Chapter Seventeen
Feeling lost? Check out the Chapter Guide.
Chapter Seventeen
Queen's Day Express Railroad, Arborview to Eastvale - October 6, 8:08 a.m.
"And remember, please walk along the road instead of taking a vehicle. If one of the witches discovers our intentions, I would rather have only you in combat without any innocent civilians involved. These women are ruthless and quite addicted to dark magic." The words spoken from Minette across the military chamber's table rung over and over in his head.
The girl fainted at daybreak in the Unquiet Forest, what was he supposed to do? It wasn't like Orin could carry her in his arms for an entire day's voyage to Eastvale, so he composed an alternative to hiking by foot. Queen Helenia and Minette would demonstrate nothing short of resentment at his decision to relay this female onto a train and put citizens at risk, but he didn't care, he just wanted to return to Eastvale as rapidly as possible to steer clear of the Dark Council.
Orin would make sure to tell the girl not to mention that they rode the Queen's Day Express train to anyone, if she ever woke up. It seemed like she had been asleep forever.
"It's not like she'd know that I'd get in a shitload of trouble if Minette found out I took her on a train with risks of jeopardizing everyone else on this ride," he pressed his thumb into his chin and thought while specks of rain began to wash against the train window and the entire landscape in the distance.
Rainwater descended from the skies and the forest trembled with the resonance of thunder, birds exited their woodland abodes in panic. Orin felt about as satisfied as possible with knowing he would soon return to his home kingdom and the praise he'd receive from retrieving this girl in such an unbelievably timely manner. He owed it to his fortune in encountering Lariska within the Unquiet Forest - the quest seemed almost too easy, he attributed it to his own luck, but certainly not to his own karma.
Still, the prospect of his travel with this girl aboard the train reaching the ears of Minette, or worse, the queen, didn't leave his mind. Orin would surely be demoted from his status in the Royal Guard, or possibly dismissed overall for disobeying orders. He didn't see what they were so concerned about anyway, "It's not like anyone can sense her aura unless they're actively seeking it, and this train is pretty empty now."
Aura. When he told the green-clad girl about her aura in underground Arborview upon discovering her laying placidly on the ground, she looked bewildered. Was it possible that she wasn't aware of her identity at all?
It seemed unrealistic that a girl of her physical age wouldn't have any awareness of her destined significance in life. But he knew that she was the target he was assigned to rescue, he sensed it even minutes away from her location in Arborview with ease, shadows veiling her place of rest more profoundly with every footstep nearer to her until the entire area eclipsed upon him locating her behind the curtains. There was no doubt about her identity.
Orin felt sorrow for her, it must be unsettling to live your life without knowing anything about your destiny in it, his expression softened and he smiled slightly.
"Man, she's going to be in for one hell of a surprise when Minette explains everything to her. I sure wouldn't want to be the one to do it in-detail."
Droplets beclouded the view from the train window and it pissed Orin off. Despite letting the girl rest, he was beyond bored with no one to chat with. People like him didn't cope well with boredom and often attracted trouble through attempting to cure the boredom.
The thought of waking her up never crossed his mind, I'm more knightly than that but damn, boredom is the worst type of feeling. His expression of annoyance intensified with every moment of staring into the monotonous pine trees outside.
Orin stood from his seat and sauntered through the cabin hallway. Surely the girl would be okay resting on the sofa by herself, this car was vacant and nothing would affect her. He felt irritated at the whole predicament and wanted nothing more than to inspect the dining car for some conversation and a drink.
His eyes glanced at the lights brightening the cabin and he felt re-assured about his decision in boarding his rescue onto the train.
Several train cars down resided a cabin connected to the dining station, the only place with people at this early hour. Despite the individuals situated at the wooden tables and booths, the space remained near silent. No wonder why I dislike mornings, this shit is boring.
"Seeking breakfast, denizen?" A train waitress dressed in the usual vermillion color looked his way.
He raised his arms, a bit startled, Orin had been so consumed in his racing thoughts pertaining to his possible punishment that he hadn't realized the waitress inquiring him. "Oh uh, no. Actually, I'm not looking for breakfast but a drink."
"Right this way then," her index finger motioned Orin over to the cherrywood bar counter.
"Pick your poison, we've about every drink imaginable on-board to accommodate our guests," she beamed, appearing amused at the concept of kick-starting the day with a drink.
Still, Orin couldn't help but notice the bottle of East Mint Cola, a virtuous concoction unlike what he had in mind, mixed with sugary mint leaves and fizzy cola. The innocence of the non-alcoholic beverage reminded him of the girl who slept soundly on the sofa in their assigned cabin. Fidgeting for bronze coins in his denim pocket, he barely had enough to purchase one beverage. Ah well, guess I'm out of luck. And his decision was made.
"You know what, I don't think I'm gonna have any 'poison' right now. I'd like one East Mint Cola."
She nodded then headed off, "Great choice. Wait one moment and I shall retrieve one beverage for you, sir."
Lanterns glimmered and hung from the train like jeweled ornaments in the queen's favorite shade of red. Orin reflected on the passing of the king resulting in Queen Helenia transforming anything she could into a radiant red shade, and Eastvale's public transportation demonstrated it.
Beyond turning Eastvale into a scarlet-ridden kingdom, she even dubbed this particular railway "Queen's Day Express Railroad" among other public works that she tacked her title onto wherever possible. Orin laughed at how egotistical the royal family must appear to an outsider, but knew that Queen Helenia was a fair, but stern lady with a love for her own personal aesthetic. It wasn't like Queen Helenia had to care about what outsiders thought anyway, for royalty remains royalty no matter the favor held with the people.
It must be nice to live life not having to tiptoe around the judgmental eyes of others, Orin thought, not that I'd know what that's like. His mind drifted to the worry of entering the Court of the Royal Guard. He'd have to explain his current actions to the queen and his fellow guardians, every moment filled with judgment and misunderstanding toward carrying the collapsed girl onto the train to evacuate her from Arborview and its Dark Council as soon as possible to ensure her safety.
Either way they escaped from Arborview would turn out as a risk and despite his own reasons of convenience in wanting to board the train with her, Orin hadn't a clue as to how the Dark Council would comprehend her disappearance and their reaction. Getting the hell out of Arborview as soon as possible, even by train, was most likely for the best, and Orin hoped no one would stand in judgment of that upon the learning of the train ride.
Lights flashed and flickered and the sound of the steam whistle rung through Moss' ears. She shuffled on the suede sofa, unsure of her location or how she ended up aboard a train, still wearing her slippers that adorned her feet from days ago. Was this real?
With a carefulness about her, Moss lifted her tense body up to view what the commotion was outside. A royal blue locomotive whistled in the landscape and sped past the train she resided on. The teal lamp gleamed dimly and radiated the chestnut table flecked with gold engraving, both more refined than any furnishing pieces she had ever viewed in her entire life. Was she alone? Moss began to wonder where the golden-haired knight wandered off to, or if he was still even part of her journey on the train.
Continue to Chapter Eighteen
Return to Chapter Sixteen
Notes
I apologize for the bit of delay in updates! I had this chapter near complete for a bit but was in the hectic process of moving cross-country yet again. The upcoming chapter will be posted very soon.
* A blast from the past!: The beginning flashback in this chapter is from Chapter Six.
* I've decided to embrace both names for the story: Eastvale and Through Her Eyes. I decided upon keeping it primarily as Eastvale because of course Moss isn't always present for her first-person interpretation of events as depicted in this chapter. Chapters with first-person perspective will denote the sub-label "Through Her Eyes" in addition to the Eastvale title.
Hugs!