“What’s next?” asked Milli her eyes now shining more brightly and her hand steadier.
“Now, we start with the first three cards which represent the past. First I shuffle the cards and then you cut the deck.” Petra took the one card already chosen and mixed it in with the others and then gave them a couple of quick little shuffles.
Milli watched as Petra did one final shuffle and then handed the heavy deck of cards to the girl. “Cut them.” Milli reached forward tentatively, her hand trembling slightly, and took them. She needed both hands to hold onto the big cards but cut the deck somewhere near the middle and placed the bottom half on top. “Now, take the top three cards,” instructed Petra, “and put them in the three positions. You decide for yourself where they go but they must go into the first section here.”
Milli did as she was told and soon three cards lay face down on the cloth backing.
“Now cut the deck again, and take three more cards,” said Petra. The process repeated a third time and soon enough nine cards lay face down on the cloth and everyone stared at them in silence as the sun began to cast its final rays of the day on the little camp.
“Now what?” said Milli eagerly gazing at the layout.
“Turn over the three cards from the past,” said Petra pointing to the left most of the three little lines of cards.
“This one is good?” said Milli pointing tentatively at the top most of the three.
“Yes,” said Petra with a nod of her head and a gentle smile. “Go on.”
“Should I do good first?” asked Milli still hesitating with her hand hovering over the cards.
“It’s up to you. We can’t begin until all three are turned over in any case, so it doesn’t really matter all that much.”
“Ok,” squeaked Milli her voice going up an octave as she began to flip over the cards. The first one depicted a hugely fat man sitting on a throne laughing uproariously while a colorfully dressed man capered in front of him. “That’s a good one, right, and in the good position so it means more?”
“The Joke,” said Petra. “It is aligned in the good position so that might give it more meaning. It represents using humor to overcome adversity.”
Brogus put his hand to his chin, “When did we use humor?”
“I humored the First Edos,” chimed in Milli. “When he came to visit me. He was a little addled and I think I told some jokes, or something.”
“How is that overcoming adversity,” said Dol who suddenly found himself drawn into the little circle.
“I thought you didn’t believe in any of this nonsense?” said Milli turning to her friend with a wide smile. “Now you’re interested?”
“Just to prove it’s stupid,” said Dol with a shrug.
“We can’t make any judgments on the card until the other two are turned,” Petra interrupted. “It could be The Joke isn’t the one that will tell of the past. Go on, Milli. Do the other two.”
Milli reached forward and flipped the middle card. It showed a beautiful woman sitting on a comfortable chair while other women attended to her. “Ohhh, is that me?”
“The Courtesan,” said Petra. “She represents social whims. She can be as powerful as the queen but easily deposed if she makes a single slip. It is a neutral card in the middle position which is a match as well.”
“When we were dealing with Ming back with the nomads,” shrieked Milli putting her hands to her rosy cheeks. “We had to behave socially otherwise they would have killed us!”
“Yeah!” said Brogus, “that’s right. It was because we were so good that Manetho let us go! This stuff really works, see Dol? And you didn’t believe.”
“I thought Manetho let us go because he thought we might be able to help him sometime in the future,” said Dol although he still watched the proceedings.
“That’s stupid,” said Brogus. “You’re remembering it all wrong. He liked us because we fit in with the nomads, we didn’t do anything stupid. Usually it’s me who does the stupid thing so I guess we lucked out!” he finished with a broad smile and, although still seated, somehow bent over in a deep bow.
Milli applauded, “That’s the way I remember it too,” she said. “Now, the third card is evil, right?”
The third position is the evil representation of past events,” said Petra. “The card itself is yet to be revealed.”
Milli reached forward hesitantly again, her hand steady, but her eyes darted back and forth to Brogus who urged her forward with a nod of his head, “Go on, Milli, show it.”
She flipped the card which showed a pair of heavy draft horses pulling a large wagon, “The Team,” said Petra. “It’s a neutral card in the evil position and is mismatched so it probably doesn’t mean anything. Usually it represents an external force driving you forward.”
Dol laughed, “That’s exactly our situation.”
“No it’s not,” said Milli defiantly crossing her arms across her chest. “What the cards say is what things are. So, which one is most important then?” said Milli, “The Joke or the Courtesan?”
Petra studied the cards for a long moment, “This is where I don’t have the gift as strongly as some others,” she said with a shrug of her shoulders. “I can only guess.”
“Go on,” said Brogus, as he eagerly leaned over the cards laid out on the cloth. “Tell us!”
Petra studied the cards for a bit longer, cleared her throat, and then spoke, “The Courtesan is obviously a representation of Milli as she tries to bring Dol towards his goal of killing the elemental. She is precariously perched between a position of great power and being destroyed by the forces she is trying to manipulate.”
Milli and Brogus stared at her with wide eyes and mouths slightly slack, “That’s exactly right,” said the halfling girl and Brogus nodded his head vigorously. Dol said nothing but continued to watch the other three.
“Now, the present,” said Petra and Milli reached forward eagerly. This time she started with the bottom positioned card and flipped it over quickly showing a small man kneeling over a chest and plying it with little instruments, “The Locksmith,” said the older woman. “It is a neutral card in the evil position and thus mismatched.”
“What would it have meant?” said Milli.
“It usually is interpreted to mean that you will get the keys to unlock whatever puzzles you at the moment. This can be a physical thing or some knowledge.”
“Ohhh, that would have been a good one,” said Milli.
Petra shrugged. “Next card.”
Milli then reached towards the middle position and flipped over the card showing a one eyed man pouring liquid from a pitcher into a large mug, “What’s that?”
“The Cyclopes,” said Petra. “He has insight and wisdom and it is a good card. Its meaning is not dissimilar from the Locksmith. In this position it means that you might have gained insight into how to solve your problem but that insight doesn’t necessarily translate to success.”
“Oh,” said Brogus. “Now the good card!”
Milli reached forward to flip the last card in the middle pile but then paused to look at Dol who was watching the proceedings closely now, “See, Dol. You are interested. It’s not just silly girls.”
“I’m not a girl,” said Brogus.
“Might as well be one for the way you’re carrying on,” said Dol and turned his back to the trio. “Fine, go ahead and make fools of yourselves.”
“Oh Dol,” said Milli. “I didn’t mean to make you go away. Stay and watch, please, for me? Even if it is stupid, what harm can it do?”
Dol looked at her and put his hand in his hair and gave it a scratch, “By Davim!” he shouted and yanked it away.
“What? What’s wrong?” said Milli and Brogus.
“Damn apples,” he said and showed them two little apples, one was more reddish in color than the normal green but the other was almost a bright red and seemed to glow with energy and life in the light of the campfire and the setting sun.
“I think they’re getting ripe,” said Milli with a giggle.
“I didn’t want to say anything,” said Petra as she suddenly gave off a loud snort.
Brogus slapped Dol on the back and the thick dwarf suddenly began to laugh himself. Great guffaws burst from his mouth as he bent forward and put his hands on his knees.
