//------------------------------//
// 3. Night One Part Three 
// Story: Poker Night 
// by SvenFoxx 
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Twilight gathered the cards in her magic and began shuffling them. Sly spoke up as she did. "You mentioned it had been a long time since you guys were invaded by the Dragons... right? How long?" he asked curiously.

Twilight paused. "The invasion happened about four hundred years ago. It was the key event that led to the Skyland Concord, a peace treaty between Ponies and Dragons. Why?" she asked, dealing out cards. She looked at her own once everyone had a hand. 'Hmm... A king of and jack of spades. Here's hoping for lucky Royal Flush.

"You said Princess Celestia stopped the invasion?" Sly asked as he and Ark threw in their Blinds.

Twilight nodded. "I Call. And yeah," she said, throwing her chips in. "She was given the name The Final Flame when she did it. Again, why?"

"Call." Ark threw in his chips.

"How? That must make Celestia over four hundred years old." Sly Checked after saying this.

Twilight dealt out three cards. Ace of hearts, seven of hearts, and queen of diamonds. 'I may just get a Straight again,' she realized. She frowned, what Sly said registering. "Oh. I see what you're asking."

"I am ageless, Mister Cooper," Celestia said from the bar. "All Alicorns are ageless once we reach our prime. Not immortal, we can still be struck down or get sick, but age ceases to affect us after a certain point."

Sly frowned. "I've dealt with powers that make you ageless. So help me God if you say hate is involved in your agelessness..."

Celestia blinked. "What? No! It's nothing more than a natural biological function of the Alicorn body. Our magic is so potent that it revitalizes our cells. I suppose we are not truly ageless, so much as we are extremely long lived, but when you can count your lifetime in the centuries it stops mattering to you."

Sly noticed both Arkantos and Twilight were tense, staring at him, and realized he was gripping his cane rather tightly. He slowly forced himself to relax and let out a breath. "Sorry... Sorry, I'm just... I guess there is something that bothers me," he chuckled. 

Arkantos nodded. "Just remember that we are not allowed to harm each other in any significant way, Sly. This is truly neutral territory. You couldn't even attack Clockwerk if he were standing next to you without serious repercussions."

Sly pulled off his cap and ran a hand through his hair. "I know, I know. I just..."

"Sly... why are you bothered by my age?" Celestia asked kindly.

Sly leaned back and stared at the ceiling. He sighed again. "I can't believe I let myself get that tense. I came here to relax, not get worried over ghosts from my past." He turned in his chair to look at Celestia. "Remember my story about Clockwerk? Remember the Hate Chip from the second encounter?"

Celestia nodded, before a hoof came to her mouth. "Oh..." she muttered. "No wonder my age would cause such a reaction." She suddenly turned to Reginald. "Commodore, would it be possible to make use of your abilities to have Mr. Cooper transferred with us back to our world? I wish to ease his mind regarding the age of my species."

Reginald sighed into his drink. "I'm afraid that is quite impossible madam. The Inventory is absolute in its neutrality. I cannot render aid in any form if it involves matters outside the business of The Inventory. It is how we maintain our legality with inter-dimensional authorities." He glanced at Celestia meaningfully here. "Please do pay attention to what I just said."

Celestia frowned. "...I see."

Arkantos clapped his hands. "So! I vote we move on with the game. All in favor?" Suffice to say his motion was carried unanimously. "I Check."

"Check." Sly said, somewhat subdued.

"Check." Twilight also said, considering in her mind if there was a way to help the raccoon.

She drew a card and laid it on the table. Three of hearts.

Arkantos smirked. "Let's see if there's a spine in you guys." He said, throwing two thousand and two hundred into a bet.

Sly sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Sorry, I'm not feeling it right now. Fold."

Twilight frowned. 'I may be able to pull this off if the last card is a ten, but do I want to risk it?' she glanced at her chips, then blinked. She face hoofed. 'I have enough chips that I cane call this without worry.' She Called.

The last card was a nine of diamonds. Twilight groaned. "Well that didn't work," she grunted.

Arkantos chuckled. "It's a mind game just as much as it is a game of luck and skill. Sometimes you have to fight your own fear to make the risky bets. Sometimes it pays off... and sometimes it doesn't." He Checked.

Twilight Folded with a huff. Arkantos pulled his winning to him. Three thousand and eight hundred chips. Not impressive, but still something. He also gather up the cards and started shuffling. He paused though, seeing Sly looking a little down still. "Reginald, how much are drinks tonight?" he asked.

Reginald looked away from his conversation with Celestia. "Ten tokens a drink. Have you changed your mind?" he asked, standing.

Arkantos shrugged. "Sort of? Go ahead and get Sly a drink, on me. Maybe some alcohol will help." He pulled a pouch from his belt and poured some gold coins on the counter, garnering Twilight's attention. He counted out ten and handed them to Reginald when he came by with the drink. 

Reginald put a wooden mug in front of Sly. "Alcoholic root-beer," he said. "Your favorite, I recall."

Sly managed a smile and grabbed the handle. "Thanks Regi, Arkantos," he said, saluting his mug towards the Atlantean.

"Wait, you guys use Bits here?" Twilight asked.

Arkantos paused. "Bits?" he asked.

Twilight pulled one from her nearby saddlebags with her magic and presented it to Arkantos. He took it and examined it. "Huh. Look at that. Hey, Reginald! Did you know about this?" he asked, waving the host over.

"The token? What about it?" he asked, seeing the coin in Arkantos' hand.

"It's not a token. Twilight called it a Bit, the currency of her world I think." Arkantos handed it to Reginald. Reginald examined it.

"I see..." he mused. "I will have to speak with the Owner about this."

"But... wait, I don't understand?" Twilight said, confused.

Reginald looked at Twilight. "The gamblers of The Inventory are held to a specific currency, that of the Inventory Tokens, to purchase amenities. Tokens can be earned through placing second or first in our tournaments, or bought using other recognized currencies. However, it seems your world's Bit is a very near exact copy of the Inventory Tokens."

"Is that a problem?" Twilight asked.

"Yes. You could theoretically ruin the economy of The Inventory by using Bits as Tokens, or your own economy by using Tokens as Bits." Reginald flipped the coin. "May I keep this, Miss Sparkle? I wish to show it to the Owner so as to convince him of the issue."

"Uh... sure. I guess. I mean, I don't want to cause an issue."

Reginald nodded and pocketed the coin. "Thank you, Miss Sparkle. You may resume your game at your leisure," he said, walking off.