[Ace of Wands] Gameplay

July 3, 2019

The day before, Ishtar receives an email invitation and itinery for her orientation tour. When she arrives, she finds a haggard volunteer manning a check in desk, a folding table on the street. Chaos reigns, as volunteers rush about with tools, decorations, and clipboards, arranging the myriad of details a street festival entails.

When she approaches the desk, she finds a few ID tags in as box and a list of performers on a sheet. About half have been checked off.

"Hey gorgeous, looks like a whirlwind here. I'll just pick up my ID, you can check me off and point me to where I can set up. It's Esther Quinn. Ishtar." Esther smiled her warmest smile at the busy volunteer. It was a thing she was able to do, make harried people calm down a little in her presence, make them instinctively like her and welcome her. It wasn't just that Esther seemed to look appropriately attractive to whomever she was speaking to, or that what she wore, in this case a tight sleeveless top and shorts, accentuated her figure in the right way. It was just something, inexplicable.

The volunteer looks up, a smile of recognition on her face. "It is you! Come on, I'll show you." She grabs the ID badge and scratches Ester off the list. "It's just over her. I missed your shows. I had a ticket but my stupid live in partner decided to totally flake and we missed it. When I saw your name, I felt like my karma boomerang was finally coming home. Yay!"

The booth is a bare wood stage with a cloth overhang and a table in front. "There are decorations over in that trailer. There is a large size printer in the tech truck beside it, and a pair of graphic artists to help. Take what you need. My shift at the table ends in 45 minutes and I'll come see if you need any help then. Umm, food and water are over there, bathrooms just inside the community center there, and here's your itinerary for tomorrow."

How do you setup and decorate your booth?

Fortune Telling Booth

Table Layout

"You're an absolute dear!" Esther gave the girl a hug and a peck on her cheek. "I have a new show next week, call my assistant, he'll comp you two tickets. That's him, Taurus!" Behind her, a tanned, well-built young man in wife beater and jeans came forward, hefting a big box. "We brought some things to set up as well. Catch you in a bit then!"

Esther worked her friendly charms on the graphic artists as well, getting them to print her name Ishtar the Immortal, and an ornate signage to go on an easel next to the table: She knows you more than you know yourself. Fortunes told. Crystals read. Lives changed.

Together with whomever else she managed to cajole, they managed to rig a simple tent-like drape around her table, and Esther whipped up a throw rug and tassled cushions, as if from nowhere. The net effect was transformative - a cosy, lamp-lit booth that looked the part for tomorrow's event.

Very cool.

With her deft minor magicks, Esther didn't take too long to set herself up for the event. She spent the evening walking around the streets of North Vegas where she grew up, but didn't hang around late enough for the seedier side of the night to surface.

Back in the hotel for one last night, she was all packed and ready to check out the next morning. The hotel was teeming with families on holiday, people were generally eating and drinking and gambling. She had wanted a swim in the pool, but that was too crowded as well. Esther gave up finding any peace and quiet, and decided to head back to the Community Center. No harm being early. I didn't get a chance to meet the organisers, maybe find out why I was invited.

Glenda does her normal morning routine: breakfast, a yoga dvd, and puttering in her backyard herb garden. She gets her traveling pack ready, showers, and heads for work. While she's at work, she grabs some business cards and postcards for the dispensary to hand out to people.

By the time she gets to the Community Center after work, it'll be about half past 4. Not too late, and the food should be ready.

Conner wakes up, knowing today is the day. He prepares a ritual for himself for some good luck today, making some of his Bad luck from the previous day into a good force. Lighting some candles and drawing some staves onto his back with a henna brush, it is a decent part of his day, hoping that the spell should bring him so good luck or cards at any of the tables today.

After that he reaches out to his usual patron, You coming along for this one Jack? could probably use the help! he waits patiently for any kind of answer. Hoping the spirit may want to cause some shenanigans at the event.

July 4

You arrive at the festival when you do. There is a small line up to get in, and the crowd grows as the day advances. The New Fremont District seems to be attracting a lot of interest, and the investment booths have no shortage of people willing to gamble their savings on a new entertainment district in LV. Mainly, people are here for the carnival, games, and open air gambling.

The kids fall all over the GHN mascots, Gordon the Gecko and Gnash the Gator, and get hopped up on the free Lizard-Leap sports drinks and high energy Chaos Bars. Their screams of ... well, a love for screaming, become a constant.

Ishtar's booth gains consistent attention, with many sight seers claiming to have decided to come at the last minute just to see such as headliner. The biggest draw is, as advertised, acclaimed actress from the Hunger Games and Game of Thrones, Natalie Dormer, who tours the district, stopping to speak with people and sign autographs.

Later in the day, after the afternoon glaring heat passes, announcements start going out for the big prizes available on the Wheel of Fortune, by special invitation only. Volunteers walk through the crowd with invitation samples sent "to randomly selected households in the greater Las Vegas area". Lucky holders of such tickets are invited to proceed to the indoor center to take their turn at spinning to win the big prizes.

---

Conner: Stingy Jack comes and while you manage to exact some hijinks, they're not overly profitable.

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What do you do?

Waiting outside the convention center I text wiki,

Wiki glances at her wrist computer and returns the message.

A few minutes later Wiki parks her bike at the convention and unzips her leather jacket, revealing the promised T-shirt

Esther enjoyed the popularity of her booth. Many of the visitors seemed genuinely enthusiastic to meet her and get their fortunes told, something which she did easily with hardly any use of her actual powers. One or two of the gentlemen callers were particularly tenacious, but a warm hug and peck on the cheek, and a selfie kept them happy.

She had to admit she was pleased with the turnout on behalf of the community's efforts. Perhaps her old hood might just see some improvement in the years to come. Still, in the back of her mind, nothing explained why she received the invitation. Perhaps some divining later might shed some light. She planned a break from her own booth, intending to tour the entire carnival to see if she could sense anything at all. The Wheel of Fortune lucky draw caught her attention.

Mordecai’s Uber pulls up to the community center. He steps out of the vehicle wearing his usual outfit: black suit, black shoes, white dress shirt, and a black suede fedora on his head. They aren’t just clothes to him; as far as he is concerned, they are a religious uniform. In keeping with his people’s tradition, the rabbi has a robust beard, whitened by age, and long sidecurls. Although he looks to be in his 60s, maybe even 70s, he moves with the alacrity of someone much younger.

Behind Mordecai, Schlomo exits the vehicle; the undercarriage of the car raises by a few inches as he steps out. The other man is noticeably large, easily standing at seven feet, with the countenance of a professional wrestler. He is perhaps half of the rabbi’s age; his hair and sidecurls still dark brown. He is dressed in similar Hasidic fashion to the rabbi, but unlike Mordecai, has no facial hair and wears a yarmulke in place of a fedora. Schlomo’s face is stolid and expressionless; the definition of a poker face.

Amidst the crowds of people gathered at the gala, the Hasidic pair undoubtedly stand out: an old man of small stature and his massive companion. Mordecai sizes up his surroundings, frowns, and walks toward the festivities, waving for his consort to follow. Schlomo marches obediently behind him. His strides are long and purposeful, and his posture perfect. People begin gawking at them the way locals are wont to do; Mordecai is used to it. Some stare outright, while others at least attempt to be polite and restrict their staring to sidelong glances. However, despite his height, most sleepers don’t seem to pay Schlomo much mind. They take in his sheer size for a few seconds, but then shift their scrutiny to the rabbi. Even without trying, attention slides off of Schlomo like water on Teflon.

After greeting Wiki when she arrives with a hand wave, so what you trying to see? personally I wanna see some of these games they have set up. But all of this is pretty overwhelming. He gestures around himself.

Let's go ogle Natalie from Game Of Thrones. Then see what these tickets are all about
Wiki has a mistievous grin on her face.

Glenda walks around, enjoying the music, the wine, and the food. She talks to some of the people, getting a general vibe of how they feel about the redevelopment and if they live in the area. She manages to get a photo with Dormer where they are both holding wine glasses, which makes Glenda squeal just a little. Glenda notices that Ishtar's booth is doing well, and gives her a little wave of encouragement when she walks past.

When they start announcing the Wheel of Fortune, Glenda shows her invitation. Might as well see what this is all about. She notices that the kids are being really loud. Curious, she decides to check out their Life patterns. Glenda takes a small eyedropper full of a specially-prepared herbal formula and puts a couple of drops into each eye. She blinks it in, and then looks over at the children.

You got it, Conner wanders around the center looking for signs of the actress.

...any woman with that smile and that look, can make me jump the fence.
Wiki is projecting confidence and girl power until it's their turn to greet Natalie Dormer. Wiki faulters to a shy 14 years old schoolgirl, that stutters through an autograph request.

When she 10 minutes later sees Glenda drinking wine with Natalie, she is torn between admiration and jealousy towards Glenda.
Ishtar is greeted with hugs and kisses and Wiki introduces Connor.
This man of the arts, is new to the city and thought the Black Pyramid I have set him up with the standard secure tech packet. Mail, phone, and all that. We both got a lucky invitation and going to check it out soon.

Hello Miss, Conner waves nervously to the others, his accent coming out just a tad heavier than usual. Clearing his throat he starts again, I apologize, not used to Las Vegas yet.

Esther was in the middle of a reading when Glenda walked past, so she could only wave at her and signal I'll catch up with you later. She frequented the pharmacy that Glenda worked at, and she half-suspected Glenda knew what she did with all the regular supplies she bought from her.

A while later, she was curious as to why the noise of the crowd in front of her booth quietened a little. With no customer at that time, she popped her head out of her tent to see two Hasidic Jews cross over, one elder, and a younger behind him. "Shalom aleikhem, tzadik!" She called out mischievously. In her semi-diaphanous, pagan, fortune-telling garb she expected the holy man to avert his eyes completely and ignore her.

"Wiki!" She hadn't seen Wiki for almost a year, and was glad to note that she looked happy and well. "And who's this handsome Irish farmboy?" Esther wrapped her arms around Conner effusively, almost too lingeringly. "Welcome to Vegas, we'll make a man out of you yet." She said with a wink.