The Poker Game
Jonathan Stevens ran down the dark, narrow hallway, his lungs about to explode. He had been running so long, he no longer felt the sharp pain of the gash in his right leg. As he neared the corner, he ducked beneath the shadows of an inactive co mputer console. The armed guards ran past him, their boots thundering on the metal grid floor.
As he caught his breath, he opened the maintenance panel on the underside of the computer. He hecked the station's layout and found the administrator's office. Jonathan was on the second floor, section 7A, and the administrator was three floors up in section 12B. The only way up, without getting caught, was through the venting and maintenance tunnels. That would have to wait until morning though; he needed to recuperate. He slid along the wall, listening for any indication of pursuit.
When he reached the emergency storage room, he hacked into the computer and disabled the lock. Once he got inside, he jammed the lock with a password he created so that no one but him could open it. Luckily, the room was completely stocked so there was no need for any personnel.
He hid in a corner behind some storage containers where he found some emergency rations that would have been used in an emergency to conserve what little food they had. Then, he settled down to sleep. Finally, after hours of paranoid hysteria, sleep overcame him. Instead of rest though, nightmares of his predicament consumed him.
He had known something was wrong from the moment he had left school. Instead of people outside, the streets were empty and army trucks were parked everywhere. As soon as he entered his house, his mother had told him that his family was moving to the station. The government had been taken over by a rebel group and the governor had been assassinated. All the government workers, which included his father, and their families were being sent to the station. They packed all the belongings they could in the time they have been allotted. The guards had led them outside, where they were shoved in the back of one of the trucks, along with a few of their neighbors.
Once they reached the station, they had been led into the underground caverns that had once been used for mining. Then the caverns had been somewhat decent, but since the mining operation had been closed for at least fifty years, they had fallen into disrepair. The air was damp and dust hung in the air. They caverns were so crowded, it made him claustrophobic. Jonathan and his family found a corner that was less crowded than the others and set their belongings there. His father had grown ill from all the stress of the move and the guards had not allowed any help or medication to be brought in. Finally, after hours of suffering, his father's heart gave up. The guards dragged his father's lifeless body out one of the tunnels as his mother screamed after them. The head guard told Jonathan to keep his mother quiet. When Jonathan's mother continued to scream, the guard opted to use force.
The sight of the blood on his mother from the blow to her face sparked something in Jonathan. With a manic-like rage, Jonathan leapt onto the guard. As they struggled, the guard managed to get his knife and slice Jonathan's leg. Ignoring the blinding pain, he charged after the guard, who had managed to squirm away, and pushed him against the wall. The guard's head smacked against the stone and his limp body fell to the floor. Some of the remaining guards dragged the body into the same tunnel through which they had taken Jonathan's father. The room at the end must have been almost filled; so many had died since they had arrived. Jonathan remembered the gut-wrenching smell that had come from that room. He had run past the tunnel entrance when the guards had come after him.
As he ran, he heard his mother call after him, "Run! Don't let them catch you!" Then he heard a crack as a guard hit his mother with a rifle and knocked her to the ground. Jonathan wanted to go to her, but her last words echoed in his head. He would run until he was safe, but then he would get his revenge. That's how he'd ended up in the storage area.
Finally, after a rough night full of reenactments in his dreams, Jonathan awoke to the sound of laser fire outside the door. The guards must have found him with the heat sensors and were trying to unlock the door. It would be harder to find him in the venting system since the vents were normally hot. He sprang to his feet and grabbed an oxygen pack and took out all but one tank. In it he put some water, rope, a map of the station used for emergency operations, some emergency ration capsules, and a laser rifle for opposition. As he moved toward the exit, he grabbed a vial of anti-hydration pills, took a few and threw the rest in the pack. He slung the pack over his back and headed toward the vent. Sparks flew as the lasers clashed with the metal and the guards entered. Just in time, Jonathan climbed into the vent and shut the grid behind him. The vent was cramped and dirty. It was hard for him to breathe, but the oxygen tank had another purpose. He began to feel claustrophobic, as the air seemed to grow thinner while the dust grew thicker. He wanted to cough but they might hear him. Once he got to section 12B, he climbed into the maintenance tunnel. The ladder was only half there; they were trying to halt his progress. Jonathan lassoed the rope and caught it on a broken rung. Once he knew it was secure, he climbed up the rope.
When he reached the top, he sat on the edge and pressed his ear against the wall to see if the administrator's office was empty. He didn't hear anything. Either it was empty or they were quiet. He bet that it was empty. He slowly and quietly climbed into the office. The room was empty. He scanned the room for a place to hide. When he didn't find a place, he jammed the door lock; he'd surprise them. Then he went over to the administrator's computer access panel. He deactivated the station's heat sensors. They would know he was there when they saw him. He heard footsteps and he moved away from the computer. As he hid behind the desk, he heard them fumbling over the lock and asking who did it. Then the door opened and closed. It sounded as if four men had entered, probably the administrator and three guards.
Jonathan leapt up, laser rifle in hand and aimed at the guards. One guard shot at Jonathan and missed. Jonathan fired and the laser shot through the guard and the laser burned a hole in the first layer of the wall.
The administrator held up his hands. "Hold your fire!" He glanced at the guards and nodded at Jonathan. Both the guards and Jonathan put their weapons down. The administrator whispered something to the remaining guards.
"No secrets!" Jonathan said as pulled out the oxygen tank. He had attached a power module to it in the hopes that it would explode if he turned it on, but he wasn't sure if he had rigged it right. "I have a bomb and if there are any secrets, I'll use it."
The administrator said, "I just told them to move to the corner so that we could discuss the situation." He motioned for Jonathan to sit down in his chair.
Jonathan nodded and he and the administrator sat down.
"Now I assume you are the Jonathan Stevens who killed one of the cavern guards and escaped," the administrator said cautiously. "Is that correct?"
Jonathan replied coldly, "No, I am the Jonathan Stevens whose father was killed and attacked the guard who was at fault. My father's heart was weak and your guards wouldn't get any help for him. I am the Jonathan Stevens whose mother was killed by a guard because she tried to help me escape. She simply told me to run and the guard hit her so hard with a rifle that the blow snapped her neck. So you can see my reasons for being so bitter to you and your guards, besides the fact you took over the government."
The administrator played dumb. "I had nothing to do with it. The guards acted of their own will." He leaned toward Jonathan. "What is it that you want?"
Jonathan replied, "Justice."
The administrator smiled slightly. "Are you planning to kill me? If you even try to, these guards will stop you. That's their job. It's nothing against you, of course, just business as usual." He pointed toward the guards.
"Just business as usual you say? Then it would be just business as usual for me to set off this bomb." Jonathan hoped that the administrator didn't see through his bluff. It was all he had left. The administrator stood, reached over the desk, and opened a drawer, all the while showing his hands so that Jonathan wouldn't suspect anything. He pulled out a deck of playing cards. "We'll settle this fair and square. We'll play a game of poker. If I win, you will be punished for the death of my guard. If you win, you'll be cleared of the crime, appointed to my council and you'll never have to worry about a thing."
Jonathan thought about it. It sounded too good to be true, but what choice did he have? "That's sounds fair. How about Five Card Draw, no wilds?" Jonathan hoped that Lady Luck was on his side.
The administrator nodded. "I'll deal."
As the administrator shuffled and dealt the cards, Jonathan prayed that he would win. He looked at his cards. He had the King, Queen and Ten of Clubs, a King of Spades, and an Ace of Spades. The cards he had received indicated that the deck was in his favor. He took a chance and discarded the Ace and King of Spades. As he took two more cards, he took a deep breath. These cards could make or break him. He looked at the cards and it was all he could do not to smile. He had gotten the Ace and Jack of Clubs; he had a royal flush.
The administrator didn't take any cards. He looked at Jonathan and set down his cards which were four fives and a nine of Spades. "Well, Mr. Stevens, let's see your cards." Jonathan felt a rush of relief. "Before I show you my cards, I'd like you to answer a question for me. Why did your group take over the government?"
The administrator smiled. "We felt that the governor was weak, as was the government. He gave the students military training, but he wasted it by forcing them to solve problems by diplomacy. Diplomacy is for the weak and feeble. Our people have a history of wars and great conquerors. The government has made a mockery of our glorious past. We could have conquered all of our enemies, but instead we signed peace treaties. Peace is just another word for surrender." He lost his revolutionary air and turned toward Jonathan again. "Let's see your cards, Mr. Stevens."
Jonathan, with a deep sigh, unveiled his cards. Obviously the administrator had assumed he'd won because his jaw dropped. The room grew silent and the guards came over to see what had happened. As Jonathan gloated, one of the guards grabbed his rifle and aimed it at Jonathan.
The administrator cracked a smile. "Looks like you're caught Mr. Stevens."
Jonathan could have kicked himself for trusting the administrator. It had been too good to be true.
The administrator laughed. "It was all planned. We knew you would come to my office. Where else to get your final revenge? Here's something else I'll bet you didn't know. We chose you. We wanted to show that we will not tolerate any resistance. Your little plan to get here was all planned. We let you escape."
Jonathan flew forward and grabbed the bomb. With a quick movement of his hand, he turned the power module on. He threw the bomb across the room where it exploded. The explosion was small, some of the oxygen must have leaked out in the tunnels. The two guards were killed, but the administrator had only minor burns. Jonathan had been hit with flying debris and all he had were some minor abrasions. With the room partially filled with smoke and the administrator occupied with his own welfare, Jonathan grabbed his laser rifle.
When the smoke cleared, the administrator was surprised to see Jonathan alive and pointing a rifle at him.
Jonathan smiled wickedly. "We're going to play another game of poker and this time your life is at stake. I'm the dealer."
The administrator just nodded.
Jonathan shuffled the cards and smiled to himself as he set the deck.
Jonathan Stevens ran down the dark, narrow hallway, his lungs about to explode. He had been running so long, he no longer felt the sharp pain of the gash in his right leg. As he neared the corner, he ducked beneath the shadows of an inactive co mputer console. The armed guards ran past him, their boots thundering on the metal grid floor.
As he caught his breath, he opened the maintenance panel on the underside of the computer. He hecked the station's layout and found the administrator's office. Jonathan was on the second floor, section 7A, and the administrator was three floors up in section 12B. The only way up, without getting caught, was through the venting and maintenance tunnels. That would have to wait until morning though; he needed to recuperate. He slid along the wall, listening for any indication of pursuit.
When he reached the emergency storage room, he hacked into the computer and disabled the lock. Once he got inside, he jammed the lock with a password he created so that no one but him could open it. Luckily, the room was completely stocked so there was no need for any personnel.
He hid in a corner behind some storage containers where he found some emergency rations that would have been used in an emergency to conserve what little food they had. Then, he settled down to sleep. Finally, after hours of paranoid hysteria, sleep overcame him. Instead of rest though, nightmares of his predicament consumed him.
He had known something was wrong from the moment he had left school. Instead of people outside, the streets were empty and army trucks were parked everywhere. As soon as he entered his house, his mother had told him that his family was moving to the station. The government had been taken over by a rebel group and the governor had been assassinated. All the government workers, which included his father, and their families were being sent to the station. They packed all the belongings they could in the time they have been allotted. The guards had led them outside, where they were shoved in the back of one of the trucks, along with a few of their neighbors.
Once they reached the station, they had been led into the underground caverns that had once been used for mining. Then the caverns had been somewhat decent, but since the mining operation had been closed for at least fifty years, they had fallen into disrepair. The air was damp and dust hung in the air. They caverns were so crowded, it made him claustrophobic. Jonathan and his family found a corner that was less crowded than the others and set their belongings there. His father had grown ill from all the stress of the move and the guards had not allowed any help or medication to be brought in. Finally, after hours of suffering, his father's heart gave up. The guards dragged his father's lifeless body out one of the tunnels as his mother screamed after them. The head guard told Jonathan to keep his mother quiet. When Jonathan's mother continued to scream, the guard opted to use force.
The sight of the blood on his mother from the blow to her face sparked something in Jonathan. With a manic-like rage, Jonathan leapt onto the guard. As they struggled, the guard managed to get his knife and slice Jonathan's leg. Ignoring the blinding pain, he charged after the guard, who had managed to squirm away, and pushed him against the wall. The guard's head smacked against the stone and his limp body fell to the floor. Some of the remaining guards dragged the body into the same tunnel through which they had taken Jonathan's father. The room at the end must have been almost filled; so many had died since they had arrived. Jonathan remembered the gut-wrenching smell that had come from that room. He had run past the tunnel entrance when the guards had come after him.
As he ran, he heard his mother call after him, "Run! Don't let them catch you!" Then he heard a crack as a guard hit his mother with a rifle and knocked her to the ground. Jonathan wanted to go to her, but her last words echoed in his head. He would run until he was safe, but then he would get his revenge. That's how he'd ended up in the storage area.
Finally, after a rough night full of reenactments in his dreams, Jonathan awoke to the sound of laser fire outside the door. The guards must have found him with the heat sensors and were trying to unlock the door. It would be harder to find him in the venting system since the vents were normally hot. He sprang to his feet and grabbed an oxygen pack and took out all but one tank. In it he put some water, rope, a map of the station used for emergency operations, some emergency ration capsules, and a laser rifle for opposition. As he moved toward the exit, he grabbed a vial of anti-hydration pills, took a few and threw the rest in the pack. He slung the pack over his back and headed toward the vent. Sparks flew as the lasers clashed with the metal and the guards entered. Just in time, Jonathan climbed into the vent and shut the grid behind him. The vent was cramped and dirty. It was hard for him to breathe, but the oxygen tank had another purpose. He began to feel claustrophobic, as the air seemed to grow thinner while the dust grew thicker. He wanted to cough but they might hear him. Once he got to section 12B, he climbed into the maintenance tunnel. The ladder was only half there; they were trying to halt his progress. Jonathan lassoed the rope and caught it on a broken rung. Once he knew it was secure, he climbed up the rope.
When he reached the top, he sat on the edge and pressed his ear against the wall to see if the administrator's office was empty. He didn't hear anything. Either it was empty or they were quiet. He bet that it was empty. He slowly and quietly climbed into the office. The room was empty. He scanned the room for a place to hide. When he didn't find a place, he jammed the door lock; he'd surprise them. Then he went over to the administrator's computer access panel. He deactivated the station's heat sensors. They would know he was there when they saw him. He heard footsteps and he moved away from the computer. As he hid behind the desk, he heard them fumbling over the lock and asking who did it. Then the door opened and closed. It sounded as if four men had entered, probably the administrator and three guards.
Jonathan leapt up, laser rifle in hand and aimed at the guards. One guard shot at Jonathan and missed. Jonathan fired and the laser shot through the guard and the laser burned a hole in the first layer of the wall.
The administrator held up his hands. "Hold your fire!" He glanced at the guards and nodded at Jonathan. Both the guards and Jonathan put their weapons down. The administrator whispered something to the remaining guards.
"No secrets!" Jonathan said as pulled out the oxygen tank. He had attached a power module to it in the hopes that it would explode if he turned it on, but he wasn't sure if he had rigged it right. "I have a bomb and if there are any secrets, I'll use it."
The administrator said, "I just told them to move to the corner so that we could discuss the situation." He motioned for Jonathan to sit down in his chair.
Jonathan nodded and he and the administrator sat down.
"Now I assume you are the Jonathan Stevens who killed one of the cavern guards and escaped," the administrator said cautiously. "Is that correct?"
Jonathan replied coldly, "No, I am the Jonathan Stevens whose father was killed and attacked the guard who was at fault. My father's heart was weak and your guards wouldn't get any help for him. I am the Jonathan Stevens whose mother was killed by a guard because she tried to help me escape. She simply told me to run and the guard hit her so hard with a rifle that the blow snapped her neck. So you can see my reasons for being so bitter to you and your guards, besides the fact you took over the government."
The administrator played dumb. "I had nothing to do with it. The guards acted of their own will." He leaned toward Jonathan. "What is it that you want?"
Jonathan replied, "Justice."
The administrator smiled slightly. "Are you planning to kill me? If you even try to, these guards will stop you. That's their job. It's nothing against you, of course, just business as usual." He pointed toward the guards.
"Just business as usual you say? Then it would be just business as usual for me to set off this bomb." Jonathan hoped that the administrator didn't see through his bluff. It was all he had left. The administrator stood, reached over the desk, and opened a drawer, all the while showing his hands so that Jonathan wouldn't suspect anything. He pulled out a deck of playing cards. "We'll settle this fair and square. We'll play a game of poker. If I win, you will be punished for the death of my guard. If you win, you'll be cleared of the crime, appointed to my council and you'll never have to worry about a thing."
Jonathan thought about it. It sounded too good to be true, but what choice did he have? "That's sounds fair. How about Five Card Draw, no wilds?" Jonathan hoped that Lady Luck was on his side.
The administrator nodded. "I'll deal."
As the administrator shuffled and dealt the cards, Jonathan prayed that he would win. He looked at his cards. He had the King, Queen and Ten of Clubs, a King of Spades, and an Ace of Spades. The cards he had received indicated that the deck was in his favor. He took a chance and discarded the Ace and King of Spades. As he took two more cards, he took a deep breath. These cards could make or break him. He looked at the cards and it was all he could do not to smile. He had gotten the Ace and Jack of Clubs; he had a royal flush.
The administrator didn't take any cards. He looked at Jonathan and set down his cards which were four fives and a nine of Spades. "Well, Mr. Stevens, let's see your cards." Jonathan felt a rush of relief. "Before I show you my cards, I'd like you to answer a question for me. Why did your group take over the government?"
The administrator smiled. "We felt that the governor was weak, as was the government. He gave the students military training, but he wasted it by forcing them to solve problems by diplomacy. Diplomacy is for the weak and feeble. Our people have a history of wars and great conquerors. The government has made a mockery of our glorious past. We could have conquered all of our enemies, but instead we signed peace treaties. Peace is just another word for surrender." He lost his revolutionary air and turned toward Jonathan again. "Let's see your cards, Mr. Stevens."
Jonathan, with a deep sigh, unveiled his cards. Obviously the administrator had assumed he'd won because his jaw dropped. The room grew silent and the guards came over to see what had happened. As Jonathan gloated, one of the guards grabbed his rifle and aimed it at Jonathan.
The administrator cracked a smile. "Looks like you're caught Mr. Stevens."
Jonathan could have kicked himself for trusting the administrator. It had been too good to be true.
The administrator laughed. "It was all planned. We knew you would come to my office. Where else to get your final revenge? Here's something else I'll bet you didn't know. We chose you. We wanted to show that we will not tolerate any resistance. Your little plan to get here was all planned. We let you escape."
Jonathan flew forward and grabbed the bomb. With a quick movement of his hand, he turned the power module on. He threw the bomb across the room where it exploded. The explosion was small, some of the oxygen must have leaked out in the tunnels. The two guards were killed, but the administrator had only minor burns. Jonathan had been hit with flying debris and all he had were some minor abrasions. With the room partially filled with smoke and the administrator occupied with his own welfare, Jonathan grabbed his laser rifle.
When the smoke cleared, the administrator was surprised to see Jonathan alive and pointing a rifle at him.
Jonathan smiled wickedly. "We're going to play another game of poker and this time your life is at stake. I'm the dealer."
The administrator just nodded.
Jonathan shuffled the cards and smiled to himself as he set the deck.