Chapter 72

12 “U…urgh…” Hope rubbed his head, and his vision cleared, revealing the worried face of Milo standing over him. “Hope! Thank goodness, you woke up!” “M-Milo. Apologies. I think Actagawa’s g-forces were too much for my ear canals to keep up with…” He shook his head to clear the last of the nausea before rising to his feet. “What about the others? Are they okay? We didn’t lose anyone, did we?” “Nope! Everyone’s safe. They just went off to look around while you recovered.” “Look around? It is dangerous here…” As Hope spoke, he took in his surroundings once more. After shattering the barrier, Actagawa seemed to have landed right through the red-brick roof of Tokyo Station. The evening light filtered in through the hole in the ceiling high above, illuminating the surrounding ruins. I’m back…to 2028… Hope looked in wonder at the rows of boutiques and restaurants, just as pristine as they had been before the fall of civilization, and he felt a little homesickness in the pit of his stomach. Just then, he heard the squeal of tires and turned to see a large black motorcycle bearing down on him. It stopped before the pair, causing Hope’s braids to flutter, and Pawoo stepped off it. “Hope!” she said. “You’re awake!” “Pawoo! Wh-where did you get that?” “I found a store selling them not far from here. There was no one there to pay, though, so I borrowed one.” It seemed Pawoo had changed out of her wedding dress at some point and was now back in her familiar black bodysuit and silver skullcap. She grinned, stroking the vehicle’s dark leather seats. “I have to say,” she continued, “this old Japan craftsmanship is something else. This bike feels like a second skin.” “…A second skin? It’s a vehicle, not clothes…,” said Milo. “Pawoo, where are Actagawa and the other two? We have to—Cough! Cough!—We have to hurry. By now, Apollo will have figured out we’re here.” Pawoo patted Hope on the back, then she whacked a nearby vending machine with her staff, and out popped a canned drink, which she tossed to Hope. “Drink this,” she said. “We know. We’re in the lion’s den now.” “Th-thanks… Ow! It’s soup! …And it’s still hot!” “They are running rather late, though. Knowing these Mushroom Keepers, they likely got distracted by a shiny pebble or something. Perhaps I should head out and see what they’re up to…” Pawoo scratched her chin and considered it, when suddenly Milo heard a strange clattering noise coming from the ground at her feet. The noise moved toward them, passing between him and Hope, and in its wake appeared some sort of steel lattice. “…Hey, Hope. Isn’t this…?” “…A railway?” “…! Milo, get down! Something’s coming!” Just as Pawoo shouted her warning, a loud foghorn noise filled the station. Pawoo quickly grabbed the other two, pulling them onto her motorcycle and twisting the accelerator, just as an enormous train barreled through where they had been standing, smashing through the nearby boutique and continuing on through the coffee shop opposite. “What was that?! Is it after us?!” “It’s the Yamanote Line,” yelled Hope from Pawoo’s arms. “It’s creating its own rails and trying to run us over!” “Hold on tight, you two!” The railway line came around and advanced on Pawoo’s motorcycle with even greater speed, as if the first attack had been only a test of their strength. The Yamanote train leaped forward on the track, smashing through all obstacles in pursuit of the fleeing vehicle. Pawoo was a formidable rider and was able to swerve and avoid its attacks, but the rain of shattered glass and twisted metal as the train demolished yet another installation was terrifying to behold. “Pawoo! This thing’s unstoppable! We need to get to open ground!” “I know!” Pawoo steered toward a part of the wall smashed open by the train and leaped through into the dark streets of Tokyo outside. It seemed the Yamanote Line was not restricted to the station, however, and it continued its assault into the city. So long as the train continued to telegraph its attacks, it would be possible to dodge, but its charge was so relentless that even the iron-willed Pawoo was feeling the pressure, and large beads of sweat appeared on her brow. “Grrr… It just doesn’t give up! Will this never end?” “Whoever’s creating the railway track must be nearby. If we take them out…” “Pawoo, look out!” At Milo’s voice, Pawoo slammed on the brakes, just as the train dashed out in front, curving around like a steel snake. Pawoo looked around for an escape route, but… “…Dammit! We’re trapped!” The rails had come together into a circular track, around which the train raced at incredible speed, leaving not even a single gap through which to escape. Gradually, the track spiraled inward, leaving the trio with no choice but to wait for their inevitable deaths. “Milo! Use my staff to vault out of here! Take Hope with you!” “No, Pawoo! I won’t leave you behind!” Pawoo looked up into the evening sky. Just then, something came into view. “It’s them!” “Hyo-ho-ho! Have at ’em, Actagawa!” Ker-ranggg! Actagawa’s giant claw smashed through the roof of the train, crushing the carriage flat. “Jabi!” “Sorry I’m late! Bisco found a bookshop, and it took some fightin’ to get him to come out!” “You old fart! It was you readin’ Kobo, the Li’l Rascal the whole time!” Actagawa picked up the fiery wreckage of the Yamanote train and hurled it into the air, where Bisco shot it with a mushroom arrow. All four carriages became host to a mountain of Rust-Eaters that glittered in the evening glow, while Actagawa landed beside the motorcycle and raised his claws protectively. “Bisco! Jabi! You saved us! We must hurry! We need to reach Apollo before it’s too—!” “Wait. Hope. We’re not alone.” Bisco, too, had long since cast off his bulky wedding outfit and was back in his usual Mushroom Keeper getup. Hopping off Actagawa, he stared at a fixed point in the sky. Standing atop the wreckage of the railway station so damaged by the Yamanote Line’s rampage was a red-haired man. He glared down at the group with murder in his eyes and shouted out to them: “A crab destroying a train? Sounds like the plot of some third-rate disaster movie.” “Rage!” At Hope’s cry, everyone turned to look at the figure. The man had Hope’s same bright-red eyes, shining in the night. “As we suspected. You’ve been helping them, Hope. Look at you. You’ve even become an ape yourself. Do you truly detest Apollo that much?” “I don’t hate Apollo! I hate his twisted ego that seeks to wipe out humanity just so he can go back to the way things were! The old Apollo would never have done something like that!” “We don’t seek to wipe out humanity. Only apes.” “Rage…! I can’t believe you…!” “Launch:City:Maker!” His desire for conversation apparently over, Rage raised his arms, and at Hope’s feet another railway track began forming. “C’mon, Actagawa!” The giant steelcrab took the full force of the approaching metal python head-on, and though it pushed him back several meters, eventually he lifted the train above his head and flung it far behind him. “Actagawa and I’ll hold off that rotten red-haired rascal, Hope,” shouted Jabi. “You guys get a move on!” “Jabi! Thank you, I won’t forget this!” “Are you goin’ senile already, you old coot?” yelled Bisco. “It’ll take all six of us to beat that guy!” “Think about it, boy. If he’s sendin’ his goons after us, he must be buyin’ time still! We all stay here to fight him, we’re givin’ him exactly what he wants! Lass! I’ll leave Bisco to you.” Pawoo nodded, and while Hope muttered a spell to conjure a pink sidecar for the motorbike, Pawoo grabbed Bisco by the scruff and threw him into it. “You really serious about this, old man?” “Bisco. Have you forgotten who I am?” “…!” “Hyo-ho-ho. Got it? Then go!” “Milo, Hope, we’re off!” shouted Pawoo. “…Actagawa, Master Jabi… Stay safe.” Then she twisted the throttle and sped off through the streets, following Hope’s directions. Just as she did, Bisco tossed his dagger to Jabi. “Jabi, use this!” Its blade shone gold with the light of the Rust-Eater, and the old man caught it in his other hand. “You better kick his ass!” “Oh, I will.” “…Fools. You think I’ll let you escape?” Rage turned toward the fleeing motorcycle and began constructing the rails, sending the Yamanote Line on its heels. However, Jabi reacted with a balloonshroom arrow that knocked the train clean off the track. “…Stay out of my way, you decrepit old fool.” “Hyo-ho-ho! Actagawa! Looks like it’s our time to shine. Let’s give it all we got!” Actagawa swung his claws in response, and they gleamed in the orange glow of the setting sun. Jabi, hero of the Mushroom Keepers, drew his bow tight, eager to be heading into battle once more.