Therans In Space: Chapter 7

“Yahtzee!”

Trey threw his hands into the air and then reached forward to pull the strange alien chips to his side of the table. The three other aliens made noises in their own language and he did his best to ignore them but he was very happy with himself.

“What’s a Yahtzee?” Ya’Cahin asked leaning against the table as he passed the dice to her.

“Shit I don’t know. Just saw it on billboards back home.”

As he passed her the strange seven sided rocks he reached for the warm orange drink that was like a mix of hot chocolate and some sort of fruit. If someone described it to him while on Thera he would have called it gross. But after some cycles in space he was on his fourth.

“Let’s do this,” she said and rattled the dice in her hands before sending them spilling onto the board. They rolled and bounced along the board which had several stacks of metal cubes, alien numbers scribbled on a field and flags for the various players in the game.

The dice bounced together dancing around the flags and bumping into a few stacks of coins before settling down. Ya’Cahin looked at the numbers rubbed her chin and then scowled. “Could be worse. Not a ‘Yazee’ or whatever you called it.”

“We didn’t lose much.I think. Wanna keep going?”

“You bet your ass,” She raised her drink and Trey clinked it against hers. “Until we run out of cash!”

“Hell yeah!”

Ula rubbed their forehead slowly and let out the equivalent of a sigh. They sat at the bar nursing a drink that crackled with bubbled with heat. Seth sat near them doing the same minus the bubbling part. They had their backs to the bar and to keep their eyes on the pair of them at the tables. They’d attached a small crowd of jeers and cheers but that meant they could observe without issue.

On Ula’s side was a four-legged creature with two heads that was bickering amongst itself about which head lost all of their money. On the other side of Seth was a machine with a head made of gas that flashed and boomed like a storm. It had made whistling noises in his direction that reminded him of the storm wind.

 “How did we let them take us here?”

“They deemed their votes to be worth more,” Ula replied. “And when we told them no again, they went without us.”

“Right. We matched our impulsive captain with my impulsive friend.”

“Indeed, we did.”

There were two bars both on either side of the gambling tables, a larger floor below them and another one above them. The one below had more machines that seemed to be meant for one person. Something like fancy slot machines but more digital.

Above was a more intimate setting. Seth tried to go up but a robot appeared asking for his invite. Not having one, he wasn’t allowed to cross. He debated on teleporting to the other side but risking getting thrown out wasn’t worth it.

“Seems like no matter where it is, everyone likes to gamble.”

“It is a universal constant.”

Seth rolled his eyes, “They’re loud. And reckless. How much have they lost?”

“I don’t really want to calculate it,” Ula took a longer drink. “Hopefully we don’t lose it all. And sadly, they haven’t gone unnoticed either.”

“No. They haven’t.” Seth’s eyes narrowed from over the lid of his glass, glancing down to the red contents before glancing up again.

There was a circular booth that had been very much been paying attention to their friends. He could only guess at the company around them, aliens of strange shapes and sizes. Some he recognized and others were brand new which wasn’t as common as it used to be.

But the one in the middle however had their attention. Dark purple skin with curved horns sprouting from their head and fingers thin like needles. Their clothes sparkled and flashed, from the fabric itself to the jewelry that adorned it.

They were staring at the table of their captain as if their gaze could set the whole place on fire. Seth only got glimpses of their face but the few times he did he caught a glare and a snarl of bared teeth. It reminded him of the few times. “Do you know who that is?”

“I might. And he’s someone we don’t want to get mixed up with.”

“Well it looks like he wants to get mixed up with our crew.”

After a moment the alien stood and jerked his way forward nearly knocking the table over. He stomped towards them and his entourage followed at a distance. The pair exchanged glances. “Should we go over there?” Ula asked carefully.

Seth shook his head and sipped his drink slowly. “Let’s watch. Just in case things get bad. It’ll be easier to break up a fight if they don’t know we’re here.”

Ya’Cahin and Trey clinked their drinks together, hooked their arms around the others, took a sip then threw down each of their die. They bounced across the table, clattering toward the end and then bouncing back toward them. They stopped on their ends glowing dots shining and flashing symbols.

Trey had played enough to recognize that those numbers were good and cheered. Ya’Cahin cheered as well and the two of them chugged their drinks before slamming empty cup onto the side of the table.

“Yahtzee!”

“Bring those over to us aye!”

The coins materialized on their side of the table and they laughed together. Their opponents were groaning at everything they just lost while the crowd had very much turned to favor the pair of them. Ya’Cahin called for a refill on their drinks when she saw the commotion.

Arching her eyes, she watched as a newcomer placed two pale purple hands onto the table. He glared at the two of them before speaking, “You two seem like you’re having a lot of fun.” they said and Ya’Cahin placed a hand on Trey’s chest before he could respond.

She knew who this was and sobered up quick enough to be smart. “We don’t mind at all. Want in?”

The crowd hushed quickly and Ya’Cahin narrowed her eyes. The new comer smirked showing fangs and simply shook their head. “You really wanna play a game with me? In my hotel? You’ve got some ghins on you. I’ll give you that much.”

Trey leaned over to her and whispered, “What are ghins?”

“Tell you when you’re older partner,” patting his head she looked toward the newcomer. “And yeah we’re all friends here.”

He snorted and leaned back. Taking off the jacket he handed it to someone behind him. “As the owner of this club and the first son of this house I’ll enjoy taking back what you’ve earned tonight.”

Raising his hand, he snapped his fingers and a mechanical waiter whizzed over. At the little dispenser came a quick clattering of chips. Scooping them up, he stacked them on the edge of the able as a drink was set alongside it. He glanced at the pair of them and Ya’Cahin glanced at Trey.

“Who is this guy?”

“Votaic. Could be bad news but also could be a good thing. If we play it right.”

“Think we got this?” Trey asked whispering in her ear.

“I’m feeling lucky,” She replied and he nodded scooping up one of the dice. Blowing on it, she did the same to hers and both clacked down some chips. They floated upward before flying over to the dealer who collected them into its mouth.

“Good,” Votaic said and snapped his fingers. “But let’s change the game.”

Several spots on the board glowed with numbers and colors. The spots connected to be a large wheel, each of the points being a star. The sections were all blank but could be fill in with colors that were called out by the players themselves.

“You know how to play right?”

“Course we do,” Ya’Cahin said snorting.

Trey grinned. “We’ve been killing it at everything. Including this.”

“Fantastic. Give me the points,” he said motioning toward the star. They glowed a soft red twinkling.

“He’s playing that risky already?” Trey mumbled as he leaned on the table.

“Yeah, but the question is do we wanna meet him or do we wanna play it safe?”

“I think we play safe for now,” Trey nodded affirming this belief. “We can blow him out later with crazy stuff.”

“Like the way you think,” she said before pointing. “We’re going for the wedges on blue.”

At her command the inner spaces of the star glowed with red living the center uncolored and dark. The dealer tapped both hands on the table and whirred before launching two discs out of the table. The clacked off the walls of the table and each other while bouncing at high speeds. The sounds of them smashing together slowed as they landed in the middle. One flashed showing the points but the other glowed the color blue.

The wedges of the star glowed brighter as the red went away but the points blinked a few times. Chips rolled toward Trey and Ya’Cahin who bumped their fists together.

Votaic smirked. “Smart bet. But you didn’t get this far on placing it safe.” He flicked forward more chips at the dealer. “Can you meet that bet?”

“Course we can. In fact we’re gonna raise it.” Trey said and Ya’Cahin nodded rapidly.

Sliding away some of their chips Votaic grinned watching them go. He met the bet without a second thought and motioned toward them. “Call it.”

Nodding confidently the pair glanced at the board together. “Should we go risky?” Trey asked.

“Not too risky. Especially after a raised bet like that,” she said rubbing her jaw.

Trey pointed at the board and kept his voice down slightly. “Why don’t we go for edges. Higher stacks but not too risky.”

“And if we lose we’re not in danger of being out.”

“Yeah.”

“Call it then.”

Trey turned to the dealer and traced his fingers on the air. “Let’s get the edges taken care of.  Make em blue!”

At his command the edges flickered with blue light and all eyes turned to Votaic. His eyes were narrowed in thought but he pointed toward the center of the star. The edges as well, but the ones around the center point.”

While the outside edges of the star glowed blue the interior was filled with red. He looked toward the pair of them and snorted. “Let’s get this party on the road.”

The dealer’s eyes rolled back as the disc flew out and popped around the interior of the table. They bounced quicker and quicker before clacking together. When they finished they highlighted the edges and flashed back and forth before the color ignited into a bright red. An alarm sounded and Votaic was bathed in color. Chips glided toward his side of the table, nearly doubling what he had and pushing his counter near as high as their own.

Both of them traced the rims of their drinks slowly thinking hard about their next play and bet. But Votaic motioned toward a server and got some drinks delivered to his side and the entourage that had followed him. Chuckling he glanced at the pair of them.

“What? Where are those smug smirks now hm?” he flexed his fingers. “Come on now. Place your bets. Choose the spot.”

“Do we want to up the ante?” Trey asked. “We just lost a lot.”

“Yeah I know but I hate his smug face. I wanna take it all back.”

“Me too.”

They turned and glared at the table thinking hard. Trey flicked his hand toward the center of the table and winked. She arched her eyebrow and he nodded even quicker with a bigger grin. She laughed turning to clap her hand against his back.

“See Ula wouldn’t face the abyss like this with me.”

“Neither would Alice or Jenny. Don’t get me started on Seth.”

Tilting their heads back they finished their drinks in one solid gulp and slammed the cups down. “We’re taking the center piece. The very tip.”

A collective gasp came from the He nodded slowly. “Alright. I’m impressed by you two. Even if you lose, I can respect such a bold statement. Forgive me for not following suit.”

Setting aside a stack of chips he motioned around the star. “The edges. All of them.”

Ya’Cahin and her crewmate gathered up all but a couple of their chips and sent them over to the dealer, what they were betting at this point almost entirely lopsided but when you went that deep you had to also bet deep.

Votaic motioned toward the dealer when his horns and eyes glowed. Narrowing them sharply he turned quickly and glared at the sky. Ya’Cahin gripped the table tightly and hissed, her head pounding. She fought the instinctual rise of her own psykik energy and looked at him.

“What’s wrong?” Trey asked getting closer and whispering into her ear.

“The shard. It’s close. I can feel it. Whoever just contacted him is using it.”

Trey glanced back at him and then at her. “You’re sure.”

Glaring at the table she said. “Positive.”

Both looked back at Votaic but he was already putting the jacket on. “I can’t tell if this is lucky or not. But I have to leave our game. Come see me up above and we can finish our game. Enjoy the casino.”

He walked away but the entourage didn’t follow this time. He walked to the very spot that Seth had approached and made it to the stairs without coming to any problems. The person above stopped commanding the shard and the pressure ceased on Ya’Cahin’s mind. Gasping she let her head drop.

The dealer looked at them and motioned. “Would you like to collect on your winnings?”

“Yeah wrap it up,” Ya’Cahin said quickly and then looked at Trey.“Well I know where we need to go next.”

“You want to follow him?” Trey asked collecting their chips. In reality it was just a single chip with a number recorded on both faces. “How’re we gonna do that?”

“At the moment no idea. But I think Ula and Seth will be better at this than me. And we need to get in touch with the others. This is our chance and we are not gonna miss it.”

Taking their coin first to one of the kiosks that flashed the number the person behind it gasped slightly but nodded. She returned with a few cards. Trey took all of them then handed one to Ya’Cahin. She took one and traced her finger across the card seeing the data encoded piece.

“That should make sure that Ula doesn’t blow a gasket,” she said her smile long gone. Her mind was still on the owner of the shard. She wondered if they noticed her at all or if they had the element of surprise still.

Wandering over to the bar they were hailed down by Seth whose drink was sparking with tiny lights around them. Ya’Cahin beside him and Trey on her other side. They called the bartender for more drinks and flashing their new card they got to work quickly in the hope of a good tip.

“So, did you enjoy your game?” Seth asked his voice a little higher and definitely not sober.

Ya’Cahin flashed the trio of cards, the credits on them flashing in the line as code and Ula’s hand flashed forward and held out to them. Ya’Cahin laughed as their drinks were brought over and she slid them into her pilots’ metallic hands. Ula took them and traced their fingers across, their eyes checking them over quickly.

“This is good but you risked a lot to get it Captain,” they reprinted as they slid them into their arm. “I don’t approve..”

“Course not. But I get results.” Holding her fist up Trey dapped it and they both sipped from their new drinks. “But. I got something new for you. And you’ll both like this.”

Leaning forward she motioned for them to lean in with her which they did, both with varying levels of annoyance. “There’s a shard in this casino. Upstairs. Someone who knows Votaic has the shard.”

“You mean to tell me that family has the shard?” Ula hissed. Ya’Cahin made a face as she nodded. “No. This shard is not worth it Captain.”

Ya’Cahin sipped her drink and glanced at her pilot and thought for a moment. “I know how risky it is. The reach of their family is huge. But I don’t want to give up on this. Not yet.”

“Have you seriously thought this through Captain? All of the risks?”

“No. Not at all. Still stitching it together. You know me Ula.”

“I do and that’s why I do not support this. You and Jenny can find another shard.”

Trey tapped the table with his cup and glanced at everyone but very amused. “Hey. Just wanna throw this out there for us terrans who don’t know. Who’s Votaic’s family?”

Ya’Cahin laughed and put a finger to her lips. “Careful about how you ask that. Could get you guys in trouble with the wrong folks.”

Ula glared at her. “You’ve had too much.”

“They both have,” Seth added. “The long and short. They’re space mafia Trey. And we rub them the wrong way we’re going to swim with the fishes.”

Trey snorted into his drink. “Seriously?”

“Yes. So be careful here.”

Nodding quickly Trey set the drink down taking a slow breath. “Alright. Well I’ve always wanted to screw over the mafia. But gotta think this one out more than just us right now.”

“I was afraid he’d say that,.” Seth glanced at Ula and she nodded. They tapped their drinks together and finished them. “So Ula. I think you’ve been out voted. Especially once the coconspirators hear about this.”

“Hey! We don’t have coconspirators.”

“Tahu.” Ula said.

“Rizier would side with you just because you asked.” Seth added.

“Jenny wouldn’t join my side.”

“But she would eventually,” Seth sighed heavily. “And Alice would side with us but we’ll be out numbered too.”

Ula stared into the dark depths of their drink and finally sighed looking away. “Why did so many risk takers join this crew. Ya’Cahin and Tahu were enough.”

“Because I find cool people!” Ya’Cahin shouted. “Now let’s finish these drinks. Meet up with the crew and plan out how we’re gonna get this shard!”