Ringmaster Ch. 21: Club and Rub

Vanessa took me by the hand and forced us to the center of the stage, taking the spotlight from Tae and Lexi now. She bounced her shoulders around in rhythm to the music, just letting the vibes course through her. I tried to match her as best as I could without thinking too much. My body let the music flow through my veins down to my arms, swinging them in grand gestures.

As Vanessa and I got closer together, Tae and Lexi butted right in, gripping each other's arms and hips as they smirked at us. They spun around to face us, their hips and heads grinding around, teasing us with their bodies. Lexi put her hands on my shoulders, giving me a little bend and snap before gently booping me on the nose and turning back to Tae, while also shaking her ass a little. If we weren't in public, I would have probably buried my face between those cheeks.

I could feel myself, or rather the magic in me, wanting to really give a great showstopper. Vanessa gave me a smile as well, knowing that she had some sort of idea. She waited until it sounded as if the music was reaching its finale. Then, she ran towards me and jumped. I let my body go completely on autopilot to do whatever the magic thought was best. My body moved to grab Vanessa by the waist and push her a little bit in the air with a spin. My body twirled around as Vanessa did before I got down on one knee and caught her. Vanessa gave a fabulous pose as the song finished and a rousing sea of applause washed over us. The two of us panted as the adrenaline began to wear off. I set Vanessa down as I felt my arms start to give out. She grabbed onto the sides of my face and pulled me in for a kiss on the lips, smiling wide.

"Holy fuck, that was incredible babe! Where did you learn to dance like that?" she asked as we walked over to Tae, Lexi, and Danna.

"Oh, just some lessons here and there," I said with a little chuckle, gently rubbing the ring with my thumb.

"Well, whoever taught you, you better give them one hell of a tip. That was absolutely amazing," Vanessa said before taking the drink that Danna offered her. She took a sip before exhaling, pleased with herself. "Man, that hit the spot! Maria, you want?"

Normally, I wasn't one to drink, but this was a celebratory night. Plus, my throat was feeling pretty parched after all that dancing. I looked over to Danna to make sure that it was fine. She nodded her head, so I drank some, but it barely had to touch my lips for me to recoil. "Bleh," I said, wincing a little at the taste, handing it back to Danna. "A bit too sour for my tastes. I'm just gonna get myself something at the bar real quick." Danna gave a quick signing, letting me know that Summer had opened up a tab for the group. "Sounds good! Be right back, girls."

I squeezed my way through the mass of people that separated me from the bar until I saw the bartender's face. I quickly scanned over the menu and my brain, trying to think of something good to drink that wasn't too strong to start off the night. There were so many choices to pick from, and that was before I even started to consider any of the price tags.

"Well now, what's a beautiful lady like yourself doing in a place like this?"

There he was.

I turned my head to the source of the voice and, leaning up against the bar was a man, rugged and easily somewhere in his late 20s. The first thing I noticed was his jaw line, almost chiseled to perfection to lead up to his cheekbones. His eyes were a mesmerizing deep blue, framed by a few scratch marks here and there that had long since healed. They drew you in, a hint of mischief and charisma peeking through in glints in his eye. His hair, a dark chestnut brown, fell by the sides of his head in soft waves. He gave off the sense that his hair was naturally like this, despite what was likely a clear effort on his part.

His outfit was a crisp button-down shirt, gray with hints of white stripes you could only see if you leaned in closely. His pants fit well, not too tight to see the curvature of his bulge, but not loose enough to completely hide the definition of his legs. His watch, made of some silver or other gray metal, shimmered like a diamond under the club's lights.

"Are you talking to me?" I said, looking around. There had to be countless other women that he could have been referring to.

To make it clearer, he downed the rest of his drink before walking over and sitting on the stool next to me. "Yeah, you. I saw your dance moves out there on the floor. You've got some real talent."

"Oh, thanks," I said, feeling my face get a little red. I don't know why my chest felt so flustered. It didn't quite feel like the embarrassment of just having an onlooker complimenting me. I was sure that he was simply trying to hit on me, but there was this oddly comforting feeling about him; like as if I didn't need to worry, which only made me fidget a little more.

"Looking for a good drink?" he said as he followed my gaze to the menu. "Want my recommendation?"

"Oh, um, sure," I said, trying to fight back against this tightness in my throat. It wasn't like he was intimidating or anything. Plus, if needed to, all I would need to do is think about it and I'd be out of there. No, this wasn't the feeling of being threatened, but something in the opposite direction. It felt like a good kind of nervous.

"Here," he said as he hailed over the bartender. "Two Honey Bees." The bartender nodded and began to mix honey and water together. The man turned back to me and extended a hand out. "Cyril."

"Huh?" I said, not sure when I started spacing out.

"My name. Cyril. It's a pleasure to meet you." He gave me a warm smile that helped calm some of my nerves. I took the seat next to him that I was already hovering over and shook his hand.

"Maria. It's nice to meet you as well."

"Maria, huh? That's a lovely name," Cyril said with a chuckle. "You were quite the dancer out there. If that went any longer, I think you'd put the rest of us to shame."

"Oh, I'm not that good," I said with a bit of an awkward laugh. "I was just vibing to the music and letting it lead me. Nothing special."

The bartender put the drinks down in front of both of us. Cyril and I picked up the glasses and clinked them together. Cyril quickly downed his in a single gulp. I gave it a little taste against my lips. It was so delightfully sweet, I ended up drinking the whole thing before I knew it.

"Looks like that was a hit," Cyril said, smiling wide at me. "Care for another?" I gave a nod and Cyril ordered another two Honey Bees. The bartender quickly made them for us, and just as quick, Cyril and I drank them. "Man, these really hit the spot."

"Yeah, they sure do," I said, already feeling the first one starting to work its way through my system.

"So, since you're just vibing and being lead," Cyril said as he hopped off the stool and walked a little towards the dance floor. He extended out his hand and bowed a little. "Could I have a dance as well?"

I smiled at him and took his hand as he led me onto the dance floor. It was probably the Honey Bees coursing through me, but my movements felt a lot looser and more energetic. Cyril danced rather awkwardly, as if he was taught by someone who had read a book about dancing. But, a part of that seemed to add to his charm. He took me by the hands and pulled me into his dance. I could feel the dancing magic from before trying to redirect the course, but I pushed back to let the moment carry me. When I looked at him, it felt like there wasn't anyone else on the dancefloor but us. It was just me and him, not a care in the world and no one else but us.

"G...wa...ia..."

Wait... no, this wasn't right. There were people but us. I had come here with people besides us. What in the world was I doing, dancing with a stranger who I just met at the bar? My head suddenly felt like it was pounding. It wasn't the alcohol, and I definitely watched to make sure nothing funny was added to my drink. I had gone to the bar to get a drink quickly, then it was back to Vanessa and Danna and Lexi and Summer and Tae and...

"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER! YOU BASTARD!"

The next thing I knew, a half-naked Regina practically flew into my vision with a kick right to Cyril's face, knocking him away from me and sending him sprawling to the ground. The crowd all backed up, giving everyone space. I looked at Regina, trying to figure out what just happened. I could see it in her eyes, just pure seething rage and hatred. At the same time, Vanessa and the rest of the girls all rushed to the scene. It took the combined efforts of Danna, Tae, and Summer to hold back Regina from outright murdering Cyril.

"What happened? We heard Regina yelling," Vanessa said as she rushed over to my side.

"I don't know," I said, the strange fog in my head clearing up. "One moment, I was going to get a drink at the bar, and I did, and then I was dancing with that guy and then Regina came in and kicked him in the face."

"MARIA! WHAT DID HE DO?" Regina shouted at me, practically feral. "DID HE GRAB YOU AT ALL? HOW LONG DID HE GRAB YOU?"

At that point, I had to hold back Vanessa from trying to beat the answers out of Cyril.

"Regina! Calm down! What the hell's going on?" I shouted.

"MARIA! JUST GET US OUT OF HERE! I DON'T GIVE A FUCK HOW! JUST DO IT NOW!"

For the first time since I've known her, there was pure panic and fear in her voice. She looked at me, terror in her eyes as if she had just watched an eldritch being pop several people's heads like cotton balls. Whatever was going on, it was serious. I focused on the group, closed my eyes and my fist, and used the ring to teleport us back to the apartment.

A second or two passed, but I could still hear the club music ringing in my ears. There were screams and confused shouting. The beat of the music was still reverberating in my chest.

Something was wrong.

I opened my eyes, and I was still in the club. All of us were. Regina looked at me as the terror in her eyes turned to despair, her mouth hung limply as she couldn't even form the words.

Why hadn't it worked? Why were we still here? I tried to focus again, but nothing happened. It felt like there wasn't even anything there to focus on. Feeling the same dread as Regina was projecting, I unclenched my fist.

There was a pale section of skin where the Reality Ring was.

I turned towards Cyril, but it was already too late. He was standing, tall and proud, as he slipped the Reality Ring onto his left ring finger. There was a shockwave that came from him, knocking everyone backwards a little. He shuddered as the warmth coursed through him, but he didn't fall or seem to recoil from the pain at all. Instead, he only smiled as he ran his other hand through his hair.

"Finally." He clenched his fist and all the women in the club suddenly fell to their knees, as if their strength had been entirely sapped away. "Bow before your King!"

"No..." I said under my breath, struggling to force myself to look at him. "It couldn't be."

"Hey jackass!" some guy wearing a security outfit said as he approached Cyril. "I don't know what's going on, but you need to leave now."

"Oh, I don't think I'll be doing anything of the sort."

Cyril flicked his hand and one of the women nearby got up and touched the security guard. In an instant, I saw the guard's hair extend out, his features turn more feminine, a large pair of tits grew out of his chest as the rest of his body became more and more curvy. The guard blinked a little before giggling like a schoolgirl, barely any thought behind the eyes.

"Like, wait, what was I doing?" the guard asked, the voice sounding like something straight out of a porno.

"You were helping turn the rest of the boring men here into my beautiful bimbo women slaves, remember?" Cyril said as he patted the guard's ass.

"Oh right! Silly me!" the guard said, tapping on their head before walking over to one of the men who was still trying to process what was going on. With a quick tap of her hand, the man was transformed into a bimbo female version of himself, giggling and smiling.

At that point, it was pure chaos as everyone who could started to run away in fear. The rest of the women in the club turned into slutty bimbo versions of themselves, touching the people running away and turning them into bimbos. And, in the epicenter of the whole mess was me, Vanessa, Regina, Danna, Summer, Tae, Lexi, and Cyril.

"Ah, it feels so good to finally be back," Cyril said with a stretch before turning to me. "See? This is how it should be used. Not whatever stupid shit you were doing, like using it for dancing."

"Maria, what the hell is going on?" Vanessa said as she clutched onto my arm. "I just saw several guys turn into hot babes in a matter of seconds!"

"I'll explain later!" I said as I tried to force my body to lunge for the ring, only for Tae and Summer to tackle me back to the ground.

"Shit! Maria! I don't know what happened! I'm not doing this," Summer said as she held down my left side.

"My body's just moving on its own!" Tae said, holding down my right.

"It's okay girls. It will be okay," I said as Summer tilted my head up to look at Cyril.

Cyril walked over to me, smirking before squatting down. "Well, I see that look in your eyes. You recognize me. And here I didn't think anyone besides that bitch over there knew about me anymore." He pointed over at Regina, who was struggling to stand up.

"What the hell are you even doing here, King Burrukam? You should be dead by now!" I said.

"Well, I can see that she never told you," Cyril said with a chuckle. "You see, she wasn't the only one affected when Seqora's ritual failed. You see, I've dabbled in the mystical arts as well and in my dying moments, I swore that I would come for the ring, even time and death would not stop me. And now? Every time reality is reset, every time a new world is born, I am reborn anew. Sometimes older, sometimes younger, sometimes in vastly different places. But, I retain all of my memories, experience, and skills. All that's left is the matter of tracking down the current Ringmaster to claim what is rightfully mine. This Cyril body is just my latest form. Pretty nice, wouldn't you say?"

"So... you're the reason that all those Ringmasters died?" I said, thinking back to the vision that I had of Rene's last moments.

"Some of the time. I can't take credit for every death; some of those fools did it to themselves before I even got close. Thankfully, I've been getting better and better at masking my presence." He walked over to Regina, cupping her face with his hand. "I bet she didn't even know I was still around for the last couple realities." I could see Regina blaming herself for everything; not just for not knowing he was alive, but for having ruined the entire magic ritual at the beginning of this all. Cyril pulled Regina in, firmly planting his lips on hers and as much as she tried to push back, nothing worked. Eventually, she just went limp with acceptance of her fate. He let go, causing her to drop onto the ground like a lifeless doll.

"Maria, what the hell is going on? Summer, Tae, get off of her!" Vanessa pleaded as she tried to pry them off of me.

"Oh?" Cyril said as he walked over to Vanessa, "You never told her?" He laughed with a deepness that rivaled the pit in his heart. "Did you even tell any of them? How utterly pathetic, keeping such a thing hidden. This ring is the most glorious treasure to ever grace this Earth and you squandered it. Allow me to inform them of what you've been keeping from them all."

"Cyril! No! Leave them alone!" I shouted, but Tae's hand covered up my mouth. I felt the magic from the ring reveal everything that I had done, but there was also something else that I couldn't quite fully sense. I felt Summer and Tae shuddered and I could see Lexi and Danna shudder as well out of the corner of my eyes. Summer and Tae huffed before their grip on me tightened.

"You did that to us!?" Tae shouted at me. "You MADE me into a lesbian and forced me to join your polycule? What the fuck is wrong with you, Maria?" She removed her hand from my mouth and squeezed on my jaw.

"You forced me to just swallow up my depression and just get over my problems?" Lexi shouted as she walked over to me, grabbing and pulling on my hair. "You made me into some little toy for you? Is that how you see me?"

"Girls, wait... this isn't you. Let me explain! Please!" I groaned.

"Save it!" Summer said, pressing her foot into my back. "You made us fall in love! You made me open to sharing my wife! Do you know how fucked up that shit is? I had to watch the woman I love be used by you all and I was forced to ENJOY IT!"

"It wasn't... like that... at all," I said, trying to fight through the pain.

Then, she stepped in front of me. Vanessa stood over me, her head hanging to stare down at me, seething rage mixed with sadness in her eyes. "Girls, stop." I felt the others not get more aggressive, but they still held me in place. Vanessa gestured for Tae to turn my head upwards to look at her, craning my neck. "Tell me..."

"Vanessa, I was going to tell you. I just-"

"TELL ME IT WASN'T A LIE!" she shouted, her fist balling up at her sides as she fought back tears.

"What wasn't?" I asked.

"It. All of it." Vanessa's body shook with anger before stomping her foot down. "WAS ALL OF OUR LOVE A LIE? YOU MADE ME YOUR GIRLFRIEND, BUT I SAW WHAT THAT RING DID TO YOU! IT MADE YOU LIKE WOMEN, HUH? SO WITHOUT THAT RING, WOULD YOU HAVE EVER FALLEN FOR ME? WOULD YOU HAVE EVER SEEN ME IN THAT WAY? DID WHAT WE HAVE EVEN MATTER? WAS IT EVEN REAL OR JUST SOME FABRICATION CREATED FROM THAT FUCKING RING THAT LETS YOU CHANGE EVERYTHING!? EVEN ME!?"

"I..." I couldn't answer her. I didn't know the answer. Would I have ever gotten with Vanessa if I hadn't found the ring? All I could do was look at her teary eyes and choke on my own words. I couldn't even spit out saying that I loved her.

Vanessa reared her hand back, preparing to slap me across the face, but the hit never came. Vanessa just looked at me, tears streaming down her face and her body shaking. Then, she fell to her knees and just cried into her hands. It was, without a doubt, the worst sound I had ever heard.

"There there," Cyril said as he patted Vanessa on the shoulder. "The truth hurts, but I can make the pain go away."

"How?" Vanessa sobbed.

"It's simple, really." As he said that, I felt a tingling sensation in my fingers and toes. Then an itching feeling like poison ivy mixed with mosquito bites. Then it became a burning sensation all throughout. My vision started to fluctuate between reality and darkness. "The pain goes away, when she goes away. Just watch."

Vanessa peeked between her fingers at me. I will never forget the pain and sorrow and heartbreak and rage in her eyes as the sight of it burned into my mind.

"Vane-!"

That was the last thing I was able to say before I felt myself erased from existence.