The Amazing Ariel sat in the candlelit room, wrapped in her long flowing robes. The light of the tiny flames flickered over her face and reflected in her eyes as she took in the visage of her customer. “You wish to know your future?”

The handsome young man reclined in a chair opposite her. “Why not? I’m up for a laugh.”

Ariel let the insult pass; she’d heard it all before. Closing her eyes, she lifted her arms above her head. Humming tunelessly, she lowered her hands and waved them around the crystal ball in the center of the table. She opened her eyelids, looking up so her guest could only see the whites of her eyes.

Ariel was about to begin her generic fortune spiel when the images flashed into her mind. She gasped audibly. “I see knives! And… And blood! So much blood! Death is in your future!” The vision vanished, and she collapsed into her chair, panting.

The young man raised his eyebrows. “Impressive. I always thought people like you were full of it.”

He pulled the knives from his sleeves.