> Catching a run of bad cards can really make you bleed.

The night hag: A phenomenon during which a person wakes up from sleep, and feels the presence of a supernatural malevolent being which immobilizes them as if sitting on their chest. In reality, it's the condition of sleep paralysis, where they wake up while their muscles are still in a sleep-induced state of paralysis. Some people even experience hallucinations such as seeing a ghost or actual night hag.

It was the middle the night, Joey woke up in his bed. When he opened his eyes, he saw the night hag, sitting on top of him, pinning down his arms. 'It's all right. I've read about this. This night hag is only a hallucination.'

Thunder resounded through the skies outside, leading a flash of light through Joey's window, illuminating the dark room for a moment.

If he wasn't paralyzed before, he was now. Joey froze from what he saw. 'Why does this night hag look like Amy? And why is she in full clown make-up?!?'

"Hey, Joey. Give me your opinion. Does this rag smell like chloroform?"

…

Joey's eyes bulged. It was Amy's voice!

The "Night hag" covered Joey's mouth with a rag, but he didn't get a chance to offer his opinion on the scent because it knocked him unconscious!

…

*Splash*

*Cough* *Cough*

Joey woke up with water dripping off his head. He looked around to discover Amy in her clown make-up, grinning at him as she lowered a bucket.

"What's going on?" he asked.

Amy didn't answer. She only put down the bucket, turned around and walked away, while whistling a tune and doing some light dance moves to the rhythm.

'Is that Toxic by Britney Spears?' Joey wasn't in a dancing mood, because his arms and legs were restrained. His eyes scanned around. They were in some sort of warehouse or large space with limited light. It stunk of rust and old rubber. He was standing, tied against something. He jostled for freedom, but stopped squirming when he felt the world spin a few degrees. No…the world wasn't spinning. He was spinning!

He was tied to a large spinning wooden wheel!

"I suggest you don't squirm too much or you might flip upside down," Amy said.

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"Amy! What is this?"

She smiled. "It's target practice. Duh! What else could it be?"

Joey scrutinized the wheel. There were many painted concentric circles outlining zones like a dartboard. The paint was fresh. It was even painted over him!

He narrowed his eyes. "Shouldn't the bullseye be in the center…Why did you draw it on my groin?!?"

Amy shrugged. "Artistic instinct." By now, she'd reached a long wooden table stacked with various…instruments: knives, hammers…There was even a cage full of live rats!

In the distance, Joey spotted a few large contraptions. 'I hope that's circus equipment…' The most notable was a metal chair covered in spikes with lockable restraints. 'What kind of f*cking circus is this?!?'

"Joey, I'll let you choose…"

Joey looked back at Amy. He blinked to remove liquid from his eyes, but at this point, he wasn't sure if it was water or his sweat. "Choose what? What are you going to do?"

"Nothing much. Only a little game. Haven't you ever played catch before?"

"…How am I supposed to play catch with my arms tied?"

She scratched her head, before smiling. "Catch it with your teeth!"

"I don't want to!"

Amy chuckled. "It'll be fun. Just like a pie in the face…Now, select your pie!" She pointed to an assortment of bladed weapons: bowie knives, tomahawks, daggers, and more.

Joey's eyes twitched. "I'm allergic to those flavors…"

"Well, here at Amy's circus, we're of course accepting of those with special needs…Tell you what. You go ahead and choose anything on this table and I'll throw that."

Joey evaluated his options. 'It's like poker. Consider all the possibilities...Should I choose a rat? It's soft and furry.' He glanced at the rats. There were bones on the cage floor. 'That's not a good sign.'

Then he noticed a few of the rats were chewing through the steel cage in his direction. They'd already gotten halfway through the bars! They were all staring at Joey with shining red eyes…like they were salivating at their next meal!

Pale-faced, Joey searched for a better option. A few moments later, he smirked. There was one item on the table he guessed Amy forgot to put away. "I choose the deck of cards!"

Amy stabbed a serpent dagger into the wooden table. She then went over to pick up the cards. "I was sure you would've gone for the demon rats…Cards, huh? Wouldn't have been my first choice, but I'll forgive you for your lack of culture in all things bloody."

Joey squinted. 'I prefer to stay an uneducated fool in such cultural matters.' He was still unsure of what was happening here, but at least he bought himself some time. His muscles relaxed a little. "So, uh…could we talk about what's going on here?"

"Hold that thought. I haven't done this in a while. I need to shake off the rust with a few practice throws." She aligned herself with Joey and his wheel.

"Look, we should stop playing games and talk like civilized people." Joey watched as Amy removed a card from the deck and practiced throwing motions.

Her wrist movements were unique. Unlike when throwing knives or darts, the shape of the cards made it so she needed to release them backhanded.

Joey knew this game. As the thrower, Amy needed to throw the sharp objects into the empty spaces on the wheel, missing his limbs by a narrow margin. It was a dangerous attraction that created tension in the audience because if the thrower was off the mark, the fastened assistant could die. 'What is she even planning to do with those cards though? Even if they reach here, they'll just bounce off.'

*Bang!*

Amy made her first real throw.

Wood chips flew by Joey's horrified eyes! An inch under his genitals, there was a card half lodged into the wooden wheel… 'Damn! These cards are metal!'

Amy snapped her fingers and swung her arm in an exaggerated motion. "Tch. Missed…It's been a while."

"Missed? You're not supposed to aim at me!"

"How else would you catch it? Be open-minded. All games have variations!"