“Your usual today Jacob?” The card shop owner smiled at Jacob as he walked in, a small bell ringing as the shop door closed. The owner was an older man who had been running his shop since shortly after the first packs had been released, though Jacob had never learned his name. The store was small and out of the way, wedged between two factories in one of the most run down parts of town. Across the street from it were massive automated warehouses, filled with production lines creating every sort of product. In the old times the shop had been a cafe news stand, with it’s primary customer base being factory workers. The shop owner still carried the weekly edition of the last remaining newspaper in the city as an homage to that, even as the factories had long since laid off their workers.
Despite it’s modern appearance, pieces of that past still remained. Marks on the floor where tables used to be. The old faded letters spelling Cafe on the walls, that the owner refused to remove. The Shop owner was proud of the building’s history. The old man swore that it was once a popular spot for artists and writers, claiming every week a different famous novel had been written there. Nowadays both walls were covered in shelves displaying a variety of Cards and supplies, with the majority being government issue. There were a few Corporate Card packs locked behind glass, though the cases were more of a formality. Such a store would normally be a prime target for crime, however it had never been successfully broken into. The owner was beloved throughout the city, a short elderly man with unruly curly hair down to his chest that genuinely loved everything about the cards. During his time at the Agency Jacob had heard of exactly one break in attempt: supposedly five years prior criminals broke down the front door, smashed the cases, and made out with several dozen boxes of cards. The cards re-appeared less than a week later in the shop with an apology note, alongside brand new cases and a new front door. The criminals responsible were found lashed to the railing directly outside the Agency. No one knew who had hunted them down and caught them, but no one had tried anything since.
“Same allotment as always.” Jacob glanced about the shop as he responded, passing his gaze quickly over everything. “Plus a weekly for my grandfather, if you still have one.”
The owner smiled, and moved to grab what Jacob had asked for. He walked over to a section filled with GovPacks, their dull grey foil lifeless next to the corporate packs a few shelves over. 5 companies had managed to secure machines when the portals opened 50 years ago, and they had held a monopoly on the card market ever since. Every other machine known was in the hands of a few governments; investigating the corporate machines was a top priority for every card agency on Earth. If they couldn’t outright seize them, they could at least monitor them. For half a century the companies had fought tooth and nail to maintain exclusive access to their machines, moving them to secret locations in international zones no government could touch. Each of the companies guarded them closely, with private militaries and intelligence networks that could rival even the strongest nations.
Jacob moved over to look at the corporate packs and decks, produced in bright colors for every purpose imaginable. The shop was visited by people from across the city, and despite being in a poor neighborhood had a large collection of expensive corporate cards. Competitive Casters came from far and wide to talk with the owner about Cards and their uses, consulting the elderly man on their decks and strategies. Around the Agency station there was a rumor he was one of the legendary missing 12; the earliest competitive casters who had defined the matches before the government cracked down and regulated them. Either way, almost every Agency Officer at the station visited his shop, to the extent that the Agency wouldn’t dare to investigate it even when it was known black market deals were done there. Some illegal activity was tolerable, when it benefited the local community and didn’t cause trouble. A few candidates in the next election wanted to crack down on shops like the old man's, but they would never convince the Officers to actually enforce those regulations.
The owner moved back to the counter and placed Jacob’s pack on it. A plain GovPack pack of fifteen cards from the WC Focus line, designed for basic workers who needed an extra boost throughout their day. One of many packs the government produced to fill the void, giving cards to the masses who couldn’t afford corporate boosters. Even with massive factories pushing the machines to their limits there was still a perennial shortage, requiring the government to restrict their release to specific allotment amounts and dates. Cards had become more critical than currency for a struggling populace, keeping the economy and people moving. At the man’s shop Focus packs were the most popular choice for allotment, and the owner always kept 2 or 3 packs available on the days he knew Jacob showed up. Jacob was sure he did the same for the other Agency Officers regulars. There were roughly 20 different card lines of standard GovPacks, though some legislation was supposed to be introduced later this month to create a few more. It was the most prominent and beloved social safety net in the country, and never failed to get political attention.
Jacob pulled out his GovCard ID and a 5 Unit of CivCreds. The owner took the ID and slid it into the tabletop Card Equipper he had next to the register. He placed the grey foil GovCard pack on top and the machine beeped, registering the allotment and cards within to Jacob. The owner slid both back to him, then held out a hand for the currency. Jacob handed the CivCreds over, and the owner opened up the register. He placed the currency inside, pulling out 2 1 units and a few coins in change. He handed those over to Jacob who took them, alongside the weekly edition of the City News. Jacob pocketed the currency and card pack into his jeans and tucked the paper under one arm. He turned to leave, then hesitated and looked back at the shop owner.
“What do you know about the Order of Aman’thea?” Jacob lowered his voice slightly as spoke, despite no one else being in the shop.
“The card worshippers?” The Shop owner raised one eyebrow at Jacob “Not much more than anyone else.”
“Ever sell them any packs?”
The shop owner paused “You asking as an Officer?”
“Personal interest.” Jacob’s response didn’t seem to assure the shop owner much “Fully off the record.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
The owner sighed, and eased slightly.
“No one knows about the Order of Aman’thea, except for the Order of Aman’thea.” The shop owner paused for a moment to think as his mind turned to a slight tangent “Though I suppose a former Order member would know a lot, but no one’s ever left.”
“No one’s never left?” Jacob’s voice was suspicious in return “They’ve been around for over 50 years, that can’t be right.”
“Some think they’ve been around a lot longer.” The shop owner mused “They appeared with hundreds of members at roughly the same time as the cards, with deep knowledge of how they worked. Something that would seem impossible.”
“Unless they knew the cards were coming.” Jacob picked up the obvious thread the shop owner was leading to.
“Indeed.” The shop owner smiled knowingly “I will say not only have I not sold them any packs, no one has. At least not in the Card Sellers Network. No one really knows where they get their cards or how many there are. Or what they are. Just that they have their own card type, a card type no corporate or government machine has yet been able to make. The Sacred Cards.”
Jacob nodded. The Holy Order of Aman’thea was another one of the Agency’s top priorities, one they had never gotten a foothold on. What was known via security footage and chance encounters was that the Order had its own battle decks, equip cards, and card equippers. 14 cards had been catalogued thus far, but if what the shop owner had said was true they had to have far more. Cards no government or corporation had ever seen. At least, not that they had admitted to. Like all technologies there was plenty of classified research being done that none but a select few were privy to; whether that lack of knowledge in cataloguing was due to black projects or a genuine lack of knowledge was something someone at Jacob’s pay grade would never know.
“So they use Shadow Cards then.”
The shop owner’s face grew solemn, and he glanced at the entryway before leaning in towards Jacob.
“How much do you really know about Shadow cards?” The owner’s voice was low and intense, matched only by the piercing stare of his gaze.
“As much as any Officer.” Jacob replied flatly “They aren’t my department.”
“Of course they’re not. You’re new, unproven, and even I can tell you’re destined more for battling than deception and deep investigative work.” The shop owner chuckled “Tell them to hurry up and promote you so I can sell you some proper cards and get you casting”
“I’ll be sure to pass on the message.” Jacob replied wryly “Right after I finish casing out the latest batch of murders I’ve been tasked with.”
“Useless exercise in futility.” The owner grumbled “In a world with cards, no crime someone wants to hide will ever get solved”
The shop owner squatted behind his counter, and Jacob heard the sounds of various things being pushed around. The owner stood back up holding two small wooden boxes, and glanced conspiratorially at the door.
“I’m going to guess by how hush-hush you’re being, that those are something you’re not supposed to have.” Jacob’s tone was dry and sarcastic. Every Officer at the station knew the shop was involved in the Black Market. It had to be in order to keep its doors open. Government cards were a tiny business, with subsidies providing nowhere near enough to keep the shop going. The owner gave him another wry look, and opened the first of the two boxes. Inside was a high level corporate card, encased in plastic to protect it from the elements. It was thicker than government cards, with a light texture and sheen to it. The card itself was an incredibly powerful snare that Jacob had only seen twice in videos of official matches. The Piper’s Melody, a snare card designed to lure an opponents creatures away from the battle itself, and directly into the caster’s own creatures. It stripped all defense points of the snared creature, making it completely helpless in battle. It was incredibly rare, and incredibly expensive.
“Somehow, I am not surprised you have one of these.” Jacob said whistfully, staring at the impressive card laying on a velvet cushion.
“The first unlocked card on any machine.” The owner said “Produced nearly 50 years ago. Only 600 were made. A perfect example of a corporate card. No gimmicks no fluff. The card that put Wonder Corp. on the map.”
“A card I’ve also seen before.” Jacob glanced up at the owner “It single-handedly gave Nokumori the first international championship. It’s required viewing at the Academy.”
The shop owner nodded, then opened the second box. Inside on an identical setup - encased in plastic on a velvet cushion - was a shadow card. Jacob leaned forward, captivated by it. He had never seen a shadow card in person, only in limited Agency briefings and Academy assignments. As he looked at it he felt a weight in his pocket, like the shadow pack that was hidden there was calling out to the card in the box. The Card had a raised black border distinct from the corporate and government cards, which were uniformly borderless. The entire surface of the card had a light texture to it, while the art on the card gleamed with holographic effects. The name of the card was embossed into it instead of purely printed, and the card appeared to be slightly thicker than the corporate card it sat next to.
In terms of the card itself, the shadow card was one of the more common in the illegal casting circles. Shining Sword of the Ice Queen, a glittering sword of Ice that served as a caster equip. It granted the caster during all duel types a frozen sword made of unbreakable ice, that could be used to attack both casters and their creatures. It sent dozens to the hospital from illegal matches every month, and was one of the most commonly seized shadow cards by undercover officers. Still, the card was beautiful, in a way government and corporate cards could never be.
“That is definitely something you shouldn’t have.” Jacob spoke quietly, still enthralled by the card.
“And if you tell anybody about it, it will disappear.” The shop owner said seriously, before continuing his explanation “Government and Corporate cards are a dime a dozen. They all look the same, use the same machines. Shadow cards are different. No corporate or government card has ever managed to replicate them. The machines can’t do it. They have the technology to do it, but they just… can’t. Every time anyone has tried, terrible things happen.”
“What kind of terrible things?”
“Deaths. Hospitalizations. Explosions. Nothing good.”
“Why are you showing me this?”
“Everyone has seen Government and Corporate cards. A large amount of people have seen Shadow Cards. I have seen a Sacred card once. Over 40 years ago, when I witnessed an Order caster in an alley.” The Shop owner closed the two boxes, and his voice grew distant with recollection “The things those cards could do… they could level mountains. Tame seas. Alter weather. Change the fabric not just of their caster, but the world at large. And unlike any card I have seen since, they glow.”
“…Like they’re shiny?”
“Like they literally glow. When you cast them, they emit light.” The shop owner leaned forward, his voice returning to it’s conspiratorial tone “Don’t cross the Order. Whatever they have, it’s something different. Something powerful. Something only they can control.”
Jacob paused for a moment, unsure what to say. He cleared his throat nervously, picked up his paper, and turned to exit the shop.
“I’ll bear that in mind.”
every genre. I know some of you are likely wondering why I then chose Deckbuilder of all things as my second release. It isn’t hugely popular, on Royal Road or elsewhere, I could have spent my time building a massive fanbase in an Isekai or classic LitRPG to get a lot more attention; wouldn’t that have been a better strategy?
many ideas I have as the series goes on.
trust in the cards.
What is the Best Yu-Gi-Oh Anime?
