I Sing Of Chaos And Eternal Night

1800

When my eyes fluttered open again, a crowd had started to gather in front of me- in front of the town square. They were trying to find a place to sit among the aisles of chairs facing the wooden platform ahead. There was a dark blue banner hanging over the platform with the words, 'Tenth Anniversary,' printed over it in bold white letters.

Darkness had fallen over the town, even though it had been morning only minutes earlier. Yet, the sun had already set and a full moon had replaced it in the sky. Around me, lanterns with low flames dangled from storefronts. Right behind the platform, a bright bonfire glowed in the middle of the town square. How I came to be here, I did not know.

Blinking, I turned my head and saw several others standing to the sides of me. Like me, they had their hands clasped together in front of them as they stared on. But unlike me, they wore many different getups. Some were saloon girls, others were soldiers from the Confederacy. I even spotted a Native among them.

But when my eyes landed on the man with a white hat, the urge to march towards him surged through me. There, standing on the opposite side, with his blond locks and bright blue eyes was my enemy, The Man in White. Our eyes met for a split second, and a sudden change crossed over his features. His eyebrows knitted together and his mouth sunk into a deep frown. He must have recognized me too.

Before either of us could react, a loud voice rang out through the square, drawing my attention back to the platform.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!" A woman announced into the speaker in front of her. I blinked, instantly recognizing her as the same woman with bronze streaks in her hair from the train.

"I want to thank you all for being here, and for joining us for our tenth anniversary! It seems like only yesterday when I was helping my father try to come up with designs for the entertainers." She glanced at the old man beside her with a tight smile. "What started as a simple fantasy turned into something beyond our wildest dreams. And it's only through your continuous support have we been able to make this a reality."

The woman clasped her hands together in front of her. "I would like to hand the mic over to my father now. He's the true genius here." She took a step backward as the man staggered past her towards the podium.

"Let's have a round of applause for my beautiful daughter, Dominique." He gestured to the audience, who did as they were instructed. "She's being far too modest. It was only through her talent this place was able to get started in the first place. And her husband's money, of course." The audience chuckled along with him as he pointed to someone in the front row. "Can't forget about you, Pete."

A flash of someone's arm rubbing the back of their neck caught my eye. Even in the dim light, I could see the red creeping up his neck and onto the side of his cheek. From atop the platform, the woman's thin smile seemed to falter as she looked down into the audience.

Even though I was to the side of him, I could still make out his profile. The thin face, angular face. The dark curls on top of his head. But most of all, the rimmed glasses that framed his eyes.

It was the man from the train.

"No, seriously. My vision for this park wouldn't have come to fruition without my wonderful daughter and her husband." The old man spoke with an accent, and from the sound of it, it seemed to be one of Hispanic origin. "Never once did she doubt me when it seemed impossible. I mean, ten years ago, this technology was something in the movies. But now? Even the military's wanting it!" He threw his head back and let out a wheezy sort of laugh. "Of course, at the time this park was the only one in my mind. Growing up, I always dreamed of being a cowboy and getting into shootouts at high noon. All those westerns I used to watch were to blame for that. But I knew I could never live in a time already gone by." The grin on his face had vanished. "But then the idea occurred to me, 'Why not just recreate it?'"