<blockquote><div><cite>Kestrel wrote:</cite>On any ship and any vessel, you can expect gamblers. The Elyandra was no different. On the lower decks where most of the cargo and food bulks resided, men would sit between their shifts. Amidst the provision-filled crates; an ageless, traditional game of cards was played. Games ranging from hearts to poker over their most recent credits â€“ after all they hadnâ€™t got anything else to spend it on aboard anyway. And what is the point of being paid if you cannot utilize your wages? This very question was the one that lingered in the minds of these gamblers â€“ haunted even; like a ghostly whisper in the back of their heads.<br/><br/>But where men risk money, malicious intentions stalk in the shadows. That is not surprise to most as greed is possibly the most common sin to mankind. Greed is the very reason games of chance exist, after all. Men desire wealth â€“ no â€“ men desire the dominance granted by the possibilities gained by wealth. But until their mission succeeded, a number would have to suffice. <br/><br/>â€œI tella you, <span style="font-style: italic">mistah</span>, you no see the card, there no be the card!â€ <br/><br/>The boy tore his sleeve from the soldierâ€™s grip and proceeded to stand tall â€“ for as tall as a kid like him could stand - then adjusted his cap, which he lowered to throw a shadow over his eyes that cheekily met those of the much taller man. His right hand still held on to his cap, but the boy held out his left straight forward â€“ as if he was expecting someone would put something in it. The toes on his foot pointed in the direction the deck he had just unfolded; a full house. <br/><br/>â€œShoulda folded, mistah.â€ He grinned as he nodded towards his open hand. â€œNo be a bad loser now, mistah, we all friends here.â€  That was far from true â€“ most had almost sworn to kill one another over their own misfortune with the cards. Especially the boyâ€™s throat was one they would have loved to entangle in their fingers. They were suspicious of why the brat was enjoying the luckiest streak in the entire company and that cheeky smile of his didnâ€™t work in the boyâ€™s favor either. <br/><br/>But as long as he kept winning, the kid didnâ€™t mind. The cold feeling of the soldier handing him the writing tool didnâ€™t bother the boy in the slightest. The pen between his fingers drawing another number under his name; Nickel - made the boyâ€™s little heart once again. He really had to settle for creating that bank account once the ship arrivedâ€¦ Or Nickelâ€™s efforts would have been for naught! But if he could keep pulling this of, heâ€™d be a rich man at the end of the journey. <br/><br/>â€œSo, who is up for another game?â€ A woman proposed â€“ no doubt the words had sounded a lot more enthusiastic in her mind. â€œIâ€™m not bailing now.â€ A third grumbled in agreement and even the sore loser him self nodded. Nickel gathered the cards again and his hands randomized in a more honest order; he would forsake this round. Although that was not completely true either; Nickel did make sure none of the pictures did end up in the first manâ€™s hands. <span style="font-style: italic">More</span> honest never meant <span style="font-style: italic">completely</span>, of courseâ€¦  <br/><br/>But before he could deal his slight twist of fate; the alarms resounded loudly throughout the storage deck. It echoed between the walls and the gamblers their ears â€“ that was the downside of their hide-out â€“ even though the officials resided on the upper decks and their games remained yet undiscovered, the alarm would dazzle their heads and hurt their hearing every time it rang. â€œLooks like the game will have to wait. The crusade skipped in line-â€ The woman spit viciously. â€œ- again!â€<br/><br/>â€œCanâ€™t a man just get one day off. One day without assaults? For pityâ€™s sakeâ€¦â€ The first man echoed her opinion loudly as he stood up. In spite of their complaints however, they swiftly made way towards the hangar. Both pilots knew how dire the situation was. The last hope of all mankind, the last candle in the dark, they were, entangled in a struggle not to dim or extinguish. The Elyandra was meant to be that beacon lighting the path to better days in a limitless space better known as despair. But none would succumb, or be allowed to succumb to those thoughts. Mankind had their way through all that opposed them and a dead planet was no different.<br/><br/>â€œThere they go off again.â€ The third gambler sighed. â€œSuppose we better get going too Nickel. Theyâ€™ll be bringing in the injured ones in soon enough, wonâ€™t they?â€ The boy nodded, but Nickel felt kind of defeated; finally he was on a roll and then those religious dimwits just <span style="font-style: italic">had</span> to ruin his fun again. If only he could fly a mech, Nickel thought, he would shoot them all downâ€¦</div></blockquote>