It was the day of the Pound Ball Grand Final. The newly opened Kingdom Stadium had a capacity of sixty thousand. This was more than twice the size of the previous largest stadium. This stadium was to become the home stadium for the Capital City Chiefs. Despite the stadium’s huge capacity and the fact that the game was to be aired live on television, every ticket had been sold out.
That year’s grand final had the most hype of any grand final in Sapey’s history. The excitement was about the two teams that had made it. The Capital City Chiefs returned to the Grand Final after losing in the previous year’s Grand Final to the Lake Rural Miners. The Chiefs looked stronger than ever. They had won every game in the season. They were also going to play in front of their home crowd.
The other team was the Agriah Rural Scarecrows. They were the seventh-seeded team entering the playoffs. This was their first playoff appearance in their history. They defeated the defending champions in the previous round. They were proving to be an exciting underdog team.
Fans were drawn to the Scarecrows because of their megastar player, Ryan. He set records in number of catches and points. He was also a force to be reckoned with on defence, where he set the team record for the most number of interceptions. The Scarecrow’s dependence on him led to him setting a record for the most number of minutes played by a player in a single season.
It was not just about the number of points Ryan scored, but when he scored them. In the first playoff game, he scored the game-winning two points against the Priests with just three seconds left to play. In the second playoff game, he scored the game-winning points in extra time to defeat the Miners.
Another huge draw for Ryan was his girlfriend, Saliyah. At the end of every game they won, she would run onto the field and leap into Ryan’s arms. Then she would perform several of her most popular songs. Despite the team doubling the ticket prices, every game was sold out. Not a fan would leave the stadium until she had finished her songs. The romance and the exposure caused Saliyah’s popularity to soar ever higher. She had become the most popular singer and performer on the whole continent.
James and Jeff were in their private box at the stadium watching the marching bands perform in the pregame show. They were also waiting for Chief Waldo to arrive.
Suddenly, the doors to the box burst open; it was Waldo. He was fully dressed in Chiefs’ merchandise.
‘I’m here! I’m here!’ announced Waldo as he waltzed towards James and Jeff. ‘Did I miss anything?’
‘Just the first marching bands, but there are many more to come before kick-off,’ replied James.
‘Marvellous! Marvellous! Marvellous!’ exclaimed Waldo, clapping his hands frantically. ‘Both of you have done an amazing job.’
‘We are here to entertain,’ said James proudly.
‘And I’m here to be entertained,’ said Waldo. ‘I’m also here to see my team win. I still feel the sting from last year.’
‘The Chiefs are unbeaten for a reason,’ said Jeff. ‘I don’t see them losing today.’
‘That’s a relief,’ said Waldo as he dramatically pretended to wipe the sweat from his brow. ‘I bet the whole zoo on this one.’
‘I’m glad you’re immersing yourself in the experience,’ said James with a big smile on his face. ‘Taking risks can be fun.’
‘Hahahaha,’ giggled Waldo, ‘If for some reason this bet doesn’t pay off, I’ve got a secret weapon. I like to call it taxation. Something the entertainment and sports industries have been exempt from so far.’
‘We have a private box set up for you and your family,’ said James in a slightly agitated tone. ‘It is well stocked with pizzas, pancakes, cakes, and even giant novelty coconuts.’
‘Ooohhh, you are too good to me,’ laughed Waldo as he clapped.
James escorted Waldo and his family, who were waiting outside their box.
A few minutes later, James returned. He did not look pleased. ‘I don’t believe he threatened us with taxation,’ said James as he pressed his hands against the glass window of the box.
‘He was just joking,’ said Jeff calmly. ‘He has an unusual sense of humour.’
‘Taxation is no joking matter,’ said James firmly. ‘It’s unfair, and it’s cruel.’
‘Speaking of unfair,’ said Jeff as he took his seat. ‘Ryan only gets paid two coins a game on his rookie contract.’
‘You’re getting it all wrong, brother,’ said James as he sat down next to him. ‘It’s only unfair when we lose out. If it’s anyone else, it’s just business.’
‘Anyway, I’m making sure he gets the contract he deserves,’ said Jeff, as he looked his brother in the eyes. ‘There’s enough money going around for everyone.’
‘Of course, of course,’ said James as he grinned smugly.
The pregame show ended. The teams and players were introduced. The fans cheered loudly for each player. When Ryan ran onto the field, the stadium exploded with roars of cheers. Both James and Jeff had to cover their ears as the cheers lasted several minutes. Then Saliyah ran onto the field to hug Ryan. The crowd erupted again for several more minutes.
When the stadium quietened down, Jeff turned to James. ‘Even the Chiefs fans are cheering him,’ said Jeff in astonishment.
‘The power of great marketing, little brother,’ said James calmly. ‘Heroes for some and romance for others. These two bring them both.’
Saliyah walked off the field blowing kisses to the crowd. They chanted back the lyrics of one of her songs.
‘I spoke to our bookie before I got here,’ said James. ‘More money has been bet on the Chiefs, thanks to the likes of Waldo and his family. However, the majority of the bets, over 80% in fact, have been placed on the Scarecrows. They believe in him. We have sold his story so well. They actually think he is going to pull off a miracle today.’
‘Then why are you so worried about tax?’ asked Jeff in a slightly cheeky tone.
‘I’m not,’ said James. ‘I just don’t like threatening behaviour.’
Fifteen minutes later, the teams met in the middle of the field for the coin toss. The Chiefs won the coin toss, and they chose to give the Scarecrows the first possession of the game. The Chiefs defence was fierce. The Scarecrows’ throwers could not get the ball to Ryan. The Chiefs took over possession at the halfway line. They quickly moved the ball into the final quarter of the field. The Chiefs number one thrower hurled the ball towards their star catcher, who had just crossed the goal line in the middle of the field. Ryan leaped into the air and pulled the ball out of the sky with his exceedingly long arms. He charged to the left side of the field. He knocked two players over as he sprinted into the second quarter of the field. The fans began screaming loudly.
Ryan was about to reach the halfway line. A Chiefs’ player charged in fast to tackle Ryan. At the last second, Ryan tossed the ball to his right. A teammate caught the ball; he was in the clear. The player sprinted down the middle of the field to score three points. The crowd roared in excitement. However, Ryan was still down. The crowd quickly quietened down. Then Ryan leapt to his feet. The crowd went wild again. Even the celebrity commentators’ started screaming when he got up.
James glanced over to Waldo’s box. Waldo was staring at him. Waldo picked up his plate. He had written the word ‘tax’ in sauce on it. Then he started to nod his head slowly. James smiled back at him.
‘Don’t worry about him,’ said Jeff. ‘He’s just playing around.’
‘No, I’m actually delighted,’ said James. ‘We had thousands of coins bet on Ryan scoring first in this game. Nobody bet on Number Nine, whoever he is!’
The Chiefs took possession of the ball. This time they scored, but they settled for two points to avoid Ryan, who had taken control of the middle of the field. On the Scarecrows next possession, the Chiefs defence successfully prevented the throwers from getting the ball to Ryan again. They retook possession of the ball and scored again. With the two points, they had now taken a 4-3 lead.
The Scarecrows had possession of the ball again. A Scarecrow’s thrower quickly threw the ball to a catcher. He ran across the field, drawing defenders to tackle him. He tossed the ball to the other thrower. This thrower saw Ryan charging down the sideline. He launched the ball in his direction. Ryan reached over the top of a defender. He caught the ball as the defender fell over. Ryan ran towards the middle of the field to score three points. The crowd roared with excitement.
Every time the Scarecrows had possession of the ball, they had an innovative way to get it to Ryan, who scored every time. The Chiefs continued scoring every time they got the ball, but they only scored two points each time. Whereas the Scarecrows scored three. On the last possession of the half, Ryan ran across the goal line to score three more points, leaving the Chiefs no time to respond. The score at halftime was 21-14 to the Scarecrows.
‘What a half! What a half! What a half!’ exclaimed Jeff ecstatically. ‘Ryan is a Pound Ball God.’
‘This stadium is so loud,’ shouted James. ‘I love it. This is the sound of success. Now the halftime show is going to take things to an even higher level.’
‘I need a drink,’ gasped Jeff. ‘Those coconuts look tempting.’
‘You do that, bro,’ said James. ‘I’m going to check in on Waldo.’
Jeff walked back to the window while holding his coconut. He watched the stadium crew wheel on stages and sets. He looked over at Waldo and his brother. Waldo was waving his arms around dramatically. It looked like James was attempting to calm him down. Eventually, the two sat down. Jeff looked back at the field. The celebrity performance had just begun. He had never seen so many star performers on one stage.
The stage cleared. The lights dimmed as Saliyah walked from the goal line up to the stage at midfield. Then the lights shone on her. The crowd erupted in excitement again. They screamed for five minutes before calming down. Saliyah began her first song. Dancers ran across the field as Saliyah belted out her finest performance. After her final song, the crowds started chanting, ‘We want more!’
Then, Ryan emerged from the players’ tunnel. A spotlight shone on him as he made his way towards Saliyah. Jeff glanced across to see Waldo’s and James’ reactions, but they were not in the box. Jeff looked back down to the field. Ryan was on the stage in front of Saliyah. He was holding a microphone.
Ryan got down on one knee. Saliyah covered her mouth as she began to gasp. Ryan looked up into her eyes. ‘Please make this the greatest day of my life. Marry me, my beautiful Saliyah?’ asked Ryan as he held out a small box with an enormous diamond ring inside.
‘Yes! Yes! Yes!’ screamed Saliyah. Ryan got to his feet, and they both kissed. Music filled the stadium. Cameras zoomed in on them kissing.
‘Cut the music! Cut the music!’ shouted James as he walked onto the field.
The music stopped abruptly.
‘This Grand Final is the greatest spectacle this continent has ever seen,’ cried out James. ‘I really want it to remain that way.’
Both Ryan and Saliyah looked at James with concerned looks on their faces.
‘I fear in a few months’ time, it is going to be overshadowed by the greatest wedding of all time,’ continued James as he walked towards the stage.
The crowd began chanting, ‘Wedding!’
‘I believe there is only one way we can prevent this predicament,’ said James as he climbed up on the stage. ‘We have the wedding right here, right now.’
The crowd roared with excitement.
Waldo ran onto the field shouting, ‘I have the authority to make this possible.’
Saliyah and Ryan looked at each other. ‘Let’s do this,’ screamed Saliyah.
Waldo took his position on the stage in front of Saliyah and Ryan. The stadium wheeled off the set pieces and replaced them with a variety of wedding flowers and a giant cake.
Violinists walked out onto the field and began playing wedding music. A few minutes later, the stadium went quiet.
‘We are here today to witness the wedding of the greatest Pound Ball player of this generation, Ryan,’ said Waldo as he turned to face Saliyah, ‘and the brightest spark in our music industry, Saliyah.’
Waldo briefly paused as Ryan and Saliyah held hands.
‘Do you have anything you’d like to say to Saliyah?’ Waldo asked Ryan.
‘Eight months ago, we met at the Pound Ball convention,’ said Ryan as he looked into Saliyah’s eyes. ‘I was modelling the new uniform and trying to sell season tickets. Saliyah walked right up to me and asked me what a scarecrow was. I immediately knew who she was, but I couldn’t remember for the life of me what a scarecrow was. So, I told her it was my dream job. She burst out laughing. I realised how dumb my answer was, so I just burst out laughing too.’
The crowd gave out a large sigh. Waldo gestured to Ryan to hurry along.
‘We laughed a lot,’ said Ryan. ‘Half of our conversation was just laughter. It was weird, and it was great. Besides the laughter, the greatest thing about Saliyah is the level of support she shows me. She has been to every one of my games. When I look into the crowd and see her face, I want to play hard. Now, here we are today.’
‘Thanks for your life story,’ said Waldo sarcastically. He then turned to Saliyah. ‘Do you have anything you’d like to say to Ryan?’
‘You still haven’t told me what a scarecrow is,’ shouted Saliyah.
The crowd roared with laughter.
‘I love Pound Ball,’ shouted Saliyah. ‘But I love you so much more. You are so kind, caring, and extra sweet. You are my gentle giant. Now seal the deal, Waldo!’
‘I now pronounce you both as awesomely married!’ cried out Waldo as he spun around.
Ryan and Saliyah warmly embraced and kissed once again.
The Head Theologist, who was sitting in the Priests’ box, shook his head at Waldo’s shambolic performance.
The celebrities walked onto the field singing the wedding song. Ryan swept Saliyah off her feet and carried her off down the players’ tunnel.
James rejoined Jeff in their box.
‘Tell me that wasn’t special!’ proclaimed James as he held out his arms to hug his younger brother.
‘You are truly the master,’ replied Jeff. ‘I just fear you have set the bar too high. How are we ever going to match this again?’
‘We still have an entire half of Pound Ball to play,’ said James as he smiled smugly. ‘The finale is going to be phenomenal.’
Ten minutes later, the players were back on the field. The Chiefs were given possession of the ball to start the half. They began with the same strategy of keeping the ball away from Ryan. It was working well as they rapidly progressed down the field. Then in the final section of the field, there was a change in plan. A thrower fired the ball to the centre of the field to try to score three, but with lightning reflexes, Ryan reached out with his extraordinarily long arms and pulled the ball out of the sky. The Chiefs immediately converged on him. A large blocker went flying into his legs, knocking him down hard. The crowd gasped, but they cheered when Ryan slowly got back on his feet.
‘This is not the Chiefs night at all,’ gloated Jeff to his brother.
‘I’m sure this game has a few more surprises to throw at us,’ replied James smugly.
The Scarecrows once again progressed down the field. Ryan played a decoy role, allowing other players to make big gains. However, in the final section of the field, Ryan reached into the sky to pull down a three-point catch. A Chiefs player charged into him, knocking him hard when he was off-balance. The Scarecrows fans began to boo loudly, and so did some of the Chiefs fans. Again, Ryan got back off his feet.
‘That’s another nasty, unnecessary hit,’ said Jeff, sounding annoyed. ‘I might need to have a word with the referees.’
‘It’s a contact sport,’ said James smugly. ‘They are supposed to be rough.’
Jeff glared at his brother. James continued to grin.
Again, the Chiefs began to work their way down the field. In the final section of the field, they attempted to throw to the middle. Ryan once again pulled the ball out of the sky. The same blocker who tackled Ryan before crashed hard into the side of Ryan’s legs. Ryan fell to the ground hard. The referees blew their whistles.
Jeff leapt out of his seat. ‘No! No! No!’ he stammered as he pressed his face against the window.
Ryan did not get up this time. He lay, wincing in pain on the ground. Medical staff rushed onto the field. The crowd was silent as they waited. A few minutes later, Ryan was placed on a stretcher. They carried him off down the players’ tunnel. Saliyah ran down the tunnel after him.
The referee sent the offending player off the field for the next possession. The Scarecrows would have possession as well as a player advantage.
Jeff turned to his brother.
‘It’s a contact sport,’ said James as he grinned back.
Jeff sat back in his chair. James looked over to Waldo, who was giving him the double thumbs up.
‘Now it’s time to see the real Scarecrows in action,’ James said to himself.
The Scarecrows took advantage of the extra player. They ended the possession with a two-point score. They were now leading 26-14.
The Chiefs were back to seven players again. They moved the ball downfield with relative ease. They no longer needed to avoid the middle of the field and could score three points on every possession. The Scarecrows, on the other hand, struggled to even reach the halfway line.
The game was now tied at 26. Still unable to move the ball, the Scarecrows kicked the ball back to the Chiefs, who took possession in their first sector of the field. The Chiefs were about to start their next possession when there was a loud roar from the crowd. It was Ryan. He had just emerged from the players’ tunnel. However, the roar dulled to a murmur when they realised he was on crutches.
‘No heroic comeback today,’ said James with a grin.
‘How is this good business?’ asked Jeff angrily. ‘It was supposed to be his night. That’s what everyone wants.’
‘This is the Capital City,’ said James firmly. ‘We can’t have the Chiefs lose two finals in a row. They will be labelled as losers. I also don’t want to pay tax.’
‘At least I know where I stand with you,’ said Jeff as he folded his arms in disgust.
Meanwhile, on the field, the players rushed over to see Ryan. He started giving them a quick pep talk. The referee blew his whistle to get them back on the field.
The Chiefs began their possession. They moved the ball with relative ease. They were close to the goal line but out of the three-point zone. A catcher tossed the ball to the middle of the field, but his intended player dropped the ball. A Scarecrows’ player jumped on it. They had regained possession. Ryan sighed in relief. The players, Ryan, and the coach huddled together to discuss their game plan. The referee angrily blew his whistle. He demanded they resume the game immediately.
‘Delay tactics,’ said James. ‘They really have nothing.’
‘I’m sure this game has a few more surprises to throw at us,’ said Jeff, trying to sound confident.
The Scarecrows began their next possession. It was different this time. They moved with more energy. The throwers were more accurate, and the catchers broke tackles. A catcher caught the ball in the middle of the field just a few meters from the goal line, but a defender went crashing into him, knocking the ball loose. The Chiefs recovered the ball. Ryan dropped to his knees in frustration.
The Chiefs moved the ball downfield with relative ease yet again. This time they wanted to run as much time off the clock as they could. They reached the final section again. This time they did not attempt to go for three points. A catcher found room down the outside to score two points. The Chiefs finally recaptured the lead. The score was now 28-26. There was only a minute left for the Scarecrows to score. The Chiefs’ fans began to cheer loudly.
James sat back in his chair. He had a huge smile on his face. ‘Admit it. It has been the perfect night,’ said James as he put his arms behind his head.
Jeff stared down at the field as the Scarecrows began their final possession.
The Chiefs went into a spread formation to stop any quick scores. This gave the Scarecrows more time to throw to their catchers. The Scarecrows made short work of the first two sections. The closer they got to the goal line, the tighter the Chiefs played. With just six seconds to play, a Scarecrows player ran out of bounds about ten metres short of the goal line. The clock stopped as the ball was moved back to the centre of the field.
‘I must admit they gave it a great shot,’ said James with a smile. ‘Yet another reason this final will be remembered.’
Ryan watched his team line up in the centre of the field just ten metres from the goal line. He looked at his crutches. He looked back at his team. He slammed the crutches down hard and walked onto the field.
‘I’m coming back out,’ he shouted as he limped onto the field.
The fans from both teams roared loudly. The players turned to look at him. The Scarecrows players cheered him. The Chiefs players laughed as he started to stumble. The referee blew his whistle to restart the game. The players did not hear the whistle because of the noise. Scarecrows’ Player Number Nine noticed the clock had started to count down. He grabbed the ball and sprinted towards the goal line. He leapt over the goal line in the three-point zone to score just as the clock reached zero. The referee blew his whistle to end the game.
The players did not hear that whistle either, as the stadium was so loud.
Both Jeff and James stood up. They looked up at the clock and the scoreboard. The clock showed zero, and the score was 29-28 to the Scarecrows. James looked over to Waldo. He was holding up eight fingers.
‘What just happened?’ asked Jeff.
‘Looks like the Scarecrows did it,’ replied James. ‘They did it with eight players on the field.’
‘Should we do something?’ asked Jeff.
‘Sounds like a refereeing issue to me,’ replied James. ‘I would rather just sit back and watch the fireworks and the presentation of the trophy.’
The crowd empathically cheered the Scarecrows. The Chiefs players left the field looking very confused. Saliyah ran over to hug Ryan. The crowd started cheering for both Ryan and Saliyah. The cheering continued throughout the trophy ceremony. The night ended with a huge fireworks display.
Jeff and James had made their way to the conference room to avoid Waldo.
‘You don’t seem so worried about “tax” anymore,’ said Jeff as he looked across at his brother, who was staring down at the street outside.
‘I have an awesome way of getting out of that,’ said James as he turned to look back at his brother.
Jeff was a little confused, but he did not doubt his brother’s cunning.
Down on the street was a small group of Linap holding a sign with the word ‘democracy’ written on it.
Sapien Loop: Frozen in Time is the sequel to the book Sapien Loop: End of an Era. Sapien Loop: End of an Era is available on Amazon, in collection series on my 
