"Hahaha… you've gotten serious. Good… because Act 2 is about to begin."
The clown pointed his hand at the sky, forming a gun with his fingers. A bright light shot from the tip, illuminating the forest.
"The stage lights are set… now let the performance of Act Two, the Grand Finale, be memorable."
He looked at the Skinless One, now completely enraged, with long claws formed from hardened blood.
The clown's mask looked like part of his face. Not paint. Not a disguise. Something natural.
His voice remained elegant. Cold. Dark.
He held knives in his hands.
"Let's begin."
He vanished.
He appeared behind the Skinless One and cut off his left arm. Without pause, he drove another knife into his back again and again.
The Skinless One screamed.
He moved the blood from his right hand and created sharp spikes across his own back. The spikes pierced through the air.
The clown reappeared in front of him and stabbed his eyes. Then he kicked him, sending him flying backward.
The Skinless One exploded into a rain of blood, launching spikes in every direction.
Some of them shot toward Vivian and Madeleine.
Before they could reach them, the balloon eagle and the balloon bull moved in front of the girls.
The spikes tore through them.
Both balloon animals exploded.
They had fulfilled their purpose.
Vivian and Madeleine were unharmed.
Vivian looked at the clown.
The clown returned her gaze from beneath his mask.
Then he shifted his attention back to the wounded, staggering Skinless One.
He threw a knife.
The Skinless One caught it.
"I'll kill you, clown!" he shouted.
Then he opened his mouth in an impossible way, like a python unhinging its jaw. From his throat, skins began to emerge.
Fifteen human female skins.
Well preserved.
Too fresh.
The clown reacted instantly.
He pulled out a pistol.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
Bang.
The bullets struck the floating skins. Black fire consumed them in the air.
The Skinless One vomited again.
But this time, no skins came out.
A human figure emerged.
A woman.
Skinless.
The clown aimed at her.
Bang.
The bullet stopped in midair in front of her.
Levitating.
The clown smiled.
"Interesting… worthy of the final act."
Unlike the boss, this skinless woman had color in her eyes. She could see. But there was no emotion in them.
She slowly turned her gaze toward Vivian and Madeleine.
The two girls were in shock. They had cried, screamed, felt absolute terror.
But this…
Seeing a skinless woman staring at them.
Their thoughts went blank.
The woman began walking toward them.
They trembled.
It was the only thing they could do.
The clown applauded.
"Well, well… it seems the secret weapon has a mind of its own."
From the ground, the Skinless boss, weak and laughing, spoke:
"Clown… hehehe… you made me reveal this weapon… but it doesn't matter now. YOU WILL DIE."
The clown burst into exaggerated laughter.
And that exaggeration made it even more terrifying.
In one clean motion, he cut off the Skinless One's head.
The boss died.
His body vanished.
The skinless woman paused for a second.
Then she resumed walking toward Vivian and Madeleine.
The clown appeared in front of her.
"What a rude little girl… ignoring me, the clown who is supposed to make this show entertaining."
He placed a hand over his chest, squeezing as if his heart hurt.
He sobbed.
"You're all like this… evil from birth. Fine, I'll kill you and then eat some ice cream to ease the pain you've caused me."
The woman ignored him.
She levitated.
And shot forward like a bullet toward the girls.
The clown appeared in front of her and kicked her in the face. Her body was violently redirected.
He reappeared before her and stabbed a knife into her neck.
Another into her eye.
He didn't stop.
He cut off both of her arms.
She reacted.
With an invisible force, she made the clown levitate.
She slammed him into the ground.
The impact created a crater.
She lifted him again.
And slammed him down.
Over and over.
Then she formed a blood tentacle that pierced through the air and impaled the clown's fallen body in a pool of blood.
She lifted him.
Pulled him closer.
The body exploded.
The explosion injured her.
"Hahahaha…"
The laughter came from behind her.
The clown stood there.
Holding an assault rifle, aimed directly at her.
She tried to move.
She couldn't.
She looked down.
The ground itself was holding her. Spikes pierced through the soles of her feet.
He fired.
The bullets tore through her.
She tried to stop them with her supernatural power.
She couldn't.
Those bullets were wrapped in a stronger energy than hers.
She screamed.
Using her blood, she sliced off her own legs at thigh level.
She levitated.
Still alive.
The clown didn't stop.
He moved to another angle.
Fired again.
She partially dodged, but several shots hit her.
The weapon ran out of bullets.
"Damn… out of ammo."
He looked at her.
Raised the gun again… even though it wouldn't fire.
She was furious.
Before she could attack, the clown raised his hand.
"Stop."
He stood completely still.
Doing nothing.
A firework appeared in the sky.
It descended straight toward her.
She tried to escape.
The clown fired one last burst to destabilize her just enough.
The firework struck her.
The explosion lit up the entire forest.
And the skinless woman died.
The clown applauded as the remains fell in the distance.
He walked toward the lifeless body.
Extended his hand.
The body disappeared.
After a few seconds, he appeared in front of Vivian and Madeleine.
He stared at them.
The flowers around the collars of their cheerleader uniforms suddenly soaked them in water once more.
Then the flowers withered.
And vanished.
Their faces drenched, they looked at the clown.
"I hope Act 2: The Grand Finale was to your liking."
He grabbed a large balloon.
Held the string.
And slowly rose into the sky.
He disappeared.
Minutes passed.
Then a sound echoed through the forest.
Sirens.
Police.
Vivian looked up at the sky.
Far away, barely visible, the clown held the large balloon as he drifted off.
"Here!" Madeleine shouted.
Vivian understood.
She screamed at the top of her lungs.
The sirens stopped.
A voice called out:
"This is the police! Is anyone there?"
"Yes!" they answered.