She stared through the window at the sunset, gazing at the passing corn fields, before her gaze shifted to her phone. Meggy looked at the picture of him, of Oneshot Wren, once again remembering the day they met and when he gifted her with his beanie. Soon, they would be in Western Spaghetti, and it would be a reunion that she'd dreamed of for a long time.
Hopefully, Wren would recognize her. He heard about her accomplishment at Splatfest and knew she'd become a human, right?
Meggy smiled and looked over at everyone else in the compartment. Mario was eating spaghetti, and SMG4 was talking with SMG3. But then, she shifted over to Tari, who was shaking, with no indication of any happiness in the blue-haired gamer.
And now, the mood shifted.
"Tari, are you alright?"
For a while, Tari had been happy, despite being a little sick. She'd suggested a nap, after a strange occurrence had happened with everyone being cowboys and SMG3 "discovering" dynamite. But now, Tari looked disturbed again.
Meggy walked towards the cyborg gamer, looking at her with concern. She could hear a soft whimper, and Tari muttered something. Usually, it was fine to be nervous. But something was very wrong.
"Tari?"
Tari looked up, gasping heavily. She grabbed Meggy and hugged her, then she pulled away and looked around very nervously. Meggy snapped her fingers, "Tari, what's wrong?"
"We're not alone, we're not alone." Tari whimpered.
"Is something scaring you?"
"THERE'S SOMETHING ON THE TRAIN, SOMETHING WATCHING US!" Tari squeaked, "I DON'T KNOW WHY, BUT THERE IS SOMETHING EERIE HERE, AND I DON'T FEEL SO GOOD! MEGGY, I DON'T THINK WE'RE SAFE!"
"Lower the voice!" Meggy said, "Tari, calm down and tell me what's going on."
"Just told you..." Tari rubbed her head, "I think something on this train is watching us. You saw something, and acted as if our friends were... not being themselves. Tried to be hopeful, but there's something wrong here; we're not safe. There's something following us, and... something's wrong with the TV."
"What TV?"
Tari stood up, her legs shaking, and she led Meggy to a table, where a TV sat. Funnily enough, Mario and the others had yet to notice or comment on it. Tari pointed to the TV, and Meggy looked at it, just as Mario came to their side from his table, having overheard the conversation.
The cyborg trembled as she spoke; "I saw that TV a while ago, it looks like the one at Oneshot Wren's place, but I... I have a feeling that something is very wrong..." She clutched her head, "Uh, not feeling good."
"Ok, Tari, it's going to be okay..." Meggy said calmly, "Just lay down and..."
Tari shrieked. And then, she ran from the car. Mario and Meggy watched her go, unaware that something creepy had just popped up on the TV, watching with eerie eyes.
"Mario thinks she's cuckoo crazy." Mario quipped.
"What's that message?" Meggy then asked, noticing the TV again.
She and Mario looked at the screen; a strange TV symbol had appeared, along with the words: 'You can't hide, no one is safe, not even on this train. I follow..."
Tari ran to the next car, passing Melony, Shroomy, Old Man Hobo, Belle, and Rob. She clutched her head and stumbled over. Tari ran, gasping, and holding her head. She entered another train car and found a compartment, closing the door behind her and sealing herself inside. Tari sat in the middle of the room, trying to catch her breath.
"Not safe, not safe..." She gasped, "Something evil is here..."
Darkness surrounded her, even with a dim light, and she could still feel the train rolling. Tari hugged her legs, fighting a sudden sense of nausea. She held it back and rubbed her head again. An ominous chill washed over her, and she looked up, thinking she'd seen something watching her in the dark.
That TV, they didn't bring any TVs, and yet, it came with them. It wasn't an ordinary TV, there was something sinister and it followed them to the Wild West. Tari could see things in her head, her friends acting so crazy, SMG3 blowing up the train, and Mario threatening to do something illegal.
And then, it appeared in her head, a TV with a red-eyed face, smiling at her in the dark. Tari whimpered and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to block out the image. She gasped and sat up, looking around in fear.
'I am watching.'
Tari turned, thinking something was stalking her. She felt so scared, so unnerved. Fear was all around her. She wanted to think of something else, she tried to think of rubber ducks, but there was a chance she'd still feel that something was wrong. Tari felt dizzy and held her head, gasping for breath as more eerie thoughts flooded her mind.
And then, she looked up, seeing a TV right in front of her. Tari gasped with fright, watching as it flickered to life, showing static. And then, a frightening image appeared; A creature with a TV-shaped head with horns, large hands, and a bone-chilling smile, staring right at Tari.
The creature held its hands out and reached through the screen, reaching for the cyborg gamer.
Tari screamed, ready for that horrible thing, that horrible presence, to grab her. But when she looked, the TV was gone. She must have hallucinated, probably passed out, and had a frightening dream too.
She sat in the dark for a while, huddled and shaking with fear. Tari could still feel that something was amiss.
'Ready for the next show?' A voice asked, 'You can't run and hide, not when I am around. I can see you in here, and you know why I am on this train. Your friends aren't safe, neither are you. You can't escape from me, not in the Wild West, you will never be safe...'
Tari stood up and shook her head. She needed to calm down; perhaps another nap was in order. It was time to get back to her friends. Tari departed the compartment and headed back to the train car where the others were waiting. But, unbeknownst to her, a TV was sitting close by, flickering and showing another TV with a face that stared around the train with an ominous smile...
The End