Robert Asprin – Thieves World 09 – Blood Ties

New Year to “pacify” what was left of the town.

Lalo sat before his worktable, eyeing the bright array of cards. It was remarkable, considering his physical and mental state the night before, that they looked like anything at all. But the vision of the seeress had flowed through his hands, and he knew that these cards were artistically far superior to the ones the S’danzo had possessed before. He suppressed the flicker of pride that the thought gave him. He had no memory of painting them-any praise belonged to the power that had impelled his hand. And prettiness would not matter if they could not use the cards to undo the damage they had done.

“I tried to do a reading while you were both asleep,” Illyra said when the girl had taken the dishes away. “It’s no use, Gilla. The cards kept returning to the pattern we made with them before.”

“Then we’ll have to try something else,” Gilla nodded de-terminedly.

“Lay them out in another pattern,” said Lalo, “a pattern of healing this time.”

“I did that too,” said the S’danzo helplessly. “But there was no power in it. I could tell.”

They did it again, and then another time, but Illyra had told them truly. The cards were no more than pretty pictures making a pattern on the tablecloth. The bright colors glowed mockingly in the lurid afternoon sun.

Illyra was sponging Latilla’s face and chest. Lalo sighed, and cut the pack again. The card on top of the deck now was the Archway, a massive gate whose keystone was carved with an arcane symbol whose meaning even Illyra did not know. Beyond it was a mass of greenery, perhaps a garden. Lalo let his gaze unfocus, trying desperately to think of something else to do. Green vibrated in his vision, and he was abruptly aware of a tantalizing sense of familiarity.