Chapter 97
Chapter 97
Max stared at all the games they were playing. He had grown the stone that hovered in the air to over thirty square yards and had over fifty different ones laid out.
“You’re losing,” Gykewotik said, seemingly enjoying himself as he watched Max try to make his next move.
The concept is easy. You're thinking too hard about it.
Says the one who doesn’t have to consider which game he is about to lose. If I choose the three games over there to do next, he’ll move on to the ones on opposite ends, causing a loss on both.
And yet you know you have to sacrifice some things to win. Right now you’re ahead. That is all that matters.
Shaking his head, Max knew Bob was right but the way they were playing this game made him realize how many lives were going to be lost in the coming years.
“I won’t lose overall, just some things,” Max replied. He walked to the strategy games he had mentioned to Bob and made his moves, securing victory on one and setting up two more wins on the others.
A large finger moved in the air, and the games Max knew were about to be lost ended, the demon king gathering more tokens from the first, and on the second, flipped the tiles, resetting the colors and securing another win for himself. Gykewotik’s grin grew as he moved, flipped his finger, and the rope that was spinning snapped.
“Wait!” Max exclaimed. “You can’t do that!”
“I can and every other god will as well,” the demon replied. “The rules aren’t as simple as you think. This is the real lesson. This is the real game right now.”
Max immediately understood what Gykewotik had done. The two previous versions they had played were simply meant to teach the basics. Juggling multiple different games, getting a set number of moves before the other god got the same amount. You could secure a win in one game but fall behind in three. Blocking their moves meant not advancing on others.
The cost was measuring how many total games you could win. There might be a tie overall, or it could be a close match. Yet, Gykewotik showed the rules Max thought were being followed weren’t a requirement.
So the rules chang,e and yet they don’t. But we can play the same way.
Max nodded, studying all the games before him. Some were similar, slight variations, a few different pieces, while others were completely different, with rules that didn’t match up at all.
What if we…
Bob chuckled as Max considered his next three moves.
He took the king from two of the games and put them in a capture bowl for the balls-and-jax game.
“Good!” Gykewotik shouted. “One more move! Make it a good one.”
Max could see the lesson that the demon had just taught. Each piece didn’t have to stay in the game it came with. They could be moved between boards or games. One's ability to play the game well would depend upon their knowledge of each game and the potential power each piece had.
He took the ball and set it on top of the top block for the stacking game, making the next block very difficult to balance.
“You’re learning,” Gykewotik stated. “But the problem is you’re still confined by the way your mind works. Now watch.”
Bob began to chuckle as the demon selected a kids' game Max had played numerous times with Miranna. A bucket for each person would contain items. The different items had different point totals, yet you had to always place one item in your own and two in your opponent's. It was a simple math game, designed to teach the potential point totals based on how you moved the limited number of pieces. The winner had the most points.
Gykewotik put two games that Max had already won in his bucket. Doing so did not change any of the game-won point totals. Then the demon put Max’s bucket in his.
Max grunted when he realized that such a simple move was so obvious and yet ignored.
“I think I realize now how much trouble I’m in,” Max said.
“No,” Gykewotik replied. “You’re still not aware of how much trouble you’re in. Now watch.”
The demon began to cast a spell and all the games that were before them doubled, and then tripled. They rose above each other, creating three sets of games stacked upon each other. Gykewotik then cast the same spell, making two more sets of three stacks of games.
“This… right here,” the demon said, motioning at the number of games that was now almost 500, “is a fraction of what the game is like. You’re still playing with just the first set.”
Max’s mind stretched. He could feel Bob working out different options but knew it wouldn’t be fast enough. The worst rule of the game was you had one minute to make all your moves. By the time they figured out the best path, they’d have lost their turn and fallen farther behind.
So… the game is played knowing there will be countless boards lost… but what is the focus then? It can’t be as simple as focusing only on a smaller amount.
The focus has to be on a single board or on two. Yet what makes it worse is that you cannot let the others be knowledgeable of which one is the one you care about, or they will then put all their efforts into those.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
But if you ignore them completely, that would then show you’re doing so intentionally.
“I can see you and your skill are talking,” Gykewotik said. “You get that look each time you do. Tell me, what has your skill told you?”
Sighing, Max motioned at the display of games before him. “Most of these don’t matter. I have to decide which ones I really want to win and protect them while not showing you which ones they are.”
Gykewotik smiled, displaying all of his black teeth. “Good. Then that part of what I owe is complete.” The cloned copies of the games vanished a moment later. “Now for the last part. You and the other two black skills are on every board, and yet you aren’t.”
“What does that mean?” Max asked.
“I don’t know,” the demon replied. “I just know what I have witnessed and learned over my lifetime. “A… piece… essence… or call it whatever you want of each of you shows up on every board once you are in play. I’ve witnessed the arrival of black skills three times and each time their presence was everywhere.”
“What were those moments like? What happened?” Max asked.
Gykewotik shook his head. “That is not part of our bargain. And I will not share that information unless you are willing to give me something I want.”
Max frowned, knowing his question was outside of their original terms. “And what is it you would like in exchange for that knowledge?”
Everything about Gykewotik changed in that moment. The fun-loving demon vibe that had been present as they played games, Max learned that the one god he had played with was gone. It was replaced with a hunger that Max could feel. It was as if the demon king was rubbing his finger across his skin.
“For knowledge like that? We would have to form a pact and I–”
“No,” Max declared, cutting Gykewotik off. “I’m not forming a pact.”
A chuckle came from the demon and he shrugged. “Then it appears our time here is over and I have paid my debt. Unless you have something else to offer me, I shall take my leave.”
Max started to open his mouth and then closed it. Without saying anything else, he began collecting the games he had laid out and putting them away.
“Do not be a sore loser, Max Hoste,” Gykewotik said. “You have done well. Far better than many I have come across in my time. Still, there is much for you to learn and I do not doubt that we will encounter one another in due time.”
Pausing what he was doing, Max looked up at the demon king and frowned. “Are you saying that you expect us to fight one another?”
Grinning, Gykewotik shook his head. “I’m not saying or implying anything other than I am certain we will stand before each other at some point in the future. I’m not foolish enough to indenture myself a second time unless the value of what I gain is worth it. You have learned to egg others on and make them react in ways they shouldn't. But I will not make that mistake again.”
The sound of thunder came and then Gykewotik’s body began to sink under the bubbling lava. Once it was gone, the kaleidoscope walls shattered, revealing Sog on the sand, looking up at Max who was standing on a stone platform, collecting games.
“Uh… what kind of torture is this?” his demonic friend asked. “Games?”
“A harsh lesson,” Max replied. “One that I’m going to have to show all of us.”
He could see the confused expression on Sog’s face.
“Well do you need help picking those up?”
Nodding, Max motioned to the remaining ones. “I’m always up for a little bit of help.”
***
“I’m going to need a lot of help getting smarter,” Fowl muttered. “That is too much work and planning.”
Max said nothing as the others studied the games strewn across the ground around them.
“Is it really this complicated?” Cordellia asked. “I mean… I get it but I also see the difficulty of trying to manage these things.”
“It is, and I’m guessing it gets easier the more one plays the game,” Max stated. “The problem is that the only way to get better is by playing and the danger is that one wrong move can result in real losses.”
“How… how do we manage to win this?” Batrire asked. “I’m with Fowl. What we’re looking at seems impossible.”
“Partnerships, deals, alliances, and others,” Rakonath said. “One can’t win this alone. We’ll have to work together and enlist the help of others, also.”
“He’s right,” Jazzjak added. Their helper moved to a board game near him. “Let’s say this is the one you all care about the most. If you work together, you will have a higher chance of keeping it safe and also from distracting others because this one is that valuable.”
“So other gods,” Fowl said. “Like Ockrim and Phaius?”
“Those and I’m certain we’ll need more as we get stronger,” Max replied. “The problem is I’m certain every god we align with won’t have the same goals as we do. Some will betray us, others will attempt to play or use us. Outside of you six, I’m not going to be able to trust any other god the same way.”
“And what happens if one of them betrays us?” Fowl asked. “What if they find out which board is our main one and then use it against us?”
“We kill them,” Tanila said. Her voice was cold and firm, matching the frown she now wore. “This isn’t a game one plays for fun. No matter what another god tells you or leads you to believe, every act they take is because they want to win.”
“And you know that how?” Sog asked. “Not that I doubt you.”
“I grew up in a palace and every day was like this. There were numerous boards with dozens of other elves playing their own games, each trying to win. My father taught me early on that every action he took was for one purpose only. Himself.”
Max could see how Tanila stood, her back straight, head held high.
“We’re going to need to practice playing some variant of this game just as much as we practice in the training area,” she said. “No matter how strong we become, the truth is we can’t do this alone. All of us are going to have to be together or all of us are going to fall.”
Max Hoste… you unknowing married the best woman you could. She’ll teach you and the rest how to survive this game.
And all it cost her was her childhood.
Bob didn’t reply for a moment. Max could sense his skill considering something and then knew the answer before Bob said it.
What does a childhood matter if one wishes to protect the ones they love? Metal gets stronger from being forged in fire and beaten upon. Sometimes the strongest are the ones who endured the worst.