Crossover Earth '98

Arcane's Journal

The Reading

by Ken St. Andre

After the encounter with Kayli, nothing much happened and Gene finally went back home. He picked another tarot deck at random to keep with him, but there were no tinglings and no compelling needs to us it. When more than a month had passed, Gene began to ask himself, "What's wrong?"

That night, he had a dream. He was in an empty place with black stone under foot, black starless sky up above, and a cold wind blowing around him. For a long time, he seemed to be alone, and then he heard a voice behind him saying, "You have been given great powers."

Gene spun to confront the intruder. There was a darker, man-shaped shadow in the blackness. As he concentrated upon it, details began to emerge. As he stared, he recognized: THE EMPEROR.

"You seem to be forgetting the primary function of the tarot," said the Emperor. "You have become so lost in using it as a focus against evil, that you have forgotten what the tarot does best."

"What does the tarot do best?" Gene asked.

"Ah, that's better," said the Emperor. "The tarot is generally used to answer questions." With those words, the Emperor faded away.

Gene awoke, his whole body clammy with sweat, his mind aswirl with questions that needed to be asked. He didn't bother to dress, simply lit the candles on his tarot altar. He reached out and grabbed one of the many tarot decks that he kept nearby. As he touched it, he knew that he should separate out all the Major Arcana and use only them for this reading.

He did that, and shuffled them thrice. Then he began to ask his questions.

Who is in danger?
THE WORLD.

How can I save the world?
STRENGTH.

Arcane stopped. Seven questions seemed like enough for now. He had a lot to think about.

(to be continued)

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