1 Step Forward, 12 Steps Back

Ladies and gentlemen, step right up, step right up, and welcome to the Menagerie of Wonders and Oddities. We have a special treat in store for you tonight. A treat that will engage your imagination, tickle your funny bone, bring tears to your eyes, and send chills down your spine. It will be an absolute delight for the senses.

Stroll with me down the Menagerie’s midway. Feel free to pick up some cotton candy, fried Oreos, caramel corn, or whatever you fancy. Stuff your face. Play a few of our many games of chance and win a few prizes. Mementos you can take home to remind yourself of your time here at the Menagerie of Wonders and Oddities.

Just make sure you follow the handling and care instructions that come with those keepsakes… for your own safety. We once had a patron who didn’t follow the rules and… well… just follow the rules. It’s why we have you sign the lengthy waiver upon entering the Menagerie’s grounds.

Anyway, along the midway, you’ll notice some of our wonderful, mysterious, and altogether delightfully odd attractions. Over there, step into the tent to bear witness to the elegant, thoughtful reflection of halfshellvenus Under Glass. And over there, take some time to enjoy and ponder rayaso’s Fantasyworld. Both will in turns, make you laugh and cry. But you will come away in awe. I promise you that.

Up ahead of us is the Magically Confounding flipflop_diva's Hall of Chaos. Over there is alycewilson in Blunderland. Be sure to take a moment to enjoy The bleodswan Procession and have a horn of mead after. roina_arwen’s Cabinet of Exotic Poisons will chill you to the bone. See your true self in The muchtooarrogant Mirror, and be careful you don't fall into The hafnia Basin of Reflection.

Take some time to enjoy these attractions, but please don’t dally. We have places to be.

Come with me now as we step into the area of the Menagerie some call the Shadow Fair. Others call it the In-Between. In another time, I suppose it would have been called the Freak Show. I’d explain what it is to you, but I think it’s better that you see it for yourself. That’s right, just follow me into this tent. Watch your step and, for the love of God, don’t touch anything.

Step into this room with me. What you see before you are three exhibits that are caught in the In-Between… hovering somewhere in that gray area between life and death. Three oddities who volunteered for the battle royale and earned their right to stand here before you. Three oddities who somehow survived the trials inflicted upon them by the Wheel of Chaos. They are here for you to ponder. To consider.

And consider carefully, for the fate of these three oddities is now in your hands.

How is their fate in your hands you ask? Because only one of them will be moved to our main exhibit hall and earn the title of Grand Oddity. The other two shall remain here, in the Shadow Fair, caught in that gray area for the rest of their existence, never moving forward, just… left to collect dust here in the In-Between.

This is a weighty decision, I know. But you did volunteer to be here, so you cannot back out now. You must now make a decision. I, however, am here to assist you. You are not alone. But the final decision is ultimately yours to make.

So, let us consider our final three oddities, shall we?

Let’s first take this one. drippedonpaper Of our three exhibits, this one has been around the longest. Some might say it’s her time. Some might have considered her a dark horse, but she navigated her trials with the utmost grace.

Quiet and understated perhaps, but her words carry heft. Weight. Power. She writes from a personal perspective. Like she’s inviting you into her heart, her mind, and her world, and asks you to stay a while—and you find yourself wanting to.

While some of her works highlight parts of the unique life she’s lived, others show a flair for darker and more dramatic prose.

And I would be remiss if I did not mention her wonderful gift for crafting elegant and lyrical poetry that is sometimes haunting and always stays with you.

Dark horse, you say? Maybe. But what I see is a gifted and passionate weaver of beautiful words. What I see is a fighter who battled her way through and earned the right to stand before you.

However, if versatility and ferocity strike your fancy, I invite you to take a closer look at l0lita

She is the newest of those who dared set foot in the arena for the trials. But she came out swinging. She tackled the trials with the grit and gumption of a veteran fighter. She beat each and every trial into submission like it owed her money.

Every single piece she wrote felt personal. l0lita wrote with passion and heart. With an authenticity few truly capture. Every story felt like it contained fragments of her personality. Of her life. And she so effortlessly seemed to capture a perspective and voice that were absolutely magnetic.

From the absolutely unhinged hilarity of A schoolbus massacre to a more sober reflection of beauty standards and sense of self that leaves you contemplative and questioning, to a darker yet rocking fun ride, l0lita seemed able to do it all.

Nothing was too big for her. She showed up and showed out for each and every obstacle thrown at her. More than that, she showed an impressive range in her writing.

And though her pieces are fun and engaging, there’s more beneath the surface. A lot more. She writes with a depth to her pieces that feels like hard won wisdom and life experience. She writes with absolute control and power.

For a newcomer, she’s been slaying from the word go. And, if resilience is important to you, let’s not forget this one survived multiple assassination attempts. Resilient indeed.

Last up for your consideration, is inkstainedfingertips.

This one is somebody who walks in shadow and looks toward the darker side of life and the world. His pieces often strike others as bleak and violent. A battle of good against evil. A war between dark and light.

And it’s true. He creates a gloomy view of people and the world. There is plenty of violence in his works. His worlds are bleak. And the darkness is often pitted against the light. And that is all many see.

But underneath the violence, beneath the misery and suffering, if you look closely enough, you just might see something more. You might see emotion. Depth. And you might just see hope. The mask he wears is one of darkness. But peel that away, and you might catch a glimpse of the light underneath.

That isn’t to say, however, that everything he creates is touched by the darkness of violence. He sometimes dabbles in the absurd, or bureaucratic silliness or even the fun of childhood.

Yes, you're right. Those tend to be outliers. He can usually be found in his comfort zone, writing tales of vengeance or stories of generational trauma.

His tales tend toward the dark, it's true. But he's got plenty of tricks in his bag. The majority of his work may be dark and grim, but it also contains a hard won honesty. If that's your thing.

All three are worthy. But that doesn't mean they're any more worthy than those other incredibly talented souls who fell in the arena along the way. Good timing and good fortune helped these oddities get to this point. That can't be denied.

But here they are all the same, and the decision now rests with you.

All three are passionate and dedicated. And their willingness to put themselves through these trials, enduring all the twists, turns, and attempted assassinations makes them more than fit to be part of this most curious collection of oddities. Of this freak show, if you will.

But only one can earn the title of Grand Oddity. The other two shall be relegated to the dustbin of history, two final victims of the Wheel and its trials. Forever caught in the In-Between.

So, that's it. I don't envy you this decision. But then, at this stage of the trials, I don't think the decision should be an easy one.

Three have entered. Only one may leave.

The decision is yours...