Disclaimer: I own nothing Phantom or phantom related. My only claim is over the original characters created and used in this story, and my own additional plot.

A/N: This isn't a great chapter, nor is it very long. I know I promised more to come and although this is more it isn't self-satisfying. The thing is…I'm in a painful situation at the moment. Tragedy has struck my families life since 9/27/07 when the oldest member of our family and my most loved aunt passed from this world. My Aunt Lavigne was 96 years old and one of the most spirited people I've ever known; I loved her very much. Unfortunately with age comes the failing of our fragile bodies. She had a stroke, and during rehabilitation died in her sleep. I'm happy to have seen her one last time, I'm happy that she is no longer in pain, but I am beyond the meaning of sadness for the loss of her in my mortal life. So for this reason I present you with a pretty crummy update. Forgive me, I am not myself in these times.

To My Reviewers: Forgive me that I don't do individual ones on this chapter. My mind is just so lost from the recent events that I can't seem to think of things to say right now. Know that I appreciate your support and comments, and that it brings me some joy at this time in my life to know that you all like my work. I admire you all. Thank you so much for all your kind praise.

Now I will let you all go, into the incredibly short update I present you with. I will return with more in time, just need to recover inside first. Enjoy friends, and I hope to return to you all soon.

Rest in piece Aunt Lavigne. I love you.

Inferno

By Nuria Shadow

Book One: The Deviant Carnival

Chapter Five: The Freak Show Family (PART TWO)

The red light of dawn kissed Aideen's pale skin with acid lips, pressing its sardonic brilliance into the woman's face as if it meant to mock the gloom to come with its radiant bliss. Gray eyes winced at the scarlet stream that had replaced the blue light over their tent city, and she sighed a little as the new ray brought the image of her world to clear. Without its shadows Varvara looked arid, like a shapeless thirsty desert beneath a grueling, robust sun. It's oily black tents were stained a muddied shade of brown, and its sleek dark earth that at night seemed flowing lush as a sea now cracked and crusted like stale bread. Below her Aideen dragged her booted foot harshly into the ground, watching with a stoic gaze as the soil snapped and curled away from the pressure. It built up around her shoe like a mound of sand, but with no wind to smooth it the place remained a stamped hole when Aideen removed her weight.

A hole. Aideen laughed at little at the cruel irony this prison home poetically played out. A red sky on the morning of a fire starters demise; an effortlessly made ditch in the earth that she would soon be lying in. It was all so sickeningly symbolic. Varvara was in its own way celebrating her end as elegantly as it had celebrated her arrival fifteen years ago, only this time it was not a warm welcome but instead a mortal catastrophe. The night sang when I came here, but now…heavy eyes drifted up to the sickly brown master tent that awaited her arrival, her final living destination. Now there's only thunderous silence in a world built from applause.

"Move fire starter," A heavy, turbulent voice pressed beside her, drawing her distant gaze curiously to the roar. In her thoughts Aideen had almost forgotten her Goliath like usher, the towering Arabian staring down at her from a staggering nine feet with large, piggish black eyes. Aideen took the spectacle in for a mere second then, as if she thought she could capture the massive image and take it with her to the afterlife. Eyad stood like a bronze god above everyone else, the massiveness of his body only outdone by the range of his inhuman strength. His muscles were well toned and round, protruding from every corner of his body as if the giant were made of nothing but the thick tendons. His browned skin was scarred and massively tattooed with what he said were symbols of his crimes, although the rolls of his blue robes covered the majority of the rough inking now. The only always visible inking was that of a weeping woman with a sun emerging from her voiceless scream that was painted into the skin atop his hairless scalp. Sadly, Aideen realized now that in the past fifteen years she had worked with Eyad never once had she asked him the deeper reasoning on his odd markings, and now that opportunity was no more. Too late fur bonding…neva been good at it anyway.

The giant looked at her with his oddly large eyes then, and with one skull sized hand, gestured towards the master tent before them. Aideen followed his gesture with her gaze and winced when realization struck again. Fifteen years ago the massive tent had been a welcoming home amongst the bitter rejection of the human world, but now the warm comfort and love it once renewed held all the dry and choking tastes of ash. The place had become her grave, one that she would finally be put to rest in.

"Thata way?" Aideen asked with unrestrained sarcasm, her eyes turning back to Eyad with one last laugh as she joked, "I neva would've guessed."

Eyad didn't find her comment amusing though and he simply crossed his massive arms over his equally massive chest before staring at her stoically. The big choob. Aideen grinned wirily back and remarked as her gaze smirked into the giants black orbs, "Geez, don't laugh too hard Eyad, ya might mistakenly display signs of ah sense of humor."

Aideen gasped dramatically for effect but the only reaction she got from the Deviant was a firm shove against her spine, Eyad's enormous hand reaching out to push the fire starter abruptly towards the tent. Despite Aideen's numerous layers of clothing she could still easily feel the full power of Eyad's blow, and in shock her body fell forward, coming to land on her knees before the master tent as if she meant to grovel for forgiveness. The small sting of impact coursed through Aideen's knees and palms, but she bit back the pain with a growl for a warning to the oversized thug.

"Eyad," She hissed and the giant understood the warning, taking a few cautious steps back from the crouched fire starter. Both knew that even with the Arabs considerable size included, Aideen's power deemed her the most dangerous in their Deviant carnival. So Eyad carefully kept his distance, although he once more silently gestured to the master tent with unspoken impatience.

Ya heartless arse, I get the bloody point. Aideen rolled her eyes at the giants repeating gesture in attempts to retain her cocky negligence, but when her gaze lifted once more to her death she could only nod, her voice quivering with mounting fear as she spat, "Yea… we wouldn't want to keep the master waiting."