Lexie's plan the next day was organized in a series of steps, though not necessarily in chronological order.

One, she needed to talk to Xena and find out everything that happened with her and the men in black. She should also call Dewie and ask how he was doing.

Then, she needed to go see Uncle Max and try her hardest to convince him to accompany her to visit Isaac the Genius, or someone else who could give her access to the Undernet.

She also needed to have a video meeting with Elvira and Meerp. And she needed to figure out what cards she would select for her Starter Deck.

The latter was the first thing she thought of once she sat up in bed, mind groggy from a sleepless night. She'd tossed and turned through most of it, consumed by dreams of Aiden's face collapsing in disappointment and anger after she told him she wasn't his real daughter.

Dream? More like a nightmare.

She was almost surprised Naem didn't show up in them.

Lexie rolled out of bed, watching the sky that gave just a hint of orange peeking out behind the blue. It was too early for her to be up, but it wasn't like she could sleep much anyway and she needed to get started on her plans for today.

She shot Xena a quick text, saying, You awake?, and also remembered to shoot Dewie a text asking how he was feeling. Following that, she went to her desk and pulled out her study tab to start making notes.

Truthfully, she found the idea of choosing a starter deck daunting. It meant committing to a deck of cards for a good while, and if she wasn't careful she would pick cards that she had no liking for. Yeah, the Party Planner's deck had been good for learning but she was already way past that. She was at a point where she needed cards that did things that she, well, needed. And though she'd done a lot of deck research in her free time, she still felt like there were so many cards out there that she didn't know anything about that could serve her purposes better than the ones she was using now. Choosing her starter deck was locking her out of those cards for months at least until she mastered and leveled up the deck, which could take a while.

But choosing her starter deck also gave her certain benefits which she really could not deny. And she would have to do it eventually, so she needed to start thinking about it now.

There were two ways she could approach it. She could either start going through the extensive list of decks on the system, try out each of them, and see which ones suited her needs the best. That would take a lot of time, money and effort and it would frankly spread her too thin. The second option meant working backward. Figure out her needs first, how to get them from the cards, and then use that to pick the cards that would best suit her needs. Create a deck from that.

That was what she was doing now, noting what down what she required:

Cards that had protective and attack capabilities.

Even without considering everything that happened last night, Lexie still needed to be able to protect herself. She was the daughter of an ex-[villain] who had many enemies. And strange friends too. Her best friends were both S-Rank mages and at least one of them might become a [Hero]. That meant that at some point, Lexie might become a target to some crazy [villain] who sought revenge or something. She didn't want to be a sitting duck. She wanted the power fight back.

She also wanted:

Cards that were malleable.

She needed the cards to be able to be tweaked and combined easily. Her initial goal was still the same, to research a card-based system that could help a mundane population and that she could somehow use to earn travel points. Malleable cards were better for research.

The third thing she wrote down was:

If all other criteria above are met, then give priority to the cards that I already have experience with.

Although in the long term, it would all even out, in the short term, it would be easier to work with and level up cards that she was already using. For the Party Planner's Deck and a few other cards she'd tried, she'd gotten her pathways so accustomed to their mechanism that her activation time was as little as three seconds. That had taken her a year to do. She didn't feel like spending however many months to a year getting her pathways used to another activation pattern and having to cut down her activation time bit by bit again. It was tireless work. So unless she saw a card that was special enough to make the effort worth it, she would stick to the cards she knew.

After writing it down, she looked at the three simple rules and thought they were probably all she needed. Though it probably meant that she would have to craft several cards in her starter deck herself, which made things complicated. But it would be better for her in the long run.

She took a deep breath and said, "Okay now back to point one."

It wasn't that easy to think of an attack combination of cards right out of the blue. Lexie wasn't a warrior, and there were very few cards online that could be used to fight. Rather, she needed to think of a problem and then work her way back on how she would solve it. Just like she'd done with Max.

For example, with those boys that wanted to kidnap her and Xena. She'd been able to escape their magnet power relatively easily but she wasn't able to save Xena too. Or Dewie. What if she had multiple people to protect? Or what if the men had something else that wasn't magnetic but worked the same way?

She'd figured out the answer sometime during the nightmare she'd had last night.

What she needed was a trap card.

Something that would trap people in place and give Lexie and her friends enough time to escape. Like the <Shut Up and Dance> combo but on a wide scale, and that would also prevent targets from using their hand as well.

She currently didn't have anything in her deck that she could combine to create that effect. So she needed to go hunting to find something.

She opened up the Card Inventory and began searching through the possible decks and cards. She also had the textbook that Elvira lent her in the opposite tab (Encyclopedia of Cards) through which she cross-referenced the logic tree of each card to figure out how many nodes they had and where they were located. They needed to have their NOR in the right place for what she needed to do.

It took her hours and by the time she was done, the sun was out but she'd selected four cards that had potential.

A card from a Pageant Queen's Deck called <Hooked on the Look>.

A card from a Librarian's Deck called <Stories That Stick>.

A card from a Debater's Deck called <A Compelling Argument>

A card from a Journalist's Deck called <Catchiest Headliner>

The first card read as follows:

Card Type: Effect Card.

Power: 7

Description: Don't you just love the attention? As you strut down the runway, prepare to be the object of admiration and envy. Like the goddess of beauty, just setting eyes on you will render many unable to look away for 10-20 seconds.

Activation Prerequisites:

A minimum mana output of 100.

Must begin strutting right after the card is flashed.

Targets must have eyes on you at the time of activation.

Targets must not have their pathways in defensive mode.

Other prerequisites may apply.

Lexie could already point out a few problems with going with this card. The card had a significantly high mana requirement, despite being an average-powered card, which meant it probably had a convoluted pathway shape that would be harder to manipulate. There was also the fact that she had to strut while the card stayed activated. Would the card go off if she stopped strutting? That was something she needed to figure out.

The third and fourth activation prerequisites were also going to be a problem because once she flashed the card at an enemy and they saw it (because their eyes had to be on her at the time of activation) they would immediately put their pathways in defensive mode. Typically, she could overcome that by pushing more mana into the pathway, but it seemed that this card would shut down immediately at a hint of defensiveness from the target. It needed a willing victim to work.

It was a no-go unless she could delay the actual activation till their eyes were away. What if she began activation with the eyes on her, but delayed the final step until after they turned away? Would that still count? She would need to experiment to know for sure.

She switched over to the next card and it read:

Card Type: Effect Card.

Power: 8

Description: Your word is law! Inspire confidence in your target and make them hang on to your every word. With a convincing argument, you can render them speechless and motionless for ten to twenty seconds! Use that time to make them see things your way.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Activation Prerequisites:

A minimum mana output of 110.

You must be making a convincing case at the time of activation for it to work. The better the argument, the stronger the effect.

Targets must not have relevant pathways in defensive mode.

Other prerequisites may apply.

The description sounded close to mind control but it seemed to have skirted it pretty well. It didn't make people any more likely to trust or believe you, but it did give you more time to get your point across before they could shut you down, which was useful in a way. And that was really all Lexie needed for her purposes. Plus the card architecture had a lot of branching paths which was great. This was likely the first one she would practice with because it seemed to be the easiest one to manage, despite the high mana requirement.

The next card was similar to the previous one, except for a few notable differences.

Card Type: Effect Card.

Power: 6

Description: Everyone loves a good storytime! Enthrall your target with a riveting story, and keep their attention on you for as long as the story lasts and remains interesting.

Activation Prerequisites:

A minimum mana output of 70.

Story must last for less than a minute.

Must be telling a story at the time of activation for it to work.

Target must want to hear the story. The better the story, the better the effect.

Targets must not have relevant pathways in defensive mode.

Other prerequisites may apply.

For all intents and purposes, it was essentially a weaker form of the prior card. The biggest weakness was the part about having the target want to hear her story which meant that she couldn't just be spouting bullshit while waiting for the active time to run out. She must be speaking to their face, telling them a story they want to hear, which would require her to know some intimate details about her target.

The advantage here was that it worked for far longer than any of the other cards. Nevertheless, it wouldn't be ideal for a quick escape, because she would have to keep speaking to the target while the effect lasted.

It might come in handy in times when she did know her attacker and wanted to expend less mana, but truthfully, she would rather go with a superior card than an inferior one.

And finally, the last card read she'd selected read as follows:

Card Type: Ability Card.

Power: 6

Description: You certainly have a way with words! Say or write the perfect thing to instantly grab the attention of one or multiple targets. The card enables you to think of the perfect way to present a topic to interest your targets.

Activation Prerequisites:

A minimum mana output of 60.

Must know the target. The more knowledge the better the effect.

You must be making a convincing case at the time of activation for it to work.

Other prerequisites may apply.

Hmm. As an ability card, it was easier to activate, required less mana and just less effort in general. But of course, the trade-off was effectiveness and it didn't say anything about freezing the target.

All in all, none of the cards were doing exactly what Lexie wanted so she simply needed to pick one that she could tweak to her needs and start experimenting with that.

While she was figuring it out, there was a knock on the door, and Aiden came out with his tweed suit, his hair combed back and glasses perched on his nose.

"Hey bumble bee," he said. "I'm taking off. I have a meeting in the morning and office hours with students that I have to be early for. Your breakfast is on the table, but I know you don't like to eat this early so I'm keeping it warm for you. You'll be okay by yourself, right?"

She nodded. It was an odd question to ask considering she was always okay staying home by herself. But maybe he thought she was still frightened after last night.

Even though none of them brought up, the tension hung tautly between them, restless words left unsaid. As normal as Aiden was trying to be, Lexie couldn't forget the fact that they were lying to each other.

"I'll have Max check in on you in the afternoon," Aiden continued. "And I might come home late, so I'll also pick up dinner on the way. Dumplings from that place you like so much."

"Sounds good," she responded. Another awkward silence hovered between them, and they both felt it from the looks on their faces. And while Lexie didn't like the regret her father showed, there was nothing she could do about it.

He sighed. "Alright, I'm going. I'll see you. I love you."

"Same," she said and he paused in step, before he walked away. Lexie cringed internally. 'Same' was a lame way to answer that, but she needed some distance this morning, physical and emotional. Aiden would likely find out about her true identity anyway, one way or another, and she thought it would hurt less if she could detach first before he did.

But, it still kind of hurts now.

She shoved the thought out of her mind and refocused on her cards.

Lexie met Meerp while eating breakfast. Elvira video-called her and when she answered, she saw the other woman was sitting on an elegant four poster bed next to a slime creature.

It was a small, blue gelatinous mass, probably half the size of Lexie, with its outer body seemingly vibrating a little with...nerves? Excitement? Lexie didn't know. Probably neither.

It was a slime after all and Aiden always cautioned her about ascribing human qualities to other alien creatures.

She did notice something that looked like a bowtie attached to its front about halfway down its form. Who put that there, Elvira? Or did most slime butlers wear bowties?

"Why's it wearing a bowtie?" Lexie asked.

"I explained to Meerp about the meeting," Elvira explained. "And he thought it might be easier for you to converse with him if he ascribed by gender norms from your planet. With the bowtie, you can more easily identify and refer to him as a he."

Oh. That was nice of him.

Lexie felt a little awkward just sitting there with cereal in her mouth staring at it, so she said, "Hello, Meerp."

Elvira looked at Meerp and said, "I'm speaking to him via telepathic communication using a translator. After you make a contract with him, you can fitted to do the same."

"Neat," Lexie said as Elvira relayed her message.

Meerp made a buzzing sound.

"He says 'hello'," Elvira said. "Or something close to it anyway. They don't have a word for 'hello' for his species. They don't have a lot of words at all so this might be a difficult conversation."

"Oh sorry, I don't mean to stress him or you out, I just wanted to let him know I'm very thankful for his help."

Elvira turned to him and spoke telepathically and Meerp buzzed again.

"He says he's thankful for your thanks and he is also thankful to be chosen for the contract."

"Awesome. Um...last question is there anything in particular he doesn't want to do or he's not good at?"

"I can answer that," Elvira said, "He's not good with sheets."

Even though he didn't technically have a face and shouldn't be able to understand her, Lexie could have sworn that Meerp turned to Elvira in offense. But Elvira kept going with her critique. "He can never get the corners right. And don't get me started on his folding. But in all other things, he's adequate."

"Um...alright. I guess we can sign the contract, then."

"Good. You remember how to do it right?"

Lexie nodded and activated the <Handy Helper> card. It triggered a short contract, which she read through and sent over via message to Elvira. Elvira coached Meerp on how to sign his portion, and Lexie signed hers. The agreement glowed in the air and triggered a celebratory blue screen complete with fake fireworks that read:

CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE SIGNED A CREATURE CARD CONTRACT WITH MEERP THE SLIME.

"Awesome," Lexie said again. "Thanks, Meerp. You too Elvira."

Elvira nodded and Meerp buzzed. Within a second, they were both gone.

Later that afternoon, after successfully working out the calculations for the NOR node of several of the cards, she opened up her messages to find that Xena had texted her back.

The text read: I'll come over tonight. Still have a few things to figure out and I'll make my decision by then.

Her decision. Well, at least it was a relief that the men in black kept their word and didn't whisk her away. It seemed they were letting her choose instead. Lexie wondered what she would decide.

Dewie also texted her back and said, I'm good. Have been busy with mom. She's taking me shopping again.

That's nice. Lexie was glad that Vera was finally spending time with her son. But some part of her also resented the fact that it had taken Dewie having some special skill for her to give him that attention. It reminded Lexie of her situation back on Earth 2. But, Dewie seemed to be enjoying his mother's affection and Lexie didn't want to ruin it for him so she couldn't say or do anything but be happy for him.

Sometime around mid-afternoon, she decided to head to Uncle Max's. He lived twenty minutes away in a ranch-style home that he shared with Luke. He was supposed to check in on her during the afternoon but she knew he would probably forget. At least this way she made it easier for him.

When she got in his bunker garage, she found him holding a smelting rod into a mini furnace. She thought he'd heard her walk in but when she called him he jerked around and she froze.

"Jeez," he said when he saw it was her. He put down the rod. "Don't sneak up on me like that."

"Sorry," she said. "What are you doing?"

"Baking cookies and curing diseases. What does it look like I'm doing?"

But Lexie ignored his sarcasm and cleared a spot on his work table, hoisting herself up to sit anyway. "I didn't mean in general, I meant specifically."

Uncle Max ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "I'm trying to create more chambers for my Berretta Junior number two."

"I thought you did that last week."

"And I'm doing it again this week. Not like I have much else to do."

Lexie had noticed Mad had been antsy and grumpy lately. Luke said that he had adventure-sickness and if he didn't do something exciting and dangerous soon then he would explode.

Well, Lexie had some danger she could offer him.

"Uncle Max," she said. "Have you ever heard of the Undernet?"

He paused and narrowed his eyes. "Who told you about that?"

She shrugged. "I overheard kids from school talking about it. And I wanted to know if you knew."

"Stay away from the Undernet, Lexie."

"Fine." She pursed her lips, waiting a few seconds. "In unrelated news, do you want to take me to Old Moulding to a store called the Genius Bar? I need to talk to a guy there."

"Lexie..."

"Remember you do owe me that favor." She raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest. .

Her Uncle smirked at her. Then, he shrugged.

"Fine. I'll take you."

She blinked. She'd expected to do a little more pleading. "That was easy."

He snorted. "You act like I don't know you, Lexie. If I don't take you then you would just go on your own. Or find someone stupid enough to take you, even if it's without adequate protection. I'll take you to Old Moulding but you're not joining the Undernet. And I'm going to make sure of it." His eyes glowed with a menace that worried Lexie.

Uh oh. She may not have thought this through.

"Maybe we don't have to go anymore," she said. "It might be too dangerous..."

"No." Uncle Max shook his head. "Where we're going isn't the real dangerous part. We should be fine. And if we're not..." He glanced at his gun collection, followed by his smelting rod and grinned. "...then I get to try out my brand new gun."

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