The Space Train

There was a train station on the moon. Cyrus looked at the sheet of paper in his hands. It had a golden tint to it and the words, ‘One Way,’ written in bold print. There was an intricate border and the date; March fourteenth, three thousand and five. Cyrus glanced at this watch, the time hovered just above the face. Two twenty-five. The train was late leaving the station. Cyrus tapped his foot in annoyance. Cyrus wasn’t sure why he was so impatient. He had nowhere to go. 

He stared out the window at the aftermath of Earth and took in a breath. He pretended, for only a moment, what his life would be like if he was still there. Walking around the beauty of the planet that no one seemed to notice. In total, he had only spent seven days on the planet before it was destroyed. His only true memory was the ocean. Standing on the beach and laughing as the waves tickled his toes. He remembered the sound the most. How the water whispered their desires; pulling and pushing against the rough sand. He lost himself in the horizon and let the ocean taste his ankles. Cyrus never learned to swim so he told himself not to go in any further than he could stand. He was sure that if he did wander any deeper, the waters' secrets would take him away. 

Cyrus was great at keeping secrets. He only spoke if he needed to. Most of the time, his innocent thoughts were dismissed before they could solidify and as a child, he was treated like one. Blurred blobs of color replaced the memories of his mother and father. He was told his mother’s beauty matched the rings of Saturn, indescribable; and her presence alone could create stars. Unfortunately, he took after his father. 

Cyrus dribbled a coin across his fingers as he glanced out the window. The bit of metal danced over his fingers as it slid from his index finger to his pinky and back again. It was a fairly large silver coin and a treasure he had stolen from the sands of the shore. His most prized possession. 

“Shame, that.” Cyrus turned to the voice’s owner. The creature sat across from Cyrus and placed their suitcase on the floor. It was a scaly creature with purple spikes around the crown of their head. A third eyelid wiped over piercing reptilian pupils. 

“I’m sorry?” Cyrus answered, un-phased by the stranger's appearance.

The stranger gestured toward the rubble of what was left of the planet. More than half of the rock floated effortlessly in the vastness of space. Fire continued to eat away at what was left. Black clouds twisted in anger within the diminishing atmosphere. 

“Heard that planet destroyed itself before mother nature could.” The stranger had a distant look in their eye, almost as if lost in thought. “You from there?” The reptile hissed gently, coming back to reality. “Are you…a human?” he asked playfully. 

Cyrus shook his head. “No. I was there for about a week. Before…”

“All aboard!” Cyrus heard the roar of the conductor. 

“Ah,” the stranger nodded after the doors closed. “What was it like?” He took a seat across from Cyrus and licked his left eyeball with a long purple tongue. 

Utter chaos. Words could barely begin to describe the horrors Cyrus witnessed on his short vacation. Panic and poverty challenged the dominating species on a daily basis and war seemed to be the answer. He could feel the hurt of the planet and choked on the air. Mankind marked their death eons ago. Cyrus was disappointed and dissatisfied with his exploration. The ocean was the only saving grace. If only he knew how to swim.

“I don’t remember,” Cyrus said after a long silence, “It’s all a blur. But the water. The water was nice. Mesmerizing even.” 

“Shame. I’ve always wanted to go. See if the rumors were true.” 

The train squealed its wheels and rumbled awake. With a blare of its horn, it left the station, leaving behind the empty moon and dead Earth. 

Cyrus turned to his new accomplice. “What rumors?”

“I heard,” the stranger lowered their voice to a whisper. He leaned forward to protect the secret. “That humans glow-in-the-dark.”

Cyrus chuckled and shook his head. “You wanted to go to Earth to see if humans glow-in-the-dark?” 

The stranger stiffened in slight embarrassment. “Among other things. Someone told me that they have wings…and I heard that they have four arms.” 

Cyrus laughed at the obscurities and thought about dismissing Kronk’s rumors. Instead, he said, “You may be on to something.” He turned his attention away from the window and took a small moment to take in more of the curious character before him. The lizard was tall and thin. They wore a slim-fitting black vest, with three large red buttons down the middle. They had nothing underneath. Skin-tight black jeans with large three-toed feet. Long, skinny arms crossed over his chest. The lizard sighed and shook their gaze away from the window, now that the destruction of Earth was no longer visible.

“Now I will always wonder,” The stranger said with a sad smile. Small needles of teeth flashed just under their upper lip.

Cyrus sighed, “I suppose you are right.” 

“Kronk.” The reptile held out their scaly hand. 

Cyrus introduced himself as he reached for a handshake. It was a firm and slightly damp grasp. A loud whistle echoed through the train as they passed the asteroid belt. A static message boomed over the intercom. 

“Next stop, Jupiter’s Junction. Next stop, Jupiter’s Junction.” 

“Where are you heading?” Kronk asked.

Cyrus shrugged and folded the ticket that was still in his hand and placed it in his pocket. His right hand firmly grasped the coin. He looked up and noticed the conductor, slowly making his rounds. He was dressed in a fancy red vest with golden buttons and black cuff links. A mess of tentacles slapped against the floor under his vest. A square hat sat on top of a bulbous head.

“Wherever this takes me,” Cyrus said, showing off his coin. He didn’t have a true destination. He flipped the coin into the air and caught it, flipping it over onto the backside of his hand. Heads kept him on the same path. “Apparently, not to Jupiter’s Junction.” 

The tracks glowed brightly underneath the train. They appeared two meters before the catch and disappeared as the last car passed over them. Cyrus and Kronk stuck their heads out of the windows, pointing at faraway comets and counted all the personal ships that raced by. The train was powered by solar winds and had two enormous engines that protruded from each side of the last car. Large sails stuck out from the tops of the cars. They collected the rays from stars and stored the energy as backup or for shorter trips where the engines weren’t needed.  Cyrus and Kronk were far enough away from the mechanisms, but they both could still feel the heat of the flames as the engine hummed. 

The train came to a stop and the wheels hissed as the engineer applied the brakes. The name of the stop was repeated over the intercom and there was a small commotion as people lined up to exit and enter the cars. When the train began moving, the conductor found his way to Cyrus and asked for his ticket. Cyrus reached into his pocket and pulled out his folded ticket. 

“Gold, huh?” Kronk said. “Fancy man.” 

“All looks in order,” the conductor said with a tip of his hat. “Enjoy your ride.” He turned to Kronk and held out his tentacle. Kronk handed over a white slip of paper, which the conductor hole punched and gave it back. “Thank you gentlemen,” he said with a nod. “Next stop is Saturn’s Rings.” 

Cyrus flipped his coin. Heads. “Looks like Saturn isn’t for me either.” He thought of his mother and hoped a view of the rings would give him clarity. 

“Good,” Kronk said as he waved a claw. “It’s too touristy anyway.” 

The large rings of Saturn shone brightly against the glare of the window. They were magnificent, golden and sat around the planet like a halo. Cyrus sighed at the sight and smiled. He imagined his mother was just as perfect. He remembered she had blue eyes. Blue like the ocean waves. The train slowed to a halt and Cyrus took his gaze back to Kronk. 

“What about you?” Cyrus asked, “Where are you going?”

“The gaseous swamps of Neptune.” A smile curled on its scaly lips. “The waters are so blue and the planet is surprisingly warm despite all the wind. See, the core is made from-” Cyrus nodded along Kronk’s presentation. Kronk went on and Cyrus listened, grateful for the company. 

“I wish I knew how to swim,” Cyrus said sadly. 

“You should learn. I’m a fantastic swimmer. Was actually brought into this life in water. I could maybe teach you.” 

The train sailed through space. The engines died down. The train would coast through the next four stops since they were fairly close to each other. The speed of the train matched Cyrus’ breath. Slow, yet steady and serene. Cyrus was so lost in conversation that he missed the name of the station as it pulled into a stop. 

“Ahh,” Kronk said with a smile, “Here we are.” 

“Where are we?” Cyrus asked as he peered through the window. A heavy coat of fog sat in the station. The muggy wet air flooded the cars as the doors creaked opened. 

“Neptune.” Kronk grabbed their suitcase and stood.

Cyrus flipped his coin. “Doesn’t seem like I’ll be joining you,” he said. 

“Unfortunate,” the lizard replied. They placed a clear helmet over its head, tightened the straps and connected the hose to an oxygen bag. Kronk held out his hand to Cyrus. 

“It has been a pleasure,” they said. Cyrus stood, took the reptile's hand and shook it. Kronk’s claw seemed to engulf Cyrus’ hand. 

“I’ll see you around,” Cyrus said. The false promise hung in the air, but they both nodded in agreement. 

“If you ever learn to swim, come visit me in the swamps.” Kronk waved goodbye and took his leave. The seat across from Cyrus was now empty and somehow, heavy. There was an overwhelming silence that sat in Kronk’s absence. Cyrus held his head and stared out the window.  

Pluto wasn’t very big, but its ocean was. Cyrus gasped and pressed his face to the window. He watched as the waves lapped each other and fish-like creatures jumped from underneath the froth. The train slowed as the intercom buzzed to life. 

“Pluto’s Place, arriving. Watch the doors,” it cut off quickly. Cyrus took a long look at his double-sided coin. He smiled to himself and placed the coin on the seat across from him. He grabbed his bag and tossed it over his back. The bag hung low on his shoulders. Cyrus sighed to himself happily as he took his first step off the train and into his new life. First stop, the ocean.