Still, I wanted to show off my abilities to the world. I didn’t spend hundreds of hours clacking joysticks for nothing. Hope filled me when I realized my parents would see this when the Dragonfate Games aired, and they’d finally understand that all those hours of gaming in my room honed an impressive skill after all.
A sudden tingle jolted across my skin. I glanced up to see Aurum watching me on stage, his eyes narrowed with warm pride. He nodded encouragingly. I smiled and nodded back. I wouldn’t let him down.
The tournament began. The huge projector flared to life, booming with pumped-up music as Aurum navigated to the character selection screen. After that, he stepped back, letting the contestants take the stage. The first two in line took their seats and controllers. Whoever won the round progressed, while the loser was disqualified. I wondered how much effort the other omegas would put into this challenge. Were there other gamers here like me?
As the first round began, it quickly became obvious the two players had no clue what they were doing. They fumbled the controls, moved randomly, and could barely execute a combo. I winced. It was painful to watch.
Alaric noticed my pained expression. “You could do better?”
“Well... not to brag, but yeah,” I replied.
The round ended quickly. Thank gods. I didn’t know how much more of that I could take. The winner succeeded through sheer luck, which didn’t continue to the next battle. He lost, though the winner wasn’t any more skilled. This repeated for a while until it was Poppy’s turn.
“Yay! I can’t wait to forfeit,” Poppy said. “How do I do that again?”
I imagined the controller layout. “Press the button in the middle, then scroll down and select forfeit.”
“Thanks, Mylo!”
Poppy eagerly climbed on stage. He took my advice. The instant the battle started, he opened the menu and gave up. He flashed me a relieved grin as he left the stage.
Alaric huffed in amusement as he sidestepped out of line, not even bothering to get on stage. “He’s special, all right. I’ve never seen a wolf with such little fight in him.”
“You’re not going to try?” I asked.
Alaric scoffed. “Gods, no. I won’t embarrass myself. Go ahead and win the whole thing.”
A burst of pride bubbled up within me. I was good at something that Poppy or Alaric weren’t—and apparently, that none of the other contestants were good at, either. My heart raced as I took the stage. The other omega on the couch looked smugly up at me. He’d beaten the last three players, but not skilfully. He’d obviously button-mashed his way to victory. Given the inexperienced player pool, it wasn’t difficult.
I sat on the couch calmly and took the controller. Muscle memory took over as my fingers fell into place. I spread my legs to get comfortable, crouched forward with my elbows on my knees, and focused on the screen.
I was ready.
“Good luck,” my opponent sneered.
I smiled to myself, saying nothing.
“FIGHT!” the screen announced.
Years of playing video games led me to this moment. I smashed the joystick to the right, avoiding my opponent’s initial predictable attack, then launched my character up to start an air combo. I spiraled into my opponent with a flurry of kicks and punches that drained his health bar.
The omega beside me cursed and sat straighter. He smashed the buttons furiously, but his button-mashing luck hit its limit. He didn’t know how to fight back against my onslaught. I jukeda few stray swipes of his sword, then counterattacked. It was all over in the next combo. My character stood victorious while my opponent lay KO’d on the ground.
“Yay, Mylo!” Poppy called from the audience.
I gave the other contestant a polite nod. “Good game.”
He scowled. “You got lucky! Fight me again. One more round.”
“Nah,” Aurum said as he strode toward the loveseat. “That ain’t happening. Mylo beat you, fair and square.” He flashed a toothy warning grin. “If you’ve got complaints, tell ‘em straight to me.”
The omega balked. “N-no, thanks.”
He scurried off stage without making trouble. When he was gone, Aurum smiled and plopped down next to me. His golden eyes flashed, fiery with competition, but also warm with love. He sat so close that our legs brushed, sending a tingle along my skin.
“Ready?” he asked.
I clutched the controller harder. “Ready.”
