Chianna gasped, D'argo growled and even Rygel started at the sight of a frightening appearing Pilot plastered on a banner. His eyes were painted as if glowing with an inner fire. Blood dripped from fangs. Clawed pinchers poised, with fanged mouths at the junctures.

He looked terrifying.

"Chianna, I DO think we will be going to that circus," Crichton vowed menacingly, his eyes burning holes in that banner. Pilot's monster face seemed to loom closer as it fluttered in the breeze.

A street barker waved fliers, "Hear ye, hear ye, come witness the Seven Cities Circus! Thrills! Chills! Impossible Acts! And yes…" his voice became an ominous murmur, which the surrounding audience closed in closed to listen, "Captured from the wild, an unusual creature taken from the Eastern Swamplands. His kind was thought no more, BUT here, in this city, for the first time EVER, you will see one for YOURSELF! Ferocious! Blood thirsty! Fierce! Hunted to near extinction long ago by the Army of Peace. Tomorrow…you will see one of these things…FOR YOURSELF! For a modest gratuity, of course."

He smiled and continued his spiel, passersby taking fliers. Crichton shouted at the barker, "Yo, Barnum, let's have one of those!" He took the flyer and read it. It said….

"Greetings, Citizens of Geldburg, the Seven Cities Circus is now among you! For one week and one week only, the Seven Cities Circus will astound you, amaze you and show you sights unseen anywhere else in this world! Amazing magic, High flying men and women! Beautiful maidens, hideous creatures and animals from all corners of the world! One week! Tickets available now! Modest price, but can you really put a price on AMAZEMENT? Come one, come all!"

Crichton looked up from the flyer. "Hideous monsters," he murmurs. "Hm…"

"We gotta get him out of there," Chianna said, her head sticking out of the window of the carriage, looking at Crichton. D'argo rumbled deep in his chest, his eyes intense.

"I know," Crichton said. "But I'm at a loss on how, Pip."

"Simple, " D'argo growled, "We break him out. He's in a circus. We are warriors. We can overcome them with little trouble, especially if we strike without warning."

"Yeah, I feel ya," Crichton nodded. "But we're in this city alone. We've got our skills, our weapons, but we are surrounded by a lot more. So we don't need to go for our guns unless we have no choice."

"Then what do you suggest?", D'argo asked.

"Still workin' on that, guy," Crichton said. "We have the financial clout of a well known merchant who wants to stay on our good side. That's one. And we have a respected lord of a realm, that's two. Maybe there's something we can do with that. The VIP treatment, you know?"

"Crichton, look!", Chianna said, pointing down the street.

A somewhat small but VERY vociferous group of people, who could only be described as protesters, mobbed the ticket booth, and now approached the barker. They were shouting things like "Cruel!" "Inhuman!" "Barbaric!" and "Endangered Species!" They were waving around signs and shouting at the passersby, handing out flyers of their own.

One man from the group approached the carriage, saw Rygel, and went to one knee, head bowed, "Milord, this circus is a cruel mockery of civilized life. It is an affront to a polite society, and because of THAT…", pointing to the Monster Pilot picture, "…is ILLEGAL!"

Rygel regarded the man, "And…you are?"

The man eagerly stood up and extended his hand, then withdrew it again when it seemed Rygel wasn't inclined to take it.

"I'm Garin Tayle, Attorney at Law, and I'm protesting the display of this creature on legal grounds. He is the last of his kind, as far as this world knows, and is an intelligent creature. The law shouldn't allow this kind of treatment! According to my research, it DOESN'T!" He waved a satchel of documents around to emphasize his point.

Crichton smiled slyly, "So, Garin, can you hook us up with the local Judge Judy?"

Garin smiled gratefully, then paused, "Who?"