21. Child Protective Services #2
Part of me wanted to ask the system why we had to choose our starting legends prior to the battlefield’s theme reveal, but there was no purpose.
I wouldn’t have the strategy or familiarity with my deck for that to make any difference and–more significantly–the game had no rhyme or reason in accordance with human logic.
It might pretend to be a test of true intellect, but I knew it was as rigged and flexible as any of the modern laws.
A system wasn’t running this, but an individual–if the Luxists were leading us well.
A human could change the order of the game’s phases all they wanted and any complaints would be ignored.
Just as with the politicians outside of the neurocore, our opinions didn’t matter. It was their game, not ours.
I glanced at my opponent on the video cube above, which is the same as the last one as was everything in the arena, save the battlefield.
He was an older man, perhaps sixty or seventy but still had a youthful visage.
This was no comforting grandfather, but a hardened Scholar who seemed as fit for this event as any other.
He was of West Arabasian descent and well-toned, though I wondered if his perfect musculature–as seen by the absence of a shirt–was another part of this illusion.
My cartoonish apparel was just as unreal, but at least my body was my own.
I turned back to my hand as he finalized his starting lineup, which would be obscured until the game began.
I didn’t think before choosing Zhu and hoped that every game from here on out would let me begin with him.
Even if I didn’t use him in combat, his advice was invaluable.
Advice or cheating, it didn’t matter as long as I survived until the next round.
I had Digital Dependent in my starting hand and would not use it out of spite. The Pain was back and despite its early death, I wanted to see what it could do. I selected it then chose Swine’s Servant, hoping it would at least be able to die before Zhu so I wouldn’t have to kill him again.
The announcer introduced me on the green side, then the old man as RegLon on the red.
“The gamble deck has been set to match the theme for this round. This rounds’ theme is…”
The field shifted to a frozen plain with miniature glaciers. Lava streams weaved around them with random eruptions of vibrant magma bursting from random cracks in the ice.
“... Hellish Tundra! Beware of your legends’ weaknesses when preparing for random damage from the battlefield.
Now, for the gem of this theme…” The eggshells dissolved like frost clearing from a window.
The fluid within evaporated before touching the ground.
An infant dropped from each egg, clad in nothing but a loincloth.
“Help!” they screamed simultaneously as the soles on their feet faded to purple against the ice.
“Heed their calls, competitors! If one of your Lonesome Infants dies, you will automatically lose this bout. Please select their starting health and your ability cards.”
I adjusted my health to thirty-five, adding ability cards in addition to those they had added for this round, and gave my infant fifteen health.
“Begin!”
I glanced at our health total, seeing that this opponent favored their legends more than the last and gave twelve health points to their infant.
RegLon had summoned four legends, two three-costs and two two-costs.
Rather than a variety of creatures like mine, all of his had closer ties.
Ralia had advised team synergy with my spirit type deck, but I had reason to believe that even my best combinations would pale in comparison to his legends who all shared the name.
The two larger Tanuki Brutalists stood on the flanks of the gaunt Tanuki Skirmishers.
The bipedal racoon-dogs looked just like the caricatures I had seen as doorstep decorations in East Arabasia, including the giant cartoonish eyes and oversized groin.
RegLon began, sending each Skirmisher out to attack The Pain, which dealt a damage but left it alive. One of the Brutalists raised his iron gauntlet in a shout, damaging the other Brutalists but allowing the Skirmishers to attack with Penetrate.
They eliminated The Pain again before I could use him and dealt two damage to me.
The other Brutalist lifted the infant, cursing the legend with the keyword Frozen.
Despite the Brutalist now being a blue statue of ice, the infant suffered no damage in its grasp.
I hadn’t expected my infant to take damage so early on, let alone on my opponent’s turn, but it suffered one point of damage.
Green infant: fourteen.
Red infant: twelve.
The lights turned on me. I played an ability card called Rebirth, which returned the infant to its egg for one turn. With my focus back on my legends, I activated Swine Servant’s chant ability, doubling Zhu’s attack for the rest of the turn.
“Play Multipider.”
I looked at Zhu and caught his glimpse. Rather than make him demand trust again, I followed through and summoned the card he had requested.
A reverse centaur appeared with an arachnoid torso spouting twelve arms, and two hairy human legs below. Each arm had a different modification, some with lights and others with blades. Looking at its abilities, I now understood Zhu’s request.
I chose to multitask, granting another legend with spread.
Zhu attacked with his double damage, spreading his fire-fueled staff swing’s damage to every opposing legend.
RegLon shook his head, arms still behind his back. I was relieved to see that he responded with simple disappointment where MayWat would have thrown a tantrum.
Fire spread across the field, melting the ice in its wake and angering the lava flow enough to cause a splash onto the Tanuki force. The Brutalist took it like a wall, despite the bald patches that remained after the attack. The Skirmishers stood much closer to the lava flow.
Zhu’s tidal wave swept over them, depleting their health to a few points and leaving their skin black and charred without a single hair.
Though the frozen Brutalist was near the back of the arena, he was not spared from the attack.
A few drops of lava melted him and dropped RegLon’s infant to the ground.
“Look at that combo!” The crowd roared with the announcer’s appraisal. “And an extra point of damage to the Red for dropping the infant!”
The infant turned back to RegLon, not crying, but with the voice of a disappointed grandparent. “Why do you hate me?”
Green infant: fourteen.
Red infant: ten.
RegLon glared at the infant for only a second, then tapped his cards. He summoned a four-cost Tanuki Herbalist, then activated her four-cost ability to heal the Brutalist to fill health and returned the Skirmishers to three-fourths of their full health.
The Brutalist then cast its two-cost impregnate, which played out as one would expect between it and the herbalist. Rather than focus on the act, I selected the pregnant keyword on the Herbalist.
Pregnant: target legend will spawn one to three Taniki Pups on the player’s next turn.
He ended his turn.
Green infant: fourteen.
My infant rehatched.
Red infant: nine.
The light shined on me as my hand and lumens replenished. I felt myself understanding the game but was again pulled from my focus. My infant was now back on the frozen ground and cried out, “I am suffering. Think you not that I suffer?”
Rather than feel empathetic, discomfort overcame me. I didn’t want that thing looking at me any longer and would have returned it to its shell, had I the card to do so.
Though RegLon’s creatures had healed, they were weaker than before. I commanded Zhu to attack and the Multipider to spread the attack, leaving me a few lumens to protect my infant.
Zhu swung his staff, invigorating the lava flow to wash over the Tanuki legends.
RegLon revealed a card.
Counter: Begin your next turn with three fewer Lumens. If played on an opponent’s turn, prevent their attack if it is the same as their previous attack.
The lava splashed against a blue barrier and dissipated like steam.
The infant stared at me, but I only noticed it from the corner of my eye. I would not make eye contact. I could suffer another point of damage for the sake of a better move.
I summoned Anti-parasite, a golem formed of human intestines with worm-like tendrils around its torso. I glanced at its healing abilities but left them for the next round when I would have the lumens to use them.
Green infant: thirteen.
Red infant: eight.
The light shone on RegLon’s side and he eyed the field.
The Tanuki Shaman fell to her back and screamed.
As something emerged from her birthing canal, a die rolled in the air above her, landing on the number three.
With a final euphoric cry, three slimy furballs shot out like cannonballs onto the field.
Two of the furballs landed near their father, each unraveling in the air to stick the landing.
The third was the largest of the three and looked the most like the Brutalist but landed in the lava stream and died upon impact.
RegLon shook his head and mumbled under his breath but did not lose his focus. The Tanuki pups hid behind their father, who then cast impregnate on the mother again. RegLon summoned another Brutalist and played an ability card to give him samurai armor that glowed with violet light.
The armored Brutalist cracked the ice beneath his feet as he stomped forward, stopping in front of the other Tanuki legends. One of the Skirmishers disappeared and the Brutalist doubled in size.
RegLon played the Rebirth ability card that I had used and ended his turn.
Green infant: twelve.
Red infant: eight.
Do you think he has another one of those counter cards?
Zhu replied without moving from his predatory stance. “I would risk it. Gamble.”
Are you– I stopped my thought and spent the energy.
The top card of the Gamble deck flipped over and was revealed to the audience.