Arriving at a round room topped with a stained glass dome, Lark looked around. It was a train station but far fancier than he had ever seen. Only populated by those of the church and he expected this was their private terminal. Every country’s stations were mostly underground to preserve the farmlands and forests, providing quick transportation to all. The decadence of the terminal was equal to the Cathedral itself and Lark raised an eyebrow at why that was even necessary.

Delilah led him over to a small ticket booth where a timetable for high-speed trains sat on the counter, with prices and special discounts listed at the bottom. An asterisk underneath the blocks of text said Saints rode free from this station.

Tapping on the counter, Delilah instead knocked loudly on the glass when he got no response. A small-statured, rounded woman popped up from under the counter, her wide-rimmed glasses and headband both having flower details along them. She tidied her tight-curled, dark hair from being slightly out of place.

”D-D-Delilah! Such a pleasure to see you today!” Her voice squeaked while her face reddened something fierce. She was immediately at attention in the presence of the two Saints, her gaze dreamily fixed on Delilah. Reading the room, Lark held back a snicker.

Smiling with all the sparkles he could muster, Delilah leaned an elbow on the counter. “Hiiii~! I’m doing just fine, Cordé! What on earth were you doing down there?”

An embarrassed look covered the woman’s face. “Do NOT laugh. I dropped my glasses under the counter.” Then her shoulders sagged with visible exhaustion. “It’s been so busy all day, with a new Saint showing up and everything!”

She turned to Lark and smiled broadly, features exuding genuine joy. Her dark brown eyes were gentle and friendly. “And you must be him! I hope you’re doing okay? Is Delilah taking care of you?” Her attention went back to the other Saint propped sensually on the counter.

“I am, I am! Don’t worry, he’s getting the best treatment.” Promised Delilah with a cheerful little laugh. “Unfortunatlyyyyy we gotta go on a little errand into the Torchlands.”

He handed Cordé an ID card and she opened up her computer, typing quickly.

“Torchlands? Meis is really making you poor Saints work, huh?” More clicking. “We have a train coming in and going back out in about 30 minutes.”

Looking past the turnstiles and seeing some trains on the numerous tracks, Lark hummed. “We can’t take any of those?”

Shaking her head, Cordé didn’t look up from her computer. “Oh, no no no. Since the Torchlands has some… interesting geography, only special trains can be used.”

Counting on his fingers Delilah began listing off some things. “Glyphs to help make the fire-resistance furniture and train parts, glyphs to make sure it stays on the track safely, glyphs to let folks of all sizes use the trains… those sorts of things, among others.”

Fascinated by who was coming through the city, Lark could feel the excitement shivering at the back of his neck. Where he lived, out in the country, there were very few demons since the mountains were too cold year-round. Briskwater was in general a country ample in plains and mountains and cold rivers, and the seasons leaned more towards autumnal. 

Demons were a very proud and dedicated group of people, mostly living in the Torchlands as it was a climate they were more accustomed to. They were peaceful and skilled in their particular crafts, home to some of the most influential scholars and scientists, and very friendly. Lark had heard the current King was quite young when they took the throne and had done their best to govern alongside outlying town government heads.

A jingle startled Lark and he focused on the current objective.

“Here you are!” Sliding two shiny tickets under the window Cordé pointed to Delilah’s earring with a wink. “I know your medallion number, so don’t worry.”

“You’re my favorite ticket booth, Cordé.” Blowing her a kiss, Delilah took the tickets and turned around.

Lark could hear Cordé giggling to herself as they walked away and chuckled softly to himself. “She liked you.”

“Oh, who could’ve guessed!” Rolling his eyes, Delilah smacked Lark’s cheek with their train tickets. “We actually had somethin’ goin’ on but that was a while ago. We’re still cool, once in a blue moon we hook up.”

Appreciative that he was so open about it Lark nodded. Walking towards their track number, Lark pointed to the supposed medallion. “What did she mean by that?”

Pinching it and spinning the gold between his fingers, Delilah made an O with his mouth. “I forgot you don’t have yours yet. All Saints have one of these, it has a code glyphed into the metal on the back. You’ll get your ID card, too.”

She flipped it around to show a set of numbers and a unique seal stamped into the medal. “We use it for transport and discounts at places. I don’t like to use it that often unless I’m traveling. The train ticket fare can rack-up when you’re going across the country constantly. It’s only free here, after all.”

“I’ll get one?” Liking the prospect of just… seeing as many places as he wanted was the most exciting thing that had come up this whole time.

“Mmhmm.”

Sitting down on a bench, Delilah tapped the spot next to her and Lark sat. Immediately she grabbed his arm and tugged him closer.

“Something important, by the way.” His voice held an uncharacteristic nervous tone and Lark gulped. “Please don’t embarrass me in front of Ammut.”

The apprehension vanished.

“What?”

“You gotta be cordial and poised and all that garbage and you can’t tell them about me being so nice!”

“Why not?”

“Because he’ll hang it over me forever! I have a reputation.”

Covering his mouth to resist a laugh, Lark tilted his head. “Really? The news always makes him seem like a complete gentleman.”

“Yes! So much so that it’s agonizing! They don’t tell you how much he loves to mess with me.” Delilah snapped.

Lark chuckled again. “Mess with you?”

Delilah bit his lip and leaned back onto the bench, folding his arms. “We’re… childhood friends? I guess? Me being a Saint and them being a king makes it weird, though.”

She shivered dramatically. “He knows how to get under my skin. It’s terrifying.”

Mimicking his languid pose, Lark stared up at the ceiling. “That’s surprising.”

Glowering, Delilah jabbed a finger at him. “Don’t say a fucking word. Or the training deal is off.”

Lark rolled his eyes, wondering why he was getting so worked up over it. “If you’re friends, shouldn't he know everything about you? What’s the big deal?”

“I dunno. We like keeping secrets.” Was all Delilah sadly said. 

The half hour wait went by agonizingly slowly after that, until finally a dark train rolled through the tunnel. It gleamed and shimmered with rainbow colors despite the lack of lights along the tracks. Glyphs were carved all over the sides and around the out of place stained glass windows unbecoming of a train. It let out a hiss as glittering silver dust blew out from underneath. Marveling at the beauty of it, Lark looked on with wide eyes.

“Pretty right? I like them better than ours.” Already making his way over, Delilah stood in front of one of the doors. It opened with a click and an attendant came down the steps to check tickets. Too busy looking, Lark was abruptly dragged up into the train and to a pair of seats.

“They don’t like waaiiitiiing.” Sang Delilah, getting comfortable in the seat across from him.

“How long does it take to get to the royal city?” Lark was still busy looking around, wondering about the choice of such detail just for a train.

“Only a few hours. This is a high-speed train after all. Go on, get comfy.”