The Train to Nowhere

Chapters 17 - The City

Breanna once again found herself in an elaborately decorated coach, royal blue seats now embroidered with delicately intricate gold designs, the tables with what appeared to be brass inlays, and a number of brass ornaments and decorations all over. She wandered past the small bar off to the side that was serving all manner of food and drink that she couldn't identify, though a few of the other passengers seemed brave enough to try them. As she continued on, she spotted Rider at a table near the far door, his usual teacup in hand. He offered her a nod as she sat across from him.

"So it turns out that all those things I had to trade to get the key for that last challenge were things that I had made with my Dad over the years," Breanna started.

"This is a dream, it is not uncommon for reality to leak in from time to time," Rider explained.

"I guess, it was just so uncanny," she responded, receiving another nod in reply. "So, do you know what my next challenge is going to be, oh wise fortune cookie?" she asked after a moment, a slight teasing tone sneaking into her voice. He simply raised his eyebrow, a gesture that held a number of messages, all of which were received. Breanna let out a giggle at his reaction. "Thought so. Well, I guess I'd better get going then, the next challenge isn't going to complete itself."

She stood and began walking to the door, pausing briefly as she passed by Rider. "Can you at least tell me how many more of these cars I'm going to have to go through?" she asked. His silence as he sipped his tea was her only answer. She let out a sigh before continuing on, grabbing the ornate brass handle and pulling the door open.

Stepping out onto the small platform between the coach and the car in front of her, Breanna opened the next door and stepped through, finding herself in a bright city, glass skyscrapers towering above her on all sides. Her Dad pulled her to the side just before she could be run over by a careless pedestrian. She clutched onto him for a moment before pulling back.

"Hey, Dad. So, any idea what the point of this one is?" she asked with a smile on her face.

"Afraid not, but I'm sure we'll figure it out," he replied. As he spoke, Breanna took a quick look around, taking note of something rather odd that all of the surrounding buildings seemed to have in common.

"Hey Dad, there aren't any doors. Even the one I came through disappeared," she pointed out.

"You're right," he observed.

"Then it stands to reason that if we find a door, then that should be the way through, right?" she suggested.

"Maybe," her Dad answered. She smiled, grabbing his hand, and started walking.

It was only after a few blocks of pushing through the crowded streets that she realized that she didn't have a strategy for actually locating a door, though it was seeming more and more plausible that her theory was correct. There weren't any anywhere she looked. She turned to look to her Dad for suggestions, before realizing that he was no longer right behind her. Somewhere along the way, she had lost his hand, and they had become separated. She began to panic, realizing that she was all alone in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by strangers constantly bumping into her.

Breanna began to shove her way back the way she came, quickly becoming turned around as she called out for her Dad. She was completely lost, and he was nowhere to be found. She pushed her way over to a building and sat down against the wall, sliding down to the ground and pulling her knees to her chest. Tears began to well up, and she held back a sob. Just as the crushing weight of the situation she was in began to crash down on her, the dream slipped away, leaving her in her bed as the tears broke loose.

Good thing it's Saturday, she thought to herself as she rolled over to try and sleep in.

The following night found Breanna back in front of Rider, bringing him up to speed on her current situation. Once she was done with her story, she stared at him expectantly, his golden eyes returning her gaze.

"Sometimes, when there are too many people around, it's okay to step away to catch your breath," he finally said. Breanna sat blinking at him for a moment.

"Is that it? What am I supposed to do with that?" she asked in exasperation.

"That's up to you," he replied. She groaned as she slumped down onto the table.

Back in the car, Breanna was faced with the busy street again. She began wandering aimlessly through the crowd, looking for someplace that she could 'catch her breath.' She was unsuccessful. Night after night this continued, and she was making no progress. Her frustration was building again despite her best efforts and all the progress she had made thanks to the Forest Path. Without her Dad to lean on while surrounded by all those strangers, her stress was building, and she was having a hard time pushing herself forward.

Her stress built up to the point that she struggled to fall asleep, leading to long and sleepless nights, which didn't help her mood at all. She was becoming irritable again, worrying her mother and Counselor Tater. She rarely stopped to chat with Rider anymore since he was being decidedly unhelpful, making the same suggestion over and over, aside from mentioning that she should try going where other people generally wouldn't.

Finally, though, Breanna caught a break. As she was squeezing through the crowds one night, she popped out into a secluded alley with no one in it. It was dark and dirty, in stark contrast to the surrounding city. There was a dumpster, though it seemed there was more trash on the ground around it than in it, and a rusty fire escape on the wall of the building opposite of the dumpster. Cringing, she took a step further into the alley.

"Well, it's a quiet and secluded spot. I guess it's a good a place as any to take a break," she said to herself.

As Breanna looked around a little more, she noticed a small circular manhole. It caught her attention since it was in a rather odd place for a manhole, and what's more, it was in the wall at the end of the alley rather than in the ground. As she looked closer to inspect the strange cover, she heard her Dad calling out for her. She whipped to the side, toward the alley's entrance where she immediately spotted him running toward her. She returned the gesture, sprinting as fast as her legs would carry her, careening into him as her arms wrapped around his middle.

"I thought I had lost you," Breanna said after a moment, sniffling.

"I will always be here for you, even when you can't see me," he replied, holding her close.

After a couple minutes, Breanna pulled back and grabbed her Dad's hand, holding more tightly this time as she pulled him over to the mysterious manhole.

"I think I have to go through here to make it to wherever I'm going. It's the closest thing to a door that I've found so far," she said as he observed the thick cover that was blocking the passage. He carefully reached into the small holes and tugged on it, letting it fall to the ground as the duo jumped back to avoid it landing on their feet.

"I won't be able to fit in there," her Dad said after observing the tunnel that he had opened up. Breanna's heart dropped.

"But we only just found each other again! I can't do this without you. We'll find another way," she argued.

"Peanut, it'll be okay. I can find a way around, but you have to keep going. You won't be able to find your way through the streets, and we can't guarantee that we won't get separated again if we try that," he replied. Breanna gave him a disheartened look. "Look, I promise I'll be waiting for you on the other side. This is the only way through." She mulled his words over for a moment before coming to a decision.

"You promise?" she asked in a small voice.

"I promise," he answered. She let out a huff before moving to stand in front of the tunnel.

"Here goes nothing then, I guess."