“It was told that centuries ago the mighty ruler Osiris was betrayed by his brother Set. The two battled in an ancient game for the very throne of Egypt. The King was defeated and banished to the underworld, while the usurper prospered. Until one day the powerful hero Horus fought Set in a deadly game to save the very kingdom. We love games and they hold more power than most people realize.”

- Siv Maranthanin two-time duelist world champion

Seth Anderson sat in an expensive chair in an extravagant tower built by his father. He gripped the well-made acrylic material in disdain. In the room sat five other men and one woman, all wearing the best suits money could buy. Seth hated board meetings, but he knew it was a necessary evil since his father’s passing. Seth was surprised that his father cared enough to give him a seat on the board, after his death. He never truly liked or even knew his father. As far as Seth was concerned his father deserted him and his mother years ago to build his legacy. Yes, Seth knew he lived a privileged and extravagant life due to his father’s hard work, but he never truly forgave his father for not being there for him and his mother.

“So, our Q4 numbers are looking great. We are up 20% more than we were this time last year. Our augmented reality sector is making us 60% of our annual gross income. I’d like to take a minute and thank Seth for all of his hard work in developing that division of Anderson Games.” Max said.

Seth looked around and gave a nod to the other board members trying his best to not show disinterest. “I appreciate the kind words. I know my father started this as a humble but small game company. We all know he made board games out of his basement for the first few years. However, to secure the future of his legacy, dabbling in simple game concepts is not enough.” Seth said in an authoritative tone.

“I mean with Emblem Duel on the phone using the AR tech you created single-handedly saved the company. I’d hardly call it simple.” A board member said.

Seth looked at him disapprovingly, he neither remembered his name nor did he care. “Yes, we are doing well however, complacency is what kills companies, and we must be as ruthless as our competition. That is why I am handing off the AR portion of the company to another team well suited for it. I am creating a new division. A virtual reality sector. Not only for games but for everyday life.” Said Seth.

“What? That’s impossible! We aren’t even close to immersive VR technology,” said Max.

In the vast room of luxury sat six confused and concerned board members and one young confident heir. Seth looked down at the oversized table that lay in front of him. He thought of how many tables were made in the world to be luxurious as the one in front of him. He didn’t care for arbitrary things like material objects.

“Well, you have to spend money to make money,” Seth said with a smile.

“The board will never approve of this Seth!” said the man Seth disliked.

Max looked on in terror, he knew Seth better than anyone and Max knew it was better to have Seth as a friend rather than an adversary. Even if Seth wasn’t the nicest of people.

“That’s what I hoped you’d say,” Seth said with a crooked smile. “I know most of you won’t approve of this because you want to sit in your ivory towers and bask in the hard work my father and I have done.”

The room was silent, and nervous energy filled the void. None of the members ever saw this side of Seth, apart from Max. He knew that this wasn’t going to end well.

The man stood up looking at the other members. “A little boy does not have power over well-educated professionals who have spent years climbing the corporate ladder. I didn’t work my ass off to take orders from a little boy like you.”

Seth couldn’t help but laugh at the words the man said to him. He took a deep breath to center himself. It took everything he had to not run over there and beat the shit out of the man. Seth thought the man was a fraud and a waste of space. He knew he wanted to make an example out of the man. Devine justice, Seth thought. It would also get the rest of the members to concede. Seth learned just because he controlled a portion of the company didn’t mean he could do whatever he wanted. Well, most of the time. Certain circumstances needed drastic results, and these were one of those times.

The man still standing, pointed his finger at Seth. Seth slowly stood up. He gingerly pushed his chair out from behind him with extra care. He looked the man in the eye and smiled.

“What are you smiling at?” The man questioned.

The rest of the members were stunned in silence not knowing what to do or say. They felt uncomfortable and embarrassed with the given situation they found themselves in. The majority of the members thought Seth had put a lot of work into the company. Some people around the office called Seth the golden boy for the success Anderson Games shared due to his involvement with the company.

Seth walked over to the head of the table like he was waiting for something. A woman in a business suit entered the room, making her way toward Seth. She carried an oversized briefcase and handed it to Seth.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

“Thank you.” He said in a sincere tone.

Seth placed the oversized briefcase on the beautiful ornate table. Looking at the man in utter contempt, he focused his attention on the rest of the members with a well-crafted smile.

“What I have here is a holographic deck demo for Emblem Duel. It blends the holographic fun the AR game cannot produce while giving players a small VR experience.”

“This doesn’t change anything.” the man said.

The rest of the room looked on in interest and excitement.

“Well, maybe since you’re the most skeptical you should try it.” The woman said to the man.”

“How about I do you one better,” Seth said.

“What do you mean?” The man questioned.

“If you duel me right here and win, I’ll simply end the program."

“And if I lose?” The man asked.

“I’ll just ask for a fair amount of money for the VR program and it will take me double the time to create. Really, it’s a win-win either way.” Seth laughed.

“Besides, perhaps seeing what the technology does might change our minds,” Max said.

“Ok, it’s settled,” Seth said, as he unfastened the clips on the briefcase. He opened the case and inside sat two small headsets. They looked different from the AR glasses the company sold. Instead of see-through glasses the headset was black and fully covered the user’s vision from the outside. It looked as if the front of the headset had four cameras on each corner of the rectangular shape. Two gloves accompanied the headsets along with two card decks. The gloves were also black and had a chamber on the top the same size as a deck of cards.

Seth turned the case so the man could see inside. The rest of the members looked on in amazement, wishing they were the ones to duel Seth.

“Pick whatever deck you want, and I’ll show you how to link your deck to the system. The rest of the rules are the same as the game we all know,” Seth said.

Everyone that worked at Anderson Games was required to have a basic understanding of Emblem Duel. While some employees played it casually; most were skilled duelists in their own right.

“Alright I’ll pick this one,” the man said confidently.

“You sure you want that one?” Seth said toying with the man.

“Umm actually I’ll grab this one,” the man said taking the deck on the right side of the case.

“It’s simple to link your deck with your duel gloves. Just put the gloves on and place the deck into the top chamber of your non-dominant hand. The chamber will glow when you’ve linked up.” Seth explained.

“So, what if I try to cheat?”

“I wouldn’t try that if I were you,” Seth said.

As both duelists registered their decks to the dueling gloves the room watched in anticipation. Max hadn’t been this excited since the initial tech demo Seth performed years ago with his AR technology.

“What do we do now?” The man said. With his glowing duel glove.

“Looks like we are linked up, we just put our headsets on and shake hands to accept a duel. Seth said.

“Sounds easy enough,” the man said.

Alright! Let’s Duel! Seth shouted.

The board members gathered around, and they saw both duelists shake hands. Max looked at Seth in admiration. Seth had medium-length blonde hair and the confidence not seen in most guys in their early twenties. Seth donned a long blue trench coat flowing like a superhero cape, a white-sleeved button-up shirt, black pants, and shoes of the same color.

Max thought the whole situation was comical; it was like seeing a superhero square up against a boring businessman, in a boardroom that conducted high-level business transactions. Max knew it was anything but a fair fight. Though he never saw Seth duel before; Max heard through the office that Seth was a strategic genius.

The man elected for the first turn. On his turn, the board members saw the man’s duel glove glowing a purplish color.

“Wow that’s pretty,” a member said.

Both duelists held five cards in their hands. The dueling man looked around like he was in a whole different world.

“Might want to take your turn,” Seth said.

“This place looks so realistic; how did you do this?”

“Tick Tok,” Seth said.

The man refocused and took a card from his hand. He placed the card in the air, and it stayed floating for a second. Before everyone’s eyes, the card turned from a purple glow to a great and massive bear. It roared a deep guttural noise out from its maw.

The board members jumped in terror and surprise, but the creature didn’t give anyone in the room attention. Max saw the monster was perfectly lined up with the VR headset. This must have been the new holographic tech Seth talked about for months, Max thought to himself. The members looked on in excitement, thinking about the amount of money this new technology would make them.

“How does it work?” One member said.

“Who the fuck cares. This will make billions,” another member said.

The man ended his turn and Seth played a card the same way the man did. The familiar purple glow revealed a red dragon egg. The Bear towered over the dragon egg, which appeared to be defenseless. Seth played another card however this one floated staying face down next to the dragon egg.

The man smiled after Seth ended his turn and summoned a tiger-like creature onto the battlefield.

“Attack!” The man bellowed out in excitement.

Both creatures rushed at the dragon egg. Right before they made it to the defenseless egg the card Seth laid face down transformed into a great flame, overtaking the whole field of battle. The room that once conducted business was now a war zone. The fire bathed both creatures causing them to yell out in agony. The members felt the heat produced by the fire, they were both confused and alarmed.

“That’s impossible, we shouldn’t feel the heat,” the woman said.

“ha-ha, that son of a bitch, he did it.” Max laughed in joy.

Where the defenseless egg once stood sat a baby dragon. It cried out, producing a cute roar. The baby dragon was red and didn’t look very formidable. The man ended his turn in disappointment. Seth played a card failing to hide his crooked smile. The card floated to the baby dragon overtaking it and with a purple glow, the baby dragon increased in size and acquired armor that made it look deadly.

“That’s not a baby dragon anymore,” Max said.

Seth pointed his finger at the man who called him a little boy:

“Red Dragon, destroy!”

The great flame engulfed the man, who cried out in pain. The board members were not sure if anything they witnessed was real. The cries of the man said otherwise. The dragon’s attack felt never-ending and finally, the screaming stopped.

The fire dissipated and the dragon roared. The members looked down at their former peer lying on the floor, unresponsive. None of the board members said a word.

Seth took off his headset and the dragon disappeared; the glowing aura of the dragon returned to the deck from which it came. He looked at the man in pure satisfaction.

Seth looked at the dumbfounded board members.

“Any questions?”