The Pool

The Hero runs down the stairs of the big top stands, still munching on the last of his bag of kettle corn.

“What happened,” says the Hero through a mouth full of kettle corn.

“Seems that the show has gone awry,” says Dr. Wolf thoughtfully, “But this was no accident.”

“So what’s the play?” asks the Hero, crumpling up and tossing his kettle corn bag in a nearby trash barrel.

“It's the Carney barker, he’s behind all of this,” says Dr. Wolf.

“Well, that’s typically how the the carnival works,” says Dr. Wolf questioningly.

Dr. Wolf stares at the Hero with an annoyed look for a moment or two.

“Oh,” says the Hero as Dr. Wolf’s comment finally dawns on him.

The two heroes look around the tent and now notice two dark hallways they didn’t notice before. Dr. Wolf pauses, unsettled by the sudden appearance of the two hallways.

“Do we split up,” asks the Hero, perturbed as well.

“I think that’s what the Carney wants us to do,” says Dr. Wolf.

“And so?” says the Hero.

“We give him what he wants, if it’s traps he has, we’ll spring them,” says Dr. Wolf determinedly.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

The Hero walked down the big top’s walk way for what seemed like an hour. The never-ending descent into the striped labyrinth creates greater and greater anxiety within the Hero, tearing his nerves to shreds. He is bracing himself for anything at any time.

Suddenly the terrain changes, the tint hall rising to accommodate a set of metal stairs that level off into a walkway. A dark aquatic green glow slightly illuminates the darkness. The Hero walks up the stairs and finds himself traversing across a giant pool. The pool seems to go on forever, seemingly outlandish considering that to accomplish this the room would need to be several times larger than the main arena from which the Hero and Dr. Wolf separated. The Hero looks beneath him but doesn’t see anything in the water.

“But in here I’m sure there’s some evil nasty that’s just itching to smash, crush, or eat me because that’s how the night’s going. Bunch of freaks,” mumbles the Hero to himself.

Suddenly, something slams into the Hero, knocking him over the railing.

The water is frigid, and the air is driven from the Hero’s lungs. The Hero claws at the water drying to drag himself back into the fresh air. After what seems like forever, the Hero breaks the surface and takes deep gulps of precious air. He kicks frantically, trying to stay above the freezing water. The Hero looks above, the catwalk is just out of reach. After a few attempts to kick hard out of the water and reach the catwalk above, the Hero determines that this approach is futile.

The Hero feels something nudge his leg and he thrashes around. He sees a shadow swimming away. The Hero’s heart is beating rapidly, and his quick breathing echoes off the water. His heart is in his throat. Suddenly, something wraps around the Hero’s ankle and he is sucked beneath the water.