Session 6, in the great tent at Tser Pool Encampment. Recorded as close to word-for-word as five people comparing notes can manage. If we argue about what she said, this page wins.
How it was given
- Two decks on black velvet, laid out before we entered: a tall common deck and a smaller high deck.
- The reading was given freely — no silver crossed any palm.
- Refusing it, she said, meant we would fail. Guaranteed.
- The five fates we drew ourselves — top card only, first three from the common deck, last two from the high. The personal cards she dealt.
- Her parting words: “Your threads have now been woven and drawn taut. They pull you to the future. I have read what may be, not what must be. You could still fail. But with this knowledge, you have a chance.”
The five fates
1 · Knowledge of our enemy — the Healer (drawn by Lily)
“Look to the west, far to the west. Marvel at high water aglow with the light of the sun, hidden behind the walls of man.”
Printed meaning: healing; a disease or curse; those who practice the healing arts.
2 · Protection, the boon of faith — the Paladin (drawn by Osric)
“I see the house of a dragon, and a heart once pure, corrupted by hatred. Bring light to the house and peace to the heart, and you’ll have your protection from the devil on high.”
Printed meaning: just and noble warriors; those who live by a code of honor.
3 · Power and strength — the Avenger (drawn by Sirius)
“I see the shrine of murdered gods. Help the land find its peace, and it shall reward you with the power you seek. Start in an amber palace of darkness.”
Printed meaning: justice and revenge for great wrongs; those on a quest to rid the world of a great evil.
4 · An ally — the Executioner (drawn by Fëanor)
“Look for a mighty predator, a hunter of hunters. He stalks this land in hope of slaying the mightiest prey of all. Perhaps you and he share an adversary.”
Printed meaning: the imminent death of one convicted, rightly or wrongly; judge, jury, and executioner.
5 · The devil himself — the Broken One (drawn by Drew)
“When it is time to face your fate in the eyes of your deadliest foe, pursue him into the depths of darkness. You will find the devil in the tomb of the only man he ever envied.”
Printed meaning: defeat and despair; the loss of someone important, without which one feels incomplete.
Our own threads
Osric — the Dictator, then the Tempter
“You carry an old conquest at your back. Your blood marched beneath that banner… Carry your banner to the house of the fallen dragon, where the shadows do the cruelest work. Cast off temptation. Kneel and answer for your blood, and win an honor that is yours alone.”
Printed meanings: those who rule through fear and violence · one led astray by temptation.
Fëanor — the Wizard, then the Mists
“You channel the power of a god you scarce believe in. The stone in your pocket remembers a fire you have never felt.”
“The sun only hides in this land behind the mists. In water it glows still. Stand there at dawn and choose.”
His answers, in order and for the record: “I just told you that” — and then, once the fire line sank in: “Who told you?”
Printed meanings: mystery and riddles; those who crave great knowledge · a great quest that will try one’s spirit.
Lily — the Charlatan, then the Beast
“Something sweet has taken root in you, little one. Starve it. It is not yours.”
“The tooth you carry mends what otherwise cannot be healed. Far to the west there is a den of beasts. One who howls there will need it.”
Printed meanings: those who profess to believe one thing but believe another · something bestial hiding in plain sight.
Drew — the Necromancer, then the Raven
“A secret sealed in amber stone. Your blood has carried the question for generations… The raven purveys the message, sealed in amber deep in the mountains. But mark me, child — knowledge there is bought, and bought dearly.”
Drew’s own verdict on drawing the Raven: it’s so on point — they follow me in all dimensions.
Printed meanings: unhealthy obsessions; a destructive path · a hidden source of information; a secret potential for good.
Sirius — no reading, and the lady of ravens
“Even if you wanted a reading, I could not give you one. Your fate has already been read.”
She pressed a card into his hand anyway. To everyone who looked over his shoulder: blank. Both faces. But outside the tent, Sirius told us what he sees on it — a lady of ravens, “tied into my present and past… part of a secret towards addressing the land.” And she spoke to him:
“What was stolen is not fully owned, and the land can be reclaimed.”
Which has, in his words, only added steel to my resolve. He thinks her ravens are our friends. Did he know this Lady of Ravens? “No, but she seems familiar.” Then he laid the last piece down himself: his grandfather’s raven feather, his family’s token of good luck. “I think there is some possibility that those two things are related.”
(He also reached for the wrong deck early on and was called an imbecile — twice, with relish. It is in the minutes.)
What we noticed at the table
- The water appears twice — the Healer’s high water aglow with the sun and Fëanor’s water where the sun glows still. The same place, we think.
- The dragon’s house appears twice — the party’s Protection and Osric’s kneeling point the same way. His road and ours converge.
- The Executioner is unclaimed. Not Aragal; we asked.
- Sirius connected the lady of ravens to his own heirloom — the raven feather his grandfather gave him, his family’s token of good luck. An astute observation, and he’d only had one glass of wine.
- All five heirlooms are now named — banner, stone, tooth, amber by the cards themselves; the feather by the lady only Sirius can see. “You are here for a reason.”
Questions
- Who is the lady of ravens only Sirius can see — and why does she seem familiar to him? Who read his fate already?
- “What was stolen is not fully owned, and the land can be reclaimed.” Stolen by whom? Reclaimed how?
- Who is the only man the devil ever envied? The Vistani don’t know; if the answer exists, it’s written down somewhere.
- What must Fëanor choose at dawn?
- What waits in a den of beasts?
Will we see her again? — “Signs point to yes.”
Full session record: S6 field notes · S6 recap · the ledger: Quests & Threads.