Diane skidded to a halt after coming outside a compartment that voices seemed to be emanating from. No doubt, one of those inside that compartment was the screaming prospective sidekick in peril. There was no need to fear, though, for she was-

And the door was closed.

Why was the door closed?

Why was there someone behind the door putting on an audibly strained voice?

Why was she being asked to answer a riddle?

"A riddle, hm~?"

...The past has been viewed. The history has been retained. The foundation has been forged.

"You underestimate me, not-sidekick. A riddle is what the dragon and the sphinx pose of the man. A riddle is the evaluation of an eyeless god, and yet you, a mere not-sidekick, dare to place yourself upon that pedestal?"

Devise a system. I have to devise a system.

Like an army of insects, again and again.

A system.

In the span of an "instant", something changed. The world in Diane's purview seemed to shudder, space distorting for the briefest moment as something sleeping within it was roused to life.

"...laughable. It's simply laughable. Ah, how does it go? The name is unfamiliar, the feelings are unfamiliar, but the words, the words can still be felt. Like looking through a pane of misted glass, like a song without a melody, like a declaration for the end of an era."

Make the usage from mental circuit possible.

Divide.

Expand.

-And square that expansion.

"Right, that's it. Answer your riddle? Idiocy, utter idiocy. I don't care what sort of not-sidekick you are. Don't get in my way. That goal I'm stepping towards is already in sight, and that's why- I will break through this trifling storm of yours, sneering at it to declare that I've already reached that goal!

"Watch, for this is the first step of ending a voyage!"

Space bent.

Light pierced the dark. A lance stabbed upwards from the Kingdom Below, the light pervaded this space of tranquil knowledge. The darkness was burned away, twisted and perverted by the all-consuming light. A cataclysm that lasted for an instant from the outside and an eternity from the inside.

A being beyond description let out a laugh that sealed the very heavens. Head bending backwards in an angle that was obtuse but behaves as though it was acute, she roared for the end of innocence.

Her hand reached forwards, sundering space and light as it cut towards its goal...!

"...mmf."

-And tugged at the door weakly.

It looked like she couldn't just brute force the locked door open.

Damn these girlish arms.

Druuk sat alone in his train car, with the window open to feel the wind whistling by. It also provided an easy escape should the train suddenly stop. The train car was big enough to be comfortable but not nearly enough to fight with any kind of grace. Druuk was sure he could take on a single attacker if it came to it, a group may be tougher. But hopefully The Empire wasn't completely inept and their trains had some sort of protection seeing as they've been doing this for some time. So Druuk absently cracked his knuckles and sat back in his chair, his blades resting at his sides, and he let his mind wander.

He knew there were others on the train with him, they each had their own sections. He was glad for that fact, it meant they should stay away and not try to make small talk. People often thought Druuk was just some idiot from the North Kin, but he wasn't totally clueless. He knew some things, important things, like survival, and battle technique, and.....and that trains don't fly. Druuk thought something felt off, and looking out the window he noticed everything was on an angle, and not an angle that would come from just going up a hill.

Druuk could hear voices as the train rose, he couldn't make out what they were saying, but it sounded like they were giggling. The voices were also very high pitched, what exactly were these things? As Druuk thought about that one of them flew in through his open window. He tried to reach out and grab it but the creature was very quick, it zipped around the room and eventually found its way to a pouch. Druuk had his hands on his swords but released them when it seemed the creature was not going to fight him. It didn't seem like a creature which could fight, but it obviously had some kind of power about it if its kind were what was lifting the train in to the sky.

While Druuk debated disturbing the creature in its pouch he suddenly felt like he was being watched. Glancing at his door he saw a woman standing there. Had she been there long? It looked a bit like she was expecting Druuk to say something, had she spoken to him? He was a bit lost with trying to figure out what these things were that he may have missed whatever it was she said. At any rate she mumbled something he didn't catch then became distracted by who Druuk assumed to be their other train mate. He ignored them, they could do what they were doing, he wanted to see what kind of creature had the power to lift a train.

He put his hand in the pouch and scooped out the creature. It was definitely physical, but it almost felt like he was holding light. "Do you speak, what is it you are doing here?" Druuk was not the best with his words, just another reason he did not enjoy talking to people. The creature did not look like much, but he had to keep reminding himself that the train was in the air, and anything that could do that had to be seriously powerful.

Michael didn't like the word "stolen." So many things this side of the gate tried to 'steal' things from you that the word practically meant 'you're going to regret everything.' There were things that stole souls, stole hearts, stole bodies, stole... Children. It was especially bad for humans, who generally lacked the supernatural powers to prevent any of it. Michael looked down to shift himself over to one of the small balconies between the two train cars, so as to not worry the woman he had just met, and saw the world beyond The Gate for what it really was. It was an... Interesting patchwork to say the least. Nothingness in some places, everything in others. He noticed one green forest with a black line that pointed straight at- The star flitting over to Sinead distracted him, and he watched it fly over and around her shoulders. Michael smirked and looked back down at the landscape, but couldn't find what he had been looking at again. The lapse in concentration was also enough for him to realize that he should be asking questions, not just going along with this.

Clearing his throat, Michael finally managed to speak to the stars around his head. "So, if you're stealing us, where are you stealing us too?" He asked, hoping the question would be considered innocuous. The very last thing Michael wanted was to anger the starthings.



Regulus? Was the first thing that Michael thought. The way they said it, they were definitely the starthings leader, but something that is these things leader would have to be pretty powerful. "Hey, uh, if it's okay for me to ask, what is Regulus?" The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could think about them.



That hadn't been quite what Michael had been hoping for for an answer, but it quietly made him more excited. Maybe, just maybe... For a moment his imagination got away from him, and he reigned it back in, and turned to Sinead to distract himself. "Uh, sorry for ignoring you for a second. I'm Michael by the way," he offered his hand to her, or took her still-outstretched one if she kept it out. "Oh, and for the little star... Thing about your shoulders? Just think 'up.'"

His eyes were beginning to adjust to the darkness. He could see the shimmering blood, and was that where it was coming from? He could see it, a gap he could probably get through. His eyes widened, it was freedom. But then there was a sound.

It echoed through his ears, but it was different than the laughing he could hear before, it seemed to encompass him, it was creaking, and then suddenly a sharp pain. And then his eyes widened even more, this time in pain.

Aaaaugh." the shout was loud and guttural as his eyes welled up with tears. He clenched his jaws, closing his eyes as he tried to take deep breaths, each movement just exacerbating the pain more. He didn't want to look at his new wound. He didn't want to move.

He could feel his heart racing, he was beginning to shake, he didn't know if was from pain or panicking. Did he dare take it out? Or did he try to escape with it still in him.

He was having trouble concentrating, the sharp, throbbing pain in his abdomen was all he could focus on. Even the sound of the familiar cackling seemed distant...

He gritted his teeth. Come on, you've been in pain before, you can do this... But he couldn't remember feeling this trapped.... He gritted his teeth, leaving it in could cause it to get stuck on something... It would be harder to move, it needed to come out, if it got caught on anything while still inside him...

He held back sobs as he very carefully moved to his side, trying to steady himself. He bit into his arm, ignoring the dusty taste of his jacket sleeve as his free hand gripped the piece of metal lodged inside of him. He took a few steadying breaths stealing himself for the pain he was expecting as he pulled on the piece of metal, hard and steady trying to keep it a swift fluid motion.



She looked at the woman’s hand and took it, offering her a smile. ”I’m Alexis, and that’s Oxe, he’ll be glad to meet you.” She said brightly, though she wasn’t actually so sure of that.

As they neared the table Alexis' eyes widened in surprise as the chairs began to fly around. She felt on nudge her from behind, giggling as she fell easily into it. Oxe, unfortunately, seemed to have issues. The tall man had merely been knocked over. She had a look of concern on her face, but she couldn't help but laugh more as the chair seemed to parade around the table.

"A...are you ok, Ze?" she asked between fits of laughter.

Oxe's eyes narrowed as the chair assaulted him. He glanced at Alexis, his nose flairing. He wanted to get her off of the dancing, acrobatic chair, but the chair that had tried to, and failed, to get him to sit on continued to attack him He could feel bruises begin to form as the hard plastic hit against him.

He groaned a bit, trying to grab hold of the chair while taking in the situation. Alexis was being carried around by the strange, moving chairs, while the woman she had brought with her had mostly settled, just moving in a seemingly rhythmic pattern.

Cups swirled around the table and all Oxe could do was grab hold of the chair to try and get it to stop. He could only assume that the only way to get it to do so was to sit on it, but the chair seemed unable to realize he couldn't do that if it kept attacking him. He glared at the chair, pointing at himself, and then at it, as if to tell the thing 'alright, I'll sit.', hoping it would work.

Meanwhile Alexis' chair was now moving up and around the table, spinning around in dizzying, but exciting circles, holding onto the chair so she wouldn't fall.

Before she could get a response from the man she saved on where the other trapped person could be, the sickening sound of cackling, an uncomfortable wet thumping noise and a creaking came from the direction of the engine room, catching Kaleo's attention. Although the sounds weren't as odd given the situation, Kaleo remained frozen in her spot. She couldn't ask the blonde man to check it out for her, as he was injured, but it was something that needed to be looked upon.

As the girl was thinking about what to do, the sound of someone...groaning came from underneath the train. That's right, the man in danger was in need of help first! Just as Kaleo was turning around to face the crushed compartment, something...or was it someone...launched right into her, throwing her onto the ground.
"GAH!!" Kaleo screamed as her body slid across the carriage floor before stopping near the wall. Blood patches began to form on the back of her gray blazer as the blonde's extremely frail body remained motionless on the ground...

---

Farran sucked in a sharp breath when Castiel clapped a hand over his smaller shoulder. The boy's gaze shifted quickly to the taller male, his expression hard. It was an action that he was quite use to growing up, so having a stranger do something similar was a little uncomfortable. Assuming that he did something wrong, Farran kept quiet, pressing his lips to a thin line. It was only after Farran's body was pushed forward by a similar hand that he stumbled and sputtered, grabbing onto Melanie's sleeve to keep himself from falling over. Understanding that the motion wasn't anything he had to worry about, Farran smiled sheepishly.

As introductions began, Farran perked up. He always loved meeting new people, and knowing their names made them closer, right? First was Castiel, or Cas. He seemed nice enough, although he did talk in a more formal manner then most. Then there was, Lloyd, who was the exact opposite in probably every single way. He had agreed with Castiel for him and Melanie to join them, something that Farran would honestly prefer.
"N-Nice to meet you, Mister Cas, Mister Lloyd! U-Um, but my name i-isn't 'Small-Child', it's Farran! Just Farran!" He introduced himself politely.

Before he could get Melanie's name, a quiet, but obnoxious hissing became evident to the white haired boy. Farran couldn't quite put his finger on what it was until it was too late. Crashing waves quickly collected and made their way over to the small group. Unfortunate for the young boy, his reaction speed was far too short, and he ended up getting carried away with the wave.

Farran let out a cry for help as his body was at the mercy of the current. While his head did slip underwater every now and then, he always managed to suck in shakily breaths of air. Unable to escape the fear clouding his senses, small sparks began to form in the water, as if the water was being powered up by electricity.

---

Wakana looked over at the green haired girl, well more like what was in her jacket to be specific. Something was definitely there, and it was only when she went to feed whatever she was hiding that Wakana caught sight of the bird. The ginger could only arch an eyebrow in confused before letting it go; she had no right to say anything about the other's hobbies, especially since she seemed to be okay with letting her stay in her carriage.

By the time she had finished her note and shoved it into the other's face, she expected her to read it. Instead, Gas Mask looked at her. Heterochromic eyes met green ones as she was asked what her note said.
"...Read." She said simply, before a rather loud voice caught her attention. Was that voice...directed to towards her? Wakana arched her eyebrows in confusion. Before she could even do anything, Gas Mask told her to play along. Well it wasn't like she was going to say anything anyways.

The ginger girl remained where she sat watching as the two interacted with each other through the door. A small smile formed on the bespectacled girl's face as it was quite amusing to watch the two play their little game.

Unfortunately, Wakana was distracted by the sound of drums. Everything around her became blurry as she was solely focusing on the drums. Tap...tap, tap-tap...tap tap-tap-tap. Wakana's foot tapped along. Why were there drums playing in the other carriage; last time she checked, there were no instruments on the train. Next came the sound of a sax and a bass, causing Wakana to stand abruptly. Her expression was still, almost stone cold, as the rhythmic, but off putting tune caught her off guard.

Unable to stop herself, Wakana made her way over to the door that head the music and placed a hand on the knob, her eyes wide in confusion as she noted two doors on the same side.

In a delirium of metal and movement Targilde was pulled to safety in the intact carriage. My sincerest gratitude, Madame." Targilde said with a hand lifting to his chest over his heart as the sweet lady tended to his wounds.

"It won't do much, but please hold this to your wound." She said softly before looking back at the crushed compartment. "Might you know where the other man is? We must help him quickly!"

"I believe he is under the train, Madame. We should work quickly to-"

It was then the foul beast careered through the carriage and threw the lady to the ground. Targilde's eyes widened as he scrambled forward to her aid. Without thinking he shot out a long-limbed leg, the force of the kick connecting with the beast's side enough to throw it off of her.

It seemed the kick was enough. The beast slopped against the wall and scampered out the carriage to lick it's wound, clearly not expecting to have any sort of resistance. Targilde cackled maniacally at the sight of it turning tail. It was a momentary lapse of judgement, however.

Targilde kneeled down beside her, unbuttoning his jacket to apply pressure to her wound... or was that what you were supposed to do in these situations? His head was swimming with the sight of her blood and his wounded hand. He wrapped his jacket around her shoulders.

"Miss! Miss! Can you hear me?!"

Aaaaugh." Oh that couldn't be good.

What was he supposed to do in this situation? Targilde laughed at the insanity of all of this nonsense. Barely a few minutes ago he had been sitting in his carriage minding his own buisness.

He didn't leave her side, shuffling over a little to call down to the end of the carriage.
"SIR! WHAT IS YOUR STATUS?"

---

---

"Oh my, you're bleeding a little bit there." Melanie's brow furrowed in concern as she had no qualms wiping the blood from his nose with her pristine white hoodie sleeve. "Darn, I can never remember if you're supposed to tilt your head forward or back. You'd think I'd know stuff like this by now. Are you sure you're feeling ok?"

"Tut-dadadaaa - Lloyd Llewyn!"

Oh boy. Melanie turned her head to watch the flamboyent display with a quiet snk being the only sound to warrant she had any sense of humour in her. Well, there was one to quell her axe-lantern?-murderer fears and that was by sheer wanton good-hearted idiocy. She shook her head with sweet memories of home.

"You caught me, my birth name is needed Pin-" The wall of water that barrelled into her side hit her with a force strong enough to hit her back and pull her under. A brief exhale escaped her lips at it slammed into her chest, her arms stretching out in front of her. She winced in pain, her brain firing into action as she began to search for the surface -

ZAP. The shock flooding her system was a momentarily respite from the pain in her arm, except it was a whole lot worse as she realised she was underwater with no control over her limbs.

---

---

"No! I can't say we have many where I come from." he replied, staring bemusedly down at the little beast as it pointed his sword at him threateningly. Humphrey raised his hands slowly. That was what you were supposed to do in these situations, right? Definitely not provoke the armed guy.

"I'm gonna put an end to the likes of you human scum!! So take me to your leader!"
But then he fell down, and Humphrey's shoulders shook quietly.

^{"Actually that's pretty adorable."} he said gleefully under his breath, unable to contain his amusement even in the face of angry sword-wielding.

The little guy looked like he was trying so very hard.

Awh, shucks. He couldn't rain on his parade.

"Yes! Of course! Immediately! Uhrm..." Well, Humphrey was pretty sure the king of the Old Lands wasn't going to be out here, and Humphrey had never seen sight of him let alone met the guy. Arranging a meeting with him was more then beyond impossible now.

Humphrey waved his hands around. "I think I heard some people over thataway, they can help too, maybe!"

Water filled the tunnel at an alarming pace, and Castiel stood alone, on top of the carriage they'd ridden in only a few minutes ago. Just Farran and Lloyd Llewyn were gone, along with the pink-haired girl whose name he'd never even gotten to hear. A minute ago they'd introduced themselves to him, and now, they were drowning. Cas wasn't easy to faze, but the ridiculous turn of events left him gaping at the tide. It was only when a spray of water crashed into the carriage's side, toppling him over in the process, that he was snapped out of his thoughts.

He had to assist them.

Quickly, Castiel pulled open his bag and pulled out the spool of rope he'd tucked inside. He leaped to his feet and scanned the water for signs of his companions. He caught sight of Just Farran struggling against the water, and Lloyd was there too, but the pink-haired girl was nowhere in sight. His insides tightened into a knot, if she'd been pulled under water... there would be no way of helping her. For now, he would have to focus on those he could save. And then he saw the sparks racing across the water and he froze in an act of self-preservation. Once the sparks had subsided, he gathered his courage. "Just Farran! Lloyd Llewyn!" He yelled in hopes of getting their attention. "I'm going to throw this into the water! Please try and reach it! And if you can, please find the girl!" Moments after yelling, Cas tossed the opposite end of his rope into the raging waters below and prayed for the best possible outcome to this horrible turn of events.

A dice had been cast, and it were as if the Gods above were frowning upon them.

---

A look of concern wormed its way onto Viola's face when magical chairs suddenly lifted them off the ground. Teacups followed shortly after and things grew even more bizarre than they already were. This wasn't normal, then again, normal wasn't something you expected beyond The Gate at World's End. Still, chairs that forced people to attend tea parties wasn't one of the things she thought she'd encounter. Monsters, spirits, demons, she'd prepared herself for that.

For this - she was completely taken off-guard. It didn't help that one of the passengers she'd met was being beaten by a piece of furniture. Her eyebrows furrowed together in worry, and out of reflex, her left hand reached for the blade she wore by her side. She held her hand steady, wondering if the best option would be to play along and avoid angering whatever spirits controlled the chairs.

She was set on doing just that, but Oxe was receiving a pummeling from his chair, and she wasn't about to just stand by and do nothing - wasn't about to allow a little girl to watch her friend get beaten black and blue. The young woman leaped off her own chair and made her way towards Oxe. Unsheating her blade with expert ease, she moved to block the following blow. The chair continued its assault and what followed was a comical exchange between the woman and the supernatural entity, mostly this consisted of Viola waving her sword around in attempt to ward off the chair's frenzied and uncoordinated attacks.

"Stop this right now!" She commanded in the same voice she used when she was barking orders to newly-minted soldiers. "It's horrendously rude to hit your guests! If you want us to enjoy some tea, then you ought to play nice!" Viola's grip on her blade's hilt tightened. She was fully expecting some form of backlash - for the chairs to gang up on her or for the teapots to start shattering into a painful spray of glass, but much to her amazement, the chair stopped its assault and pulled back.

She kept her defensive stance for a second then two then three, when it was clear that the chair wasn't going to go ballistic over her retort, she strode towards Oxe and looked him over for injuries. "Are you alright?" She didn't say outright that they had to leave, in case it would upset the entity, but she implied it heavily in the way she was looking from Alexis to the foggy nothingness that awaited them.

As the water came careening from the darkness, Lloyd managed to see it coming. The roar of the advancing flow gave little warning. Lloyd, unable to warn the others, was only able to brace himself - and brace himself he did. The wave came quick, striking two of them rather brutally. Perhaps due to his lantern acting as an anchor or perhaps his innate strength, Lloyd was able to wade in the rapid blast of water.

"Just Farran! Lloyd Llewyn!" Cas yelled, "I'm going to throw this into the water! Please try and reach it! And if you can, please find the girl!"

Lloyd heard him loud and clear. The rope swung around in the rapid but Lloyd managed the end of it. Without an ounce of hesitation, Lloyd wrapped the rope around his hand before letting the water guide him.

Managing to stay upright as the water carried him, he managed to find one of them - Just Farron. The two collided meekly, but it was enough for Lloyd to grapple on to the panicking boy. The turbulent bounces and uncertainty of breath were soon to be prevented as Lloyd wrapped his arms and legs around the boy. Rather quickly, Lloyd tied the rope around Farron's chest, creating a faux-harness that was on rather tightly.

Of course, that was only a third of the problem solved.

"Cas!" Lloyd yelled as water splashed into his mask, "pull the rope!"

Lloyd could have ferried the boy over to the train cart, but time was of the essence. He had no idea where Pinkie went. He quickly let go, Farron now with the ability to easily keep his head above water. The tide quickly dragged him away from the boy.

The lantern that slowed him managed to emanate some light, but it nearly wasn't enough. Lloyd, thinking quickly, grabbed the chain. Almost instantaneously, a bright flash illuminated the water. Just as quickly as it came, it disappeared. It was enough. He could ascertain where Pinkie was. He began to swim, dragging the lantern-turned-anchor along with him. It was difficult in the turbulent water, but he could do it. He knew he could.

He took a deep breath and dived down. The lantern gave a barely-visible glow, but it was enough. After a few seconds of searching, he managed to spot a single bit of pink. Rather quickly, he swam to it, assisted by the current. He wrapped his arm around it as tight as he could and began to swim up.

It wasn't fun.

He was literally swimming with two anchors.

He was able to surface, but there was no possible way that he could swim back to the train.

As the current began to drag him along, he hatched a plan. It was a terrible plan; one so stupid that only an idiot could think of it.

It was a good thing that only this idiot could pull it off.

He collided with the cobblestone wall, his body taking most of the force. He endured. Still holding Pinkie as tight as he could, his elbow smashed into the wall, creating a small hole. It wasn't enough. He did it again and again, the sheer amount of anchors that he had managed to let him be unaffected by the flow for this brief moment.

It was enough. The water began to spill into the small hole. The force of the water carved more and more out until the hole began to gape. Suddenly, a crack. Then another. Then another. Loudly, the wall cracked and groaned as the water managed to break through, diverting the flow and lessening the current.

Lloyd let out a sigh of relief as the currently lightly pushed him into the wall. It hurt. His elbow, his back, his front, everything. But he did it. His dumb idiot plan worked.

"Cas!" He yelled, sputtering water out of his mask. "I got Pinkie! And this," he paused to sputter, "gaping hole in a wall!"

He couldn't exactly swim back to them, but they were safe.

A dagger, some wood, and a pair of very, very skilled hands equals a spear.

Granted, it was crude and had barely any other detail to it than its form, but it was sharp and that was the point. Ha. Kain hefted the weapon up and threw in the air for a few times, testing its balance and durability; he had also fashioned a hook of sorts which he was hoping he could use to retrieve his bow. The mercenary swung the pole from side to side and, satisfied, turned towards the exit. At the start he had been certain the monsters would break down the door and mow him down, but… Well, he wasn’t going to complain.

Kain exited the cargo hold and dropped to a crouch, returning to the place where he had fallen earlier. He crept closer, alert for any sound from the beasts in case this was a ruse to draw him out. Only until he had reached the edge of the train exterior did he realize he was relatively safe, because the monsters had flocked to a different prey. Niiice. Well, sucks for them, but... Y'know. Win some, lose some. The mercenary lay down on the ground and used the extension of his spear to snag his bow. Miracle of miracles, it caught! Now to actually get it back. Kain pulled on the drawstring as gently as he could, eyes trained on the body of the bow to make sure it didn't get knocked loose from a rock or blade of grass. He could scarcely believe it when he succeeded, and exhaled all the air he had been holding in.

"Damn. You're a pain in the neck," Kain grumbled as he (lovingly!) brushed the dirt off the grip. If it had a voice, maybe it would tell him to get over himself because it wouldn't have fallen were he not such an uncoordinated bag of shit. Or maybe he was just projecting his thoughts again. Anyway, now that Kain had his longbow back, there wasn't really any other reason for him to stay...

And then someone screamed from within the crumpled carriage. A girl too, from what it sounded like. The abominations circling the ruin burst into giggling fits and jumped around in a frenzy. Gods, he hated their ugly mugs.

... Ughhh. Fine. He wouldn't want to get eaten by these asshats either. Kain turned around and started walking away as fast as he could, going so far as to jog when he was sure the hyena-things wouldn't notice. When he reached a slight distance from the wreck, he plunged his rudimentary spear in the ground and flexed. With another stretch he nocked an arrow then stretched to a full draw. Kain exhaled slowly, and let loose. The arrow soared.

A pained screech rippled through the air as the mark was hit on the side, a spray of blood erupting from the wound while the creature staggered from the impact. Its pack hacked and coughed before retreating to the treeline. Even with one of them rendered immobile, another of the beasts started bounding towards him, its tongue lapping about as it bared its jaw. With a cold, cruel practicality to his movements, Kain picked another arrow from his quiver and shot it through the eye. A clean, precise hit. He pulled his makeshift spear from the ground and ran, past the intact arrow covered in gore, after the thing crumpled down in the macabre gyrations of death.

Kain skidded to a stop in front of the obliterated carriage, eyes trained on the treeline and the twitching abomination he had injured earlier. It was still stunned. He considered killing it now with the polearm, but...

"Sorry to disturb your 'my train just crashed but otherwise it's a-ok' day but... Anyone here? I'm sure heard you earlier. If there is, now's the best damn time to get your asses out of there!" He snapped at the inhabitants of the cabin without so much as sharing a look within the compartment. He smelled blood though. Great. Just peachy. Whoever was in there's either dead or injured, and he didn't know smack about advanced field medicine.

"I drove the things off for a while, but I bet they're gonna come back soon. So, chop chop, ladies and gentlemen!"

---

---

One does not simply “fly and shine” without a certain degree of grace to it.

Unfortunately, Seona lacked that grace.

Understandably panicked about the concept of ‘being the heavens’, the noblewoman flailed- and maybe let out a squeal or two- when she realized that she was hovering above the ground in escalating increments. This meant that at best she floated aimlessly, at worst she smacked into an overhead lamp while trying to latch onto something. The epitome of poise. The distance Seona travelled simply by floating was actually a bit far, though she managed to right herself halfway through Druuk’s cabin, whom she noticed was distracted with a golden visitor of his own.

The man from earlier had deposited himself on the balcony, occupying himself with watching the passing landscape. As she finally managed to approach, she thought she heard him and the starthings conversing about something- a Regulus? Well, whatever it was, it seemed fancy. A King of some sort? These tiny magickal beings had a hierarchy too, it seemed. Then, the stranger turned towards her and introduced himself. Seona patted her hair down- her braid had snagged on that accursed lamp from earlier- and grabbed on to the railing. “I don’t mind. It’s a pleasure to meet you, although these circumstances are rather...” Seona paused and glanced at the twinkling creatures, not wishing to inspire any sort of ill will from anything that was holding her aloft several miles off the earth. “Unique. My name is Sinéad Argent.” She managed a wobbly curtsy.

She remained drifting which, when combined with the strong winds at this height, was not quite a good state for anybody wearing a long skirt. Although it was picturesque to some degree. Seona knew nothing scandalous was being revealed right now, but she preferred having her skirt do what it was supposed to be doing- covering her legs from the cold. Wait. Oh.

Oh dear.

Seona began to ascend… and then descend, where she bumped against the balcony’s door. “Up? Wait, I think I’m thinking about it wrong!” Embarrassed and not quite able to anchor herself, the lady grabbed onto Michael’s hand as she started to hover past him. “My apologies. Do you know when we’re going to reach our destination? I fear as though I’m going to make an even bigger fool of myself the longer we’re up here,” Seona exclaimed over the din of the moving train and the rushing winds, although she was good-humored about her state enough to share a laugh or two.

The creature zipped around the room once more and hid again. Druuk heard the other creatures saying things about having stolen the train and it's occupants. While he did not like the idea of being stolen the creatures seemed to mean them no harm for the time being. Druuk turned his head from side to side looking for the creature while saying, "now where did you go little one?"

"I am hidden! I am the best at hiding!" He heard it giggle behind him and noticed its glow in his peripheral vision. It reminded him of the younger children back home, they often hid for stealth exercises but then didn't understand that to stay hidden you had to stay quiet. Druuk chuckled then spun around quickly to find the starling right in front of him "Aha! I gotcha." He was sure if the creature could look surprised it would, it seemed very happy when it said, "You found me! I hide so well! You must be magic!" He noticed the girl from early seemed to be drifting in to his room, literally drifting, as her feet weren't touching the ground. She left and Druuk brought his attention back to the starling, chuckling at its remark about him having to be magic.

"I'm just good at finding things, you're much more magical, you can fly and lift this train," Druuk said this to the creature but it just giggled some more and replied, "It's easy if you try! I can even make you fly." This surprised Druuk, would he really be able to fly? He'd had dreams of flying before, not aspirations but actual dreams, and he always found them incredible. "I'd like to see that, I'm a pretty big guy," he was a bit dubious of the claim but if he could fly he'd very much like to experience it. The starling flew over him and covered his shoulders with a light golden dust, and Druuk felt as light as a feather. He jumped lightly to experiment and it felt as thought gravity no longer applied. After a few moments he found it easiest to treat it as though he was in water and to swim through the air. He laughed, a real, true laugh he had not felt in a long time, "oh thank you little one, this is amazing."

The other humans who were originally occupying the train seemed to be floating along just outside the train. Druuk gripped his swords to make sure they had not fallen as he flew about his room and they were where they should be. He left his room to go join the others, they were all in this together now, he may as well figure out who they were and what they could do. "Hi," he grunted to them as he approached, very personable, helped by how his face had gone in to its default resting position which was a scowl, making him look somewhat angry.

@Orpheus@Burthstone

The Kobold picked himself up and his hefty blade as he tried to regain composure, that could have gone way better. He scoffed at the blond, how could he have not heard of his race's misdeeds and acts of terror throughout the land? Although when Crusz glances back at Humphrey and tries to identify just what kind of person he is, he definitely seems like the kind of person to not take too many details into account, or just forget them altogether. When he heard the degenerate giggle under his breath, the reptilian could swear he'd almost pop a blood vessel. Although, as the idiot began to speak in words that sounded quite fine, a big and wide smile adorned Crusz's face.

Hefting his blade up once more and with a slight hop in his step, Crusz eagerly began to make haste into the direction the blond had directed him to. He was already fading into the mists when he stopped dead in his tracks, the jittery kobold pointing his heavy blade at the young human again, "Well don't just stand there! You're my prisoner now, so get movin'!" there was something quite disturbing about a small, childlike, reptilian creature being so happy at the prospect of having a "prisoner." Not a moment too soon, he and hopefully the human trailing behind him, fade into the depths of the mist.

Crusz didn't know how long they've been walking, but it already feels as though they've been going in endless circles. Groaning, the kobold couldn't help if the human was jut pulling his tail here and was ditching him, tough luck though. If he gets any funny ideas, the reptilian would make sure that he'd give his head more than just a bruise. He was going to complain about the lack of targets when suddenly...A shine...a shimmer...a glitter! Even in the thick fog blanketing the both of them, Crusz knows shinies when he sees them. Like a dog fetching a toy, the reptilian began to dash towards the source of the light like some predator catching its prey, not even bothering if the human could catch up.

It wasn't before long before he came upon some sort of...What was it? It's some kind of container but he quite tell what it was called. But he could've cared less about that, the real important thing are those silver things attached to it. "I want to smash it, can I smash it?" he said, asking the human (who should have caught up by now, and if he hasn't well then maybe he got eaten by some mist monster.) with his purple eyes never once leaving the sight of the container.

"Miss! Miss! Can you hear me?!"

Glazed over eyes fluttered open. Everything was hazy and black spots littered the girl's vision. What just happened? Kaleo attempted to sit up, in hopes of seeing what was going on, but her body wouldn't move; the only thing she felt was the searing pain running up her spine.
"U-Ugh..." The girl groaned, her skin already growing pale from the amount of blood she lost.

While she couldn't move her back or legs at the moment, Kaleo did raise a hand up and out towards the blurry figure she had assisted earlier, clutching onto his shirt loosely. They had to get out of here, but how could they, with the state they are all in? Tears formed in Kaleo's eyes and began to stream down her face, not only because of the pain, but also because of how hopeless their situation felt. She could barely move, there was a man stuck under a crushed compartment, and another who was also injured and possibly physically and mentally drained...what could a group like this do?

Just as she was about to succumb to her pain and give up on their survival, the dulled out sound of something screaming caught her attention. Kaleo attempted to turn and see what was going on, but she was stopped by the reoccurring sharp pain of her spine and back. Her grip tightened on Targilde's sleeve as she used all her concentration on clearing up her drowned out hearing.

From what Kaleo could pick up, someone was fighting off the beasts that were approaching her carriage. It had to be someone new as the blonde man was with her and the man under the compartment wouldn't have been calling for help if he could get out on his own.

Although Kaleo had been doing well to keep the pain in check, the dark spots in vision returned, covering up most of her vision. The hand clutching the man's sleeve had gone limp along with the rest of her body...

---

Farran let out several coughs and sputters as his hands and legs flailed in attempts to free himself from the raging waves that plowed into him. However, after what seemed like forever, Farran's body connected with something...more like someone as the figure immediately latched onto him, wrapping both arms and legs around him, thus restraining him. Of course, this only made the white haired boy panic even more as he couldn't move his own arms and legs anymore.

Farran's half covered, but still entirely horrified face, let the other do whatever he wanted, in fear of making the situation worse for the both of them. He felt something wrap around him, creating an 'x' over his chest. Recollection finally hitting him, the white haired boy grabbed the rope that was above the water as tightly as possible, grateful that he didn't have to worry about slipping or drowning anymore. Now he could only hope that the others were okay...

Michael smiled as he watched Sinead flail around a little wildly, and grabbed hold of her hand firmly as she floated by. Gently, he pulled her towards the floor of the carriage, grabbing her waist as politely as he could think to when she was close enough to shift how body so she was properly perpendicular to the floor. Michael seemed to be fairly adept at keeping himself firmly on the ground, providing an effective anchor for the floating woman. "No idea when we're gonna get where we're going, but I'm sure you'll get the hang of it. I'm pretty sure it works just by thinking about what direction you want to go. It's... Honestly it really is a strange sensation. Though, why don't we head back outside where we won't bump our heads?" he'd suggest, already gently guiding Sinead to the outside of the train-where there would be less stuff to run into-when Druuk came over to them.

"Hey, seems you've also joined the flying club." Michael observed in response to Druuk's 'hi,' his smile seemingly unaffected by the other man's scowl. He would look at Sinead, for whom he was still acting as an anchor if she needed it. "I was just heading back outside where there is a lot less... Metal to run into, are you coming with?" He offered a friendly smile as he prepared to step back out onto the balcony between the two train cars, Sinead's hand in his own. Sinead, having been in in both compartments now, might remember that there was only one flying train car attached to the one she had been in, and no additional one beyond Druuk's.

Just what was the strange white haired girl blathering on about? It was something to do with feeling words and other pretty prose. This girl sure did chatter on with lots of flowery words, that was for sure. From what Rowen could tell, it sounded as if she was refusing to answer the riddle, although she took a rather roundabout way of saying so. What was with the need to drag it out for so long? She could have just as easily said no.

...Unless she was stalling! That had to be it, this girl must actually be acting as a diversion, but also absolutely terrible at riddles. And if she was trying to distract Rowen, that must mean she was planning something. Something to get inside, like perhaps blowing up the door...

"Get down!" Rowen shouted towards Glasses as she hid her bird within her jacket again and swiftly slid underneath the nearest seat for cover. She braced herself for the explosion, but it never came. Instead, she heard the useless wiggling of the locked doorknob.

"Heh," Rowen chuckled softly, before it grew into full laughter. She crawled out from under her cover and popped her head back into the window. "It would seem I overestimated you. Didn't you want to get inside? Or is that not where your voyage leads?" Rowen teased, her grin hidden underneath her mask. As odd as this girl was, at least she kept Rowen entertained from the long monotonous train ride.

Wait… the train?

Rowen's thoughts grabbed frantically at her, dragging her through darkness and into a beautiful scenery of dancing lights and a grand old tree. The image was transcendent almost, ethereal in her mind's eye. That's right, Rowen remembered, the train to World's End… Frustrated that she had somehow been tricked into forgetting, she swatted away at the air above her head with her free hand.

Rowen lifted her fledgling bird up to eye level and fixed him beneath a brown gaze. "Did you know this whole time?" she asked, although why she was indulging in the distraction was another matter. Then again, everything around her was a distraction. The train, the noises, and perhaps even the people. For all she knew, the people were in on it too, keeping her mind at bay whilst those things—

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick.

"Be quiet," Rowen muttered lowly, her thoughts trying to break through the infernal ticking and onto a real solution. Time was limited, she knew that, she didn't need some sick reminder constantly ticking all around her. "Just shut up," she growled at the train again, her voice slightly more forceful than before.

"U-Ugh..."

"Oh my goodness, are you dying? Please don't do that ma'am. Please. You have to live." Her hand went limp against him and his eyes widened, teeth clenched. This train was a damned death trap and not a suitable place for a lady even slightly.

They had to get out of here, now.

He clutched her preciously tiny form to his body and stood up, his bandaged hand still bleeding but hardly even registering in his mind. This lady was dying, and it sounded like the man under the train was not fairing any better-

"Sorry to disturb your 'my train just crashed but otherwise it's a-ok' day but... Anyone here? I'm sure heard you earlier. If there is, now's the best damn time to get your asses out of there!"

"I drove the things off for a while, but I bet they're gonna come back soon. So, chop chop, ladies and gentlemen!"

Targilde looked up as a voice drifted in from outside.

"Hello?!" he called, looking between the pale form of the girl and the exit. The man was right. It would be better to leave their luggage behind and get the hell out of dodge before they were all dead meat. The lanky man shook his blonde head from side to side vigourously, snapping himself out of his panic.

Time for panic later. Now was the time to get moving.

Targilde walked swiftly to the door, being careful not to jog the injured girl who had kindly helped him. It was his fault this had happened, he was sure.

"You're totally right, of course. We have to go. There's another man stuck under the train. Please tell me you have some medical knowledge." He called out as he exited the train, coming face to face with the tall gentleman who was currently wielding a spear.

"Oh my." Targilde exclaimed as he stared at the makeshift contraption.

---

---

Melanie spasmed as she was vaguely aware of the current pulling her down below the precious air she loved so very, very dearly for breathing purposes. It took all her ability to dart her gaze up - was it up? she couldn't tell - as the numbness set into her limbs.

Shit. shit. shit.

Okay, she knew World's End was a dangerous place. You could get mauled by bears or things. But stepping out of the train and instantly drowning in a perfectly normal room? really? This was how she was going to go? This way the way she bit the big one.

Pffffft. Melanie couldn't tell if she was so terrified beyond feeling that she was just numb or if the ludicrous nature of the situation was killing all sense of fear. Or whether it was the, yaknow, electric current numbing her senses. Hard to tell.

In the few moments she had to perplexedly contemplate her life before it all ended, something began to happen. A strong comforting force wrapped itself around her ribs as her arms noddled about in the water, pulling her upwards despite the drag of the water. She caught flashes of red and blue fabric, the only clue to her saviour, as they crested the surface and she spluttered.

Her fingers twitched. She lolled her head upwards to examine her tall, slim but muscley majestic saviour out the corner of her eye. Truly, a courageous act to dare defy the water, who could possibly dare brave the depths to-

oh it was him. Gross.

What was worse, dying horrifically as you struggled to breathe will paralysed underwater or being saved by the group goof?

Either way, her first order of buisness was spewing the small amount of water she'd swallowed all over his nice robes.

"Thanks." she grumbled, her voice somewhere between bewilderment, disgust and appreciation. "The names Melanie, by the way." Was this going to go to his head? I mean, it's not like she owed him or anything now... right?? He just happened to be saving her when she was drowning. That's practically a coincidence, almost. If you just forgot most of the details and also the big picture.

She internally wrestled with the ongoing horror of the situation.

---

---

A prisoner, huh? Humphrey had hoped he could avoid being anyone's prisoner out here in ye olde merry evil lands, but he susposed he was quite lucky that he was the prisoner of a four-foot-something lizard thing rather then say, a mountain-sized dragon or a fire-shooting whale cannibal or something.

Although, he could of been taken hostage by a tribe of exotic mostly naked ladies, and that would honestly be alot better. curses. He hoped that he hadn't met his life-prisoner-time-quota if that was a possibility for his future, and they did say all things were possible beyond the gate...

oh shoot, stop daydreaming and start placating the little red guy before he beats you up some more.

Humphrey looked down to see the lizard galumphing off into the distance. In the briefest of moments, he considered using this as his oppurtunity to escape. He would arguably be safer that way, though he wasn't sure whether he reckoned his legs could outsmart that reptile-nose of his... urm... owner? jailkeeper?
Whatever word he used this situation seemed just plain silly.

"oh, hell." Humphrey muttered under his breath as he trotted after the little guy.
"I want to smash it, can I smash it?"

The scruffy man looked down at the offending item he was talking about. A trunk? Well, that wasn't the first thing Humphrey would do with it personally but hey, if it eased some of that murder-impulse the lizard had.

"I don't think you need my permission here, boss." he replied with amusement, and then hastily added, "but whatever you think is best. You're in charge here, right? hah. hah. heh..." Humphrey pulled his collar. Gosh this guy just had too much energy. If only he could of stumbled upon a picnic or a tea party or something.

ppfff yeah right... what're the chances of that out here. Stupid.

It had given him a new strength, grabbing onto the piece of metal that was stuck in him. Biting down even harder onto his arm he pulled. It was swift, almost painless as the metal piece came out, only his jaw and arm ached mildly from his biting. With the rod out of him it seemed as if the darkness around him cleared, the fear he felt gone. He was ok for now... he knew how to escape.

He could still hear the voices above, someone asking if someone was ok, someone mentioning having fought off something, but in that moment he saw only the sliver of sunlight coming through. He coud see now, it was where the two train cars connected. There was just enough room for him to get through. Taking the piece of metal and sliding it out from under the train he crawled over carefully, picking his way through the opening. He barely squeezed through, but he managed it. Sunlight hitting his face he picked up the piece of metal. Gripping it in his teeth he lifted his jacket and shirt, both sporting a new hole, to reveal the damage the metal had caused. It still stung, but now in the dazzling sunlight Igantus could see that it was barely much of anything.

He couldn't help but laugh. It wasn't the first time he had been in a rough situation, each time just as relieved that last. He was a bit bruised, a bit shaken, but he was alive and surprisingly uninjured aside from the small wound in his abdomen. He let out a sigh of relief as he ran his hand through his hair, miraculously not getting stuck in the obvious tangles and knots that rested atop his head.

At last he looked around, he couldn't see the Misery Hounds, though he was sure they were nearby, somewhere... He did, however, spot what was inevitably the voice he had heard while under the train. He was taken aback, not expecting them to be so close. A tall blonde carrying a girl, talking to another man holding a spear, just in front of him. What were they talking about? Ignatus took a step back, clutching the piece of metal tigher, his hand moving towards his pocket.

"I'm fine." He said completely out of the blue, the amusement and excitement nowhere to be found in his voice. He didn't look fine, of course. His hands covered in blood, only some of it his own, and his frazzled, messy appearance seemed to indicate anything but 'fine'... But he felt fine, which was all that mattered.


Oxe was thankful when the woman stepped up, fighting off the chair. Helooked to the woman, nodding as he placed his hand against where his mouth was hiding and moved his hand forward in her direction, 'thank you'. However his thanks were short lived as the chairs came back. He scrambled to get up, but they didn't attack him this time.

His brow furrowed as he stared at the strange oblong shape they had brought to him. His eyes watched it carefully. Strange yellow eyes looked back at him amidst complete darkness. His eyes widened as he registered what he was seeing. His nose flared as he looked around him and down at himself, but nothing seemed amiss. He looked back at the strange object, but it was merely as it had presented himself, a oval shape covered in a grey cloth. Nothing with piercing yellow eyes in sight... He took a deep breath,looking back up at Alexis, who had by now found herself stacked several chairs high, her eyes wide in amazement and awe.

"This...is incredible..." she muttered as everything came into view. Sitting above the mists it was as if everything had cleared itself in front of her. There were shapes moving about, the mists itself moving in the directions of those that moved into it. There were strange objects and beings all about.

From where she sat Alexis could two figures, one looked perfectly normal, but its companion was short...child-like but... inhuman? She squinted her eyes trying to get a better look, was it covered in scales?

Beyond them, far away from either of them she could see a huge figure hulking about, seemingly minding its own business. A person off in the distance standing on the edge of the mists, but then seemingly convinced it should stay, simply turning around. The Mists themselves were alive it seemed... Nothing seemed to stay the same either, something would spark into existence, immediately followed by something else disappearing into nothingness. And was that the train? It looked like it. And there were people roaming and making their way through the Mists...

And...and... And suddenly she remebered what she had been doing before, the trance watching the mists had over her gone. She let out a surprised yelp "Oxe! Are you ok?" She called down, wringing her hands. Her eyes were wide "Excuse me, chairs? May I please go back down to my friends now?" She asked politely, a hint of fear in her voice.

Oxe looked up, frowning deeply. Something happened but what? Her eyes seemed to be searching for something, but he couldn't figure out what would startle her so much... She must have been seing something he didn't which worried him greatly. He nodded at her, to give Alexis some reassurance, and though she smiled back it seemed nervous, she was suddenly very worried about something.

Right. First thing the butler did was to notice the spear. And you would think that Kain, after seeing how the other man was lugging around a pale, half-conscious girl, would have the grace and sense to keep on track.

Not a chance. That line was ripe for the picking.

"Yeah, it's even bigger up close. I know, I know." The mercenary affirmed with a wide grin, his voice echoing with the promise of laughter in circumstances less dire. "'S what they all say." His good humor failed to leave the lines of his mouth even as he surveyed their ragged, bloodied group. Ah, what a mess. It was some comfort the beasts were giving them space though.

He made an odd, deep noise at the back of his throat, shoulders rising in time with his breath. It sounded suspiciously akin to a snicker.

Kain's eyes narrowed all of a sudden. "I'm lending you people this thing. Don't think of trying to stab me with it, or some other shit idea. I'll hate you, everyone else will hate you, and there will be crying. It'll be a bad time for all of us in general. Got it?" He thrust the spear towards the others, whomever of them was willing to take it, and glanced again at the treeline. The monsters were still prowling about, no doubt waiting for a chance to strike again. He shouldn't have found the situation funny; things that retreat only do so either because they're waiting for you to die off on your own, or because they have another card in their repertoire. Something was wrong. He didn't know if it was with him or everything else, and that was pretty damn irritating.

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest we keep moving. Don't want to patch Blondie upwind a buncha carnivorous beasties, right?" He jerked his chin towards the opposite direction and gazed at his fellows. He still had his longbow at the ready, though. Just in case.

---

---

"I think I'm getting the hang of it!" Seona exclaimed in delight, though her joy was dampened a bit with chagrin when she realized that her new acquaintance was the one keeping her grounded. Offering no other comment regarding their current physical closeness, the young lady bobbed her head and murmured, "I apologize for the inconvenience I am causing you, Michael." Still, she felt as though she was now less likely to bounce from side to side. How odd. The weightlessness felt as though it were absent from her bones, and the act of floating was more a mental task than a physical routine. It was quite a difficult concept. She supposed it was how a fish would feel if they were given feet in exchange of flippers one random day. The noblewoman was startled out of her thoughts when a new arrival joined the two of them.

Unable to give a formal bow, Seona settled for greeting Druuk with a nod and a welcoming smile. "Greetings. I am Sinéad, of the Argents. And you must be?" At first she wondered if he was irritated- she did just barrel through his compartment like a drunken fishwife- but then a chorus of silvery voices pierced the otherwise tranquil atmosphere of their carriage.

Seona turned to Michael when the curious little creatures all but vibrated in place from their excitement, "I have to say I'm quite worried about this, dear sir. 'Most probably' is still a probability." She gave him a gentle pat over their clasped hands, implying in what must have passed for a polite and grateful manner that she was ready to let go. With a sigh of resignation, Sinéad tidied up her appearance before lowering the volume of her voice, until it was barely heard above the song of the ethereal stardrops. With their proximity to each other, both men ought to have heard her words even so."Nobility are a poisonous lot. Let's hope this King Regulus is far more amicable than his human counterparts, hm? Or at least as playful as that adorable blip over there." The last part was uttered with some fondness for the starling who had grown quite attached to Druuk, and was now weaving around him with a restless vigor.

"Druuk, just Druuk," he said to the girl, Sinead of the Argents, bit of a pompous name, but he'd let it slide. He was sure she must have grown up somewhere you needed proper manners, maybe The Empire. Perhaps she would know things he did not. He gripped his swords once more then released them and cracked his knuckles. She probably wouldn't be much good in a fight, so Druuk would have to step up. The other one, they boy, he looked stronger. Not as strong as Druuk, but like he may have grown up having to work a bit harder to get his lot in life. "Didn't think dealing with whatever we're coming up on alone was the best idea, so I'll be joining you so we have a better chance of survival if things go south." Druuk wasn't asking to join the two of them, he was simply informing them he'd now be along for the ride whether they liked it or not.

Suddenly there was a loud sound, like many voices singing at once, he heard the other starlings saying that Regulus had arrived. The starling that gave him flight couldn't figure out how to get outside so instead flew excitedly around Druuk's head saying how this Regulus, the King of the Stars, had arrived. Druuk chuckled as it flew around his head, "how about we go outside together little one? Then we can go meet Regulus together?" Druuk heard Sinead mention he dislike of nobility, that was a point on which they agreed. Perhaps they could be friends after all, even if she was not nearly in fighting condition.
@Orpheus@Burthstone