Grandmaster

Mikah scrutinized the board, trying to determine his first move. This wasn’t his first game against this particular opponent, they had stood against each other many times before. The faint ticking of the game clock echoed in the large room, each strike of the hand adding a pulse of anxiety in the players. Tick. Tick. He reached forward to move the Queen’s pawn to D4, but hesitated, eyeing his opponent’s steady gaze. Tick. Tick. He pulled back and hovered over the King’s Knight, trying to anticipate the next few moves. Tick. Tick. His opponent was unwavering in their focus, steadily clasping their hands together in front of their face with a Zen-like patience. Mikah tried to read that face, attempting to discern what was going on in their mind but gained no insight from the stoic face before him. He hovered from piece to piece, analyzing each possibility, weighing every consequence and finally reached a decision. With a rapid flick, nearly half of the light ivory pieces were swept from the board and he bounded to the floor, much to his opponent’s chagrin. He was more interested in the box in the corner anyways. The players sighed and picked up the pieces to begin again.

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