The Crimson Carnival: Chapter XII, The Final Hour

  --- Gregory Fischer ---

  “What were you two doing?” Melanie frowned at them, when they reunited at the tent’s exit.

  “Settling unfinished business.” Maeve answered, a slight skip in her step as she looked at the ferris wheel just a bit away from them. “It shouldn’t be much longer now until we leave this accursed place behind.”

  “Not soon enough.” He told her, tossing his cigarette on the ground as he followed after.

  And it wasn’t very long -maybe ten minutes in total- before they heard a massive crashing sound behind them. One that could likely be heard throughout the park from how loud it was.

  “What was that?!” Louis jumped, spinning around to look behind them.

  Instead of looking behind them, Gregory looked at the pillar of light. Noticing that its pink tone had darkened, just a few tones off from the shade of red that Maeve’s magic gave off. (Meaning they are doing something over there…)

  Whether or not the pillar stuttering was his imagination or Maeve’s distraction working, he couldn’t tell.

  “Nothing of import, when our destination is straight ahead.” Maeve assured the kids, redirecting everyone’s attention towards the clearing the ferris wheel had been set up in.

  “And we’re sure we’ll be able to get out of here with this?” Melanie asked, despite looking behind them for whatever had made the noise.

  Maeve pulled out her emblem before raising it to the sky, where far below the cracks that nearly reached the horizon a smaller red crack seemed to form in the air. “That should be our egress there. We simply need to reach it.”

  “By riding the ferris wheel.” Louis noted, looking at the massive machine standing still. “Does uh, anyone know how to make this thing move?

  “Figured it’d already be moving with the Jester coming this way.” He admitted before checking his map and finding that. “Whoever they were, they’re not on the map anymore… Though the crown and the hat are both still at the haunted house.”

  “Given the situation they may have simply climbed the machine rather than riding it.” Maeve pointed out, before seemingly judging the structure. “Truthfully, I believe I could do the same though I doubt I could manage such with our entire party.”

  “Same.” He nodded, easily able to picture the path he’d take with his dashes. (Still figuring out how these paper ‘dodges’ differ from my smoke dash. In which case…)

  He turned his attention to a small booth next to the wheel. “Let’s see if we can’t figure out how to get this thing spinning.”

  Inside the booth he found a panel with a key switch and a good dozen switches on it, the various labels either scraped off or stained a dark red by what he was sure was blood.

  “Uh, any idea which button we’re supposed to hit?” Louis asked, as everyone stood outside of the rather cramped booth.

  “You need tickets!” Ferris declared from where he’d sat the Lost Child down, the kid digging in his clown suit before pulling out the same roll of tickets he’d shown off before. “I’ve got enough for everyone! I think…”

  Despite himself he couldn’t help but give the kid an amused huff. “Yeah, you’ve got enough. Just need to get the door open.”

  Flipping the switches at random, eventually showed him how to both get the wheel spinning and to open the doors on the various carriages. “Alright kid, I need… six tickets for everyone to ride.”

  With no small amount of excitement Ferris began tearing off his tickets one by one, counting them out with a big smile before offering them.

  “And that’ll do it.” He chuckled at the kid, accepting the tickets before slapping them against the panel just out of sight. “Everyone move it, we’re going to have to jump on when a carriage passes.”

  “We shall also have to ride in the same carriage for my key to work for everyone.” Maeve warned.

  “Then kids first and we’ll hop on after.” He told everyone, picking Ferris up and handing him to Melanie.

  “Right.” Melanie nodded back with a determined look as she and Louis watched for the next carriage before quickly stepping on when it got close.

  Once they were inside and away from the door Mr. Peabody leapt on after them, and he hopped on after the dog as the carriage started to rise off the ground. Once he got his footing he quickly turned and offered his hand to Maeve who had to actually jump to make it onto the carriage.

  “Alright, couldn’t close the door and get us on here so kids stay back, adults in the at risk seats.” He sighed, dropping into one as his eyes checked the horizon and the cracks getting far too close to it for his comfort. (Then again we’re all in the risky seats right now…)

  Something Louis seemed to pick up on as the teenager glanced at the horizon too. “Any idea how long it’ll take to get to the top?”

  “No more than a half of an hour.” Maeve assured the teen before leaning back in her seat and crossing one leg over the other. “Unfortunately, we’ve little else to do but wait for the key to respond to the gate.”

  “I’m not sure I’m comfortable just sitting here when I know this whole place is about to blow up.” Melanie admitted, trying to keep a bouncing Ferris in place.

  “Actually, since we’ve got nothing but time… What’s the story with the Lost Children?” He frowned, turning back to the Theater Rose. “You’re scared of them escaping this place, and the other clowns were outright scared of them, and yet you don’t want them to die like the rest of this place.”

  Maeve let out a sigh as she stared at Ferris. “I suppose that’s a fair question given our previous clash… The Lost Children are… one of the greatest tragedies born to this corrupt carnival.”

  The Theater Rose looked out the window as she continued to explain that, “Before the Carnival’s Corruption, we were a place where many came to bask in joys and merriment that could not normally be found in such harsh times. So when the Corruption began, many people died… Many, those of us in charge were unaware of…” Maeve let out another sigh. “Such as the many children they brought with them…”

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  He glanced at Ferris, The Lost Child, as he remembered just how monstrous the kid had looked when he refused to let him ‘play’. (So that means the kid is…)

  “I’m not sure what happened, the magic of the Carnival was not something I often dealt with, but something in it… echoed the children in a way. It’s magic slowly amalgamating the feelings of children who wanted nothing more than to play in the Carnival, until at last the first Lost Child appeared.”

  Roisin’s face twisted as if remembering something painful. “At the time we didn’t know what to do with the child, nor what to do with it. Or the others that appeared as time went on, until Barbra finally made the connection of what they were.”

  “Deadmen...” He grimaced, having met only a few in his time even with how much death had been on the battlefield.

  Melanie swallowed, glancing towards the Lost Child as if unsure whether she should hug him or push him away. “So wait, Ferris is a… a…”

  “Ghost.” Louis finished, looking half-ready to jump out of the carriage.

  “Aye.” Maeve confirmed like a death sentence. “And with that revelation we realized just what the rest of the Court had been keeping from us. The nightmare they’d turned this sanctuary of mine into.”

  (If the kid is a Deadman… One that can bring down an entire horde of Dead-Kids… Yeah, I can see why Maeve wanted them contained in the park.)

  He ran a hand down his face. “Is the… ‘Hunger’ going to be a problem?” He paused, the already scared teens. “I mean, you’re a vampire right? Blood magic and everything.”

  The Theater Rose watched him for a moment, ever so briefly looking towards the kids. Ferris in particular before giving him a nod of understanding. “While the modern myths of vampires are closer than the ones of my youth, there are many inaccuracies. Namely the need to kill in order to feed.” Mave glanced at Ferris once more before looking him in the eye. “So, you need not worry. I will make sure there is no human death from any sort of hunger I have. Even if I need become a pig farmer to do so.”

  “W-wait, hold on. Ferris is a ghost and, and she’s a vampire?” Louis asked, apparently falling behind in his fright.

  “She’s a heroic vampire, Ferris is a tragic ghost, and Fischer is the wizard saving them!” Melanie interrupted. “I see stuff like this all the time in my books!”

  “But those are books, not reality!” Louis pointed out.

  “I very much doubt I’m what you would consider heroic.” Maeve added.

  “And don’t trust anyone that calls themselves a wizard. Especially if they try to take you to a second location.” He warned the kids, because, “There was this cult wiping people’s memories left and right a few years after the war and kidnapping kids. If you see one of those racist wand twiddlers just pretend you saw nothing and walk away before they flash you.”

  “Oh…” Melanie blinked, clearly unsure of how to take his warning about stranger danger.

  Something that was apparently shared by everyone other than Ferris, who was now standing on the seat and looking out the window behind them with a wide awe filled smile.

  Deciding that it was best to change the subject, he asked Maeve, “Do you have any idea where this exit is going to spit us out? Because I’m pretty sure the kids and I are from… very far away from each other, and I didn’t get here by normal means.”

  The Theater Rose frowned consideringly as she pulled out her Rose Emblem. “Given how our main goal is getting the children to their home, it may be best for one of them to hold this. When we near the gate all they need to do is think of their home and it shall take them there.”

  “Ooh, me, me!” Melanie called reaching for the Blood Key. “Do I have to say magic words? Or cast a spell?”

  “When the key starts glowing, simply think of home, and when the carriage passes through it will leave us there.” Maeve explained with a shrug, clearly having never given the spellwork much thought.

  (I guess, I can use Briar’s recall anywhere… As soon as I figure out how to make it work, then I can drop off whatever Story I’ve found, go home and crash after eating an entire pizza.)

  “Actually, thinking of, what will you guys be doing when we get out of here?” He wondered, hoping the kids would get some semblance of normality after this nightmare of a night.

  “I… don’t know.” Louis admitted, running a hand through his hair and looking like all the stress of the night was hitting him. “I mean, we went to the carnival parked outside of our town and got dragged into this nightmare and… after, after Caspian… and shit, how many others from town came here tonight?”

  He couldn’t help but grimace at how badly that little distraction had spiraled, especially as Melanie moved across the carriage and wrapped an arm around Louis looking equally as confused and devastated when the boy asked, “Can we go back to normal?”

  (PTSD is a bitch…) He had more than his fair share of it, which is why rather than thinking about why he could smell burning meat he turned his attention towards the Theater Rose. “How about you?”

  “My situation… admittedly isn’t much better than theirs.” Maeve confessed, even as she looked more resigned to her fate than the teens still processing things. “With the Court hunting me… It’s only a matter of time before they drag me back. If I’m lucky I might manage a few years of peace before they do, but… I’ve long since learned that their pursuit is unending.”

  (And that is just as depressing as the kids… Fuck. Fine if there’s no escaping the rough subjects then,) “You’ve mentioned the Court a few times, who are they exactly?”

  “The Crimson Court is one of the oldest vampiric bloodlines alive, dating back… further than I care to guess.” Roisin answered, sounding detached from the topic as if she were trying to answer without really thinking about it. “They’ve some of the most powerful blood mages and practitioners across the realms, and use their magic to spread their influence far and wide. Ever in the pursuit of fulfilling their king’s bloody desires, no matter how savage or cruel. What’s worse, is that many join unaware of just how corrupt the court is until there’s not a drop of blood in their veins not fed by the innocent.”

  “Are… are they going to keep coming after us? Our town?” Melanie frowned with no small amount of concern.

  Maeve shook her head. “They shouldn’t. While the Court’s power is great, it is also spread thin. With the Carnival’s collapse, they will lose track of your home in the chaos. They’ll likely spend the next few years far more interested in finding the cause of this disaster and tracking down any nobility attempting to run.”

  (Such as you.) He didn’t say, figuring that would just be poking an open wound at this point. (With the way the Library can teleport people… maybe Briar will have something that can help her, be it escaping or containing Ferris’s whole thing.)

  He doubted it could do much for the kid’s issues, given how hard losing people was and how fresh that wound, but… (There’s got to be something I can do to help everyone…)

  A screech tore through the air just before the carriage was sent shaking.

  He jumped to his feet in spite of the still rocking carriage. “What was that?”

  “I’m not sure.” Maeve admitted, eyes drifting around the windows.

  “Birdie!” Ferris laughed.

  Across from him Maeve’s eyes went wide as she looked behind him. “Oh, no.”

  The carriage shook again, this time hard enough that he had to grab the carriage door to keep balance.

  “What the fuck was that?!” Louis screamed, both of the teens on their feet.

  Gripping the carriage door, he leaned out of the open doorway looking for the thing attacking them. When he failed to immediately find it his eyes briefly darted towards the crimson pattern that marked the gate, (five minutes at least…)

  Movement in the corner of his eye snapped his attention to a massive winged creature with grey skin, solid white eyes, and a mouth full of fangs diving through the air before crashing into the carriage.

  “The fuck is that?” He growled, stumbling back as the carriage hinges screeched far more than he was comfortable with this high in the air.

  “A Dracule…” Maeve answered, her face pale.

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  A/N: You’ve a giant flying monster after you, no space to maneuver, and are several hundred feet in the air with three kids. (Hint: It is a vampire monster.)

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