The Clown Army

The Clown Army

Prologue

There was once a world of paradise, a world of clowns. A world where Zombozo, the all-powerful Clown God, sat upon his obsidian tower and all of existence out in every direction was rings of clown slaves. They were his exact likeness and every second of their minds was spent eagerly exalting their master. The only emotion in this universe was happiness and the universe enjoyed an infinite utopia. Then it all fell apart. A dimensional portal opened up, taking Zombozo and some of the clowns to another dimension. Zombozo lost his physical form and the clowns lost their monochromia, filling with color. This color weakened them and separated from their perfect god.

Zombozo and the clowns were still incredibly powerful, however. Armed with powerful magic, tough skin, and magical blades, a clown army was formed. Zombozo would use this world to recreate his utopia and bring peace to this world as he had to his home. In order to do so, he created a spell, allowing his spiritual form to turn a human into his new host. One who would willingly give himself up to Zombozo at the place where the clowns entered the world would be able to take his form.

As Zombozo's army sought to liberate the world, they faced opposition from humanity. Seven sages rose up against the clowns. Despite being unable to defeat the nearly unstoppable army, the sages used their lives to seal all the clowns, bar one, under Castle Avalon. They created two keys, in case a way to kill the clowns was ever found, and hid them. One of the keys was a physical one, locked in a vault at the peak of the Mountain of the Lost. The one clown that escaped went to the key and to access it, waiting for someone who could open the vault in which it was held.

However, the physical key could only work from the inside of the clown's cage, which is where the second key comes into play. The second key was sent forward in time, as the child of one of the descendants of the head sage, the Sage of Time. The child that would bear its magic would be able to move through the gate unhindered and, if in possession of the first key, open it from the inside.

Little did the sage know, Zombozo was able to hijack the second key and align his host spell with the second key. Thousands of years pass and the child was born in the slums of Avalon. Knowledge of the clowns becomes nothing more than a fairy tale used to scare children into behaving. Castle Avalon eventually forgets what was kept behind the vault door in its basement, thinking it to be either a massive threat to the world or some kind of weapon.

Despite not knowing the purpose of the gate, they remain aware of the existence and form of the keys, but not their location. It is said that the ruler of Avalon, a descendant of the sages, could locate the second key, who in turn could use his natural connection to find the first. Our story begins at this time, the time of prophecy.

Zayn

My name is Zayn Arden and my life is about to change. I was born in the slums of Avalon with my sister Anna. Our mother died giving birth to Anna and our father died seven years later, so I have had to take care of myself and Anna through stealing. I guess my stealing made an impression because one day the Avalonian guard came to our dugout. That was ten years ago. Although I was surprised when the guards came for me, their visit turned my life around.

The guards did not come to imprison me, but to earn my talents as a new assassin. They took me in, and took in Anna as a maid, and I started to work through the ranks, rising to personal assassin of the queen. As I worked through my training I befriended a man named Aaron. As I rose, so did he, eventually climbing to Guard Captain. We became the best of friends, and, unbeknownst to him, I developed feelings for him, although I knew I could never tell him of them.

As we started to go on missions for the queen, we faced opposition by the Lizals, a race of lizard-like monsters who wanted to take over Avalon Castle. Our story begins when me and Aaron follow the Lizal leader, Harim, to the Mountain of the Lost.

The Keys

"Why me?" I thought silently as the queen of Avalon, Zara, assigned me and my best friend, Aaron, on a mission: to follow the Lizal king, Harim, to the Mountain of the Lost. The mountain was known as a place where no one ever returned, and we had been chasing Harim's tail for far too long. I was glad to have a good shot at catching him and going solo with Aaron was a bonus, but I hated the cold more than anything else. Regardless, when the queen told us of our mission, all I said was "Yes Your Majesty."

"We leave at dawn, so sleep tight" Aaron said to me after our meeting.

"I know. I'm not the one who stays up late doing who knows what." I tease as I turn away and head to my room. The next morning we head out and make our way to the Mountain of the Lost.

The cold is infuriating and making our way up the mountain is an arduous experience. As we start near the peak I notice a set of footprints, "Look over there, Lizal footprints."

"Let's follow them," Aaron says as he makes his way after them. As we make our way after the footprints we reach a cave with an ominous mouth.

"Should we go in?" I question as I step towards the cave.

"Be careful" Aaron warns as he follows behind me. As we make our way towards the cave a shiver runs down my spine and I feel something intense.

I grimace but I continue forwards, hoping to find Harim and be rid of the Lizals. "Oh my god" we exclaim in unison, our faces twisted in horror. In the center of the room, was a clown.

"How is this possible? I thought clowns were just a myth" I mutter as I pull out a dagger.

"We should proceed with caution, considering the legends" Aaron says as he brandishes his sword. A blade materializes in the clown's hand, dripping with magical energy.

I run forward and throw a dagger at the clown, only for it to bounce harmlessly off his skin. "What the..." I gasp as I run at the clown and jab at it. Once again my blade fails to pierce the clown, and I quickly duck out of the way of its swipe. As I roll away, Aaron runs at the clown with his broadsword. While moving towards the clown, the clown shoots a blast of magical energy, which Aaron attempts to block with his shield.

As he lifts his shield, the magic pushes him backwards, but Aaron is able to push his sword at the clown's nose. The sword nears towards the clown's nose, but the clown lifts his hand and grabs the sword, breaking it in half.

"Why did he block his nose, but not the other attacks? It must be his weakness!" I yell as I slide past the clown and grab his blade out from his hand. In one motion, I tighten my grip on the clown's blade and stab it right at the clown's nose. The blade cuts through the magical guards layered around its nose and stabs deep into the clown's big red nose and it explodes into a cloud of confetti.

"Oh god" I pant "that was... difficult. On the bright side, I think it will keep this sword" I measure the balance of the sword and it feels perfect in my hands, like this is where it was meant to be.

Aaron adds "A little odd, but ok. Also, what was the clown guarding, why was it here, and what about Harim?"

"All good questions, but I think some of the answers are in front of us" I say as I gesture towards a chain covering an opening at the back of the cave. I move towards the chain and feel energy rising within me. I don't know what the feeling is rising in me, but I feel unable to resist it. When I get to the chain, I reach out towards it.

As my hand touches the chain it turns to dust, opening the back of the cave. "What is this?" Aaron says, coming up behind my back shoulder. I walk up to the center of the cave, where a key sits on a stalagmite.

I pick it up and say "I guess this is what the clown was protecting, or trying to get" I say, feeling electricity tingle across my hand as I hold the key.

"Well thanks for getting it for me." I turn as I hear a voice echo from the cave's mouth.

"Harim" Aaron notes. Suddenly my body, as well as Aaron's, flies backwards and is pushed against the cavern wall.

Harim waltzes up and grabs the key out of my hand. "You fools have no idea what you have found, but do not worry, I will put it to good use." Harim sneers as he turns and fades away using a teleportation spell.

"Argh" Aaron yells as Harim escapes with the fruit of our labor, "I can't believe he played us so easily."

I sigh, "I guess we have to go report our failure to the queen."

As we make our way down the mountain and back towards the castle, we notice something moving. "What is that Aaron?" I question, in reference towards some sort of room moving towards the castle.

"Could it be Harim?" he responds, in as much confusion as I am. We rush back to the castle, only to see the town on fire and guards and Lizals fighting in the streets. We hurry to the castle and make our way inside, only to see lizals battling guards all throughout the hallways.

Aaron splits off to help the guards as I rush to protect the queen. When I get to the queen's chamber, which is barricaded by guards, I ask her: "what happened here, and what should I do next?"

She immediately responds, "I do not know. There was a thud and suddenly Lizals were pouring into the castle. I do not need your protection right now, you have a much more important task. You must report on the condition of the vault of Avalon in the castle basement. It cannot be breached by the Lizals, no matter what. Whatever is behind there but remain that way forever, so please hurry and protect the vault at all costs!"

"I will not fail, your majesty" I respond and then quickly move to the basement. As I arrive near the hallway where the vault is supposedly located, I see two Lizal generals.

The queen's words echoing in my mind, I pull out the clown blade, and engage the two in combat. Despite the power of the blade, they push me back towards the vault door. Soon the battle pushes me right up against the wall, but as soon as I touch the vault door, I somehow end up on the other side. When I look out at the interior of the vault, my face becomes one of pure horror, as I realize that the greatest threat to the entire world has been sitting under Castle Avalon for thousands of years.

Zombozo

Clowns. Millions of clowns of green, red, and blue. An entire army of the most powerful and dangerous beings on the planet was sitting beneath our feet and we were none the wiser.

As I turn to report what I have seen to the queen, I hear a voice echo in my head. "Wait. My name is Zombozo and I come in peace." Suddenly, although I knew it was only in my head, Zombozo appeared in front of me. He looked just like the clown from the Mountain of the Lost, but everywhere there was color was instead a deep black. His big black shoes rested on the floor, and his black lips were painted into a gaunt smile. His large, black nose dominated the room and commanded attention. Every inch of skin, from his black clothing to his large, blocky hands demanded my attention. I could not look away. He exuded power and yet still felt charismatic, comforting, and strangely familiar.

I felt inclined to listen to what he had to say, despite the legends of him trying to end the world. "I doubt that" was the only response I could croak out.

He started to pace, teleporting around me as he walked and said, "I am your friend. I am someone you can trust. Perhaps the only person in the whole world you can trust."

"Why should I trust an evil demon who tried to end humanity?" I protest, feeling strangely spooked by his words.

He appeared behind me and put his large, white hands on my shoulders and cooed into my ear: "I want to help you Zayn" I flinched as he said my name, but continued to listen. "I want to help the world. Me and the clowns have been painted in a bad light, but I only sought to bring peace to the world. I think you know that we aren't the demons we have been portrayed as. I think you know that purely from how that sword you bear already means more to you than the necklace your dying father gave you."

"How did you-" I failed to respond, knowing that somehow, he was right. I valued a blade that I looted from a hostile monster more than a gift from my dying father. The sword was everything to me, like it was the only link to who I truly was and where I truly belonged. I was sick.

"You aren't sick, Zayne" his voice echoed in my mind. "Get out of my head" I roared, afraid of how he was making me feel.

He started up again: "I want you to trust me, I want you to see how those you put your faith in have failed you, and how I am someone who truly has your best interests at heart." Suddenly images flash through my head. I see the queen talking with a younger Aaron, I see my sister grimacing as we enter the castle, and I see me and Aaron talking for the first time.

Zombozo's voice echoes over the images, "The queen did not value your abilities, she saw you as a filthy criminal. She only wanted you for your power, for your birthright. You are one of the keys of the avalonian vault, that is all she cares about. Your sister sees you as an imperial dog. She doesn't value what you did for her, she sees you as a betrayer to her struggles and a slave to the queens demands. The one you care about the most, the one who you love, he doesn't even truly see you as a friend. The queen used him to befriend, to control you. He was to keep an eye on you, to keep you out of trouble and keep you, the key, safe. The one you loved the most, the one you put all your faith in, was just your warden."

"No, this can't be true. Stop this, you sick clown!" I cried, fearing what he said was true.

Zombozo's voice, smooth like honey, continued to fill my head "I have been under this castle for millenia. Waiting, watching, listening. You know what I say is true, but I do not say it to hurt you. I say it because I want to help you. I don't just want you as some key. You are under no obligation to do anything for me."

My mind was racing. Suddenly everything I knew had come crashing down. My friends, my family, my authority, they all betrayed me and the only person telling me the truth was a mythical demon who tried to destroy the world. "What do you stand to gain by helping me? Why would you even bother?" I argued.

Zombozo responds, "Well for one you are the first conversation I have had in over a thousand years, secondly I pity you. Seeing you be betrayed by every person you know was quite sad to see, and I have some sympathy. Third, I do want someone to know the goal of the clowns, and you are the only one listening."

"What do you mean, 'the goal of the clowns'" I questioned.

"After coming to this world, we realized it was a sad place. I come from a paradise. There is no war, conflict, or sadness. It was a utopia filled with happiness. We were torn from that, and we sought not only to revive it for ourselves, but for those living in this world. Now I am not telling you this as a way of getting you to help me, rather as an explanation for why we were imprisoned. I have seen that we are portrayed as demons out to end the world. That is not true. The sages simply feared the clown army and refused to hear us out. I wanted someone to be able to."

Every word sounded so genuine, so real, I felt almost unable to fall back on the stories I had been told. As doubt floated through my mind, I suddenly remembered the chaos happening outside the vault.

"Do not worry about the outside'' Zombozo assured me, "Time flows differently in here, so we can talk as much as we want."

The idea of talking more with Zombozo did not disturb me, so I continued "If you wanted to bring paradise, why did the sages seal you underground?"

He smiles, "They feared our magical ability, believing me to be a liar and a demon. Of course fear of the unknown also played a large role in their actions. They were scared of the changes we could bring, and they were afraid they would become... unnecessary."

"I am still unsure of why I should trust you. You said you pity me, but do you really feel so sorry for me that you would squander your one chance at getting out of here. I am your only ticket out, so of course you would say anything to capitalize on that."

Zombozo smiles and responds: "I would be lying if I said that I didn't want to escape the vault, and that you were my way out. However, the fact that I can say that makes me more trustworthy than anyone else in your life. You have lived in a maze of lies your entire life and I am the only one telling the truth. I am not going to bother being another in the list of people who use you for your power. I will tell the truth and if you want to help me, that is your decision. I will live with it."

"If we are talking, full truth, then I would like to learn more about you and your clown army. First of all why are you black, but the other clowns red, green, and blue?" I question.

"All of the clowns used to bear my exact likeness, color and all, but when we were pulled to your world, they refracted. Your world exists in a lense of green, red, and blue, so I am assuming that is why those three colors were the ones that they took on. The coloration symbolizes the lack of acclimation to the world, but me, being the original, was able to hold on to my color. If we were to be free for long enough, I could only hope that the clowns regain their true forms." He responds.

"Next question. Having fought one of the clowns, am I correct in assuming they can only be killed by magical blades like their own, and only when attacked on the nose."

He answers "I truly hope you do not wish to use this information, but you are correct. I saw your battle on the Mountain of the Lost, and despite being saddened by the outcome, I must say your skills were quite impressive."

"Final question, where do you derive your magical power from? I have heard that the sages carried amulets in which they stored the magical energy they naturally generated, accruing large amounts of power." I ask.

"Good question, but you may not like the answer. My magic is gained through worship. The reverence of the clowns towards me fills me with magical energy, which is stored in my nose or redistributed back to the clowns."

Despite being a little disturbed at how he derived energy from being worshipped like a god, I was impressed by his honesty. He truly wanted to better the world, and he truly was the only person I could trust. If I turned my back on him now, I would return to a world where I was a tool to be used.

Zombozo seemed to genuinely value my presence, and actually cared about me. The person I put the most faith in was a liar and a backstabber, so at this point I value honesty above all else. Zombozo had given me nothing but honesty, which led me to say, "I want to join the clown army."

"So you want to help me. Let me just make sure, this was entirely your choice, correct?"

Zombozo asks with a grin on his face. "Yes, Zombozo, it is. You are the only person in my life to tell me the truth, and I would rather defend your cause then fulfill some greedy queen's wishes. You should not be locked in some cave for having magic that you want to use for good. This is the path I wish to take." I say resolutely.

"Well I am very pleased to have you, Zayne. How about you meet the rest of the troops?"

I walk down the steps into the cavern of clowns, surprised at how densely they are packed. I start to push my way through the clowns towards the pillar of stone in the center of the cavern. Being surrounded by clowns makes me feel incredibly welcomed and warm inside. I stop my walk, turn so I am facing the same way as the clowns, and just stand in the sea of bodies. Being part of the army feels so right, so perfect, and in that moment I knew I was making the right decision. This was where I belonged, as one of the clowns. After basking in the perfection, I turned around and continued walking towards the inner chamber where I knew Zombozo was truly located. As I reach the cavern, I see one clown blocking the doorway to the inner chamber.