Chapter Text
POV POMNI
I don't know how long I stood frozen in front of the keyboard.
My fingers trembled above the keys, my eyes stung from staring at the screen, and a strange feeling—heavy, suffocating—pressed down on my chest.
The headset was still on my head. I remember wanting to take it off. Just that. Take them off and breathe.
Then everything changed.
Light exploded around me.
Not a soft light. A garish light, saturated with impossible colors. Too bright. Too present. As if each color was screaming for my attention.
I blinked again and again, as if my brain refused to accept what it was seeing.
The ground beneath my feet was suddenly solid, but not like normal ground. Smooth. Elastic. Almost alive.
“No... no, no, no...”
My voice came out higher-pitched than I would have liked. It echoed strangely, as if the air itself was mocking me.
I looked at my hands.
They weren't my hands.
They were smaller. Rounded. Gloved. Colored. I brought a hand to my face and felt... fabric. A kind of foam. A round nose. A mouth frozen in an expression that wasn't mine.
I took a step back. Then another.
“What... what is this place?”
My voice was shaking. So was I.
Around me stretched a gigantic circus. Big tops with garish stripes. Stairs that seemed to lead nowhere. Doors suspended in midair. The sky was not a sky: it was a digital canvas dotted with luminous symbols and pixelated clouds.
It was too much. Way too much.
My heart was pounding. Every breath burned my throat. The air seemed too thin.
“Calm down... calm down...” I whispered to myself, without believing it for a second.
Then a voice rang out.
“WELCOME!”
I jumped violently.
Before me appeared a floating creature, a smiling head with huge eyes and an overly expressive jaw. A master of ceremonies' hat sat proudly on its head. It twirled in the air as if defying all logic.
“WELCOME TO THE CIRCUS!”
I stared at him, mouth agape, unable to form a coherent thought.
“I... I want to go home.”
He blinked.
“Oh.”
He tilted his head, still smiling.
“Sorry, that's not part of the program.”
My stomach knotted.
“What?”
“But don't worry! You're going to love it!”
Before I could protest, he snapped his fingers.
And suddenly, I was no longer alone.
They were there.
Other... people. Or rather, other beings. All different, all as strange as me, maybe even more so.
A woman who looked like a rag doll was looking at me with sincere concern. A square, rigid figure stood straight as a soldier. A silhouette made of ribbons seemed barely held together. A tiny chess king watched the scene with fascination.
And then... him.
Tall. Purple. A smile stretched to the point of absurdity. Rabbit ears that twitched slightly.
He was staring at me.
Not like the others.
The others looked sympathetic. Curious. Tired.
He was smiling as if he had just witnessed a particularly entertaining show.
“Ohhh, look at that,” he said, bursting out laughing, “a new one!”
I tensed up instantly.
“I'm not a show,” I muttered, even though my voice was shaking too much to be really firm.
“Oooh,” he continued, approaching me, his footsteps echoing slightly on the floor. Look how she's shaking. It's cute.
I stared at him, panicked. He was way too close.
“Back off...”
“Relax. I'm just getting acquainted.”
He looked at my outfit... then his smile widened.
“Mini jester.”
The word struck me without me immediately understanding its meaning.
“Mini... what?”
He didn't answer. He just slowly raised his hand, making a vague gesture in front of me. Up and down. As if he were introducing me.
I frowned... then looked down.
My outfit.
The ridiculous costume. The garish colors. The gloves. The oversized shoes. The round nose. It all hit me at once.
“Oh...”
My throat tightened.
“I... I'm not a clown,” I protested weakly, more to myself than to him.
He tilted his head, watching my reaction, then burst out laughing.
“Oh, really? Someone should tell the costume department, then.”
A softer voice interjected.
“Jax,” sighed the rag doll. “Be nice, she just got here.”
“So what?” he replied, shrugging his shoulders. “Now's the best time.”
I could feel my hands shaking even more.
My whole body was trembling with anxiety, ready to give way. Yet... despite myself, his presence kept me rooted to the spot.
As if, paradoxically, his mockery kept me anchored here. In this nightmare too colorful to be real.
He was still watching me.
Longer. More intently.
“Do you even have a name?” he finally asked.
I remained silent.
Because the truth was... I didn't know.
The realization hit me harder than anything else.
I knew something was wrong since I arrived—since long before, even—but now it was as if an essential part of me had been torn away.
I opened my mouth, then closed it again immediately. No words came out.
“I...”
Nothing.
The purple rabbit raised an eyebrow, amused.
“Oh. Looks like we have a bug.”
“It's not funny,” said the rag doll, moving slightly closer to me. “It happens a lot.”
A lot.
That word made me want to vomit.
Before I could ask any questions, the floating creature reappeared with misplaced enthusiasm.
“NO NAME?”
He clapped his hands together, visibly delighted.
“NO PROBLEM!”
A huge roulette wheel appeared out of nowhere, spinning in the air with garish colors and random letters. I instinctively backed away.
“Wait—”
“TOO LATE!”
The wheel spun. Again. And again. The clicking of the gears got on my nerves. Then it stopped abruptly.
“THERE YOU GO!”
He leaned toward me.
“You will be called... XDDCC!”
Silence.
“...What?” I whispered.
Jax burst out laughing.
“It suits you.”
“No!” I cried. “No way!”
He blinked.
“Oh? Not satisfied? LET'S TRY AGAIN!”
The wheel started spinning again.
My heart was racing.
Then it stopped abruptly.
“PERFECT! Your name will be... POMNI!”
Pomni
The word echoed in my head.
Strangely... it stuck. As if it had always been there, somewhere, just out of reach.
I nodded slowly.
“Pomni...” I repeated in a low voice.
“PERFECT!” exclaimed the flying creature. “NOW THAT EVERYONE IS HERE—”
“Unfortunately,” muttered the purple rabbit.
I glanced at him briefly, without really thinking. He was already looking at me, leaning casually against a colorful structure, arms crossed.
“What?” he said, feigning innocence. “I'm just saying what everyone else is thinking.”
“That's not true,” replied the rag doll with a reassuring smile. “Welcome, Pomni.”
I gave her an awkward, slightly shaky smile.
“Thank you...”
I still didn't know her name. But her kindness made me feel like I wasn't completely alone.
“GOOD!” said the floating creature, clapping her hands. “SINCE WE HAVE A NEW MEMBER, IT'S THE PERFECT TIME FOR AN ADVENTURE!”
My stomach instantly turned.
“An... adventure?”
The others reacted immediately.
“Oh no,” groaned a voice further away.
I turned my head and saw a shapeshifting figure, as if its body had been hastily assembled. Its different parts seemed barely held together.
“Not another one,” it complained. I haven't even recovered from the last one yet.
“Oh, come on!” he replied with unbearable enthusiasm. “It's going to be FUN!”
“Interesting,” said the character with the crown suddenly, his eyes shining. “Very interesting...”
I blinked, confused.
They were all talking as if it were normal. As if it were all part of a daily routine to which I had clearly not been invited.
“This time,” he continued, “you're going to have to retrieve something that has been STOLEN!”
The scenery changed abruptly. The ground beneath my feet transformed, taking on a rocky, uneven texture. Before us lay a strange canyon with colorful, shifting walls.
“The Gloinks!” he announced proudly. “Small, thieving creatures that are very annoying.”
“Wait...” I whispered. “Is this real?”
No one answered me.
“RULE NUMBER ONE,” he continued. “STAY TOGETHER. RULE NUMBER TWO,” he added immediately. “HAVE FUN!”
Then, without further warning... he disappeared.
Just like that.
“He... he left?” I asked, panic rising.
“Yeah,” replied the purple rabbit with a smirk. “He always does that.”
As if it were perfectly acceptable.
I didn't have time to respond.
A high-pitched noise rang out behind us.
“HEY!”
A small, round creature appeared out of nowhere. Before I could understand what was happening, it pounced on the shapeshifting figure and... tore off several parts of its body.
“MY ARMS!” it screamed. “HEY, GIVE THEM BACK!”
The Gloink sped off and disappeared into a gaping hole in the ground.
A heavy silence fell.
"...”
“Great,” said the rag doll, visibly worried. “That's a bad sign.”
“It's always like this,” sighed the square character.
I could feel my heart racing.
“What... what are we going to do now?”
The rag doll put a hand to her chest.
“I'm worried about Kaufmo,” she said softly. “He hasn't come out of his room in a long time.”
The name passed through my mind without sticking. Another stranger. Another thing I didn't understand.
“Oh, you mean the depressed clown?” said the purple rabbit, snickering. “I'm sure he's fine.”
“Jax” protested the rag doll.
He shrugged.
“Okay,” he said, clapping his hands. “We're not going to stand around here. Let's split up.”
I looked at him, surprised.
“The whiners,” he continued, pointing to the character with the ribbons and the one with the crown, “you're going to retrieve the stolen pieces.”
“Excellent!” exclaimed the one with the crown.
“And us,” he said, turning to the rag doll... then to me.
His gaze lingered on me for a fraction of a second longer.
“Let's go see what's going on with Kaufmo.”
My stomach tightened.
“Me too?”
He smiled.
“Yeah, mini-clown. You might as well see the circus through to the end.”
I swallowed.
I didn't know why, but part of me was relieved not to be left alone.
Even if it meant following him.
~~~
We left the canyon without really talking.
The scenery changed again, but this time more slowly. The colors seemed less vivid, as if the circus itself were holding its breath. The walls were getting slightly closer, the corridors narrower and more winding. The ground hardly bounced under my feet anymore.
I didn't like it.
Every sound echoed too loudly. The rubbing of my shoes. The slight clatter of footsteps behind me. Even the silence seemed...charged.
The rag doll walked beside me. She sometimes glanced around us anxiously, as if she expected something to jump out at any moment.
“By the way...” she said softly, as if to break the uneasiness.
She turned to me with a reassuring smile.
“My name is Ragatha.”
“Oh...”
I nodded.
“Nice to meet you.”
Hearing a name at last made me feel strangely good.
She slowed down slightly to walk beside me.
“And him,” she added, pointing to the purple rabbit behind us, “is Jax.”
Jax barely raised his hand in greeting.
Ragatha hesitated for a second, searching for the right words.
“He's...”
She tilted her head slightly, still smiling.
“How can I put it... special.”
“Hey,” Jax protested without much conviction. “I'm just being honest.”
“Very honest,” she corrected gently.
I glanced discreetly at him.
He wasn't laughing anymore. He was walking quietly, hands in his pockets, his long ears swaying slightly with each step. Yet I could feel his gaze on me from time to time.
Not insistent.
Just present.
And it made me uncomfortable.
“Is it... always like this?” I asked in a low voice. “So... quiet?”
Ragatha frowned slightly.
“No,” she replied after a short silence. “Not really.”
That was all.
~~~
We arrived at a door.
It was different from the others. Dull. The colors seemed to have faded with time. The handle hung crookedly, as if it had been pulled too hard too often.
Something knotted in my stomach.
“This is Kaufmo's room,” Ragatha whispered.
I felt a shiver run down my spine.
“Is he... is he okay?”
Ragatha didn't open the door right away.
“He hasn't come out in a long time,” she admitted. “But... sometimes, you just need time.”
Her voice was soft, but I could hear the concern behind every word.
Jax had stopped a little way back. He was watching the door, silent. His smile had disappeared.
“Well,” he said finally. “Do we knock, or do we barge in like rude people?”
Ragatha gave him a disapproving look, then knocked softly.
“Kaufmo?” she called. “It's Ragatha... we're here with...”
She hesitated for a split second.
“...a new one.”
My heart sank.
No answer.
The silence behind the door was thick. Overwhelming.
My hands started shaking again.
“Something's wrong,” I whispered without realizing it.
Jax turned his head slightly toward me.
“Yeah,” he replied simply. “You're right.”
Then Jax suddenly reached into his pocket.
“Well,” he said in a falsely light tone. “We might as well not stand here all day.”
He took out a key.
My breath caught in my throat.
“You... you have the key?”
He twirled it between his fingers, looking perfectly relaxed.
“Of course.”
He glanced sideways at Ragatha.
“And don't worry, I checked: there are no bugs behind the door.”
Ragatha immediately tensed up.
“Jax,” she sighed, already on edge. “That's not funny.”
“Yes, it is,” he replied, bringing the key closer to the lock. “A little.”
He turned the key.
Click.
The door opened slowly.
A strange smell escaped. Rancid. Digital. Oppressive. Like a bug left too long without being fixed.
I took a step back without realizing it.
The room was plunged into an eerie darkness. The walls were covered with drawings. Frantic scribbles, repeated over and over again. Smiles that were too wide. Empty eyes. Distorted shapes.
“Oh no...” whispered Ragatha.
My heart was beating so hard that I felt like it was going to explode.
Then... something moved.
At the back of the room.
A figure slowly stood up.
It wasn't really... a person anymore.
Its body was deformed, stretched to impossible proportions. Its colors flickered erratically. Its face—if you could still call it a face—was frozen in a grotesque expression, devoid of all emotion.
Its eyes.
They were completely empty.
“Kaufmo...?” Ragatha tried, her voice trembling.
The thing turned its head sharply.
A shrill sound escaped from its throat, something between a broken laugh and a saturated scream.
I backed away further.
“This... this isn't real...”
My legs refused to move. My mind screamed to run, but my body remained frozen, paralyzed with terror.
“He's abstracted,” Ragatha whispered, horrified.
The word echoed in my head like a condemnation.
Abstract.
Lost.
Broken.
The creature took a step toward us.
Then another.
“No... no, no, no...”
My breath caught in my throat. The walls seemed to close in on me, the air grew thin. My whole body was shaking so hard I could barely stand.
“Okay,” Jax said suddenly, his voice far too calm. “This is clearly beyond my tolerance threshold.”
“Jax—” Ragatha began.
Too late.
The creature pounced.
Ragatha screamed.
The impact was brutal. She was thrown against the wall with a thud.
“RAGATHA!”
I turned around.
Jax was still there.
Our eyes met.
For a split second.
Then he fled.
I was left alone.
Alone with Ragatha on the floor...and the monster advancing.
A chilling certainty dawned on me: if I stayed here...I wouldn't survive.