Getting from point A to point B was a straight shot. I simply needed to walk across some narrow bridge-type thing, and I’d reach another ominous entryway. I could go backwards, but I still had no idea where anyone was and didn’t want to risk being hunted through a maze of illusions.
I began inching forward, careful where I placed each foot. I didn’t trust anything around me. Last thing I needed was to trigger some booby-trap or riddle because I stepped on something. I was at the halfway point when from the opposite end of the tunnel, another clown emerged.
Huge was an understatement. This man was a giant. His hair was fireball red and wild, overalls covered in fresh blood. He was carrying a sledgehammer as if it weighed nothing. There was no way in hell I could take a blow from that and be remotely okay.
I froze in place, not knowing what to do. I for sure wasn’t going back in that damn maze room. I could already envision my brain splattered all over the glass.
“What’s the matter?” the clown taunted; his voice low.
“You could say I’m having a bad day,” I quipped.
“Aw, what a shame. Let Dandy make it better.”
He grinned manically before charging right towards me. I instinctively hopped the metal guard rail, leaping off the side of the bridge. I landed on my feet and immediately realized that it wasn’t the shapes moving, but the wall itself that was slowly rotating.
Due to the odd shape of the room, I had to consciously keep my balance. Dandy turned towards me, sledgehammer still in hand. With a sneer on his colorfully painted face, he swung.
I jumped out of the way, barely managing to remain upright. The bang echoed throughout the tunnel, a nice portion of the wall caved in, revealing a jagged black hole and electrical wiring.
“Oh, you made me miss,” Dandy whined.
He turned towards me again and I knew I was so fucking fucked. All I had was a bullshit Swiss knife and nowhere to go. I started to retreat as far as I could, pausing when Dandy came to an abrupt halt.
His eyes slightly widened, mouth opening and closing like a suffocating fish. I squinted, noticing a rapidly spreading amount of blood suddenly coming from beneath his overalls.
His grip on the sledgehammer loosened and it fell from his hands, landing on the bridge with a loud clatter. Dandy stumbled forward before ultimately falling to the floor. Left standing behind him was honestly one of the last people I expected to see. In Ciaran’s hands was a long, thin bloodied blade.
“What are you doing?” burst from my mouth before I could stop it.
“What I promised you I would.”
That didn’t even begin to answer my question. He’d said a lot of things that could be taken as a promise. I shifted on my feet; cognizant the wall was still turning.
Dandy groaned and began to mumble. With the music still going it was near impossible to make out what it was. I wanted to get closer but didn’t dare with Ciaran standing a mere few feet away. Without another word he bent and grabbed hold of the sledgehammer.
“Watch closely,” he needled, bringing the tool down on the back of Dandy’s skull.
That portion of his head deflated like a balloon getting the helium sucked out of it all at once. Something wet hit my calf and left arm. The flashing lights made the contents within his look more like remnants of a volcanic eruption than a sloppy pile of brain and skull matter.
“Hey,” Ciaran called to garner my attention. He dropped the sledgehammer and stepped towards me; one hand outstretched.
I was suddenly glad he couldn’t see my face. There was no way to hide the tumultuous emotions I’m sure played right across it.
“You’re not serious?”
“Don’t pretend to be mad at me, puppet.”
“Quit calling me—pretend? Do you see where I’m at right now because of you?”
“Yeah. I see you’re alive too. How about a thank you?”
I scoffed. “Why are you helping me? And what’s with the picture?”
“Sooner or later, you’ll understand how much we need each other.”
“The only thing I need you to do is fuck off!”
His responding laugh was unmistakable.
“I’m glad it was you.”
“Will you speak normally for once?”
“Keep going, puppet. You’re almost right where you need to be.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
Still donning his mask as well, I couldn’t see his face, but I swear I felt his arrogant smirk as he turned away.
This asshole.
The second he was gone I climbed back onto the bridge. I folded up my army knife and shoved it in my rear pocket, the one that wasn’t holding the picture Ciaran gave me.
I wasn’t sure why he left the sledgehammer behind. I was taking full advantage of the fact that he had, though. My boots squished across blood, brain, and skull as I walked to retrieve it. I’m sure there was some cerebrospinal fluid down there too. I didn’t bother trying to avoid the mess.