Stepback Tempo

• × Chapter Eleven: Peace × •

It was about ten, nearing eleven at night.

The train's window was cracked open a bit, letting in the sweet smell of petrichor as chilly, winter rain breezed past the locomotive.

Ensley slept in the middle of the leather seats at their booth, his head low and his lantern burning dimly as he rested in peace. Jack slept on the right of him, his small, adolescent frame exhaustedly crumpled and slouched into the other's side. Chancellor, however, was sitting next to the window. Still awake, his heavy ruby eyes watched the passing scenery as the train rumbled low over the metal tracks. The manager kept quiet, thinking to himself as the other two slept beside him. Aside from what happened back at the hotel, everything was now completely calm. However, Chancellor felt a low sense of concern that lingered in his chest. Where would they find his friend?

"...however, if you take a train north, there's a metropolitan area that way that I can assure you will most likely have many Oculatums. One may perhaps be able to help you find who you're searching for. However, that will take more time and perhaps may bring risk."

Matchstick's words ran through his head like a trapped song. That's where he had chosen to go, speaking to the other two on the way. It seemed like the most reasonable choice, but risk echoed through his mind. If it was a city full of Oculatums, then he would be most certain that a Demon or a Paragon would be there as well. Taking a quiet breath, Chancellor furrowed his brows and glanced around. Now is not the time to panic over the inevitable. If the manager was going to look for that man... then he would have to meet up with those familiar to him -- or them --  first.
He decided. Sitting back in the leather seat that hugged his form, he watched outside of the window once more to distract himself from his thoughts. A strike of lightning went off in the distance, flickering like a switch in his eyes, before the gentle rumble of thunder shook the train. A flock of birds passed by in his view, the partial glow of the moon giving them a silhouette against the ground. And tiredly, he counted them as they passed by.

One, two, three, four, five.

Five...?

The gambler felt a strange sense as he watched them fly through the air, and rubbed his eyes. Birds were still here in the wintertime? Usually, if wise, they should of travelled down south to where the climate was warmer and more muggy, yet this flock was different. Face closer to the partially closed window, he watched them as the train chugged at their side... and for a second did Chancellor feel as though they looked back.

×××

Eventually, he had settled down and fallen asleep with the others in the passenger seat. Ambiently, the train had moved on its way despite the manager's strange occurrence, and by sunrise had they finally made it to the station in the town far over. Sluggish and exhausted, they each made it off the train and into the building, making sure they each had their own things. The other stations they had came across were of no compare. Filled to the brim with citizens, the train station was impeccably large, perhaps accompanying the giant population of humans and spirits that resided in its economy. Many were in business suits, many had children... and as Jack saw with his amulet, there was indeed many Oculatums — just as Matchstick had said. Taller ones, shorter ones, ones with all kinds of object heads and bodies. And in short, the young redhead was absolutely fascinated. He was nearly tempted to start running rampant and questioned every spirit he saw, but Ensley firmly leaned down and stopped him. "We can't do things like this here, Jack. You could get in serious trouble..." He reprimanded softly, placing a gloved finger to his curt lips, "...the reason Oculatums have human disguises, are indeed so they can not be noticed by other humans. You cannot tell them out, no matter what." After a brief pause, Jack had registered all that information and gave a calm nod, agreeing to what the Englishman said and therefore staying at his side. If Oculatums, in their real forms, were seen by humans... perhaps like many strange topics, one would stay nonchalant, one would be surprised, and the last may perhaps not even take the issue kindly to heart. Some in the world tend to be sensitive like that.

It took quick a reasonable amount of time to get through the heavy queues of passerby and leave the station. Compared to the two, this station had much more security due to a larger population, and therefore had made it where those leaving took longer for, well, safety reasons. Really, was it just a "if you came from another city we make sure you're not a bad guy" kind of plan. Aside from that, they had finally made it out into the main part of the city as they left the building. It was historical and gorgeous, skyscrapers touching the clouds above and fancy restaurants lined the well-paved sidewalks in an organized fashion.

Jack sleepily rubbed his eyes, looking up at his elders. "So... where are we going first?"

Chancellor heard his request and glanced down at him, giving a quiet raise of his brows in response. "The nearby library. I know two people there who can help us find who we're specifically looking for." He replied. After a second of walking, the curiously-minded adolescent spoke once more. "Hey... who is the guy anyway? He seems really important if we're going to be looking around all over for him." He questioned, Jack lightly holding on to Ensley's scarf. The Englishman listened in, then glanced back at the gambler in agreement to Jack's words. Who really was this mysterious person?

With a joking huff and the shake of his head, Chancellor merely said nothing but a few words. "Berkeley is his name."