A few regular patrons greeted Jake and Shaylie as they entered the Gentle Giant. Jake ignored some of the smirks when they saw them together. Little did Jake know, some people took bets on how long it would be until Jake passed out drunk again. Meanwhile, Jake waved at Hector and moved toward the poker table in the back. He saw two open seats.

"Can I play with you guys?" Shaylie asked.

"Do you know how?" Jake asked.

"I have the basic gist."

"You wear your emotions too close to the surface. Bluffing these guys is hard."

"Please. You just don't want me to beat you," Shaylie said, grinning.

"I know you cheated at the drinking game. They might kill you If you pulled that at the poker table."

"If you knew I cheated, why did you show up to help me at work?"

"Because I wanted to," Jake shrugged.

"Okay, I won't join your poker game, but promise you'll teach me to play later."

"I promise," Jake said, holding up a hand.

"Can I at least sit and watch?"

"Sure, but don't be bad luck this time."

"I wasn't bad luck last time! Don't blame that on me!"

Jake shook his head, but he didn't keep arguing. They approached the poker game, and everybody greeted them.

"Always room for a pretty young lady at the table," Jeff said, pulling a chair for Shaylie. "Are you playing?"

"No, this one won't let me," Shaylie said, nodding at Jake.

"Oh, you're no fun, O'Reilly. Let her play," Ron said.

"Fine! It's up to her," Jake said.

"Sweet!" Shaylie said and fetched a wad of cash from her purse. Everyone at the table seemed pleased except for Jake and a new face Jake didn't recognize. A dark-haired man in a leather jacket scowled at them. Jake glanced at him warily.

"I'm Jake," Jake said, extending a hand to the man.

"Trent," the man said, giving him a limp handshake that lasted half a second.

"He's new here. I told him he could join," Ron said, but he seemed uneasy when he noticed the tension in the air.

The tension only grew as the game progressed. Most of the men seemed distracted by Shaylie, and she won a few hands. Jake still held the lead, but Trent wasn't faring as well. He began shooting daggers at Shaylie with his eyes. Shaylie either didn't notice or ignored it. Jake bet on the latter. Soon, Jake felt leaving the table was a wise idea.

"That should be enough for tonight. Thanks, guys," Jake said.

"Am I still bad luck?" Shaylie asked as they walked away.

"No, but that guy in the leather coat wanted to kill you."

"Oh, him? He doesn't worry me. Are you scared?"

"Of course not! I just figured we should stop before he got angry."

"He'll get over it," Shaylie said, brushing it off. "Does this make up for my cheating?"

"You want things to be even between us?"

"Yeah, I feel a little bad about it."

"Okay, let's make another wager," Jake said, leading Shaylie to the pool tables. He set up what looked like a normal game, but Jake had another idea. "I bet 100 dollars that you can't clear every ball on the table without scratching."

"That's it? I win as long as I don't scratch?"

"Those are the rules."

"Okay, you're on," Shaylie said, taking the pool cue. She impressed him. Shaylie took her time, but she sank every ball on the table. When Shaylie looked up with a smile, Jake shook his head.

"You haven't finished," he said.

"Yes, I have."

"No, there's one ball left," Jake said, pointing at the cue ball.

"I can't hit that one in. That's a scratch."

"That's the point," Jake laughed. "I said you had to clear every ball. Pay up!"

"Oh, you jackass!" Shaylie said, slapping him on the arm.

"Relax. You don't have to pay me. We're even now," Jake laughed.

"Is that so?" Shaylie asked, examining her pool cue closely.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm trying to decide the best way to break this over your head."

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

"Hey, isn't that Bret over there?" Jake asked, pointing at the bar.

"I'm not falling for that."

"No, I'm serious."

Shaylie turned to see Bret sitting at the bar with three empty mugs in front of him. He rested his head on one hand, but it looked like he was about to fall over.

"Uh oh. I know this look," Jake said. "The date must have gone poorly."

"It wasn't a date," Shaylie said, but Jake ignored her and headed for the bar.

"Oh, hey, Jake. Are you guys done poker—pokering?" Bret slurred.

"That's not a word, and what happened to you?" Jake asked. "How was the date?"

"Things were going great until we almost kissed, and she freaked out."

"Bret, you don't understand. Maya is..." Shaylie started, but Bret cut her off.

"You're right. I don't understand. Is it me? Am I not pleasant? People tell me I have criminally high cheekbones!" Bret said, pointing at his face.

"Okay, bud. You've had too much to drink," Jake said.

"It's not you, Bret. Maya is going through some stuff right now," Shaylie explained.

"Like what?" Bret asked.

"I can't tell you. It's personal."

"She should open up to me. I could help."

"It isn't that simple."

"Nothing ever is," Bret said and called for another beer. Jake protested, but Bret slapped his hand away. He knocked over a mug with his follow-through. It shattered on the floor, making Hector glare at Bret.

"You're going to get us tossed out of here, Bret," Jake said.

"I ain't scared of no giant," Bret muttered.

"Okay, we're leaving," Jake said. He slung one of Bret's arms over his shoulder and lifted him off the stool. Jake turned to exit the bar, but Trent blocked his way. Trent looked even drunker than Bret, making Jake grumble. "Not this," he said.

"You and your little gnome friend over there owe me money," Trent said.

"Gnome!? I'm not that short!" Shaylie yelled.

"You used your girlfriend to win at poker," Trent said.

"I'm not his girlfriend," Shaylie said. "And you just suck at playing," she added, making Jake wince.

"Whatever. I'm getting my money," Trent said, and his eyes glowed yellow.

"Ooh, what are you going to do? Are you going to read my mind?" Jake asked.

"Look out!" Shaylie yelled as a stool flew through the air at Jake.

Jake sidestepped it but dropped Bret, who uttered a slurred curse. "That's okay. I'll just lie here," Bret said.

Glasses and mugs flew toward Jake next. He hardened his skin and channeled magic into his muscles. A mug shattered against his arm but didn't leave a mark. He turned toward Trent with glowing red eyes. Trent backed up a step and showed a brief moment of fear, but he erased it and hurled more objects.

"Stop it!" Hector yelled from the back of the bar.

The onslaught of glasses created a distraction while Trent threw a punch. Jake caught it and gripped Trent's fist. Shaylie heard Trent's knuckles crack, and Trent cried out in pain.

"Do you want a fistfight with a red mage?" Jake asked.

Trent increased the amount of mugs. The glass exploded against Jake's hardened body, but he didn't flinch. The shards tore Jake's shirt, but his skin remained unblemished. Shaylie produced a gust of wind to knock them away, but she sent a few flying toward a group of people behind them. They ducked behind their table.

"I'm so sorry!" Shaylie said.

Since Trent didn't stop, Jake squeezed his fist harder and bent Trent's wrist, driving him down to his knees. It seemed Jake had the upper hand until one mug broke too close to Jake's eye. He recoiled and released Trent's hand.

"Dammit!" Jake yelled.

Trent used the opening to run, and the rain of glass ended. They let him escape, but Hector chased him to the door. "Never come back, you little bastard," Hector yelled.

"Are you okay?" Shaylie asked.

Jake wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his eye, but he nodded. "It got close, but it didn't cut my eye. If it were a half-inch to the right, I might be partially blind. Sadly, I can't harden my eyes with magic."

While Jake tended to the small cut, Shaylie noticed something on his upper arm. His torn shirt exposed a tattoo. It was a four-leaf clover with a banner around it. The banner read, "Born Lucky." Shaylie laughed as Jake looked down at his arm.

"Oh, I got that when I lost a bet. I meant it to be ironic," Jake said.

"After tonight, I think your luck is running low," Shaylie said.

"Please. I just stared death in the eye and lived to talk about it."

"Isn't that a little over-dramatic?" Shaylie asked.

"Maybe," Jake shrugged.

"Well, you might be about to face something worse," Shaylie said, nodding toward the doorway.

Jake turned to see Marcus Hamilton entering the building and cursed under his breath. He pulled Shaylie behind the bar but didn't speak. Jake lifted his hands and placed them on the sides of Shaylie's head.

"What are you..." she started, but a strange sensation stopped her. Jake's eyes glowed red, and Shaylie felt her skin crawl. She wanted to move and pull away, but Jake held her still. A strange vibration flowed through her skin. When it ended, Jake released her. Then his appearance shifted. She watched in awe as he transformed into a balding man with pasty white skin. Shaylie understood what had happened. Jake had changed her appearance. She stood up and glanced into the bar's mirror. What she saw shocked her. She now looked like an old woman with long gray hair, but one detail bothered her. "Why did you give me a snaggle tooth?"

"Huh? I didn't realize I did that," Jake lied.

Shaylie started to argue, but Jake pulled her to the side of the room. They watched as Marcus surveyed the damage. Broken glass crunched underneath his boots as he walked around the room. A silence filled the bar. Everybody was stunned by what had taken place. Most patrons had ducked behind tables to avoid the flying glasses, but now, they watched with curiosity. Marcus walked within feet of the disguised Jake and Shaylie. He glanced at them for a moment before refocusing on the mess. However, something made him turn back to them. A grin appeared on Marcus' face.

"I should have known," he said. "What happened, O'Reilly?"

Jake feigned confusion and shook his head. "Are you talking to me?" he asked.

"I know it's you," Marcus said, grabbing Jake's arm and lifting it to point at one of the leather wristbands. Jake cursed to himself for forgetting to remove them.

"Sir, we were attacked. I only defended myself. Ask Hector," Jake said, pointing at Hector.

"We?" Marcus asked and looked at Shaylie.

"Hi, Marcus. It's Shaylie," she said, giving him a small wave.

"They're telling the truth, Marcus," Hector said. "I can vouch for them," he added, but Marcus held up a hand to stop him.

"I believe you," Marcus said, but he turned back to Jake with a tired look. "But I'm willing to bet you caused the drama somehow, O'Reilly."

"No, Marcus. It was more my fault," Shaylie said.

"It wasn't. Marcus is right," Jake said.

"You realize it's midnight, and you have training tomorrow, right?" Marcus asked.

"Yes, sir. I lost track of time."

"What did I tell you about keeping your nose clean? Maybe you should cut back on the late-night activities until training ends."

"You're right, sir."

"O'Reilly, you should..." Marcus began, but a noise cut him off. Every head turned when they heard the sound outside. Something soared over the bar with a roar, briefly shaking the building. "Were those fighter jets?" Marcus asked, looking confused. He rushed to the door and opened it in time to hear loud explosions in the distance. Someone in the bar shrieked in fright.

"We're under attack!" they yelled.

The patrons flocked to the windows and doors to see what was happening. Jake grabbed Shaylie by the hand and led her to a side exit. They stepped outside. Jake enhanced his vision to look into the distance, and what he saw almost stopped his heart. The academy and Mage Quarter were on fire.

"Those were Varidian planes! I saw them as they passed," a man said.

"No, not again," Shaylie cried.

Jake hoped the man mistook what he saw, but two more jets rocketed past them. Heightened senses allowed Jake to see the jets. He spotted the Varidian flag on the side. The man was right. Jake watched in horror as the attackers dropped more bombs on the Mage Quarter.

"This can't be happening," Jake muttered.

"Oh, no! Maya!" Shaylie screamed.