Scott Sigler - The Rookie

Quentin waved a hand dismissively. “Big deal,” he said. “They haven’t faced us yet, we’ll light ‘em up.”

“Pine’s well enough to dress this week.”

Quentin suddenly sat forward, eyes narrow. “I got us to this position, and you know it.”

Hokor’s eye turned translucent black.

“You’re not in charge here, Barnes, I am. You’re starting, you’ve earned it for this game. But I’m letting you know that if you keep throwing interceptions, I’m going to have to sit you down. I would have pulled you last week, but Yitzhak couldn’t have done any better. Pine can.”

Quentin felt his temper boiling up to the top, but he concentrated, holding it in check. “I’ve studied like mad for this game, I’ve worked the holo-sim over and over again. I know those defenders. I just won’t throw interceptions, how’s that?”

“Ball control,” Hokor said. “That’s what we need. We turn it over against them, we lose. You’re doing a great job, Quentin, but you’re still a little rough around the edges. Don’t take it personally.”

“Oh I don’t,” Quentin lied. “Not at all.”

He stood and walked out of the office.

Transcript from the “Galaxy’s Greatest Sports Show with Dan & Akbar & Tarat the Smasher”

CALLER:I’m glad Barnes gets the start. Pine is washed up.

AKBAR:You moron! How can you say he’s washed up?

CALLER:He’s always hurt.

AKBAR:He got mugged, for crying out loud. Mugged. This wasn’t some on-field injury.

DAN:Well, there was the injury earlier this year.

AKBAR:Hey, you don’t recover from a broken femur that quick if you’re fragile, you know.

CALLER:But he can’t win the big games!

AKBAR:What, two Galaxy Bowls aren’t big enough for you?

TARAT:That was years ago, Akbar.

CALLER:Ancient history.

AKBAR:Well I can’t believe you people. Aside from Condor Adrienne, Pine is still the best quarterback in Tier Two.

DAN:But that’s Tier Two! The fans are sick of Tier Two, I’m sick of Tier Two, and so are you. Barnes is the key to Tier One, like I’ve been saying all along.

AKBAR:He’s too young.

DAN:Too young? Who cares! Look what he’s done so far. His come-from-behind win over the Orbiting Death kept the Krakens in the playoff hunt, and he dusted the Bigg Diggers.

AKBAR:Dusted? What game were you watching?

DAN:The one where he threw two TDs and ran for another, racked up 387 all-purpose yards.

AKBAR:Oh, that game. Is that the same one where he three interceptions? Why yes, I think it is. Three interceptions against a mediocre defensive secondary that gives up an average, an average of 280 yards a game? Are you kidding me?

TARAT:Well when I played the game, all we cared about was the win. Barnes got the win.

DAN:That’s right, he wins games.

AKBAR:Well, he’s not going to win against the Warpigs, I’ll tell you that for free. They’ve got the best secondary in all of football, not just Tier Two.

TARAT:One could easily argue that the Bartell Water Bugs or the Hullwalkers have the best secondary.

AKBAR:Am I in a house of morons, here? Am I? Those are Tier One teams contending for the championship this year. The best of the best. And the Warpigs’ secondary is right up there. Look at the stats: left corner Keluang, four interceptions; safety Wellington, three interceptions and a pair of sacks; free safety Alamo, two interceptions; and let’s not forget right corner Toyonaka, all-pro two years running, eight interceptions on the season, averaging more than one a game.

DAN:Look, Quentin Barnes is the future of this team. I said it before, I’ll say it again, I’ve said it all along, Barnes needs to start.

AKBAR:You’re crazy and stupid, Pine needs to start this game.

DAN:Well, we’ll see what happens at game-time. Caller, thanks for the call. Next we’ve got Amos from Jones 2. Hello, Amos, you’re on the space…

QUENTIN RUBBED SWEAT from his eyes. He’d never faced a secondary like this one.

Arkham had robbed him blind last week, but the rest of the secondary had been mortal. The only reason Arkham had intercepted him three times was he wanted to go after her, he wanted to complete passes to her side of the field. Hokor had told him to avoid her, but Quentin hid from no one. You just don’t give up a whole side of the field. If he’d have stayed away from Arkham, gone to the easy side of the field, he probably would have come out with no INTs at all.

But the Warpigs were different — there was no easy side of the field. The Warpigs didn’t have anyone as good as Arkham, but they had four players who were almost in her ballpark. Four. Every time Quentin dropped back, every receiver seemed covered. And if they looked open, they probably weren’t. He’d learned that lesson the hard way, throwing two interceptions in the first quarter, including one that Keluang, the Warpigs’ corner, took to the house for a 33-yard touchdown. The secondary switched from woman-to-woman to zone in the same play, zone to woman-to-woman the next, two-deep with zone under the next. The ‘Pigs linebackers were also damn good, covering passes over the middle and in the flat, trying to take away dump-passes to the tight ends and running backs.

His arm hadn’t done anything for the Krakens. What had worked, however, were two pairs of Human feet — his and Mitchell Fayed’s. Late in the second quarter, Fayed already had 80 yards on the ground and a TD. Quentin had added a rushing TD and another 40 rushing yards, mostly from scrambling because there was no one to pass to. Those two touchdowns put 14 on the board that matched the Warpigs’ two TDs.

Second-and-4 on the Krakens’ 22. Quentin looked to the sidelines as the Krakens huddled up.

“Keep it on the ground,” Hokor said into his ear-piece. “Forty-six sweep right.”

Quentin breathed a sigh of relief, then felt a wave of anger swarm across his thoughts. What kind of a pansy was he turning into? He’d felt happy because Hokor called a run play? Quentin called the play in the huddle, then walked to the line, marveling at how this defense had taken him right out of his game.

“Red, twenty-one… red, twenty-one, hut-hut!”

The ball slapped into his hands. Quentin stepped to his left, planted his left foot and pivoted backwards all the way around in a smooth motion. Holding the ball in front of him with both hands, he gently flipped it to Fayed, who moved left, five yards back and parallel to the line of scrimmage. Right guard Wen-E-Daret pulled to lead the block, taking a few steps back and then scuttling right, horizontal to the line. The big Ki lineman got in front of Fayed, leading the running back to the outside as they both looked to cut upfield. The Warpigs’ outside linebacker picked up the play and drove straight at Wen-E. The two collided, and Fayed slipped past the block, trying to find open space. Keluang, the Warpigs’ left cornerback, came up fast, a streaking blur of black jersey with teal numbers and a teal helmet. Fayed tried to cut outside, but Keluang dove and tripped up the running back, taking him down for a four-yard loss.

Third and 8.

Quentin’s stomach churned with butterflies. He had to pee. Tie game, passing down.