Golden Age 30: ‘The Soul Breaking Soldier of Cricket!! And The Actor Takes Center Stage! Karachi Kings VS Islamabad United (Part III)’ (Part 1)

(2 Years 6 Months ago)

"It's Kenzo! Kenzo has defeated them all for the first time ever! The Third-year seniors of Atia Eden City Cricket Society have been outplayed by the First-year freshman, Kenzo ShahJahan! Listen up, everyone!"

The news spread rapidly throughout the prestigious academy.

Meanwhile, a 13-year-old Kenzo, holding his queen 1tightly, clicked his tongue as he looked down at the defeated leader of the cricket society, who was kneeling before him.

"Is that all?" Kenzo asked, clearly unimpressed.

"What?! He's asking if that's all?!" murmured the audience in shock. Phones in their hands, clicking pictures and filming the entire situation. "Are you freaking Serious?! Just how strong is he?! And how strong of an opponent does he want?!" they gossiped, astonished and anxious.

Kenzo, receiving only a tight-lipped silence from the leader, turned and walked away from the nets with Damian and Faris.

Among the onlookers, Heber gasped alongside Izaak and Silas. "He just defeated him effortlessly…?" Heber said, unable to believe it.

"He returned every single delivery. Is there no ball he can't handle?" Izaak wondered, still in disbelief.

_____

Meanwhile, outside the Atia Eden City grounds, 10-year-old Azazel raised his bat high and slammed it against another, sending the boy stumbling.

"HAHA!! Is that all you've got?" Azazel taunted, picking up his ball and throwing it at another boy, hitting him in the back.

"Gahk!!" the boy winced in pain.

One by one, with the ball and the bat, he took down a group of 7 boys on his own. His pupils flaring red and actions ruthless.

"Hey Azazel, we're done here!" another group called out to him.

"Haha, thought they could challenge us? Look at all those losers," one of the boys jeered.

Azazel, still holding his ball, glared threateningly at the battered group. "Try to take our ground again, and you're done for!" he warned.

Joining his group, which laughed mockingly and left, Azazel wiped the blood from his cheek, fuming. "To think he even managed to punch me?" he muttered angrily.

"But, Azazel, there's still no one who can return your deliveries," a boy said reassuringly. Azazel grinned wickedly, "Yeah, there's no one."

"That's our 'Soul Breaker,'" another one winked proud.

Waving one last time at the boys, Azazel took a different route, shortly stopping in front of a big house. He sighed at the locked door, glanced at the walls, and climbed up before jumping down. His clothes were torn, and hairs were a mess. He entered the house, tossing his bag and shoes aside.

"You're back?" a hoarse voice called out.

Azazel rolled his eyes, "Yeah, I'm back, gramps. What's the matter?"

Assessing his usual battered condition, Azher glared at him sternly, "What were you up to and what kind of school teaches you to fight, toss your bag aside and rip your clothes?"

Azazel clicked his tongue and shot an annoyed look over his shoulder. "The school you put me in, gramps. Glory of the trash," he retorted.

Azher's face darkened with anger.

"If you're finished with the interrogation, I'm heading upstairs," Azazel yawned, making his way up.

Hoor came out, "Is Azazel back, father?" Azher, passing by with a scowl, replied, "Yes, your hooligan is back." Hoor blinked in surprise, "Huh?"

Azazel fell onto the bed with a loud 'Puff!' and stared at the ceiling, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. "Haha! A bunch of crybabies," he chuckled, recalling his recent fight.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door. "Come in," he called out, still lying down. Hoor entered with a gentle smile, "Aza?"

Azazel blinked and immediately sat up straight, his mischievousness and fatigue vanishing in an instant. With a pure, innocent tone, he responded, "Mama?"

Hoor stepped in, closing the door behind her. "You're home early again?" she asked, trying to hide her concern.

Azazel rolled his eyes, "Yeah, they were wasting time, and I had nothing to do, so I came back. And you know, some other kids had taken over our ground, so I beat them up and got our place back. Now we can play as much cricket as we want tomorrow."

Hoor sighed, disappointed. "You fought again? And not only that, you talked back to your grandpa too."

Azazel was silent for a moment before replying, "It's because they wouldn't have given the ground back, and grandpa asks too many questions! I don't have answers to all of them."

"That's not right," Hoor said, sitting beside him on the bed. "Your father, brother, and I respect him because he's older than us. You should do the same, Aza."

"Tch, that's because you're useful to him," Azazel muttered, irritated.

Hoor blinked, taken aback. "What…?"

"You and father take care of him. Brother listens to him. Both father and Ahmed are generals, soldiers of the country like him. But who am I? Nobody, just a hooligan in his eyes who fights, skips school, doesn't want to be a soldier, and loves to play cricket all day. Why would he look at me?" Azazel said, his voice heavy with frustration as he clenched his fists.

"Hmph…" He laid back down, turning to face the wall. "Not that he's wrong. I am like this, and I don't care. I have no desire to live up to his expectations. As if he even has any." He added mockingly.

"Azazel…" Hoor called softly, but Azazel cut her off. "I'm sleepy, Mama. Please."

Hoor sighed and fell silent. She stood up, draping a sheet over him, and gently caressed his hair. "Aza, you're still young. Don't think your grandpa doesn't care about you; he really loves you." With that, she turned off the lights and quietly left the room.

Azazel stared at the tape ball in his hands, a disappointed grin on his face. He recalled how his grandpa would pat Ahmed on the back, not him, when they went to school, even though he was the younger one. How his grandpa would attend Ahmed's award ceremonies without sparing him a glance. And, How Ahmed was congratulated and loved while he was left on the sidelines. That apathetic, strict glance he always has when he looked at him.

"Lies… all lies," he muttered, annoyed, "He won't change. And, neither will I." he whispered, clasping the ball closer to his chest soon falling asleep.

_____

"Yes! Another one, Azazel! He's out for a duck!" a boy cheered as Azazel raised his index finger, signaling the dismissal.

"What kind of delivery was that? It was awesome!" another boy exclaimed, wrapping his arms around Azazel, who chuckled.

"Hehe, I call it the 'Grave Knuckle.' Cool, right?" Azazel asked, clearly pleased with himself.

"Yeah, it's so cool," the group agreed, clapping their hands together.

"How many are left?" Azazel inquired.

"Just two more wickets needed, and they've got 25 runs to go with two overs left," another boy informed him.

Azazel grinned confidently, "Hehe, easy~"

Soon, the bell of the academy near the ground rang, and the students began dispersing to head home. Azazel prepared to bowl again when he overheard some students gossiping as they passed by.

"Hey, did you hear? Kenzo formed a new team in just a week!" one of them said.

"He's crazy, I swear. Today he gave the cricket coach a real hard time. The coach bowled two overs to Kenzo, and he didn't get out on a single delivery—scored 30 runs on top of it!" another added.

"Haha, he's not just Kenzo; he's King Kenzo ShahJahan! The entire academy bows to that little king. He's the best in academics, leadership, athletics, and cricket. He truly is a prince. I do admire him," one of them remarked.

"Tch, really? He annoys me. He's too full of himself," another mocked.

The boys listening to the conversation wondered, "Who is he…?" Azazel sighed in irritation, "These prestigious academy students sure are loud, even after school."

"Look, the elementary graders in red are about to win their match," some students observed as Azazel and his team neared victory.

"Man, what would happen if Kenzo stepped in there? He's only two years older, right?" one of them speculated.

"Complete annihilation of those kids' determination. Just thinking about it gives me chills," another laughed.

Suddenly, a huge shot sent the ball soaring toward the sidewalk outside the ground.

"Ah! That's going to be a six!" one of the fielders exclaimed in amazement.

Azazel gasped, his eyes following the ball as it flew off to the side.

"Oh no, is it coming here?" the academy boys asked, stepping back.

"No, it's a bit to the left," some guessed, moving aside.

"Wait… it's heading towards Kenzo?!" one of them pointed out, noticing Kenzo walking beside Damian and Faris.

Kenzo's attention immediately shifted to the falling tape ball.

"Be careful, Kenzo!" Faris warned, stepping back.

However, in a blink, Kenzo dropped his bag and grinned, looking up at the ball. With a full stretch, he leaped into the air, raising his arm to catch it. His azure blue eyes glistened in the sunlight with shimmering silver hair dancing with the wind.

Azazel stared at him, wide-eyed, as Kenzo effortlessly caught the ball and landed on the ground, stumbling backward, but quickly regained his balance.

The entire sidewalk, street, and ground fell silent before erupting into cheers and applause.

"Wow! He caught it?! That was unreal!" the spectators remarked. 

"He was so cool!" the girls giggled.

At that moment, time seemed to stop for Azazel as he stared at Kenzo in disbelief. Kenzo met Azazel's gaze for a brief second before handing the ball to Faris, picking up his bag, and walking away.

"Heavens, that was nerve-racking," the boys who had been watching muttered, blinking in bewilderment.

Faris tossed the ball back to Azazel and his friends, playfully cautioning, "Play nicely, little ones~ Here you go!" before following Kenzo.

Azazel gulped, his heart racing with excitement. "He… caught that? Who is he?" he wondered, completely in awe.