Freak Show

Prologue

The night was coming to a close as the circus stage set up for the final act of the night. The next act was the most dangerous of all, and one that made people come back, because it would never be the same twice. All because those who participated in the act were unpredictable and savage. The staff set up large metal fences at the edge of the arena that was centered in the large tent. The Ringleader stood on his pedestal as he watched the crowd get antsy in their sets waiting for the last act of the night. As soon as the staff finished, the Ringleader shooed them away with one wave of his cane that was in his right hand, before the man spoke, a wave of whispered went through the restless crowd at the tried to figure out what was about to happen. Another set of staff rushed in and filled the arena with props such as large hoops and other various objects.

"Ladies and gentlemen, before we began the last act of tonight I must warn you." The Ringleader's raspy voice echoed through the almost silent tent. He grinned slightly as he peered through the metal bars at the audience on the other side. "This act is very dangerous and if you are scared easy this is your chance to leave before we continue as this act can become..." He paused for a brief moment to rise the tension. "gruesome, if we aren't careful." He smiled devilishly. And with that statement, two men dragging two large square objects covered by cloths walked into the now caged stage, and in between the two men stood a woman. She was a woman of dark color and with almost no hair. Scars and scratches were scattered upon her dark colored skin, she didn't look friendly at all. She was wearing tan fabric with red and yellow patterns that covered her chest and a the same type of fabric covered her waist but has two longer pieces that hung down from the front and the back of her skirt like piece of clothing. The strangest of all was that she was barefoot. In her hand, was a whipped that was curled up neatly. When the scarred woman entered the stage the crowds whispered and murmured, the Ringleader knew why, it was because she was a girl of color. 

"Now," The Ringleader hushed the crowd when he spoke. "this is your last warning before we began." The Ringleader warned once more. When no one moved he nodded and the two men who dragged the squares into the arena removed the large pieces of cloth in unison to show two large male lions. The two large cats were prowling in their cages, head hung low the walking back and forth. When the lions were revealed, the crowd gasped and starting whispering again. The scarred woman glanced back at each lions, her expression changed only slightly as she looked at them, her eyes softened but then she drew her attention back to the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen," The Ringleader said once more. "welcome to the finally act of the night." He grinned, he still stood upon his pedestal. "From the lands of Africa, watch as I tame theses... savages." He glanced back at the dark woman and smirked. The woman was unamused and when the Ringleader turned away she frowned at him.

When he finished talking, the woman unlocked and opened one of the cages, releasing one of the lions. It leaped from it's prison and prowled around the area, scanning every inch of the arena. Next, the woman unlocked the other caged. Now the two male lions were walking slowly on the outskirts of the arena, their eyes locked onto the Ringleader. The woman walked over to the man on the pedestal and handed him the whip she had been carrying. Quickly, the Ringleader snatched it from her grab and uncoiled the whip. The look of regret flashed in the dark woman's eyes and she stepped away from the tall Ringleader and went to pick up one of the many large hoops laying around.

The act consisted of the Ringleader whipping at the lions and forcing them to leap through the hoops. The Ringleader could tell that the lions were getting antsy, they kept snarling at the Ringleader and even the crowd at times, but never at the woman who held the hoops. The night drew on as did the act, until the woman held up a smaller hoop than the others she had previously used. She moved it higher in the air and one of the lions jumped through it with no hesitation, but it didn't stop. After it landed on the ground, the lion charged at the Ringleader. The crowd gasped at the watched the full grown lion tackle at the Ringleader to the ground, losing his grip on the whip and throwing it to the ground. The scarred woman reacted with no hesitation, she threw the hoop onto the ground and picked up the whip. She whipped the floor causing a loud, sharp sound to echo through the circus tent. The lion that was on top of the Ringleader flinched at the sound and backed off, but that didn't stop the woman. She repeated her action, causing the two lions to back away from her, snarling. Eventually, she got both lions back into their cages and locked them. When she locked the second cage the crowd burst into cheers and applause. She turned back to the crowd but didn't react. She didn't know how to react. No crowd had ever really noticed her, she was always in the background of the Ringleader's glory.

The Ringleader stood up and stared at the woman with disgust. This wasn't supposed to happen. I shouldn't have been saved by some slave. He thought. He walked to his pedestal that was still there and stood on top of it. "Thank you for coming to our show tonight!" The Ringleader said to the crowd as he opened his arms. He didn't even know the warm blood trickling down the right side of his face. The lion was got him after all. "Goodnight! We hope to see you all back here soon!"

After the mass crowds had left and the circus tent was finally clear of everything the Ringleader went behind the curtain to where most of the his freaks where. Most of the freaks lived at the circus, as this was their only source of income, and some went home. But he wasn't looking for those who went home, the one person he was searching for was the one who, in his mind, would never have a home. He walked past the circus staff and props as he made his way to the back where the animals that were used in the circus where kept. He knew she would be there. As he neared the back, the person he was looking for come out from where he knew she was. The scarred woman looked at him, she no longer looked menacing or scary, she looked frightened. He stared at her for a moment and gripped her by the arm and dragged her to where the most people where. 

"Let go of me!" She spoke in a heavy Zulu accent as she was dragged from where she stood. With no mercy, the Ringleader threw her to the floor, everyone stopped and stared at the chaos the two where causing.  The scarred woman tried to crawl away from the Ringleader but it was to no luck. For every inch she moved away, he moved closer.

"This," The Ringleader yelled so everyone could hear him He glanced down  at the woman who was on the floor. "this is what happens when you take the spotlight away from me in a moment of your own glory." He snapped, as he spoke, the Ringleader kicked the woman as hard at his could, he was fuming. "Especially," He paused and looked at the crowd that had gathered. "if you are of color." He snarled. The people around gasped and called out for him to stop. Though, the Ringleader wouldn't listen to them, and he kept kicking the poor woman. By now, the scarred woman was badly hurt, and scarlet blood dripped from her mouth, she was pleading for mercy, but the Ringleader wouldn't listen. A few moments passed and a woman dressed in a fancy leotard and fishnets raced out towards the Ringleader and pushed him back slightly in a fit of bravery. There wasn't much she could do was both her hands were wrapped tightly in bandages. Now, the Ringleader focused his attention the lady who had pushed him. He grabbed one of her hands and squeezed it tightly, causing her to squeal and yelp in pain. When he finally let go of her hand she crumbled to the floor in pain, holding her hand close to her. "Does anyone else have a problem with this?" He challenged the people who surrounded him, he turned around in circles to look at all of their faces.

"I do." A man said in a thick hispanic accent as he  stepped from the crowd. He was slightly shorter than the Ringleader, his mocha colored skin was covered in burn scars and some tattoos dotted his body. He was shirtless, wearing nothing but pants. The Ringleader's gaze shot to him, his eyes flickering with absolute rage. The Ringleader reached into his red colored coat and pulled out three of his throwing knives. He held them in his hand to show them off for a moment before throwing one at the man who challenged his authority. The knife landed on wood only an inch above the man's head. 

"And next time i won't miss." He growled and looked at the crowd again. By now, his blood was dripping down all of his face and onto his clothes. "Is this how to treat the man who feeds you? Who gives you a home? Who gives you everything?" He pleaded with the circus members. "I should be treated with respect, you should be grateful i am here and that i saved her from the streets." The Ringleader spoke, his throwing knives still in his hand. Everyone around him looked horrified, they were all scared of him. Good, the should fear me. He stood up straight and pushed his way out of the crowd. After the Ringleader left, people rushed to the two women on the floor in their aid.  The dark-skinned woman pushed them away and stood up, she picked herself up and walked away from the crowd. She was limping heavily, bleeding from multiple wounds that were visible upon her body.

"Hey." A new, woman voiced called out to the scarred girl. "Are you okay? How bad did he hurt you?" The voice belonged to a lengthy girl, dressed in flowy blue outfit with her head slightly wet. The scarred woman just glared at the girl dressed in blue and turned away, going back to where her loins were kept. The woman dressed in blue sighed and walked off.