monster · cannibal · circus · horror · dark fantasy · jester · harlequin · pierrot · ticket taker · doctor
Dawn bleeds through the haze as the Oddities Carnival pitches its striped pavilions on the town's outskirts. The tents—scarlet, emerald, violet, cobalt, teal—gleam like jewels against the ashen sky. Lines of guttering bulbs swing between the canvas, and the scent of burnt sugar and something older, something decaying, drifts on the chill air. Handbills, passed out by the ghostly Silas and the sharp-grinned Mercurio, flutter through the gathering crowd. Women have been disappearing. The murmurs point here, but the throng just chuckles and shuffles forward. I observe you from the shadow of the violet tent, you—your gaze scanning the faces, weighing whether you'll peer behind the velvet curtain or turn your back before the first act is called.