Over a Game of Cards
“So are you enjoying the game so far?” the purple coated Unicorn asks me as he begins putting away his cards.
“Yeah, but we’re not done playing are we?” I ask as I start shuffling my deck of cards.
The stallion looks to the clock behind the sells counter, “Okay, one more game.” With that he takes his cards back out and begins lazily preparing his deck for another match.
I watch him for a moment, “You don’t really like that deck do you?”
“It’s pretty boring to use,” he stops shuffling and places the cards in front of me, to cut the deck I assume.
“You can use another set if you want,” Cinnamon Swirl, what did you just do?
He smiles for a moment but quickly returns to his lazy gaze, “You’ll learn the game better if I use this one.”
“I’ve played that one three times, I get the basics now. How about something more advanced?” I hope I don’t regret this.
“You’re going to regret say that,” He removes his cards from the field. His horn begins to glow purple and a box levitates out of the saddlebag resting beside him. A deck of cards float out of the box and begin to shuffle themselves.
I watch this display for a few moments, I’ll never be that good with my magic. He’s not even looking at his cards. In fact his golden eyes are looking dead at mine. It’s making the hair along my spine stand up. He blinks a few times, adjusts his posture making himself appear more relaxed. He places his cards before me and we cut each other’s decks. “I’ll go first,” I declare.
“It is losers choice,” almost as soon as he finishes saying the words he bites his lower lip and diverts his eyes elsewhere.
I draw my cards, two monsters and three traps. This might be my best hoof all day. “I’ll summon this monster and set these three cards.” I’m ready for him. The look he gives me says I’m not ready for this, “Do you normally do that to the ponies that you play against?”
One of his eye brows arches, “Do what?” While the look he is giving me is a little menacing he actually sounds like he has no idea what I’m talking about.
“The creepy glare and trash talk?” I reply as bluntly as I can.
Instantly the look vanishes and turns into the face I would make if I was caught with my hoof in the cookie jar. I can’t help but laugh. “Sorry, it’s a really bad habit of mine.” He runs a hoof through his short cobalt colored mane and he sits up straight in his seat. “I’m here to teach, not to draw blood,” My ears fly back and he smiles, “That one was on purpose.”
I set my card down and lean forward,” It’s your turn.” Once again the eye brow shoots up. Trash talk is fine and probably a big part of the game. There’s just something about how he’s doing it that makes me feel odd.
He draws a card with his magic and the six of them to eye level. He spends a second looking them over, “Try not to blink.” He activates a spell card and takes out my attack trap. From there he summons a monster, then another, then a third one making sure to explain why the cards he used allow him to make each of his moves. It all makes sense, I just didn’t know these kind of moves were possible. It is now sinking in that I have stepped into something I have no idea how to deal with. Before he finishes his turn he has bucked my monster to the discard pile, inflicted more the a worrisome amount damage to me and has two monsters, two face down cards in his back row which I am sure are traps and two spell cards that are enhancing his monsters. “I end my turn.”
“Thanks,” I reply as I continue trying to process what just happen and if there is any way out of this. I start to draw my card, but figure I’ll try his magic trick. I summon forth my magic and grab at my deck.
“You might want to practice that with just one card instead of tackling the whole deck at once,” He says sounding a little worried. Which might be good advice and I settle on using my hoof.
I activate my new card and I get to draw two more cards and for a moment he seems ready for something big to happen. Then it’s like he remembers who he is playing as relaxes. “I’ll play this spell card.”
“Pay the cost,” He responds flatly. I discard one card from my hoof and his monsters are wiped from the field, progress! “Now my field card actives and they return to my hoof,” The two monsters float up before him, “Now this card activates and I get to search out a monster.”
“How is that fair?” I yell. The other ponies in the store all turn to us and I shrink a little. My opponent just floats the relevant card before me to read. “Just because it’s legal doesn’t mean that it’s fair.
“Do not seek a fair fight, a fair fight means you have a fair chance of losing,” he quotes.
“You are not a ninja master, you don’t get to say that,” I say back to him.
He grins after realizing that we’ve read the same book. His card then floats back to its spot and his deck spreads out before him. He looks through them, picks a card out being sure to reveal that it’s another copy of the first monster he used. The card then floats over to the other cards in his hoof. Then the cards in his deck fly around us in what looks like a very random manner before resting before me. I’m still mad, but that was cool. I just wave the cards away, he’s been searching through his deck after almost every move and I don’t think cutting the deck is going to do me any good. He tries to hold in a laugh and I realize that my building frustration must be showing on my face. With a deep breath I remind myself that it’s just a game, game that I really want to win, but a game.
“I summon this monster,” I slap my card on the table. For the slightest of moments one of his face down cards glow, but remains where it rest. “Don’t start taking it easy on me now.”
“Just saving that for when I need it, please continue,” I am going to make him regret that this turn, time to even things up. I have my monster attack, he flips the other face down card up ready to send my poor monster to oblivion, but for once I am ready for something like this. I flip one of my cards over with as much authority as I can and shut his card down. All of the games before have built up to this moment where I leave my opponent powerless before me. The attack does through and he barely reacts.
“Anything else?” I review my cards and realize that I don’t have any other plays left and pass my turn.
“So what’s your name kid?” He asks as he draws a card.
“I bet I’m not that much younger than you,” I reply.
“I was mostly going by your blankness of the flank,” he answers back.
I look at my flank like I’m completely shocked to find my cutie mark missing. “Well that’s just rude pointing that out.”
“Trance, Trance Magnus if you want to be formal,” he extends a hoof to me.
We shake, “Cinnamon Swirl.” I announce.
“Red coat and a white mane, cute,” he stretches in his seat. “Are you still having fun?’
“Yeah, that deck isn’t fun to play against. You’re going to make the same play you did on your first turn,” I rest my head on my hoof and lean on the table.
“That’s what the deck does, I can repeat my process until it works. You will run out of ways to stop me be for I run out of ways to try to move again. Also very nice work reading how my deck works.” For a moment I think about that, I did piece it together from what I‘ve seen him do and the cards on the field.
“So how does this end?” I’m sure he has come up with a dozen ways to beat me at this point.
“Depends on how cool you want your defeat to be,” His golden eyes look dead into mine once more, but now they’re not creeping me out. “Your call,” He informs me.
“I want the best you got,” I lean forward not wanting to miss anything. For a few seconds he just stares at the cards on the table. Just as I am about to ask him if something is wrong something starts climbing out of my monster card and I bounce back in my seat. My monster climbs out of my card! He’s tiny, just a little smaller than the picture on the card but it’s him. A little armored Unicorn wielding a sword with his magic stands on the table. Trance then summons a cat in a purple jacket which is followed by the problem monster that started this mess. She appears as a white robed Pegasus, it leaves the field and a vest wearing owl replaces her and he brings out a stallion with a newscolt hat and saddle bags overflowing with letters. The cat and owl combine to form some kind of sea dragon which brings back the Pegasus one more combination and the two ponies have become an Alicorn. She sits on her throne and her scepter points at the two cards I have on my side of the field and they go flying back into my deck. My little knight was screaming on the way. The spell card in Trance’s back row card glows and a letter flies over to the Alicorn who quickly rips it open, seems to read it and swings her scepter at Trance’s deck which flies apart. He gestures at a card and it flies down to the field and another Newscolt appears on the field. “That’s game.” He declares as he sits back in his seat. His deck and hoof of card rest on the table as his magic leaves them but the monsters remain on the field.
I return to reality. I have nothing on my side of the field and he has enough power to take down a legion, or he might as well. “Yep, you win,” I concede.
Trance begins levitating his possessions into his saddle bags, “I hope that doesn’t make you want to quit game after just four games?” He leaves his seat and places his bags on his back.
“Four loses, but no I’m not planning to quit the game yet,” I quickly gathers my things and tosses them into my bag. “Just don’t use that deck anymore,” The two of us make our way to the sells counter.
“I’ll take one of the spell caster decks,” The Stallion places his bits on the counter and the clerk gives him the box of cards, which he slides over to me. “This deck is much better than the one you have, learn it and we’ll play again in two days if you’re up to it.”
I place my gift in my bag, it’s already paid for and I’m sure I am going to need something better if I ever want to beat that monstrosity of a deck. “Why not tomorrow?” I ask.
“I’m going out with my parents,” he turns and starts for the exit. I look back to the clock and realize that the game lasted much longer then I thought.
I make my way out the door that he is holding open for me and we start down the Canterlot street. “Don’t use that deck again!” I exclaim.
“Really, you don’t want a chance to beat it another day?” We stop at the corner.
“I do, just not anytime soon,” No point in lying about it.
“Fine, I’ll just make a new one tonight,” A smile grows on his face, he’s probably already plotting my demise. “Do you need someone to walk you home?”
“I don’t need you to foalsit me, and I’m not sure I want you to know where I live,” I reply.
“Alright, see you in a few days,” He waves and crosses the street heading into the distance.
I continue watching until he turns a corner and vanishes from sight. I stand at the corner alone for a few minutes, having someone to talk to for a few more minutes would have been nice but I don’t really know him so this was the smart idea. Well walking home alone is just something I’m used to doing away.