The day before at Silver City ended up being pretty good. The two guys gave back what they had won and then kept reaching into their wallets. JJ had walked away with close to $200.
“Well, time to get my day started. Maybe I’ll have another day like yesterday.” JJ said to himself as he walked out of his apartment.
His place was on the second story of a three-story building with an external walkway connecting the flats. JJ walked down the stairs to the street and headed towards the closest bus stop.
“Whatcha need,” A guy standing next to a payphone asked JJ.
The closest convenience store to JJ’s new apartment had a few payphones with young men constantly standing at them. Greg, the Big Top pit boss, had recommended that he look on Sierra Vista for a furnished apartment. He had said they were cheap and usually clean. He wasn’t wrong. They were clean and cheap, which was exactly what JJ wanted since he didn’t know how much or if he would continue to make money. It had been three weeks since JJ got into town, and he still couldn’t believe the casinos paid him to stand.
“I’m good,” JJ said to the local doctor-feel-good, who had addressed him.
“It’s going to be a hot one,” the guy attached to the phone said before he turned to answer a plea for a fix.
It was 11 a.m., and it was already 90 degrees. JJ figured he would get an early start and have lunch at a buffet on the strip. He still was not making enough money to want to take a cab unless it was for work, so he was still using the bus. The walk over to the closest stop, on Twain, was about a quarter of a mile. At 90 degrees, that wasn’t too bad.
It’s always interesting to see the locals on the bus. Some are college students, some are working men and women, and some are families. All of them live their lives connected in some manner to the strip and its siren call of pleasures. Some are making their living at a job to help the beast devoure the souls that are drawn by the intoxicating serenade. Some bide their time until payday to go back to the tables and machines and finally get that big win. Some are less connected, and they lie to themselves that they are not living off the poison. Every person on this bus is connected to the strip and its flow of money.
JJ’s thoughts wandered back to his current occupation. He had been in Vegas for three weeks now and still didn’t understand how he was doing what he did. He would simply stand next to a player, and they would start losing. What was astonishing to him was that the casino was willing to pay him to stand there.
“Las Vegas Boulevard,” a prerecorded voice said over the bus’s speakers.
The heat hit him as he stepped off the bus. “I really need to get a car,” JJ said to himself.
The street he was standing on, Spring Mountain Road, had the Sands to the south and the Desert Inn to the north.
“I can’t wait until that new casino opens,” one of the fellow passengers said as they stepped onto the sidewalk. “I heard they are going to offer big hiring bonuses.”
Catty-corner to where the bus had dropped JJ off was a construction site for a new casino called Treasure Island. All around the site was a banner that declared ‘Coming soon Treasure Island.’ The banner served two purposes: it obscured the view of the ongoing work and built anticipation for another new resort. The only thing visible above the fencing and banner was the top of a tall ship mast with full rigging furled.
“This town is insane; they are building two tall ships and a lagoon in the middle of the desert,” a person waiting at the light said to their companion. JJ shook his head at the excess as he crossed the street to get food at the Sands’ buffet.
He had been sampling all the different buffets all along the strip, or at least the ones he could afford. He had walked into the Desert Inn once. It was right next to where he got off the bus, so it made sense to check it out. The minute he walked in, he could tell that it wasn’t his kind of place. Everyone there was dressed in clothes that he could never afford. Seeing that, he turned around and left. There was no way a buffet would be cheap enough for him to be able to afford where everyone he could see didn’t spend less than a few thousand dollars on their outfits. So far, he had two favorite buffets: the Riviera and the Sands. He still had not tried the one at the off-strip resort, the Rio, which was supposed to be incredible.
Finishing his meal at the buffet, JJ took one last sip of his water.
“Are you finished, sir?” An older woman said after seeing JJ put his napkin on the plate.
“Yes, thank you. It was as good as usual.” JJ said. He stood up and then grabbed his wallet to leave a tip. Feeling generous, he pulled a ten out of it. As he placed it on the table, he looked again at the woman. She looked tired and beaten down by life and maybe a spouse or significant other. She looked like she could really use a bit of good luck.
“Have a good day,” JJ said to her.
“Thank you, sir,” she said, and then she returned to her task.
‘I don’t want to change her life for the worse,’ JJ thought to himself as he quickly made his exit.
JJ left the buffet and headed out to the Vegas heat.
Most of the pages he had been getting had come from the north end of the strip. So far, he had to go down to the south end of the strip once for a call from the Tropicana.
“Maybe I should visit Arnie and head north on the strip,” JJ said to himself.
The temperature continued to climb, and JJ’s t-shirt was starting to stick to his back. He was about to start walking when he caught sight of the CATS bus stop and decided to wait for the next one.
As he was sitting there, trying not to think about the heat, he remembered the first time he had met Arnie. It was about two weeks before then and the first day that he got to experience the real Vegas heat. He had just left the Riviera, where he had tried their buffet. On the way out, he saw that there was going to be live music by some band with a pretty female singer.
“I guess I’ll have to see how well they make Boulevardiers here while I listen to the music,” He hadn’t found that many places where you didn’t have to pay to hear a band. Before seeing the Riviera’s lounge, the only other one he had stumbled upon was a piano bar in the Tropicana, or the Trop as the locals call it. JJ headed out and started walking south with the intention of going back to his apartment to wait for the next page. He got about a quarter mile south down the strip when he started to look for a store where he could duck in to cool down. It was really getting hot, and he was not accustomed to the weather. He had just passed one of the small motels that were sprinkled along the strip between the casinos and came to a small strip mall. The first store in the strip was called “The Crystal Palace.” There were poorly printed signs on the windows that said, “Change your luck” and “Use the power of the crystal to win your fortune.” Behind the signs hung blackout curtains so that nothing could be seen in the shop.
“Maybe they have some crystal water,” JJ said to himself and headed for the door.
“You are in the presence of the 52nd reincarnation of Amonkhet, the high priest of Ra,” an amplified voice from hidden speakers said as JJ walked in.
The shop was full of crystals, dream catchers, and other new-age items.
“There may not be any water, but at least it’s cool in here,” JJ said under his breath.
“I am Amonkhet,” a dark-haired tall man stepped out of some back room.
“Sorry, I just stepped in to get out of the heat for a moment and buy some water, but I see you don’t have water. Man, it’s hot out there,” JJ said.
“Amonkhet is not bothered by the heat. Amonkhet is the high priest to the sun god Ra.” Amonkhet said.
“Uhm, okay. Well, I think I will go. Have a good day,” JJ said to him as he turned to head out.
“You can stay. I didn’t see you were a practitioner at first. My name is Arnie.” Arnie said, dropping the third person.
“What do you mean by practitioner? I’m just a hot newcomer to town. What happened to your weird accent and addressing yourself in the third person?” JJ asked.
“That’s just for the tourists. You wouldn’t believe how much I can make with a little theatrical flair. I get these rocks from the side of the road in the desert, put a massive price on them, and tell the tourists that it will channel good luck; they can’t give me their money fast enough,” he said. “You aren’t a practitioner?”
“No, what do you think I’m practicing?” JJ asked.
“I mean magic practitioner,” he said.
“So, you are a magician?” JJ asked.
“No magicians practice illusion and sleight of hand. I am a magic practitioner. I control the energies of the universe.”
“That sounds like another line for the tourists,” JJ said.
“Well, it might be, but it doesn’t make it a lie,” He said.
Just then, the voice from the speaker said its spiel as a couple of loudly dressed women walked in.
“Are you Amonkhet?” One of the women asked me.
“No, that is the great and powerful Oz,” JJ said, pointing to Arnie.
“We’re looking for Amonkhet, not whoever this Oz is,” she said.
“I am Amonkhet. Pay my underling no heed; he is only worthy of tending sheep,” he said to the women. Go to the back, where Amonkhet, in his generosity, has provided for you.” He addressed this last to JJ with a wink.
“It is so hard for Amonkhet to find competent help today,” Arnie said as JJ went to the back. As he went through the doorway, he felt spider webs clinging to him and some small flashes of light.
The back room was bigger than would be expected for a break room for a single employee. Bookshelves lined one wall. Another wall had a refrigerator, a counter with a microwave, and cabinets above and below. There was another door in the wall opposite to where JJ had entered. In the center of the room was a round table with a couple of chairs. Opening the refrigerator, JJ found the water bottles that Arnie had said were there.
He sat down to enjoy the cold bottle of water. On the table was a book with a title in an unknown language. JJ opened it and started flipping pages. There were intricate drawings on almost every page. Some were what seemed like random shapes, and some were weird creatures. It wasn’t obvious what the book was about. Usually, you can tell something about a book by the flow of the text or illustrations if there are pictures. The flow of the text in the book didn’t give any clues. The drawings were disjointed, without any commonality.
“I guarantee that your luck will change. Just rub this before you go down to the tables. That will be $2200, and I will throw in this small luck booster. Just rub this on the crystal and keep it in your pocket.” I heard Arnie say from near the cash register.
“Can I keep it in my clutch? I don’t have pockets on my dresses,” one of the women asked.
“No, it works best for it to be in contact with your skin if you can’t keep it in a pocket. You could put it on a chain and wear it on you,” Arnie said.
“Amonkhet thanks you for your business,” Arnie said to the women.
“Wow, $2200 for something you picked up in the desert, that is incredible,” JJ said as Arnie walked into the room.
“That’s a rare one. Normally, I sell the small crystals for under $100,” Arnie said. “So, did you find the book interesting?”
“It has interesting pictures, but I couldn’t understand any of the words. What language is this? I don’t see any normal letters. How do you read this?” JJ asked.
“It’s a very old book that was transcribed from an ancient scroll that was probably transcribed from prehistoric tablets,” he said. “That book is about the intersection of our world and other realities. But I asked you back here so I can try to understand you.”
“There is nothing to understand. I came from Salt Lake. Come for the snow, stay for the family. Minutes after I got into town a few days ago, my car burst into flames, and I lucked into a job at the Big Top casinos,” JJ said.
“So when you say you are working for a casino, what are you doing there cleaning ashtrays? You can’t just get a job at the casino by walking in; you have to get a gaming card, and usually, they don’t like to hire newcomers. People new to town tend to leave within a few weeks when they realize they won’t win their fortune.”
“Well, it's the craziest thing. I stumbled into the casino, and they offered me the job of standing next to tables. They even gave me this pager and arranged for a furnished apartment. They said that I’m a cooler.” JJ said.
“Well, that explains what I saw when you came in. It’s going to take me a week to put back the luck that you drained off the crystals that I actually charged.” Arnie said.
“Luck, there is no such thing. I think you're as crazy as the rest of this town,” JJ said.
“Luck is real, and you are the biggest black hole of luck I have ever seen,” Arnie said.
“Black hole? You sound like you can see something different about me. You make it seem that those pit bosses aren’t crazy and have a good reason to pay me.” JJ said.
“No, they are not crazy. They do have a good reason to pay you,” Arnie said. “You are a very unique person.”
“Beep, Beep, Beep.” JJ’s beeper made the sound of money. “Well, speaking of crazy people, It sounds like I’m needed. It’s been interesting talking to you, Arnie.”
“Stop by anytime; it is always good to talk to a fellow practitioner. By the way, I never got your name.” Arnie said.
“Oh, that's right. I never told you. It’s JJ, and I’m not a practitioner.”
“No, but you will be. With that natural ability, you will need to learn about the reality you can’t see just to protect yourself. You will attract all kinds of … people.”
“Ok, I’ll stop by again,” JJ said as he stepped out.
* * *
JJ had stopped by one other time, but Arnie had a few customers and couldn’t talk. He started to look around, but Arnie gave him a pained look when he approached the expensive crystals, so he headed out.
On the way out, JJ told Arnie, “I will stop by again so we can discuss the beneficence of Ra.”
* * *
The bus showed up just then. It was still early enough in the day that traffic wasn’t horrible, so it only took a few minutes to get to the stop closest to the Crystal Palace, and JJ was quickly walking into the cool of the store.
“Hey, Arnie,” JJ said, opening the door and not seeing any customers.
“JJ, it's good to see you,” Arnie said from a shelf where he was dusting. “I’ve been thinking about you since you first stopped by, and I want to develop a course of learning.”
“Whoa, slow down there. I just wanted to talk about what's happening to me,” JJ said.
“Well, we can do that, but it would be a lot easier if I taught you how to be a magic practitioner.”
“That may be, but that seems a little bit too much for me. I’m just a country boy from Salt…” JJ stopped talking before he repeated the same line he had said every time someone asked him where he came from.
“Wow, that was interesting,” Arnie said.
“What? What was interesting?” JJ asked, shaking his head, trying to clear a sudden fog.
“You seemed to blank out for a few seconds,” Arnie said. “You were talking, then just stopped and stood there with a blank expression on your face. I think you should spend some time here with me,” Arnie said.
“I guess, if you can tell me why I’m a cooler, then I guess I can spend some time here,” JJ said, ignoring most of what Arnie had just said.
“I have been thinking about that,” Arnie said, not wanting to press JJ on what caused him to blank out. “I have been reading, and I want to try some things. Do you have a few minutes?”
“Yeah, I haven’t had any pages yet,” JJ said.
“Good. Go back and have some water, or if you want, there is some tea and an electric kettle.” Arnie said. “I will be there in a second. I just have to retrieve something.”
“Hot tea in this heat? No, thank you, but I will have some water.” JJ said.
There was a new book on the table in another language that JJ did not understand. The pictures in this book were only geometric shapes of different kinds. He started flipping through it when he heard Arnie's automated voice welcoming a customer.
“Well, at least I have something to look at while he takes advantage of a sucker’s greed,” JJ said to himself.
“Some of these are very intricate,” JJ said as he continued to turn pages.
He reached a series of pictures that looked a lot like what he’d been doodling since he got into town.
JJ was trying to figure out what the shapes meant by deciphering any of the unknown words. The words had only a few letters of a standard English alphabet, as well as a mix of Cyrillic, Greek, and other characters.
“You are really studying that. Do you understand any of it?” Arnie asked.
“Uhh, no, but these shapes look a lot like what I’ve been doodling recently,” JJ said, looking up as Arnie came into the room. “What are these?”
“That one you are looking at is a protection rune. Most of the others around that one are also protection runes,” Arnie said. “Here, take this.” Arnie handed JJ a small, flattened metal egg with symbols carved on it.
“Ouch, what is that? Some kind of joy buzzer?” JJ said as he dropped it onto the table after getting shocked by it.
“Hmm, no, it's a simple lucky charm,” Arnie said.
“I’m not understanding something. If it’s a lucky charm, why did it shock me, and where are the marshmallows?” JJ asked.
“The shock was because of your ability to drain luck. You drain luck so fast that it acts like a static shock,” Arnie said, ignoring the reference to a kid’s sugar cereal as he reached down to pick up the metal piece. “Here, feel it.”
“No way. You already tricked me once,” JJ said.
“It’s drained already. It won’t hurt you now. Here, just feel it.” Arnie insisted.
JJ took the piece from him. “Wow, it's very warm, almost hot.”
“That’s from the quick drain of luck,” Arnie said.
“So what does that mean?” JJ asked.
“I don’t know,” Arnie said.
“Then why did you shock me like that if it didn’t tell you anything,” JJ said.
“I had to know how intense your ability to drain luck is. Now I know that it is better than I’ve ever seen, and it's probably not natural.” Arnie said.
JJ sat for a moment, looking at the piece of metal as he turned it in his hand. “How is that …” JJ started to say when the automated voice announced its message. “Well, on that note, I think I will head out and see what’s happening on the north end of the strip,” JJ said.
“Go out the back door so I don’t have to say anything about you. It’s the door at the end of the hall.”