The Circus Infinitus Stories Volume 1

by Ethan Somerville

  “What trouble? I haven’t done anything!” she protested.

  “You’ve upset him,” Icarus growled. “He’s been moping around the place like a laudanum-addicted poet.”

  Violet she squared her shoulders. Why am I on the defensive? “I want to try the Immortality Machine again and be human for another week,” she declared.

  “What? No!”

  She planted her hands on her hips. “The Ringmaster wants it too.” She knew the Professor would never be able to refuse his wishes.

  Icarus expelled a huge sooty black cloud from his chimney in exasperation. “Dammit! Alright. But not until tonight, after the last show.”

  “That doesn’t leave us much time. I will change at midnight.”

  “I won’t set it up now.” He slammed the door in her face, but she couldn’t stop her smile of triumph – a smile no one could see anyway. But she could definitely feel it.

  The day couldn’t pass quickly enough. Even though Violet was able to help out in the Ringmaster’s magic show, she still found herself pacing and tapping her feet in agitation. Oh, to be visible again! And for an entire week! By the time the last show finished, she was waiting impatiently beside the cabinet where Icarus kept the Immortality machine locked up. He soon appeared, as surly and bad tempered as always, not sparing her a single glance as he hurried over to the iron-shod door and unlocked it. She waited while he set everything up. “Nothing had better go wrong tonight,” he growled as he worked. “We’re leaving tomorrow night, and we need all the power we can get.”

  “It worked last time, didn’t it?” she asked.

  “Yes, but like I said before, we are dealing with an unknown intelligence.” He gestured for her to get undressed and lie down on the metal grille. “You’ll have to take a deep breath before I lower you in. In order for the machine to work properly, you must be completely submerged in the salt water.”

  She gulped. “But the total process takes minutes!”

  “Then it had better be a really deep breath.”

  The Professor fumbled to get the shackles on her invisible wrists and ankles. “Take a breath – I’m lowering you in now!”

  She sucked in a huge gasp and he yanked down the lever, dropping her into the chilly water. Shock almost punched the air from her lungs. Then the great metal lid was clamped down and she hung in the dimness, waiting nervously. Suddenly electrical discharges sizzled along the chains holding her down, arcing through the water and her body. Engulfed in agony, she tried to scream. Salt water rushed into her lungs. Then there was a colossal explosion of light and sound. The pain stopped. The water rushed away. Illumination returned to her world, and suddenly she could breathe again. Over the sound of her own coughing and spluttering she heard Icarus screaming in fury and cursing her name.

  Somehow she managed to wrench her limbs from the manacles. Because the Professor hadn’t been able to see her, he hadn’t locked her in as tightly as he should have. Which was just as well, because he was charging towards her, arms upraised, fists clenched. Black smoke pumped wildly from his chimney. She had never seen him so furious!

  “Wh-what-" She realized that she was still invisible.

  “Your accursed necklace has destroyed my machine!” he howled as he crossed the drenched floor. “It will take me years to rebuild!”

  She realized he could see her because of the mark she was making in the wet. She scrambled desperately to her feet amidst the torn metal wreckage of the Immortality Machine, realizing she had to get away. The Professor was angry enough to kill. She tried to dart past him – he lunged to grab her - and then his feet slid out from under him and he landed on his back with a crash.

  Violet, still invisible, her necklace burning her bare flesh, bolted in terror from the lab. Behind her, Icarus bellowed his fury. Even though the Ringmaster had made the request, he saw the damage as all her fault.

  Somehow Icarus had been right. This time the dark intelligence within Violet’s necklace had recognized the Immortality Machine’s power and reacted against it. Instead of resetting in confusion, it had burst forth a dreadful pulse, strong enough to destroy the contraption that once again dared to overcome its energy. It had made sure that Violet could never try that trick again.

  She made it into her room and locked the door in case Icarus came after her. “Will I ever be free of you?” she wailed, tears of frustration coursing down her cheeks.

  Then an all too familiar lethargy overcame her and she barely had time to dry herself before collapsing into bed. This time she welcomed the dark, and the new form that would drive her unhappiness away.

  When she woke, in her new form, she dressed in the appropriate attire and padded from the room, heading back to the Professor’s stage. He was still there, crouched amidst the broken pieces of his machine, weeping. She had never seen him do that before. She hadn’t even realized that he could cry.

  “I’m sorry,” she said softly.

  He lurched to his feet. “You! I will kill you.”

  “You can’t kill me.” She walked towards him. “I’m already dead. Let me help you fix it. I can do that. I can even help you do it better.”

  His shoulders slumped. “One night in seven! I will be here forever!”

  “Then we had better get started. I already have some ideas, and will need to put them down before I change again.” Lady Frankenstein glided towards the stairs leading up to the laboratory.

  The Ringmaster had heard the ruckus from across the circus grounds. But instead of going to Icarus to comfort him, he had waited in the shadows, wracked with disappointment. Violet had been perfect; a warm human companion with a mind he couldn’t probe, who had exuded confidence and had even been attractive – a bonus! But most importantly, she had been alive. As far as he was concerned, all undead were already damned, no matter what their motivation.

  Now it seemed Violet would never be free. In her invisible form, she would return to the quiet creature she had been before, only appearing – so to speak – one day in seven. He would never be able to rebuild the rapport they had enjoyed.

  The Ringmaster sagged against the pillar he had been leaning against, darkness swamping his mind. Because she had been alive, she had made it recede. She had made him feel strong enough to hold his own curse back. Her curse wasn’t like his. It wasn’t linked to eternal damnation. It was an ancient, primal magic from a time before good and evil. She did not consort with demonic forces like Dr Tumblety.

  But now the Ringmaster’s own evil returned with a vengeance, and this time he heard wicked cackling in the blackness.

  You cannot escape! Your soul is mine!

  Gremlins

  “We’ve all heard stories about it over the past few years, mainly rumours and hearsay, but now it’s finally happened. The Circus Infinitus has shown up on American soil.” President Grover Cleveland paused to allow his words to sink in. He leaned back behind his desk in his office, across from him three unusual individuals; two females and a male. The ladies were attractive but remarkably immodestly dressed considering the venue. However the President didn’t care. He had hired them for their skills, not their appearance.

  “Really?” exclaimed one of the females in the response to the president, She was a tall, strongly built blonde woman wearing a tight fitting tunic and tall boots. Her name was Flash Furiously, but of course that wasn’t her real name, merely a nom de plume she used in her current profession. “It’s here? I’ve been wanting to take a look inside since the stories started!”

  “Me too!” chimed in the male. His name was Artemis Vestra. Although he resembled a good natured ruffian with his broad shoulders and ruggedly handsome features, he was actually a very intelligent professor from Harvard, specializing in “alternative technologies”. “I’m dying to find out how it actually works! Did it actually appear out of nowhere? Does it really have chimneys? Is there a fellow running it who is part machine?”

  President Cleveland lifted a hand for silence. “You will find ou
t soon enough, Artemis. You three are to go in undercover as ordinary people, view some shows, and find out as much as you can.”

  “Excellent!” exclaimed Flash.

  “Wonderful!” cried Artemis.

  “Visit a circus?” exclaimed the second female, a strikingly attractive Hispanic woman in a large feathered hat, black velvet tunic and breeches. Her name was Xiva, and she normally cultivated a cool, aloof personality. “Excuse my impertinence sir, but surely our time could be better spent on more important matters?”

  “Miss Xiva, let me assure that the Circus Infinitus is very important. I have a disturbing report here from Queen Victoria herself. Of course the woman is prone to exaggeration, and is quite hysterical about morality, so her information must be taken with a grain of salt. However, I do believe parts are to be taken seriously, hence your visit. Believe me, the Circus Infinitus is no ordinary show. It possesses devices that even Artemis’ Alternative Technologies Department has not heard of.”

  “So when can we leave, Mr President?” Artemis asked eagerly. “I’d really like to stretch my wings, so to speak.” He gave a silly giggle.

  “I’m sure I could fit everyone in my vehicle,” Flash declared.

  President Cleveland shook his head. “No, you will all be travelling by coach, I said undercover, and I meant it. You may only take portable equipment, that which can be easily concealed.”

  Both Flash and Artemis groaned at the thought of a long, bumpy ride. Xiva simply nodded.

  “Here,” the President handed over a paper folder labelled ‘The Circus Infinitus – Top Secret.’ “Familiarise yourselves with all the information we have managed to gather on the Circus so far. It is currently set up on Boston Common, and should be there for several weeks. It spent almost a whole month in London before it disappeared, and my agents lost track of it for a considerable while.”

  “Thank you sir,” said Flash, taking the file in a gloved hand.

  Then the President bid them farewell, and good luck on their journey. The odd little group departed Washington, travelling by slow, old-fashioned horse and carriage to Boston.

  Flash, Artemis and Xiva had only recently been brought together, hired by President Cleveland for their unique talents and skills. All were curious, highly intelligent modern thinkers. Flash was well travelled, having adventured in all the continents. Artemis could build almost anything. And Xiva could fight with pretty much any weapon she laid her hands on, although she preferred twin whips, which she always carried at her waist. Together, the group formed the fledgling secret organization President Cleveland called the Zero-Corps. Their job was to investigate bizarre, but nonetheless real world events, and they already had three successful missions under their belts. Although investigating reports of spooks in the Adirondacks, weird creatures living in lake Erie and mutant hillbillies in Kentucky hadn’t really stretched their skills. They hoped the Circus Infinitus would be more challenging.

  The three agents realized the Circus Infinitus was no ordinary show as soon as they glimpsed the big tent through the trees. “That’s not a tent at all!’ Flash cried.

  “There’s a building beneath all that cloth! And look! The chimneys! Just like in the stories!” Artemis was so excited that Xiva thought he would wet himself. She simply sniffed disdainfully, still sure that they had been sent on a wild goose chase. There didn’t appear to be anything out of the ordinary about that carousel, or that lopsided house.

  The three agents were soon surrounded by other excited patrons and exhibitors. Jugglers entertained children, a man stalked past on stilts, and a snake-oil salesman calling himself Dr Tumblety loudly extolled the virtues of his brand new “Anti-Aging Elixir”. Then a ginger-haired mime in a red and white skivvy and suspenders leapt out in front of them and started climbing an imaginary rope. He wore a broad-brimmed hat with two floppy points on it, like a jester’s tassels. Although he wore a painted smile on his white made-up face, his eyes looked sad.

  “Very good, very good,” Artemis approved, and tossed him some coins. He scooped them up eagerly.

  “Some of those carnies don’t look very respectable,” Xiva muttered. “All those scars, sores and missing teeth – ugh.”

  “”If we want to see a show, we’d best buy some tickets now,” Flash declared, joining the end of a long queue. “This could take a while.”

  Artemis was only able to wait for five minutes before something else caught his eye and he dashed off to investigate. Flash had to hurry after him, leaving Xiva to wait and purchase the tickets on her own. She was most displeased when they finally returned, just before the start of the two o’clock session. “Did you see the enormous cables running to all the major buildings?” Artemis gushed to Flash. “They must be receiving electricity from the main structure! The engines must be truly prodigious structures. I wonder if we will get to see them?”

  Xiva handed them their tickets, then stalked into the Big Top without a word.

  “Why is she so upset all of a sudden?” Artemis wondered.

  Another disreputable looking carnie showed the odd little trio to three seats in the middle and the room quickly filled up. Artemis continued to talk non-stop about the structure, wondering about all the cables that appeared to be hooked up under each seat. Flash listened, but truthfully she wanted to see the actual shows, which were supposed to be spectacular. She also wanted to see the Ringmaster, rumoured to be so handsome he turned men’s heads!

  When everyone was seated, the noise died down, the lights flickered a little erratically then dimmed – and the Ringmaster appeared as though he had simply transported himself in. Flash couldn’t tear her eyes from him. Artemis practically bounced up and down in his seat when Professor Abbacus started flinging his lightning-bolts around his magnificent set. Xiva, who managed to maintain her cool demeanour throughout all this, finally cracked a smile when the clowns came on. By the end of the show she was clapping as hard as the rest of them. The Circus Infinitus truly was a spectacular.

  At the end the carnies reappeared to usher everyone out. Artemis caught hold of the man’s ragged coat sleeve. “Is there any chance we could get an audience with Professor Abbacus?” he begged,”

  “We represent an organization which collects technology like this,” added Flash.

  “No chance – the Professor’s been even more anti-social than usual lately, But I could get you an audience with the Ringmaster. Wait here – I’ll see if he’s busy.” The carnie left them outside the big top and dashed back inside. Artemis waited impatiently, hopping from one foot to another.

  “Honestly Artemis, you are just like a big child!” scolded Xiva.

  “I’ve never seen anything like this place!”

  “Ah, there you are. How can I help you, ladies and gentlemen?” inquired the Ringmaster’s soft, but commanding voice. They turned around and there he was, in his top hat and cloak, not a single shining hair out of place. He smiled warmly, but his eyes remained shadowed beneath the brim of his hat.

  Flash stepped forward before Artemis could embarrass himself. “Thank you so much for seeing us, Ringmaster, I am Flash Furiously, and these are my associates Professor Artemis Vestra and Xiva Delgado. We represent the US government and have come at the behest of President Grover Cleveland.”

  “Thank you! A much friendlier reception than the one we received on behalf of Queen Victoria!” He bowed. “You may call me Adam Delfay.” He straightened, smiling again. Flash thought he was looking directly at her and blushed. Funnily enough, Xiva could have sworn he was favouring her, and her heart skipped a beat. Artemis was also convinced he was the centre of attention.

  “Thank you for seeing us,” Artemis put in. “Do you … think there’s any chance we could meet with Professor Abbacus? I would very much like to talk about the circus’ technology with him.”

  The Ringmaster shook his head. “He doesn’t see anyone, I’m afraid. But I’m more than happy to answer all your questions. Would you like a guided tour of the facility?�
�

  Artemis was speechless with delight.

  “Of course,” Flash answered for him.

  The Ringmaster escorted the Zero Corps around the Circus grounds first, showing them the various rides, games and exhibits. Artemis asked question after question, which the Ringmaster answered, explaining as much as he could. Then he took them back into the Big Top, now empty of life save for a few employees cleaning between the seats. The overhead electrical lights flickered occasionally, and the Ringmaster frowned.

  “That’s not supposed to happen,” he muttered to himself. “Must get the Professor to take a look.”

  He took them across the stage where Professor Abbacus performed, pointing out the various contraptions he used in his act, such as the giant Vander Graaf Generator, Jacob’s Ladder and the Tesla coil.

  “Fascinating machines, but what about that big collection of rings up the back?” Artemis asked. “I’ve never seen anything like it!”

  “Ah, that is part of the generator.”

  “Yes, but a generator for what?”

  Flash and Xiva had hung back for much of the tour, content simply to watch. But now Flash interrupted. “There’s someone back there.” She pointed, and Artemis caught a glimpse of a shadowy figure moving between the forest of pipes and hoses lining the wall behind the ring.

  “Is that the Professor?” Before the Ringmaster could answer, Artemis hurried across the room.

  Suddenly, there was a loud bang and a hiss of escaping steam. Mist billowed up towards the ceiling.

  “Son of a syphilitic whore!” someone shouted.

  Artemis squeezed through a gap in the pipes to find the very man he sought, knocked off his feet and seated on the floor in front of a ruptured conduit. Boiling fog billowed from a rent several inches wide. As the agent watched, the Professor scrambled to his feet to examine the damage. Then he felt around his coat and swore again. Not realizing he had an audience, he unwound some of the bandages from his head and started wrapping them around the burst pipe, trying to stop the flow.