Chapter Twelve- Honorary Phantom Returner ?????
If I don't think of something in the next five seconds, I'm gonna be dead.
Shadow was caught in a bad position. Being half-paralyzed on the ground thanks to Kefka's Bolt spell, the enemy easily snuck up on him, and now had him at their mercy. (As much as he hated to be at anyone's mercy, he was willing to admit now that was indeed in deep trouble.) The soldiers both smirked and were about to bring their swords to Shadow's head, when a loud barking noise broke out, and a black shadow swiftly leapt between Shadow and the soldiers, too quick to be made out for what it really was. With a growl and a mighty bite, the shadow chomped on each soldier's hand, causing them to drop their swords and go screaming off in the opposite direction. Shadow grinned as the black figure made it's way over to him and lovingly licked his cheek.
"Interceptor!" Shadow exclaimed, hugging the dog. "I owe you. Come on, lets go find that Sabin fellow and make sure he hasn't gotten himself killed. He still needs to find us some food." With that, Shadow stood up, and Interceptor began to follow him through the base. However, he stopped his search for Sabin when he came upon a rather interesting sight, actually, 3 interesting sights that were glimmering in the heavy desert sunlight.
"Kefka, damnit, where are you?!" Sabin cried, who had somehow lost sight of the nightmarish clown. He cursed himself at becoming lost, but didn't have long to wallow in any self pity, for he realized he had reached the ends of the base territory. Not only that, but he could also see a whole load of soldiers struggling in a battle only a few feet away. Sabin narrowed his eyes, but was shocked to see that all those soldiers were going up against one lone figure, and that figure was winning! He was a tall man with long black hair in a thin ponytail that waved in the air like a flag as he dashed from soldier to soldier, letting them each have a taste of his shining rapier blade. He was decked out in some of the most majestic navy armor that Sabin had seen outside of his brother's usual flashy wardrobe. Sabin noted that however, this man pulled off the style with a lot more grace then poor Edgar.
"I am Cyan!!!!" The man cried as she slashed his way through the crowd. "Retainer to the King of Doma!"
"Doma!?" Sabin cried. "Are we too late!?" With that, Sabin took off running to help the man.
"Ahhh, he's the enemy!" The soldiers squealed. "Fight harder, everyone!" With that, Sabin was accidentally pushed by a rushing soldier and knocked to the ground.
"Eoooa!" Cyan cried in surprise, glaring at Sabin. "Be you friend or enemy!?"
"Ouch, didn't mean to just step in there!" Sabin cried. "But...hey, can I lend you a hand?"
"Thank you... whoever you are." Cyan said, a little surprised, and Sabin leaped up, throwing himself at the soldiers.
"Ahhh!" They all screamed as Sabin blinded them with an Aura Bolt. Cyan took that opportunity to take them down with his sword. In a matter of seconds, it was all over. Stunned and dying bodies were scattered all about... However, more troops were running towards them to quickly replace their dying comrades.
"Ohhh! This is too much!" Cyan cried, and shook his head.
"Let me have at it!" Sabin shouted, just getting warmed up and swinging a punch at the nearest soldier.
"What a mess!" Cyan exclaimed. "Do be careful Sir!"
"Arrrrg!" Sabin yelled, and took a flying leap back away from the soldiers and Cyan. Placing his two index fingers together, he began a short chant and the ground began to rumble and shake as a barrage of flaming replicas of Sabin began to fly at the soldiers from all directions. In moments, they were all puffs of smoke being carried away by the dry desert wind.
"Amazing!" Cyan exclaimed, dropping his sword to his side.
"That was called a Fire Dance." Sabin explained proudly.
"Fire Dance?" Cyan smiled excitedly. "You must be a disciple of Duncan, the greatest Blitz Master that has ever graced the planet!"
"Well, I used to be..." Sabin trailed off, but shook his head. "But that is not important. I am Sabin Figaro."
"And I am Cyan Garamonde, of Doma." Cyan said. "But I am afraid that Doma has been..."
"Poisoned!?" Sabin interrupted, and Cyan sadly nodded.
"When I find out who was behind it, I'm going to..." But Sabin stopped Cyan by placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Listen... I know how you feel, but we really need to scram!" Sabin explained. "It's not safe here!"
"But what of my home, my family... and my friends?" Cyan protested. "Who will avenge them all...?"
"I promise you will have your chance soon enough." Sabin said desperately. "If we stick around any longer, we'll have a regiment of troops down our throats."
"I see 'em!" A voice suddenly yelled out, and Sabin turned, only to see soldiers running at them from all angles.
"Hooo-Boy." Sabin muttered, and looked around. However, he soon found a solution to the problem, and gestured for Cyan to follow him.
"What in blazes?!" Cyan cried as he pulled out his sword to defend himself as he and Sabin ran past all the soldiers further back into the base.
"I have a friend in here!" Sabin explained. "I can't just leave him here... but these will help us navigate a lot faster!" With that, Sabin pointed up to the set of 3 Magitek Armor suits he had spotted from afar.
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried. "What on Earth are these?"
"I'll explain later!" Sabin assured him. "Just get in and relax!" With that, Cyan followed Sabin's actions and climbed into the tall armor. Sabin grinned as he poked about at the machinery, but Cyan cringed.
"Sir Sabin! How might these abominations be manipulated?" Cyan squealed, and Sabin rolled his eyes. This man was not patient at all!
"I'm getting sick of this! Thou art such a pain in the...! Confound it all! I'm starting to talk like you! Now listen! Just use those levers located by your hands!" Sabin burst out, and tugged down on one of his own levers. However, as he did so, he heard a growl from the empty machine behind him and Cyan.
"Ahhh!" He and Cyan both shouted at once, and turned around in their seats, only to see Shadow sitting still as death itself in the third unit, smiling pleasantly. He had kept so still that Sabin had not even noticed him before.
"Shadow!" Sabin exclaimed. "So I've found you!"
"Indeed, that seems to be the case." Shadow said. "Who is this?"
"Cyan, of Doma!" Sabin explained hurriedly. "Doma has already been attacked, I'm afraid... so our next goal is to get out of here, pronto!"
"Indeed!" Cyan exclaimed, and slammed down on his lever. However, this caused his armor to let out a loud his of steam and begin to turn in rapid, dizzying circles over and over again.
"Sir Sabin, I am in your debt!" Cyan exclaimed as he went in another circle.
"Ahhh, forget it!" Sabin protested. "Now, come on!" He pushed his lever forward and began to march slowly when a group of soldiers clamored up to them., with raised guns.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" One shrieked.
"Ahhh, we cannot stop now!" Cyan exclaimed happily, and suddenly his armor charged through the soldiers, causing them to both run and bounce off in several different directions. Sabin and Shadow looked at each other worriedly.
"Ehh... lets just bust through!" Sabin ordered, and with that, the three of them began to charge through the Imperial Base towards the southern exit. Soldiers shot and cursed at them, but alas, their own armor units were quite effective against any attack they tried to make against them. After blasting through a few more soldiers and tents, the three men had finally reached their destination, and broke free from the base. However, the armor units were beginning to slow down due to uncharged batteries, so they stopped the armor each hopped out, deserting them in the yellow grassy plains outside the desert base. Positive no one would bother chasing after them now, Sabin, Shadow, and Cyan all turned to each other, waiting for one of them to say what was to happen next. Everything had happened so quickly, for each of them...
"I can't believe we made it this far." Sabin said thoughtfully, and stroked his chin.
"Indeed." Cyan said, nodding.
"Eh..." Shadow grunted.
"So... How do you get to Narshe from here?" Sabin asked both Shadow and Cyan, hoping one of them would know.
"You are going to Narshe?" Cyan questioned. "To head off the Empire's attack, I presume..."
"Yes!" Sabin nodded. "How did you know about the Empire's plans?"
"Doma, although accused of associating with the Returners, weren't really. However, we did gather information about the Empire on our own, and learned of the Esper in Narshe. I guess the Empire found us out though...and wanted to make sure we couldn't warn anyone else..." Cyan looked down sadly, but Shadow shook his head.
"You must give up all hope...of having a better past." Shadow said coolly, and crossed his arms over his chest. "You must think of now. The present. The present danger...that Narshe is facing. With the knowledge of the Empire's planned attack, what will you do? Run away?"
"No!" Cyan cried. "That, Sir, is senseless! I...I wouldn't want the sacrifice the Kingdom of Doma made for this information to be in vain...perhaps it was fate that I met up with you, Sir Sabin, Sir Shadow. I am sure my wife and child would understand that I not remain in Doma right now..."
"Perhaps." Sabin mused, getting the intention that his wife and child were no longer of this world. Shadow said nothing.
"But why do you fight?" Cyan asked.
"I am a Returner." Sabin explained. "I am fighting with my brother, King Edgar for the insurance that Figaro will have a better tomorrow. I also have new friends that I wish to protect." At this point, Sabin thought of Terra, the mysterious young woman, and of Locke, who seemed just as mysterious, if not more...Locke, who seemed to hide a lot behind those fake smiles of his.
"What about you?" Cyan looked to Shadow. Shadow shook his head and merely answered with: "I need food for Interceptor." Cyan, not knowing who this was, was a bit confused, but dropped the subject.
"Well, at any rate, you need to get to Narshe then." Cyan said. "I will accompany you, if you don't mind..."
"No, of course not!" Sabin smiled. "The others will be happy to meet you. But how are we going to get there?"
"To get there, we need to cross through the forest to the south of this continent." Cyan explained. "It's the only route."
"Alright, it's decided!" Sabin shouted. "Lets go!!!"
**********
Getting to the forest was not as easy as said. Beasts and other small monsters were running wild through the plains, and Sabin and the others found themselves in almost constant combat. However, every once in a while, Interceptor, Shadow's loyal pet, would leap out of no where and take a monster down for the kill on his own, making battles easier.
"That dog is unreal...almost like a phantom." Sabin murmured to himself at one point.
But at last, the forest was reached, and after a few moments of rest, the team went inside. However...
"It's so dark in here!" Sabin cried, and squinted his eyes. "It's like night!"
"This is the Phantom Forest." Cyan explained. "It's always like this."
"Hmmph." Shadow replied.
The beaten path in the forest was hard to see because of the lack of light, and Sabin felt as if he and his comrades were merely going in circles over and over again. After what felt like an eternity, he finally gave in to his frustrations and let out a mighty scream of agony.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHG!"
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried.
"This is horrible!" Sabin yelled. "Does this place have no end!?"
"It feels like we are going in circles..." Shadow trailed off.
"Oh no, you feel it too?!" Sabin cried.
"Stop, stop!" Cyan shouted, and pointed ahead. "Look, Sabin, Shadow, between those trees there..."
Sabin took a deep, calming breath and turned to where Cyan was pointing. In the short distance ahead of them, he could see a strong light, as well as a beat up wooden post. He leaned in to try to read it, but it was faded badly. He could only recognize one word: Train.
"Lets go see what's by the light." Sabin suggested, and wordlessly, Cyan and Shadow followed him deeper into the forest. However, when they reached the light behind the trees, they were all rather shocked!
Ahead of them was a train platform, empty and gray in color. However, there were burning lights every few feet of the platform, and the large light they had seen belonged to the massive train that was sitting at the platform, smoke pouring out of it's smokestack.
"A train is here?!" Cyan cried. "But I thought Doma's railway had been destroyed...?"
"There may be survivors inside." Sabin said. "Lets take a look."
Sabin pushed open the small gate that led to the inside of the platform, but nearly jumped in the air when he heard it slam behind them. Other then the echo of the gate, there was no other noises. As they slowly walked along the side of the train, Sabin spotted a passenger entrance.
"Hey!" We can get in right here!" Sabin exclaimed.
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan protested immediately.
"We can just keep wandering around out here! We have to go on board!" Sabin lectured, and before anyone could say anymore, he slid open the door and walked in.
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried again.
"Don't worry!" Sabin called from inside the dark car of the train.
"Sir Sabin..." Cyan shook his head and entered after him. Shadow entered last.
And the door slammed shut behind them.
"What on Earth...?" Sabin murmured as he looked about the interior of the train. It was finely decorated, with silky red carpets and exquisite lighting utilities, however... there was also something seriously wrong about it. Floating every which way were faded blue figures that were pale enough to see right through... and they were all either wearing long, dragging robes, or dragging long chains and/or keys over their robes.
"Ghosts..." Shadow whispered. Sabin raised his eyebrows and Cyan cried out in fear.
"Let me off!" He shouted. "This train is HAUNTED!"
Suddenly, a short rumble shot through the entire car, and the team could feel the train slowly start to move.
"It...It's moving!" Sabin cried.
"If we don't leave now...!" Cyan was interrupted as Sabin quickly ran to the door he had come in to throw it back open. However, the door was stuck tightly. No...not stuck...
....Locked!!
"It won't open!!" Sabin cried.
"We are too late!" Cyan moaned.
"What is with this train?" Sabin demanded.
"...I was afraid my suspicions were correct..." Cyan sighed. "Sir Sabin, I told you that it was not good for us to come in here!"
"Well, what were your suspicions?" Sabin asked, feeling a little wary.
"That this was the rumored "Phantom Train"..." Cyan shook his head. "It carries the...departed, to the other side..."
"Wait a sec!" Sabin shouted. "I don't want to go THERE!" However, Cyan did not seem too excited, either way.
"We all must go sometime..." Cyan sighed.
"But I have things to do HERE." Sabin argued. "And I've decided that we have to stop this thing...before it is the end of the game for us!"
"Lets make for the engine." Shadow suggested.
"The engine is in the front, more then likely." Sabin said carefully. "But lets go through here first, ok?" With that, Sabin pushed open the door to his right, and entered the small caboose of the train. Inside was another ghost and what appeared to be an elder man. The ghost looked to them, and slowly began to float towards the group.
"AH!" Sabin and Cyan cried in unison.
"Quiet." Shadow ordered. "It does not seem to have the violent vibes it's cousins in the other room had..."
The ghost floated up to Sabin and did a small bow. He then bowed to Cyan, and Shadow.
"It seems... to want to come with us." Cyan said weakly, and at this, the ghost happily bobbed up and down. Well, it seemed to be happy, you couldn't really tell, for a hood that had the resemblance of a black starry sky covered what it's face might have looked like.
"Well, ok!" Sabin exclaimed. "The more, the merrier!"
"...." Cyan shook his head as the Ghost did a small victory dance, and proceeded to follow the party over to the old man.
"I manage this train!" The old man exclaimed. "What business have you here?"
"Tell us about the train." Sabin said.
"This train ferries the dear departed to the "Other Side."" He said. "There, they can take their eternal rest." Everyone, even Shadow gulped, but Sabin pressed on.
"How do we stop it?"
"You wanna stop the train?" The old man shrugged. "Just use the controls in the engineer's compartment! It's in the front end of this train, just so you know." Sabin thanked him, and saw Cyan looking over a small book on an unsteady table.
"Be this the time schedule?" Cyan questioned.
"Hmm..." Sabin looked over his shoulder and blinked. "They're all blank!"
"The Phantom Train guides the departed ones to the spirit world!" The old man suddenly added. "They have no need of schedules!!"
This chilling comment made everyone shudder, so Sabin shook it off and walked over to a wall with a switch on it.
"What's this?" Sabin questioned. "Let me just give it a..."
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried. "Maybe we shouldn't fumble with that!" Sabin looked over at Cyan and nearly laughed. He could hardly believe the man freaking out before him had been the same warrior back at the Empire base! There were two different sides to this guy! Finally, Sabin just had to give in to himself, and laughed at Cyan as he flipped the switch. However, nothing happened.
"Gave it my best shot..." Sabin said, while still laughing. Cyan hurried over and flipped the switch right back.
"How...can you...do such a thing?!" Cyan cried, his eyes wide. Sabin blinked, and realized the truth about this so called warrior.
"Cyan... are you one of those types who's afraid of machines?" Sabin questioned. He should have guessed it before! All those old noble type were like that!
"How dare you?" Cyan snapped snottily. "Just because I respect other being's property doesn't mean I'm not mechanically minded!"
"Cyan...you're a total klutz when it comes to machines, aren't you?" Sabin smiled slyly, and Cyan turned red.
"SILENCE!" Cyan roared, and the entire caboose seemed to shake. Shadow, Sabin, and the Ghost all turned to Cyan, who immediately blushed furiously.
".....H-How could you tell?" Cyan asked meekly, and Sabin just laughed again and shook his head. Shadow, as usual, looked less then amused, and the Ghost just...floated there.
After discovering Cyan's little weakness, the team made it's way back out of the caboose and began to travel car to car to the front of the train. Ghosts traveled past them and sometimes right through them at times, but they generally did not bother the team unless the team bothered them first. Every once in a while, they would run across an angry spirit and be forced into battle, but it was nothing Sabin's Fire Dance and Cyan's blade could not handle. Shadow would throw mystical scrolls that released fire against the demons, easily destroying them. The ghost would throw a punch to anyone who got in it's way, but if you were ever struck by a ghost, you would know that it felt the same as someone trying to hit you with a tissue.
However, the half-peaceful trip was suddenly interrupted when the group entered a new car, and found that there was no door in it to go on.
"Well, we'll just have to go outside and walk along the rails to the next car." Sabin suggested, although the team had been avoiding doing just that because of the harsh and chilly winds that blew outside of the cars. However, they really had no choice. When Sabin led the group back to the door they came from though... A Ghost stood in front of it, and it did not look too pleased.
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!" It moaned in a soft, almost whispering voice. Sabin let out a yelp as it threw itself at the party, but Cyan gathered his wits and sliced the ghost from head to feet with his rapier, making it disappear in a flash of purple light.
"That was close...thanks Cyan!" Sabin said quickly, and threw open the door. However, when everyone was outside, their surroundings suddenly darkened, and another soft voice moaned:
"Ha..ha...ha...What ever did you think you were doing...?"
Shadow blinked and whirled around to see if there was another ghost in the doorway.
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!"
"Who's there?" Shadow yelled.
"It came from this direction!" Cyan cried, and began to run along the car rail to the next car. However, he was stopped by a line of ghosts emerging from the car ahead of them! The line forced Cyan to back up to the group, so they tried to run back in the direction they originally came from. However, a line of ghosts had suddenly appeared there too, ready to stop them!
"Whoa, they're coming from this way too!" Shadow said.
"Oh my God!" Cyan whimpered.
The wind began filled with the shrill chants and lowly moans of all the ghosts, their words chilling the spines of the team and paralyzing them to their spots. The only other noise that could be heard over the moans were the creaking gears and wheels of the Phantom Train, which brought them all ever closer to their final destination...
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!"
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!"
"You can't escape... Nowhere to run... Nowhere to hide..."
"You can't escape... Nowhere to run... Nowhere to hide..."
"These...ghosts are bloody persistent!!!" Cyan cried.
"Up here!" Shadow exclaimed, and began to climb to the roof of the train. Sabin and Cyan followed suit, and soon they were all teetering on the roof of the shaking car. However, the ghosts were not stupid, as they too began to float upwards, trapping the group!
"I believe we're stuck!" Cyan pointed out. Sabin looked around hurriedly, and suddenly got a wicked grin on his face.
"I know!" Sabin exclaimed.
"You have an idea?" Cyan asked hopefully.
"Yep!" Sabin nodded and began to stretch his arms and legs. "Time to see if all my training has paid off!"
"Wha..." Shadow didn't know what to say.
Sabin cracked his knuckles and ran to the edge of the roof. "Come Cyan, come Shadow!" With that, Sabin took a flying leap off of the roof and landed perfectly on the roof of the next car, waving for the others to join them. Cyan timidly went next, and landed gracefully next to Sabin. Shadow jumped so fast that Sabin and Cyan didn't see him until he had landed lightly at their side, and their ghost companion merely floated over.
"Yahoo!" Sabin exclaimed, and they all leapt again, doing this for 3 consecutive cars until on the 4th car, the roof under Sabin shattered, and he went plummeting into the car below. He landed on his behind with a hard thump, but nothing appeared broken. Sabin stood up and brushed himself off as the others jumped in after him.
"Are you ok?" Cyan asked.
"I'm fine!" Sabin exclaimed. The ghost danced happily at this.
"Well, at least we lost them..." Shadow trailed off, but suddenly cringed at the sound of moaning outside. When he dashed outside the car to check what was going on, he was surprised to see the ghosts that had been chasing them all gathering on the second and third trains behind them. They were slowly inching towards the fourth car, where the team would be trapped again!
"Everyone!" Shadow cried as he ran back in the car. "We have to detach the rear cars, right now! Those ghosts will be here any minute!"
"But how will we do that?!" Sabin protested.
"We're doomed." Cyan stated sadly.
Suddenly, their ghost companion turned and began to float away from the group.
"Huh?" Sabin asked.
The ghost looked back at Sabin and waved it's arms in a frantic motion. Sabin didn't realize what it was doing until he heard a click, and the car suddenly jerked forward, causing everyone to fall to their knees. However, the moans outside began to fall farther and farther away... Sabin finally stood up and went outside, not really knowing what to expect. However, he was pleasantly surprised to see the cars of the train the ghosts had been swarming on falling further and further behind them, until they had completely disappeared in the darkness of the forest.
"Hey!" Sabin exclaimed. "The whole back end of the train is gone!"
"The ghost must have known how to detach the cars." Cyan commented as he stepped outside and joined Sabin.
"Thank goodness!" Sabin grinned, and Shadow and the ghost joined them outside as well. "Shall we proceed, my good men?"
"Cut it out." Shadow grunted, and Sabin could not tell if he were happy to be out of danger or not. He shrugged it off and led the group on.
The next car on the train was the dining car. It was empty inside, except for some tables and chairs scattered about. Just to be funny, Sabin sat down at one of the tables and banged his fists on the table excitedly.
"Food, Food!" He cried. "Bring me everything ya got!"
Suddenly, a ghost materialized out of thin air, and presented to Sabin a plate full of some of the most succulent chicken and potatoes that Sabin had ever laid eyes on. The ghost set it down on the table, and disappeared as mysteriously as he had appeared.
"Ohhh..." Sabin drooled and prepared to take a bite.
"Are...Are you going to be okay if you eat THIS?!" Cyan cried worriedly.
"Worried?" Sabin grinned. "Can't wage war on an empty stomach!"
"Hmmmm....Sir, I won't hear any more of this kind of talk!" Cyan cried, but before he could say anymore, Sabin had grabbed handfuls of chicken and stuffed it in his mouth.
"Gobble... snarf... snap..."
"Ahhh...." Sabin grinned, satisfied as he popped the last piece of chicken in his mouth and leaned back in his chair, patting his stomach. "Well, I've stuffed down all I can, lets go!" Cyan looked as if he were about to hurl, and Shadow chuckled some. The ghost just floated about, looking bored.
The next car appeared to be a dormitory car. There were several doors, each leading to a small and empty bedroom. More ghosts floated about here, but did not seem intent on killing Sabin and the others like the psycho group they had left behind. In one room, however, instead of being totally empty, contained a treasure chest.
"Oh!" Sabin grinned, and kneeled down to open it.
"Stop where you are!"
"Huh?" Sabin blinked and stood up, looking around. Suddenly, a man dressed in robes of pale blue and dirty white dropped down in front of Sabin, and pushed him aside. Sabin grunted and tried to get a glimpse at the man's face, but couldn't see who it was, for he had a mask on.
"I am Ziegfried, the world's greatest swordsman!" The man cackled, and drew his sword, which was a long, shining blade covered in bright jewels. "That treasure chest is mine. If I were you, Ox, I'd grab grandpa, here, and run!"
"Grandpa!?" Cyan stuttered.
"You look more like a manicurist." Sabin snapped. "Now SCRAM!"
"Aha!" Ziegfried laughed. "The Ox bellows! Allow me to introduce my blade...!" With that, Ziegfried leapt at the party in a blinding flash and began to make rapid slashes every which way that were so dizzying, Sabin couldn't keep his vision straight. He almost feared that he would be struck when Ziegfried jumped back and cackled menacingly, ending his attack and expecting his enemies to fall to their knees. However, the blade had not touched one of them, except for the ghost, and it merely went through him. Ziegfried widened his eyes.
"Wha, what happened?" He stuttered, and with that, Sabin strapped on his claw and gave The World's Greatest Swordsman a hard blow to the stomach. Ziegfried cried out and stumbled back, falling to his knees.
"Impossible! I...I'm the greatest... But I still laugh last!" Ziegfried moans of pain turned into laughter, and with that he leaped up and swiped the entire treasure chest. Pushing past the stunned group, he reached the doorway and gave a little wave.
"Ta-ta, Cretins!" He exclaimed, and disappeared.
"What a bag of wind..." Cyan muttered.
The group reached the end of the Dormitory Car and were all happy to see that ahead of them was the engineer's compartment of the train and the smokestack as well that they had seen when they first arrived at the platform. Just as Sabin opened the door to the room, the Ghost gave a little wave and began to float away quickly.
"Hmmm... I guess we're on our own now..." Shadow said.
"Thanks buddy!" Sabin exclaimed, and waved back to the ghost until it disappeared.
"He wasn't THAT bad." Cyan admitted. "Shall we carry on?"
The group entered the room and began to look around for some way to stop the engine of the train. At last, Shadow came upon a note taped to the wall of the compartment.
"Something is written here." He said. "To stop the train, shut the first and third pressure valves, and operate the switch outside, near the smoke stack."
"I found the valves!" Sabin exclaimed, and did as the instructions said, shutting down the first and third ones.
"Lets go outside now." Cyan said, and they did so, Sabin climbing up on the smokestack to shut off the final valve. When he did, the train suddenly rumbled and shook underneath him, throwing him back down to the others. However, it did not appear to be even slowing down!
"Hey, did we do it right?!" Sabin cried. The train rumbled again, and a deep voice suddenly spoke, it's words echoing off of the trees in the woods.
"SO!" The voice boomed. "IT IS YOU WHO HAS BEEN SLOWING MY PROGRESS!"
"Is that the train speaking?!" Cyan cried.
"The voice is coming from within it!" Shadow confirmed. "It is the Phantom Train!" At saying this, the train rumbled again, and threw the group off ahead into the middle of the tracks!
"RUN!" Sabin screamed, and they all scrambled up and took off running, the train roaring right on their tails. The train was so wide in the front, that if they tried to run to the sides and escape into the woods, they would be crushed to nothing!
"The train...is NOT attacking us..." Cyan tried to convince himself as he continued running.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Shadow said coolly, and with that, the train suddenly opened a small compartment in it's front, and out shot a spinning wheel!
"Dodge it!" Sabin instructed, and everyone leaped over the wheel as it rolled past them.
"I don't know how much longer I can run!" Cyan cried.
"Me neither..." Shadow moaned, his breath coming in rough intervals.
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking!" Sabin cried, and racked his brains for an idea.
"The Phantom Train must not let anything stop it's journey to the other world!" Cyan moaned. "That's why there were ghosts attacking us...and why it is attacking us now!!!!"
"....Phantom....Train..." Sabin trailed off and suddenly, a most brilliant idea came to mind.
"This train, it's a phantom, right?!" Sabin shouted. The roar of the engine that was coming ever closer to them was beginning to hinder their speech to each other.
"It is indeed!" Cyan confirmed sarcastically. "When did you figure THAT out, Sir Sabin??"
"Shadow!" Sabin cried, ignoring Cyan's comment for now. "Hurry, and throw a Phoenix Down at it!"
"What?!" Shadow yelled.
"Just do it!" Sabin cried. "I'll pay you back the 150 gil later.....!"
"......Hmmph." Shadow grunted as he reached in his pack and turned around, tossing the Phoenix Down like he would one of his stars or scrolls. The glass bottle of ruby red liquid smashed into the front of the train, and shattered instantly. However, the train suddenly sputtered, and began to rapidly slow down. Sparks flew out of it's weapon compartment, and an inner explosion could be heard. With that, the train just came to a complete stop, and steam poured out of every opening possible.
"Do you see?" Sabin grinned, and he kneeled to the ground to catch his breath. "It was undead! Therefore, the power of life could destroy it!"
"Very nice indeed." Cyan nodded happily, and Shadow just nodded as well.
"...You don't have to pay me back." He finally said. However, their victory discussion was interrupted by the deep voice that belonged to the train.
"I WILL LET YOU GO." The train sputtered. "I CAN SEE THAT YOU DO NOT BELONG HERE. BUT FIRST, THERE IS SOMETHING I MUST DO..."
**********
Before they knew it, the group found themselves at a new platform, which the train had stopped at to let them off. On the way there, the same conductor who they had met in the caboose of the train explained that they were being let off at the end of the forest rather then going on to continue to journey of the train. When Sabin asked where that was exactly, the conductor could not answer. Then when Sabin asked how the heck the conductor got from the caboose to the front of the train without them noticing, he simply refused to answer.
"Hooo boy, finally got off!" Sabin exclaimed, and stretched his legs when they stepped on the platform. "At any rate...we shouldn't be here... so lets go, NOW!" Cyan was about to agree, when some familiar voices caught his ear, making his heart wrench in agonizing memory.
"Oh my God..." Cyan murmured, and took off running to the far right side of the platform.
"Huh?" Sabin asked, and he and Shadow ran after him. They found Cyan staring at a line of faded passengers climbing into the entrance of the train, all having the ghostly appearance of their friend that had helped them on the train. However, Cyan began to shout and cry out as a tall, beautiful woman with shining blonde hair in a ponytail and a rich red skirt on got on and assisted a young man with blonde tendrils and cute green shorts. The pair walked to the rear of the train and gazed out at their surroundings.
"No!!! Elayne, Owain!" Cyan cried, and began to push through the ghostly passengers in line to get to them.
"Cyan!" Sabin shouted.
"Elayne and Owain... his wife and child...?" Shadow questioned.
"Departing!!!!" Sabin cried. "They're departing!"
"Please, wait!" Cyan moaned, but the train began to roar as the last passenger climbed on, and the doors shut in Cyan's face. The train slowly began to move down the track, picking up speed every few seconds or so.
"Ahhh! Elayne, Owain!" Cyan cried in agony, and pushed past Sabin to run down to the other end of the platform. Sabin gasped and tumbled over the side of the platform, but Shadow dashed down and grabbed his hands just in time. Cyan continued running, his vision blurred with tears as she shouted at the top of his lungs. Suddenly, the woman in the back of the train looked up at him, and held up her hand, calling out.
"My love!" She said, holding her hand out to Cyan, even though he was far out of reach. "You made me so happy, Cyan! Please, do not forget me...!"
"Father!" Owain called as well. "I'll make sure Mother is alright...!" With that, the train suddenly gained more speed, and disappeared from view. Cyan heaved a sob and collapsed at the end of the platform, his body shaking all over. Meanwhile, Shadow had pulled Sabin up to the platform again, and Sabin began to approach Cyan.
"Hey." Shadow said coolly, and grabbed Sabin by the wrist. "...Leave 'em alone for a while..." Sabin nodded, and they both turned towards Cyan's crumpled body, his sobs so loud and hard that they caused him to choke several times. Sabin turned away, not being able to bear the view, and looked to the ground.
He secretly swore to himself that he, as a Returner, would do everything in his power to never allow a scene like this to happen again.
If I don't think of something in the next five seconds, I'm gonna be dead.
Shadow was caught in a bad position. Being half-paralyzed on the ground thanks to Kefka's Bolt spell, the enemy easily snuck up on him, and now had him at their mercy. (As much as he hated to be at anyone's mercy, he was willing to admit now that was indeed in deep trouble.) The soldiers both smirked and were about to bring their swords to Shadow's head, when a loud barking noise broke out, and a black shadow swiftly leapt between Shadow and the soldiers, too quick to be made out for what it really was. With a growl and a mighty bite, the shadow chomped on each soldier's hand, causing them to drop their swords and go screaming off in the opposite direction. Shadow grinned as the black figure made it's way over to him and lovingly licked his cheek.
"Interceptor!" Shadow exclaimed, hugging the dog. "I owe you. Come on, lets go find that Sabin fellow and make sure he hasn't gotten himself killed. He still needs to find us some food." With that, Shadow stood up, and Interceptor began to follow him through the base. However, he stopped his search for Sabin when he came upon a rather interesting sight, actually, 3 interesting sights that were glimmering in the heavy desert sunlight.
"Kefka, damnit, where are you?!" Sabin cried, who had somehow lost sight of the nightmarish clown. He cursed himself at becoming lost, but didn't have long to wallow in any self pity, for he realized he had reached the ends of the base territory. Not only that, but he could also see a whole load of soldiers struggling in a battle only a few feet away. Sabin narrowed his eyes, but was shocked to see that all those soldiers were going up against one lone figure, and that figure was winning! He was a tall man with long black hair in a thin ponytail that waved in the air like a flag as he dashed from soldier to soldier, letting them each have a taste of his shining rapier blade. He was decked out in some of the most majestic navy armor that Sabin had seen outside of his brother's usual flashy wardrobe. Sabin noted that however, this man pulled off the style with a lot more grace then poor Edgar.
"I am Cyan!!!!" The man cried as she slashed his way through the crowd. "Retainer to the King of Doma!"
"Doma!?" Sabin cried. "Are we too late!?" With that, Sabin took off running to help the man.
"Ahhh, he's the enemy!" The soldiers squealed. "Fight harder, everyone!" With that, Sabin was accidentally pushed by a rushing soldier and knocked to the ground.
"Eoooa!" Cyan cried in surprise, glaring at Sabin. "Be you friend or enemy!?"
"Ouch, didn't mean to just step in there!" Sabin cried. "But...hey, can I lend you a hand?"
"Thank you... whoever you are." Cyan said, a little surprised, and Sabin leaped up, throwing himself at the soldiers.
"Ahhh!" They all screamed as Sabin blinded them with an Aura Bolt. Cyan took that opportunity to take them down with his sword. In a matter of seconds, it was all over. Stunned and dying bodies were scattered all about... However, more troops were running towards them to quickly replace their dying comrades.
"Ohhh! This is too much!" Cyan cried, and shook his head.
"Let me have at it!" Sabin shouted, just getting warmed up and swinging a punch at the nearest soldier.
"What a mess!" Cyan exclaimed. "Do be careful Sir!"
"Arrrrg!" Sabin yelled, and took a flying leap back away from the soldiers and Cyan. Placing his two index fingers together, he began a short chant and the ground began to rumble and shake as a barrage of flaming replicas of Sabin began to fly at the soldiers from all directions. In moments, they were all puffs of smoke being carried away by the dry desert wind.
"Amazing!" Cyan exclaimed, dropping his sword to his side.
"That was called a Fire Dance." Sabin explained proudly.
"Fire Dance?" Cyan smiled excitedly. "You must be a disciple of Duncan, the greatest Blitz Master that has ever graced the planet!"
"Well, I used to be..." Sabin trailed off, but shook his head. "But that is not important. I am Sabin Figaro."
"And I am Cyan Garamonde, of Doma." Cyan said. "But I am afraid that Doma has been..."
"Poisoned!?" Sabin interrupted, and Cyan sadly nodded.
"When I find out who was behind it, I'm going to..." But Sabin stopped Cyan by placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Listen... I know how you feel, but we really need to scram!" Sabin explained. "It's not safe here!"
"But what of my home, my family... and my friends?" Cyan protested. "Who will avenge them all...?"
"I promise you will have your chance soon enough." Sabin said desperately. "If we stick around any longer, we'll have a regiment of troops down our throats."
"I see 'em!" A voice suddenly yelled out, and Sabin turned, only to see soldiers running at them from all angles.
"Hooo-Boy." Sabin muttered, and looked around. However, he soon found a solution to the problem, and gestured for Cyan to follow him.
"What in blazes?!" Cyan cried as he pulled out his sword to defend himself as he and Sabin ran past all the soldiers further back into the base.
"I have a friend in here!" Sabin explained. "I can't just leave him here... but these will help us navigate a lot faster!" With that, Sabin pointed up to the set of 3 Magitek Armor suits he had spotted from afar.
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried. "What on Earth are these?"
"I'll explain later!" Sabin assured him. "Just get in and relax!" With that, Cyan followed Sabin's actions and climbed into the tall armor. Sabin grinned as he poked about at the machinery, but Cyan cringed.
"Sir Sabin! How might these abominations be manipulated?" Cyan squealed, and Sabin rolled his eyes. This man was not patient at all!
"I'm getting sick of this! Thou art such a pain in the...! Confound it all! I'm starting to talk like you! Now listen! Just use those levers located by your hands!" Sabin burst out, and tugged down on one of his own levers. However, as he did so, he heard a growl from the empty machine behind him and Cyan.
"Ahhh!" He and Cyan both shouted at once, and turned around in their seats, only to see Shadow sitting still as death itself in the third unit, smiling pleasantly. He had kept so still that Sabin had not even noticed him before.
"Shadow!" Sabin exclaimed. "So I've found you!"
"Indeed, that seems to be the case." Shadow said. "Who is this?"
"Cyan, of Doma!" Sabin explained hurriedly. "Doma has already been attacked, I'm afraid... so our next goal is to get out of here, pronto!"
"Indeed!" Cyan exclaimed, and slammed down on his lever. However, this caused his armor to let out a loud his of steam and begin to turn in rapid, dizzying circles over and over again.
"Sir Sabin, I am in your debt!" Cyan exclaimed as he went in another circle.
"Ahhh, forget it!" Sabin protested. "Now, come on!" He pushed his lever forward and began to march slowly when a group of soldiers clamored up to them., with raised guns.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" One shrieked.
"Ahhh, we cannot stop now!" Cyan exclaimed happily, and suddenly his armor charged through the soldiers, causing them to both run and bounce off in several different directions. Sabin and Shadow looked at each other worriedly.
"Ehh... lets just bust through!" Sabin ordered, and with that, the three of them began to charge through the Imperial Base towards the southern exit. Soldiers shot and cursed at them, but alas, their own armor units were quite effective against any attack they tried to make against them. After blasting through a few more soldiers and tents, the three men had finally reached their destination, and broke free from the base. However, the armor units were beginning to slow down due to uncharged batteries, so they stopped the armor each hopped out, deserting them in the yellow grassy plains outside the desert base. Positive no one would bother chasing after them now, Sabin, Shadow, and Cyan all turned to each other, waiting for one of them to say what was to happen next. Everything had happened so quickly, for each of them...
"I can't believe we made it this far." Sabin said thoughtfully, and stroked his chin.
"Indeed." Cyan said, nodding.
"Eh..." Shadow grunted.
"So... How do you get to Narshe from here?" Sabin asked both Shadow and Cyan, hoping one of them would know.
"You are going to Narshe?" Cyan questioned. "To head off the Empire's attack, I presume..."
"Yes!" Sabin nodded. "How did you know about the Empire's plans?"
"Doma, although accused of associating with the Returners, weren't really. However, we did gather information about the Empire on our own, and learned of the Esper in Narshe. I guess the Empire found us out though...and wanted to make sure we couldn't warn anyone else..." Cyan looked down sadly, but Shadow shook his head.
"You must give up all hope...of having a better past." Shadow said coolly, and crossed his arms over his chest. "You must think of now. The present. The present danger...that Narshe is facing. With the knowledge of the Empire's planned attack, what will you do? Run away?"
"No!" Cyan cried. "That, Sir, is senseless! I...I wouldn't want the sacrifice the Kingdom of Doma made for this information to be in vain...perhaps it was fate that I met up with you, Sir Sabin, Sir Shadow. I am sure my wife and child would understand that I not remain in Doma right now..."
"Perhaps." Sabin mused, getting the intention that his wife and child were no longer of this world. Shadow said nothing.
"But why do you fight?" Cyan asked.
"I am a Returner." Sabin explained. "I am fighting with my brother, King Edgar for the insurance that Figaro will have a better tomorrow. I also have new friends that I wish to protect." At this point, Sabin thought of Terra, the mysterious young woman, and of Locke, who seemed just as mysterious, if not more...Locke, who seemed to hide a lot behind those fake smiles of his.
"What about you?" Cyan looked to Shadow. Shadow shook his head and merely answered with: "I need food for Interceptor." Cyan, not knowing who this was, was a bit confused, but dropped the subject.
"Well, at any rate, you need to get to Narshe then." Cyan said. "I will accompany you, if you don't mind..."
"No, of course not!" Sabin smiled. "The others will be happy to meet you. But how are we going to get there?"
"To get there, we need to cross through the forest to the south of this continent." Cyan explained. "It's the only route."
"Alright, it's decided!" Sabin shouted. "Lets go!!!"
**********
Getting to the forest was not as easy as said. Beasts and other small monsters were running wild through the plains, and Sabin and the others found themselves in almost constant combat. However, every once in a while, Interceptor, Shadow's loyal pet, would leap out of no where and take a monster down for the kill on his own, making battles easier.
"That dog is unreal...almost like a phantom." Sabin murmured to himself at one point.
But at last, the forest was reached, and after a few moments of rest, the team went inside. However...
"It's so dark in here!" Sabin cried, and squinted his eyes. "It's like night!"
"This is the Phantom Forest." Cyan explained. "It's always like this."
"Hmmph." Shadow replied.
The beaten path in the forest was hard to see because of the lack of light, and Sabin felt as if he and his comrades were merely going in circles over and over again. After what felt like an eternity, he finally gave in to his frustrations and let out a mighty scream of agony.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHG!"
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried.
"This is horrible!" Sabin yelled. "Does this place have no end!?"
"It feels like we are going in circles..." Shadow trailed off.
"Oh no, you feel it too?!" Sabin cried.
"Stop, stop!" Cyan shouted, and pointed ahead. "Look, Sabin, Shadow, between those trees there..."
Sabin took a deep, calming breath and turned to where Cyan was pointing. In the short distance ahead of them, he could see a strong light, as well as a beat up wooden post. He leaned in to try to read it, but it was faded badly. He could only recognize one word: Train.
"Lets go see what's by the light." Sabin suggested, and wordlessly, Cyan and Shadow followed him deeper into the forest. However, when they reached the light behind the trees, they were all rather shocked!
Ahead of them was a train platform, empty and gray in color. However, there were burning lights every few feet of the platform, and the large light they had seen belonged to the massive train that was sitting at the platform, smoke pouring out of it's smokestack.
"A train is here?!" Cyan cried. "But I thought Doma's railway had been destroyed...?"
"There may be survivors inside." Sabin said. "Lets take a look."
Sabin pushed open the small gate that led to the inside of the platform, but nearly jumped in the air when he heard it slam behind them. Other then the echo of the gate, there was no other noises. As they slowly walked along the side of the train, Sabin spotted a passenger entrance.
"Hey!" We can get in right here!" Sabin exclaimed.
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan protested immediately.
"We can just keep wandering around out here! We have to go on board!" Sabin lectured, and before anyone could say anymore, he slid open the door and walked in.
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried again.
"Don't worry!" Sabin called from inside the dark car of the train.
"Sir Sabin..." Cyan shook his head and entered after him. Shadow entered last.
And the door slammed shut behind them.
"What on Earth...?" Sabin murmured as he looked about the interior of the train. It was finely decorated, with silky red carpets and exquisite lighting utilities, however... there was also something seriously wrong about it. Floating every which way were faded blue figures that were pale enough to see right through... and they were all either wearing long, dragging robes, or dragging long chains and/or keys over their robes.
"Ghosts..." Shadow whispered. Sabin raised his eyebrows and Cyan cried out in fear.
"Let me off!" He shouted. "This train is HAUNTED!"
Suddenly, a short rumble shot through the entire car, and the team could feel the train slowly start to move.
"It...It's moving!" Sabin cried.
"If we don't leave now...!" Cyan was interrupted as Sabin quickly ran to the door he had come in to throw it back open. However, the door was stuck tightly. No...not stuck...
....Locked!!
"It won't open!!" Sabin cried.
"We are too late!" Cyan moaned.
"What is with this train?" Sabin demanded.
"...I was afraid my suspicions were correct..." Cyan sighed. "Sir Sabin, I told you that it was not good for us to come in here!"
"Well, what were your suspicions?" Sabin asked, feeling a little wary.
"That this was the rumored "Phantom Train"..." Cyan shook his head. "It carries the...departed, to the other side..."
"Wait a sec!" Sabin shouted. "I don't want to go THERE!" However, Cyan did not seem too excited, either way.
"We all must go sometime..." Cyan sighed.
"But I have things to do HERE." Sabin argued. "And I've decided that we have to stop this thing...before it is the end of the game for us!"
"Lets make for the engine." Shadow suggested.
"The engine is in the front, more then likely." Sabin said carefully. "But lets go through here first, ok?" With that, Sabin pushed open the door to his right, and entered the small caboose of the train. Inside was another ghost and what appeared to be an elder man. The ghost looked to them, and slowly began to float towards the group.
"AH!" Sabin and Cyan cried in unison.
"Quiet." Shadow ordered. "It does not seem to have the violent vibes it's cousins in the other room had..."
The ghost floated up to Sabin and did a small bow. He then bowed to Cyan, and Shadow.
"It seems... to want to come with us." Cyan said weakly, and at this, the ghost happily bobbed up and down. Well, it seemed to be happy, you couldn't really tell, for a hood that had the resemblance of a black starry sky covered what it's face might have looked like.
"Well, ok!" Sabin exclaimed. "The more, the merrier!"
"...." Cyan shook his head as the Ghost did a small victory dance, and proceeded to follow the party over to the old man.
"I manage this train!" The old man exclaimed. "What business have you here?"
"Tell us about the train." Sabin said.
"This train ferries the dear departed to the "Other Side."" He said. "There, they can take their eternal rest." Everyone, even Shadow gulped, but Sabin pressed on.
"How do we stop it?"
"You wanna stop the train?" The old man shrugged. "Just use the controls in the engineer's compartment! It's in the front end of this train, just so you know." Sabin thanked him, and saw Cyan looking over a small book on an unsteady table.
"Be this the time schedule?" Cyan questioned.
"Hmm..." Sabin looked over his shoulder and blinked. "They're all blank!"
"The Phantom Train guides the departed ones to the spirit world!" The old man suddenly added. "They have no need of schedules!!"
This chilling comment made everyone shudder, so Sabin shook it off and walked over to a wall with a switch on it.
"What's this?" Sabin questioned. "Let me just give it a..."
"Sir Sabin!" Cyan cried. "Maybe we shouldn't fumble with that!" Sabin looked over at Cyan and nearly laughed. He could hardly believe the man freaking out before him had been the same warrior back at the Empire base! There were two different sides to this guy! Finally, Sabin just had to give in to himself, and laughed at Cyan as he flipped the switch. However, nothing happened.
"Gave it my best shot..." Sabin said, while still laughing. Cyan hurried over and flipped the switch right back.
"How...can you...do such a thing?!" Cyan cried, his eyes wide. Sabin blinked, and realized the truth about this so called warrior.
"Cyan... are you one of those types who's afraid of machines?" Sabin questioned. He should have guessed it before! All those old noble type were like that!
"How dare you?" Cyan snapped snottily. "Just because I respect other being's property doesn't mean I'm not mechanically minded!"
"Cyan...you're a total klutz when it comes to machines, aren't you?" Sabin smiled slyly, and Cyan turned red.
"SILENCE!" Cyan roared, and the entire caboose seemed to shake. Shadow, Sabin, and the Ghost all turned to Cyan, who immediately blushed furiously.
".....H-How could you tell?" Cyan asked meekly, and Sabin just laughed again and shook his head. Shadow, as usual, looked less then amused, and the Ghost just...floated there.
After discovering Cyan's little weakness, the team made it's way back out of the caboose and began to travel car to car to the front of the train. Ghosts traveled past them and sometimes right through them at times, but they generally did not bother the team unless the team bothered them first. Every once in a while, they would run across an angry spirit and be forced into battle, but it was nothing Sabin's Fire Dance and Cyan's blade could not handle. Shadow would throw mystical scrolls that released fire against the demons, easily destroying them. The ghost would throw a punch to anyone who got in it's way, but if you were ever struck by a ghost, you would know that it felt the same as someone trying to hit you with a tissue.
However, the half-peaceful trip was suddenly interrupted when the group entered a new car, and found that there was no door in it to go on.
"Well, we'll just have to go outside and walk along the rails to the next car." Sabin suggested, although the team had been avoiding doing just that because of the harsh and chilly winds that blew outside of the cars. However, they really had no choice. When Sabin led the group back to the door they came from though... A Ghost stood in front of it, and it did not look too pleased.
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!" It moaned in a soft, almost whispering voice. Sabin let out a yelp as it threw itself at the party, but Cyan gathered his wits and sliced the ghost from head to feet with his rapier, making it disappear in a flash of purple light.
"That was close...thanks Cyan!" Sabin said quickly, and threw open the door. However, when everyone was outside, their surroundings suddenly darkened, and another soft voice moaned:
"Ha..ha...ha...What ever did you think you were doing...?"
Shadow blinked and whirled around to see if there was another ghost in the doorway.
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!"
"Who's there?" Shadow yelled.
"It came from this direction!" Cyan cried, and began to run along the car rail to the next car. However, he was stopped by a line of ghosts emerging from the car ahead of them! The line forced Cyan to back up to the group, so they tried to run back in the direction they originally came from. However, a line of ghosts had suddenly appeared there too, ready to stop them!
"Whoa, they're coming from this way too!" Shadow said.
"Oh my God!" Cyan whimpered.
The wind began filled with the shrill chants and lowly moans of all the ghosts, their words chilling the spines of the team and paralyzing them to their spots. The only other noise that could be heard over the moans were the creaking gears and wheels of the Phantom Train, which brought them all ever closer to their final destination...
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!"
"N.o...e.s.c.a.p.e...!"
"You can't escape... Nowhere to run... Nowhere to hide..."
"You can't escape... Nowhere to run... Nowhere to hide..."
"These...ghosts are bloody persistent!!!" Cyan cried.
"Up here!" Shadow exclaimed, and began to climb to the roof of the train. Sabin and Cyan followed suit, and soon they were all teetering on the roof of the shaking car. However, the ghosts were not stupid, as they too began to float upwards, trapping the group!
"I believe we're stuck!" Cyan pointed out. Sabin looked around hurriedly, and suddenly got a wicked grin on his face.
"I know!" Sabin exclaimed.
"You have an idea?" Cyan asked hopefully.
"Yep!" Sabin nodded and began to stretch his arms and legs. "Time to see if all my training has paid off!"
"Wha..." Shadow didn't know what to say.
Sabin cracked his knuckles and ran to the edge of the roof. "Come Cyan, come Shadow!" With that, Sabin took a flying leap off of the roof and landed perfectly on the roof of the next car, waving for the others to join them. Cyan timidly went next, and landed gracefully next to Sabin. Shadow jumped so fast that Sabin and Cyan didn't see him until he had landed lightly at their side, and their ghost companion merely floated over.
"Yahoo!" Sabin exclaimed, and they all leapt again, doing this for 3 consecutive cars until on the 4th car, the roof under Sabin shattered, and he went plummeting into the car below. He landed on his behind with a hard thump, but nothing appeared broken. Sabin stood up and brushed himself off as the others jumped in after him.
"Are you ok?" Cyan asked.
"I'm fine!" Sabin exclaimed. The ghost danced happily at this.
"Well, at least we lost them..." Shadow trailed off, but suddenly cringed at the sound of moaning outside. When he dashed outside the car to check what was going on, he was surprised to see the ghosts that had been chasing them all gathering on the second and third trains behind them. They were slowly inching towards the fourth car, where the team would be trapped again!
"Everyone!" Shadow cried as he ran back in the car. "We have to detach the rear cars, right now! Those ghosts will be here any minute!"
"But how will we do that?!" Sabin protested.
"We're doomed." Cyan stated sadly.
Suddenly, their ghost companion turned and began to float away from the group.
"Huh?" Sabin asked.
The ghost looked back at Sabin and waved it's arms in a frantic motion. Sabin didn't realize what it was doing until he heard a click, and the car suddenly jerked forward, causing everyone to fall to their knees. However, the moans outside began to fall farther and farther away... Sabin finally stood up and went outside, not really knowing what to expect. However, he was pleasantly surprised to see the cars of the train the ghosts had been swarming on falling further and further behind them, until they had completely disappeared in the darkness of the forest.
"Hey!" Sabin exclaimed. "The whole back end of the train is gone!"
"The ghost must have known how to detach the cars." Cyan commented as he stepped outside and joined Sabin.
"Thank goodness!" Sabin grinned, and Shadow and the ghost joined them outside as well. "Shall we proceed, my good men?"
"Cut it out." Shadow grunted, and Sabin could not tell if he were happy to be out of danger or not. He shrugged it off and led the group on.
The next car on the train was the dining car. It was empty inside, except for some tables and chairs scattered about. Just to be funny, Sabin sat down at one of the tables and banged his fists on the table excitedly.
"Food, Food!" He cried. "Bring me everything ya got!"
Suddenly, a ghost materialized out of thin air, and presented to Sabin a plate full of some of the most succulent chicken and potatoes that Sabin had ever laid eyes on. The ghost set it down on the table, and disappeared as mysteriously as he had appeared.
"Ohhh..." Sabin drooled and prepared to take a bite.
"Are...Are you going to be okay if you eat THIS?!" Cyan cried worriedly.
"Worried?" Sabin grinned. "Can't wage war on an empty stomach!"
"Hmmmm....Sir, I won't hear any more of this kind of talk!" Cyan cried, but before he could say anymore, Sabin had grabbed handfuls of chicken and stuffed it in his mouth.
"Gobble... snarf... snap..."
"Ahhh...." Sabin grinned, satisfied as he popped the last piece of chicken in his mouth and leaned back in his chair, patting his stomach. "Well, I've stuffed down all I can, lets go!" Cyan looked as if he were about to hurl, and Shadow chuckled some. The ghost just floated about, looking bored.
The next car appeared to be a dormitory car. There were several doors, each leading to a small and empty bedroom. More ghosts floated about here, but did not seem intent on killing Sabin and the others like the psycho group they had left behind. In one room, however, instead of being totally empty, contained a treasure chest.
"Oh!" Sabin grinned, and kneeled down to open it.
"Stop where you are!"
"Huh?" Sabin blinked and stood up, looking around. Suddenly, a man dressed in robes of pale blue and dirty white dropped down in front of Sabin, and pushed him aside. Sabin grunted and tried to get a glimpse at the man's face, but couldn't see who it was, for he had a mask on.
"I am Ziegfried, the world's greatest swordsman!" The man cackled, and drew his sword, which was a long, shining blade covered in bright jewels. "That treasure chest is mine. If I were you, Ox, I'd grab grandpa, here, and run!"
"Grandpa!?" Cyan stuttered.
"You look more like a manicurist." Sabin snapped. "Now SCRAM!"
"Aha!" Ziegfried laughed. "The Ox bellows! Allow me to introduce my blade...!" With that, Ziegfried leapt at the party in a blinding flash and began to make rapid slashes every which way that were so dizzying, Sabin couldn't keep his vision straight. He almost feared that he would be struck when Ziegfried jumped back and cackled menacingly, ending his attack and expecting his enemies to fall to their knees. However, the blade had not touched one of them, except for the ghost, and it merely went through him. Ziegfried widened his eyes.
"Wha, what happened?" He stuttered, and with that, Sabin strapped on his claw and gave The World's Greatest Swordsman a hard blow to the stomach. Ziegfried cried out and stumbled back, falling to his knees.
"Impossible! I...I'm the greatest... But I still laugh last!" Ziegfried moans of pain turned into laughter, and with that he leaped up and swiped the entire treasure chest. Pushing past the stunned group, he reached the doorway and gave a little wave.
"Ta-ta, Cretins!" He exclaimed, and disappeared.
"What a bag of wind..." Cyan muttered.
The group reached the end of the Dormitory Car and were all happy to see that ahead of them was the engineer's compartment of the train and the smokestack as well that they had seen when they first arrived at the platform. Just as Sabin opened the door to the room, the Ghost gave a little wave and began to float away quickly.
"Hmmm... I guess we're on our own now..." Shadow said.
"Thanks buddy!" Sabin exclaimed, and waved back to the ghost until it disappeared.
"He wasn't THAT bad." Cyan admitted. "Shall we carry on?"
The group entered the room and began to look around for some way to stop the engine of the train. At last, Shadow came upon a note taped to the wall of the compartment.
"Something is written here." He said. "To stop the train, shut the first and third pressure valves, and operate the switch outside, near the smoke stack."
"I found the valves!" Sabin exclaimed, and did as the instructions said, shutting down the first and third ones.
"Lets go outside now." Cyan said, and they did so, Sabin climbing up on the smokestack to shut off the final valve. When he did, the train suddenly rumbled and shook underneath him, throwing him back down to the others. However, it did not appear to be even slowing down!
"Hey, did we do it right?!" Sabin cried. The train rumbled again, and a deep voice suddenly spoke, it's words echoing off of the trees in the woods.
"SO!" The voice boomed. "IT IS YOU WHO HAS BEEN SLOWING MY PROGRESS!"
"Is that the train speaking?!" Cyan cried.
"The voice is coming from within it!" Shadow confirmed. "It is the Phantom Train!" At saying this, the train rumbled again, and threw the group off ahead into the middle of the tracks!
"RUN!" Sabin screamed, and they all scrambled up and took off running, the train roaring right on their tails. The train was so wide in the front, that if they tried to run to the sides and escape into the woods, they would be crushed to nothing!
"The train...is NOT attacking us..." Cyan tried to convince himself as he continued running.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Shadow said coolly, and with that, the train suddenly opened a small compartment in it's front, and out shot a spinning wheel!
"Dodge it!" Sabin instructed, and everyone leaped over the wheel as it rolled past them.
"I don't know how much longer I can run!" Cyan cried.
"Me neither..." Shadow moaned, his breath coming in rough intervals.
"I'm thinking, I'm thinking!" Sabin cried, and racked his brains for an idea.
"The Phantom Train must not let anything stop it's journey to the other world!" Cyan moaned. "That's why there were ghosts attacking us...and why it is attacking us now!!!!"
"....Phantom....Train..." Sabin trailed off and suddenly, a most brilliant idea came to mind.
"This train, it's a phantom, right?!" Sabin shouted. The roar of the engine that was coming ever closer to them was beginning to hinder their speech to each other.
"It is indeed!" Cyan confirmed sarcastically. "When did you figure THAT out, Sir Sabin??"
"Shadow!" Sabin cried, ignoring Cyan's comment for now. "Hurry, and throw a Phoenix Down at it!"
"What?!" Shadow yelled.
"Just do it!" Sabin cried. "I'll pay you back the 150 gil later.....!"
"......Hmmph." Shadow grunted as he reached in his pack and turned around, tossing the Phoenix Down like he would one of his stars or scrolls. The glass bottle of ruby red liquid smashed into the front of the train, and shattered instantly. However, the train suddenly sputtered, and began to rapidly slow down. Sparks flew out of it's weapon compartment, and an inner explosion could be heard. With that, the train just came to a complete stop, and steam poured out of every opening possible.
"Do you see?" Sabin grinned, and he kneeled to the ground to catch his breath. "It was undead! Therefore, the power of life could destroy it!"
"Very nice indeed." Cyan nodded happily, and Shadow just nodded as well.
"...You don't have to pay me back." He finally said. However, their victory discussion was interrupted by the deep voice that belonged to the train.
"I WILL LET YOU GO." The train sputtered. "I CAN SEE THAT YOU DO NOT BELONG HERE. BUT FIRST, THERE IS SOMETHING I MUST DO..."
**********
Before they knew it, the group found themselves at a new platform, which the train had stopped at to let them off. On the way there, the same conductor who they had met in the caboose of the train explained that they were being let off at the end of the forest rather then going on to continue to journey of the train. When Sabin asked where that was exactly, the conductor could not answer. Then when Sabin asked how the heck the conductor got from the caboose to the front of the train without them noticing, he simply refused to answer.
"Hooo boy, finally got off!" Sabin exclaimed, and stretched his legs when they stepped on the platform. "At any rate...we shouldn't be here... so lets go, NOW!" Cyan was about to agree, when some familiar voices caught his ear, making his heart wrench in agonizing memory.
"Oh my God..." Cyan murmured, and took off running to the far right side of the platform.
"Huh?" Sabin asked, and he and Shadow ran after him. They found Cyan staring at a line of faded passengers climbing into the entrance of the train, all having the ghostly appearance of their friend that had helped them on the train. However, Cyan began to shout and cry out as a tall, beautiful woman with shining blonde hair in a ponytail and a rich red skirt on got on and assisted a young man with blonde tendrils and cute green shorts. The pair walked to the rear of the train and gazed out at their surroundings.
"No!!! Elayne, Owain!" Cyan cried, and began to push through the ghostly passengers in line to get to them.
"Cyan!" Sabin shouted.
"Elayne and Owain... his wife and child...?" Shadow questioned.
"Departing!!!!" Sabin cried. "They're departing!"
"Please, wait!" Cyan moaned, but the train began to roar as the last passenger climbed on, and the doors shut in Cyan's face. The train slowly began to move down the track, picking up speed every few seconds or so.
"Ahhh! Elayne, Owain!" Cyan cried in agony, and pushed past Sabin to run down to the other end of the platform. Sabin gasped and tumbled over the side of the platform, but Shadow dashed down and grabbed his hands just in time. Cyan continued running, his vision blurred with tears as she shouted at the top of his lungs. Suddenly, the woman in the back of the train looked up at him, and held up her hand, calling out.
"My love!" She said, holding her hand out to Cyan, even though he was far out of reach. "You made me so happy, Cyan! Please, do not forget me...!"
"Father!" Owain called as well. "I'll make sure Mother is alright...!" With that, the train suddenly gained more speed, and disappeared from view. Cyan heaved a sob and collapsed at the end of the platform, his body shaking all over. Meanwhile, Shadow had pulled Sabin up to the platform again, and Sabin began to approach Cyan.
"Hey." Shadow said coolly, and grabbed Sabin by the wrist. "...Leave 'em alone for a while..." Sabin nodded, and they both turned towards Cyan's crumpled body, his sobs so loud and hard that they caused him to choke several times. Sabin turned away, not being able to bear the view, and looked to the ground.
He secretly swore to himself that he, as a Returner, would do everything in his power to never allow a scene like this to happen again.
