//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: The Corgi Car // Story: Infinity Train: Crossover Nexus // by Solar Force //------------------------------// In the latest train car, which consisted of nothing but what looked like the night sky, and was filled with lots of different musical instruments which hung seemingly from midair, with a long winding path that looked like the keys of a piano, Tulip stared down at the number on her palm. “Still 109,” She said with a heavy sigh as she glared down at her glowing green number 109, “It’s been a week! Why won’t you change?!” “Look, Tulip,” Sunset said firmly but gently as she came up behind the irate redhead, and placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down, “Obsessing over your number is not going to help you.” “Sunset’s right,” Korra agreed, “The Conductor is probably the only person who can help us with this whole Number problem.” “That is,” Steven added in a worried voice, “if we ever find him.” “Oh, are we stopping to talk to our hands, now?” One One chirped. “Hello, hands!” He said happily, as she waved one of his tiny mechanical legs. “Wait,” He then pondered. “Do I even have hands?” “Ugh,” Tulip grunted, “That cat wasted time I could have used getting off the train.” She grabbed the straps of her backpack as she declared, “From now, we’re not stopping for anything!” She then walked up to the edge of the ledge on which they stood, and knelt down into a starting position. “Alright, One One. Time me! Ready!” “Set!” One One chimed as he split in two. “Tulip, what are you doing?” Sunset asked. “What does it look like?” Tulip said back, “I’m making up for lost time!” She then waited with a determined smile for a moment, before it became neutral, and then slipped into a frown. “Eh hem!” she said firmly. “Eh..uhh...go,” One One said distractedly, and Tulip took off at a jog, with One One quickly rolling after her, the piano keys lighting up and chiming musically as she went. “Ugh, not again!” Korra exclaimed in frustration, before she took off running after the young Red-Head. “Tulip, get back here!” “Of course,” Sunset said with a roll of her eyes, before she grabbed Steven’s hand and dragged him along behind her as she also started running down the piano path. “Hey, wait for us!” “Whoa! Whoa! Take it easy!” Steven exclaimed, as he was dragged helplessly behind the amber skinned girl. As Tulip ran along the path of piano keys, One One hopped from one floating instrument to another. “Look at me, I’m a musical genius!” He sang cheerfully, as the others tried to keep up with the two of them, as Tulip slid down to the other end of the path and dashed to the Train Car door, flung it open, and ran across to the next car, looking down at her hand as she went. She grunted in annoyance as her Number stubbornly remained at 109. She ran on, flinging open the door to the next car, and halted in her tracks as she was faced by...ducks! A car full of ducks. Plain white ducks piled on top of each other, and taking up the entire space of the car, quaking continuously and loudly. Tulip then frowned with determination as she entered the room and pushed, shoved, and waded her way through all the ducks. “Bwah! So many Ducks!” As she shoved the ducks aside, one of them actually spoke. “Can you help me find my normal eyes?” it asked in a goofy voice. “Sorry, no time!” Tulip said, grabbing the duck and tossing it aside as she pushed on, before finally bursting out the next car door, falling to her knees. Letting out a huff, she looked at her hand again, her number still at 109. Just then, one by one, Sunset and the others spilled out of the car, gasping for breath, before they got back to their feet. “A duck car? Are you kidding me?!” Sunset said with annoyance. “So...many...feathers,” Korra spluttered, as she brushed herself down to get rid of the feathers that were clinging to her. “You can say that again,” Steven said, just as Tulip got up and took off running once more. “I am getting really tired of this girl,” Korra said through gritted teeth, as she carried after Tulip. “Tulip, when I get my hands on you!” Sunset looked at Steven as she rolled her eyes, before they both headed off together. Tulip shoved her way into the next car, stepping right into a...party? A party with all sorts of strange creatures. “Mash with us!” one of the monstrous guests said. “Sorry, no time!” Tulip said hurriedly as she pushed her way forward, running along the top of a table and causing a mess as she went. “So sorry about her!” Korra exclaimed as she rushed past the shocked party guests, Sunset and Steven right behind her. Tulip burst out of the next car door, looking at her hand once more as she ran on, but before she could get much further, she was halted in her tracks when Korra grabbed her by the arms, and held her tight against her front. “Hey, let me go!” Tulip snapped in frustration. “I’m trying to save time here!” “Will you just hold still for a minute!” Korra snapped back in a reprimanding tone. “When are you going to get it that we need to stick together?!” “I don’t have time!” Tulip said, as she struggled to break free of the older girl's grip. “We want to get off the train as much as you do,” Sunset said with a frown. “But that doesn’t mean you have to just recklessly rush straight through everything.” “Oh, come on, how are you guys gonna lose me?” Tulip argued, as she finally got Korra to let go of her, and carried on ahead at a walk. “We’re on a train, and we’re all going in the same direction, because there’s literally only one direction to go.” “That’s not the point, Tulip,” Steven said with a shake of his head. “In a situation like this, it’s better to stick together.” “I’m not going to waste time waiting for you guys to just slow me down,” Tulip said in frustration as she reached the door of the next car and reached for the handles to open it. “The less time wasted on this Train the better.” She shoved the doors open and dashed inside. The others all rolled their eyes and groaned in annoyance, before giving chase to the hot tempered redhead once more. Inside the new train car, the interior resembled that of an ancient temple, but before any of them could take in their surroundings, the irate redhead ran on ahead, forcing them to keep chasing her. However, this didn’t last long, as Tulip leapt down a set of old stone stairs, and her foot landed on stone tile, pushing it into the floor like a switch, and a loud rumbling sound was heard from behind them. They turned to look, before running for their lives as a large round boulder came rolling after them. “A big rolling boulder?!” Sunset exclaimed in disbelief. “How cliché!” “Not the time!” Korra said. They ran on until Tulip’s foot triggered another booby trap, forcing them all to duck as a spear was launched into the opposite wall. Leaning against the wall was a skeleton in ragged clothes. “Got the time?” He asked, holding up his bony arms, and pointing at his bare wrist. “No time!” Tulip shouted as she sprinted past. “You’re telling me. I’m dead!” The skeleton said as the others ran past, not even bothering to look at him, before he was run over by the boulder, falling to pieces. As the group ran down the narrow passageway, they spotted the car door up ahead, which was on the other side of a pit, and the stone path ended in a slight ramp. It looked like their only way across would be to jump, but then Steven spotted a vine hanging from the ceiling. “Grab the vine!” He shouted. Running up the ramp, they all jumped, grabbed the vine, and swung across just in time as the boulder rolled up the ramp and was flung across after them. They let go of the vine, fell to the ledge on the other side, before barrel rolling and skidding through the doors. Finally, they slammed the doors shut behind them, and collapsed to the floor, gasping for breath. Once they had regained their breath, they all got back to their feet, and everyone else glared at Tulip in frustration and annoyance. “You see, Tulip?” Steven began. “This is why we don’t just go charging ahead.” “Yeah, Tulip!” Korra snapped angrily. “Steven’s right! We almost died back there because of you!” “That wasn’t my fault!” Tulip shot back. “How was I supposed to know there was a giant boulder in there that would have squashed us into pancakes?!” “That’s just the point!” Korra ranted. “You didn’t know, none of us did, but you just charged straight in on there anyway!” “And don’t forget, you were the one who set off that booby trap in the first place!” Steven added. “Well, excuse me for not looking where I put my feet!” Tulip shouted back rudely. “Alright, enough!” Shouted Sunset firmly as she stood in the middle of the quarrelling trio. “Just standing around yelling at each other isn’t going to get us off this Train any faster.” She turned to look at Tulip. “Tulip, I know how desperate you are to get off the Train and get back to your regular life, but simply powering through every obstacle in your way will only put you on the fast track to getting yourself killed.” She then looked at Korra and Steven. “Korra, Steven, I know you’re both angry at Tulip for always rushing ahead, but all we’ve shown her since we met is anger. Is it any wonder she’s so willing to just leave us behind?” After a moment of awkward silence, Sunset went on, “OK, so how about from now on we keep moving along the train together as a group?” She then looked sternly at Tulip. “No more powering recklessly ahead,” she turned back to Korra and Steven, “and no more yelling. OK?” The others all took a moment to consider Sunset’s words, before looking at each other sheepishly. “OK, I’m sorry for rushing on ahead,” Tulip said with a heavy sigh. “And I’m sorry for always yelling at you,” Korra said with regret in her voice. “I’ve kind of always had anger issues.” “Yeah, and I’m sorry too,” Steven said softly. “I’m not usually the kind of person to get so mad at someone.” “Alright, so we’re all good now?” Sunset asked, and the others nodded. “Good. Now, let's keep moving, and this time, I’ll go first.” She then led the group across the walkway to the next car. Once she reached the door, she turned the handles to open it, and they all pushed their way inside, closing the door behind them. Once they had closed the door, they all gazed in wonder and astonishment at the new train car’s interior. They were standing in what appeared to be a vast green field, surrounded by tall mountains, and covered by lots of small rocks and stones. On top of one of the rocks was a large wooden, ornately decorated horn. There were also many ancient Roman or Greek buildings scattered all over the landscape, like a small settlement. But what really caught their attention was that the car was inhabited by lots of little… “Awww, puppies!” Exclaimed Korra with glee as stars danced in her eyes. “Awww, they’re so cute,” Sunset said with a big smile. “That’s a lot of dogs,” Steven said with a raised eyebrow. “Look! More weird furry ducks!” Chirped One One happily. “What do you even call this car, The Dog Car?” Tulip asked as she looked all around, before briefly checking her hand. It still said 109. Just then, they all looked up as one of the dogs sounded the large horn that was perched on the rock, and all the dogs leaned down in a bow. They watched as a small set of steps, being held by a dog on each corner, was carried towards them. The steps had an ornate red carpet running up them, and on top of the steps, sitting on a very comfortable looking red cushion, was yet another dog, wearing a small crown. This dog was a corgi, with the classic white underbelly, blonde-amber fur on top, white paws, and a white tip on his tail. “Salutations, 2 legged strangers and loud ball-creature!” He said grandly as they approached. “Welcome to Corginia!” “Well I feel welcomed,” Smiled Sunset. “I am Atticus,” The crowned corgi introduced himself as they came to a stop in front of the group. “King and Uniter of the Cardigans and the Pembrokes. I extend to you my greetings,” he finished with a respectful bow. “Hi, I’m Tulip,” Tulip said with a small wave. “I like…books?” “Greetings, Tulip The Literate,” Atticus said welcomingly, before turning to the rest of the group. “And who might you all be, my welcome visitors?” “Hi, I’m Steven,” Steven said. “I...sometimes enjoy playing music.” “Greetings to you, Steven The Musician,” Atticus said with a bow of his head. “I’m Korra, and I like, um, lots of excitement,” said Korra with a smile. “And a hearty welcome to you, Korra The Adventuress,” Atticus said cheerfully. “Hi, I’m Sunset Shimmer,” Sunset said, smiling so hard she looked almost ready to burst. “And I hope to make friends with you and all of your cute subjects.” “Well, an extra big welcome to you, Sunset Shimmer The Friendly,” Atticus said in a very pleased voice. “Now, let me show you all my kingdom.” “Uhh, no, it’s OK, we’re all kind of in a rush here, so,-” Tulip tried to object. “And so commences the official tourginia of Corginia,” Atticus said proudly, cutting her off. “Well, I guess this is unavoidable,” Sunset said with a shrug, as the dog on top of the rock once again blew the horn. “Does he do that every chance he gets?” Steven asked. “Oh yes,” said Atticus, “he simply loves it.” Toot! The dog went as he gave the horn another quick blow. “Talk about tooting your own horn,” Korra said with a smirk, causing the others to groan at the bad pun. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist,” she said, her smirk never faltering. The group was now being led by Atticus through the grass covered streets of Corginia, and at least a dozen other corgis were surrounding the group, jumping up and barking excitedly. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, down, get down!” Tulip said, trying to ward them off to no avail. “Awww, so many fluffy heads to pet. If only I had more than two hands,” Sunset said gleefully as she tried petting all of the excitable corgis at her feet at once. “Who’s a good boy? Who's a good boy?” She cooed as one of the corgis rolled over so she could rub its belly. “You want this? Go get it!” Steven said, throwing a dog toy, and the corgis following him chased after it. Then, they all stopped and stared as a group of corgis came walking past, carrying a reclining Korra on their backs, who had her arms and legs outstretched, like a crawling starfish. “Take me away my four legged companions,” she said in a happy, serene voice, and with a happy, relaxed smile on her face. “Well, it is most pleasing to see that at least two of you are real dog lovers,” Atticus said. “Uh yeah, I’m not exactly in the mood for showing unconditional love to a fluffy animal right now,” Tulip muttered. “And I’m more of a cat person,” Steven added, “especially since I don’t have a pet dog, I have a pet lion at home.” “Wha?” Tulip said, looking dubiously at Steven. “Please excuse us,” Atticus said, “It’s been so long since we last had a visitor, and we get rather excited when someone new comes through the door.” “Oh, I don’t mind them being excited at all,” Sunset said happily as she kept on making a fuss of the all corgis vying for her attention. As they walked, Tulip looked all around at her, observing the corgis as they went about their carefree lives. “Food dispensers, belly rub machines, gift of speech,” she said in an impressed voice. “You guys are doing pretty well for yourselves,” she said to Atticus. “Wow, this is my first time being nauseous!” One One chirped as a bunch of corgis ran past, tossing the little white sphere around like in a game of catch. “Please, make it stop?!” “Hey, Atticus?” Sunset asked as she knelt down to keep petting the dogs, “how many of you little guys are there in Corginia?” “We are 400 strong,” Atticus said proudly, “and 399 cute.” “You sure got the cute part right,” Sunset smiled as she laid down on her front, and the dogs gathered around her and began licking her face, causing her to giggle. “Hehe, hey, cut it out guys, that tickles.” “Uh, if there’s 400 of you, what do you mean you’re 399 cute?” Steven asked. “Let’s just say we don’t talk about Ugly Erwin,” Atticus said in a low voice, before gesturing over to a nearby hill, where, standing in the sunlight from above, was a tall, magnificent blonde furred dog, with his held high, and his fluffy chest puffed out proudly. His ears and tail seemed to be blowing gracefully in the breeze. “Wow,” Sunset breathed in awe, her eyes filled with stars once more. “Majestic.” “Eh,” Korra said nonchalantly, “I prefer Naga.” “Ugh,” Atticus shuddered in disgust. “Anyway, moving past that unpleasantness, can I offer any of you a sunbeam to lay in?” He gestured with his paw over to where a few other dogs were lying lazily in round patches of sunlight. Korra, with a dreamy smile on her face, flopped down onto her back. “Take me to the sunbeam my furry minions,” she ordered, and the dogs flocked to her, picked her up, and carried her over to the nearest sunbeam. “Wow,” Steven said, “she really is a dog person.” “Obviously a young lady of refined taste,” Atticus said in a pleased tone. “And I thought I was a dog person,” Sunset said, before she looked around her. “Hey, where’s One One?” One One, as it turned out, was in the sunbeam where Korra was laying with her new corgi ‘minions’. “Enjoy the sun while you can,” He said ominously, “It’s going to burn out one day, and there will only be darkness.” The poor dog whimpered in fright as it slowly backed away from the little white orb. “OK, OK, this place is cool and everything,” Tulip put in, “But can you please tell us where the exit to the car is? We’re kind of in a hurry here.” “I’m not,” Korra said calmly from her sunbeam, “I don’t want to go anywhere just yet. I can’t remember the last time I felt this relaxed.” At that moment, the ground beneath them shook, and Korra sat up in shock. “OK, relaxation time over,” she said in alarm. They looked out across a flowing river, and from the top of a not too distant mountain, where the river flowed down from the top, a large shadow, made up of what seemed to be tentacles, came looming over the top of the hill, even covering the low hanging clouds. “Yay! A shadow puppet!” One One cheered. “Look, I can make an eagle.” He crossed his front legs in front of him. “Uhh, what’s that?” Sunset asked nervously. “The Monster,” said Atticus darkly, as the water from the river rose, turning into a flood, as all the corgis turned in panic and ran for cover. “Quickly, friends, to the temple!” Sunset grabbed up One One, and they all ran through what was basically a dog flap inside the nearest building, with Sunset and the others having to kneel down since the building was obviously corgi sized. “I regret to say that there are certain things I did not tell you about Corginia,” Atticus said as soon as they were inside. “OK, so what exactly was that thing, and what’s going on here, Atticus?” asked Korra. “Like I already said, that thing out there was the monster,” Atticus said grimly, “and every time it makes its presence known, the waters will rise and ruin our city.” “Haven’t you ever thought of going out to face it together?” Sunset asked. “Maybe you could fight it off.” “Impossible,” Atticus replied. “The water is a harrowing 2 metres in depth. If we even attempted to cross it, we would surely drown.” “2 metres?” Tulip asked in a deadpan voice, “that’s it?” “Tulip, don’t forget,” Korra said warningly, before picking up one of the dogs and cuddling it. “They’re just little babies,” she finished with a pouting puppy face. “Do you think it's still out there?” Asked Steven nervously. “I’ll go and check,” One One said, before he split into his two halves, and the happy One ran outside. “Looks I’ll have to start writing his obituary,” the sad One said, as he pulled up a piece of paper and a pen that were lying on the ground. “Awfully morbid little thing, aren’t you,” remarked Atticus. “Yes.” “Ahhh!” Screamed One as he appeared back at the dog flap. “What is it One One?” Sunset asked in alarm. “The monster is gone! I’m excited! Ahhh!” One cried out in his happy way, and everyone groaned. “Come on, let's get going?” Sunset said as she led the rest of the group back outside, only to duck back inside and see that Atticus hadn’t moved. “Don't you want to come outside?” she asked. “Yes,” Atticus said. “Outside?” Sunset asked again. “No,” Atticus hesitated. “Outside?” “Well…” “Outside?” “Maybe…” Atticus said as he tapped his front paws anxiously. “You want to go outside right now?” Sunset went on playfully, “You want to do it? You want to go outside, boy?” “Yes, I want to go outside,” Atticus finally said as he dashed outside. Sunset could only giggle as she followed after him. Back outside, Atticus showed them one of the now flooded areas of Corginia, with most of the buildings almost completely submerged under water. “One week ago this was the dog-partment of water and power, and now it's just the dog-partment of water and water,” he explained grimly as he hung his head. “All of this started a week ago?” Sunset asked. “Isn’t that when our Numbers last went down?” “I think so,” Korra replied thoughtfully, before she looked at Sunset in realisation. “You don’t think that maybe…?” “Maybe that monster is related to our Numbers?” Tulip said with excitement. “Maybe if we can stop it and reach the exit door…” “It’ll help us get off the Train?” Steven finished with a dubious look. “Oh, we’re off to see the shadow monster? Yay!” One One cheered. “It probably has no connection to anything. Just saying.” “Well, what are we waiting for?” Sunset said. “Let’s get moving. We won’t find out until we see this thing for ourselves.” “Wait, friends,” Atticus said, as he dashed in front of them. “You will need my help if you intend to leave. The exit is blocked by the unsolvable puzzle door. Plus it's too dangerous.” “Dangerous,” Korra smirked. “You should see some of the things I've fought against back home. I’m not scared.” “Nevertheless, as long as you are all willing to fight for my people, I cannot stand idly by,” Atticus insisted, before walking up to Sunset. “Sunset, I don’t usually beg unless its for a tasty, tasty treat, but I must ask that you take me with you so I can help save Corginia?” Sunset didn’t even need to think about her answer. “If it’s to help save your kingdom and your people, of course you can come with us, Atticus,” she said with a smile. “Excellent,” Atticus said as he turned and walked to the water's edge. “However, I must warn you all that we corgis are a proud people, and we do not enjoy being picked up.” “Why would you need to warn us about that?” Steven asked with a raised eyebrow. “Don’t worry guys,” Korra said as she stepped towards Atticus, “I got this.” “Seriously, why do we need to know this?” Steven insisted. “Whoa, whoa, take it easy!” Korra exclaimed as Atticus writhed, wriggled and barked in her arms as they walked across the river. “Just stay calm, now, just stay calm, we’re almost there.” “So that’s why,” Steven murmured as he, Tulip and Sunset trailed behind them. “He really wasn’t kidding about not liking being picked up,” added Sunset with a slight frown. Once they reached the other side of the river, Atticus leapt out of Korra’s arms and ran on ahead, leading them on an eventful journey up the mountain. When they finally reached the top, they all took a moment to catch their breaths. “Oh man, I didn’t think all that would happen on the way up here,” Sunset groaned. “I know, who’d have thought we would walk under a cloud where it was snowing in only that spot?” Korra said as she wiped her brow. “Or that the sun would move back and forth across the sky,” Steven added. “Hey guys, look!” Tulip said excitedly, “There’s the door!” She pointed across the small clearing where they were, and embedded into the side of the mountain was indeed the exit door. “OK, everybody, head for the door, but stay alert for anything,” Sunset told the others, and they all walked cautiously towards the door. As they approached it, the large shadow they had seen suddenly loomed overhead. “Look out!” Cried Tulip, and they all ran for cover behind a nearby rock. After a moment, they all peeked out from behind the rock to see what the monster was doing, only to stare in confusion at what they saw. “Wait a minute,” Sunset said as she stepped out from behind the rock and approached a nearby bush, where the shadow was being projected from. Nestled inside the bush was a glowing bluish green orb. Next to the bush was a tree, and hanging from a branch over the orb, dangling from a thin piece of silk, was the source of the shadow, which was… “Aw, here’s our monster,” Sunset said with a relieved smile, “it’s just a little spider.” She pulled the spider from the branch with her finger, and let it dangle there from the thin string. “Aww, she’s just building her little spider web,” she cooed, before gasping in horrified shock as Atticus jumped up…and ate the spider! He chewed noisily as Sunset just stared down at him in despair, before her face twisted in anger. “Atticus! Why’d you do that?! Bad dog!” “We have vanquished the monster,” Atticus said triumphantly, before muttering, “I thought victory would taste less musty.” He then looked at the fast flowing river next to them. “Hmm, I also thought the water level would go down.” “Yeah, that certainly hasn’t changed,” Korra muttered. “But maybe our Numbers-” Tulip said as she checked her hand, only to stop as she saw her Number was still 109. She looked around hopefully at the others, only for all of them to hold up their hands, showing that all of their Numbers still hadn’t changed either. As she stomped away in a huff, venting her frustration about being stuck onboard the Train, Sunset looked curiously at the sphere in the bush. “Now, what are you, exactly?” She wondered, gazing at the glowing orb that had caused them such a fright. “What are you looking at, Miss Sunset?” One One asked as he scuttled up to her. “Are you looking at the remains of the spider's web you so casually destroyed when you picked it up, only for it to be eaten moments later?” “As dark and morbid as that is, no,” Sunset replied with a groan, “I was examining this glowing orb. What even is it? Why’s it here? It just feels so…out of place, don’t you think?” At these words, everyone walked up to her to see the orb for themselves. “I gotta admit, she’s right,” Tulip said, “this thing just doesn't fit here. It’s almost like it’s alien or otherworldly.” Nodding at this assessment, Korra then reached out, grabbed the orb, and with a pull, picked it up from out of the bush. Next moment, they all gasped, as the bush suddenly and simply vanished, revealing a large rectangular hole, the edge of which glowed green, and exposed an array of wires, pipes, exposed circuit boards, and a circular slot where the orb had sat. “What did you pull it out for?!” Sunset said in a reprimanding tone, “that could have been dangerous!” “I don’t know!” Korra shot back, “I just wanted to see what would happen, OK?!” “That doesn't mean you should have touched it,” Sunset rebuked. “Well, we saw what happened once you took the orb,” Steven said, “what about when you try putting it back?” “Alright, fine,” Korra huffed as she placed the orb back in its slot, and the bush reappeared. “So, this orb controls the environment?” Tulip wondered. “All by itself? I doubt it,” Sunset pondered, “maybe it's one of many that are used to form the environment. Removing this one only made this set of bushes disappear, and nothing else.” “But if there’s a whole bunch of these orbs, then where are they?” Korra asked. “My guess is they’re all around us, and we just can’t see them because they’re hidden by the environment,” Sunset theorised. “But if they’re supposed to be hidden,” Steven spoke again, “how come we could see this one?” “Maybe for the same reason we can see that one,” Atticus said, pointing with his paw. Everyone looked, and sure enough, there was another rectangular hole in the ground, with the same green glow all the way around the edge. In the whole was a mess of wires, pipes, and a circular dish like panel where an orb, identical to the first one, was meant to sit. They then all looked up nervously as they heard strange clicking, clanking and whirring sounds. They slowly made their way towards the sounds, and stopped and stared at what they saw. On the ground, in the walls, and in the air were lots of those same glowing holes, some had orbs in them, others had them removed. Collecting and sorting through the orbs was a strange mechanical creature, with a body made entirely of long metal tentacles, which all came together behind a porcelain white face mask, which had blue flames coming from its eyes. It stretched out one of its tentacles, the end of which split into 5 sharp metal fingers, before they tapped rapidly on seemingly thin air, opening a hidden panel and revealing yet another orb. It pulled the orb out of its slot, and dropped it into a metal crate which was full to the brim with identical orbs. The crate was being carried by another machine, but this one looked different. It looked more like a traditional robot. It waited attentively as the other metal creature took out and loaded more orbs into its crate. After loading a few more orbs, another machine came hovering down towards them. The best way to describe it was some kind of drone meant for carrying things, which was proved correct when it took hold of the crate from the other bot, and carried it away, hovering up and out of a large hole, in what would have been the sky, but was in fact the wall of the train car. They could clearly see the sky of the desolate world outside. “So there were real monsters after all,” Atticus said darkly. “Are they harvesting those orbs?” Steven said. “If they’re what maintains the environment here, why would they be harvesting them?” Sunset wondered. “Do we even want to find out?” Korra added. “We should attack,” said Atticus. “We’ll never make it,” said One One. “I say we just get out of here,” Tulip said, “we can try to escape through the unsolvable puzzle door,” she pulled out a notepad and a pen from her back pack, “how do we unlock it, Atticus?” “First, you put your paw on the handle,” Atticus explained. “OK,” Tulip said as she scribbled the instructions. “Then you turn it.” “Alright,” there was an awkward pause as Tulip waited for Atticus to say more, before she scowled in annoyance. “That’s how all doors open!” she snapped. “Their dogs, Tulip,” Sunset said in exasperation, “the little babies don’t have thumbs,” she finished in a cutesy voice. “We need to figure out how to get past those things and get to the door,” Korra put in. “We could just try talking to them,” One One said as he jumped forwards from their hiding place. “One One, no don’t,” Steven called after him, but it was too late. “Hello!” One One called with a wave, before Tulip quickly reached out, grabbed him up and stuffed him in her backpack, but the damage was done. The lead creature turned its face mask towards them, and two small gun turrets pushed out of its burning eyes. It opened fire, and they were all about to scatter, before Steven suddenly stood up, his arms wide, and from seemingly nowhere, a bright pink bubble took form around them. It had a swirling pattern all over it, and a crest that looked like a rose at the top. Everyone stared in astonishment as the bullets bounced harmlessly off the protective dome. They then gave Steven inquisitive looks as he looked back over his shoulder at them. “I’ll explain later!” He shouted, “Kinda busy right now!” “I’ll hold you to that!” Sunset shouted over the hail of bullets. As the metal creature continued to rain fire at them, Korra then stood up, and as everyone watched her, she took a strange stance, and with a grunt, one of the rocks lifted off the ground, and with a thrust of her fist, the rock was sent flying straight at the masked monster, catching it off guard as the rock collided with it and sent it flying back away from them. “W…w…what?!” Tulip shouted in shock, “Wha…how…how did you…” “I’ll explain later!” Korra shouted, parroting Steven. The metal creature struggled and writhed as it was pinned by the rock, before its flaming blue eyes then began to flash an angry red, and the other 2 bots eyes also flashed red, as they turned their attention to the group. “Uh oh,” Steven said as he began to struggle to maintain his shield, “now we’ve really made them mad.” The two other bots then charged towards them, and began hitting and wailing on the shield with great force, as Steven grit his teeth in concentration. “A little help here, please?! I can’t keep this up forever!” “I shall draw their attention!” Atticus declared bravely, as run out from under the shield and charged towards the lead robot as fast as his little paws could carry him. “FOR COGINIA!” he bellowed in a battle cry. “Atticus no!” Sunset yelled after him as she watched in horror as the king of the corgis charged at the lead robot, just as the metal monster finally tossed the rock away from it self, saw Atticus, and with a swipe of its tentacle, it the sent the little dog flying towards the side of the mountain, where he hit the rock face hard, and slid to the ground, where he lay motionless. “ATTICUS!” After this, Korra and Steven looked at each, and with an understanding nod, Steven shrank his shield down just enough so it covered just the two of them, and they both took off at a run, with Steven ploughing his way through the two drones, as they dashed towards the lead robot. As they approached it, Steven shrank the shield to cover only his arm, and Korra, with a blast of wind from her feet, launched herself into the air. As she made her descent, she pulled back her fist, and flames formed around it. With a fierce yell, she punched the lead bot right in its face mask with all her might, and with a burst of flames, the metal monster collapsed to the ground, twitching and convulsing violently. Korra then landed back on her feet, and with another punch, she shoved her fist into the ground, and once she withdrew it, it was surrounded by a solid ball of rock. She stomped towards the lead bot as it twitched on the ground, glaring down at it with fury, as she drew back her rock covered fist once more, intending to put an end to the metal monster once and for all. However, just as she was about to give the final blow, she froze as the lead bot turned its face mask towards her. Its eyes were now glowing bright white, and its face had now morphed into…herself! “Not you,” Korra whispered as her body suddenly shivered with terror, “not now.” That was all the lead bot needed. Its tentacles lunged out towards Korra, wrapped around her legs, lifted her up like a rag doll, and began spinning her at fast speed, before tossing straight towards Steven, who still had his hands full with the other bots. The two collided with each other, knocking them both to the ground in a heap. The lead bot then crawled towards them, grabbed them both in its tentacles, and then scuttled towards the others. Sunset and Tulip tried to back away from the robotic monstrosity as it advanced on them, but they were quickly backed into a corner. “What do we do?!” Shouted Tulip. “I don’t know!” Panicked Sunset. They quickly found themselves backed up against the train car’s exit door, as the lead bot loomed over them. It then dropped Korra and Steven down beside them, and pinned them all down so they couldn't move. As Sunset and Tulip struggled to break free, the metal creature leaned down, bringing its face mask right above them. “Return to your seats!” It ordered in an electronic female voice. Just then, One One pushed his way out of Tulips backpack. “Greetings friends!” he chirped, “Do you want me to write your obituaries?” The masked robot looked up at One One, and, to everyone's surprise, released its hold on the group. Tulip, taking advantage of the moment, reached for the handle on the exit door, and the door swung open, hitting the bot right in its mask. Then, with a loud click, the mask opened upwards, revealing its inner workings, as well as a large round dish-like slot, almost like there was something missing from it. Its face mask then slapped back into place, before it took another glance down at One One. It then turned and retreated out of the car door, with the other two bots right on its tail. Tulip quickly got up and watched as the strange robotic trio disappeared over the top of the next train car. She then turned to check on the others as they all either sat up or got back to their feet, gasping and sighing in relief. “Are you guys alright?” she asked. “We’ll live,” Sunset said with a groan. “But what happened?” Steven asked. “Why’d they just leave like that? They could have easily finished us off.” “I don’t know,” Sunset replied, “what do you think, Korra?” When Korra didn’t answer, Sunset looked at her, only to stare in bewilderment. Korra was kneeling on the ground, and her face wore a blank expression as she stared straight ahead of her at seemingly nothing, like she was lost in a daze. Also, if you looked carefully enough, you could see that her body was visibly shaking ever so slightly. “Uhh, Korra?” Sunset cautiously approached, reached out a hand and touched the older woman's shoulder, and in an instant, the trance was broken. “Um, uh, what?” Korra stuttered in surprise. “Are you ok?” Sunset asked in concern. “Yes, I’m fine,” Korra replied just a little too quickly, making Sunset suspect she wasn’t fine, and was trying to change the subject off herself. “OK, if you're sure,” she replied, but could see that although the daze had been broken, she still continued to shake. She then reached out with both hands, and helped Korra back to her feet, who gave a small, grateful smile, but Sunset could still see, and now felt her shaking. But before she could think about it any further, they both looked up at a certain red headed girl's voice. “OK, you,” Tulip said accusingly as she pointed at Korra, “and you,” she then pointed at Steven, “I knew you two were weird, but now you both have superpowers like out of some comic book?” She gave each of them a stern look. “Start explaining. Did you gain those powers when you came aboard the Train? Did you know about them when you came aboard? Does this mean that I have powers too?” She fired question after question at them, as they both looked more and more uncomfortable. “Uhh, well, you see…” Steven said sheepishly. “That’s enough, Tulip!” Sunset snapped at the red haired girl in a stern tone. “After what we’ve just been through, Korra and Steven aren’t in any state to explain anything, none of us are. We can save questions for later, just be glad they both did what they did, or things could have turned out a lot worse for us.” She then looked around as her eyes widened in worry. “Speaking of which, where’s Atticus?” She then heard a groan as she spotted the Royal Corgi, who was getting back up onto his paws. “Atticus!” Sunset left Korra’s side and dashed over to the dog, kneeling down beside him. “Atticus, are you alright?” “Do not be concerned, I am in fighting shape,” Atticus reassured her, before he let out a pained moan and collapsed to the ground. This seemed to bring Korra to her senses, as she quickly ran to Sunset’s side, and knelt down beside her. “Here, let me help,” she said, as she gently picked up Atticus in her arms, and carried him over to the river. She placed the dog down on the bank, and with a wave of her hands, a plume of water rose up from the river, and engulfed both of her hands, like a pair of watery gloves. Slowly and carefully, she rubbed her water covered hands over the poor dog’s body. “Tell me where it hurts, OK?” she said softly. “I must say, this is the most soothing sensation,” Atticus said in a relaxed voice, “Ohh that’s so much better.” He whimpered for a moment as Korra moved her hands down to his back legs, “Ohh, careful there, a little tender.” “OK, that’s pretty cool,” Steven said with a grin. “Where’d she learn to do that?” Tulip asked with a raised eyebrow. “Does it really matter right now?” Sunset stated, “Just let her do what she needs to do." “Alright, does that feel better, Atticus?” Korra asked with a smile as she sent the water back into the river with a wave of hand. “Very much better, thank you,” Atticus said gratefully, “although would you mind putting me down before…” “Oh right, yeah, sure,” Korra said with a chuckle as she put the corgi back on the ground. “There, all better.” She knelt down and scratched the King Corgi’s chin. “Who’s a good boy?“ “I am a good man,” said Atticus as he wagged his tail, before the two of them headed back over to the others. Atticus then paused as he looked down at one of the orbs that was lying on the ground. He padded over to it, and nudged it back into its slot. The moment the orb was back in place, the rushing river instantly stopped flowing. “As of this moment, my people are safe,” he started proudly, but then gave a frown, “for now at least. As long as that monster and its two minions are still at large, Corginia will never be truly safe.” He then turned to the others. “My friends, I must request that I accompany you on your journey?” He asked humbly. “Really?” Sunset said with a big, excited smile. “Of course you can come with us.” “We’d be delighted to have you along with us, Atticus,” Korra said with a wide smile of her own. “Yes indeed,” Tulip said in a mock posh voice, “It would be an honour to be joined by such royalty.” The other girls just laughed at this. “But what about your kingdom?” asked Steven. “Surely you can’t just leave them without a leader?” “No need to worry, my friend,” Atticus said with a wave of his paw, “I can just leave the kingdom in the capable paws of my assistant, Steve.” “Steve?” Steven said with a frown. “I assure you, Steve is just as much of a good leader as I am,” Atticus said. “So, shall we depart on our heroic quest?” “Yeah, sure,” Korra said with a light chuckle. “I’d say we’ve hung around here long enough.” “Agreed,” Sunset added, “we really need to keep moving if we’re ever going to reach the engine.” “But maybe we can move at a more steady pace instead of charging through everything,” Tulip said with an embarrassed smile and a light blush. “Best idea I’ve heard all day,” Korra said with a smile, and she and Sunset lead the group out through the train car’s exit door. What they failed to notice as they exited the car, was that all of their Numbers were suddenly changing. Once the group had gone through the door, Korra stepped back through, seeing that Atticus hadn’t followed them. “Uhh, aren’t you coming?” she asked. “Yes,” replied Atticus. “Then come on.” “No, no, no,” Atticus replied skittishly. “Oh, come on, Atticus, don’t you want to go outside?” “Uh, yes.” “Outside?” “Uhh, no.” “Outside?” “Maybe,” Atticus fidgeted. “You want to come outside and play?” Korra said with a smile. “Yes, I want to come outside and play!” Atticus said excitedly as he scampered out of the door, and Korra could only giggle as she followed him. To Be Continued…