Chapter 1: That which sustained my soul has rotten me

"Your receipt, you can keep the freaking change." - Jojo's Bizarre Adventure} [Jotaro kujo]

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What is a place that everyone has dreamed of going to but knows deep in their souls that it is literally hell on Earth? The saying "hell on Earth" would be an understatement if comparing it to children on Christmas hearing that they are getting coal as presents while they cry.

It is a place that one could go and look at it as if it was an oasis made for them, a place they could pluck out all their greed and try their luck to fulfill their dreams. Anything could happen one just needed luck.

However, the reality of it all is written on tombstones. It is not a place to achieve something great, no, it is a place where dreams go to die, where a big strong lone wolf with one scarred eye walks in but comes out a shaved sheep lam. Where a promise of making it big always ends up in failure, but if you ask anyone knowing the place is hell on Earth to go for a trip , they would ask who would want to visit hell?

Asking a question that one would not be able to reason with, a question that questions the fool who looks at the questionnaire like a Joker card itself.

One such fool was a man named Ace. Ironic one might say as a Joker card is held in high regard. Yet one must alone mention that the Joker is a double edge sword when it comes to cards. Ace was such a man that played the Joker Ironically or one might say coincidence as it had backfired on him.

It was funny to him as someone with the name of Ace and while knowing cards, Joker was better than an Ace. He found it even funnier why his cunts of parents didn't name him the joker? The only true trump in the "house rules."

"Hahahaha" laughing hysterically Ace thought of the notion of even when playing the Joker, even while being the fool he had hit rock bottom.

Looking down Ace could see his reflection in the puddle beside him as drops of rain create ripples of waves in it while splashing. If one were to look at him one would guess that he was a man in his 20s. A person who is sitting rested in an alleyway with blue hair down to his back laughing like a mad man. His face was not a lot to see, it was plain as if he had switched faces with someone from a reality show but what one could notice was the deep blue eyes. The eyes were looking at the sky as the mad man was lining against a dumpster with a phone that seems to have a broken screen. The words that one would describe him if any were to passed by would be mentally ill.

Ace the man guilty as charge himself did not care for the matter of fact that people saw him laugh like a psychopath. No, he was recollecting his life to that very moment. How he grew up with a strict family that where ever he went he felt like he had electronic tagging around his leg. Not being free to do what he wanted to do. As he thought about it he shouted;

"Ha Hah, THOSE BASTERS NEVER ONCE WANTED TO SEE ME PROGRESSED IN LIFE!!" He did not find it a good selling point for him to have his freedom restricted. He felt like a slave to a cult that's so-called "Family." Much more when he saw to accomplish great things in life, having his way of life before restricted from him.

"Sign" with the deep blue eyes he lamented on the things that could have and should have been. After that, though he once again stair into the rainy sky like a mad lad having a bit of laughter on the bottom of his lips as a small smile appeared on his face. It wasn't that he had gone insane from looking at his past but was looking at his teenage years, how he escaped the clutches of his enslavement of his family by playing the death card. Faking one's death!!!

"Ha, A cliché move but a smart one non the less" as he spoke to himself on the endeavor of getting away. How he found a place and started making money while only finding entertainment in anime, manga, video games, and comics.

Like déjà vu thinking about the old days made him come back to why he had come to a place such as This, a place like Las Vegas, a place where one could make it big or go home… at least for those who have nothing to lose even when spending money all day.

Ace knew of this but wanted to make it big in the world and the only place that one could turn any bits of money into a mansion was this place and the only place to play for money, Las Vegas. But as he is looking at the sky showing the deep blue ocean of his eyes that seems to not even have a wave even when the rain comes in contact with it. He spoke out like it would not matter if someone heard him, not that there was anyone there too.

"What a wasteful, looks like this time the Jokers on me haha…" Ace showed a glance of disappointment in understanding his situation as money-making was already hard enough with small bets but could not help knowing to continue is to play the same game, a game made by the prying party pertained to for that party to gain money and no one else. He knew of such tactics as he had played lots of video games that showed such things but in different situations.

.He looked at his phone with nostalgia as he thought '2020 was a shitty year and 2021 didn't make it any better' he sigh as he continued ' I wish I had known what those 2 years would have brought me and this one, especially this shitty year' as he thought, Ace face could be seen with irritation and annoyance. He was thinking if this was his family of a cult doings or just karma that befalls people who have bad luck.

At the start of the year 2022, was when he felt bewildered about having to fail over and over again. The present of money he was making was 10% out of 100%. Not enough to grow past the losses that he had taken and comebacks that he could not have.

He could not help but let out a breath of air if one were to see the look on his face, the irritated isolated cold breath that seem to hold much to what would be considered a simple reflex. He thought as he looked at what he had lost since the start of the year 2022. 'It doesn't get any better than this huh, well even if am at death's door there is no use in crying over split milk, even if I starve to death'

Thinking of such things Ace looked at his phone, the only thing that could distract him from his failure at playing the Joker card, failure for being the fool. He sights nonchalantly as he said.

"A fool is someone who knows better but acts like someone who doesn't know but who am I to talk hah" As he was laughing at his ordeal he looked up to see one of his favorite games to distract him, Chess. The game of the mind.

Before he would even play he felt his hand shaking caused by vibration as a notification showed a text message, his eyes were intrigued as he thought 'since when did I start getting text messages, much less from who knows who' It was something that distracted Ace momentarily from where he was at.

As he open the notification the bright light of the screen showed a reflection over the cold blue ocean of his much like a moon's light reflecting off the ocean surface.

It was an interesting notification to him as what he could see was only one question, which he read nonchalantly. "Do you wish to start anew?『YES or NO』 It was something that seemed interesting in his imagination but it only brought laughter out of him. "Hahaha hah, fools who do you think I am, even a two-year-old child would know that they are being tricked"

As he followed up with more lines that would make him win an Oscar if he was a comedian, Ace knowing that nothing would happen pressed 『YES 』as he laughed at his choice, " Hah, today is the day we all become fools"

As he has said that sentence nonchalantly but in his mind was a mix of annoyance irritating laughter and a bit of seriousness.

He was about to have another thought but couldn't as the electrical signal that was heading to their destination to the next neurons had been stuck in the middle, if one were to take an outside perspective far away from his brain one could see his face him getting sucked into the very broken screen of his so-called phone.