KINGS OF CRICKET: The Golden Era

Kenzo listened, taken aback by his words.

"Quite grand aren't we?" Orion winked, "We annoy you a little, force you a bit, taunt you for fun and you all get so worked up. Now, after hearing the truth, look at you—you can't even utter a single word."

"As for Xavier, he embodies resolve itself. Have you ever seen a body die when its heart is still beating? Don't you call him the heart of your team?" Zachariah asked Kenzo.

Avoiding their gazes, Kenzo looked back at the field.

The last ball of the over, Ibn Sena secured a boundary.

Xavier rubbing his forehead with his collar walked towards the slip. "I gave too many runs again. 15 runs…? Never in my life have I been so merciful on my opponents before." he thought bemused.

"Vice-captain…" Feng whispered concerned. Islamabad accumulating 45 runs with a loss of single wicket.

A team fifty shortly approached.

Isa, gesturing to Poseidon called him over. "You are going next, little Poseidon. And, we need to stop run scoring. If you want to set the field as per your choice, do tell me." Isa patted his shoulder.

"Yes." Poseidon nodded.

The second last over of the power play, the umpire handed the ball to Poseidon who stepped a few steps behind the popping crease.

"A leg spinner." Juhan pointed.

"Yup, they are trying to level our fun now." Rovan said.

"I wonder if they will slow down, though." Hamza doubted.

"They shouldn't, right now. If they want to pressure Karachi Kings. A 60 or 70 before the power play should be their mindset to stagger them." Hamit suggested.

"Sena's doing pretty well too. To think he is keeping up with Seon Yul for this long. I am impressed." Asim read his player file.

Venus grinned, "What do you expect, Senior Asim. His mind is working overtime today."

"You mean…?!" Emmad asked, surprised.

"How else do you think he's keeping up with the free-spirited and unpredictable Senior Hang Seon Yul?" Venus glanced back.

"Venus is right. Ibn Sena is using mind reading on Xavier ibn Zain, Seon Yul, and Isa Sikandar simultaneously," Rovan observed.

"Three of them?!" Hamza asked, stunned.

"Yes, three of them," Romeo emphasized, "And, I bet Karachi Kings don't even realize it. Ibn Sena's intensely focused expression gives the illusion that he's struggling to keep up with Seon Yul, however, in reality, he's masking his ability. He's discarded their attention over him in the blink of an eye."

"Hey skipper1, I like him. Ibn Sena's cool. Let me be his partner in the next match," Basid said, swinging his legs as he stared at Romeo's back.

Hamit sighed, "First, let them win this match. We can think about the next one later."

Basid put his picture book aside and sat up straight. "We've already won, Amit. You should start planning for the next match now." he stood up, stretched his arms, and started heading out.

The boys exchanged surprised looks.

"Where are you going?" a voice called from behind them. The rhythmic clatter of keyboard keys filled the room as another man, adjusting his glasses, glanced at Basid.

"To the fridge for a cold drink. Want anything, Coach Ulhas?" Basid replied, pointing outside.

Ulhas, around Hamit's age, sat with a laptop balanced on his legs, one atop the other. He wore a suit under a lab coat, his black hair neatly parted in the middle, and his amber eyes gleamed with concentration as he peered over at Basid. "Iced tea, please," Ulhas responded, not looking up from his work.

"And make it quick." "Okie~" Basid responded, showing a perfect gesture as he headed out.

"Quite a confident rookie he is don't you think?" Rovan questioned Romeo.

Romeo chuckled concurring, "Truly."

Poseidon delivering a Googly in the third ball of the over. Seon Yul smirked, stepping forward and reading the trajectory of the mystery spin. He raised his bat high and sent the ball towards long-off for a boundary.

"Darn!" Feng thought, looking up.

"Another one?!" the commentators exclaimed, bewildered.

Isa, however, immediately ran behind the ball. "Reveal... Gravity suppress," Poseidon muttered, his glare at Seon Yul sharp.

The ball, which was about to cross the boundary with a bounce, suddenly dropped to the ground motionless right before it.

Isa, smiling, grabbed the ball and threw it back to Xavier, who caught it. The crowd's cheers immediately turning to disappointment.

"It halted...?" Maaz asked the other commentators, confused.

Seon Yul blinked.

"Open it," Poseidon said sternly. "And once you open it, don't close your Pinnacle of Monarchy again. Because I assure you, not a single one amongst us will give you a chance to catch your breath, let alone win without it." He challenged, turning around.

Seon Yul chortled, amused. "Haha! Did you see him, Sena? Learn this bravery, got it?"

Ibn Sena nodded diligently yet perplexed.

Poseidon exhaled. "For a moment, this feels worse than Rauf's mocking for some reason," he thought, displeased. Twirling the ball in his hands, Poseidon gestured for the players to move slightly back and adjust their positions.

Hiding the balling grip, Poseidon stepped on the popping crease and spun the ball harshly, whispering, "1st Tide of Return!"

A Googly balled left to right aimed for the mid-wicket. Seon Yul's body immediately began to glow as Poseidon's gaze narrowed. Stepping forward, and freeing his hands once again, Seon Yul smacked the ball hard towards the long off again. However, this time rather than halting it had crossed the boundary line awarding 4 runs to Islamabad United and an overall team fifty.

The audience clapped and cheered.

"Heh~ you didn't even try to stop it." Seon Yul taunted, his hairs flaring golden with Pinnacle of Monarchy activated once more.

Poseidon, wordlessly grabbed the ball from Isa's hands.

"He couldn't. You asking this despite knowing is irritating." Heber replied, slightly annoyed.

"Oh my, I am sorry." Seon yul smiled, "I didn't mean to irritate you." The sly look in his eyes clearly visible.

Azazel clicked his tongue.

Suddenly, Seon Yul stepped back, his gaze widening, he looked around the field in disbelief.

Poseidon's eyelashes fluttering, he whispered, "Finally."

Seon Yul looked around, frantically. "Under the sea… I am under the sea!" he gasped excitedly.

"Haha! Little Sena, did you see it? I am under the sea! You must be seeing it right? It's gorgeous!" he waved at him, like a curious child.

Hearing him, Poseidon's, Aigou's, Isa's, Feng's and Aaron's expression widened as they turned to Ibn Sena who stood on the non-striker's end, speechless.

Ibn Sena exhaled, "That's the reason. I'd rather partner with Venus, Basid or Vice-captain Rovan, than you, Senior Seon yul. What a way to blow the covers." his words dripping with sarcasm and annoyance.

Poseidon, headed back bewildered. "He can also see it…? How…?" he thought.

Another two runs accumulated in the next delivery. Seon Yul took the bating crease again.

"Say…" Ibn Sena called out to Poseidon, who was preparing to deliver the last ball of the over. "When will you release us from this place? Under the sea is honestly dark and scary."

Poseidon narrowed his eyes and replied, "What's the rush? I'd prefer if you enjoyed it to the fullest."

Ibn Sena grinned. "If I were you, I wouldn't get my hopes up, Sea King," he warned.

Poseidon returned to his position.

Back in Karachi's pavilion, the boys watched the match intently.

"You are right Senior Elias. It is Mind Reading." Cassiel agreed. With his glasses removed, he kept his hand on his right grey eye while the left seemed to reveal every mystery from the field.

Elias squinted his brows.

"You sure?" Nidou confirmed.

"Yes, I am 100% sure. Remember, when I told you I could sense Pinnacles, Doors and Realms on the field. I can sense this ability too. It's gotten a hold of Poseidon right now. Furthermore, Senior Elias is saying this with complete confidence." Suddenly, Cassiel blinked his eyes, feeling weary.

"Alright, that's enough. I got it now." Nagi stopped him, from continuing further.

Seraph gently patted Cassiel's shoulder as he sat down, his eyes closed for a while.

Elias nodded lightly.

"Mind reading? Is this an ability from a Pinnacle, Door or Realm? I don't recognize it at all?" Orion asked pondering.

"Yeah, if it is a normal ability how did you sense it then Cassiel and outside the field on top of it?" Ezekiel asked in wonder.

"His ability is growing." Seles replied, showing a radar chart1. A hexagonal, five leveled star radar chart with Cassiel's name written on top, Seles continued, "Cassiel's skill in interpreting player changes and sensing their abilities is merging with his existing skills and intelligence, opening the door to a new capability. It might take some time to fully develop, so don't push yourself too hard, Cassiel."

Cassiel glanced at Adam and Seraph, surprised to see them looking relatively pleased.

"The same applies to Ibn Sena," Pedro added, turning his tablet around.

Kenzo's gaze narrowed as he took it studying it. Ibn Sena's chart showed, the intelligence radar measured his intelligence and attack skills 8/10, focus and stamina 7/10 and power 5/10.