• [Jen]

    I yawned, staring at the clear sunny sky. It was hot up here on the concrete roof.
    “You tired already, Jen?” Marco, the violinist, asked.
    “Yeah” I yawned again. “Say, when you get a strange feeling out of nowhere, like someone you know is in deep trouble, should you worry about them?”
    “Umm…” he was tuning his violin. “I don’t know, man. It’s just a feeling, right? So I guess I wouldn’t but hey, it might be true” he looked at me. “Why? You have a feeling something bad happened to that guy you were with a moment ago?”
    “You mean Trek?”
    “Yeah, him”
    I thought about it. “Well yes, I do think he’s in huge trouble right now, I mean he practically stole a child. But he can deal this out on his own”
    “He napped a kid?!” he gaped.
    I chuckled. “In a way. That brat just followed him, wouldn’t leave him alone” I tapped my fingers against my thigh, staring at the amusement park that Trek went to.
    “You should go if you’re so worried”
    “Oh, I don’t know…”
    “It’s alright, you know” Joy, the guitarist, said. “You’ve helped us a lot, anyway, so get out of here!” he grinned.
    “You sure?” I asked.
    “Of course I am! We all are. Right, group?” everyone cheered yes. “See?”
    I smiled, waiting a bit longer.
    “Oh, you want more? Okay then! We, the Nighting Heirs, the most famous musicians in Symphony, are in debt to you for helping us organize and recite our songs, making them flow smoother and more…emotional. Blah, blah, blah, now go”
    I laughed “Okay, okay, I’ll go. Seeya!” I waved them goodbye then ran to the amusement park. It was ten houses away but I forgot to control my speed so I ended up getting there in five seconds.
    This place was really crowded and loud. Everybody was laughing and talking, shouting, eating cotton candy and hotdogs on a stick. The rides were enormous and all looked daring. Everything seemed fogged with orange and other colors. I have no idea how I’m suppose to find them, this is the biggest amusement park ever, and it stretches on for miles! I looked around, trying to spot Trek and the kid. After about an hour of searching every corner, watching people get off rides, waiting for people to get out of the porta potty, and scanning all the lines, I realized I could’ve asked one of the workers if they saw them because he had to go on at least one ride. Right when I was about to put my new plan into action, I remembered that they’d need money to ride the rides, so once Trek figured out there was nothing for him to do here, he probably left with the kid. I groaned, where would he be now, then?
    “Hey, it’s you!” a girl with black hair tied into a pony tail came rushing towards me, followed by her friends.
    I tried to think if I saw her around before, on the roof as a musician, but I don’t remember seeing her. “Do I know you?”
    She stops in front of me, beaming. “No, but would you like to?” she bats her eyes twice.
    I wanted to laugh at her but kept it in. “Um, listen, I was looking for one of my friends…”
    “Oh, you were? Well, I saw one of them a few hours ago”
    “Really? Where?” I didn’t bother asking how she knew who I was talking about.
    She pouts. “If I told you, would you leave me?” she gave me her best imitation of sad, lonely eyes.
    I held her hand, to make her think I was serious. “Of course I won’t. I just want to make sure where he is so I know he’s safe and not lost” I lied.
    She smiles and squeezes my hand. “He’s over there” she points to the left with her free hand. “At Ellor Ella’s. It’s a big round, orange building that looks really old and haunted”
    Haunted? What’s he doing over there? “Thanks, hun” I slide my hand out from hers. “See you later!” then I ran.

    I stopped, staring up at the place. It looks so bad, so hideous! I wonder why he would bring that kid in there. Probably to scare him so he goes running back to his home. I walked inside and sneezed instantly. This place is so dirty. I looked at the corners and picture frames on the blue, almost black, hallway walls. It was caked with dust and spider webs. I rubbed my eyes as I got a bit further in. The entrance lit up the front but now its pitch black. I can’t see anything at all anymore except for a bright light that filled a whole door. It was straight ahead, I wonder why it doesn’t brighten up the hallway. I could hear music up ahead. It gets louder and clearer, it sounds like a circus song. I got closer, the light got more blinding, the song got louder and now there’s a drum roll, someone is talking, and then someone else is cheering. I walked through the door to see an enormous room with a bright round stage in the middle and thousands of empty chairs except one. Is it Trek? No, no it isn’t. I got closer and sat in the chair right next to him; he turned to me, surprised.
    “Jen! What are you doing here?” Roger said. The circus act halted, but the music kept playing.
    “Well, well, now who is this?” a man wearing a red suit asked.
    I looked at him then back at Roger. “I came to look for Trek but got the wrong info so here I am. I feel a bit better now so I guess it doesn’t matter. I’ll just search for him later” I turned back to the man on the stage. “Hey, why’d you stop the act? Come on, give me a good show!”
    He laughed, smiling happily. “I hope more of you come!” then the performance began again.


    [Kert]

    I walked out of the metal door. I saw what I went there to see. I even visited all the workshops and took mental notes on the inventions. I didn’t bother asking how they made the more difficult ones—I wanted to figure it out myself. I turned right and started walking, only to be stopped by Racio, one of the workers for art, Mina, a worker for cleaning, and Anor, a worker for neon lights.
    “You’re really going to go?” Racio asks.
    “Yes” I replied.
    “We wanted you to stay longer…” Mina says. “You really helped us a lot, with our machines, you know”
    “Yeah!” Racio agreed. “You got at least twenty broken things to work”
    “There should be something we can do to repay you” Anor says. It almost seamed like he was pleading.
    “There isn’t anything I need from you” I started walking again.
    “Oww, you’re so harsh” Mina says. “But I don’t care what you say! We’ll never leave until we repay you” the others agreed, then followed me.
    I sighed, not turning to face them. Right now I have to figure out were everyone is. I doubt they’re in the same place they went to. Jen was on the roof, but he could be anywhere by now. Trek was at the candy stores, but he probably got distracted and wandered off somewhere else or got kicked out because he was making too much of a ruckus. And Roger, I got off the wagon before he did so I don’t have any idea where he is or where he could be. I looked straight ahead, seeing an insanely large fountain. Nana said that that marked the very center of the town. All the main roads are connected to there so I should be able to spot one of them around. I started walking faster. After a couple minutes, Mina, Anor, and Racio were panting, hard.
    “What’s the…rush?” Racio asked.
    “Nothing…” I slowed down once I realized I was running.
    “Sure doesn’t…seem like it” Anor wheezed.
    “You guys are the one following me” I stopped as we reached the fountain. I scanned the crowds, but they weren’t there. I looked down all the streets, they weren’t there either.
    “Who you looking for?” Mina asks, cooled down.
    “My friends” I replied, not taking my eyes off of this one big building.
    “Ellor Ella’s” she said, pointing. “It’s a circus place, used to be very popular till an incident happened there years ago. After that, people refused to go inside it”
    “What happened?”
    “Let’s just say it scars when you see someone die”
    “Oh…” I coughed uncomfortably. “So it’s shut down, then”
    “Nah. It will be soon, though. There’s still people that goes and performs there, even if there isn’t anyone watching or cheering for them”
    I stared; everything about Ellor Ella’s seemed out of place. It was near the amusement park but it looked so wrecked and uninviting. It was an absurd idea, but I wanted to go inside it. I have this feeling inside my chest that someone’s in there, someone that has something essential to our mission, to finding Anysa.
    “I need to go there” I said, sounding hypnotized.
    “What?”
    “There’s something there, I know it” before they could object or asked any questions, I ran towards the building.
    I slowed to a walk as I got through the front entrance. It was a dark hallway, deep blue. I heard Mina behind me complaining about the filth.
    “You hear that?” Anor asked.
    I nodded. It was music, coming from up ahead through that door. Once I got to the other room, the music faded to a stop. It was an auditorium room filled with red sofa chairs. A circular stage was in the very middle. Two people were standing on the chairs, applauding. Performers, I’m guessing, were taking their bow on the stage. Then the dim room lit up, showing the big space and filth. Everywhere you see is faded colors, dust, spider webs, and stains.
    “More arrivals!” a man in a red suit said. He was standing on the stage.
    “Howdy!” Jen and Roger said once they saw me. They got of the chairs, laughing.
    I gape, appalled. “What are you guys…?” I said it so quietly that they didn’t hear.
    “You’re rather late to the show, bub” Jen says. “It’s already over. You should have been here earlier, it was that awesome!” he turns to face the performers. “You guys were great! That was the best show I ever saw in my whole entire life!” he shouts.
    “Thank you, thank you” the red suit man said.
    I stared at the man, there’s strange about him, something off, but nothing threatening, I think. Everyone was chatting with each other, talking about how good they were or about mistakes they did. I let it go on for awhile till I broke the happy atmosphere with one question.
    “What happened years ago that made this place end up like this?”

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