Tristan of Steelbend arrives in the famous city of Hosanna with nothing but his beloved harp and a pocket full of dreams. In this beautiful Kingdom By The Sea, mysterious angelic beings known as the Seraphim rule and protect mankind from the insidio...
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I hurried to the train station and bought two tickets. Was Penance real? Even if it was, could we reach it in time? I half-slept upon a wooden bench at the boarding platform, huddled beneath my overcoat. My eyes closed, but my mind wandered, every noise and footstep a jolting start. Sunrise soon peered over the rolling cityscape, muted blue among the shadows.
The click of feminine heels struck my ears. I sat up, squinting. Annabel's silhouette drifted toward me, dawn blazing at her back. A single bag hung over her shoulder, notebooks and paper crushed into the side pouches.
The train arrived with a hiss and screech.
I showed her the tickets. "One-way trip for two, thirty hours to the end of the line. I had just enough for a first-class booth. We'll run away in style."
She grinned and took my arm. "It'll be an adventure. Let's go."
The engine hummed, streamlined steel sweeping toward the sturdy cars in tow. We boarded quickly and settled into our private compartment. After a full day's ride, the city surrendered to countryside and the landscape billowed before snowy peaks. That evening, we enjoyed a humble supper in the dining car and retired to our booth soon after.
Annabel sat beside me on the bunk, her bobbed hair awry.
"Do you regret leaving?" I asked, stroking her cheek.
"I miss Fidelius, but there's nothing else for me in Hosanna." She kissed me. "Sing to me, Tristan. Your music makes everything better."
She laid her head on my shoulder. Without my harp, my voice keened to the rhythm of the train.
"Hold me," she whispered.
Hours melted into soft skin and sweat, and we fell asleep in each other's arms. Sometime before dawn, the clack of the train ceased. Dreams arose. Chromatic threads and virtual breezes promised bliss, childish laughter teasing my mind.
I sat upright and gripped Annabel's bare shoulder.
She woke with a gasp, clutching the covers.
"The train's stopped," I said.
Along the roof of the coach, something scurried like vermin through decaying walls.
"Wait here." I rose from the bunk, tying my robe. So cold. I cracked the door open, hinges moaning. The cramped aisle was dark and empty, the floorboards like ice slabs beneath my toes. Where was the coach attendant? His chair was empty, spindly against the light angling through the adjacent portal.
More noises scraped outside.
I halted, heart pounding. "Is anyone there?"
No answer. I took a step closer.
Angelic trumpets bellowed, shaking the windows and frame of the train car. I cried out and covered my ears.
Annabel rushed into the corridor, wrapped in blankets. "Did you hear that?"
