by Paul Ormond
Contents
Copyright © 2018 by Paul Ormond
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-One
Chapter Forty-Two
Chapter Forty-Three
Chapter Forty-Four
Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter Forty-Six All was darkness when he opened his eyes. He felt all around him, but nothing...
Copyright © 2018 by Paul Ormond
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without written permission of the copyright
owner except for the use of quotations in a book review. For more information, address: [email protected]
FIRST EDITION
Cover art: Zack Drenski
www.paulormond.com
Disclaimer: All characters in this story are works of fiction and are not intended to represent anyone living or dead.
To my family, for always believing in me.
CHAPTER ONE
THE WHOLE ARENA shook with the rhythmic stomping of the crowd. Feet pounded the bleachers in unison while people cheered and whistled. The music that crackled over the loudspeaker rattled down the hallways of the creaky old arena and into the dressing rooms beneath the stands. Inside the Kingsford High School Crushers’ dressing room, the players were gathering their helmets, gloves, and sticks before they took to the ice.
Mitch Mythic scrambled about the Crushers’ dressing room in his full uniform. He peered behind doors and looked under bags, much to the dismay of his teammates, who were getting ready to go out onto the ice. He was frantically searching for his stick – his lucky stick. It was the stick that had fallen at his feet at the United Hardware store before the first game of the year. It was the stick that had allowed him to score 30 goals during the season and it was the stick that was now currently missing right before the final game of the year. “Has anybody seen my stick? It’s a black and green Dryden,” Mitch shouted out as he ran his hands through his dark brown hair in frustration. But all of his teammates just looked around and shrugged. The coaches head popped in the door of the dressing room and shouted “Ok boys, let’s go. Mitch, you lead ‘em out. You’re the captain and all.” Everybody pushed out of the dressing room and Mitch was forced to take the lead, empty-handed.
As the lights dimmed, an audible hush came over the crowd in anticipation of the team taking the ice. Suddenly, a booming voice came over the speaker. “Ladies and Gentleman and kids of all ages, here they are - the pride of the north - your very own Kingsford Crushers!” The crowd roared as the ice was flooded with dramatic spinning lights. The Crushers’ team anthem pumped through the speakers and everyone in the packed arena was on their feet and cheering.
Mitch stood at the front of the group of players that was about to take to the ice. His eyes darted back and forth nervously. He still hadn’t located his lucky stick and he knew it was bad luck to enter the ice without it, but he was shoved forward by the other players as they rushed out. He tried to move back, but he was caught in the way of the goaltender, Gareth “Double Cheese” Lishinski. He was as fat as he was large, and once he got moving, there was no stopping him. Mitch opened his mouth to yell but he was knocked backwards by the huge goaltender and was sent sprawling out on the ice, much to the shock and merriment of the crowd. Mitch got himself up while taking in the catcalls from the stands. “Way to go, Mythic,” he clearly heard from behind the players’ bench. “What a mythical entrance,” he heard as well. He was used to the name-calling by now. With a name like Mitch Mythic, it’s hard to get through life without attracting any attention and Mitch had heard it all before.
Mitch sighed and groaned as he got back to his feet. The game hadn’t even started yet and he was already off to a terrible start. The taunting or the fall didn’t bother him as much as his missing stick. The thought of playing the final match of the season against the Crushers most hated rivals, The Vanderton Thunder, without his lucky stick, filled him with dread.
The Thunder had already taken to the ice and he could feel the cold stares from the other team at the opposite end of the rink. As he searched the bench for his missing stick, he heard the sound of skates on the ice nearby. Eric Archibald, the Captain of the Thunder circled around casually nearby the Crushers’ bench.
“Hey Mitch, what kind of mythical performance will we see from you tonight?” he cackled. “If it’s anything like your entrance, I’m sure it will certainly be a sight to behold. See you on the ice, Mythical Mitch!” Mitch didn’t bother to look over. Eric was only trying to get under his skin and he was much more concerned with finding his stick.
Mitch frantically searched the Crushers’ bench but his stick was nowhere to be found. Fear soon overtook him and he knew in his heart that the game would not go well for him. He tried to hold it together but he couldn’t escape the panic brewing in his guts. The horn sounded and the players took to their respective benches.
Both the Crushers and the Thunder gathered around their coaches. Mitch’s father, Mike Mythic, coached the Crushers and he spoke with a commanding tone. “Men, we’ve worked hard to get here and we don’t want to let those dirtbags from Vanderton take away our glory on home ice! Everybody came here to see you do us proud. Don’t disappoint them!”
The Crushers and the Thunder had battled it out all season. Both teams had won games but the Crushers had remained victorious at home. Whoever won this game would claim the league championship. The pressure on both teams was immense, but Mitch felt it most of all. His father had appointed him captain of the team at the start of the season and the burden of leadership fell heavily on his shoulders. His teammates hated the fact that his father had bestowed the captaincy upon him and Mitch had been feeling the heat from everyone all year.
“Hey Mythical, you planning on showing up today?” Sage Rhinus said as he leaped over the boards onto the ice. Sage was Mitch’s line mate. He was tall, lean and muscular, the epitome of a hockey player. They had been close before, but over the course of the season, their relationship had begun to chafe. Sage resented Mitch’s success and position as captain. He felt that Mitch was getting special treatment from his father. Mitch scowled as he watched Sage skate by him and then he groaned and grabbed a stick off of the bench. It wasn’t his lucky stick but time had run out.
Mitch faced Eric Archibald at center ice for the opening face-off of the game. “Well, looky looky, here comes the grand and glorious Mitch Mythic. How mythical it is to be in y
our presence,” Eric jeered.
Mitch didn’t respond. He knew that Eric was only trying to get a rise out of him again and if he replied, it would only make things worse. The linesman approached the circle and the two players came forward to the center dot. The puck dropped and Mitch swiped at it only to catch Eric’s elbow to the back of his head. Mitch face-planted onto the ice, but he came up quickly, and looked around in disbelief for the referee.
“No penalty?” he cried out but no one seemed to care. The game was on.
“Get going, Mitch,” his father screamed from the bench. Mitch groaned again and skated towards his own goal while Eric lined up for a shot. Mitch was way out of position, and Eric had a clear view at the net. The shot went off like a rocket, and before Mitch realized what had happened, all of the Thunder players were congratulating Eric for scoring the opening goal.
“Nice going, Mythic,” Sage said, as he skated by. The Crushers were making a line change and Mitch’s father beckoned him over to the bench.
“Get your head in the game, Mitch,” he screamed, as Mitch sat down in a huff amidst his teammates. Needless to say, the rest of the game did not go well for Mitch. The puck just seemed to bounce off of his stick the entire night. Nothing went his way and he knew why. “I need my stick,” he muttered to himself. The Crushers, however, managed to battle back and with time almost out in the third period, the score of the game was locked at two goals apiece. The horn ended regulation play and the referee indicated that the game would go into sudden death overtime.
“You plan on showing up anytime, Mitch?” his father asked from behind the bench. “It’s only the most important game of the season. We might need our captain to show some leadership.”
The overtime period was about to begin. Mitch needed to do something, but he knew it just wasn’t his night. Mitch skated up and down the ice, hoping and waiting for a chance, but he just couldn’t find the puck, and he was smothered by the excellent defense of the Thunder. Both teams battled ferociously during the overtime period but neither team was able to score. The horn blew to indicate the end of overtime and everybody knew that the game would be decided by a shootout.
The referee came to the bench and told the coaches that each team would get three shots. “I want Sage first, followed by Darren. Mitch, you shoot last.” Mitch’s father said. Mitch sighed under his breath, he could feel the hot stares from his teammates.
“Don’t blow it again, Mitch,” Double-Cheese said from behind him. Mitch immediately felt himself go red. Gareth was talking about the year before at an out-of-state tournament. Mitch had fanned on his shot during a shootout and the Crushers had been eliminated. Mitch tried to shake it off, but the damage was done. Mitch saw himself whiffing over the puck and he was horrified that it would happen all over again. The way his night had gone, Mitch was certain that was how it would play out. He needed his stick. Where could it be, he wondered to himself.
The first shooter for the Thunder approached the center ice dot. The referee pointed at the puck and blew his whistle. The Thunder player paused for a moment and then skated deftly towards the net, trying to deke out the Crusher’s big goaltender, but the shot was easily steered aside by Double-Cheese. The crowd roared in approval.
Sage went next. He skated quickly towards the goaltender and blasted a shot to the top corner of the net. It was 1-0 Crushers in the shootout. The crowd went wild.
The next Thunder shooter prepared himself at center ice. He slowly skated towards the net. As he approached, he quickly faked left and then right, sending Double-Cheese sprawling onto the ice. The Thunder shooter easily slipped it past the goaltender. It was now 1-1.
Darren Francis from the Crushers skated to center ice. He was Mitch’s friend and he had an easygoing manner. He skated towards the goal, and he tried to fake, but the puck was poked away by the goaltender. The crowd murmured their disappointment.
Eric Archibald skated past Mitch on his way to center ice. “Ready to be embarrassed on home ice, Mythical?” he sneered as he readied himself for his shot. Eric slowly approached the goaltender and wound up to shoot. Double-Cheese rushed out to cut off the angle but Eric faked and quickly stepped around the big goaltender and smashed the puck into the back of the goal. The crowd groaned.
It was now Mitch’s turn. The entire season rested firmly on his shoulders. The dread and panic that had consumed him all game was now on full boil in his stomach. He felt himself start to gag and vomit slowly began creeping up his throat. No, not now, hold it back, he thought to himself as he skated towards the center ice dot. Just as he was about to reach the puck, he heard a voice cry out from the bench
“Hey Mitch, wait.” It was the team manager, Jason. “Is this your stick, Mitch?” He shouted. Mitch looked back and all the panic and worry that had been crushing him the entire game evaporated. There, in Jason’s hand, was the elusive “Lucky Stick”. Its carbon shaft seemed to gleam in the overhead lights, and Mitch eagerly skated back to the bench to grab it. He snatched the stick from Jason’s hands. “Thank you so much, you are a life saver,” he said to Jason.
The stick felt light and agile in his hands. Instantly he felt whole again. This stick had lasted him all season. He had used it to score the winning goal in their last game and it had allowed him to lead his team in scoring during the season. Now he knew that nothing could stop him. He took a deep breath and looked toward the Thunders’ goaltender.
“It all comes down to this, folks,” the announcer said over the loudspeaker. “Mitch Mythic must score now or the Thunder will win the game,” the voice boomed. The crowd cheered loudly and Mitch could see his family and friends sitting in the stands.
“Come on, Mitch,” they all seemed to be saying.
“You can do this,” he whispered to himself as he began to slowly skate towards the net. Although he had blown it once last season, Mitch had done well in shootouts for the most part and he knew what he needed to do now. He had to fake a few times to get the goalie off balance and then look for an opening. As a he got closer, he leaned into his stick, faking to right and then pulling to his left. The goaltender had fallen for his fake and he lunged to the right again. Mitch could see the empty ice behind the goaltender and the open net, all he had to do was pull out past the goaltender and slide it over the goal line. The crowd gasped and the whole arena went silent. It seemed like everybody present was holding their breath in anticipation of the coming goal.
Mitch reached forward with his stick to slide the puck into the goal, but out of nowhere came the leg of the sprawling goaltender. The goalie’s pad caught the puck and Mitch’s lucky stick at the same time. The goalie’s skate hit the side of the net creating a solid wall. The puck slipped under the pad and Mitch, going full force, watched in horror as his stick jammed into the goalies pad and simultaneously speared into his crotch, causing immediate and immense pain. With the stick planted firmly in his groin, Mitch, in agony, pole-vaulted above the goaltender and over the net. He fell to the ice behind the goal in a crumpled heap, only to hear the referee blow his whistle. Mitch looked up and watched the referee wave his hands from side to side indicating that the puck had been stopped.
All of the Thunder players rushed onto the ice and piled on top of the goaltender. The game was over. The Crushers had lost the final game of the season on home ice and Mitch new it was all his fault. The fans began to file out of the arena, while the Thunder celebrated. Mitch looked to his right and he saw his lucky stick, snapped in half, laying on the ice beside him.
CHAPTER TWO
A few months had passed since the Kingsford Crushers’ shocking loss to the Vanderton Thunder on home ice. The hockey season had ended just like that, but it took a few more months for winter’s firm grip upon the northland to give way to warmer weather. The giant piles of snow that had blanketed the ground finally melted and the evergreens had shed their icy beards to bask in the warm spring sun.
It seemed that everybody in Kingsford had moved on from the defeat at t
he hands of the Vikings, all except for Mitch Mythic. He was still devastated by the loss and he couldn’t help but blame himself. To make matters worse, his own embarrassment had been amplified by the ubiquitous and ever-present internet behemoth known as MindHIve.
MindHIve was a massive social media and technology company that dominated the industry in every way. Any social media function was possible through one of the tech giant’s interconnected applications. From texts and games, to video and beyond, MindHIve was ever-present and unavoidable. Mitch had a strong following on MindHIve and he had actively cultivated his presence on the platform. However, his epic fail had gone viral over the past few months after that fateful game against the Thunder and the video of the incident had racked up millions of views on MindTv, the video extension of MindHIve.
Mitch had watched in horror as his carefully crafted persona had slowly been dragged into the dark bowels of internet humor. A crueler place had never been imagined and any and all that found themselves drawn into this horror had rarely returned unscathed. Mitch had often been amused by the never ending stream gifs and memes that MindHIve offered up on his feed. He and his friends had shared them amongst each other for their own amusement, but Mitch had never imagined that he would become the “joke.”
“#Epiccrotchshot,” as the incident had come to be known, had been trending heavily since it was posted online by the local news station. The video had been reposted all over the internet and it had caught the attention of every single comedian in the country. After a short while, #Epiccrotchshot had become a buzzword throughout the world, and for months now, it had been the punch line of every joke imaginable. Mitch, like most kids, had always thought that being famous would be amazing, but he never imagined that it would turn out like this.
It goes without saying that the last while had been an absolute nightmare for Mitch Mythic. His online world had been devastated by the viral video, and to make matters worse, his IRL social life had absolutely disintegrated. After the loss, his teammates had slowly turned their backs on him. He had felt the cold shoulders during the season while he bore the burden of being the team captain, but in the aftermath of the game and his new found infamy, it seemed like the entire community had ghosted him.
