Extraction: Infinite Hunger

Chapter 80: Why Are You In My Car?

Two days later, Ash found himself at the departing train station that would take him to his field trip destination. Before getting on, he counted all of the cars on the platform. He counted eleven, though none of them looked like where a conductor would be stationed. No other passengers were around him. Only Vivian and Sheila, with neither of them packing anything heavy.

The other students going on their trips had already left, either by train or, based on the destination, by plane. The other side of the platform was also empty, but it was also early in the morning, early enough that no trains would be scheduled for arrival or departure.

Vivian boarded without looking at what car she was entering, already ahead of where the trip’s status was in her own head. Ash boarded after her, while Sheila took her time deciding which car to enter.

Once the doors sealed shut after them, the train immediately shot out of the station faster than any ordinary train should have. There wasn’t the slow acceleration that typical trains had to abide by; it was like it only knew one command.

Forward.

A synthetic voice came through the intercom of each car’s cabin.

"Welcome to the Aegis Express. This is a fully autonomous train that does not stop until its final destination. Each car is fully equipped with its own motor, heating, and provisions. In the event of an emergency, any car will detach and complete the route alone."

"Your destination is two hundred and ninety minutes away," the intercom said, finishing its speech. It said the number part in a slightly different voice and with a delay, like it had to calculate how long it would take for them to get there.

Ash’s car felt warm, so warm he was starting to think he might have to take off his hoodie. He looked around at the car he had gotten into. It looked like it was designed to pack as many people as possible. He moved to a small alcove for group seating which came with a table.

He set his bag on the table, dug past the clutter of hoodies, and pulled out the artbook Evelyn had given him. The first page was blank. He reached back into the bag for a pen, patting the corners where stray ones usually hid, but found nothing. The thought of asking someone else for one hadn’t formed yet. He sighed, tucked the notebook away, and left the alcove to wander the train.

The first car over was a bunch of bunk beds. He sat in one, but immediately felt motion sickness from the disconnect between the bed’s zero motion and the car moving around him. He got up before he could make a mess in the car and moved on to the next one.

That one looked to be the train’s food rations. It all looked futuristic; freeze-dried foods in packages with a convenient hot water source on the other side. He wasn’t hungry, so he let the room be, though he did take a plastic bottle of water with him.

Ash looked out the window to see the train was in the middle of a sharp curve, but it felt like the train was still moving in a perfectly straight line.

The sound of water running drew him into the next car.

As he entered the car, steam from the shower carried the smell of citrus and essential oils with it.

The water stopped, and out came Sheila, a pale green robe tightly hugging her figure, while her normally shiny ombre hair had become dark. She didn’t look startled to see another person in the car, but she did grab another towel to wrap her hair with.

"Why are you in my car?"

"Your car?" Ash responded. "Who decided that?"

"I did, before the train left the station. I needed to shower and this was the only car with one equipped. Therefore, it’s my car."

She patted her hair dry before removing the towel altogether and taking out a hair dryer to finish the rest of the job. Bit by bit, her hair was beginning to take on its normal shine.

"Do you want to talk?" Ash asked. "We’re going to be in the same place for a while. We might as well get to know each other before living the next month of our lives together."

Sheila didn’t answer him. She turned off the hair dryer and slipped into a small closet to the side of the shower. A moment later she emerged wearing sleek black leggings and a pleated gray skirt with a green hem. She buttoned up a crisp white collared blouse, then reached for the dark green cropped blazer draped over the chair. After slipping it on, she fastened a matching green choker around her neck, completing the look.

"Well? I’m waiting," she said, taking a seat and crossing her legs.

Ash knew what she was waiting for, but from what he knew about Sheila, she wouldn’t take his normal half-truths as a complete answer.

"I touched you because your Shade was close to cracking," Ash said without embarrassment.

She didn’t look surprised. Instead, she calmly pulled out a small pocket mirror, gently touched the small beauty mark just below her lip, and put it away again. Then she turned her hands around, seeing no visible scratches or scuffs, and made a disgusted look with her face.

"Lucia told me you have a power like that. Meanwhile, I saw you use several students’ Dominions like they were yours. So. Which is it?"

"A bit of both," Ash answered truthfully.

"A copycat was what Vivian called you. Was that ability to enter people’s Shades another one you stole from someone?"

"I don’t steal anything from anyone." Ash raised his voice. "If you wanted to turn into a Hollow so badly, then maybe I wasted my time."

Her face finally looked settled. She picked up the pocket mirror again and touched her birthmark.

"I appreciate the honesty. Most people are afraid to talk to me because of my Dominion. I hadn’t noticed people were finally coming up to me until after you touched me. I guess that’s why I saved you back there on that island when you looked like you could barely stand up."

"Yeah," Ash said, reminiscing about it. "Your Shade did a number on me."

She looked like she was about to laugh, and then the moment passed.

"Anyways, why did you sign up for the worst location? You and Lucia are top students, so you shouldn’t have had any trouble getting one of the nicer locations. I know Lucia is doing her own thing. I want to know about you."

"Same as that other person who’s with us," she said. Her emerald eyes stared out the train window, looking at her own reflection. "But I don’t think we are after the same thing. Vivian has a mind of her own, I just want—" She stopped herself.

Sheila’s fingers tightened on her blazer, knuckles whitening as she caught herself. For a breath, the cold elegance slipped, then settled back into place.

"I see," Ash said under his breath. "The thrill of a fight which is why you went through the entire preliminaries hoping to get one moment where you felt you might die."

Her eyes turned sideways and away from Ash.

Ash looked out the train window to see they were in an underground section of the passage. Whether it was manmade or natural was not something he could tell. Jagged rock formations blurred into a dark, continuous smear of gray, lit only by the occasional pulse of amber warning lights mounted on the tunnel walls.

The sheer speed of the Aegis Express made the subterranean world feel claustrophobic, yet the cabin remained unsettlingly silent, completely detached from the chaos outside.

"You’re a lot easier to talk to than Lucia; my shoulders don’t feel tense when I’m around you."

Sheila seemed to like that response, smiling gently, then turning back to a neutral expression. "You were one of the first people that didn’t try running away when they saw me. You ran towards me."

"Yeah," Ash said, leaning back in the seat. "I guess I did."

His hand reached down and found the artbook, placing it on the table between them. "Do you have a pen with you?"

Her eyes looked at it, then at Ash’s pale blue eyes. "Here," she said, handing him one from her bag. "That’s a really nice notebook you have; I didn’t take you for someone who came from money."

Ash’s hands dug into the notebook’s leather cover. "I got it as a gift for my birthday," Ash said, already putting the pen down onto the thick first page of the book.

"Happy late birthday," she said, standing up. "Thank you for what you did for me."

He put the pen down and closed the cover. "Would you do the same for other people if you could?"

She tapped her finger on her chin a few times as she thought aloud. "Definitely not."