Elaclea Electronic

(Oh my god, it's been forever and a day since I posted! ; Sorry everybody! I've gotten a lot of this done on paper; I just haven't had time to type it. Anyway, for those of you reading Perpetual Motion Machine, the next chapter of that is on its way as well. ; I'll try to be more efficient now that I don't have much going on until May…By that time, this story will be over.

Here's the next chapter!)

Chapter Nine: The Train

It was strange to me that Dio had never seen the city before. I am not sure why, but I had been certain that he would have gone out at least once before. The way he stared around, his eyes wide open, made me think of how I acted when I first went there. Although he did not say anything to me, I had a feeling that I knew what he was thinking.

Dio was enjoying himself, but I did not have time to be a sight-seer. I had to make sure that neither of us attracted too much attention. Luckily, Dio's hair covered his tattoo that marked him as a noble. If it had not, then we would have had a lot more trouble than I would have liked. Nevertheless, we made it safely to the train station. Of course, that was where the trouble began.

We entered to find that all the trains, save one headed to Disith, were delayed for five hours. Since we had no definite destination in mind, we hurried to the ticket counter and purchased two of the three remaining tickets.

"Luciola, can you speak Disithan?" Dio asked as we went to our assigned area.

"I know more of it than I know of Anatorayan. Besides, this way, it may be harder for people to find us." I replied, glancing at a near by clock. While I knew the language, I really had no idea what to expect once we arrived there. The actual culture was entirely unknown to me. This was going to be a difficult experience for both of us.

A mix of Guilders and foreigners sat on benches, waiting for the train to arrive. Dio and I took the only two empty seats left, which was next to the biggest, hairiest man I'd ever seen. He seemed to be friends with the bald Guilder next to him. At first, I guessed that he was from Disith, but when he and the Guilder began speaking Anatorayan, it was apparent that I was wrong.

Right as Dio was about to say something, the big man tapped my shoulder. "My friend was wondering what region of the Guild you're from," he said in Guilder, which surprised me, "He said that you've got eyes like he'd never seen." The fact that he could speak our language amazed me. Guilder was the most difficult language to learn in all of Prestale.

I glanced over at Dio, who obviously wanted me to talk to him. Somewhat nervously, I turned back to the stranger. "I am from the north, sir. My friend grew up in this city." I said to him, trying not to speak too fast.

The foreigner said something to the Guilder in Anatorayan. After that, the Guilder leaned forward so that he could see us. "Oh, I'm from the North Province also. My name's Gale," he said and then nodded toward the Anatorayan, "This is Godwin. We're heading to Disith to help out with the construction of a new railroad." They seemed quite friendly.

Dio also wanted to be a part of the conversation. "My name's Dio, and his name's Luciola!" he exclaimed happily. I was relieved that he did not tell them why we were leaving. Even if he had, I got the feeling that they would not have reported us.

"Nice to meet you both," I said, my nervousness ebbing away. The rest of the time we spent waiting for the train was very nice. Dio and I talked with Godwin and Gale the entire time, mostly about Disith and what it was like there. They told us that it was always freezing, so I thought that we should have worn warmer clothes. It was too late to turn back now…Delphine may already have discovered we were missing.

When the train arrived, we went on and sat down in an empty car. Godwin and Gale came with us. I'm not sure why, but they gave me an odd feeling of security. As the train started, a guard walked through and checked our tickets. He paused for a moment when he came to us, which made me incredibly uncomfortable. If he noticed something suspicious, we would all be in trouble. By some stroke of luck, he nodded curtly and left the car.

Just as the door slid shut, Gale decided to strike up a conversation. "So, why're you and Dio going to Disith?" he inquired.

It seemed that our luck ran out. Of course, this was by no means, the worst thing that could happen, but I had not planned on this situation at all. Since nothing good ever lasted forever, I could not reply in time, and Dio just spouted the truth.

"Luciola and I are running away from the Maestro!" he exclaimed, ignorant to the fact that the car may be bugged. I felt a cold flush wash over me. The least I could hope for was the Dio could announce that he was kidding, or perhaps Gale and Godwin would not believe him.

My hopes, unfortunately, were dashed. The two of them exchanged shocked glances and then stared at us with wide eyes. "You two are either crazy or very brave…" Gale said, shaking his head. I had to agree with the first option; to run away from the Maestro was sheer lunacy. However, we did not have another choice. As you know, if we remained at the palace, Dio would have been dealt a cruel fate.

Gale was still surprised, but Godwin seemed to find the situation exciting. He laughed, nodded, and clapped me on the back. I did not understand his bizarre behavior. "You two would be in a world of trouble if you got caught," he stated, "That's why I'm gonna offer you our help…" It seemed our luck had returned! "There's one condition, though."

"What's that?" I asked. Whatever it was, I knew that Dio and I would try our hardest to meet it. Of course, I hoped that the catch was not something that might put us in even more danger.

Godwin said that Gale would reveal what it was. "All I want to know is why you two are on the run. What did you do to make Maestro Delphine angry?" Gale asked his voice low. I should have known that they would be curious about that.

With no other choice but to oblige them, I began to tell them our story. Dio occasionally piped in with his own comments. Gale and Godwin listened intently, not once interrupting with questions. Although I thought they might find some reason why Dio and I should have stayed, at the end, they stated that they both agreed with me.

Honestly, I had no idea that the train ride would take so long. By the time that it hissed to a stop, the sun had been gone for hours. Dio ended up falling asleep, but I stayed awake the entire time. I suppose the thought of being caught still frightened me. That was still a possibility because most of the Guilders that were on the train were loyal to the Maestro.

When it was time to exit the train, I nudged Dio until he awakened. He rubbed his eyes and smiled at me. "Are we in Disith now?" he asked, stifling a yawn. I realized then, that I was fairly tired as well. Long trips tend to have a soporific affect on people.

I nodded. "We've just arrived, sir." I said. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gale and Godwin rise from their seats. With that, I found myself wondering where Dio and I would go. Neither of us had much money and we did not know anything about anything when it came to Disith. I began to think that we may end up returning to the Guild after all.

Godwin and Gale had been conversing in Anatorayan for about an hour during the trip. As I stood up, Godwin looked at me, that grin still on his face, and asked me something I had never expected. "Do you and Dio want to stay with me an' Gale? I'm assumin' that you guys haven't made living arrangements and all…" His generosity surprised me very much. What little I heard from others about foreigners, was that they were all incredibly stupid and rude…But these two were the exact opposite of that stereotype.

Dio jumped up, a brilliant smile on his pale face. "Can we really!" he chimed, obviously as surprised as I was. Since he was of noble lineage, I guessed that he knew more of those stereotypes than I did.

Godwin laughed and nodded. It looked like we would not have to go back…ever again. We left that train station, thinking we would never hear of Delphine and those doctors anymore.

It was a nice thought, but it was not true.