Welcome to the Tabernacle: Henry and the Middle Man

>Henry knows he’s made a mistake in coming here.
>When he first arrived, everything seemed so promising.
>The Tabernacle, an underground casino is nothing special, but there was something extra here.
>A new member is given ten thousand dollars at the front with only one stipulation.
>They must make five bets of at least a thousand dollars before leaving.
>Which meant that even if he lost all five bets he could walk out with half that money for free.
>On paper, that’s a steal.
>In practice? Well…
>Henry has lost twenty thousand dollars already.
>Sure, the minimum bet he had to make was a thousand, but that didn’t help much once he sat down at the poker table.
>His initial bet of a thousand quickly rose until he lost five grand on the first hand of poker.
>And from there Henry’s luck did not increase.
>He did manage to win one hand, but that win did not lead into a streak.
>Which has brought Henry to where he is now.
>Five games in and owing ten thousand dollars.
>Now, in a normal casino, he’d have turned his money into chips and once he was out of chips, that was that.
>This casino works like a bar tab.
>One don’t have to pay right away, you don’t even need the money.
>Which means despite you only having ten thousand in your account, Henry could lose far more.
>A detail which Henry happened to overlook at the time.
>But now, the moment he steps out of this place, he’s in debt.
>And debt means interest, monthly payments, and all that fun stuff.
>Henry can’t have that.

>Now, Henry could try his hand at gambling some more to fix his debt.
>The credit based system means he technically could gamble indefinitely.
>But at the same time he could just simply dig his hole even deeper.
>His worries growing, Henry walked around the casino floor.
>Men in suits smoked on cigars lazily as people in more casual wear are playing the games.
>It’s strange, one normally would think a place like this would be a place where the more wealthy business type would play.
>What with the high prices and all.
>Henry walks up to a man sitting over at the slot machines.
>His eyes are bloodshot with bags under them.
>His hair is a mess and he’s all around unkempt.
“Hey, are you okay?”
>The man starts the slots up again, not even looking at you.
>”A-am I okay?” he asks weakly.
>The three wheels stop on seven, cherries, seven.
>”No, I’m not.”
>His voice feels hollow and weak.
>”I’ve… I’ve been here for… days… I can’t leave…”
“Why not?”
>He turns around to face Henry, his body shaking with either rage or fear.
>”I can’t go home with this debt, I can’t! I need to get lucky… I… I…”
>A man in a suit sits up, looking over at the two of them.
>The haggard man instantly turns back around, mumbling.
>”I… I just really want to keep playing…”
>A deep, overwhelming despair begins to bubble up in Henry.
>He’s not going to wind up like this, is he?
>There has to be another way.

>After some looking around, Henry’s desperation has reached a fever pitch.
>Coming here was wrong, he should have just stuck to playing dime poker with his friends.
>He’d give back all that money if he could.
>But that’s not an option anymore, is it?
>With his tail proverbially between his legs, he sulked up towards the receptionist who he talked who when he first arrived.
>”How may I help you?” she asks with a sickeningly sweet smile.
“I… I don’t think I can pay back what I owe…”
>She nods, looking down at her little podium.
>”You’re in luck sir, I believe our high stakes table has an opening!”
“No, no, I don’t want to gamble anymore…”
>She shakes her head, giggling.
>”This isn’t normal gambling sir, this is one of our most popular attractions!”
“S-so?”
>”The spectators pay good money to watch this. So, to encourage players to join we wipe out their debts.”
“Only to play more and owe more money, right?”
>”No, no, the high stakes table doesn’t gamble with just money. In fact, many play without ever wagering a cent!”
>Henry thinks back to the man slaving over those slots.
“How come a lot of people aren’t taking this option?”
>”Embarrassment. After all, who wants to admit to a casino they’re deep in the red? It takes guts, so only those who ask can be considered for the high risk table.”
“And… I don’t have to bet any money?”
>”Not a cent sir.”
“Sure, let’s try it…”
>”Excellent, now just follow me!”

>He follows her into a back room.
>Most on the casino floor hardly even notice him disappearing.
>Save for the few suited men who trail behind.
>After walking down a long hallway, Henry finds himself looking down on a large blackjack table.
>There are studio lights set up, illuminating the whole thing as if it were on television.
>But that’s not the strangest part.
>The dealer sitting at the table is no human.
>They’re a small… horse?
>Saffron colored fur with a dark black coat, a horn protruding from their head.
“Wh-what is that?”
>The woman giggles slightly, stopping to let you gawk for a moment.
>”That’s Lady Luck, she used to be a regular here, but turns out she’s quite the card shark. We just had to have her work this table.”
“But… that’s a horse.”
>”A pony actually, she prefers pony.” the woman corrects.
“Right…”
>Henry feels as if he’s stepped into a dream.
>A horse dealing blackjack in the back of a casino?
>This is insane.
>Noticing his apprehension, the woman puts a hand on his shoulder.
>”I know this is strange, but the high risk table is the best way to absolve your debt.”
>Gulping, he nods.

>In the time it took him to be lead to the table, a few others have been brought in.
>In total there are four other players at the table.
>Once seated, Henry can’t help but stare at the pony.
>She’s levitating a deck of cards, bridge shuffling them in mid air with a grin on her face.
>This has to be some kind of special effect.
>Like a puppet or animatronic.
>And the cards are… mirrors?
>Magnets?
>His conspiracy theories are quickly cut off though.
>”Oh! Everyone is here? Great!” exclaims the pony as she sets down the deck.
>There’s a mixed reaction from everybody at the table.
>Some seem eager, others far more apprehensive.
>”Well, I’m Lady Luck, and I’ll be your dealer this evening! Of all the special games we offer, I’m elated that you all chose to play at my table!”
>Her ear twitches a bit as she stops talking.
>There’s an earpiece clipped on to it.
>”Oh, I mean, I’m glad you all decided to participate in our debt recovery program!”
>She giggles softly as Henry is left to ponder what she meant by “special games.”
>”Anywho, we’ve got to play a game and then everybody can go home happy with all their money~!”
>A screen behind the pony lights up, revealing a list of sorts.
>”Tonight we shall be playing a fan favorite game: Middle Man! I would appreciate it if you all took this moment to read over the rules!” says the horse, pointing her hoof at the screen.
>Henry, still weirded out by everything going on, reads the screen’s list.

>Middle Man: A Game of Being Insignificant!
>The goal of Middle Man is simple, to have the least points by the end of the game.
>One gains a point by having played either the lowest or highest face value card.
>Each round consists of a player playing a card from their hand face down, then revealing their cards once all have decided.
>The three players in the middle of the range of card values receive not points.
>Each player has been given the cards two through ten, and only one copy of each.
>If a player earns a point in a round, they may draw a card from the dealer’s deck.
>Cards in the dealer’s deck can be any card, including a face card or Joker.
>A Joker gives every other player a point the round it is played.
>If there is a tie for highest or lowest, both players receive that point.
>Best of luck!

>Henry isn’t sure what to make of the game.
>It feels overly simple to be played at a casino, there has to be some sort of catch.
>There is some strategy, if one can keep track of high value cards already played or not played, they can play around it.
>But then again, the dealer’s deck throws a wrench in that, doesn’t it?
>Those cards can be anything and are impossible to count.
>Not that Henry wholly minds that, he knows that he won’t be counting cards and having opponents be able to is worrisome.
>The real question is, why would this be an attraction people pay good money to watch?
>Looking around, Henry sees no seating, let alone spectators.
>He thinks back, remembering how the hallway above had a window…
>Sure enough, there’s several suited men watching from above.
>Shuddering, he faces forward once again.
>”Everybody ready to begin?” asks Lady Luck.
>All the players slowly agree.
>Clapping her hooves together, the horse’s horn begins to glow as cards fly around, landing in front of all the players.
>That’s probably the weirdest dealing Henry’s seen.
>But everything about tonight is his weirdest gambling experience, so he’s not even fazed anymore.
>”Everybody got their hand? Great! Let’s start round one! You have thirty seconds to choose your card!”
>Henry thinks for a moment.
>Nobody wants to get a point, and with so many cards in hand, there’s not a lot of wiggle room.
>So, instead of getting rid of his middle cards this round, he can drop a higher or lower one.
>Feeling confident, Henry slams down his ten, just to get rid of it.

>The cards played this round are: two fives, a four, a two, and your ten.
>”Henry and George you both get a point! Sorry!” exclaims Lady Luck.
>A scoreboard appears on the screen, a big “1” next to Henry’s name.
>As that happens, his ears suddenly feel odd, as if they’re being pushed on by some unknown force.
>Wincing, Henry instinctively grabs them.
>They’re softer than before, covered in hairs.
>Within moments he feels them slowly shift upward finding themselves atop his head.
>Looking over at another man at the table, he sees equine ears twitching on his head.
>Henry tries to convince himself that his ears are different, but he certainly doesn’t feel like it.
“Wh-what the hell is this?!”
>Lady Luck giggles, leaning in.
>”Did I forget to mention? Every point will turn you more and more into a pony like me! So, if you aren’t into that, I’d play carefully from now on!”
>”Wh-what the fuck? Fix my damn ears!” shouts the man you assume Is George.
>”The person with the lowest point total will have his changes reversed if he so chooses, everybody else however is stuck with what they’ve been given!” Luck retorts.
>Henry looks around, still touching his fuzzy ears.
>Is this why people are watching?
>And… if this is only one of their “special games…”
>He shudders, not even wanting to know what else may be here.
>Right now, he just needs to focus on winning.

>Lady Luck tosses Henry and George another card, a part of the rules to this no longer simple game.
>Still shaken, Henry slowly picks up the card and adds it to his hand.
>Joker.
>Thinking back to the rules, he feels a slight bit of relief.
>This card basically negates a turn and gives everyone else a point.
>A part of him wants to save it, but the more he thinks about it, the more he wants to use it now.
>Right now everybody is going to be using their good cards to avoid points, especially knowing the stakes.
>So, instead of burning one his fives or fours now, he can use this.
>It’ll bring him into a four way tie for second and push George to two points.
>He might feel bad if he actually knew anybody here, but right now all he knows is that he needs to fix his ears.
>”And now for round two!” exclaims Lady Luck.
>The timer once again starts back up, quickly ticking down.
>Henry wastes no time placing his Joker down.
>The cards revealed are Five, six, three, four, and Joker.
>The others at the table wince as their ears become large and technicolor.
>George swears loudly as a long tail rips from behind him, swishing back and forth slowly.
>”You son of a bitch!” yells George, slamming on the table with his fist.
>In this moment Henry is easily the least liked person amongst those playing.
>But, lucky for him, directly attacking other players is not an option.
>Lady Luck deals cards out to the other four players, a smile still plastered on her face.
>”Round three, here we go!”

>Henry plays a four, not sure what else to go with at the moment.
>Everybody is looking at each other warily, not trusting anybody for even a moment.
>Two rounds in and everybody already is at each others throats.
>After all, only one person gets to fix their body at the end of this.
>After the timer is up, Lady Luck frowns for the first time.
>”George, you forgot to play your card!”
>He stares at the pony indignantly, his cards sitting on the edge of the table.
>”Fuck you, I’m not playing your stupid game!” he bellows.
>Lady Luck winces at being yelled at, but manages to hold her composure.
>”Well, that’s just not an option George! You came to my table to absolve your debt, and this is how you do it!” she replies.
>”Fuck off you horse!”
>”Very well, I suppose I shall play for you by proxy.” she says, flatly, floating his cards over to her.
>With a smirk, she plays a card in front of him, flipping it over.
>A ten.
>”Oh my George! An interesting play~!”
>The cards on the table are George’s ten, Henry’s four, a three, a six, and another four.
>George winces as a sharp ripping noise is heard.
>Upon looking under the table, Henry notices George’s feet have become lavender color hooves.
>The man on the far end of the table has grown a tail as well, according to the point totals, his name is Paul.
>The look in George’s eyes is a mix of rage and terror.
>”You bitch! You played my highest card!” he yells.
>”Highest? I dunno, this ace you just drew seems pretty high!” she teases.
>With that, he jumps forward, lunging at Lady Luck.
>”Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!”

>His attack however does not go nearly as well as he had hoped.
>Lady Luck’s horn glows instantly, sending him flying.
>He crashes into the wall with a loud crack, leaving him crumpled on the ground.
>”I am so sorry about that!” Lady Luck insists, talking more to the other players and viewers than the man she just threw.
>Henry is awe struck, staring at George with wide eyes.
>”As much as we wish George would play with us, his actions are grounds to eject him from the game, but don’t worry, you’ll still have scored rather high George!”
>With a sickening amount of glee, Lady Luck gestures to the board, where the number next to George’s name has become a ten.
>In that brief moment, George has been carted off, for when Henry turned back to look at him, he was gone.
>”I hope you four aren’t too startled, I know that was a lot of commotion for your sensitive new ears!”
>She quickly shuffles his cards into her deck, and stretches.
>”Before we get back into the game, does anybody have any questions?” she asks.
“Um… yeah…”
>Looking over at Henry, she rests her head on a hoof.
>”And that is~?”
“H-how many rounds are there?”
>She giggles a little.
>”Oh, that’s the beauty of Middle Man! It only goes until only one person is below ten points!”
>Henry gulps upon hearing that.
>What she’s saying is that everybody who loses is going to lose totally.
>If ten is the cap, that means ten points and you’re a pony.
>He thinks back to George for a moment, feeling a little bad for the guy.
>”No more questions? Great, on to the next round!”

>The game carries on uneventfully for a bit.
>Henry’s short lucky streak was quickly ended as he found himself growing a flowing tail.
>Looking back, it was a soft, bubblegum pink.
>Great, just great.
>Thankfully the game seemed awfully balanced for the most part, Henry never pulled ahead in points for too long.
>He was the last player to feel his feet mush and reform into solid hooves, but he was the first one to notice fur growing all over his body.
>Pink fur.
>Needless to say Henry’s motivation to win grew tenfold.
>The tingling sensation of hairs growing at such an intense rate rattled him, but he knew that he’d have to keep going.
>If he could just win, all of this would go away.
>Not only his debt, but all of these strange horse parts.
>Lady Luck sure isn’t helping his nerves.
>”You know, based on your colors, you’d swear we included some gender changing aspect to the game!” she sneers as she slid you a card.
“Whatever…”
>”Don’t worry though, you’ll still be a male! We can’t have just mares running around.”
>That statement made Henry wonder.
>Just how often is this game played?
>It’s scary to think about.
>A part of him wants to talk with the others about it, but he knows that would be futile.
>This is no game, it’s a battle.
>And there’s no room for friendliness in battle.

>Paul is the first among the players to really start slipping.
>While the game favors a more balanced spread of point increase, Paul seemingly began to lose every round.
>It doesn’t take long for his points to rise up, more and more of his body changing.
>His button up shirt looks loose on his body, his left hand is a useless hoof, and his hair is a long, chestnut mane.
>Not to mention the fur covering his body.
>While everybody has only just begun to noticeably grow fur and mane, Paul’s other hand too falls to the game.
>Lady Luck however has an easy solution for this.
>Paul’s cards are put in a little stand, and he can push them out with a hoof.
>Lady Luck can use her magic to help do it neatly.
>This however does nothing to improve his loosing streak.
>Which is good for everybody else, Paul almost always has the high card.
>It seems that in the early game he played through most of his small cards, which even then didn’t always help.
>Because for the past couple turns he has not played a card lower than a six.
>Henry is not too far behind him, his left hand being the second to become cloven.
>But by then, Paul is already at nine points.
>When everybody else usually gets one point every two to three turns, and Paul gets one every turn, it’s a recipe for disaster.
>Yet Paul never once complains, he sits there silently, his face the last remarkably human thing left to him.
>But, as he reveals his first low card in rounds, a four, that too is lost.
>The cards are a four, six, eight, and king.
>Meaning he has finally hit ten points.
>With a sharp gasp, his face pushes out into an equine muzzle.
>He teeters around in his seat, confused and dizzy.
>In that moment, a few people come up, carrying him out of the room.

>Henry looks up at the scoreboard nervously, rubbing his hoof.
>The totals are seven, six, and seven now.
>Three more points and he’s just like that.
>Thinking back to Paul’s changes, next he’ll lose his right hand.
>Then he’ll shrink down to the size of a pony in full, along with his coat finishing growing in.
>Then the head.
>The past several rounds have consisted of slow but subtle changes, more fur, legs bending differently, stuff like that.
>But now the next ones are all drastic.
>Lady Luck starts the round and Henry shakily chooses a six he drew recently.
>Only one person escapes a round without a point now.
>And this round, that honor goes to Henry.
>His remaining opponents grimace as their changes run their course, the stand once being used for Paul now being slid over to Martin.
>Seven, seven, and eight.
>The next round sees Henry play the lowest card.
>His eyes shoot open wide as he watches his fingers lose any form, melding together into a hard hoof.
>A little stand is brought over to him as well, his cards put into it by some unknown assistant.
>Eight, eight, and eight.
>Henry loses the next round as well.
>His spine cracks as his now small body realigns itself.
>A thought occurs to Henry as this happens.
>He may never walk on two legs again.
>Nine, eight, nine.
>One more loss and it’s over.
>The game will only last two more rounds at most.

>Martin and Henry are both on the brink.
>Both know that one of them will lose next turn.
>Martin leans in, looking at Henry.
>”Hey, this is all kinds of fucked, isn’t it?”
>Henry nods, gulping.
”The odds are pretty shitty for us.”
>”Ain’t that the truth… say, how good are your cards right now?”
>Henry looks his over, shaking a little.
>He has a two, a three, and a seven.
“Alright, I guess, how about yours?”
>”Awful. I managed mine like shit. I’ve only got high end stuff right now.”
>Henry’s ears twitch slightly upon hearing this.
>Did he really spill that information?
>Or is he trying to throw Henry off?
>This is the first small talk all night and Henry wishes it never happened.
>It’s only confusing him more now.
>The player between the two of them doesn’t say a word however.
>He just stares forward at the board.
>He is the only player who can survive this round, he’s got the best position out of anybody.
>Next round, even if he’s at nine points, he goes against…
>Someone else with nine points.
“This is rigged!”
>Lady Luck looks over, concerned.
>”What now?”
“Th-The game! There’s no way anybody can win! If highest and lowest both get a point, then…”
>Martin catches on too, his eyes going wide.
>”Oh, don’t be silly. This game is quite fair! It’s just that our friend George skewed the game by leaving so early. It is a shame!” Lady Luck says, still cheery.
>Henry feels like he’s going to be sick to his stomach, there’s nothing he can do.
>There is no way out.
>That damn George fucked up this game!
>Everybody is going to lose!

>”Alright everybody, this looks like it may very well be the final round, so play your hearts out!” Lady Luck cheers.
>Martin is sobbing softly, his head hung in defeat.
>Henry is shaking, trying to figure out some way out of this.
>David, the player in the middle, however is calm, confidently sliding a card out of the stand.
>Seeing no other option, Henry plays his seven.
>Martin refuses to play anything, leading to Lady Luck taking his turn by proxy.
>She flips his over first, an eight.
>Henry’s heart skips a beat for a moment, he may have a turn left!
>Then he can petition for the game’s rules to change in the final round so there’s a winner.
>That is, until she flips over David’s card.
>Joker.
>That’s when it hits him.
>The game isn’t unbeatable.
>The Joker card.
>If he had just saved that damn Joker!
>Tears begin welling up in Henry’s eyes as both his and Martin’s scores hit ten.
>”Wow! David! What a clutch victory!” Lady Luck compliments, clapping her hooves together.
>”Fix me.” he demands, speaking for the first time.
>As promised, he is quickly returned to his human form, breathing a sharp sigh of relief.
>Meanwhile Henry and David’s faces stretch outward, becoming muzzles.
>Muzzles that will be there forever.
>Shaken, Henry hardly even registers being picked up by a burly man and carted off.
>Just as he hardly registers his slow fade into unconsciousness.

>When Henry comes to, he’s lying naked on the ground.
>Despite the fur covering his body, he can’t help but feel strange.
>Sitting up, he wobbles on his quadrupedal body.
>He’s in a cage, in some dark room.
>After a while, he’s approached by someone.
>It’s the receptionist lady.
>”Are you awake? Oh, excellent!”
“What… do you want…?”
>Henry’s voice is slurred slightly, the sensation of talking with a horse snout all new to him.
>”Well, as you can tell, you lost, and that means you’re a pony now.”
“Yeah, I got that part…”
>”Well, your debt is cleared, but now you are technically an asset of the Tabernacle.”
“Are you saying I’m… property?”
>”In a way yes, but don’t let that discourage you, there are many options for you in-”
“Fuck you! Fuck you and your goddamn casino! I wish I never walked in here!”
>Henry explodes, too angry to think straight.
>”Henry, I must advise you to calm down. Those that misbehave do not get a preferential role…” she says, trying to hush him.
>But he’s having none of that, he keeping screaming at her at the top of his lungs.
>He doesn’t want to be a pink horse, he doesn’t want to be at this casino, he wants to go home!
>Sighing, the woman makes a call on her phone.
>”Yes, I’m afraid he is being belligerent. Oh, you got Martin to calm down? That’s good…”
>She pauses every so often as the other person on the line talks.
>”I know we can’t waste time but… I know… Lewis, have a heart, you know what these poor-”
>She winces, moving the phone away from her ear slightly.
>”I understand, I’ll prep him for the auction immediately. Just… please let me handle the others. Having two be auctioned off tonight is more than enough.”
>Another pause.
>”Thank you Lewis, I’ll see you there.”

>She hangs up with a sigh, wiping tears from her eyes.
>”This is your fault you know, I tried to help you.”
“Help me?! You call this helping me?!”
>”Well, it’s certainly a better option than what you have in store for you now.”
“And that is?”
>”We sometimes auction off the rowdy ponies to the audience. Or ponies who volunteer for the auction. You will be sold to the highest bidder.”
>Her voice is soft and distant, the care she was treating him with earlier now gone.
>Regret starts to build up in Henry.
>Perhaps he should have listened.
>He most definitely doesn’t want to get auctioned off.
“H-hey, you should have lead with that! I’ll be good now, I promise!”
>”I wish I could accept that, but Lewis… he doesn’t like taking chances.”
>The woman walks a short bit away, returning with what looks like a pistol.
“Are you g-going to fucking shoot me?!”
>”It’s just a tranquilizer Henry, you’ll be unconscious for three hours, disoriented for another three. Please hold still.”
>His tail goes behind his legs as he whimpers, edging backwards in the cage.
>”Th-thank you for choosing the Tabernacle this fine evening.” she says, her voice catching slightly.
>Closing her eyes, she pulls the trigger.
>Despite Henry moving abruptly at the last moment, the dart still catches his neck.
>Within in moments, he’s fast feeling drowsy.
>He lies down, his eyes feeling oh so heavy.
>Just a little sleep won’t hurt.
>When he wakes up, this nightmare will all be over.
>He’ll be back at home… back in bed…
>”Yes, you can come pick him up. Starting bid will be-”
>Everything will be back to normal…
>And Henry slept.