“Dude, where is everyone?” Josh asked Bobby, the store owner.

“I wish I knew; the Upgrade has everyone freaked out, but I figured most guys would at least want to keep playing,” Bobby lamented. Josh had only finished a couple of semesters of business school before he dropped out, but even a business school dropout could realize that his favorite game store wouldn’t be around much longer if things didn’t change.

“Why don’t we start a little later than normal to give folks a chance to get here. The traffic was pretty bad on the way here, must have been an accident or something,” Josh offered. Bobby agreed since the only other player in the store, an older guy named Charles, had been there all day and would likely be there until the store closed.

Josh was a hard-core gamer, but even he was surprised by how much it consumed the life of some people. He didn’t know Charles that well and wasn’t sure what he did for a living. Whatever it was, it must have been enough to support not only Charles but also his collectible card game addiction. Mayhem the Get Together wasn’t a cheap game to play. The best decks, the only ones that could consistently win, were full of rare and expensive cards.

The Upgrade had been a painful day for him and most of the world, but at least here in their small town, there hadn’t been much trouble. They didn’t have any monsters show up and even a few months later, the craziness had been minimal. There were a couple of people that tried to use some newfound criminal skill to rob a few businesses, but the police seemed to be on the case and would stop any these shenanigans before too long.

For all it promised, the Upgrade hadn’t been all that useful for Josh. Finding out the whole world functioned like a game seemed a dream come true, at least until he looked at his character sheet. In his mid-twenties, Josh hadn’t done a whole lot with his life.

He was never into sports and never felt any real calling as far as a career. He studied business for a couple of years in college but dropped out when it cut into his gaming time. Back in high school and college, he was into various MMO’s, but just two years ago, he found his new gaming love, the card game Mayhem the Get Together.

It had been the store owner Bobby that got him started. Dragon Dropping Games and Comics was the closest store to him, and Bobby was cool enough to set aside a copy of his favorite comics or the latest MMO expansion whenever he asked. Josh had come in that day to pick up a couple of comics and saw the place full of cheap plastic tables that were surrounded by gamers playing some kind of card game.

Bobby told him there was a tournament about to start and asked if he wanted to join in. Not having anything else to do, he took a chance and signed up. Bobby gave him a crappy starter deck and explained the basic mechanics before cutting him loose. Josh had seen the cards for sale in the store during his previous visits, it was hard to miss the row of glass cases that housed selections of individual cards. He had chalked it up to being some kids game, not one that would appeal to a serious gamer.

He was in for a rude awakening. The game was simple enough to learn but much more difficult to master. With various strategies and ways to build your deck, Josh was hooked, not even minding that he lost every game that first day.

Pouring every spare dollar that he could squeeze from the part-time jobs he worked, Josh put together a decent deck and grew in skill, finally winning more than he lost. Now, he was good enough to enter and even win a few regional tournaments. Josh now dreamed of going pro, using his skill at the game to earn a living.

If things kept going the way they were, he didn’t think that Mayhem the Get Together or any other of games like it, would survive the downturn in the player base. He perused the store’s inventory while he waited for more players to arrive, looking at the various cards in the case. Josh’s deck was just about perfect, the only thing he was missing was a final foil copy of a death font, something that neither Bobby nor any of the online vendors seemed to have for a price that he could afford.

Josh hadn’t been gifted with much in the way of skills when the Upgrade occurred. His stats were average, he supposed, for a man in his early twenties that lived a fairly sedentary life. He received a few skill points for his various hobbies, including a few for cooking, which he enjoyed, and a few in marketing, the Upgrade at least giving him some credit for his two years in college.

The only anomaly was a skill in something called mana manipulation. He was ecstatic at first, figuring the nanobots were going to give him some kind of mage-like powers. Sadly, no matter how hard he tried, nothing happened when he activated his mana manipulation ability.

Josh read up anything he could find online on magical powers granted by the Upgrade. For the most part, the Upgrade seemed to only give powers based on real-life skills. A few people could do other things, and there was that one girl in Florida

She had an animal summoning skill where the nanobots would build various monster-sized animals that she could command. The creatures she summoned only lasted an hour, but it was a really cool ability. A few others had different abilities to manipulate the various elements, but he couldn’t find anywhere in the guides where mana manipulation was listed as a skill.

In a final effort, he tried to channel his power through his deck of cards. Josh had high hopes that he would become a mage like the ones he played in Mayhem the Get-Together. Sadly, nothing happened.

He could see and feel the energy leave him, but that was it. It was his highest skill with eleven points locked into it. Josh had no option but to live with what he had, it wasn’t like there was some helpline or complaint department for the GGS. At least there was none that anyone on the planet knew about.

“Hey Josh, you want to get a game in before the tournament starts?” Charles asked him, shaking Josh from his wandering thoughts.

“Sure, man, what are you playing?” Josh asked.

“I’m not going to give that away, you’ll have to wait for the battle to start,” Charles replied.

Josh smiled as they began to shuffle their decks. Charles was really into the lore of the game and liked to roleplay that he was an actual wizard controlling his deck. Josh and the regulars at the store didn’t care, personality quirks were part of the whole gamer scene whether it was digital or with actual paper cards.

“I see you and I are both blessed with the power of magic,” Charles said as he made his first play.

He dropped a fire font card on the table. It was the card that activated the other cards they played. Next, he played a Goblin Swiftfoot, linking it to the font and attacking.

The goblin only did one point of damage but it signaled to Josh that he was up against an aggressive deck. Perfect, his deck had more of a midgame strategy, but he had plenty of early game interaction to offset the damage the aggressive creatures could dish out for the first few turns.

Josh looked at his hand as Charles completed his turn. He had a pair of golden archmage fonts and five other cards that could be played out in sequence. The color of the font determined the types of cards a player could use in a particular deck. Fire fonts powered small, aggressive creatures as well as some buffing and, as you might expect, fire magic.

Gold was the color of control. It favored a steady, disciplined approach that sought to play synergistic creatures and use magic to counter the opponent's play. Dropping a font, he passed the turn back to Charles.

Charles placed a second fire font and used both to play the Flaming Torch card. The torch could be added to any attacking creature, giving it the ability to attack twice in each round. For now, his creature only dealt one damage per hit, but Josh knew more was coming. Waiting for Charles to declare his creature as an attacker, Josh used his Repel the Aggressor card, forcing Charles to place the Goblin Swiftfoot back into his hand.

“Ha, well-played mage, but my fierce creatures will overcome your paltry tricks,” Charles said, getting into his role.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Brains over brawn, my man,” Josh replied.

The game went as he predicted, with Charles’ deck not working fast enough to kill Josh before the mid-game where his powerful synergies came into play. With the first win going to Josh in the best of three matches, the two shuffled up their decks for the next game. In between games, the pair could substitute a few cards from their sideboard, but Josh kept his deck the same for the second game.

When the door to the shop chimed, Charles looked up. He missed his shuffle and dropped his cards over the table. Seeing the shocked look on his opponent’s face, Josh turned to see what was happening. At the front of the store, three masked men had entered. The first one held a pistol in his shaky hand while the others both held cheap fold-out knives.

“Come on, open that register and give us all the cash or somebody gets hurt,” the man with the gun said as the three moved toward the back of the shop where Bobby stood stunned at the cash register.

Josh sat still, not wanting to draw attention to himself. He hated to see Bobby get robbed, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. Charles, on the other hand, pushed back his chair and stood, a look of defiance on his chubby and unshaven face.

“Begone, foul brigands, or face the wrath of a Deck Mage!” Charles growled.

Josh started to try and pull him back into his seat when he noticed a glow around Charles’s hand. A red light grew to cover both hands which Charles pointed at the floor. There, on the chipped linoleum floor next to their table, something began to take shape.

The shape was familiar, it was one Josh had looked at countless times while playing, it was a magic font. Silence rained in the shop as everyone inside stood stunned at this turn of events. Charles didn’t wait, he held his left hand with the palm up, revealing cards blazing with magic energy. The cards moved on their own, wiggling as if they were alive. Plucking one with his right hand, Charles dropped the card next to his font.

A red glow of magic linked the font to the card and appearing before Charles was a real-life Goblin Swiftfoot. Without hesitation, the little red goblin charged the gunman, the creature’s sharp claws ready to strike. It knocked their game table over as it charged, and Josh had a fleeting fear that his cards might get bent as both decks scattered over the floor.

The robber snapped out of his stupor as the creature charged him. He pulled up his pistol and fired two shots into the small goblin. With a squeal, the goblin fell to the ground, breaking into shower of light as whatever nanobots created it dissipated back into the world.

Shifting targets, the gunman fired two more rounds at Charles. The first shot clipped his shoulder while the second hit the gamer right in his prodigious stomach. A sickening, wet slapping sound could be heard even over the roar of the gun as the round hit.

Charles slunk to the ground and Josh moved to help him. Josh didn’t know much about first aid, but he did know he needed to try something to stop the bleeding. Pulling off his windbreaker he bundled it up and pressed it against the wound. Charles grunted in pain, whispering to Josh as warm blood flowed past his makeshift bandage.

“Fellow mage, use your power and engage these villains, you have the same ability that I do, I can feel that it is so, it is a power we can use only in battle,” Charles muttered. It was then that Josh noticed a golden glow start to form on his hands as an Upgrade system prompt appeared.

Class unlocked: Deck Mage. Your skill and dedication to the game Mayhem the Get-Together, along with your mana manipulation skill have combined into a rare class. The deck mage can use his mana to summon powerful beings during times of great stress. A starter deck has been granted to you, defeat your foes to earn more powerful cards.

Just like that, knowledge flooded into Josh’s mind, the ability to become in real life what he pretended to be for hours on end while playing Mayhem. He knew exactly what to do, channeling his newfound power as he peeked over the collapsed table. The robbers had the cash register open and the one with the gun was leading Bobby behind the curtain that separated the back of the store, likely trying to find whatever cash might be inside the safe.

After scooping out the cash from the till, the knife-wielding thugs were busy grabbing anything they thought looked valuable. If it wasn’t so tragic, Josh would have laughed at their antics. They were shoving used video games worth five bucks into their bags while ignoring the case of rare Mayhem cards that were worth thousands.

Using the table to block their line of sight, Josh held out his hand, cards appearing in front of him as he took stock on what he had to work with. Like his deck in real life, it appeared he was a gold mage. Sadly, the deck he had access to only held five cards, none of which were particularly powerful, but they were better than nothing.

Dropping a golden font at his feet, Josh activated a creature card. An Ironbeak Sparrow took shape in a ball of golden light. The small flying creature didn’t do much damage, but whatever damage it did inflict was translated into healing power to the summoner or a designated target.

As the knife-wielding thugs turned toward his light show, Josh linked the sparrow to Charles and sent it to attack. With a two-foot wingspan, the summoned bird wasn’t all that powerful, but its sharpened beak was made of metal which the first thug found out the hard way. Josh heard the man curse in pain, blood spurting from the gash in his shoulder.

The pair flailed about their knives, trying to kill the attacking bird. Josh used the confusion to summon his second, and last, golden font. His other two cards in the deck both needed two fonts to activate. Needing more fonts indicated a more powerful card, as was the case this time.

His next creature took shape, this time a human in robes holding a flanged mace. The Herald of Victory had okay melee stats, but its real advantage was that it generated health whenever Josh summoned another creature. Mentally, he kicked himself for sequencing his casts wrong.

He should have waited to summon the Ironbeak until after the Herald was on the field, improving the overall healing. Shaking off the minor mistake, Josh ordered the herald to attack. The man charged forward swinging his mace.

The thugs shouted for their partner as they ignored the sparrow to take on the charging man. With a horrible crunching sound, the first thug’s knife flew from his grip as the herald’s mace shattered the man’s arm. The second thug stabbed his blade deep into the herald’s side. Josh could feel his link to the summoned man waver as he took damage, another blow would defeat his herald.

Not wasting any time, Josh activated his final card. This time it was a spell called Locked Away. The second knife armed thug shouted in fear as glowing walls of light sealed around him, preventing him from moving or attacking.

The sparrow continued to peck away at the injured thug as another gunshot boomed in the small store. Josh felt the herald unsummon as the pistol shot finished it. This was it, he was out of cards and the thug was even now turning his gun toward Josh.

As he looked for something to hide behind, Josh watched as a halo of fire appeared around the head of the gunman, causing him to drop his weapon as the flesh on his forehead crisped and sizzled. The man let loose with a final high-pitched screech before dropping to the ground dead, the halo of fire winking out as the man expired.

“So, the Upgrade gave you a lifegain starter deck?” Charles said, his hands glowing red as he summoned another goblin that he sent to attack the wounded thug who was even now begin pecked to death by the sparrow.

“Looks that way, I prefer control over lifegain, but I suppose it has its moments,” Josh replied, smiling down at Charles. The wound had stopped bleeding as the healing from the sparrow’s attacks kept the man away from death’s door.

“Unlike you, I got my favorite deck, aggro fire may not be the top tier deck anymore, but I do like it,” Charles replied.

“That Flaming Crown spell was a clutch move, thanks,” Josh said, recognizing the spell that had killed the gunman.

“Hey, do you think you can drop your locked away on that guy and let the sparrow do a bit more, the pain is still really bad,” Charles asked as he summoned yet another goblin.

Josh dropped his spell as the goblins charged in, tanking the thug who didn’t show any skill with his small blade. The sparrow darted in where it could, the damage it caused translating into healing for Charles. By the time the final thug expired, Charles was out of any danger and police sirens could be heard in the distance. Bobby must have hit the silent alarm while the robbery attempt was happening.

Their summoned font’s and creatures dissipated now that the threat was over. Josh did spot a glowing card on the floor where his herald had died. Picking up the card, he saw it was another Ironbeak Sparrow. The card disappeared in his hand, the item already added to his deck by the Upgrade.

“Sweet, I got a Fireblast uncommon card, what did you get?” Charles asked.

“Another Ironbeak Sparrow. How did these drop, those robbers were real people and real people don’t drop loot?” Josh asked.

“Oh, you haven’t had a chance to check the FAQ for our class. When we use our decks, there is always a chance for a new drop. It’s not tied to the opponent, but instead, it’s linked to our mana manipulation skill,” Charles answered.

After he got through with talking to the police, Josh was going to have to dig into the class description more. Mayhem the Get Together may be dying as a game, but he and Charles were going to live the dream.

“I suppose you can split the prize pool today, you both earned it,” Bobby said in a daze as he handed out three packs of the latest Mayhem set to Josh and Charles. Before, opening packs had been the most exciting part of a tournament, now, he was more interested in the real cards he would discover as he explored his newfound power. Maybe this Upgrade thing wasn’t going to be so bad after all.

***

Deck Mages are still a rare class and only the most dedicated card game players have been able to unlock it. Collectible card games saw their sales drop during the Upgrade, along with many other gaming hobbies, but the advent of deck mages breathed new life into the hobby, and gaming stores are starting to pop up again.

The existing deck mages often give demonstrations of their abilities at conventions and the like. It’s something I recommend you see if you ever have the chance…and if you can stand being around that many gamers. Despite the Upgrade, personal hygiene remains a problem at many of these events.

Not every tale I have researched ends in bloodshed and battle. Most people were able to go about their daily business, skilling up their existing abilities and working, for the most part, as if the Upgrade had never happened. Of course, the Upgrade has a way of intruding into most of our lives at some point, no matter how hard we may try to avoid it…