In The Wasteland

Later in the day, the dense fog had finally lifted, revealing a clear path ahead. Our destination was now in sight. Our goal was to rescue innocent people and Lena's brother from a fast-moving train. I followed Lena to a meadow where a small barn stood. I was confused as to why we were there, but Lena seemed to have a plan.

As we entered the barn, I saw four majestic horses and two cows grazing inside. "I thought we had a train to catch," I said.

"Yes, we do," Lena replied confidently. "But we can't run after it - it's too fast and there aren't many hills to jump on. Our only chance is to ride alongside it on horseback."

"But won't that attract a lot of attention?" I asked.

"Don't worry," Lena reassured me. "When we get there, you can climb over the top of the train to the prisoners' section while I ride alongside and signal to Tag that it's me on the horse and not to worry."

"And if he asks why you're there?" I questioned.

Lena thought for a moment before replying, "For the safety of the train, there is no outside or inside communication. So when I enter the train, I can easily convince him that the epic sent me and that everything is okay."

"You've planned so much," I said in awe. "You really couldn't have done this on your own?"

"No," Lena admitted. "Unfortunately, I can't do both jobs."

"I understand," I said as Lena mounted her horse.

"Shall we go?" she asked with determination in her eyes.

As I was about to mount another horse next to Lena, she suddenly signaled for me to stop with a wave of her hand. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Two horses will attract too much attention."

I walked over to the horse Lena was on and motioned for her to scoot over. "Then move over," I said.

"No way," Lena said. "Get in."

"I don't like that," I replied firmly. "I'd rather ride."

Shaking my head as if I regretted coming here for a moment, I slowly climbed up behind Lena on the horse. She turned her head to look at me before riding off. "There may be no turning back this way," she warned.

"Thanks for the warning now," I said sarcastically.

"I thought I'd tell you anyway," Lena replied.

"I've saved people before, don't worry," I reassured her.

"Is that so?" Lena asked.

"Yes," I confirmed. "But it's the first time on a train."

"You'll manage then," Lena said confidently.

She shook the horse's reins and urged it into a run. We were slowing down with a hustle, we were on the road, the horse suddenly accelerated, the horse continued to accelerate. Although it was carrying two people, the horse was quite fast. I nudged Lena with my hand and asked, "Do you own this horse or did we steal it?"

"Don't worry," Lena replied. "The horse will return to its owner once it's on the trained train."

"That's good," I said, relieved.

The road we were traveling on was becoming increasingly arid. The once lush green landscape had given way to barren land with no trees or grass in sight - only dry ground and dust. It was strange how suddenly the land had become so dry. The horse seemed unfazed by the change in scenery, as if it had been like this for a long time.

Curious as to why a place that was once green could suddenly become so desolate, I prodded Lena once more. "Why is it so dry here?" I asked.

"Because of Furon's castle," Lena explained. "The castle employs laborers every day to forge metal and then send it to the fourth kingdom to make weapons."

After Lena's explanation, I took a deep breath and tried to focus on the journey ahead. The dryness of the environment was really starting to get to me. After traveling for some distance, we finally reached a hill-like area.

"There's Furon's castle," Lena said, pointing ahead.

I had never seen anything like it before. The castle was bigger than any other epic castle I had ever seen - so big that I could see the fires of the great hearths even from this distance. Lena pointed to the railway line below us and then to a train that was passing by.

"There's our train," she said urgently. "Oh no, the train will reach the castle sooner than I expected. We must hurry."

From our vantage point on the hill, we could see the train heading towards the castle. It was fast but not as fast as I had thought it would be. Lena wasted no time and started riding again, urging the horse into a gallop.

"Hey, slow down!" I called out, but Lena was already on her way and we continued to move quickly towards the train.

After a lot of speeding, we finally caught up with the train at the top of the hill. Just as Lena had said. The train seemed to emit a thick black smoke as it chugged along. When we got close enough, Lena turned her head back towards me.

"Okay cowboy, you're up," she said.

I waited until the horse was close enough before jumping onto the train. Now all I had to do was find the prisoners and rescue them before the train reached the fort.

I didn't understand how it had come to this. All I knew was that I had to be very careful on the train. As Lena had said, there were no soldiers outside the train - apparently, they were all inside. I didn't know if that made things easier or harder for me.

Thinking that our time was valuable, I had to move fast, but at the same time, I had to be quiet.

Since I did not know how many people were hostages inside, I knew that I had to be careful with my shots, because the inside of the train was not very spacious.

I checked my weapons and got to work.