29 - “A” Team?

Gaming Center

At last, Sara manages to convince her friends (at least, she hopes most of them consider themselves to be her friends) to leave their computers and form a semi-circle away from them. She might even have felt cozy seeing her teammates gathered for something other than playing the game again, if not for the anxious feeling eating her from the inside.

"What's so important to have us lose practice time?"

Shani sits with her legs crossed, left arm tossed back over her chair's backrest as her colorful hair half falls over her face, doing little in terms of hiding the irritation in the gaze the girl uses to measure Sara; It seems the death of her character, companied by Avril's tongue lashing afterwards, was enough to rid even Shani of her usual good disposition.

Feeling like a dear under a hunter's aim, Sara tries not to showcase her discomfort.

"We're losing time," Grace speaks, "Time we could be using to prepare for tomorrow."

"No shit, genius. Isn't that what I just said?" Shani snaps, which gains her a stare from the other girl, a stare which she shrugs away.

Realizing the two might go at it for real if this continues, Sara clears her throat, then gestures toward Uren, who fidgets uncomfortably under everyone's stares as he smiles, stepping forward.

"I'm Uren, nice to meet you."

Shani raises her eyebrow while Zach stares suspiciously, clearly on guard. Avril, who sits with her right knee firmly embraced, seems bored, her eyes unmoving.

"Wait, I remember you. You're the new student who defeated our mascot!" Grace suddenly speaks.

"Mascot?"

The girl rolls her eyes. "Green eyes? Dirty blond hair? Bad attitude? Standing right next to you?"

Grace's statement clearly causes the group's interest to pick up. Zach, whose eyes now glow, sits upright.

"The archer? That was you?"

After an uncertain glance in Sara's direction, Uren nods. "I was lucky. And I'm afraid the result might not be the same if we fought again…"

"Don't sell yourself short. Sara is a good player," Charles speaks, interjecting for the first time. His large, well-built body almost feels out of place next to Zach's puny one, though over the years Sara has learned to reconcile the scene; She is not sure she has ever seen the two away from each other.

"If you act like this, how will our members who failed to accomplish the same feel?" Shani adds, opening her palms in the air as if to say it can't be helped.

"Fuck off," Grace warns, showing her middle finger, "I was about to win!"

Uren throws the two girls a confused look, and then one at Sara, to which she shakes her head; She might explain things to him later, but now is not the time.

"Can we please focus on what's important?" Branden interjects.

"Right," Grace continues, sheathing her dagger-like stare for long enough to throw Uren a slightly intrigued one, "Are you here to apply for a spot on the team? What's your rank?"

"Ah…"

"Forget it, he's not getting on the team," Avril interrupts, causing a vacuum of silence to follow, during which the small, gloomy girl stares into Uren's eyes, her expression as unreadable as always.

"Get to the point then, pretty boy. We don't have the whole morning," Shani adds.

Uren sighs. "Sorry, but she is right. I'm here because I need your help."

"Our help?"

"I assume you watched Aston's announcement earlier this morning?"

Sara's teammates exchange glances, causing the ball of nervousness in her stomach to squeeze itself further. With the corner of her eyes, she watches Uren take a deep breath.

"As you can probably tell, I wasn't born in Elysium… Crecia, my home country, currently faces a state of civil war, and I traveled here in search of a way to put the conflict to an end."

"I think I can tell where this is going," Shani murmurs as she exchanges a wide-eyed glance with Zach.

Uren throws the couple a quick glance but doesn't comment. Instead, his gaze jumps from face to face as he continues in a somber tone, "Forgive me for my bluntness, but could any of you imagine what it'd be like, to watch your neighbors killing each other? To know every day, hundreds, thousands are left without a father? A friend? A son? Can you imagine, watching a building blow up in front of you, knowing your friends were still inside? Because… I've been through that and worse before I had the chance to come here."

Clearly, Uren's question was rhetoric, and Sara doesn't miss the horror that flashes briefly through some of her friends' expressions. She feels similarly herself, and only Avril seems unaffected.

"Uren, right? Look…" Charles begins, somewhat hesitantly, "You're right in that I can't imagine what it'd be like to live in a country at war... But I still don't understand what sort of help you expect from us."

Uren throws Sara a glance, clearly struggling to find the right words.

Containing a sigh, Sara steps forward. "Except for Avril, I assume none of you browsed through the school's forum recently?"

Shani tilts her head, confused looking. "Should we have?"

Sara smiles. "If you had, you'd have known who Uren is… But I suppose that isn't important right now. Uren had a plan. He wanted to become popular in order to convince the public of his country's desperate need for help, and so force Elysium's government to intervene."

Silence follows Sara's words, until Zach blinks, incredulous, and breaks it, "A plan? You call that a plan?"

Ignoring Zach, Shani raises her eyebrow. "Interfere? You mean like… By sending in soldiers? To die?"

Uren clenches his jaw, looking frustrated and slightly ashamed, but nods. "I understand it wasn't a plan likely to succeed. I simply wasn't left with many options after your king refused to acknowledge my existence despite allowing me in the country. As for sending in troops… I doubt it would come to that. I'm led to believe Elysium has more than enough firepower to stop the war without causing unnecessary bloodshed."

Uren's determined gaze jumps from face to face, most of them confused-looking. Sara understands how they are feeling.

"The problem is," Sara continues, "That Uren's plan was crushed by Seijuro Aston in a matter of days, and now his reputation is in the gutters."

"I've heard about Crecia." Braden is the first to break the silence this time. The handsome boy raises his eyebrows, his expression serious. "But to draw the attention of Seijuro Aston… And you've mentioned the king… Who are you, exactly?"

Uren looks down, perhaps running from the other man's gaze, perhaps thoughtfully, Sara isn't quite sure. They've spent so little time together still… And yet, Sara finds herself containing the urge to grab his hand, squeeze it lightly in order to offer what little comfort she can…

Gods, how much of a mess is she?!

"Some call me a prince," Uren continues, seemingly unaware of the inappropriate gaze and thoughts of the girl standing by him, "Some call me the son of a dictator, someone to be dragged onto a public square and executed. Uren Hoxha Juric…"

Uren chuckles; Once he raises his stare, sadness and determination are seen within it.

"Decades ago, my people realized they were tired of being ruled over, tired of being oppressed. They rebelled against my family… Against my grandmother. And they were killed. Arrested. Tortured… Until the oppression drove them to rise in arms, and my family paid the price in blood for their selfishness. I'm lucky to have survived if only to witness the slow decay of my country."

Feeling something burning inside her chest, Sara is about to speak when she notices Shani's slightly agape mouth visibly closing as she recomposes herself.

"So, let me see if I got this straight," the girl starts, her gaze and finger leveled at Uren, "You. You are some sort of prince? And your country, correct me if am wrong… Wants your head? Like in an old movie?"

"Half of them," Grace interjects, rolling her eyes, "Half of them want his head, brainlet. What part of civil war did you not understand?"

Uren clears his throat, attracting the girls' attention despite the awkward look on his face. "More like eighty percent of them want my head… But my side has most of the weapons."

"You're not helping your case!" Sara hisses in his direction, containing her urge to facepalm.

Uren's smile is strained. "They'd have found out about it eventually."

"It takes two sides to maintain a war," Zach speaks, attracting Uren's attention away from their locked stares, "I get it, you don't wanna die, I wouldn't either, but… Couldn't you have reached some form of agreement, as the prince? Giving in to some of their demands?"

As he replies, frustration taints Uren's words, "As I've said, the war started long before I was born. Do you think I haven't tried?! My father already held little power when he was alive, and after he died… Who would take seriously the words of a teenager? Certainly, not the generals who were supposed to have sworn their loyalty to me. I told them, I ordered them, to lower their weapons, to give in to our people's demands if that's what they wanted! So did my sister!"

Uren runs his hand through his hair, clearly irritated. "My family wasn't the only ones who benefited from the power they held… Or the only ones to have abused it. The rebels demand more than freedom; They demand blood. The end of my family line is only the beginning of their requirements for ending the war, and I'm afraid my generals have no wish to part with their lives or that of their families. You are correct in that the war could stop were both sides to reach an agreement, but they refuse to see past their hatred for each other, regardless of what I have to say on the matter. It pains me to admit it… But I need help. My country needs help."

The prince's gaze runs through the room pleadingly. "I've tried asking for help directly. Political leaders refuse to meet our ambassadors; Kings, emperors, governors, none of them want anything to do with our bloody war… And I can't blame them. Choosing any side other than the rebels would be condemned internationally, but…"

"But you have most of the weapons," Shani completes, to which Uren slowly nods.

Gazes are exchanged throughout the room, many of them clearly unsure about how to take in so much all at once. Sara's eyes jump from face to face, and she knows Uren is probably doing the same. Her teammates listened attentively, and they didn't seem to doubt Uren's words; A simple online search would reveal their veracity, after all.

"Well… What, exactly, do you need from us?" Zach asks in the end, seeming to represent the rest.

"Eden. The king's reward," Charles interjects, causing several looks of understanding to spread across their room.

"He wants us to play for him?" Zach asks, straightening himself as he throws Uren a surprised look.

Uren's gaze sweeps the room as he nods again and sighs. "In short, yes."

"No," Avril states simply.

"Avril, wait-"

Sara takes half a step forward before a light touch against her elbow causes her to pause and glance at Uren, who, after a moment of hesitation, steps forward himself.

"I understand I'm kind of asking for a lot… But what if I said there's something in it for you?"

Avril tilts her head slightly.

"As we speak, my guardian is building his own team. We plan to share information and have both of our teams compete for the prize. As long one of us manages to do it… We are willing to offer 100 million."

100…?!

Sara nearly chokes. What happened to not having much to offer?!

"A fight against Aston? Generous, but thanks, I think I'll pass," Grace speaks before anyone else could recover enough to, "No amount of money is worth that."

"We could feign ignorance! They have no reason to believe we're helping Uren on purpose!" Sara blurts out hurriedly as her gaze jumps from one face to another, "He already defeated me in front of the whole Gaming Center; From our perspective, he's just a good player trying to join the team, so why would we refuse him?"

"Would they see it like that? And what about afterward?" Zach interjects, "If his so-called plan succeeds, they'll be pissed… From what you've said, it is clear they have no wish to interfere in Crecia. Don't you think they might look for somebody to take it out on if we force them to?"

"They wouldn't be able to hurt us," Sara murmurs, glancing at Uren as she suddenly realizes something, "Everybody would be watching. If Uren or the team who helped him win suddenly disappeared from the scene, who do you think everyone would blame?"

"Naive. There's much they could do behind curtains to hurt us, without having to actually kill or arrest anyone; Aston controls everything," Zach reasons with a head shake, "Or have you forgotten who owns the ground we stand on?"

"I have forgotten nothing," Sara murmurs, her teeth clenching. However, before she's able to continue, Shani interrupts once more.

"You know, what's stopping us from playing for ourselves and asking the king for credits once we win? I assume the money you're offering would be divided among both teams, so that's what? 5, 7 million for each player? It's not that much, and we have to win in order to get it."

Uren throws a self-depreciative smile in Sara's direction, making it clear he already predicted this train of thought.

So that's what he meant by not having much to offer, Sara realizes, Anything he might offer, Aston could easily double, or even triple.

"That's why he's here," Braden speaks, "And not somewhere else, talking to people better prepared to accomplish his goal. He's appealing to our morals, rather than our greed."

Uren nods. "As you've realized, anything I might offer, Aston could cover. The money is just a bonus."

"Would Aston really try to seek revenge against us?" Shani speaks. Sara can't help but notice the girl's face has become even paler than normal; An impressive feat. "I find that hard to believe. I mean, from their perspective, we're just a bunch of kids, right?"

"Are you guys seriously considering this? Have you lost your minds?" Grace interjects, her gaze jumping around the room as if the girl is unable to believe her eyes.

"Shani is right. Think whatever you want, Aston has a shining reputation to maintain, created by generations of rulers. Some of it might have been a show, but I doubt they'd risk it all to get back at a bunch of teenagers. They'll most likely assume we had no idea Uren intended to throw them to the wolves, and even if they go after him, we'll have already done our part…" Braden adds, ignoring his girlfriend as well as the poisonous look she throws at him.

"Are you absolutely certain they wouldn't come after us?" Charles asks as he faces Braden's eyes directly, who hesitates underneath the larger boy's gaze.

"I… I find it hard to believe they'd be so petty. It's their contest, after all, and we plan to win it honestly. At that point, what would they do, exactly?"

After a long moment of silence, Zach sighs. "Okay, say we managed to get enough headsets for all of us… Then what?"

Uren clears his throat. "Unfortunately, information regarding the game is scarce and untrustworthy. For now, nobody really knows what finishing it entails… Or how long it might take. It might mean defeating the final boss, or reaching the highest level possible… Hopefully, our objective will become clearer once the game is available, and we'll be able to adjust from there."

Sara's teammates exchange glances.

"…No offense, but the risk far outweighs what he promised us," Shani concludes, her voice far from having its usual confidence.

"One's ignorance is but a shield," Zach interjects in a somber tone, "What choice do we have now? Refuse to help? Spend the rest of our lives wondering if somebody out there died because of our cowardice?"

"You really want to put our future at risk because of some war most of you had never even heard of?!" Grace snaps, rising from her chair, "You're insane!"

Underneath the girl's burning stare, Zach frowns. "Then would you rather do nothing?"

"You have no idea if his plan will even work! We might be putting ourselves on Aston's radar for nothing!"

"Still, I'd rather at least try," Zach continues, calmly maintaining his gaze leveled against Grace's glare.

"Stop," Charles interjects, breaking the contest of stares in between his teammates. "Fighting among ourselves will accomplish nothing. We'll do this the right way."

With a sigh, Charles stands from his chair, easily towering above the people present as he makes an effort to meet their gaze, one by one.

"Those in favor of helping Uren accomplish his goal, despite the risks?"

Shani fidgets uncomfortably in her chair, eventually dropping her gaze towards the ground. "Sorry, Sara. I'm about to graduate… I can't…"

"You disappoint me, Shani. I thought you were braver than this… Though I understand your position is difficult. Still, personally, I'd rather not spend my life wondering what if," Zach murmurs, almost to himself, as he surprises Sara by being the first to raise his hand. "Do not fail me, Mr. Prince; We all have much to lose by helping you."

"Hells no," Grace speaks while crossing her arms in a clear indication she has no intention of raising her hand. "You're all crazy."

Braden, who stands by her as usual, gives his girlfriend a glance, his expression unreadable as he mutters, "Sorry," then raises his hand.

"What?!"

Sara almost feels bad for the other girl, though a meaningful glance from Braden makes it clear he considers his debt to have been paid in full.

He did much more than she expected, and as such, Sara returns his gaze with a short, nearly imperceptible nod, before raising her own hand. "Well, you guys probably know what I think already. Uren deserves a chance, but they're not going to give it to him. Aston plays dirty, and we're his best chance… It's up to you guys, but I promise not to hold a grudge. I understand I've put all of you in a difficult position."

Sara meets Shani's eyes as she finishes speaking, finding there thankfulness, but also resolve; It is clear the girl has no intention of changing her vote.

Charles sighs. "Three to two… I'm sorry, but I'll have to refuse. The risk is far too great, for all of us. I'm afraid you'll have to find help somewhere else, Uren."

Being addressed directly, Uren bites his lips, as Zach throws his standing friend a surprised look. Charles refuses to meet his stare, however.

Sara sighs. "That makes it three to three, then. Avril?"

Sara has little hope, considering the other girl has been against it from the very beginning, and sure enough, the gloomy girl's empty gaze is all the answer she needs; It is obvious their attempts haven't been able to shake her conviction.

Though Sara can barely contain her disappointment, she still forces herself to grab Uren's hand for a soft squeeze, earning a slightly surprised look from him. "We'll find another way together," she whispers, causing his eyes to widen, and then to quickly turn away, as if ashamed.

"Four to three. That's it," Shani speaks as she nods, visibly relieved, "I'm sorry things did not go as you expected today, Uren."

Uren sighs, though he faces the girl's gaze with his head held high, and only a slight bitter twist to his voice, "No… I understand. You have much to lose, and little to gain from helping me. If I was in your position, perhaps I'd have made the same decision; I've not the right to judge you."

Shani everts her eyes, hiding her blushing cheeks behind a long streak of colorful hair. It is hard to not sympathize with the girl's position; Sara can't help but blame herself for having caused the whole thing. She swears she'll find a moment to apologize after class, once they're alone.

"Er… Do I get a vote?"

Sara was about to suggest she should leave with Uren in order to find another way to help him, when a quiet voice, coming from the corner of the room, interrupts the group and attracts their attention.

Nico, the team's new player, blushes as he finds himself showered by surprised gazes.

"I was just wondering… A said I was officially a part of the team yesterday, so I thought… Maybe…" The boy lets his voice slowly fade as the burning in his cheeks continues to increase. After a moment of silence, he throws Avril a gaze filled with uncertainty, fidgeting in his chair.

"A?" Charles hesitates, turning towards their captain as he follows the boy's gaze, "Avril, is this true?"

The petite girl grimaces.

"The decision affects his future as much as it does ours," Sara quickly adds, "He should have a right to weigh in."

Avril's grimace remains unyielding. However, after a moment, she shrugs, averting her gaze.

"Then I suppose…" Charles begins slowly, as he turns to face the younger boy again.

"I… Is it really okay?"

"Too late for backing out now kid. Spit it out," Braden replies.

Grace's arms remain crossed over her chest; Needless to say, she does not look happy. Then again, she rarely does.

Nico licks his lips. "I agree with Zach. We should do something, even if the chances are small. I'm no coward."

"Ha! Well said!" Zach does little to stop his smile from blooming, and less still to hide it from view. "At least some of us have guts to speak of!"

"Fighting in the game is one thing, but this… This is dangerous…" Shani whispers.

"Four to four," Charles concludes with a sigh, "Does anyone have anything else to add?"

Nico still seems somewhat out of place, Zach's smile remains unchanged, Shani bites her lower lip as Charles runs his hand through his short hair, and Grace glances around the room furiously.

Uren frowns. "What now?"

The foreign prince tosses Sara a questioning gaze, which she catches with the corner of her eyes. "Avril decides," she whispers, forcing herself to not avoid the girl's piercing, dark stare, "In case of a draw, our captain makes a final decision."

Grace snorts. "Well? We know she doesn't want it. Can we go back to playing the game now?"

However, Avril doesn't speak immediately. Instead, she slowly adjusts her bangs, as she gives Sara a pointed look. "You. You were about to leave with him a second ago, weren't you?"

"Who cares?! We're losing time!" Grace exclaims, though Avril hardly spares a glance in her direction.

"If we don't help your boyfriend, you'll leave again?"

Sara's heart beats fast as she feels the weight of their gazes.

"Avril, I… I care about the team… And I care about the game… But I…"

"Do you care more about him than you do about us? It's a simple question. If I refuse, are you going to leave?"

Swallowing, Sara gives Uren a quick glance, but the boy, though still meeting her gaze, seems more lost than she has ever seen before. He has no way of knowing how important the team is for her (especially considering the person herself only recently realized it), but Sara has no doubt Uren didn't want to force her to choose between the two of them when he asked for her help.

"I… I hope I won't have to choose," Sara whispers after a moment, putting as much sincerity in her voice as she can muster, while underneath Avril's dark gaze. "Uren is important to me. So are you guys. If he needs me, I might go away for a while… But I'd be back, if you'd still take me, after everything."

Sara bites her lips as she stuffs her hands inside her pockets and averts her gaze, feeling like a prisoner about to stand trial; Just, her jury is composed of the only people she has ever considered close enough to call friends.

Fear, pure and simple, turns her stomach cold as she waits for an answer.

"Avril, you can't seriously be considering this!"

"If you were good enough, I wouldn't need to," Avril speaks, her voice like the cracking of a whip.

Startled, Sara turns her head in time to catch Grace's face palling at a visible rate as the girl's eyes fill with unfallen tears. But she has no time to interject before Avril continues.

"Go, run with your tail in between your legs."

Without a word, Grace rushes toward the exit, nearly shoving Uren out of her way, whose eyes bulge in Sara's direction.

"I'll speak with her," Braden says before quickly running after his girlfriend.

"She had it coming," Zach speaks, shrugging, as the door closes for a second time in quick succession, "Unearned pride, undeserved arrogance… Some people only learn the hard way. Let her beg us to take her back. Personally, I'll accept nothing less than a written apology."

"Tone it down Zach," Charles reprimands his friend, "She's still one of us."

"I'm not sure she ever was, to be quite frank… But if you say so."

Sara feels as though she should say something, or run after the girl, but a quick glance at Avril dissuades her from moving or speaking thoughtlessly.

"Would it be possible to secure spots for most of us?" Avril asks toward their couch, Kay, who raises her head from her screen for long enough to smile at them.

"I'm just about done looking into the rules of the competitions, and there doesn't seem to be any against applying for multiple ones, or giving up your headset for credits after winning… It seems they want to fill in the ten thousand vacancies, and aren't particularly picky about how exactly. Realistically, as long we don't find ourselves competing against complete pro teams, I'd say you have a good chance of snatching enough headsets… And I bet our prince here has enough money to supply for what we lack at the end, if any."

"It's all a big show," Shani speaks, looking around their group, "A big event to get everybody excited for the game. I doubt Aston cares about who actually wins… But what about For Glory? Me and Charles still need to focus on the game... Speaking of which, I doubt we could win at anything else."

"For Glory has its own competitions, non-related to the Institute," Kay continues, thoughtfully, "We could sign in for the group competition, duos, and solo; fifty available headsets altogether, though it's hard to say how many we can actually grab… It will all depend on how you guys perform tomorrow."

"Are we… Are we really doing this?" Shani asks hesitantly.

Charles sighs, his gaze finding Sara's. "I guess we are."