The Billiard Room

[Agni Sparks]

The mansion’s immense billiard room was swarming with socialites, all looking to jostle their way to Agni Sparks as he leaned against a sturdy mahogany pool table. Dart boards, chess sets and card tables padded with soft velvet and intricately carved wooden borders were spread around the onlookers, ignored.



The crowd waited their turn from a respectable distance and tried to look otherwise occupied as the Hunger Games victor laughed through his current conversation with a beautiful woman draped in a myriad of furs.


“…we had so many bags of supplies ‘n weapons, we couldn't carry it all from the cornucopia!”


The woman’s bright laughter doubled her over as she struggled to keep her thin champagne flute from tipping.


“So the thing to keep in mind: Everybody’s thinkin’ bout what they’ll do themselves. Smart ones think about what others’ll do…. Winners think about what others think they’ll do.”


The woman’s smile began to automatically open again in a laugh before she realized Agni was not telling a joke.


With a sigh he shifted his shoulders away and politely left her to ‘Have a pleasant evenin’ Ms. Prass.’

‘That woman’s all packet and no seeds.’ Thought Agni, turning toward the next conversation.
..

[Jaffe Maddox]

Jaffe fixes her hair as watching Agni shoo away a gorgeous woman. She fixes the spaghetti straps on her yellow dress and takes a deep breathe before approaching.

"He-hello Mr.... Agni," she says stumbling over her introduction. "I watched you in the games, I'm... A big fan?" Meeting him in person was very intimidating, his reserved look and kind face was not what she expected.

"Oh! My names Jaffe Maddox, from ditstict 3," she finally blurts out, "Just... I always wanted to meet you."

[Arnie Thistle]

Arnie entered the billiard room and was immediately struck by its beauty. Surrounding the entirely disinterested crowd was the most beautifully decorated room Arnie had ever seen. Between the ornately detailed walls and ceilings was a selection of equally exquisite furnishings. Arnie was drawn to one dart board in particular which was in a reasonably quiet part of the room.

Growing up he had played darts frequently to pass the time. The ivory handles and Damascus steel tips of the darts in the Capitol were a far cry from the sharpened nails he used to play with at home. The dart board itself was no less impressive. The surface was carved with intricate patterns of waves, clouds, and mountain vistas with little unused space.

"Take a breather Arnie, just play like you're at home." Arnie mumbled as he started to play.

[Agni Sparks]

Giving Jaffe his most comforting smile, Agni leaned further back against the pool table. The girl seemed nervous, which Agni could empathize with from his time in her place two years ago.

"Hard not to remember you, Ms. Maddox." Chuckled Agni, sliding a tiny black box from his suit's coat pocket. Jaffe and Alistair's holographic faces smiled out from his palm.

"Glad t' meet you too, by the way! Always happy to get to seein' the tributes face t' face."

The former District Eleven tribute paused a moment, caught between memories and expectations.

"You don' strike me as the kind t' survive on hope n' luck, Ms. Maddox. What can I expect from you out there?"

[Vester Lombard]

Vester entered the billiard room with a beautiful woman on his arm. She wore a tall wig, white in color to match Vester's hair. He spotted Arnie playing with the darts. Vester stood behind him, watching him play for a moment before speaking in a slow, clear voice.

"Do you like to play games, Arnie Thistle?"

[Arnie Thistle]

Arnie was about to retrieve his darts when Vester Lombard came up behind him with a question. Arnie turned around to see Vester and an elegantly dressed woman. He greeted them with a hesitant response, not quite sure what to make of such an important figure.

"When I get a chance to play with such beautiful equipment I can't miss the opportunity to play. I have you to thank for the opportunity, it is very nice to meet you."

Arnie extended his hand in greeting to the pair, making sure to note to soften his grip so he didn't offend them, not that he knew the customs anyway.

[Vester Lombard]

"Vester Lombard," the Game Maker said shaking Arnie's hand firmly, "And this is my wife ____"

____ also shook Arnie's hand. "You don't seem to have a drink," she said and clapped twice. The nearest three servers immediately strode over with trays of colorful drinks, offering them to Arnie.

"It is beautiful," Vester agreed admiring the game set, "but a game is only as compelling as the people who play it. So thank you for the opportunity."

"Cheers," said Vester holding up his glass of clear liquid.

[Arnie Thistle]

Arnie was greeted with a wonderful arrangement of drinks which arrived within moments. After considering the choices Arnie settled on a simple drink with muddled berries and mint. It wasn't he usual drink but he figured he had to start somewhere.

"Thank you ____, Cheers!" Arnie returned as he brought the unknown drink to his lips and finished the toast.

"You seem like the type who enjoys a good game, care to play a quick match? Normally I would put up a wager, but I suppose a friendly game could suffice." Arnie pointed to another set of exquisite darts with a hopeful grin.

[Jaffe Maddox]

"What can you expect?" She repeats snapping out of her daze. "Well... I have nothing to lose... I... I'll give it my all. I'll find put together a dream team and kill my enemies," she pauses. "I want to be just like you." She looks away as her eyes begin to water. "Very nice meeting you!" She says taking her leave.

[Ingrid Schuhmacher]

Ingrid entered the room and surveyed the crowds. She was wearing a strapless bustier romper made from nude silk and lace. Her hair was in a top knot and she wore trademark diamond studded platform wedges.

Agni Sparks was standing a couple feet away. She saw other tributes as well as Vester Lombard and multiple capital socialites.

A small bar in the corner caught her eye. She walked over to the server and said, "I will have a whiskey sour."

[Vester Lombard]

"I suppose I have time for a quick throw," Vester said, accepting Arnie's invitation. "If you're a gambling man, I'll make a bet with you. One throw and whoever hits closer to the bullseye wins. If you win I'll personally send you a much needed present in the arena. If you lose you'll find an extra trap waiting for you. You go first. What do you say?"

Instructions: if you accept, roll an 8 sided die. See the gameplay rules for how to add a die roll. Highest number wins

[Ingrid Schuhmacher]

Ingrid saw the tribute leave and walked briskly over to Agni Sparks She stuck out her hand and said, "Nice to meet you Mr. Sparks. My name is Ingrid. I am one of the tributes from District 1."

[Agni Sparks]

'Seems my comfortin' smiles aint what they used to be.' Thought Agni, watching Jaffe stammer through a moment's conversation before excusing herself.

'Cute kid, jus' wish she didn't act like a balloon in a needle factory.'

Agni was startled with how quickly the next tribute approached and introduced herself.

"Pleasure meetin' you, Ms. Ingrid. I recall you and yer brother from the chariot entrance." The memory of the young woman's jewel-covered costume stuffed itself into Agni's mind; he tried to stifle it.

"Can I ask you a question, Ms. Ingrid?" Said Agni, stepping away from the pool table toward a pair of chess sets.

"I know yer not lookin' to arm wrestle 'r show off tonight; and that's fine by me..." The young victor quickly slid the chess pieces off a board and took hold of a red colored piece from a neighboring table.

"This rook is all 'bout chargin' forward; crashin' through anyone that gets in their way." He held up the red piece before setting it on the chess board.

"While this bishop focuses on being clever and catchin' people 'fore they know what hit 'em." The piece made a soft click as it was set on the board.

"The queen is pow'rful because she uses her friends t' be good at everything...though nothin' that good lasts forever." He paused a moment, reflecting as he set the piece down.



"So tell me Ms. Ingrid; which piece do you see yerself bein' out there?"

[Arnie Thistle]

Jul 27, 2014 8:33:36 GMT -6 Vester Lombard said:

"I suppose I have time for a quick throw," Vester said, accepting Arnie's invitation. "If you're a gambling man, I'll make a bet with you. One throw and whoever hits closer to the bullseye wins. If you win I'll personally send you a much needed present in the arena. If you lose you'll find an extra trap waiting for you. You go first. What do you say?"

Instructions: if you accept, roll an 8 sided die. See the gameplay rules for how to add a die roll. Highest number wins

Arnie smiled when Vester accepted the invitation, "Vester, I say that you make a fine wager. I'll take it, whichever of us is closest to the bullseye wins."

It was time to see if this would pay off. Arnie had hustled games before, but then he always had the advantage. Here it was all about the luck.

Finishing his drink Arnie paused for a moment and threw the dart.

VIDCCW_01d81d8

[Ingrid Schuhmacher]

Ingrid looked at the board for a moment before speaking. Looking Agni in the eye she said,

"Instinctively I would have wanted to chose the queen. I would have wanted to say I am in control of others and would use them to win the games, but there are to many unknowns at risk.

I am from district 1 and I have been trained since childhood to compete, which makes me want to choose the rook. However, my brother and I were asked to volunteer by my family which means more is at risk then just our lives.

I choose the bishop because the bishop chooses a combination of strategy and power to to take out its opponents. Nothing is guaranteed, but the bishop knows that sacrifices must be made in order to come out victorious. You know that already. More so than most.

What do you expect from these games?"

[Jessie Zwinkler]

Jessie stumbles in from the bar. After taking a bit of a break he was feeling a little better. He heard Agni's thought experiment and was intrigued.

"If you don't mind me saying, I'd want to be that one pawn that gets to the other side of the board and become whatever I need at the time (which is usually a queen). In a worst case scenario for me, my lowly self as a pawn gets traded for a more important piece which during the later stages of the game could be lead to a 'win' (although since I am the piece, I guess it's not really a win, but I took down a bigger player with me). Best case scenario, I am now a late game queen and usually change the state of the game drastically. Then again I suck at chess and am only 12 so what do I know."

[Ingrid Schuhmacher]

She looked down and saw a small boy standing beside her.

"You are certainly and well informed for a twelve year old. You understand what you need to do to win as do many others in the game. We will see how the game plays out in the arena."

[Tristan Danio]

Tristan had slipped into the billiard room hoping to catch the attention of a sponsor, and was happy to find both Agni Sparks and Vester Lombard among the throngs of people.

Over the crowds conversations, Tristan heard Vester make some kind of wager with one of the tributes over darts.

'Just like a Game-maker to lord it over a tribute and dangle their lives over darts.' He thought, making a mental note to see who won.

Turning back to Agni, he overheard the question meant for the District One tribute and struggled to think of an impressive answer.

"Power comes from the crew you sail with, Sparks."

Tristan took hold of the rook and used it to take the queen.

"Unlike chess, a strong enough team can take the field in these games. You killing half the tributes in your victory seems like a rookish thing to me."

[Agni Sparks]

Agni sighed and collected the chess pieces as the three tributes stood in front of the mingling crowd.

He held up the queen up and nodded toward Jessie.

"Organizin'' a solid group with a plan got us the cornucopia. Lost our 'Pawn' to get it, but that left four of us with everythin'. Includin' a giant target on our heads."

The District Eleven tribute turned to hold Ingrid's eyes as he brandished the bishop.

"That night, I took Leevy and we sneaked away. Left the other two to die the next day, using their weapons to take out n' injure lots of the others."

The room had hushed as the socialites gave up appearances to better listen in on Agni's story. The victor took the bishop out of Tristan's hand and lowered his voice.

"Bett'r weapons, plenty of food, and hardly a scratch on us! Leevy n' I charged through the rest like a scythe through wheat... Then Leevy was-" Agni's steady voice hinted at breaking as he turned back to place the pieces on the chess board.

"Point is, when yer out there I'm look in' fer you to be whatever piece is needed but..." He turned to gesture toward the three pieces in a position to take each other.

"More importantly: Be the one to move first."

[Fortune "Yun" Paramore]

Now this, Fortune reflected, was his cup of tea. Without speaking to anybody he walked into the room, picked up the pool stick, and went over the pool table. After a moment of reflection about the angles, the velocity, and the physics of the shots he planned to make, he made his way through a crowd of tributes and sponsors speaking about chess, and took one shot. His ball ricocheted quickly around the table, knocking in multiple balls, before finally hitting the eightball into a pocket. The white ball in the center continued to whirl around like a top, Yun dropped his stick onto the table and walked toward the crowd, he wasn't sure if anybody had seen his shot, but if they had, the 12-year-old was hoping to get some recognition.

[Vester Lombard]

Arnie's dart hit the board, but just barely.

"Such is luck," said Vester. "The odds are in my favor this time, but never count yourself out."

Vester flings his dart.

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[Vester Lombard]

"Good game," Vester said, placing his hand on Arnie's shoulder. "I admire your ability to take risks. Nobody wins the Hunger Games playing safe. Especially not this year."

Vester leaves the game room.