The young man smirked as he parted the entrance to the tent. Tall and lithe, he had the sort of look to him that many a girl would fawn over, and undoubtedly had. His dark hair was cut in a rakish fashion that was fairly popular these days among the young nobles, and his outfit proclaimed him a scion to some fortune or other

To one with the Sight however, there was a dark aura about him. An uneasiness that hinted at the Other. To the occupant of the tent, this was an all too familiar feeling. However, within that darkness, a flicker of light yet held on. An ember, that perhaps could be fanned. As always however, the Cards would speak his fate.

"So fortune-teller," the young man said as he dropped into the seat on the far side of the table, leaning it back as he propped his feet up. "Tell me how rich I'm gonna be. And make it good."

Raising her head, the young lady behind the table began to shuffle the cards in her hands, letting her visitor get his first clear look at her features. Long dark hair draped straight down her back and over her shoulders, framing a face that many would call delicate. There was an eastern cast to it, uncommon in these lands, but these traveling caravans attracted all sorts. She was clothed in the typical manner of the caravan however, with an embroidered cloth vest hugging the moderate swell of her chest, leaving bare her midriff. Though the young man's imagination undoubtedly imagined something far skimpier below, hanging off her hips was a pair of soft cloth pants, loose around her legs to give comfort and mobility, a sash tied around it to hold a few tools and objects.

It was the eyes however that drew his attention, and the eyes that held him in place, much as a snake looking at a mouse. Her eyes were not quite that of a normal human, but contained a swirling purple. They seemed to shift even as he watched, giving off that sense of something Other, that feeling of something that should not, that cannot exist in this world.

One. Two. Three. The cards landed on the table in order, with a precision that should not have been possible. Four. Five. Six. Their gazes continued to lock as she flipped the cards into position. Seven. Eight. Nine.

Finally, he managed to tear his eyes away as the last card landed in the three-by-three square of the Harrow. "I know traditionally one chooses the card before the spread," the fortune-teller said in a bell-like voice, the clarity belying her strange gaze. "But I believe I already know which card you would like, ne?"

A slight chill breeze blew past his cheek, and the young noble found to his surprise the card of The Vision had dropped into his lap as if that same wind had carried it there.

"That's silly! I-"

"You have heard of Them." She cut him off, the slight musical tone of her voice cutting through his words like a paladin's sword. "Eclipse. Courtesan. Betrayal. Your father rules, but you doubt his wisdom, and believe you should rule instead. You question his decisions, but not openly."

"I would never-"

Again she cut him off, her quiet words like a scalpel. "The Uprising. The Twin. The Locksmith. You are caught up in a scheme against your father, aiming to put you on the throne, but you are still unsure whether to follow along or not. You said you want to know how rich you will become, but you are truly looking for a way to decide what you should do."

"But-"

"The Tyrant. The Lost. The Avalanche. If you continue on this path, you will lose control of your fate. At first it will seem like you are in charge, but They will slowly have their way with you, resulting in the destruction of your true self and all you hold dear."

"Th-that's ridiculous!" the young noble sputtered as he leaped to his feat, knocking the chair back. "I don't know who may have put you up to this, but I am involved in no such thing!" As he lifted the card that had been in his lap, to toss it on the table, he suddenly found her hand wrapped around his wrist. There was not much strength in her grip, but once again he found his eyes caught by those swirling orbs of purple. As she held his gaze, her form began to blur slightly, changing as he watched. Except for those violet eyes. Except for those spheres touched with Other.

"The signs are unmistakable for one such as me" she said calmly, her voice now a bit more throaty. "But it is never too late to change your path."

The swirling faded to eyes a bit more normal, and the youth finally got a better look at her current form. Her build and clothes were still the same, but soft, velvety black fur the color of night now covered wherever her clothes didn't. Where before her strange eyes had been framed by a delicate face of far Eastern origin, now they looked out over a black-furred vulpine muzzle; her head now that of a fox, though still strangely alluring.

"W-what are you?" He asked as his mind raced. He knew he'd heard tales of fox-faced folk before, but he'd been more concerned with the neighboring barony's daughter at the time.

"In my race's homeland we are known as kitsune. That is not important, however. You must forsake the Other." As she spoke, another chill wind blew over his arm, despite the enclosed tent. "You do not know their true nature, and you do not want to know. I had that knowledge forced on me, and was... changed."

Despite every instinct telling the noble to flee, the slight sadness in the fortune-teller's voice gave him pause. "Changed?"

Sensing that he would not run, she released her grip, resuming her seat as the young nobleman rubbed his wrist, where the slight marks left by her claws still lingered. "Perhaps, if you hear of my fate, you can avoid yours still. I was 16 at the time..."

**************************************

I had just turned 16 years not more than a week ago, by our best reckoning. Our caravan had just reached its latest stop: a small town called Insmouth, located on a fork in the river we were following. Reika, my mentor, could sense something was off about the townsfolk and warned the cavern-master, but we didn't have much choice, as our horses needed rest and we needed to resupply. And so, we made camp, and a few of us, me included, went to see what they had in terms of trade.

I did not look then as you saw me today. My fur was pale, like the moon, as was my hair when I chose to look more like you humans. I drew quite the eye, and young and naive as I was, I reveled in it. Even then however, I knew in these lands that no good would come of revealing myself, and so as my parents had, I kept to my "human" self outside the "family" that the caravan was.

As we went from store to store under the afternoon sun, I found myself getting bored. As my fathered haggled with a fishmonger over some dried fish of some kind or other, I slipped off on my own. While there wasn't much to slip off to in a town this small, I had spotted the tavern on our way in, and couldn't help but wonder what this one was like.

The doors parted with a creak as I stepped into the building, blinking my eyes a few times to help them adjust to the dimmer light inside. While there wasn't that many here this early in the day, several folk were at scattered tables, appearing to mostly be of human stock, while a dwarf polished a glass behind the counter. I merely gave any who looked my way a short smile, and strode over to the bar, doing my best to project the competence and confidence I felt. I didn't just think I knew everything, I knew I knew it.

"So, what'll ya have, missy?" the dwarven bartender asked in the typical gruff rumble of his kind. "Glass of milk perhaps?"

That drew a snicker from a table to the left, and I shot them a glare. "I'll have a-"

"A lightwine for me and the girl," a voice that could have been either male or female, responded from off to my right. As I swiveled my stool to see who had spoken, I missed the slight expression of panic on the bartender's face that otherwise would have been my first warning of the nature of this person.

"Y-yessir, right away!" As he busied himself with the clinking of glass, I appraised my apparent benefactor. Clad in silk that seemed strange in a place of this nature, was a young man, or so he seemed at first glance. Something about the way he held himself was also very effeminate; more so even than a couple elves I had known in years past. Long silver hair fell past his shoulders, and his eyes were like deep pools of crimson. Looking into them, I felt a strange pressure bearing down, as if it were trying to drown me in its essence...

A slight clink brought me back to this world, and suddenly everything seemed normal once more. Giving me a close-lipped smile, he took the stem of the glass between two fingers as the second one was placed next to my elbow. "I am known as Rand. And you are?"

It was just a perfectly ordinary young man offering a pretty girl a drink, and I was merely letting my imagination run wild. Shaking off the strange feeling that had come over me, I gave him what I hope was a winning smile. "You can call me... Luna." Why did I not tell him my actual name? I berated myself a moment later, but despite how sure I was that I was making a fool of myself, some deep hidden instinct was still urging me to play it safe. We weren't long for this town anyways, so what did it matter?

"Ah, Luna..." he swirled the contents of his glass as I reached over to pick mine up. "A name that speaks of the night sky, and the light of the moon. Tell me, what do you think when you look to the stars?"

As I sampled the wine, bringing the glass gently to my lips, I pondered his question. To the me that was then, the heavens were a source of wonder, and the stars my brothers and sisters. That obviously wouldn't be the sort of thing a handsome guy making a pass at a pretty girl would want to hear, however, and I was in a playful mood that day.

"I think they're beautiful," I said between sips, "Like jewels of the night sky. And you?"

"Well," he responded before taking another long sip of the wine, its deep purple catching the light like a miniature ocean. "They are amazing, but what lies between? That huge black expanse... sometimes I can't help but imagine what wonders might travel through it. If fish travel the sea, then what swims across the stars?"

"I... never thought about it like that." There was a genuine earnestness in his voice as he spoke, one that sent a slight shiver down my spine. Honestly, I had never given thought to such things; it was just there, the silk that holds the crown of stars that I loved so.

Almost as if he sensed my discomfort, he gave me another of those close-lipped smiles. "Ah, my apologies. I did not mean to disparage your own opinion of their beauty. After all," he continued, setting his glass down to lightly rest his hand on mine, "who knows better of beauty than one who shines of it herself?"

The initial touch of his fingers sent what felt like an electric shock through me, but it was quickly replaced by a gentle warmth. As he spoke, I couldn't help blushing, and I took another sip to cover my reaction. "Quite the flatterer," I responded after a moment.

"Is it flattery to speak truth?" the crimson-eyed youth asked, his fingers gently stroking the back of my hand. I felt the blush coming back and took a longer drink of the wine, finishing off the glass. This guy was quite the charmer. I felt myself growing more relaxed, and gave him a warm smile of my own.

"Now that'll get you everywhere," I found myself practically purring my response. Why was this guy affecting me so? A couple minutes ago I'd felt like running from him, but now I found my thoughts wandering towards the beds upstairs. It couldn't be the wine, not this fast.

As I puzzled over my sudden attraction to this silver-hared young man, he rose from his seat and offered a hand to me. "Well then, shall we go find someplace more fitting to speak of such things? A dinner repast of much finer quality awaits, and afterwards, clouds permitting, we can view the wonders above us."

"Let's," I murmured, taking his hand without hesitation and following him out the door. Lost in the gentle haze clouding my mind, I never noticed that the bartender had never asked for payment, or how as we left, the conversations that had practically stopped once he had entered has resumed behind us.

Even now, I still cannot recall the series of events that took place after that point. It all becomes one big blur in my mind, and sometimes I'm not sure if I'd want to remember. The next thing after that that I can recall with any clarity was shortly before the Eclipse... before I encountered... It.

I woke slowly at first, wondering where I'd fallen asleep this time, and what I'd been drinking to leave my mind this fuzzy. There was an odd coppery scent in the air also, that I couldn't quite place. I went to rub my eyes, and was startled to full wakefulness when I found my arm was tied behind me.

Looking around, it was like something out of a nightmare. All around me were what looked like humans, elves, and dwarves-- but not. Their eyes bulged like frogs, and wide flat mouths opened and closed as they chanted words that I would at the time have sworn were flatly unpronounceable. Each of them had strange symbols painted on their pasty skin in a dark red, and it didn't take much to connect that with the coppery smell reaching my nose.

Almost instinctively, I gave a small whine, feeling my fur stand on end... and then realized that I was back in my true form. Not that it mattered at the moment. I gave a stronger tug with my wrists and winced as I felt the ties yank on my tail. Trying my legs, I found them to be tied together too, at the ankles, but thankfully not higher, which let me use them to leverage myself around into a kneeling position of sorts.

As I worked myself up off the ground, two circles of torches lit up beyond the mutated villagers, lighting up the room just enough to let the rest of it come into view. Strange symbols were carved into the stone walls beyond them, and there were pillars that I can even now only describe as twisted in straight lines. Trust me, I'd prefer NOT to be able to understand how that works.

In front of me was a large chair, decorated like some obscene throne. In fact, this entire place have off the air of a temple-cum-throne room, and lounging on the "throne" was the young man I'd been so taken with in the tavern. Unlike the others, he looked exactly the same as he had then, but he was no longer attempting to hide the aura of Otherness about him. He had been toying with a lock of his hair, but now that I'd come around, his attention was plainly directed at me.

"Ah, my fox-faced friend, you've woken up just in time. I would so~ hate for you to miss all the excitement." The smile he gave me was nothing like his earlier ones. It was like a gaping void, a wound in the world that made me feel sick all over. I had been attracted to THIS?

Without thinking, I bared my teeth and started a low growl, but a short chuckle from him at my reaction made me realize what I was doing. Bringing my reaction back under control, I contented myself with a simple glare. "And what, pray-tell, do you intend to do with me? Turn me into one of these?" I jerked my head towards the chanting mongrelfolk for emphasis, then winced at the slight throbbing behind my eyes the movement had caused. Evidently I'd banged my head at some point in all this as well. Just wonderful.

"Oh, no no, my dear~" he responded in obnoxiously cheerful tones, his dark crimson eyes not seeming to reflect any of the torchlight around us. "You are to be our centerpiece, our channel to the Great Gods above!" As he spoke he had left his seat, raising his hands and face towards the ceiling as if placating to said deities.

"I'm no priest-"

"And I have no need for one!" He shot back, cutting me off as he brought his attention back to the mundane. Again he gave me that mirthless smile that was like a slice through an expressionless mask. “These are not the gods you may think, but the true gods, the Ones that once ruled this world! This creation! Their power is as far beyond your ascended-" he paused to spit after the word, as if he'd tasted something foul- "as they are beyond you. Knowledge of them enabled all you see here, and even now the heavens align! Soon, the moon shall blot out the sun, and you, my dear moon-fox-lady," He paused again to give me a mock-bow, "shall open the way."

"I'A! I'A!" chanted the cultists as he finished, sending a chill down my spine.

"And what's so special about me? The name-"

"Is fake, I know!" Again, that corruption of a smile. "But you spoke truer than you knew. There is a connection in you to the heavens above. Latent, but more powerful than I'd hoped for!"

"But prophecies-"

"Have not come true since that day? This I know well," The silver-haired monster in human form began to pace before me. "Haven't you ever wondered why? Why the return failed? It was because They wished it! I'A!"

"I'A!" The mongrelfolk returned the cry.

"And now, with your help," he practically whispered as he lowered himself to one knee, bringing him to eye-level with my bound form, "we shall speak with Them firsthand, and learn the secrets of the universe."

I tried to snap at him with my muzzle, but he moved away just in time. "Like I would give you any help," I finished with a low growl.

"Your existence is help enough. You two," he gestured to a nearby mutated elf and human. "Take her to the Stones."

I struggled and bit at them as best I could given my bonds, but they didn't seem to feel any pain. They just lifted me up like an overly large sack of flour and carried me out through tunnels that made my head spin, into the sunlit world once more.

It was a short distance from there to the clearing that they apparently intended to use for their ritual. It was a simple grass clearing in the woods, surrounded by a circle of weathered stone pillars, perfectly unsuited to what would be happening shortly.

I could hear the others following, like some profane parade. The two dumped me in the center, then joined the rest of the mongrelfolk as they filed in, spreading out around the stone circle. Finally, the silver-haired Other stepped into the circle, immediately coming to where I was, his presence washing over me like a sickness. "The time comes, my dear," he said in those smooth dulcet tones of his that belied his true nature. "Now, /be still/, while I properly prepare you to communicate with the Ones Beyond."

I tried to open my mouth to curse at him, but to my surprise I couldn't move, though there was still nothing muzzling me. I could still feel everything as he cut my bonds, but he had put some sort of magical force behind his words, leaving me a prisoner in my own body. Helplessly, I watched from inside as he arranged me into a kneeling position in the center of it all, just as the first sliver of the sun went dark.

Satisfied with his arrangement, the blood-eyed youth rose, shouting out to his followers, "He comes! I'A!"

"I'A!" Came their answering reply as they raised their hands to the sky above, clear of all clouds. Kneeling in supplication, they began to chant in a low throaty voice, the tone conveying equal parts pleasure and pain as they called out to the Great Old Ones.

As each sliver of sun vanished behind the dark circle of the moon, their chanting rose in pitch and fervor. It was then I noticed the odd strain inside myself. The best way for me to put it into words is: take the feeling you get when someone tries to bend your wrist or ankle very far back. Now imagine that feeling applying to your soul.

As more and more of the sun vanished, the pressure grew stronger. As it increased, oddly I felt more and more in control of my body. However, trying to do anything was still like trying to move through sludge. And then, as I finally managed to move an arm, the sun went fully behind the moon.

It started with a snap, almost like a broken bone, but from within myself. As the first blast of pain hit, I felt waves of impossible knowledge wash over, through, and out of me, my mouth making words that I can't remember and don't want to as I clutched at the scraps of my sanity and tried to will myself to hold together. As the waves of madness crashed across my mind, my vision began to fade, my sight focusing on the image of the sun hidden behind the moon. Like a sailor reaching for the lifeline, I lifted my hand, reaching out for that image, trying to keep a grasp on the mundane world, our world of light.

And then, all became dark.

As luck would have it, one of our caravan scouts stumbled across the clearing a few hours later. How many, I do not know, but the scene had changed greatly from when I'd passed out. The cultists were still there... but in bits and pieces. He said it looked as if some huge savage beast had torn them to shreds and painted the clearing with their flesh. Whatever had done it had made a star shape from their blood, which had already dried by the time he had found me. I was laying in the middle of all this, seemingly unharmed, but looking as I do now. I'm told I was muttering strange words still of Their tongue, even unconscious. the only thing that kept him from running me through before he realized who I was were the clothes I was still wearing. When he got closer, he recognized me, thankfully. At the time, he'd thought I'd just been covered in soot and dirt.

Throwing me over his shoulder, he took me back to his horse, then carried me back to camp on its back. As soon as I left the circle of stones, the muttering stopped as well. It didn't take Mistress Reika long to realize what had been done to me, but I was nearly beyond hope at that point, from what I was told. It took a solid week of her ministrations to help pull my mind back together enough to even reach consciousness, and several days after that before I finally awoke again as myself.

The dreams... for your sake and mine, I will not talk about what I saw and experienced finding my way back from the dark places of the mind. All I'll say is that first awakening was almost my last. If there had not been several people there to stop me from killing myself... well, when you see and know some of the things I had experienced in my glimpse of the darkness Between, it's nearly enough to crush your entire being to nothing.

That revolting sorcerer of the Other was long gone by the time I was stable enough to remember and describe what had happened without curling up on myself. The village had become a ghost town as well, empty of all life in the aftermath of what he had done.

It took even longer to come to terms with what had been done to me. I don't speak of just the physical changes, as those are just the outward expression of my "curse." Even now, if I listen I can hear the faint whispers from the Great Beyond, of things that should not be, that cannot be. Every now and then they try to reach through me to affect the world around me, but my will here is stronger than theirs.

**************************************

"Yours, is not," she finished solemnly.

"I'll... think on what you said," the young noble murmured in response. Turning, he pushed his way through the tent flaps, his earlier confidence missing from his step.

The black-furred kitsune let a small smile play across her lips as she changed back to human form. Walking around the table, she pushed the flaps apart to watch him go. What she hadn't told him was that she had used that same will to learn to control it as well. Whatever she once would have been had been tainted and broken, but from it she had forged anew the innocent blade of her soul. It had taken all of her strength, but she had turned despair into hope and bent the chaos to her will.

She might have to walk this lonely road, but she had sworn she would make damn sure no one else does, if she could help it. Either way, she had done what she could, and the rest was up to that boy; whether to find his way back to the world of light, or to drown in that alien, unknowable Other.

Another short gust blew across the deck behind her. It flipped the top card over, which landed on the middle of the spread: The Empty Throne.