by Cobyboy
Immediately, people started skimming through different online platforms and social media to find out who this 'Gama Feihren' is. Some were disappointed as they felt like they had lost all hope in redeeming the name of their dear country, but some who dug a little deeper showed signs of happiness within their eyes. It was as if they could grab that illusory victory they were hoping to achieve.
"This Feihren guy is... 80 years old?!? Grandpa, what are you doing in this place? You should be in some sort of home for the aged or something..."
"Oi! Cut the old man some slack. Respect dude! Respect! tsk tsk."
"Eh? Hey guys, we shouldn't underestimate this gramps here look, look!"
"Retired military officer? Wow and a high ranking official at that! Well, I guess this tournament really invites the talented people from all shapes and sizes, and age even!"
The perfect ambiance could be heard within the arena as people started chanting and cheering. The second match of the day was about to start. Feihren walked into the center stage were two separate booths were prepared for both the players.
Although Ru Shi was indeed a famous gamer in China, his physical appearance is pretty unimpressive, which made the non-Chinese crowd react with silence or just casual clapping. On the other hand, the tall stature of Feihren with toned muscles that are even evident under his shirt made the crowd gasp in surprise. His slightly wrinkled face was the only evidence that he was at such an advanced age. Aside from that, he was a gallant manly figure that any girl would dream to be dating. The cheering continued as the players sat in their respective booths before wearing their gaming gear.
The holographic stage emulates the virtual map when games start, which gives an authentic feel of what is happening to the audience. The game map was then randomized to be Forest (Night Time). The lights dimmed throughout the arena as the horizon within the stage had a starry scene. Lush forestry covered the stage as the two players were spawned on the map.
Within the game, Feihren was calmly walking towards the center of the map, While Ru Shi was planting [Decoys] all over the place. Out of the 10 pieces of limited utility that he could carry, 7 of them were remote [Decoys], one is a [Signal Jammer], and 2 are [Medical Kits]. The tactic of Bai last game was passed on to all of their fellow Chinese players, so this was the strategy they had stuck with.
"Ah? Not this again! These f*ckers really know how to abuse meta's!"
"Eh calm your jets dude. According to the rules of this tournament, this is allowed... Although I am not a fan of this gameplay as it is no fun."
"Well, tricking your opponents has always been a part of the game so I see no point for them not to use it again and again."
"No, not really, they're just a bunch of shameless people. I hope grampa can do a thing or two to get around this tactic."
Different comments from spectators who weren't aligned with the nationalities of the two players were heard and were of mixed opinions on what was happening. The game dragged out the same as before until the first 2-minute ping arrived.
Ru Shi immediately checked the radar. On it was the location of Feihren, who was right in the center of the jungle map. The problem was that the central part of this virtual map was a bit barren in regard to trees, which exposed an open grassy area. Ru Shi found it irrational for someone to put themselves in a place where someone could freely open-fire upon them and could easily get a clear shot.
"It's just a decoy then?"
Ru Shi did not pay any more attention to the radar as he started to turn one of his [Decoys] on. He timed it for exactly how much time was left before the 2-minute ping disappears.
The map was sprawling with mind games when it hit the 8-minute mark with the same thing happening. At every 2-minute ping Feihren's figure would appear in the middle of the map, with Ru Shi having wasted many of his decoys already. Only 3 [Decoys] were left as he used his [Signal Jammer]. He had decided that Feihren would not have prepared as many [Decoys] as he had, because the first game's tactic was hidden from most players, except for those players that had already pre-planned the same tactic before their games, of course.
Preparing to spam the central area of the grassy plain, Ru Shi went atop a tree that was adjacent to the remaining three [Decoys]. At the exact moment the clock hit the 9th minute, Ru Shi rained down bullets towards the center of the map, where Feihren was 'supposed' to be.
5 [Smoke Grenades] covered the entirety of the grassy field in their haze as the grassy plain was now hailed with dozens of rounds.
"Pshh, futile effort! Smoke grenades!? This is a nighttime map. You won't even be able to know where I will be! Then you covered yourself with smoke. Stupid..."
*Bang!
A clear shot went right through the skull of Ru Shi, and he was seen as he dropped dead to the ground.
Jolting his real body as his consciousness returned.
Winner: Gama Feihren (U.S.A.)
Everyone was confused as to what happened. The smoke cleared within the area, and everyone noticed that Feihren had something strapped on his head. It had a green colored goggle on one eye, and an orange one on the other. This counted as 2 utility objects. Aside from the five smoke grenades and 3 decoys Feihren had brought, he was using only this pair of goggles.
"Thermal Scanners? And, night vision goggles?"
The spectators were confused as to how Feihren had predicted that he was going to need those. Was that coincidence? It certainly felt like it was not.
Now the sides had flipped, as the Chinese community was now accusing Feihren of swapping items after the game map shuffle. It made so much noise that the tournament's coordinator had to intervene again.
"There was no way the players could swap items during the games. The map is decided only when the players have stepped forth on the stage and they had zero access to their private gears. Gama Feihren is the clear victor. No cheating has happened."
As for normal people, the idea of carrying thermal scanners and night vision goggles without knowing you would need them was absurd. However, from the perspective of fellow military men, this was basically a necessity during wars, whether it was night or day.
Within the modern era of wars, drones had dominated the field, which almost made men on the battlefield obsolete. But the judgment and raw input of the human brain could never be beaten by a machine's algorithms. A human could easily adapt to situations, and thus make it easy to bring about commands within a very specific time frame.
What Feihren did during his preparation was simply anticipating that the enemy would use something that could distract his attention or obstruct his line of sight. Although it did not totally add up, he was expecting a [Flashbang] spam tactic, no matter what the terrain was. The problem was anticipating things too much could actually get you in trouble. That's why he simply displayed himself out in the open, with him actually having three [Decoys] planted on the same spot he was at. [Smoke Grenades] were prepared for right after all three [Decoys] were used, which would take up the first 8 minutes. The disappearing ping of the 3-second decoy would then overlap with the real ping on his actual location, which would appear in the last two seconds of the ping. At that point it would probably be too late to notice, as any pro player would likely disregard information they thought was false.
The thermal vision was in preparation for drones that could be used which, contrary to popular belief, would actually emit heat due to the machine using a specific amount of energy. The thermal detectors within the modern era were advanced enough to detect minuscule amounts of heat. As for the night goggles, Feihren had anticipated that the enemy would blatantly hide himself in dark alleys or tight corridors that would restrict vision. He hadn't expected that the map would totally be in his favor. Luck is part of one's skill perhaps.
The Chinese community was dealt with a very similar blow to what happened with the first game. These first 2 games were just a roller coaster ride between these 2 countries as they were now tied 1 to 1...
-END OF
BOOK 1- (BOOK 2 ETA, LATE DECEMBER 2018- EARLY JANUARY 2019)
~To the giddy old man of my life- Thanks for everything, gramps. See you on the flipside~
~End~
