Chapter 15: Stacked Deck
What does a Hero Truly Need?
By: Zelkova48
Chapter 15: Stacked Deck
Gladius prison, break hours
"All right, it's your turn to deal" a large brown and very woolly minotaur spoke to Jackal as he handed him a dirty looking deck of cards from Las Pegasus.
Sitting around an old wooden table that looked like it was a home for termites were small group of inmates who were on their scheduled recess from their cells to mingle with other prisoners before their inevitable death or near death experience. To pass the time, and possibly earn some very valuable contraband from inmates with a penchant for theft, they were enjoying a good ol' dishonest game of poker.
And the players were:
Jackal, the diamond dog
"Beefsteak", the minotaur
Canary, the one winged griffon
George XII, the pet frog
And Sven, the rogue knight
"What!? I already dealed last game, it's the griffon's turn" the diamond dog complained as he passed the deck to Canary, a one winged griffon with a dark brown coat for her lion half and silky midnight black for her eagle half and remaining wing. Her eyes were like crystal clear topaz that had been expertly cut by an artisan several times to achieve the proper shape.
"No way ya mutt, Ah already dealed before that. How about the new guy?" she pointed a talon to Sven with a sultry smile on her beak "Surely a big hunk of a stallion such as yourself would help out wittle ol' me, right?" she asked with a bat of her eyelash and a flick of her only wing.
"Alright, fine. Hand me the cards" Sven took the card and began to shuffle the deck, he was very impressed with the fact that he could do such a thing with hooves. After a few seconds of shuffling, he expertly flicked the cards to the other competitors as he dealed his own cards.
"Why thank ya sugah" she replied as she blew a kiss to him "It's nice to a gentlecolt in this shithole for a change" she glared at the others as she took a quick peek at her cards "Ah reckon chivalry has something ta do with ya being a knight?"
"It is in my own code. A code that defines who I am" he check his cards and placed them back down.
"Hey! Take off the helmet! We let you slide the first few rounds pal!" the minotaur shouted. Sven complied and removed his helmet, revealing his face. His coat was the same color as his clothes, blue while his mane was bleached bone white "That's better. Heh, hope you got a good poker face, bud" the minotaur smirked as he hid his gigantic self behind his cards.
"Speaking of being a knight, what made you go rogue there handsome?" Canary asked "Ya seem to have the strength and personality to be the greatest of the guards, what made ya do something as stupid as attacking the princesses head on like that?" she threw down some painted pebbles that were suppose to represent chips "Raise you a hundred"
"Probably the same reason you lost your wing" Sven threw in some chips to the pot "Didn't like certain individuals" he pulled another card out from the deck and threw it Jackal.
" *Sigh* don't remind me hon" her expression fell "Ah used ta be the most brilliant singer in all of the Griffon kingdom!" she slammed her claw down when bad memories bleeded into her mind "Til that damn unicorn messed up mah vocal chords with his freaky magic" she squawked loudly with a sound comparable to a cat getting his balls caught in a vice
"That nasty drunk of a unicorn had what was coming to him when I knocked his block off!" she yelled "As it turned out y'all, he was some fancy smanchy prick of a delegate who loved to mess around with ladies!" she grimaced at the memory "The guards came down on me fast and took my wing in the process!" she reached over to her back to feel her nub of a wing with a frown "Overzealous dirtbags, the lot of them....."
"And then you got sent here on charge of assault of nobilty and being declared a threat to ponykind!" Beefsteak mellodramatically exclaimed "Yeah, we get it. Geez you must've told us your sob story like a million times" he slammed his hands on the table "You're not the only one whose had it rough you know! I had no idea that boulder was headed for the castle when I was training!" he roared "Beating up some of the guards didn't exactly help my cause either" he slinked back into his chair.
"Fold" Sven placed his cards down, two of a kind
"Fold" Jackal did the same, two of a kind
"Fold" As did Canary, three of a kind
"Ribbit" the tiny frog known only as George XII somehow did as well while staring blankly at the group before him with his beady little eyes and occasionally expanding his buccal cavity. Two pairs
"Wait, what?" the minotaur looked down on the table to see that his cards were facing up, full house "Ah! Damn it!"
"Aha! Loser" Jackal teased "Alright, deal them again, Sven" the cards were thrown around the table again, everyone stared at their cards with their best poker face on. The one that had the best poker face, surprisingly, was the frog that was just staring at them nonstop.
"Psst, Jackal. What's with the toad?" Sven asked.
"Beats me, plus he's a frog, not a toad" he whispered "I don't know why he's here at all, I just think he's a random pet frog that hopped his way into here by accident. Apparently, the little guy knows how to play so we just add him to the game to fill up a seat" he explained while the frog was still staring at them "According to that little collar around his neck, his name's George the twelfth"
"Hmm, how strange" Sven threw some chips onto the pot "He would look heroic with a tiny little backpack on him!" Canary laughed at his joke from across the table.
"My, my there Sven. Handsome, strong, and funny? Tell me here sugah, and be honest will ya?" she licked her beaks passionately "Do ya have anyone.... special to call your own?"
"No, I'm afraid not" he replied. Canary was thrilled with the his answer. She narrowed her eyes on him, making sure that her cards were face down on the table. She slowly ran her talons across the table until she reached Sven's hooves.
"Would ya like to me my special somepony?" she lustfully asked with a wistful twirl of he claw and an amorous look in her eyes. Jackal and Beefsteak just rolled their eyes. George just sat in his stool and stared "It would be a crying shame for someone like you to be all alone here in this prison" she edged a little closer.
"Ah jeez, a griffon making a move on a stallion" Jackal gagged "Now I've seen everything in the world" he hid his face in his paws, with one eye out towards Sven "I'd tread lightly there buddy. This is still a prison. Don't drop the soap in the showers, just a heads up"
"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Stop it right there!" Beefsteak cut in "My momma only taught me where calves come from when a mommy minotaur and a daddy minotaur love each other very much. She never taught me about what happens when a mommy griffon and a daddy stallion love each other" he paused a bit with a frown "She didn't have puppets of a griffon or a stallion..." everyone stopped and stared at Beefsteak, even George stopped his croaking when the minotaur mentioned puppets.
"Uh.... I'll think about it" Sven weakly replied as Canary backed off.
"Aw, come on. Don't be like that hon" she kept her sultry voice flowing "You're practically the first inmate in here that Ah actually like!" she squawked loudly in excitement. This time, the sound was like a thousand nails running across a chalkboard sequentially.
"Yeah, every other prisoner and guard that attempted to... have their way with you got their eyes gouged out.... then you ate their eyeballs" Jackal deadpanned with the dreary revelation.
"Excuse me?" Sven asked as he edged away from the griffon.
"They never had a chance" she gave a mischievous grin as she lecherously licked one of her talons "Don't worry though Sven, you can bed me anytime you like. Also, I like it rough, sugah" the group slowly back off from the sexually deprived Griffon. George hopped off his stool and landed next to Jackal who held him as he croaked rapidly in fear.
"Okay! Time out!" Beefsteak cross his hands "Lets just get on with the game! No more talk about about rape, and eyeballs and sex and stuff!" he took his cards and slammed them on the table "Boom! Flush! Beat that chumps!" he sounded rather confident as he tried to pull the hoard of chips towards him only for Jackal to stop him.
"Not so fast there, Beefsteak" he showed him his cards with a smile "Full house. You lose!" he tried to grab the chips only for a claw to stop him.
"Now hold it right there!" Canary showed her cards "Four of a kind! Ha ha! That contraband is as good as mine!" she reached for the chips but a hoof stopped her.
"I apologize, Canary" he slammed his cards on the table "Straight flush!" he heartily laughed.
"Daw! Ya got me there sugah. Though Ah'm not angry with ya" she batted her eyelash at him.
"I appreciate the modesty Canary" he turned to pull the chips in "The rogue knight is victorious once more!" just as Sven was reeling in the chips, he felt a cold webbed feet on his hoof. It was George.
"Ribbit" the cards in front of him made everyone's jaw hit the floor "Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit" the group just couldn't believe the little amphibian's luck. The cards didn't lie.
Royal Flush
George extended out his tongue and pulled in the pot. The frog then proceeded to croak rapidly in excitement over his victory in the poker game.
"Bah! Bested by a frog! This is a new low for the rogue knight...." Sven "Aw well, it's not the worst thing that's ever happened to me. I could've lost to Wisp" he looked to the frog and patted him on the head "Congratulations, George. You are the winner of this poker game" the frog croaked back at Sven "Heh heh heh! So true..."
"Well, he's the winner. Might as well give him the spoils" Beefsteak reached into a burlap sack and pulled out a chocolate bar "Here you go little dude, you've earned it" George walked up towards the chocolate bar and began to absentmindedly gum the sweet treat.
The group stared in awe as they watched the little guy slowly eat the chocolate bar that was roughly about twice his size. After ten minutes of staring and dedicated gumming, the frog licked the corners of his mouth to rid himself of any excess chocolate. With a quick croak he he hopped off his stool and landed right onto Sven's shoulder. He croaked happily as he hopped up and down atop Sven's shoulder pads.
"Daww, ain't the little fella cute!" Canary gushed "Looks like you got yourself a new friend there hon" she petted the little frog as he nuzzled her claw.
"Hmm, It appears that I have" Sven petted George as well who croaked happily in return.
"Huh, I guess George lost his old master" Jackal joined in "He seems to have taken a liking to you. Why don't you keep him? We could always use another cellmate" Jackal suggested "I'm sure he'll be a great help to you as well"
"That's not a bad idea there, Jackal" Sven picked up George who's beady eyes pierced his very being and into his very soul "George, from here on out, you shall be my faithful squire!" George croaked in agreement with him "Ha ha! I knew you couldn't resist" George croaked excitedly as his legs were flipping and flopping about joyously.
"Now that there is just adorable!" Canary squawked "I can just picture it now! Me and Sven, together living in peace with a little two story pink house and a white picket fence with our pet frog, George!" she sighed dreamily "Now that is the life for me. Not being stuck here where I could get eaten by manticores"
"Uh, I hate to break up the lovey dovey moment here guys but breaks over. Time to head back to our cells" Beefsteak announced "It's been cool everyone, I'm just gonna head back and take nap" he turned to leave but not before mentioning one other thing "By the way, if you do survive the fight tomorrow, let's play again sometimes" he turned about face and walked back to his cell.
"Bah! Don't listen to him Sven. If I've survived this long in the slammer, I'm sure you will too. A few manticores can't stop a couple of badasses such as ourselves" Jackal assured his friend as he also turned to leave back to his cell. Sven and George followed suit but they were both stopped by Canary.
"As much as Ah would like to believe that hon, Ah'm having trouble doing so" Canary looked down "Ya see Ah've been hearing bout some nasty rumor that's been flying round the prison, something that makes me shaken to the bone" she motioned for them to come closer.
"What is it that has you so scared ms. Canary?" Sven asked with George atop his head.
"Oh it'll be Mrs. Canary soon sugah, if ya catch my drift" she joked but her expression went from joyous to stern almost instantly "It's too bad that might nevah happen hon. Cause ya see, you ain't fighting manticores tomorrow" Jackal and Sven raised an eyebrow.
"What are you talking about? Manticores have always been the warden's method of execution" Jackal and Sven awaited the answer.
"That's the thing though, see? Ah heard he got a special gift from his friends up high in the nobility! Specifically meant for killing you, Sven!" Canary's voice shook with fear "It's a monster, something big too. I could hear it's rumbling all across the eastern wing of the complex!" she trailed off as they stayed silent
"Anyway, Ah hope you really are as they say Sven. Otherwise, you two are gonna be monster chow" she looked back at Sven, saddened by the thought of his departure. She then excused herself from Both Sven and Jackal and walked back to her own cell.
The two stood in the room for the next few minutes, not sure of how to process the information that they acquired. They had expected a simple fight late tomorrow, but what they got was a guaranteed death sentence. One that was specifically meant for the rogue knight himself.
"Come on, let's head back" Sven went and picked up his helmet as Jackal went ahead of him. George didn't croak at all during the walk back to the cell. As they all returned, they stayed in their respective bunks, trying to ward off the feeling of fear from Canary's words. Sven sat in his bottom bunk and stared at his helmet, Jackal began to read on his top bunk, and George stayed on a spare pillow that was thrown on the ground specifically for him.
"Do you think your friends are here yet?" Jackal asked as he looked through his book.
"I know they are, Jackal. I can feel it"
Chapter 15 end
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I'm a sucker for a dota2 crossover anyday, and I am following this, but your writing is just so... Immature.
The characters are two dimensional, and the princesses and shining seem especially so.
I'm guessing you're doing that intentionally though.
Ah well. Good story anywho, keep it coming
i am suposed to be studing you know, how are you gonna take responsibility when i fail my test?