Ghosts in the Pumpkin Soup

Chapter 11: Birthday Blues

Hey kid, you like carnivals? Yeah, of course you do. It's a magical place of over-priced food, rigged games, and questionable employees who may be ex-convicts. Now imagine all that as a vast city that's more haunted than the inside of your dead grandma's vagina. I mean, this place is as spooky as all hell, especially in hell. The carnies may have a taste for blood, but at least you'll be having a good time until your mysterious demise. James gaped at the giant clown mouth that served as the entrance to Carnival City.

"Fuuuuck me."

"I know, right? Pretty awesome." Luna said with excitement, she loved this place growing up.

"Why did you take me here?" James asked. Luna wasn't particularly kind to him in the past.

"Shut up and get in," she pushed him along to the ticket booth. Inside stood a decomposing corpse that smelled like cranberries for some reason. "Huh—I guess it has been a really long time since anyone has been here," Luna said before pulling James through the entrance, which he was now sure was in the shape of a colorful anus instead of a clown mouth. The place really was dead. James was confused about where Luna got their cotton candy and why it was a yellow jelly-like substance. James really needed to check his definition of cotton candy.

"Let's ride Mr. Debaucher's Booty Spiral!" Luna bounced, pointing to a ride only your imagination can truly piece together.

He took a bite of his jelly and found it surprisingly tasty, like lemon mixed with insecticide. James really needed to check his definition of tasty. When they arrived at the coaster, James nearly dropped his trousers to avoid shitting his pants. There we clearly no safety regulations for underworld theme parks. The ride was one giant spine that twisted and turned in impossible ways, and it went far higher than any ride he's ever seen. This bone ride of death can be an experience of a lifetime. All he had to do was step into the cart made from several rib cages.

James shoved the rest of his jelly down into his throat. "Could we possibly ride something that won't end in catastrophe?"

"Don't be a puss, this is a kiddy ride."

"My God."

"Fine, I know something that's more up your alley." Luna laughed maniacally.

They made their way to a ferris wheel so huge no mortal man could ever dream of it. Well, that may be a bit of an exaggeration. It was a slow ride, but it gave James time to truly marvel at how beautiful Carnival City actually is, despite all the horror that was bred from it. Almost romantic, if it weren't for the giant moon that perpetually mocked James with its eerie grin. Fucking moon. Luna hummed with delight, and it caught him off guard. He's never seen Luna so carefree before. She shot a glance at him. Just smile and wave, Jamesy boy, smile and wave. James couldn't think of a time in Inferos where he wasn't clenching his butthole with the primal fear of being dismembered. But now, in this strangely warm moment, his butthole loosened.

"It's time to stop fucking around," Luna began to tremble, "you know there's a good chance we can fucking die, right? Do you understand the gravity of the situation?"

"Uh—" James's body responded by breaking out into a cold sweat. Weren't underfolk all besties with death?

"Justice and The Eidolon are powerful beings, and they grow stronger every day we don't find them. Even with Crowsblood and Elyse, we don't stand a chance."

"If this shit is so FUBAR'd why don't we just recruit more underfolk to help?"

"You really think most underfolk give two shits about Midgard or Earth or whatever? The ones who do are either already up there or have no idea this is happening." Luna sank her head into her arms.