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Chapter 1
"Oh my god," gushed Chloe, "I am so loving this!" She
took another bite of her cotton candy and beamed at Clark and Pete.
"Who’d believe it," Pete remarked, "Cynical, worldly
reporter turns into five year old at circus." He dug his hands into
his pockets and watched Chloe devour the rest of the cotton candy.
"Yeah I know," Clark replied. "Hey, isn’t some of that
mine?" he asked Chloe as he watched her eat.
"Forget it, Kent," she said between bites. "This is all
mine, go buy your own."
"I’d do what she says," Pete remarked. "Reach for it now and
you’ll probably lose a finger."
Clark nodded and laughed. "I’m gonna remember this next time you want
help with your homework, Chloe," he promised her. She ignored him and
continued eating. All around them calliope music played loudly and the
citizens of Smallville walked past enjoying the sights and sounds of the
circus. Game and food stalls had been set up to form a long corridor in the
field outside of town, and since morning, Clark, Chloe, and Pete had walked
up and down it, trying to sample everything that the circus had to offer.
"So what’s next?" Clark asked his friends. "Ring toss;
funhouse; or does someone want to try and greet the clowns again?" he
asked Chloe.
Chloe frowned at him and looked away huffily. "That clown jumped out
at me in a deliberate attempt to scare. He should be fired and stripped of
his clown college degree."
"If you say so, Chloe," Pete said. "Meanwhile," he
pointed, "I found what I want to try next."
Clark turned around and saw a strength tester set up to the side. One of
the football players from school swung a mallet at the base and sent the
weight up to the bell. It clanged loudly and Chloe and Pete cheered him.
"You don’t really want to try that?" Clark asked in dismay.
Pete nodded and ran to be next in line. "Come on, Clark," Chloe
grabbed his arm. "You’re a big, strong farm boy, I’m sure you can show
all of them up." She pulled him towards the machine. The trouble was,
of course, that Clark could have shown them up. He could clang that bell
without even using the hammer. He could probably even pick up the entire
machine and set it flying. Ever since his parents had found him on the day
of the meteor crash, he had been stronger than other children. As he’d
gotten older, his power had kept on growing. He could bend steel in his
bare hands, see through walls, move faster than the eye could see, and he
had learned the hard way, bullets simply bounced off his skin. But with all
those powers and abilities, there was one thing he couldn’t do; be normal.
His parents had warned him about using his powers recklessly, and he had
learned through some painful experiences that they were right. If he did
reveal his super strength in even something as harmless as this, there
would always be people who would want to use him, or his powers, for their
own ends. It hurt to keep his abilities bottled up, to stand still when
others played football and ran freely. It hurt even more to keep it from
his friends. But he’d promised himself and his parents that he would keep
the secret safe and a Kent always kept his word.
"You go ahead and try, Pete," Clark said, rubbing his shoulder.
"I think I threw my shoulder out when I had to fight that clown off
for Chloe." Chloe hit him lightly in the arm and then clapped for
Pete.
"Go Pete!" she yelled. "Show that bell what you’re made
of!" Clark whistled for him and clapped as well. Pete smiled and took
the mallet from the attendant. He hefted it a few times and then took his
stance in front of the machine. He stared at the bell at the top and then
looked down at the lever he had to hit. Pete concentrated, raised the
mallet, and swung. He hit the lever squarely and the weight jumped up the
pole. It rose to within a foot of the bell and then stopped and came back
down. Pete watched it dejectedly as it fell back on the lever.
"Aww, too bad, Pete," Chloe said. Pete shrugged and gave the
mallet back.
"You almost had it," Clark comforted him. Chloe nodded in
agreement.
"I wouldn’t worry too much, Pete," a new voice said. They turned
around to see Lex Luthor looking surprisingly low-key in a pair of jeans
and an old t-shirt. "These things are rigged anyways, so only a few
people win."
"Hey, Lex," Clark said and shook his hand. "I didn’t think
you’d make it."
"What can I say?" Lex replied, "I’ve never been to a circus
so I guess the child in me just came out."
"I think we know how that is," Pete said and glanced at Chloe.
"So what’s with the outfit?" Chloe asked him curiously. She
pointed at his jeans and t-shirt with the stick from her cotton candy.
"This if the first time that I’ve seen you not wearing something from
Armani."
Lex smiled. "I’m incognito. Thought I’d give myself a day off from my
father’s company and I hoped that no one would recognize me."
"Not much chance of that happening," Clark smiled and glanced at
Lex’s bald head.
Running his hand over his head, Lex shrugged. "I guess you’re
right," he remarked.
"Hey, you!" the attendant said. They turned to see him standing
angrily by the machine. He had the mallet over his shoulder and was glaring
at Lex. "Are you Lex Luthor?"
"Yes, I am," Lex said evenly.
"Well, if the big shot CEO thinks the game is rigged, then why don’t
you come up here and prove it?" the attendant asked him. He offered
the mallet to Lex and waited. Lex looked surprised for a moment, then
smiled and grabbed the mallet. Pete, Clark, and Chloe cheered him on as he
stepped up to the machine. Lex swung the mallet experimentally, and then
readied himself in front of the lever. He brought the mallet back and then
swung it fiercely. The weight sprang up the pole and the rung the bell
loudly. Clark and the others cheered him loudly as Lex gave the mallet back
to the fuming attendant.
"Next time, Pete, don’t hold anything back," Lex said rubbing his
shoulder idly. "When you have to do something, you’ve got to give it
everything you have."
"Easy, Lex, this isn’t the boardroom," Chloe said.
"Right," he laughed. Lex turned around, looking at all the booths
and people walking by. "You know, this really isn’t that bad," he
commented. "Not that I’m going to run off and join the circus, but
it’s nice." He was silent for a moment, then shrugged and turned back
to Clark. "I guess I’ll leave you all to your fun. If I leave the desk
for more than a few hours, my dad starts making takeover bids for the
plant. Even if it is still his."
"Are you sure you have to?" Clark asked. "You could come
with us for a while, we were going to meet my parents at the escape artist
show."
"I don’t know if you’re parents would be that happy to see me,"
Lex said.
"Come on," Clark smiled. "They’ve gotten used to you by
now." Chloe and Pete smiled and looked away.
"Anyone ever tell you you’re a terrible liar, Clark?" Lex asked.
Then he shook his head and laughed. "All right, but only for a little
while. But if you’re dad starts talking about any shady motives I might
have for coming to the circus, you’re really going to see an escape artist
at work," he promised.
The escape artist show was held in a tent at the end of the row of stalls.
Large boards painted with nooses and handcuffs were set up outside, and a
girl was standing on a podium just outside the entrance. She was very pretty,
with short dark hair that stopped just above her shoulders. Calling to the
people walking by, she held a variety of handcuffs in her hands, and
challenged anyone to come up and use them to hold her. A set of older boys
stepped out of the crowd and eagerly grabbed handcuffs and leg irons from
the pile at her feet. They fastened three sets of cuffs to her wrists and a
set of irons to her feet. Then they wrapped her in chains for good measure
and secured it with a padlock. She smiled and with a shake of her
shoulders, the chains fell off of her in a clatter of metal. Twisting her
arms around, she removed a pin from the back of her costume and had the
locks undone on the cuffs and irons in moments. Smiling to the crowd, she
bowed and everyone applauded. One of the boys started to say something, but
she yelled over him, "If anyone wants to say these are trick cuffs or
irons, I’ll lock you up and give you this pin so you can prove it to
everyone. Otherwise," she said, spinning a handcuff around one finger,
"I suggest you step inside and enjoy the show."
"Want to take that bet, Lex?" Clark asked.
"I never argue with a woman with handcuffs, Clark" Lex remarked.
The inside of the tent had been converted into a small theater. Wooden
benches were set up in rows with a raised platform in the back as the
stage. A small sign at the base of the platform read, Bernard Mellivicent:
Master of the Escape, and showed a man wearing a straightjacket. A variety
of chains, boxes, and other apparatus littered the stage, and in one corner
stood a large tank filled with water. A screen with stars, planets, and
comets stood in the other end of the stage. As the tent started to fill up
with people, the excitement built steadily. "Are they really going to
do that water box trick?" Pete asked, staring at the tank on stage.
"How do you get out of that?" Chloe asked.
Clark smiled and turned to her. "Magic of course," he said. Chloe
rolled her eyes and laughed at him.
"Hi guys," Marta Kent said from behind them. She sat down in the
row of seats behind them and smiled at them. Jonathon followed her somewhat
reluctantly.
"Chloe, Pete," he greeted. "Lex," he said evenly. Lex
smiled sarcastically and nodded back to him. "Good to see you guys
didn’t get lost on the way here."
"Distracted you mean," Martha added. "I can’t remember the
last time a circus stopped in Smallville. There’s so much out there we
almost forgot about you kids entirely."
"Your mother had a little too much fun on the Merry Go Round,"
Jonathon said as he leaned over to Clark. Clark had to muffle a laugh as
his mother turned red.
"What’s so wrong with enjoying yourself, huh?" Chloe asked
everyone. Martha smiled and put her arm around Chloe.
"That’s right, we girls have to stick together! Especially when some
people, who shall remain nameless, refuse to have a good time every once in
a while," she said pointedly.
Jonathon coughed and asked, "When’s this show supposed to start
anyways?"
"Should be any minute now," Clark said. Almost on cue the tent
flap in the back swung open and two men entered. The first wore a simple
white shirt under an elaborate overcoat. It was a deep blue and resembled
an old parade uniform, complete with cuffs and trimmings. His hair was
gray, but he still seemed very fit and there was a lively glint in his eyes.
The other was much younger, maybe a few years older than Clark. He was
tall, over six feet, with dark hair and blue eyes. He wore a gymnast’s
leotard and stayed behind the first man. For some reason, Clark felt a
mental tug as he saw him. The young man seemed almost familiar to him.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls," the first man started,
"Welcome to the show of shows." He stood at the end of the stage
and held his arms out to them. "What you are about to see, is my
life’s work and passion. My family’s obsession and heritage," he
cried, and he turned slightly as the girl from outside the tent stepped on
stage. She walked by him and smiled brightly, which he returned. "But
you didn’t come to see any of that," the man suddenly added. He
lowered his arms and stepped back. "No, you came to see someone break
out of cuffs, escape the fate that catches hold when the tumblers fall and
the key turns. To see the secrets that criminals would pay anything for. I
tell you truly, we use no trick cuffs or locks here." He smiled again
in a more playful manner. "Of course, there maybe some sleight of hand
performed today, but without it where would the fun be?" The audience
chuckled and he smiled with them.
"My name is Bernard Mellivicent and these are my assistants, Tom and
Gail. I leave it to you to figure out which one is my daughter," he
remarked, evoking another chuckle. Gail laughed brightly and half curtsied
to the audience. Tom didn’t crack a smile. He waited like a statue by the
cuffs and chains, staring out over the audience. "Let’s begin with
something simple then," Bernard said and Tom sprang to action. He
picked up two pairs of handcuffs and stepped over to Bernard. As he stepped
out of the back of the stage, Clark had to blink when he saw how developed he
was. Tom looked like he had been chiseled out of stone. "Now the
handcuff is the most basic of all prisons in this world," Bernard said
as Tom snapped a pair of cuffs on his wrists. As Tom bent down to the
fasten the second pair to Bernard’s feet, he continued, "With a simple
metal click, it holds our criminals tightly bound and keeps them docile.
Tom stood up and Bernard handed back the pair of cuffs that had been on his
wrists. Clark started as he realized he had missed the man remove them
entirely. Bernard bent down and with a flip of his wrists, the cuffs on his
feet fell to the floor. Then he straightened and put his arms behind his
back as Tom snapped the first pair back on them. Then he bent down and
reattached the second pair to Bernard’s feet. As the cuffs locked, the
first pair hit the ground behind Bernard and Tom picked them up without
missing a beat. Not even bothering to reach down this time, Bernard bent
his feet at an angle and snapped them together. The cuffs fell off easily.
Tom retrieved these and Bernard looked out over the crowd. "After
all," he commented, "Who can break free of them?"
Clark stared in shock for a moment, then found himself applauding wildly.
Everyone around him followed as well. Chloe put her fingers in her mouth
and whistled loudly. Bernard bowed slightly and then put his arms up and
waved the applause away. "In case any of you were wondering, that was
no trick. A trick means you fool someone. That right there, was a skill,
something honed through discipline, knowledge, endless practice. And if any
of you don’t believe me, you can come up and try the cuffs for yourself. Or
on second thought, don’t. I just remembered; we lost that key."
The show continued, and each escape seemed more incredible than the last.
Bernard allowed the audience to shackle him with chains and irons. He had a
pair of local deputies put Gail in the most elaborate restraints the
Smallville Police had. Then Tom was put in the best straightjacket that the
local hospital had to offer. Each escaped in less than a minute’s time. As
Clark and his friends watched, the trio escaped from every conceivable form
of cage or lock known to man. But throughout the show, Clark could not stop
glancing at the assistant, Tom. While Bernard and Gail would laugh and joke
with the audience, Tom never said a word. He didn’t laugh or smile, just
did any task Bernard gave him quickly and flawlessly. It was unnerving,
Clark thought, and little frightening how cold he seemed.
"That guy’s not much of a performer, huh Lex," Clark whispered to
him as Tom escaped from an intricate series of chains and padlocks on
stage. When Lex didn’t say anything, Clark nudged him and glanced over. Lex
was staring at the stage with a look of puzzlement. "Are you alright,
Lex?" Clark asked quietly.
Lex blinked suddenly, as if he had just now noticed Clark. "Sorry,
yeah, I’m fine," he said quickly. Clark watched him turn back to the
stage with a confused look on his face. "Everything’s fine," Lex
repeated absently, rubbing his chin in deep thought. Clark was about to say
something when Bernard called out over the audience.
"Now I’m sure you’ve all been wondering when I’m going to get to that
oversized fish tank in the corner," he said, gesturing to the tank of
water. At his cue Tom and Gail rolled it onto center stage and Bernard
stepped in front of it. The tank was eight feet tall and set on a trolley.
The outside walls were covered with locks and chains and inside water
joshed around from the motion. Tom stepped behind the tank and wheeled over
a small ladder to it, while Gail brought out the straightjacket that Tom
had worn earlier. "Made famous by Houdini, this trick takes all of an
artists skill, strength, and mental fortitude. One mistake can be
fatal," he said in almost a whisper, and then his voice broke into a
laugh, "so of course I’m not going to do it." He gestured to Tom
who stared back at the audience stoically. Gail helped him into the
straightjacket as her father continued. "Tom is the youngest person in
America to ever attempt this trick, and I stress attempt because this is
his first try. We’ll give him five minutes to escape and if he can’t,
well," Bernard shrugged. "I suppose there might not be a second
attempt." With his sharp vision, Clark could see Gail smile at this comment,
but Tom hardly blinked. He didn’t seem to be concerned at all as Gail
tightened the straps holding him.
When everything was she could make it, Gail brought out a black hood, and
after turning it inside out to show the crowd it was empty, put it over
Tom’s head. Then she guided him to the ladder and with her father’s help,
climbed up the ladder with him. She helped Tom to lie down at the top and
sit over the tank’s edge with his feet in the water. "At the next
signal from Gail," Bernard said to the crowd, "Tom will be locked
into place and we’ll start the clock. In five minutes time we’ll pull back
the screen and see if we’ll have to set another place at supper again or
not." There was some nervous laughter from the audience as everyone
stared on stage. "Are you ready, Tom?" Bernard asked. Tom nodded
firmly and Gail clapped his shoulders three times. On the third one, Tom
jumped into the water and quickly upended himself so that his feet were
sticking up. With startling strength for such a small girl, Gail reached into
the water and pulled his legs up until she could lock them into place in
the cover of the tank. Tom hung in the tank, motionless, as she finished
locking his legs into place. The locks left his knees and feet out of the
water, but everything else was submerged. As she climbed down the ladder,
Bernard carefully moved the screen into place. Gail emerged from behind the
screen and moved a large timer’s clock out into the open. The hands were
frozen at sixty.
"Now when this clock has come around five times," Bernard said,
"we’ll remove the screen and see how Tom’s done. Don’t worry; I have
complete faith in the boy. He’s a bit foolhardy, but he’s learned from the
most gifted mind in the business, my own. My mind is like a razor, not a
single detail escapes my eye," he boasted. Gail coughed politely from
the side and Bernard turned to her in impatience. "What is it,
girl?" She prodded the clock with her foot and Bernard stared at her
for a moment. "Oh that’s right," he said suddenly, and walked
over to hit a button on the top of the clock. The clock started and Bernard
turned sheepishly to the audience and shrugged.
As the seconds ticked by slowly, everyone in the audience waited anxiously.
Pete kept staring at the clock on stage, then checking his wrist watch every
few seconds. Chloe had her fingers wrapped around the bottom of her chair
as she waited nervously. Clark was a bundle of impatience as he watched the
hand of the clock move slowly. Even Lex seemed nervous, sitting forwards in
his chair and staring at the screen. The only people who didn’t seem
concerned were Bernard and Gail on stage. Bernard watched the clock calmly,
while Gail sat on the edge of the table and toyed with a length of chain.
Neither looked at the screen at all as the minutes ticked by.
Even with his remarkable hearing, Clark couldn’t hear anything coming from
behind the screen. He expected, at the least, to hear the water in the cage
churning about, but there was nothing. As two and a half minutes passed by
on the clock, Clark finally had enough and focused his x-ray vision on the
screen. As he squinted, the colors of the world fell away to harsh black
and whites, and Clark could see through the screen to inside the cage. He
went cold as he saw Tom’s skeleton hanging motionless inside the cage.
Clark blinked and checked again, but there was no change. Tom’s arms were
still folded up in the straightjacket; he hadn’t even removed it. Clark
started to sweat as he realized he had to do something or Tom would drown.
He might have passed out moments ago, or just after the screen was in
place, but there was still two minutes left to go. How could he warn
everyone and not reveal how he knew. He turned to Lex and said, "Maybe
he won’t get out in time. Shouldn’t we check or something?"
"Worried, Clark?" Lex smiled back. "Don’t worry, they’re
professionals."
"Right," Clark said helplessly. Chloe smiled at him and patted
his arm comfortingly. Clark thought about turning around to tell his
parents, but there was no way he could tell them in this crowd without
someone overhearing. And besides, he realized; what could they do?
"Two minutes left to go," Bernard called out from the stage.
Clark stared through the screen again, hoping for some sign of movement,
but Tom still hung motionless. He didn’t have a choice, Clark realized,
he’d have to run on stage, knock aside the screen, and be back in his seat
before anyone could see him. He didn’t know if he was that fast yet, but
maybe he could make it. It was a tremendous risk, but what else could he
do?
Just as Clark was ready to spring out of his seat, Gail dropped the chain
she was holding. It hit the stage with a loud clatter that made everyone
jump in the audience. She smiled, embarrassed, and picked it up quickly. No
one but Clark could see it, but that noise had suddenly galvanized Tom.
Clark watched in amazement as he struggled upside down in the cage. Then to
his greater astonishment, Tom’s arms were free and he reached up to the
tank’s ceiling. He hadn’t been passed out, Clark realized, he’d been waiting
in the tank all this time.
Not even bothering with the locks on his feet, Tom pushed up on the ceiling
and Clark could only stare as it opened easily. Tom pushed himself out of
the ceiling hatch and onto the ledge of the tank. Steadying himself with one
hand, he made a sweeping gesture over his face and then put his hand down.
Clark could just barely see the outline of the mask fall to the ground.
"One minute to go," Bernard said suddenly, tearing Clark’s
attention away. He sat back in his seat, confused and almost a bit
disappointed. They’d built the trick up to be so dangerous, and then it
turned out to be nothing more than just that, a trick. Tom had gotten out
of the case in less than a minute, but had waited for three minutes before
he’d started. Clark had to wonder, why would anyone do something like that?
"Isn’t this exciting?" Chloe asked him quickly, glancing back at
the stage as she did.
"Yeah, sure," Clark mumbled as the last few seconds ticked off
the clock.
"Time!" Bernard shouted to everyone. Gail jumped off the table
and started towards the screen, but it was pulled back suddenly before she
could reach it. Tom, still dripping with water, guided the screen towards
the back of the stage, and then turned back to the audience. Everyone stared
as he stood there, dripping and waiting expectedly. Finally, someone in the
back started to clap and it swept through the audience, building to a
roaring applause. Tom endured it for a moment, then frowned slightly and
backed up, looking away. Before he could escape however, Gail grabbed his
hand and marched him to center-stage. She guided him through a stiff bow
and then turned and curtsied to her father. Bernard smiled and stood behind
them, gesturing over the audience. All three bowed one last time and then
they walked out behind the curtains.
"Now that was something," Pete said, gathering up his coat.
Martha smiled back in agreement and nodded. "I haven’t seen anything
like that since I was a kid."
"We used to get traveling shows like that out here," Jonathon
said. "I must have seen everyone of them, but that was definitely one
of the best."
Chloe smiled and turned to Clark. "What did you think?" she asked
him.
"I guess you could say, I was kind of surprised by it," Clark
remarked. His mother rolled her eyes and groaned.
"The Kent understatement strikes again," she said. Jonathon
laughed and put his arm around her. Together they walked out of the tent,
followed by Chloe and Pete. Clark started to follow them when he glanced
back and saw Lex still standing by his seat.
"Coming, Lex?" he asked. Lex turned and shook his head.
"Not this time," he said, looking back at the curtain in the
back. "I’ve got something to check out first, but I’ll catch up."
"Okay," Clark said, a little disappointed. "I guess I’ll see
you later then." Lex nodded as Clark followed everyone out. Then,
weaving his way through the last of the exiting people, Lex made his way to
the back of the tent. He stepped through the curtains and outside into a
sectioned off portion of grass outside the tent. Open trunks were spread
around along with a bench and a folding chair. The remains of a sandwich
and a coke were on a rickety table at the end of the area. A young man
knelt beside it, drying himself off with a towel. Lex watched him for a moment
and then smiled broadly.
"Hello Bruce," he said quietly.
END OF CHAPTER ONE
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