Searching the rest of the dressing rooms turned up nothing, except for the one where Miles battled the dust mephit; Noninja found a secret door, triggered by a switch hidden in the armoire. It led to a short passage, most of which was taken up by a ladder leading downwards. Its thick rungs made it more of a very steep stairway; another set of ladder-like bars hung overhead.

“Why would anyone put one of these here?” Noninja asked.

“Maintenance access, I would guess,” revealed Lorarona. “Odds are it opens up into what would otherwise be a dead end.”

The stairs led to a short passage with a door at the end; Noninja checked it for traps, then turned the handle. Beyond it, they could see rows of pew-style seats, sloping downward. He poked his head out, and motioned for the rest to follow.

They found themselves on a walkway above a balcony; it offered a commanding view of the theater below. Gently-sloped stairways provided access to the seats. In the distance, they could see the walkway opened up into another area. A huge skylight reigned over the theater floor. Shards of a mechanical occlusion system hung haphazardly from the ceiling; it let in scattered patches of light. Another balcony was visible on the other side. From here, they could see the stage, but its curtain had been drawn, blocking the view. The orchestra pit in front of the stage was little more than an opaque pool of gloom.

Noninja suddenly stopped; he turned around sharply, put his finger to his lips, then jabbed it in the direction of the theater floor. Shadowy figures could be seen, moving slowly along the aisles. It was too dark to see any details, but their unsteady, lumbering gait was reminiscent of zombies. The team involuntarily stooped, then continued walking quietly past the seats and out of the balcony.

They found themselves in a long hallway that ran the width of the upper floor of the theater, connecting one side to the other. A stairway in front of them led downward and then turned to the right.

Lorarona pointed down the hall. “Do you see that?”

Clancy squinted. “Are those children?”

The team walked toward them; as they did, the sound of light sobbing became apparent. They found what appeared to be two very young human children, their heads hung low. One was male, the other female, possibly fraternal twins. As they got to within twenty feet, the little boy suddenly looked up.

“We didn’t mean any harm,” he cried. “We just want to go home!”

“Oh, you poor kids,” Lorarona anguished. “How did you get in here?”

“Here we go again,” Noninja muttered under his breath.

Clancy put his hand in front of Lorarona, stopping her from moving forward. He glared at her and shook his head.

“We didn’t mean any harm,” the little boy cried again. “We just want to go home!”

“They’re constructs,” Clancy informed them. Lorarona peered at them nervously.

The little girl looked up and turned to her companion. “Is that our only line?”

He appeared to reflect for a moment. “I think so.”

Her eyes seemed to flare with anger. “What a ripoff!”

His eyed burned too. “Yeah!”

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

They both looked at the team and issued blood-curdling screams; all four drew their weapons.

The boy took two steps back from the girl and pointed at her; she shook her hands, darkness building up around her fingers. She rose from the ground; the little boy grabbed her and flung her toward the team. As she hollered loudly, he drew a dagger.

Lorarona swung her longsword at the improvised missile; she connected, causing the little girl to let out a shrill shriek, but she still managed to claw at Lorarona before sailing away, discharging the darkness surrounding her tiny hands. Lorarona groaned in pain and stumbled. The little girl collided with the wall, using her legs to cushion herself; she drew a dagger, screamed again, and launched herself from the wall.

“Let’s see what this does to you!” Clancy growled as he pointed his finger; a powdery beam of white light shot from his fingertip and hit the little boy squarely in the chest. Ice crystals formed momentarily; the little boy merely smirked. “Stupid grownups!” He waved one arm; a globe flew from an old oil lamp mounted to the wall. Clancy ducked barely in time; the glass globe flew past his head and shattered against the other wall. The little boy raised his arms and roared in frustration.

Miles stomped toward him, raising his axe; with a mighty swing, he connected with the living doll, sending him flying with a shower of wood splinters. He caromed off of the bar in a nearby room and crumpled to the floor. In a flash, he was standing again. “I’ll teach you to pick on little kids!” he screeched.

The little girl’s coiled legs finally sprung; with a vicious wail, she launched herself at Noninja. He tried to swat at her in the air, but missed; as she passed by, her dagger sliced across his arm, leaving a red mark. Tucking her legs, she managed to somersault in the air and land feet-first on the wall; she crouched and readied herself for another leap.

The little boy launched himself at Miles; he managed to sidestep the charge and swing his axe at his attacker, but missed. The little boy collided inelegantly with the wall and fell to the ground.

Lorarona jockeyed for position, but couldn’t get a clear line of attack on the little girl without hitting her teammates.

Clancy stabbed at her with his dagger; it went under her arm, the tip jabbing into the wall. With great fury, she swung at him, but found only empty air; the momentum carried her forward in an awkward mid-air tumble.

Lorarona finally had a clear shot. Bringing her longsword down, she chopped at the little girl, sending her plummeting to the floor and bringing forth a spray of wood splinters. She rose up inelegantly and stared hotly back at Lorarona, her dagger still in her hand.

Miles swung his axe at the little boy; it chopped into his chest and pinned him to the ground. He reached forward and yanked on the little boy’s head; it came off in his hand. The little boy managed to bite Miles’ hand; with a pained retort, he angrily flung the wooden head to the floor, where it cracked.

In one last act of violence, the little girl tried to drive her dagger into Noninja’s foot, but it didn’t penetrate his boot. Noninja scooped her up with his foot and kicked strenuously; she flew into the wall, her limbs scattering like kindling. Her torso fell to the ground and twitched vigorously for a moment before coming to a halt. Lorarona stomped on her, separating her head and sending it down the hall.

No one spoke for a second. The little girl’s head stopped rolling; she looked up with a haunted expression. The little boy’s voice warbled and cracked. “We were just playing…!” he whined before going still.

The team fought to catch their breath as they exchanged disturbed expressions. “I know I didn’t just kill children,” Lorarona gasped, “but I still feel terrible.”

“Who would make such things?” Clancy anguished.

“Someone really messed up in the head,” Noninja opined. “I knew these people were evil, but ye Gods!”

Miles snickered; they turned to look. He held the little boy’s head in his hands, and worked its jaw. “Hi! I’m a stupid little wooden boy!” he imitated in a squeaky voice. “And I just got my ass whooped by grownups!”

“Miles!” Lorarona chided.

Miles looked taken aback. “What? You’re on his side?”

“No, no,” she agreed, looking deflated. “It’s just…I’d like to stop thinking about those two as soon as possible.”