<< This is a backlog that would fit on any day during R&R
before the current situation began >>
*** Guzman / Summers Quarters * SB Unity ***
Rangi returned to the main room and began to tidy things,
plumping up cushions and picking up bits and pieces that
were out of place.
Martin had gone to play in his bedroom and when Rangi headed
for the door, her hands full of playpadds, she heard his
voice, so slowed and peeped inside to see what game he was
enjoying.
He sat cross legged on the floor, holding a pack of picture
cards in his hands, the sort used for games of 'memory' or
'snap'.
To his right, precariously sitting on top of a cushion, sat
his favorite Teddy Bear, a well loved and slightly shabby
animal who was a treasured friend. To his left was another
soft toy, a green frog, also seated on a cushion who was
known by the name of Zaba.
In front of them all were piles of building bricks and
Martin was preparing to deal the cards. Looking at the frog
he asked:
" Zaba how many for you?"
"Two please" he replied, adopting a squeaky voice.
"Two for for Zaba and...two for the bear." Martin said,
slapping two cards down in front of the teddy bear.
"Thankyou." the bear apparently said in a deep gruff tone.
" And three for me." Martin said happily handing himself
some. "Who will bet now?" he asked his friends.
Rangi heard a sound and turned to see Shane entering the
main room.
Shane said more then once to himself not to take work home,
but lately it was just not possible. He just ended reading a
battle report and decided to see what his family is doing
when ...
"Shane, " she whispered urgently and beckoned him to come
quickly but put a finger to her lips in a silent gesture to
tell him not to make a noise. He looked mystified but came
quietly.
"What is it?" asked his eyes.
"He's playing ..poker?" she whispered and pointed to the
door.
Shane looked inside, saying no words. A wide smile appeared
on his face, like always when his son was near.
" I can raise you a red brick." the bear was saying in his
deep voice and Martin took one from the pile in front of the
toy.
" Two blues" squeaked Zaba and two bricks from his stack
were placed in the centre.
" They teach him to 'gamble' in playgroup?" Rangi whispered
to Shane, looking at him with an expression of amazement.
Shane grinned and whispered back: "It looks so, but I
wonder who taught him poker ... "
Martin shrugged and nodded his head from side to side before
slapping down his cards with a cry of :
"Gnat Bite!"
He leaned forward and pulled all the bricks towards himself.
"I win." he said happily.
" Gnat bite?" Rangi asked highly amused and looked at
Shane's face where his expression mirrored her own. "Whats
Gnat Bite?"
Shane shrugged: "Never heard of Gnat Bite before" he
replied.
Martin turned his head and did not appear at all surprised
to see he had an audience.
"Do you want to play?" he asked reaching out to knock Zaba
off his cushion. "Sit down if you like." he offered.
Shane thought about the three other reports he wanted to
read, but then said to himself:
{To hell with the reports} and nodded: "Sure, we join you,
don't we mummy?"
"Yes, we'd love to play." Rangi said smiling down at their
son who looked up eagerly, pleased to have live players in
his game.
"You'll have to tell us the rules though." she added
"...neither of us has played this game before."
"No problemo." Martin replied and immediately organised
everything.
"You sit there daddy and have six bricks but not yellow
ones. Mummy you sit there and hold Zaba and you can have
some bricks too."
Rangi settled herself on the floor, picked up the toy frog
and positioned it on her knee.
"Are you good at this game?" she asked the frog and made it
nod to her.
"He's not very good." Martin said seriously with a shake of
his head.
"Oh dear." Rangi said sitting Zaba on the floor at her side.
Shane took his place next to her and they smiled to each
other as Martin began to deal out the cards.
It was an interesting game but difficult to master....some
would say impossible... for the rules seemed to change in
almost every hand.
For some minutes, the picture of a duck seemed to be the
card to have, for it outplaced all the others and won bricks
for the person who played it.
Then suddenly it was a 'Tree' or a ' Beetle' except if the
player had more than six bricks of any colour or, in Shanes
case, if four red bricks were set beside a blue one which
meant trading them all for one green.
On the whole Rangi did quite well, gaining a steadily
growing stack of bricks. Shane too had his share of luck,
Zaba not so much and the bear remained a silent onlooker.
At times the game was fast, with a win occurring on the
first card laid, sometimes eight or nine were placed on a
pile but always the infamous words "Gnat Bite" would ring
out and the bricks would be back on Martins side.
Eventually Rangi was down to a single red brick and Shane,
who had long ago decided that all his tactical and
diplomatic skills counted here for absolutely nothing, held
onto a blue.
Martin gave them a glimmer of hope by stating that sometimes
the last card could win a huge prize but, it was not to be
and despite his sympathetic looks as they set down their
cards, he was the one who shouted gleefully " Gnat Bite" and
hauled in the last of the bricks.
"Good game" Shane said as he stood up and held out a hand
to help Rangi to her feet.
"You're very good at it." she said and Martin nodded.
" We can play again another day." he said and his parents
assured him they would look forward to it.
They left his room hand in hand and looking back from the
door saw that he was counting his bricks into sets like a
miser with his hoard.
Once outside,Rangi dissolved into laughter as quietly as she
could, caught in a hug from Shane.
"Now we know how to play.." she said looking up at him
"...I'm 'sure' we'll do better next time."
"We need a Vulcan to teach us logic first !" Shane replied
dryly.
*** End Log ***
Commodore Shane Guzman
CO 1st Task Force SSF Command
CO SB 234: UNITY
&
Commander Rangi Summers
Med Adv 1st Task Force
CMO SB Unity
&
Martin Guzman
(npc) Rangi
