Challenges #13"
By: Craig Witmore, Engineer, [RNPC]
Various NPCs
, Holodeck characters
, [NPC]
Stardate: 58208.01 09.00
With lead in his shoes Craig entered the holodeck. The yellow and black grid seemed to glisten even more then normal and Craig could count the times he had been in here. That is to fix things not to enjoy in a program. Turning towards the wall console he tapped through the programs. There were a lot of battle drills in it he noticed, probably for the marines. "Now this looks inviting and he engaged the program.
In a mere second the holodeck changed into a hangar bay, several shuttles were standing there, and Craig could see that some of them were desperate for repair. Then he hesitated.. Chief had said no engineering, no tools nothing. Yet he didn't mention anything about the holodeck, but again Craig hesitated. "Computer close program."
The room faded back to the black and yellow again. Craig sighed and turned back to the programs. It was so difficult, he wasn’t quit sure what he liked. He liked poker, and roulette... what if... he had noticed something. A small program called Dices and chips.
As the program started Craig was overwhelmed in first instance by the sheer colour, smell and noises. Before his eyes the room changed into an old fashioned casino. To his left were tables and from what he could see people were playing blackjack. To his right there were several different ones, for playing poker, craps... but the biggest one was situated in the middle. Roulette.. he could here the little ticking of the ball being spun around and around.
Craig smiled. Perhaps this program wasn’t so bad at all.
Maurice looked up at the new arrival. He gave Craig an impersonal smile.
“Welcome to ze Monte Carlo" Maurice said. “I believe I have never seen you before.”
Craig nodded, “true this is my first time here.” Maurice smiled. “I can see that,” Maurice replied and looked Craig up and down. “We do have a dress code, Sir. If you please follow me.”
Maurice lead Craig to a small dressing room. “I believe we do have something in your size.”
A few minutes later Craig re-appeared this time dressed in a tuxedo. Maurice had vanished and Craig strode around for a few minutes in his replicated tuxedo - the simulated room was rather large, and filled with accurate simulacra of interesting games of chance from all over known space. But there was one game he was looking for, one that he had learned on Earth in his time at Starfleet, and which he had been very, very good at. When he found it, he spent a little time watching the table, the holographic players, reading the tells and getting a feel for the dealer. Then, when a seat opened up, he jumped in.
"Welcome to the table, sir." the dealer said with a smile. "The game is no limit Texas Hold'em. Do you need any chips sir?"
Craig nodded curiously. "Yes - but how do I pay?"
"Oh, you're credit is good here, sir." And with a wave of the dealer's hand, a reasonably large stack of chips appeared at Craigs' arm. "Ante up, ladies and gentlemen."
Craig threw in a thousand credit chip, and took his first two cards. King and ten of Hearts. Not a bad starting hand, but not particularly strong either. The betting started to his right, with a large, florid looking Tellarite wearing a cowboy hat and a bolo tie made from silver and a pale blue stone. He was all noise and bluster, and threw 5,000 credits in right away. Craig checked, considering the man might be a habitual bluffer. The next two folded, but the last, an Andorian, called as well. They were ready to see the flop.
First card was a 6 of Clubs, no help to Craig. The Tellarite made a whooping noise, and threw 10,000 credits into the mix. Craig figured he needed more cards to decide, so called the 10k with a wink that seemed to unsettle the cowboy. The Andorian checked as well.
Second card was the Jack of Hearts. Now things were getting interesting. Craig knew was drawing to an inside straight, a flush, or even a straight flush. The odds weren't high, but they weren't bad, either. The Tellarite, as if determined to get back at him for the wink, tossed 20,000 credits on - nearly a quarter his stack. Craig gave him one a long look, and then raised him another 20,000. The Andorian folded.
The Tellarite seemed to be settling in, however, and called the bet. Card three came in with the six of spades. No help on his straights, but he had a low pair to draw against now. The Tellarite pushed his remaining chips onto the kitty, and declared "All In!" Sitting back and smiling."
This was where the game got fun. Although there were odds involved, to Craig it really came down to a binary decision. Was the Tellarite a bluffer or not? Had he started out with nothing, maybe a high face card, and now just had the pair showing on the table? Or was there more, and was he just being reeled in from the hook. Craig went with his gut. "I call."
Both men flicked their down cards face up, and the gathered crowd oohed. The Tellarite had the Ace of Spades, and the six of Diamonds, meaning he was already carrying three of a kind. Craig was in the hole, with only the pair, but he had good potential. The dealer slowly drew out the fourth card, and tossed it to the centre of the table.
Queen of Hearts. Craig’s heart leapt a little, and there was such an intake of breath, he was sure someone would hyperventilate. The Tellarite was sweating profusely.
For the last time the dealer went to the deck. All sound in the room seemed to vanish. Lift, turn, flick, and...
Two of Hearts.
The space all around him exploded. He did it! He drew the flush! The Tellarite merely turned around with a grunt, and walked away from the table. Craig pulled the chips towards him, savouring the rush of victory like a good draught of spirits, until he realized someone was at his shoulder. He looked around to see a very attractive young woman, in a flattering black dress and a jewelled brooch that caught her eyes splendidly. He wondered if she were a crewmember, or just another of the holographic guests.
"Hey there handsome, you really know your cards," she said putting her hands on his shoulder.
Craig chuckled, and rose and, in the spirit of the moment, took her hand and kissed it lightly. "Yes, I seem to be doing quite well - though sometimes I wonder about holographic sims like this. After all, it's not like the computer doesn't know what both my and my opponents' cards are. Can computers cheat? And how much satisfaction should I take from beating a programmed caricature? But I will say I am enjoying myself.
She looked at him as if he were speaking another language, "You aren't from around here are you?"
“No I am from out of town,” Craig replied, walking to another table.
She followed him to the next table. “What’s this game?”
"This game is called blackjack. You have to get 21 or lower to win. And no, you cant cheat here, it's not fun. Besides, this game has a good chance of winning. You also have to have some tactics." The hologram asked for a card as he putted the marker at the table.
He had a queen of spades, and a seven of hearts. Not bad, but when he asked for another, he got busted, 27. "Well perhaps you are more lucky , or you could try to cheat, Craig started to explain"
"I won't cheat if the game is fair" Valeria grinned. ----
“Oh look there is the kingpin!.” She suddenly exclaimed.
The man, nicknamed as Kingpin walked into the holodeck, to Craig it looked as he was feeling somewhat uncomfortable in his tuxedo. After straightening his tie, he strode in, gentleman's cane now tucked in his arm, attempting to look the part of the high class rich mogul.
“Who is he?” Craig whispered. Valeria beamed at him. “He is the best player in town. Lets go and watch.”
As the new dealer sat down, The Kingpin tossed his cane to a waiter, and took a seat. A pile of chips appeared in front of him, and the portly dealer smiled. The handlebar moustache on the man's face was not out of place here, and neither were the players on The Kingpin's right and left- both appeared, like him, to be perfectly suited for the casino. One was bald- Craig could have sworn he'd seen him before- and the one to his right had jet black hair, with a moustache and beard. Again, Craig KNEW he'd seen them before.
"Would you care to make a wager, sir? The minimum is 100, no limit," the dealer asked, his British accent thick.
The fat man took a moment to consider- he pushed a pile of chips in, unsure of how much it was.
The bearded man smiled at The Kingpin, and matched his wager. Craig thought that the smile was warm, but unsettling in this setting- this man was, clearly, a gambler. Craig turned back to the dealer, as he heard the scrape of chips that signalled the bald man was in as well.
The dealer dealt- the bald man drew a ten, and a three. The Kingpin got a jack, and a ten, and the bearded man got an ace, and a nine. The card showing for the dealer was a five. 'Excellent,' Craig thought, as he turned to see what the bald man would do.
The man was deep in thought, seeming as if he had a terrible burden to bear. "Hit," the bald man decided, his voice carrying an air of authority.
A nine- the bald man was over. He sighed, and sat back, grabbing a mug from the table. The Kingpin nodded at the bald man and then turned back towards the dealer.
"Split," The Kingpin said, and his two ten-value cards were now two separate hands, and his wager was now double. The dealer threw a nine on the jack. "Stand," The Kingpin decided, as the dealer put down another card on his ten. It was a ten.
"Split," The Kingpin said again, and another pile of chips was thrown in.
The dealer threw a three on the first ten. 'Crap,' Craig thought. 'he is going to go over.'
"Hit," the kingpin said, and a seven was drawn. 19, and 20, from two hands, and the dealer showed a five. "Stand," he said, and the dealer threw down a card on his last ten. It was a King. The Kingpin smiled, and the bearded man shook his head at the uncommon luck, though the smile was still on his face.
"Split," The Kingpin said, and another pile of chips joined the three that were already there. The Kingpin's reserve pile was uncommonly small- if he didn't win here, he'd probably be done for the night. There was a small crowd forming around the table- seemingly interested in The Kingpin's uncommonly lucky hand.
The dealer put down an eight on the ten. "Stand," The Kingpin said, and the dealer put down a four on the king.
Craig looked again at the rest of the table- the bearded man showed nineteen, and the dealer had a five showing. 19, 20, and 18 already- 'Do I go for broke, or bet that the dealer won't beat the last one?' Craig heard the murmurs of the group of people around him- they wanted the Kingpin to go. 'Give the people what they want...' he muttered under his breath.
"Double down," The Kingpin said, as his last bunch of chips joined the fourth one. The entire table feel silent as the dealer turned over the card. Craig even found himself holding his breath- It was a...
Seven.
19, 20, 18, and 21. The Kingpin leaned back in his chair, reasonably certain of a good outcome for this hand.
The dealer gulped- were this a real casino, he would likely be getting into a nice hole here- though he seemed to have a sizable stack of chips available to him.