Chapter 9 - Performance
Credence forced himself out of bed an hour before he was scheduled to perform, keeping his head down as he moved amongst the crowd. He was continuously ignored by his fellow performers, jostled this way and that, pushed aside and forgotten. And right now that was fine.
He wanted to be forgotten. He wanted to disappear, to reach beyond the clouds and never come back down. But tonight there was no escaping his fate.
He stood in the shadows, shaking with anticipation as he awaited his turn in the center ring. He despised his job, and yet he would continue putting on a show day after day, night after night, all while hating the people who surrounded him. Because he had to be that person on stage. He had to face the crowd beneath the glare of the enchanted lights because there was nothing else left. Nothing else that he could become.
And then he saw her, that terrified young lady behind iron bars. The lights were dimmed, the ringmaster came forward, and once more Skender began his famous speech.
"Wait, how could this ever come to be? The most bizarre affliction of all time. What begins as a lovely girl will now transform into an ugly snake. She has traveled throughout the world telling her strange story to thousands of people. This is a must for the entire family. Never have you see anything so strange."
The spotlight shone at the center of the cage, fear shining in her eyes as she backed against the bars, trembling and sliding down until she was sitting on the floor.
Credence knew how much she hated this. She feared that her next transformation would be her last, leaving her trapped in a serpentine body. But did Skender care that she might get stuck that way? Did he care that Credence's health was deteriorating, and that the Obscurial might collapse and die during his next performance? No, certainly not. Because he could always go out and find himself a new batch of freaks to replace the ones he'd lost.
Skender approached the cage, leering at the woman in the corner. In his hand he held a bullhook, the iron rod clasped tightly in his fingers. A wicked cackle escaped his lips. He was enjoying this, and Credence knew it, watching from a distance as the ringmaster prodded her through the bars.
The Maledictus cried out, backing further into the corner. She cringed as the bullhook struck the side of the cage, the noise reverberating off the cold surface. Already she was beginning to change, her pulse pounding frantically against her ribs, rage building as he jabbed at her again, this time in the side above her right hip.
A fierce hissing noise rose above the music, and Credence stepped back, watching as the massive snake launched herself through the air, striking the bars and eliciting a sudden gasp from the audience.
The Obscurial hung his head, tendrils of blackened smoke encircling his limbs. He'd spent so many years wishing he could join the magical world, not knowing that the world he left behind was just as cruel as the realm he'd entered.
