Chapter Text
Caine tapped his fingers against the desk, Alex... that name kept jumping back and forth in his mind. It nagged at him. Alex, Alex, Alex.. Why? Who was Alex? Why did he know this name? Why did he think about this name? WHY WAS HE SO HUNG UP ON THIS NAME?
Ok calm down
Deep breath in
Wait- why did he need to breathe again? It didn't matter, just do it. In and out. There you go. He pushed away from his desk; his feet needed to move. He paced in circles, Alex, Alex, Alex. He stopped, grabbing at his gums and pulling down with an annoyed groan. Looking back at his desk, he frowned at his mess of papers. Ever since the humans had been growing more and more impatient for answers, desperate for a way out, he began to plan- to see if the possibility of escape was even- well- possible! He had run into so many walls, lines of code that had been scrambled, inputs missing from their original spots- bug and glitches galore! But he could feel it; something about him had changed while on this hunt. It felt like, slowly, ever so slowly, a fog had been lifting out of his mind. He was remembering things more clearly, things people had told him and other things he couldn't explain. Offices, like the ones in the polaroids he kept in his breast pocket. He remembers voices, laughter, pain, frustration, and fear. He doesn't know who these voices belong to; he can only wonder till the fog lifts ever so slightly and clarity shines through. Caine finds himself back at his desk, hands moving to sift through his notes. He just needed one more sign that he was on the right track, and he thinks this is it. The name, Alex. It's the push he needed to keep on in this endeavor, to know that it won't lead to a dead end. His hands dipped down back into the code, his eyes closed as he focused.
He would find them a way out. Caine swears on it.
The circus rummbled around the cast, each of them holding onto the couches they were residing on.
“W-W-Whats g-going on?!” Pomni asked, her voice stuttering as her body moved violently with the shakes.
“H-Hold on!” Ragatha put an arm over Pomni’s lap to keep her steady, Pomni smiling. Slowly, the shakes stopped, leaving the cast dizzy and confused.
“Is everyone ok?” Ragatha asked, moving her arm from Pomni’s lap before looking around. There was a collective groan.
“Yeah, sure- It's not like we were just tossed around like ragdolls- which is fitting for you,” Jax said, looking over at her.
“Shut up, Jax,” Zooble quickly shot back.
“But yeah- he’s right- what the #@%! was that?” Before any of them could chat amongst each other, Caine appeared in front of them.
“Hello, my Dazzling Lily pads!” he says joyously, his arms stretching out high above him as his caine floated beside him.
“Caine, what the #@$! was that?!” Zooble immediately questioned. He rubbed a hand against the underside of his gum.
“I have no clue what you are referring to!” He says before grabbing his cane and floating closer to the ground.
“Anyway! Today's adventure isssssss” he paused, his body glitching a shreik violently leaving his unhinged jaw before he shook like a wet dog, gaining his composure. They all stared at him.
“OH! Hi Caine!” Kinger waved at him.
“That was weird!” Caine said before quickly brushing it off and opening the portal.
“Let's skip the explanation! You have quests to go on!” Before any of them could argue, he pushed them in, closing it quickly with a snap. He stood there, and his body glitched again. He looked down at his hands, and for a moment they looked- he shook his head. No. Not now.
Pomni blinked against the harsh light, her eyes squinting as she looked around at the setting- it was surprising to see that they were in a simple art studio. Looking around, she could see the collective reactions of everyone. Jax looked annoyed- he hated mundane adventures. Ragatha seemed pleased with the change of scenery, her hand brushing against the blank canvas in front of her. Kinger- well, he's Kinger, he looked around idly before flinching when he saw the canvas. Zoobel was focused on Gangle, who was fangirling all over the art supplies and setting. Suddenly, they were all dressed in painters' smocks, a paintbrush in one hand and a paint palette in the other. Above the small stage area was a timer, 10 minutes on it flashing red. Then, Jax was suddenly moved to the pedestal, his painters' smock replaced with an extravagant Renaissance-themed outfit. He looked down at himself before looking up again.
“What the-”
“WELCOME!” Caine's voice boomed from the intercoms- when did he have time to record this again?
“You each get 10 minutes to paint the subject in front of you! You each get a turn being a model while the others paint away! Time starts now!” Just as the message ended, the timer began to tick. No one wasted any time painting. Jax shrugged and struck some stupid pose.
“Paint me like one of your French girls,” Zooble gagged.
“Just for that, I'm painting you with massive #$@!”
“WHAT!?”
Everyone, one by one, got their turn, each style of clothing being different. Gangle was in a beautiful ball dress that looked like it was pulled straight from a Victorian painting. Zooble was in a suit, a large Cigar in one hand with a whisky on the rocks in the other. Pomni was dressed as a pirate. She wheezed when she felt the corset around her waist- not exactly time period accurate, but stylish nonetheless. Ragatha was dressed in a flowery flower dress, a laced bonnet tied over her head with a basket in her hands. Kinger had been dressed in some 80’s styled disco outfit- it got a chuckle out of everyone. By the end of it, each of them had given the other their paintings of one another.
Gangles, while rushed, were all thought out and well-painted.
Zooble tried, but they were never too good with pain- they weren't bad though, you could tell they put some effort into them.
Pomni’s were more rough outlines than fully painted artwork.
Kinger had painted them all as some sort of bug. Pomni was a roly-poly, Zooble was a Stag Beetle, Gangle was a June bug, Ragatha was a dragonfly, Jax was a ladybug, and even himself and Caine were a butterfly and a bee.
Jax, well its jax they were all crude blobs of the people they were supposed to represent. There was a door that appeared, and Pomni walked forward to open it, believing it to be the end of the adventure. When she opened the door, she was met with the Void, Caine, and Bubble standing there next to a door- an exit door.
“Congratulations, my Steaming Starlights! I assume the painting went well?” he asked as if this wasn't the weirdest situation. They stared at him, and he finally cleared his throat.
“I know how much you all have been wanting to…leave this place- so I've been working diligently to make your hopes a reality! And today I think I finally figured it out!”
…
“WHAT?!”
-An hour ago-
Caine tapped his fingers against the desk, that name still bouncing around in his head as he fixed old broken code. Then it happened, he broke down the firewall that had been giving him trouble since the start of the search, and his body threw itself back, a scream coming from him as he closed his eyes.
“Ale-….wa…you need-” He pushed his hands against the sides of his head
“Alex!.. Wak… You need to...” He yelled as he pushed harder.
“ALEX! WAKE UP! YOU NEED TO REMEMBER!” He gasped as a hand flew to his chest. That's why- that's why this never made sense, why HE never made sense. He remembers now- he remembers all of it- he remembers himself- he remembers his life- he remembers..his brother. His head spins with all this new information; he feels like he is being violently ripped from his own body before being forced back into it. He snapped his fingers, Bubble apearing before him. He seemed just as off as Caine- his usual manic smile replaced by a straight-lined face, his eyes wide. Caine stared at the other; he stared back.
“Alex..?” Bubble asked.
“Aiden..?” Caine asked.
-back to present-
“Wait! How do we know this isn't part of the adventure?” Jax quickly asked, Zooble begrudgingly agreeing with him. Caine frowned, unsure how to prove he was being serious.
“Well- Bubble? Do you care to do the honors?” he turned to the assistant. He looked up at Caine before giving a ‘nod.’
“Wait- Bubble?! Isn’t he an-?” Pomni was cut off when Bubble opened the door with his mouth, cringing slightly. Bubble spit, the metal tastes gross. Slowly and hesitantly, he moved forward. Nothing happened for a moment.
“I feel-” then Bubbles' eyes closed, and he was gone. Caine stared at the door. He looked back at them and then snapped his fingers, a bridge forming between the gap in the void from the door to the entrance of the art studio. Everyone hesitated, everyone but Kinger; he pushed forward through the group. Pomni reached out and grabbed his hand. He looked back, and she could see the clarity in his eyes. She took a deep breath before looking back and offering a hand to Ragatha. She looked nervous before taking it. Soon, everyone (minus Jax and Caine) was hand in hand, moving slowly across the bridge. When Kinger reached the other side, he held out his free hand for Caine. Slowly, the ringmaster took it. They all stared at the door. Then they moved. The door slowly creaked as it shut behind them. The circus, for once, was quiet. And then, it was gone.