The perfect summer sky radiated the laughter, highlighting the atmosphere even more.
Rocky saw many things; he contemplated what to do first. Rides? Watch? or maybe even play, the carnival had many things that could entertain a person. You could spend nearly five years in here, and there'll still be many things.
This was the land of performers; everything you see or do isn't just fantasy anymore, but a place you could experience.
Rocky had an Idea-he would run around the carnival, and when he stopped, the entertainment nearest to him, he would experience first. Without a second thought, he dashed forward while his parents tried to keep up with him.
Running like they were chasing a wild goose. To their luck, this planet had a way of keeping everyone you know together... Whenever you're lost, you'll be able to find your friends or family almost instantly.
In the carnival, no one is alone, and even when you are, you're destined to find a person just like you to spend time with.
After running for a while, Rocky decided it was time to stop.
He saw a medium-sized purple tent that had the name "Cove" at the top. No booth sign, or anything at all.
To his surprise, he was exactly at the entrance of a cove. But this one was strange. Unlike other places in the carnival, no one seemed to line up for it.
The carnival is a place where every performer—big or small—is treated as everyone else. Even the smallest ones still have lines that people wait for.
He tilted his head as he turned to look at his surroundings, but everything stopped moving. Everything had a dull color except for him and the cove.
He walked forward, swaying the cloth to one side. Rocky heard a slow hum around the cove; he wasn't able to tell where it came from, only hearing it in the back of his head, even when he turned around.
Inside, he found a table that had a tiny box in the middle. The seat in front of him moved, inviting Rocky to sit on it. On the other side was a woman-or man...? It was hard to tell with its entire face and body covered by a layered cloth.
"Excuse me then..."
Rocky muttered, sitting slowly on the chair before moving it on the box.
"Do you want me to open this?"
Rocky's father had always told him to always ask permission or confirmation before acting. He waited for a response, only to be met with silence. The hum suddenly vanished; with the whole cove dulling itself, washing away all color—All except the box...
The box illuminated a warm yellow hue around itself. Symbols began to appear on each side of the box; not long after, those same symbols tore themselves from the box, bouncing diligently in the air. The symbols resembled complex runic, but it felt more... Alive, distinct—it felt the same, yet it wasn't.
Rocky watched in awe as the symbols whirled in the center, forming into a feather. The glowing feather danced through the air, swaying gently until it hit the surface of the box. Sending a gust of energy around the cove, slowly opening the box.
He heard a familiar melody, only this time, it wasn't humming anymore. Soft violin blessed his ears, as the box displayed yellow ink.
The yellow ink rose from the box and split into tiny particles, hovering around Rocky and the mysterious figure. Then it spoke:
"The child's tragedy..."
The ink around them formed into English letters in front of Rocky, while some still hovered.
"Not so long ago, a child was born." Again, the ink changed its shape—turning to the silhouette of a child.
"He was born into a struggling family; the mother cried with tears of guilt and joy, while the father held both of them close in his arms, feeling the same grief and excitement the mother had felt."
The yellow ink shapeshifted with each word, as if it presented the story while the figure narrated it. And with each passing second, Rocky pulled himself closer, listening carefully to him.
"They felt fear, but they persevered for the sake of their child. They worked until their backs ached; their legs cramp, and their eyes sagged, for the sake of their own child. As the days passed, they were recognized for their hard work. They no longer needed to preserve food or starve themselves to feed their offspring."
"With their new life, they settled in a small apartment—Not too big, nor too small. It was perfect just for the three of them. All their hard work through the struggles had awarded them; it wasn't fancy, but to them, it was paradise..."
"The child grew up to be a healthy boy, with good morals. They taught him many things—Cooking, cleaning, and many more—but the most important one of them all... Was to treasure not your wealth, but your passion and diligence."
"He treasured those words of his parents even in their final breaths. By then, he had grown so much that he had nearly surpassed his parents age... He hadn't let go of his guilt; he only watched his parents die at the hands of a man his parents once admired. He could've done something... But fear suppressed him."
"He tried to fight, but for someone like him? It was nothing short of impossible, he cried, until nothing was left. With a final resort... He hired people to kill the man responsible for his tears. This turned out to be a mistake on his part; the assassination was a success, but the aftermath was devastating."
"Many had died during the process. He had only one man to kill, and yet so many families that were once like his turned to someone like him... He became the very thing he hated, a person who ruins a family."
"With that, he fled from his city, unable to bear the weight of this guilt. He wanted to repent... Wanted to repent..."
"He had time to, but it was already too late... He had vowed never to tell a soul about the assassin. His soul was wrapped around by a string, never to speak or talk about the truth..."
"..."
Rocky felt a whisper on his ear; he glanced to see the figure, his head tilting to the side.
"What do you mean by that?" Rocky asked.
The mysterious figure lifted its head toward Rocky, revealing nothing under the layered cloak. It slowly raised its right hand, revealing a dark and uncanny hand with a mix of masculine and feminine features. He snapped his fingers, making Rocky blink.
Once he opened it once more, he saw the exact scenery from before. With the only exception that time resumed, he blinked a couple more times. When did he go outside? How did he go outside?
He questioned himself until he felt a pinch on his ear. Rocky looked up to see who it was—having a rough idea who it already is...
It was her mother who gave him a scary glare, not long after, his father arrived—Quickly hugging him by his side.
"Don't go running off like that, you had us worried for a second." His father said.
"We can't get lost in the carnival, though! Ow..."
"That still doesn't give you the excuse to run off on your own!" His mother exclaimed
"I was just there!" Rocky pointed behind him toward the cove.
But to his shock, the cove wasn't there, and the tent disappeared like it never existed. And what replaced it was a larger tent with white and red stripes. It was a circus...
"If you wanted to go to the circus, you could've just told us!"
"But..."
A loudspeaker cracked the air, its pitch somewhat unsettling, but to be expected in carnivals like these. It matched the theme well without a doubt.
"Zen will be arriving shortly to perform his act! To all those who bought a ticket, please make your way to the grand theater, please!"
"Oh, it's time! Let's go, we don't wanna miss it!" Her mother reacted quite fast, dragging Rocky by the hand.
Rocky remained focused on the circus as she dragged him, not minding the announcement a single second. He nodded to himself before he redirected his gaze forward. Walking in perfect synchronization with his family, he kept wondering why the figure told him that.
But for now, he could only guess and shrug it off. For now, he was about to watch the greatest performer on stage in the grand theater; that thought made him forget the uneasiness, and he continued forward.
After what felt like hours, he had made it. The grand theater, the largest and most popular one in the entire galaxy. It made every structure he saw look puny in its side—even the travel log was no match in terms of size. Loads of people rushed inside.
After making their way to the entrance, he felt the atmosphere change instantly as if he were in a different place entirely.
He saw thousands of chairs focused on one stage; the entire theater was filled, and yet no one made a sound and patiently waited. They took a seat, with lights beaming at the stage, almost at the same time. Footsteps echoed; his presence excited the crowd until he finally revealed himself on stage.
He wore a dark suit with a hint of red showing. Along with it came a long top hat. He walked the stage with a confident posture, walking steadily toward the center.
Many clapped simultaneously, with Zen bowing his head; his audience, before giving them a warm smile.
Just seconds after he appeared, new lights were turned on. Directing itself near the entrance. Everyone redirected their gaze toward it only to be met with another Zen appear. Multiple people looked confused, taking second glances every second.
The Zen that was on the stage then fell flatly—revealing itself to be a cardboard layout of himself. He walked down the flight of stairs, waving to his fans before stopping his motion entirely—spawning a wand.
He hid his wand in front of his vest, pulling it out slowly. Seconds had passed, and it was still going. Until it hit a wall; Tugging it slightly, trying to pull more, and as he did, the wand tore into multiple tiny pieces. Giving his fans that was over the wand line their own.
Zen continued down the stairs—but ultimately stopped after seeing a child near him. Zen saw his awed expression, and he made a sharp left toward him, patting his head.
He gave his top hot, and when he placed it down, he exploded into confetti, vanishing from the crowd. Zen appeared on the stage, standing upright as if he were on the floor the entire time.
"Welcome, everyone! I am delighted to see you all here; I will be your showman for the next hour!" Zen exclaimed, his tone bold before elegantly bowing. "Entertaining you all..."
All of them cheered; despite his simple entrance, everyone was ecstatic. They had known that Zen always liked to start simple, allowing them to drop their guards—lowering their expectations to build a new one from scratch.
But they had long adjusted to his techniques as the years passed—it became obvious, but still created tension through anticipation. Zen was known to be quite a trickster, using their expectations to deceive them.
New lights appeared from each corner, and they saw who turned them off. With another Zen, each one with its own corresponding spotlights. Turning it on like a wave, before the hue started to change. A whole hurricane of soft wind entered the room despite having tightly closed walls around them.
The ground shook beneath their seats; the ground beneath them slowly changing itself—terraforming even.
Trails of confetti, from the duplicates. Shooting from the stage, the confetti slowly transitioned into something... dull, but gave signs of life—turning to clouds, they haven't even noticed the roof was gone; entirely replaced with a night sky despite it still being noon.
"Without further ado... Let's start the show."