Dropped

His Story

"Ah so that's the one you're going with?" The man asked. I grinned up at him.

"Yeah! That one!" I said. The man grinned back and placed his hand on my head.

"Very nice choice! That's a great card to start with!" He handed me a card with an image of a fireball on it. "I assume you know how these work?"

"Yeah!" I said. "I just, like, imagine it, right?"

The man nodded. "Yeah. Stay safe out there, all right?"

"Come on chief! Mom made me wait longer than the other kids, I know how to stay safe!"

"Yeah, yeah." The man said with a chuckle. "Run along now." I turned out the door, waving. "Have fun! Not too much, though! Hahaha!" I heard the door slam behind me and took in a breath of fresh air. The lush green landscape spread out for what looked like miles. At thirteen years old, I was finally leaving home. Most of the other kids left by the time they were eleven, with hopes of reaching fame and fortune using the magical cards that we were given, known as Sepicards. I took one last glance at Chief Oricro's house. He's just some old guy, but everyone calls him chief since he functions as the leader of our little town. I sighed as I felt a smile spread across my face. I had a feeling Mom was right; if I had been leaving two years ago, I would've ended up feeling sad and alone. Now, though, I can take the change of pace with a smile on my face.

"Goodbye, Opheli," I said, glancing at the houses of my town as I turned around. "Gah!" I exclaimed as a man bumped into my shoulder, knocking me down in the process.

"Ah, I'm sorry kid." Said the man, glancing down at me. I hadn't seen him before. He offered a hand to me and I tensed up. He looked to be about 30 years old or so. He was wearing a jacket and had a toothpick hanging lightly from his mouth. I could see bags under his eyes. He was staring at me as he waited for me to take his hand, but then his focus changed. "Ah, is that a Sepicard?" I followed his eyes to the Sepicard that I had recently dropped. I scrambled across the grass to grab it, holding it close to my chest. The man laughed slightly. "Don't worry kid, I'm not gonna take it." He put his hands in his pockets then looked at Chief's house. "Good luck out there, kid." The man then walked into the building, leaving me alone.

I stood up and brushed myself off. "That guy was... Strange." I said aloud. He interrupted my perfect exit to this town as well. I smacked both of my hands against my cheeks and prepared myself mentally for the journey I was about to have. I felt that same smile spread across my face as I took my first steps into the great unknown.

Not that far from the town, after about an hour of walking, I ran into my first opponent. A boy a bit younger looking than me was sitting at a nearby park bench. "Hey!" I heard him shout out. I turned to face him. "You're a Sepician, right?" A name that we had created for Sepicard holders.

"Yeah, you too!?" I said, jumping up and down a bit.

"Yeah!" He pulled out two cards, holding the faces away from me. "You wanna duel!?"

"Of course I do!" I said, pulling out my own card.

-----

I was sitting against a tree when I heard two kids talking. I decided to go see what was going on. They seem to have been talking about a Sepicard fight. Hearing them talk so animatedly reminded me of my first Sepicard duel. I smiled at the memory. I was a bit old for it now, though.

"Of course I do!" Yelled the girl as she drew her card from its spot by her side, on full display in case anyone else wanted to fight against her. Most people do it that way. I decided to sit at a nearby bench and watch the battle unfold, for old-times sake. From where I was sitting, I could see the young boy's cards clearly. He had two while the girl only had one. In any other game, that would be an advantage. Sepicards, though, are different. I've seen someone with one card take out someone with a full deck of 10 before. No special cards, no practice, just one simple thing led him to victory: imagination. That's why older people like me can't compare to these kids. The boy here had a card with a sword and shield and a card with a cannon. Not a bad deck, but definitely hard to use creatively. I didn't know what the girl had, but if she had anything unique, I was sure she would overpower this guy.