Night Whistle and Curfew

I stepped to the chalk penalty dot to mark the end of the shift. Twenty-one hundred hours called for full perimeter lockdown. I unhooked the silver can ring pull from the left wooden upright and struck it twice against my boot heel. The sharp metallic chime signaled match termination across the empty concrete. Moving with steady pace, I scooped up the green acorn, lifted the pinecone keeper, and carried them into the sheltered hollow under the hedge roots. I stacked the three gravel stones into their standard pyramid beside the joint. All field assets are stowed for the night.