Welcome to Cirque Obscura

Laughter filled the air as the clowns took control of the stage. The audience responded with applause as the clowns juggled on unicycles. Even though she had never been much of a fan of the circus, Emma felt enthusiastic. She, too, clapped with excitement as a humongous man managed to balance himself on a tiny ball, defying gravity.

The show ended with a massive explosion, and the entire tent was lit up in shades of purple, pink, and blue. Masses began scurrying around like ants in the rain. The show had been much more enjoyable than she had expected, Emma realized as she still carried her ticket in her hand. Moving towards the exit, she could feel the cool breeze of the night on her face.

Stepping out of the tent, Emma decided to take a swift walk to the subway. It didn’t feel like she had walked far before she noticed that she was no longer surrounded by other circus-goers. She was alone in the dark of night. Ignoring a brief moment of panic, she pushed herself onward, reassuring herself that there were no dangers around her.

The only sounds that filled the air were the click-clacking of her heels against the cobblestone. They echoed until silence consumed them once again. Emma felt herself frown as she realized that it was much darker now; the night seemed to have taken on its own persona— a sinister one. Breathing deeply, she wrapped her arms around herself and quickened her pace.

At first, she ignored it, telling herself that it was merely her overactive imagination. Yet, an unfamiliar sound rang in her ears now, one that refused to go unnoticed any longer. A low buzz, like the heavy bass of an electric guitar, pulsed around her. Her ticket became heavy in her hand. Emma gasped as she examined the ordinarily dull ticket. Golden lines seemed to dance on it now, changing shapes, growing and shrinking effortlessly. In the dark, it was only the absurd presence of these golden lines that she saw. They continued in their silent ballet until she could make sense of what they were trying to convey.

Welcome to Cirque Obscura was written boldly and brightly on the card now. It felt hot in her hand, and for a second, she was tempted to throw it into the deep, dark night.

Shadows around her grew from strange shapes and transformed into more familiar silhouettes. Emma saw the outline of a large tent and sighed.

“Another circus,” she whispered to herself.

With every step she took, the shape became more alive until it was a colorful, large tent with a banner that read Cirque Obscura.

Looking up at the banner, Emma noticed that the letters were so perfectly shaped and painted in a dark crimson no different from blood.

The air felt even colder here, torturing her lungs with every breath. While the card had felt hot mere seconds before, her fingers felt stiff and frozen now. Emma wasn’t sure what lured her into the tent. It could have been her curiosity, or perhaps a deep desire to escape the unnatural chill of the night. Regardless, Emma found herself stepping over the threshold into the bizarre tent.

There was no hostess to welcome her, but strangely, she knew where to go, as if drawn by an invisible force. She took her seat and looked around. Eerie music drifted around her, and an icy breeze kissed her cheeks once more. She recognized the outlines of men and women as they took their seats around her, but she couldn’t make out their features. A heavy fog fell around her, making it harder still to see any of the audience.

With a deafening shrill, the show started. Emma’s heart beat loudly as she was pushed further into her seat.

A dim light shone through the fog into the corner of the stage. A familiar figure appeared, moving slowly, strangely.

A clown.

He moved not unlike a spider, as if his legs were too long for the rest of his body. His motions were robotic, and as he approached Emma, she felt frightened. He began moving faster, rhythmically, until he was right in front of her. Emma closed her eyes and turned away as she noticed he was faceless. She sat with her head down, feeling his grim presence in front of her.

Suddenly, the heaviness on her body seemed to lighten as upbeat music began to play. Emma opened her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the faceless clown was gone. Two lights kissed the stage as large shadows danced vigorously around. Limbs stretched and curled faster and faster as the music’s tempo increased.

Which objects created the shadows, Emma didn’t know. It was as if they were born from shadow twins. They continued to twirl and sway until they exploded loudly, and silence lay heavy upon them. Emma heard a sob escape her as she tried to make sense of what she had seen. Splatters of dark liquid decorated the stage where the two figures had collided.

Emma tried to get up from her seat discreetly, but her limbs felt heavy. A huge light was cast to the center of the tent. As it rose upward, a figure came into view.

Hanging from a swing, a marionette dangled.

Emma held her breath as she waited.

As if in slow motion, the marionette’s limbs began to slide and hang from the swing until only its head still had contact with the wooden bar. A loud shriek echoed through the tent as the marionette began to tumble to the ground.

Emma realized the scream was hers.

The marionette fell with a loud thud and remained motionless.

Emma felt a tear run down her face. Even though she was terrified of the events unraveling before her, she couldn’t stop herself.

Squinting, she focused on the body lying in the dust in front of her.

Did she see the slightest movement—a shiver, perhaps?

Slowly, the limbs of the marionette began to move in a clumsy fashion, as if they were about to come undone at any second. Head hanging, the body rose into a seated position. Then it turned onto its front until it looked like a deformed toddler ready to crawl to its parent.

With its head still hanging, the figure moved toward Emma, who squirmed in her seat. It continued crawling, making its way over the heads of the mysterious audience that sat around her.

Only when it came face to face with Emma did the marionette lift its head.

Emma couldn’t find words as she stared at herself.

A scream tore through the air.

It was the scream that awoke her.

Emma’s body was drenched in sweat. She cried hysterically as her mind processed the horrid images that had infected her dreams.

Standing up slowly, she felt unbalanced.

Emma walked to the bathroom and washed her face.

“It was only a dream,” she said to herself. “You are safe.”

As she returned to her bed, something caught her eye.

On her bedside table, the dull ticket lay.

Golden shapes began shifting and dancing, spelling out the words Welcome to Cirque Obscura once again.