The message from GridironGuru was a shark fin cutting through the calm waters of Ethan's pre-match focus.
The viewer count exploded, the chat window a frantic, scrolling waterfall of hype and speculation.
Thousands of people, Guru's entire "Gurunation," had just descended upon his little, one-subscriber stream.
They weren't here to see Apex United.
They were here to see the "minnow" that their king had pointed a finger at.
Ethan felt a surge of adrenaline so pure and so powerful it was almost overwhelming.
He looked across the tunnel at the Lincoln City players, who looked completely oblivious to the virtual drama unfolding.
He looked at his own players, their faces a mask of quiet, steely focus.
They didn't know they were a-list celebrities in a high-stakes online drama. They just knew they had a football match to win.
The signal was given. They walked out into the roar of the home crowd at The Apex.
