The Devil's Carnival

The Begining of the End

Allen Dale, Tom Lotter and Michael Forler, three won-a-bee body builders on their way to a competition, were comparing the sizes of their arms and thighs in the back of the bus, proving that to some people size meant everything. Kind of. The three of them may have said they were on their way to a competition although through their mumbling about ‘mine’s bigger than your’ no one was exactly sure exactly where. Even though no one was paying any attention to them they strut their stuff to the extent their immediate surroundings allowed. Tom, who was fair haired and light skinned, even went as far as to remove his shirt while Allen rolled up his unsightly tight jeans to show off as much of his legs as possible. “You boys got plenty to learn. Synthol’s only going to get you so far.” Tom teased as he flexed an arm in the direction of a young woman sitting alone. Mina Wond stared out her window and the vast empty nothing as it flew by her. She did all she could to ignore the clowns behind her, the old woman scolding her husband and the two teenagers with their hands in each other’s clothing. Instead she had her cell phone clutched in her hands and occasionally she would correspond with her brother whom she was on her way to visit. She was just a little annoyed at the delay but knew there was nothing to be done about it. So she sat patiently and tried to stay awake, the city couldn’t be that far now. “I offer you some liquid refreshment?” The wild looking platinum blond in her forties who sat in front of her leaned over her seat and held out a metal flask. Mina could only imagine the kind of cocktail mixing in there as the woman shook it back and forth. “I’m alright. Thank you.” The woman who called herself Danielle propped herself up on one knee. “Suit yourself.” She through back a few mouth full’s before she crewed the top back on. Danielle Heinye hasn’t been sober since sixteen and was nursing a hangover just about every time you would ask her. She blamed her drinking on her parents who never even tried stopping her. She also blamed her ex husband for divorcing her instead of sending her for help and her employer who fired her instead of helping her. That was just her mindset, her personality. It was always someone else’s fault and never hers. She knew she had a problem, she knew it very well but she was of the firm belief that someone had to come and save her. Until them she would continue to drink herself into a hole and maybe a coffin. Mina, perhaps the only one on board without any personality demons or shadows of the mind, sat quietly minding her own business and occasionally following Danielle’s conversation. “I loved the man but he had a bit f a problem and at some point the little blue pills just wouldn’t do the trick anymore. If you know what I mean.” Mina didn’t know what she meant but she wasn’t paying all that much attention to begin with. In fact she was starting to doze off and just about asleep when there was a loud pop from the engine moments before it was engulfed in smoke. “s**t!” Bob exclaimed as he struggled for control of the bus. It swerved violently across the road and nipped the gravel on the shoulder of the road. The already, albeit understandably so, disgruntled passengers clung to their seats as some of them sent up a last prayer just in case. Bob had no time for such things. He was responsible for these people and would be damned if he couldn’t get them to their destination in once piece. Moreover, if he couldn’t he wouldn’t be able to go back to Clara. That was far less of an option. He hoped to high holy heaven there were no other cars anywhere close to where he was. He had picked up earlier on that the brakes seamed just a little unwilling to work with him. For example once he hit the brakes they only kicked in about five minutes later. Initially he had thought it was his tired mine playing tricks on him but he was now very sure his mind was fine and the old hunk of junk was ready to fall to pieces. Bob floored the braked for what little good it would do but to his utter dismay he heard the horn of an oncoming car. With the amount of smoke emanating from the engine he had no idea what side of the road he was on or where the car was coming from. Behind him his frantic passengers screamed. Mrs. Gimble prayed as she gripped her children who were both close to tears, Danielle clutched her flask and Nina shut her eyes as tight as she could. Amanda had her arms around Brian and held on for dear life, as fit everything would come to an end in the next few moments. Tom, Allen and Michael screamed at the top of their lungs that they didn’t want to die, which was exactly what the rest of them though but had just a little bit more grace when it came to their fear of mortality. With no other choice Bob drove the bus on to the side of the road in the hopes of getting the beast to slow down. As he did the oncoming car sped past all the while honking until he could no longer be heard. Maybe it was all the praying going on in the back, maybe it was just dumb luck but finally the breaks started kicking in and the hunk of scrap metal started to slow down, not a moment too soon. The interior was filling up with smoke and Bob was getting to worst of it. Then finally the bus ground to a halt.