I stand in the darkened silence of a rectangular chamber, 8 meters long and 6 meters wide, balanced on the tips of my toes. On the wall in front of me are the outlines of two circles. Beyond these walls is an enormous insulated hangar decked with artificial grass and filled with highly paid professional soccer players. The lower circle glows a brilliant white in the dim light. I brace, as though waiting for the Death Star to ready its superlaser.
One second passes.
Two seconds.
Clunk—pause—whoosh!
A soccer ball fires from the illuminated hole, accelerating to 35 miles per hour and shooting through the darkness, before slapping onto my right foot and