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balance, to adapt in the face of hardship, the secret of the ‘change point’
Their first encounter with the Emperor was outside his castle walls under a starlit, night sky. The Emperor looked exactly as Follin remembered him: powerfully built and sitting astride his horse - he cantered to their side.
“Hail and well met, young Follin!” he thundered in his deep, powerful voice, “and to you, Eve, dear wife of my friend, you are most welcome. I am excited that you have decided to accept my hospitality. I want you to know that while you are under my roof you are members of my family.”
The richly dressed Emperor dismounted and walked over to his page. “Alice, please inform Mage Hermes that I wish to introduce him to my very special friend’s wife, Eve, at supper.” Handing his horse to one of his squires the Emperor turned to Follin and Eve. He then embraced them warmly asking them to walk with him.
It was a cold evening and he intended to only keep them out for a short while. He escorted them through the castle gates and walked them into the keep.
“Follin, I remember meeting a lost youth some years ago. Today I see that he has grown into a young man with a beautiful and talented wife.” The Emperor guided them up a flight of aged, stone stairs which brought them to a tall spire atop his castle. The walk was long and steep but he appeared no more fatigued than his youthful guests.
“I heard that you were seeking employment, Follin. Sir Cecil informed me of your excellent performance. I knew that I had made the right decision when we met for the first time and I took you to ride with me to view my Empire. After consideration with my wife, the Empress, Mage Hermes, High Priestess Hera and Sir Cecil, I have decided to invite you to join my staff and help me manage the Empire.” This statement made Follin gasp. “Yes, I know we spoke of rulership and management when we met back then, but now I wish to do it properly, formally. However,” he put his hand up to stop Follin from interrupting with questions. “I have need of youthful zeal as well as wise counsel, and I know you have both.”
“Sire, I didn’t know you knew Sir Cecil. My village is a long way away, in the Mystic Isles. It’s often raided by the Wildlanders and some people consider us Wildlanders too.”
“Sir Cecil served me well for many years. He is part Wildlander himself, a little like you. I was in need of his wild elemental magic then, as I am in need of yours now,” replied the Emperor.
Follin shook his head in bewilderment, finally he asked, “Sire, but why do you need Eve, you don’t even know her?”
“But alas, I do know of her. Her father served me as a young man. His family and Eve’s mother’s family, have provided healers to my Kingdoms for many generations. Eve has a mix of both Isle and Wildlander blood, and her mother and father’s healing skills are legendary. Sadly, war and plague have left her as heir to their unique heritage. Eve is the last of her line. She holds the legacy of generations of healing wisdom in her blood. I did not want that lost to humanity.” He looked at Eve and saw her eyes widen. The Emperor spoke to her directly.
“I’m sorry for your loss, Eve. If I had the power to stop warfare I would. What took your parents and your sister was beyond my control. You will both learn that sometimes we must find the serenity to accept the things we cannot change. Warfare, man’s hatred and greed, are beyond our comprehension, and sadly, our control.” He paused as he looked out beyond the castle walls. “Eve, the Wildlanders are being pulled from one faction to another. They have little order or structure which makes them vulnerable to being manipulated and used. I have no control over their lands, I have enough to do to manage my own Empire. The northern warlord’s greed has now flooded into my Empire, my kingdoms suffer the Wildlanders raids and they have sought to plunder our most sacred Sanctuary, the High Priestess’s glade. I need you, and I need Follin, to assist in righting these wrongs.”
Eve stood looking at the night sky. “What about my grandparents still hiding in the deep woods, Sire? They continue their healing, surely they could be brought here to help?”
“Yes, I did invite them to join me, that was many years ago. Their loyalty to their family and their people was greater than their desire for the security of serving my Empire. They chose the path least travelled, the path of service to humanity in the worst of conditions. Sadly, they too have now passed beyond the lands of the living. I tried to protect them, but the soldiers of our enemy learned of their cabin hidden deep in the forest. I am very sorry. They asked that I accept you in their place. I have fulfilled my promise to them, in doing so I honour them. In turn, our Empire is honoured that you have accepted my invitation to join us here.”
Follin held Eve’s sobbing body to his chest. “You knew my family? You knew my grandparents?” she cried through her tears.
“Yes, I’ve sought your family’s advice, as has Mage Hermes, and others, for centuries.”
At that, Eve’s mind whirled, if it wasn’t for her husband’s arms around her she would have fallen.
The Emperor smiled knowing how sometimes even he struggled with the enormity of grief, loss and the dalliances of time.
“Now may we grieve but tomorrow we have need of you - your mind, body and spirit. The Empire is at risk and we believe that you both hold the keys to its salvation.” He stretched his arms wide. They were now high above the castle and the Tarot Empire’s lands spread to the horizon. “My dear children, look, before you lies my Empire, the four Kingdoms. Embrace it with your eyes for tomorrow your journey to ensure its survival begins.”
⇔
Within the hour Alice, the Page of Pentacles, had them bathed and dressed ready to formally meet with the Emperor, the Empress and several of the castle staff. Most importantly the Emperor wished them to speak with his Magician and alchemist, Mage Hermes.
Alice opened the door to the meeting room then quietly left. She had coached the lovers for the past hour on how they should address their hosts. Follin bowed deeply and introduced his wife to the Empress.
“Your Majesty, Madam Empress, I am honoured to be back with you both once again. Thank you for inviting us to join you this evening, we are truly curious and excited to learn of our tasks.” He stopped talking to bring his wife to stand by his side, “and now I wish to introduce my beautiful wife, Eve.”
“Eve, it is our honour that you have joined us. We want you to know that we are delighted to have you here and that you are now part of our family. All you need do is speak to any of our staff and they will rush to do your bidding.” The Empress now addressed her friend. “Follin, I see that you have grown in mind, body and spirit since your early days with us. Now please join us for refreshments and I shall let the men explain why you have been invited here,”
The Empress petted one of the many cats parading around the room. In fact, there were cats and dogs everywhere in the castle and its grounds, or so it seemed to the young man. He couldn’t quite remember if it was like this when he was here all those years ago.
The Empress asked Eve to sit beside her for the moment. She was enthralled by this young Mystic Isle woman with her bright eyes and inquisitive expression.
“My dear, please sit beside me. I would be delighted to talk with you.” Follin brought Eve across with a knowing smile on his face, he recalled how he felt on his first visit with the Empress.
The Emperor had a jug of wine in one hand and was writing with his other. He finally looked up when his wife finished speaking.
“We have been honoured to be part of your journey, Follin, right from the beginning. We’ve proudly watched as you were presented, and then overcame every challenge set before you. We were all amazed and delighted when you returned home safely to your lover, Eve. We’ve had plans for young Eve since she was a child too, but the intervening wars and plagues put our plans on hold, until today. To find you both together, at the exact right time, was a blessing for us and our empire.”
Turning to Mage Hermes, the Emperor said, “Mage Hermes, would you please explain to our guests what we had planned for Eve?”
The kingdom’s aged alchemist, Mage Hermes, stood and introduced himself.
“Follin, I shall introduce myself to you first. You may not recognise me but I am the Magician you met at the very start of your journey among the Tarot Major Arcana archetypes. My own journey was at a crisis point when I met you. I too have travelled far and wide, as well as deep within the inner worlds to find what was required in our time of need. Alas, there is always a fee for experience and wisdom for which I have paid a heavy price. My journey within has aged me somewhat,” he coughed as though a little embarrassed, “however my powers have increased with my years, I might add.”
Follin had been watching the Mage closely from the moment he heard him speaking softly with the Emperor. Now certain experiences and memories awoke and flooded his mind.
“Of course, now I remember. You were the Magician who gave me the bag of powers, the four elements. That was right at the start of my journey, wasn’t it? I still have them with me and I can proudly say that I understand how to use them, a little,” he added cheekily.
“Knowledge and chicanery, a saucy combination for someone who was once a fool,” but the Mage was smiling, he stepped around the table and embraced his young friend. “My son, that day was one of the brightest of my life. I look forward to now preparing your talented and knowledgeable wife, Eve, and initiating her into the secrets along her path. We all have work to do, our Empire is in need of youth, courage and Mystic Isle magic - which you both hold within you.” Mage Hermes now stood before Eve, he embraced her as well. “And it is to you that I direct my next explanation.”
All this time Eve was completely entranced by everyone, she even noticed the noble bearing of her husband when he was asked to present her. She was amazed at how well respected her husband was by these powerful people.
“Eve, as the Emperor has explained, you come from a family of healers, healers who had served our kingdom for many generations. Their legacy is in your spirit, your blood and your mind. This legacy represents the power of the earth - the plants we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe and the sunlight that gives life to our world. Where Follin learned to walk among the archetypal giants of the Major Arcana, your own journey starts with me, just a wee giant. I shall do my best to educate you in the craft of alchemy and magic, to awaken and tame your Mystic Isle magic.” The Mage paused to catch his breath. The two Mystic Islanders noted how the aged Mage spoke softly and appeared easily fatigued.
“You will meet with other members of the Major Arcana, just as your husband did, but for a different purpose. In some ways, your path will be easier than Follin’s, in other ways it will be much harder. Follin’s father was a mage, though he had little time to teach his son his craft before he left on his own journey of healing. You will both participate in the secret initiations into the four Elements: Pentacles Earth; Swords Air; Cups Water; and Wands Fire. Unfortunately, you may be separated, physically, for some periods of time to allow you both to learn your lessons more thoroughly.”
The small gathering was quiet as though waiting for someone to start speaking. At last the Emperor finished his writing and stood to ask the company to follow them into the feasting room to sit around the roaring fire. Follin found he had to compete with several cats and dogs for a seat close enough to feel the warmth from the hearth’s flames.
“Eve?” the Emperor called softly. “It is our wish that you give yourself time to decide if this is what you wish. I’ve asked my staff and my friends to provide every support and to answer every question you may have.”
“Sire,” said Eve, “I’ve already decided. I agree to your terms and wish to begin immediately. I have but the one question.”
The Emperor nodded for her to continue.
“If we fail in our quest, what will befall us? Will we be cast away only to be forced to start all over again, as paupers, in some strange and lonely village, in a land we don’t know?”
The Empress put her hand on the Emperor’s just as he began to speak. She spoke for them both.
“My dear daughter, we asked you here to spend the rest of your days with us regardless of your answer today, or what may befall us all in the future. Although we know you won’t fail the trials set before you, no matter what happens there will always be a place at our table for you. This decision has been lifetimes in the making and nothing will stop us aiding in its fulfillment.”
Eve and Follin turned to look at each other, neither spoke, they were now even more confused.
The Empress continued. “My dear, though you are of age to have children of your own and participate as adults, to me you are as my own children. This is all new to you now, but the truth will be revealed, in time. Please trust us and your instincts.”
At that word, ‘instincts’, Follin remembered his promise to Hera, the High Priestess, in his woodshed only a few hours previously.
He spoke without pausing to think, “Oh! My Empress, I’m so sorry. I forgot to tell you that High Priestess Hera, sends her best wishes to you, her cousin, and to your family.” He put his hand over his mouth in embarrassment and the Emperor and Empress laughed.
“Thank you, Follin, my cousin is here with us now and will be joining us shortly. Albeit, in spirit, she rarely leaves her Sanctuary these days,” replied the Empress.
At the end of their supper Mage Hermes spoke. “Eve, you will be working very closely with both myself and the High Priestess. We promise to be gentle but our time is brief and we have a lot to teach you. For now, we shall leave you in peace to talk and think about your quest together. We shall all meet again on the morrow.” With that he stepped over to the young lovers and took their hands in his. Wishing their hosts ‘good evening’ he then led them to their rooms.
“Alice?” the Mage called softly upon entering the palatial rooms the Mystic Islanders had been assigned. “Alice, are you here?” To Follin and Eve, the Mage whispered, “I bet she’s fallen asleep. She’s been up since before dawn and a soft, feather-down mattress is her personal weakness.”
There came a relaxed and sensuous groan from their bedroom, after some moments out walked Alice, still half asleep, her hair a mess.
“I’m awake, Mage Hermes,” she answered. Suddenly she fully awoke and realised where she was. “I am so sorry! I just had your rooms made up and prepared... but the effort of magic and travel and everything... I just couldn’t stay awake.”
The teenager stretched sensuously, like a bear waking from hibernation, she smiled disarmingly at the three.
“It’s fine, Alice,” said Eve, “we’ve just come from discovering a little of why we’re here, so we didn’t need our bed, not until now that is.” With a quick hug for the Mage and the young Page, Eve eased past everyone and raced for the bedroom. “I’ve got the window side!”
Follin shook his head and smiled. “Thank you both for your kind welcome. I look forward to a good night’s sleep and breakfast on the morrow. Perhaps I’ll meet some old friends in my dreams tonight. See you in the morning.”
⇔
Follin’s meditation – Two of Pentacles:
He sat quietly with the image of the Two of Pentacles in his mind and began to feel as though he were trying to steer a ship in a troubled sea, he worried if he should take this tack or that? Should he accept his quest... but what if Eve changed her mind? Or perhaps Eve should accept and not himself? He felt tossed about like the ship in the stormy ocean.
Eventually he found himself on an isolated beach. He was alone, washed up by the ebb and flow of the tides. He sat and watched as two sailing ships battled the waves in the distance. The winds had picked up and the ocean appeared angry. He wondered if the ships would survive.
Finally, a voice came into his mind, it was Hera, the High Priestess. She told him to calm his mind and this would calm the seas. The young adept now began his slow, centred breathing and soon his mind was settled - to his amazement, the ocean too did settle.
“Whenever we embark on a new endeavour there is always initial resistance. There are always doubts and questions that you should have asked and deeds you should have done. Fortunately, time is immeasurable, time is infinite, time is an illusion.” At that he found the figure 8 in his hands but it was turned on its side. Within each circle was a pentacles spinning in this endless loop. It was the magical symbol for ‘infinity’.
“In the one hand resides reality and in the other possibilities. Our goal is to hold both in balance - if one gains ascendancy the other is lost to us. New beginnings also confuse and throw us out of balance. That balance is of these two qualities. Sometimes it’s best not to act and not to think but to just be. The lesson of this dream is to just ‘be’. Find your state of internal peace and harmony and the outer world will match it,” came the disembodied voice of the High Priestess.
“But what does that mean? Time, opportunities, potentials and reality? It doesn’t make sense,” said Follin watching the figure of 8 as it swirled the pentacles around, held in suspension and in perfect balance. As he spoke one pentacle would drop forcing the other to rise higher threatening to destabilise the balance and order of its machinations.
The High Priestess’s voice came back to him, softly so that he had to strain to listen against the roar of the ocean. “Did you learn nothing on your travels among the Major Arcana?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean that not all lessons are learned at its first presentation. This is something I wish you to attend to tonight while in this dream-state. Then continue with it tomorrow. Ask the Magician if you wish, but consider this as the foundation of your Pentacles lessons.”
Follin was already drifting into sleep but then a surge of energy hit his astral body allowing him to focus back on the infinity symbol and the spinning pentacles.
By shifting his focus to different locations in his body, and by performing a specific breathing pattern, he found he could influence the behaviour of the infinity symbol as well as the ocean waves. But the lesson continued to elude him.
It was while in this semi-conscious state that he felt something shift within him. He felt the energy of the image again, it was a metaphor, like a zen koan, and that’s when he realised that he had control of the balance of power. Follin concluded that he was the one who controlled the ‘point of change’, he was infinity and he could divine and control it. This was not an image, it was life, and it was within him to use it, to bend to his will – to adapt to change and life’s fluctuations.
He realised that the gateway Alice walked them through to arrive at the castle was a metaphor for the beginning of their journey. The two pentacles spinning in the infinity symbol was a lesson on how to harness the energy of the Ace of Pentacles. Sometimes one can influence change by ‘not doing’, a lesson he had learned from the lady with the lion during his journey with the Major Arcana archetypes. By engaging the power of the Ace in the infinity symbol he could guide his path to align with his destiny.
It hit him - he didn’t have to do a darn thing except ‘be’.
“Feel the ‘change point’,” Follin heard his own voice say inside his head. “If I put my mind to ‘be’ the change point I can tilt it forwards or backwards. I become the power to change destiny. I can shift the balance within time and space, all I need to do is find that critical ‘change point’.”
Elated but exhausted, he succumbed to sleep. It was as he was sleeping that Follin recalled the images on the piece of paper Alice had given him.
‘Now I understand the power of the first picture, the Ace of Pentacles. Its raw earth power needs to be settled, tamed and given direction and that is through the use of the two spiraling pentacles in my hands. I must learn to use this ‘change point’ to bring balance and harmony into my life.’