Coin Toss

Chainbeard pulled out the gold coin for one final coin flip. This last game was going to be between Erika and First Mate Hugo. I had to admit, I felt a bit uneasy having to fully count on her. Hugo may not have supernatural luck like Chainbeard, but he was still a skilled gambler despite his mild mannered demeanor. I hoped there was some kind of game Erika was good at.

"Why don't you flip." Hugo said, deferring the coin to Erika.

She once again held the coin in her hand. She looked at both sides for a few moments then spoke, "I pick heads."

She held the coin in her palm and then threw it up. It fell onto the table and spun on its side a bit, until it finally settled... It was heads!

Erika won, so she had the choice of game. This at least gave her a slightly better chance of winning.

"Looks like you win. What game are we playing?" Hugo said.

"Can I make a suggestion to the girl?" I spoke up.

"Unfortunately, I can nah let ye do that. It's her choice, so ye can nah influence it." Chainbeard responded sternly.

I was hoping I could guide her a bit to try to pick a game she could for sure win. All I could do now was hope she could make a good decision on her own.

"Hmm... What should I choose?... No offense, but you guys like some really boring old man games… I guess I'll pick something easy and quick. How about... Ummm... Maybe... Uhhh... Let's just do a best 2 out of 3 coin toss." She said.

"Alright, seems fine to me." Hugo responded.

I wasn’t sure how to feel about her decision. On one hand at least it didn't take any skill to toss a coin, but on the other she was leaving this competition entirely up to luck.

Erika picked up the coin,

"here, you can have a turn throwing it Mr. Pirate."

She handed it over to Hugo. He fiddled with the coin between his fingers for a few moments.

"Heads or tails young lady?" He asked.

"I'll do heads again."

Hugo flicked the coin up quite high. It nearly touched the ceiling. It fell back towards the table and bounced a bit before settling... And it landed on heads! So far so good. Maybe this would work out after all. She just needed to win one more.

"Looks like you won the first toss. Why don't you flip it this time." Hugo said.

"Okay, I'll do tails this time," Erika said.

She threw the coin up. It hit the table on its side and spun a bit. Eventually it stopped spinning... Neither won!?

The coin somehow managed to land on its side. The chances of that happening are slim to none. Most people think coin tosses are a certain 50/50 probability for each face, but most don't take into account the unlikely odds of it landing on its side. The chances are low, but not impossible.

"Huh. I guess we'll just have to flip again." Erika said, a bit surprised.

She threw the coin up again and... Same thing!

They tried it again and again and again. Each time the coin ended up on its side. I had no idea how it kept happening. Statistically I'm not even sure if this was possible.

Chainbeard laughed, "She might jus' 'ave the Devil's luck jus' like me."

Next was her seventh attempt throwing the coin. She tossed the coin once again. This time it hit the table without bouncing or rolling and landed straight on a face... I guess seven was her lucky number because it landed on tails.

"Did I just win!?" Erika said excitedly.

I felt completely relieved. We had won. Now we could get that key and get out of here.

Chainbeard spoke while clapping,

"Congratulations Arno! I be a scallywag o' me word, so here's the key I promised."

He handed over the key.

"I be goin' t' let ye in on a wee secret me bucko. Whether ye won or lost I was goin' t' give ye that key. The purpose o' this whole competition was jus' t' stall ye long enough fer Master Lucian t' come up here."

I completely paused after hearing what he had said. It would be bad news if Lucian got in our way. In the state I was in, there was no way I could take him. Without an ounce of hesitation, I grabbed Erika by the arm and began rushing towards the exit. I went over to the locked box with the key and began opening it, when;

"Arno, wait!" A voice said from behind me.

It was Lucian!…