Title: Terror-Go-Round, the alternative universe ending
Chapter: Six
Author: Squeezynz
Rating: PG

........so many little people, so little time........

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The sun was high in the sky and the morning well advanced before Valerie and Mark heard someone moving around in the room outside their cage. Mark had taken advantage of the availability of the bathroom after they finished their meal, using the replacement clothes to effect a transformation. He had managed to ease the loose fitting trousers over his bandaged knee, the bulky dressing hardly noticeable, and the long sleeved shirt felt cool against his clean skin. Valerie had also changed, into the form fitting dress that now moulded itself to her slender curves so that she looked as if she was about to embark on an evening of socialising instead of the reality of facing their giant captor. She had sat and watched as Mark perfected the use of the crutches, hobbling back and forth the length of their box room. Now they stood outside their refuge, staring out into the room beyond.

An elderly man looked down at them, his face creased in lines of humour and sympathy.

"I see you have put my gifts to good use, you look much better, young man,"

"Thank you Vargas, we appreciate all you've done for us...but we'd like to go now,"

The giant magician looked perplexed for a moment, then threw back his head and roared with laughter, the sound echoing around the room. Choking back his mirth, Vargas grinned broadly and sat down beside the table, resting an arm beside the cage.

"You'd like to go, oh that's a good one. I'm very sorry little man, but you are not 'going' anywhere, you are mine now and I have plans for you and your pretty lady,"

"Plans ?" said Valerie, edging closer to Mark and exchanging a worried glance with him before turning to stare at the giant magician again. "What plans, its illegal to keep Little People, if you show us off you'll be arrested by the SID,"

"Oh you're quite correct my dear, if we exhibit you as a side show then we would surely be breaking the law, but that is not what I have planned for you. I have already created a place for you in my magic show and I think you'll be the hit of the performance."

"A magic show ?...I would have thought a magician as accomplished as you wouldn't need us to make it a hit," said Mark curtly, shifting slightly to ease the ache in his knee.

"You are quite right, of course, I have no need of a gimmick to enhance my skills, but I can use you in one of my tricks so that it will astound and amaze everyone who sees it. Even Inidu would be hard pressed to figure out how I will have done what I have in mind."

"Who is Inidu...your assistant ?" asked Valerie, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Great heavens no," laughed Vargas, his eyes crinkling up with mirth, "Inidu would not thank you for calling him my assistant, particularly as it is more correct to say that I was his....for a short time."

"Oh.....but I still don't see how we can be part of a magic trick without anyone realising who we are ?" questioned Valerie, her attention focused on the magician.

"That will keep until later, for now I want to test some of the equipment, so I will need the assistance of one of you,"

"No wait, we stay together Vargas," said Mark, moving instinctively in front of Valerie, who shrank back as the giant moved closer to the cage.

"Stand back little man, I need your lovely lady for awhile." Without waiting for a response, Vargas waved his hand in a complicated gesture and Valerie disappeared from the cage, reappearing almost instantly inside an ornate glass bell jar set further down the table top. Mark could only hobble to the cage bars and fume impotently as Vargas scooped up the jar and carried it away, Valerie's body sprawled unmoving on the glass floor of the bottle.

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Pepe kicked at a clump of grass, his scuffed and worn boots sending up a puff of dust. He had stayed with the truck through the morning, feeding Willy when Luiji showed now sign of waking up despite the bears insistent growls of hunger. Now he waited for the return of his uncle, the sun beating down on the truck making it too hot to sit in the cab. He wondered what had happened to the Little People, his brain telling him that there had been nothing he could have done to help them, while his heart ached to help the strange creatures so like themselves. Finally Pepe gave up his idle past-time and decided to seek out his uncle, and maybe find out the fate of the Little People at the same time.

After checking that the bear was not in direct sunlight and that his uncle's partner still snored in the back of the truck, Pepe walked briskly to the entrance of the circus, his feet slowing as he approached the striped canvas wall. In the dust he thought he could see tiny footprints and his heart lifted in hope that some of the tiny people had managed to escape and even now were rescuing their companions. A quick check revealed that no-one was taking any notice of him, so Pepe used the toe of his dusty shoe to rub out the evidence on the ground, the barely visible footprints erased completely from any inquisitive eyes.

Sidling through the entrance he was stopped at the ticket booth by a large lady with a shock of brilliantly red hair. Pepe was amazed that the women actually fitted the booth, her ample charms spilling onto the counter and threatening to escape the neckline of her flamboyantly frilled dress.

"Where do you think you're going, my fine lad ?"

"My uncle is here....somewhere...I have to find him," said Pepe, gazing earnestly into the women face.

"Who is your Uncle and what was he doing here ? If you tell me, I might be able to point you in the right direction, it's dangerous just to wander around a circus, you know."

"Oh....okay, my uncle had some business with the Ringmaster, he had something to sell," said Pepe, shuffling his feet and feeling uncomfortable under the woman's intensely curious gaze.

"Other side of the clearing, the blue and yellow caravan with a Targe painted on the end wall. That's the Ringmaster's caravan, but you'd better hurry, he'll be doing his rounds before long. He should know where your uncle was billeted last night."

"Thanks you," said Pepe, grinning at the woman as she smiled and winked at him, his feet quickly carrying him past the ticket booth and into the circus ground, the caravan easy to spot as the most ornate and gaudily painted.

On reaching the steps he paused, drawing in a deep breath and casting a glance at the people hurrying about their business, then climbed the few steps and lifted his hand to knock on the gaily painted door. Without him touching the wood the door was flung open and Pepe found his eyes travelling up the corpulent torso blocking his view of the interior.

"And who might you be ?" asked the man, his black eyes taking in Pepe's dusty clothes and worn boots.

"My Uncle Karlos came here....to see you.....last night, and he hasn't returned,"

"Aaaah, your Uncle Karlos, of course. He was here, we conducted our business and he left. I had assumed that he'd already left the circus, but if he had, you wouldn't be cluttering up my doorway, now would you ?" The man reached out a hand and ruffled Pepe's hair, his face split with a wide, toothy grin. Pepe shuffled his feet on the top step, his hands gripping his hat so that his knuckles showed white.

"Did you buy the Little People ?" asked Pepe, his voice barely above a whisper, already hunching his shoulders in anticipation of a blow for his presumption. To his relief the Ringmaster only stared at him, still grinning, then to Pepe's surprise, the man's left eyelid drooped into an unmistakable wink.

"Now what would you know about such thing ?"

"Only that my Uncle....my Uncle was going to sell them so we could set up our own stall and...and maybe join your circus," stammered Pepe, his eyes darting from the mans massive silver belt buckle to his black, fathomless eyes.

After a moments silence, the Ringmaster stood to one side, leaving just enough space for Pepe to squeeze past and enter the caravan.

"I think you'd better come inside. Have you had any breakfast ?"

Surprised at the note of concern in his voice, Pepe glance quickly up as if to catch the man unaware, but he saw only polite inquire and a friendly smile. His stomach chose that moment to rumble very loudly and Pepe felt his lips curve into an embarrassed smile.

"I think my question has been answered, come inside boy, I'll send someone to find out the whereabouts of your missing Uncle. While you wait you can fill that noisy stomach of yours."

Squeezing past the man's bulk, Pepe found himself inside a comfortable caravan, the whole room decorated in muted colours, in direct contrast with the vehicles' garish exterior. Sidling into a deeply cushioned bench seat, Pepe watched as the Ringmaster called to someone outside, instructing them to look for Karlos, then he went to the compact kitchen area, picking up plates and cups and carrying them back to the table. There were already signs that the man had started his own meal which Pepe had interrupted. Now he sat down opposite Pepe and picked up his spoon, digging into his breakfast and leaving the boy to see to his own.

Pepe hesitated for a second, drawing his bottom lip into his mouth and worrying it with his teeth. Seeing the Ringmaster tucking into his own bowl, Pepe decided to give into his own hunger and started to spoon the tasty cereal into his own mouth as fast as he was able.

"Hey slow down, you'll choke at that speed !"

Pepe looked up, flushing with embarrassment.

"Doesn't your Uncle feed you, there's nothing of you and you eat like you haven't had a meal in a week."

Not wanting to answer Pepe only shrugged his body shoulders and continued eating. The Ringmaster regarded the slender boy shrewdly before continuing his own meal.

Pushing away his now empty bowl, the man reached for his mug and took a sip. Pepe continued to shovel in his food, eyes on his spoon.

"I could use a boy like you," mused the Ringmaster, his heavily ringed hand tapping with a chink against the sides of his mug. Startled, Pepe looked up, his spoon halfway to his mouth.

"For what ?"

"Oh....I need someone to keep this caravan tidy, and to act as a go-for during the performances, that sort of thing."

"Don't you have anyone to do that already ?" asked Pepe, his eyes darting around the neat caravan.

"My previous assistant left last week when he got a better offer from the Svenga Circus, so I have been managing on my own. That's fine but I am already behind and need someone to act as my eyes and ears around the circus."

"What about my Uncle ?" asked Pepe, his eyes as round as saucers in his pinched face.

"I'm sure I can come to an arrangement with him. Would you like to work for me, you'd get food and board plus a wage, plus we have a number of children here of all ages."

The man could see Pepe turning all this over in his mind, his expressive face mirroring his every emotion. The Ringmaster knew that the boys Uncle, with the necessary monetary inducement, would be happy to part with the boy, his comments the previous night enough to give the Ringmaster a fair assessment of the mans avaricious character.

Before the boy could respond there was a knock at the door and the Ringmaster rose to answer it. Pepe couldn't see the person in the doorway, or hear the information imparted but he did hear his Uncle's name mentioned and waited apprehensively to hear what had happened. Pepe had been completely taken aback by the mans offer of employment, his emotions swinging between utter joy at the prospect of a future with the circus, and utter despair that his Uncle would never agree to it. Looking down at his bowl, Pepe was dismayed to realise that his appetite had completely gone and he lay down his spoon.

Abruptly, the Ringmaster swung around and beckoned to Pepe, his face sombre.

"There's been an accident boy, I need you to identify your Uncle,"

"An accident ?" croaked Pepe, his face draining of what little colour there had been.

"Come along, Sherk here will take you to his tent," said the Ringmaster, his eyes filled with compassion. "You can come back here afterwards and we'll discuss what's to be done."

Pepe felt a huge lump fill his throat and his eyes stung. Looking up at the man in the doorway he hoped vainly that the man was only joking and would burst into raucous laughter and slap him on the back, just like his Uncle was want to do. Instead Pepe met the dark eyes and saw the pity in them and knew his life was about to change irrevocably. The man outside waited for Pepe at the bottom of the steps, his eyes intent upon his employer, the two men exchanging a wealth of meaning in their unspoken conversation over the boys' head.

"Bring him back quickly Sherk, I'll expect a full report before midday on this matter."

"Sure Boss," replied Sherk, one hand coming down to settle on Pepe's thin shoulders, already steering the boy away from the caravan.

The Ringmaster watched intently as the boy was led away, his expression thoughtful. There would be little trouble disposing of the remains of the uncle, and the Dancing Bear partner would be only to glad to accepted back into the Circus family, and if he wasn't, well more people had entered the ranks of the Circus folk than had ever left. As for the boy, his future was already decided. Turning on his heel he shut the caravan door and returned to his interrupted breakfast.

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Valerie, at first alarmed at finding herself in the glass jar, pressed herself against the glass wall and watched enthralled as Vargas proceeded to give her a private performance of his magic skills.

He had carried her out of the caravan and into a smaller tent that nestled against the back wall. Inside were an odd assortment of paraphernalia that was obviously used for the magicians many magic tricks. Valerie had rather scorned magician acts on Earth as purely for the gullible and the young, but her experience with Vargas was starting to change her mind about magic. To put his captive at ease, Vargas had put on an impromptu show for her, putting her glass jar up on a shelf so that she had a good view of the interior of the tent and of Vargas himself. For the next half hour he went through a repertoire of slight-of-hand gags that Valerie had seen done before but not with this mans level of expertise and finesse. After the first few minutes she was laughing and applauding, almost completely forgetting that she was a prisoner. After completing a completely mystifying trick, to Valerie anyway, Vargas bowed deeply and approached the shelf, his face only inches from the glass wall of the jar.

"Thank you, thank you, its always nice to have an appreciative audience," he intoned, smiling broadly.

"You're amazing, I've never seen magic done so well...its almost...well...magic" gushed Valerie, her face flushed and awestruck.

"Thanks you dear lady, I do my humble best, but that is only a small part of my show, the real magic is when I enlist the aid of my assistant. When you meet Sherali you will understand why I want you to be a part of my act."

Clapping his hands, Vargas turned away and looked towards the tent opening. Against the bright morning light Valerie saw the silhouette of a woman appear but it wasn't until she approached the magician that Valerie understood what Vargas meant.

"Good grief!" Valerie gasped, her hand coming up to cover her mouth in shock.

"Who is this ?" asked the woman, turning her blue eyes from the magician to the glass jar.

"This, my dear daughter, is one of the Little People, she will be helping us in one of my acts,"

Tossing back her head to flick some of the auburn curls off her shoulders, Sherali peered more closely at the woman crouched in the jar. Her blue eyes widened and she jerked back, a frown marring her smooth forehead. "What joke is this...she looks like...no.. she is just like....me!"

"I know, isn't it famous.....now I have two beautiful assistants," laughed Vargas, his eyes twinkling.

"It's unbelievable...and yet I see her with my own eyes," breathed Sherali, bringing her face closer to the jar to inspect its occupant again. Valerie shrank back as far as she could, still shocked to see herself in giant form. Except for the longer hair, Vargas' daughter could have been Valerie's twin.

"How do you intend to use her ?" asked Sherali, her eyes turning once more to her father.

"You know I have been trying to create the illusion that you are shrunk down and captured into the sphere," explained Vargas, " well here is the answer," he swept a hand out to indicate Valerie.

"But wasn't the point of the act that the sphere was going to be destro....." started Sherali only to have Vargas cut her off.

"There is no need to go into details yet, suffice to say that I have reworked the trick and now it will be the highlight of the act."

Without letting his daughter speak again, Vargas bundled her out of the tent and Valerie could see him imparting some last instructions before pushing her gently away out of sight. After a moments pause, Vargas returned and picked up the jar, bringing it up to his eyes level.

"Now you see why I want you to be my 'assistant', little lady. You and my daughter are as alike as peas. It's time now to return you to your man. Later, when Sherali has finished preparing for the trick, we'll do a run through and you will become part of the greatest magic trick ever performed."

Valerie could only gape at him, her mouth open. She wasn't sure what she wanted to address first, his assumption that she and Mark were a couple *her man, indeed!* or the incredible co-incidence of his daughter being Valerie's doppelganger, and there was the small matter of what happened to the sphere, as Sherali had been about to mention before Vargas cut her off.

"Vargas...I..." but she got no further. With a complicated wave of his hand, Vargas swept it over the jar and watched as Valerie slumped insensible to the glass floor. Reaching inside his voluminous robes, he dropped the jar into a hidden pocket before leaving the tent. At the door of his caravan he paused, on long finger tapping at his bottom lip, then he whirled and did a complete about-face, his hand absently patting his side with its hidden pocket, before marching off and disappearing from sight, his robes flapping in the slight morning breeze.

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Kerin Stark stared at his rapidly cooling coffee, his thoughts centered on the boy that had previously sat opposite him. As Ringmaster of the circus he was responsible for everything that happened within the circus grounds. The arrival of the boy's Uncle with his precious cargo of Little People had certainly set a cat amongst the pigeons. The law demanded that any and all Little People be surrendered to the SID, on pain of all sorts of nasty consequences. But the circus was a world unto itself, with its own laws and Kerin was master of it all. If he chose to purchase, with a view to exploit, Little People, then he would, and the SID be damned.

His ruminations were cut short by someone hammering on his door. Opening it brought him face to face with Durk, the tattooed contortionist, not his favourite person in the world.

"What is it Durk, I'm trying to have my breakfast."

"I won't have them, nasty creatures,"

"I assume you are referring to the Little People I put in your care last night ?" asked Kerin, one bushy eyebrow raised in inquiry.

Throwing his arms about, Durk flushed angrily at Kerin's offhand tone of voice.

"I have enough to do without pandering to these aliens!" he spat, eyes narrowing.

"I really don't have time for this Durk, if you haven't the wit to see them for what they are, then hand them back, I'm sure I'll find someone more willing to make the most of this opportunity."

"What opportunity...they are trouble. Have you forgotten that the SID were only here yesterday," shouted Durk, his tattoos standing out lividly on his flushed face.

"Bring the creatures here Durk, before the SID hear you all the way to their headquarters."

With a snarl, Durk leaped off the top step and scampered away, returning almost immediately, a box cage swinging from his hand. "Now they are your problem." He spat, whirling around and leaving Kerin holding the cage. Bemused at Durk's more than usually eccentric behaviour, Kerin lifted up the box to view its occupants.

"Well well my friends, what did you do to set off Durk like that ?"

Turning back into his caravan, he kicked the door shut and chuckled to himself as he placed the box on the breakfast table. Two pale faced appeared and peered up at the looming giant.

Taking a belated sip of his now stone cold drink, Kerin returned their stare. "Just what am I going to do with you ?"

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