“All right, girl, let’s do this after all,” Wolfe said, sitting down on the floor away from the blood and pulling out the ten cards from the deckbearer he had killed. “We have to wait for Harry and his boys to get here.”
He spread the ten cards across the floor. They were all generic Infernal cards, nothing that was rare or named, and no companion card.
Shel sat down on the other side of the cards cross-legged, but her eyes went to the corpses not but six feet away. “Do we have to do this… here?”
Wolfe stopped arranging cards and glanced up. “It’ll build character—or at least a tolerance for bodies and the smell of death. Offer’s still open if you want to just take the cash and get out. It’s the smart move.”
Shel shook her head and Wolfe went back to arranging the cards with a huff. After they were arranged, he checked the cards he had on the ground while Shel watched.
Two ‘escaped damned’ cards, and one that had been Heinrich’s in his pocket made three. Two ‘torturer imps,’ no different than his own. A ‘wandering imp’ creature card that had probably been the deckbearer’s best card, a rare card which allowed any imp up to four power to switch in without paying its power cost. Two persistent ‘hint of the pit’ aura cards that each added a tiny bit to all the combat stats of other Infernal creature cards. A card called ‘tiny demonic pitchfork’ that was a persistent equipment card that added to the wielder’s attack and could be equipped to either imps or a deckbearer.
Then there were two more interesting cards. A card called ‘punish the sinner’ that allowed an Infernal creature to directly attack a deckbearer, and the ‘imp master’ mantle, which empowered imps.
The deck had clearly been imp tribal. Not the worst deck, Wolfe supposed… but pretty basic compared to most, and the imps weren’t exactly amazing creatures. Or impressive at all to talk about.
Wolfe glanced up to find Shel breathing through her mouth and staring at him. She watched him run his finger along each card as he read them. Her eyes had been flickering over the cards—reading them upside down, probably—but she had stopped. Neither said anything and Wolfe stared at his new cards again.
Wolfe was half-tempted to switch his deck to an almost pure imp deck. His current deck had little real synergy—its only serious play was against other Infernal decks. But the idea of running an imp deck—the lowest tier of infernal being—didn’t sit right with him.
Wolfe shook his head. Focus on the now. He put aside his deck thoughts for the moment. He would make the two card combinations he could make regardless of his final decision, so he should focus on that.
“First thing we’re going to talk about is combining cards, since I have enough here to demonstrate. You need three cards of the same tier to raise the card a single tier.”
Wolfe summoned his deck as Shel watched. He subbed the ‘punish the sinner’ card into his deck for one of his ‘escaped soul’s. The ‘escaped soul’ dropped to the ground.
Wolfe took the two new ‘escaped damned’ and put the three cards together, giving Shel enough time to see the three cards. She leaned over to take in the stats.
Escaped Damned (Common Tier-1)
1 Infernal
A soul that has somehow escaped the Hells
Infernal, Undead, Fire
Creature Card
Attack
0
Magical Attack
3
Defense
8
Magical Defense
1
Health
10
Special: N/A
Wolfe took the three cards and willed them together. The three cards all glowed a fiery red and then merged. The card front burned away, leaving a new card behind: ‘escaped damned,’ tier-two.
Escaped Damned (Common Tier-2)
1 Infernal
A soul that has somehow escaped the Hells
Infernal, Undead, Fire
Creature Card
Attack
0
Magical Attack
4
Defense
8
Magical Defense
2
Health
11
Special: N/A
The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.
“That was… underwhelming,” Shel said.
Wolfe laughed. “I suppose, but it’s a permanent and unlimited method to make yourself stronger no matter your level. You never need more power to cast, or more cards on field, or anything. Just get giant piles of other cards and combine.”
Shel nodded. “I guess that makes sense… It works for anything?”
“If you get three of the same card at the same tier.”
Shel scrunched her nose as she focused. “So it’s a geometric progression? Three raised to the power of the tier you are raising the card to, minus one?”
Irritably, Wolfe said, “You just need three cards of the same name and tier and you’ll make a new one. Don’t complicate it.”
“Still… I can see how it would be hard. A tier-four card would require twenty-seven tier-one cards. Imagine the crazy amount of zeros you would need on a tier-ten or something.”
“Heh.”
Wolfe took a cigarette out, noting his pack was almost empty. He lit his cigarette, merged his ‘torturer imp’ cards, and switched so he had two tier-twos in his deck. Then he leaned back against the wall. “Okay, since we’re still waiting on Harry, let’s talk leveling. I need to actually level, so pull your status sheet up a second time to follow along with me.”
Shel glanced at the bodies on the bed again but said nothing.
He pulled his status sheet up again himself, then quickly checked the values each stat could be increased by. Then he leveled before using the chart as a reference to talk to Shel.
Wolfe puffed on his cigarette, adding secondhand smoke to the miasma of terrible that floated through the air of the room. “Okay, so, each time you level, you get a point. Each of the deckbearer stats can be increased for a point per time you’ve increased it, including the one you’re doing at the moment. What you had to start doesn’t really matter.”
Shel was nodding.
She probably understood, but Wolfe gave her an example anyway. “So, for my level, I added a point of power—Beast power, but it’s total power that’s the stat for determining the cost to raise my power. It cost me one point. I have four power now—one Fire, one Infernal, and two Beast. But I’ve raised my power one time only, so it only cost me one leveling pip to raise it. Get it?”
Shel nodded.
“If someone who didn’t have a perk granting an extra power had tried to raise to three power from their base two, it would have cost the same. One leveling pip. No matter which specific power type they raised.”
Shel kept up the bobblehead nodding as he talked. Like she was automatically agreeable. He wondered why. “Now, when I go to five, even if I get a second Infernal instead of a third Beast, it’ll take two leveling points. Because even though it’s my first Infernal power raise, its my second power raise ever.”
“Got it,” she said. “What are the values of each increase on the other stats?”
“For a leveling pip each, you can get the following: Each increase to your deck size is five. Each increase to cards in hand and cards in play is one per. Each increase to length of play is one minute. Each increase to power is one power of any type, whether you currently have it or not.”
“And specialty card slots?” Shel asked. “How much do each of those cost?”
Wolfe quoted from his memory of what he had read on the internet. “It’s different for each specialty card. For the most common two—buildings and minions—it’s five and one, respectively, modified by number purchased. Unlike power, this goes up per type, not for the whole category. So even if you had five specialty cards, if none were minions and you bought a minion card slot, it would still only cost one for your first.”
“And Companion cards?”
“Five to add one, and then ten for the second, fifteen, and so on. Having five amazing companion cards that cost no power on the field at all times would be insanely valuable, but you’ll need fifty levels to pull it off. Well, actually, only thirty for you since your card combination would give you a bonus companion card slot. But fifty for most people.”
Shel exhaled so hard, she practically deflated, then nodded at Wolfe. But she didn’t say anything.
When she breathed in again, deeply, she coughed and went a bit gray.
It is getting even grosser in here.
Even as Wolfe thought it, his phone rang—it was Harry.
Wolfe answered.
“We’re here, Wolfe. Four guys and a tarp. Is it okay if we come up?”
“Yeah. Room 3D. We’ll be outside in the hall, right when you get off. By the elevators.”
Wolfe stood up, gathered his remaining cards, walked over, and ground his cigarette out in the ashtray on the nightstand. He turned to hold his hand out to Shel but found her already standing.
He dropped his hand and motioned to the door. “Well, with fortuitous timing, Harry has arrived right at the end of our talk about the two ways to make yourself more powerful as a deckbearer. Let’s go see what we can work out.”
Shel nodded and followed Wolfe outside the room and back into the hall. She walked a bit from the door and breathed heavily.
Maybe asking her to stay in there was a dick move… but she does need to toughen up.
“So, tell me about your deck,” Wolfe said.
Shel took another deep breath, then started in. “It’s mostly Mortal cards, actually. I have the same perk you do—I got an extra power type as well. You have Infernal and Beast and Fire. I have Divine and Mortal and Light.”
He nodded, feeling the sting of his gifted deck pretty much declaring him irredeemably bad. At least I can still get this precious little cinnamon roll out of the life.
“I have a couple of small, direct damage Light abilities, the companion, a card that empowers mortals while it’s out, and some mortal cards—all of which are weak on attack but can take a beating and have mild special powers. Most are subtype ‘martyr’ or subtype ‘healer,’ except I have two ‘rookie riot police’ cards.
Wolfe wanted to take another cigarette out but held off, tapping his foot against the floor. He still felt wired and anxious. “What are your perks and flaws?”
Shel frowned at him but answered fairly quickly. “The extra power is one, and my second is an increased quality pull for one random card from any Divine or Mortal pack we win from monsters or a dungeon, or, for a mixed pack, a guarantee that at least one card will be from one of those types.”
Wolfe almost face-palmed. Every Drop Night, the world also got inundated with new monsters and dungeons—it was a great source of new cards and experience both. He pulled his phone out. Who to call for information? Even a small tip was hugely valuable right now.
Shel was still talking. “My flaw is that I can’t gain attack from mantles.”
Victor Gaines. He owes me—big time. As soon as I have some actual free time, I need to try to get some levels and cards before this season’s resources disappear. Half will disappear in the first month, and two thirds of the remainder in the rest of the year.
Then Wolfe did a double take. “Wait, say that again.”
“I can’t gain attack from a mantle.”
“Can you gain magic attack?” Wolfe asked.
Shel’s eyes unfocused for a second, then she nodded.
“Okay… very few mantles add magic attack, and you can’t really train yourself up for it, but that’s not the worst thing you could have gotten. Still, it’s a decently harsh flaw. You might need to really lean into a mantle that benefits your cards.”
Shel pursed her lips but didn’t say anything else.
Wolfe got back to what he had been doing, holding his phone up.
Shel watched him as he unlocked his phone, but before he could call, the elevator door opened and Harry stepped out with four other goons whom Wolfe only barely recognized.
Wolfe hooked a thumb toward 3D. “There’re two bodies inside, boys. One is Heinrich, Big Man Grimm’s cousin—”
One of the men cussed, and Wolfe resolved to learn his name—he instantly understood what that meant.
“—and one is a working girl. I need you to wrap the girl in the sheet and drop the girl off in the dumpster behind the Rise Club, and I need Heinrich’s body to go to Big Man Grimm’s mansion—not the club. You knuckleheads got it?”
Everyone nodded. Wolfe noted with amusement that half of them were ogling Shel, despite her ridiculously unsexy outfit.
“Harry?” Wolfe asked, and the man faced him. “Repeat it back, please.”
Harry, whose thick frame was mostly hidden by the wrinkled suit from yesterday he had obviously put back on, obliged. “Put the dead girl in the sheet, take her to the dumpster behind Rise, and leave her. Take Heinrich to the boss at his house.”
Wolfe nodded. “All right, good. Additionally, someone needs to get this mattress and the blankets out of here and clean the floor perfectly. You guys can handle that?”
“You’ve got it,” the same man who had instantly recognized what Heinrich’s death meant said. He had milk-chocolate skin and brown eyes, with the tattoo of a phoenix on his shoulder.
“Thanks, um…”
“Derrick.”
“Thanks, Derrick.” Wolfe flipped his phone open. “You seem competent. Give me your contact info before I blow this joint. I have business that needs attending to.”
Derrick did so, and Wolfe walked into the elevator. Shel followed him in.
A moment later he exited into the lobby. Melissa was still behind the counter. I know she could hire someone. She had a party a year or two ago I attended—she has a small McMansion. I wonder why she’s practically always here.
“I should’ve asked earlier… but did you see anything?” Wolfe asked.
Melissa nodded. “Yeah. I saw a guy leaving right before I went to check on Heinrick—his time was up. He was an ugly guy, bald, wearing a wife beater. He had a devil tattoo on his neck and a snake on his shoulder. His license plate read ‘MILF, K, C, R.’”
Classy. “Thanks, Melissa. I’ll let Big Man Grimm know that you were a huge help.”
Wolfe took a hundred out of his pocket and handed it over to her.
“Thanks for the tip, hun,” Melissa said.