The Carnival at Moonbright

Through the town, Lyla tried to keep her calm. She kept up with the party, but her mind wandered. Their friend, someone the carnival has trusted for years…

I can’t believe she did all this. She thought to her sister.

I know. We just have to improvise. Keep your guard up.

The party reached Moonbright’s wall, being directed through the gate and out into the farmland that made up the Newsong area of the town. To her right, she could see the sun starting to fall over the western horizon as the night’s cold hit. Lyla could hear her shoes crunch on the grass as the frost began to build up on the ground beneath them. Ahead, she saw the main tent was still up, except for the roof, and the rest of the tents and showpieces were already put away.

They walked carefully, keeping their eyes out for any sudden movement, but found nothing until they reached the tent. Inside, a large sigil lay in the middle of the ground, with burning candles floating at different heights. Though Lyla knew less about magic than some, she could feel the weave of it grow tighter as they stepped inside.

Lyla felt the change in the air. What had been a place of refuge and safety for the last couple of years felt tainted. Ramona’s betrayal, the recent events, it all just felt like a long con game that was being played on them. Her anger rose higher and higher, and she balled her fists to stop them from shaking. Across the space, she took in everything she could. The large symbols took up the entire ring of the tent. In the middle, two grotesque humanoid bodies were laid out. Lyla presumed they’d been dead for years, with most of their form already decayed. Standing on the other side, the reanimated Sir Ulric stood with Nix and Meg at his sides. They struggled to be released but didn’t have the strength compared to him.

Standing on the bleachers just behind them, Ramona held a book before her. She muttered incantations under her breath, then looked up and smiled at the party. For the first time, Lyla could see something different about Ramona. First, she would look exactly like the image of the kind old woman, then it would shift, and things about her would change. Her teeth were rotten and black. Her skin was gray and covered in warts and pustules. Her fingernails were also black, long and sharp. She hunched over the book, causing it to cast shadows on her face. The only thing that was the same was her bright, silver eyes. They pierced into the party one by one, then stopped at Myla. Ramona’s smile grew larger, going further up to her ears as if her skin was cracking and ripping to give way. She closed the book, placed it in her robes, and then lifted her hands to the group.

“Hello, my friends… Welcome to the Arcana Emporium. How does Elysium put it? Ah… A place of wonder and magic, the likes of which you’ve never seen! Do you like the performance so far?”

“You’re not going to get away with this, Ramona,” Gisela yelled across the room.

“Don’t you see? I’ve already won. My ritual is almost complete!” Ramona raised her hands higher, and Lyla watched as a dark wave of energy pulsed through the space. She braced from its impact, then followed Ramona’s eyes to the bodies on the ground. In seconds, Lyla could see their forms reconstituting. Both creatures rose and stood, facing Ramona.

“Mildred, Olive! My sisters, you have been brought back! For twenty-six years, I’ve waited for this day. Sisters, kill these squabbling creatures, and then join me!”

With lightning-fast reflexes, the newly reanimated hags rushed to the party. Lyla dodged out of one of their attacks, then concentrated her ki from her center to her hands. A ray of fire scorched out from her palm and hit one of the hags as Gisela smashed into its front with her greatsword, knocking it into the air. Lyla turned around, hearing Meg screaming. Meg managed to get free from Sir Ulric’s grasp. She ran under the bleachers and out towards the entrance of the tent. Myla turned and ran to Nix.

Nix fought against Ulric, trying her best to get free from his hand, to no avail. Lyla watched Ulric pull a dagger from his side and plunge it into Nix’s chest.

“NO!!!” Lyla screamed out. With her last step, she leaped into the air and brought her fists down onto Ulric, knocking him prone. She watched as Nix dropped to the ground and crumpled into a bloody pile. Kneeling, Lyla placed punch after punch into Ulric’s face. Tears streamed down her face, making it hard to see, but she punched repeatedly. Tunnel vision took hold, and her eyes only saw red as she planned to kill Ulric.

She was stopped by laughter that sent chills down her spine. Looking up, she saw Ramona gleefully cackling while sending her spells at the party. Lyla stood, swerved past Ulric, and ran to her.

“Ramona! How could you do this!?” Lyla cried. She reared her fist back as she got closer. Ramona looked at Lyla, then waved her hand in front of herself. Black smoke, like shadows, danced around her body, and then she vanished in a cloud of smoke. Lyla’s timed punch made contact with air, causing her to stumble forward. She looked around at her surroundings.

Leaf sent waves of necrotic damage across the room while Mr. Muffins used his weapon to shoot fire bolts at the hags. Gisela lifted one in the air and threw it back into the ground, causing the dirt to fly around her. Myla was using the rafters to throw her daggers at Ulric, who had just started to stand back up.

“RAMONA!” Lyla screamed. Frantically looking around to find her, she was caught off guard by a firelight in the distance. She looked past the glowing symbols on the ground, past her friends, and out of the tent. Ramona was standing there, a small candle in her hand, staring right back at Lyla.

She stood up, ran past the ensuing battle, and out into the cold night air. Rushing forward, she screamed as fire burst from her hands, and her ki focused around Lyla’s body.

“AAAH!”

Ramona stood her ground, a grin forming on her face as Lyla ran closer and closer.

“Sleep, child,” She stated calmly, as if bored. Her hand waved above the candle, and Lyla felt the spell take hold of her. Lyla’s body seemed to react immediately, collapsing to the ground and sliding a few inches before resting only inches away from Ramona. She could feel her eyes close and herself lose consciousness, even through the anger.