The House Always Wins (Patreon)

I had spent ages looking around the market for the last pieces I would need to finish my new machine. None of my normal contacts and merchants had anything near what I needed. 

Such a waste of the day.

I was about to give up and return home when I saw him. The bandages around his pug shaped face, the tattered ill fitting clothes that just about contained his belly and the skulls on his belt all added to his brutishness. But the contraption on his back gave me the biggest pause, two smoldering caged towers with ghostly faces dancing within. All in all he was the sort of person I would avoid at all costs... However, when he locked eyes with mine his smile became warm and utterly inviting. My curiosity got the better of me and walked over to him, with every step his smile became wider and warmer.

I was a little taken aback when he said, "Greetings my new friend", in a voice so soft and comforting that you would never expect it from one of such appearance.

He didn't react to my hesitancy, but just kept smiling and continued to say, "I know what a man such as you is looking for".

"I doubt it" I replied, confident he had no idea what I needed.

"Have a little faith my new friend" he said as he slapped me on the shoulder. He reached into the box and raised his eyebrows. "Ahh, here it is," he said as pulled an object out of the box.

It was perfect in every dimension and material! It was surely impossible that he had it or that it even existed, I thought I would need to source parts and spend weeks putting it together, but despite the impossibility there it was. "It is exactly what you need, yes?"  his tone not changing.

"By the gods, it's perfect" I spat out without thinking, breaking my first rule of bartering. But it was too late now and he knew he had me. "So what do you want for it?" I enquired, preparing myself for the bartering battle that I thought was about to commence.

"Are you a gambling man?" he asked.

"Well I have been known to have the odd little gamble every now and again", I lied, I made a fortune at cards and dice in my youth, enough to set me up as an inventor with a good workshop and the many precious materials my creations required. I had to quickly hide my smile as I now thought I had him.

He tilted his head as he looked into my eyes, "Dice!" he exclaimed, "You look like a dice man!"

"Well, again, I have been known to throw a few".

"Good," he laughed. He pulled a parchment from his jacket and handed it to me. I read it.

This is a simple game of chance, the customer and merchant will each roll a dice.

If the customer rolls higher you get the offered item free of charge.

If the merchant rolls higher you will pay the object's weight in gold.

If the rolls are the same you get the item and the merchant will claim your soul upon death.

I signed the paper without thinking, I don't even remember him handing me the pen!

He took two dice from his pocket and put one in a mug that was sitting on top of the box, shook it and upended it, a four. He put the other dice in the mug and handed it to me. I copied what he did, shook the mug and upended it...

Soul Gambler (35mm and 75mm) is already available for download via the link in the pinned post (pre-supports will be ready soon)!