7 A Tiger Meets a Gypsy

Jack waited for what seemed like an eternity, his mind racing as he tensed his body, ready for something to happen. All of a sudden, the old gypsy's form materialized in front of him, as if out of thin air. He reacted immediately, taking a couple of steps back and smoothly drawing his pistol from his waistband. The sights squarely aimed at the old woman's center of mass, he questioned her "Who the hell are you? What was that true prophecy thing you talked about? Who do you work for?". The questions came out one after the other. Though he spoke in an interrogative tone and he even had his pistol drawn, Jack couldn't help but feel something was wrong. He realized it when he was about to pull the hammer on his pistol back to intimidate the old gypsy. His hand was trembling. It was slight, but noticeable to him as he watched his pistol shake around.

He was scared of what was happening. All of his training had taught him to be a master of his emotions and not let them influence him in battle. Throughout the years, he had polished his mind to withstand the massive adrenaline dump that came along with the beginning of a firefight. After enough practice, he could still complete complex tactical maneuvers while under fire and not blink, but this situation was something he had never trained for. The unknown was a scary thing even for trained professionals like him, never mind normal people. He didn't know what to do, so he did the only thing he could and defaulted to his training.

The gypsy woman smiled as she saw his actions, watching him with mild amusement as if he were a child trying to be threatening. Her gold teeth glinted in the darkness providing an eerie hint of color to her drab, dark visage. She laughed and replied "What are you going to do to me, child? KIll me? I'm already near death, that true prophecy that I gave you also gave me a peek at my death. Let me tell you, I didn't die by your hands. So listen to me, take this necklace and leave this place."

She attempted to hand the necklace to Jack, but he was still too wound up. "Answer my questions! Now! he yelled, trying to sound in control with an authoritative tone. First, it was that creepy voice, now this lady was giving him some magic necklace. He was getting tired of this shit, and fast. He needed some answers and wasn't going to leave unless she gave him some.

"Alright child, since you are so stubborn then I shall tell you about what we both experienced. See, we Roma have a legend among our people. We are naturally born with the Sight, powerful magic that lets us pierce the Veil and get a glimpse of the future. However, the Fates decreed long ago that no mortal should be able to know the entirety of the future so they made it so that only flashes will appear. Back in Ancient Greece, people with this power were called oracles. They would give prophecies to those who sought them, however, they were not true prophecies. You wanted to know what a true prophecy was, correct? Well, a true prophecy only occurs when a powerful and influential person requests a prophecy, the Fates channel their power through the Oracle and deliver the prophecy. This prophecy is different from regular ones because every word contains the power of Fate. What was said will happen, one way or another."

Jack was quiet as he listened to the old gypsy. Contemplating on the immensity and significance of her words. She had mentioned the Fates and he was confident enough in his mythology to know what she was talking about. The Fates in Greek mythology were three weaving goddesses named Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos. Clotho would spin the thread of life, Lachesis would determine the length of the thread and Atropos would cut it off with her shears. They were given power beyond even that of Zeus himself with him being unable to object to their decisions. It was said that they determined the time of death from the moment of an individual's birth. It was an ancient concept, one that Jack didn't believe in as he should have been dead several times already only to escape at the last moment.

"Okay, let's say I believe you. What difference would giving me a necklace make?" He quietly remarked, trying to calm down and think through things.

"The necklace is an item blessed by the most powerful seer in my family. My grandmother, a woman with the most powerful Sight in the history of the Romani. She cast a very powerful 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘢 (spell) on it. It shall lead you to your fated person and will help continue your destiny, fulfilling the prophecy."

Jack looked a little skeptical, but he decided to hell with it and reached to accept the necklace.

As he reached for it, his left sleeve rolled up ever so slightly, revealing the bottom half of the tiger tattoo he had on the underside of his forearm. The moment he grasped the necklace, the gypsy woman gasped in shock. She quickly grabbed his arm and pulled it towards her, transfixed at his tattoo.

Surprised, Jack nearly threw her to the ground on instinct but suppressed it at the last moment when he saw she meant no harm. She was staring at his tattoo, mumbling in Romany. She slowly pushed his sleeve further up, revealing the tiger's face in all its majestic glory. Tears pooled in her eyes as she muttered "𝘗𝘶𝘳𝘪 𝘥𝘢𝘫 (grandmother)" with a feeling of sorrow.

She still remembered that day all those years ago as if it were yesterday. It had been a harsh winter for her people and many had not made it. She had been staring at the crackling fire, as it warmed her tired and hungry body. An old voice croaked on the bed "Come here, child. There is something I must tell you."

She had run to her grandmother's bedside, scared at what might happen. The old had been the ones hit hardest by the cold, often falling deathly ill. Her grandmother had been in bed for the past few days and wasn't getting any better. Their family had started to get worried about what was happening, but the old lady herself was at peace with her circumstances.

She knew her time was coming quickly and she had gotten her final prophecy, the last one she would give in her lifetime. Surprisingly, the person who had to receive it was her granddaughter. Her granddaughter, while talented, had a limit to her capabilities. Beckoning with her shaking hand, she called for her granddaughter.

"Little Vadoma, I have received a vision from the Fates. They tell me that you will one day meet a lost tiger. He will be majestic, but dangerous and untrusting. It will be up to you to lead him back onto the right path. You will deliver him an important prophecy that will change his life." Her grandmother removed her necklace and grabbed Vadoma's hand. Pushing the necklace into her tiny hand, she looked right into eyes and spoke. "Promise me, when you meet him, you will give him this necklace. I have cast a powerful 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘢 on it that will help him on his journey."

After getting her promise, she smiled at her and told her that she would have a wonderful life filled with love. She would grow up to be beautiful and would marry a nice man who loved her very much. They would be blessed with many children and love would be plentiful in their family. As the old lady said this, she felt unsure of whether what she was saying was to comfort her granddaughter or herself. Stroking her head for some time, she told her granddaughter to go enjoy the warmth of the fire and let her rest.

Vadoma had gone back feeling sad and slightly bewildered by the words of her grandmother. She would meet a tiger? There were no tigers where they lived and she doubted that she would ever see one. However, it was her grandmother that had told her this. Although she didn't understand now, she knew that it would all make sense one day.

She had woken up the next day to check on her grandmother and had found her surrounded by her family. There were sounds of crying among some of the women and the men had solemn and sorrowful looks on their faces. She felt something was wrong and rushed to see her grandmother. She looked at her grandmother and felt her heart go cold. What she saw was a pale corpse, with a peaceful smile adorned on her face. Her vision got watery as tears pooled in her eyes and spilled out as she sorrowfully cried out for her grandmother to wake up. She had passed away in her sleep. As she held her grandmother's cold hand, she repeated her promise to her, "Help the tiger" again and again. She swore to never forget her grandmother's last words to her and lived a fulfilling life.

She was dragged back to the present as she stared at the tiger tattoo of the man in front of her. "It was you. It was always you. She knew from the beginning. We were meant to meet." She spoke while looking at Jack's arm. "The necklace was always meant to be yours. I hope that it leads you onto your destined path."

She ushered Jack out of her tent while still reminiscing the past. After pushing him out, she looked at him and said "Many will try to interfere with your fate. The necklace should always be worn by you to ward off any attempts. When you meet your destined one, the necklace will let you know. Live your life warrior, and remember the prophecy that you received. It will be invaluable to you when you least expect it." With those words, she closed the entrance of the tent and Jack found himself standing in the cold with a strange necklace in hand wondering what the hell just happened.

It was a weird time to remember that specific memory but it had happened all of a sudden when Jack was waiting for his order in the cafe. Subconsciously, he reached into his shirt an pulled out the little pendant he kept on him since that day. It was in the shape of an oval, stained with the dirt and sweat of the many years Jack had kept it on his chest. A single dent in the middle of the oval where a bullet had lodged into it.

Jack remembered that day with crystal clarity. It had been just like any other day. He had gotten up, gotten ready and went to work. He had been with the CIA for almost 5 years and he was nearing the tail end of his career. They had taken him off any dangerous field assignments and had given him a cushy position at a financial firm in the United Kingdom. His role was still that of an undercover agent, but with significantly better back propping from the Agency than his previous role. He was now assigned to the CTC as a financial analyst.

Terrorists were getting much smarter and were generating money through investments into quantitative hedge funds. These hedge funds utilized cutting edge technology such as neural networks, machine/deep learning algorithms to predict market trends. They had enjoyed huge success and many other firms were jumping into the field. He had been given the opportunity to pick which hedge fund he wanted to join and where in the world he wanted to work. He had fallen in love with London when he had last operated in the UK and decided that would be his new home.

To prepare him, the Agency had sent him to get his Ph.D. in a quantitative subject at a university of his choosing. He had gotten his Bachelor's in Applied Mathematics from Columbia when he'd gotten out of the Army and joined the CIA midway through his degree. He took a break and completed courses as time permitted until he finally applied for graduation a couple of years later. Now, to fit in with the kind of people he would be working with, he needed to become an SME (subject matter expert) in an area related to finance.

He chose to attend MIT and specialize in Applied Mathematics with a research concentration in theoretical computer science. By working with the school, the Agency placed him in an accelerated Master's program. He had been a sponge, just soaking up all the knowledge his professors could give. His advisor was one of the few people who knew that he was with the Agency and was a little loathe to give in to their demands at first. As time went on, he realized he had a true prodigy in his hands.

Jack's mind seemed to be an insatiable blackhole for knowledge. He seemed to just get concepts when they were taught to him and was able to apply them almost instantly. He tried to get Jack to take an IQ test, but was constantly rebuffed time and again. The old man was persistent if anything and finally wore Jack down to the point he agreed to take the test if the old man agreed to stop bothering him. The professor gladly gave him his word and Jack took the test to keep his end of the deal. Needless to say, the results were shocking. Jack had an IQ of 250+! The test wouldn't allow for further extrapolation, but his score in and of itself was simply mind-boggling.

The professor was saddened that such a mind was being wasted in service to an organization that frequently lied and manipulated the public for their own personal gain. He wanted a mind such as Jack's to be of service to mankind by innovating the future and making breakthroughs that would help society as a whole. Sadly, the individual himself didn't seem too interested in such utopian ideals. He was happy working for his employer and saw his education as a means to an end.

He finished his thesis in a stunning 2 years and defended it thoroughly, graduating with the highest honors in his class. He was notified by the Agency on graduation day that his interview with the hedge fund was set and it was up to him to get in. The firm flew Jack to their office in New York City and conducted the interview. Jack passed with flying colors and was given an offer on the spot. He took it without a second thought and prepared his things to move to the UK.

He had been in the UK when the incident happened. The incident that had changed his life forever.