Theft of Decks 4, CH 28

We had to pay a good deal for these. A short bunch of written lists, enumerating soldiers and their positions, titles and schedules near a specific post. While it gives an indicator of their military ranking systems, the real takeaway from this would be the numbers. There are more than three thousand soldiers posted here. Either this post at “A4” is a central military stronghold, or the Liberty military is numerous enough to rival at least the Furyborn. Rival the Furyborn? I doubt it. But that’s mostly because the Furyborn will all fight, if pressed. Still, there is no underestimating the numbers of Liberty. (Page 50.)

“This is overwhelming!” Kith spread the sheets of paper on the table in front of him. “Picking cards is supposed to be fun – not about memorizing all this crap!”

“Heh. Who’s going to bet on Cilia’s next comment?” Liam asked. He was squinting at a page as if it were written upside down.

“Something, something, ‘memorizing is fun?’” Chase hazarded.

“Behave.” Sera said. “Also, speaking as a representative of those who have actually been forced to memorize endless lists of nobles, troop strength, trade goods and worse, I have to say it. Memorizing isn’t fun. But memorizing this is fun! We are not merely trying to remember which cards we are not supposed to use. We are also trying to cheat the system and evade their restrictions by means of creative thinking. Basically, this is just like you cheating nobles back in Isarn.”

Kith frowned at her, then turned toward Chase. “Chaaase!” He whined. “Your girlfriend is trying to make learning fun!”

“Ah. In that case, I will do what any strong, independent man should. Accede to her whims.” He bowed his head to the sound of Kith and Liam jeering. “Jokes aside… the scope of the information Reen’s gathered or written himself is pretty excessive. Do you even think he’s slept the last two days?”

“Definitely not. Or, well, judging from the look of his handwriting here, he might’ve fallen asleep halfway through a sentence.” Cilia frowned. “Regardless, he’s done an insane job. Not only does he come up with a ton of theories on how it should be possible to cheat the different rules, he also hypothesizes about all the known rules and why they have them. This is excellent stuff. Listen. ‘Estimating an incremental amount of Ænima needed for each additional Step past the very first, we should expect the Savior to be anywhere between Tiers ten and twelve. Assuming that the Savior is at least at Tier eleven, and also assuming that he will have crafted implements to boost his own stats, we should reckon that he has at least crossed a hundred in each attribute except Potential.”

“A hundred!” Liam mouthed.

Kith shrugged in response.

Cilia ignored them, continuing. “This would explain one of the rules. Any card with fixed increases or decreases to an attribute will generally be acceptable across the board. Because Liberators are required to use their Tier increases to increase the rarity of their Devotion to Liberty card, we rarely earn cards higher than Uncommon rarity. Hence, any cards tend to boost or reduce an attribute, at most, about six points. Even finding a full group of six people with these types of cards would not be able to majorly impact any confrontation. However, cards with percentile or even multiplicative effects could wind up with major effects. Five people, each with a card granting a twenty-five percent reduction, will see a Toughness of a hundred reduced to twenty-four.”

“But we don’t really have any of those?” Liam said.

Chase snorted. “Not the point. We have Sera’s Blessing of the Night that more than doubles any buffs. That’s what we’re talking about. Liam, your strength’s already at thirty-two. Take that, coupled with Blessing of the Night, Spark of Divinity and your own Earthen Might that doubles your Strength for a short while. That leaves you well above a hundred with your Strength.”

“I… didn’t think of it like that.” Liam admitted.

“That’s the point, though. If we manage to pick some of the right choices in combination, and get away with it, we’ll be able to actually be a match or more for the Savior.”

Kith coughed. “Kind of downplaying the whole ‘get away with it’ part if we’d have to fight the bastard, aren’t we? I like the idea, though. If we manage to somehow cheat their systems, we’d be able to custom-build something working directly against the bastard and all his crafted crap.”

“That’s the spirit.” Chase grinned.

“Sooo… I hate to be the one to say this, because Cil’s the professional downer here.” Kith leaned back on his chair, evading Cilia’s punch. “But how do we get away with it. Sera managed to cheat that Heidel guy and make sure that we - well, she – has the cards to create some shields that are more powerful than average. I doubt we’re going to be able to pull that one off twice, though. So… how?”

“I believe I have an idea for that.” Sera said.

They all fell silent.

Sera smiled. “Sorry. This is no stroke of genius. I simply recommend that we repeat one of our old schemes.”

“I’ll have to vote against that.” Chase said. “Those servant robes you wore sneaking into the cathedral in Isarn were really unbecoming on you. Also, they didn’t help at all. Even though you were basically wearing a burlap sack, the guards still harassed you. Serves you right for being so damn stunning!”

“You are so funny.” Sera rolled her eyes. “Not that scheme. I am talking about Cilia’s armbands. You likely noticed that the illusions did pass muster? Until the Savior came out swinging, their illusions were still active.”

Cilia frowned. “So, what, you want something to hide the new choice we make? That could be a possibility.”

“Exactly. We will need illustrations showing what the cards look like, but I am certain Reen will be able to get those. Then, as long as we have the descriptions memorized, we can convince them we’re going with a “safe” choice, as long as we can recite the card description from memory.”

“But what if he asks us to show the effect by activating the card? He did that twice last time.”

“We just pick something we can fake. I have…Spark of Divinity, for instance. That can double as any Liberty buff!”

“Ooh. I have… Race of Life. That gives me a fixed Agility boost. I’m sure there’s a Liberty equivalent.” Chase exclaimed.

“That is my point exactly. Chase chooses his new card. Puts on an illusionary bracelet or something, making it look like a Liberty Agility boost. Then he fakes the effect with Race of Life. These are all things we can prepare beforehand.”

“Most importantly, it should work – and it would allow us to pull a fast one on that damn Heidel. That would totally make my day.” Chase showed his teeth. He turned toward Sera who raised an eyebrow with her hands firmly placed on her hips. “Yes, dear. This is not about cheating tiny tyrants. It’s about making it possible for us to complete a heist against a Tier ten-asshole. But I need my small wins!”

They continued their work, with few distractions. Reen earned every ounce of praise they could lavish upon him, showing just how he’d managed to make it this far without getting busted. Not only did he have a huge number of friends, servants, and helpers that he could call upon to hide the fact that they were working together, he also delivered everything they asked for, no questions asked.

For two more days, a veritable stream of messengers moved back and forth between the two houses. The only time they left the house was for time to – quoting Liam – ‘punch something so he wouldn’t go insane.’

Once they fixated on the exact choices, they got the illustrations from Reen along with a generous serving of leather items, and Cilia got to work crafting the illusion items. This time, instead of large, obvious bracelets, she went with small tooled and braided leather rings you could easily slip over a finger when you needed it. It would deliver the same effect, but for a shorter period at the time. This was no issue, given that they just needed to fool Heidel for a brief period.

With that done, they spent their time diving into the options available for them. The scope of that was an entirely different beast. They’d thought there were maybe a hundred Tier three options available to each of them. Turned out, the answer was closer to five hundred, with the caveat that third-Tier cards were less well-documented than first-Tier – hence, they might actually stumble on some unknown cards. If that happened, they had to be certain which options they were aiming for, and when they would be better or worse than the known options.

Chase was forced to spend some time touring the city. That was Reen’s solution for sharing cards. They couldn’t just have people knocking on their door at all hours. In no time, that would lead to investigations and added attention. Instead, they arranged circuits around the city, changing every three days, of about two hours’ walk that he’d try to walk at around the same time of the day. This allowed people to approach him, say the agreed-upon code word, and touch his hand or shoulder in short order.

In theory, of course, this should let people get their cards and walk away without arousing any suspicion. In practice… well, there was a reason that they decided to change the routes every three days. At first, they’d thought changing it each week would be sufficient. Only, they’d forgotten to account for humanity. The people of Liberty had, for their entire lives, been taught that they had to move, choose and act in a very specific way, select some very specific cards that would define them forever. Now, they were faced with something they’d never expected to see. Actual freedom.

Their reactions differed. Yet, the one common denominator among them was that there usually was a visible, audible reaction. People choked up, coughed, laughed out loud, sometimes burst into tears in the open street. For a people as controlled as the Liberators, those did not go off un-noticed.

This translated directly into danger. Yet, watching a kindly old grandfather drop his walking stick, and stare into oblivion with a blissful smile and a trail of tears running down his cheek, Chase knew one thing for sure. They were not going to stop. They had no intentions of committing suicide against some overpowered self-created faux god exploiting his own people. Yet they could still leave them with the means to rise up against the bastard.

Emilia came through for them. It took longer than she’d expected, but she came through. One day at the breakfast table, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Minutes later, they were walking toward the palace, all caught up in their own heads, trying to remember the best choices, as they reassured themselves that, yes, they remembered the illusion rings.

Heidel was the exact same as last time. A façade of politeness, badly hiding the focused scrutiny underneath. As he congratulated them on their swift rise to approval and their impressive results in taming the stampede, none of them failed to read the suspicion right underneath the surface.

They were led to the same room, heard the same speech, and were nudged to read the same tome as last time. Of course, these were pages they’d already studied to death back at home. Still, they faked it, studiously investigating each of the banned cards, asking inquisitive follow-up questions to make it seem like they actually were interested.

The rings worked a charm. The moment they chose their new cards, they slipped on their illusion rings, which depicted cards they were certain would pass the muster of Heidel. Then they showed him, reciting the memorized texts of the card in question. Liam flubbed parts of the text, once, but Heidel didn’t seem to notice.

Sera got to show off hers, faking a Liberty Toughness boost for their entire group by engaging Spark of Divinity.

This seemed to be the final touch needed to lay Heidel’s suspicions to rest. Last time, it seemed like they’d constantly teetered on the edge of disapproval. Now, with them having chosen something that was well within the scope of what the Savior favored, the veneer of faked acceptance eased somewhat, and Heidel even finished their session with a few horrible jokes.

Somehow, they managed to make it all the way home without anybody spouting in public about their new cards. They didn’t last more than a dozen feet past the entrance door until Kith howled in laughter.

“Can I… thank you, Cil!” He rubbed his hands together, chuckling darkly. “This was the best. We walked straight in there, looked the smarmy bastard right in the face and lied about everything! And he bought it!”

Sera smiled. “I will say, that was satisfying. Though, I am bursting at the seams to hear which cards you earned.”

“You should be.” Kith smirked. “I did what Cil always says, this time around. Thought about what card would be good and thought about combinations with my other cards – and considered what cards you guys have as well.”

“I’m getting more and more suspicious the more he speaks.” Cilia said with a frown.

“Usually, that’s a great choice.” Kith laughed. “Today, though, I’ll be waiting for your apology. Check out… this!”

[Enforced Entropy

Uncommon, Liberty summoner

Tier three

Active, medium duration.

This card, when active, grants each of your other summons an additional ability. As long as they are physically touching any hostile being, they will be exempt from any buffs or beneficial card effects otherwise affecting them. Already active effects will be cancelled.

Long cooldown

“Nothing can touch you? Ah, but entropy is nothing, with a twist.”]

Cilia glared at him for a long while. Then she sighed. “I am sorry, Kith. That is an amazing choice.”

“Sorry. I don’t get it. Not fully.” Liam shrugged. “Let’s ignore how you couldn’t even summon any cards last time we were in the palace. Let’s say he activates this on his Tainted Earth. It’ll be able to remove any active buffs or active effects from anything it touches. That’d be able to level the playing field a bit between us and anybody who was boosted a lot. But if it’s somebody like the Savior, they won’t just stay still.”

Kith’s eyebrows waggled and he raised two fingers. “Apian God and Twice the Fun. If I get the chance, I’ll be able to fill the damn palace with summons. Nobody will be outside of their reach.”

“Okay, fine, I get it.” Liam waved him off. “We still need to get to the point where you can actually summon the damn critters.”

Cilia took a deep breath and sighed. “That was my main consideration for a card this time around. When we enter the palace, we need something that ensures that we are not kept down by the myriad effects of the Savior.” She grimaced and elaborated. “In short, above all, we need something that ensures our freedom from the influence of his crafted items, in order to be able to make it past their security with all our cards and buffs intact. I think I got exactly that.”

[Dab of Freedom

Uncommon, Liberty crafter

Tier three

Passive

One constant on Ordei lies in the ever-present existence of people trying to limit the freedom of others. When wielded, this card greatly strengthens the crafting of any items aiming to counter debuffs, negative effects and especially movement-impairing effects.

“Do you like it? A collar of freedom? I relish the irony.” A Liberty crafter loses his job.]

Sera had her eyes closed and wore a deep frown. “Countering debuffs and negative effects does sound like the exact result we would like. Yet… do you… do you believe that you would be able to create items that can overpower those of a Tier eleven powerhouse?”

Cilia gave a slight smile. “Without cheating? No. I think, however, that I know how to do it. With you granting me buffs and a number of our other tactics? Yes.”

Sera burst into a wide smile. “In that case, I will do anything in my power to help you.” Her warm laugh lit the room. “As if that were ever in question.”

“And you? What did you get?” Chase asked.

“A solution to another problem.” Sera said. “Cilia’s creations on top of my Shimmering Sanctuary card might be enough to ward off all debuffs and effects cancelling out our powers. That still leaves us with one major issue. The barriers.”

“Oh.” Liam said.

“Yes. Oh. Maintaining our powers has no point, if we cannot make it past those darned shields that kept us trapped last time. I hoped that I would earn a straight cancelation card that would work on shields. Only, my choices were questionable. Hence, I opted for this:”

[Shield of Cancelation

Uncommon, Liberty healer

Tier three

Passive, medium duration

This creates a shimmering barrier, which, when in physical touch against hostile magic, will work to break down said magic. If the affected person already is subject to a shield effect, the cancelling effect will be more effective.

“What do you mean how did I get in here? I’m a healer.” The court cleric saves the treasurer’s life, but fails to save her own.]

“Ohohoh.” Liam chuckled. “I can see it. You got that other shield thing last time!”

“I did indeed. Bubbles of Blue strengthens any shield I create. Shimmering Sanctuary fends off hostile debuffs and effects. Shield of Cancelation on top should add up to create a much stronger effect that will burn through any barriers.”

Liam clapped slowly. “I like it. You have all three combined to create something that should, hopefully, allow us to evade all those effects waiting for us, and get away safely.” He nodded softly. “I decided that I’d need to go for something to help us if we failed to get away.” He shrugged. “We’ve talked about this a few times. The Savior’s bound to be just as fast, strong and tough as any of us, with all our buffs activated. How do we catch up? How do we counter that?” He shook his head. “The last Liberty card I got was awful. Useless, basically. Canceling out the momentum of an attack I parry? What good will that do if he’s three times faster than me? No. I needed something that would help us even the odds.”

[Finger on the Scales

Rare, Liberty fighter

Tier three

Passive, long duration

A constant in this life is the existence of imbalance. There will always be those who tilt the scale in their favor. This card attempts to counter that. Each hostile effect either boosting an enemy or debuffing you or your group members will grant you a +3 to all attributes except Potential. The effect activates, even if the hostile effect is suppressed or cancelled.

“No, please, continue. Add a few additional cards to the mix. They tickle so nicely.”]

Cilia made a sound deep in her throat. Hoarsely, she said “Whatever I’ve said about you in the past, I take it back. You’re a genius! Isn’t that ridiculously powerful, though?”

“Eh.” Chase wrinkled his nose. “Not really. Think about it. We’ve fought most against Guardians, right? How many Guardians would even activate this? And when you think of most Tier twos and threes, they tend to have direct abilities – a single attack or two, maybe a good defense. Buffs and debuffs are rare. So, nine times out of ten, this would be a wasted card.” His grin was outright devilish. “That tenth time, though. How many crafted items do you think affected us when we were running through the palace? Five? Ten?”

Sera tapped her nose. “Also, Blessing of the night will double any gains.”

Chase blinked. “I second what Cilia said. You’re a genius. If you ever need to stand up to the bastard, this should help you get there.” He waited a few seconds for theatrical effect, then added. “And if it doesn’t, my card should help. A bit.” He grimaced. “

[Double Dip

Rare, Liberty rogue

Tier three

Passive.

Why limit yourself to just a single taste, when you can have more? Wielding this card, any debuffs used on an enemy will take effect twice, if possible.

“I know what you're thinking. ‘Did he use three cards, or six?’ Well to tell you the truth in all this excitement I kinda lost track myself.”]

“Wait. So, every point of Agility removed by my Draining Ward would be doubled?” Liam asked.

“As would the Toughness drain from Kith’s Tainted Earth.” Chase agreed. “Or any other card we gain that debuffs an enemy. But I really chose it for Sticky Fingers.” He shrugged and scratched his neck. “If Liam’s card could raise his attributes to where he might actually keep the bastard back, this card, in combination with Draining Ward, Sticky Fingers and Free of Perdition might actually grind him down to where we’re both stronger and faster. That’s the idea, at least.”

Sera’s hand clasped his. “I think it could work. Obviously, the plan is to never actually learn whether it would work. Yet, having it and not having to use it is better than the reverse.” She squinted and mused. “Now, the question is whether or not we will be able to get ready to steal a deck before we are sent on our next mission or not. Are you all ready to work hard?”

“For the chance at building a legendary Wellspring with a power that hasn’t been seen in hundreds of years?” Chase tilted his head left, then right. “Eh. Can I at least have a nap first?”