The Midnight Train to Nowhere

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Collab by @Yakamoz, @Capt. Blu and @Fox of Spades

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Cement and dirt sprayed across the courtyard as the titans wrecked havoc on the execution grounds. The towering doors overlooking the courtyard were smashed off their hinges and amidst the chaos that was the battle against the possessed queen, several voices rang out.

One of those voices was Rook's: "Eloi, get out of here and take those humans to safety!"

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The trainee didn't need to be told twice and as the ground rumbled fiercely he whistled in an attempt to call Bento. The hellhound pup came dashing through the chaos, a piece of rope clamped tightly between his jaws as a wagon trailed haphazardly behind him. If they didn't leave now they'd be goners. Eloi quickly pulled himself onto his partner's back and began steering him towards the cluster of humans caught between two executioner bunnies. Bento tackled them out of the way and snarled, there wasn't enough room in the wagon for everyone but it would do the injured wonders.

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"Harper," Inadi's voice was weary. "Get in the wagon, you shouldn't walk on that leg."

Harper didn't argue, he'd only slow them down if he ran. With Ace's help, he clambered up the wagon and ended up rolling onto his back. By then his pants leg was soaked in red and he was starting to feel woozy. He allowed himself a moment to close his eyes, but the moment was short lived and he heard Numair muttering curses as he was assisted into the cart by a furious looking C.

The surfer had a hand pressed to his head and dark rivulets of blood seeped through his fingers and down his face. C tried to fuss over him, but he insisted he was alright and with Songbird's help, they got Cello, Dune, and Ise into the cart as well.

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"We'll catch up," Songbird wheezed. His pale face was the opposite of confident, but he wasn't going to leave the rest of the guides behind, and the guards, despite how tough they appeared to be would eventually be overwhelmed by the bunny guards' sheer numbers.

Songbird didn't have to repeat himself because as soon as the words died in his throat one of the executioner bunnies began barreling towards the cart. It would have made contact too if a blur of black hadn't barreled into it and sent it flying.

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Cobalt skidded to stop and flared out his wings protectively as a worried Toby sat shaking on the dragon's saddle. Tasha came to a stop on the cart's opposite end, an equally pale-faced Jasper, clinging to the reigns as if they were her lifeline.

The baby dragons pulled back their lips and snarled when their eyes fell upon their injured partners, but Tobi and Jasper were quick to run comforting pats across their scaly heads. They'd have to assess the damage later, for now they could only keep moving.

No words needed to be said and Eloi simply gave Bento a firm pat before the dog began barreling towards the gate, Harper let out a yelp as the cart tossed from side to side and C and Numair tried to ensure the injured didn't move around as much when the cart jolted.

Toby and Jasper nodded to those on foot, and after their friends began rushing towards the south most door and into maze of halls, both followed.

Behind them several more voices rang out as the queen commanded her guards to capture the humans and take the living list. The ground shook as one of the unoccupied titans began its own sprint towards the same doorway and its escaping targets. It tried sliding in after them but its head was too big. Frustrated, the titan began reaching inside with its paw. By then, the Lost Souls and their current companions were long gone.

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Riley's eyebrows furrowed as chunks of rock and dirt were sent flying towards them with each paw swipe. She wasn't sure if Bento or Eloi knew where they were going, but anywhere other than the execution ground was a-okay in her book. The sooner they lost the queen and the titan bunnies, the quicker they could find a way to the station. And Leila... where the hell was Leila and the Clockwork soldier? They couldn't leave without her.

She shot Ran a worried glance as they continued their mad dash towards who knows where.

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"Hey, Rils, chin up!" Ran wheezed slightly. He clutched his side but otherwise he was running fine. A good sign considering he had nearly been strangled earlier. "We're almost home."

"Riley, Ran," Inadi snapped. "Stay focused! It isn't over until we are on that train." He knew acting tough wasn't winning him any friends, but he needed to stay strong. He wanted to protect the Lost Souls and Jasper. If anything happened to any of them now that they were so close, he knew he'd lose it.

Rils merely nodded. She had seen the way Inadi kept checking on his girlfriend even though Jasper was far ahead. The tender looks he shot in her direction told Riley exactly what the boy felt at the moment. She decided to let it slide. Inadi was right, they cheated death countless times since the Clock Tower. Their experiences made Inadi's behavior pale in comparison. Almost forgiveable even.

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"He's right. We gotta get past these guys first!" As much as Ace didn't want to admit it, there was still a chance that they could have lost everything they had after making it this far. They couldn't get lose focus on the train that would get them home. "But we'll get there! We will."

Ran and Riley glanced at each other with new looks of determination and then nodded again to Inadi and Ace. They were so close. They couldn't lose focus now.

"We're almost out the castle," Eloi yelled from up ahead to encourage the rest. "From there the station is north of here."

A ton of bricks showered from above and Bento stopped in his tracks. The pup crouched forward and bared his fangs, as a massive white paw clawed out of the ground in front of them, blocking their path. Eloi kept trying to coax his partner back, but the hound refused to surrender.

Cobalt also crouched forward, getting ready to attack the enemies coming from behind, while Tasha pressed closer to the ground, ready to pounce at whatever threat it was next. More paws began bursting from the ground. Front, middle and center - their entire group was now split in two and surrounded.

The paws disappeared down the hole and soon the entire floor shook. Bricks and dust rained down on them, as wraith like zombies bunnies with elongated skeletal bodies clawed their way out of the ground.

"Ran, Rils, Ace, we're heading back!" Inadi called to the group. "There are less zombies behind. We have a better chance if we split." He took a deep breath. "Come on! We have to make sure that bunny thing doesn't get the list."

"Move, move!" Ran yelled, not taking a moment to contemplate the choice. Fast acting was all they could do right now considerng there was no time for anything else. Riley spun around, grabbing Ace's arm in the process, and ran the opposite way, following Inadi and Ran.

"Inadi!" Jasper yelled desperately, but her boyfriend never looked back. Fear and worry clouded her eyes. "Come back!" Staying seated on Tasha instead of running after him was hard. She wanted to make sure he was okay, especially after not seeing him for so long, but she knew she had to trust him. "Stay safe!" She called out to him as he finally disappeared from sight with the others.

Harper's reactions were the complete opposite. He couldn't believe that the rest planned on splitting up and risking getting captured. It was insane! "Guys!" Harper yelled above all the commotion from where he was hanging onto the side of the wagon. "Don't go!" He wanted to jump out of the wagon and follow them, but C and Nums both gripped his shoulder at the same time.

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"We need to keep the items safe," Nums reminded Harper. "Splitting up means that demon creature won't get her hands on everything if one group gets caught." He felt the boy slump. "Hey, don't worry. We'll all make it to the Train."

Before he could say more, Bento spewed searing flames at the advancing horde. The smell of singed fur and flesh filled the area, making Eloi and the Lost Souls gag. Bento then threw his head up and bayed to encourage the two baby dragons to attack as well. Together they might be able to take down these enemies and bring their friends to safety. More flames shot from his mouth as he lead his group onwards towards the main gates with Cobalt and Tasha acting as rear guard with plenty of encouragement from Toby and Jasper.

Riley looked over her shoulder and watched as the wagon jolted out of view. The others had gotten away, but now the four of them were headed the opposite way, deeper into the bowels of the castle instead of towards the nearest exit and their escape.

With the zombie rabbits blocking their way, they didn't really have much of a choice.

Muttering a curse beneath her breath, she raced after Inadi as they continued to move south, with simply the four of them in the group, they would need to rely on stealth in order to make it out alive.

But they didn't get far because as the group of four rounded a corner Inadi was jerked back by the collar of his shirt and a strong arm wound around his shoulders before a hand clamped his mouth shut. He kicked violently but his captor was stronger. The pale arms dragged Inadi head first into the darkness. Last they saw of him was a pair of squirming legs that went limp.

"Inadi!" Riley's yell alerted Ran and Ace to the sudden attack, but she didn't wait for them and instead rushed after Inadi into the darkness. They were so close now, they weren't going to lose anyone else! As she fumbled through the dark, someone tripped her and she tumbled head first into a pair of arms. The cold steel of the person's gauntlet muffled her yells, and like Inadi, she was quickly silenced.

"Riley!"

Ran and Ace leaped in next. After they vanished, a stone wall slid downwards from the ceiling and hid the dark recess from view. Everything went silent; the only clue that the group ever passed this way were their faint footprints left on the dusty floor.
 
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Part One: Collab by @Yakamoz, @Capt. Blu, and @Fox of Spades

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Numair and C kept Harper steady as the wagon traveled down the dimly lit halls. Based on the way Harper bit his lower lip whenever the wagon jolted, they could tell the pain was bad. Annoyance surged inside the surfer's chest. Numair hated the fact that he couldn't do anything to alleviate Harper's pain. He felt even worse knowing that he couldn't help the Nobodies either.

"C, I wish I could do more," he voiced out all of a sudden. How much the girl understood was doubtful, but still, being able to speak to someone made him feel a tad better. "Harper and the Nobodies are hurt badly."

C patted Nums' shoulder to console him and he returned the gesture briefly. He was about to turn back to Harper, when he realized that one of the riders was awake; a blonde boy was examining the unconscious girl.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" The surfer asked worriedly. He saw the boy lose consciousness earlier after being flung onto the ground, so there was a very real possibility that the Nobody might be concussed and not realize it. "You don't want to push yourself too hard."

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"I'm fine," came a raspy croak. "Ise seems fine too. Her shoulder stopped bleeding," Dune reported. Yes, he knew he was being stubborn, but honestly, a little knock on the head was nothing compared to what he endured during training. "Err .... thanks for the concern," he added as an afterthought not wishing to upset a potentially unstable Hooded Figure.

Numair and Dune exchanged nods indicating that both of them respected the other's opinion and there was no hard feelings between them. Dune breathed a sigh of relief, feeling glad that this Hooded Figure seemed more sane than the rest. Cautiously, Dune crawled over to Cello. He started reaching for the arm lying limply on the floor when the man's wounds were illuminated by a burst of flames from Tasha as she torched several zombies.

Images of a charred, bloody corpse flashed in his mind, causing Dune's eyes to widen in horror and he scooted back suddenly. The young rider sat on the wagon floor, staring at the unconscious guide. Eventually, he looked away. The tattered and bruised skin bathed in red light reminded him so much of Garret's corpse that he couldn't bear to be near the man. "S-sorry," he apologized, seeing Numair making his way towards them. "I can't."

Dune swallowed. "I don't know if the guy's okay." He forced himself to take another look but he turned his face away at the last minute. "We need to get him to a healer."

The rider sighed as he watched a worried Numair check the cat guide for a pulse. "If Noe was here, she could help...." His thoughts drifted to his missing friend. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen her since the Hobbit Hole. And Milo, where was Milo? The last time he'd seen his friend was when they were having tea with the queen, what happened after that, Dune didn't know. Was he...? The rider screwed his eyes shut and scolded himself. He must have faith that they survived too. "We need to find her. And Milo..."

Numair gave his head a soft shake. "He ran into battle, we didn't have the time to get him on the cart." The words were unpleasant and he didn't know if the other rider was still alive, but when they left he was still fighting alongside Songbird and the rest of the guards.

Dune hung his head low and muttered a soft prayer.

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Eloi who had been listening in on the conversation, turned to look at the passengers in the wagon. "We're almost out of here," he said encouragingly. "After the next turn, it's a straight run towards the main gate. We can stop and find a healer or your friend after that."

The wagon jolted again, as Bento pulled to the right suddenly and began picking up speed. Eloi's calm facade broke after he looked up and saw that heavy, wooden gates were bolted shut. Meu Celery! This was suicide.

"Hold on!" He shouted in a panicky voice now feeling even more sure that he knew what his partner planned to do. After all, this wasn't the first time Bento tried to breakdown the door. Eloi also knew his friend never succeeded before. "Bento's charging at the gate." Eloi cried shrilly already anticipating this would end in lots of pain for both of them. Possibly everyone in the wagon too! "B-Bento, NO! STOP! PARE!"

His nervousness began infecting the rest.

Cobalt and Tasha gave a worried roar, but the hellhound was already closing in on his target. Now, with less than 10 feet between him and the towering wooden structure, Bento lowered his head. Eloi let off a string of Celery laden expletives as he gripped Bento's fur tightly.

Knowing that it won't be long till they crashed, Nums clawed his way back to the front of the wagon and threw himself over C and Harper, apologizing reflexively when Harper screamed and writhed in pain. Dune, on the other hand, stared at both Cello and Ise lying side by side in front of him, but, in the end, he chose to only protect his fellow rider.

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"Bad dog, stop!" Toby yelled as he waved his arms frantically. "You'll hurt yourself." Still the dog wouldn't heed his warning, so Tobs urged Cobalt forward, somehow hoping they could overtake the hellhound and block his way. The black dragon dashed forward immediately. "We need to stop them," Tobs yelled to a Jasper and Tasha.

Jasper stared dumbly for a second before she began urging Tasha forward too. The dragons raced snout to snout and they were nearing the wagon, when Bento launched forward with an incredible burst of speed. He caused a powerful backdraft in his wake.

"Wooooah!" Tob exclaimed, gripping Cobalt's reigns for dear life. "Fight it, Colby!" He cried. "Fight!"

The winds continued whipping around and the folded wings burst open. Cobalt and Tasha swayed around helpless. Bit by bit, the two began sliding back.

"No, no, no!" Toby protested. "Doggy, STOP! Please!" He begged, allowing his own cries to meld with Eloi's, creating a cacophony that was barely heard over the wind.

It was too late. Bento's shaggy head butted the remaining zombies aside and rammed into the gate.

Booooooom!

Bento's head prevailed this time. There was a collective sigh of relief, when the doors flew to the ground on the other side and light flooded the dark passage. Eyes narrowed rapidly as Nobody and Lost Souls alike tried to adjust to the sudden brightness. Behind them the zombie bunnies screeched as the creatures turned to dust.


Meanwhile...

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Down the dirt road and beyond the woods, dust clouds rose into the sky. The sight of them made the Clockwork Soldier frown and hesitantly he turned towards the rest of his team and motioned for them to stop and stay quiet.

Immediately the golems did what they were told, and the soldier turned to Mica, the taller of his two companions. "Hey Mica? Can you please give me a lift? I see something, but I'm not sure if it's dangerous or... whoa, thank you very much." Before the Clockwork Soldier could even finish his sentence, his faithful friend had plucked him off the ground and plopped him onto his shoulder. A warning would have been nice, but Mica's help was very much appreciated.

As the Clockwork soldier attempted to clamber onto Mica's head, Howl and the lava golems remained absolutely still as Leila and Noe sat safely on the former's shoulders. Gaara and Lull lumbered slowly behind, the both of them acting as a rear guard of sorts.

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"Clockwork... do you see anything?" Leila asked, but what she really wanted to say was: Do you see them? It was the first words she'd spoken in awhile and there was no mistaking a tinge of worry. It'd been awhile since she'd seen any of the other lost souls and she couldn't help but worry about them.

"I don't see anything... oh wait." The soldier held on tightly to Mica's head as he leaned forward and narrowed his eyes. Beyond the trees he caught the faint outline of a wagon making its way down the road. The soldier's first instinct was to freeze up, but he noticed the humans in the back of the wagon and let out a relieved sigh. "It's your friends." Out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed Leila and Noe perk up a little, but he was worried because the people in the wagon didn't look so good. "They're fine, but I think they might be in need of medical assistance." He turned to Noe. "You're the healer, yes?"

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"Y-yes," Noe replied. "I will try to do my best..." Self doubt began plaguing the timid healer and she wrung her pale hands repeatedly. She hadn't ever healed anything worse than a shallow gash without supervision so she couldn't help worrying that she might end up being useless. "I don't know if I can, though. I mean if it's bad."

The Clockwork Soldier flashed her a reassuring smile. He knew what it was like to doubt one's skills. Countless times he'd wondered if he'd be able to serve his purpose, and countless times he'd fretted over his own skills, the first few cycles had been the hardest. "I'm sure whatever you do will help them, something is always better than nothing at all. Believe me. And," he smiled a little brighter. "We all learn from experience, yes? Let's go and wait for your friends now." With a nod of the head, the Clockwork Soldier slowly made his way down Mica's back then onto the dirt road where he stood patiently. It took awhile before the wagon jolted slowly out of thin woods and onto the dirt path.

Upon noticing the soldier both Bento and Eloi tensed, but Numair instantly shot up to his feet and shook his head. The sudden movement caused dark spots to dance across his vision but he persisted. "It's okay, they're cool." His eyes flitted from the soldier to Noe and Leila, and when he noticed their missing friend was alright, he allowed himself a relieved sigh.

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Dune also tried to stand up, but Ise kept a firm hand on his arm and kept him seated. Her free hand was pressed over her wound, but her eyes were focused on Harper. The boy had stopped bleeding awhile ago, but judging by the look on his face, she guessed he was in a lot of pain. He looked like he was about to pass out.

"Ise, it's Noe," Dune rasped as the corners of his lips quirked up into a smile. "She's alright." And then his eyes flitted to Gaara and Lull and Dune laughed. It sent a ripple of pain through his chest and he nearly doubled over, but he didn't care because he'd been so worried and they were alive.

The same sense of relief fell over Ise and she sat up to see it with her own eyes. The sudden movement sent a rush of hot pain across her arm and chest but like Dune she was just so happy to see Gaara and Noe. "You're both okay," she whispered almost in disbelief. "Dune, they're okay."

They could only hope Milo was safe too.

"Ise, Dune... y-you," Noe ran over the cart, climbed and threw herself at the two riders. Tears of relief fell heavily down her cheeks as she hugged them close. "I'm s-sorry," she stammered. "I-If I w-were there maybe y-you wouldn't get hurt." A small sob escaped her slightly parted lips. "I failed you."

Putting herself down wasn't helping but Noe didn't know what else to say. It was true. She shouldn't have left their because she was supposed to be the one to heal them if the got hurt. What if something worse happened? This thought made her feel even guiltier and Noe began crying for real.

As her tears wetted the fabric of Ise's top, a gentle green glow washed over her, Dune and Numair, who happened to be close by. Ise sighed, enjoying the soothing warmth that dulled the throbbing pain and weariness. "Oh Noe," she cooed, wrapping her arms around her friend. "Don't be silly. You weren't the one who stabbed me."

Dune nodded his head then reached out until his hand was on Noe's head. He ignored the dull ache in his chest and ruffled his friend's hair. "It's okay, Noe. We're alright," he whispered. "Don't worry about a thing." He felt a sting as thoughts of how to break the news about Garret rushed through his head. How they would do it, Dune didn't know, but now wasn't the time... and Milo, how was he going to break the news about him. His fingers skirted the top of Noe's head before his hand fell limply to his side.

Everything was such a mess, but at least for now, they knew Noe and Gaara was safe. Dune gave Gaara a nod, but the other rider was staring seriously down the road, as if he were a thousand miles away.

"Things will be okay, Noe." After this, there was no telling what would become of their squad, but she said the words anyway, speaking softly as she ran a reassuring hand down her friend's back. The searing pain from moments ago had turned into a dull throb and the girl did a double take, were Noe's healing powers working? It seemed to be the case. "Noe, your powers are working." Ise's tone was encouraging. "Can you help Harper and Cello? They need it a lot more than I do." Slowly, she nodded her head towards the Nobody's and the human's prone forms.

Numair and C were seated beside them, ensuring that they didn't move around too much whenever the wagon jolted.

"M-my powers?" Noe sounded baffled. She wasn't focusing on channeling her powers earlier so it was unlikely she could be healing anyone. "Ise, I wasn't healing anyone. I-I ... oh..." A glance at her hands and Numair, confirmed what Ise said was true. She really was healing them otherwise there wouldn't be this green glow. "I d-don't know why..."

Dune shook his head. "That's not important, Noe, try and keep it under control or you'll tire out to fast." The healer merely shook her head, indicating that she wasn't sure how. He frowned a little but decided not to pressure Noe too much. She might end up panicking as usual instead of healing Harper and Cello. Gently, he took her hand and led her towards her other two patients. "Here," he said encouragingly, as he picked up Cello's hand and pressed it between Noe's two hands. "Focus on Cello, especially. You can do this."

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Noe blushed and looked down onto the wagon floor. "I-I can try." The green glow radiating from her proceeded to envelop the hooman and Nobody, as she closed her eyes and pressed Cello's hand against her cheek. She tried visualizing her aura trickling gently down his arms and spreading inside of the poor man's body. As it reached Cello's feet, she imagined it spreading throughout Harper's body in a similar fashion, working from inside out to mend the damaged leg.

Sweat began beading her brow, as she felt herself flagging. Noe took a deep breath and pushed herself to keep healing them. Her lips began moving slowly as she sang softly. A soothing lullaby for those close enough to hear the whispered words.

"You're doing it, Noe," Ise continued to encourage, as a soft green glow enveloped the injured. The pained look on Harper's face turned into one of relief and Cello, who'd been unmoving for sometime, stirred lightly.

Awe sparked up in Dune's eyes, he'd never seen his friend do anything like this before. Noe had really improved, and Garret would never be able to see her progress. The follow-up though made Dune go quiet, and he only snapped out of his thoughts when he saw Noe begin to sway. "H-Hey, Noe, you okay?"

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Before he could say anything else, she began to wobble and Harper stared up at her with a worried look plastered to his face. He felt much better, but in contrast, Noe looked much more tired than she'd been awhile ago. The girl pitched forward, and in an attempt to catch her, Harper jolted upright.

The boy choked as his lips collided with Noe's, and for a moment, he expected the healer to smack him back onto the wagon floor. He waited, and after a split second of panic and silence, realized that Noe was unmoving in his arms.

Both riders had terrified looks on their faces, but not because of the accidental kiss, but because Noe had actually passed out.

Harper eased the unconscious healer to the wooden floor of the wagon.

"Ise?" Dune's voice was laced with worry. "I-Is this normal?" Is Noe okay?

The look on Ise's face mirrored Dune's. She didn't know, this had never happened before.

Thankfully, Clockwork, who had seen it all unfold strode towards the cart to help ease their worries. "She just burned herself out, it's a common thing with magic users, especially with beginners." He attempted to flash the kids a reassuring smile. "Let her rest, and she'll be okay."

Awkwardly, Harper backed away as Ise scooted towards Noe.

The girl placed her unconscious friend's head in her lap and ran a gentle hand through Noe's hair. Clockwork's words were reassuring, and by the looks of things, Harper and Cello would be just fine as well. "Just rest up, Noe," she whispered. "This'll all be over soon."
 
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The four had thrashed wildly, trying to break free from their captives' grips. It was when they heard a sharp "Silence!" whispered loud enough to get their attention. Inadi and Ran stopped fighting first. Those cold gauntlets didn't belong to the bunnies that terrorized them earlier- no they belonged to the guards! When they finally calmed down, they were finally let free.

Riley's eyes adjusted in the dark and she deciphered Layla, Aimee, Arno and Rook! "You guys escaped!" Her voice was still a whisper, but the happiness in her voice was clear. Like, everyone else, she didn't want anyone else dying becuse of them.

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"There are escape routes all through this castle. We know how to get away when we need to." Arno stated from the rear. He glanced back every so often to make sure no one else was following them. "The bunny guards only know of two of those exits. We kept these silent just in case there was a dire emergency and we needed to get the queen to safety- quietly."

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"Or if we needed to get away from the queen, quickly." Aimee muttered bitterly. Sure she heard them continously say that wasn't the queen, but from where she stood, that red eyed demon looked just like the queen they were supposed to know and love.

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Rook was eerily quiet, letting the other three talk.

"Anyway," Aimee added in. "Layla has a map of the tunnels, we should be in and out in no time." The thought of leaving the castle for the last time was not a pleasant one and thoughts of the aftermath of their betrayal and what would become of Nowhere were even worse. A part of her blamed the humans for this catastrophe because, before they'd come along, everything had been fine. Still, there wasn't much they could do now.

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Layla nodded her head, but as she reached into a messenger bag, the calm look on her face melted away. It only lasted for a split second, but her eyes betrayed uncertainty and Rook noticed it.

"What's wrong?" He asked as he strode towards his soldiers.

Each of them attempted to mask their uncertainty, even Arno, who looked as if he were ready to lose his temper and kick blindly at one of the walls. The youngest nobody felt a hand clamp his shoulder firmly and he stiffened in Rook's hold.

"It looks like we've lost the map, sir." Layla reported halfheartedly.

"We must have lost it during the scuffle," Aimee added in as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "These tunnels are a maze, we could be lost here for... who knows how long."

The last bit caused Arno to snap and the boy kicked at the ground sending clouds of dust into the air. Rook sneezed and he snapped back to his senses, stood upright and apologized profusely for losing his temper.

The captain of the guard merely waved a dismissive hand in response. He was just as unhappy about the situation as the rest of his friends, but they had no time to mope, not when several of those bunny monstrosities were after the humans.

"I don't suppose they memorized the paths...?" Ace mumbled to Riley, watching as the guards resolve died a little.

Rook's steely gazed fell on the confused lost souls and he nodded. "The sooner we start walking, the sooner we'll find our way out of the tunnels." Then he focused on his soldiers. "We've all been here before, think of it as a memory exercise."

Arno tried not to groan and dragged his feet behind him as he followed after Rook.

"That might be a no." Riley responded to Ace's earlier comment with a sigh. Together, the group made their way down winding corridors and avoided pitch black paths. As they continued making their way through the underground maze the sound of clinking eventually caught everyone's attention.

They followed the sound and as they rounded a corner they were greeted by the sight of a spacious chamber that was at least a few soccer fields wide. Inside the chamber were several mine carts filled to the brim with chocolate, the sound of pick axes hitting hard surface continued and loud clinks filled the room.

"Miners?" Arno asked. It was the first time he'd seen them.

Layla's nod, and the bat workers were Arno's only response. The group crowded in their spot to see just what was going on.

They stood in rows of three and there had to be at least twenty of them. Tiny purple bats wearing miner hats hacking away at the hard chocolate at their feet, while two bigger bats dressed in smart vests and bowler hats watched haughtily from the raised platform in the center. Behind the Queen's two Chiefs of Chocolate were meek bunny guards standing at attention. The curious thing about these guards was the fact that each wore bat masks that reminded Ran and Riley of Batman. Bat Bunnies, whatever.

Behind them were railroad tracks that led downward and out of sight.

"You think that's the exit?" Aimee whispered. "The carts have to go somewhere."

"Nice catch," Rook answered. "It most likely would lead to an exit."

As the guards discussed among themselves, Riley couldn't help but gape. What the hell? Nowhere was weird enough on its own but this took the frigging cake. "They're wearing bat masks," she let out a humorless laugh. "Bunnies in bat masks."

Arno shrugged. "Night vision goggles." He went on to ignore Riley as she turned to look at Ran, Ace, and Inadi with an exasperated look on her face.

Ace and Ran shrugged, just as confused as Riley, while Inadi simply shook his head. "Is that really what you're worried about? Is that really the weirdest thing you've seen since you've gotten here?" If Inadi had the time or energy he could have created a list of over the top things that he had witnessed while he was in Nowhere. This probably wouldn't have made the top 20.

"...Fair point." Riley responded, only for Layla to silence the humans.

There was a loud toot. Bright lights flooded the area, as a miniature version of the Midnight Train pulled up. Unlike the original, the body of this smaller train was a series of mining carts linked together by chains. A brown bunny in a grey vest and red coat holding a huge pocket watch hopped down from engine. He flicked away imaginary dust, as a weasel wearing an train engineer's costume scampered after him, quacking nervously with each step.

"Messieurs Fondanté and Trufflé," the bunny greeted, ducking his head in acknowledgement to the two well-dressed bats. "I trust that the Queen's order is ready as per our agreement."

"Oui, oui," Fondanté chimed, as he moved over to begin fawning over the Queen's personnel. "Oui have done what we can. These peasants, they can't work any faster." He sniffed while indicating the miners still slaving away. "Oui are so, so outraged." His twin added.

"Oh don't I know about peasants," the rabbit sneered, as he glared at his weasel companion. "Mr. Poppins here tried to help Cello from the gallows. I reminded him that he and his family can go POP if I demand it." Unpleasant laughing followed and even the two haughty bats joined in.

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"But s-sir," Mr. Poppins stammered. "My misus is Cello's cousin and Mary, she, asked if I coulds help him, sir. He was in great p-pain and h-he did no wrong. H-he was a guide."

"Silence!" The rabbit yelled, slapping the weasel across the muzzle. "I did not ask you to speak." He turned away and ignored the whimpering Nobody laying on the ground. With a sniff, the bunny straightened his immaculate coat. "Now my good bats, shall we adjourn for tea? I have some news on the traitors from the palace. New security measures and the usual pish posh."

Aimee and Rook looked grim upon seeing the bunny. Their faces made Arno and Layla stare even harder at the Nobody, but neither knew who he was. Finally, Arno made a face and turned to Aimee. "Who's the talking bunny? He doesn't look like a regular bunny guard."

"Shuffle along, I am seeing Mayor Spicy Tuna after this and maybe that nasty head crone from the Dark Side." He began walking towards the spot where several bat butlers were trying to lower a round table that was all set for tea. "I hope you have enough for three."

"That, Arno," Aimee spoke calmly, despite being slightly annoyed by Arno choosing not to address her like his superior, which was a real feat given the amount of stress she had at the moment. "Is the Queen's Head of Internal Security, the one person who can make you disappear with a flick of his paw."

Arno made a face, as threatening as the whole thing sounded, the head of security was still just a rabbit. A talking rabbit, but really, couldn't the queen have picked someone like Rook or someone more threatening instead? "Uh, we could punt him across the room."

Rook gave his head a firm shake and Arno stared on, puzzled.

"Don't underestimate the head of internal security," Rook spoke calmly, but Arno couldn't help but notice the apprehension in the man's voice. However, the head guard didn't say more, because if they played their cards right, they wouldn't have to deal with Fluffy Huggins and the tricks he had up his tiny sleeves. "We're not here to stir up trouble, just get to that train in one piece."

Aimee nodded her head. "Earl Fluffy Huggins is also the alpha of the hell hound unit too, troublesome ball of fluff. Best to keep clear."

Riley continued to stare on with an exasperated expression. A rabbit serving as the head of the canine unit? How Fluffy Mc Stuffins over there hadn't had his rabbit heart ripped out was a miracle, especially if the queen had beagles. "Okay? Get to the train, gotcha, but Arno's right, right? He's just an angry little bunny, and if worse comes to worst and we get caught, we can always just kick him, can't we?"

Arno nodded rapidly when Riley voiced his own concerns.

"Ace could kick like three of them away at the same time if she wanted to," Riley continued. "We blazed our way through dozens of them when they tried to get us in the castle. And Fluffy Huggins, what kind of name is that? It's very scary." She shot Ace a grin. "I'm quaking in my boots."

"I don't know Riles, that's pretty scary if you ask me." Ace silently chuckled, not wanting them to get caught. "But I'm sure, one swift kick could put Fluffy back in his place."

Ran cleared his throat several times yet he couldn't hide the amused twinkle in his eyes nor the smile on his lips. He knew it was serious but still! The name Fluffy Huggins was too cute. "R-right," he snorted and almost laughed. "Dashing pass a few knee high bats and a shorter bunny is going to be a piece of cake."

"Seriously," Arno smirked. "If girlies here," he paused and pointed to the troublesome duo. "If they get caught, I'd be laughing for days."

Aimee shook her head. When would these kids learn? In Nowhere, nothing was as it appeared to be and judging a book by its cover was a deathly mistake.

As amusing as it was, Inadi watched the others silently. Of course, he was still in his 'all serious' mode. They could joke all they wanted when they were on the train out of Nowhere.

"Ya know, one thing is kinda confusing though." Ace started, scratching her head. "I thought you," She pointed to Rook. "were the top dog around here. But... the top dog is a bunny named...Fluffy?"

"I'm head of the Royal Guard, yes. But that bunny is over all of us." Rook explained, not taking his eyes off the miners in front of them. "And underestimating that bunny isn't a good idea."

"Now, now, Earl Huggins," Fondanté tittered, as he held up a porcelain teapot with gold trimming. "Would you like some sugar with your tea?"

Trufflé was also keen to get in the bunny's good graces. He clapped the silver tongs enthusiastically as he fussed over the cakes on the tea tier. "Can I interest you in a carrot cake slice? Oui had chef make it specially for you. Oui know you like cake."

"Two lumps of sugar, please Monsieur Fondanté," Earl Huggins said silkily, as he shot Trufflé a look of disdain. "Funny you should mention I like cake, I had no idea you knew I was coming. Isn't that the purpose of a surprise visit?"

"Oui, oui!" The bats protested. "It is a surprise," Fondanté reassured the earl. "A very pleasant one," Trufflé emphasized. "We just like to prepare in case you drop by. We eagerly await your presence, Your Grace."

"Mmmm," Fluffy said finally. "And I see you still hire Mr. Cuddles. He is Unwanted No. 1 along side the demoness Martini, the treacherous Brandy and the shifty crow, Songbird. They managed to turn the dumb dumb sisters, Dissonance and Serenade, on the Queen."

"How horrible!" The bats exclaimed.

"Yes, yes, help us sniff them out and hand their dead bodies over," the brown rabbit said with smile, as he stabbed a butter knife into the table. He let go and ignored his hosts collective wincing. "We need good citizens like you. Great leaders who keep our community safe."

A tensed silence seemed to fall over the entire party. The Queen's right hand bunny was at it again. Calling the leaders and higher ups to silence the dissenters no matter who they are - friend or family. And, according to rumors, he was one of the select few who knew about the origins of the bunny guards. Humans turning into meek rabbits, it was the craziest rumor of them all, but if it was real then he most likely played a part.

As Fluffy got back into his seat, his nose began twitching. It wiggled about cutely and he scowled. "I smell Rook." He growled. "Fondanté, Trufflé, have your men search the area."

"Oui, oui!" The twins responded. "Men, spread out!" Both yelled and pointed in different directions. Their guards bumbled around and crashed into each other before finally organizing themselves into two groups. One group headed to the right and one to the left.

"Oui, Fondanté," Trufflé whispered. "Isn't Monsieur Rook head of ze Queen's Guards?" He eyed his brother nervously, tugging at the hem of his vest.

"Oui, but I want my head," Fondanté hissed back. "You ask!"

"No, no, I need my head more."

The two siblings broke apart immediately, when they saw Fluffy glare at them. Sometimes, knowing a little too much would be the fastest way to the gallows. They just need to trust the Earl and the Queen. After all, it was the Queen who made them the Chiefs of Chocolate Town.

"Sniff them out?" Riley asked, feeling confused.

Rook shifted slightly and he turned to look at Aimee. The latter sighed, knowing it was up to her to fill in the blanks. Again. "There've been rumors going around about the missing rebels. We think Fluffy Huggins might be involved." She paused again. "And there's been even stranger rumors about the bunny guards, once again, the rebels think Fluffy plays a part, a vital piece in the queen's chess game." Aimee sighed. "We dismissed these rumors back then ... because ... it made no sense that the Queen wanted you to fail. She was always so sad when bad things happen to you."

"Seems to make sense now." Inadi commented dryly. Even Arno silently agreed with him.

For too long, at least that's what Ace thought, they sat there sitting and waiting. That was until Ace pushed to the front of the group, right next to Rook. "I don't know about you guys, but there's an exit and we should be moving to it-" Ace was about to spring into action, slipping through the field, only for Rook to grab her shoulder.

"Are you trying to get yourself caught?"

"No worries, I've done this kind of thing plenty of times." Ace's comment recieved various confused looks from the guards, but they pushed it aside for the time being.

"I think I found a path sir." Layla pointed towards the edge of the mining field where fewer bats were working. "I think we can slip past them if we're fast enough."

"Good eye Layla." Rook looked back to where Huggins and the bat twins disappeared to once more. "We need to hurry."

"Maybe if we're lucky, those miners won't say anything if they see us?" Ran said with nervous optimism. The lack of response wasn't the best answer, and they all quietly began to make their way towards the exit. There were a few piles of chocolate they were able to hide behind, not to mention the train carts.

Ace lead the group forward, dangerously peeking every now and then to make sure they were still unnoticed. Occasionally, she'd whisper an 'all clear!' so they'd keep moving. "If she keeps doing that we won't be." Arno looked at the other humans as if saying 'tell her to stop!' Instead, the humans followed Ace's lead. "Sir-"

"Just keep moving." Rook said. There was no time for arguing and debating. They had to keep moving.

Everything was going smoothly until one wrong step from Arno sent a pile of chocolate tumbling over. The miner bats' ears twitched at the sound and they turned to see what happened. After a few chitters and debate, one bat was nominated to go check it out.

"Oh Celery, Sir, I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Arno practically squeaked as an uncharacteristic blush crept up his cheeks. He'd been so focused on Ace and all the noise she was making, that he'd forgotten to look where he was going. He could feel the disappointed gaze on his back and he frowned deeply. He needed to prove himself. "We should get moving, sir. We should run now." Arno was the first to get up, now that their cover was blown. He began to run for the exit with the others at his heels. Sounds of alarmed screeching got louder behind them. "That's not good."

A huge spotlight switched on from somewhere above. The beam coming from it illuminated the roof of the cavern, showing a huge bat symbol. On the ground below, the miners began panicking as soo as they saw the bat signal. One by one they chucked their pickaxes to the ground and ran in different directions. The masked bunny guards clutched their carrot guns to their chest; their noses twitched nervously as they looked out for the enemies.

Indeed, it was bad. Very, very, bad. And when Rook caught Fluffy Huggins looking in their direction, he felt a chill creep up his spine. He'd been in some bad situations before, but this one took the cake. When this was all over, everyone who remained loyal to the queen would want their heads. He, AImee, Layla, Eloi, Arno, they'd all have to go into hiding.

He almost regretted helping the humans, but he pushed on. "Fluffy knows. He must have smelled us earlier."

His words alone were enough to make Aimee cringe. What was hopefully supposed to be a quiet escape had ended up becoming a game of get out quickly.

"My, my, I see we have uninvited, guests. How very rude of you, to drop in uninvited." Fluffy stood up to his full height, a very un-terrifying twelve inches.

"Oui, oui, rude. Very, very, rude, monsieur," the bats chimed in agreement.

Fluffy's eyes glazed over as he paced around in tiny circles. "And you," he was speading to the guards. "Teaming up with these humans," he tsked then tapped his golden cane twice on the hard-candied ground. Swiftly, the cane began to transform into a canon almost twice Fluffy's size, but he lifted it with ease and pointed it towards the humans and the traitors.

There were no speeches or warnings, the cannon's tip began to spark and Rook immediately pulled those closest to him to the ground.

A bright beam of pulsating light shot towards them, obliterating all that stood in its path.

Smoke and molten chocolate fizzled into the air and after the first blast, the humans and all the guards were rendered speechless. All it would take to kill them was one hit.

"Run," Rook commanded.

He didn't have to say it twice, the humans broke off and began scampering towards whatever cover they could find.

Fluffy Huggins smiled when he caught two humans out in the open. Inadi and Riley had yet to find cover when he aimed his cannon at them, once again pulsating blue lights began to gather at the cannon's opening.

Rook noted they were too far away from any form of cover and that by the time he reached them they'd be nothing but charred flesh, a goopy mess on the melted chocolate floor. In his desperation he reached for a large chocolate ball on his left and flung it at Fluffy, hoping to knock the rabbit off balance and mess up his aim. Instead, the chocolate boulder smashed into the tea table and tea cups, plates, and sweets alike fell to the floor. The teapot was a different story. It caterpaulted towards Fluffy and smashed against his back. Hot tea splashed all over the back of coat, causing the bunny to yelp loudly. He dropped the cannon and bounced around in agony as he fought to remove the burning hot coat.

Rrriiiiiiiiiiiipppppppppp!

The coat split in two from behind and both halves fell to the floor. This was....

Fluffy stared numbly at the ruins of his beloved coat. He blinked back tears. The coat had been a gift from the Queen. He taken good care of it and now it was beyond repair.

This was the hoomans' fault!

Suddenly, rage flashed across Fluffy Huggins' face and the rabbit threw his teeny arms up and screeched. "DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM? I AM FLUFFY HUGGINS, EARL OF BURROWS AND HEAD OF INTERNAL SECURITY. NOW SURRENDER!"

What Riley did next was stupid, she laughed at him and Arno joined her. Immediately, Inadi clamped a firm hand over her mouth. Earl of Burrows or not, the rabbit had almost killed them just moments earlier. Either Riley wanted to die, or she was beyond stupid, or this was her breaking down under the stress. Inadi didn't know, but he was beyond irritated and fearful for their lives.

Arno snickered, but the laugher died in his throat the moment the sound of ripping fabric echoed throughout the cave. Something was happening to Fluffy...

Fluffy's face, arms and legs swelled rapidly. Tiny tears formed here and there, revealing black fur. Those cute beady eyes sunk into the rabbit's skull and an eery greenlight burst through the empty sockets.

"G-guys?" Rils swallowed. "W-w-w...."

"RUN!" Ran and Arno yelled together.

The brown bunny skin gave way and the black mass within expanded rapidly, crushing the platform it was standing on. Claws burst out from the swirling blackness. Next was razor sharp teeth housed in a huge muzzle. After that was a sinewy body and, finally, a pair of powerful hindlegs.

The massive panther-wolf hybrid roared, as he took off after his retreating prey. Chocolate chunks and jellybeans fell from the roof with every pounding step that left deep imprints in the ground. Fluffy overtook them in mere seconds. The entire group froze. Glowing green eyes bathed them in his sinister light, paralyzing most of them save Rook, Aimee and Layla.

The guard captain tried reaching for his sword. Huge eyes flit in his direction and the teeth flashed dangerously. "Aaaaaaargh!" The whirlwind of black, green and white bursting in the center of the group took everyone by surprise. They barely caught a glimpse of the huge head when they sent flying away. Soon the only person left was Rook.

He drew his sword but Fluffy countered quickly. White stars filled Rook's vision. He lay on the ground, blinking rapidly to clear his vision. Another dark shadow passed overhead followed by a crushing weight landing squarely on his abdomen. Rook gasped loudly as more stars danced in his vision.

By the time Rook recovered, he found himself pinned to the ground by a massive paw. His sword lay a good distance away. Feeling a warm, rancid breath wash over his face, he brought an arm over his face as he glanced up. He prayed that the brute won't take off an arm but what he saw made his eyes widened in shook.

Green swirling light inside the open maw turned red. The air heated up rapidly. Flames began licking from the back of the cavernous throat and Rook felt his eyes water. Few things managed to unnerve him but the Queen's beast was the stuff of nightmares.

"Commander!" Aimee pulled the nearest pickaxe out of the chocolate rocks, ran forward and swung her weapon over her head. The pickaxe's blade dug deep into Fluffy's cheek, but instead of blood, black goop seeped out of the grisly tear.

Fluffy was taken off-guard, and the extra second was just what Rook needed to reach for his fallen sword. He buried it deep into Fluffy's shoulder and when the panther tumbled off him, howling in pain, Aimee was quick to reach for his hands and pull him to his feet.

They didn't waste any time. Both guards began running towards the humans who were a good several feet away from them. Rook could hear Fluffy clawing his way back to his feet but the head of internal security went ignored because someone else already had Rook's full attention.

From within the train, Mr. Poppins the weasel was waving frantically. The guy was going to take them to freedom. Rook shot a quick glance over his shoulder and winced when he noticed Fluffy was once again hot on their heels. "The train!" Rook rasped as Aimee continued to drag him along. "Get to the train!"

From all directions, the humans began scampering towards the mine carts, leaping in at the first chance they got. Rook and Aimee were the last to make it, but once they were close enough, they leaped into the carts and hoped Mr. Poppins would be able to drive fast enough. A loud toot echoed throughout the cave as the train began chugging down the tracks. The carts jolted as they dipped downhill and Fluffy pounced. However, instead of ripping into flesh and bone, his claws tore into hard chocolate instead. The train was travelling farther down the tracks and through dark tunnels at breakneck speed, and the last thing Fluffy heard was the traitors' collective screams.
 
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Gallows Courtyard: Guides, Soldiers, Titans & The Queen

Collab by @Yakamoz and @Fox of Spades


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Heaps of cotton balls and red ribbons littered the group beside puddles of scarlet. Lifeless bodies and broken weapons lay in plain sight. The losses were starting to cripple the rebel forces and many soldiers began desserting their comrades. Martini sighed. There was only so much she and the bunny sisters could at this point. She had her hands full trying to bubble the wounded soldiers while the sisters worked tirelessly to provide medical aid.

"Sis, I can't do this anymore," Serenade sobbed as yet another soldier breathed his last despite her doing everything she could. "It's horrible."

"Be strong," Mr. Cuddles rumbled as he entered the bubble carrying another injured soldier over his shoulder. "We can't give up now."

A spark of hope shone in Serenade's eyes but it was quickly extinguished when she saw his expression. The dull eyes and sad smile told her that even he was starting to crack under the strain. "I guess ... " she hesitated.

Dissonance didn't say a word, instead opting to give her sister's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. There wasn't anything good she could say. To be frank, Serenade had every reason to cry, they were in hot water and it didn't look like things would get better soon.

The rest of the guides did the same, scrambling about in a mad dash to save whoever was still breathing. Thankfully, by now most of the choas had died down and all that remained were a few damaged titans. Still, the damage had already been done.


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"Everyone alright?" Songbird called out in hoarse voice as he scanned the courtyard for his fellow guides. Somewhere in the middle of the scuffle, he'd lost his favorite hat and had ended up with a bloodied shirt. Thankfully, he was still on an adrenaline rush. But the stain... it was atrocious and Brandy would probably end up upset if he saw it. Seriously, the rabbit could be such a worrywart. It was half endearing and half irritating.

Speaking of Brandy... his quick headcount revealed that the man was missing.

"Sir! Just a few more titans, sir!" A bloodied and pale recruit yelled as he pointed at the towering bunny titan who had cornered two pale-faced recruit and one bunny-eared man.

The realization was a slap to Songbird's face and his eyes went wide when the titan rabbit pulled back its fist for a death blow.

"Brandy!" You idiot, get out there... get out of there now!

The titan's fist collided with the wall behind Brandy and the soldiers but at the same time a hot blast of fire errupted before the injured titan's face, blinding it and singeing its fur. It let out a pained groan as it fell onto its back.

"Brandy!"


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The exhausted mage sank to his knees and barely managed to keep himself from falling face first to the ground. He allowed his fingers to dig into the ground as he panted heavily. Gradually, he felt a familiar presence standing behind him. "Glad to see you're okay, Song."

Songbird's expression was unreadable as he let out a quiet huff. "Worry about yourself more, yeah, Brandy?" He didn't mean to come off as cold, but there was an unsettling worry in the pit of his stomach that made him extra snarky. "I...I'm glad you're okay too. Now," his eyes flitted to the soldiers who had been quaking in their boots moments ago. "Let's put an end to this and dispatch this enemy."

One of the two soldiers continued to cower so Songbird yanked his sword from him and began stomping towards the incapacitated titan. The braver of the two soldiers accompanied him and, once they were beside the titan, both nobodies buried their swords into the giant rabbit's neck until it stopped moving.

Realizing that the giants could be defeated, the remaining soldiers formed small units and began sieging the remaining titans, felling them one by one. Queen D's clawed hands dug tighter into the arms of her throne.

Queen Delirium's clawed hand shot towards her face as fingernails began raking through flesh. More black ooze seeped out in the place of blood as black wisps began emanating from the tears in her skin. The voice that left her mouth was not hers, but the Mad God's.


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"Now, now little ones. Such naughty children need to be punished!."

As she stood from her throne, Queen Delirium raised both hands into the air and grinned wickedly. Swiftly she brought her hands down and in invisible force began to push down on everyone's surroundings and the nobodies present. A side swipe of her hand caused the walls of the fortress to quiver like jello. The immense pressure caused hairline cracks to spider along the surfaces of the wall.

"I guess that's how the cookie crumbles," Mr. Cuddles gasped. He couldn't say anything after that as the invisible force around his chest began increased. By now, breathing was starting to become a chore.

Songbird had a great retort on the tip of his tongue but it was a little hard to say something when the air is being forced out of your lungs. Instead, he settled on a simple eyeroll to show how much he appreciated Mr. Cuddles's observation.



Escaping the Chocolate Mines: Riley, Ace, Ran, Inadi, Arno, Layla, Rook, Aimee


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Continuous rumbling came from somewhere above them, making humans and Nobodies alike glance nervously into the darkness above. They knew that there was a ceiling above them and should it give way they'd be crushed. Riley tapped the sides of the cart she was riding in nervously. "H-hey, do you know there's this cake back home - "

"Death by chocolate?" Ran added. He wasn't too sure if that was a legit name or some pun that Riley was trying to make. Somehow at the back of his mind he conjured up a blurry brown mess. "I don't think I'd like it very much."

On any other occasion she would have chided Ran for stealing her punchline, but yeah, right now wasn't the time and death by chocolate seemed like very real threat so she let it go. Riley opened her mouth again but shut it quickly when a loud cracking sound echoed through out the tunnel.


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Fine cocoa powder, sugar and hardened marshmallow rained down on the passengers. Rook gave the unseen ceiling one last look before ordering the Lost Souls to start retreating towards the engine. "Move quickly," he hollered. "It's the only celery sticking thing with a roof on this celery stick of a train."

"Commander?" Aimee asked nervously as her eyes darted from Fluffy who was gradually catching up and Rook. She wondered briefly if the commander was mad enough to try and take down the Earl himself and that thought alone made her hesitate.

"Go," he ordered. "Head to the engine with Layla and Arno. I'll meet you there."

"I - yes," she said with a brief nod. She hated abandoning him like this but he was right. She needed to be there for Layla and Arno. The two of them depended on her and she couldn't bear letting them down too.

Rook watched as his second in command made her way with the two junior guards in tow before turning back to the hellhound. He unsheathe his sword from the scabbard and raised it above his head. "You shall not come any closer!" he roared, cleaving the chains that held the remaining carts to the train. The combined force of the train pulling forward and the chains snapping made them shoot backwards straight into the incoming Fluffy and tripping him.

Rook didn't bother lingering any longer. He turned around and made his way towards the engine too. Loud rumbling came from overhead once more followed by a serious of violent jolts. The last sent the man flying into Aimee and Inadi.

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Ace, Riley, and the two trainee's were quick to come to the soldiers' aid, but getting everyone back on their feet was easier said than done considering the ground beneath the train was rumbling so much. Mr. Poppins was trying to keep it together for the humans onboard but everyone could tell he was starting to crack.

Their situation was a very bad one, and from far behind them, Fluffy Huggins had managed to escape from under the carts. Effortlessly, he flung it at one of the walls and the entire ceiling above them made an even louder rumbling noise. The loud bang threw him off for a split second but soon enough he resumed the chase.


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"Is the fluffy bastard still coming after us?" Inadi asked through gritted teeth.

"Uh, yeah..." Riley mumbled in response as they watched him run.

From onboard there was absolutely nothing they could do to fight back. Layla threw one of her javelins at him, and while it'd sunk into Fluffy's shoulder it didn't slow him down.

"Just a little farther, Mr. Poppins," Aimee encouraged as they approached a distant light. It was a race with time and with each passing second the rumbles would grow louder and Fluffy closer.

Rook clenched his hands into fists before quickly making his way to a stunned Arno. He lifted the boy by the collar of his shirt before quickly reaching for the holsters attached to his belt. Bingo! One flash grenade coming right up!

"Close your eyes," the man bellowed and when everyone had done as told he pulled out the pin with his teeth and tossed it at the approaching Fluffy. There was loud bang followed by a bright light and Fluffy colliding into one of the many walls. This action, while it had stopped Fluffy, also caused more debris to rain down.

Giant chocolate boulders came crashing from above, one falling right on top of Fluffy. The oversized Maltisers ball twitched a bit before going still. A red jammy substance eking out from underneath it marked the end of the Earl. No one breathed a sigh of relief nor shed a tear for Fluffy's passing as they weren't in the clear yet. Based on the chunks of chocolate and puppy-sized jellybeans falling around them, the entire cavern was collapsing.

"Can you shovel faster?" Rook tried his best to keep calm but with the world falling on top of them anytime soon Mr. Poppins' fast was not fast enough. "If not I'm taking the shovel..."

"B-but ma Bess ne'er cried so much in her life," Mr. Poppins wailed as he tossed in another heap into the orange flames. "I don't wanna hurt her."

"Mr. Poppins," Aimee stepped in quickly as she noticed a familiar irritated tick starting around Rook's temple. "We understand but it is imperative that you and Bess help us."

The weasle hugged the shovel close to his chest, looking like a desperate man finally cornered. "Mine, it's mine! Bess trust me and only me."

"Guys!" Riley and Ran yelled at the same time as they pointed straight ahead. "Guys," Rils sputtered. "This isn't the time."

"What?" Rook snapped.


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"They're right," Arno shouted, looking more nervous than ever. Out of sheer desperation, he jumped up Rook's back, nearly felling the man, and twisted the commander's head so that he could see the obstacle too.

The irritated expression on Rook's face vanished in an instant, and in its place was a look of worry. Road blocks... they would inevitably slow the train down, and well, right now a split second could be the difference between life and death. "Pull yourself together man!" Rook exploded as he reached for the shovel and yanked it out of Mr. Poppin's hands. The weasel would come to his senses later and realize that what he was doing was for the best, but the train, Rook couldn't promise it wouldn't end up a wreck.

Mr. Poppins yelled loudly in protest, but Aimee quickly scooped the Weasel off his feet before turning to look at the terrified humans. "DUCK AND HOLD ON TIGHT!" That was really the only advice she could give right now, everything else would be up to sheer luck. After passing Mr. Poppins to a clearly distressed Arno, she rushed to the coal pile where Rook was shoveling coal as fast as he possible could into the furnace. With her hands, Aimee did the same, tossing the black rubble as fast as she could go.

There combined efforts caused a high pitched whine to leave the train's chimney. The train started picking up speed, but just as it did it rammed into the first road block and the entire train shook violently, tossing Rook, Aimee, and everyone standing to the ground.

Distressed yells filled the small train as people reached to cover their heads. Rook tried to get back on his feet but then the second road block slammed into the train making him tumble down again. He dug his fingers into Ran's shoulder while trying to fight gravity.

"Hang on, Bess ol' gal!" Mr. Poppins roared when his beady eyes saw they were about to fly off a steep cliff. He squirmed around violently until he was free from Arno's arms. Adjusting his hat, the engineer grabbed the gear stick. "You got this, Bessie!" He thrust his entire weight forward to force the thing to budge. "Hang on!"

His cryptic rambling dawned on the passengers a little too late. Loud oofs peppered the air when the train veered off rails and u-turned towards the exit. Mr. Poppins contemplated nagging at Rook and Aimee for almost killing them when Arno let off a death wail.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!"

Rils' prophetic pun came back to haunt them. More giant chocolate boulders smashed down from above and blocked the entrance and, for a split moment, the world went dark.

"We're going to dieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" someone screamed. "Celerieeeeeeeeee!"

Red hot embers pulsed eerily from Bess' furnace. There was just enough light for everyone to see the impending demise. Rils flailed around in her panic, knocking Inadi's glasses off his face.

"RILEY!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" She screamed, shielding her head with both hands. Screwing her eyes shut, Rils swore on the great green stick that this will be the last time she'd crack a death pun.

Chooooo! Chooooooooooooooooo!

Bess' buffer rammed into the first of the chocolate boulders and she sliced through it like a hot knife. Things got stickier towards the middle. Bess stalled but Mr. Poppins didn't call her 'Old Faithful' for nothing. The coal Rook and Aimee fed her turned a glaring white as temperatures skyrocketed. With so pressure building up, she gave one massive toot and plowed right through.

Liquified chocolate, semi melted marshmallows and burning jellybeans pelted the roof sounding like a richocheting bullets and denting the thin roof with each successful blow but ...

THEY WERE FREE!

White light enveloped the sputtering train and making the passengers blink back tears. Fresh air swirled around them, tickling sweaty cheeks and tousling chocolate crusted hair while gently blowing away the scent of burnt chocolate. Scarlet hair blew around like a victory banner as Ace was first to jump to her feet. She looked odd with her cap missing, probably buried under a ton of chocolate somewhere back in the mines.


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"Ah shucks," she grumbled, running her fingers through the chocolate dusted locks. "Must have lost it back in the mine." She took a step back and winced when she heard the sound of glass smashing under her foot. "Oooops..." Picking up Inadi's shattered glasses, Ace walked over and slipped it on the blind Inadi. "There you go. Not quite as good as new but it works."

His glasses... Inadi wanted to give Ace a piece of his mind, but after everything they'd been through, losing it over a pair of glasses would just be petty. "I guess that means I'll be getting a better pair when we get home."

Quite oblivious to Inadi's plight, Riley was the picture of triumphant. She was leaping up and down and punching the air. "Oh celery, celery ... OH MY CELERY!" Rils screamed, throwing herself at Ace and proceeding to give her friend the biggest bear hug ever. "WE SURVIVED!"

"B-but look at Bess," Mr. Poppin moaned, dropping to his knees and gripping his head between his paws. "She's hurting and covered in chocolate." He leaped off Arno's back and ran over to the wall, stroking it gently while cooing. "My poor, poor gal."

"We survived so she's ..." Ran scratched his head as he tried to think of the best thing to say in such a situation. "She's a hero. Yeah, she's a hero! She saved us all." It was a stretch but, at least, neither Rook nor Aimee, the other heroes, minded the slightest. If anything, Rook looked exhausted and irritated by the weasel's whining.

Similar to Rook, Inadi wore an irritated look on his own face. Ace cracking his glasses didn't help in the slightest, but he intended to wear it proudly like a newly acquired battle scar. "Hey, come on," he tried to be comforting but was far from it. "At least you're alive, right? I'm sure, uh, Bess wouldn't want you going down in a blaze with her."

This didn't seem to help Mr. Poppins so Ace tried to hop in.

She gave Inadi a slight whack with the back of her hand then beamed. Her ability to smile brightly no matter what the situation never failed to amaze the man. "Mhm, and because you're still alive you'll be able to fix up the train and add cool things like boosters maybe laser beams."

Inadi chided her about how impractical the idea sounded and Riley laughed. They'd almost been crushed in a canyon and those two were bickering as always... yeah, it was nice to see that in the face of absolute danger, some things would stay the same.

"Anyway," Rook interrupted. "I'd hate to put an end to this happy moment, but you humans need to get to the station." He looked down somberly. Who knows how many soldiers had been injured back when the canyon collapsed... and the guides, were they alright? As much as he and the guards wanted to help, they had to go back. "We can't go with you."

"What?" Riley asked. "Why?"

"We need to check on the rest," Rook gave them a salute. "Take care, humans."

Aimee nodded silently before giving them her own salute. The woman's eyes flitted to Arno and after he did the same, she looked to Mr. Poppins. "You can come with us."

Mr. Poppins shook his head and Aimee nodded.

"Get home safe, okay?" The woman said.

"Right, of course!" came Riley's response. "You too, thank you for everything!" What followed were a chorus of thank-yous and goodbyes as the soldiers leaped off the train. The four stood there, watching the train chugging away before turning and running towards the fortress.

They didn't get far when a tiny shadow passing overhead caught Rook's eye. The man's steps slowed for a bit as he looked up and shielded his eyes against the sun. He grunted. "Aimee, looks like trouble."

"Sir?"

"It's one of Delirium's pidgeons." Rook supplied.

Aimee's blue eyes lit up. A pidgeon so far from the station? Does that mean ... Oh celery! It did. A heady feeling of fear, triumph and something not quite familiar danced about inside her. The first group of humans have arrived at the station meaning victory was within reach. "Sir, we must support them," she commented in her usual no nonsense tone.

"Yes, we need to secure the fort and delay Delirium if we can."

"Yes, sir!"




Gallows Courtyard: Guides, Soldiers, One Lone Titan & Queen D


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Song's vision fogged up and blurred around the edges but he refused to cave. Beside him, the rabbit was putting up an admirable fight. It was two of them left now that Martini also passed out. He glanced at the poor mermaid lying on top of Mr. Cuddles and at the poor bunny sisters lying side by side with their hands barely touching.

Celery. Darn. It. Things weren't supposed to end this way.

He gasped and stretched out his arms, falling onto all fours. No, no, no, he wasn't going to bow to this demon. This Delirium or whoever she calls herself. Stubbornness shone in his eyes and steeling himself, the guide forced himself up into a kneeling position. Anything was better than bowing to this she witch.

There was only so much air left, though, and Song knew that it wouldn't be long before he joined the rest of the Guides on the floor. Finished. Maybe teaming up with the humans had been foolish. Hah, sticking his neck out for them was so unlike him, but he didn't regret it. At least he'd figured out the truth, right? At least they had all figured out the truth. At the very least, they'd fought for something that mattered. But the thought didn't make things sting any less, he still couldn't save his friends, could he?

His vision grew dimmer and he swore he heard fluttering from overhead. Angel wings? Feathers - no, a bird! Blinking slowly and stealing seconds of clear vision for his oxygen starved body, Song saw a familiar pigeon flitting round Delirium. Orange, yellow, colours of the birds often seen gathering in flocks outside the station. He couldn't hear what it was telling her, though, for he was way passed his endurance threshold and ears deaf to everything save for a strange dull ringing sound.

They were through, but then... the queen left? As his vision faded to black, he saw Brandy fall to the ground beside him as the queen disappeared in a column of black smoke that blotted out the sun.

.
.
.​


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"Songbird, Songbird," the desperate voice rang loudly in the guide's ears as Rook held him by the shoulders and shook him.

Slowly, the Nobody's eyes opened and Song found himself staring into Rook's desperate expression.

"Is everyone alive? Where is Delirium?" Rook demanded.

Songbird's head was killing him and he groaned before responding with a weak nod. His friends were unconscious but alive. "Gone... she's gone."

Those three words wiped whatever hope remained on the soldiers' faces.

They were too late. Now it would be up to Commander Sieghart, Eloi, and Garret's young riders to protect the humans at the train station. Most of his men were down and the Guides looked like they needed medical aid as well.

"Aimee," Rook called to his trusted second in command. "Send Arno and Layla to instruct the wizards to set up a portal. We're going to Sol."

Aimee did a double take this time. "Sir?" she asked not sure if she heard correctly. "Sol? Isn't that where ..."

"We have friends there," Rook reminded her. "Friends who would be happy to avenge Garret and support Commander Sieghart. I'd rather trust them than those at the palace." His eyes grew colder. "Aimee, the die has been cast."

She went silent as she struggled to accept the truth. Had she really chosen to join the rebels by supporting her commander? She, a traitor to the crown. Aimee bit down on her lower lip. Did she regret this? Somewhat but her loyalty was to Rook. "Understood, sir," she saluted.

Rook thanked her and watched her leave. His mind reflected on the little clues he had shrugged off over the past batches of humans. Suddenly, feeling the winds whipping up into a frenzy, Rook stared up blankly as clouds gathered overhead. "What the ..."

In the distance, gashes began tearing across the sky. These claw marks that raked the clouds began joining together and swirled around crazily as they formed a nebulous, black vortex. Such a frightening sight that made the lookouts back at the fortress quake in their boots. The men took one last look before relaying the message.

"Sir, looks like a tornado," a pale-faced soldier finally reported between pants having sprinted all the way across the courtyard. "North of here. We believe it's headed towards the train station.

Rook sighed. Celery save them all... Delirium was out for blood.
 
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Collab by @Fox of Spades and @Yakamoz

The Midnight Train Home

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Ise remained seated on the ground with Noe's head in her lap. Nervous energy coursed through the young spear woman and manifested in her playing with the loose strands of pale pink hair that escaped her friend's ponytail. Occasionally, she glanced at Harper slumped against the wall with his leg propped up by the messenger bag or at Cello curled up in a fetal position on the ground with Commander Sieghart's cape as a makeshift bedroll.

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" ... come and s-stop ... "

Cello incoherent ramblings made Toby and Jasper glance nervously at the cat guide from where they were sitting beside Harper. Like the previous times, they exchanged sad looks and tried looking away. Jasper gave a pale Harper's hand a tight squeeze. Leila, clearly lost in thought and feeling a little worried about Cello, murmured gentle words while she hovered over the guide.

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Leila sat on her hauches quietly as she recalled being frightened at night. Tossing and turning as blurry phantoms, dreams she could no longer recall, plague her sleep. Miraculously, when she opened her eyes, James would be standing by her bedside, rubbing her back and singing a song that made her think of fair Celtic women with their golden hair whipping in the wind.

"... please, please ...."

A strange sensation, an unfamiliar one, tugged at Lelia's chest once again. Her eyes held as sad glow as she felt herself reaching out. She drew her hand back shy of Cello's back and blinked. The memories of those happy, safe feelings James brought her when she was most frightened back on earth helped make her more determined and Leila rested her hand on Cello's side. She started rubbing gently while humming. After tensing up initially, the guide started to unwind gradually as he concentrated on the haunting tune.

Touching as Leila's song was, it did little to put Jasper at ease. "You'll be okay," Jasper whispered to Harper, doubting that was the right thing to say. This scene, along with Leila's song, reminded her of the dreadful witch fight where she comforted Avian as the man breathed his last. Only this time Harper was the one lying on the ground. She could tell that the pain was still bad just looking at his sweat drenched brows and tensed jaws. "Help is on the way," she tried reassuring the boy.

"Yeah, Harper," Toby exclaimed as he tried to sound as cheery as he could. A certain warbly quality in his voice told a different story, sadly. One which hinted at just how affected the bubbly teen was by everything. "Help is on the way."

Help is on the way. That phrase even when echoed by Toby still sounded false to the albino. Help never seemed to arrive in time and this was all her fault. She shouldn't have let Harper get down from the wagon on his own earlier. It only made his half healed wound worse. Oh Harper, she thought sadly, I'm sorry. Harper not hating her for neglecting him during those crucial few minutes made her feel twice as guilty. Jasper blinked slowly, squeezing his hand again while a single tear rolled down her cheek.

"I'm sorry," she apologized out loud for the nth time since they laid the teen down on the ground.

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"Don't... don't apologize," Harper whispered as his eyes met Jasper's. They'd all done what they could have and him falling after they'd arrived and hurting his leg even more was on him. Noe and Cello were much worse after all, him... well, he'd live. Anyway, what mattered was that they were at the station now and that the Clockwork Soldier was winding up the clock to open the portal. "We'll be home soon, okay?" Harper stated in an attempt to comfort the crying girl. "We'll go home and then things will be okay for real." At least for them it would be, his eyes flitted to Cello and then to the riders.

After they left Nowhere, the guides and everyone who'd helped them along the way would still have to pick up the pieces. The pain they were putting everyone through left a bad taste in his mouth and, when his eyes landed on Victoria, he couldn't help but think of Avian, Garret, and everyone else they'd lost along the way.

"Hey, Jasper?" Harper changed the topic. "How's The Clockwork Soldier doing?"

Jasper wiped away at her tears with the back of her hand then looked to the soldier in the distance. He was pacing rather far away, the clock pressed tightly to his chest as the hooded figures stood guard.

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Gary and Luke seemed to be arguing about who would get to hold onto Ise's spear, but thankfully C plucked it from both of them and handed it over to Sacha. However, Sacha simply shook his head given that his arm was in a cast and pointed to Numair.

The surfer took the spear into his hands then looked to Clockwork. "So we're finally going, home, huh? Geez, I honestly thought we were going to be stuck here for much longer." He tried to play it cool but the surfer was as anxious as everyone else.

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"Yes," came the curt response, "but we seem to be missing the key." He flipped the clock over to show Nums the key hole. "It shouldn't be that complicated..."

"Yeah," Numair responded, feeling his heart sink. A clock key? Where the celery are they going to find one? He cast the items listed on the living list piled at Clockwork's feet a dirty look then sighed. "None of these look like they'd fit that tiny hole."

As Clockwork continued staring at the clock helplessly, Gary decided to reclaim the spear. The midget tip toed quietly over to Numair and jumped onto his back. "Mine!" she exclaimed, snaking her arms round the guy's neck and yanking the spear. "It's going to be my new pole, Nums."

"Gargar, let go!" Nums protested as he tried steadying himself. His balance was completely off and, unlike standing on a surf board, there was no way of finding his center not with Gary aiding gravity. He shoutedly loudly as he crashed down onto piled up items and sent them scattering.

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"We need to wait for Bento and Eloi to return with reinforcements and ...." Victoria broke off mid sentence when she heard glass shattering. Both she and Dune, standing at the other end of the station, whirled round and stared at the HFs rushing around retrieving leaking glass bottles. "Dune," she motioned for him to follow as the rushed over to see what had happened. Despite appearing calm, deep down Victoria cursed the HFs. Those idiots had better not blotch their own chances of getting home.

Further from Clockwork and the panicking HFs, Ise, Tobs and Jasper were craning their necks, trying to see passed the scaly semi circular barrier formed by the baby dragons. They swore they heard shouting and glass smashing earlier. Unable to take it, Tobs yelled something that sounded like "brb" and squeezed pass a lazing Cobalt and Tasha.

"Do you think?" Jasper asked Ise worriedly. At the back of her mind, she noted that Lelia had stopped singing. A quick glance in the girl's direction showed that Lelia seemed entranced by something happening the sky. Jasper felt a little curious but the commotion the HFs were making made her worry even more. "Ise?" she prompted the rider again. "What happened?"

Ise shook her head. What else was she to say? "Ooops, there goes your chance of going home" sounded mean even if that was her conclusion at this point. She frowned as she struggled to find a more diplomatic way of preparing Jasper and Harper for bad news.

"Garret? Can have some of your chicken soup, please?" Noe murmured suddenly, rolling onto her side. Her aching body protested and, with the pain getting worse, Noe's brows furrowed. She rolled back onto her back, waiting for Garret to say something like he always did whenever they were sick or hurting. She laid there waiting and waiting. Instead of feeling Garret's fatherly pats on her head, Noe felt something warm and wet hit her face. Groaning, the girl opened her eyes and found herself looking into Ise's teary face. "Ise?" she asked in a confused voice. "Where's Garret? Where are we?"

Where's Garret? Ise brought her hands to her face and allowed her fingers to curl up against her scalp. Noe's innocent question had brought so much pain again that she wasn't sure how she'd be able to keep a brave face. As Garret's junior leader, though, she couldn't fall to pieces right now. She must be strong.

Ise took a deep breath then wiped her tears away. Forcing a smile, she lowered her hands and stared at Noe with red rimmed eyes. "He's out getting reinforcements," Ise lied. The last thing they needed was a shellshocked Noe. She'd tell her friend later, when this was over and they could finally rest. "You'll be okay, we'll all be okay and the humans will get to go home."

The lie left an ache in her chest but Ise continued, giving Noe's shoulder a reassuring squeeze for good measure. "Dune is here too and Harper and Cello are doing a lot better thanks to you."

A glance at Ise's eyes made Noe's stomach turn to ice. She sensed something bad happened but it didn't feel like the right time to ask. She felt for Ise's hand. Finding it, Noe clasped it between hers and returned Ise's smile. "I'm glad," she spoke gently. "Help me up, Ise, so I can heal them more. Cello, he was badly hurt."

Ise looked conflicted. "I ... you need to rest," she insisted, patting Noe's head the same way Garret used to do whenever they felt under the weather. She kept supplying Noe with reasons to keep resting but Noe was stubborn. The healer ended up supported by Ise and Jasper as she took baby steps towards Harper and Cello.

As Noe started healing the two, Ise could hear scolding in the distance and she did her best to ignore it as she tried to keep an eye on the overworked healer. Suddenly, a happy whooping snapped her out of her trance and Ise stood up. Just across Cobalt's shoulder, she could see Clockwork swinging Nums and Gargar round and round in a strange victory dance.

C inched closer. Swooping down, she casually bent down and plucked the clock off the ground thereby saving it from getting crushed. The three of them were acting too crazy even for her.

"The clock is too important," she informed Luke.

"Jasper, look!" was all Ise managed finally after she stood there gaping for a heartbeat or two. "They did it, they actually did it."

Jasper pulled Ise into a tight hug. Words couldn't express how happy and relief she felt right now. Speaking of good news, Jasper dropped beside Harper and pulled the boy into a hug, giving a slight start when Noe's healing aura enveloped her too. Recovering quickly, she beamed as she announced. "Harper, we're going home."

This was all Harper needed to know. Tears stung the corners of his eyes, but they were tears of joy. Being able to feel such giddy happiness took Harper by surprise as he had been glum since Abby got sick and he doubted he'd be this happy again. He embraced it anyway. Everything had been so bleak that a little ray of sunshine was like medicine he didn't know he needed.

Jasper brought Harper's face closer to her chest, allowing him to have some privacy. She closed her eyes for a bit. There was just one person, no four of them, not here yet. When they come, their little group would be complete. Inadi, she thought. Please be safe.

"Thank celery," Clockwork laughed as he turned to the two accidental heroes. "You figured it out." The items had mixed with one another and in its place was a brand new key. He picked it up and examined it closely, grinning brightly when he realized he could use it to wind up the clock. "Let's get you all home."

Inserting the key into the slot behind the clock, the Clockwork Soldier began to wind it.

"Wait," Numair interrupted. "We can't just go, the others aren't here yet."

"If worse comes to worst," Clockwork responded.

"No way in hell are we leaving anyone behind!" Numair looked absolutely furious at the suggestion, but also knew that if the others didn't show up there was a chance the queen had gotten to them and it wasn't like they could stay here forever either.

"I'm sorry," Clockwork whispered as he continued to wind up the clock. Tilting his head back, he stared at the gashes that began to appear across Nowhere's sky and the swirling hues and pulsating lights that crowded together and spun in the air like the beginnings of a tornado. Very soon, this entire adventure would come to a close.

Lelia let her hand fall to her side as she stared with wide-eyed wonder at the grey clouds overhead. Could they be witnessing the birth of a tornado? It seemed a little too much to hope for considering she was present at the genesis of a wormhole and lived to tell the tale. Yet as the clouds gathered in rapidly spinning rings, she became more certain. Suppressing her urge to squeal with delight, the girl took one last look at Cello and patted him awkwardly. "I'll be right back."

Cello shifted slightly after she lifted her hand but Lelia didn't notice him. She wormed her way passed the distracted baby dragons and wandered slowly towards the edge of the platform. Hundreds of math equations danced around in her mind while she tried estimating the speed at which each ring moved and their distance from the calm looking red eye. Based on her calculations, it seemed that the eye was growing and pushing the rings further away. That was unusual ...

As Leila stared on, a cold chill ran down her spine.​

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"Leaving the group isn't a very wise decision," it was the same static-like voice that belonged to none other than the Mad God. "Haven't you heard of safety in numbers?"

Leila spun around only to wind up eye to eye with Queen Delirium, but before the girl could do anything, a hand clamped tightly around her mouth and the queen pulled her into a headlock. "As I said, naughty children ought to be punished."​
 
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"And this is where it ends, children. It's bedtime," Delirium's smiling lips snaked to her cheekbones as her red eyes taunted her enemies. "Let me tuck you in and sing you a lullaby. The faster you sleep, the faster we can put an end to this silly game." She wrapped a second hand round Leila's throat, pulling the girl up so sharply that the girl choked. "Doesn't that sound good?"

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The static-y voice brought a look of pure rage to Dune's face. He clenched his fists tightly, hating this demon for the pain it caused Garret, Xerxes and Ise. And Milo, he was still out there too. They don't even know if he was dead or worse. Gripping the hilt of the dagger strapped to his waist, Dune let out a roar and charged forward hellbent on putting an end to the queen.

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"Dune, NO!" Ise's voice came crisp and clear from where she remained blocked by a quaking Cobalt. Her black dragon tried hiding hishead in her chest but ended up eclipsing her view of the entire scene. "No, Cobalt. Dune, no!" she protested over on over, feeling the same sense of dread of helplessness wash over her. She couldn't bear to see him end up like Garret.

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Victoria threw out her arm immediately and caught Dune in the chest. "Don't be foolish." She kept her arm firmly against his chest. "We all know what this Mad "God" is capable of. You'll only get yourself killed. And then what will Garret's sacrifice be for?" The last bit caught Dune offguard. The fire in his eyes extinguished and the teen stood there with wide, empty eyes staring straight at the enemy no longer feeling so confident.

Garret died for them and he thanked his commander by rushing into battle. If Garret was watching them right now, he was sure their commander would be disappointed. Dune glared at the queen once more then, without blinking, he tossed his dagger to the ground. As the blade clattered on the stone floor, Queen D laughed.

"Not so brave are you now?"

No one said a word, one move would be all it took if the queen wished to end Leila's life.

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Pushing himself off the ground, Harper managed to get onto knees that felt more like jelly than anything else. Pain shot up his leg as he struggled to stay upright. Thankfully, Jasper reached for his arm and steadied him.

"You can't," Harper croaked, still reeling from how quickly the tide had turned against them.They were going home together. They were at the station, moments away from the Midnight Train, but now one last obstacle stood in their way and it was an obstacle he wasn't sure they'd be able to overcome. Shakily, he took a step towards the queen, but he froze the moment she tightened her grip on Leila, eliciting a pained yelp from the girl.

The humans might have been too worried to do anything of significance, but the hooded figures didn't have the same problem. Countless of years had passed them by and with that, the loss of several friends. To them there was only home or staying in Nowhere and turning into one of the many mute bunny guards.​

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C shared a pointed look with both Luke and Gary before the three sprinted past a stunned Sacha and Numair. The former, as dazed as he was by his friends' brashness, rushed in a split second later. Perhpas this plan would get them killed, but if his friends were going to devote themselves to a plan then goshdarn it, Sacha would join them and give it his all. With large strides, he quickly caught up to his three shorter friends.

They rushed towards the queen from different directions, unflinching despite the cheshire-like grin the queen was sporting on her usually friendly face.

Luke lunged in first with a left hook, but the queen merely stepped to the side, dodging it effortlessly. She was instantly met with Sacha closing in on her for a grab, but instead of losing her cool, the Queen slammed the heel of her palm into Sacha's chest and watched with mild amusement as he was sent skidding across the station and falling onto the tracks. Gary watched on, horrified, as her best friend disappeared from view. "Sacchin! Sacchin!"

Immediately, Gary and C closed in on her from opposite sides, and the queen, though impressed with their determination, merely laughed. "As I said earlier, playtime is over." As C and Gary were within arm's reach, her free hand shot out and a hot, white burst of energy crackled in the air around her. What followed was a loud pop and an explosion in which the queen was the center. All four hooded figures were sent flying back as debris and patches of earth were sent flying across the station.

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One by one they rose to their feet, but Clockwork had seen enough to know they would only get themselves killed if they attacked again. "Enough," he commanded. "Time, time stop! Tick-tock!" The air shimmered briefly before the Hooded Figures were rendered immobile. "Sorry," he said sadly. "We can't have you hurt."

He waved his hand again. "Time, time, stop!" The air shimmered again. The remaining humans, the riders and the four baby dragons found themselves unable to move as well. "Forgive me." He bowed nervously. "I'll do my best to save your friend."
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Victoria looked to the humans and then to Clockwork, her expression blank. "Clockwork and I will handle this." There was sliver of doubt growing within her, but they were the most capable ones for the job. She unsheathed her sword. Avian's sacrifice wasn't going to be for nothing. She wouldn't allow it.

Clockwork nodded in response to Victoria's reassurances to the Lost Souls. He might not be the bravest warrior or skilled swordsman like Commander Sieghart but he'd try his darnest to support her. "Ready when you are, Commander," he informed her politely.

"Celery save us." Victoria murmured as she stared down her toughest opponent yet. She knew she was threading on dangerous ground but her desire for revenge extinguished her doubts. This was the person responsible for sending Avian to his grave. "Cover me," she ordered, disppearing in a flurry of red, blue and silver towards the demon.

"Time, time, fast! Run, run, we go. Tick-tock!" The speed boost made Victoria so fast that she became invisible to the naked eye. Clockwork blinked in amazement. This was the first time this ever happened. "Commander?" he whispered worriedly.

The words barely left his mouth when lines of blue and silver appeared behind the Mad God. Victoria paused for a heartbeat to regain her balance then wasted no time lunging at her opponent. Even with her mind focusing on her current attack, she was already planning her next step. She doubted that she'd get the needed opportunity to snatch the girl away with her opponent forced to play defensively.​

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Surpised by Victoria's sudden speed boost, Queen Delirium leaped forward just in time to avoid being skewered. "I see you've got some tricks up your sleeve, Clockwork Soldier, but will mere tricks be enough?" Red eyes focused on the blur of silver and blue as Leila was cast aside like a rag doll.

There was a dull thud as the shivering girl hit the ground.

Victoria, noting that Leila was out of immediate danger, lunged towards the Queen with her sword drawn. Streaks of silver shone here and there as Vicky swung her sword rapidly at the queen, a left strike followed by a jab and another swing. However, none of her hits landed and the queen's eyes merely shone a darker shade of red as she weaved effortlessly through the flurry of strikes and blows.

"What is a sword against a God?" Edith said in two voices instead of one.

And then she reached out her hand, the heel of her palm stopping mere inches away from Victoria's face.

"MOVE!" Clockwork practically exploded as beads of cold sweat dotted his face. It looked like an invisible weight had been shoved onto his shoulders.

Vicky dropped into a crouch and a split second later a white, hot streak of energy crackled above her, barely missing her head as it tore through pillars and everything in its wake.

The station started to rumble.

Maintaining the time freeze on such a large group while keeping Victoria safe took a toll on Clockwork. His fingertips turned a familiar greyish hue that reminded the Lost Souls of Martini. Harper's eyes shone with worry. No, not another one. How many more had to sacrifice their lives for them to get home?

The black haired human wanted desperately to tell the soldier to stop but, with the spell in effect, he could only watch in horror. Please stop. Please!

Clockwork hunched forward as he began panting. Part of him begged him to stop keeping the rest of the group in stasis but he wasn't so sure about it. Allowing them to roam around with the station so close to collapsing sounded too insane. He guessed he could try to give a little bit more. It wasn't like he was at death's door yet.

"Time, time," he panted. "Reverse! Back, back, we go. Tick tock!" He closed his eyes, focusing on restoring the weakened walls and roof to their original state before the evil bunny's attack. "Tick tock, tick tock," he murmured as he felt his entire being stretched to its very limits. Steadily, the grey patches engulfed his entire hand.

Victoria wasn't faring that much better herself. Every fibre in her body begged for mercy as she pushed herself to keep pace with the Mad God. "What God fears mortals?" she mocked, side stepping the bunny's lunge. "I've seen recruits fight with more courage."

Red eyes narrowed as Queen D spun round and grabbed the steel blade with her bare hands. "I see," the possessed queen sneered. "Shall we up the stakes?"

Victoria masked her shock well. She kept her steelly gaze fixed on the disfigured albastor face framing the red eyes. "Do your worse."

The weight countering her thrust vanished suddenly and Victoria pitched forward. Reacting on instinct, she plunged her blade into the ground to break her fall. Where? She forced herself back onto her feet and scanned the battlefield. There was no telling what the cunning wretch was up to.

"Too slow," the queen sneered.

Victoria's stomach tightened into a knot and she felt the sudden urge to throw up. She hadn't even seen the queen, but she was certain the woman was standing right behind her, ready to land the finishing blow.

It looks like I'll be joining you soon, Avian. She closed her eyes. I'm sorry.

As Victoria prepared for the inevitable end, the humans felt Clockwork's time spell weaken and Harper managed to find his voice. "Victoria," he screamed. "Get away!" Avian's blood was on their hands, this couldn't happen, not again.

He watched as Dune's fallen dagger fly into Delirium's hands. He closed his eyes, turned his face away and winced. In the silence that followed, he could hear his heart hammering in his chest. He counted five beats then open his eyes. His mouth contorted to a silent scream.

Standing between Victoria and the Queen was Clockwork looking a little greyer than before despite the golden aura enveloping him. As the light faded away, Harper saw a red flower blooming outwards as the tip of the blade burst out of the soldier's back. The Nobody gasped, sending flecks of blood flying into the air.

The sudden shift in circumstance made the queen smile. Wasn't this a pleasant surprise? The guardian of time was taking some royal dragoon's place. Extending her free hand, the queen gathered a writhing black mass and shaped it to form a replica of the dagger embedded in the guardian's abdomen. She plunged it deep into the Clockwork Soldier's throat and stared on in fascination as the look of shock on his face quickly turned into one of pain.

She dug the knife deeper, twisting it as a red river from the soldier's throat flowed downwards and merged with the overflowing crimson sea around his middle. A soft red glow began emanating from the queen and as she twisted the second dagger around cruelly, the color from Clockwork's skin began draining away and soon even his eyes had turned a pale and ugly gray.

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Clockwork's knees gave way beneath his own weight and he crumpled to the floor in a growing pool of blood. Leila stared with child-like fascination at the fallen man. Her mind still mostly blank although there were pinpricks of conciousness here and there. A pair of hands held her under her arms and lifted the girl gently to her feet.
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"You okay?" Dune croaked, looking totally ashen-faced.

Leila noticed that he kept his face adverted from Clockwork. She blinked slowly, feeling oddly uncomfortable. Her eyes darted around as she searched for something more interesting to say. "Clock," she whispered.

"Huh?" Dune's eyes widened slightly and he turned a shade paler. He couldn't stop thinking of the Clockwork Soldier and Leila had to remind him of the poor man. "Um..."

"Look. Look at the clock," Leila stated firmly. Her head tilted in the direction of the Last Clock

Dune's eyes flitted to the clock and he noticed something strange. The second hand was moving slower than it was supposed to as the ticking of the clock grew louder.​

Tick tick tick ... Tick tick tick ...

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Clockwork's eyes grew dimmer as his vision began failing him. He closed his eyes for a bit, feeling oddly weary. The ticking was rather soothing. Each beat synchronizing perfectly with his own heartbeat. He breathed a little slower.
Tick tick ... Tick tick ...

"You must guard time forever. It is your duty, your purpose."

The voice resonated from within a clock on the pedestal. And Clockwork winced at the familiarity of it. Where had he heard this voice before? The answer flitted just out of reach, but as he blinked stupidly at the hazy images before him, he realized he was standing within the Tower of Demise, back when it had just been built and long before he'd met Mica and Howl, long before he'd met any of the humans.

Memories of earlier days in the tower began bombarding his senses. He had been alone from the start, just him and the clock. And everything before that... there wasn't a before. Everything began with the clock and the tower and the familiar voice.

"I created you to be the guardian of time and the keeper of balance. There is still much for you to do. Your purpose has not yet been fulfilled."
Tick .......... Tick ..........

The declaration filled him with a sense of both guilt and shame. All he had was his purpose and now he wasn't even going to be able to fulfill it. The back of both his eyelids burned as memories flashed across his eyes.

There was the creation of Nowhere, the battle with the Mad God and then nothing.

Those memories seemed to be from another lifetime. The clearer memories were of him waking up in the tower with nothing but the clock and a voice telling him he had to guard it no matter what, that he could never leave the tower.

It had been so lonely, and yet, everything had a purpose.

A soft glow began to surround Clockwork as the memories and hazy images around him started to disappear, one by one, they poofed out of existence until only an all-consuming darkness remained.

There was the sound of shattering glass and he stopped breathing.​
 
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Collab by @Fox of Spades and @Fox of Hearts

Train Station: Victoria, Sacha, Gary, C, Luke, Numair, Toby, Cello, Jasper, Harper, Toby, Leila, Ise, Noe, Dune and Baby Dragons

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Vicky swallowed, staring mutely ahead. Her stomach felt like ice. Before her, Clockwork lay colorless in a puddle of blood. "No, no," she murmured softly. "We've lost."

She wanted to deny everything but she couldn't. Refusing to accept the truth would make a mockery of Clockwork's sacrifice. Her eyes stung as she slowly sank onto her knees. Why? Why in Celery's name did this have to happen? The Clockwork Solider was dead. Dead just like Avian, Garret and countless other Nobodies. She screwed her eyes shut, allowing a single tear to trickle down her cheek. Her thoughts spiraled endlessly in a cycle of self-pity and blame. Eventually, her mind latched onto image of a solitary figure standing with his back towards her. Avian.

Longing tugged at her heart, twisting it so painfully that she found it hard to breathe. Victoria was on the verge of utter despair when memories of happier days flooded her mind. Memories of her, Garret and Avian as young, carefree trainees. The two boys always teasing her and her beating them to a pulp for it. She squeezed her hands tightly. She must be strong! This demon had to be stopped or Nowhere will be destroyed.

The fire ignited in her eyes again and the woman staggered up to her feet. Her entire body ached ceaselessly, reminding her how far she had pushed her body. She managed to stand for a while before she had to lean on her sword. Come on, Victoria, you got this. She gasped loudly. A little more. I can do this! I can! Victoria fought to hold back her sobs. Everyone counted on her but she was useless! So useless! She couldn't get her body to move because she was so, so tired. Slowly, she slid back onto her knees. She remained in that position with her forehead pressed against the cold steel of her blade. Celery, give me strength, she begged. I don't know if I can do this.

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"Ise," Noe whispered. "We need to help Commander Sieghart."

The girl nodded her head as she ran her fingers over Cobalt's sturdy head. There was no way they'd be able to fight off Queen Delirium. At their current skill level, it was impossible but they would give this everything they got. This was for Garret, Commander Sieghart and the humans. Ise locked eyes with Dune, snapping the shocked rider back to reality. "Do you have your bombs?" she asked by pointing at his belt.

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The rider shook his head somberly. He'd passed them to Gaara and Luxa earlier when the two volunteered to guard the entrance of the train station. But they didn't have time to worry about that and Dune took a step forward when Ise signaled that they head towards Victoria. However, their little plan was cut short when the queen began making her way menacingly towards the shattered clock and the dead Clockwork.

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Having climbed up from the tracks and started taking stock of the ongoing battle, Sacha twiddled his thumbs. He could see the dead Clockwork Soldier and Vicky struggling to stand up. He swallowed, feeling a little concerned. Did this mean they wouldn't ever be able to go home? The severity of the situation had yet to sink in fully and, as he eyed the rest, he noticed the same blank stares on his friends' faces.

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Toby followed Sacha's line of vision and saw the same shocked looks mirrored on everyone's face. A different battle was raging inside him, making him feel like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He wanted desperately to keep everyone happy yet the dormant, mature side of him knew he won't succeed. Happy Toby was useless here. Everyone needed the other him. The boy bit down on his lips. It had been so long since he let the Other Toby take over and the thought scared him.

He breathed in deeply. There was always time to be happy later. Toby studied the people around him and decided to help the Hooded Figures first. After taking one last breath to reassure himself that it's okay, he rushed towards Luke, whose arm hung limply at the side. "Hey Luke," Toby called urgently. "Lu - "

A crunching sound resonated throughout the station, forcing Toby to look down. Beneath his feet were shards of glass and a broken second hand. The color drained from Toby's face. The Last Clock! Immediately, his thoughts turned to home and how this was their only chance. Blind panic blanketed his mind and Toby reacted by dropping to his knees and trying to gather the shards. "Guys, help!" he called out in a panicky voice as his eyes flit from C to Luke to Gary. "Guys, the clock. It broke!"

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The clock broke.

Leila practically doubled over when she realized this. If she hadn't wandered off, maybe they wouldn't have gotten into this horrible situation, maybe their only shot at home wouldn't be lying shattered beside a dead clockwork. Maybe they could fix it? She blinked slowly as she played around with the idea not entirely sure it was the best suggestion. The clock looked horribly beyond repair. Its ageing white face was peeling off to reveal something glowing inside and, between the cracks, something black and oozy, like oil, seemed to be leaking out. Was the clock bleeding? Or crying?

She looked away, feeling uncomfortable at the thought but her eyes were drawn towards the black thing again. The liquid substance seemed to display gravity defying properties because it remained peeking through the cracks as tiny floating wispy tendrils. Leila blinked. Should she join Toby and take a closer look? She really wanted to know what that was. Unable to contain her curiosity any longer, Leila took a step forward then stopped when she heard someone scream.

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"Where am I?" Edith stared around her with wide, blue eyes. This was the station, right? Why was she here? The queen groaned as she clutched her head. Everything inside was a big jumbled mess. Taking slow, deep breaths, she managed to calm herself. "How did we get here?"

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"We can talk later, Edith," the Mad God hissed as both eyes turned red again. Despite seeming to be in control, Harper observed that he was struggling to move forward and the teen wondered if the Queen was still fighting. "Be a good little, pawn. I have a date with destiny."

Those familiar words, the same ones uttered by Jean and the rest of the cultists, sent a chill down Harper's spine. Date with destiny? He swallowed hard before turning to look at Queen Delirium again. It looked like the queen had been subdued and the Mad God's smile only grew until the corners of Edith's lips practically stretched towards her ears.

He brought Edith's hands together and clapped. "Bravo, I applaud you, my pawns, for playing your parts well. Sadly, I am the only victor here." He paused dramatically. "That clock is the only thing that binds me to this world."

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"What?" Toby shouted suddenly staring in horror at the demonic eyes. "B-but you said," he stuttered. He pointed and accusing finger at the Queen as his eyes began filling with tears. "But you said we can go home when we have everything." He balled his hands into fists. "That was why we worked our butts off to find everything!"

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The rage radiating from Toby caused something to snap within Harper too. The boy's eyes glazed over. No, no way! Had this been for nothing? Did Haku, Leon, Emily, Vince ... did they die for nothing? Hurt brought the boy to his knees once more and he looked imploringly at the Queen. "Please," he begged. "You said we could go home."

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"I didn't say that bit was a lie now, did I?" The demon answered in a honeyed voice. "I needed all those things to summon the Midnight Train. But, you see, the Living List and the Scavenger hunt were all part of my plan to have you fetch it for me instead. Running around can be so tiresome, don't you agree?" He flicked Edith's long curls back then began strolling casually towards the Last Clock, confident that none of the mortals would be able to harm him. Inside, he could hear the annoying girl whining and begging him to spare the humans. Slapping himself across the face, the bunny's smile turned to a scowl.

"Don't worry Edith dear, you will finally be able to go home but I will come back with you. Now, now," he spoke to the queen who was struggling within. "It'll be fun, we'll get to see Earth together." Kicking Clockwork's body aside, the Mad God lifted up his skirts and stepped daintily across the puddle of blood. Soon he was in front of Toby. Holding out his hand, he demanded. "Now, child, give me the Soul Sealer, yes?"

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"No!" Toby exploded as he practically threw himself over the clock. "We're going home! We're going together, we promised!"

The blond boy curled up around the clock out of sheer desperation. His mind kept telling him to run but, he knew no matter how he tried, he would never outrun this demon thing. Plus, he'd rather die doing the right thing then knowing he let the Lost Souls down. They were going home and he wasn't going to let that meanie put an end to everything he and his friends had worked for.

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Jasper raced towards Toby, throwing herself in front of him and the Last Clock. She felt ready to throw up and pass out, but during the course of this crazy journey, the Lost Souls had become family, the closest thing to Rosen she had. And maybe Inadi was dead, but she wasn't just going to roll over and die without putting up some sort of fight. "We're not letting you take it."

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The amused expression remained plastered to the Queen's face as the same shadowy dagger from before began to materialize in hand. "Very well, then you will die here," came the Mad God's matter-of-fact reply.

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Hearing the false god gloating over them was the last straw. Vicky took one last strained breath then rushed towards her foe with her blade drawn. She stabbed at the Queen's chest but, before she managed to pierce through the fabric, an invisible force knocked Victoria across the station and onto the train tracks. Sacha spun round and dashed over to pull her up but a blast of white light hit him in the small of the back. He shouted in pain before falling unconscious onto the train tracks beside Victoria.

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Jasper kept her arms thrown out even as the queen raised her dagger into the air. She never dreamed she'd ever be brave enough to protect her loved ones but today was different. Did she regret it? Maybe a little. Inadi, she hoped he won't hate her for sacrificing herself like this. He was so angry and depressed because she got hurt in Orion. She prayed he'd forgive her eventually and move on.

"Toby, please tell Inadi I love him," Jasper whispered. "Also, tell him, I'm sorry."

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"Jasper!" Toby cried, trying to push his pale friend away but she reminded rooted to the spot. Tears streamed his eyes at this point as he begged her to move, hammering her back hysterically with his fists. "Jasper, don't!"

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The knife sang through the air and Jasper screwed her eyes shut. She trembled slightly, dreading the pain that would come when the knife pierced her heart. Was Clockwork as scared as me? She wondered briefly as screaming exploded all around her. Harper, Jasper, Ise, Noe and ... was that Leila? So many people cared and it made her happier than they'd ever know. They cared for her as much as Rosen and Inadi did.

Eventually, the screaming stop saved for Harper's soft "no, no, no" echoing eerily across the silent platform. Jasper could only assume that the deed's been done. She felt lighter and much stronger than she had earlier. Strange, death didn't seem so bad. Painless even. Jasper debated opening her eyes, half dreading what she would see. She imagined herself floating above her dead body like ghosts in movies. Come on, Jasper, be brave, she encouraged herself.

Cracking an eye open, the albino noticed something strange. While one of the queen's eyes remained a fearsome crimson, the other had returned to a softer shade of blue. The knife she had held in her hand moments ago had vanished into wispy nothingness and her expression had contorted into one of pain. Reacting out of instinct, Jasper pushed the queen away as Toby snatched up the clock.

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The Queen staggered back, and for a moment, looked as if she were about to cry. "I'm sorry," Edith was the one speaking now. "I didn't want it to come to this. I'm so, so sorry." And then the Queen was gone and once again the Mad God had resurfaced.

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"Run, Happy Boy!" C yelled suddenly while Gary shouted lots of encouraging threats about how she'd whoop Toby's ass if he let the Bunny Man get the clock. C paused for a moment nearly forgetting what she wanted to say. However, when she saw Toby running, she cheered him on once again. "Run, Happy Boy, run!"

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Toby felt like he was racing back in the City of Cogs and Gears again with all the screaming and cheering. It didn't help one bit! Everyone shouting like that made him confused and panicky. Where should he go? The boy jogged on the spot as his frantic mind tried to decide on the best direction. Finally, choosing to head towards Harper, Toby broke into a run. He didn't get very far, though, before he fell face first to the ground and dropping the clock. Toby didn't have time to worry about the clock because, after he rolled onto his back, he realized a shadowy tendril that grew out of Queen D's back was wrapped around his ankle. His eyes widened. "AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Next moment, the boy found himself dangling in the air beside an equally helpless Jasper who had a tentacle wrapped round her waist. Toby watched in horror as more tentacles burst out from the queen's back. His mouth felt really dry. Ace, Ace, where are you when we need you? He thought desperately. Ace ... that's it! Feeling inspired, Tobs decided to take Ace's place as cheerleader temporarily and, hopefully, get the rest moving. He cupped his hands round his mouth and shouted. "Someone, get the clock!"

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Dune and Gary rushed for the clock at the same time. They leaped forward, colliding head on. "Ouch! What gives," Gary snarled as she found herself flat on the ground. "You're not s'posed to hit your teammates, dum-dum! We're on the same side - oi!" A fiery rage lit up the Hooded Figure's face but she was rendered silent when Dune sprang to his feet and instantly yanked her up by the arm.

"We don't have time for this!" Ignoring Gary's threats and the throbbing pain in his head, Dune zipped forward and reached for the clock with his free hand. He held it close to his chest all while continuing to rush forward with Gary in tow. If they so much as stayed still, they'd be sitting ducks for sure.

He could feel the queen looming even closer. "Ise! Catch," mustering up whatever remaining strength he had, Dune tossed the clock at Ise then gasped as another of the queen's shadowy tendrils encircled him and wrapped tightly around his chest. He released Gary's arm as he was yanked into the air and his own yells mingled with Toby's and Jasper's.

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Ise could only stare on in horror as Dune struggled futilely in the queen's grasp. "Cobalt, come!" Not wasting any time, the rider clamped her fingers around Noe's wrists and began sprinting towards her approaching partner. She and the healer quickly hopped onto Cobalt's back, and soon, the baby dragon was flapping harder than he ever had before. Several shadowy tendrils shot towards them as they soared through the air, weaving left and right to avoid each new strike and blow.

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"I won't let filth like you escape," the Mad God declared as he dropped his captives. One by one, Toby, Jasper, and Dune fell to the ground with a thud. The humans and Nobodies could wait, for now he was after the clock!

Edith dashed forward, kicking up debris and dust as she zipped after the flying cobalt. The shadowy tendrils attached to her back all shot forward, racing towards its target. Soon enough Cobalt found himself struggling to weave through the several tendrils focused on knocking him out of the sky. One, in particular, slammed into Cobalt's side. The dragon was able to maintain his balance but Ise and Noe could only stare in terror as the Last Clock slipped through their hands and plummeted to the ground. Dozens of glowing fragments and cogs littered the ground around Clockwork's corpse. Noe pressed a hand to her mouth unable to say anything. Ise's attention, on the other hand, was diverted before she even had a chance to see what happened. Her eyes were fixed on the forest of black tendrils shooting towards them.

"We can't get through this," Ise admitted through gritted teeth. "Where's Gaara when we need him?" She grumbled. "He and Luxa better not be slacking by the entrance."

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That last thought was communicated telepathically via Aurora to a very miffed Gaara. He decided to let Ise's comments slide this once as he didn't want to give his position away. The teen pulled back the string of crossbow and fired. His black bolt whizzed through the air, narrowly missing a confused looking C, and knocked Queen Delirium's crown onto the ground. Her hair gathered in half up braids exploded in frizzy waves, falling over her shoulders and face. He smirked as he kept his crossbow trained on the queen's back.

"Tch," he snorted. "Thought I'd shoot her through the shoulder at least." Shrugging nonchalantly, the 5th Platoon sniper loaded a second bolt. "Luxa, you have 15 seconds to get there or else."

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"Aye, aye, Mr. Grumpy Pants," Luxa retorted as she signaled Aurora with a whistle. A streak of pearly purple caught Luxa's eye and she leapt off the ground and landed on her partner's back. Find Dune, came Luxa's command.

Instantly, Aurora took to the sky and it didn't take long for Luxa to notice her fellow rider curled up on the ground but alive. Get up, I have your stuff.

Her voice resonated loudly in Dune's head and she watched as the boy picked himself off the ground, a steely resolve evident in his gaze. They exchanged nods and Luxa tossed him a bag filled with a variety of the weapons Dune liked tinkering with.

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Dune caught it and gave her a thumbs up before quickly hopping back into the fray. He pulled out a handful of confetti bombs and began showering the queen in a mixture of smoky and colorful explosions. "Gaara, NOW!" he bellowed.

Gaara steadied his crossbow and released the string. It whipped forward, sending the bolt whistling through the air. The queen, however, spun round at the last second and caught his bolt out of thin air. Both her eyes flashed an angry red.

The sniper's eyes narrowed as he reached behind for another bolt when a crushing force smashed him upwards and against the wall. His entire vision turned white as he dangled near the ceiling like a convict hanging from the gallows. He clawed helplessly at the invisible hands crushing his throat. Despite being backed into a corner, Gaara refused to give up. He reached for the knife he kept in his boot and flung it at the Queen.

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His current shot was way off. The blade flew over the queen's head and she laughed. "Oh, how cute, you really, really want to play, don't you?" she mocked. "Too bad! It's time to say good night."

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As the queen taunted Gaara, Vicky noticed a glint of steel lying on the ground. It was Gaara's knife. Her fingers wrapped around the blade's hilt, and without wasting a second, Victoria propelled herself forward with her knife raised and ready to strike.

Metal came into contact with skin as the blade connected with the back of Edith's head. Vicky pushed forward with a battle cry. This was for Avian and everyone the queen had killed. The knife sunk deeper and Edith found herself standing stiff as the tip of the blade protruded from her left eye socket.

Surprised, the queen brought a hand to her face. A dark liquid oozed down her cheeks. The tendrils dispersed into puffs of black smoke. "Enough is enough," Edith sounded as if she were talking to herself but she was addressing the Mad God. "You've already done enough... just let them go." If going home meant allowing the Mad God to roam free on earth and ending the lives of innocents, then she didn't want to go home anymore. It was selfish--she was selfish.

From within, The Mad God sneered as he wrestled with Edith for control. He won and the possessed queen spun around to glare fiercely at Victoria. Queen D pulled the knife out from the back of her head. "Can't wait your turn, can you?" she spat. "Well, since you've been such a bad girl, say good night to everyone!" Laughing manically, she pressed the stained blade against Victoria's throat. "Say it," she taunted. "Say good night to everyone!"

The dragoon rolled her eyes. Was this deranged deity serious? She couldn't believe he'd want to try and humiliate her like that. There was absolutely no way she'd ever submit to him. Never! Vicky ducked her head down for a bit. When she finally looked up, she spat in Queen D's eyes.

Screams of rage filled the air. The sheer force generated sent everyone flying towards the walls or onto the tracks as the entire place shook violently. "Fools, you'll pay for this insolence!" she roared moments before a brilliant, blinding light enveloped the station.

----------------------------------------------------

Enroute to Train Station: Mr. Poppins, Ace, Ran, Inadi, Riley

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"Come on, guys!" Ace called from where she danced about on the roof of the engine. "We got this."

"Yes, come on!" Mr. Poppins cried encouragingly as he waved his paws around pretending he was waving a pair of pompoms. "Put your back into it, Inadi! Don't give up, Ran!"

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Grumbling came from below as Riley, Ran and Inadi pressed their hands against Bess's side again and pushed, one painstaking step at a time. Inadi was perhaps the crabbiest of the lot. He grumbled under his breath non-stop as he gave the weasel the evil eye. Why were they even pushing this broken down train? He was certain they'd have travelled twice the distance without this unnecessary effort.

"Guys, let's ditch them," Rils complained. She was sweating worse than a pig now and the back of her shirt completely soaked. This won Ace and Mr. Poppins no brownie points in her eyes either. "On the count of three, deal?"

"Deal," Inadi answered in a heartbeat. "Any place is better than here."

"Okay, one ... two ......."

"LOOK!" Ran exclaimed.

"What?" came several confused voices.

"No, look!" the adult shouted with a happy grin spreading across his face. "Dragons!"

"THANK CELERY STICK WE'RE SAVED!" Riley threw her hands up into the air and cheered, but then a thought crossed her mind and she stared at both Ran and Inadi with wide eyes. "Wait... those are Sol dragons, right? Not evil dragons sent by the queen to eat us?"

"What?" The color drained from Inadi's face. Did she seriously have to crush their hope and dreams? he wondered but held his tongue. "I don't know? How on earth am I supposed to know, Riley?" Sourpuss Inadi was showing. "I'm not some dragon expert!"

The two began to bicker as poor Ran was left to stare at the oncoming Dragons.

Ace, who was standing on the train with Poppins, began waving her hands in the air. Bad dragons, good dragons, the thought never crossed her mind. She simply called out to them as stars practically shone in her eyes. "Woo! Free ride! Come on, Mr. Poppins, let's ditch this ride." Ace was so excited, that she didn't notice tears welling up in the poor weasel’s eyes. Mr. Poppins dropped onto all fours and clung sadly to the roof of his dear ol' Bess. "We'll make you a better train," Ace comforted before she scooped the distraught Nobody into her arms. "One with laser beams and jet blasters!"

As Ace hopped off the train, the dragons began swooping in. One dragon in particular had several familiar faces riding on its back.

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Several faces lit up, but before the humans or guides could say a word, a bright column of light erupted in the distance. Tears stung their eyes as the blinding light only shone brighter. Nobodies and humans alike brought their arms up to shield their faces as a hot, white streak enveloped the world around them.
 
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Collab by @Fox of Hearts and @Fox of Spades

Enroute to the Train Station: Mr. Poppins, Ace, Ran, Inadi, Riley, Azalea, Lumi and Red Dragon


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"What the hell," Songbird hissed as tears stung the corners of his aching eyes. The flash burned like fire behind his eyelids, and as much as he wanted lower his arms, he couldn't. Brandy muttered curses from beside him while Lumi, Commander Azalea's dragon, let out a pained hiss. Songbird ran his hand across the dragon's back to calm it.


"It came from the Train Station ... " Azalea commented softly. She felt her heart sank as she uttered those words. Her daughter and the rest of the trainees were there. And, given that the strange bright light came from the station earlier there was a small possibility that they might be too late. Her hands tightened on the reigns slightly. "We need to get there fast," she whispered. "I'm ..."

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"Don't worry," Dissonance chirped brightly. She flashed the frowning rider her most cheerful smile while she nudged her sister to join in. "They have Commander Sieghart with them. She's really tough so I bet she's putting up a great fight!"

Sernade nodded her head, but she chose not to sugarcoat the situation they were in. "Commander Sieghart will definitely do her best."

Martini couldn't help smiling when she saw the two sisters doing their best to lift everyone's spirts. "They're right. We're here to help." She glanced at her fellow guides and received a kurt nod from Song. Brandy gave her a small smile back and she beamed a little brighter. "We've fought him before and we survived. I'm sure we can do more this time."

"Yes, but we'll celebrate later. We've got friends to save." Songbird wasn't the cheeriest guide around but he managed to muster a small smile.

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Mr. Poppins pressed his paws to his tiny face as his eyes sparkled. "Friends? Save?" he squeaked. "We be heroes, sir?" The weasel looked positively overjoyed at being considered someone's friend let alone being counted as someone worthy enough to save them. "Aye, aye, Mr. Birdy. We gots people to save!" He shouted, waving his paws around. "Come on!"

"I'm not Mr. Birdy. Call me Song," Songbird huffed, and had his hat not been destroyed, he would have pulled it gruffly over his face. "Anyways, less talking more flying."

"Yes, Mr. Song!" Mr. Poppins shouted gleefully, scrambling up the leg of the guides' dragon and sandwiching himself between the two bunny sisters. "Gets moving," he waved to the humans standing on the ground. "We don't wanna keep them waiting. They needs a hero and we're gonna save them."

Dissonance laughed. "Yes, we're heroes ... I guess?" She never thought of herself nor Seranade as heroes. They were musicians who made people happy with their singing and dancing. It's not like they'd ever wield a sword like Songbird or Commander Sieghart. Neither would they use magic offensively like Martini or Brandy.

"Actually, Song's right," Azalea snapped after she regained her composure. "We are wasting time. Ran, climb aboard Lumi with me. You too," she nodded towards Inadi, Ace and Riley.

Keeping to her usual no nonsense tone, one that reminded Ran of Ise, she urged Lumi to lower himself so it was easier for the humans to climb up. "Thanks," she murmured, stroking her partner's scaly neck before turning back to the humans. "What are you waiting for? Climb aboard."

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Ace looked mildly disappointed at having to climb aboard the blue dragon instead of the shiny red one the guides were riding. She considered protesting but Inadi nudged her forward by pressing his hand against the small of her back.

"Gotcha," Inadi replied. "We'll help Ms. Firebrand up first then Gramps." The young man adjusted his cracked glasses a little after that. He waited and waited. That was a great joke, surely someone would laugh, right? The pin drop silence made him panic. They knew he was just teasing them, right?

Riley having caught the smallest smile on Inadi's lips gave him a polite chuckle. Slapping his back as she passed, the girl said. "Don't worry too much, Inadi. It takes years and years of practice to become a pun master."

The boy's eye twitched in slight annoyance. "You'd know."

"Yup!" Not picking up on Inadi's sarcasm, Riley beamed brightly. "Because I'm a pro."

"Stop it with the melodrama," Songbird's words sounded harsh, but that was only because they were wasting time. "We need to go, now."

Riley and Inadi stopped arguing and, after helping Ran mount Lumi, Inadi gave a protesting Riley a leg up before climbing aboard. Azalea nodded when Inadi gave her a thumbs up. Leaning forward, she whispered into Lumi's ear and he roared. The other dragon turned towards him and nodded. The two dragons began flapping their wings and whipping up powerful gusts in the process. They crouched lower then kicked off.

"Woohoooo!" Ace threw her hands into the air which caused poor Riley to panic. Immediately, Rils wrapped her arms tightly around red head's waist, hoping to keep the Ace from slipping away. "This is really fun."

Azalea tried not to chuckle. "Too bad you're human," she teased. "If you were Nobody, I'd have you made a rider. You have the guts, girl."

Ace sat up straight and her eyes sparkled. A rider? That would be the most awesome thing ever. She tried replying the dragon rider but her words came out slow and distorted. Hearing those words, Azalea's head turned around a fraction at the time as if she were some character in a stop motion film. Her eyes widened ever so slowly.

Looks of horror started forming on the Lost Souls' faces. The commander's face was turning an ashen grey. Inadi parted his lips to yell something. Anything. Unlike Ace, though, no words came. He could only watch helplessly as the remaining colors bled from them, peeling away like ribbons and leaving a horrid array of grey in their wake. Lumi's grey wings beat one last time then they froze completely. Colored pixels still flickered here and there as a loud static-y noise filled the air.



Train Station: Last Battle!

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Footsteps echoed throughout the train station. They were accompanied by clinking of metal chains. Harper gasped as he felt a sleeve brushed pass him. Blinking rapidly, the boy rubbed both his eyes with his hands then stared.

Standing in front of him, with a giantic sword held at waist height and dressed in a white robe with gold trimmings, was a familiar figure. He blinked again. It couldn't be. He saw the guy died. The Nobody was supposed to be dead. Harper rubbed his eyes again, causing tiny dots to swim around his vision, but things were a lot clearer. Clockwork was alive!

The revived guardian turned his head towards Victoria and he bended down to offer her his hand. An apologetic smile graced his lips but, before he had the chance to even think of what to say, black chains wrapped round him, forming a body hugging cocoon. Victoria gave a loud battle cry as she reached for her sword and started hacking away at the chains. Black links clattered on the floor, disappearing into wisps of smoke. No matter how much effort she put into her task, more chains shot towards them.

"Fight it," she cried. "We can't give him the upperhand!"

Instead of replying, Clockwork sighed. It's time, he thought. A battle to decide the ultimate victor. He wished he could bring Victoria into battle with him yet he doubted he'd be able to live with himself if she got hurt or killed. She had done so much already and he was useless earlier. He bit down his lower lip.​

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"Well, well, someone has a few card tricks up their sleeves," the demon mocked. "Such a sneaky thing too. You had me thinking you were dead." Its fingers lengthened to form hideous black claws. Tapping a single digit lightly against Edith's chin, the Mad God's smile returned. "You won't fool me twice." He lifted his clawed hand up and Vicky found herself threshing around helplessly in the air. Black chains bound round her arms and legs, squeezing them so tightly that she finally let go of her sword.

So this is how it's going to end? Vicky's chin jutted out in defiance. She didn't regret this decision. It was the right choice, the one Avian surely would have chosen. Her taunts fell on deaf ears, though, as the Mad God ignored the bound dragoon and turned to face Clockwork instead.

Wisps began forming at Edith's feet, surrounding her, wrapping around her and crawled upwards. The tendrils wove together rapidly to form a second skin that reached to her neck. Her face looking unnaturally white against the oozing blackness was a death mask. A reflection of the deadened soul housed in the body. Long black tendrils poked out of the queen's damage eye and started forming a black sphere that transformed into a brand new eye. "There now," the Mad God crooned. "Your turn. Let's see what other tricks you have."

As the words left Edith's lips, several darken tendrils shot out of the queen's back and they gathered together to form a the head of a massive axe. The red eyes flashed with ghoulishly glee as the same tendrils making the blade swung out in an curving arc that would bring it dangerously close to Clockwork's exposed neck.
Tick ... tick .... tick ....
Clockwork closed his eyes and inhaled. His entire body began glowing with the same aura that enveloped his weapon. Vicky would probably hate him for doing this. He could already imagine her bursting into an angry tirade when this was over. But, he felt this was the best. He couldn't bear to see anyone else get hurt or killed. His eyes snapped open.
Tick ... tick .... tick ....
Color pulled away from Nobodies and humans alike. They tried fighting against his spell but eventually everyone remained still. Their eyes opened wide as if they'd been caught offguard at the very last second. Even the chains that hugged him tightly stopped writhing suddenly, making it easy for him push out and shatter them.

As the black links fell soundlessly onto the ground, the Mad God started to laugh at Clockwork. "Don't you think that time trick is getting old?" Wispy claws materialized out of think air before Edith brought both hands to her face and clawed away at what remained of the human-like exterior. Flesh gave way to black wisps and soon, what was standing before Clockwork was not the queen, but an apparition of black smoke and red eyes.

"Let us end this once and for all, Time Guardian." The limp chains by Clockwork's feet snaked around his ankles and with a flick of Edith's hand they pulled the soldier towards the Mad God. Unable to escape, Clockwork braced himself for impact and raised his sword to block the brunt of the Mad God's blow.

Claws collided with steel and, at that moment of contact, Clockwork's eyes shone an even brighter gold. Pushing the Mad God back, he placed some distance between them then slashed at the chains binding his ankles. The time guardian threw himself towards the ground and skidded out of reach, leaving a trail of dust clouds in his wake. The Mad God's red eyes narrowed. Dark portals appear along the ceiling and the floor and black chains shot out from these vortexes.

Sparks flew as the chains rubbed against each other in their mad dash towards the Nobody. What followed was a deadly dance filled with ducking, weaving, and the occasional trading of blows. As the two opponents locked eyes, the bunny's right eye turned blue for a fraction of a second and Clockwork realized Edith was still fighting the Mad God alongside him.

"Edith," Clockwork pleaded as massive black spears rained down on him from the ceiling. Sweat glistened on the guardian's brow as he concentrated on his footwork and expertly dodging chains and spears.

Without warning, the axe burst out from between the densely packed chains. It swung upwards, attempting to cleave Clockwork in half, but he leaped backwards and pulled several chains towards him so that they shielded him from the deadly blade. Pain flared along his fingers where the sharp edge brushed against them earlier but he was so high on adrenaline that the pain was barely felt. "I know you're still in there!" The axe was swung again and this time, Clockwork parried. "You have to fight him, please."

Perhaps it was mere optimism, but Clockwork believed he saw regret within the queen’s eyes. Choosing not to dwell on it, he bent his knees and awaited the next attack. Black wisps shimmered in the air. Clockwork brought his heels towards the ground. As soon as his feet were flat, he propelled himself forward in a blur of white and gold. He swung his blade forward as he neared the queen, baiting her to block the incoming blow. Seeing her clawed hands crossing protectively over her face, the Nobody leaped into the air, spinning upwards with his blade leading him.

It wasn't long before he reached the apex of his trajectory. He paused time. After adjusting himself with a cat's agility, Clockwork rocketed towards the queen with his blade extended. Delirium barely had time to raise her arms overhead. Metal impaled the flesh. Clockwork swung the blade sideways and looped off the dark and wispy limb. It fell to the ground and Clockwork’s eyes shone with worry. “Please, Edith. Wake up so we can end this.”

Chains shattered, disintegrating into wisps as the transformed queen writhed in pain. Patches of white skin started appearing beneath the flaking black layer and the eyes turned blue again. This time a little longer than before the red returned. "Edith," Clockwork called out with renewed vigor, feeling certain that Edith was trying to pull herself free from the Mad God's hold. "Edith, I believe in you. You can do this!"​

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Red eyes widened in rage. "SHUT UP!"

A black tendril replaced the arm the queen had lost and she swung horizontally in another attempt to knock Clockwork back or cleave him half. He blocked the strike with his sword and pushed it aside before advancing. Edith stumbled back clumsily and he took notice of how her movements had slowed.

"I know you're in there. You're not a bad person, Edith." Clockwork tried again.

The words caused the queen to stir and the Mad God scowled, unleashing strike after strike upon the Clockwork soldier who was relying on both footwork and swordplay to stay alive. He had been put on the defensive, but by then, Clockwork realized that his best shot at winning was by getting to Edith to overpower the demon possessing her.

"You don't have to hurt or kill anyone ever again," he brought his blade up to block an overhead strike and pushed forward with all his strength. Maximizing his opening, the guardian slashed at the tendril with the axe head. He panted heavily. Already he could see more tendrils slowly morphing into different blades. Clockwork got into position once more. "Even back then, in the memories we saw, you never wanted to hurt anyone."

A tendril with a sharpened tip, like a spear head, launched towards Clockwork and caught him in the shoulder. Blood trickled down his white robes, but he gritted his teeth and soldiered on. "You might not think it but you're a good person."

A good person? The words rang sharply in Edith's ears. Tears filled her eyes and fell in a continuous stream, washing away the outer skin. The red eyes widened in shock. "Edith, you're crying," the demon whispered as a strange new emotion began clawing inside his chest. Something he had never been able to feel before. This. This was the stupid girl's fault. "Edith," he yelled, clutching his chest. "Stop! Stop, you stupid girl! You're hurting us."

"I don't care," came a gentler, feminine voice from the same lips. Edith had had enough. Never had she felt so ashamed, she'd never wanted this and yet she'd played along for centuries in hopes of going home. She should have know the truth, or to be more precise, she'd known all along but had continued to deny it. Cycle after cycle, dead batch after dead batch. She'd been so, so stupid and innocent people ended up paying for her sins.

There would be no way to atone for all the pain she had caused but she could give it all up now and try to make the right choice. This wouldn't happen to anyone ever again. A fierce determined look took over Edith's face and her eyes changed to blue again. "Checkmate," she said calmly. "You lose."

"Yes," Clockwork exhaled. "You can still save them."

Black liquid began oozing out Edith's skin. It pooled at her feet and turned into a huge black cloud. A pair of red eyes opened. "No, Edith, I've only lost my queen."

The shocked woman whirled around and, without warning, the smoke poured into her mouth. Her eyes turned red. Laughing, the Mad God turned to look at Clockwork again. "And now, Time Guardian, where were we, hmmm?" An eerie smile began forming on Edith's lips again and she lashed out with a clawed hand.​

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Her arm stretching longer and longer in a nightmarish fashion as she tried to grab Clockwork. Just as the hand wrapped round the man, the queen's free hand reached for her throat and began squeezing tightly. Blue began appearing around the outer edges of the irises. More tears slid down the pale cheeks. "Time Guardian, use the Soul Sealer, please," she begged between gasps. "Please end this, send them home and allow me to right my wrongs."

As the hand loosened its grip, the Clockwork soldier fell to the ground. Shock was written over the Clockwork Soldier's face, but he didn't waste a second. With his sword held out in front of him like a lance, he propelled himself forward and, upon closing the gap between them, dug the blade through the queen's heart. It plunged deep into her chest and out her back. She hunched over like a broken rag doll, but as the color drained from face, a ghost of smile tugged on the corners of her lips.

Thank you, Clockwork could imagine her say as her eyes closed shut and as her breathing grew ragged. The black wisps turned to ash and the queen began to disintegrate before the Clockwork Soldier's eyes. Golden wisps took the place of flesh and blood, and slowly, these wisps disappeared into the soul stealer, leaving no traces of the queen.
Tick ... tick .... tick ....

The hands of the clock embedded in the Soul Sealer's hilt raced each other before stopping at 11:57 pm. There was a second burst of light and glowing feathers filled the air. Clockwork stood in the middle of it all, dressed in his original outfit instead of his white robes, staring at the pocketwatch now sitting in the palm of his hand. He marvelled at the immense power held inside the tiny clock, wondering if he was truly worthy to wield it. Commander Sieghart, in his opinion, deserved it more than he did.

Closing his eyes, the man allowed his magic to fade. Colors seeped into the monchrome world and sounds and sights bombarded his senses as he fell to his knees and gasped. Everyone gaped as they watched the ethereal feathers drifting to the ground. The baby dragons trumpeted with delight and started chasing the feathers around playfully while Ise, Noe and Dune struggled to keep them from trampling the poor Clockwork soldier.​

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"It's over," Clockwork couldn't believe his own words. "It's finally over."

Everything was rush, but soon, he felt two arms around him, Victoria hauled him up to his feet. Irritation and worry was written all over her face. He squinted at her moving lips unable to hear what she was saying thanks to this strange ringing sound in his ears. His head started lolling to the side as she shook him violently. That helped clear his head and his hearing returned.

"... fighting it on your own, what were you thinking?"

"Who what?" Clockwork answered drunkenly. "Oh, me?" he asked pointing a finger to his nose and Victoria shook him again. He flapped around like a ragdoll. "S-sorry, Commander Sieghart," he apologized as the world turned into dizzying whorls of color. "I ... "

"You're so stupid," Vicky scolded. "You, you know I was going to help. Why? Why did you do it?" Her hands stopped shaking the poor Nobody and she held him steady in front of her.

Clockwork opened his mouth to say something but his delayed nausea hit. The poor guy spun round and vomitted spectacularly all over Sacha, Luke and a confused looking C.

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Sacha and Luke looked like they regretted their decision to check on Clockwork. C, on the other hand, clenched her fists tightly. Messy, she thought. Horrid, horribly messy. She felt a homicidal urge rise inside her but, before she could start strangling Clockwork, Sacha started dragging her away, leaving poor Luke to be puked on again.

The soldier gripped Luke's shoulder weakly and began to pull himself up. "I'm sorry?" He didn't regret what he'd done but one look at Victoria's furious expression made him change his mind. "Next time," he practically yelped. "I promise I'll let you be in charge."

"Good," Victoria affirmed as she placed a steadying hand on the wobbly soldier's shoulder. "Now let's get them home." Finally, she could rest knowing that both Avian and Garret and all the other Nobodies who'd lost their lives had been avenged. She wished she could have done more but a sense of satisfaction fell over Victoria.

Mixed feelings were etched onto the Lost Soul's face. Was this truly the end? Words were scarce as they struggled to find their bearings but the silence was broken when a loud "choo choo" resonated throughout the station. From above them, within the swirling vortex, shone two bright pillars of light. A mere second later, a train of colorful lights and fleeting stars tore through the rift in the sky. It was the Midnight Train to Nowhere.

Victoria peered wordlessly as the double doors opened. She could see the worry and reluctance in everyone's eyes. The other group had not yet arrived and it was time to go. "The train won't wait forever," the dragoon stated matter-of-factly.​

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Harper looked up at her with trembling hands and spoke the words that had been on everyone's mind. "The others, they're not here yet."

This time it was Toby. "Do you, do you think they're..."

Silence hung over the group once more, only for it to be broken by Clockwork. "I'm sorry, but if you don't leave now, you won't get another chance." He stumbled forward his knees nearly giving way beneath him. "I'm sorry, humans. I'm so very sorry."

"No," Toby practically bristled at the implication. They'd been through hell and back together so it was unfair to just up and leave. He couldn't bring his legs to move and hot tears stung the corners of his eyes. "We have to wait! Ran, Ace, Riley, Inadi, they're still out there. We have to wait--put me down!"

Victoria had yanked Toby up by the collar of his shirt and was glaring daggers at the boy. "This might be your only chance. Are you going to let everyone's sacrifices be in vain? Don't be such a child." The disappointment on Victoria's face faded when Toby started to cry. Angry tears streamed down his cheeks as he looked away, embarrassed.

"Please, don't yell at him, Victoria," Harper pleaded as he took a step towards his friend. His stomach had tightened into a knot. "None of us want to leave them behind."
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Jasper nodded fiercely, as the usually meek albino made her way towards Toby and wrapped a motherly arm around him. "We have to know if they can still make it."

As the pleading and arguing continued, C stared at the wide open doors. Her eyes glowed with delight. She couldn't remember why this was so important but she felt like she had to get in. It was super, super important. Humming happily, she reached out to grab Luke by the sleeve of his cloak and marched towards the train and passed through the doors. She sat down.

Suddenly, she got up and walked back towards the doors. She stuck her head out. "Come," she ordered, pointing to Sacha, Gary and Numair.
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"We can't just leave...?" Numair began as he deposited Gaara on the ground having caught the falling rider earlier. "What about the rest?"

"Come," C insisted.

Sensing the importance of it all, Sacha practically scooped a squirming Gary off her feet as headed towards the Midnight Train to board it. Numair hesitated. He looked at Gaara and the Nobody urged him forward. Sighing, the surfer walked towards the train too.
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Leila watched Numair walk pass and she followed meekly behind much to Toby's disappointment. He considered calling her back when Victoria's words hit him. They had to go. The blonde crossed his arms stubbornly. "Harper, Jasper, go," he insisted. "I'll wait for them."

Harper wished to follow Toby's example but a pair of pale hands grabbed his arm. Jasper merely shook her head then began pulling the reluctant boy towards the train. The teen's let a single arm trail behind, reaching out to Toby but the other Lost Soul had his face downcast. Harper had to be dragged inside by Luke, Numair and Jasper as he kicked and screamed all the way.

A loud beeping sound came from above the doors to warn the passengers to stand clear of the closing doors. As the doors began to close, a disorientated Tobs stumbled in. Behind him, Victoria stood with her arms crossed, a silent sentry barring the young man's exit from his ride home. Tobs slammed his fists repeatedly on the glass windows of the closed doors, cursing her. Hating her for making him leave. Though, a small part of him accepted that this was also for his own good. "No, no, no!" he wailed.

Jasper, Leila, Numair, Sacha and Harper stood silently around him. They hated it as much as he did if not more. Yet no one could bring themselves to say anything. Slipping between Numair and Harper, C walked closer to Tobs and sat on the floor beside him. She poked him repeatedly. "Happy Boy, smile."

Toby pushed her away but she persisted. "Smile, smile!" She put her fingers to the sides of his lips and pulled them upwards. "See," she pointed out. "You smile now."

"No," Toby snapped as he wiped away at his tears. "Don't you get it? They're not coming home with us! Ran, Riley, Ace, Inadi..." Just saying their names made him feel sick to his stomach and soon Toby was sitting crossed-legged on the floor, his face buried in his hands as tears trickled down his cheeks. "They're here and they won't be able to get here because the train is leaving. It's not fair," he sobbed. "It's just not fair."

Jasper pulled a crying Leila into a hug and watched silently as Sacha yanked Toby back onto his feet. The tallest hooded figure wore a confused look on his face, but the confusion gave way to pity when Toby buried his face in Sacha's shoulder. Unsure of what to do, he looked to Jasper and blinked dumbly.

Seeing Toby cry like this caused something inside Jasper to snap and, with Leila in tow, she made her way towards both guys and pulled them into a tight hug. Soon enough Harper joined in, pulling Gary and Luke with him.

C stared on in a daze at the rest of the passengers. There wasn't a single dry eye in sight and that caused a strange sense of dread inside, one she couldn't fully comprehend. This was what they'd always wanted, right? She and the rest have been waiting for cycles and cycles so why did she feel so ... empty? More importantly, why were the rest sad? She sat with her hands in her lap for a moment, frowning hard as she tried to remember.

Blurry images filled her mind's eye. Humans from the past batches that came and gone. While most were nameless, faceless blurs, she recalled one or two names like Leonard and Susie.

She pressed her lips together and clutched her wrist tightly. Her eyes were starting to sting too but she couldn't cry. Wasn't she sad enough? No, she should be happy. She and her family, the Hooded Figures, they were going home. They'd get to tell the families about their deceased loved ones. They promised.

Promised.

The word caused something to click inside her mind and C sat up. She made a promise recently, didn't she? Her mind flicked back to the not so distant memory. She recalled a man, his face not as blurred out as the rest, drawing. Was it ... was it after ...? Pain cleaved through her head, making the girl scream loudly as she clutched her head. She screamed non-stop in confusion, pain and sorrow. "Luke," she called helplessly. "Luke, Luke, Luke..."

Luke, who was sandwiched between both Gary and Harper, tried to wriggle free from the tight bear hugs. People all around him were crying and it was making him wet. He wondered if it was starting to rain. "Where's the umbrella?" he asked, tugging at Harper's sleeve. A look of confusion passed over Harper's face and Luke rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Um ... it's raining on your face," he added, rubbing more tears away from Harper's cheeks. "You'll get sick."

As Luke tried to comprehend what was happening, Harper couldn't help but feel somewhat sorry for the Hooded Figures. He hoped that once they returned, they'd regain not only their memories but their feelings as well. "Sometimes," he croaked. "You just have to let it rain."

Luke hung his head. Kicking mutely at the invisible dust on the ground, Luke dug his hands moodily into the pockets of his hood. Shame rather than sorrow caused his eyes to tear up. Why couldn't he feel sad just like the rest? Halfway through his internal diatribe, C's voice cut through the several ones around him and he felt an invisible weight on his shoulders. Wasn't this everything they wanted? Freeing himself from Harper's and Gary's grasps, Luke emmerged from the hugfest and inched slowly towards his crying friend. He couldn't find the words to say, but he felt C reach for the sleeve of his cloak.

"C," he hugged her closely. "You okay, right?" He felt her nodding slightly and he rubbed a hand up and down her back. He didn't know where he learned this from but he felt it would be soothing. "It's also raining here," he commented, pulling away to have a better look at C's teary face. "So wet." He pressed his thumbs under her eyes to wipe away the tears.

"No, Luke," C gurgled. "Tears. Lots of tears."

"Why?"

"Artist Man, Zombie Girl, Troublemaker and Glasses are gone."

"Gone?"

"They're not here."

"Oh ..."

Luke stood there mutely in front of C. He watched her cry as he tried to comprehend what was going on in her head. Seeing her cry like that, though, made him feel sad too. Soon the two friends hugged each other and sobbed. Their crying melding gently into the sobbing coming from the rest of the Lost Souls.​



Train Station (After the Lost Souls have left): Mr. Poppins, Ace, Ran, Inadi, Riley, Azalea, Lumi and Red Dragon (Aerith)​

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Dune supported Gaara as they stood beside Ise and Noe. The riders stood silently, watching the train reaching the end of the tracks and taking off into the sky. Slowly, Noe raised her hand and waved shyly. Behind them, Vicky was lecturing the baby dragons on how to behave like proper dragons as she sat beside a sleeping Clockwork.

"Ise," Noe murmured. "I thought we'd be happy for them. Why is it so sad?"

Ise gave Noe a tiny smile and ruffled her friend's hair the way Garret used to do. "We tried our best," she reassured her friend before reaching out and grabbing Dune's hand. She was unaware of the faint blush dusting the gadgeteer's cheeks as her fingers fitted between his and she gave them a tight squeeze. "Most of them are going home. The rest ..." Ise paused. "I guess we can make them a home with us in Sol."​
Victoria fell silent upon hearing Ise's kind offer. She wondered if that would do anything to console the remaining humans. Going home had been their motivation for as long as she knew them and, with the Midnight Train no longer returning, she couldn't help wondering how long they'd last. The dragoon tucked at her loose red curls obscuring the side of her face. "I'm sure they'd like that." She assented. "Ran and Toby talked fondly about Sol."

"Yeah..." Ise agreed but deep down she wondered if it would make a difference. In the end, they'd all end up as mute and mindless bunny guards.

"It's better than nothing," Dune whispered forlornly as he caught a glimpse of a familiar dragon. Lumi was a little more than a white speck in the dark sky. "Hey... Ise, I think it's your mom?" He squinted and that was when Dune realized the rest of the guides were accompanying her on another familiar dragon. And was that the other humans?

Dune's eyes widened even more. "They're here! Look they're here! It's Ran and the rest!"

Surprise crept onto Ise's face as the dragons drew closer. "Mom?" she called loudly, cupping her hands around her mouth. "Mom!" The baby dragons began roaring as well. Cobalt was the loudest among them.​

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Upon hearing the din, Commander Azalea's eyes flitted to the train station platfom below and she caugh sight of her daughter's long brown braids whipping around. Azalea breathed a sigh of relief when she noticed Ise and the rest of the 5th platoon were relatively unharmed. Milo's absence was noted with a tight frown but she commanded the dragons to land. They could only hope for the best and look for him later.

Dust clouds whipped about as both Lumi and the red dragon landed. Commander Azalea wasted no time and, after hopping off Lumi, she rushed to give her daughter and the members of the 5th platoon a tight hug. "Where are the other humans?" She asked as she pulled away.

Victoria answered the question with a grave expression. "They just left for home on the Midnight Train."

Looks of despair flashed across the remaining humans' faces but, before they could say a word, they were silenced by Azalea's declaration. "Well then, we have a train to catch!"

"Mom, that's crazy!" Ise protested. She knew a full grown dragon was fast but catching the train was impossible. Right? Ise clenched her fists. As much as she thought her mom was crazy, she knew that the commander was the one person to pull off such a miracle. And, if that happened, she wanted to be there to say goodbye. "Mom, I'm coming too!" Her voice was filled with determination. Turning to the rest of the platoon, the junior commander nodded. "Guys, take care of Cobalt, okay?"

Dune scuffed the tip of his cap and cleared his throat. The blush from earlier still visible. "Alright," he croaked. "Get them home, Ise, Commander Azalea!"

Ise mouthed "thank you" as her mom grabbed hold of her hand. The girl stumbled along before breaking into a sprint. "Songbird, get Aerith in the air now! Lumi, go." Azalea shoved her daughter up moments before Lumi kicked off the ground.

The rider commander crouched low and leaped as Lumi swung his tail pass her. She clung on tightly as her partner threw his tail upwards. Whooping, the woman let go. She hugged her knees, somersaulting in the air then landed gracefully on her usual seat, the ridge nearest Lumi's wing joints. "Faster, Lumi!" she urged. "Remember Thunderbolt? We got to be like lightning if we want to whoop Commander Jared's ass in the next race."

Lumi roared his aprroval, startling the other passengers. Fine, white mist issued from his snout as he angled himself upwards and folded his wings flat against his body. The winds around them grew frigid as the updraft jettisoned them towards the clouds and far above the snaking train. Everyone - barring Ace and Azalea - screamed. Ise hugged Inadi so hard that his screams turned into choking. "Mom, you're going the wrong way!" she exclaimed. "The train was just ahead."

"No, Ise," Azalea yelled back with a smirk on her lips. "We're going to meet the train head on."

"We're WHAT! Are you crazy, commander? You'll get us all KILLED!" Song screamed on the red dragon who was a full dragon's length behind.

"We're meeting them head on," Azalea laughed. "Don't tell me you're too chicken!"

"I'm not chicken," Songbird protested, looking absolutely distraught. "I just have a sense of self-preservation!"

Bursting through the rings of poufy clouds, Lumi's wings flared. The reddening light of sunset danced all over his scales, reminding Riley of the polar ice caps. She would have exclaimed about how pretty Lumi looked had she not heard the blaring of a train fog horn.

Lumi and Aerith hovered among the clouds with their wings spread. Their mirror-like eyes watching the Midnight Train making one last turn and pulling up onto the same level. They remained there, not moving much save for the occasional wing beat, as the train sped towards them.

"Starting from 10," Azalea informed her partner. "10 ... 9 ... 8 .... " Without giving the humans a chance to get accustomed to her countdown, she let out a booming "ONE" and Lumi charged straight for the train. His snout glanced the cold steel of the train's front before he allowed himself to be tossed up by the winds. Azalea tapped his side. He flared out his wings once more, landing flat on the train's roof.

"Good job, Lumi," she praised, leaping off him and beckoning the humans to join her. The terrified humans followed after, most of them screaming their lungs out as they crashed down beside her. Even Ace, the resident daredevil, looked somewhat uncertain and Inadi, the poor guy was green in the face and shaking like a leaf. The humans' nervousness only increased when Aerith refused to allow the guides to hop onto the roof. She purposely flew high above making it risky to attempt jumping down. Lumi called her to join him on the roof but she merely shook her head and remained a safe distance away.​

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"Be careful," Dissonance shouted from above. She squeaked loudly as the air buffeted Aerith and clung tightly to the red dragon's reigns. "Don't fly off the train."

"Sis!" Serenade chided. "You're making them more likely to slide off."

Both sisters starting bickering over whether or not they would make the humans worst off by reminding them about the strong updrafts. "Both of you," Brandy hissed. "If you want the humans to live, you'll keep quiet and let them concentrate!" The humans were under enough pressure already. He scowled and the bunny sisters found themselves quieting down, Serenade mumbling angrily at her sister, who was the only reason they'd gotten scolded in the first place. As the sisters continued to bicker in hushed voices, Brandy set his sights on the struggling humans. Any longer out in the open and he feared they'd end up getting blown away. "Get in the train!" He called out. "Get in before you all die!"​

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"How are we supposed to get inside!" Riley attempted to yell back to Brandy over the howling winds. Clouds obsecured the guides at that exact moment and the answer was gone with the wind. She swallowed hard, feeling her heart pounding twice as fast. The girl clutched tightly to Inadi, the only stable one not tettering close to edge like a certain red headed troublemaker.

"I remember this movie where masked people rode horses and tried to hijack a train," Ace spoke conversationally as she crouched down and her fingers dug into the edge of the roof. "They were on the roof like this and then they threw themselves over and kicked in." Her eyes lit up with excitement at the thought of trying out the stunt. "We should do that!"​

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"WHAT!" Inadi and Ran yelled in unison. Rils' protest echoed their words. None of the three seemed particularly thrilled at trying that out not when they were so close to falling off. Inadi shook his head rapidly as he continued holding tightly onto Riley to keep her steady. "We are not jumping down. It's ... Ace, we'll ride on the roof all the way home. Tie ourselves down or something," he suggested. The wild look on Ace's face being mirrored on Azalea's did not reassure him one bit. "Ise," he hissed. "Your mom!"

"There's no way you'll be able to stay on the roof," Ise answered gravely. As crazy as jumping into a moving train sounded, there was no telling if they'd survive a trip on the roof. "Mom knows what she's doing... I hope." The last part was a little more than a silent mumble, but the next bit was louder. "You'll just have to trust her!"

Azalea beamed. "That's my girl!" Stepping backwards towards the edge, the commander spread out her arms. She took a deep breath then took the plunge. Icy winds swaddled her tighter than a baby's blanket. Her hair fanning out in all directions as she admired the stars winking between the clouds. Then, as Ise ran towards the edge to look at her, Azalea pulled her hands towards her face and whistled for her dragon. Lumi surfaced from the clouds beneath them, taking Ise by surprise. She couldn't recall when her mother's partner had jumped off the roof. Azalea waved to Ise as she laid on Lumi's massive back. "It's fine, Ise," she reassured her daughter. "My partner's got my back."

The blue dragon coasted alongside the train. His scaly body and wings visible from the windows along the right side of the train. Numair continued patting Harper's back but he slowed down as he became increasingly distracted by the movement he spyed out of the corner of his eye. He glanced up and found himself looking at a smiling Azalea. The woman indicated he should move back. Numair nodded mutely, pulling Harper, Gary and Leila back with him as he stepped away from the window.
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When they suddenly jerked away, it brought everyone's attention to the rider standing outside the train. Azalea mouthed something that made Jasper and Numair frown. They leaned forward and squinted but still couldn't understand what she was trying to tell them. Things got clearly when they saw her pull back her gauntlet covered fist and slammed it into the window.

The grating sound of metal scratching glass set the human's teeth on edge. Quickly, the train passengers covered their ears as Azalea continued her assault on the window. Spidery cracks trailed across, but as soon as they'd appeared, the window magically began to fix itself. That didn't stop Azalea, though, and she pounded the glass pane stubbornly hoping to retard the repairing process. The only thing that seemed to be yielding was her gauntlet.

The sound of crunching glass coupled with Numair's previous warning had all eyes flitting towards the window and the frustrated commander. "So, uh, we should probably let her in? She seems desperate to say good bye."​

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Luke simply sucked in a breath of air, surprised to see the commotion coming from outside but he backed away when Toby freed himself from the group hug and practically smooshed himself up against the window. "It's Ise's mom!"

"What?" Numair tried to put two and two together but at this point it didn't make sense. He swivelled around and noticed someone dangling upside down from the roof. The messy red hair and mischievous smile belonged to none other than Ace, the girl who was trouble with a capital T. He ran towards her window determined to pull her in when two pairs of hands hauled her up. The hands with chalk white skin reminded him of the bespectacled young man, Inadi. "Guys, the rest, they're on the roof!"​

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"What?" Harper was beyond relieved, but he couldn't help but look somewhat horrified. Seeing that everyone was still rather frazzled, he took it upon himself to try and think things through. His green eyes surveyed the area desperately and he ended up staring at the doors. There were many white double doors running parallel to each other on either side of the train. "Okay, um! Numair, Toby! Do any of you know how to get the doors to open?"

The surfer was already on it as he tugged on the door's handles with all his might. A flurry of curses left his lips as he gave it another kick. "What the hell is wrong with this thing? It's not budging a frigging inch!" Amidst his complaints, Leila had wandered towards the control panel by the door and a bright red button caught her eye. She also noticed a sign above the button.

"There's a button," she let out a nervous squeak. Feeling a little calmer having managed to get Numair to stop his frantic tugging, she moved her lips again. This time she was a little louder. "Press in case of emergency," she read, pointing to the bold words.

"This is an emergency," Tobs shouted. "Leila, press the button. Press it, now!" He flapped around vigorously trying to pressure the timid girl to hurry up before the train left Nowhere. Up ahead, he could see a swirling cluster of light expanding. The purple and gold colours reminded him of the portal he saw when they first arrived. "Leila!"

"Um..." Leila pulled back slightly but Jasper, who was just behind, ended up pushing her forward towards the button again. Her black eyes flicked nervously towards Harper and she saw him pointing to the button too.

Lelia froze. Her mind struggled to accept that even without a fire or an earthquake their current situation qualified as a legitmate emergency. Toby, Harper and Nums won over her inner voice in the end and the girl trodded back towards the panel, tip toed and pressed the button. She gave a loud start when a loud pneumatic hiss came from the doors in front. Eeping loudly, she ran back towards Jasper and hid behind the albino. "W-what's that?"

The double doors parted slightly in the center but slid closed again. Toby groaned loudly, rushing towards the panel and slamming the button himself. "Leila, we need to keep pressing the button!" A bigger gap opened up this time but, when the boy excitedly took his hand off the button, the doors closed again. "Open, you stupid door!" A desperate Toby cussed, kicking it and eliciting tears in his eyes.

"What are you doing?" Nums snapped finally. He strided over to the abandoned button and pounded in down with his hand. The doors didn't respond. An irritated look crossed the surfer's face and he smashed the button in with even more force this time round. Sparks escaped from under the sunken red crater, making him yelp loudly. Numair clutched his stinging hand as he backed away from the broken panel. "Oh Celery," he swore.

All the doors went crazy, opening and shutting continuously, causing more sparks to fly.

That doesn't look good. Leila wanted to point out, but before she could say anything, the doors in front of them slid too far in and wouldn't close anymore. Two exits down, the doors were literally flying away while the double doors behind them remained ajar with a 5-inch gap in between.​

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Sensing that it was time to say good bye, Aerith swooped lower until she was able on the same level as the opened door. A weary looking Song gave the humans a pointed look a shook his head, mumbling about idiots. Brandy appeared more forgiving as he assessed the damage. "Nothing too bad," he concluded. "The train should take you home as long as you stay away from the doors."

"Better hold on to the poles too," Mr. Poppins added. "The winds are strong and my cousin, he, gots blown off a fishing boat. We never saw him again. Mai misus says he's livin' in Orion now."

Dissonance and Serenade kept their heads tilted towards the roof where they waved cheerily at Ace and Inadi. "The door's too small," Dissonance warned them. "Yes, go to the other side," Serenade told them. "Azalea's waiting," both chimed. "Come on, get in!" Dissonance added with the same breath.

Lumi roared from the other side. His mouth parted slightly, giving him the appearance of feigning a yawn. He was, however, was struggling to keep flying beside the speeding train.

Azalea stood on her dragon, unfazed by the whipping winds. "Ise, when I say 3, you jump!" she instructed. "1 ... 2 ..." She never got the chance to say three when Ise landed with Riley. Lumi oofed slightly, turning his head to look at the two girls. He narrowed his eyes and snorted. Riley could have sworn he was making some snide remark about her weight. She put her hands on her hips and gave a loud "hmmpf".

Feeling totally inspired, Ace grabbed hold of Inadi's and Ran's wrists and leaped off the roof. She landed in a super hero style crouch but the two men ended up in a pitiful heap. "Tsk," Azalea teased. "You two are supposed to be men." Shaking her head, she helped them both to their feet. "Anyhow, you can do better next time."

"Next time?" Ran swallowed.

"Yup, jumping into the train," Azalea said non chalantly, pointing at the gaping entrance. "If you miss, the ground is a few hundred yards below. So, try not to miss it."

"Are you certain this is going to work?" Inadi screamed as Azalea grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and yanked him onto his feet.

"It will if you trust me!"

"What if I don't trust you?" Inadi wanted to curl into a ball and die.

"You have no choice. Now go!" Before Inadi could prepare himself, Azalea practically flung him off of Lumi and onto the Midnight Train. The rest of the humans, save Ace, winced when they realized they would have to go through the same ordeal.

"Get on your feet and I won't have to toss you!"

Not wishing to go through Inadi's experience, the remaining humans braced themselves as they leaped off Lumi and stumbled past the train doors and into the arms of their friends. Everyone looked a little worse for wear, but everyone was where they ought to be now. Toby whooped loudly in celebration while Harper and Jasper thanked the riders.

"Hey, it was fun," Azalea said as she flashed them all a bright grin. "The lot of you are almost worthy to be my recruits." Her eyes twinkled as they settled on Ace. "Still say it's a pity that some of you aren't Nobodies. Anyhow," she saluted while keeping an arm round Ise's waist. "Good luck, humans! Next time we meet, I won't go easy on ya."

"We'll miss you," Ise added in as she leaned in only to get jerked back by her mom. "And Colbalt and all the other dragons will miss you all very much. Take care all of you!" She gave them all a bright smile before her eyes settled on Ran and Toby. "It was so much fun."

"Ise, Azalea, Lumi, Aerith, thank you!" Ran finally manged to say. He staggered to his feet and waved. "I'll never - "

"Hey," Tobs protested. "We!"

"Okay, we," Ran corrected. "We'll never forget Sol!" The two reunited buddies turned towards the guides flying on the other side of the Trains. "Thank you all too, for everything." Ran paused. "Send our regards to Victoria!"

"And Cello!" Ace exclaimed. "And Froggy!" Not wanting to be caught crying, the girl rubbed her eyes with hands and pretended to grumble about the train being dusty. Riley joined Ace's side and hugged her friend. "Hey, Songbird, you and Brandy should ask Martini for some new clothes," she said with a grinned. "A spiffy new hat to replace the one you lost."
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Martini let out a teary chortle. "They better," came her sassy reply after she managed wipe away her tears. "I'll make them fabulous!" She grinned. "Too bad you can't see them after the makeover."

Mr. Poppins began tearing up. "So, so, this is good bye?" Areith nodded and he bawled. "B-but we just met. And you haven't met the misus yet! And, and you're Cello's friends."

"Humans!" It was Disonance, yelling loudly as she stood on the dragon's back comforting the bawling weasel. "When you get home, promise you'll have the biggest bestest birthday cake ever and that you'll celebrate together, okay! Don't forget about us or Nowhere!"

Serenade stood up to wrap an arm around her teary sister. "We'll definitely remember you. Please have a safe journey."

"Of course we'll remember them," Songbird chortled. "This is the most chaotic Nowhere has ever been."

Brandy leaned forward and placed a firm hand on Song's shoulder. "But it wasn't all bad."

"Yeah, you kids turned out to be pretty okay," Songbird added in before he flashed them all a smile. "Troublesome, but alright. Don't get yourselves killed, ya hear?"

As the train continued to gain speed, the dragons fell farther and farther behind. The guides waved once more as Harper practically bolted towards the open doors. He would have fallen if Ran hadn't reached for his arm.

"We'll never forget you!" Harper stuck half his body out the door and waved. "We'll never forget everything you did for us!" He waved and waved until the dragons were nothing but specks in the horizon. Soon, it was just the Lost Souls and the Midnight Train and the atmosphere grew heavy with unsaid words and inevitable goodbyes.

"So," Ace broke the silence as people began slumped back into their seats. "We did it, just like we said we would."

Ran flashed her a smile as he pulled the dazed Harper away from the open door.

"Yup," Inadi exhaled as his finger's tightened around Jasper's. "We're going home."

Home. The word used to be a happy one, but now, none of them were so sure. The thought of never seeing each other again and of returning to their normal lives, it left a bitter taste in their mouths, a sickening sense of dread in the pit of their beings.

"You know," Leila mumbled, breaking the tense silence. "We can always find each other."

"We should," Toby added, determination burning in his gaze. "Nowhere might be ending, but that doesn't mean we can't be friends anymore!"

"Duh," Ace laughed as she plonked her hat onto the blonde's head. "We've been through too much for it to end just here! We'll have a reunion!" She raised her hand into the air then pointed to Jasper and Inadi. "And it'll be at their wedding! Inadi, you better not be chepskate, alright?"

This caused Inadi and Jasper to blush fiercely, but while the former struggled to come up with some sort of retort, the latter merely laughed. "That would be nice, Ace." The laughter faded into tense silence once more.

"It's a promise then! We'll find each other somehow!" Harper croaked as he held his arms wide open for a hug. At the start of their journey they'd had all been strangers but now they were a family and thought of never seeing them again left him tired and empty. "We'll keep trying until we do--" He quieted down when Ace and Toby practically tackled him into a hug then laughed when one by one everyone including the hooded figures joined in.

On the other side of the glass windows were various constellations. There were flying whales and flying ships, but they were too busy saying their goodbyes to care.

"You better keep your promise, Harper!" Riley yelled.

"I will!" The boy cried. "As long as Inadi keeps his too!"

Everyone joined in on the chorus as a bright light engulfed the Midnight Train to Nowhere. Harper tighened his hold on Ace's and Toby's hands until he couldn't feel them anymore.

"I'll miss you all." He repeated over and over again until there was no one left to hear it.​



Back to the Beginning: New Year's Day 2013, 11:55 pm

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I won't forget. I promise I won't.
He repeated the phrase over again as if saying it for the nth time would make it come true, he repeated it until the world around him began to blur. Harper reached out for Ace's hand but she slipped through his fingers as the world folded in on itself. He never felt more lonely in his life. Hearing joyous calls of "Happy New Year" made Harper open his eyes to a dimly lit train station and to people bundled up in scarves and winter coats as they rushed about in hopes of getting home before the clock struck midnight.

The train station looked exactly as it did on the night of his departure, and in five minutes it would be New Years Eve and 2013 would begin. Harper stared at the station clock in utter disbelief. He could have sworn he'd been gone for days, months, or maybe even a year. But, according to the old, rusty clock, not a day had passed since he'd left for Nowhere. He was home yet he felt oddly empty.​

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Three new messages. Harper reached for his phone with a shaky hand and checked his messages. His parents were asking him where he was and if he was going to watch the fireworks display with them at the hospital. The lack of worry in their messages confirmed his suspicions. He hadn't gone missing and time hadn't passed. Reality couldn't have felt more surreal than this.

Harper reached for his coat, unzipped it and pulled up his shirt. The scar above his abdomen from where the witch had stabbed him had disappeared completely as if the fight had never happened. This brought tears to his eyes. Nowhere was real, as real as anything on earth, but now he was starting to doubt everything. A strangled sob left his throat.

Fresh tears stained his face making the adults around him panic. Two women rushed over to him and muttered words of comfort as they demanded to know if he was lost or hurt. No, no, they didn't understand. How could they? He was in Nowhere. He really was. He believed it! The boy dropped to his knees and started keening loudly. His phone slid to the ground and the battery scattered just as a call from Dad was coming in. Harper didn't care. He didn't care about the stares he was getting or his parents trying desperately to contact him. All that didn't matter compared to how confused and vulnerable he felt.

He wasn't going crazy. He wasn't ....

But ...

All proof could disappear, but he wouldn't forget a single one of them or the Midnight Train to Nowhere. "I'll find you," he whispered as his shaking fingers gripped the hem of his coat and as the chiming of the clock signaled the beginning of 2013.

His behavior was starting to scare the adults crowding round. A man, a father with a 3-year-old in his arms, yelled for someone to call 911. The teen seemed to be hurting. Possibly mugged.. Another, a woman with graying hair beneath her beanie, offered to get the one of the staff.

Harper didn't care. He didn't even stir when another man threw a jacket over him and began leading him away. A pretty girl, possibly the man's girlfriend, rescued his phone. Harper merely stumbled along towards the tinsel decorated control station with teary, vacant eyes.

"I'll find you. Prove you exist," he sobbed. "I will!"​
THE END
 
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The Midnight Train to Nowhere: New Year Edition
A Three Year Anniversary Special: Epilogues

Proudly Brought to You By
@Capt. Blu @four @Fox of Hearts and @Fox of Spades

Friends are Forever

1. They May Be Back in Nowhere
Epilogue One ft: Clockwork, Victoria, Serenade, Dissonance, and the Guards
Written by: The Fox Sisters

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"Hey, sis? Are you, uh, are you sure we should do this?" Dissonance's ears drooped as she stared at the sign plastered onto the large door. 'King Lessons in Progress. Do Not Disturb' the sign read. The white rabbit winced in response. Dissonance loved adventure as much as the next gal, she really did, but Victoria could be rather... frightening. And after the woman helped defeat the Mad God, there was no doubting that the ex-dragoon was a force to be reckoned with. "Commander Sieghart takes her classes very seriously, sis."

Serenade simply nodded, her expression almost unreadable. "Yes, that's true. But Clockwork doesn't exactly want to be king."

"I know, I know," the white rabbit made a face. "But you're knocking, I'm not going in there."

While Dissonance continued to pace around the hallway, Serenade approached the door and gave it two swift knocks. The black rabbit waited for a moment then knocked again.

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Victoria's lesson came to an abrupt halt and the sound of boots clacking against the palace floor resonated throughout the hall. "I told you already," the ex-dragoon mumbled as she opened the doors. "The king has had enough biscuits for today--oh, Serenade, Dissonance, do you two need anything? We're in the middle of an important lesson."

"Yes," Serenade answered, she was calm and collected like always. "We need to have a brief word with the king. It shouldn't take long. Skitz sent us with some important news."

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From inside, Clockwork lifted his eyes from his desk and stared curiously at the door. He was chewing dilligently, his cheeks puffed up like that of a chipmunk. Copius amounts of jelly stained his cheeks and shirt. "Me?" Came the somewhat garbled response.

"Yes, King Clockwork," the black rabbit answered. "May we borrow him for a bit?"

Victoria held back a sigh and nodded. "Alright, but don't take too long. We've still got a very long way to go."

"We promise," Dissonance chirped as she bounced towards a very alert looking Clockwork and grabbed his arm. The king responded by immediately reaching for the half empty bowl of jam dodgers in front of him. "Come on, Your Majesty, we shouldn't keep Skitz waiting!" The white rabbit tugged harder but Clockwork stared at her with mournful eyes. He seemed really reluctant to leave the cookies behind even though there were nine empty bowls on the table. "Come on," Dissonance urged, looking desperately to her sister for some much needed back up. The king seemed to be much heavier now that he had a cookie addiction. She guessed the cookies had to go somewhere aside from making his cheeks rounder.

"Yes, we need to hurry," Seranade added calmly. She pulled out a huge cookie lolipop from under her sleeves and waved in front of the monarch. Clockwork had stars in his eyes as he reached for the cookie lolly. Serenade sighed. Was this cookie monster really the guy who defeated the Mad God? He seemed far too child-like to be their savior. "Shall we? Skitz wants you to look at the new cookie houses we are building for the bunny guards."

Clockwork nodded vigorously. Being king wasn't his favorite thing in Nowhere and responsibilities were constantly being shoved onto his shoulders. It was something he didn't quite want, but Victoria said the people of Nowhere needed him, and because he owed the ex-dragoon, he begrudgingly agreed. Mr. Cuddles' cookies helped sweeten the deal somewhat. That, and his comfy, floofy bed. Actually, those were the only two reasons he stayed so long. Fine crumbles began dotting the red carpet which earned the trio a glare from Victoria. Realizing their window of opportunity was shrinking, Dissonance yelled goodbye and the two dragged their cookie addict out the doors.

"Skitz?" The time guardian mumbled and pointed in the opposite direction before taking another big bite out of his rapidly diminishing cookie. He saw the sisters exchange looks and he gulped. The evil grins suggested that he was in big trouble. Serenade wasn't still mad he finished all the cookies at the tea party yesterday, right? She had threatened to throw him down a deep well. And, she looked like she would have if Victoria hadn't joined them then. Even without a sword in hand, the ex-dragoon was intimidating. Feeling a lump gathering at the back of his throat, Clockwork swallowed again. His unchewed chunks of cookie went down the wrong pipe, resulting in the Nobody choking and turning slightly blue in the face.

"Shhhh," Serenade hissed as she clamped a hand over the choking King's mouth. She did it so violently that the half-eaten cookie lollipop fell to the floor. Crumbs and chocolate chips dirtied their shoes but Seranade didn't even blink. She was too focused on hushing their king-to-be. Rook and Aimee were supposed to be patrolling this corridor and she'd rather not try to pull wool over the guard captain's eyes. That story about the lying recruit was legendary! "If you want this to work, you're going to have be quiet!" she stopped before adding. "I don't think I'd like to get yelled at by Rook." Serenade frowned. "He made Arno cry on his first day."

"Sis," Dissonance called out. "The guards will be here soon." She reached out to yank Serenade away from Clockwork, freeing him the process.

Coughing, he slammed his fist into his chest then eyed the two sisters warily. Both wore worried looks on their faces, and even the usually cheery Dissonance had grown silent."Want what to work? I might be wrong, but both of you are acting quite suspicious."

"Remember your birthday party?" Dissonance hinted as she reached out for his hand once more. The white rabbit ignored the puzzled look on Clockwork's face and began dragging the poor Nobody down the hall and towards his room. "You wished to travel and make new friends. So... " she whirled and grinned. "We're helping you escape! Mr. Poppins is waiting with a wagon. He's outside, below you bedroom window."

Hundreds of question popped into Clockwork's head, none of them relating to cookies for once. He wanted to question the soundness of the sisters' plans and point out that it was a silly wish. He had duties. He was the king! And yet, if he was completely honest, he didn't mind. He was getting bored and Victoria seemed much better at handling the endless royal duties thrown his way. So, why not? It wasn't like Nowhere would collapse without him. However, there was one pressing question. One super important one that the sisters overlooked.

"Erm ... " he began. "Isn't my window at the top of the highest tower..."

"So?" Dissonance countered. "We made plans."

"Okay, I guess," the king replied unconvincingly. They might have busted him out of a boring class about diplomacy and treaties but he highly doubt that Rook and Victoria would be fooled for long. They always appeared when he tried to leave the palace.

"Believe us!" Dissonance reassured him. She was speeding up so much that three bunny guards marching towards the royal classroom with their tiny arms hugging bowls of cookies were punted out of the way. Dissonance went "ooops" and apologized to them. However, she had no intention of slowing down. "Hurry, sis!"

Serenade followed at a slower pace, making sure that no one was behind them. "If we take too long, Commander Sieghart is going to send someone to fetch him."

"Chillax, sis, we're here." Dissonance reached for the king's bedroom door and opened it with a flourish. Inside was a suitcase and what appeared to be several bedsheets tied together in an attempt to form a makeshift rope. Clockwork tried commenting that he felt the rope was far too short but his comments were brushed away. Dissonance made a fist as her eyes blazed with determination.

"See! We are going to be like the spies Ace told us about." Grinning, she pulled out a scroll from under her kimono sleeves. "We even made a random note! Then, once we are out of here, it should be smooth sailing! Sis and I used to be traveling musicians, so we know Nowhere like the back of our hand. We used to have concerts with Songbird," a pout wormed its way onto her face. "But since he's too busy being all lovey-dovey with Brandy now, you can carry our band equipment for us!"

"Ransom," Serenade corrected. But really, kidnapping the king!?! She was sure that wasn't part of the plan at all. This was crazy beyond crazy. "Dissonance," she wailed. "We can't kidnap the king. We'll go to prison!"

Dissonance's white ears drooped and her smile slipped off her face. Prison? The musican flailed around in a panic, yelling that she didn't want to go into prison. Begging loudly for mercy because it was too late. "What do we do?" she wailed. "We already kidnapped you."

As fate would have it, a strong gust of wind blew the ransom note out of Dissonance's hands and out of the room through the slit under the door. There was a pause. All three stared in horror as they heard Arno picking up the note. They blinked. Oh Celery!

News of the king getting kidnapped filled the hallway and the panicky trio heard bunny guards blowing their trumpets. Dissonance wailed at the injustice of it all. "We just wanted to help! You hate being the king, and you're always talking about how you want to see the world and stuff, so we thought of taking you with us. But whyyyy..." She clutched her head dramatically. "Oh Celery! We're travelling musicians not criminals!"

Serenade facepalmed. She pulled Dissonance into a hug to calm her sister down. "Ignore her. The point is we're busting you out, so pack up." She nodded to Clockwork. "We have to be fast if you want to come with us. Rook and Victoria will be here soon."

Clockwork stared at the sisters blankly. He'd lived his entire life within the Tower of Demise and had always wanted to travel the world. "Okay," the doubt ebbed away and he grinned brightly. Clockwork didn't waste a second, he dashed up to his cabinet and threw the doors open, revealing endless rows of boxes labeled 'Jam Dodgers'. He tucked a box under each arm and stuffed his suitcase until it was close to bursting. He zipped it up and stood, eyes ablaze with determination. "I'm ready."

He noticed the sisters already working hard to barricade the shuddering door with his dresser, his armchair and finally his wardrobe. No matter how heavy everything was, he doubted it would keep Rook out for long. The guard captain was hacking at the door and yelling for someone to bring Eloi and Bento.

"Window, now!" the sisters exclaimed.

"Wait, stop..." Clockwork shouted, waving his hands about. "Actually, time, time stop!" he yelled. Colour ebbed away, leaving the time guardian the only spot of colour in the dreary world. A twinge of regret crossed his face briefly but it was succeeded by a look of relief. Finally, he had a moment to himself. Some time to think, literally!

He hated the thought of running away like this but he couldn't lie to himself anymore. No amount of cookies or nights spent in a comfy bed could ever motivate him. Vicky would probably do a better job. He nodded and clenched his hands into fists. Yeah, he wasn't the Nobody for the job and it was time to rectify that. But, before he left, he owed Victoria an explanation. He owed her at least that. Clockwork scanned the room and spied several pieces of paper scattered at the foot of the upturned wardrobe. With time in stasis, he had all the time in the world to write her a farewell note.


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"Commander Sieghart! Commander," Arno and Eloi practically glided into the King's bedroom, kicking up dust clouds in the process. Between pants, the boys kept stuttering incoherently until Arno had enough. He took a deep breath and shouted, "We heard the King has been kidnapped and came as fast as we can!"

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She raised a hand and signalled for them to quiet down. The past few moments left her reeling and she shook her head in response. "Clockwork has left voluntarily." The proof was written... no, smuged onto a piece of paper in strawberry jam. The words were sticky, but as clear as day. She didn't know whether she ought to be mad or just plain surprised.

The letter read:

"Dear Victoria,

I have left with the Serenade and Dissonance to travel the world. I apologize tenfold for the trouble I have caused, but I'm not fit to be king. You're more suited for the job than I am. As my last act as king, I dub you Prime Minister of Nowhere. Thank you for everything and please don't look for us.

Your friend,
Clockwork

As she clenched her hands and peered out the window, she caught sight of the wagon zipping down the dirt road. Clockwork stuck his head out the back door and waved apologetically before a pair of hands yanked him out of sight.



2. They May Be From Earth
Epilogue Two ft: Ace and Lelia
Written by: @four and @Aki

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After a year, she would have thought things would have been slightly different. Then again, after a year she also would have thought she would have forgotten about that Train. But it was hard for Ace to just let something like that go...

And it was almost equally as hard leaving the former life she had built for herself. Well, it wasn't too bad. She hopped from town to town, but instead of 'living off the land' she managed to find some odd jobs here and there. It was stable and much better than the group of criminals she normally hung out with...Not that she didn't say hi every now and then. It was a stable way of living.

Ace was smarter. She planned these things out. And in her backpack, she had almost half the amount she needed to buy some rundown apartment and actually call some place her home.

All that didn't really matter at the moment. What mattered now was that Ace was lost and the sounds of a storm caught up with her. "Ah man...this isn't good." Looking around the neighborhood, things were quiet. No one was out and lights were flickering off in home windows.

12:47 a.m.

She knew buying that digital watch would be helpful.

The area she stopped in was littered in small homes and apartment complexes. There was nothing too fancy about the place, which was a good sign. In fact, the place looked near abandoned- even better sign.

To say the least, it was quickly judged that it was an empty apartment and Ace chose to make shelter for the night- or at least until the storm stopped. Trying to beat the rain before it came, the redhead didn't take the time to thoroughly investigate the place. She contemplated sneaking in just to find an umbrella or taking only what she needed, but she decided against it. As if staying in someone else's home was any better.

It wasn't one of her best plans.

Ace reached under her old worn out baseball cap to grab a hair pin. Those always came in handy for door locks. After a few jingles and tugs, she made her way inside right as the rain began to pour.

---

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After a year, Leila thought, things would have been slightly different.

And they were.

The first seconds after she returned to the train station, New Years Eve 2013 - the specification of a location must always be space and time - she spent being utterly, helplessly confused. The first minutes she checked over herself: home clothes, long hair. Scars - the barely noticeable one on her finger from a very bad paper cut, but not the one from fighting with a bow and arrows. The small one on her knee from the one time she rolled down a staircase, but not the rash marks from having jellyfish arms torn away. There had been nothing on her shoulder before the intervention of the fingernails of a witch whose existence was now much questionable, because now again that piece of skin was without marks.

The first half an hour, James found her wandering around at one of the exits of the station. An hour and a half, they made it home and she had him promise not to mention the incident to anyone else. The rest of the first day, she slept, because she was tired.

The day following that she began by telling him what happened, again under the condition that he did not mention it to anyone else. He listened but clearly did not believe. She went on until she got to the flying pirate ship, at which point she decided to write it down. By the end of the first week she had discovered she was not very good at writing.

So for the rest of January she read, and she did also for the following month. By the end of February she had heaved through at least four shelves of physics, math, history, and mythology, old and new; and had filled every page with annotations that allude to the secret realm accessible through the magical train that arrived at midnight. She noted that there were no mentions anywhere of the magical train at midnight, but she felt much more comfortable documenting things on the edges of pages already filled with text compared with working on blank sheets.

She would likely have continued if she had not, rejecting James' repeated reminders not to stay up too late, spent the first half that March being terribly ill.

For the fourth and five months she refrained from visits to the library, in favour of long intervals of time spent staring out of windows, at walls, and at swirling patterns between milk and tea.

And then a lot of things happened. Or not. Her parents visited. She talked to them. It felt weird. James filed his retirement. Not much changed. He still lived nextdoor and he still met her in the afternoons.

She felt like it was a pretty good representation of how things were after Nowhere. Everything chaged - the way she looked at stars and they seemed that much closer, the way she saw lakes and felt like she could hear songs, the way talking animals on covers of childrens' books looked less silly - but in the meantime, everything was the same. Stars and lakes were still what they were. Nothing changed.

But then again, that was more or less what every New Years felt like.

Twelve months, sixteen days, and a couple of seconds after Leila returned from Nowhere, she was wearing the shirt and trousers from earlier that day and the sweater jacket that didn't match but was doing a good enough job keeping her warm, filtering the otherwise harsh midnight temperature into something much more pleasant. The jacket had no objective influence on anything other than how she felt the air around her, but somehow the dark, rumbling clouds in the distance appeared to her also a lot less menacing and a bit more beautiful than they otherwise would.

Aside from the expanse of the sky and the streets below, the balcony on the second floor also offered a pretty good view of the main entrance on ground level. And at that entrance was a baseball cap that she was certain she had seen somewhere else.

---

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So maybe it wasn't as abandoned as she thought it was. Upon opening the door, Ace gazed around a small and comfy living space. "May have miscalculated that one." A simple style of furniture and books- Ace wasn't good with words but she could only describe it as a 'really nice napping place'. "Eeh, right someone lives here. Time for plan B." She was definitely making this stuff up as she went. Plan A was to find shelter. Unfortunately, there was a slight problem with plan A so plan B was now to leave- and maybe grab something useful like an umbrella. Surely the person living here wouldn't mind a missing umbrella.

---

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There was a door, a set of curtains, and eighteen steps of stairs were between the second floor balcony and the living room. There was also the interval of time, a little less than a full minute. In that time, as she discovered after flipping the light switch on the wall at the end of the staircase, the baseball cap had made its way from outside the door into the place - however she managed to do that.

Leila squinted a little. She didn't recognize the person, but neither was she entirely sure she remembered to lock the front door on her way in.

"Sorry, but you may have mistaken this place for somewhere else," addressing someone who was up to this point assumed to be a neighbour who erred in her haste to return home from the oncoming storm. "I know a person who had that exact same cap," a remark on an amusing coincidence. And, in a failure to distinguish between the two, the latter came out of her mouth.

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Ace had still been trying to figure out a proper plan when the lights turned on. Her surprise and the voice of the owner of the apartment sent a cold chill down her spine. Busted, was the word she wanted to say, however when she realized that the person didn't react in hostility Ace took the chance.

"Y-Yeah. I," Ace cleared her throat and slowly turned around. No need to sound suspicious right? She fiddled with one of the straps of her backpack. "Sorry about that I didn't mean to--" Her pause was followed with a curious expression. That voice sounded oddly familiar, like she had heard it once before. Maybe it was just a dream.

She subconsciously took off the hat revealing the red mess of hair underneath. "And here I thought this was one of a kind." Ace pushed passed the odd sensation of familiarity and ran fingers through her hair. "Ah, anyway. I better run off. I'm no fish or anything and I need to get going before I have to swim home." She laughed at her own joke before giving a salute. "Apologies again missy."

Leila stood still for a good while, mostly trying not to make it seem obvious that she was staring at the red hair.

At some point she realized that she had to apologize for the prolonged silence, but at the same time, there's also a pending "it's alright" in response to the visitor's own apology.

Instead she smiled and said something else (she rarely smiled when she was alone, but courtesy wasn't lost when guests were present - even temporary ones). She said,

"That was not an particularly good joke."

"...sorry," she added, seconds later, after the interjection of the muffled sound of intensifying rainfall in the background.

"Would you need an umbrella or something?" There was a black one stuck in an umbrella holder just outside the door.

While Ace wanted to make another joke, out of mild spite really, she continued to inch back towards the door. "Oh? Oh. no no I couldn't take something that was yours."

She never knew silence could seem so familiar, but for some reason the way this woman carried herself- even if it was matter of fact sentences or silence seemed oddly...familiar.

"You wouldn't- Ah, nevermind, but thanks."

There was a thought, and just like every other chance one would only realise they'd regret not taking just before they lost it, that thought managed to bubble to the surface of Leila's mind just as the door was about to close.

"Ace, wait."

It wasn't very loud and despite the storm Ace still heard the voice call her.

She froze.

The door was pushed open and Ace stood with a narrowed eyes. There were a few questions that went through her head but for some reason none of them came to the surface. In fact, she was uncharacteristically quiet.

This random woman knew her name. This random woman also gave her some odd feeling of... was it deja vu? What even was deja vu? She never knew the exact definition of it. How was she suppose to know what she was feeling if she didn't even know proper words.

'Bah, Leila would probably know-'

Ace's eyes widened for a moment as the light bulb went off in her head. "Holy-" Ace paused and narrowed her eyes again. "Tell me," Ace leaned against the opened door and adjusted her hat. "You wouldn't happen to..." It was a first Ace didn't know what to say. Everything she tried to say sounded really silly in her head. And this was coming from Ace. But the redhead had to to know.

"To be...a dragon tamer of sorts?"

There was, once again, silence, in which neither of them spoke and both of them stared at the other. This time not in confusion, and not in hesitation.

Leila was aware that she had again not spoken for too long. But that didn't really matter now. Neither did it matter that she never really liked, nor felt like she deserved, that particular title Ace just mentioned. Ace had been standing with the door open for a little too long now and the rain outside was getting to the carpet - that was okay too, at least for now.

There was also the temptation to just lunge forward and hug the person she had never thought she'd see again. She didn't do that because there were at least six paces, a couch, and a tea table between the two of them and that was too much to lunge over.

But for the first time in a quite while, Leila was laughing. Her hand was over her mouth and she wasn't really making any sound, but she was laughing.

Between all that, she nodded. An answer was due for that question, after all.

"Yes."

---

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"..And after the hotdog stand crashed into the officer- well long story short, I kind of got away scott free." This was probably the fourth or fifth elaborate tale from Ace now that the two were done gushing about how great it was to see each other. The stories ranged from a bit outrageous- as if this wasn't Ace- to somewhat expected. Nonetheless, she was overly excited to see someone she thought she'd never see again.

Leila smiled her way through most of the stories, as much at the stories themselves as at the unexpected pleasure of just seeing Ace being all excited. A few times she held back laughs ("the hotdog stand - what again?"). Many times she was reminded how much she actually missed it.

"Wow. I can't believe it's been a whole year!" There was a short pause before Ace sighed. "You know, I honestly thought I wouldn't see you guys again. I did try searching at some point, but I figured if I waited maybe juuuust maybe, coincidences would happen. Like this! Well, I guess this still counts even though I forgot about that whole declaration in the first place-" She began rambling on to herself about how she promised to find the others and that even though she'd be patient, she wouldn't rest until she found them.

Realizing she was getting off track again, she stopped and laughed. "Well, the point is, it's so good to see you! And finding you means that it's obvious that we have to find the others!" That familiar fiery passion shone in her eyes at the idea. She would have jumped up too if it hadn't been for the fact that she was holding a cup of tea.

Simultaneously, as she blurted out the idea thunder boomed in the background, reminding her that if she wanted to do anything, it would probably have to wait till after the storm. "So, uh, what do you think?"

Needless to say, Leila didn't deny the idea. Both women thought it was a great idea to, as Ace said, 'get the band back together'. Leila didn't recall any of them being in a band, but she was sure that was besides the point. And while Ace eagerly rambled on about the many possibilities of just how they could find the others - some of those ideas being rather impossible- Leila, quietly but very happily sipped her tea.

This was like the start of another adventure. A good one too.


3. No Matter Where You Are
Epilogue Three ft: Riders from Sol
Written by The Fox Sisters

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"Cobalt," Ise called out. "Come back or we'll eat all the cake." The dragon rider was sitting on a checkered picnic blanket with Dune and Noe. Picnic baskets were scattered around in front of them. Each one filled with an assortment of treats.

The baby dragon ignored his rider's calls and Ise noticed he was racing towards a sleeping Lumi. "Cobalt," she tried again. "Leave poor Lumi alone! he's trying to sleep." Much to the girl's dismay, her dragon ignored her again, opting to leap into a berry laden bush instead. The other baby dragons trailing behind their so called "leader" also dove into the same bush a few seconds after Cobalt took cover. All of them were trying to be stealthy, but they didn't realize that their tails and wings poked out from between the branches, giving them all away at first glance.

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"Aw, let them have their fun, Ise." Dune grinned as he eyed his own dragon, Tasha, and flashed her a thumbs up. "Lumi's sure to put them in their place."

"I guess your right," Ise replied. She reached out to the sleeping Noe and gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind the healer's ear. It was the first picnic they'd gone on since Garret had died and, for the first time in awhile, things were starting to look bright again. Milo and Gaara had mostly recovered and Noe was regaining her strength as well. "We're all going to be okay, Dune." The recently elected co-commander of the fifth platoon stated.

Surprised, Dune turned to stare at Ise. "Yeah... I guess we are." It had been tough, but everyone was starting to get back on their feet again. He mustered up a smile then reached for the tray of brownies. "Hey, Gaara, Milo!" He called out from where he was sitting. "You guys want some? I baked them this morning and they're still warm."

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Gaara adjusted the scarf round his neck until the hem hid his mouth from view. Dune frowned. "You could pretend to be happy just for one day, you know," he told his younger platoon mate. Seeing Gaara hide behind a book titled "A Complete History of Sol", Dune chose to leave the grumpy guy alone and focused on Milo instead. "They are so good Ise almost finished the first tray herself!" he added with a chuckle as a faint blush dusted his cheeks. Consider how Ise kept shovelling his clumsy looking brownies into her mouth, Dune couldn't help wondering if the fastest way to his crush's heart was through her stomach. That would be an interesting parallel, he concluded, as he remembered hearing that Commander Azalea fell for Ise's dad after tasting his mashed potato and gravy.

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Dune never got to finish that thought when he noticed Milo bum crawling over. "They look great!" The spunky swordsman-in-training exclaimed happily, as he attempted to move his right arm that was still in a sling. The hand, which was immobilized by a cast, was only good enough to smash several brown cubes into a pile of crumbs but nothing more. Letting out a loud "awwwww", the determined boy used his less dominant left hand to grab at another cube. He almost succeeded but it ended up splattering on the mat after he knocked it off the plate. "Why did you have to make them so slippery?"

"Buttery, not slippery!" Dune protested with a huff. "And I'll have you know, they taste pretty great." Reaching for one of the uncrushed brownies, Dune leaned towards Milo and stuffed the tasty treat into his fellow trainee's mouth. "The butter makes it taste better." Dune explained while stuffing a second brownie into his poor friend's mouth until the boy ended up his bulging like some starving chipmunk.

"There! Now you'll appreciate good baking." Sheepishly, Dune turned to face Ise. "You think it isn't too buttery, right?"

Noticing the hesitance on Dune's face, Ise flashed him a reassuring grin. "Nah, it tastes great, Dune. Better than Dad's or Jared's for sure." She took another one off the tray and saw him light up at the gesture. She arched an eyebrow at him when he looked away a little too hastily. Recently, Dune had been acting weird and she figured it had something to do with Garret. Actually, it wasn't just Dune. Everyone had been acting differently since then and it worried her. Hopefully, she wasn't failing them as the new co-commander. "Dune, I think you should hold back on the brownies or you'll end up choking Milo. Also, are you alright, Gaara? And what about you Milo, is your hand feeling better?" Had Noe been awake, she would have fussed over the healer as well.

Dune's blush intensified. He murmured something that sounded like "beaver's have better otters". Ise arched an eyebrow again as she stuffed a second square into her own mouth. "What are you saying?" she spoke, spraying her secret admirer with goopy flecks on the cheek. "S-shumthing about otters?"

"I meant we never had better butter," Dune clarified quickly. The obviousness of his actions made Milo and Chevra stare at the poor tinkerer with wide, starry eyes. Sensing that his friend was about to start chanting "Ise and Dune sitting in the tree", Dune yelped and smashed the entire porcelain tray onto the ground. This was the end of the remaining brownies! They were nothing more than a smooshed pile of brown crumbs interspersed with powdery white shards. Dune was speechless.

"Awwww," Ise groaned, feeling sad about the loss. Those were seriously good brownies and she would have been more than happy to eat the whole lot had Dune not gone ahead and sacrificed them to some unseen earth deity. "You better bake me some more soon," she grumbled. "I hadn't had enough."

Milo snickered. "He'd like to give you more than brownies..."

"Uh, if Dune can bake chocolate cake, I wouldn't mind having that or jam dodgers ... hadn't had those biscuits since we were at the King's cornation." Ise tapped her chin thoughtfully, making it painfully clear she was oblivious to Dune's growing affections for her. She leaned forward until she was almost nose to nose with him. "Can you, Dune?"

Overheating was the kindest way to describe what was happening now. Dune's face practically glistened with sweat as he jerked away slowly. He let out several strangled utterances which left Ise looking hurt and confused at the sudden rejection.

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"Don't worry, Ise," Felix said between yawns. "Dune isn't angry or ... having a f-fever." He rubbed his bleary eyes with one hand. "I think he ..." The guy didn't finish the sentence before he found Luxa clamping a hand over his mouth. She hissed angrily about respecting people's love life a little too overtly and this made Ise even more baffled.

Dune liked someone? She wondered. The co-commander crossed her arms over her chest and continued pondering this strange development. Dune received several love letters during the last festival and she remembered that girl at the kissing booth blushing heavily when he joked about kissing her. Ise wrecked her brains further. Who was it? One of the girls who confessed in paper and ink? Or was it that pretty blonde at the kissing booth? She turned on Dune suddenly with stars in her eyes. "Duneeeeee, who is it?"

Why? Why was this happening to him? What had he done to deserve this fate? Dune leaned back helplessly as his mind continued drawing blanks. Should he lie? Possible, but he didn't want to ruin whatever chance he might have. Actually, did he even have one at all? He wasn't able to come up with an appropriate answer, so when Ise started giving him funny looks, he leaped to his feet and turned on Milo. "You! I'm going to get you!"

Milo blinked. "Me? DUNE ARE YOU GAY!?!?"

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Their shouts made Luxa's eyes pop and she nearly ended up choking Felix. Milo didn't seem to notice the other riders' expressions at all as he was too focused on trying to get away from Dune. He liked girls! That much he knew so there was no celery sticking way he planned to hang around and see if Dune batted for the other team. Eventually, the ever excitable swordsman-in-training felt his wobbly legs give way and he ended up lying in an undignified heap on the mat. Rolling onto his back quickly, the guy pointed a finger at Dune. "Also, could you please flirt with Gaara instead? Maybe you and him can, um, do better."

"WHAT?" Dune's scarlet face couldn't get any redder. "Gaara's not even my type -- I mean, no! What are you even suggesting Milo?"

"What?" Ise's reaction echoed Dune's before a more somber expression made its way to her face. She nodded sagely then reached out to pat Dune on the shoulder. "Is this why you've been acting so weird lately? You know... if you need to talk, you can talk to us."

"Ise. Read my lips, I'm. Not. Gay."

"There's nothing wrong with it, Dune. We'll support you no matter what."

"THERE'S NOTHING TO SUPPORT."

Before anything else could go wrong, he stomped towards Milo and raised his fists. "That's it! You are dead meat, Milo!" Dune reached for the collar of Milo's shirt and swung back a fist. Before he could do anything, Ise reached for his own collar and tugged him back so sharply that he fell back onto the grass. Milo landed on top of him shortly after.

"Get off! Milo, I hate you!"

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The loud yelling caused Noe to stir and Ise sighed at the bickering pair. "You know, as much as you hate to admit it, you two really argue like a married couple."

Luxa nodded sagely, humming the tune of "Dune and Milo sitting in the tree" much to the boys' horror. They protested over and over again but she clamped her hands over her ears and continued humming that dreaded tune. Nothing was more fun than rattling two idiots for being stupid. Seriously, though, she wondered if Dune could use some help when it came to Ise. He seemed to have as much of a chance of being with their co-commander as there was being a snowstorm in summer. Zilch! For now, she needed to teach him an important lesson - how to stop being an idiotic boy! Ise would definitely thank her for whipping him into shape.

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Across from the noisy humans, Lumi finally cracked open an eye. The dragon yawned at the same time Felix did, showing off his very pink tongue. He stretched his front claws in front of him, raked the earth with his claws and lowered himself onto his stomach again. A second yawn followed shortly after as his eyelids began drooping. The recruits' antics didn't interest him that much. Humans and their mating rituals were far too complicated for him to bother understanding. What interested him more was the flicking black tail he noticed coming from behind the bush. He suppressed his urge to grin and pretended to sleep again. Fooling the young ones was going to be fun.

Cobalt crouched low. His black tail swished back and forth, peeking occasionally from beneath the bush. In front of him were claw marks scratched into the dirt. The markings were composed of odd circles and x's and in a way looked like a messy game of tic-tac-toe.

Air, Lull, and Tasha were gathered nearby, but none of them seemed to be looking at the attack strategy Cobalt had painstakingly carved into the earth. The oldest dragon shot his nest siblings Xerxes-like glare which went largely ignored. Air and Tasha were far too enthralled by the stream of bubbles Lull kept blowing in their direction. The younger two squealed happily as they competed to see who can burst more bubbles. Sadly, neither could count beyond 10 so they focused on popping the bubbles after awhile.

Cobalt let out an irritated roar and swiped a claw over the plans in the dirt. He received a bubble to the face from a snickering Lull and Cobalt glared at his friend as steam rose from his damp skin. They always listened to Xerxes, but here he was ignored and left to plan on his own. Fine, he would choose to lead by example then. Crouching even lower, Cobalt launched himself forward, charging towards Lumi with his wings spread out in a silly attempt to make himself look bigger and more threatening.

All three heads turned towards him and the other babies looked excited. They loved racing! Bellowing their battle cries in unision, the dragonets took off after Cobalt. He might be the oldest but they believed they could outrun him easily. Tasha stretched her neck out even further, hoping against hope that she'd somehow manage to win by the tip of her nose. She was the only one who managed to keep shoulder to shoulder with the black dragon after all.

Lumi simply rolled over, as he watched the stampeding baby dragons close in on him. Then, just as Tasha was about to slam head first into him, he tilted his head to the side and blew out a gust of freezing air. Cobalt's wings remained semi-folded in an awkward position as ice encased his entire body. The young one cried piteously, as he realized that only his wing tips, his head, his neck, his claws and his feet were not covered in ice.

The older dragon chuckled and rested his bearded chin against his forearm, watching the baby dragons realize that all of them have fallen victim to his ice breath. Cobalt was first to realize this. Seeing his friends look so dejected, the little one glared at Lumi defiantly and started wiggling madly to aid his nearest friend, Tasha. Inch by inch he rocked until the edges of their ice cubes met. Just as he thought he succeeded, he was sent skidding towards Air instead. Cobalt shook his head stubbornly. Never mind, he was confident his plan would work anyway. He sucked in a lung full of air and spat out the tiniest flame he ever produced. He tried again only to produce sooty embers that snuffed out quickly. Tasha started trying too but she didn't do much better. In the end, the babies were resigned to their fate as Lumi's eyes started drooping for the third time that afternoon.

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Not too far from the playful dragons, Jared was walking towards Azalea with a steaming pot of Garret's famous chicken stew. Sadly, the stew also fell victim to Lumi's ice attack and the once warm pot turned into a cube of ice in Jared's mitten-clad hands.

He watched as a fine layer of frost covered the pot and his eyebrows furrowed in irritation. "Thanks a lot, Azalea," the man said sarcastically as held out the pot of now ice-hard soup. "Looks like we'll all be eating ice for dinner."

"Bah," Azalea gave her fellow commander a dismissive wave and grinned. "It wouldn't have tasted good anyway. Garret's chicken soup my boot! That man's soup was legendary so I bet you won't be able to do it justice."

"Justice? I just wanted to try and re-create it, but now we'll be having ice and more ice. The kids were probably looking forward to this you know."

The grin never left Azalea's face. "We can get one of the baby dragons to melt your precious soup."

"If you look to your left, you'll see they're frozen," Jared retorted.

"Awwwww," Azalea fussed. "Don't they look adorable like that?" She would have continued teasing the little things if Jared hadn't reminded her that she was now in-charge of this bumbling lot. That sobered the woman up, a little. "Lumi was teaching them something," she defended. "Yeah! He was teaching them how to never underestimate a sleeping foe."

"Right..."

A bronze head nudged Jared from behind then peered into the rider's eyes with his own solemn dark ones. The two engaged in what seemed to be a staring competition before Thunderbolt smirked. That was when Jared realized what his partner was thinking of at that very moment.

"No," Jared said firmly as he gave his dragon a pat on the head. "You know better than that. This is a picnic and not a competition. The babies are watching, so you and Lumi need to set a good example." Judging by the tone in Jared's voice, Thunderbolt knew there would be no convincing his rider. Often when he said no, he meant no.

The dragon rolled its eyes and let out a fake sigh.

"You'll get to race Lumi next time and we'll kick him and Azalea to the curb, won't we?" He was quite confident that Thunderbolt would agree to his terms, so it took him by surprise when he knocked onto the grass by Thunder's tail. "Wha - No! Thunder, no, I said - No!"

Thunderbolt issued a challenge to the sleeping Lumi and Jared was left watching helplessly as his dragon rocketed towards the clouds. Lumi gave a taunting roar before he took off after his competitor. The two of them clashed playfully in the sky in a mock battle before Thunder streaked off in a random direction. Lumi followed close behind. Whenever they passed by at the start of their next lap round Sol, the baby dragons and young riders would cheer loudly for whoever was in the lead. They cries were enough enough to spur the slower dragon to move even faster.

"Thunder!" Jared bellowed as his dragon passed him for the third time. "You know better than this. I said come back!"

"So much for kicking us to the curb, eh?" Azalea smirked, as she picked up the pot that he dropped between his feet. "Now let's go serve them your legendary snow cones."


4. They Believe in You
Epilogue Four ft: Lesley, Amiel, Clockwork, Bunny Sisters, Victoria and Guards
Written by The Fox Sisters

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The yacht cut through the clear waters of Summer Island Bay as Amiel leaned back into his beach chair. The sun was shining, the skies clear, and the wind cool against his skin - it was the perfect date and he let out a content sigh. "Isn't this the greatest, Lesley?" Amiel's pink-haired lover was sitting perpendicular from him on another beach chair, a pencil in hand and his nose buried in his sketch book. "Also," Amiel purred. "How's the picture coming along?"

Lesley looked positively delighted. "Good, but it'd go even better if you stayed put." Pencil met paper as Lesley's eyes roamed over Amiel's body. He'd gotten the face just right and the hair too but as for the rest of Amiel... the artist's sketching came to a halt as Lesley observed the curve of Amiel's biceps, the smear of sun tan lotion on his chest... his well-defined stomach. Lesley stared on, his eyes trailing lower and lower. Soon they caught a peek of the hem of Amiel's shorts. Lesley swallowed hard, trying to keep his naughty mind out of the gutter. "Oh, oh, I think you could bend your leg a little more. Keep those shorts hidden, yes?" Lesley teased with a wink. A scarlet blush fanned across the bridge of his nose to either cheek when Amiel obliged. "C'est magnifique! You are getting better at posing."

A proud smile wormed its way onto Amiel's features and a chuckle left his throat. "You're turning as pink as your hair, my love."

Pencil met paper once more. Lord, what had he done to deserve such a beautiful man?

"Draw me, Lesley," Amiel teased. "Draw me like one of your bishie boys. The ones you've told me so much about." The Nobody let out a tinkling laugh, as he rolled off to his side and propped his head up using his palms. "Maybe this pose will set your heart aflame." He purred protectively, as he leaned towards the object of his affection.

"Amiel?" Lesley whispered.

Without bothering to reply, Amiel lunged forward, swatting the sketchpad aside and capturing his pink haired angel's lips hungrily. Sensing Lesley trying to break free, Amiel's arms snaked round his love's waist and reeled the wiggling body in until they were practically glued at the hips. He stared into Lesley's blue eyes, watching them flutter close. He closed his as well. They remained entwined for what seemed like an eternity. There was slow, passionate kissing with occasionally pauses long enough for them to gulp down lungfuls of salty air.

"Ahem!"

The couple jumped apart so suddenly that they resembled red-faced highschoolers caught necking in the church pews by the pastor. Amiel, despite how embarrassed he felt, quickly wrapped an arm round Lesley's waist and pulled the human close to his side. "Yes, Franz?" He would be lying if he said he wasn't upset about being so rudely interrupted. He and Lesley barely had any alone time back home, what with his father snooping on them.

"Lord Amiel, we are reaching Sol." Franz, the elderly butler, announced. "I suggest we get you ready for the ball."

Amiel glanced behind the butler and nodded when he noticed the harbor coming into view. "Oh," he muttered before lapsing into a complete silence. His father warned him to be on his best behavior as the Prime Minister of Nowhere would be there and he was supposed to impress her. Their family's sugar business depended on her continued support after all. His eyes flit towards his beautiful companion. "Do we have a dress for Lesley?"

"Of course, as requested, several dresses have been prepared for Lord Lesley."

"Fantastic," Amiel gave Franz a tap on the shoulder then beamed brightly at the human by his side. "You're sure to be the talk of the town, my love." He laughed when a bright blush crept up Lesley's face. "Well, we don't want to be late. I'll see you when you're ready." And with that said, the lovers broke apart to prepare for their night in town.

A few moments after the boat had docked, Amiel arrived in a crisp dark suit. He donned a fashionable long coat and was straightening up his tie when Lesley arrived to join him. His eyes flitted towards the vibrant pink dress Lesley was wearing and his heart skyrocketed into his throat, leaving him stunned and speechless. "Fabulous! Lesley, you are absolutely stunning."

"And you look positively dapper, Amiel." Lesley reached out and hooked his arm with his date's before flashing Franz a smile. The buttler was standing by the side of the boat, waiting for both men to disembark. Sadly, the two spent a good chunk of time complimenting each other and it wasn't until moments later that they'd all managed to get off the ship and onto the harbor.

Sol's harbor was swarming with people and as they made their way across, Amiel made sure to keep a protective arm around his lover's shoulders. "How far is the castle, Franz?"

"Quite far, but not to worry, my lords. After we leave the harbor, we should be able to take a turtle bus to the venue." Franz tilted his head up, noting that the sun was still high in the sky. Sol was one of the few places in Nowhere that had a night and day cycle, and judging by the sun's position, they had plenty of time to reach the castle. "I assure you, we won't be late." At least, as long as nothing out of the ordinary happened.

"Good, first impressions are everything after all." Amiel beamed.

Relieved, the trio walked on, but as they made their way through the crowd, Lesley suddenly stopped in place, his eyes focused on two hooded figures he couldn't help but find odlly familiar. In the distance, three hooded figures stood before a fruit stand. One of them snatched three oranges from an unmanned stall and stuffed it into their sack.

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"You can't just take things," Serenade hissed. Thankfully no one had seen them, but she didn't want them to be branded as thieves. "Jam, you have to pay for things."

The confused man nodded, but he was more interested in the round green fruit that was resting one of the stall's countertops. It was bigger than his head and green stripes ran across its round body. Taking what Serenade said about paying to heart, the Clockwork Soldier, now officially known as Jam to his friends, desposited five of his precious cookies onto the countertop.

The confused merchant didn't have time to say anything else, because as soon as the deed was done, Clockwork wrapped his arms around the shiny watermelon and began to walk away. Serenade and Dissonance stood with their mouths hanging wide.

"That wasn't what sis meant!" The white rabbit yelled. "You're supposed to pay with Stars." But by then the Cloclwork soldier was several feet away and the enraged merchant was yelling 'thief' and calling out for the city guards.

"Stars?" Jam sputtered having just taken a huge bite out of the fruit. "What are stars?"

The bunny sisters exchanged exasperated looks. How could the "King" of Nowhere be so ignorant about how the world worked? Seriously, his naivety never failed to floor them even after they had been travelling with him for some time. Serenade shook her head, pulling her hood tighter round her face, as she clamped a hand on top of Jam's head to prevent his hood from flying off. "We'll explain later. Promise, just promise, okay? You'll never take things again when you don't have stars."

The black rabbit could almost imagine their royal friend pouting under that hood when the runaway king whined. "But I don't have stars...."

"We'll get some. Just don't take anything," Serenade added sharply.

"Yup! You'll get arrested and thrown in prison!" Dissonance chimed in. She turned to look back briefly before looking ahead again. Her eyes grew as wide as saucers when she noticed a dark haired gentleman and his pretty lady walking towards them. The couple were so busy flirting that they didn't even notice the hooded figures running straight towards them. "LOOK OUT!"

Desperate to avoid colliding into the nobles and getting into even more trouble, Dissonance grabbed her sister and Jam and leaped off the sidewalk. The hooded theives landed onto the puddle-riddled cobblestone road with a huge splash. They fumbled around, nearly crashing into an all too familiar ex-dragoon and her bodyguards.

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"Stop theives!"

"How dare you try and ambush the Prime Minister?"

The myriad of shouts were causing Serenade's head to hurt. Today had promised to be such a good day too. Why did she promise Jam cookies today? Why? She and Dissonance should have kept quiet and surprised him like they always did whenever they passed through town.

"We're not trying to ambush anyone!" Dissonance yelled as she quickly grabbed the dazed Clockwork and her sister by the sleeves of their green cloaks. Before the guards could reach for them, they were off, rushing down the busy street and disappearing into the crowd.

"Was that... Serenade and Dissonance?" Lesley couldn't believe his eyes. He'd only seen them for a split second, and yet, they'd been all too familiar. He stared on in a daze, until he felt Amiel's strong arms wrap around his waist.

"Lesley, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," came the quiet response. Was it really them? He stared on, his eyes flitting to another familiar face. Victoria Sieghart stood motionless, her eyes focused on the busy streets. Lesley wondered if she would chase after the hooded figures, but instead, he noticed a ghost of a smile on her face.

The newly-elected Prime Minister of Nowhere shook her head. "Leave them be," she whispered as she motioned for the soldiers to return to their post. The angry merchant insisted that the thieves be caught, but when Victoria handed him a pouch of stars, he quickly mumbled apology after apology before rushing back to his fruit stand.

Rook, who'd been assigned as Victoria's head bodyguard, shot the woman a puzzled glance. "Lady Victoria, what are you doing?"

Victoria leaned in to whisper something in his ear and Rook went quiet, unable to believe what he'd just heard. The rabbit sisters and the Clockwork soldier had disappeared right before the king's coronation day, and frankly, he didn't think they would ever see any of them again.

"Life sure is full of surprises," the man mused.

"You're preaching to the choir, Rook," Victoria chuckled. "One day I was a dragoon and now I'm the Prime Minister." Sometimes she still couldn't believe it, but what's done was done and now they could only continue moving forward.

As Victoria and Rook made their way down the bustling street, Amiel fussed over Lesley, rushing around his stunned date like a mother hen. "Lesley, you're awfully quiet. Are you sure you're okay-" the words died in Amiel's throat as two bunny ears suddenly popped out of Lesley's head. They were pink and they twitched whenever a loud sound echoed down the street.

"Amiel, what are you looking at?"

"Um, nothing my love. Now, let's get you something to eat, you looked absolutely famished!" Hand in hand the lovers walked on, eventually disappearing into the crowd the same way the hooded figures and Victoria had earlier on.

"Lesley?"

"Yes, Amiel?"

"I love you," he wrapped his arm tighter around Lesley's waist. "No matter what."


5. You Will Always be Connected
Epilogue Five ft: Ran and Riley
Written by The Fox Sisters

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It was 3:05 and the artist was nowhere in sight. Riley stood impatiently by the swing-set, checking her phone every minute or two to see if there was a new e-mail. The man she was going to meet was the artist of the comic dubbed Mr. Rabbit Dreams of Nowhere, a fun whimsical comic Harper referred to her over Facebook during start of his summer break.

At that time, the comic had only one chapter but the cute drawings had her hooked. Soon the two reunited pals began following it obssessively. Initially, they would remark about how similar the Nobodies looked to Songbird, Brandy, Martini and even the bunny sisters while chatting on Skype. After seeing Queen D in chapter three, however, Harper couldn't help exclaiming during their voice call that this was too much of a coincidence. Riley agreed and suggested that it had to be one of the Lost Souls, possibly Inadi.

Before Harper could stop her, she contacted the artist and Jasper via Facebook Messenger. To Jasper, she mentioned that she and Harper believed they found Inadi on Facebook and, to the artist, she demanded that he man up and confess his love to Jasper in real life. Less than a minute later, Riley noticed that both parties had replied. Jasper was puzzled because she thought she mentioned to the rest of the Lost Souls that Inadi was staying with her for the next two weeks. She added that he denied knowing about the comic. Even weirder still, the artist sounded very amused and gave her his personal email. He asked her to contact him via email instead because he only logged into Facebook to update the comic.

Riley emailed him, of course, and they corresponded for about a week before she proposed meeting up before Inadi travelled back to Japan. That was how she ended up here in a random park in New York that two train stops away from Jasper's cafe. Waiting, possibly forgotten, at three in the afternoon. Now that she had even more time to obssess over it, she couldn't help wondering if she scared this person off. The last email she received came in four days ago and the person hadn't been online since. She sighed.

She checked her phone yet again. Two years had gone by since they'd first returned, she managed to contact Inadi, Jasper, and Harper, but the whereabouts of the rest was an unanswered question that continued to haunt her until this very day. Wherever they were, she hoped they were moving forward and that they were happy.

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Three benches away from Riley, a casually dressed man and his young son sat in front of a huge, bubbling fountain. The toddler sitting in his father's jeans clad lap chewed on his toy rabbit's drool soaked ear as he stared at the office workers in vibrant coats zipping off to destinations unknown. Everyone appeared too busy on their handphones to pause and enjoy the nippy autumn air. The man holding onto the boy was no different. He was so caught up with drafting an email that he didn't realize that his three o'clock appointment was sitting on the swings to his right.

"Babi, Babi! Who?" the dark-skinned child squealed, as he stopped chomping on the ear and stared expectantly at his father with a huge smile tugging at his lips. He pressed his white rabbit dressed in a red soldier's coat upwards until the bunny was nose to nose with his daddy. "Babi!" he exclaimed joyfully, yanking the toy away from the man's face and shaking it vigorously to get his father's attention. The head lolled from side to side so crazily that the stitches began to strain.

Noticing the flashes of red and white out of the corner of his eye, Ran pulled his gaze away from his handphone and turned his attention to the toddler in his lap. A single glance was all he needed to understand what his son was trying to tell him. Ran chuckled, as he reached out and mussed up his two-year-old's dark brown hair hair. "I'm Mr. Rabbit. I'm a bunny guard." he responded cheerfully, knowing the routine by heart. Andy never seemed to get tired of the bedtime stories about the Nobodies. The same stories which Ran had been serializing into the lighthearted comic he dubbed "Mr. Rabbit Dreams of Nowhere".

"Babi, where?" The boy's eyes lit up with delight. He swung his tiny legs back and forth already anticipating an action packed storytime right here in the park. Andy placed his plush over his Daddy's phone as an extra precaution because he knew that his father had the tendency to stare at the glowing screen for hours at a time. "Babi, where?" he shouted a second time to make sure his father really heard him.

"I'm from Nowhere." Ran spoke calmly, as he tried to pry the phone from underneath the rabbit's butt. As soon as he managed to tug his phone free, Andy grabbed the other end and refused to let go. Ran frowned as they continued engaging in this unnecessary tug-o-war. The final tug in the child's favor sent the poor bunny guard doll flying to the ground, but Andy didn't care. The boy simply waved the phone in front of his father, who sighed loudly.

"Where we go?" Andy insisted while he continued clutching the phone. "Daddy, where?"

Ran's free hand snaked behind Andy quickly to support the toddler's back as he finally yanked his phone free. Tickling the boy's belly, the dad stood up and began rocking the kid in his arms. "Where?" he teased. "We are in a boat. We are going to Orion."

"O on?" Andy repeated as he stopped fidgeting. He had heard of the Shakespearean Starfisher, the Siren Lake, Sol and Aven, the Midnight Man's Mansion, the City of Cogs and Gears and the Hobbit Hole, but he didn't remember hearing about Orion before. Brimming with curiosity, the kid tilted his head to the side and tugged at his father's t-shirt. "O on?" he asked again.

"Yes, Orion," Ran encouraged. "We're on a boat going to Orion!"

"See?" Andy asked suddenly wanting to see pictures of the boat and Orion. He pointed to his Daddy's phone, because he remembered the colorful, glowing pictures on the black rectangle thing his father liked so much. "Daddy, see?"

A little earlier, Riley had looked up from her phone to stare at the father and son duo. The white rabbit the boy had been carrying in his arms shared a strong resemblance to the bunny guards that walked down Nowhere's streets. One, two, one, two, she could picture them marching to an imaginary beat, their chests puffed out and their carrot rifles held tightly in their soft and tiny paws. Riley looked away, reminding herself that it was rude to stare, but the man began talking about Nowhere and the puzzle pieces fell into place.

He was the artist. Riley took a long, good look at him and a bright grin wormed its way onto her face. There was no doubt about it, it was Ran.

Stuffing her hands into the pockets of her coat, the girl made her way towards the bench.

"You can't get to Orion by boat, you need to take the whale bus." Riley scooped the rabbit plush off the ground and took a step towards Andy. Beaming, she reached out to offer the stuffed animal to the child.

"Whale bus?" Ran craned his neck around to get a better glimpse at his eavesdropper. His eyes lit up upon seeing Riley's familiar face - almost nothing about the girl has changed in the past two years, so he recognized her immediately. Given the vibrancy of the carrot top, he guessed she colored her hair recently. "Rils," he greeted with his usual grin. "I thought it had to be you. Surprised to see me?"

Andy put his small fist into his mouth, as he stared at the newcomer approaching them. His eyes went rounder when she seemed to produce his favorite toy out of thin air. He was reaching for the bunny toy when his spotted the woman's orange hair. He stopped wiggling for a moment to stare at the wispy locks. Then, squealing happily, the toddler flailed his tiny legs and hands around even more vigorously than before.

"Looks like Andy is happy to see you too," Ran added with a laugh completely unaware of his son's true intentions. "Boy, looks like he really wants Mr. Rabbit. Andy, say thank you."

Andy let off another deafening squeal, making both adults wince. Laughing at their comic expressions, the child reached out and grabbed a fistful of the orange hair. Ran apologized profusely, but try as he might Andy refused to let go. The child giggled once more at his Daddy's funny face then stuffed the hair into his mouth.

"Andy!" he sighed. "Sorry again, Rils. I forgot he likes orange things a lot more than his bunny lately."

Riley stood there awkwardly. Just as she was about to respond, Andy had grabbed onto her hair and stuffed it in his mouth. Now she was stuck in a half-crouching position as she tried to free herself from the child's grip. "I can tell he really likes it," she joked lamely.

Ran gave her a sympathetic smile before eventually managing to get his son to let go. He apologized again and Riley gave him a dismissive wave in response. Getting nommed on by a toddler wasn't exactly up there on her to-do list but she was just really happy to see Ran again. Finding one of the Lost Souls was always great, they'd grown to become family after all. "It's fine, Ran. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to become a zombie." She winced as she reached for the fistful of hair Andy had bitten. "Anyway, it's really, really good to see you again. I've missed you." She stuck out a hand to ruffle Andy's hair. "Are you babysitting one of your nephews? How are you? It's been so long." Riley continued to ramble. "And you're writing comics now?"

Andy burst into tears the moment the hair was removed. Ran cooed softly, rocking his son gently but the boy continued wailing loudly. Not even Mr. Rabbit could distract the boy. Ran tried his best to ignore the small group of college kids staring at him and Andy, but things were getting awkward fast. "Maybe we can go grab a coffee?" he hinted to Riley. "It's past Andy's naptime."

"Oh, right." Riley nodded not wishing to have Andy cry even more. "We can talk later. Actually, I've got some news you might like. Jasper's coffee shop is in the area, I was planning to head there after meeting you. We should go! I'm sure she'll be so happy to see you." Riley would have said more, but Andy was growing more antsy with each passing second. "Let's go, it's not far from here."

The two adults barely made it out of the park when Andy decided it was time to turn into a child Hulk. He screamed until his face was red, thrashing around and almost falling out of Ran's arms. Unknowingly, the kid garnered so much attention that his stony-faced father started hailing a cab. "I think I'll skip the coffee," Ran spoke apologetically. "Andy's not his cheerful self today. I should have guessed when he woke up two hours earlier than usual this morning."

"Oh, of course," Riley eyed the wailing child worriedly. "Is Andy sick?" She made a mental note to send Jasper a text or give her a call so she could tell her about today. Running into Ran at the park was kind of a miracle in itself. She'd need to tell Harper as well. "We can catch up some other time if you're busy, Ran. Either way, it's great to see you again."

Ran nodded, as a cab pulled to a stop beside him. "No, he'll be fine after a nap. Say, it's too early for good-byes. Why don't you come over? We could have tea or a Pimm's Cup after Andy nods off." He grinned then decided to add something else as a way to make his invitation more obvious. "Plus, I'd appreciate you helping me with the pram."

Riley lit up when Ran invited her to follow them home. She'd been looking forward to catching up with Ran and talking about the rest of the Lost Souls and the Midnight Train. "Sure, that sounds nice, Ran." It was always a little odd meeting them for the first time outside of Nowhere where things were normal but with Ran it was different. It felt like they never said goodbye at all. "How have you been since, y'know, Nowhere and all that? It's been a long time. I've found Harper too," she continued as she kept an eye on Ran to see if he needed help with anything. "Two years, it's kind of hard to believe, isn't it?"

"Well, let's talk after we get to my place?" Ran suggested with a laugh. "The driver's waiting and Andy's not gonna like me being distracted." He indicated that he wanted his friend to enter the cab. He let her settle on the seat before he wheeled the pram towards the driver waiting near the boot. Noticing Riley sitting on the edge of the seat as if she wanted to dash over and help, Ran shook his head. "We're good, Rils. Be with you soon."

He chuckled when he saw how conflicted she looked. People, men or women, reacted the same way when they saw him wrestling Andy and the pram. He appreciated their kindness but he would rather handle everything by himself. After all, he had two years of practice being a single dad. Leaving the taxi driver with instructions on how to lock the pram, Ran walked back to Riley's side of the car and climbed in after she scooted to the other side.

Slowly, he rubbed Andy's back as the kid continued hiccoughing into his shirt. The warm wet patches left by the tears and snot were starting to cool, indicating that this current tantrum was finally over. The dad was secretly relieved, as Andy had been throwing longer tantrums lately. The longest was last week when his son practically cried for over two hours and he couldn't do anything to soothe the boy at all. Andy only paused long enough between each mini tantrum before wailing himself hoarse over and over again. It was so bad that several concerned neighbors came knocking on his door. That was perhaps the second most embarrassing moment since the boy was born, Ran mused. The other was when he took a two month old Andy shopping with his mom back in Bangkok sometime after his on and off girlfriend, Mazu, moved out of his home and heart permanently.

Refusing to let melancholy take over, Ran returned his attention to his little bundle of joy. He peeled the groggy child away for a bit, whipped out a handkerchief from his jeans pocket and started wiping away the gooey remanents on the tiny face. Andy's eyes started drooping further, so Ran shifted Andy over to his cleaner side and allowed the boy to rest against his shoulder. Sensing Riley staring at him, Ran turned to look at her and pressed a finger to his lips. He winked, hoping she got the message.

Riley responded with a silent nod. Awhile ago, she'd asked if Andy was Ran's nephew, but she was starting to think the kid was his son. It made questions whirl around inside her head. Was Ran married? The thought made her grin. Back in Nowhere he'd been the cool uncle of the group, so the thought of him settling down was an interesting one. Something to talk about as they killed some time and caught up with each other.

She wondered if he'd married Mazu. Ran had mentioned her once or twice, but back in Nowhere, his words had never been overly optimistic. Riley opened her mouth to ask, but decided to save the questions for later. Waking Andy up was not on her to-do list. The poor kid had cried enough for one day.

The rest of the ride was spent in silence, but eventually, the cab came to a halt in front of Ran's appartment. They paid the driver and were out the door shortly after. Riley went on ahead to open the door for Andy's pram, and once Ran and his son were inside, she made her way to the elevator and pressed the button. "What floor are you on?"

"14th, thanks." Ran whispered. He placed a hand reassuringly over his dozing toddler's back to prevent Andy from opening his eyes again. Luckily for them, no one else entered the lift, so it took less than three minutes for them to reach the 14th floor. Quietly, Ran led Riley to apartment 106C and indicated for her to reach into his right pocket. He merely mouthed the word "keys" so she didn't think he was trying to be lewd or anything.

Riley unlocked the door then took a step back so Ran could make his way inside. She followed shortly after and eyed at the apartment room curiously. "Soo," she made sure to whisper. "What are you doing in New York, Ran? I thought you were from Thailand?" Some memories from Nowhere had grown hazy with the passage of time, but at the very least, she was sure she remembered this right.

"So many questions!" Ran exclaimed in a hushed voice. "I'll answer them once I put Andy to bed." Without jerking Andy too much, Ran pulled down a false wooden partion in the wall under his loft bed to reveal a plush looking bunk bed. He pushed it down until he heard it lock into place. Bending over, he lowered the sleeping child onto the mattress and began removing the tiny sneakers. Then, with the shoes in hand, he began searching for Andy's baby blanket and favorite bedtime buddy, a small dragon doll named Cobalt.

While Ran tended to Andy, Riley peered around curiously in hopes of catching a glimpse or a sign of Mazu. When she found none, she eyed the rest of the apartment and noted that it seemed rather small for three people. Perhaps it would be best not to ask about her and focus on the Midnight Train and the past two years instead.

"Mroaw," a soft purring sound came from one of the bags on the floor.

"You have a cat?" Riley asked. "N'aw, sounds like things are going purrfectly well for you, sorry, sorry. Old habbits die hard and all that."

A black cat tumbled out of a crumpled Food Panda bag. He purred cutely, rolling over to show off his white underside. His green eyes stared into Riley's and he reached out to biff her fingers with his white paws as if he was demanding a lot of belly rubs. "Mroaw," he called again. Pet me human, Riley could hear him whining inside her head with a voice that sounded awfully similar to Cello's. Pet me now.

Miffed that the girl wasn't adoring his furry person, Jo pulled a grumpy face before walking over and lying across Riley's shoes. He yawned, stretching his paws upwards and downwards then twisting his spine into an almost perfect S. Again his green eyes flicked towards Riley and she could have sworn he was smirking. "Mraow."

"N'aww, who's a cute cat? You are." Riley stooped down to scoop the cat into her arms. If Jo protested, she didn't hear it over her cooing. "Aww, such a chubby cat. I bet Ran spoils you rotten or something."

"More like he pampers himself and acts like he owns this apartment," Ran corrected. "He would come over and demand thickened cream or cat food even when I'm trying to put Andy to sleep. And," Ran paused so that he could glare at his cat. "He loves leaping into the laundry basket and leave me with a huge mess. Luckily, he knows better than to tear up my shirts. Right?"

"Meow?" Jo asked innocently while cocking his head to the side.

"Yes, you do," Ran argued.

Jo simply flicked his tail dismissively before turning back to the new human. He stared at her with huge, googly eyes and started licking her chin and cheeks in an attempt to convince her to take his side. He batted her arm in gentle taps. "Meow, meoooow," he pleaded. I'm innocent, he insisted.

Ran facepalmed. "See what I mean. It was so much worse when I had the other four around. They were the furry mafia of Fleet Street. Each gang memeber took turns to make sure I toed the line. I had a strict schedule to follow - when I change their kitty litter, when I cuddle whom and what groceries I needed to buy. Not the most baby friendly household."

Jo yawned and turned his face away.

"A furry mafia, that doesn't sound too bad." Riley laughed at the revelation, but hadn't turned away from Jo since he'd started looking at her with those eyes. "I see what you mean though, cuteness can be very dangerous. That's why cats and dogs tend to be master manipulators." To be honest though, she wouldn't mind getting manipulated by an army of floofy animals. "Did Andy like the cats?" Her eyes flitted to the sleeping child and she broke into a grin. Only two years had passed since Nowhere but it looked like everyone was already living very different lives. It was good, a little strange, but still good.

Ran shook his head. " Wow Jo seems to have you eating out of his paws so quickly! Anyway, grab a seat," he said, gesturing to the messy dining table with three chairs surrounding it and the huge sofa overflowing with toys. "I can get us some drinks. Beer? Cider? That Pimm's Cup I promised? I have some wine as well if you like or, erm, diluted coffee. I ran out of beans earlier this week."

"Water is good," Riley laughed. "It's like three in the afternoon, Ran."

"That's pretty tame," Ran teased. "I expected better from you. How about some of Andy's carrot juice with a dash of vodka? I think a rum and coke might be a better choice actually." He saw Riley's eyes grow wider with each suggestion. Ran reached behind and ruffled his hair. "Been awhile since I had an adult around, you know. Of course, I have baby friendly juices too. That grape juice from the Heinz bottle isn't too bad. Well, it's much better with some vodka if I wasn't too tired to look for the bottle on most days."

Riley arched an eyebrow at the growing list. "Yeah? Either way, Carrot juice with Vodka... I'm sorry Ran, but that sounds gross." At least the other options didn't sound that bad. "Maybe next time though, I need to bike over to Jasper's later. I don't think I want to get hit by a truck today." Riley sat down on the couch and looked at the drawings Ran had tacked onto the walls. There were so many of them, and most of them looked way too familiar to be anything other than scenic shots straight out of Nowhere. "Looks like you've been really busy. So, uh, I've been trying to find the other Lost Souls. Jasper, Inadi, and Harper are fine. Are you doing, okay?"

"You have?" Ran remarked from inside the kitchen. The man noted that he forgot to fill up his water bottles again so he prayed that he had some kind of can drink somewhere inside his fridge. He recalled buying some recently. After junking his greying pepperoni pizza slices from three weeks ago, dried out sweet sour pork over bloating rice and a plastic wrapped furry, green loaf that expired last a month ago, he found two forgotten cans. The soda water expired seven months ago while the coke was only three months passed it's best by date. Not too bad, he guessed. After all, he read on the Internet that canned food usually were good for months after their expiry dates. Shrugging to himself, he walked back to Riley and tossed her the coke. "Sorry, out of water. I can boil some but I'm not a fan of hot water. Hope you don't mind coke."

Pushing Andy's wooden blocks off the sofa, Ran plopped himself down beside his guest and placed his can on top of cluttered coffee table. "How's everyone?" he asked curiously. He doubted Riley would want to hear him go on and on about the trials of parenthood. That was pretty much his life since returning from Nowhere.

"Coke is good, thanks." Riley caught the can and popped it open only to notice the absence of the all too familiar fizzy sound associated with carbonated drinks. Curiously, she eyed the can and noticed that it had expired in June, which was nearly three months ago. "Harper's in college. He wants to be a teacher. Jasper's running Rosen's cafe and Inadi visited her last week. He'll be here for a couple more days. I think he's working on his next book. We were pen pals for a bit. So yup, they're all doing well! Not sure about the others, but I hope they're fine too. I'm guessing they are. Oh, and not to be a bad guest, but I think this is expired." Riley laughed it off as she placed the can on the table. "What's been going on with you?"

Jo stood up on Riley's lap. He chased his tail for a bit before tucking his legs under his body and turned into a black, purring pillow. Ran considered freeing Riley from Jo's tyranny but she seemed really happy. He pretended to grumble at Jo only to have a paw stretch out and nudge him away.

"Fine," he huffed. "Rils' a better friend than you anyway." Turning his attention back to his guest, he smiled lazily and leaned back until his head was pressed against the head of the sofa. "I've been ... occupied. Between Andy, Jo and my freelance contracts, I barely have time to eat." He chuckled. "Heck, I tossed out more food just now. Best weight loss plan, eh?"

"It's something," Riley laughed before giving Ran a mock glare. "Doesn't sound like the best way to save up on cash, though. Food too." She would have joked around a bit more, but the lighthearted atmosphere turned into something much more somber and she quieted down to listen to what Ran was about to say next.

"But yeah ... I dunno. I feel weird. Empty, you know when I'm not busy. Sometimes when I happen to be up at 3 a.m. or maybe when I'm the only one awake at 2 in the afternoon. I can't help wondering where you guys went. If you are real... that's why I started the comic. It made everyone seemed more real." His eyes pulled away from the ceiling fan finally and he rolled his head to the side so he could see Riley. "What's your story? I doubt you planned to set out to find everyone the moment you got home. Or did you now?"

Riley nodded sympathetically. She understood what Ran was trying to say, the emptiness after the Midnight Train, the endless questions, she understood all of it. In fact, she'd doubted almost everything until she found Jasper and Harper. Before that, questions about Nowhere and everyone's whereabouts kept her up at night and made her question her sanity. "Yeah, I feel you. After the train, things were really shitty for me too." She waved a dismissive hand and mustered up a chuckle. "Nah, I wish it were that easy. I tried to ignore it at first, just keep going, pretend it never happened. Mhm, it didn't work out so well. Started blubbering about Nowhere to my friend and it really freaked her out." Riley laughed at the memory. Kim drove her home and that was the end of their adventures as a dynamic duo. "I moved back home, started obsessing over finding the others. Whaddya know, I run into this blog about Jasper's cafe, and on that same forum? Bam, I find Harper. It was a Christmas miracle out of a Disney movie, Ran."

Ran arched an eyebrow. Rils' story left more questions than answers. He couldn't see the connection between reading the blog about Jasper's cafe and finding Harper. Was Harper the writer of the said blog? Was Jasper photographed with Harper? He narrowed his eyes playfully, making Riley start a bit before he broke into a laugh. "Kidding!" he assured her with a pat. "Still don't see the link at all to be honest. How did Harper come into the picture? One moment you mentioned Jasper and next you talked about Harper."

Truth be told, his thoughts were jumbled up during his emotional lows and he couldn't help wondering if Riley was experiencing the same thing. Everything seemed horribly mixed up inside his head, past, present and future. It was like he could remember individual events perfectly but the links between them were broken. He doubted he was like that before taking that fateful train ride to Nowhere. Still patting Riley sympathetically, he continued observing her quietly while waiting for an answer.

Riley narrowed her eyes in response. "Hey! Though, I guess you're right. Sorry 'bout that. Okay, so this is what happened. Harper's sister wrote the blog post featuring Jasper's café. I found Harper in the comment section of said post. Like I said, doesn't make much sense, but I'll take whatever miracles I can get. Started contacting Harper through the blog then we got in touch with Jasper through Harper's sister."

They lapsed into an awkward silence after that. Ran wasn't sure what to add to the conversation without it sound forced. He didn't want to keep talking about the past for too long because it felt like something that could derail their relationship. He was sure they'd grow jaded of one another if all they ever did was focus on Nowhere. They needed to move on anyway. It'd been two years since they got back.

"Isn't Jasper waiting for you?" he asked politely as the cuckoo clock in his living room sounded. It was 5 in the afternoon and Andy would be up soon. "I mean we could hang out at my place after she closes for the day. Have dinner and all."

Ran scratched the side of his nose sheepishly. "Would suggest going out but Andy needs to sleep by 8 and I can't leave him alone at home."

The tense silence was cut short when Ran jumped in with a question. Riley nodded in response. "Oh right, Jasper. Thanks for the reminder. I almost forgot. She'd be pissed if I didn't show up." Riley found it difficult to imagine Jasper getting mad, but she'd seen the kind albino lose it once or twice in Nowhere, and well, Jasper could be quite scary when she lost it. "That sounds like a great idea. I can call Harper too, if you don't mind." Her eyes flitted to Andy. "Would his mom mind though? We wouldn't want to intrude." She almost said Mazu's name but stopped herself before she could, she wasn't exactly sure who Ran had ended up with. That, and he hadn't mentioned Mazu at all.

"Harper's here?" Ran spoke cheerily, trying his best to distract Riley from her latest question. Thinking of Andy's mom still felt like a punch in the gut. She had chosen her career over trying to build a family for their son. To make matters worse, she married his best friend only to further her own career less than a year after. A marriage of convenience obviously since they only lived together for a month or so before Mazu returned to her own apartment. He stopped following the gossip after that and he felt so much saner. "I'd be glad for more company," he added truthfully. "I need a social life outside my son."

The slip of the tongue brought Ril's attention back to the question. Ran slapped his forehead and muttered under his breath, something about being such an idiot. There was no avoiding it now. "About Andy's mom..." he trailed off and began lacing his fingers together tightly. His eyes broke away from Riley's gaze. "I never married. Mazu proposed around 12.30 am the night we got back. I mean we were engaged but I could see she was miserable the entire time."

He squeezed his fingers until they turned white, as he tried to figure out how to continue. He saw Riley inching closer to him like she wanted to give him a hug but he moved away. No, he decided. He didn't want to keep this a secret anymore. Not from Riley. Silly as it sounded, he kinda felt she'd understand. "I didn't want to marry her either to be honest. She cheated on me many times and I had enough. I almost broke up with her anyway before New Year's Eve when she told me about Andy."

Ran closed his eyes and exhaled. He allowed his words to sink in before he opened his eyes to look at Riley. "I only agreed to the proposal because I didn't want her to abort the baby. The thought of taking someone's life to pay for our mistake disturbed me."

He saw her look away but he didn't drop his gaze. "Riley, I was so distracted that night because of Mazu that I didn't even notice the train was different." He laughed dryly. "It must have heard my desperate wish to escape from it all. My unemployment, my family, memories of my mentor and Mazu."

Ran's revelation caused the atmosphere to grow heavy, but Riley stared on unflinching. "You know," she struggled to find the right words. "Andy's lucky to have a caring dad like you." She might not have said much, but the look she gave him was one of respect. Ran had agreed to Mazu's proposal to ensure she kept Andy alive when he didn't even want to mary her. It was a sacrifice and it was... well, it was a very grownup thing to do. "That was a really cool thing to do, even cooler than that time we almost won the hoverboard race." 'I'm sorry,' Riley almost said, but instead, she wiped the frown off her face and gave Ran an encouraging pat on the shoulder. "You'll be a kickass dad, Ran. Andy's going to have the coolest father around." She had a few more questions she wanted to ask, but Riley shoved her curiosity aside. The last thing she wanted to do was reopen old wounds.

"Anyway, Harper and Jasper replied. They're psyched to see you." She mustered a grin. "I'll give them a call right now. Are you sure Andy will be okay with all the people around? I mean, we'll try to be quiet of course, but still..." Seeing as Ran didn't look the least bit worried, Riley whipped out her phone and gave the other Lost Souls a call.

"Yup, I'm telling the truth!" Riley hissed as she pressed the phone against her ear. ""Ouch, Jasper. Ran's really here. I'm not making excuses, okay. I was going to go, but I ran into him in the park. "Ouch, Jasper. Ran's really here. I'm not making excuses, okay. I was going to go, but I ran into him in the park. What? Yup, you, Inadi and Harper should come. Okay, see you later. Bring food, please. Ran doesn't have any."

The idle chatter continued for another minute or two before the call was eventually dropped. "Hey, Ran. Do you have room for one more person?" Riley gave him a sheepish smile. "I kind of forgot about Inadi. He's coming too."

Ran brightened up at the mention of Inadi. "H-hey, yeah!" he had to stop himself from flooding Riley with questions about Inadi and Jasper. Things like if they were married already or if Inadi had already published his first novel. Those things could wait, he guessed. They were coming over after all. "That's great! I was planning to order Clam on Clam from this new pizza place called Ottermore's Pizza. Apparently, the original branch is in Oakwoods. Been there almost 50 years before the owner's son decided to open a branch here. Apparently, his wife lived here all her life and she didn't want to move away."

He grinned and pulled out a battered looking pizza pamphlet with a anime-ish otter emblazoned on the front cover. The cute, chubby cheeked animal was stuffing its face with super oozy pepperoni pizza. "People were raving about a new pizza called Captain Walter Overboard on Facebook the other day. It was launched the day the Oakwoods owner became a granddad and the shop claims it will be the biggest pizzas you'll ever see!"

"Ottermore's, huh?" Riley took the pamphlet from Ran and grinned at the cute otter mascot. "I've never heard of them before, but sounds adorable. The food looks good, and gotta give them points for the cute designs too." Riley flipped the pamphlet on its back only to catch a glimpse of several coupons. Heck yeah, they were eating tonight! Or not... her eyes fell on the expiry date written on the coupons, apprently, they'd expired two days ago. "Um, Ran? I think we've got a little problem. Your, uh, coupons. They're kind of expired. Kind of like the food in your fridge." She shot him a mock glare. "Kidding, kidding, though you should be more careful. Andy might eat something rotten. Maybe you need a little help? Not to pry or anything of course."

"Are you implying you wanna work here?" Ran joked. He laughed for a bit but eventually stopped when something crossed his mind. "Say, Rils, I'm looking for a partner. I plan to start a company soon and it'll be nice having a friend onboard. Media stuff, like I can design websites, create logos, edit videos and create short animation films. You sound like someone who can do sales and write stuff. You know, be my copywriter."

He scratched the back of his head nervously, fearing he might make things awkward again. "I, yeah. Sorry. It's just a crazy idea I had. Thought you might be interested since you mentioned I need some help." He shrugged. "I'm okay with you working from home or we can find a bigger apartment in New York. This place is kinda too small and expensive now that I have Andy."

For a moment, Riley wondered if Ran was kidding. When she realized he was serious, she broke into a grin then laughed. "Not what I was implying, but that would be great, Ran. Wait... this is for real, right? This isn't some late April Fools prank or anything like that?" She'd spent the last two years obsessing over finding everyone that the thought of actually having a real job was almost surreal. "Copywriting for you. Totally in. So is there an interview?"

"Well, kinda? I dunno. Never did HR before and I don't think I'll have the heart to reject people I interview. So, yup, you're hired!" Ran beamed as he stretched out his hand. "I hope you don't regretting starting from ground zero. I mean we can live off my savings until our company makes a profit. Shouldn't be too bad."

Riley practically had stars in her eyes. "I can't believe it," she laughed. "I actually have a job. Mom and Dad are going to think I'm making this up." She would have gone on and on, but a knock on the door interrupted her from saying whatever it was she'd planned to say next. "Ooh, I'll get it. It's probably them." In a flash, Riley was looking through the peephole and pulling the door open. "Guys!" She practically yelled. "I got a job."

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"What? Congratulations?" Harper had barely stepped through the door and already Riley was bouncing around like a kid in a toystore. "H-Hey, Ran. Long time no see. Thanks for having us over. Um, I'm a little confused. What's happening?"

"Ran and I are starting a company." Riley blurted out.

Ran didn't have time to respond when he heard Andy crying. "Sorry, guys, erm, duty calls. Make yourself at home and ... err... Riley can show you around. Get you drinks and all. Trust me, take her advice and drink the baby grape juice. It's great with some vodka."

"Vodka?" Harper's eyes went wide. It wasn't even past dinner time yet. Well, it was Ran and Riley after all. A small smile tugged on the corners of his lips. He'd missed them all, and being together again felt good. "I'm glad you invited us over, Riley."

"No worries, now let's get you all a drink!" Riley stated as she began shoving them through the door.

You Are Fire Forged Friends!



Stay Tuned for Epilogue Part 2
 
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Epilogue Part Two : We Will Keep Moving Forward
Collab By:@Capt. Blu @Fox of Hearts and @Fox of Spades


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They were an hour away from Oakwoods and Andy wouldn't stop announcing what he saw through the window. Mostly it was cows, more cows and yellow blobs. Riley tried to teaching him the word "haystack" but the kid didn't seem to get it. She laughed and leaned back, as she took another sip of her melted Starbucks drink.

"From Oakwoods, it'll be another half hour to Grenfall," Harper announced without looking up from the map. The bespectacled young man appeared to be taking his navigator post way more seriously than either Ran or Riley. The other two kept goofing off and offering a lot of "fun" detours that turned their five day drive into a eight day trip. Things had come to a point that Harper offered to be the permanent navigator so that he could make sure they arrived well before the school semester started. "Abi said she'd be with us at a place called Daeyong's Korean BBQ Buffet."

"I thought the plan was to meet at the original Ottermore's," Ran teased. "I mean I know she's meeting us after work but I could use some pizza about now."

"We had pizza six times over four days," Riley complained. "Pretty soon Harper will turn into a chubby pizza boy called Norman."

Harper shot her a glare but refused to comment on her weird ideas. Riley had gotten a lot crazier ever since she and Ran started their business two years ago. That was the kindest anyone said. Inadi said they were nuttier than Mado behind their backs and Harper couldn't help agreeing. Secretly, he was worried they were suffering from some sort of PTSD or depression.

"Rye, look!" Andy exclaimed, slamming his hands against the glass. "It the Cimson Justice!" He then proceeded to babble more about The Crimson Justice, Ran's newest comic book protagonist.

Hearing the name made Riley smiled. The plot for that series was about a brash, optimistic heroine who beat up baddies with her fire powers. The story practically screamed Ace Tain and thinking about it brought a grin to Riley's face. However, just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished. Ace was one of the few friends she'd yet to find along with Lelia. They kind of bumped into Toby a day ago while stopping at a huge amusement park called Czar Toby's Palace of Fun, so that was more or less one down and two to go.

It was 2017, five years since they'd boared the Midnight Train.

On some days Nowhere felt like it was lifetimes behind her, yet on days like these, everything felt fresh--as if she'd just hopped out of the train in time for 2013.

Memories of that night came flooding back, they were holding hands and saying their goodbyes when a bright light enveloped them all. After that, they were alone and it were as if Nowhere had never happened, as if it'd been nothing but a lucid dream.

"Riley!" Andy called out as he left the window and spun around to face her. Before Riley could do anything, the child was smiling as he tugged onto her hair. "Look! Look! Id her. She have a cap too!"

Riley was tempted to ignore the kid when she noticed a familiar flash of red out the corner of her eyes. She pressed against the window, took in the sight of the messy hair billowing in the wind and gasped. "Ace!" she exclaimed.

"Wh-what? Where?" Ran responed, as he applied the brakes so suddenly that Harper was almost flung through the windshield.

On any other occasion, Harper would have scolded Ran for his bad driving. He would have given Ran an even harder time because Andy was in the car, but when his eyes flitted to the person outside, the words died in his throat. "What in the world... is that really her?" He unbuckled his seatbelt, ignoring safety protocol for the first time since the trip began. "Ran, unlock the car."
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A lone gas station sat in what seemed like the middle of nowhere although the owner would quickly assure anyone that it was perfect. "Aw, you sure that's as far as you can take me? It still looks pretty empty to me." Hopping off the back of a motorcyle, sure enough, was Ace. Sitting in front of her was a burly and bearded man sporting a leather jacket and helmet. The man said something only Ace heard and she responded with a casual goodbye salute. "Oh yeah, tell him I said hi and I'll visit sometime!" She waved off as the biker left the way they came.
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Harper spent a whole minute gaping through the window before he opened the car door. He'd been doubtful at first, but there was no way that could be anyone other than Ace. Riley had said the same, and as soon as Ran unlocked the doors, he hopped out of the car.

Riley would have trailed after him, but Andy was clinging to her like a sleepy sloth. "I'll catch up," she whispered as Harper followed after the redhead. She watched as he made his way towards the store by the gas station then turned to Ran.
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"You think it's really her? It sure looked like it was."

Ran stared at the lone figure Harper was running towards while absentmindedly taking Andy back from Riley. Slowly, a smile crept up his lips and he nodded. "Well, Ace or not Ace, we found a possible voice actress for our Crimson Justice animation videos."

"What are you going to pay her with though?" Riley blurted out.

"Candy or three meals a day sounds promising. Temporary lodgings too? We have space in the basement of our shophouse and she doesn't look like a local with that backpack." Seeing the frown getting more pronounced on the orange girl's forehead, he chuckled weakly. The money will come sooner or later," he tried reassuring his business partner. "We may be in the red but we have money to buy food and pay rent for two more months."

The red head paid no mind to her surroundings, tired of pointing out haystacks and cows. Normally, she was much more vigilant and prepared for sneak attacks but...she was in the middle of nowhere. Instead, she headed into the gas station because there she could find a map and maybe grab some snacks for her trip down the road. Stuck to her like glue was her dingy, plain black backpack that she'd been toting around for awhile. Considering all that she had saved up from random jobs was in that bag, of course she kept it close.

Not one for remaining in one place for too long, she gathered some snacks for the road, paid for them, and stuffed everything in her bag. According to the map she had, Ace was sure the walk to the next stop would be at least an hour...or three. "Welp, time to get moving." The red head was no stranger to travelling by foot and

Harper stood by the entrance to the store and waited for Ace to emerge. Moments later, that was exactly what happened and his friend practically strolled past him, mumbling something about getting moving and reaching her destination.

"Ace?" He called out hesitantly, as if he were worried it would all be a dream. "Is that really you?" Please be real, he thought. Please be real.

Ace was mentally going over everything she had on her person when she could have sworn she heard her name. That wasn't possible though because she didn't know that cashier she just met, her friend on the bike was long gone, and there were just a bundle of strangers that were... What were strangers- or anyone for that matter- doing out in the middle of nowhere?

She stopped in her tracks and fixed her hat before turning around completely. "Listen, I'm sure whatever I did we can settle this like adults, yeah? Or you know, you can try-" Realizing that it wasn't anyone she had stolen from, she cut the sentence short. There was no need to raise any suspicion.

One moment the look on her face was a slow realization of who she was staring at and in the next moment it turned into that of surprise when she realized who she was staring at.

Not being the most eloquent, Ace she yelled in excitement. She had also been so shocked that she didn't know what else to say. It only took a few strides before she was in front of Harper. True to her nature, instead of hugging him, she clasped his face and began to look at him this way and that. "Holy moly it is you! And not a dream you- or a dead me!" She stopped squishing Harper's face and looked at him with a playful frown. "It's been five whole years! Where the heck have you guys been!? What took you so long!? If I knew any better, I'd say you were late!"

"Better late than never, eh?" Ran couldn't resist adding, as he and Riley approached Ace and Harper. He adjusted the sleeping boy in his arms slightly, feeling relieved that Andy remained sound asleep despite all the shouting. "Say, Riley, I guess this answers your question." He leaned closer and whispered. "Also, makes paying our actress easier, no?"

He winked. "I'd say we deserve a friends' discount for the first few months until the comics start selling thanks to our yet to be created Youtube animation videos."

Ran's comments about the comic went somewhat ignored when Riley noticed that the person before them really was Ace. "It's you! Damn, Ace, I didn't think we'd see you again." If Ace hadn't had Harper in some face grip, she would have waltzed over to hug them both.

Ignoring the fact that she was holding onto his face, Harper laughed and leaned in for a hug. He allowed it to linger for a moment to make sure Ace was real then pulled away and beamed. "Nowhere really," Harper winced when he realized what he'd said. "I mean, I've been keeping busy with school and family. Riley found me. Turns out she's started a business with Ran. The past few months have been just... a blur really." Harper laughed. "One big blur. We found Jasper and Inadi, and there's so much you need to hear, Ace." Harper was starting to ramble, but he didn't care. He was just so happy.

"You said you were heading north?" Harper asked.

Ace nodded her head and it made him smile even wider. "You should come with us, there's so much we need to tell you. You can hear all about it on the way to Oakwoods!"

"We have plenty of room in the car," Ran added in a heartbeat. He was as happy as Riley and Harper to see Ace again, but his lack of outward emotion was due mainly to the fact that he hadn't been that close to the young woman. That and the fact that he was currently carrying his sleeping son in his arms. It also looked like she was going to join their little carpool anyway, so there was plenty of time to talk to her later too. "You should have lunch with us once we get to Grenfall and I'm not taking no for an anwer," he said with a smile. "Harper's sister knows this great Korean place and I'm sure she'd be happy to include Harper's long lost friend."

"Of course! Well, we're wasting daylight. C'mon, Ace! To Oakwoods!"​
 
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"Time is fluid here."
Those were the first words the Mad God spoke to her when she awoke within the last clock. It was an empty world made up of cogs and gears and infinite white for as far as the eye could see. There was a lone table and chess board, courtesy of the Mad God, but aside from that, it was cold and they were alone, existing and not existing.

Days turned into months, and months turned into years. Everything stayed the same and everything changed.

She started to forget her name - Jeanne, the Midnight Train, everything that made her Edith Arkwright.

She started to disappear and it was almost peaceful, but every time she started to slip away, he was there to drag her back in.
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“We could have had it all,” the mad God would say as he sat haughtily on his chair, playing chess against himself.

She never replied, until one day the silence finally broke her.

“I don’t regret it, you know.”

“If you didn’t, you wouldn’t have to tell me, Edith.”

She remained on her side of the room, lying motionless as she stared at the endless white that surrounded them.

“Would you like to play a game of chess with me? Perhaps have some tea?"

Edith picked herself off the ground and stared at the bunny perched on his seat. The mad God was bent over the table, his red eyes focused on the scattered chess pieces on the board. He looked up to stare at her and his nose twitched, if not for the overcoat and the top hat, he would have looked like any regular rabbit. “We’ll be here till the end of time, Edith, dear. You might as well stop hating me. I’m all you have left. When your memories fade, when you forget, I'll still be here."

This was her punishment. She had already accepted it.

"We could have had it all," the mad God repeated.

"Perhaps," Edith stared him down. "But now you're stuck here forever, just like me." Forever. The finality of it made her feel sick to her stomach. How much time had passed? She didn't know. She missed Nowhere, the taste of sugar, the nobodies, everything. The thought of forever within the clock made her want to scratch out her eyes and scream, but she pulled herself to her full height and glared defiantly at the waistcoat-wearing rabbit demon before her. "You can't hurt anyone anymore. It's over. You and me, we'll be here until the end of time."

I have no regrets. She repeated over and over in hopes that she would eventually believe it.

The cogs and gears continued to turn.

From the fox sisters and drawn by the fantastic @AiDee
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(transparent version)

@four @Capt. Blu
Thank you all for making this a train ride to remember <3! I couldn't have asked for a better team, you're all fantastic RPers and friends, and I hope we all RP together in the future.

@Fox of Hearts
We wouldn't have reached the end without you! Thank you for everything <3!

Epilogues: The End
 
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