Collarborative Fiction (ANYONE): It's not just dogs playing poker.

Dennis West Toon # 12189 poker story
We find our Superhero
(ง ͠° ͟ل͜ ͡°)¤=[]:::::::::::::>
aka Captain Marvel and his sometimes side kick Marshal Law. Advancing along a road towards a giant mansion.
Are you sure about this Cap?
Have I ever steered you wrong Marsh?
All the time.
I meant lately.
Well no. But playing poker with a bunch of beings who can read the future and manipulate mater seems like a fools errand.
Don’t sweat it I have a plan. Besides with my new name and look no body will recognize me.
You are joking right Changing your name from Captain Marvel to the symbol (ง ͠° ͟ل͜ ͡°)¤=[]:::::::::::::>. Is straight up nutty!
Hey, it worked for Prince.
Oh you mean the artist formerly known as popular? No it dident. You look like Captain Marvel with a coffee can over his head.
I didn't ask for your opinion. “HEY LOOK” a bag of Funions. Yummy!
(As our two heroes begin to look around they notice there is groceries spread all over the front yard.)
What's up with all this.
Oh that's so the blind Super heroes can smell their way to the front door.
WHAT? I call BS!
Shhhh just ring the door bell. WAIT!!! how do I look?
Ridiculous!!!
Ok Fair enough ring the bell.
(The Door is answered by the very vivacious Red head Krystal Fae.)
We are here for the poker game.
Come on in boys. I see you already found some of the snacks.
Yes we did.
( As Captain Marvel heads towards the poker table he notices a intricately ornate goblet filled with what looked to be wine).
Well don’t mind if I do.
(Before any one can say anything he takes a large gulp).
Uh-oh is this eleven wine?
( the effects are almost instantaneous. His vision begins to blur as he staggers forward)
I”mmm n-not as as drink as you am I think!
(With that, our hero's vision fades from a pinhole to blackness, as he face plants through the food table on to the floor).
Ooooo thats going to leave a mark.

    "Teemai Emasia!" Futurina exclaimed in a melodic voice as she uttered her once infamous battle cry.  "I'm going to have to make another special trip to Svartlheim to pick up more Black Cherry Wine at this rate."  Gerri, Krystal and anyone else who can speak elvish chuckled at the battle cry.

    Astra looked confused, "What's so funny?  She just said her battle cry."

    "It's what that battle cry means," Gerri stated.  Futurina glared at her as if to say don't tell them.  "I really shouldn't say what it means in present company."

    "Why do you say that phrase, Futurina?" Krystal asked.

    "It's what my father told me was our family battle cry when I was growing up here," Futurina claimed.  Her parents were able to use glamour to disguise themselves, but she was not.  She really didn't know the real family battle cry, just the one her father used while raising her here.  She washed the goblet and refilled it.

    "You know what it means, though?" Gerri asked.

    "Yes," Futurina replied, "and it was proper use."

"Futurina, It so happens that I am half-human... and frankly there have been moments that I have muttered the same phrase. I feel no offense, having seen something of your past during the alien incident."

"I will note, however, that this, too, is a prejudice... and that it should be taken as such... humans as a species are even more highly varied than the Elves."

"I try to judge individuals, not groups...", Krystal concluded, as she sipped her pineapple juice and Sprite.

    Futurina took Krystal's words to heart, "I do not mean a sweeping generalization, but see how it could be taken that way.  Do you know of a different battle cry that my family uses?"
   
    Krystal thought for a moment, "No, I don't believe I do.  Perhaps we can find one for you when we go to Fae-re?"

    "That'll work," Futurina agreed.  She took a sip of her Black Cherry Wine.  "My family name is Jhandroelaeji.  That will probably be important."

    "Why didn't you translate that into the Common Tongue?" Gerri asked.

    "Why would I?" Futurina questioned.  "I only go by Futurina because humans have a hard time saying Theresoelae.  No one has ever asked for my family name."

    "What does that translate to?" Starmaster asked.

    "Lightbreeze," Futurina answered.

    "No one would believe your from a family named Light breeze," Astra added.

"Oh, this is quite tasty," smiled Rosa as she swished the beverage in her goblet around. "Arcian Red, you say?"

The Chad Brothers bowed their heads in appreciation. "Aye," said the elder of the two, " if you have been to the SHC Realm you may have heard of such."

"Indeed," chuckled Rosa. "It feels like forever ago... I'm pretty sure I wasn't even of age to drink wine back then!"

She turned to Gerri, who had regaled her with some interesting stories to pass the time. Rosa loved listening to tales of sword and the like, and in exchange explained to Gerri a bit of her own 'origins'.

"So your mom, can she communicate with animals of the forest? Or even the trees?" asked Gerri.

"It's not that simple, to be fair. Kind of an understanding that she has, in a pinch she can pretty much link minds. But you have to see it to really understand it."

Fiona clasped her hands to the side of her face as she surveyed the damage to the area that resulted from Captain Marvel’s crash through the table that sent food and drinks flying, staining the walls and possibly damaging the new hardwood floor that she had installed.

“DUNCAN!!”

“Wha … Who is that?”

“I don’t know, but please do something about this. And after tonight, NO MORE POKER GAMES!! Understand?”

“I get it.”

Highlander pointed to Marshal Law and said, “Out! Now!”

The big man grabbed the unconscious Captain Marvel by the back of his belt and unceremoniously carried him to the door and literally tossed him outside. He then returned to area where the elves were congregated and, taking note of the bewildered looks on the faces of a few, said: ”Please, it appears that some folks cannot handle the drinks you’ve brought. No more!”

The big Scotsman’s demeanor was less menacing than what he often displayed, but it was stern and the meaning was unmistakable. Very little frightened the giant, but it was apparent that the wrath of Fiona was something he was leery of confronting.

*"We will not bring anymore wine but can assure you Arcian Red is not a wine that makes humans pass out but should not be one tasted by casual drinkers because they can become euphoric very fast," Chad Rockwell says to Fiona and Highlander. "We do thank you for allowing us to attend this peaceful party here."

"And thank you Rosa. Though we never met you or your mom back in the day, we did have some mutual acquaintances in common when defending the realm from evil back then."*

I'd though I would ignore the invite to a poker game, I've never been good at it. Surprising, since I'd been playing poker since I was 5, and even tried learning how to stack a deck from a book my brother got. But my spouse said I should get out and do things, gave me kiss, we withdrew some cash from the ATM, and I was off to poker night.
The scene was about what one would expect - some milling about and socializing before the game began, showoffs grandstanding, people getting a feel for the competition. But, after people finished arriving, the players took to tables and the deals went down.
Game theory says that the optimum strategy is to bluff randomly, with a random pretend hand, and betting as if you had that hand. In practice, people are not random. But I had a plan. I'd check the second hand on my watch; prior to 30 seconds, I'd bluff. And the strength of hand I pretended would be based on the position of the second hand - near 0 second, weak, near 30, strong.
With the doubloon messing up TK and Psi, I had a fighting chance.