It all felt weird to Tham.

Walking the streets of this unknown coastal city with a girl by his side, a hood over his head, and a newspaper in his hands made him feel like he’d somehow skipped several years and was now carrying on a life of his own. It was a curious sensation.

Hassah and himself, being the only ones who weren’t either world-class bullseyes, inanimate objects, or dragons, had been the obvious choice when deciding who would go buy supplies, but still, Tham was starting to doubt the soundness of it all.

Why hadn’t they just asked Merdilen to Transmutate soil into food? He had said he didn’t want to intoxicate them with a failed Transmutation, but still. So Hassah was now scouting for places to get cheap adventuring supplies, while Tham skimmed through the newspaper trying to figure out if there was anything they should know about the current state of everything. The rescue and escape from the Unbadda mines the day before had probably given plenty to talk about.

The news were mostly technological advances and progress updates, painting a world that seemed so wonderful Tham was almost led to believe it was the truth. But there was nothing of relevance. Maybe they hadn’t made as much noise as Tham thought.

“That’s the ‘Entertainment and Technology’ section, silly,” Hassah replied as Tham told her of his findings. “You gotta check ‘International News.’”

Tham flushed slightly, but couldn’t help but laugh at himself anyway.

“Thought so,” he said.

He flipped through the pages, reaching the front page of the ‘International News’ section, and his smile vanished.

“What is it?” Hassah asked, frowning.

“...Not good,” Tham whispered. “‘SG-Omega Releases Files About The Skyguard To The Public.’”

“What?!” Hassah said. “Like, information about us? Come on, what else does it say?”

Tham paled slightly. “Looks like anyone asking for information about the Skyguard in town halls and government offices will get a copy of all compiled imperial information about us. And… oh, no. It says our names, Hassah. Of the six of us.”

Tham looked around. It seemed to him that every last person walking through this bustling market street was keenly aware of who and where they were. The very stone building walls seemed to be watching. “It seems like we really made a mess back at the mines.”

“Just keep walking,” Hassah whispered, slightly hurrying up her pace.

Tham so did, but his constant glances down at the newspaper ended up with him bumping into an oversized figure in a trenchcoat, face darkened and hidden underneath a wide fedora.

“We know who you are,” it said in three different sharp, high-pitched voices. “We all do.”

Tham froze. As the figure towered over him, he felt the overwhelming urge to Spacebend himself out of there, to somewhere far away –now that he could. He glanced at Hassah. Was it just his imagination that the whole street had turned to stare at them?

Tham grabbed Hassah’s hand. She looked at him, worried. And then he ran, pulling her along.

The figure in the trenchcoat started chasing them down the street as Tham and Hassah struggled through the crowds, following way too nimbly for its massive size. Tham, not letting go of Hassah’s hand, tried to keep a firm grip on his breathing as they traversed the street, through a market, then a small park, then into the market again. Their pursuer didn't seem to even need to catch its breath as it cut through.

“Wait!” Hassah suddenly said. “I’ve got an idea.”

She pushed Tham to the side, behind a long lettuce-cart, and turned to face their pursuer. As Tham watched the oversized trenchcoat figure shoot closer than ever, Hassah opened her mouth to shout… but no sound came out. No sound, and all sound.

For a fraction of a second, every single noise, conversation, and interaction in their stretch of the street amplified its volume to a ridiculously high degree, a sonic explosion all around the trenchcoat figure that made Tham’s ears hurt as if about to snap. Without missing a beat, Hassah slammed her body into the trenchcoat figure, toppling it over… and splitting it into three.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Among the sonically-blasted crowd and from inside the fallen trenchcoat rose three child-sized rats, screeching and shouting. Hassah paused for a fraction of a second just as the first rat pointed at both of them with tiny paws and screamed.

“Guards! See?! These are from the Skyguard!”

Tham paled.

The rat breathed in deeply, and then screeched again. “Capture them!”

From around the street Tham could hear metal clangs and calls for the two of them to hand themselves over. He dashed to Hassah’s side and took her arm.

“Hold ti–” he started, and before finishing his own line, Spacebent.

Darkness.

“Uh, Tham?” Hassah asked, her arm still held by Tham. “Where did you take us?”

Tham couldn't see or hear a thing.

“Um,” he hesitated. The air was heavy and hot. “I think we’re underground.”

“...At least we’re safe, I guess,” Hassah said, shaking Tham’s hand off her arm. He quickly took her hand instead. His hand was sweaty, which made it all the more awkward.

“We shouldn't separate here,” Tham said in a hurry. “...It’s probably not a good idea.”

Hassah sighed. “Okay. … Underground. Now what?”

“I think we should, uhh…” He paused. “Isn’t it hot in here?”

Hassah let out a slight laugh. “Never held a girl’s hand before?”

Tham flushed, glad that Hassah couldn't see him.

“No, I mean it,” he said. “It's really hot. And, it's–”

“It's getting hotter,” Hassah muttered. “What have you gotten us into, Tham?”

And then the darkness started to dissipate. A small light appeared at the far end of… the cave? The tunnel?

A light that started getting progressively brighter and closer as the air grew hotter.

“Let’s move out of the way,” Hassah said, trying to keep calm. She pulled Tham to the side, only for them to soon hit a rock wall.

The lights –now recognizable as two sources side by side– shot towards them as Tham started to panic.

“Hey, hey, hey. Breathe in,” Hassah said, her voice shaky. “You’re making me nervous. Now, um, Spacebend.”

The strage, sharp lights flew closer, straight towards them.

Hassah squeezed Tham’s hand. “You can do it.”

Tham tried to focus. Where to?! What now?! Up? Down? … Forward?

“Stretch out,” Hassah said, her voice stablizing. “Feel.”

Tham tried to sense his surroundings. All he could feel beyond himself was Hassah’s heartbeat, slowing down to a constant rhythm, under control. Tham’s heartbeat slowed down too, and in those few seconds, as his breathing grew deeper and less desperate, he realized what he needed to do.

Do you trust me? he thought. Somehow, he knew the answer.

…That wasn't natural. But there was no time to think about that now.

Tham snapped his mind’s fingers.

Light.

A comfortable linen red seat that smiled at him from under his legs, a wooden wagon going way too fast. A warm candle’s light swooning back and forth as it lit up the dark.

A man sitting in front of them glanced at him with a raised eyebrow from behind a newspaper spread wide.

Tham struggled to catch his breath. He wiped his forehead with his arm as he forced himself to let go of Hassah’s hand.

“Um, hi!” Hassah said to the man, struggling with a smile. “Sorry to startle you. May I ask where we are?”

The man’s eyebrow-raise got sharper.

“You can ask the waiter for our next stop.”

“Uh, stop?” Tham asked. “What is this?”

The man frowned, leaving the newspaper on the table between their seats.

“This is the last train to infinity, of course.”

What’s a train? Tham wondered. Somehow, though, he felt that wasn't a wise question to ask.

Hassah smiled. “Of course! My friend here has had one too many sleepless nights, and is pretty groggy. Forgive him.”

“Uhhh, yes,” Tham said. “I don't know what I’m saying. And, uh, sleep made me forget. The horses pulling these wagons are pretty fast, right? And is it nighttime already? My mental clock stopped working several, um… stops ago.”

“You must mean the dragon.”

“...Yes. Pretty fast dragon, even if I say so myself.”

That doesn't make any sense, Tham winced to himself.

“Well, underground dragons have always been faster and stronger than their surface peers,” the man nodded. “Burrowing through rock has never been easy. …I think to have heard these tunnels are already pierced, though. Don't worry about the time, though. It means nothing where we’re going.”

Tham paled slightly. He could feel the train speeding up, and he didn't like it. “...Where exactly are we going, again?”

The man smiled. “To infinity.”

Silence. Outside the wagon’s windows he could see nothing but darkness.

“We’ve got a long time coming,” the man then said, “so you’d better get comfortable.”

Tham’s heart seemed to stop.

“...What if we want to get off?” Hassah asked in a weak voice.

“It’s a little late for that, you know,” the man finished. “A bit of advice? This is the last train to infinity. Enjoy the ride.”