#exploding cards

Book 1 - Part 61:  Pick a Card! Any Card!

The card exploded in the brute’s face, filling his eyes with black smoke and soot. Unknowingly, the brute had fallen for an old trick that Jack had invented back in his military days. Tempers would occasionally flair with the other soldiers, and Jack had cobbled together a trick deck if he ever needed to lighten the mood. Luckily, he still carried around the old deck for sentimental and, at times, practical reasons (or, at least, practical joke reasons).

Unfortunately, though stunned, the guard was still blocking the exit door with his massive bulk.

The other guards, upon seeing Jack attacking the brute, raised their pistols again and aimed at him.

“Give us the cards,”they said, menacingly.

“Sure thing,” said Jack, and promptly threw several of the cards at the unsuspecting guards.

“Pick a card, any card!” Jack said loudly, laughing and coughing as the room filled with black smoke from the exploding cards that he continued to throw. Fortunately for Jack, the guards no longer had a direct line of site at him with their blasters, so their shots went wild. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see them either, so he quickly threw himself to the ground as a few wild shots narrowly missed him.

He wasn’t long safe in that position either, as the large brutish Nagrak, who was extremely upset from being blasted in the eyes with soot and ash, brought down his electrified mace very near Jack’s head, striking the floor soundly. Sparks scattered in all directions and electricity surged out, knocking the other guards back through the thick smoke. Jack sprang away from the brute’s heavy blow. Catching a quick breath, he was surprised to find himself unharmed from the electric blast. Perhaps he had built up some sort of an immunity to electric bolts by being zapped so many times by the green electric eyes? Whatever the reason, he was glad to be unfazed and even more glad that the lesser Nagrak guards had been stunned instead of him. However, there was still the big brute to deal with. 

As the green giant lifted his mace for another strike, Jack frantically searched in his pack of cards to see if any were left. He feared that he had used all of them up in distracting the guards. But, no! Here was the last card of the deck, and it was the one card he had hoped to pick:  The Lucky Jack. He turned to the brutish barbarian and proclaimed proudly and loudly, “My good green sir, it’s been a pleasure doing business with you! Unfortunately, I have to be leaving, but here’s my card!” and he promptly threw the card at the green thug’s head.