MLG FN

Nerds.

"I think I'm going to pass out when we go up there." Alison 'Birb' declared, her hands shaking as she shovelled potato chips into her mouth. Her hair was frizzy, limbs long and stick-like, and a pair of glasses sat perched on her nose, slightly crooked. She wore a dark blue hoodie with orange denoting her gamertag, and the team logo.

"Just drink your dew, and you'll be fine, Ali." Daniel 'KnightONorth' reassured her. He was wearing a similar hoodie, but yellow and black. Likewise, he also had glasses; square ones that accented the friendliness of his face. He was larger than the rest of his team, and taller than them by at least an inch. He was the main part of the group that said "don't mess with us", yet also seemed the most welcoming at the same time.

"We should try to get the Dew company to sponsor us, it would probably cut our costs in half." Karys 'ArtiumFlora' remarked. She had tan skin, dark hair, and dark eyes that shone when she grinned. She had an accent that coloured her voice; the mark of having lived abroad. She wore her team hoodie around her waist; red and black.

"Well, it can't get better than PC. If we win this, that's pretty much all our groceries." Cameron 'NPJN00BS' reminded them. He had short dark hair and yet another friendly face, and looked to be the epitome of easygoing; which was exactly right. His team hoodie was dark green and lighter green.

"It just sucks that we have to win to get the sponsorship." Cameron 'CoCoolBeans' commented. He was fairly tall, had longer dark hair, tired eyes, and a dry sense of humour. His team hoodie was dark red, almost maroon, with grey. He looked wildly different from the other Cameron in their group, despite sharing a name.

"Don't worry, guys. If all else fails we can commit cannibalism to keep us going. I vote we eat Cameron first." Finn 'NyaBoi' declared. They were big and soft, and had short brown hair and wide glasses. They gave a devious look to each of the Camerons in turn; as if they were trying to make it clear that which one  they were eating was ultimately a mystery. Their hoodie was red and golden-yellow, hearkening to mind a certain superhero.

"I would have gone with Daniel, personally." Alison commented.

"Daniel would fight back harder." Karys shook her head.

"Yeah, so we have more people to take him down." Cameron pointed out.

"If he's not the first, he'll be the last." The other Cameron agreed.

"I'm not gonna eat any of you. I'm vegetarian!" Karys shook her head.

"Am I interrupting something?" A voice came from the door of the team room. In the doorway stood Marsha Longé, the reporter-announcer-interviewer for the Oversight league.

Everyone froze. Daniel was the first to recover and scramble for something to say. "No, no, it's okay."

"Great!" She stepped across the threshold, heels clicking on the linoleum floor. "I'm going to need to get an interview with your leader."

Alison and Finn shared a look. "Uh..." Alison's voice quivered slightly.

"I'll do it instead." Daniel declared. "I'm not the leader, but we don't really use a command system all that much, anyway."

Marsha looked around at the group, looked unsure for a split second, and shrugged. "Okay. Come with me."

And they disappeared.

"We're going to be interviewed." Alison stated. "I can't believe I forgot that. Shit."

"Just say some Lúcio lines, drink a can of voltage, and you'll be fine." Cameron suggested.

"Ali, how do you feel about today's win? 'Oh, oh, oh, it's time to accelerate!' Very good, then. Here's your winnings!"

"Sounds good to me." Finley shrugged.

A portly man in a dark shirt and jeans stepped into the room once again. A hat atop his blond head proclaimed him the 'I.T. God'; 'bow down before the hard restart'.

"You guys need to get ready to head up on stage." He told them. "Come on."

The team followed IT God down a darkened hallway. They could hear the distant hum-roar of hundreds of people talking all at once. From where their guide had them stand, Fantastic Nerds had no way of knowing the size of the crowd that would greet them, nor did they know the layout of the room.

It would all be a surprise. The dramatic intro to esports ads almost seemed realistic, now that they were standing at the forefront. As they waited and listened to IT God explain how there were anti-cheating measures in place and the like, it was in crystal, HD, IMAUX clarity just how big this was.

They'd been to tournaments, of course. But this wasn't "a tournament". This was the tournament. Oversight League. The big times, big money. An actual sponsorship was on the line.

Daniel appeared when there were 3 minutes 'til showtime. "Lotta people." Was his only, awestruck comment.

"If you have controllers, they'll be waiting for you by your designated computers. Usually I don't need to comment on that, but here we are." IT God told them. "Your provided headphones are noise cancelling, voice chat is already enabled, you'll be able to communicate with each other during play."

"We're not noobs, dude. We know how to play." Finn pointed out, crossing their armsand raising an eyebrow at the man.

"One of you brought a controller along. I just had to make sure you knew how the game worked." He gave them each a scathing look in turn.

"In that case, sex happens when people's genitals connect." Karys said, a fake sweet tone colouring her words.

"What?"

"You're wearing an IT God hat and clearly have never touched another human being in your life. Just had to make sure you knew how it worked."

"Nice." Alison high-fived her cousin. IT God shook his head and stalked away, adjusting his hat indignantly.

"Hello, everybody, and Welcome to Oversight League Entry-Level Championships!" Marsha's voice boomed over the speakers. "In about a minute, you'll be seeing team Fantastic Nerds face off against team GGamz in the next of many showdowns over the next week."

"So tell me," John's voice boomed low. "Are you ready for this?"

The crowd cheered. There was mumbled uncertainty amongst both the teams. John, of course, couldn't hear anything but the excitable crowd, and laughed. "Alright then, let's get this show on the road!"

"I guess that's our cue to go." Daniel commented, and the team began moving forward.

"Do you think their voices are pre-recorded?" Cameron reflected. "The announcers. Don't they announce for the live broadcasts as well?"

"Probably." The other Cameron agreed.

With that, they emerged onto the stage in a near-blinding display of lights and sound. Across the floor, the players of GGamz appeared, looking shockingly even to them in terms of anxiety levels.

Only time would tell if that would prove to make or break the game. the teams moved up to the computers, sat in the chairs, and prepared to find out who would be taking their first steps towards the big prize; sponsorships, a pass into the big league, and 50,000 dollars. 

There was a lot on the line. Good thing this was what they had been training for for a very long time.