Page 75 of Chaos Carnival

“Exactly.” I leaned forward. “They'll line up to be frightened. Pay us for the privilege. And the hunters?” A laugh escaped me, echoing across the room in all directions. “They'll never spot the real alchemy hiding behind the fake.”

Addie's excitement was infectious, even as she unconsciously leaned away. “A haunted big top! We could have acts that blur the line between performance and... and...”

“Reality,” I finished, my smile widening. “Oh, we'll blur more than lines. We'll make them question everything they think they know. And they'll love us for it.”

Lux had stopped pacing entirely, transfixed. “The energy from willing participants...”

“Is sweeter than anything torn from unwilling victims,” I confirmed. “I've tasted every flavor of fear across a thousand realities. Trust me on this.”

Maverick's hand tightened on mine, protective as his magic responded to mine. “And you're sure about this? You know this works?”

“The universe shows me everything, love.” I turned to him, letting him see it in my gaze. “Every outcome. Every path. And in the ones where we succeed?” My voice dropped to a whisper. “We become legends.”

The room fell silent, but their resistance crumbled like sweet shortbread. They'd follow me into this new adventure I was crafting for them. I'd already seen them do it a thousand times.

Before anyone could speak, Lilith leaned forward, glee reflected in her eyes. “It can be warded,” she purred, confidence dripping from her words. “I'll weave protections so deep into thecircus's bones, the hunters won't even notice us, as long as we keep moving.”

“A moving target,” Lux mused, his strategic mind catching up to the possibilities. “Never still enough to pin down or track.”

Stone's frown deepened, power rumbling beneath his words. “You're suggesting we build a fortress of nightmares.”

“A labyrinth of willing sacrifices,” Lilith corrected, her smirk sharp enough to cut. “The best deceptions are the ones people choose to believe.”

Addie's excitement bubbled up like blood from a fresh wound. “The costumes, the sets! We could make them brilliant and terrifying!”

Maverick's gaze bore into me, still trying to protect what was now beyond protection. “And you, Tess? Is this truly what you want?”

I met his stare, letting him see the vastness behind my eyes. “The fates have already decided. This circus will rise, whether by our design or fate's cruel hand. I prefer to be ahead of destiny than its victim, don’t you?”

Silence fell like a fog as my words resonated. They all considered whether I was crazy or powerful, or both. It was both, but they didn’t need to know all the facets of my new shell. I was going to bask in it though, joyfully, while I could.

Finally, Maverick exhaled, surrendering beautifully. “Then I'm with you. Wherever you lead us.”

“Into darkness and beyond,” I smiled, atoms shivering at my satisfaction. “We'll build something that makes the shadows themselves afraid.”

Lilith stretched like a predator after a feast. “Well then, my darling harbingers of chaos. Shall we begin?”

Oscar's crystalline voice cut through the planning session. “Darling, if we're going to run a circus of horrors, we simply must do it with style. None of that garish carnival nonsense—weneed elegance in our entropy. Think Wilde meets Lovecraft, with better wardrobe choices than either.”

I couldn't help but laugh. Trust Oscar to keep me grounded in his uniquely theatrical way, even as I floated between realities.

Something stirred inside me. Not hope, I’d evolved beyond needing that. This was certainty.

The hunters could chase us across every realm, but they'd never catch what they couldn't comprehend, and that was what I had become. We would turn their threats into our triumph.

After all, every circus needs its clowns.

Chapter 34: Three Ring Rebirth

Maverick

Itossedbackanothershot of whiskey, watching Addie pace the length of my living room, her energy almost manic as she gestured with a half-eaten cookie. “Okay, but hear me out—what if we made it like those haunted houses where people sign waivers? Get them scared before they even walk in!”

“We could always use it to punish the wicked,” Stone mused from his position by the window, Eris the demon-bound goat dozing at his feet. “Let the truly guilty feel some real fear.”

“Your kind of justice,” Lux added, looking up from his laptop with a glint in his eye. “I could think of a few deserving candidates.”

“We'd have to be selective,” I said, the idea taking root in my mind. “Choose our targets carefully.”

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