Monday morning arrived with a buzz in the air. The kind of tension that wraps around the academy walls and pulls at your lungs like altitude.
Something was coming. Everyone knew it.
Even the cafeteria was quieter than usual.
Coach Navarro made us wait. Let the silence stretch during morning assembly. Then — finally — he stepped forward, tapping a single button on the holo-board behind him.
A logo appeared midair.
⚽ INTERGALACTIC YOUTH CUP QUALIFIERS
Tier 3 - Eastern Galactic Zone
The room exploded.
Chairs scraped. A few guys actually yelled. Someone in the back tried to start a chant and choked halfway through.
Navarro raised a hand. "Settle down."
The screen shifted.
Atletico Solar – Group B
Teams:
🔹 Lunar Titans
🔹 Vix Asteroid Academy
🔹 Mars United Youth
🔹 Atletico Solar
Top 2 qualify.
Musa whistled under his breath. "That's brutal."
Kenji muttered, "We're not favorites."
I already knew that.
Last time Atletico Solar qualified? Four years ago.
Half the current squad was still in middle school. Most of the galaxy thought Earth teams were novelty acts — players with heart, no results.
Navarro tapped the board again.
Starting XI – Match 1
Opponent: Vix Asteroid Academy
> GK – Martez
RB – Riku (Martian Twin #1)
CB – Kenji
CB – Olawale
LB – Ria (Martian Twin #2)
CM – Vega
CM – Soren
RW – Juno
LW – Kai
CAM – Alejandro Vega Ruiz
ST – Musa
I stared at the name. My name.
Midfield. Central Attacking. Number 10 vibes.
I felt my chest rise just a little.
---
🛰 Field Tower – Analyst Deck
Elira watched from the upper deck, tablet in hand, stylus tapping against her chin. Her screen flashed tactical overlays — movement patterns, stamina trends, heat maps from the last scrimmage.
Alejandro was circled three times by the auto-analysis program.
She squinted.
> "He's… changing."
Another analyst leaned over. "Who?"
She closed the display. "No one."
---
Back in the locker room, guys were slapping shoulders and bumping fists. Soren looked serious as always, but I caught him sneaking a glance my way.
A nod.
We were starting together — me and him — the creators.
Kenji was quiet, focused. Locking in.
Musa? Grinning like he'd already scored twice.
---
Coach Navarro gave us the look. The one that said: No speeches. Just prove it.
"We've been rebuilding. But the galaxy doesn't care about excuses," he said. "They care about results. This is our shot. Don't waste it."
The room clapped. Slowly at first, then louder.
The Intergalactic Youth Cup.
We were really doing this.