After explaining their experience to the guys, the girls were left with waiting for them to fully turn it over in their heads. They appeared to be having trouble with it. Christoph tried laying out the sequence of events.

"So... we all realize this train is a massive trap. We try to work our way up, only make it to car three and you all ended up being sent back in time."

Synthia nodded. "About the gist of it. I think."

Contrary to what Synthia was expecting, Christoph shook his head. "I believe you Synthia, but I think you've got the wrong lay of Time magic. All three of you, actually. Travelling back to the past is impossible."

"Huh?" Livian seemed the most surprised out of all of them. "But... it literally just happened to us."

Evarius elaborated. "No, he's right. As it stands, there's no way of actually going back in time. Not even creating a parallel timeline. What you three experienced was a type of reverse genesis. It's hard to wrap your head around, but the world you three now find yourselves in... it's fake."

The girls hitched their breaths. They looked at one another, trying to see if anybody was reacting differently and they hadn't misheard. Iggy was the first to inquire further.

"Fake? But how? The train we're sitting in, talking with you, how can it not be real? It's just another illusion?"

"Somewhat." Evarius pursed his lips. "I think a good metaphor is... It's like diving into a photograph. You three are experiencing the mere reflection of the world you came from based off your shared experiences. When you tumbled through that shape-shifting car, you slipped through a gap in dimensions and ended up trapped. Which means me, Christoph and everybody else in this car aren't real. We're just an illusion that's sprung forth from your heads."

"Our heads?" Synthia repeated. The men nodded. Livian chuckled in disbelief.

"I guess what you said was true, geezer. Time magic's no joke. So we're stuck like this? For how long?"

"You're stuck until you can make it to the front of the train, from what I can gather," Evarius said. "That'll be your best shot of getting back to where you were."

"But we kinda ended up failing last time. And miserably." Iggy sighed. She had started shivering. "So what happens if we fail again? Are we just going to fall deeper and deeper into different fake dimensions until we can't find our way back anymore?"

Evarius had nothing to offer them. He could only frown as he waited for them to come to a decision. Iggy held her head in her hands. "I don't believe it... why did I ever leave home?" She sounded like she was on the verge of tears. Synthia looked at her with sympathy while Livian gave her a cold stare.

"Thought you didn't want to be dead weight. Didn't want to be useless. You run at the first

"Look, how about I come with you this time," Christoph offered. Synthia still refused him.

"But he bumped into you at the start. We don't know what'll happen if you leave. It could screw things up for us even more."

"We won't know unless we try," Christoph said. "So come on. Gimme a shot. I promise I won't let you down."

Iggy nodded. "Look, no offense guys, but I trust him the most of anybody here. I think it's better if he comes with us too."

"I guess I'll be staying behind, then," Evarius said.

Synthia sighed. "Okay. Fine. Christoph, you can come. But if things go wrong, we're returning you to this car."

"Sure thing." Christoph got up, considerably cheerful. "C'mon, we've got an asshole criminal to catch."

Things proceeded somewhat similarly to before, although the girls were careful not to commit their previous mistakes. That meant letting the passengers in car four back into five, and then positioning Evarius at the last door instead of Christoph. Synthia addressed Christoph once again as he prepared to proceed to the next car.

"Remember: with the way this guy's ability stacks, we don't know what'll happen if you advance. It may be part of what allows him to use his ability. Like he pinned the chain to you and is using you as some sort of... receptor, I guess."

Christoph smiled. "Don't worry." He took a single step into the fourth car. After a few seconds, he turned around and held up his hands. "Seems you were just being overly cautious. You see, if he really 'pinned the chain' on me as you put it and that meant something would go bad, then those people heading into the previous car would've also caused something bad to happen right?"

Synthia blinked as she looked back. Now that she thought more about it, if the Time user had to touch somebody to activate his ability, then something should've happened if he got too far away. She sighed in relief. "Guess I was just being paranoid."

"Still, I'm impressed you could pick up something like that being a condition for magic," said Iggy, considerably calmer now that Christoph was properly along for their trek up. She pinched her nose at the car's foul smell as she continued. "Thought you were just some thief."

"I am just some thief," Synthia confirmed. "But I've also picked up little bits and tricks over the years."

"Enough of that, let's just go," Livian said. "I wanna pay this bastard back already."

Christoph took the lead. "Don't worry. Now that I'm here, we can beat this guy and you can use that knowledge for when you get back to the real Christoph and Evarius. Feels weird to say that, though. I guess I can give it my all without regrets."

"Don't overdo it," Synthia said, to which Christoph only winked. That worried her even more. And there was something else too, a gut instinct screaming at her. Just like a few nights prior at the cave.

"Something's still bugging me though," Synthia said. "We need to be really careful."

"No shit," Livian said, but Synthia remained firm.

"No, I'm serious here. I think we've only begun to see what this guy's got up his sleeve. And I still think..."

"What?"

Synthia hesitated at Christoph's query. Iggy held her shoulder, encouraging her in a surprising display of gentleness. Emboldened by this she managed to spit out what she was thinking. "Look, I still think it's a bad idea bringing you along. We don't know what could happen."

Christoph gave her a reassuring smile. "As long as I'm here, we're prepared for anything. Now let's go. Next car awaits."

Approaching the third car, they all huddled outside the door on the small platform. Synthia unwrapped the Mioja again and held it in front of her as Livian kicked the door open. Sure enough, the inside was still the incomprehensible, whirling mass of shapes it had been before.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

"I'll be extending the radius as wide as I can," Synthia said. "Just follow after me."

"You can do that?" Christoph cocked his head. "That's pretty impressive when you've had that thing so briefly."

"Well, I don't plan to hold onto it forever," Synthia said. "At least until we get to somebody who can be more worthy."

The others stared at her, somewhat shocked. "You're... not keeping it?" Iggy asked.

"That was never my intention," Synthia replied. "But come on, we don't have time to talk about that."

Iggy had more to say, but Christoph was already about to step through. She bit her tongue, saving her worries for later as she held onto the door this time.

Walking through the swirling car, the three chosen to go ahead hurried through the car this time. Hopefully getting to the front quicker would offset the issues they'd run into before. Pulling open the door, Synthia pulled open the next one.

"Alright, let's go—"

"WAIT!"

A loud yell from behind stopped them in their tracks. It was Evarius, who they could see looking quite harried as he ran up to where Iggy was.

"What are you doing, geezer!?" Livian yelled. "You were supposed to hold the door open!"

"Don't let Christoph proceed any further!"

"Huh?" Christoph could only look confused as Synthia's gut feeling surged once again.

"Evarius, what happened?"

"The end car, it just... vanished as soon as Christoph got too far away. I was staring in disbelief until I realized what was happening."

A cold chill ran down Synthia's spine. "And the passengers?"

Evarius shrugged from across the Time-addled car. "Gone."

Synthia looked at Christoph, who had grown deathly pale. He crouched to his haunches, staring at the ground. Synthia could only imagine the guilt he was feeling.

"Why are you looking so down?" Livian asked. "This isn't real. So long as we make it back up, everything will be—" Synthia cut her off with a glare. She didn't seem too guilty over having said it though.

Synthia walked over and crouched down beside Christoph. "I know this is a shock. But this also isn't real, like you guys said. So we just need to keep pushing ahead, alright? Christoph, you take the door. Evarius, you take over for Iggy. Me, Iggy and Livian will keep going ahead. That good?"

"Yes," Christoph said meekly. His eyes were downcast. Iggy trotted up to where they were and rubbed Christoph's arm soothingly. "We'll make this better. I promise."

"You're awfully reliable when you're not pissing your pants," Livian commented. Iggy flashed her an annoyed look. "I'm contributing more than you, Ms. Snarks-a-lot. Maybe actually stop being a bitch for five minutes?"

"Huh?"

"Guys, enough," Synthia ordered. "We move forward at all costs, even if we have to claw our way out. Ready?"

Nodding, but with tensions still high, they all took their positions by the door ready for who had pushed them into this fake reality from before. Christoph prepared to open it. "Those people are gone because of me. But I guess if this is all fake... the mistake hasn't even happened yet. Go and make sure it doesn't."

Synthia nodded as she huddled by Iggy next to the door. Livian stood by Christoph. Nodding, Christoph pulled open the door and the three girls rushed through. Synthia adopted a guarded stance using the sword while projecting her magic cancelling radius again, followed by Iggy ready to cast any spells necessary and Livian with her guns checking the corner.

This time, the train car was dark. While the lights were still floating around inexplicably in the previous car, there was nothing at all to be seen inside the car save for Synthia's eyes glowing gold. Livian swiftly lit a fire in her palm to reveal a car that had since grown long decrepit.

The benches were rotting, the must in the air was stifling and the floor creaked. Synthia did not want to imagine falling through and tried to control her breathing and rapidly beating heart.

"Where is he?" Livian whispered. The other two didn't respond. They could only look at their surroundings, looking for any possible trap like the one from before.

They slowly walked through the car, keeping their backs against one another as they proceeded. More than a sense of unease settled itself inside Synthia's stomach, there was the feeling of genuine dread as well. She knew somebody was close by, but their enemy was able to hide out of their sight. It would be no easy task to keep moving up.

A flicker of movement occurred in Synthia's peripheral vision. She whipped and saw a flash of green. Without thinking, she slashed the Mioja up and fired off a burst of Darkness magic at it. A grunt sounded out, but one that was far different from the masculine one that had jeered at them before.

Livian brought her fire around and used it to light where the person had fallen. They saw a pair of brilliant blue eyes peeking out beneath a fringe of flaming red hair, and in the next moment they had vanished again. Iggy gasped.

"Was that—"

"I don't know," Synthia said as she got back up. "Stay on guard."

"Stay careful, guys," Christoph cautioned.

Suddenly, a leg extended out into a sidekick jabbed itself into her stomach. Unprepared, Synthia stumbled back as Livian and Iggy backed her up. Iggy moved her hands in a swiping motion, tearing at the air and causing the person they'd seen to fall out again with the resulting gale of wind. Livian stumbled forward as she tried to maintain her balance and fired off her revolver. The bullets embedded themselves into the floor while the figure dodged out of the way before disappearing again.

"This person's getting on my nerves," Iggy said. Livian was snarling in frustration.

"Oi, come out you bitch. We know you aren't that other asshole, but the question is are you working with him? You a friend, or do I need to put a bullet between your eyes."

"That depends," said a cool, female voice. It was absurdly youthful, almost like bells, but possessed a certain chill that made it stick. "I needed to test whether you were worthy or not."

"You're the one who kicked us in here," Synthia concluded. "Why? You working with him?"

"No. In fact, I consciously deposited you into an alternate reality of my own making."

"You trying to trap us?" Christoph asked.

"Trying to save you," the voice replied. As if stepping out from an invisible veil, she walked out in front of them. A green cloak of a lighter shade than the one they'd seen was draped over her shoulders. The bright red hair peeking out from under it seemed to flicker like the flame in Livian's hand under its light.

Synthia cocked her head. "By fighting us?"

"By testing you." The woman was devoid of emotion. Empty. "If you face this man and you are of inadequate skill, he will annihilate you."

"So what's the clear condition?"

"Defeat me. That's all there is to it. As you can see, our powers are somewhat similar. He won't find you down here, I promise you that."

Everybody was still defensive. "But he pushed me in," Iggy pointed out. "What, you're telling me you scooped me up and deposited me here in your own reality?"

"Yes and no. This is a world based on your memories, and as such it had to be constructed based off what you three remembered." She pointed at each of the girls in turn. "Wonder why you saw snatches of one another's lives? That was a side effect of this spell searching your minds."

"Wait... that's what it was?" Livian quickly grew embarrassed. "W-what did you two see?"

"Some girl crying her eyes out," Synthia said. Livian grimaced. She turned to Iggy who, somewhat afraid of her reaction, nodded to show she had seen the same. Livian rubbed her temples.

"You two are never to talk about that to anybody. Anybody! Understood?"

"Loud and clear," Iggy said. She turned to the woman again. "But still, for all we know this is another elaborate trap. Just what's your goal here."

The woman shrugged. "I guess there's not too much I can say to prove I intend you no harm except give you time necessary to prepare, and in here..."

She clapped her hands. The train car seemed to expand tenfold and be stripped bare. The train itself melted away and morphed into a brilliant blue, crystalline floor with no recognizable ceiling. They had been transported to some other dark plane, far away from the narrow and cramped insides of a train. Everybody grew startled.

"Time can be infinite," the woman said.

"I need a few seconds," Iggy said, falling to the ground. Evarius caught up to them from where he had been previously, the most bewildered of them all.

"I saw you guys fighting somebody and then... that happened. What are you doing? And who is—" He noticed the woman for the first time just as she proceeded to pull back her hood. Long red locks fell past her elegant shoulders. Her pointy ears rose high up her head and her dispassionate gaze held no judgement or bias. An elf.

"I am a member of the elven royal guard, and I am on a mission." Rynne laced her fingers, stretching them out. "I must assess the one with the Mioja is of sufficient caliber for the tasks ahead." She pointed at Synthia, who jumped in response.

"So you shall be facing me. You said you were intending to let go of the Mioja? Be that as it may, you are one of the few I have come across capable of wielding it. Even if you find somebody to pawn it off to, you must undergo severe trials to even get to that point. Understood?"

"I guess?" Synthia scratched her head. "So... what? We're having an impromptu training session all of a sudden? Seems too convenient."

"Not quite." The woman adopted a defensive stance, blue eyes taking on a colder chill. "Because every time you fail, I'll keep throwing you down further through layers of dimensions until you don't even know what the sun looks like anymore."

Synthia held the Mioja tighter. She indicated to the others to step away as she walked toward the woman. "Seems a little unfair."

"So is life."

A pause hung between them. Synthia gripped and ungripped the sword as she prepared to attack, also observing if the woman was prepared to do the same. She tensed as the woman's eyes flashed with realization.

"Oh, and you can call me Rynne. I apologize for not saying my name before."

Even though she knew it was foolish, Synthia couldn't help but let some tension fall from her shoulders as she sighed. This one seemed slower on social cues than even her.