A harsh clack from the intercom interrupted the ruffling cards, the clinking chips, and the staccato tumble of dice. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, I regret to inform you that Franklin “Two Chip” Johannes has just passed away,” an elderly woman rasped over the speakers. “In honor of his life, and to remember the pair of Melange poker chips he always carried with him, we will observe two minutes of silence. Thank you.”

A story by Lucas X. Wiseman