Chapter One: The Zero-Degree Line

It grew from the puck, narrow and luminous, grazing the post, striking the boards, then folding back toward the crease. It was no reflection. Points of light marked every place the puck had not yet reached. Three. Two. One. The puck followed it exactly. Shen's glove was waiting before the rebound arrived. The whistle blew. The arena erupted. Gao stared through his visor. “How did you know it was coming back?” Shen had no answer. The line had not vanished. It continued from beneath his glove, crossed the entire rink, and ended inside the upper-left corner of the empty net. Six seconds remained. He rose, dropped the puck to his stick, and ignored the coach shouting for him to freeze it and take overtime.