CHAMPIONSHIP

If Minerva didn't find a quiet place immediately, she was probably going to faint, or vomit, or do something else unpleasant due to sheer nerves. She quickly strode down the locker room, the chattering sounds of her teammates fading as she passed rows of lockers, toilets, and showers until she found a bench in a secluded corner. Minerva sat on it, hugged her knees to her chest, and put her head down, trying to stay focused on breathing deep. It was no use. The roars coming from the crowd above the underground locker room indicated the mounting excitement, which only twisted Min's stomach into more knots. The locker room was located under the stands of Nefertiti Stadium. At least it was a home game, which made Min happy.

This was the world championship. Somehow, the official soccer people had negotiated that it would take place in this city. There was some kind of rule, but Min couldn't remember it; she could only feel grateful. Her team, the Olympians, had achieved a nearly flawless regular season and then fought their way hard through the playoffs to make it here, with a certain someone scoring most of the goals. Min had made the team easily, of course. At tryouts, the coaches had only stared open-mouthed, then immediately signed her on as one of the starting forwards. Min smiled, remembering that day, as she fingered the fabric of her uniform. The colors were navy, white, and light blue, and the logo was a light blue cloud with a yellow lightning bolt going through it. Min approved of it all. For some reason, things around here were always named after nearby geographical features. The name of her team was derived from a group of mountains, and the name of the city itself, Columbia, came from a river.

"Min! We're getting ready to go out!" called Max. Max was a pretty good soccer player herself, so they ended up on the team together. Minerva's life seemed to be going perfectly so far in the sixteen short years that she had lived. Why wouldn't the Olympians end up the world champions? Min chugged a last bit of water and compulsively tightened her heavy ponytail yet again. Its unusual shade was what made her visible on the field. And the fact that she was usually the player that seemed to be moving the most.

She walked back to join her team in stretching, then they climbed up the stairs and out onto the grass. The crowd went wild, either over the appearance of the team or the finale of the fireworks show. The whole team strutted onto the field with confidence to face their opponents, but tonight everyone would be watching her, Minerva, the rookie, to see how she would perform. The audience was much larger than the hundreds of thousands in the stadium, though. All the feeds would be airing the city's first world championship in decades. The team did that thing where they all put their hands in the circle and shouted, "Olympians!" It was corny, but Min could tolerate that tonight. She walked to her starting position and stood in a half-crouch, every muscle tense, ready to charge at the ball at any moment. The hovercams booted up, prepared to broadcast every detail of the game. And the ref blew the whistle.

Halftime

Minerva stumbled down to the locker room, ready to collapse. She had fought hard, but the battle wasn't over yet. The Olympians were down, two to one. Min took a much-needed drink, then listed to the pep talk and strategy from the coach and team captain. Even though it seemed like the break had just started, it was time to get back on the field again.

Overtime

The game was all tied up, two to two. There was no way Minerva was going accept defeat. She charge down the field, the other team's defense charging at her, but she was too quick for them all. She snatched the ball away from one of the defenders, who didn't even notice her coming. Min dribbled it down the field, closing in on the goal. She was wide open now. She wound up for the kick, and poured her heart, her soul, her everything into that one shot. The ball sailed through the air, followed by hovercams, straight for the goal. The goalie leapt, but she wasn't quick enough. The ball brushed her fingers, then hit the back of the net. The whistle blew.

Min's eardrums were assaulted with the sound of the screaming crowd. The hovercams descended on her like a flock of hornets, the her team closed in around her, hugging her and screaming. They lifted Min onto their shoulders, and she threw her arms in the air and whooped. Min never acted like that, but she had a good excuse this time. A ref cam over with the trophy, and the team passed it to Min, who lifted it up into the air. Warm tears began coursing down her cheeks. The hovercams gathered around her captured it all. Her face was on the huge screen above the stadium, and on thousands of more wallscreens across Columbia. She was sobbing now, which must have looked quite ridiculous. "Hey guys, can you put me down? I need a moment!" she shouted, then jumped down and sprinted to the locker room. The noise and all the bodies pressed around her had become too much. Min splashed cold water on her face, trying to pull herself together for all the feed interviews which she would inevitably have later tonight. Such an embarrassing display of emotion was rare for her, and she was not used to it.

A few minutes later, Min heard footsteps on the locker room floor. "Minerva? Are you in here?" It was the coach. She ran to meet him. "Have a seat. I need to talk to you," he said.

Min sat down on the bench next to him. "What is it?" she said nervously.

"I know you're overwhelmed with your amazing success. Congratulations, Minerva. You are truly a star player. What you did out there today was historic."

"Um, thank you," she answered, blushing.

"But it's just the beginning. You need to be extremely careful from now on. What you do, what you say, everyone will be watching, even more than before. Even if you don't think anyone is, watch out for hovercams. Keep your personal life as private as possible. I don't want to see a good girl like you destroyed."

"What are you talking about?" Min asked, confusion all over her face.

"What I'm trying to tell you, is..." He took a deep breath and looked at her, his face a mixture of awe and concern. "Minerva, you're famous now."

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Don't worry, this story isn't just about soccer. While I am an athlete, I have never played soccer in my life, in fact. I just needed to include it because it seemed to be the only sport in Tally's world, basically. I did do some minimal research on soccer, so if I get anything wrong, tell me!

Coming in the next chapter: I will bring back a character from the original trilogy! Finally! Actually, if you remember, Maxamilla Feaster (a.k.a Max) is an original character. She had a very small part at the end of Specials. Basically all that we learn about her is her name and that she is one of Dr. Cable's subcommanders. So you already know her fate: she ends up a Special. But you don't know Min's! Tell me if you want to know...