When Khandro blew the end-game whistle, Deneb’s team had won nine goals to one. The two captains congratulated one another and Deneb ushered her team off the field so Korrigan could play Theseus’s team to decide third place. Lysander and Angelo were quick to retain commentator duties.

“Something tells me we’re in for an unpredictable game, Angelo,”

“I have calculated the chances of a penalty shoot-out and have deduced that only the intervention of zombies could swing the game in Korrigan’s favour,”

“Looking at her team, I’d say half of them already are zombies!”

Theseus wasn’t a strategic whiz like Deneb, but it didn’t take much effort to subdue Korrigan’s players. Korrigan herself seemed more interested in cheering both teams on than trying to compete, and ten minutes later left the field congratulating everyone on playing a great game, even when most of her team had loitered around talking.

Lysander leaned over to Phantasia and whispered in her ear, “Best look lively before Queen Hermia whips us into line!” Moments later, their team captain was calling a strategy meeting.

“Team, we’re against the cleverest brain in the school now, but that doesn’t mean we can’t win!” she said, standing with hands on hips and trying hide the fact she was shorter than most by standing on her toes, “Our weapon is teamwork! So long as we combine our strengths, nothing can penetrate our defences! Look lively, Katrina and Shelley, because I’m relying on the two of you to keep Lysander up field,” Both girls nodded, vacant looks on their faces, while Hermia continued. “Lyra, Angelo, excellent work last match! You’ll be up against the Chris and Lance this time, so eh…”

“You knock ‘em down and I’ll kick ‘em” said Lyra. Angelo replied with wide eyes and a big grin, but it was anyone’s guess as to what that meant.

“Let’s try not to get ourselves disqualified for foul play,” said Hermia, giving Lyra a stern glare, which the strawberry-blonde girl ignored.

“Guess I’ll have to handle Doyle by myself then,” Lysander sighed. Given that Doyle was twice his size, it wasn’t a fair match-up and the frown on Hermia’s face suggested she agreed.

“We’ll need a distraction…” she said.

A few minutes, after some cunning strategic decisions from Lysander and Angelo, Phantasia found herself acting as that ‘distraction’. “Keep the ball,” Lysander had told her, “Doyle’ll never tackle a girl, and neither will the other guys. Just watch out for Deneb and pass to Shelley or Katrina if she gets close,”

The plan was for Lysander to score an early goal, and then maintain a defensive formation for the rest of the match but, with the draws nil-nil at the halfway point, it needed changing. Deneb had figured them out and was leading a counter-attack, ordering her team to stalk the opposing girls so they had little room to manoeuvre. It was an order Chris, Lance and Doyle were more than happy to oblige.

Phantasia found it frustrating, however. Their game of strategy, of move and counter-move, reminded her too much of too many annoying things, like King Nereus marshalling his forces against Cecaelia or Mr Payne and Bishop Wotan manipulating everyone around them for their own ends, or like Yokai, insinuating that Phantasia herself was being used by others.

Enough was enough! She’d had it with these rules and orders! She’d do things the way she wanted to do them, and play no part in the scheming of others! In a burst of near-inhuman agility she twisted around Lance’s lecherous marking and propelled herself into the fray. Deneb had just claimed the ball from Shelley when Phantasia careered towards her, twisting the ball away from her feet in a display of graceful athleticism that left everyone in awe. While they were trying to fathom out what had just happened, Phantasia dribbled the ball down the pitch, vaulted over Doyle’s shoulders as the ball slipped between his feet, and smashed it towards the goal. Phoenie was too startled by the gymnastics to move, and the game ended one-nil to Hermia’s team.          It was only after that final whistle that Phantasia wondered if she’d pushed things just a little bit too far.

Chapter 27
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