“Draw,” Cross called out, slightly off balance.
It wasn't the first time he had gone second, with his opponent failing to play anything, but those had all been matches against other Heapers, not a player with access to all sorts of cards for their decks.
He looked at his hand, not surprised at the lack of playable fighter.
Maybe he should have taken the time to look at them earlier and gone for a special draw, but the unexpected advantage had thrown him off.
In fairness, he didn't know whether Crash had told his father anything about his cards or deck, whether showing his opening hand would be of greater help for him or Balthazar.
“Turn end.”
“Indeed,” Balthazar stated with a raised eyebrow. “Very well.”
He drew his next card, glancing at it briefly before adding it to the others in his hand, picking out a different card to place in the arena.
Thunderbound Tyrant
Atk: 6 Def: 15 Life: 11 Level: 3
On destruction: deal 5 damage to each opponents fighter and each Tyrant in play
The fighter that appeared looked somehow more solid than those Cross was used to, a man in golden armour, lightning crackling across every surface.
“Thunderbound Tyrant, attack.”
The fighter stepped forward stiffly, as though fighting against restraints, to land a punch on Cross and reduce his Life to 94.
He felt the punch make contact, sparks of electricity crossing into his body and making him double over in shock.
“You won't have experienced a match like this before,” Balthazar commented as Cross tried to straighten himself to his feet. “If my son is as talkative in the Heaps as in the city, I doubt you know who I am, what I do. Let me erase that ignorance. I am a human guardian, one of those who stands against the monsters of the wastelands who break through the borders between zones to destroy civilisation. This,” he held up the gauntlet, “allows me to make every card, every fighter, I play just as real as you or me. Do you get what that means?”
“Yes,” Cross snarled out, “you're the sort to drag a kid into a real fight without any warning, before trying to intimidate them into giving up. It won't work.”
Balthazar raised an eyebrow.
“Turn end.”
While he had no level 2s in his hand, there had been a few level 4s, giving Cross no choice.
“Draw.”
A quick check and,
“Summon Harbinger of Discord!”
Harbinger of Discord
Atk: 14 Def: 14 Life: 14 Level: 4
Passive effects: while summoned, enemy fighters lose 2 Atk. Does not prevent enemy fighters attacking directly
On destruction: if a copy of Harbinger of Bloodshed exists in the owners deck, summon it at no cost
Again the mysterious horse riding fighter appeared.
“Attack Thunderbound Tyrant!”
A pulse hit the Tyrant, dropping it to 2 Life but leaving it still alive.
“Turn end.”
Balthazar drew his next card almost casually, before placing it next to his first.
Thunderstrike Tyrant
Atk: 19 Def: 0 Life: 15 Level: 3
Activation cost: discard 1 card
Activated effect: deal damage equal to this cards Atk to an opponents fighter that has already taken damage from this card in the same turn, and 5 damage to each Tyrant other than this card in play
This fighter was a heavily muscled (and barely armoured) man with an oversized sword crackling with electricity.
“Tyrants, direct attack,” Balthazar ordered, the pair attacking Cross as ordered and bringing his Life down to 73.
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“What,” Cross managed to croak out as he struggled to recover from the electricity that had struck him.
“Why I ignored your fighter? Hmmph, let me guess, in your match against my idiot son he chose to destroy it, and the others it called out before the inevitable level X which destroyed him. Am I right?”
“How did you know about Harbinger of the End?”
“I am not an inexperienced idiot. Any fighter with an effect that allows you to ignore it is best ignored, the consequences for doing otherwise. One of the basic marks of a veteran over a mere beginner.”
He looked at his cards again, before nodding and picking one out.
“I activate Tyrants Repose. Now, for each turn I end without summoning a fighter, one of my Tyrants recovers 5 Life. Turn end.”
“Draw. And let me guess, your entire deck consists of level 3 or higher Tyrants?”
Cross looked over his hand quickly as he spoke, looking for a way to blunt Balthazars advantage in Life.
It was too high for a nine card to seven card hand to balance out.
“Naturally every fighter gracing my deck is a Tyrant,” Balthazar scoffed, “I have no need to fill it out with fighters that don't benefit the archetype. And every Tyrant I have seen is level 3, nothing more and nothing less.”
It didn't look good for Cross.
He had drawn his Water Sprite, giving him a fighter he could play at least, but its Atk was too low and the effect too little to do much right now.
If it had instead had an effect to damage a fighter with damage equal to a discarded cards level, that would do it, but…
His eyes moved to a different card in his hand, a non fighter that could be devastating late gate, but that was nearly useless early on like this.
Normally he would hold on to it, but right now…
“I activate Level Shot, targeting your Thunderbound Tyrant! By paying both the levels I received this turn, I can deal 2 damage to your Tyrant, destroying it!”
A ball shot from the card, nearly too fast to be seen, striking the Tyrant and destroying it.
“And now its effect activates, dealing damage to both my Harbinger and your other Tyrant,” Cross continued, a wave of lightning from the destroyed armour matching his words. “And now that its been damaged, my Harbinger can destroy your Thunderstrike Tyrant, so Harbinger, attack!”
This time the pulse saw the Tyrant shatter, leaving Balthazars side of the arena clear save for his currently useless healing card.
“Turn end.”
“A skillful play,” Balthazar allowed as he drew his next card, “using the weakness of my Tyrants against them. I activate Black Blade of Tyrants,” he stated, placing the card on the furthest row from himself. “It doesn't do anything right now, but I suppose I should be treating this more seriously.”
“Shouldn't you explain what it does anyway,” Cross prodded. “Match etiquette and all that?”
“There is a different etiquette in serious games. Now take your turn.”
“Draw.”
He hesitated only a moment before making his choice of cards.
“I summon Water Sprite, and activate its effect by discarding Bloodstone Tyrant!”
Water Sprite
Atk: 4 Def: 4 Life: 14 Level: 2
Activation cost: discard 1 fighter from your hand
Activated effect: gain Life equal to that fighters Level
Something crossed his opponents face as his own Life recovered to 76, not the best but certainly putting him in a better position.
“And now my fighters will attack directly!”
The distortion and water bullet struck Balthazar at the same time, dropping his Life to 82, a much more manageable deficit.
“Now,” Cross hesitated. There was something about the Blade Balthazar had played, sunk into the floor between them… “I play one face down, declared non fighter.”
It wasn't one he'd ever had cause to actually activate, but he'd kept it in his deck on the basis that it could be potentially game changing in the right circumstances.
“Turn end.”
“Of course,” Balthazar acknowledged, adding an eighth card to his hand, putting him briefly ahead of Crosses seven. “Now I summon my Greatsword Tyrant, activating my Black Blades effect! By giving up 5 of my Tyrants Life upon summoning it, it gains 5 Atk until it leaves play.”
“I activate Judgement of Power,” Cross countered immediately. “When you activate an effect to increase the power of one of your own fighters,or weaken one of mine, I can activate it to negate your effect and destroy the activating card!”
“While my payment of Life is left untouched,” Balthazar nodded, as the sword shattered before his Tyrant could draw it.
Greatsword Tyrant
Atk: 15 Def: 13 Life: 8 Level: 3
Passive effect: whenever another ‘Tyrant’ cards effect would reduce this cards Life, it instead heals by that much, up to the original Life of 8
“Greatsword Tyrant, attack Water Sprite anyway.”
The Tyrant lunged forward, slashing the Sprite with its sword to leave it with just 5 Life.
“Turn end.”
“Draw.”
It was the third Harbinger.
The first time he had any of them but Harbinger of Discord in his hand.
And it was useless there.
But…
Cross quickly checked the effect again.
The wording was very deliberate, so…
“I activate the effect of Water Sprite, discarding Harbinger of Starvation!”
His Life shot up by 8, putting him in the lead at 84 to 82.
“And now I tribute Water Sprite to summon Steampunk Tank!”
Steampunk Tank
Atk: 20 Def: 28 Life: 8 Level: 4
He had recovered a decent amount of Life thanks to the Sprite, but if he left it in play it was almost certainly going to be destroyed next turn anyway, so better to make use of its Levels while he could.
“Steampunk Tank, attack Greatsword Tyrant! Harbinger of Discord, direct attack!”
The Tanks shot destroyed the Tyrant, leaving the path clear for the distortions of the Harbingers attack to strike Balthazar and reduce his Life to 68.
“And turn end,” Cross declared, excited at taking the lead after how the match had started.
Balthazar added another card to his hand silently, an eighth to Crosses six.
“I summon Gravesoul Tyrant,” Balthazar declared, placing the card in the middle of his arena. “And now its effect activates, dealing 5 damage for each fighter in my discard.”
The fighter was a humanoid figure in black robes, an ominous glow beneath its hood.
Gravesoul Tyrant
Atk: 8 Def: 8 Life: 19 Level: 3
On play: for each fighter in your discard, deal damage to 1 random opponents fighter and 1 random ‘Tyrant’ other than Gravesoul Tyrant. If this effect would deal damage to an opponents fighter while they control no fighters, deal the damage to your opponent instead
“I usually use this card to finish off a match,” Balthazar stated, as three orbs of light rose from the ground around his fighter, “but with your Harbinger of Discord, I obviously cannot take the risk. But playing it now, I have a fifty-fifty chance of removing the strongest of your cards you can choose when to play from consideration.”
Balthazar grinned a twisted grin as the orbs spun around his fighter, faster and faster.
“What can I say? I feel lucky today.”
