“Everyone’s real lives just sort of got so busy that it stopped being fun because we didn’t really have enough players for a quest,” I explained.
“Do you have any materials of your own to start a game with?” Daddy asked.
“Just a handful,” Murry explained. “We found some Vampire the Masquerade books at a used bookstore and a couple Dragon Lance novels, but when we looked online to try to get the expansion set, it was crazy expensive.”
“Well then, you’ll be happy to know that Aspen has it and several campaigns he’s created that he’s complained about not getting to run,” Daddy explained.
“Sweet!” Murry declared. “In that case, I’m going to start with this expansion and a Dungeon Master’s guide so I can start working on a campaign too.”
“And I’ll send Aspen a quick text to let him know that we need to start planning a new game night,” Daddy said.
“I’ll let Phoenix and James know we’re trying to put one together,” I said. “James makes all the schedules, so if he can work it out for him and Phoenix to make it, he will.”
“Perfect, and on the nights we don’t have enough for a campaign, let’s see if we can find something in the same realm of play that we can enjoy,” Daddy said.
Talk about a quest; what Daddy had just proposed certainly sounded like one as we started browsing the shelves.
“Check this out,” I said, holding up a game with emoji-looking creatures on the front.
“Doomlings?” Murry read off the front of the box. “An end of the world card game. Ohh, that sounds fun.”
“Doesn’t it,” I said as I read the back. “They’ve got a card calledApex Predatorand another calledOptimistic Nihilism. I don’t even know what that is, and I want to play it just to see what happens.”
“Looks like you’ve found something for us to test out tonight,” Daddy said.
“I’m definitely getting this one,” I declared as Murry found the dungeon master’s guide he’d been searching for amid the other books and expansion sets to go with the one he’d spotted in the window, which he held tight to his chest, while I still clung to his belt loop.
Fortunately, one of the employees appeared a few minutes later with a basket on wheels that Daddy took possession of so I could keep holding on to Murry while we continued to browse the shelves.
“Cooperative Candlelit horror strategy game,” Murry muttered, reading from a display graphic beside a stack of games. “What in the world?”
Murry picked up the game that had snagged his attention and turned it over in his hands. The cover saidThe Night Cage, and it was supposed to be a labyrinth that you had to escape from with only candlelight to guide you.
“Collect keys, locate the gate, and escape,” Murry continued to read, this time off the back of the box.
“Why does that sound way easier than it’s likely to be?” Daddy said. “I’ve never heard of anything like that, but it certainly looks interesting.”
“It has a game board, cards, little keys, and tiny figures to move,” Murry declared. “I wonder if we’re really supposed to play it by candlelight because that would be cool.”
“Why don’t I get that one for the loft?” Daddy said, holding his hand out for it. “It’s certainly unlike anything we already have in the collection.”
“I think it’ll be fun,” I said as Murry passed it over so Daddy could add it to the basket with the rest of the pile we’d amassed.
By the time we made it to the register, there was no doubt in any of our minds that a trip back to the loft would be necessary before we checked out the rest of the street fair. We had three bags, one for each of us to carry, and plenty of new games to explore together.
“Phew,” Daddy said, tugging on the neck of his t-shirt to fan himself as we rode the lift up to the loft. “A few minutes in the air conditioning will do us all some good.”
“I’m grabbing a popsicle before we head back out there,” I declared, as the doors opened and a blast of cool air hit me square in the face. “Oh, this is nice.”
“Here, give me your bag, and I’ll put it in the living room,” Murry said. “That way you can grab us all popsicles.”
“Make mine a lime one,” Daddy called after me as I hurried to the kitchen after passing my bag to Murry.
I found them on the couch, Daddy leaning back with his arm over his head, while Murry rummaged through the bags, pulling the games out and stacking them on the coffee table.
“Thank you,” Daddy said when I passed him his lime popsicle, then Murry a strawberry one before I sat down with the orange I’d chosen.
“That’s quite a haul,” Daddy said as he studied the pile. “Let’s pick two to leave out and put the rest away before we head back to the square. That way we won’t have to put them away later.”
