Matilda looked at the young couple that she imagined they were and wondered how such children could be in charge of this circus thing. “I came to warn you that we have worse than witches in our neighborhood.”

“The Flesh Eaters,” Leonora said, like she knew, though Giovanni felt her tighten her grip on his arm.

“Is that what you call them? We’ve been calling them Snake Heads….”

“Or Big Mouths,” one of the men spoke up.

“Or Big Mouths,” Matilda agreed. “What Rudolf said. They say they are not allowed to eat people, but we got four dead and eaten…”

“And that is why there are only eight left out of the twelve that came here. The four that could not resist eating people all died.”

“As it may,” Matilda said. “Though why God didn’t make it so they couldn’t eat people, I don’t know.”

“Because people always need to have a choice. Adam and Eve had a choice. It is part of the package.”

“And they chose wrong,” Rudolf said.

“Snake Heads aren’t people,” Matilda argued.

“But they are people,” Giovanni responded. “They are not human people, but they are Flesh Eater people. They talk and think and are self-aware. Just because they are not human it doesn’t make them less of a person.”

In the timing the little ones often exhibit, Oberon and Sibelius walked up and Oberon spoke. “Boss? We got to go see the Flesh Eaters?” Oberon and Sibelius together hardly looked like people in that moment. The two men looked at Sibelius and took a half-step back.

Matilda’s eyes widened for a second before she nodded for some reason. “I assumed you planned to go and see the Snake Heads—Flesh Eaters. I suppose I better go with you. How about you gentlemen?” One man waved them off, turned and walked away. Rudolf said he was game, and Matilda explained. “I understand Wilfred was the worst of the worst when he could do magic, but since the magic went away he has proved himself to be a real coward.”

“Everyone makes choices,” Giovanni said and Leonora nodded.

It took almost an hour to get there so they arrived around two in the afternoon. Giovanni heard from Lady Alice that the Ape ship kicked in the afterburners and nearly caught up to the Flesh Eater shuttle. While they walked to where Matilda knew the Flesh Eaters were parked, they saw the flash high in the sky when the shuttle broke into the atmosphere. They arrived just before the shuttle set down, and Leonora, Oberon, Sibelius, Matilda, and Rudolf were all eyes on the shuttle. Giovanni was busy with an internal dialogue and Leonora guessed.

“Junior?” she asked, knowing Giovanni had no special ability to deal with people from another world.

Giovanni shook his head. “Nameless,” he said. “This is his part of the world, and he needs a turn, though he is complaining that he always gets stuck with the werewolves and hags and such things.” Giovanni traded places with the ancient god he used to be, though like Junior, he kept up a perfect glamour of Giovanni so no one would notice unless they were sensitive to such things.

Leonora smiled at him and held on to his arm. His attention stayed focused on the newly arrived shuttle until the shuttle turned off all systems. He noticed when Leonora’s attention shifted from the spaceship to the oncoming local Flesh Eaters. She got one good look and swallowed her scream as she buried her face in Nameless’ shoulder.

“Matilda.” The Flesh Eater out front spoke. “We have rescue.”

“Snakes,” Matilda called the Flesh Eater. She obviously talked with the Flesh Eaters enough to not only name this one but to be able to distinguish between one Flesh Eater and another. Not an easy thing to do. “These people came to see you. I do not know what they want, but I thought to bring them because you can be frightening for our eyes to see.”

“Captain and crew,” Nameless said, and the newly arrived captain and all of his crew appeared with the others. “Quiet. Listen.” he made sure no Flesh Eater interrupted and they all heard so there would be no mistake. “Quercus,” he called. A fairy dropped down from the tree branch above. He faced Nameless and put his back to the Flesh Eaters. “Have they been good?”

“They have not used their VR Energy on the people and they have not used their weapons to kill people,” Quercus said, as Leonora dared to peek. “Define good.”

“Only one is good and he is beyond us. In this universe of flesh, good is relative, but there are some certainties, such as leaving the humans alone and not eating people.”

“Then they have been relatively good,” Quercus said, and smiled for Leonora. “My lady,” he bowed to her.

“Don’t start,” Nameless said and turned to the newly arrived Captain. “You are here to rescue this crew and leave this planet forever, and do not come back here.” He allowed the captain to speak though only himself and his little ones would understand the Flesh Eater language.

“I do not know what we may do.”

“I am not asking. I am telling. You will leave this planet and not come back here.”

“We are being followed. We might not be going anywhere.”

“What happens if we do come back?” Snakes asked.

“Your broken shuttle,” Nameless said and raised his hand. Every eye looked there as the shuttle slowly turned to dust, inch by inch. “It is now gone forever. So will you be the minute you touch the atmosphere.” Nameless tapped the shoulder Leonora was not using and Quercus came to take a seat and watch the fireworks, if any.

One of the Flesh Eaters did pull a gun and fired, but the fire stopped at the screen Nameless put up. Snakes and the captain both yelled, “No.” but it was too late. That Flesh Eater became dust and blew away on the wind.

“I am sorry for that, but we all make choices and choices have consequences.”

The Flesh Eater captain paused before he spoke. “We are here to rescue our people and leave this planet to never come back.”

Nameless nodded and put his hand up again, and the functioning Flesh Eater shuttle and all the Flesh Eaters present became invisible. Nameless allowed Leonora, Matilda, and Rudolf to continue to see the Flesh Eaters and their ship, but only after they saw everything vanish. When they reappeared, they appeared to be surrounded in a glowing light of some kind. Of course, Quercus the fairy, Oberon the dwarf, and Sibelius saw that as the invisible spectrum, so-called.

Moments later, the Ape warship broke into the atmosphere. It only took a couple of minutes before they landed and three Apes came out to face the humans. “Where have they gone?” The Ape commander insisted on an answer.

“Out of your reach,” Nameless said. “This world is off limits. You do not belong here.”

“In the years ago, the Kairos in this world said we could come and remove the hated Flesh Eaters from this place.” The Ape ground his teeth. “Where are they?” he raised his voice.

Nameless sighed. “The time for Apes and Flesh Eaters has ended, and you who were once the most kind and gentle of people have become filled with anger and hate. Let go of the evil that grips your heart and return to your peaceful ways. Please leave this world in peace and do not expect me to ask you again.”

‘Where are they?” the Ape yelled.

Nameless raised his hand and the three Apes vanished and maybe reappeared in their ship. The ship started its engines, whether voluntarily or forced, and the ship lifted back into the sky. It moved at maximum speed out of the atmosphere and when it was clear, it shifted to multiple light speed, as much as the engines could tolerate, and soon left the solar system.

The Flesh Eaters reappeared by their shuttle and the captain spoke again, and this time he meant it. “We will leave and not come back.” They boarded their ship and in a few minutes took off. Giovanni returned and hugged Leonora.

“I see what you mean,” she said as he turned her toward the village, and everyone turned with him. “I can’t imagine what a battle in the sky might have been like.”

“It would have destroyed everything around for miles, maybe hundreds of miles,” he said. She nodded and smiled for the fairy on his shoulder as he walked with his arm around her shoulder.

“One question,” Matilda spoke as they walked. “How come your magic still worked?”

“Because it was not magic.” Giovanni answered. “It was the ancient power rooted in the source… In God.”

Matilda nodded. “I certainly could not have done anything like that when I did have the magic.” She looked at Rudolf and he shook his head to say neither could he. They walked for a while before Matilda added, “But that certainly would be a power to conjure with. If I could do like that I could become really corrupt.”

Oberon took that moment to interject a thought. “That is strike two as you are fond of saying. The Masters are going to figure it out.”

Giovanni sighed, much like Nameless, and changed the subject. “By the way,” he said. “We have a magician as part of the circus. Try not to laugh too hard when you see his cheap tricks.”

“Oh, I hope I get a good laugh,” Matilda responded. “I’m looking forward to it. I haven’t had a good laugh in years. You know when you are a witch nothing is ever funny.”

Leonora shared her thought. “So you can be like march. you came in like a lion and can go out like a lamb.”