Reshar Collifay: A Star in the Making - Part Ten

     "Overtime will be three minutes long. The game will end once a team scores a goal, no matter how much time is remaining. If you foul someone, they will receive a penalty shot. Let overtime begin!"

     The players returned to their positions and waited for the Yooyu to appear. The referee blew his whistle. The Yooyu to appear was a snow Yooyu. Tandrak and Layton ran as fast as they could, and Tandrak retrieved it. Tandrak and Layton together passed all of the forwards, and it was 2 on 1 again. Tandrak passed to Layton, and Layton passed it back. Tandrak ran to where he was easy scoring distance in front of the goal. The defender started running after him. Layton was now opposite to him, and wide open. Reshar passed it to Layton, Layton shot, and scored! Darigan Citadel was going to the Finals!

     Reshar jumped really high and the Darigan Citadel team was now cheering together. The crowd was now going crazy at this point. Reshar was still cheering with his teammates. He couldn't believe his team was going to the Finals.

     "Congratulations, Darigan Citadel!" the announcer said over the loudspeaker. "You have secured your spot in the Altador Cup Finals. You will be playing Maraqua. The game is scheduled for next week on Saturday night. We wish you luck on your way to becoming Champions!"

     The crowd was decreasing slowly as they left the Colosseum. Adelene greeted the team and started talking with them. "No practice tomorrow, but we will continue practicing the next day. This will be the biggest game of your lives. I want to make sure we're prepared. See you then!" She left.

     Reshar was very tired and headed in the direction of the Astrovilla. He had many fans pass him and they were fired up after the Darigan Citadel win. He arrived at the hotel and went up to his room. When he opened the door, his mother hugged him.

     "That was an amazing game, Reshar! I'm so proud of you!"

     "Thanks, Mom... but I'm really tired..."

     "Oh. Well then, I'll see you in the morning. We can talk about the game tomorrow. Goodnight."

     Reshar closed the door behind him and crashed on to his bed.

     ***

     Reshar woke up the next morning at noon. He was amazed when he realized he slept in so late and rushed out of his room into the living room. He stopped and smelled the aroma of food.

     "Eat up," his mother said happily.

     Reshar stuffed food into his mouth as quickly as possible. He finished and grabbed the latest issue of the Neopian Times. There was a preview of the Darigan Citadel and Maraqua Championship match on the front page. All of the correspondents were choosing Maraqua to win. Reshar had no problem with their decisions. He'd just have to prove them wrong.

     The next day Reshar returned to practice. The team practiced three hours a day. Reshar was wiped out once each practice finished.

     On the last day of practice, Adelene called Reshar over. She had a charm in her hand. "Reshar, I want you to have this charm. It helped me when I was a rookie in the Altador Cup; I hope it can do the same for you." She dropped the charm in Reshar's hand. It was a symbol of the Darigan Citadel logo.

     Reshar thanked her and he continued practicing. Practice ended early so Adelene could talk to the team.

     "We are this far in the tournament, and I don't want to lose. We won't give up what we've trained for. I'll see you tomorrow an hour before the match starts for warm ups. 1, 2, 3, Darigan Citadel!" She left the field.

     Reshar headed back to his hotel room. He arrived at the door and his mother opened it for him. "Welcome home, Reshar! I made your favorite dish tonight. Let's eat!"

     They ate and ate. Reshar was gulping every little thing off his plate down. Once he finished, he told his mother he was exhausted and that he was going to bed. He said goodnight and tucked himself in to his bed and dreamed about playing against his favorite team in the Altador Cup Finals.

     ***

     It was the day of the Finals. Reshar jumped out of bed quickly and put on his uniform. It was about 9:00 in the morning. Reshar counted eight hours until he had to be there. Eight hours?! What was he going to do for eight hours? He went into the kitchen and found a note from his mother. He read out loud to himself:

     "Reshar, I went out to get a few supplies. Have some breakfast and I'll be back later. -Mom"

     Reshar put the note back where he found it and started fixing breakfast. He sat down at the living room table and started reading the front page of the Neopian Times. There was another article about the game with Darigan Citadel and Maraqua. Reshar read intently. They discussed Darigan Citadel's strengths and weaknesses on the field. They said one of Reshar's weaknesses was passing. Reshar made a mental note in his mind about that. He finished his food and rolled up the Times and placed it on the table. He didn't know what to do. There was nothing to do in the apartment. He took notes about what he and his team had to improve on.

     There was a knock on the door a while later. Reshar opened the door and it was his mother with two paper bags of groceries in her arms. She greeted him on her way in. She put down the bags. "I saw your coach at the market. She wants you at the Colosseum at 1:00 for practice."

     "One? Okay." Reshar glanced at the clock and it was 11:30. "I'm going to go right now, Mom. I'll just walk around Altador."

     "Okay, Reshar," she said. She gave him a hug. "Good luck today."

     "Thanks," Reshar said as he left. He walked past the Colosseum. I'll head over there later, he thought. He decided to visit the Exquisite Ambrosia for a quick lunch. He looked at the selection and chose the Altadorian Bread. He paid his neopoints and looked for a place to sit down and eat. He found a bench and started eating his food. When he finished, he realized it was five minutes to 1:00. He had to run to the Colosseum to make it in time. It wasn't that far away, but he arrived at the field right on time. He put on his equipment and started practicing with his team. Reshar was looking good, scoring the majority of goals he shot. Maraqua arrived on the other side of the field and started practicing. Reshar stopped. He saw his favorite player, Elon Hughlis, Forward of the Maraqua team. Reshar was amazed. He was actually going to play against his favorite team in the league.

     Adelene yelled at him. "Reshar! Keep your mind on the practice!"

     Reshar was embarrassed. He got back to practicing. It was getting close to 4:00 when Adelene called them in. Adelene discussed the Maraqua's strengths and weaknesses. The team listened closely. Adelene finished and said, "Get back to the team entrance, on the southwest side of the field. The announcer is going to call you out one by one. You can see it over there." Adelene pointed to a huge tunnel that looked like Darigan Citadel's logo. "When they call you out individually, run out of the tunnel, and then go to midfield. Good luck, team. This will be the biggest game of your lives. 1, 2, 3, Darigan Citadel!" The team went into the tunnel as the seats began filling up with Darigan Citadel and Maraqua fans. The announcer's voice appeared about thirty minutes before the match.

     "Ladies and gentlemen, we will announce each player from the Darigan Citadel team. Please hold your applause until the last player is on the field. Kep Bonnefie! Tandrak Shaye! Tormo Frein! Layton Vickles! Reshar Collifay!"

     Each player ran out to midfield and the stadium was deafening. Reshar couldn't hear a single word the team was trying to say.

     "Now," the announcer said, "Here is Maraqua! Oten Runeu! Filo Desenz! Tonie Plessix! Barit Jowes! Elon Hughlis!" The Maraqua team ran out to midfield and shook hands with Darigan Citadel. The announcer announced the two coaches and they waved to the crowd.

     After the crowd was settled, the referee came out to midfield. He discussed the rules and the captains shook hands. The players took their positions. Darigan played in their usual 2-2 formation, but Maraqua played in a 1-3, with Hughlis playing forward. The referee blew his whistle. The Final match had officially begun.

     The first Yooyu to appear was a fire Yooyu. Tandrak and Layton ran after it, and Tandrak retrieved it. He passed it to Layton successfully, and Layton ran down the field. Layton easily passed the little Flotsam defender Filo Desenz and was now in front of the goal. The other defender, Barit Jowes, ran after Layton, while Oten Runeu was guarding Tandrak Layton passed to Tandrak, he got an opening and shot, and scored! Darigan Citadel had a 1-0 lead with 2:20 left. The Darigan Citadel fans in the crowd cheered.

     The players returned to their positions. The next Yooyu to appear was a fire Yooyu. Tandrak and Layton ran after it, but Elon Hughlis got it and ran downfield. Filo Desenz took over the forward position and was running opposite to him. Elon passed Tormo Frein and was in front of the goal. Reshar readied himself as Elon shot, and it swerved an inch away from his fins, and he scored. Maraqua tied the score 1-1 with 1:25 remaining.

     Reshar was beginning to get worried and returned to his position and waited for the next Yooyu to appear. It was a faerie Yooyu. Layton and Tandrak ran after it, but Elon Hughlis was successful again. He ran downfield with the Yooyu and passed Tandrak and Layton. He passed it to Filo, who then passed back to Elon. Elon passed Kep Bonnefie this time and passed it to back to Filo. He shot in front of the goal, but Reshar made an amazing save to keep Darigan alive! There was forty five seconds on the clock as Reshar passed it to Tormo, who passed it to Layton. Layton ran downfield, past Elon and Filo. Layton ran until he passed it to Tandrak. Tandrak swerved past Oten Runeu and was in front of the goal with ten seconds left. Tandrak had no choice but to shoot. He shot it; it swerved to the left, right past the goalkeeper... AND HE SCORED! Darigan Citadel was the Altador Cup Champion! The crowd was going crazy. Reshar ran over towards Tandrak and started crying tears of joy. The President of the Altador Cup came on to the field with a huge gold trophy.

     "I present this trophy to Darigan Citadel, Altador Cup Champions!" Reshar accepted the trophy and raised it up as high as he could. “We also have the Altador Cup Most Valuable Player trophy, which we’d like to award to Reshar Collifay for his amazing save to keep his team alive.”

     Reshar accepted the MVP trophy and raised it up in the air. The crowd was chanting his name for what seemed like forever. Purple and black confetti was floating down on to the field. It was the happiest day of Reshar’s life, and he would never forget it.

     Several years later...

     Reshar was in a suit in front of the Altador Cup Hall of Fame, with many adoring fans of Darigan Citadel. The President had a plaque with Reshar's records on it. "Ladies and Gentlemen," the President said, "this individual has played eight amazing Altador Cup Tournaments with Darigan Citadel, winning five Championships with them. He led the league every year in saves and shutouts recorded. We recognize Reshar into the Hall of Fame. Reshar, you may speak." The President handed him the plaque, and Reshar approached the podium.

          "Ladies and gentlemen, this is an honor. Who knew it would have started with a 3 on 3 Tournament. I would like to thank my friends, Thilve and Nixx, my teammates on Darigan Citadel, my mother, my manager, and everyone that helped me reach the Hall of Fame today. This has been a great experience. Thank you." Reshar left the podium. The President also handed him a picture. It was a picture of the three young Neopets winning the Neopia Central 3 on 3 Yooyuball Tournament.

The End