Chapter 4 - The Train and the Golden Age
"What happened to the Golden Age?"
On the return journey, Jack finally had the chance to press on the questions that kept bubbling in his mind. The concept of magic at its height of development, the apex of adventures between stars, was alien to him- fantastical and about unimaginable. What fun it would be to be unlimited by the sky, to submerge himself the era of boundless opportunities. It also filled him with a sense of longing, and a tiniest, almost unperceivable dose of shame.
He told himself that he seldom resent Sandy's dreams. After all, it had brought bundles of sensations: the warmth at his chest, the weightlessness somewhere between his ribcage and stomach that made him believe anything is possible, the hope, the wonder, yet-
-When he finally opened his eyes, snapped back to reality, and realised that things he just experienced minutes ago- something along the situations in which he was building a fancy castel and recruiting a flying whale named Captain Brownie as its guardian- were, to put it bluntly, non-existent. It felt like a schoolboy just receiving the news that the classroom was going to hold a party tomorrow and ten minutes later they curtly announced oh sorry it's a mistake. No party tomorrow but the schedule is still going normal so no harm done, right? What'd you say about your plans?
"Ransacked," said Bunny. He tried to continue, but failed when the reindeers galloped higher and faster into the reddish sky.
"Come again?" Jack prompted, grinning.
"There were Tsar and Tsarina Lunar- The Man in the Moon's father and mother," Tooth saw the confusion in Jack's face, and explained. "-to initiate the defense. Among the troops is the Hero of the Golden Age, General Pitchiner, leading the Golden Armies to protect the galaxies and capture the fearlings."
"And in the end," Jack recalled Bunny's word. "The Golden Age was ransacked?"
"Not yet," Tooth shook her head. "General Pitchiner was responsible for guarding the prison of the Fearlings. But one day, the monsters tricked him into believing that his daughter was being held inside with them, and he opened the door."
"And he was killed?" Jack prompted again.
"Worse," poor Bunny managed to utter another word, before slumping lower into the seat.
Sandy patted Bunny on the shoulder, and then got started as he noticed the white light in his palms seemed a lot duller than usual.
The sleigh dashed forward with North yelling "HIYAAA!" and it swept swiftly against the back of the passengers like a dust pan. Sandy had the sense to hover a little bit away from the seat, but the rest of them either got slammed at the back of the skull or the shoulders by the cheerfully-red wooden board.
"What is wrong with ya, blowhard?" Bunny waved his fist, exasperated. "Ain't it gonna be fit to just use that bloody snow globe of yours!"
"HA!" North barked as he flicked the reign. "But we are not going back just yet!"
"Y'all hear that guy?" Bunny's ears drooped.
"We have to get things done before dark- Pitch's high time! Not a moment to lose! Father Time gives us name, and we find Grim Reaper."
"But North," Tooth smoothed out her feathers as she got up from the seat. "You know Father Time likes to talk riddles. What if we've misinterpreted him? What if he doesn't mean us to literally find the Grim Reaper?"
"We believe," North turned around to show them a warm smile. "In him, and in ourselves."
They landed finally. Jack hopped off from the back of the sleigh and admired the new environment, half-expecting for something epic like Father Time's Clock Tower.
But there was nothing, practically. They were on a forlorn-looking flatland with rocky ground, which- Jack noticed- had deep and thick cracks caused by draught. No life- not even a blade of grass- was in sight. The only things that caught the eye were the low, sharply ridged mountains resting far away, hazy and muffled by fog. Then-
-Jack saw it. A blue flame, floating eerily in mid-air as if an invisible candle had placed under it. Jack circled the flame, yet it remained calmly unbothered and unmoved, as if it was perfectly normal. Almost.
Jack blew it. It dissipated as if it had never been there before.
"What was that for, Jack?" Bunny hopped towards him. "That's gonna help us!"
"What?" Jack threw his arms dismissively. "I saw these before, loads of times. I blew them all off! It's fun!"
Near the parked sleigh, Sandy held out his hands and let the white light float freely. Taking notice of the two arguing, he pointed at somewhere behind them. Bunny and Jack dropped their argument mid-sentence, and followed his finger; not far ahead, another blue flame floated peacefully in mid-air.
"Don't you blow it!" Bunny warned quickly.
"And all the time I've been doin' it," Jack smirked, beating Bunny- who looked half-dubious- to the flame and poked it with the tip of his staff. "Nothing bad happened."
"Ya think."
"Whoa, look- another one!"
Before Jack could summon the Wind, a loud chorus of whistles sounded. It echoed through the land with its powerful chord. The whistles lasted for only seconds, but felt a minute to those who were stunned by it.
Sandy watched as the ball of white light floated higher and glowed brighter; it seemed to be paying extra attention just like the others.
A train- a steam train to be precise- travelled across the land. Under the train, there were no tracks; it apparently didn't need any, because once it was close enough, the train had steadily come to a halt right beside the Guardians.
"You're in some thunders rollin', frostbite," Bunny leaned to Jack, smirking. "That's the Afterworld Express."
"You're saying the Grim Reaper's on it?" Jack started hopping, excited. "Love to meet someone new."
Bunny palmed his own face.
Once the locomotive had stopped utterly, more white steam flooded from the chimney and between the wheels, forming a big thick cloud. The door to the driver's cabin was slid open by a skeletal hand from inside. Out came a hooded figure standing on the edge of the cart, all in ebony black.
"Oh," the figure murmured, with a raspy yet female voice. "It's you."
The hood that hid the upper face of the Grim Reaper, gave out a dangerous yet mysterious aura. But what made her more threatening, was the seven-feet-tall scythe draped by a long, shaded bandage.
"Just now, I could sense a Ghost Fire was once again blown out," she deadpanned, her voice lower and raspier. "I'm not asking why. Some people just love banging on doors instead of ringing bells."
Jack could feel her gaze on him for a second, and responded with a sheepish smile.
The driver's cabin was too small to contain a whole group of spirits, not to mention it was rather risky to have energetic spirits near the numerous lever switches and controllers.
And so the Guardians, along with the Grim Reaper, gathered inside the next passenger cart. To the former's delight, souls of children squealed at the sight of their beloved spirits and received a few hugs.
"I heard ginger tea helps," the Grim Reaper offered, glancing at Bunnymund, who- after rides and rides- finally slumped by the booth and glued his face onto the table.
"Nah, but thanks, mate," Bunny's voice came out muffled. "Don't think it's a nice idea to drink anythin' at all."
The white light shimmered.
"Oh, right. Where was I..." the Grim Reaper turned back to the Guardians. "I can confirm his words. This light is- in fact- a soul."
The Guardians perked up at the news- finally some solid leads!
"Not a whole one, but a fragment, at least," she carried on. "I'll explain first. A soul lives in a living creature. When the body expires, the soul loses its container, and become a wandering ghost on Earth. It's my job to take them to another... stage.
"You can see on this train: the souls are whole and unscathed, having an avatar of what they once were. However, if a soul is made a spirit, the soul sticks to the body, and both gain powers that grant them immortality and perhaps enhanced abilities."
Jack stared at the Grim Reaper, mouth agape and eyes widened to a full circle. So after saving his sister three centuries ago, his body was never found. Just poof, disappeared into the world of spirits, and into oblivion and invisibility... without any trace that he had been there in the first place- if his sister was not there to tell the tale?
The possibility frightened him, and he gently shook his head.
"So this is what only a piece of soul looks like," Tooth thoughtfully tapped her chin. "No wonder North nor Sandy could understand it. We'd mistaken it for a light beam-"
"Na-ah, we can understand it!" said North. "You don't need my belly to do that! Just use here!" He slapped his chest for good measure, not before showing an ear-to-ear grin that made his eyes squint. When everyone in the cabin- including some eavesdropping children by the nearby booths- displayed their confused faces, North elaborated.
"You can do it- Anyone can!" his hands were free as the cutlasses were sheathed, and he held out his palms to let the white light flew on top of them. "Just look, and see. It's always trying to tell things. I can see shimmer faint when it feels sad, bright when happy, blinking when telling stories!"
Jack glanced at North, who spoke of the soul like a lighthouse, and slowly, a faint smile crept up on his face: maybe North was just too optimistic for most times.
Or, that he was indeed to kindest soul on Earth.
Toothiana was as well smiling, but she decided they simply did not have enough time to interpret shimmers and blinks- the sun was going down.
"Anyway," she softly coughed. "I can see some of the child souls sleeping in the cabin- so maybe just a fragment of it still can?"
Sandy's eyes widened as he realised, too.
"Of course," the Grim Reaper said. "But what about it?"
Sandy conjured golden streaks of dream sand flowing from the fluid movement of his little hands. Bunnymund also rose from his seat and closely watched.
"If the little guy here can still sleep, it can dream," said Bunny. "Sandy can talk to it through dreams, righ'?"
Sandy gave a thumbs-up.
The golden sand swirled like liquid, flowing in every direction and soon made contact with the ball of white light on North's hands.
Next Chapter: Kozmotis Pitchiner
Update Date: 1st November