I live in the middle of nowhere and I don't play CF!V online often. I don't have experience playing against people in real life, and thus I don't know much about units other than Spike Brothers – so forgive me in advance if I messed up.
And that was how it came to be that I spent most of the afternoon bored, looking for another card shop to play in. I wasn't familiar with the town. In fact, I was new here, trying to establish myself among the other Vanguard fighters just after moving in. This city was much larger than my hometown, so there were bound to be some strong players. Vanguard wasn't very popular where I had lived before, but I still considered myself good at the game, which was why I actually felt disappointed after having beaten that guy. It was hard to stay positive when facing the dreary thought that people like that might be the best this city had to offer.
It was merely by chance that I heard the two students passing by me, suggesting I might have jumped to the wrong conclusion after all:
"-ki's a tough competitor, and a pretty nice guy to boot. Everyone at Cardshop Handsome is, but Gouki stands out 'cause he's the captain."
Here, I silently fell into line behind the two students, intent on hearing more. 'Handsome' seemed like an odd name for a card shop, but I wasn't about to judge. The name didn't matter, as long as the players were good.
"It was so awesome, that Team Handsome made it to the Cardfight nationals last year!"
Bingo.
"Heh. A guy like me doesn't have a chance at beating a team as awesome as that, but I think I'll go back and play a few rounds anyway."
The second student laughed, "Dude, there are other people than Team Handsome in the shop, you know!"
The first student replied with something about how Gouki and his friends had this aura that seemed to take up the whole shop, but by that time I had fallen back and wasn't really listening anymore. I'd follow them to the card shop, but I wasn't intending to get any closer to them than I had to, a decision based solely on account of how weird that would look if I were caught. But as long as I could keep them in sight, I was fine.
...The shop's set up was certaintly unique, but there was no mistaking the writing on that sign: This was Card Shop Handsome. I entered a few minutes after the students I had followed, and was greeted by a ship-like interior and the equally unmistakeable bustle of card fighters. This store was busier than the last place I had entered, and with fewer kids, except...
"Greetings!"
I was caught off guard by the orange-haired midget screaming at me, but it appeared that this kid was in charge of greeting customers at the moment. Or was it more likely that she had given this duty to herself?
"Hm... You don't look familiar here," she continued, putting on a thoughtful face. Very much like a kid, being needlessly expressive and easy to read.
I don't like kids much.
"Um, I'm looking for a player named 'Gouki'?" I offered helpfully, and her eyes lit up instantly.
I almost groaned, because she had a high-pitched voice that I was already starting to find irritating, and worried that I might be in for a volley of off-topic chatter by the expression she wore, but it turned out the half-pint actually had something useful to say:
"That's my brother!"
Hearing that was almost as surprising as having her shout in my face the instant I walked through the door. However, it made things that much easier – from here, it was only a short transition from meeting the highly esteemed Gouki to the standing fight table. He introduced himself politely, and I did the same, but caring little for small talk, I attempted to keep the boredom out of my voice.
I couldn't help if a teeny bit of pride crept into my voice when I informed him that I thought of myself as a pretty good Vanguard player though. Gouki smiled back, shuffling his deck, and I was beginning to see why people would like him, despite the hulking mass and lame pirate theme.
"Then I won't have a reason to go easy on you."
"I wasn't expecting one," I shoot back. But by now, it already feels more like friendly banter, and damn, those two were right to admire Gouki like that, because I was already thinking that he might be kind of cool.
The opening hand I drew wasn't bad – one Grade Three, one Grade Zero, one Grade One, and the last two cards were Two's. It probably could have been better, but I didn't feel like doing a redraw when I had a decent hand to begin with, so I left them alone.
Gouki didn't do a redraw either, and given the smirk on his face, I guess he must have thought he had a pretty good hand as well.
Considering the description on his starting Vanguard stated it had the one of the same abilities as mine – moving to a Rearguard when another card of the same clan was played over it on the Vanguard – I suddenly didn't doubt that.
"I go first," I announced, and since Gouki didn't seem to care, I proceeded to draw.
It wasn't a card I had wanted to draw.
So far, the only Grade One in my hand was Dudley Dan, and here's the thing about Dan: You don't exactly want him occupying the Vanguard. His ability comes in handy as a Rearguard in the back row, but more so than that, he wasn't strong enough to even scratch the Grade Zero on Gouki's Vanguard, assuming I could have attacked on the first turn anyway.
I spent about half a minute trying to decide whether it was worth it to withhold Dudley Dan and hope for a better Vanguard this turn, or if I should play him now for a faster ride to Grade Two next turn.
...Since I could just use Mecha Trainer to call out another one next turn, it seemed the answer was actually obvious.
On his turn, Gouki rode to Grade One and called another unit to the Rearguard, and thus launched an attack dealing two damage. Pretty standard for the start of a game.
Two cards in my Damage Zone though. I was not pleased when one of the Driver Triggers turned up to be a Grade Three.
The next card made up for it when Unite Attacker, another Grade Three in the Spike Brother's clan, showed up in my hand though, and I abruptly discarded my former Dudley Dan strategy in favor of this one.
"I ride the Treasured Black Panther!" I announced. "And call Highspeed Brakki to my Rearguard, and Silence Joker to the back row!"
But with Mecha Trainer's ability removing itself from the field, and requiring a counterblast of one to activate, the Joker wasn't going to be in the back row for long.
"Since Mecha Trainer's ability allows me to search for any Grade Zero or Grade One Spike Brothers card from my deck after paying the cost, I choose a Redshoe Milly and add her to my hand."
Picking another Grade Zero might have seemed like a useless move, but she played well into my strategy.
"Next I put Silence Joker into my Soul from the Rearguard to unflip that Counterblasted card."
That played into my strategy as well.
It ment my cards only had 10,000 and 9,000 power respectively, and that Gouki only took one damage – because he only chose to Guard once and I didn't draw a trigger – but it all played into the big picture.
Apparently, so did Gouki's specific choice of Guard.
Although it had seemed suspicious that he would Guard with a card forcing him to send a card from his deck into the Drop Zone, I still wasn't expecting to hear that Captain Nightmist gained an extra +3,000 from it. Calling a Grade One behind Nightmist for support and a Grade Two in front, he took a chance with Nightmist to attack and hope for a Trigger unit to support his second card. The second unit was only a Skeleton Swordsman, with 8,000 power not being enough to damage my Black Panther's 10,000.
With Samurai Spirit boosting Captain Nightmist, the Vanguard's total was 15,000. Since the beginning of this turn, I'd already decided not to Guard, but unfortunately Gouki had better luck with trigger units than I did.
"Critical, plus five thousand," he declared.
Putting the Critical on Captain Nightmist meant there was nothing I could do to avoid it since I'd already chosen not to Guard, and he gave the extra attack power to his second unit. To prevent the score from becoming five-nothing, I used Redshoe Milly from my hand to Guard the final attack.
"And when she's sent to the Drop Zone after Guarding, this unit goes into my Soul."
My current Damage was four, but my current Soul was only two.
The next card I drew was lucky, and I played it right after sticking Unite Attacker on the Vanguard. "Panzer Gale to the Rearguard."
No units called to boost.
"I'm Soul Charging one card to add an additional 2,000 power to Unite Attacker, and then I'll start my attack with Panzer Gale."
"No Guard," Gouki announced, most likely saving any units he had to Guard with in his hand for a bigger attack. "No trigger either, but the score is still five-to-one."
It was good that he seemed confident in his ability to win, but I was still prepared to put up a fight.
"Unite Attacker next!"
"Skeleton Lookout with 10,000 Shield!"
"Check the Twin Drive..."
Another Redshoe Milly and...
"Sonic Breaker, Critical Trigger and plus 5,000!"
Redshoe Milly was a lucky draw, but, damn it, even adding the power to Unite Attacker wouldn't make the attack go through. 17,000 was still less than his Nightmist's current total of 18,000. I resigned to giving both effects to my remaining unit, but guessed correctly when I had assumed Gouki would be able to block that just as easily.
But by now, he must have been running out of Shield power... even if the card he'd guarded with had allowed him to move another unit from his deck into the Drop Zone, and I kind of knew what to expect with that.
Current Soul total: Three.
"My turn." Gouki drew a card, examined it for a mere second, and then announced, "I call Samuari Spirit and Knight Spirit to the Rearguard, then put them both into the Soul to Ride Spirit Exceed from the Drop Zone."
Spirit Exceed being a Grade Three with a 10,000 power to match Unite Attacker's.
"Then I call Commodore Blueblood to the Rearguard."
Another unit with 10,000 power, though this one was only a Grade Two.
I managed to get by Guarding with Redshoe Milly for the first attack, Intercepting with Panzer Gale for the Vanguard, and using up Brakki for the last, but just barely; if he'd had any boosting units, it might not have ended so well, and if he'd drawn a trigger I would have been done for.
The total of my current Soul was four.
I drew a card, but didn't use it.
"Using Unite Attacker's ability, I Soul Charge one and add 2,000 to his attack total."
The Soul's total was five.
It was risky, and I could feel my face scrunching up in that way it always did when I was concentrating too hard for something to please go right, as if I could somehow control the flow of the cards with my mind.
Which was laughable, no one could do that.
But at only one damage, I didn't expect Gouki to Guard, which would work out in my favor. For once, I was thankful that my assumption turned out to be right.
Unfortunately, I couldn't remember if I was supposed to Drive Check first or not, but Unite Attackers ability did say, "when the attack hits" so I hoped I was right and breathed an internal sigh of relief when Gouki didn't speak up to tell me I was wrong.
"When this unit's attack hits, you may pay the cost," I read aloud. "Counterblast five, Soul blast eight, look at the top five cards from your deck and call any number among them to your Rearguard."
I nearly leaped for joy when the first card I drew turned out to be Sky Diver; with the remaining Grade Three in my hand, his ability to go into the Soul after attacking and summon a new unit was just what I needed. He was the first unit to go onto my field, with Cheerful Lynx appearing right behind him.
Highspeed Brakki went on the other side of my Vanguard, and I put the last two units – Grade Zeros – back in the deck, in the hopes that I could call on their Trigger effects soon.
"Then I shuffle my deck..." I continued, reading the last line of text on Unite Attacker's card. "And this is my Twin Drive."
Another Black Panther, but I smiled at the ever-welcome sight of Cheer Girl Tiara.
"Heal one Damage, add 5,000 power to Brakki. Then I'll attack with him."
"I won't Guard it."
I assumed Gouki's strategy was to leave at least one Grade Two unit on his field, but probably both of them, to attack with next turn, just to make sure he could hit me. But with Sky Diver on the field and his ability ready to be put to use, I wasn't planning to give him that opportunity.
"Next, Sky Diver's attack total is 16,000."
And I was right when he didn't Guard this attack either.
Nor did he draw a Trigger.
Now the total damage on each side was four-four, and we were at a tie.
"I use his ability to send him into the Soul, and call the Juggernaut Maximum from my hand. Attacking with 11,000."
Gouki grit his teeth and, almost reluctantly, said, "I'll intercept with Skeleton Swordsman."
The Skeleton Swordsman was a waste of a good 10,000 Shield – the extra 5,000 coming from whenever he used it to Intercept for a GranBlue Vanguard – so it was obvious he was still favoring power over the ability to defend himself.
Meanwhile, I still had Brakki on the field and ready to Intercept, and now a Cheer Girl Tiara in my hand prepared to Guard.
"My go. And what luck!"
...Another Grade Two.
Even if I used both cards capable of Shielding the Vanguard, I still had the Treasured Black Panther in my hand for another shot with three attacks next turn. If he didn't make it this turn, I was almost definitely going to win for sure.
I took the first damage, and sent another Redshoe Milly to the Damage Zone.
Then I used Tiara for his Spirit Exceed, with her 10,000 Shield being high enough to block any Triggers he tried to attach to his Vanguard. Unless he somehow drew two. Brakki's Intercept was enough to Shield against a 5,000 power bonus added to his only remaining unit.
The moment of suspense was upon us, and seemed to be bearing down on Gouki as well. He drew his cards with a deliberate slowness, frowning in anticipation. He actually was a decent Vanguard player, so he probably knew the stakes just as well as I did.
"Twin Drive, first check..."
Monster Frank, a Grade Three.
"No Trigger. Second check..."
I gasped, letting out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding as he held up the second card. It was of shock, not relief.
"Got a Stand Trigger."
I had five Damage. I couldn't possible Guard against two more attacks.
The match was over.
For a moment, I stared at my cards in disbelief, convincing myself that the final Trigger had only been a stroke of dumb luck on Gouki's part. If I played him again – and again and again – I wouldn't lose anymore, but...
There was another factor to consider, aside from Gouki grinning and congratulating me for doing a good job as a "beginner"; for at least half of the match, Gouki had been in the lead with only one or two Damage, while I'd almost been out of the game since around the third turn.
...Maybe Gouki was right, and maybe I still had a lot to learn.
"You're welcome to come back any time if you want to play again, Newbie," Gouki finished cheerfully, before collecting his cards and starting off toward someone else.
...So maybe I would.
The time for lengthy explanations is upon us!
This story was originally part filling the prompt and part character deconstruction, but the ending is too weak for me to consider the latter a success. I went back and edited some parts, but I actually gained a headache from working on this, so for now I'm leaving it as is.
Instead of naming every unit played, I assumed it would be easier to follow just the basics. Without visuals, naming every card would just be a huge information dump that seems like it would be too difficult to keep track of.
...At some point, I actually lost track of the cards, which I probably deserve for trying to keep track of everything in my head instead of taking notes. I think editing fixed any errors, but if you look closely enough you might find something I missed... So please don't look! (Kidding.)
The challenger for part to originally went from Kourin to Kyou to Gouki... and perhaps I should have just settled on Kyou, for sake of ease of writing, but...
A) I might be the only person who likes him.
B) The conclusion might have been (more?) obvious.
Conclusion: I probably lost this challenge just for writing about decks and characters no one cares about!
Add some insult to the injury by trying to guess who the intended opponent in the first chapter was, I dare you. (Another major reason my deconstruction flopped; I built up too much arrogance in the beginning and failed to tear it down in the end, although in my opinion Gouki would probably be this really cool guy that it would be hard for anyone to get mad at.)
Final tip! Don't make a deck with both General Seifried and Unite Attacker in it. You'll notice the General is mentioned in this story, but if you have Unite Attacker in your deck you'll want to maximize his ability by sticking him on the Vanguard... Otherwise it's too difficult to get the necessary Soul to use his ability, and putting General Seifreid on a Rearguard would leave him hanging around kind of uselessly, as he really only shines when on the Vanguard. :)
(My current deck was built from scratch and modeled after Kyou's though... I just really love Spike Brothers.)