Short Stories of the Weird, Wicked and Warped

Happy the Clown

"The top of the hour breaking story tonight is about the body of a man dressed as a clown found floating in the Pristine Lake off of the I-10 exit 25B. The body was found by a local game warden who had been notified of a bag of trash floating near the water's edge. So far, the police have not been able to identify the man." The male news anchor turns to his co-anchor as she reads from the paper.

"If you have any information on the matter, please contact 9-1-1. At this time there has not been any reward established but more information will be available as the case develops. We will keep the public advised of any new information on the case." The female news anchor shuffles more papers around and continues about the economy or such garbage.

The person watching the news turns the channel back to the show they were watching about ancient aliens. A smile is plastered to their face as they remember the life ebbing from the man's eyes as he drowned. The voice in their head is quiet too as if content for the time being.

Pushing down clown outfits back into the box, they set their feet on top to relax while watching the show. A man that looks like he put his finger in a light socket keeps talking about a disappearing bell.

Closing their eyes, they try to take a nap because soon the voice will be back and they will have to go back to work. The voice keeps telling them that their work isn't done until everyone involved pays for their part.

They don't care why they have to kill the others, they just love doing it and now have a reason whereas before it was empty kills. Now they get joy, almost like a high, from it that leaves them content for a bit at least.

The voice started speaking to them not long after they had almost drowned in the same lake as the body that had been found. They had been performing at a kid's birthday party on a fancy yacht when they had been pushed overboard by a parent.

No one from the yacht had tried to save them or alert anyone else in the area that they had fallen over. A passing boat saw them floundering in the water and had stopped to help them out of the water. It wasn't that they didn't know how to swim but with the clown outfit on, they had been weighed down.

The owner of the yacht told police that they had been drinking and touching a child inappropriately. When confronted by the parent of the kid, they jumped from the yacht to get away. The group told the officer that the clown actor had refused help from them and had only decided to be rescued when the other boat showed up.

The officer charged the clown with drunken disorderly in public, sexual misconduct on a minor, false reporting of a crime, and causing an accident. The owner of the boat passed the officer a large clip of money just before the clown was arrested. That's when the voice spoke to them the first time.

"They deserve to pay for what they have done to you. I can make sure of it if you accept me. I know your deepest desires and it's not new to you to kill. I have seen your memories of those that you have taken care of before. You were doing good work, getting rid of the wicked and soulless masses. Now it's time to start again." The clown almost screamed out loud hearing a voice inside their head.

They nod to show that they accept the voice and could already feel a change come over them. They felt stronger, more everything as the warmth spreads through their body. Their chest, leg, and arm muscles feel fuller, more toned. Small aches hit different parts of their body as they change. The outfit becoming smaller and a little too tight around the neck.

It starts to choke them as it shrinks and pulls against them more. The officer hears the noise, looks in the back, and slams on the breaks. "Who are you? How did you get in the car? Where is the other person?" The officer gets out and opens the back door.