NOVEL FROG Chapter 28: Game Over
The audience approached the back side of the defense’s base to watch what happened, and to their surprise, they found Shane on the ground, with all of his teammates piled up above him, surrounded by Scott’s entire team as they laughed at his misfortune. Their classmates joined in on the fun, but as Frost hadn’t put an end to the match yet, he rushed over to the field to stop the audience from interfering. Charlie pretended to bonk Shane’s head with his broken hammer to tease him, which only filled his rage, though there wasn’t anything he could do, so Alex, Scott, Zoey, and even Jumbo began doing the same. However, their fun was interrupted by Frost as he brought Panda and Tricky to control the crowd gathered around the destroyed base while he stepped forward to address the situation.
–What is this about? The round isn’t over yet, you shouldn’t be in the field…– Frost ordered with mild annoyance as he scared off the students trying to get a closer look as soon as he approached. The rest immediately backed away, and as Panda and Tricky kept them in check, everyone stayed behind the limit of the playing field to watch from a distance. Even Frost stayed out of the field, waiting for the attackers to take out Shane and finish the game, though they looked like they were already celebrating.
–Oh, come on. He clearly lost, and we still have time left, so let’s not humiliate him…– Scott replied with a jolly smile, which he shared with his entire team as they cheered with the audience. But as Frost didn’t see the charm in his lighthearted response, he stayed quiet and just kept watching with a bitter expression to see if any of the players would do something, especially Shane, who wasn’t comfortable with everyone seeing him in such a humiliating position.
–Is it true? Are you going to give up or what? I mean, there is only a minute left, so you could still give one last fight…– Frost asked Shane indifferently, not really expecting much, as he addressed him scornfully as always. But as Shane only looked back briefly and scoffed at him, Frost saw the need to save him the effort and make the decision for him.
–Alright, everyone gather up. I’ve just thought of a great nickname for our loser here…– Frost ordered, getting all of his excited students to gather around him immediately as they eagerly waited to hear what nickname he could come up with. Scott’s team united and stepped aside to let the other students get closer, and with the entire class now right in front of Shane, he began seething in rage, losing his temper with every heavy breath. And as everyone focused on Frost as he comically posed reflectively to think of a good name, Shane tried to slip out of the pile of his eliminated friends, struggling to reach for his mace while no one paid attention.
–From now on, you will be called Shade. Cool, right?– Frost announced sarcastically, taunting Shane with a smile as he turned around and renamed him, which he almost found flattering. For a brief moment, he seemed to forget about his frustrations when he heard his new nickname, but it only took him a second more of thinking to realize Frost had some not-so-subtle degrading intentions, which became clearer when he and Panda started to crack up.
–That’s for hiding in the shadow of your teammates and waiting for them to do all the work while you watched like a coward behind your toy fortress for four minutes, doing absolutely nothing… Congrats, you should be thrilled to be called that for the rest of your life!– Frost added with an exaggeratedly disdainful and demeaning voice that caused his students to laugh with him, which he made sure to last for a good while to make sure Shane was properly humiliated for his new nickname. Scott’s team laughed the hardest as they watched how Shade was incapable of doing anything to protest or confront them. But as he endured their insults silently for a moment, restraining himself from saying anything, he soon proved them wrong as he sneakily grabbed his mace and managed to push the weight of his friends to the side to slip out.
Before anyone was done laughing, Shade stood up in the blink of an eye, mace in hand, bloodthirsty eyes, and a crude expression directing all of his aggression towards Scott. He was absent-minded like his friends, enjoying a good laugh as he finally got praised for something he did. But as Scott was probably the closest to Shade, and since the entire class was gathered around him, he had a clear path to attack him, and he didn’t hesitate to take it. Running at him as he charged his mace, he aimed straight at the top of his head to bash it into mush, being so quick that none of the students could step in to prevent the attack. They reacted too late, with only Frost, Panda, and Tricky noticing right away, but not even they were able to do anything to stop Shade. Right as he swung his mace at Scott, Zoey tried to jump in the way, but she was standing too far away, barely getting to move before Shade had closed the distance, with the only thing between him and Scott’s head being the mace rapidly heading at his oblivious face.
Scott was completely unaware of any danger as he was facing Alex, who did manage to warn him of the attack as he squealed in terror at what was coming. And while Scott immediately turned to his right, he didn’t even get to identify Shade as his attacker before he reacted instinctively to the unexpected. Not even thinking about it, he pulled out his weapon and tried to step back, but by the time he drew his sword, Shade had already swung at him and was about to strike him on the forehead.
But before hitting him on the head, Shade’s hostile grin vanished as he felt a pointy object touching his chest gently. Mid-attack, he looked down to notice Scott’s sword fully extended, with only the very tip tapping his chest. And despite his swing carrying all the strength he could put into his attack, he immediately realized that he had been eliminated, and seeing Scott react so quickly distraught Shade so much that he just froze in place, letting go of his mace as he lost all energy or emotion. His jaw dropped in shock as he began processing his loss, shutting himself off from the entire world around him, all while Scott stood in front of him, just as stunned as him. But since he did manage to defend himself, taking Shade out in the process, the audience erupted in shouts and cheers.
–Oh, well, look at that. We have a winner!– Frost announced with excitement, and slight confusion, prompting more cheers from everyone, except Shade, who cowered in silence before snapping and bursting into swears and screams, killing the mood and scaring his classmates instantly.
–That wasn’t fair! What was that thing with the meat shield? They broke the rules, that isn’t allowed! How coul-...– Shade yelled furiously at everyone but mainly addressing Frost to complain about his defeat. His outburst even woke up his teammates after being knocked out by the fall, though they just stayed back to watch awkwardly, with not even his closest friend Bryan trying to stop Shade from embarrassing himself further. He continued to rage and ramble incoherently, and while he did get some strong reactions, everybody just seemed to ignore him, almost leaving the field completely to leave him alone. But as he continued to humiliate himself, with no one even laughing at him anymore, Frost stepped in to put a stop to his scene, which was tough as he couldn’t approach him when he was in such a state.
–Yea, cry all you want. I know the rules of my own game, and that was a clean victory…– Frost replied dismissively, a little annoyed at Shade’s complaints but still quite amused by his fit of rage, which prompted another collective mocking that finally quieted him down.
–Although, I have to say, whoever came up with that strategy showed a lot of passion and intelligence… and faith, I did not expect that to work. You got very crafty with the few tools at your disposal, and that deserves some recognition…– Frost congratulated Scott’s team with a more earnest and appreciative tone that caught them off guard. And while he was being positive, some were a bit anxious when they heard something so uncharacteristic as a compliment coming from his mouth. Even Panda and Tricky were taken aback by the recognition he granted the attackers, but it was Scott who was in most disbelief, even though he tried to hide a prideful and exalted grin. However, his appreciative self only lasted for a couple of seconds before he got bored and started walking back to the bleachers, leaving Panda to tear down what little remained of the defense’s base.
–Alright, I know you probably won’t top this, but there is still one more game to go, let’s go. And I don’t want to see you cry like that, or else you know what to expect…– Frost added nonchalantly after a brief silence as he led the class back to their seats. Shade tried to argue again, but as Frost just dismissed him with a gesture and walked away, he remained silent before doing the same thing and leaving the field. His friends followed right behind, though it looked like they weren’t coming back to the bleachers like the rest. Neither did Scott and his team, as they got a chance to celebrate in private while Tricky retrieved all the weapons on the battlefield and Panda cleared the field.
–Holy horse! That was amazing!– Charlie exclaimed in exhilaration, being met with some laughs and other cheers from his teammates, even Jumbo, who stood awkwardly next to his teammates without saying much as he couldn’t imitate their excited bounces without looking silly. However, even Jumbo got some credit, as Scott couldn’t contain his joy and gave everyone pats on the back or shoulder.
–Yea, we all did great! Even you, Jumbo, you were the perfect meat shield!– Scott added with a lively smile, getting an embarrassed smile from Jumbo, who seemed oddly relieved to receive pats on the shoulder but a bit confident after getting praised for his simple yet effective performance as a human shield.
–I mean, how did you come up with those ideas? Seriously, man, that plan was crazy good!– Charlie continued to flatter Scott with the most unhinged elation out of the team, getting so loud that Scott couldn’t hear him well. He laughed it off but also got a bit embarrassed to have everyone trying to thank or praise him for his plan, especially when Zoey inched closer to give him kudos for his excellent planning and coordination.
–I knew it would work, but I didn’t think it would be so perfect! You are a genius!– Zoey said with extra enthusiasm, struggling to contain herself and letting out an ear-piercing squeal that made his teammates laugh, even though it almost left Scott deaf. He laughed nervously as he tried to think of a response, but then just stood awkwardly as she couldn’t contain herself and hugged him tightly, squeezing so hard that it made him groan despite the gesture lasting a brief second. He didn’t know how to react, so he didn’t hug her back, but luckily Alex cut the moment short to take his turn praising Scott’s plan.
–It was bold, I didn’t really think we had it, but dude, you have my respect…– Alex admitted with a bit of restraint, though he turned playful as he still showed disbelief in his face, struggling to get his words out before just extending his hand for Scott to shake. He hesitated at first, but as he saw that Alex was being genuine and just as joyful as the rest, he gave him a firm handshake with a bright smile.
–It was nothing, you just have to be creative… and I really wanted to beat that dirtbag…– Scott replied jokingly but with some modesty to get some more laughs from his teammates. They continued to chat and celebrate, now making more fun of Shade and his friends, but were then forced to leave the field and join the other students after Frost called them out.
Scott and his new friends walked back to the bleachers, where Shade and his crew were nowhere to be seen, which only gave them more reasons to keep smiling. They were both relieved, satisfied, and eager to watch the next match, as they could now relax. But as the last game of attack and defense began, it turned out to be much less engaging than the previous ones. Still, they were able to enjoy it as they got to see how well their strategy compared to the rest worked. The next fifteen minutes flew by, which was enough for them to rest and get moving, as Frost had announced that they were going to continue training after the game.
Even though the students looked like they had been exercising for hours, only an hour had passed. It was still early in the morning, so despite them being tired already, it was only the beginning of their second training day. Frost killed the excitement as he ordered more exercises in the style of yesterday’s laps, but thankfully for his students, he kept his promise of keeping them short in quantity. But to make up for the low difficulty and amount of exercises, he chose to give them more practical lessons, now teaching them about the offensive and defensive strategies they tried to come up with earlier.
Between the remaining lessons, he included a few exercises to put their knowledge to the test, but nothing big, giving them short breaks afterward for them to relax for a moment before the next lesson. He kept working their bodies and minds at the same time, while also giving them time to socialize with each other and grow as a team. Although he was still strict, mean, and even insufferable at times, his harsh words didn’t seem to affect the students anymore, or at least not as badly as they did before. They began getting used to his style of teaching, and whether they wanted it or not, they grew resistant to his insults, now knowing not to interrupt him or ask any dumb questions to save themselves a degrading scolding, or worst of all, a deceivingly cool nickname.
Unfortunately, Shade and his group returned during one of the last lessons of the day, though they were a lot quieter, staying away from everyone to not cause any problems. Now, they were the butt of the joke, getting laughed at or mocked if they got close to any of the other classmates. And while they did continue causing some trouble as they weren’t fans of Frost’s rules, they actually helped the other students get along since they now had a common enemy to hate, which could also be Frost in some cases because that’s seemingly all they had to talk about during their breaks. But as Frost got to improve his classes and make them more effective, even getting some respect from his students, he actually had to wait longer than his students to see some progress come to fruition, as he needed a chance to sneak out to the office with Panda and Tricky to discuss his plan.