The Beast Within

Champion of the Pit: Chapter Four

A remarkable thing came to the circus.

In my mind I can still picture in vivid detail the marvel that unfolded, for it touched my heart in a way that nothing else ever has.

I was leaving the pit after my fight, where I proved victorious against two desperate vampires, but instead of escorting me back to my room, Myranda grabbed my arm and nodded at the sand.

"We should stay for the next act."

"I'm not interested in seeing more death."

"Oh, but you'll enjoy this."

"I'm wearing nothing but a cloak, Myranda. I want to go to my room."

"Come now, Wolf-king. This will be a curiosity unlike any you've seen before—or are likely to ever again."

I wondered how, after witnessing endless combat, there could be anything worth my attention.

"Is there a potential champion-on-the-rise you wish me to see?"

Myranda shook her head.

"What's about to enter the sands is far more powerful than you."

"I'll be the judge of that."

"You won't regret staying, I promise."

As usual, crow men were scrambling around the sand, but after cleaning the blood they brought out a pallet and several wooden beams. With unnatural speed they built a stage.

"I don't want to watch the Feeder Act," I groaned. 

"That's not what's coming. This is something special."

"I think I'm about to be disappointed."

Myranda pulled me to the edge of the pit, in the spot she occupied during my fights.

"I want to sink into a warm bath," I grumbled.

"Be patient."

"Patience isn't desired in a fighter."

Myranda snorted but did not reply. Her hands wrung her skirt and fiddled with the buttons on her shirt. She lifted her fingers to her mouth and began to absent-mindedly chew on her long nails.

"What's got you agitated?" I asked.

"Hush, damn it, and watch!"

With the stage complete, the gangly man took his place on the sand. He raised his hands to quiet the audience before addressing them.

"Another cheer for the marvelous show brought by your Champion of the Pit!"

I rolled my eyes as the audience cheered. The fight, in my opinion, hadn't been particularly exceptional. Someone in the audience had thrown the wolf a blade dipped in garlic oil, which, when held between its teeth and swung just right, made quick work of its opponents.

"Now the blood has ended," the gangly man continued, "and what better way to calm your excited hearts than by witnessing true beauty at work? The circus is honored to bring you a most rare and exotic delight. This creature has walked the whole world over, and is now here to bewitch and entice you lucky few. For one night only, I present to you: A Hag Dancer!"

I turned to Myranda. 

"What's a Hag Dancer?"

She spit out a fingernail.

"It must be seen, not described."

I assumed that, whatever was about to happen, there would be violence. The pit was made for blood and nothing else.