Ultimately, Oticat4 was a good king. He always donated everything he could, which was nice. He made sure to regularly send mail to his clanmates, even when he didn't want something. Occasionally, he would make a trade that didn't benefit him in any way, just to help out his clanmate. He always did all three of his Collection Day battles, and he always, always, used his War Day battle. He made good decks, using annoying meta strategies only when he had to. And he had good cards, as well. Good spells, good buildings, good troops- the best of which was Brandy the Bandit. Or at least, she thought so.
As she sat on the bench in the dugout in the midst of the latest battle, Brandy closed her eyes for a second, and took in the wonderful atmosphere. The cold wind of Frozen Peak seemed to be rather biting to some people, but Brandy didn't mind all that much. She felt it, sure, but it didn't mean a whole lot, not when this was one of their last battles before Arena 9.
"Hey, Brandy! You're up!", came the shout of Dan the Knight, her best friend. He had been in Oticat's battle deck from the very beginning. Brandy was a relatively recent addition, having been unlocked from a Legendary Chest only a few months ago.
"Thanks, Dan!", she yelled back, and leapt up from the bench. A quick Dash, and she was on the teleporter. Her vision blurred a light blue, a low roar echoed in her ears, and a second later, she was on the ice and snow of the battlefield, placed right on the right bridge.
"Alright, what do we got today?", she said to herself. Looking out across the Arena floor, she saw an Hog Rider. Okay, that was pretty standard, especially after the recent buff. But Brandy knew better than to try and catch him- no one could outrace a Hog. She would leave that task to Agatha and her Skeletons.
Looming up from behind the opponent's king tower was a Balloon, a faint 9 glowing over its surface. There was no possible way she could deal with that. Brandy hoped that maybe Bowza could deal with it. The Magic Archer was one of the only air targeters in the deck, along with Agatha and Randy, who was an Ice Spirit.
Brandy looked forward, and to her surprise, the path to the tower was completely open! It looked as though the enemy king, focused as he was on the Ratzo Brothers charging on the left side with their Battle Ram, had simply forgotten to defend it.
Brandy ran for the tower as quickly as she could, trying to get within dash range. She had seen him use his Fireball just a few moments earlier, so she knew that she didn't have to worry about that. He did have a small spell in the form of The Log, just like Oticat. The spell had regained its former popularity pretty much the second Barbarian Barrel was nerfed. But now, she had crossed the bridge, was in dash position, and ready. Steam rose off of Brandy's body as she knelt to rush forward. Too late, the enemy king noticed. He pressed his finger to his digital interface, and flung it forward. Within a second, his The Log had come hurtling toward her, bouncing off of the ground at high speed. But unfortunately for him, his reaction had been just a bit too slow. Brandy dashed, and passed almost phantasmally through The Log. A Villager in the front row of the stands cheered, and threw her drink into the Arena. Almost immediately, it was absorbed by the Shield that protected the Arenas from any interference. Brandy finished her Dash, and struck the tower, shaking the Princess within, almost off of her feet. It's health readout dropped to 400- it was almost down Just a few more hits would finish it. So Brandy raised her club to strike the tower- and another Log emerged from nowhere and knocked her backwards.
"Wha…", Brandy thought to herself. "How did he get a Mirror? He's only in Arena 8! Oh well, that Log didn't stop me."
Brandy wasn't in Dash range, so she just started to run towards the tower. Hopefully, she could still bring the tower down- oh. Nope. Not with that just-played Mini Pekka blocking the way. Brandy knew she couldn't take it down, not without her Dash.
"Hey, look! Pancakes!", she shouted, and pointed to somewhere in the audience.
"PAN. CAKES?", asked the Mini Pekka, and swiveled its head all the way around.
"Yes, Pancakes!", said Brandy. "Go get them."
"PAN. CAKES!", it beeped, and swiveled its head around again. It saw Pancakes, all right- that was the way it saw the world. And to it, Brandy looked like a very inviting stack. It raised its sword, and swung down.
Seconds later, Brandy reappeared back on the bench. She huffed, and blew her bangs out of her face.
"Hey, you didn't do too bad.", said Dan. "You did better than me."
"Why?", asked Brandy. "What happened to you?"
"I took one step, and got fried by a flawless prediction Lightning.", Dan replied. "But you know what that was?"
"What?"
"It was a…", Dan began, as he waved his hands around in the air. "Positive Elixir Trade! Yeeeaaah!"
"Yeeeaaah!", Brandy sang back, and they exchanged high fives. A second later, the entire Arena was rocked by an explosion, and the two friends stumbled.
Because out on the battlefield, the huge rock of Webert the Bowler crashed right through stone, destroying the enemy princess tower and winning the match.
"Oticat 1, MaNoFwAr_68 0.", drawled the Wizard in the announcer booth. "Blue team wins."
The specially constructed blocks of ice on either side of the Arena cracked and split, forming into the shape of a single crown, lit from within with a mysterious blue light to signify the score.
Oticat4 held up the screaming hog sign- his favorite to use whenever he won. The red king, MaNoFwAr_68, ranted and raved, then flipped the laughing sign multiple times in a pathetic attempt to mask his loss.
Within seconds, everyone that had been out on the battlefield reappeared, back on the bench. Agatha and Bowza crossed weapons in a formal celebration, staff to glowing bow. Webert shared a fist bump with both of the Ratzo Brothers at once, while Randy danced on top of The Log.
"Kudos for taking out that Minion Horde, Bowza.", said Agatha.
"The mountains cannot meet the sky without the trees, Agatha.", replied the Magic Archer.
"And that means?", said Agatha.
"It means that you helped take them out too.", said Bowza. He would usually do this- speak in riddles, then provide a translation just in case nobody understood. Which was all the time.
"Hey, nice job with that Furnace, guys.", rumbled Webert. "It was really annoying."
"Well, we couldn't have done it without you.", said one of them.
"Yeah, you took out the Fire Spirits.", said the other.
Randy said nothing, because he was an Ice Spirit.
Oticat and his daughters, Sadie and Elizabeth, walked down from their respective towers after their emoting was finished. Oticat clapped his hands.
"Alright guys, great match today. Let's head out."
As one, they exited the dugout and strolled towards the Prize Goblin at one end of the Arena. Here, the winning king would receive Gold and Chests, as well as sometimes a Crown for their Crown Chest. Here was also the spot where the loser would hand over a select amount of trophies - usually between 20 and 30, but occasionally higher- to the king that won.
"Hey Grug!", said Oticat to the Goblin attending to the table that day, once they arrived. He slammed his elbow down onto the counter. "What do you have for me today?"
"Oh, I have something simply delightful for you today, sir.", said Grug, and rummaged around below the counter. With a grunt, he pulled up a handful of Gold and a battered red crown.
"Here you go, mate- 16 gold, 1 crown for your chest, and..."
The prize goblin ducked down behind the counter again. As Oticat watched in excitement, loud grunts of exertion and Gobbish curses could be heard. Finally, with a heave of heroic effort, Grug lifted a massive Chest onto the table, and gasped.
"Here's your Giant Chest, sir!", he said finally. "Hope you - wheeze - enjoy it.
The king's face lit up in delight. "Awesome!", he said. "It's always good to get a nice and juicy chest like that."
Webert took the Giant Chest in one massive hand, and gently bounced it up and down.
"And of course, the trophies.", said Oticat, eager to receive them.
"Right," the goblin replied, "MaNoFwAr_68 should be along any second to deliver you his trophies." Oticat4 looked down the hallway- and sure enough, the angry red king was marching stiffly toward him. One of his Princesses carried a bundle of 30 Trophies in a wheelbarrow behind him.
With a sneer of disgust, MaNoFwAr_68 gestured towards his daughter, and she piled the won Trophies into Oticat's own wheelbarrow, pushed by Elizabeth.
"Here, take your stupid trophies. I hope you lose them.", said the red king with a huff.
"Oh, it's all right man. You played well out there. Good game.", Oticat said, and moved his hand to give him a thumbs up. Once MaNoFwAr_68's eyes followed Oticat's fingers, they were swiftly changed to a circle, and slammed against the blue king's knee.
The red king drew swiftly back, then crossed his arms and turned around. Oticat just laughed.
"Hmph. You'll hear from my clanmates about this.", he said.
Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of footsteps and laughter. Brandy came around the corner, already engrossed in conversation with Dan and Agatha.
"I can't believe that moron left the tower open for me!", she said, and put her hand on Dan's shoulder. "And such a nice Log placement- it's like he's got the reflexes of an actual Log!"
Everyone laughed, except, of course, for the MaNoFwAr_68. Smoke merely came out of his reddening ears, and he grumbled. But then, as he looked at Brandy, the source of the insults, he stopped. His head tilted very slightly, and a mote of an idea began to form in his head- somewhere around 11%. Suddenly, he gave a good natured smile and clapped Oticat4 on the back.
"Yeah, no hard feelings man.", he said, suddenly all sunshine. "Just don't expect us to cross paths again anytime soon."
And with that, he turned around, swept his cape around, and strode out of Frozen Peak, his team and Princesses following closely behind.
Dan frowned, and scratched his head. "What do suppose that was all about?"
Agatha stepped forward, her brow furrowed with concern. "I don't like the way he was looking at you, Brandy."
Brandy startled and turned to the Witch. "Why, was he looking at me? I didn't notice."
"So, I'm gonna hit the shop really fast.", said Oticat as they left the Arena. "You guys can just wait here."
He walked into a nearby Official Store, in order to check what was for sale. Sometimes they had free Gems, Gold, or even free Chests. They also had a selection of various cards for sale, as well as some Emotes. Also available were high end, specialty chests, but hardly anyone ever bought them, due to their massive Gem cost.
Brandy decided to follow him, then at the last second took a left into the Gift Shop. This was for visitors to the Arenas to pick up souvenirs- action figures, posters, and the like. After a few seconds of poking around, Brandy noticed a figure of herself posing on a shelf. Of course, it was not actually her, but rather a regular Bandit. But all Bandits, and indeed all troops, did look practically the same. The figure was packaged as part of "The Essential Bridge Spam Kit", and nestled in between two Elite Barbarians.
Brandy picked up the box, and looked at it for a bit. It also included a Battle Ram team and the massive figure of a Pekka. In between the figures, she could see out the back of a box- and through the box, Brandy could see a small Villager child staring at her.
Brandy put the box back onto the shelf, and knelt down. The little girl yelped and hid behind her mother's skirt.
"Now Cookie, what do we say?", said the adult Villager.
"Hi.", squeaked Cookie shyly, staring up at Brandy with sheer admiration in her eyes.
"Hi, Cookie.", said Brandy. " I'm Brandy. How are you doing?"
Cookie, as typical of small children around unfamiliar people, said nothing.
"Cookie, you've wanted to go on this vacation for months.", sighed her mother. "You kept on talking about how you wanted to meet a real troop, and now here's one and you don't want to talk to her."
Cookie continued her silence.
"Maybe I can get her to talk.", said Brandy, and knelt down onto one knee. With a swift sleight of hand, Brandy tucked her hand behind Cookie's ear, and pulled out a Gold piece. Cookie gasped and grabbed it.
"How- how did you do that?", she asked, her fear vanishing in the face of magic.
Brandy wiggled her fingers. "It's all in the fingers, kid. I can teach you, if you like."
The adult Villager swept Cookie back under her arm. "Oh, no thank you. She already gets into enough trouble around the Hut. Which reminds me-"
She fumbled in the folds of her dress for a second, before pulling out a huge camera. "Do you think you could take a picture with us before you go?"
"Sure, that'll be fine.", said Brandy, and maneuvered herself in between the two, hands in the air and fingers in a V. With a click and a snap, the picture was taken, and the camera put away.
"Well, we better leave, Cookie.", said her mother, then looked around. "Cookie?"
Cookie was staring intently at something on the floor. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be a large floor art of a vicious looking red Dragon. Cookie's study of the picture was interrupted by a tug on her sleeve.
"Cookie, we need to leave."
Cookie looked up with eyes shining. "Mommy, can I be a Bandit when I grow up?"
Her mother grimaced. "I'm afraid that's not possible, dear. When you're born, you're one thing and that's it. Your father learned that the hard way."
"Now, don't be so sure.", said Brandy with a smile. "Something could always happen."
The second Brandy left the Gift Shop, she was very nearly blinded by a ray of sun that glinted off of the metal ground. It was getting kind of late after such a long day of battling, and the sun was beginning to set. Oticat walked out of the door next to her, with a small white square in his hand.
"Hey, guess who just got a new Emote?", he asked to the team, and they all crowded around to look.
"What is it? What did you get?", asked Dan excitedly.
"I bet it's Goblin Facepalm.", said one of the Ratzo brothers. "I love that one."
"Yeah.", said his partner. "Especially when you charge a Tombstone instead of the tower."
"Hey, did I ask for your opinion?"
"No. That's why I'm giving it."
Oticat silenced them with a motion, then moved his hand to reveal his purchase- the Dabbing Wizard. Everyone cheered, and laughed.
"Watch this.", said Oticat, and pressed it. The symbol of the Wizard on the tile made a small motion, and a pressing sound issued from it as he dabbed.
"But all fun aside, we had better head home.", said Oticat. "It's pretty late, and I really want to set this Giant Chest to unlocking."
So Oticat and his team got up, walked to the Balloon station, and got in line.
"11, please.", said Oticat to the Bomber tending the stand. "And hurry."
"Yeah, yeah, 11.", said the Bomber sarcastically. "Look, you can just say the standard package- there's only ever a Team, a King, and the two Princesses. Never anything else."
"Oh." said Oticat. "Well, in that case, standard package, please."
The Bomber sighed, and expertly unhitched a group of Balloons from their tethers. "Here you go, sir."
Once Oticat and the team were in the Balloons, high in the sky overlooking the great uncharted canyon that seperated Arenas, they all started to relax a bit.
Oticat4 looked at his Giant Chest, then up at the sky. Back to the chest, then back to the sky. Up, down. He really wasn't sure if he should do what he was thinking of, but it was a spontaneous feeling day. Finally, he sighed and cleared his throat.
"You know what, everyone?", he said.
The various Troops in their various Balloons all turned to look at him with varying levels of curiosity.
"What is it, Dad?", asked Sadie.
"I really shouldn't be doing this, especially after buying an Emote, but I feel spontaneous today. I'm gonna Gem this thing once we get back home."
This caused a great excitement among them all. Rare chest openings were always fun to see- and there was the hope that one of them might get upgraded. And that was one of the greatest feelings of all.
Work- Once they all arrived home, the team hurried out of the Balloons, full of excitement. The door burst open with a bang of Webert's foot, and they all rushed through.
"What's the rush for, sir?", asked Masonl, Oticat's highest level Wizard.
"I just got a Giant Chest.", Oticat quickly explained. "I'm going to Gem it open. You wanna watch?"
Masonl folded up his glasses, and folded to Oticat's side. "Yes, sir. I rather would like to."
The group, now larger with the addition of Masonl, quickly filed into the Card Hall. Here, Chests were unlocked, decks were built, and cards were upgraded. With trembling hands, Oticat gently placed the Giant Chest into the unlocker. Everyone watched intently as he walked over to the cupboard, took out 72 gems, and carried them over to the machine. He placed them, one by one, into a special slot fitted into the front of it, and the Giant Chest cracked open. He grabbed it and took it out, then set it on a nearby table.
"Alright everyone, let's see what we get! Here's hoping for an upgrade!"
His hands trembling from excitement, Oticat reached in and pulled out a sack of 1500 gold. A few thousand Gold was always nice to have. But now, on to the cards. He placed the Gold on the table to be carried off to another part of the room by a "helpful" Goblin. Oticat reached in again, and pulled out a stack of 185 Commons. With a flip, he turned them over to reveal them as Knights. His eyes lit up and he turned to Dan. "Congratulations! You're getting upgraded!"
Everyone cheered- with Dan the loudest. Oticat rubbed his hands together, and reached in again. This time, what was clutched in his hands were Rares- 64 Battle Rams.
"Dang, this is a good Giant Chest.", he said as he turned around. "Two stacks that we use." But he stopped as he saw everyone else in the room staring in shock and awe at something behind him.
"What? What is it?", he asked.
Brandy whistled. "Oticat. Look.", she said.
Oticat turned around, and saw what they were all looking at. A shimmering corona of multi-hued light glowed from the Giant Chest- the surest sign of a Legendary.
Elizabeth squealed with excitement. "What do you want, Dad? I hope we get a Lumberjack. They're so dreamy."
"I want…", Oticat said, and glanced back at the group. Bowza and Brandy both had their hands clasped together, both hoping for an upgrade.
Come on, please…, thought Brandy. I want to be Level 10…
"Well dang. I don't even know what I want.", said Oticat with a shrug. "Just something I don't have, I guess."
He shut his eyes, and pulled out the last card. It flew out of his hands and into the air, where it began to float. It spun around faster and faster, spattering sparks of rainbow light, until finally it stopped- and turned into the shining silhouette of- a Lumberjack! Elizabeth clasped her hands and screamed, as snow fell around him.
The Lumberjack stepped forward, posed, slipped on a wild patch of snow, fell down the stairs, hit his head on the floor, and said "Bugger!", which is a terrible thing to say as your first word ever.
"Woah, are you alright-", Oticat started to say, but the energetic Lumberjack jumped to his feet before there was a second and shook Oticat's hand with a grip as hard as oak.
"Hi! Name's Kars! Kars the Lumberjack!", he shouted enthusiastically. "Good to be alive, huh?"
"Well, Kars, I'm-", Oticat tried, but Kars had already moved on. Quick as a flash, he was down the stairs and already introducing himself to the rest of the group.
"Hi, I'm Kars!", he shouted as he pumped Dan's hand up and down. "You look like some fine people!"
Before Dan could even think of something to say, Kars turned and saw Elizabeth, attempting to control herself. Kars winked at her, and the Princess fell into the arms of her sister.
"Hey, Bowler!", shouted Kars, and Webert looked down at him. "You got any trees to chop?"
"Well, there's some outside.", rumbled Webert. "I guess you could-"
"Awesome!", Kars shouted, and kicked open a random door. He laughed maniacally as he ran through in search of some lumber to jack.
"Sadie, see to it that he doesn't go too crazy.", said Oticat.
Now it was time for everyone to wind down. And in order to do that, they usually partook in one of their favorite activities- watching some T.V Royale. Brandy took her regular spot sprawled across the couch, Dan sitting in the chair right next to her. Agatha summoned some of her skeletons so they could watch too, the Ratzo brothers sat on their ram, and Webert, Randy, and Bowza stood, as always. Oticat, Elizabeth, and Sadie had the seats of honor in the middle. Oticat grabbed the remote from its glass case and flicked the On button.
"Hey everyone, and welcome back to TV Royale.", said the Villager on screen. "I'm Trisha, your host, and today we're going to be taking a look at several exciting things. Isn't that right, Ted?"
Her co-host, a Wizard, laughed. It wasn't very authentic, but nobody expected it to be.
"That's right, Trisha.", he said. "First up, the rumors going around are, in fact, true. Dennis, roll the ad."
Dennis, the Bomber working the camera, flipped a switch, and the scene on the screen changed from a newscast studio to darkness. Writing appeared on the screen.
Introducing a new card…, was what it said.
Oticat leaned forward in anticipation. This was exciting. "What do you guys think it's gonna be?", he asked.
"I bet it's the Hydra.", said Brandy. "I remember hearing about that a few days ago."
"No, it's the Firecrackers for sure.", said one of the Ratzo brothers. "That'll be just our luck."
"Now, the only wave that can truly crash is one who-", Bowza started to say, but saw no one was paying attention. So he forgot about it.
The Gravity Elf!, flashed the writing on the TV, and for a split second, a figure of a young, slender woman in bright green cloth appeared, in front of a bundle of leaves. Purple particles shimmered around her, and then the TV faded back to the newsroom.
"So, the Gravity Elf, eh?", said the Wizard. "About time the Jungle Arena got another Epic. It just hasn't been the same without the Executioner around."
"But that's only the first of our announcements.", said the Villager. "Because the council of the gods has ended, and our monthly balance changes have been announced."
"Now, this is a pretty large one, and it might spark some controversy. But rest assured, they know what we're doing.", said the Wizard.
"Firstly, the great Dr'ew has decreed that the speed of the Elite Barbarians will be reduced from very fast to merely fast, and their HP and Attack will be increased by 4%. He says that this will help give Kings more time to react before the Elite Barbarians start hitting the tower."
"Good.", muttered Elizabeth. "About time the jerks got what was coming to them."
Dan stood up. "Oops, looks like we're out of Elixir.", he said. "I'm gonna go get some more."
"Could you bring me a brush while you're over there, Dan?", asked Brandy. Dan nodded, and walked away.
"Secondly,", continued Trisha, "the mighty Ti'm wishes the HP of the Dark Prince to be increased by 6%. He says that he rather likes Dark Princes, and wants them to see a lot more action."
Giovanar the Dark Prince had stopped to watch. Upon hearing this announcement, he pressed his hands to his helmet and shouted something excitedly. But no one could understand what he said, because he had a giant metal bucket on his head.
"And lastly, the ineffable Se'th has decreed that the speed of the Ice Spirit be raised all the way to very fast, in order to help underleveled ones get that one hit on the tower."
Randy jumped up from where he sat, and did a little dance. But he said nothing, because he was an Ice Spirit.
"And that should be it for today, folks- wait. No.", said the Wizard, and pressed his finger to his headpiece. "Never mind, that's not quite it yet. We still have one more change- with the Knight."
"Hey Dan! You're missing this!" Agatha and Brandy both shouted. Dan, in the kitchen, almost dropped his mugs of Elixir.
"What? What am I missing?", he yelled back.
"You're getting balanced, you klutz!", shouted Brandy good-naturedly. So Dan hurried back as quick as he can, mugs and random muffin in tow, and quickly sat back down.
The Wizard on the screen cleared his throat. "Now, this is a bit of a controversial change.", he said. "I still don't quite believe it myself, even as I hear it. But it's my duty to report the news, so you here all go. The Knight will have his hitpoints..."
Everyone leaned forward, and the Wizard blinked. "Nerfed. Reduced by 50%."
In the utter silence that followed, you could have heard a flea blink. No balance change had ever affected a card this much. Never. Cards had been pushed to uselessness for far less, and everyone knew it. Slowly, everyone's eyes turned to Dan.
Dan's grip on his mug loosened, and it fell out of his hand. He could feel it, and his dreams, shatter on the floor. With trembling hands, Dan slowly walked towards the T.V, then grabbed it and began to shake it violently.
The normally calm Knight lost it. "Why?", he screamed. "Why? What did I ever do to deserve this? I'm iconic! I'm not oppressive! I'm… I'm…"
He slumped to the floor, with his head in his hands, and began to quietly sob.
"I'm… balanced…"