BLUE CARD

"The game begins now!"

Minako felt a familiar presence as she opened her eyes. The scenery around her shifted, dark blots filled her vision. A violet light filled the space. She winced at the brightness, which made her eyes sting. There was no doubt about it though; she was underwater.

She pushed her arms out in front of her and accelerated towards the surface with a stroking motion. She breached the surface, pushing her soaked fringe away from her eyes with her left hand. She stretched her legs and found the floor. The water was shallower than she had originally thought.

Her head felt heavy, and she felt her heart pounding rapidly against her chest. She tried to take in her surroundings as quickly as possible. She currently stood in a pool surrounded by three velvet-padded walls. There was a single exit from the pool on the far side, with a staircase leading up to an open space.

"Welcome to the Velvet Room!" The statement was punctuated with a light chuckle, the voice cold and sharp. It was a man's voice, but it certainly wasn't Igor.

The bright violet light adjusted over the open space. Minako could make out a round table at the other side of the room. A figure was sitting on the far side, the bright light obscuring his features.

Minako waded through the water slowly. She felt horrible. The water washing around her waist kept knocking her off balance. She found it very difficult to think as well, trying to recall where she had been before. Her memories were fragmented and she could only recall the faces of her friends, and her memories of the Velvet Room.

"Please, have a seat." The man said as he lifted his hand.

Minako stepped out from the water. Her soaking wet uniform was caped around her body. Just as she went to adjust it, she stopped in disbelief. Her uniform was completely dry!

She shifted her weight cautiously, trying to maintain balance from the dizziness. She took a seat, glad to finally be off of her feet. Elizabeth was nowhere to be seen either. She tried hard to remember where she had been before. She could only hear the sounds of laughter in her mind, the sounds of her own laughter mixed with her friend's. Why was it so difficult to remember?

"We're going to have a little fun. This place has been boring for far too long." The man fell silent once again as he started to shuffle a deck of cards. "Don't worry. I've ensured that we won't be interrupted."

"Who are you? Is this the Velvet Room?" Minako asked.

"I guess you could say that. For now, it's the room in which our game shall begin. And who are you?"

Minako stopped for a moment. Did the man really not know who she was? Why had she been called here?

"Just kidding!" The man let out that cold chuckle once again. "Minako Arisato. Gekkoukan High student. Frequently spends her time with friends, or hunting that which we call 'Shadows'. If no friends are around, you're usually found at Hagakure or studying for exams. Sound about right?"

The man let out a great laugh. He spoke with confidence, but Minako still felt confused. She couldn't even find the strength to speak.

"That's not important for now anyway. This is the game room, and I am the dealer."

The man started to shuffle the cards quickly now. He kept his eyes on Minako as he mixed the cards together at lightning speed. "And so...!" The man slammed the deck against the table in front of Minako. "Try your luck!"

Minako's head had started to clear. She could remember the Velvet Room and all her friends, but not where she was and what she was doing before this. Even after the mental haze had lifted, she was still none the wiser.

Reluctantly, she placed her slender hand on the top of the deck and picked up a card. The card was pure blue. There was no artwork present on the card.

"Ah, the blue card! This will be fun!"

"What does this mean?" Replied Minako.

"So here's how the game is going to play out. I'll say this once, and only once. You will not interrupt." The man took a deep breath as he picked up the deck of cards and continued to shuffle them.

"Let's say, for example, other worlds exist, parallel to our own. In one world, you may be similar in personality, but have a different name. In another world, you may even be an introverted guy. The blue card itself IS the game. It will take you to these worlds that are not your own, it may even take you straight back to your own world. That wouldn't be any fun though, would it?

"You must investigate these worlds. You'll have limited time, depending how harsh the blue card is. If the world is your own, then all you need to do is shatter the blue card in the palm of one of your hands. Your hands can only crush it! It cannot be broken in an accident, and no one else in the world will be able to see it. However, if it is not your world and you crush the blue card, then you'll remain in that world forever.

"You have no memories of your world, aside from your friends. You will also replace any parallel version of yourself in different worlds. Some of the worlds you go to may be a little crazy! But that's the fun part of the game!"

This was all sounding very ominous to Minako. She was being forced to play a potentially dangerous game, in which she may not return to her own world and for what reason? Because this man thought it was fun?

"Of course, if it is not your world, then you only have to stay there for the allotted time. You'll return here after that. If you survive two worlds, then I shall let you draw another card. Perhaps this will be beneficial to you, perhaps not. Any questions?"

"Do I have a choice whether or not I play this game?"

"No. Not really."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I think we've talked enough for now. On your way! Oh, and one last thing… If you die in an alternate world, there is no going back. Same rules apply as your normal world."

The Velvet Room started to crumble around Minako, her mind clearing along with its disappearance. "Wait!" Minako's voice was drowned out by the sound of the crumbling room. It faded from view as Minako found herself sitting at her desk in Gekkoukan High.

It appeared as though she was stuck in a cruel game. She had to discern which world was her own with no memory of where she was before. This could be difficult...

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hello!

Been a little while since I've written some fan fiction!

I'll be honest now... This was another experiment. I have no idea where this story is going and I currently have no plans to continue it. Sorry! I'll leave it open for potential updates anyway.

This was an idea I've had for a while, but I was finding it difficult to get into writing it. This is mostly because it felt quite uninspired. I didn't want to waste what I had written though, so I thought I'd put it up here anyway.

I hope you enjoyed it!