Chapter Three: The Embers Ignite

Lu saved a screenshot and turned toward his eight players. Beneath the faded crest, everyone was soaked in sweat. There were no stars, no favorites of capital, and not one bowed head. “Our first league game is in three days,” Lu said, pocketing the phone. “From now on, we take every chance they said we didn’t deserve.” Chen raised a fist. “And then?” Lu looked at the sign outside, only half of it still glowing. His voice was quiet, but it cut through the celebration. “Then we keep winning until the people who decide what everyone is worth have no choice but to look up at us.” Night pressed over Northport. Wind crossed the abandoned factories. The broken Embers sign suddenly blazed to life, casting red fire across the rainwater.