Challengers of Soccer
Chapter Two: Registration
Briiiiiing! Briiiiiing! Shell groggily got off of his bed, and switched off his alarm clock.
"Ugh…I'm tired." He yawned, and walked over to the other side of the room. There, he took a look at the wall, where a Super Mario Bros Calendar hung.
"I almost forgot! Today's the day!" Shell laughed happily as he read the date. Today was the registration for the Fire Cup; the first tournament Shell's team would be entering.
The happy Koopa danced around his room, and ran out of his house. He and his friends had decided to meet in Toad Town Square at 11:00, as registration started at 11:30. Shell wanted to get there on time, and he was also extremely excited, so he left Koopa Village at 10:30.
Shell half-skipped, half-ran down the little dirt path that led to the large Toad Town. Humming a happy tune to himself, Shell started to daydream about who his team's first opponent would be, and what strategies they would use.
After we register, we should have a practice, to go over some drills! Then we can assign positions!
Shell continued these thoughts as he reached the main gate to Toad Town. From there, he could see the town square, where a few Toads were standing.
"Excuse me, pardon me!" He called out as he ran through a large crowd, anxious to see who else was waiting. But to Shell's dismay, he was the only one from his team there.
"You've gotta be kidding me…" Shell sat down on a bench, starting to get nervous. The Koopa looked up at the town clock, realizing that it was five minutes to eleven.
"C'mon, you guys-" Shell started, but was interrupted by a voice.
"There you are Shell! Good morning."
Shell turned around to see Guy walking towards him.
"Hey, I was beginning to think no one would show up!" Shell called happily.
"Well, we still have five minutes." Guy sniffed. The Shy Guy sat down beside Shell, and the two talked for a bit. Eventually, Goomchard joined them.
When it was 11:15, and the team was still missing Toaduel and Marty, Shell spoke up.
"Guys, I don't know where the other two are, but maybe we should go sign up without them. Maybe if we tell the people there that we have two other members, they'll understand…" Shell thought aloud.
"I-I'm starting to get a-a-a little nervous, Shell. A-all this hard w-work for nothing?" Goomchard bobbed up and down.
Shell frowned, and motioned for the other two to follow him to the Fire Cup Registration Centre, just a short block away from the town square. The three friends stood outside the door for a few minutes, until they saw a Toad with pink spots open it up.
"Are you here for the registration?" She asked quickly.
"Yup." Shell replied, and the Toad allowed the three to enter. The Toad gave Shell some paperwork, telling the group to fill it out before heading over to the front desk.
"OK…let's see…" Shell started. At that moment, Guy spoke up.
"Guys, do you hear that coming from outside?" The Shy Guy poked his head out the door, to see Toaduel running towards the building.
"I…overslept…sorry gang…" The Toad panted heavily as he walked through the entrance.
"OK, good to know you didn't bail. Now we just need Marty." Shell smiled as he handed out the paperwork; each member needed to give a signature.
--
It was almost noon, and Marty still hadn't shown up. Shell and the others were beginning to get discouraged, as other teams had already come and gone. As the minutes ticked by, spots in the tournament were being filled up.
And we still need that last signature… Shell thought to himself.
"Last position! One spot left for this year's Fire Cup!" The same Toad with the pink spots called out.
"Wait!" Shell yelled. He ran to the front desk.
"Please, I have a full team, but our last member isn't here. If you could just give us a bit more time…" The Koopa pleaded with her.
"Well I-"The Toad was cut off by a voice.
"Never fear, I have arrived!" Everyone in the building turned to the doorway, where Marty the Mole leaned. He flashed the desk Toad a grin, walked up casually to Goomchard, Guy, and Toaduel, and grabbed the paperwork.
"There we are…Done." The chubby Mole finished signing off his signature, and placed the registration sheets on the desk.
Shell couldn't believe it.
"Where have you been?! What ever happened to, '11:00 in the town square?'"
"Sorry man, I was busy. Didn't think I'd be so late. But don't sweat it," Here Marty winked to the desk Toad, "we got it all in on time."
"Yeah, but you're even later than I am!" Toaduel laughed. Shell smiled too, relieved. Who cared how it had happened. The Challengers were in the Fire Cup.
"Hold it! Hold it!" A voice called. Three Toads and two Bob-Ombs marched in through the doorway. They all were wearing uniforms that said, "Team Supreme".
Marty scoffed. "Nice team name. You're a little late, though."
The leader, a Toad with a bandana around his head, stepped forward. "There's no way Team Supreme is not entering the Fire Cup! We're the best team around."
The desk Toad shook her head. "I'm sorry, but The Challengers here just filled up the last position. Better luck next year."
The lead Toad's eyes bulged out of his head. Calling his teammates over, the group got into a little huddle.
"Listen…Yeah, yeah, I like the way you think." Shell heard coming from the huddle.
"OK, listen up. We'll play these Challenger fools. Winner takes the last spot." The Toad glared at Shell.
"That's ridiculous! We signed up first!" Guy protested, but Marty put his arm across him.
"No, no, we can take you. Consider it a warm-up, gang. What do you say, tomorrow at noon in the Toad Town Field?" Marty smiled cleverly, as if he had just struck an amazingly clever deal.
The other team nodded, and left, but not without a little trash talking first. When Team Supreme was gone, Marty spoke up.
"Who's up for a little brunch, eh? On Goomchard!" The Mole laughed heartily, and walked out the door.
Shell and the others ran after him.
"Are you crazy? Why would you agree to their challenge? Marty, you're acting like you're the leader of this team or something!" The Koopa stated furiously.
"Well, I don't see any C on your shirt, bub. C'monnn, lighten up. This should be a snap!" Marty chuckled.
"A-at least we should practice, t-today…" Goomchard stared at his feet as he spoke.
"Yeah. Let's go guys." Shell glared at Marty, as the Challengers started to walk away.
--
"Alright team, try to control the ball through these pylons." Shell called out to his four teammates. The group had decided to practice in Koopa Town, since there was a field close by perfect for soccer.
Shell blew his whistle, and Toaduel, the first in line, started the drill. The Toad made it about halfway through, before tripping over the ball. He started to laugh.
"Uh…good! Next, let's go Guy!" Shell called out.
Guy took one step before kicking the ball away from him. "Oh, sorry!" He called out.
"H-here…you go ahead of me, Marty." Goomchard walked to the back of the line. "T-this looks tough…"
Shell shook his head.
Marty wasn't much better. The Mole was huffing and puffing after going through only a few pylons.
"Eh, give me a break. I'm a goalie, after all." Marty shrugged. He headed over to his bag and pulled out a sandwich.
"Marty, no snacks during practice." Shell snatched the sandwich away from the Mole, to see Goomchard run up and completely miss the ball.
"I thought you guys were good at soccer…" Shell started.
"You'll see my goaltending skills tomorrow, mate.!" Marty laughed heartily as he patted Shell on the back, and pulled another sandwich out of his bag.
--
Shell tried to get some sleep that night, but couldn't. He was really nervous about the game the next day. Every drill the team had tried today, some problem had come up.
Goomchard was afraid of the ball.
Guy couldn't run.
Toaduel, while he claimed to be a soccer star in his league, didn't seem to really be trying.
And Marty. Marty just didn't seem to care.
"Uggggh…" Shell groaned as he rolled over, wondering what else could go wrong.
--
"Heh, I woke up on time today. But then…I forgot to bring my cleats! So I have to play in my bare feet today!" Toaduel laughed as Marty gave him a hearty grin.
"That's nothing. Try forgetting your-"
Shell couldn't take anymore of this conversation. He paced up and down his team's bench nervously. The Challengers were supposed to be warming up right now, but Goomchard was too nervous to move, Guy was getting himself "pumped up" listening to dance music, and Toaduel and Marty were having their conversation.
The Koopa looked down the field, to see Team Supreme running, stretching, and warming up their goalie.
"You know guys, now would be a great time to go for a jog." Shell smiled, but the ref, the desk toad with the pink spots, walked onto the field.
"Team Supreme and The Challengers. This game will be a thirty minute match. The winner will be granted the final position in the Fire Cup." The Toad spoke loudly for both sides to hear.
"Well guys, let's have a quick meeting." Shell suggested. Goomchard and Guy walked over to him. Toaduel quickly followed them, and Marty finished off his chocolate bar to join the team.
"OK. Let's just get out there and do our thing. I know we didn't get a lot of practice in yesterday, but if we make smart passes and take some shots, we can win this." Shell smiled, looking more confident than he was.
"Yeeaaaah! That's the spirit!" Marty thumped Shell on the back.
The Challengers took to the field. Marty jogged to his net, while Goomchard was on Defense. Toaduel, Shell, and Guy took to the front end, on left striker, center, and right striker, respectively.
Team Supreme jogged onto the field, chanting as they went.
The lead Toad lined up with Shell.
"Let's do this!" He snarled.
Since the Challengers were the ones to be challenged, they started off with the ball first.
"Here we go." Shell said to himself, and the game was on.
The Koopa kicked the ball back to Goomchard, who ran up and slipped on it. A Toad ran by, kicking the ball down the field.
"Not already!" Shell yelled out as the Toad ran in on Marty, all alone.
"C'mooon! Whaddya got?" The Mole taunted the Toad.
Marty ran out and slid at the Toad, who easily stepped around him and tapped the ball into the empty net.
1 – 0 Team Supreme
The ball was placed back in the middle of the field.
"OK, here Toaduel!" Shell called out as he passed the ball over to him. The Toad got the ball and spun around a Bob-Omb.
"I wasn't really tryin' yesterday!" Toaduel laughed out as he deked a Toad from the other team.
"Pass if over here!" Shell called out. He was wide-open, while Toaduel was being covered by two Toads.
"Nah, I got it!" Toaduel laughed as he tried to get around both Toads, but was easily stopped. One of the Toads passed the ball back up to the Bob-Omb, who came in on Goomchard.
"Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! What do I do?" Goomchard cried. He tried to take the ball off of the Bob-Omb, but the opponent simply spun around the Goomba, keeping possession of the ball.
The Bob-Omb came in alone on Marty again, but Guy danced out of nowhere, slide tackling the ball away.
"Beautiful!" Shell gave his friend the thumbs-up.
But Team Supreme recovered the ball. The leader Toad got the ball, and left it for another Toad, who lob-passed it over to a wide open Bob-Omb. The little guy tapped the ball towards the net, and Marty watched it roll slowly over the goal line.
2 – 0 Team Supreme
"Marty, c'mon, try for those." Shell called out.
"Yeah, but I didn't feel like diving." Was his reply.
The ball was once again placed in the middle of the field, and Shell kicked the ball back to Goomchard. To the Koopa's, and the Goomba's, amazement, Goomchard tapped the ball over to Guy.
Guy started to run down field with the ball. A Toad came to challenge him, and Guy slipped, but kicked the ball through the legs of the confused Toad.
"I got it!" Shell called out as he ran over to the ball and spun around another Toad. He was running in against the third Toad, with Toaduel to his left.
Faking the shot, Shell lob-passed the ball over to Toaduel, who headed it into the net. The goalie for Team Supreme, a Bob-Omb, dove to the side and managed to get a piece of the ball. However, the ball managed to cross the line.
2 – 1 Team Supreme
The lead Toad from Team Supreme placed the ball back in the middle, and kicked the ball back to his teammate. However, Shell charged head on at the Toad, who got a little too fancy and ended up giving away the ball to the Koopa.
Shell charged down field, in all alone on the goalie. When he was close enough, he let a shot fly, and it hit the cross-bar, bouncing into the back of the net.
2 - 2
"Yeaaaah!" Shell pumped his first triumphantly as Toaduel and Guy congratulated him.
"Humph. C'mon guys. Play like the Team Supreme we are!" The lead Toad yelled at his gang. As he kicked the ball back to the Bob-Omb, Shell checked how much time was left.
Three minutes. And the score was all tied up.
Shell was snapped out of his thoughts as the Bob-Omb sent a long pass up field. The lead Toad picked up the pass, and spun around Guy, then easily deked around Goomchard.
"Please Marty…" Shell pleaded.
The burly Mole had been leaning against one of the goal posts, reading a comic book. At the sound of his teammates cheering, Marty looked up and tossed his comic book to the side.
"Not this time!" The Mole said through gritted teeth.
The Toad ran in, faked a shot to one side, and tapped the ball the opposite way. Marty, having been faked out, had to stop moving in one direction, and dive in the other. The Mole just reached out and grabbed the soccer ball, before it crossed the line.
"Here!" Marty called out as he tossed the ball downfield.
"No! No!" The Toad called out, as the ball flew over him and his two wingers.
"I've g-got it!" Goomchard ran for the ball, as it bounced off of his head, and straight to Guy. Guy looked about, and tapped the ball over to Shell.
"This is it!" Toaduel called out. Shell grinned, and spun around Team Supreme's lone defender. Shell could see the nervousness in the goalie's eyes as the Koopa roofed the ball, over the Bob-Omb, and into the back of the net.
"And that's game!" The ref called out, as the timer went.
"Yeaaaaaah!" Shell ran down to his team's end, as his four teammates jumped on him excitedly.
The perfect ending.
"Unbelievable. We're Team Supreme!" Shell heard the Toad say as the other group slowly walked off of the field.
Shell didn't care that they hadn't shook hands; he was too excited right now.
"You're the best, Shell!" Guy laughed.
"Maybe even better than me!" Toaduel smiled.
The Challengers had won their first match.
And they were in the Fire Cup.
--
Whew, this chapter took me awhile to write. I wasn't exactly sure how I would describe the game, but I think it came out pretty cleanly. One thing I don't want to ever do again is have a Bob-Omb in a chapter – It's a pain to write that over and over again.
I really like Marty; he's a lot of fun to have in the story. His personality is pretty funny too. He may actually have the deepest backstory out of any of the characters in the story…except for maybe one character not yet introduced, that is ;)
I know that I didn't use all of the right terms and everything for soccer, but this is based off of Strikers: Charged, and the game doesn't get into all that "defender, mid-field, etc." stuff like in real soccer. I'm just gonna keep it basic with defense, center, wingers, and goalie.
Anyways, you might not see another chapter for a few days. By the time I get around to writing, I'll probably be doing a few chapters for Pokemon Topaz. But, we'll see.
Until next time,
-Cranihunt