Video Game High School: The Professional Game

Chapter 3: A New Monster

Standing at the front gate of the Sony eSports Campus, home of the Toronto Titans, Brian was taken aback by its immense scale. A massive scarlet banner embroidered with the image of the first team hung above the main entrance. Glancing over at a nearby map of the facility, he noted that there were five main buildings on campus which formed a massive five-piece pentagon shape from overhead. Each main structure was connected by sheltered walkways and bridges whilst surrounding a wide-open field in the center of campus.

Brian had been on several school trips touring real, professional eSports training facilities. He had seen how real FPS pros train and play. The intensity and speed were unlike anything he had seen. Fire-fights more or less lasted for thirty seconds in competitive high school matches. In a professional game, players were taken out in less than five. There was almost no time to think or hesitate. You either kill or get killed.

"Are you kidding me?" The frustrated scream of a girl came from his right. "All I asked was just some time away from school and work. That's all dad. And now you send me to this... this... whatever this place is?"

Standing before him was a lean, blonde girl donning a blue hoodie with cut off sleeves and jeans paired with black sandals. The food stains splattered all over her clothing did little to deviate his gaze from the numerous ripped holes torn into them. Another thing that caught his eye was the bright sleeve tattoo that wrapped around her entire right arm from her shoulder down to her wrist. She was also a lot taller than he was at about six foot, two inches.

"Don't talk to me about learning my lesson dad!" The girl said over the phone. "Fine! I'll go for the stupid youth trials. But if you don't keep your end of the deal, you won't be seeing me ever again. Tell mom I love her. Bye"

Pocketing her iPhone with a cracked screen, she then took a deep breath before turning her gaze over to Brian. Before he knew it he was staring directly into a pair of deep set, green eyes. For a brief moment, the world stood still and there was nothing else but the two of them standing before an opportunity of a lifetime. Though, it seemed clear only one of them wanted it more than the other.

"Brian D?" The girl questioned. "I'll be damned. Everyone knows the Titans were looking for new high school players, but I didn't think their scouts would be interested in a defensive assault. Let alone one with a slow trigger finger."

"S-sorry," Brian said in confusion. "But, have we met before? Maybe in the playoffs or in a pre-season skirmish?"

"Nope." The girl said before shaking his hand. "But I've watched a few of your matches. The name's Sarah Lawson. I played sentinel for Henry East High and I was also their analyst."

"You're an analyst?" Brian asked. "Might I ask for your opinions on my game?"

"If I'm honest, I'd say your mid to long range combat skills are solid, and you're good at covering defensive weaknesses. However, apart from a few grenade and gun tricks and unorthodox tactics, you're weak at close quarter combat and high intensity fire fights. Overall, you're a low level shooter with weak offensive power. So, tell me, how the hell did you get on the Titan's radar?"

"The dean at VGHS was once a player for the Titans before retiring and taking the reins at my school." Brian said. "He recommended me to his friends here in Toronto. Before that I was actually looking to attend Northwood U. But he persuaded me otherwise."

"He must either be one very demanding dean, or a very caring one. I can't imagine having a teacher, let alone a dean that gave two shits about their students back at my high school. Not even the students gave a shit about each other. Everyone was just out for themselves."

"I mean it couldn't be that bad. There must've at least been a few pranks, or a couple of heartwarming anecdotes and such to look back on. You know, fond memories of your high school years with your friends and teachers. How about events like birthday parties, or graduation, or even fragging opponents together with your team."