The Mutant

Dr. Wolf hurriedly separates from the Hero, assimilating into the crowd flowing towards a second tent wall leading to the quickly filling stands of the Freak Show. The Hero instead heads toward the concession stand where a couple of voluptuous barmaids are selling kettle corn and rich lagers.

“Hey ladies, what does a handsome hero have to do to get a bag of popcorn and something to drink?” says the Hero.

Dr. Wolf enters into the inner tent and heads toward an open seat.

“I want you in my freak show,” says a whisper, cutting through the bustling throng. Dr. Wolf spins around, scanning the crowd. In the middle of the flowing crowd, like a standing rock in the midst of a babbling brook, stands an ornately clothed carnival barker staring at him. The Carney’s eyes are bright with an electric light sure to invigorate and rouse a crowd and his merry smile hangs like a festive sign from a carnival booth, but there’s a maniacal madness behind those boardwalk eyes. The madness is accentuated by the Carney’s contrasting cold pale-blue skin.

A passerby steps between the Carney and Dr. Wolf and when the bystander passed, the Carney was gone. A chill crawls up Dr. Wolf’s spine, but he shakes it off as he heads toward his seat. The house lights swirl around the big top tent as the crowd is whipped into a frenzy.

“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls….”

The voice sounds familiar to Dr. Wolf and a sinister thought turns in his mind, but before Dr. Wolf’s can reach its malevolent maturity, a brigade of clowns, contortionists, and acrobats storm the floor, entrancing everyone with their humor and feats of athleticism. The show continues and Dr. Wolf’s fears are quickly forgotten.

“Now for what you all have been waiting for, the final event of the evening. Hold tightly to your loved ones, these freaks are not for the faint of heart. Prepare yourselves…”

Suddenly the lights cut out, plunging the big top into complete darkness. The crowd rumbles in anticipation. A sepia light shines down from the top of the tent crawling across the ground, almost as if the light itself was searching for the subject of its presence.

A savage roar shakes the bleachers. A thundering gallop grows louder, and louder, and louder. The crowd buzzes with curiosity. Out of one of the folds of the tent, two carnival workers struggle to restrain a raging beast.

“This oddity comes from the laboratory of a mad scientist in the far east realm, a true marvel of science. The scientist attempted to meld two people into a single person, however the results are as bizarre as the science that produced this freak…”

The Mutant stares into the bright light squinting, occasionally shaking his chains and roaring. Suddenly, the Mutant grabs one of the stage hands, throwing him at the audience. The crowd gasps as the Mutant bellows and charges at them…