Chapter 69: Garden Of The Doomed Maiden Part 1
Alabaster
Alley was about to inspect the hovering images of the five Cards that made up his Hand when he felt a wriggling from within his cloak. For the briefest of moments, he thought the tree lady had somehow managed to circumvent the Challenge Arena and snaked one of her roots up his leg.
Of course, none of them had moved or shown signs that they could so he knew it was a stupid idea.
Alley felt his eyes go wide with realization as he felt his cloak itself begin to constrict.
“Oh no you don’t “ he hissed as he unceremoniously ripped the garment from around his shoulders and tossed it into one of the corners of the Arena. He half expected the bundled cloth to spring to life and surge towards him, or for his connection to the Deck to vanish.
Thankfully none of that happened, and in fact Alley pondered the Cloak was only half of the Dealer, or the Dealer’s delivery system or something. He could feel the other half or the true Dealer or whatever it was sitting atop his brow right now. The Crown Of The Cursed King. Still invisible the crown nevertheless cast a sort of shadow in the light of the Resonance crystals.
“I uhh didn't know she could do that,” Alley said to the tree sheepishly. While he very much appreciated the improved Ante Card, it felt a little rude to just reach out and change what someone else was risking.
“Just take your turn” Came the more than exasperated projection from the tree lady.
“Right, yep,” said Alley with a little laugh as he considered his Cards.
First was the spell he had gotten from the Knots Family. Fierce Negotiations. Alley had been looking forward to playing that one and he felt his smile widen a little.
This was a strong opening hand, not a Cursed Draw for once. Saoirse, Chill Of The Grave, Shadeling, and finally Zombie Brute.
With those four Cards plus the Fierce Negotiations spell this was a hand he felt like he could use to quickly seize control of the Challenge. That would be a nice change too, not running around for his life while he desperately searched for a way off the backfoot.
“As requested, let's get things started. I Manifest Saoirse, Relentless Banshee”. Once again Alley thanked the stars above that he knew how to pronounce that name, based on the way it was written he could have been guessing for a year and never figured it out.
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Saoirse, Relentless Banshee
Resonances: Undeath, Curse, Cacophony
Unique
No Cost
Power: 2000
Vitality: 1
The first time Saoirse is sent to your Crypt you may send the top five Cards of your Library to your Crypt. If you do Manifest Saoirse in play and lower a Creature in play's Power by 200.
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A strange sobbing that seemed to come from everywhere at once filled the room, then the banshee Manifested along with a moss-covered log upon which she sat. The monster was of all things combing her long grey hair as she sat. She might have been called pretty, but Alley preferred the word terrifying. Pale blue skin that seemed to turn translucent and then back again every few seconds. Her eyes were a milky white flecked with glowing spots of red, red that only grew in intensity when the comb snapped in her hand.
The banshee let out a shriek of rage that left Alley’s ears ringing in a way that didn’t clear until long after the monster had stood up from the log, and the wood had vanished behind her. The introductions that Unique Cards got always impressed him but some, like this one weren’t exactly comfortable.
2000 Power. 1 Vitality Good value for a Card that didn’t cost Vials, but nothing special for a Unique.
‘Well if she has an effect it had better be a good one.’
“Next I activate Fierce Negotiations”. A more conservative part of Alley felt like he should hold onto the Card until later in the Challenge, but he was aiming to seize control quickly and that meant playing Cards in order to draw Cards.
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Fierce Negotiations
No Resonance
Spell
No Cost
Additional Cost: Send the top two Cards in your Library to your Crypt.
Each player selects a Card in their Hand. The selected Card is sent to the opposing player's Hand and may be played by them as per normal for the remainder of the Challenge.
[Traded Card returns to the Crypt of it's original owner if it is sent to the crypt]
The spell activated and the sounds of a thriving market filled the air. A pair of women appeared and began to shout at each other in a language Alley didn’t recognize. Automatically a pair of Cards were sent from Alley’s Library to his Crypt. Knowing the way that his Crown Of The Cursed King tended to function he paid special attention to what those Cards actually were.
The first was a Unique Card he still hadn’t quite figured out. It had weak stats but almost certainly had a combination effect with other Cards.
Clarence, Supreme Shadeling
Alley had a regular Shadeling in his hand and paused for a moment to see if the Unique monster activated some sort of effect with the one he was holding when it hit his Crypt. Nothing happened, but that had been a long shot anyway so he wasn’t overly concerned. He would figure out the Card’s synergy eventually.
The next Card sent to his Crypt was a familiar one. It was Alley’s Greater Shade Hound. A little bit of a loss, but until he had more than two Vials to play with the Creature was bad value anyway. While he would have preferred to have a crypt-based effect activate, or have sent some of the remaining off-Resonance Cards from his Library to his Crypt the spell hadn’t cost him anything he couldn’t afford.
Once the cost was paid and the sounds and images faded Alley explained.
“So all you need to know about Fierce Negotiations is that we both pick a card from our hand, and the other player gets that Card till the end of the Challenge. So make sure to give me something strong, okay?”
Obviously she wasn’t going to do that, the tree woman would pick what she considered the weakest Card she had and Alley would do the same. Naturally he gave her the Shadeling and received a Swamp Zombie in return.
Ending his Creation Phase with Alley reinspected his hand, now that the two Cards he had played were replaced. Chill of The Grave, Zombie Brute, and Swamp Zombie had already been there, but now they were joined by End The Bloodline and City Of The Doomed And Rotten.
‘Spell heavy draw.’ Alley remarked to himself, not that he minded Spells were quite often the lynchpin that held your Deck together or the Catalyst that allowed it to get its strategies rolling.
Unable to attack on the first turn, Alley moved on to his second Creation phase and activated the Land Manipulation spell.
“All this plant stuff isn’t really doing it for me, hope you don’t mind if I redecorate a little, City Of The Doomed And Rotten!”
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City Of The Doomed And Rotten
Resonances: Undeath, Zombie
Land Manipulation Spell-Continuous
No Cost
While this Card remains in play all Creatures in both Crypts gain the Undeath and Zombie Resonances.