Freakshow - Chapter #9
The Beast, the Cat
Freakshow was started by J. Curtis of Tiny Worlds, because he’s awesome. Several of us jumped on board to take up the story. We did one round, had a break and I’m jumping in once again. Who is next?
, , , , , , .List of FREAKSHOW Chapters (will be updated as they are released):
Chapter #1: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 1 by J. Curtis
Chapter #2: by Ann Kimbrough/Tell Me a Mystery
Chapter #3: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 3 by Keith Long of Loser’s Fiction
Chapter #4: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 4 by C.S. Mee of The Deep
Chapter #5: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 5 by Paul R. Pace of Paul Runs His Mouth
Chapter #6: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 6 by Pablo Baez of Chrome Hearse Express
Chapter #7: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 7 by Jon T/Ferns of Columbo
Chapter #8: FREAKSHOW - Chapter 8 by Sandolore Sykes
Chapter #9: by Ann Kimbrough (you’re here now)
Are we ready?
What You Missed So Far:
Freakshow has been running her whole life, lifting secrets, futures, and memories with a single touch—and running from everyone who would use her skills to their own ends, like her father. Betrayed by her most loyal friend, Phil, she summoned Byleth, an ancient creature whose visions are pure nightmares that allowed Freakshow to witness her mother’s death.
Hold on tight as the lines continue to blur…
Freakshow: Chapter 9
Freakshow felt a chill in her bones. Byleth wanted what she could not give. What they all wanted—her father, shitty Phil, even the shadows. They wanted what she’d taken long ago. Long before, she’d known about the unholy alliance.
How was she to know? Sneaking into her father’s study, Freakshow witnessed her father do the unthinkable. He’d summoned Byleth. Right there, amongst the books, Persian carpet and roaring fire. All that normalcy had been so normal… except for the cat.
The beast had so many layers. Father, in his arrogance, reached for a pet. His fingers stroked the cat, and he’d lifted one hair, taking with it an unseen strand of magic, but it cost him. The cat struck out. Lightening fast, and took Father’s right eye.
Freakshow had huddled under the desk, horrified. Father cursed a blue streak, not because of the eye, but that he’d failed to steal any power. He eventually got a new eye, though, but it never looked right on him. It missed its old body. Stolen eyes were like that.
The cat, though, was so cute. When Father had run out of the study, Freakshow crawled from her hiding spot to pet the purring kitty.
One touch and she knew Byleth’s secrets. She couldn’t help it. Not that she’d understood her skills, being so young, but it hadn’t stopped there. Some of his power transferred. The evil kind that made blood boil.
The first time, Freakshow couldn’t handle it. At dinner, she’d hurled and spitted poisonous toads all over the dining room, releasing the darkness. No one knew how she’d done it.
Freakshow knew it was the cat.
From that moment, anytime she called, Byleth came.
No one should call Byleth.
He takes.
He bleeds.
Scratching at her arms, Freakshow felt the after-effects. While the connection was one-sided due to her gift, his layer had layers. They protected her from his sight. Still, he knew. He had bigger problems than a wild girl who could steal secrets, but his interest grew every time. He’d eventually want to find the little thief.
I have to stop calling him, Freakshow admonished herself. He’s a deadly crutch. She knew her luck would run out, and Byleth would come for her.
The bigger shock, the transfer hadn’t required touch. The power had flowed to Freakshow with ease. Too easily.
Freakshow dragged her aching body into an alley, looking like another lost soul buckling under the city’s pressure. She had to keep the power contained, but it took a toll. Tampering it down, the energy burned in her belly, unbearable. If she could release the magic, conjure whatever, it would be better. It would also be a signal that she’d stolen from Byleth again.
“I’ll have to use it,” she sighed, “or it will come out in hideous ways—and harm anyone nearby.”
In the past, people had died. The names and faces blurred. Had it also led to her mother’s gruesome end? She couldn’t look at that vision again, blaming her father. That was the easy way out. It was all his fault.
She’d hold onto the hate.
This time.
Ignore the penalty.
But she was on the run. After two days and several near misses, Freakshow had no choice. Especially when the math hit her. MATH. It was all a jumble of nonsense and numbers. She didn’t understand, but she was afraid it would summon the beast, and he’d finally figure out she was siphoning his power.
Six feet—vomit.
Times two: betrayal.
Less one—mom.
Focus girl! You’re losing it. Losing yourself. Maybe it’s too late? Too late, baby. It’s too late.
Perhaps her father had figured it out. He was suspicious from the start. He could never explain Freakshow’s power, and his initial pride had turned to coveting and then cursing until he wanted answers.
He wants my power, Freakshow thought, and he’ll find a way to transfer it to him.
Blood sacrifice was her guess, based on the vision. He’d practiced it on his wife—mom. Shit. Mom. Shake it off. Let the vision go. Maybe he’d thought Freakshow’s power came from his wife’s family, because his side only had low-level skills. Father might have tried to bleed it out of his wife. It’s a belief that dated back to the Aztecs. Bleed humans and drink their blood.
Yuck. The hate grew in her heart. Father is that desperate. That shitty.
Freakshow couldn’t hold it in anymore. She had to face one of them—her father or Byleth. Neither was a good option.
The math strummed along her arms, making them itch. Was the answer in the numbers? Could she translate any of the overwhelming messages and find another option?
Circumference = 2π × r
Boundaries. Yes. Find the boundaries within my circle.
Freakshow cleared her mind.
One breath.
Two.
An image.
A book.
Flames and oozing green, gripped by a haunting scream. It ripped at the soul.
Barely able to breath, Freakshow looked around the alley. She was alone, but clear for the first time in a long time. The answer was in a book and the math, specifically the coordinates she’d seen, would lead her to it.
Option 3, thank you very much.
Hmm… if she knew anything about magical books, they had a way of shrouding the reader in darkness. But Option 3 it was. Freakshow vowed to dodge Byleth and her father. She’d find that damned book and twist her whole world inside out.
The power boiled under her skin. “Soon,” she told it. “Soon, you will come out to play.”
Music to read by: 21 Guns by Green Day