Chapter 1

I glanced nervously over the roof. I can't believe I'm doing this. But… kids?

I couldn't let that slide, not if I wanted to be a hero. I rifled through my satchel and drew out a 'crowd control' card. My Changer-form would grant me blindness-inducement with this one. I gathered it could also cause 'confusion', but I didn't know how helpful that would be. I steeled myself and stepped forward.

"Night Blindness [Song of the Night Sparrow]"

The change was instant: I shrank a few inches and produced feathered wings. I leapt into the air, and felt a power welling up within me. The gang members were turning to where I had called out, but started stumbling. I couldn't see the effects of my own power, but I knew visibility had been reduced to a few feet. This was as I had expected.

The singing wasn't.

On reflection, an effect named 'Song' should've made that obvious, but as it was, I was quite surprised by the sudden compulsion. Notes spilled from my lips, and I felt a gleeful satisfaction as the gangers stumbled over themselves and attacked each other. They fled in short order, and I made an ironic bow.

A moment later, a lash of fire whipped past me; reflexes not-quite-mine threw me from its trailing edge. I squawked (literally) and flung out another card.

"Deadly Toxin [Poisonous Moth's Dance in the Dark]"

I could only use one 'set' of cards at a time, but each deck was quite versatile. As blades coated in venom slashed their way through the swelling form of Lung, I found myself very grateful for this. I flew up and back, dodging bolts of fire, and hoping the poison would get to him. he was moving a little slower than I'd expect, but he was clearly shaking it off. As I watched, more scales burst across his body, and he grew to about twice my (not inconsiderable) height. I spat out a few of my bullets. They glanced off, and I gulped. Those things, slow as they were, could tear through concrete. How tough was this guy?

He leapt to the roof I'd stood on just a minute before, and made another jump toward me. I rolled under him.

"Bird Sign [Human Cage]!"

My gamble paid off – he crashed to the ground, imprisoned in chains of my arrowhead-bullets. But they were already dissipating, and Lung looked stronger than ever. Dodging the fire was getting harder, and I was debating the merits of a fallback when the dogs arrived.

Well. I know they're dogs (bird instincts?). They look more vaguely canine dinosaurs from some fantasy paperback. One lands on Lung with a smashing impact, while two more stop below me. They're carrying people – some indie heroes, I guess – and I drop gratefully to land at their side.

The heroes – four in total – return my evaluation. Lung seems to have been KO'd (and just in time, too), so I'm in no rush. We stand at an impasse for perhaps ten seconds, then one – a girl in purple – breaks down laughing. The rest of us stare incredulously.

"You – you're that new tinker, huh?"

I tense up. How'd she know?

She must have seen something, because she cut off with a gasp.

"It's just – well – your testing was about as unsubtle as it gets."

I wince. How was I to know that 'a love-coloured laser' meant a roaring pillar of light able to act as a second sun? I hadn't returned to the Boat Graveyard since that disaster, a fortnight hence.

"Tattletale, stay focused." That was tall, dark and hot sitting over th- what?

I blinked, shaking my head. That was the downside to my cards – mental pollution. I'd have to return to my base form soon. I didn't know if the effects could last yet, but they tended to affect my judgment significantly.

The third dog paced over to us, and the other four prepared to leave.

"Need a lift?" asked the girl – Tattletale, I gathered.

I shook my head again, mutely.

"Well, you'd best leg it then – or wing it, rather. Someone from the Protectorate shows up, finds two bad guys duking it out, they're not going to let one walk away."

They were gone before I realised what she was talking about.

"Damnit!"

My elfin ears twitched as I picked up a rumbling noise approaching. I turned and watched as Armsmaster pulled up, keeping a wary eye on me.

This is gonna be a long night.

I got home at three or four in the morning, and released Mystia Lorelei (What kind of name is that, anyway?). Five seconds later, my supernatural confidence gone, I was screaming into my pillow.

What was that? What the fuck did I just do?

I stressed for a few more minutes, then dragged myself out of bed. At this rate, I'd be skipping again tomorrow, but it would be best to take inventory now anyway.

I dumped my satchel on my desk and opened my 'library' drawer. I'd been carrying my more 'discreet' decks with me – better for a debut. That meant my Mystia, Sakuya, Reisen and Medicine decks. On reflection, the latter might have been more effective on Lung then Mystia's poison cards, but I didn't know how to ensure they'd be nonlethal on my unpowered opponents.

I got out some paper strips and the brush I'd dug out of the basement and started painting more cards. I had to steel myself for a Mystia set, as all the cards seemed to be built of 'memories' – in this case, memories of hunting people down at night. I was slightly concerned by these tendencies, shared by so many of my sets, but I'd never gotten hungry while using them, so it seemed safe enough for now.

After restocking the cards I'd spent, I did some rearranging. The strips were bulky, and the satchel had four compartments, so for now I just took four at once. Given the obvious efficacy of Mystia, I decided to switch out Medicine for a stronger set.

I had to think about it for a while, but in the end there was little choice. If stealth failed me, I had no reason to worry about flashing lights, so I added my Marisa deck. Regardless of its 'Anti-Stealth' properties, I couldn't deny that its lasers were awesomely powerful.

I closed and locked my drawer, slid my satchel under my bed, and turned in.