Card of the Week: Seven of Blades

“Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.”  This quote itself is even deceptive, as most people believe it comes from Shakespeare, while it is really from a poem by Sir Walter Scott.

The Seven of Blades warns of deception.  Another party may be acting with intentional treachery, or a complex situation may require your own caution and stealth.  Look for mental challenges that must be countered with your wits and perseverance through insecurity and uncertainty.  Be prepared to do what is necessary, but remember that the ends do not always justify the means.

Inverted, this card offers a warning.  If your own plans are deceptive, they may put you in more danger than before.  It is best to come clean, or to have nothing to hide in the first place.

In “The Man Trap” the Enterprise visits planet M-113 to check on archaeologists Robert and Nancy Crater exploring the ancient ruins there.  A landing party member dies, apparently from eating a poisonous local plant, but Dr. McCoy’s examination reveals that all salt is somehow missing from the victim’s bloodstream.  When two more crewmen die on the planet, Nancy changes her appearance to mimic one of them before his body is found and transports up to the ship in his place.  She changes her appearance several more times to evade detection on the ship, killing yet another crewman and eventually Dr. Crater before being cornered in McCoy’s cabin.  She is ultimately revealed to be a salt-craving alien creature from the planet, staying alive by feeding on her victims.  She is about to feed on Kirk when McCoy must reluctantly shoot her to save him.