Halftime Score: 1–1
Intergalactic Youth Cup Qualifier | Second Half
---
The locker room buzzed.
Not with celebration — but with something sharper.
Conviction.
Coach Navarro paced slowly, hands behind his back.
"Nothing's guaranteed in this game," he said, voice low. "But I guarantee this — if you leave that field with fear, don't expect to step on it again."
No one said a word.
Musa stood with fists clenched, forehead glistening.
Kenji sat with eyes closed, lips moving — counting breath.
Soren leaned against the wall, staring at the floor. Thinking.
Me?
I kept seeing flashes. That ball hitting the net. The roar. The system blinking.
That wasn't luck. It wasn't magic.
That was mine.
---
🌀 [GOAT SYSTEM PULSE]
> [Player Status: Focused]
[Potential Unlock Detected… Monitoring…]
---
Second half. Lights on.
Back to the pitch.
The stands were louder now — alien chants rising, mixing with Solar supporters screaming our names through augmented megaphones.
Vix came back angry.
They pushed high. Quick flicks. Constant pressure.
In the 50th minute — a corner. Missed header. Scramble. Goal.
2–1, Vix.
Kenji smashed his boot into the turf.
"Where was the clearance?!"
We reset. Again.
---
⚡ Minute 62
Elira's voice came in faintly from the tower:
> "Solar's shape is breaking. No width. Vega's isolated."
She wasn't wrong.
I dropped deeper. Called for the ball. Got fouled. Again. And again.
Vix was bullying the midfield, turning us sideways.
But then — a chance.
Kenji intercepted a pass and launched it long. Musa sprinted and chested it down.
I exploded forward, dragging two defenders. Then… stopped.
Waited a beat.
Flicked a reverse pass behind me.
Soren. One touch. Boom. Net.
2–2.
Our bench exploded.
Soren jogged past me.
"Didn't say thanks," he muttered.
I laughed. "Didn't expect you to."
---
🌀 [GOAT SYSTEM]
> [Assist Registered]
[Momentum Rising]
[Instinct Level: High]
---
But Vix wasn't done.
They hit back hard — a solo run from their striker, cutting through two, sending Kenji wide — and then burying it.
3–2, Vix.
"¡Mierda!" I hissed.
Coach Navarro was yelling now. "Heads UP! Keep pushing!"
Elira's voice crackled again:
> "Still time. But they need one spark."
---
⚡ Minute 81
We pressed. Hard.
Soren to Musa — denied.
Martian twin fired a low cross — blocked.
I picked it up, danced through one, then two — lost it.
Ball back to midfield.
Minute 84.
I cut inside. Fired. Keeper blocked it.
Rebound fell to Musa — who slammed it top corner.
3–3.
And we believed.
The stadium went electric.
---
⚡ Minute 89
Free kick.
Right outside the box. Slightly to the left. Prime range.
Musa stepped up. So did Soren.
But then…
Soren turned to me.
Held the ball out.
"You take it," he said. Loud enough for everyone to hear.
Even Musa blinked. "Wait, what?"
Soren's voice didn't shake.
"I'm crazy for thinking this," he said, eyes locked on mine, "but I feel like you can do it better."
He handed me the ball. "Don't let me down."
Everything. Went. Quiet.
---
I stepped up.
Breathe in.
Three steps back.
One look at the wall. The keeper.
Then the universe slowed down.
I struck it clean — not too hard, not too soft — but with spin, curl, fire.
The ball bent perfectly around the wall, dipped, and kissed the bottom left of the net.
GOAL. 3–4.
Game. Flipping. Over.
I stood frozen for a second.
Then Soren tackled me. Musa jumped on us. Kenji roared. The Martians even smiled. A little.
Up in the tower, Elira stood with a hand over her mouth.
> "He just—he actually did it."
---
🌀 [GOAT SYSTEM UPDATE]
> [Curve Precision (Rooney)] – Unlocked
[Freekick Accuracy +++ | Confidence Surge Triggered]
[Match Report: 2 Goals, 1 Assist]
Performance Rating: ELITE
Some greatness doesn't wait for permission. It just strikes.
---
Whistle blew.
We won.
3–4. Remontada complete.