Story: OC The Big Gamble

[MisterChippy]

Hello! Mister Chippy here with something that wasn't ever actually intended to be a full blown story. This was originally just one small part of the backstory for a character that I might be fielding in an RP that explains how he got his name and his cutie mark. However, as always happens with this character, the story just took over. Before I knew it it was 11 and I'd written five pages. I really like this story and hope to do a lot more with this character.

Just one brief warning, this story does have some sequences of action and some mild violence. Just keep that in mind while reading it. Nothing graphic, but this is an all ages site so I figured that I'd better put this here.

And so, without further ado, here's the story!

It all started after he graduated from school. He wanted to be an actor, and he was very good at it. However, he was a full grown stallion without a cutie mark. For a while he saw this as a blessing, as it meant that he could easily put on makeup so that he'd have the appropriate cutie mark for whatever character he was playing, but it was slowly driving him crazy. He was one of the the best actors in all of Manehattan! He had studied acting so seriously that he could even see the roles that other ponies took on to get through their days. He could see their lies, their inner demons. He knew them better then they knew themselves. If this wasn't his special talent, what was?

Eventually he could take it no longer. Tired of the unsatisfying life he was living, he hopped on the train to Las Pegasus, intent on destroying what was left of his life at the tables and bars there. When he arrived he immediately went for the biggest, fanciest casino he could find. He managed to get inside by pretending to be immensely wealthy, which was easy to do for him, and quickly went over to the high stakes poker table. Before he sat down though, he watched three games get played in front of him. It was amazing. The dealer was a pro. White Mask had never seen any pony manipulate his audience so well while keeping his own face blank. However, it wasn't blank enough. White Mask could tell every card he had in his hand. He knew that if he could sit down at that table he would walk away a rich pony. The only problem was a ten thousand bit ante.

All thoughts of self destruction gone from his mind, White Mask tried thinking of some way that he could make ten thousand bits fast. It was then that he noticed the safe. There, right in the middle of the gaming hall, was a huge steel safe, guarded by twenty tough looking unicorns. Every hour, the pony manning the desk where you could buy chips walked over to the safe and deposited ludicrous amounts of money into it. An ostentatious display of wealth, but a fairly risk free one, since it would take an army to defeat the highly trained guards defending it. Or would it...

White Mask had always been a good pony. He'd always done what he was told and followed the rules. But he'd been a failure. In all his life he'd never even found out what his special talent would be. Yes, he decided, White Mask was a failure. In fact, the goal of destroying himself had merit after all. It was time for him to take on a new role, one which would be much more rewarding.

Quietly, the now nameless pony snuck over to the stage in the back of the casino. He slipped behind the curtain and had a quick look around. Yes, there wasn't any-pony here right now. He dashed over to a table where a magician had left his props. Yes, he thought to himself, these would do. As he put the top hat over his horn and donned the cape he considered wearing a mask, then dismissed the idea. What good would a mask do? Then ponies wouldn't know who he was, and by the time he was through he expected every pony to know his name, even if he didn't. He was done with masks.

Grabbing a few packs of trick cards and some other gimmicks, he quietly snuck out the back exit, then made his way back to the front. As he stood there, gazing up at the gaudy facade of the casino, he had a moment of hesitation. Now that he'd cast off his identity, he finally felt like he was somepony. Did he really want to throw that away one some long shot plan?

Of course he did. That was why he was doing this. Because it was a gamble. That's what he'd come here to do in the first place, wasn't it? It was just that the games at the casino had been too tame. Well, now it was time for him to make his own game.

Smiling widely, he walked up the front stairs and into the building, carrying himself like he owned the place. Just as he'd expected, the receptionist didn't recognize him.

“Hello sir!” She said, smiling at him. “May I help you with anything.”

“Yes. I intend to steal all the money in this building, then hold the occupants hostage for even more.” He said so nonchalantly that it took her a few seconds to register what he'd just said. When she finally did, she immediately pressed a big red button under the counter. Suddenly alarms filled the air, shutters slammed shut on all the counters, and the safe fell through a huge hole in the floor that quickly closed up. The guards all turned and saw him standing there. He smiled at them.

“Hello. I assume you fine gentlemen are going to stop me?” He asked them, sauntering over. They were nervous, he could tell that. They were all pretty sure he was bluffing, but to bluff like this would be suicide. Nobody would be crazy enough to do that, would they? However, the leader was well trained and knew that if he did have a plan, it revolved around their hesitation while they tried to figure him out. He charged at the nameless pony, getting ready to unleash a powerful spell, and the rest of the guards followed his lead. Suddenly, right before they were going to run him over, they all turned and bolted for the back of the casino. As one, the fired off large blasts of magical energy, blowing some of the gaming tables apart and revealing a white unicorn in a hat sneaking around underneath them.

“You think we're so dumb that you could fool us with an illusion? Hah! Even a first rate illusion like that one is no match for our skills.” The leader said with a smirk.

“Gentlemen, I'm afraid you have me all wrong. You see. I'm the real illusion.” He said, looking up at them.

“Yeah right! Surrender now and you will not be harmed. Much.”

“I don't think I shall.”

“Have it your way then.” The leader said, then he fired another blast of energy at the pony at his feet. The patrons who hadn't fled yet flinched as it struck him, the gasped as it went right through him. The guard looked surprised, then turned around to see the pony he'd dismissed as an illusion earlier calmly walking over to the trap door the safe had just gone through. The pony turned his head over to them and smirked. The fools had fallen for it. He'd actually created two illusions. One subtle one and one noisy one. He'd then sent the subtle one to go sneak around over there and worn the other like a coat. The guard had seen the magical aura and automatically assumed it was an illusion. Everything was working perfectly so far.

With a bellow of rage, the guards charged him as one. Staring at them, he calmly stopped in his tracks and turned to face them. He saw the energy gathering around their horns, forming magical sabers so sharp they could slice through steel. Good. Using his own magic, he made a saber of his own. It was nowhere nearly as sharp as the ones coming at him right now, but it was just as hard. The fools had no idea who they were messing with.

As they reached him, he suddenly adopted a fencers stance and met them head on. They had training, they had stronger magic, and they outnumbered him. But he was better. All throughout his acting career he'd played the villains. He loved them for two reasons. One, they were always far more interesting than the main characters, and two, they always got to fight. Stage combat was one of his passions. And after all, isn't all the world a stage?

Grinning, he parried and riposted with the guards, luring them close to him and then tripping them up with his superior footwork. He was fully aware of his surroundings, not from some innate sense, but because the guards were telling him everything he needed to know. They kept looking over his shoulder, telling him that one had gotten behind him, or even just telling him what their next more would be through their footwork. To onlookers the sight was amazing. Twenty guards attacked one unicorn who seemed to be able to see the future. He dodged or parried every attack, and eventually he'd slice a flank with his foil, inflicting a harmless injury that none the less rendered the guard immobile. After five minutes the it was only him and the leader left. All the other guards were down on the ground, all of them alive.

The leader couldn't believe this. One pony, one little trickster, had managed to defeat nineteen trained warriors. All without dealing a single fatal blow or even getting scratched once. The nameless pony smiled and stepped forward.

“Come now. I've beaten all of your men. Their lives are currently in my hands, as are the lives of everyone else in this miserable little building. What can you do to stop me.” He said tauntingly.

“Refuse to give you the money. Only I can open that safe now, and protecting that is my job. Not protecting the customers, or my men.” The leader said, preparing to charge into battle once again.

“Sigh. Now this simply won't do. You're saying that you won't ever open that safe, even if I threaten to kill everyone here, you included? Fool. Noble sentiment like that is why the world is in the state it's in today. Very well then. I'll cut you a deal.”

“You can't bribe me!”

“I wasn't talking about a bribe. I was talking about a game. If I win, I'll take the money and leave, but if you win I'll surrender.”

“Hah! Like I'm that stupid. Whatever game you suggest will be rigged.”

“But that's the thing. You see, my dear guardian, it will not be me who suggests the game. It will be you. Pick any game you like, as long as it's something we can play with what we have here and either one of us has a chance to win.”

The guard froze, unsure of what to do. There had to be a catch, he knew it! But what choice did he have. He'd seen this guy in action, and he didn't want to go up against him again. This sounded like a pretty good deal, assuming he could pick the right game.

“How do I know you'll keep your end of the deal?” The guard asked.

“Simple. There's an easy binding spell I can cast that will make it so that which ever one of us loses will have to make good on their end of the bargain.”

“I'm not letting you cast a spell on me! I'll cast it.” The guard said, the he proceeded to grunt until a beam of light connected their two horns.

“There. I accept you deal. And the game we're going to play will be... Arm wrestling!” He said, a large grin on his face. This guy was very skilled, and maybe he could see the future, but neither of those would help him out in a contest of pure strength. Sure, he was pretty fit, but the guard could bend iron bars in half. This contest would be easy.

Calmly, the white pony walked over to a table in the midst of the wreckage and put his right arm down on the table, his other arm dangling loosely by his side. Smirking, the guard sat down and took the proffered hoof in his own.

“First hoof to touch the table looses. Ready?”

“Yes.” The white pony said, awfully calm.

“Go!” The guard yelled, using all his strength to push his opponents hoof to the table. Suddenly, he felt a searing blast of pain and all the strength went out of his arm. He heard his hoof crash to the table, then he felt a tingling in his horn. The spell was activating, forcing him to open the safe! White faced, he looked down and his right arm and saw that the white pony had stabbed him with a huge splinter of wood from one of the smashed up table. He turned to look at his opponent, who was calmly picking a little splinter of wood out of his left hoof.

“You... cheated.” He said, feeling light headed.

“You never said I couldn't.” The white pony said.

“H... How? How did you plan all of this? How did you know it would work?” the guard grunted out, feeling a little bit faint.

“I didn't. I took a gamble. Isn't that what one is supposed to do in a casino?” The white pony said, watching the safe rise up out of the floor and swing open.

“You... You're one high roller, aren't you?” The guard said, watching the white pony walk towards the safe, idly drawing cards from a deck he'd pulled from his pocket.

“Yes. Yes I am.”

“Wait... before you go... What's your name?” The guard asked, losing consciousness fast.

The pony stopped for a moment, smiled, then resumed walking over towards his newfound riches.

“You just said it.”

As he started fading out, the guard saw High Roller's cape fall to one side, and he got a good look at his enemies cutiemark. It was a royal straight flush, accompanied by two dice, one reading 1, the other 6. High Roller, ignored him, instead staring at the five cards he'd just drawn. Then, grunting in annoyance, he threw them on the floor. The last thing the guard saw before falling unconscious was an ace of spades, accompanied by a king, queen, jack, and a ten, all fluttering slowly to the floor.

(Don't worry, the guard's still alive. The spell combined with the wound made him lose all his energy and fall unconscious. He woke up in half an hour feeling fine, although he did wear his arm in a sling for a month after this)

Hope you enjoyed it!