Chapter Text
“I must say, I never thought alternate realities would ever be confirmed. I certainly never saw myself ever having a conversation with myself. At least, not literally.”
“It is…bizarre, I agree. But the way things are progressing right now, I have little choice.”
“I’m afraid I don’t understand.”
“Surely, as guardian of the Akashic Book, you’ve noticed some odd goings-on? Anomalies? Events that have no business occurring, happening anyway?”
“Ah, that. Yes, that has been puzzling me for a bit. Small things, but they’ve been adding up. I’m guessing it’s the same on your end?”
“I’m afraid so. We’ve been fortunate thus far, but it is only a matter of time before both of our Earth's experience something much more violent.”
“And you reached out to us because you need our help?”
“Correct. More precisely, we need every drop of data you have on your world’s current events. Given that we’re ‘neighbors,’ so to speak, we might be able to find something in your reality that can tell us what’s going on.”
“What did you have in mind?”
“Those with a strong connection to Cray, for starters. According to our allies, their world is also experiencing the weakening of dimensional boundaries.”
“Should be an easy task. Anything else?”
“Second, we need to know in detail what anomalies are occurring in your world, how often, and to what degree. If there is any overlap between what we’re experiencing, we can conclude there is a common force behind these disturbances.”
“A tall ask, but if it’s a matter of maintaining balance, it shall be done.”
“Third, we need as complete a picture of your current events as possible. Even if we are experiencing the same anomalies, there could still be many differences in our histories that influence the world.”
“Of course. I must admit, I am curious about the differences in our worlds. If the situation wasn’t as potentially grim as it was, it’d be a fun intellectual exercise…”
“Undoubtedly. Oh, and one last request- we’ll need a sort of ‘base of operations;’ somewhere from where we can conduct our investigation.”
“I might have something like that…”
“Does anyone remember who said the following?” the teacher asked, tapping the blackboard lightly. “I don’t think I have to remind you that participation is a major part of your grade.”
A rough-looking redhead from the back squinted at the board. “‘The empire, long divided, must unite; long united, must divide,’” he read aloud.
“Very good, Naoki,” snickered his bespectacled neighbor, “but I’m pretty sure he asked for the source , not just for a reading.”
“So you don’t know either, huh, Shingo?”
“Oh, I know. I’m just not telling you.”
“How convenient.”
A spiky-haired boy from the other side of the room scratched his chin. “Sounds pretentious. Maybe it’s a philosopher or something?”
“Maybe,” a brunette next to him agreed quietly. “Empire, huh? Maybe Sun Zhou? Can’t think of anyone else who fits that bill-”
“Good one!” His hand shot up. “I bet it was Sun Zhou, teach!” he called out without waiting to be called on.
“A decent guess, Morikawa,” the teacher answered, “but not quite.”
Morikawa slowly lowered his hand, embarrassed by the smattering of laughter. “Thanks, Izaki…”
“I didn’t do anything, you dope. It was just a guess…”
“Does anyone else want to take a crack at this?” the teacher prompted. “Right or wrong, I’d love to hear someone with as much enthusiasm as our friend, Morikawa.”
A few other students began to engage. “Do you think it’s western?” asked a girl near the middle rows.
“If it is, I can’t think of anyone who’d say that,” her neighbor admitted. “I’m guessing ‘empire’ is the key word here?”
“It talks about ‘uniting,’” another student noticed. “Maybe it’s from the Warring States period or something?”
“No, it can’t be Japanese,” said another. “If Sun Zhou is a ‘good guess,’ it’s gotta be Chinese.”
“I’m drawing a blank here,” Naoki sighed. He turned to his other neighbor. “Aichi, what do you think?”
The blue-haired boy looked down, racking his brain. “Empire, unite…oh!” Aichi raised his hand up, producing a smile from his friend.
“Yes, Sendou?” the teacher called. “Do you have an answer for us?”
“Is it Luo Guanzhong? From Romance of the Three Kingdoms?”
“Exactly right!” the teacher agreed emphatically. He wrote the author’s name on the board, eliciting some ‘ohs’ and groans from the rest of the class.
Naoki leaned over. “How’d you know that?” he whispered.
Aichi smiled sheepishly. “I just did the homework. It’s not a big deal.”
“It really isn’t,” Shingo poked. “Maybe if you did it once in a while, you wouldn’t be so clueless.”
“Please,” scoffed Naoki, “you didn’t even try to answer the question. Bet you didn’t do it, either.”
“It was a recall question, hardly worth my time.”
“Yeah, sure.”
“Yes, Luo Guanzhong,” the teacher continued. “The attributed author to Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a work of literature so quintessential to the Chinese identity, it’s considered one of four ‘great classical novels.’ As students of world literature in an increasingly global world, it behooves us at Hitsue High to at least have some familiarity with these works. Of course, given that the actual work well exceeds one-thousand pages-”
“Aw, come on!” Morikawa complained, joined in by many of his classmates.
“-we’ll be picking through a handful of key excerpts. Though I do encourage you to try reading it in your own time.”
“Sounds like a fun challenge,” Shingo smirked. “I bet I can chew through that in less than a month.”
“You make it sound like that’s something to be proud of,” Naoki grumbled, rolling his eyes.
The teacher checked his watch. “Ah, unfortunate. It seems the Three Kingdoms will have to wait. Before we break for lunch, though, I would like to pass back yesterday’s test. I would like to begin by saying that I am pleased with the progress of most of the class.”
“Sounds ominous,” Aichi murmured.
“Oh, you’ll be fine,” Naoki reassured. “You and Shingo always do really well on stuff like that.”
“Hope so. That essay question was pretty tricky.”
“Don’t remind me. Seriously, how was I supposed to answer that?”
“Maybe by thinking, for a change?” Shingo jabbed.
“Maybe try shutting up, for a change?”
Aichi just chuckled. Just another day at Hitsue…
Hitsue High was not the most impressive school, as far as Aichi could tell. True, he was just a freshman, but even in his brief time there, he found so few things that actually stood out. The sports teams weren’t particularly formidable, each team “boasting” a barely winning record, their performances each game being solid but unremarkable. Academically, it wasn’t terribly challenging, proving too easy for brighter students to find engaging, despite the teachers’ best efforts. The faculty wasn’t the award-winning allstars that other neighborhood schools boasted, nor did the facilities of the campus catch the eye of anyone from the outside.
Aichi’s mother often asked why her son, one of “the best and brightest of young men,” ever considered Hitsue and not something more prestigious like Miyaji Academy. And the answer was simple- it’s where his friends were.
Granted, Aichi didn’t have many. His “clique,” so to speak, largely belonged to someone else, and he was just along for the ride. Naoki was the one who kept the group together, having collected each member of his entourage through sheer force of personality. Still, the group got along well, and even though a few of them had good chances of getting into more renowned schools, they chose, like Aichi, to stick together, not being able to imagine life without each other. It was genuinely heartwarming, and it helped Aichi wade through his high school life.
Well, that and his sketchbook. When the lessons were found wanting, he’d sneak it out for a few sketches here and there. His grades were good enough that most teachers simply elected to ignore his artistic tinkering. Between his independent academic pursuits and his artwork, he had plenty to do after finishing his homework- unless, of course, Naoki had anything to say about it. He often found himself tagging along with his best friend whenever the boy had found something else “worth doing.” Sometimes, it panned out, other times, well, they’d just get lost in some unknown neighborhood or roadside forest.
Even then, it was often worth it. Naoki may have been rough around the edges, but Aichi wouldn’t have it any other way.
It was finally time to head home- the last class had concluded, the teacher having lost track of time and panicking to finish her lesson, much to the amusement of the class. Aichi had settled into the school’s courtyard (one of Hitsue’s few, true highlights), taking advantage of the relative lack of homework to put the finishing touches on his latest piece of artwork. He might have gotten away with doodling while in class, but outside of school, he was able to fully flex his artistic talents and imagination on fuller works. The autumn leaves this time of year led to a brilliant strike of inspiration- his subject, an auburn-haired knight in bronze armor, readying his hunting bow. There was something about the medieval imagery blended perfectly with the autumnal color palette that made Aichi smile in self-satisfaction.
“Aichi!”
The voice wasn’t particularly loud, but it was enough to startle the boy out of his creative groove. He looked up, watching curiously as two of his friends rapidly approached. Naoki slid to a stop in front of the bench Aichi was using, his rear being brought up by…Izaki? That was a pair Aichi rarely saw together…
“Hi, Naoki,” Aichi greeted politely. Upon seeing the look of stress on his friend’s face, he knew something was up. “Uh oh, what’s wrong? Did you lose your bag again?”
“Way worse,” Naoki panted. Izaki behind him was so winded he couldn’t speak. “The Club’s in serious trouble.”
“You mean the Cardfight Club?” Aichi knew the Hitsue High Cardfight Club was perhaps the only thing about school Naoki took seriously, and especially the only extracurricular activity he ever participated in. There wasn’t any reasonable candidate for Naoki’s worry.
“Yeah! The Club’s grades aren’t good enough right now for Mr. Kobayashi to keep us open! That last essay really screwed us…”
“Oh no.” Aichi knew that club’s at Histue were kept alive by sponsors, who often attached grade requirements as a condition. Even then, the Cardfight Club’s sponsor was lax enough to let others in and out of the room during club meetings. Aichi had hung out in the Club’s room often enough just to enjoy his friends’ company, but from what he could glean, it was Shingo and Misaki that kept the average where it needed to be- Naoki and Izaki were C-students at best, and Morikawa was…well, he could sink about any average like a brick.
“He’s pretty unhappy,” Izaki elaborated after finally recovering. “That last test really put the nail in the coffin. We got along pretty decently before, but apparently with that essay grade-”
“It finally tipped the average!” Naoki growled. “He says he can’t sponsor us anymore with ‘grades like that.’” He crossed his arms. “You get one 60 percent and suddenly you’re thrown out on the street.”
“Hardly seems fair,” Aichi agreed. “Sorry about losing your club. You guys really enjoyed playing there. And the room was pretty nice too…”
Naoki snapped his fingers. “We ain’t giving up, yet! Mr. Kobayashi said he’d keep us open if we got a new member who could bring us back up-”
Izaki sighed. “Here we go…”
“-and from what I heard, you crushed that test! So all we have to do is get you on board as an official member, and we’re back in business!”
It didn’t take long for Aichi to add two and two together, though he wasn’t a huge fan of the answer. “Y-you want me to join?”
“‘Course! You hang out in that room all the time, and you probably have straight-As; getting you to join will convince Mr. Kobayashi to keep us running!”
Aichi blinked. Naoki often had flights of fancy like this, and unfortunately, whenever he got on a roll, he was impossible to stop. There were cases where this was endearing or even helpful, but sometimes they just ran headlong into reality. “I’m…not sure that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” Naoki’s question was less pointed, but not exactly curious.
“Because, like I tried to tell you,” Izaki interjected, “Aichi doesn’t know how to even play Vanguard. If we tried to recruit a non-player to keep the Club open, we’d get shut down for sure.” He turned to Aichi. “Sorry, I tried telling him it was a waste of time, but-”
Naoki grinned mischievously. “ We know Aichi isn’t a cardfighter, but Kobayashi doesn’t. Aichi spends so much time in the club room, I bet teach thinks he’s a player, too.”
“Yeah, he said that and ran off…”
Aichi looked down. This was a dilemma, alright. Aichi was aware of his friends’ biggest hobby- a trading card game called Vanguard- but beyond the name and a few choice pieces of artwork, he knew nothing about the game. Whenever Naoki or Shingo or Misaki began talking about the game, he tuned it out- it all sounded like a foreign language to him, with all the terms and intricacies. Trying to convince Mr. Kobayashi he was a player was a longshot, and if they were found out, the lie would definitely sink the Club, and guarantee they wouldn’t get another sponsor. But the club was everything for Naoki and the gang, and they meant a lot to Aichi. If it helped his friends-
“Maybe it’s worth a shot?”
Naoki grinned. “I knew you’d come around!”
Izaki gaped. “Aichi? I thought you were smarter than this! The second Mr. Kobayashi is on to you-”
Aichi nodded. “I know, but if it means keeping the club open for you guys, I guess I could play along.”
Izaki blinked, then sighed. “Yeah, I guess. You’re too nice, you know that?”
Naoki gave his friend a hearty slap on the back. “You’re the best, man! Come on, we gotta talk to Mr. Kobayashi before he changes his mind.”
“Man, I hope he buys this…”
“You worry too much.”
“Or maybe you don’t worry nearly enough.”
“Man, you’re beginning to sound like Shingo.”
“He has a point,” Aichi sighed, standing up. “I’m more than happy to help, but if we’re found out-”
“Don’t worry,” Naoki reassured. “Believe it or not, this is just part one of the plan.”
Aichi blinked. “What’s part two?”
Looking closely, the boy saw a twinkle emerge from Naoki’s eye. “A field trip.”
Convincing Mr. Kobayashi to let Aichi join the Club was, despite the worries, shockingly easy. After a rush to catch their sponsor at the last minute, all it took was an announcement from Naoki and confirmation from Aichi, and the teacher simply blinked and nodded. It was an anti-climatic outcome, but Aichi knew the true test laid in the coming days. When he asked what “part two “ was, all Naoki did was repeat that he was taking his friend on a field trip.
It would have been ominous if not for Naoki’s wide, almost infectious smile.
Despite living there his entire life, Aichi admittedly knew very little about his hometown. It made some sense that he would- even with someone as outgoing as Naoki, there weren’t that many places people their age could hang out, or at least a place all the whole group would agree with. In addition, most of his childhood wasn’t spent exploring the town, but rather the surrounding wilderness. Aichi’s excursions into the woods and riversides made for fun days with Naoki and Shingo, but it did nothing to acquaint him with the town proper. So, when Naoki took him on their “field trip,” he had no idea what to expect. After an ill-advised shortcut, they arrived at their ultimate destination.
“Card Capital?” Aichi read. The storefront didn’t do much to stand out- aside from its colorful and eye-catching logo on the windows, its nondescript paint job did it no favors. “Given the name, I’m guessing this is a game store?”
“Yep,” Naoki beamed. “They sell all sorts of card games here. Vanguard, especially. Lots of cool cardfighters hang out here, so where better to learn how to play than here?”
Aichi nodded politely. He, personally, could think about several ways to learn about the game without even leaving his room, but he really wasn’t the type to argue, especially with someone as admittedly stubborn as Naoki. “So someone in there can teach me?”
“She should be able to, yeah.”
“She?”
Naoki laughed. “Oh, yeah, you probably don’t know that, yet. You’re gonna flip.” He pulled on the door handle, swinging it open with his characteristic force. “Come on, the real fun is inside.”
Aichi complied, following closely behind his friend. However, while the shop’s exterior was largely unassuming, the interior almost floored the boy. While spacious, with the back half only populated with a small fleet of tables and chairs, the gentle lighting and color choices of the wallpaper made it feel cozy, like a country home. The rest was crowded with shelves and displays, practically overflowing with all sorts of merchandise. Behind several glass panes along the wall were an assortment of odd collectables and pristine looking trading cards. It was an impressive combination of flamboyant color and welcoming atmosphere- he immediately understood why Naoki had given it such an endorsement.
Naoki beamed. “I knew you would love this place.”
Aichi blinked, coming back to reality with his friend’s words. “Yeah, it looks like a fun place to be.”
“You know it! It’s why the Club comes here all the time. Well, most of us. One of our members comes here for a completely different reason. Hopefully she’s here- ah!” He pointed to his left, towards what looked like the store’s main counter. “I knew she’d be here. Come on, we got work to do.”
Aichi followed Naoki to what looked like the store’s front counter. The most surprising thing, however, wasn’t any of the products highlighted in the glass or on the back shelf (in all honesty, Aichi had no idea what any of the games were), but who was working behind it.
Well, “working” was a stretch. She was actually buried in a novel of sorts, but that was hardly a surprise for who it was.
“Hey, Misaki!” Naoki greeted. “See you’re working hard, as usual.”
“You said that yesterday, Naoki,” she retorted without looking up. “Is it too much to ask for you to learn a new joke?”
“Ah, I think you’ll forgive me once you see who I brought with me.”
Misaki sighed. “If it’s another one of your ‘friends’ from the soccer team, tell them that they’re not welcome after the mess they made-”
Naoki’s smile faded. “Come on, would it kill you to at least look up? The book couldn’t be that good.”
“Not sure how you’d know- you’re practically illiterate. But fine.” Misaki carefully bookmarked her page before looking up. What was an indifferent but icy gaze softened considerably when she saw Naoki’s company. “Aichi?”
The boy waved nervously. “Hey, Misaki. Guess I finally found out what that part-time job was huh?”
“No offense, Aichi, but what are you doing here? Tabletop games aren’t really your thing.”
“Maybe once upon a time,” Naoki grinned, “but today, you’re looking at the newest member of the Cardfight Club!”
“...now I’m just more confused. Why would-” Misaki’s gaze quickly resetted to its chilly default upon realization. “Oh. Of course. Naoki, even by your standards, this is a boneheaded move.”
Naoki’s own gaze soured. “Really? I bring on a new member, who's known us for years , too, and this is what I get?”
“Oh, please. You only brought him on to keep the club afloat after you bombed that test. The second Mr. Kobayashi learns he’s not a cardfighter, this whole thing will blow up in your face.” She sighed again. “Honestly, Aichi, how could you go along with this?”
Aichi shifted nervously. “I just wanted to help. I know how much the Club means to you guys, so having it shut down would be terrible.”
“You really are too nice for your own good. Still, you don’t know how to play. There’s only so long you can keep this act up.”
“Which is why,” Naoki interrupted, “we need your help. The sooner he learns the ins and outs of Vanguard, the better. And since you’re the best player I know, and wicked smart too-”
Misaki’s look softened again, if only by a little bit. “You want me to teach him how to play? That’s why you came?”
“Well, yeah. Whaddya say?”
Misaki mulled over the offer before turning to face Aichi. “Are you okay with all this? You’re not just doing this because you can’t say ‘no’ to Naoki?”
Aichi chuckled. “It may have been Naoki’s idea, but I’m happy to help. Besides, if both you and him swear by it, it must be at least some fun.”
Misaki paused, somewhat satisfied with the answer. “I can help you guys, but I can’t really teach him.”
“What?” Naoki balked. “Come on, why not? He’s a quick study.”
“Sure, but I’m working the register right now. If I leave it unattended, I wouldn’t be doing my job.”
“Come on, you can leave it for a little bit, especially when it’s this slow. If you’re really so worried, get the Assisticat to help out or something.”
Misaki glowered at him. “Look, regardless of what you think, I take this job seriously enough to not leave the cat in charge. Besides, just because I can’t teach him doesn’t mean I won’t help. And if you want that help, you’d change your tone, got it?”
Aichi shivered. His upperclassman could be quite intimidating when she wanted to be…
Naoki snorted, then shook his head. “Fine, you won’t teach him. What did you have in mind, miss worker bee?”
Misaki gave him a quick glare, then turned to grab a woven basket on the shelf behind her. Aichi noticed it held six brightly-colored boxes embedded in some straw. The boxes were small, and had where covered with nicks and scratches- clearly, they had been in use for a while.
“As an employee,” she explained, “I can lend you our start decks, free of charge. Since it was your idea to bring him into our Club, I think you should have the honors of teaching him.”
Naoki blinked, still a bit irritated. “Me? Didn’t you just call me out for flunking a test?”
“Don’t be like that. You and I both know you’re useless academically, but your understanding of the game is actually really good. You’ll be able to teach him fine.”
Aichi felt a bit relieved. He had helped Naoki in the past with difficult assignments (which, admittedly, had been a bit of a struggle), having him return the favor by teaching him the Club’s favorite game was somewhat reassuring. Besides, he knew Naoki far better than Misaki, so tackling something so unknown felt less alien.
She extended the basket towards the pair. “Since he’s a total beginner, you can take the whole thing to try out. Just bring it back when you’re done.”
“Right,” Naoki said, taking the merchandise with uncharacteristic care. “Thanks.” He turned to Aichi and began to smile again. “Let’s head to one of the back tables- they should have a playing surface just for Vanguard.”
Aichi nodded and once again followed his friend. Naoki was right- it was a slow day, with only a handful of other customers browsing or at some of the tables. As they got closer to the back, though, Aichi managed to spot a pair of familiar faces among the shoppers.
“Naoki!” Shingo greeted, exasperation heavy in his tone. “Thank goodness. Morikawa’s been forcing me to play with him nonstop. I desperately need to play against someone who knows what he’s doing-”
The boy across from him sneered. “The weasel gets a winning streak going, and all the sudden he’s too good for me-” He paused, becoming somewhat baffled by what he saw. “Hang on, Aichi? Never thought I’d see you here…”
Aichi waved. “Hey, guys.”
Naoki smiled widely. “Aichi here’s our newest Club member, so you’ll be seeing him around a lot more.”
“Wow, really?” Morikawa grinned. “Well, congrats! I guess we finally got you to play the greatest game of all time, huh?”
Shingo adjusted his glasses, confused. “Uh, Naoki, I know you aren’t the brightest, but you do realize that if he doesn’t know how to play-”
Naoki shrugged it off. “Mr. Kobayashi already said ‘yes,’ and,” he hoisted the basket for effect, “that’s what these are for. I’ll teach him.”
“...Normally, I’d say you couldn’t even teach a fish to swim, but since Vanguard is the one of the few things you actually know-”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“So, where do we sit?” Aichi asked.
Morikawa pointed to a table next to the one he was sitting at. “That’s one of the Vanguard tables. Has zones and everything- should make things way easier.”
“Alright.” Aichi took a good look at the playing surface. It was covered in gray boxes and numerous circles. He noticed that on both sides, there was a three-by-two grid of circles, with the upper middle being colored a dark green compared to the surrounding yellow ones. In the exact middle was a golden oval-shaped space with a large “g” in the middle. “Already, I’m a bit lost,” he chuckled.
“It’s simpler than it looks,” Shingo reassured him. “And if a neanderthal like Naoki and someone like Morikawa can learn it, it’ll come easy.”
“Right!” Morikawa agreed. “It’ll be a- wait.” His brow narrowed. “Oh, very funny .”
“Well,” said Naoki, setting the basket down on the table, “the first step is to pick a deck.”
Aichi glanced at the boxes nestled in the straw. Each one was a different color- red, blue, yellow, green, white, and pink.
“Each one is for a different Nation,” Naoki explained. “Every deck in Vanguard is made up of one of the six nations on Cray- the world the game takes place on. Each Nation has a theme, and is good at different things.”
Aichi nodded along. “So what’s red?”
“The Dragon Empire!” Morikawa belted enthusiastically. “A military powerhouse whose reign has stretched over millennia! Pack to the brim with intense dragons with legendary weapons and powers! If you love powerful vanguards that can dominate the gamestate, you’ll love ‘em!”
Shingo sighed. “Here we go. He refuses to study anything, but when it comes to Vanguard lore-”
Aichi just smiled at his friend’s zeal. “Okay, what’s in the blue one?”
“Ah, the Dark States!” Morikawa continued. “A nation of magical beings and demons, shrouding their homeland in a secretive darkness! They come packing a variety of explosive effects powered by the soul!”
Demons and dragons, huh? Aichi thought. Neither theme spoke to him. “And yellow?”
“The Keter Sanctuary! The last bastion of knighthood on Cray! They come equipped with the best the science and sorcery of Cray can offer! They aim to-”
“Knights?” Aichi asked. “This game has knights?”
Naoki smiled slyly. “I think you just said the magic word, Morikawa.”
Morikawa blinked, a bit crestfallen. “I-I haven’t even gotten to Stoicheia yet.”
“I wouldn’t recommend Stoicheia or Brandt Gate to a beginner, anyway,” Shingo opined.
“You can tell me later, Morikawa,” Aichi offered diplomatically.
“Alright, if you’re choosing Keter,” Naoki thought aloud, “I’ll take the Dragon Empire one. I think sticking to the one I know best will help me teach you better.” He reached for the red box, opened it, and took out a deck of sleeved cards.
Aichi followed suit, picking up the yellow box and carefully sliding out his own deck. Leafing through the deck, he noticed two things. The first, most immediate observation was that the artworks were amazing- as an artist himself, Aichi was deeply impressed. The second was that the back few cards had different colored sleeves. “What’s up with the sleeves?”
“Ah,” Shingo said. “That’s your Ride Deck. That goes there.” He pointed to a square outline on the table. “Well, the grade 1, 2, and 3 do. The grade 0 goes on your vanguard circle face-down first.”
“Um…” Aichi took a closer look at the cards, hoping to see a sign that clarified anything Shingo rattled off. Upon closer inspection, he saw a number in the upper right of the cards, going from zero to three. “Okay, so the zero guy goes…”
“Right here,” Naoki pointed, tapping the center green circle on Aichi’s side.
“Okay. So that’s the vanguard circle…” Aichi then placed the other cards in the outline Shingo mentioned. “What about these crystal things?”
“That’s Energy. It’s a resource in the game. You can put that near the ride deck.”
“Uh huh.”
“So far, so good. Now, before we begin, we gotta shuffle the deck.” Naoki brought up his deck and performed a few demonstrable cuts. “Like this. We don’t wanna bend the cards- bent cards are no good, and Misaki would kill us if we messed with the merch.”
“R-right.” Aichi did his best to follow his friend’s lead, focusing hard to make sure he didn’t drop the deck.
“You’re deck will go here,” Naoki continued, placing his own down on the table. Aichi looked for a similar spot on his side and followed suit. “Now we draw our starting hands- the top five cards.”
“Like this?” Aichi took one card from the top at a time. “I… can’t tell if this is good or not.”
Shingo walked over, peering at Aichi’s hand. “It’s not awful , for a start deck, but I think you should take a redraw anyway.”
“A what?”
“In Vanguard, you can put any number of cards in your hand at the bottom of your deck, then draw replacements. You’ll have to shuffle again, but having a chance at a better hand is always worth it.”
“Though if you're a real man,” Morikawa smirked, “you play the hand fate dealt you and win regardless.”
“Don’t take his advice. Morikawa’s wins can be counted on one hand.” Shingo tapped a couple of cards in Aichi’s hand. “Anyway, you’ll want those for later, so put them back.” Aichi complied, drawing his replacements, then gingerly reshuffling his deck.
“I’ll redraw three,” Naoki stated. “And since you’re totally new, I think it’d be easier if I went first. I learn best when I see everything in action, so I’ll lead the way.”
“Sounds good,” Aichi said. He wasn’t really a visual learner, but with something so foreign to him, he’d take any help he could.
“Now, imagine it,” Morikawa said dramatically. “You’re a just an astral body on the surface of the Planet Cray-”
“Oh boy, this again.” Shingo groaned.
“Powerless in this form, you must take the form of your starting vanguard, the one who leads the way!” Morikawa pointed at the table. “Flip over your starter, and say with your opponent: ‘Stand up, my Vanguard!’”
Aichi blinked, then turned to Naoki. “Uh-”
“For some people,” Naoki smiled apologetically, “it helps to picture the battle in your head. Though in Morikawa’s case-”
“So we don’t have to?”
“You should,” Morikawa objected. “A Vanguard without imagination is not even worth playing!”
“Just let me know when you're ready to start,” Naoki said, ignoring the other boy.
“Alright, let’s go,” Aichi nodded. He reached for the face-down card. “So, flip this up?”
“Yep.”
“ Now stand up!” Morikawa cried. “ VANGUARD!”