The Circus Infinitus - Victoria 7 Read online

  The gasps changed into shrieks of surprise and horror as I landed lightly on the ground, in full view of everyone. I set Adella down.

  "Why, thank you Arachnora!" cried Adella the Amazon in a very familiar voice. She may have spoken in a high-pitched, cockney-accented tone, but I'd recognised that cool, lean muscular form as soon as I'd caught it in my arms.

  She was Adam Delfay in disguise!

  I smiled at the gobsmacked audience and bowed. Arachnora. I liked that and decided to keep it as my name. Arachnora the Spider Queen.

  I performed in all three shows of the day; the eleven o'clock, the two o'clock and the five o'clock. Finally I began to feel like I really was a part of this bizarre circus, and I hoped the folks would start opening up to me with their secrets. The carnies seemed to like me and didn't stop their conversations when I approached, but they weren't talking about anything particularly secret, either. They may have been zombies, but they gossiped just like normal people about who was pulling in the most money, which couples were fighting, and who was currently sleeping with whom!

  That evening I joined the carnies who ate in the cafeteria, and partook in another enormous meal to keep my spider self fuelled. Then, as the sun set, I stole off into the forest to quickly erect some more webs for ensnaring wildlife.

  Later, just before midnight, I sought out the Ringmaster. I found him in his room, waiting for me. Professor Abbacus was there too, as usual wrapped up in his scarf, his hat pulled low. "Three's only one form left you haven't changed into," he told me. "Perhaps you will become it tonight."

  "Maybe. There's a good chance. But I could also shift into a previous form."

  He grunted as he fished out his monocle and inserted it. I turned to Adam. "Adam - Adella. Very clever."

  He smiled. "You spotted that, did you?"

  "Kind of hard to miss, when you're in my arms," I told him with a wicked leer.

  He smiled back, and I thought it was encouraging, but then Abbacus quickly stepped in between myself and the Ringmaster, and started closely examining my necklace through the various lenses. "I think I've learned as much about this thing as I'm going to," he muttered. "Perhaps I could discover more if I subjected it to various electrical and Magickal effects, but I doubt they'd be much good to you, Spider Queen."

  "Ah, no."

  "The forces are building. It's time."

  On cue, the clock started to strike midnight. Because I had not rested at all that day, my weariness almost got the better of me. I could feel my eyelids drooping as the chimes continued. When I next changed into the Spider Queen I'd need to sleep. I'd learned a long time ago that if I went without food or sleep in a particular form, when I became that shape again I would immediately need to eat or sleep, regardless of whether I had already rested in a previous body. Each form was suspended when another took over, but not reset. Only my undead bodies didn't require any sustenance or sleep.

  The amulet grew warmer and warmer. Then, with a flash, I changed. I was amazed; Professor Abbacus had actually predicted correctly. I shifted into my white-skimmed smart self. I was pale and naked. Immediately, the Ringmaster handed me a robe to cover myself with, which I accepted gratefully. In this body I was too white and skinny to be attractive.

  But my brain ran like a well oiled machine. When I remembered the devices I had seen as the curious Spider Queen, I recognised one of them.

  The device that had resembled cylinders of discs was actually an adding machine. Instantly, I remembered seeing of a schematic in one of the many scientific texts I had ordered over the years. It was used for adding very large numbers together. So, that contraption calculated figures for the spinning ring thing. There were seven rings, so the numbers would need seven digits.

  Unfortunately, that still didn't tell me what the spinning ring thing was!

  All this passed through my mind in a matter of seconds. "I call this form 'the bright one'. I don't have a name yet."

  "I'm good with names. I can give you one," the Ringmaster suggested.

  "You're undead, just like the mummy," Professor Abbacus muttered as he continued to examine me.

  "Yes, but unlike her, I don't feel cold. Just ... numb, I suppose. But my brain is so sharp! I remember everything in this body, even things my other forms have forgotten."

  "Well, you look like the Bride of Frankenstein," Abbacus growled.

  The Ringmaster snapped his fingers. "Then you can be Mrs Frankenstein - or Lady Frankenstein."

  I knew the Professor had been trying to insult me, but I gave him a haughty glare and declared; "Then I'll be Mrs Frankenstein. It's as good a name as any." I began counting them off on my bony clawed fingers. "Wolf Woman of Borneo, Vampiress, Invisible Woman, Arachnora the Spider Queen, Swamp Girl, Amuna the Mummy and now Lady Frankenstein. I hardly seem like Violet Hollingworth any more now, do I?"

  "No, you don't," the Ringmaster agreed.

  "Perhaps now I'm leaving my past behind, I should take a new name to describe my seven faces. Something that starts with V, I think."

  "Victoria," Adam said immediately.

  "Yes, I shall be Victoria, the Lady with the Seven Faces. I have shapes that will benefit the performances, such as the Wolf Woman and the Swamp Girl, but this one may actually be of benefit to the Circus itself. For example, I figured out that one of the machines in the back room is actually a Charles Babbage adding machine. It is amazing that you have actually managed to build one, and I hope that you will let me-"

  "No!" snarled Professor Abbacus with more venom than I had never heard him use. He waved a gloved finger in my face. "You will never touch my machines! No-one touches them except me! And to a lesser extent the Ringmaster."

  "Now really Icarus!" Adam reproached. "Was that absolutely necessary? She might actually be able to help you so you won't need to fix everything yourself all the time!"

  The Professor planted his hands on his hips and glared at him. "She is not touching my machines!" Then he turned and fixed me with a penetrating glare from his human eye. "If I catch you anywhere near them I will kill you!" Then, before I could answer, he'd turned and charged from the room in a truly frightful temper.

  In this form I didn't have a working stomach, but I felt it drop regardless. I sighed. "A shame. In this body I may not be pretty, but I am quite a genius. I conducted so many experiments up on my laboratory in Hollingworth manor, and discovered so many things I only understand while I'm in this body."

  The Ringmaster sighed. "Unfortunately, Icarus is extremely stubborn and paranoid. Just give him time. After he starts to know and trust you, he might come around. In the mean time, feel free to continue your experiments in your room here. But for goodness sake don't blow the place up!"

  Chapter Fourteen

  Since the room at the back of the Big Top wasn't locked, Professor Abbacus couldn't stop me from going there. In my new form as Lady Frankenstein I wanted a better look at that Babbage machine. My own intelligence was so great I could add large numbers myself, and I was sure that Abbacus could too. So why did he need that device? What was it calculating seven-digit numbers for?

  I stared at the ring machine for a long time, trying to figure it out. I examined it in great detail until I felt a presence come up behind me. I turned to see the Ringmaster.

  "Couldn't you sleep?" I asked him.

  "I don't need much sleep. Four hours per night is enough for me to wake perfectly rested."

  "Four hours have passed already? My, I was in a world of my own trying to figure this thing out." I gestured towards it. "I don't suppose you can tell me what it is? Or would that be breaking another Circus Infinitus taboo?"

  He smiled thinly. "I will explain. After all, it's how we move around. You will see it in action soon enough. It's called the Omniportallis, and shifts us through reality to our new location."

  I gaped at him. "How is that even possible?"

  "Icarus could explain it to you, if he was so inclined. I'm afraid I don't know all the details. He uses
what he calls Magick, and mixes it up with his science into some sort of ... mechanomancy."

  "Magick..." I tailed off in amazement. As the Mummy I had been right! There was Magick involved!

  "Yes, I have trouble believing in it myself."

  "No, that's not what I meant, Mr. Delfay." I felt funny calling him Adam in this form. "I ... I know some Magick myself. I've been learning it over the years from various books. Are you telling me that Professor Abbacus is a mage?"

  "Er, yes. A very powerful one. He manages to keep this place running, when in reality it is flouting most laws of physics."

  I looked hopefully at him. "Do you think he might let me help if I told him I knew Magick?"

  "I could ask him, but I don't know. He really does like to keep his secrets. I think if I told him that, he would become even more suspicious of you and believe you want to steal his ideas."

  "I just want to be involved. This place is fascinating, and with my own Magickal knowledge, I'm sure I could learn exactly how it works."

  "Well, Icarus can't stop you from going down into the mechanism." The Ringmaster tapped his pointy-toed boot against the steel-grille floor beneath. I looked down and noticed a large access panel only a few feet away.

  I knelt down beside it, hooking my fingers into a gap and levering it up. "I can open it! Surely Professor Abbacus would always keep such panels locked?"

  "He has access panels all over the place. If there's a problem, he needs to go down there straight away. He couldn't afford to lock any of them." The Ringmaster lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "I'd like you to go down there and start checking things out. There'll come a day when something breaks that he simply won't be able to fix on his own."

  "Are you sure? Do you trust me?"

  "Some of your other forms are a bit erratic, but I trust this one."

  "You're not worried that one my other selves will cause trouble?"

  "Will they remember what you know?"

  "Yes, but they won't understand what I did. It's difficult to explain. We're all aware of each other, and remember everything we do, but we react differently to situations and don't process information in the same way. The Wolf Woman and Swamp Girl won't care what I do here. The Mummy might try to understand, but she has never managed to master Magick. Same with the Vampiress and the Spider Queen. They just aren't focussed enough. And my invisible self doesn't want to cause trouble."

  The Ringmaster frowned, but then he nodded. "I'd still like you to learn about this place, Mrs Frankenstein. Don't worry about Icarus. I'll handle him."

  I nodded. "If you're sure." I leaned over the panel and looked down into a dark, steamy world of giant cogs and wheels. It looked fascinating, and suddenly I couldn't wait to get started. I swung my legs into the access port and descended a narrow steel ladder into the very bowels of the Circus Infinitus. Behind me, the Ringmaster replaced the panel and walked off.

  I spent a very enjoyable day exploring underneath the Circus. I even stayed down there during the shows, watching as the giant rings were lowered and moved around. I made sure I stayed hidden from view when Professor Abbacus's stage was lowered while he was still on it, powering down his equipment. I soon learned how this mechanism worked. It actually did follow laws of physics, although I could tell Magick had been used to greatly enhance its strength and efficiency. I could detect arcane power by smell - it always reeked of sulphur, but with subtle differences I was starting to notice. Soon, with a bit more concentration, I would be able to tell which branch of Magick had been cast over an area.

  It was such a shame Professor Abbacus didn't want anything to do with me. While I was moving through the giant support-struts, grinding gears and whistling pipes, I saw bolts that needed tightening, leaking connections and patches of rust where water had collected. Unfortunately I didn't have any tools with me. In between the two afternoon shows I managed to creep out without anyone seeing me and collect some implements from my room. I was able to fix some of the worst problems before they caused the whole mechanism to creak to a halt. I also oiled some screeching gears and cogs. I felt very pleased with myself by the time the last show ended.

  But then I thought I'd better cut my losses, just in case Abbacus came down here and spotted me. I retreated into my room to scribble down a rough diagram of the Circus Infinitus and make some notes.

  That night, when I changed, I shifted into the form of Arachnora, the Spider Queen.

  Each part of me soon found a part to play in the Circus Infinitus. As the Vampiress, I coupled my natural agility with my alluring presence, and performed on stage with the Limbonis and Adella the Amazon. I was able to perform in one show and still be available for the Ringmaster's pleasure. As Amuna I appeared in a side-show as a mummy exhibit, lying still, cold and dead while curious onlookers drew closer. As soon as they were near enough, I rose and moaned ominously, sending them screaming in fright. As Arachnora I appeared on stage and also developed my own flea circus side-show. My ability to control bugs enabled me to get them to do interesting and amusing tricks. As the Wolf Woman I also starred in my own side-show, similar to Amuna’s, in which I was imprisoned in a cage. I would leap about, rattle the bars and roar like an untamed beast. The same handler also escorted me on stage with a chain about my throat, Even though I had the power to break the chain like cheap twine, I snapped and snarled and fought, frightening the people in the front row. The handler pretended he couldn’t control me, ‘accidentally’ letting me off the chain so I could menace the closest audience members. As Mrs Frankenstein, I kept out of Professor Abbacus's way while surreptitiously repairing whatever he missed.

  But only the folks of the Circus Infinitus ever learned the Invisible Woman existed. Once, during a particularly hot day, I ‘appeared’ on stage, completely naked, to aid the Ringmaster’s magic show. I'm not sure what was running through my mind that day. Perhaps the heat had made me lightheaded. Perhaps I had drunk too much ale the night before. Even though no-one could see me, I was still acutely embarrassed, and quite confident that I was beet red all over!

  In this form I mostly roamed the grounds, making sure everything was running smoothly. Once I spotted a thief breaking into one of the caravans. I alerted the Slasher Brothers who were on patrol that day, and they charged in to grab the fellow. He was extremely surprised and loudly protested his innocence - until I said in a voice that seemed to come from thin air "No sir, I saw you jimmying the lock on that conveyance."

  I was very happy to see his face turn white. I was pleased to have helped out the Circus Infinitus, and hoped I might learn a little more about it, but in my invisible form, I was far too shy to approach the Ringmaster with my endless questions.

  Then, one night a couple of weeks after I had joined up, it was decided that the time had come for the Circus Infinitus to pull up stakes. Every local for miles around had visited several times, and the crowds were starting to slacken off. We had drained every last spare penny from them, and stocked up our larders and coffers.

  I was finally going to see how this Omniportallis thing worked. Unfortunately, I was in a form that didn't particularly care about mechanics - the Wolf Woman. I vowed to pay as much attention as I could for Lady Frankenstein's sake.

  But in this body I didn't like being inside the Big Top, surrounded by all the weird smelling machinery and dead things. I didn't like not being connected to nature. I stayed outside as long as I could, using my superior strength to help the carnies pack away displays and button up the stalls. They told me that nothing could be left on the ground; everything had to be locked up in a construction that was connected to the Big Top.

  By the time the sun set, everything was ready. My heart beat faster as I trailed after the last of the carnies into the Big Top. Almost immediately I noticed the noise, the screech of some awful engine as it rose towards a crescendo of full power. I had never heard this machine before, only the creak and grind of the stage mechanism as it moved around.

  "Is that eve
ryone?" called the Ringmaster.

  "Yes," answered Tragedy, the upper twin of the Slasher Brothers. "Victoria is the last one."

  I gave a terse growl of agreement.

  "Right then, let's get moving." The Ringmaster turned and headed towards the room up the back, the Omniportallis chamber. I really didn't want to, but I forced my back legs to move across the main room after him.

  The roaring engines grow louder. I could barely hear myself think, but others seemed able to converse quite normally. In this body, my ears were far too sensitive. Grimly I nudged my way through the crowd that had collected at the base of the platform that held the difference engine and the Omniportallis.

  Professor Abbacus stood at the control board. Finally, he had shed his disguise. I gaped at him in horror.

  "You're about to travel with us, Victoria, so you might as well see me for who I really am." He gave a rasping laugh, amused by the sight of the six and a half-foot tall werewolf cringing from him with ears flattened and teeth bared.

  Lady Frankenstein would have been fascinated. But right now I was quaking at the sight of him. He wasn't one of the undead carnies, who made me nervous enough, but something else, something part machine, just like this Circus.

  Half of his head was metal, studded with shiny brass rivets. His jaw was made of steel, and where his mouth should have been was a grille. Only his left eye and nose were still human. I tried to be stoic, but I couldn't stop from giving a whine of distress and tucking my tail between my legs.

  He laughed again, and flickered his hands across the control board, pressing buttons and pulling levers. I was furious. I wanted to leap up onto the platform and attack him. But I was too frightened to move. I was surrounded by weird smells and sounds. I couldn't detect anything natural at all. To compensate for my fear I raised all the hair on my head and shoulders, making myself appear more frightening. It served to unnerve all the carnies around me, but didn't affect Professor Abbacus. Even though I couldn't read his weird face, he did not appear intimidated.