Gate: Nine of Cups

I entered the vision gate and found myself in a verdant forest beneath a waning moon.  I had only walked a few paces through dense and thorny underbrush when suddenly, ahead in the woods, I heard the sound of a horn blowing mournfully.  Arhoooooo, arhooooooo.  It drifted through the trees, summoning the spirits in the woods.

Compelled by its mysterious power, I moved towards the sound and discovered a large company of elves riding on horses as quickly as shadows beneath the trees. They were headed directly towards me and I experienced a momentary panic at their approach.

I began to move out of the way with some idea of hiding behind or within one of the many trees nearby but, before I could run, one of the riders grabbed me by the upper arm as he raced by and pulled me up on the horse behind him.  “Welcome to the Great Hunt!” he said as we barreled forward through the darkness.

“Is that what this is?” I said. “I didn’t realize that was the source of the horn’s call or I would have wandered the other way. What exactly are we hunting? If it is some helpless forest creature or, worse, a mortal, I don’t want any part of it.”

“Calm yourself, forest wanderer,” said the elf. “My people hunt nothing this night.  We ride together beneath the trees for the love of it and the feel of the wind in our hair. Be welcome to our gathering.” 

The host of the Great Hunt didn’t move like riders of flesh and blood for they didn’t go around trees or other woodland obstacles.  Though their bodies and mounts looked as solid as anything on earth, they were incorporeal and passed through the landscape as easily as forms made of mist and starlight. I relaxed into the hypnotic movements and began to enjoy the ride among the elves, gazing up at the moon as it was revealed and then hidden again through the upper branches of the forest canopy.

“What is your name?” I asked the rider as we rode through a small hill. “My name is Heidi and I am pleased to make your acquaintance.”

“I am called Oberon. My mother thought that name sounded appropriate for a king but I fear she dreamed above her station,” he said with a laugh. “There is very little that is king-like about me.”

“What is it that makes a king, a king?” I mused. “Is it an object like a status symbol? An accident of birth?”

“I would say it’s a way of moving through the world and how one treats those around him,” Oberon said. “Frankly, I have given up on the idealized role of kings and leaders in general. I have yet to see someone embody what I believe a king should be.”

“Oh, then you are not the leader of this host?” I said. “With a name like yours, one can forgive me for making assumptions.”

The elf gave a long sigh. “It’s a common enough misconception, you are forgiven,” he said. “Though there is one among us whom I would follow into the depths of hell itself. Royalty travels at the front of our host, Heidi. Can you see the glow?”  I looked where Oberon indicated and far ahead, leading the riders, there was a bright light emanating from someone who shone like a star moving upon the surface of the earth.

“You can go speak to the blue bloods if that is what you desire,” Oberon said. “I suppose that they would have more to say to you than I.”

I considered this briefly. “As brightly as that spirit shines, I would rather remain with you,” I said. “I believe there is a reason you and you alone drew me into this hunt. Let us share our knowledge and understanding with each other, if that is agreeable, and maybe together we can learn this reason.”

Oberon broke away from the host and began to ride in a different direction through the forest.  His horse never tired and he easily overcame every obstacle that appeared in our path. After we crossed a wide and quickly flowing river, the elf and I dismounted on its far side.

“Welcome to my home and hearth,” said the elf and he led me into a low doorway in the riverbank.