House of Cards

Jagger

On the other side of the portal there was a large room. When I say large, I mean large. There were cream pillars shooting into the ceiling, and other kids everywhere. All of us were different suits. Jacks surrounded us, and portals were opening every which way.

At the front of the room was a large stage, but it was currently empty. Looking up, four balconies tiered above us in each corner of the room. There were adults dressed in office attire, all black, white, and red. The House of Cards colors.

The adults were holding clipboards, taking names from kids who entered through. Speaking of which, one was standing in front of us. She was a short and stubby woman, dressed in a blouse and pencil skirt. When she spoke, she had a jersey accent.

"Name?" she called out, and it took me a moment to realize she was speaking to me. "Oh, Jagger Wells." She nodded, writing my name down. "Go stand on the far left with the other hearts." She muttered, monotoned like she had been doing this forever.

I trudged over to where I was instructed to go, Brooke following shortly after. "Did you know those water pools existed ?" I shook my head, seeing how perplexed she was. Not that I wasn't.

All of a sudden, a booming voice echoed throughout the entire room. Murmurs came throughout the audience, "Hello Children!" It bellowed.

Looking around, I couldn't find where it was coming from. Then, a man appeared on the stage. He was dressed in a white and gold suit, his black hair slicked back and a 'Joker' symbol was under his eye.

"Welcome to the Day of Dealing!" He continued. "I am Reginald, the current Joker! Today you are going to get your introduction to everything about the House of Cards! Now who's excited?!"

Weak cheers circled the room, and he seemed to die a bit. "Once you go back through the wishing well portals, you will find yourself in your court. Yes! You get courts! In these courts, you'll have your living quarters. Here is wear you keep your personal belongings and sleep. Now, don't worry. The boys and girls are separated to avoid shenanigans. You are also separated by suit, just like the real world. You will have training first thing in the morning tomorrow, so curfew is at eight o'clock. " He was smiling the entire time he spoke, unlike the name takers.

"Now, suits! Let's meet our Queens and Kings!" He projected.

"Spades! Meet Bertuska Ivanov! Queen of Spades! Kill streak of sixty-five! The highest kill streak we have so far!" Reginald cheered. The spade group, in the center of the four, went completely wild with excitement.

In one of the four balconies, a dark haired girl, around seventeen stood in full armor, similar to a viking's. She held a sword into the air, then sheathed it again. She had cocoa butter skin, but her features were blurry because of how high up she was.

Once the cheering died, Reginald went back to his chipper persona, "Next up we have Hendrix Lee! King of Diamonds! Kill streak of forty-two!" He beamed, and once again, someone appeared in the balcony.

It was a very tall boy, around nineteen. He wore armor that looked like it was made of pure gold. If not, then it was very expensive. He had platinum blonde hair and icy blue eyes. He was pale as a ghost. Hendrix, as he was called, pulled an arrow out of his quiver, and adjusted it into his bow and aimed. Then reared back.

The diamond crowd roared.

Reginald seemed very pleased with this feedback. "Clubs, welcome your King, Oliver Ron! Kill streak of twenty-seven!" Screamed Reginald, obviously straining his diaphragm.

As the clubs cheered, a boy, the same age as the last, came out with a hefty battle axe. He had curly brown and blonde hair, olive skin, hence the name, and brown eyes. Even from where I was standing I could see his freckles and scar on his eyebrow.

"Now Last, but definitely not least, Delphine Davis! Queen of Hearts! With a kill streak of thirty nine!" He bragged, and the final monarch arrived on the fourth balcony.

She was the same age as the rest, with long, dark hair and pale skin. She had almond brown eyes, pink lips, and dual swords. She waved with one of them. What a badass.

Screaming at the top of my lungs with the other hearts, I was more than pumped to see my first battle.

"As tradition, on the Day of Dealing, The Royals will fight eachother in a thrilling game of cards! You new comers will all attend to get a bloodlust from the best!" Reginald chirped.

Though I looked amazed, Brooke didn't look as excited. "Hey, Bumblebee, whats bugging you?" I asked, and she shrugged, "Nothing, just the fact that we are about to watch a real battle where someone could die. That's all."

Ah, sarcasm.

"Sorry, sorry. I know you're not the biggest fan of this, but it's my chance to prove myself to my mom and show I'm better than Conrad!"

"That's great, Jagger."

"I know!"

The jack that had escorted us to this place called us over so we could teleport to the House of Cards. "Your King or Queen will be giving you each a tour once the battle is over. Don't worry, the first one isn't to the death, but the others are!" Reginald gushed. He really seemed to like his job.

The portal opened for us again, and we stepped through. So far, it's the best worst part. While you're in the portal, you feel like your skin is being ripped off and your lungs are full of water. When you get out, though, you feel good as new.

It hurts to open your eyes inside of the portal too, but I did it anyway. It's a blinding white all around.

It's a very odd sensation, that's for sure.