The Champion (24 page)

Yitzhak ... Quentin never saw that man anywhere outside the stadium or the
Touchback
. Every minute Zak wasn’t playing football, he was in this very building. Granted, he wasn’t a starting quarterback and therefore his family wasn’t as much of a target, but he had little kids — if it was safe enough for families, maybe it was safe enough for Jeanine.

“It’s a compelling offer,” Quentin said. “But after what you’ve done in the past, Gredok, I doubt I can trust you.”

“I have invested a great deal of money in you, Barnes. Protecting your sister maximizes that investment. Don’t let your lack of trust wind up making her an easy target.”

Quentin wanted to say no, didn’t want to believe
anything
that Gredok said, but the arrangement just plain made sense. While Quentin could hire guards for Jeanine, he couldn’t offer anything close to the security she would have here.

And, she would be his neighbor.

“I’ll talk to her about it,” he said. “If she agrees, I’ll move her in immediately. But there’s one catch.”

“There always is with you, Barnes.”

“Frederico is her best friend. He needs access to the building, to come and go as he pleases. I need to know your feud with him is history.”

Quentin still didn’t know the cause of Gredok’s beef with Fred, but if the Leader let it go, everyone got what they wanted.

“Acceptable,” Gredok said finally. “I will have Messal prepare an apartment for your sister.”

“Thank you, Gredok.”

“You are surprised at my generosity, Barnes, but I am well known for taking care of that which is mine. One more thing before you leave. I understand you had a physical altercation with Virak after the Galaxy Bowl. Is this true?”

Quentin concentrated on keeping his breathing and heart rate normal. He and Messal weren’t out of the woods yet.

“It is,” he said and left it at that. No need to give Gredok extra words to play with.

“It seems Virak took my orders too literally,” the Leader said. “He should have used better judgment. Virak, you have something to say to our star player?”

The Warrior’s eye went from swirling black to a sheer sheen of onyx. When he spoke, the words came out forced, with barely veiled hate.

“I apologize,” he said. “I should not have touched you. I ... I ...”

Gredok slapped a middle hand down on his throne’s armrest.

“The
rest
of it, Virak!”

Quentin wondered if it was possible for a Quyth Warrior to explode from bottled-up rage.

“I beg your forgiveness,” Virak said.

Gredok spread his pedipalps. “There, you see, Barnes? Sometimes it is hard to control the lower castes, but with constant correction, you can make them behave. Beings like you and me understand such things. Do you accept his apology, or would you prefer I have him punished?”

Quentin felt stunned.
Beings like you and me
— Gredok considered Quentin to be the Human equivalent of a Quyth Leader. For all the sentients who said Quentin emulated Gredok, this was, perhaps, the worst comparison of all.

None of this had anything to do with football. Quentin didn’t want any animosity with Virak. He just wanted all of this to go away. A few months with Becca, then, maybe, when he came back, he could patch things up with the linebacker. They could all focus on defending the GFL title ...
together
.

“I accept the apology,” Quentin said. “No punishment necessary.”

Virak’s eye remained black as coal.

“One last thing,” Gredok said. “Catch.”

The Leader tossed something, something metallic that flashed in and out of spotlight beams as it fell. Quentin held out a hand: the small solid object landed in his palm.

It was a ring.

A GFL championship ring.

“Congratulations,” Gredok said. “Since you are vacationing, you’ll miss the ring presentation ceremony, so you may have it now.”

With a trembling hand, Quentin slid it onto his left ring finger. So
heavy
. Smooth metal, silvery, flawless and cold against his skin. The face was a rectangle with rounded sides. A deep-orange football-shaped gemstone sat in the middle. Curving above it, the word
GALACTIC
, and below it, the word
CHAMPIONS
. On the ring’s right side, carved into the metal, the GFL logo and the words “GFL Champions” with the date of the Galaxy Bowl victory. On the left, a helmet with the name
BARNES
.

A ring.
The
ring, the talisman that Quentin had dreamed of since he’d been a little boy. Only a champion could wear one of these, only the
best
.

And it was his.

“Touch the top,” Gredok said.

Quentin did, lightly tapping the top with a fingertip. The orange gem suddenly flared to life: a hologram of the Krakens logo hovered just above it.

“You earned that,” Gredok said. “Enjoy your vacation. You are dismissed.”

From
UBS Sports

Teams Set for T3 Tourney

by
PIKOR THE ASSUMING

LEAGUE OF PLANETS — Are you ready for Two Weeks of Hell?

The Tier Three tournament is about to take over the League of Planets. Once again, the best lower-tier franchises are set to do battle in this grueling 13-day single-elimination tournament, with teams playing every three days until a winner is crowned.

Larger conferences, like the 51-team National Football League (NFL) of the Planetary Union, put multiple teams into the T3 Tourney. The NFL places the top four teams, the most of any T3 league. The Ki Gridiron League (KGL) places three teams (the champion, the runner-up and the winner of the third-place game). The Chachanna Football Collective and Tri-Alliance Gridiron Association (TAGA) each place two, their champion and their runner-up. The rest of the T3 conferences only place their champion into the tourney.

If a team doesn’t place high enough to make the T3 tournament, the GFL commissioner has the prerogative to appoint teams that excelled but fell short of their respective championships. These “Commissioner’s Choice” selections fill out the 32-team tournament field.

Unlike Upper Tier tournaments, where bracket positions are based on win/loss records, all first-round match-ups in the T3 tournament are based on random draw.

The T3 Tourney is known as a breeding ground for future Upper Tier stars. Scouts have flocked to League space to evaluate the talent that will be playing at various venues across the system’s five worlds and two colonies. Without a doubt, many players will leap from T3 squads and join the rosters of T2 and T1 teams.

National Football League (Planetary Union)

Champion:
Jakarta Jaxxons

Runner-up:
Colorado Bulldogs

Third place:
Quantico Leathernecks

Fourth place:
Kellyville Gangsters

Ki Gridiron League (Ki Empire)

Champion:
Ru Dragoons

Runner-up:
Market District Eagles

Third place:
South New Castle Borough White Knights

Chachanna Football Collective (Sklorno Dynasty)

Champion:
Chachanna Einharjar

Runner-up:
Bellatrix Battlers

Tri-Alliance Gridiron Association (Tri-Alliance)

Champion:
Kipplebas Frenzy

Runner-up:
Barnard Star Badgers

Satirli 6 Gridiron League (League of Planets)

Champion:
Miles Mastodons

Gridiron Accord of Tribes (Harrah Tribal Accord)

Champion:
Satah Flayers

Runner-up:
Wapashana Skyjackers (Commissioner’s Choice)

Whitok Gridiron (Quyth Concordia):

Champion:
Jobu Junkies

Chillich Football League (Sklorno Dynasty)

Champion:
Hallacha Hungries

Tower Football League (Tower Republic)

Champion:
New Madeline Manglers

Runner-up:
Citadel Blue Angels (Commissioner’s Choice)

Yall Football League (Sklorno Dynasty):

Champion:
Samlan Slayers

Ki Rebel Establishment Football League (Ki Rebel Establishment)

Champion:
Trent River Rats

Quyth Gridiron Association (Quyth Concordia)

Champion:
OS3 Raiders

Thomas 3 Gridiron League (Planetary Union)

Champion:
Steinmetz Stallions

Wilson 4 Gridiron League (League of Planets)

Champion:
Harvey Generals

Withrit Gridiron League (Sklorno Dynasty)

Champion:
Troip Olla Maulers

Jupiter, Neptune, Saturn & Venus League (Planetary Union)

Champion:
Jennings Brotherhood

Capizzi Gridiron Association (League of Planets)

Champion:
Antonville Archaeologists

Wilson 6 Gridiron League (League of Planets)

Champion:
Dark Matter Destroyers

Vosor 3 Gridiron League (League of Planets)

Champion:
Vosor 7 Ebony Wolves

Runner-up:
Vosor Horrors (Commissioner’s Choice)

Reiger 2 Football League (Planetary Union)

Champion:
CenTex Centurions

Whitok Kingdom Football League (Whitok Kingdom)

Champion:
D’Koda Bears

Rodina Planetary League (League of Planets)

Champion:
Kyndal Talleies

Purist Nation Football League (Purist Nation)

The PNFL does not compete in the T3 Tourney.

Champion:
St. Addison Wheelmen

Runner-up:
Purist All-Saints

Third place:
Jacobstown Railroaders

Fourth place:
Allah Ascendants

Teams in the Running for Advancement to T2

Commissioner Froese has released his short list of teams he is considering for advancement to Tier Two. He has based his selections on fan support, facilities and proximity to existing T2 conferences.

• Denton Creepers (Satirli 6, League of Planets)

• Zachary Attack (Satirli 6, League of Planets)

• Bo Bristlebacks (Fa, Ki Empire)

28

The Tier Three Tournament

THE LAST TIME QUENTIN HAD BEEN
in this stadium, confetti had been falling, lights had been glaring, his teammates had been celebrating, and he’d stood on a podium lifting the Galaxy Bowl MVP trophy high into the air.

And what better way to add even more memories to the Shipyard — home of the relegated Hittoni Hullwalkers — than by hanging out with Becca, Choto and Fred, watching the T3 Tourney and scouting for potential new Krakens?

They sat in a luxury box designed to hold about twenty sentients comfortably. Seeing as there were only four of them, they had plenty of room, although Becca sat in the seat to his right, leaning against him slightly.

Hokor was in another luxury box. Quentin had heard Gredok was in the stadium as well, but he hadn’t seen either of them.

Quentin could finally relax and appreciate what he and his team had accomplished. No need to worry about Jeanine, Petra’s crazy doomsday prophecy, Gredok’s next move, his contract or anything else — for once, Quentin was happy in all phases of his life, and he reveled in the moment.

He angled his bowl of chili-cheese fries toward Becca.

“Sure you don’t want some?”

She looked longingly at the messy food, then sighed and shook her head.

“Suit yourself,” Quentin said. He lifted a bunch of fries to his mouth, dripping some chili on his pants as he did.

Quentin reached down to the next row and offered the bowl to Fred, who grabbed a handful of fries. Somehow his fingers didn’t touch any chili in the process. He didn’t even look up from his messageboard as he ate.

“Fred, are you reading a book?”

“Very observant, Quentin,” Fred said. “Can’t put one past you. Choto recommended it.”

“Why are you reading? This is the championship game.”

Fred looked up. “This is the
sixteenth game
we’ve watched in the last two weeks, and football is boring to begin with.”

“
Boring
? You think football is
boring?
”

Fred shrugged. “Oopsie. My little secret is out.”