Sadly for Flavio, though he desired to make it to the final qualifying match, there was no possibility of him playing. When he had woken up from the tranquilization, he was in a very small room, a lit torch high on a stone wall and a little cot underneath him. He called for the nearest person, who entered. Flavio questioned him, “Why do you have me here? Why do you not let me go?”
“Sir, I wanted to. I like you on the soccer field much more than in here. I like your goals. You have brought us much great joy in hard time, repeatedly.”
“Um, well… thank you so much, I’m glad to help when I can. But why can I not go to my team?”
“Your…it’s your leg, sir. It’s crushed. They think you might not walk. Ever.”
“Wh…Why? How? What happened?”
“You…don’t you remember? Run over by a car, then landed square on the broken segment when you jumped out of bed to escape. The bones are shattered, but our main doctor is here to help you. He may be your biggest fan.”
“That explains the cast then. But can I at least join my team, even on the bench? They need me, and I need them!”
“I would let you go, sir. But the head doctor says you need medical care, from him only. He says he can help you, help revive you. There’s an easy way out, take the hall down the left and you’ll find a door…hidden in the stones, actually. It’s hard to find, but it’ll take you right to the cars.”
“Ah, thanks, but who exactly is this doctor?”
“He is…the priest as well. Iumao’hi Sander.”
“You’re telling me that I’m inside of Vuihi Temple right now?”
“You didn’t know that?”
“Well…no. I’ve only had about twenty minutes of consciousness the whole time I’ve been here.”
“Ah, well yes. Anyway, did you want to go to the central chapel, sir? They could help you there I believe.”
“Sure, let’s go,” Flavio consented. The man walked out of the room, and his footsteps trailed off down the stone hall. “Hey, come back!” Flavio shouted.
“You hurry up, man!”
“I need help walking there,” he grumbled.
“Oh, right!” The still-anonymous aide came back, and the two men walked to the temple together, Flavio making sure to note the path in need of escape. Upon arrival into the central chapel, they chanted the prayers together with the priest Sander.
Zandito fu’mao
Zandito fu’mao
kama igaho
igaho vuiho tomou
Other prayers were recited as well, when a crashing noise was heard from the outer areas of the stone temple. The words stopped abruptly. All the men rushed out of the room, grabbing guns and other weaponry and scattering to hiding points throughout the temple. Flavio Domingo was alone in the room. He said one last prayer, then set out hop-crawling on his one good leg and two hands to try to find the exit, by which he could reach his teammates.
~~~
General Zanderstrom had wasted no time. He arrived on the military docks of Krumping Bay, and did his best to ignore the smoke and smell coming from the factory sector of the metropolis. His troops were all there, and he rallied them, giving a rousing speech, ending in the words, “Let’s bring them the ZanderStorm!” They all yelled with fervor, and then two hundred of the most elite troops piled into jeeps to lead the force toward Vuihi Temple. The remaining men would follow behind, providing backup and reinforcements, and also to fight outside the temple, in the forest and countryside, if Wallace also had a large force behind him. But the General dearly hoped he could make it to the temple before Wallace took it over and burned it. Were that to happen, there would be no possible reconciliation of the Zanditos and Zandistanis. Zanderstrom was now not only fighting for himself and to put down the insubordination of his aide, he was also fighting to keep his country intact.
