I awoke early the next morning, eager to start the day, and get to traveling.

After a quick wash, I was dressed in clean travel clothes, my weapons were belted on comfortably, with the cutlass feeling like a good addition, and I was ready for some breakfast.

Breakfast turned out to be a simple but delightful fare, and after that I was off to get Halona, and my own horse for that matter, and then on to shopping, trading, and getting some train tickets.

“So, you hope to sell off some of your salvage?” She asked, as I hitched her back up to the wagon. The Sheriff had let me store it next to his office last night, so I needn’t worry about anything being stolen.

“Indeed.” I replied. “After we’ve lightened our load, or at least exchanged it for some better stock of goods, we’re getting a train ticket and heading out of here.”

“Sounds good.” Halona nodded with a smile as she began pulling the cart alongside me down the dirt road. Townspeople still stopped to stare at her in wonder as she passed, which caused her no end of quiet amusement.

“Of course it does.” I replied with a sigh. “If my mother and sisters were anything to go by, all women just love being able to go shopping.”

“Meanwhile all you boys like playing with your toys as soon as you get them.” She replied, pointing at the pistols and knife on her belt around her waist with a raised eyebrow.

“Naturally,” I laughed. “We have to learn how to use them, after all.”

We both laughed as we set about going down the road to the various shops and stores, ready to trade, sell, barter and buy.

What I had envisioned being merely a couple hours spent on this morning endeavor quickly became half the damn day! There was a collection of stores for clothing that all but begged at the chance to have Halona try on their latest and greatest, which I did not understand at all. Well, not until I saw a photographer with a large tripod camera nearby, then it suddenly made perfect sense.

Halona for her part loved every second of it, happy to try on so many elaborate dresses and even hastily modified gowns. Between the fashion women and their arguments, or competitions I guess, and the photographer, I simply told Halona that I would see to our other needs, and left her in that fabric lions den.

She didn’t seem to mind.

After I escaped that silk and satin hell, I set about getting some real work done.

I bartered most of the tobacco at a local general store for some better transportable food stuffs, and a few of the bottles of top quality booze got me some better hygiene supplies for both humans and horses. Some of the other herbs, and the rest of the tobacco and another good bottle got me a nice, new duster.

Simple, easy, practical and reliable. And it looked good. Why women made clothing so damn elaborate and complicated I would probably never know.

Or care even if I did know, honestly.

In the end, even with selling some of the spare guns and cloths, we still had a lot of odds and ends and random supplies. Some were useful for a trail, some were useful for civilization or furnishing a house.

Still, the supplies were gathered, and apart from proper luggage boxes, we were done are ready to go.

With that in mind, I set off to the train station.

Finally! I thought darkly as I reached the station, and found it open.

After tying up Butterball and the wagon, I headed inside.

“How can we help you sir?” The clerk behind the walled off counter asked, professionally.

“Two tickets east. All the way to the coast. Plus a horse and a wagon full of goods as well.” I stated, finally able to say what I’d been planning on saying for months. Finally; heading east to the steam and soot coast, and beyond that, who knows?

“Of course sir, and what class tickets would you like?” The clerk asked, writing down my order on pad.

“First class, all the way, for both.” I informed him with a smile. “I also have some cargo I would transported in a safe or lock box. Quite a bit, actually, now that I think about it.”

“Absolutely sir!” The clerk responded with a smile. “We offer several most excellent safes and strong boxes for all our passengers needs. Of course space is at a premium and that will necessitate a larger fee, on top of the two first class tickets.”

“Of course.” I replied without rolling my eyes, too much anyway. “That will not be a problem.”

“Excellent sir! And will you and your companion prefer to have one train room together or two separate ones, sir?” The clerk asked. That caught me off guard.

“Train room?” I asked, confused. “Don’t we just stop at towns at night and sleep at an inn or hotel?”

“We used too, sir.” The clerk sighed, looking suddenly tired. “Several towns between here and the next two states over have been wrecked. Some say giants, others say beastkins, still others whisper of far worse things.”

“There a new war on or something?” I asked, confused. “I thought we were on good terms with the beastkins and their towns and territories? Hell I heard that some were even state senators now! And I thought the giants had retreated to their mountain cave systems?”

“There are beastkin outlaws just as much as there are human outlaws,” the clerk answered with a shrug. “So, if it is beastkin, that’s probably what it is. However, if its giants, or worse, who knows?”

The clerk frowned in thought and shrugged. “Giants can take entire towns apart, buildings and all. Haven’t heard of damage that bad. Yet. And there are plenty of opportunistic outlaws, human and otherwise, who could and would get in on the act, using the other towns destruction as cover for their own wicked acts. So it could easily be several things going on at once. Problem is, no one can say.”

“That why the train supplies are all screwed up?” I asked, suddenly wondering if I actually had enough guns and ammo for this coming mess. “And everyone’s arming up with everything from guns to spears?”

Maybe I should get some shotguns? I wondered idly.

“It is sir.” The clerk nodded in affirmative to my question. “As such, the trains have taken to steaming right on through the empty and destroyed towns, and the train company has even commissioned several different new routes of track to be made. So, passengers are on the train for longer these days.”

“Hence the rooms on the train itself.” I nodded, sighing. This was going to be interesting, at the very least.

“My traveling companion isn’t human.” I told him calmly, holding his eyes and watching how he would react. “She’s a centaur.”

He stared at me in quiet surprise for a moment, then actually looked behind me, as though he was trying to see her. I actually smiled at that.

“She’s busy being used by the women at the clothing shops as their newest dress up doll.” I told him, chuckling. “They even have a photographer there and everything. I was a little afraid of what might happen to me if I tried to intervene so we could work on our other errands, such as buying a train ticket.”

“Ah.” He nodded with a knowing smile. “Yes, I understand sir. I fear the attention of those women as well. It was wise to simply take care of other business while they have their fun.”

“I fully agree.” I chuckled before focusing back on the matter at hand. “So, what does that do for her first class ticket? It’s not like she can fit in a little train booth seat.”

“Hmm.” He pursed his lips in thought for a moment, before he looked back at me with a shrug. “We can hook up another cattle car, one just for her, and no one else. We’d clean it up of course and put in some better furnishings. Nothing too opulent or extravagant, considering the space that would take up otherwise. It would be a bit austere by our standards, especially for first class. But…”

“It’ll be a whole lot better than stuffing her in with the rest of the horses or cattle in their packed cars.” I nodded in agreement. Then sighed again. Women; human, centaur, beastkin or otherwise, sure as all hell were expensive!

I suddenly had to wonder just how long my new found wealth would actually last at this rate.

The clerk seemed to sense my thoughts, and actually had to laugh.

“Sorry sir, but it’s going to cost, no matter what. Still,” the clerk pointed out with amusement. “The novelty of a female centaur riding on a train might attract more customers. We could offset some of the costs in exchange for an interview with a paper. Advertisement like that would be worth its weight in gold.”

“So long as the interview is on the way.” I agreed with a sigh, figuring that they would get their story out however they could, no matter what. At least this way we wouldn’t be delayed, and we saved some money. “I’m in the mood to travel on your fine train, as soon as possible. Not talk about traveling on it with a journalist.”

“Absolutely sir!” The clerk nodded in agreement, then set about writing furious notes out on his note pad. “Perhaps one day we’ll be able to send messages to other towns or across continents instantly. It would certainly make all this much easier. Oh well. There is a reporter in town currently, and she has a ticket to leave as well. I will have a message boy deliver a letter to her informing her of the arrangement. I imagine she will accept.”

“Most likely.” I replied with a chuckle. “We’ll see her on the train. I want to leave as soon as possible. When is the next train heading east?”

“There is one departing in the next three hours sir.” The clerk answered with certainty. “I’ll have the track hands rig up the centaurs private car, and have it connected to the other passenger cars, so you and the reporter can visit. It’ll take a little improvising, but it shouldn’t be too bad. I can have them begin loading your luggage now, and you can lock up your valuables in the safe and strong box, so that you will be ready to leave as soon as the train is.”

“I would like that.” I nodded in affirmation, pleased at the competency of the small little clerk. This was a man that took pride in doing his job very well.

“One last question sir,” the clerk looked up at me with an amused smile. “What is your final destination? Just heading east doesn’t really work on a ticket sir.”

“As far to the East as the Union goes I suppose.” I replied with a smile and a shrug. “New York would be good.”

“Understood sir.” The clerk nodded. “Coming right up.”

After that, money changed hands, I received my tickets and receipts, and I and the track hands and train crew set about loading my luggage, wagon and all. I supervised the loading of the gold and expensive alcohol, and some of the spare guns we’d kept, but otherwise, the crew was very quick and professional.

I was ready to be out of this town on the next train with two hours to spare!

Now I just had to go and retrieve Halona from the seamstress women.

God help me.