Chapter Thirteen – 'Do I know you'
"So what happens after you leave and I'm here by myself?" Smithers asked Lisa as he worried that would soon be his reality.
"I don't really know. I guess we will meet up in the future." Lisa answered, but could tell Smithers was still nervous. "I can not tell what will happen when all of us are on our separate spaces." This worried her too.
"We know the game is still progressing, but this is only the first turn." He said to try to cheer her up.
"I guess I'll ask this one more time, without anyone else around. Did you know anything about this game or being selected by Burns." She asked Burns' long-time assistant.
Smithers was quiet for a second before he answered. "No." He simply said. "I was just as surprised when he said I could enter the room with the six of you, and as far as knowing he was planning this, he did all of this without anyone knowing."
The MyPad in Lisa's hand lit up as Smithers grimaced at the fact he was seconds away from being alone.
"This is where we part ways." Lisa said as she pressed the roll icon that appeared on the screen. She looked up as the booms were heard, as if she expected to see the dice. "Five." She stated as the silver race car appeared beside her.
"Be careful and don't wreck that. It looks expensive." Smithers reminded her.
"I'll be careful. The others showed us it is on a set path anyways." She said as she climbed aboard. "As long as we all follow the rules, this should be a fun game." She added as she took one last look at Smithers.
"That would be the best ending, but I don't really trust Burns." Smithers said as Lisa's race car started to pull away. "Something doesn't feel right."
"Let's hope you're wrong." She yelled and hesitated a second before finishing. "Even though I don't think you are." Lisa frowned at this, but only she could see it as the race car was a distance away from the lonely Smithers.
Lisa rode in her race car along the invisible path taking in the scenery. There was not much to see. "I wonder if this is how the game will be, and how I will be able to know I only went five spaces." She looked down at the race car and saw that it was gliding instead of rolling. "As much as I wanted to ride in a race car, this is very slow and disappointing."
She continued being driven in her silver race car thinking what she would run into and who see would meet. "No one else rolled a five so wherever I go, it will be new to everyone." This cheered her up from the thoughts of how lonely this game might be.
A few minutes passed as she continued off in the same direction everyone else had traveled, until she started to hear a faint noise in the distance. "I can't tell what that is. It just sounds like noise. Maybe when I get a bit closer I can tell." She stood up on the race car to try to see further, but could only see dim colors near the horizon.
Patiently she waited as the noise slowly got louder and more colors were visible in the distance. "I think I can see something." She got excited the closer she was getting to whatever awaited her in the distance.
It slowly got closer and louder. A big building started to get bigger as she could see more details as the noise continued to get louder
When the noise became even louder she started to think. "It sounds like a loud horn and it echoes." She giggled as the race car started to slow down. "I'm not quite at that building yet, and the race car is slowing down."
The more it slowed down, she started hearing another noise, a rhythmic ringing of bells. Equally spaced and getting louder. A few flashing red lights accompanied the bells. Then a long gate could be seen swinging down in front of her path.
"Is that a railroad crossing? It can't be. I'm in the middle of nowhere riding toward that building." The railroad gate could be more easily seen as she approached it and the race car came to a complete stop. The noise in the distance was getting louder as it approached too. "It's a train!" She exclaimed but the emotion escaped as she realized what it meant. "It's a train coming, and I guess I have to wait for it to pass."
She looked at the oncoming train. It was getting louder the closer it got. Lisa looked left than right. "I can't see the end of the tracks. They just seem to go on into the horizon." She waited as the train started to pass her. First the engine, then a few coal cars, then a few passenger cars. "It looks like a nice train. Maybe I can ride it." The train continued to pass with a few more service cars, and eventually trailed by the caboose.
The train rode into the distance, the horn grew quieter, and the ringing of the gate bells stopped. The gate raised and the race car continued over the tracks toward the building. "If that was a train..." She thought to herself. "Then that building has to be a train station, or at least I hope it is. This is going to be so much fun."
She could hardly contain herself as she got closer to the building. More details started to come into view. "I can see it." As she stood up just staring at the brick building. "There is a big clock in front. It must be used to keep train schedules. And there is ticket window, and a platform and a..." Her thought was interrupted as another train whistle blew. This one sounded different.
The race car slowed and came to a stop in front of the brick building. "Wow." She thought. "It is a train station."
"You have arrived at Reading Railroad." A computerized voice announced from her MyPad as it showed the five spaces she had moved.
"How do I know that was five spaces?" She shrugged as she said this and dismounted the race car. "Time to explore." She said as she walked towards the trains.
The train station was bigger than she had expected it to be, as she gazed upon it from the outside. The upper tier of the train station had a giant clock and below it was a very intricate brick design that spelled out the name of the station: 'Reading Railroad'.
Lisa looked up at the clock as it read quarter after seven. "Has it really taken this long to get to my first turn. It's getting late and will soon be dark." She thought as she took in more of the sites. "I better find out what I should do before it gets dark."
She walked over to the platform to look at the train she had heard. "It sounded different." Lisa saw that there were four tracks next to the platform and three of them had trains on them.
The first train was a steam locomotive that looked very old. "I've never seen one of those before, but I have read about them in books. Very popular in the early days before big cities were founded."
The second track was empty, and the third had a rusted train carrying many cars full of coal. "That train also looks like I have read about it. We don't have much use for coal in Springfield because of power being generated by the nuclear plant instead of a coal plant. As much as I don't like nuclear, it doesn't make the thick black smoke that coal does." This lightened her mood knowing that her city was not being polluted by tons of coal.
Lisa then noticed that a conductor has walked off of the train and placed a For Sale sign across the front of the engine. Lisa stopped and thought for a second. "That's slightly odd. Why would a train be for sale at a train station. Wouldn't they need it running?" She shrugged this off and continued down the line of trains.
The last track had on it a type of train that Lisa had never rode. "It looks like the old Springfield Monorail, but it's on the ground." She continued to see what made it so different. The whistle sounded again and startled her as it was loud. "That train made the noise. It looks so modern. It might be one of the very fast trains I have read about."
She continued her thoughts of trains in books as she turned around and walked towards the ticket window. There was a short line that she stood behind until it was her turn to be at the ticket window.
"How can I help you little lady?" The woman behind the ticket window asked Lisa.
"I don't know why I am here. I just arrived here on the race car parked over there, and I need to know how to continue my game." Lisa explained as the lady behind the ticket window look more confused the further she went on.
"I don't understand." She frowned as she tried to offer suggestions. "I can point you in the direction of the trains if you want to look at them. I hear the new Bullet Train from Short Line is here. Have you seen it? It can go over three hundred miles an hour."
"That's fast. I have read about the older trains here, but not that one. Can I ride it?" Lisa questioned with enthusiasm. "How much for a ticket?"
"Let me check the computer." The ticket window lady said as she started typing. She seemed to take a long time as she tried several different combinations of keys. She looked up from the computer with a disappointing look. "I'm sorry, but we are all sold out at the moment. Can I offer you another train?" Lisa thought for a second and agreed. The lady continued to type into the computer but came up empty. "I'm terribly sorry but we don't any tickets available. We are completely sold out."
"That's fine. I do have one question though. Why is that coal train for sale?" Lisa asked the ticket lady.
"Is it?" She looked over. "I see that it is. That is strange. I don't know how to answer you. Maybe I should refer you to our mayor, he runs the train station. He could have ordered it to be sold. His name is Bergstrom." Lisa's face lit up as she heard that name. Could it be him? "His office is under the clock inside the station. That clock looks just like this clock above me."
"Thank you. You have been helpful. I'll go look for him." Lisa thanked her and stepped aside to allow the next customer to approach the window.
Inside Lisa found the station was not as big as it looked from the outside. It was in fact very small with a few benches, a snack shop, restrooms and one office below a large clock.
"That has to be it. The only office under the clock. In fact it is the only office in here." Lisa said as she heard the door open and a man walked out. "It is him." She was so excited she almost forgot how to speak. "Mr. Bergstrom." She muttered, then almost shouted. "Mr. Bergstrom! It is you."
"Do I know you little girl?" He questioned as he thought how she knew him.
"Yes. You were a substitute teacher at my school." Lisa explained. "We needed a teacher and you came in and taught us."
"No. I have never been a teacher or a substitute. I've always ran the train station." Bergstrom countered.
"Yes. You filled in for a time while the school was seeking another second grade teacher. But when they found someone, you left on a..." Lisa stopped as she could not finish.
"Left on a what?" He asked.
"You left on a train." Lisa finished.
Bergstrom still looked confused. "I've been here as long as I can remember, but I have never actually ridden any of the trains." He added. "I do plan to one day. I hear the steam locomotive is restored and soon traveling to another station."
"You don't remember? You told me the greatest thing I have ever heard: 'I am Lisa Simpson'."
"I afraid I don't know you, but I think it's funny you think you know me. I'll tell you what I can do. I will let you see my office." Bergstrom offered.
The hope of an old friend had drained from Lisa. It just seemed like a consolation prize at this point to tour his office, but when Bergstrom turned around and opened the door Lisa got a small smirk on her face.
"That was delivered yesterday. I tried to find out who sent it, but there was no sender." He told Lisa as they both looked at the stone statue in front of them. "It looks nice. Bad thing is, it doesn't do anything."
"It's Burns." She thought out loud. "He is the one who wants me to play this game. It has to do something. Let me see." She went on. "Of course. The MyPad is my most important thing in this game."
As Lisa placed the MyPad into the statue's hands, a green holographic Burns appeared beside the statue.
"How did you do that?" Bergstrom questioned as he waved a hand through the hologram.
"Greetings." The green hologram Burns replied. "I am a hologram, but please do not do that. I can feel that." Bergstrom jerked his hand back. "No apology is necessary, just don't do that again."
"What happens if I do it again. You are just a hologram." Bergstrom snapped back.
"Just don't do it again. There are four of me and one of you at your train stations. You seem outnumbered." The holographic Burns said with a smile before continuing. "Greetings again, and welcome to Reading Railroad. The coal train out front is for sale and may be purchased for two hundred dollars. If you choose to buy the train, the visitor ticket price is twenty-five dollars. However that ticket price doubles for every train you buy, to a maximum of two hundred dollars for a ticket, if you can buy all four trains. Each train is stationed at a different station, so feel free to try to buy them all. Isn't that right Bergstrom?"
Bergstrom froze a second as the Burns statue seemed to be talking directly to him. "That is correct." He whispered.
"Great. You own four train stations?" Lisa got excited, as it meant three more chances to run into him.
"...That's right. Well, I'm the mayor of four train stations. I don't really own them." He stammered out as the holographic Burns stared at him.
"Make your decision Lisa. To buy or not to buy." The Burns statue taunted her. She pressed the Buy button on the MyPad and the green holographic Burns disappeared.
"I don't trust that hologram. It's just a program, but different." He told Lisa.
"I don't trust the real Burns. Something seems not right. Maybe my mother was right not to play this game." She told Bergstrom.
As the two looked at each other, two pieces of paper printed out below the statue's hands. Lisa grabbed them to read them. The first said Sales Receipt and showed her fifteen hundred-dollar starting amount with the two hundred-dollar train subtracted from it leaving her thirteen hundred dollars. "That was a small percentage of my money, but I own a train now. You want to go ride it?" She asked as she held up her Title-deed for the coal train. "See. I own a train."
But before Bergstrom could answer a third piece of paper printed below the statue's hands. He grabbed it and read it. 'You've been warned'. "I think this paper is for me." Lisa gasped as he showed it to her.
"What do you think it means?" She asked.
"I don't know, but it doesn't sound good." He replied.
"Hopefully it doesn't mean anything." Lisa added as she looked once again at her title-deed. "Do you want to take your mind off of the statue by touring a coal train?"
"That is a wonderful idea." Bergstrom said as they both left the office. "I better lock this." He locked the door to make himself feel better. They both walked outside and approached the coal train.
"The other two trains have left. Where did they go?" Lisa wondered.
"To the other stations. The next closest one is Pennsylvania Railroad." Bergstrom informed her as his voice wasn't heard because of loud booms across the sky.
Lisa still stared at him. "I couldn't hear your response, but it's fine. I have more time now for you to climb aboard my train and teach me something, since it is no longer my turn."
"All aboard! Both of you." The conductor yelled as they watched him remove the For Sale sign off the coal train and they both climbed inside.
