Well, hes the dragon slayer though! Corgea exclaimed. The crowd cheered in front of him.

Hed just screw his head back on, take out his knife and return the favor to the poor bastard
that hes up against! He grabbed the bicep on his upturned arm and the crowd started roaring. I
could see Regan look bashfully away from the campfire.
I was sitting pretty in the circus. Past the fabric doors that lead to the dungeon, theres
another flight of stairs descending the other way that lead to the clowns quarters. There was a
hammock that was open for me. I got a blanket too - the atmosphere wasnt particularly cold,
but I had become accustomed to having one when I slept. It had been a few nights since I got
out of the dungeon and I had been diligently trying to balance myself on the ball. I didnt know if
my friends were going to come for me. It took up most of my thoughts. Were they going to find
me? Had they tracked the Yatiki ship? Would they come with reinforcements? Instead of
dwelling on it, I put my heart into balancing on that ball. I ignored the terrible food, I ignored the
feeling of being lost, I ignored my sore legs and just put all my energy, physical and manic, into
my spherical madness.
I heard clowns rustling around. It awoke me from a shallow sleep. My mind hung over
my head; I wanted to go back to sleep, but clowns are not a quiet bunch. There was rustling and
giggling. I heard the clowness from underneath me giggle as a clown fell over himself trying to
get dressed. As everything toppled over, I understood that I wasnt about to get a chance to
sleep in. I put on my polkadot shirt and matching pants and I followed the crowd out as we went
to the bigtop. I was getting used to the taste of the tea, but it still hit me as potently as the first
time I had a sip of it. I went outside to get my ball out of the shed. The ball was beginning to
show some grit from its constant use. I had hit the barn a few times along with the rocky outcrop
on the other side. The scuff marks persisted on the rubber surface. I pushed it out into the
center and jumped up onto it. I stretched out my legs on top of it as I balanced on my hand.
With a blue afterglow of tea blurring my vision and mana resonating inside me, I had
become accustomed to being on top of my ball. I was staring up at the sky while I was on my
back on top of the ball. The same questions raced through my head. Would I ever get away
from here? Whats through the forest? If my friends got here, would they be able to find a big top
if they went through the forest? How would Regan feel about my one arm?
I jumped down and spat into my bucket. I got a lot of the sweat off my back with a rag
and squeezed it in for good measure. I gulped down my rage and looked back over at my ball. I
jumped at it vigorously. I landed on my left hand and mana audibly protruded down into the ball.
It was still roughly electric as it chirped out of my hand. I was rigid as I had my legs directly
above me. I bent my knees to give myself downward momentum and got the ball to bounce ever
so slightly. I rustled around on my fingers as I got the ball to begin moving backward. I got my
legs to come down from my back and just barely missed my balance on the ball. I was propelled
forward as I rolled onto the ground.
Hypseau walked out of the tent. I hadnt seem him much in the past few days. His visage
was still as clear as when I had been sober. He didnt look happy to see me, though. I braced

myself for the worst. He had his head down and his shoulders tensed, he was walking with
haste in his steps.
You clown! He spoke with a shrill in his voice, Lets see what you have for me, your ever so
gracious host.
I looked over without saying a word. I went back and took a gulp from the thermos. I let
is slide down my throat. I took a breath and leapt toward the ball. Again, as I had been working
on this move tirelessly, I caught myself with my one hand and remained rigid with my feet
directly above me. I slid down my arm and rotated with the ball; I got to my feet and started
walking backwards past Hypseau on top of it. He caught the ball with his hand and I was flung
forward.
Wroooooong! He screeched.
His blue aura protruded from his left arm and he brought the ball above his head with
only a light touch. He tossed it with a grunt at the barn. It bounced off and went careening at an
angle, bouncing back towards the uneven rocky cliff on the other side and over towards the
haystack that was still sitting there.
Its all wroooong! Hypseau shouted, My circus is a fucking joke!
He brought his mana to flame. It conflagrated to flame as he wrapped it around his arm.
His fire burned bright blue like the rest of his mana, but his overcoat began to catch fire as well.
He punched through the side of the barn. He grabbed some wood that had burning debris flying
off of it. He ripped it off the front of the barn and took it in his hand. He had undone his mana,
but both his sleeve and the front side of the barn had taken to flame. He shouted desperately as
he swung at the side of the barn closest the the big top.
Leslie and her dark-skinned counterpart began running out of the big top. Neither of
them had their tops on as their bare breasts were exposed, flopping around as they ran.
Together, they were holding a pail that was full of what I presumed to be water. As Hypseau was
panting, with his back arched over, resting his weight on his buckled knees. They poured the
water on him, staunching the burn that had consumed his sleeve from the wrist where the
garment started on the other side all the way up to his upper arm, stopping right before the
shoulder.
Maestro, please! They pleaded with him.
Hypseau screeched again as Leslie grabbed onto his burned arm as the other clowness
poured the remaining water on the barn. She began running back inside the big top as it hadnt
stopped the burning. Leslie caressed Hypseaus chest as she put his arm over her shoulder.
Hypseau began groping at her breast as she brought them both up to their feet and she began
walking him back toward the tent.

The tent had always loomed over my vision. The yellow and blue remained as blurs. I
used it as a metric to see how far the tea had taken me. The more crystallized it became in my
vision, the more I must have dranken. I was relieved to have the burning maniac go back into it,
as I had already had a fair bit of tea today. It was moderately shining with the blues protruding
much more than the yellows. Hypseau, however, had other ideas. He shrugged off Leslie and
began marching back towards me.
Theres a full. fucking. moon tomorrow, Acot! He pointed his finger at me and spat at my chest.
I closed my eyes and grimaced I looked up to see his cold glare staring me dead in the eye. If
you fuck up this performance, you will burn. The Chateau sans Kilter will eat you from the inside
out! Do you hear me?! FROM THE INSIDE OUT!
His final shriek turned into panting as he lowered his finger. Leslie began to escort him
back into the circus tent again. I was stunned. I shuffled my way on top of my ball and began
balancing on it without moving. A few burly clowns had an equal number of tigers following them
as they each carried a bucket in both hands. They put out the rest of the flame and walked back
inside. One of them went over to my pile and took my bucket and exchanged it for an empty
one. With them gone, I continued to balance on my ball.
I still felt a twinge of terror mixed with the giddy feeling of knowing that I was about to be
part of a performance. I weighed the abstract terror of my captors threat of violence against the
ill-placed wonderment of what the circus had to offer. If I was going to do well enough to avoid a
torch at my bound feet, I knew it would be wise to practice instead of ponder. I did just that until
It was a pinch past sunset. A burly clown came outside. I assumed he was just making rounds
on buckets or food, but he looked toward me.
He bowed until his back was straight. I jumped off of my ball and bowed back. I looked
up to see his hair tied up into a bun on his head. I was still blurry from the tea, so I saw polka
dots where his body should be and a sheet of white in lieu of a face. He stood still as he was
humming a tune. I waited but he kept humming. I joined him and he seemed delighted. I felt him
reach out and pat me rather roughly. He beckoned me to walk with him toward the tent. I
followed along, trying to hum along with him. We got inside the tent where it was positively
fuming with mana. I could feel the physical intensity of the room as everybody was humming in
unison. All the clowns sparkled in synchronicity. The humming was different between the clowns
and the clownesses. The people all followed a pattern as they all walked slowly and
methodically through the tent. As we got into a line, the humming did not stop. The light blue
mana began flying around to the melody of the song that the big top was humming.
We made our way down past the dungeon. We made our way down past the
conservatory. Nobody flinched at the plants as we walked one to the left, one to the right around
the brazier in the middle, not missing a beat of the song. As I walked past the door I gazed upon
the new room that we were going into. Underneath the circus, there was a giant crystal outcrop.
The floor beneath had mats put around it, but besides that, it was lit by torchlight and was
unadulterated. The crystals were blue like the color of Hypseaus mana. He had his tophat and

cane on the ground and his eyes closed as he had his hand shooting out from his burned sleeve
onto the large, jagged crystals. He waited for us to pour in while we hummed a melody that I
had been able to follow roughly. We all sat down in assorted ways as we continued to enter in a
line. The noise died down as we all became quiet. We waited for Hypseau to act, speak or cut
the silence in his over-the-top way.
You expect a show, dont you?.. Hypseau said, his voice made us urge for explanation. You
expect me to regale you with pride or shame for the circus.
Hypseau took his cane and top hat up and looked up at us, he grabbed a torch and the
flame inside of it turned blue.
The Chateau sans Kilter, the institution made possible for reasons beyond you, is so. fucking.
grandiose in flair! Hypseau outstretched his arms and chuckled. The circus was spat out onto
this world and, for the first time, we might be ready to give a real performance for a full moon.
Hypseau threw his hat up in the air and caught it on top of his head again.
There was a faint giggle going through the crowd.
The full moon and fair winds are upon us and, oh and you better believe that this is beyond me,
you need me to give you a reason why you need to focus. It will be magical! He paused as we
all became jittery. Mana and tricks, mana and tricks, mana and tricks!.. I DONT WANT THEM
TO SEE OUR SEAM! Hypseau screamed, he had his composure more than earlier today.
I want you to leave your hearts in the moonbeams tomorrow. He continued. Sparkles and
mana are just fine, circus tops and tiger blood are fantastic, but we have an opportunity to
dance with the sublime!
Hypseau struck his cane at the crystal outcrop. A shard of it fell off onto the ground. He
took it in his hand and coursed mana through it. It began to glow and let off a white mist.
Yes, the sand wanderer might be pleased at what we bring back from the circus. Our audience
might survive. The mystical moon may pass judgement upon our performance, but only you
know, but only you KNOW if you made the world dazzle. Only you KNOW how to work your
magic. Only you KNOW how to stay linked to our performance. Dont even dream of fucking this
up for yourself. We didnt practice a routine; we practiced a performance. So dont get
comfortable. Did you hear me the first time? Leave your hearts in the moonbeams!
Hypseaus energy withdrew within himself. After a long silence, the clownesses got up,
dressed in their polkadots and stripes and began singing the melody that we had been
humming. The clowns got up and joined in with chanting. One clown splashed tea onto the giant
crystal outcrop. Hypseau tapped it with his cane amidst increasingly loud song and white mist
began to fill the dimly lit room. The sound died off and white began to fill my vision. The
sparkling became silent and divine. Not even Hypseau withstood in the white ether. There were

the familiar blues, reds and greens, but they shone in silence. The tophat and cane, however,
stayed in my vision. I was still acutely aware of the other clowns even if I couldnt see them.
Slowly, the sound ominously came back into my presence. The lalas of the clownesses
rose up over the somber chanting of clowns. It sounded beautiful to me as I began to see a
consolidation of light blue mana. Hypseaus face glared out of it. The white flew back into
nothingness as quickly as it had encompassed my entire being.
Collectively, our bodies felt weak, consumed. Hypseau began groaning. He broke out
into a hacking cough. Leslie took it upon herself to take his cane. We walked back out and
through the conservatory. We all went back to our places of practice. Silence overcame the big
top. I felt too sick to my stomach to practice. I laid on top of my ball and stared at the sky.