Gamers Pt. 07

I prayed for a miracle. But I didn't get one.

Jazz left 15 days later.

We spent as much time together as we could. We made love 32 times in those two weeks, at her apartment, in my parents' car (front seat as well as back seat), and in my bedroom. I was trying to sear the memories onto my mind's eye.

The girls organized two parties for Jazz. One was for Amazons only, but they held a second gathering, to which Gerry, Max, Les, and I were invited. We went dancing, and had a great time. Cyn and Max slipped away early, which surprised nobody. Lucy and Les were still pretending that they weren't a couple, which also fooled no one.

Angie cried, and apologized to me three more times for spilling the beans prematurely. I assured her that she was forgiven.

Trisha stunned all of the guys. She looked like a different person. The double chin was long gone. She had her weight down to 125 lbs. I couldn't get over the difference. We hadn't seen her for three months, during which she had continued to diet, and to work out like a fiend.

She had also changed her hair, and, of course, her whole wardrobe.

- "What have you done with my friend Patricia?" I asked her.

- "Still here." she said.

- "What's your secret?" asked Gerry.

- "No secret." she laughed. "Just hard work."

- "You have to tell me how you did it!" he insisted.

Kasia cried (yes, her parents let her out). Angie cried some more. Jazz smiled and laughed, and promised to come back and kick their asses if they misbehaved. Or maybe it was if they didn't misbehave.

It wasn't just putting on a brave front. Jazz had cried plenty of tears, both alone and with me, until she just decided to stop.

- "Can't change the facts." she said. "Might just as well accept 'em."

She kissed me long and hard at the airport, and held me tight. She pulled back, and looked me in the eyes.

- "I love you, Dean." she said. "I won't ever forget you. And you don't have to forget me. I hope you'll think of me every time you play Amazons. But you have to get back out there and find somebody. Make her as happy as you made me."

And then she was gone.

*************************

I moped around for a week, playing sappy music, reviewing every picture I'd ever taken of her, and generally wasting my time. Then I really got depressed.

I spent hours in front of the computer, composing long emails that I (wisely) never sent. I searched up articles on jazz music, or art, that I thought she might like, and sent them instead, keeping my own comments to a minimum.

Her reply, in one case, was pure Jazz:

I love you and I miss you. But I can't read all of these articles that you're sending me. The School of Design here is really intense. Luckily, they're accepting my first year, so I don't have to repeat any classes, but I have a ton of work to do if I'm going to catch up. I have a pile of reading about Australian and Asian art, architecture, and design. I go to school, and I read. That's my life so far.

I was hoping that your life was more interesting - that you'd tell me what you're up to, or how the guys are. What games have you been playing? Did you win? Have you introduced 'Maharajah'? Are Cyn and Max still together? (Seriously, I give them a month)

That's what I want (or need) to hear from you, Dean. Please forgive me if I can't reply to your questions about the articles you sent. I haven't read them. And I probably won't be able to read the next one(s) you send.

Please say hi to Les, Max, and Gerry. Then go play a game, or ask a girl out, and then tell me about it.

Love You

Jazz

I stopped sending her articles.

But I missed the sound of her voice, so I phoned her.

- "What are you doing!" she answered - instead of 'Hello'.

- "Caller I.D.?" I asked.

- "Damn it, Dean! Don't you dare start calling me. It's too expensive!"

- "I miss the sound of your voice." I said.

She didn't answer right away.

- "I miss you too." she said. "I told you that. But it's not going to help anything if you spend a fortune calling me long-distance. And you aren't going to get on with your life if phoning me is the highlight of your day."

I had been about to say exactly that.

"You can Skype me on my birthday, or for some special occasion. I have to go, though - I have company."

I apologized, and said goodbye, and then tortured myself for hours imagining that her 'company' was a guy.

Thank God for Les and the guys. We decided to play a Kingmaker marathon on the last Friday before school started up again. I hosted.

Max actually put his arm around me and gave me a hug.

- "I feel for you, man." he said.

- "We miss her, too." said Gerry. "She was one of a kind."

- "She is one of a kind." said Les.

They then collaborated to let me win. I caught on after five turns. Les marched his army past a castle I owned, instead of laying siege to it. Then Max left one of my isolated nobles alone, in order to attack a stack of Gerry's troops at much worse odds.

When it was my turn, I simply swept all of the pieces from the map.

- "What are you doing?" asked Max.

- "Starting over." I said. "If you idiots are going to give me a pity win, I'll just go play with myself."

- "Eew." said Gerry.

I ignored him. "If you're going to throw the game, you need to be a lot more subtle. I would rather have you kick my ass than play shit like that."

- "In that case," said Max, "prepare to have thine ass properly kicked."

They came for me, with bells on. Within the first six turns, I had had lost every castle I owned, along with three quarters of my nobles and virtually all of my troops. I was down to two weak nobles and 30 Burgundian crossbowmen, sailing around the southern coast of England. I had to pray that there would be no gales or storms - the former would sink me, while the latter would drive me ashore, where I would be easy pickings for whoever was nearest.

Since the other three couldn't reach me, they turned on each other. Max had the better of it, which backfired, because Les and Gerry allied against him.

One of the great things about Kingmaker is that you keep drawing cards, no matter how weak you are. You get new nobles joining your faction, ships or mercenaries or towns, and you can rebuild your strength.

While Gerry and Les were taking Max's castles in the south, around London, I landed in Wales, and played a card which gave me access to the Welsh levies. These troops were only available in Wales, but there were a lot of them. Enough for my opponents to think twice before coming after me.

By the time Les and Gerry had weakened Max, I was getting stronger. Max gave me the 'nod' - the invitation to step into the next room for a parley.

- "I'm getting killed here." he said.

- "So I see." I answered.

- "What if I moved my army into Wales and we teamed up? Would you let bygones be bygones?" he asked.

- "We haven't got much choice, do we? Just do me a favor - save your cards for a few turns. Let them think we're weaker than we are."

Gerry and Les spent a few turns taking the last of Max's strongholds, and then concentrated their troops on the Welsh border. They weren't too keen on an invasion, but they had to come after us in order to win.

Another great thing about Kingmaker is the unpredictable event cards. The only thing you can predict with any assurance is that something unpredictable will happen. At the beginning of our joint turn, Max drew a massive peasant revolt in southern England, which drew away several of Gerry's biggest nobles - and their troops.

Max and I played our hole cards, and advanced out of Wales - something Les had figured we wouldn't do. In the key battle at Shrewsbury, we got the best possible result. We captured most of Les' nobles, and promptly executed them all. Gerry also lost heavily. He tried to take refuge in London, but we besieged the city - and captured it two turns later.

Gerry's entire faction were killed or executed. Max was caught by surprise when I called a Parliament - I had been counting votes in the House of Lords, while he hadn't. I awarded myself most of the vacant titles, and my faction went from powerful to irresistible. Then I dissolved my alliance with Max.

Max ran, but he couldn't hide. It took only a couple of turns to eliminate most of his barons. I was able to murder a few of the remaining princes in the Tower, and crown my Heir undisputed King of England.

- "Well, fuck me." said Gerry.

- "He did." said Les.

- "That didn't go according to plan." said Max. "It would have worked, though, if you dickheads hadn't turned on me."

We sat in the backyard later on, beers in hand, enjoying the clear skies and the late August heat. Spending time with my buddies, even in silence, was good for the soul.

- "Nobody else is going to bring up the subject, so I will." said Les. "We game Tuesdays and Fridays, and then every two weeks with the girls. That's five game nights every two weeks. Question is, how much longer can we keep this up?"

- "You're having trouble keeping it up?" asked Max. "Lucy wearing you out?"

Gerry made whip noises.

- "Yeah, laugh it up." said Les. "I'm thinking of you, Max. Cyn is pretty demanding, from what I've heard. And what are you going to do when school starts up again? They say third year is a killer." Gerry was still making whipping sounds. "And Gerry may get himself a girlfriend one day. Then he'll know what it's like."

- "What are you suggesting?" I asked.

- "Just wondering if we should cut out the Tuesday nighters." said Les. "I could use one more night for studying."

- "Studying anatomy." said Gerry.

- "Just think it over." said Les, and we left it at that.

We chewed the fat for a while, until Max and Gerry called it a night.

- "Mind if I stay a little longer?" asked Les.

- "Not if you get us two fresh beers." I said.

When our friends had gone, Les and I lay back on the deck chairs, admiring the stars. It was a view we didn't get that often, between clouds, smog, and the bright lights of the city. I was curious to know what was on his mind, but I had learned long ago that he would come out with it when he was ready.

- "You miss her?" he asked, finally.

- "All day long." I said. "And twice as bad at night."

Les let that lie for a while before he spoke again. "You know that I think the world of her. I think we're all a little in love with her. Don't tell Lucy I said that."

- "I know."

- "What are you going to do?" he asked.

- "Resist the urge to contact her every day, listen to sappy tunes, and punch the walls. What about you?"

- "What about me?"

- "You and Lucy." I said. "How are you doing?"

- "Great. Really great. You know she's a private person, so she doesn't want to make a big deal out of it. But I like her."

- "Keeper?" I asked.

- "Oh yeah." said Les.

- "Good for you. Good for both of you." I said.

- "You'll find somebody." he answered. "I know - I know - you don't want anybody. You just want to sit around and think about Jazz. And I don't blame you. But someday ..."

- "We'll see." I said.

*************************

Trisha and Angie hosted the next co-ed game. They had us over on a Saturday night, rather than a Thursday. Max and Cyn were there, and Lucy and Les. Gerry couldn't make it that time, and Vee was working.

- "Is she still in a tight spot, financially?" I asked.

- "Actually, she's doing better." said Trisha. "She piled up a lot of hours last spring, and during the summer."

- "She found a little place with three roommates." said Angie. "Nothing fancy, but she seems happy with it."

- "So tell us about the new game." said Max. "I think we're sober enough this time."

I explained the rules to Mahrajah, and then dealt out starting cards for six players. I would just act as referee/impartial advisor. The results were ... mixed.

The game mechanics worked well. I could have predicted that Cyn would pursue a straightforward military strategy. Trisha and Angie both tried to amass influence inside the palace. Max also tried to collect influence, but he spent as much of his energy trying to get into the harem, and gathering information. Les, by contrast, took the money route. As for Lucy - well, I had no idea what her strategy was, if she even had one.

Angie and Trisha competed a bit at first, then settled into their traditional semi-alliance. They helped each other, but never declared a coalition. Les and Lucy spent a lot of time with their heads together, whispering, but their cooperation didn't produce any visible results.

Max surprised me a little. He may have been the first to realize that he wasn't going to win all by himself. He decided to pool his resources with the roommates, who had cornered the market on place influence. Between the three of them, they had a virtual monopoly.

Cyn was not amused, to put it mildly. She had obviously assumed that Max would support her. He tried to explain that his mixed hand wouldn't be able to support the military action that she was building up to. Cyn simply wasn't buying it, and she got a bit snarky.

Because it was their first time, none of the players had any 'feel' for when to launch their move. They just continued to amass money, or influence, or military power. Typically, Cyn lost patience first.

- "Fuck it." she said, and she launched her palace coup. She certainly had enough military officers, and plenty of troops under their command.

But Lucy had a couple of potent event cards, and she had suborned the Maharajah's bodyguards. With Les' money, she was also able to bribe a few of Cyn's key units, and bring them over to her side.

- "Lucy won?" asked Trisha, incredulous.

- "She most certainly did." I said. "Nicely done, Lucy. You laid a trap, and Cyn never saw it. Heck - I never saw it. She walked right into it."

Okay - maybe I shouldn't have said that. But how was I supposed to know what would happen?

Cyn was not happy. "Yeah," she said. "No thanks to my boyfriend." The way she said it caught everyone off guard; there was quite a bit of venom in it. Unfortunately, that meant that we were all paying attention when she muttered, under her breath.

"Asshole."

Nobody moved. Nobody made a sound.

An eternity later - at least, it felt that way - Max scraped his chair back, and stood up.

- "Cyn, could I have a word with you?" he asked, in a level voice.

- "What?" she retorted. "You can say it in front of my friends. I don't keep secrets."

Max came around to stand beside her. "In private would be better." he said.

- "Fine!" she spat. She stormed into the kitchen. Max whispered to her. We couldn't hear what he was saying. But Cyn didn't bother to lower her voice.

"No!" she said. "Not this time!"

Max whispered some more.

- "I'm doing it on purpose? Fuck you, Max!"

Max whispered again, urgently. Cyn caught him completely by surprise with a left hand to the cheek. She slapped him right across the face. The sound was frighteningly loud in the girls' small apartment. Trisha let out a small gasp.

Cyn spun around, and stalked to the door. She ripped it open, and then slammed it behind her.

We just sat there in stunned silence.

'Well," said Max, "on that note, I think I'll call it a night. Thanks for the hospitality, ladies. Good game, Dean. I like it. And nice win, Lucy. I didn't see it coming it either. 'Night all."

After Max left, the rest of us just sat there, looking at each other.

- "Ouch." said Trisha.

- "That was ... over the top." said Angie. "Even for her."

- "Has she done something like that before?" asked Les.

- "A few times." said Lucy. "But not when Jazz is around. Jazz would kick her ass if she pulled a stunt like that." Lucy gave me a sad smile.

- "She shouldn't have spoiled your win." I said. "I didn't know she was such a poor sport."

- "There's obviously something going on between them." said Trisha. "Something we don't know about."

- "That's no excuse." said Lucy.

Lucy and Les decide to leave shortly after that, for one of their famous walks home. I didn't want to cramp their style, so I delayed my own departure. Angie offered me another beer, which I accepted.

- "Well, except for the drama, I like your game." said Angie. "I mean, I probably still like Amazons best, but Maharajah has potential."

- "I like it, too." said Trisha. She jumped up and went into the kitchen to get herself a drink.

I looked at Angie, and mouthed the words 'She - looks -great', pointing at Trisha.

- "I know." replied Angie, in a whisper. "She's getting lots more attention, and guys are hitting on her all over the place."

- "I can hear you." sang Trisha, from the kitchen.

- "So it's true?" I asked her. "You're getting hit on? Any interesting ones?"

- "Maybe a few. Most of them are jerks. I remember who was nice to me when I was fat." Trisha smiled, and came to sit beside me. She gave me a kiss on the cheek.

- "What was that for?" I asked.

- "For being nice to me when I was fat." she said. "And for inventing all these fun games, and then sharing them with us."

- "Thank you for trying them out. You're my play testers. I should be paying you."

We chatted a little longer, and then I thanked them again and got up to go. Angie saw me to the door. Before I could open it, she put her hand on my arm.

- "Dean ... I just want to say ... how sorry I am. That I told you about -"

- "Angie." I cut her off. "You have nothing to apologize for. Really. It was an honest mistake. You had no way of knowing. Please don't worry about it anymore." I opened the door. "Thanks again, both of you."

I thought about sending an email to Jazz, but I wasn't sure if I should tell about Cyn's outburst. If the roles had been reversed, would I have appreciated Max telling Cyn about a scene between Jazz and me?

But she had asked to hear about our gaming, and especially the introduction of Maharajah. So I sent her a blow by blow description of the game, the strategies everyone had pursued, and Lucy's winning manoeuvre. I mentioned the slap only briefly, without any supporting details or editorializing on my part.

She replied a few days later.

Hey Dean - thanks for the update! Glad Maharajah started well. Good for Lucy! You did a great job of describing the game. Wish I could have been there. When it comes to gossip, though, you suck. Luckily I have other sources.

Actually, I think I admire your ... restraint? Respect for your friend's privacy? But how am I going to get your impressions if you don't whisper little secrets to me? How are Lucy and Les getting along? Any more long walks? And how does Trisha look, from a guy's perspective? She looked pretty good to me, last time I saw her.

There was a lot more - Jazz was a very good correspondent. She told me about her classes, people she had met at school, and her first impressions of Australia - mostly positive. She asked more questions, and finally signed off.

Please say hi to your parents for me.

Love, Jazz

P.S. Share the wealth

I had trouble getting to sleep that night.

*************************

When we got together for our next game, Max didn't have much to say. I had phoned him twice, to ask him if he wanted to get together for a beer, or a workout. He thanked me, but declined. I was really offering him a chance to talk what had happened. But Max was that kind of guy: he liked to solve his problems and then tell you about them.

- "We broke up." he said, simply.

- "What?" said Gerry. This was the first he was hearing about it. "What happened?"

Max gave him the short, edited version. I think he was glad, though, that Les and I hadn't been telling anyone about it.

- "Sorry to hear that, man." said Gerry.

- "Probably for the best." said Max. "What are we playing tonight?"