Night Trains

The Queen pointed her finger at the Clockmaker and commanded: "Grab her!"

"Why? For what reason?" asked the Clockmaker, her expression filled with shock.

The girls rushed at her, and despite the frantic flapping of her wings, she could not escape. She plummeted to the ground, stuck to the marble floor like a trapped fly.

The queen climbed onto the forehead of the wounded child lying on the bed, resembling a mummy with bandages wrapped around his body, and ordered the girls: "Bring the Clockmaker here!"

The girls followed her command. In the queen's presence, they forcibly held the clockmaker and positioned her between the child's eyebrows.

"Why are you doing this to me," the Clockmaker asked tearfully.

Four Eyes explained: "Because we are evil. We cannot heal someone without sacrificing someone else. We had to choose you."

The Queen grinned slyly and remarked, "You're quite fortunate, Clockmaker if you can manage it."

"What for?" asked the Clockmaker in a panic.

"She's talking about being able to possess the child. Getting inside him and eating away at his soul and all sorts of horrible things," Four Eyes said.

The warrior said, "Great," and stuck out her tongue.

The Lollipopless kissed her sister on the cheek and said to her: "You can do it, sister. We trust you."

The Clockmaker tried to speak, but the Warrior silenced her by plunging a needle-sized spear into her belly.

The Clockmaker made a slight whimpering sound, as if a soft "zzz" escaped her lips, suggesting how much she was hurting.

Meanwhile, the five girls took out their magic spools and small needles. The Queen drew her dagger and cut the bandage from the boy's forehead, leaving a thin scratch on his flesh.

"We will stitch our sister here," she said.

As soon as The Queen said that, the girls sprang into action. The girls carefully stitched The Clockmaker onto the boy's forehead.

When the stitching was complete, a strange dance of light formed in the room. Black and red colors were intertwining, as the boy's flesh merged with the Clockmaker's.

The mystical transformation occurred as the Clockmaker's blood morphed into black smoke, seamlessly flowing into the child's body. Suddenly, all wounds embarked on the healing journey.

As the final spell echoed through the night, the child's eyes took on a terrible redness, and an unholy alliance was forged between innocence and evil.

The girls, witnesses to this supernatural spectacle, exchanged uncertain glances.

The Queen, with a mischievous grin on her face, spoke in a hushed tone, "Our daddy is saved now. The child is no longer an ordinary being."

[Time has leaped into the present.]

"What was that about," Ru asked.

"Dude, you don't like it," Vaelan said, sulking.

"That's a bit of a strange story, don't you think?" Ru said, trying his best not to offend his friend.

Vaelan replied with a frown, "Some stories need to be strange, don't they? They have to make people think, and push boundaries. This story is about the complex journey of a boy trying to discover the line between good and evil. Demons, fairies, magical rituals... Don't you wonder how it all fits together?"

Ru shook his head thoughtfully. "I mean, I don't know, man. Maybe you should give up being an author?"

"I'm offended. Don't have another word with me," was Vaelan's harsh response.

"Okay, that was a little offensive. Forget it, what do I know," Ru said and grabbed the marshmallow jar from Vaelan. Not satisfied, he grabbed the skewer as well.

"Hey, what are you doing," Vaelan snapped at him.

"You've lost your appetite, you can leave now. We've built a campfire and created a great ambiance. I don't want it to go to waste," Ru said with a cheeky grin.

"You, my friend, are a bastard," Vaelan said, grinning.

"No hard feelings, Vaelan, buddy?" Ru asked.

"I didn't resent you, dude, even though I knew you wounded me to death as a child. You think I'm going to end our friendship because you don't like my shitty story, huh?" said Vaelan, his eyes dancing in the flames.

Ru must have been emotionally moved because he reluctantly handed Vaelan a roasted marshmallow with a skewer and said, "Eat this."

Vaelan ate the marshmallow after blowing on it.

"It was poisoned," Ru said, acting like an evil queen.

"How would you like to stop doing stand-up comedy and perform as a haughty bitch?" said Vaelan, his tone being sarcastic.

"I'm going to be a rock star, man," Ru said, soloing on an imaginary electric guitar.

Vaelan suddenly asked: "Man, why don't you live in our house?"

"Because it's not our house, it's your father's house," Ru said, still playing his imaginary guitar.

"My friend, my father really does love you, you know," Vaelan said and put a hand on Ru's arm.

At first, Ru was apprehensive upon hearing Vaelan's words, but now he is deeply moved by this act of kindness.

"Man, I don't understand why you don't come and live with us. The orphanage is, I don't know, boring," Vaelan insisted.

"Because your stepfather is a pervert," Ru wanted to say, but instead he said: "I want to go to boarding school and I have to study hard. But you have game consoles at home and, you know, my mind wanders to them."

"And if I move into my own house, will you move in with me?" asked Vaelan, poking the fire with a branch.

"Maybe," Ru said, putting his hands on the ground and tilting his head back. His eyes shone in the light of the millions of stars in the sky.

"What do you mean maybe, man?" said Vaelan, looking at Ru.

"You know I'm cursed," Ru murmured.

"You're not, you're just a bastard," Vaelan said in a soft and sincere voice.

"I still have hallucinations and sometimes I hear strange voices. I'm not sane. In short, I am dangerous for you, buddy," Ru said while looking at a shooting star. At that moment, he edited the imaginary text with his thoughts: "Comet, meteorite, not star."

"Dude, what the fuck are you talking about, for God's sake!" said Vaelan, looking at Ru in disbelief.

"I'm high on sugar, I think it's the sugar," Ru said and sat up again, facing the campfire and then Vaelan.

Ru stared at him. The suspicious looks must have made Vaelan uncomfortable because he went back to roasting marshmallows.

"Let's form a rock band," Ru said all of a sudden.

"Is that why you were gazing into my eyes," Vaelan asked smiling.

"Are you crazy, why should I look at you?" said Ru angrily. He got up from the campfire and said, "I'm going to pick flowers." Then he started walking.

"Dude, you can't be picking flowers at this hour," Vaelan said, getting up from his seat worried.

Ru turned to him annoyed and said, "I'm going to pee, don't come!"

"Well, beware of bears, you know it's deserted here, Mr. Lirui Xiaolian," Vaelan said with a smile.

"We can deal with bears somehow. Don't worry," Ru said and walked on. As he left the campsite, he looked back a few times. Could someone be following him?

No one was there. As he looked around for a tree to climb, he saw a pale gray light rising out of the darkness. He heard a terrible growl. When he had goosebumps, he had the feeling that the demons had found him again.

Turning his back on the campsite, he surveyed the area and finally positioned himself for the night marathon. He threw one leg forward, bent his knees, and leaned forward slightly, ready to spring into motion as soon as the starting signal echoed through the air.

3!

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