Ty stalked back to the Dons' huddle, instincts screaming at him not to turn his back on someone as dangerous as Richaun, though he overcame them, forcing himself to look forward. He wasn't scared; he wouldn't glance over his shoulder like a frightened bitch needing one last glimpse of the thing that'd kill them. Tyrese Samuels wouldn't be a deer caught in headlights.
In the Cobras' huddle, all eyes were firmly fixed upon Richaun. Colby was stunned into silence. The audacity to break away from his assignment and STEAL one of his passes … to intercept one of them. Intercepted… by Richaun of all people?
Lamar's tongue felt no paralysis. 'Ayo, what the fuck was that?'
Richaun's head turned on a swivel. His heat was without fire. The rage inside him had transcended to a sort of serenity. Those eyes saw only one thing—targets. Anything in his way was something to be destroyed.
'You got a problem, nigga?' Richaun said.
'I'm looking at it. That pass was mine.'
'Why ain't you catch then?'
Richaun didn't wait for an answer, pushing his way out of the huddle. Across the field, Ty followed suit, leaving the Dons' huddle early. Neither boy needed to hear what their team was planning, it didn't concern them. They had their own goals. Ty's was simple, something his teammates accounted for, at least. Whereas Richaun's was a completely selfish brand of football.
Ty stared hard as the two approached one another. His spine felt as if it was encased in ice. He fought to keep his ludicrous, unwarranted fear down. A beast. That's what he was looking at. But before the snap, he changed the visualisation. Instead of an encounter in the wild, Richaun was an exhibit at the zoo. Just a dumb, caged animal there for Ty's entertainment and observation—it didn't help him figure out what kind of creature he was looking at.
Ty was so enraptured by the mystery, the snap caught him off-guard. Richaun ignored him, not lashing out, but cutting across the field immediately. Wings carried him faster than anyone else as Ty scrambled after him. Richaun's eyes were constantly darting about, never staying on one person for long.
Colby watched Richaun flash by. Shaking his head, he put the boy out of his mind. He couldn't get caught up worrying about a loose cannon like that; there was still a game to win.
Richaun reversed directions, Ty skidded as he did the same, but as they passed, any attempts to slow Richaun were batted aside by heavy, clawing hands. Not snake bites, but a lion's strike.
Colby saw the opening Richaun's wildness created, and it just so happened a third WR was slipping into the area. Smirking at the irony of using Richaun without ever needing to pass to him, he flicked the ball over. Again, Richaun intercepted.
He was flying across the field. With more space, he curved upfield elegantly, gliding into place beside the sideline. With a burst of speed, and a sharper angle Ty cut him off. Richaun lowered his shoulder, ramming into Ty, hitting him square in the chest. Ty grunted, but wrapped his arms around the rampaging beast and dragged it down on top of him.
Richaun's second stolen reception was good enough for another 14 yards. His methods were abnormal, but they were working; even if he had to drag the Cobras down the field kicking and screaming, he'd do so to win.
Ty growled, rolling away from Richaun, stalking back towards the middle of the field, being the first Don in the eventual huddle. Even though it formed around him, he was absent from the following discussion, his thoughts caught up on the previous plays; what was happening?
Coach Hoang's eyes were glued to Ty. The game kept seesawing back and forth, and now it was time for the Cobras to capitalise. It came down to special individuals to break that mould. Ty had done that with his interception. But that was a double-edged sword. The only weakness Ty had was his inconsistency. Oh he was great all the time, but that was only ninety percent of his power. That final ten percent was the tricky bit, the bit he could never tap into for long. Richaun Howard didn't appear to have such constraints.
"Come on, Samuels. Get your head out of your ass and stop letting this punk embarrass you."
Nobody could match Ty, not even Kentavious. That was something Coach Hoang had learned throughout his first season coaching Ty. But only if Ty played to his full strength.
Therein lied the problem—if they'd have a second sighting of the Black Hole that game. Because whatever Richaun was doing, it was working, and it was going to stay that way for the foreseeable future.
Richaun had become completely unpredictable. He was acting irrationally. Never before had Ty seen this kind of behaviour in a Receiver—not in Richaun's tape; not at all.
Even the other Cobras were confused. Richaun didn't bother entering the huddle at all, but he still drew most eyes. Colby's authoritative voice faded to the background as they tried to understand the enigma that was Richaun Howard.
When the Dons' huddle dissolved, Ty stomped back to the Line. He would not be beaten by some wild beast. He'd slay Richaun, no matter what it took.
At the snap, Ty deflected Richaun's snake-bite, but was caught under the chin by a second which struck immediately after the first. He wheezed, stumbling back. Richaun pushed into him again. Ty slipped, catching himself with a hand on the turf.
Richaun saw the Post route to Dominick before Colby even threw it. With a speed horrifyingly reminiscent of Nate Langford, Richaun sprinted across the field. Zayden and Dominick vied for the ball, but Richaun plucked it away from both of them, spinning from the crash zone, Ty caught up to him as he staggered out of the wreckage, dragging him down. But it was another stolen reception for Richaun, and another 16 yards for the Cobras.
With it, Colby's frustrations rose. Of course, another pass was coming. Anyone could've predicted that. No way would he give the ball away to a RB when it was already being stolen from him by Richaun. He had a point to prove. Not even Richaun could steal away his passes. Even when his own teammates were working against him, Colby would prove he was the greatest by overcoming all. Even if it was a 2v20, he just needed one teammate to throw to. He'd get them that ball.
'HUT!'
Colby's cry was short, sharp, and ANGRY. It was unlike him. Richaun surged forward, snakes at bay, lying in wait. Ty tried to fight back with another spear, but Richaun pushed right through it, lowering his helmet and charging forward like a ram, forcing open a pathway. He snapped around suddenly, eyes darting wildly.
Ty was right on his heels as they both darted towards Dominick again—this time the TE was running a short Drag route—but even so, Richaun had eyes only for the ball that would be his, and at that moment, he was as stubborn as a ram.
Colby grit his teeth before firing the ball over the middle. It was effectively shot out of a cannon, so quick and hot that it was too much for Dominick to handle, bouncing off his hands, and right into Richaun's coming the other away.
Richaun spun out of trouble; Ty lunged, clinging to the back of his shirt, but the fabric ripped in his hand as Dominick and JJ crashed into him. All three toppled to the dirt as Richaun ran on, stiff-arming Zayden down, and bulldozing through Sonny, who clung to a leg, being dragged further on the ground before Richaun was eventually toppled, landing only a few yards before the end-zone.
JJ, back on his feet, helped Dominick—the Cobra was too disoriented from Richaun's actions to refuse—then Ty up, patting his teammate down. 'You good, hermano?'
'Yeah. I'm perfect,' Ty answered, watching Richaun pick himself up and take his position near the sideline.
JJ shuddered, then blinked, feeling as if Ty was standing just out of arm's reach, even while he was holding the boy's shoulders. He stepped back, looking around. Everything else was in its right place. But the feeling hadn't passed, because looking at Ty was still like looking through the wrong end of a telescope. It couldn't be a concussion, he'd never had symptoms like THAT before.
'Uhh, yeah. Okay, good. You keep trying your best. As long as they don't score a touchdown.' He patted Ty on the back and then went to the huddle. Ty didn't follow.
Instead, Ty walked over to Richaun. Understanding, and with it, tranquillity filled his expression; he finally knew what he was looking at—a chimera.
Richaun was unlike any beast he'd ever seen before, because he was EVERY beast in one. They were interchangeable to him. Whatever the situation needed, that's what Richaun could become. He was the ultimate problem solver, able to adapt to any solution. Most importantly, he could do everything himself.
That was fine. There was nothing that could solve the problem of Tyrese Samuels. When it came to a one-on-one confrontation? Always bet on Ty.
Richaun growled before the snap. Both boys' heads snapped towards the middle of the field. Something on the other side of the field would be too far away, but there wasn't enough space, Lamar's Fade in the opposite corner of the end-zone was covered; the target would be something over the middle. It was the most congested area, but even those minuscule gaps were as wide as highways to a passer like Colby.
Richaun took off, and Ty followed, drifting after him. Everything seemed much slower, even though he knew Richaun still had a cheetah's agility. They slipped past the rest of the defence, like a knife in the back.
Colby saw the space, knew a Receiver would fill it first, and fired the ball towards the back of the end-zone, just barely passing JJ's outstretched hand.
But the Receiver who found that gap first was none other than Richaun. A fire raged within Colby as he watched the ball trail through the air, like it was all happening in slow-motion.
Richaun dove, like a bird of prey swooping in for the kill. Ty was right there with him, curving around and over him, stretching out in front of him to eclipse his reach. The ball's arc bent towards them, towards Ty. The ball was his.
Richaun's hand burst forward, shoving past Ty's as he lunged towards the catch, striking out with talons, latching onto the ball. His other arm came up, wrapping around Ty's, constricting them, blocking them from dislodging the ball.
The crash couldn't dislodge it either. They impacted heavily, Richaun first, Ty on top of him, a struggling, writhing worm desperately stretching towards something that would forever be out of his reach. Richaun clutched the ball in one hand, cradling it away from the ground.
The officials moved in. Coach Hoang's heart had already plummeted, despair filling the void it left behind. Ty had been beaten. Even at his peak. He didn't need the touchdown signal to tell him the game was in the Cobras' grasp as firmly as the ball was Richaun's.
Boos poured in from every side of the stadium, bouncing against one another, creating a vortex of noise and hate centred over Richaun who swaggered off the field. Confused Cobras trailed after him, some rushing ahead to congratulate him, others—like Colby—sticking back to wrestle with their conflicted emotions.
Ty lay where he'd fallen, staring up at the lights, yet stuck in darkness. Richaun was ushered away from him by officials, though the shadow remained looming over Ty. Even when JJ reached through the veil, and picked Ty off the ground, the abyss moved with him. He'd lost? But… Richaun wasn't anything special. He was just the shitty number two. How?
He pondered the question as he was escorted off the field and to the bench, thudding into place like a lifeless husk. He didn't take notice of the successful extra-point attempt which tied the game, 21–21.
Another score, another kickoff, another touchback. Chris came back to the bench, much more worried than he had been for the Dons' previous drive.
'It's alright!' Coach Long shouted as the offence filled the field. 'We know what we have to do. Stick to the game plan and get the lead back.'
JJ and Cameron ventured out once more, JJ already apologising for his and the defence's failings. 'It's not like this is the first game you guys have had to carry, right? Let's keep scoring, and keep them pendejos chasing us.'
Jay nodded. It was just like against the Bears. And like their eventual win against Denzel and the Bears, he knew the defence would get their shit together and get the stop they needed for the win. It was up to the offence to keep applying the pressure, and stay on top.
They kept it simple on the first play—another rush up the gut with Cameron. Maybe it was too simple, too predictable. The Maclin brothers were all over it, as one forced JJ aside, opening up the hole for his brother, who brought Cam down for a gain of only 1.
A run play to open the drive was too obvious; there was no hesitation in the defence. The Dons picked themselves up and reset. Jay kept his eyes on the Cobras, a frown etching its way onto his face.
It was true they were in unfamiliar territory being tied this deep into the game. The whole game had been strange and wrong for what the Cobras were used to. But their offence firing back with a touchdown, even if it was unorthodox, had given them new life. They just had to stop the people in front of them; how could anyone second-guess themselves when their job was so simple?
Jay took the snap on second down, dropping back, bypassing Cameron and JJ completely. A first down gain of only 1? Of course a pass was coming next. The Maclin brothers knew it too, and came screaming around the edge. Jay held firm, stepping up in the pocket. Benny would get open he just had to wait for the break.
When Benny cut out on his Corner, aiming to slip under Stephen's Vertical, Jay lobbed the ball over. Immediately after the ball left his hand, Jeremy Maclin, the younger of the brothers, rammed into him and knocked him on his ass. He grunted, taking the hit; the ball was already on its way, his job was done.
Benny looked over his shoulder, arching into the path of the pass, stretching out across the sideline. He dragged his feet as he reeled it in against his chest, a Cobra draped over his shoulders, desperately but futilely attempting to knock the ball loose as they crashed to the ground. The reception was good for 13 yards.
A gentle cheer came from the nearest section of the crowd, though it was hardly reassuring. Doubt had crept in to these bandwagon fans after the Cobras' last touchdown. They weren't quite sure what they were seeing, but they thought the tides were turning, and didn't want to get swept out to sea by them.
It was up to the Dons to prove them wrong, and Benny's catch had been a good start. Play-Action would follow. If the Cobras were expecting runs on first down, the Dons should play with those expectations.
The fake bought Jay time, occupying the Maclins, keeping his pocket clear as he looked for another deep target. Stephen was covered, and Benny drew more attention over the middle. He glanced towards Cole, knowing Cameron would be open in the flat if needed.
Cole had a step, but the quick-footed Cobra was closing. Jay put a little extra on the pass, heaving the ball forward … and overthrew his mark. Even diving, Cole's outstretched fingertips didn't brush the ball.
Jay's shoulders sagged, yet he couldn't be too upset by the outcome. Any shorter and the defender would've broken it up or worse. JJ rallied the boys, helping them put the incompletion behind them.
A run on second down was unexpected, scrambling the Cobras' defence, and Cameron's 5-yard gain reignited the Dons' engine somewhat. But it still brought them to third down. At least they'd only need something quick to earn a new set of downs.
Though the Cobras would know that too. JJ was positioned as a TE on the opposite side of the Line to Benny, giving the defence something extra to worry about. Jay took the snap. It was only a three-step drop back.
Of course, the Dons still went for something fast. There were a few options. Cole cut in on a Slant, whilst JJ flashed out, and Benny cut across on a shallow Drag. But it was a quick Slant to Stephen that was the real target.
Jay fired the ball over, and watched in dismay as Evan, #20, struck. His arm darted in, quick as a snake, punching the ball free from Stephen's hands. It was an incompletion. The Dons would punt. The Cobras controlled the game once again as the seesaw continued.
Jay hung his head back, leaving the field at a snail's pace. Stephen slapped him on the helmet. 'Hey, don't go back to that shit, you lazy bum,' Stephen said. 'That was on me. So keep looking forward. We need you to lead us to the championship again.'
Stepping off the field, Jay removed his helmet, watching the punting unit take the field. 'No. I should've… I'm sorry. We shouldn't be the one's falling behind.'
Stephen glanced back at the field, then scanned the bench, eyes falling on Ty. The freshy was silent, but he drew so many eyes. It always came back to him, didn't it. 'We'll be alright,' Stephen said, sitting beside Jay. 'They'll give us another shot.'
Jay laughed. How ridiculous. The both of them relying on a freshman to save them from the fire. Maybe he should've been crying. But Ty would get them through it, right? He always had before.
The punt went out at the Cobras' 21. Ty stood, still silent as he entered the field. Throughout the Dons' drive he'd been thinking, replaying Richaun's touchdown. What had gone wrong? Something had to have; Richaun wasn't better than him. Yet the answer still hid from him.
Richaun said nothing as they stood before one another again, yet he wasn't quiet, huffing like a bull about to charge, or maybe a wolf about to blow a pig's house down. Ty was too busy trying to solve his conundrum to shit-talk.
The ball was snapped and snakes struck out at Ty one after another, his spear deflected the first, but he was forced to retreat under threat of the second and third.
Of course, the Cobras weren't going to run. Their success might've been happening different than they'd planned, but successful it was, and they couldn't turn their backs on that.
Richaun turned, observing the field again before taking off, the space he'd earned giving him a clean release. Ty trailed after him, gritting his teeth around his mouth guard. Richaun flew past another Cobra's route, plucking away the pass intended for them.
A heavy slash batted away JJ's tackle, sending him into Ty's path; chasing against the flow of the rest of the field came with many perils. Ty spun away, locking back onto Richaun who broke away, and trucked right through Sonny. At least the failed tackle slowed Richaun enough for Ty to catch him, hawking him down after a gain of 22.
After they slid to a stop, Ty shoved Richaun back down, using him to push himself up. Richaun twisted around to snarl at him, but even the chimera paused at the sight awaiting him. Despite giving up another reception, he was grinning, a wicked thing gleaming in the deep shadows of his helmet with the lights blasting down on him from above.
'I've figured you out,' Ty said. 'You're so fucked.'
Richaun sprung up to his feet. JJ was already pulling Ty away into the Dons' huddle, ending the confrontation prematurely. The nasty look remained on Richaun's face until Ty was within reach again. He was fuming, having held in his retort until then.
'Only shit you figured out is I'm the GOAT!' Richaun snapped.
Ty laughed. 'You're so fucking stupid. You really think you can beat me at my own game?'
Fear and confusion flickered across Richaun's face before it snapped back into a mask of rage, just as the ball was snapped again.
Ty backed off without hesitation, just out of Richaun's reach. Both turned towards the inner field. Thinking about it—without fixating on what Richaun was, which was the tricky bit—the similarities were obvious. Richaun wasn't acting like a WR at all, which made his behaviour so bizarre … but he was acting like a DB.
Watching the offence, predicting the pathways of the Receivers, and keeping an eye on the QB for any clues to who he'd target? He was playing defence against his own team. Of course, he was familiar with everyone's play style, and the team's play calling in general, so he could quickly understand what they were doing. Add in first-hand knowledge of Colby's habits and tendencies, and he was the perfect weapon to take them down. A sneaky little mole.
But if Richaun was playing defence, that meant he'd stepped fully into Ty's realm. Ty was THE CB. If it was a challenge of who could be the better defender, no-one could beat him.
The only problem there, was he had to stop trying to cover Richaun man-to-man. Richaun wasn't a Receiver anymore, so guarding him didn't benefit anything. Which meant he had to drop back into a sort of all-encompassing zone and figure out where the ball would go. Still, watching Richaun's reactions could give him hints.
It was an odd sight to say the least. Both players who had been on the verge of fighting at multiple points throughout the game, were no longer even acknowledging each other.
Ty saw the open space a heartbeat later than Richaun. The rest of the world darkened, and that space lit up like a beacon. Another Receiver would be coming the opposite way, but that didn't matter, Ty would run them over, or get run over if it meant the ball was his. With cold efficiency, Ty swept through a shadowy universe, rushing to consume the light before anyone else could touch it.
When Colby threw the ball, another star lit up the world. Ty's head snapped around. He adjusted his path. Aligning himself with the ball, he leapt. Richaun leapt as well, an annoying grasshopper getting in Ty's way.
Richaun's talon struck out, but Ty thrust a hand out to match it. Both boys pincered the ball against the other's palm. Lamar, coming the other way, shied away from the collision, but still clipped Richaun's side, sending him spiralling into Ty; the two crashed atop one another, the ball rolling free from their grip. Another interception gone begging, because Richaun had stopped him.
Ty's tumbled halted. He stared at Richaun. Were they equally matched? Impossible. But they'd just reached a stalemate. Only because Ty had JUST adjusted to the new game they were playing. Richaun had been playing for longer, building up an advantage, but that wouldn't last much longer. Ty's position was winning.
Colby saw this, too. You had to be observant to be a QB; someone who wouldn't baulk at sitting back and staying quiet whilst everyone else did the flashier things. Richaun had finally levelled up, that much was obvious. "It's about time."
He pushed past the other Cobras, leaving them confused and alone in their huddle as he walked over to Richaun. Alarm bells rung in Ty's head, and he rushed over to them, but by the time he arrived, Colby was already walking away, leaving Richaun with a sickening grin.
Richaun was going back to being part of the offence again? That wouldn't help them, it would be worse for them, going back to Ty's familiarity.
Silence hung in the air. The crowd didn't know what kind of game they were watching anymore. Captivated, they couldn't think of booing or cheering. The ball was snapped, and all that was heard were the thudding footsteps, and grunting breaths as twenty-two boys went to war with each other.
Richaun and Ty collided, a ram pushing through a spear before a lion's paw smacked it aside. Richaun cut in before darting outside, a gazelle fleeing a lion, but Ty wasn't so easily avoided.
Colby sat back, watching the pair; watching ALL. It was a lot to take in, especially since it'd been so long since he'd opened his eyes so wide. A QB had to see EVERYTHING on the field, so much so they needed eyes on the back of their head. Not really, they just needed to recognise patterns. As soon as you saw someone moving, even just a snapshot of them preparing to run one way, you could predict where they'd be in a couple of seconds. So even when focusing on a single point, you knew everything that was happening around you.
What held Colby's focus wasn't Ty and Richaun themselves, but a point in the air just ahead of them. He locked in on that point, the perfect spot, where Richaun would reach by Ty couldn't. It was small. A tiny window, but Colby knew he could fit the ball in. He just needed a different angle.
He whipped his arm around, firing the ball towards the pair. Ty turned, still running back with the flight of the ball. It was wide, too wide. Richaun wouldn't get it, but maybe he could pick it off. He leapt, stretching out, reaching for the asteroid ripping through space.
It was too wide for him to reach. But as it passed his fingertips, the wind whipping off it brushing his hand, he realised it was curving, bending around him. He twisted, watching, shock taking a hold of him, as the ball curved into Richaun's outstretched arm.
He raked it in against his chest, stumbling as Ty crashed fully, the impact made all the more devastating as he thrashed around to desperately swipe at Richaun, who kept his feet just inbounds, and scurried up the sideline, racing away. No-one could catch him. It was a touchdown.
Silence blanketed Ty, dragging the moment out longer, before the crowd erupted into cheers. Colby Jenkins had come alive at just the right time to remind everyone why he was the best player in high school.
Ty's gaze snapped from a celebrating Richaun in the end-zone, to Colby on the other side of the field, standing passively, staring back at him. The air between them crackled with electricity. Richaun was special, but if he was, then Colby had to be as well.
A chimera was one thing, but how was Ty supposed to tame such a beast when it had a god of thunder assisting it?