The War Apiary

Chapter 4 Hero (On Train to Paris)

Clickity-Clack Clickity-Clack Clickity-Clack. The noise of the train on the tracks wasn't the reason for Hero Hishi-ammuddin's lack of sleep. Nor was it the dim candlelight that swang in rhythm with the sway of the carriage. He sat in a window bay looking out into the night, his mind elsewhere. In his hand, he clutched a bundle of letters he had received over the years from his only child. He had been reading them and rereading them since he had gotten onto the train bound for Vietnam. He was angry but didn't show it. Why had the QC allowed such an attack? The Underground had many theories about who the Rebellion could actually be. One of them was that the Rebellion could be no more than a branch of the Queen's Councils military that ran under the strict orders of Apis Akakios himself. But they had no evidence to prove the theory.

The train gave a violent jolt, making Hero hit his head on the window and dropping the bundle of letters which scattered across the floor of the compartment. The abruptness of things brought him back to the presence. He leaned over and gathered up the letters.

"Allow me."

He glanced up to see that a lady dressed in furs and who was quite seasoned in life just like himself had lent down and her old withered hands came to help his own and made quick work of gathering up the letters.

"Very kind, Madam." He said as he took the last letters from her hand.

"You're very welcome." She sat down opposite him by the window.

"Are you travelling far?" He asked after neatly tying the letters in a bundle so they wouldn't spill everywhere again. He could see that her face seemed to droop at being reminded why she was travelling.

"I travel to Vietnam." She replied softly. "To pay my respects to my family and find my granddaughter." She turned to look out the window, hiding her grieved face from Hero.

"So do I." He whispered, knowing the pain she must be feeling at that moment in time.

"I am sorry to hear that." She said turning to face him. "Those letters spell out your grief, yet we both can't do a single thing about it."

He nodded. "The last survivor is your granddaughter?"

She nodded. "God knows what she has experienced at the hand of the Rebellion, but I thank Him for keeping her safe."

Hero had nothing to say to that, he didn't believe that there was a higher being watching over anyone. To him, it seemed like a childish idea, a lie, and a falsehood.

The train jolted violently once more. This time Hero was prepared. The lady, on the other hand, was caught off guard and thrown to the floor.

Hero helped her up and dusted her coat off before she sat down. "Thank you."

"You travel alone?" He asked.

"I am, my husband is no longer in the land of the living." A light smile played on her lips. "It is for the best. He was a great man and life had thrown at him meany a hardship. I believe that if he was around today life would have finally broken him."

Hero bowed his head. "My condolences."

"Sweet of you but no need. Huiliang passed on just over 18 years ago before the troubles began. It is a good thing that he didn't live to see what the world has fallen into." She took out a handkerchief and blew her nose. "Here I am telling my woes to a stranger." She laughed. "Shall we introduce ourselves?"

He extended his hand. "Hero Hishi-ammuddin." He said and bowed his head.

She took his hand and shook it. "Feng Mian, it is nice to make your acquaintance Hero Hishi-ammuddin. You can just call me Feng."

Hero nodded. "Hero is what people call me back home." He replied smiling.

"And where is that?" Feng asked.

"The city of Von Han Yonio which is situ-"

"I know where it is." Feng interrupted softly. "I went to boarding school there when I was a child."

"Really?" Hero asked in surprise. "What was the name of the congregation?"

"The Boarding School of The Ancients, do you know of it?"

"I had an aunt that worked there back in the day." He said excitedly. "I wonder if you met her."

"If you told me her name I could tell you." She said leaning forward with interest.

"Sōnghuā jiāng."

"She was your Aunt? I wouldn't have guessed." She said with a laugh. "Many of the students that I studied with knew her as the rumbling river. Most of the time she lived up to her name."

Hero nodded politely before turning to look out at the dark expanse that lay beyond the glass.

"I didn't mean to sound disrespectful. If I have caused any heartfelt grief then please forgive me." Feng apologized after a couple of minutes of silence.

"You have done no harm." Hero said gently as his eyes settled on her. "We both just saw different sides to the same coin, that is all."

Feng looked relieved. "How did you know her?" She asked.

Hero smiled. "I saw her as what her name stood for. She was kind, beautiful, and also strict. The name Sōnghuā jiāng can also mean 'The Milky Way' and that was exactly how I saw her before she passed."

"The Milky Way." Feng echoed. "How Beautiful." She brought up her old withered hands and brushed her grey hair out of her face. "It is interesting how students never see the best sides of their teachers."

Hero nodded.

A knock sounded at the door of the small compartment. "I am sorry to interrupt." Said a guard that stood by the open door. "But if you look out of the window you will get a glimpse of the lights of the city Kathmandu."

"Kathmandu?" Hero asked shocked. The train was supposed to go to Vietnam, and Kathmandu was too far West. "Where is this train bound for?" He asked quickly as suspicions played on his mind.

The guard looked at Hero. "To Paris sir."

Hero looked at Feng who was staring right back at him with a look of shock in her face.

"You must be mistaken." She said turning to the guard. "I brought a ticket to Vietnam." She said desperately digging through her purse and pulled out a ticket.

The guard studied for a moment before handing it back to her. "Sorry ma'am, this train is definitely going to Paris. You must have been mistaken when boarding." The guard said.

"But we must get to Vietnam, my daughter is in danger and I can't have her be butchered by barbarians!" She cried.

"I am sorry to hear that ma'am but you must have been confused when you awaited for your train. This train is due to be in Paris by nightfall tomorrow." He turned and left, leaving Feng and Hero in a state of confusion and shock.