It was the final fixture of the Dogmatic Nation's Minor League Football season. Dragon FC sat on sixteen points, with four wins, four draws, and no losses. Their opponents, JAG FC, also had sixteen points, but with five wins, one draw, and two losses. The match was being played at the Dragon Lair Stadium in Attaki. The game had reached the second half, and the suspense was long gone. The Dragons were leading 3–0.
The sun was slowly sinking beneath the horizon, streaking the sky with fading light. The 5000 spectators couldn't care less about the bright star ending its daily journey. The stadium was packed. The crowd was cheering. Drums echoed through the stands while supporters danced to their rhythm.
Kai Mars slowly jogged to the right side of the opponent's goal to take the corner. He placed the ball carefully at the center of the arc, then stepped back three paces. His eyes scanned the penalty box, tracking his teammates' movements. He took one more step back with his left foot and raised his right arm. Inside the box, the players intensified their movement. They moved in pairs in a chaotic choreography, grabbing jerseys, shoving shoulders, each trying to gain an edge.
Kai didn't miss a second of it. Spotting his center-back gaining a slight advantage, he surged forward and struck the ball with the inside of his right foot. It rose into the air, curling toward the box in a perfect arc. The goalkeeper charged off his line, leaping with his fist raised, ready to punch it clear. The center-back appeared between keeper and ball and headed it toward goal. The ball smashed against the crossbar, rebounded, and was clumsily cleared by another player.
The crowd erupted. The defender who had come so close to scoring clutched his head and stared at the sky. Teammates patted him on the back, congratulating him before retreating to their positions.
"Nice header, Jean." Kai said.
Five minutes before the end of the match, Dragon FC's defensive midfielder intercepted a pass. He lifted his head and immediately fed the ball to Kai, who was already surging forward to lead the counterattack. Kai controlled it with the outside of his left foot and pushed on. The two forwards sprinted ahead, dragging defenders with them and opening space. A defender rushed Kai, but he glided past with a quick stepover, sending the man off balance before cutting the opposite way.
Kai drove toward the goal without breaking stride. The number 9 spotted a gap in the defense and darted into it. Almost instantly, Kai chipped the ball over the frozen defender. The through-pass dropped perfectly into the striker's path. The goalkeeper rushed out. The striker cushioned the ball with the top of his right foot and slid it beneath the diving keeper. The stadium exploded as the ball rolled into the net.
Dragon FC 4 – 0 JAG FC
Kai and his teammates sprinted toward the scorer, piling onto him in celebration. Hugs, laughter, high-fives, and shouted congratulations followed. Moments later, the referee blew the final whistle, ending the contest. Spectators flooded the pitch. Kai and his teammates were engulfed by fans desperate to touch the champions. Smiles filled the stadium. Dragon FC had won the Dogmatic Nation's Minor League Championship. The crowd exuberated once more when the captain, Kai Mars, lifted the trophy.
No one was happier than Timothy Ganvier, also called Timo, the team's owner. His grin was so wide his cheeks nearly swallowed his brown eyes. He would have been down on the pitch celebrating with his players if not for the guest seated beside him in the VIP box. And what a guest it was… The youngest active football team owner in the galaxy.
Timothy had to entertain him privately, overlooking the pitch. Normally, this man wouldn't even be allowed to set foot in the Dogmatic Nation. Its laws were strict: only citizens were permitted on the planet. But Alexey Gregorovich was no ordinary man. He had power and influence, and rules could be bent for such people.
Alexey Gregorovich was from the Zenith Empire. Timo had nearly choked on his saliva when the man, heavily guarded, had appeared before him a couple of hours ago, expressing interest in one of his players.
"What did you think of the match, sir?" Ganvier asked respectfully.
Alexey Gregorovich remained silent. Dressed in a navy suit, his blue eyes stayed fixed on the field. His black hair was neatly pulled back. At 165 centimeters, he was relatively short, but nothing about him felt small.
"Two goals and two assists," Timo added cheerfully. "Not bad, right?"
If Timo hadn't known better, he might have thought the man was deaf. Alexey was clearly aware of him but was unimpressed. Anyone with football knowledge could see that Kai's skill eclipsed everyone else on the pitch.
Alexey turned his gaze to Zyra Voss. Her wrinkled eyes never left Kai. She watched him with open fascination. Despite her experience, Zyra was terrible at hiding her emotions. Alexey, on the other hand, had mastered that art long ago, so long that even he couldn't remember when.
"Anyway," Timo continued, "I'm glad you introduced me to this business. Owning a football team is perfect for our line of work. We can buy and sell goods during away matches. It's the perfect smuggling system. They don't even search us."
"The Galactic Confederacy wanted football to serve as propaganda for peace," Gregorovich replied calmly. "That's why they tolerate a bit of contraband. As long as it isn't weapons, you'll be fine."
"Well then," Ganvier said, raising a glass half-filled with illegal liquor, "a toast to peace."
Alexey ignored it.
"You own a Minor League team in the Dogmatic Nation," Alexey said. "That restricts you to their territories. With a Major League team, you'd be free to travel across planets."
Timo nodded.
"I'm happy with being in the Minor League for now. In a few years, I may purchase a Major League team. And with Mars, I'm sure to be competitive."
"You are dreaming, Timothy, if you think Kai Mars alone is enough. No Dogmatic Nation player has ever won the Super League. Your government is too stubborn not allowing your teams to play with other divisions' teams. That is why most players from the Dogmatic Nation struggle in the upper leagues. They can't handle the competition there."
"Kai is different," Timo insisted. He's by far the best player I've seen around here."
"Perhaps. But he's never played against elite teams. He's never competed at the highest level. Can he handle the speed? The brutality?"
"I think the Dogmatic Nation's system will change," Timo said.
"Will it?"
"Football is growing, even here. Our leaders hate seeing other nations' teams win the Super League. It wounds their pride. You know how they believe they're superior to everyone else."
"And do you believe in their Dogma?" Alexey asked. "That they are superior beings?"
Timo laughed.
"I don't."
"Yet you wear their symbol." Alexey gestured toward the four-pointed star tattoo on Timo's left cheek.
"I have to blend in. Without this tattoo, others will doubt me, and it will be bad for business. It's easier to bribe high-ranking members of the government when they think you share their belief."
Alexey wasn't convinced.
"Your nation won't change willingly." He said.
"The Galactic Confederacy has been here for decades now." Timo mentioned.
Alexey chuckled.
"Like many other nations, you were defeated during the Galactic War. Your government doesn't have a choice. It either obeys or faces extinction. It's that simple."
"We still rely on others. We aren't self-sufficient; everyone knows it. Our smuggling proves that."
"True. But your government will not take that step, at least not openly. Their whole Dogma is based on discriminating against other people, and believing they're superior human beings. They would rather self-destruct than accept others as equal."
Timo shook his head.
"Take Chakra City for example, there are other citizens there, and it's the closest territory to Nen. It's only a matter of time before they allow other citizens in all their territories."
Nen was the capital of the Dogmatic Nation.
"Chakra City is a small planet. It means nothing. Your league will remain the weakest if things don't change. That's a fact." Alexey said.
"We still have some hidden gems."
Alexey raised an eyebrow.
"How many of those hidden gems have reached the Super League?"
Timo stayed silent. Both men knew it was a rhetorical question.
"Kai could do it… if he gets in the right environment," Timothy said after a long pause.
"And who would want to give him that?" Alexey asked.
"You're not the only one interested in him, Mr. Gregorovich."
Alexey's face remained impassive, though he was surprised.
"Who else approached you?" Alexey demanded. His voice showed no trace of the frustration inside him.
Timothy couldn't hold back the smile forming on his face.
"Big Mama."
It took Gregorovich all his might to refrain from showing any signs of how the news affected him. Big Mama aka Big Ma, the concierge of crime on planet Kryll, and the owner of the Galacticos.
"Big Ma? Why would she be interested in Mars when she's got elite midfielders?" Alexey said.
"Lex Guzbi is 35. That's pretty old for a footballer. He's got probably 2 or 3 more years if he pushes it before retiring. Kai is 19. I guess Big Mama believes he will be ready to take over by the time Guzbi retires."
Alexey thought for a few seconds. There were few owners in football he saw as worthy, and Big Mama was among them. She had a sharp mind, an innate sense of business, and an uncanny perception for talented individuals. On top of that, she had the resources to bring any players she set her sights on.
She'd recruited great players from all over the galaxy. Her team, Galacticos, had won 7 Supercup trophies since the team was established. Two seasons ago, they won the Super League Championship in their division and went on to win the Supercup. Last season, they also won the Titan Division championship and got to the final of the Supercup. But Maracana FC from the Gladiator Division won the Supercup that year.
"Can we get to the point?" Zyra interrupted impatiently.
Alexey turned his gaze to his coach. Their eyes met, and in a few seconds, they silently conveyed each other's thoughts. It wasn't telepathy or anything like that. Zyra has been working for Alexey for a few years now, and both people knew each other well. Alexey wanted to make sure his coach was sure of her choice, and Zyra, through her gaze, showed him she wouldn't leave without Mars.
Alexey reported his attention to Timo.
"I want Kai Mars."