“That’s him. That’s the Sen-Sen Ante Kid.”
“THAT’S the Kid???!!”
The man in the door was enormous, he was huge .. . that is to say, he was Massha’s size. For some reason, I had been expecting someone closer to my own age. This character, though, was something else.
He was totally hairless, no beard, no eyebrows, and completely bald. His skin was light blue in color, and that combined with his fat and wrinkles gave the overall impression of a half-deflated blue bowling ball. His eyes were extremely dark, however, and glittered slightly as they fixed on me.
“That’s the Kid?” I repeated.
Aahz shrugged. “He’s had the title for a long time.”
The man-mountain had two bags with him which looked very similar to the ones Aahz had carried for us.
He handed them casually to one of the onlookers.
“Cash me in!” he ordered in a booming voice. “I hear there’s a game here tonight.”
For some reason, this brought a loud round of laughter and applause from the audience. I didn’t think it was all that funny, but I smiled politely. The Kid’s eyes noted my lack of enthusiasm and glittered with increased ferocity.
“You must be the Great Skeeve.”
His voice was a dangerous purr, but it still reverberated off the walls. He moved toward me with a surprisingly light tread, holding out his hand in welcome.
The crowd seemed to hold its breath.
“… And you must be the one they call the Sen-Sen Ante Kid.” I responded, abandoning my hand into his grip.
Again I was surprised . . . this time by the gentleness of his handshake.