Scottsburg. 09:55 pm.
Old fire station No. 12
"Now beginning round seven: visible kingdom… from this round forth, the royal screen is of no use anymore. New formation is in full effect. All kingdoms return to dust and build anew; house loans are available. I call host decree number two and fifty: Double the pot and royal surge. The Royal Market is closed!" The host said. The dealers collected cash from the crowd. Monroe cracked her knuckles. "Be careful of her, Toni. She ain't in it for the pot. She's in it for the love of the game." Kojo murmured. Antonio tossed a six. "Toni rolled a six; he gets to play twice!" the host shouted. "This is good and bad. The good news is you've got an advantage, but the bad? They can see your advantage." Kojo warned.
Antonio rolled: Two gold, three crowns, and one seal. He took the crowns, then he rolled again: Three shields and one castle… Antonio got the shields; "last roll": one sword and seal. "Copy sword." he said. "Go again." the dealer told him. He rolled: Four seals, one gold, and one crown."Copy gold." He rolled again: One seal, two castles, and one crown. He took the castles—finally, his last roll: One sword and shield.
"Orders for a bank are now up for sale." the host announced. "Give me my piggy bank." The dealer slid a box beside Marlow. The others had done the same. "Host decree number twenty-seven: Royal Reprieve." the host called. "Raid on Toni." Marlow declared, "Two swords against three shields. Toni wins the contest and rips four coins from Marlow." the host stated. "Siege on Toni." Monroe requested. "They're ganging up on me." he thought. "Three swords against no shields, Lace overcomes and strips six points from Toni." the host hollered. "Siege on Marlow." Antonio declared, "Three swords against two shields, Toni pulls through and steals six points." said the host. "King's wrath on Monroe, double down with house loan for a market repurchase: Double strike." Barkus requested, "What mechanics are these?" Antonio thought. "Woo! Double down!" The host repeated, "Twelve swords against four shields, Barkus demolishes the contest and rips twenty-four points from Monroe."
Then, the siren boomed through the basement. "Round Seven complete, Elimination phase activated." The Host reported. "The Leaderboard reads as follows: Marlow: Thirty-nine points, Barkus: Thirty-five points, and Toni with twenty-three points. Sadly, Monroe sits with nine points. Y'all know what that means." Instantly, a few bodyguards surrounded her. "Judgment is complete; bring forth the lowest kingdom." Monroe slowly rose to her feet. "Lace, you have the chance to buy your way back into the game, with fifty gold coins if you please, or your debt will be announced by the House." The host said. Lace unlatched her diamond necklace and tossed it into the pot. "Interesting." the host mumbled. One dealer inspected her necklace with a Loupe; then he nodded, "A three-million-diamond necklace, to buy your way out… but—it's not enough." One guard slammed her on the table, "Hey, what the fuck!" Monroe argued. "You're a little short, honey, so we'll take what you promised us." the host said. "What I promised? Man, what the fuck are you talking about? I didn't promise anything." Monroe said. "I believe you read the contract and the consequences, right? The one that all the players sign before participation." the host corrected her. "What, that's not fair… who the fuck even reads the contract? I only care about the game." Monroe wriggled. "And the game cares about its pockets… so, pay up." the host threatened. Another guard stretched her arm out. "What are you doing?" she asked. The guards held her arm in place while the other aimed his axe. "Wait, wait, wait… give me more time and I'll pay you back." she pleaded. "I'm afraid there is no time left." the host replied. Then the guard swung his axe—THUMP!"Ahh!" she squealed; her forearm twitched as it separated from its socket. Monroe cried a river as she dropped to the floor in agonizing pain. "Escort her, gentlemen." the host demanded. The two guards dragged her by her feet to the exit. "Now, beginning round eight: Visible Kingdom, strict gameplay and rules are now introduced; all kingdoms return to dust and build anew. I call host decree number two: Double the pot. The Royal Market is open!" The host shouted.
Marlow won the toss. "Marlow tossed a five; he goes first." the host reported. Afterwards, Antonio played his turn… he tossed: Two seals and four swords; he took the swords, he rolled again: One castle, one sword, and two shields. He got the castle and sword. "Last roll": Two swords.
"Let the round commence." the host said. The entire basement shook with insanity. Fights broke out from excitement. "Assault on Barkus." Marlow said, "Four swords against four shields; the contest is evened out. Both players must roll their dice to claim victory; the highest number wins." the host stated. Both tossed their dice… Barkus won the throw; Marlow's palms grew sweaty. "Barkus wins the contest, and he gets eight gold coins." the host said. "Conquest on Marlow, and double down with house loan for a market repurchase: Double strike." Antonio requested. The host laughed. "Ten swords against two shields, Toni absolutely destroys the contest, and he steals twenty points from Marlow." Marlow's expression said more than words could, "Kings Recall and Raid on Marlow." Barkus paid fifteen coins. "Two swords against no shields, Barkus wins the contest, and he strips four points off Marlow." the host stated.
"Round eight complete, Elimination phase activated." The Host reported. "The Leaderboard reads as follows: Toni: Forty-three points, Barkus: Thirty-nine points, and sadly, Marlow sits with nineteen points. Y'all know what that means." Instantly, bodyguards surrounded him. "Judgment is complete; bring forth the lowest kingdom." Marlow stood slowly. "Wesson, you have the chance to buy your way back into the game, with seventy gold coins if you please, or your debt will be announced by the House." The host declared. Tears rolled down his face. "I can't." he stuttered. "Death!" the host announced. A spotlight glared upon Marlow. "No! No… no… no, p-please—PLEASE!" he screamed. The guard stepped forward—and swung with full force. 'SHINK—THUD!'
The head of Marlow rolled out of the Spotlight… where the guard caught it with his foot. The audience jumped and screamed while some threw their money in the air. "Escort that thing." the host demanded. The two guards dragged his corpse to the exit. "Now, beginning round nine: Visible Kingdom, all kingdoms return to dust and build anew. I call host decree number eleven: Black market." The host reported while the basement roared.
The host grinned with excitement. "Decree Category seven: Multiplier has tripled. Prize renewal, the black market is open, and house loans are still available. Buy-backs are revoked. Betting gates have closed for the final rolls; the Council may now place their winning bet, either for Barkus or Toni." The pot spiked instantly. Barkus leaned toward Antonio. "You hear that? Twelve million. You won't walk away with any of it—Kojo knows it… and deep down, you do too." he taunted. "You don't belong here, Toni. You're a charity case—the replacement. The one Kojo dragged in because he needed a puppet." The crowd hissed. "I call Host decree number nineteen: Silent Court." The arena fell into silence. The anticipation grew thick in the station.
Barkus won the toss. "Since there are only two contestants left, each player gets to draw and engage twice." the host stated. Antonio rolled: Two castles and four gold. He took the castles and gold, then he rolled once more: Two seals, three gold, and one shield. "Copy gold." he said. "Before we move on, the black market has some sales. The final two can decide whether they want to buy an advantage before heading into the next round." the host reported. A pair of dealers assisted them; they slid a black box beside them and covered it with the royal screen… "Draw a wildcard that can help you. Don't worry, they can't see what you draw." the dealer told him. "Take Absolute Usurpation. That'll be seventy-five gold coins." the dealer said. "Seventy-five!" he repeated. "Fuck, how about a house loan with thirty gold coins?" he negotiated. "Deal accepted." Swiftly, she put the card in his coat.
"Alright, enough waiting around, let's begin." the host urged. "Conquest on Toni." Barkus spent all his coins. "I call Royal decree, King's dominion… double down with another decree: Double judgment." Barkus declared. "Oh my, can Toni survive? Five swords against no shields… his attempt pierced through Toni's defense. He takes it all." The host smiled. All of his points registered in Barkus's profile. 'It's over for the rookie.' voices from the crowd had claimed. "And what will be your response, Toni?" the host asked. Antonio reached into his coat and placed a black card on the table. "Black decree." the host whispered. The dealer turned the card over… 'Absolute Usurpation.' Gasps surged from the crowd. "Transfer all crown points from Barkus to the holder of this decree." the host commanded. Barkus's smile disappeared. "Looks like you're the charity case." Antonio whispered. "Impossible!" he muttered.
The host staggered to the table like a priest who saw a miracle. "By the rules of the Golden Dice Royale… by the blood that had fallen before you… by the contracts signed in this room." The room hushed. "The winner… of fifteen million, and the survivor of the 30th Annual Royale—TONI!" The crowd erupted. Barkus lunged toward Antonio. "This wasn't luck. Someone put their finger on the scale for you… I know it." he said. A few guards surrounded Barkus. The host slowly walked to him. "Danny, I swear by the next…" BANG! The host shot him; blood oozed from his forehead.
"There is no next time." he cooed. A few spectators cheered like Spartans. Kojo waved over his men. A heavy metal case was dragged, chained on both sides. Inside were bundles of cash stacked in rows. "This is ours, kid." Kojo. "Nearly every cent. Earned fair… mostly." Antonio didn't smile. Kojo held onto his shoulder. "Let's get out of this basement. Before people start thinking of reasons it should have been them instead of you." he whispered. They went upstairs. The noise of the basement muffled instantly. Only the hum of broken fluorescent bulbs followed them. "You did good tonight. Better than I expected. Don't look at this like a curse. Look at it like an opportunity."
"Feels like both." Antonio replied. "That's how you know it's real." he said. They reached the stairwell where Kojo unlocked the door to the outside. The old fire station was quiet from the outside. "Chapter's over. But—don't forget to wire my twenty percent." he reminded. "About that, I had other plans. I need you to hold most of the cash." He said. "Don't worry, I'll take care of it. We'll talk later." Antonio left with more problems than solutions.