The Record of Unusual Creatures

Panda Novel

As a vital transportation gateway, the steel platform was busy and crowded, filled with a variety of equipment, locomotives, and carriages that yet to be assembled. The supervisor’s zinc house at the edge of the platform looked like it was going to fall off the ledge. Busy workers were running around the equipment, preparing for the next train, or repairing the ones damaged by the magic radiation. Almost no one had noticed the sudden appearance of the uninvited guests on the platform. As several burly supervisors were standing on the tower platform, any lazy behavior would not be able to escape their eyes. Compared to the wages they would receive after work, a group of strangely-dressed people suddenly emerging out of nowhere seemed insignificant.

Wendell brought Hao Ren, and his entourage walked through this busy platform toward the supervisor house not far away. A boiler under repair was roaring in the distance, with the pungent smell of lubricant and the sound of steam in the air. Lily was sneezing all the way. Twilight Capital had given the husky girl a terrible first impression, as the pungent smell there was a torment for her.

Finally, she had no choice but snap back on the life-support collar, which she had taken off after crossing the Twilight Shroud earlier.

“Two locomotives depart at the same time every two hours to the mining field in the wilderness.” Wendell pointed to the rugged steam locomotives. “The train carries a group of numb miners to the mines and fetches back a group of exhausted miners along with the excavated ore. The ore will be sent to the large forge and processed into building materials. There are several such stations in the outer edge connecting to other mines in the darkness. You may go to check out the mines if you want. Since you have ancient magical techniques, I hope you are willing to put these technologies… never mind, forget it. We will talk about it later.”

The supervisor’s zinc house was as old and messy as the rest of the platform. The only thing that showed it was unusual was the roof that was painted strikingly red, making the otherwise-dull station building look extraordinarily bright. No one had bothered them along the way. Wendell brought them directly to the zinc house and pushed the rusty door open.

A rough and angry voice, which was insulated earlier, came from the inside. “Your brains must have been soaked in oil! I want you all to check every gear, every bolt! Listen, it is every single item! Not taking a nap around the machine and then coming back to me with an everything-is-normal report! Do you know what it means to stop the locomotive in the dark area? It means that it will almost stay there forever! Unless I kick you dregs outside and let you fix the machines in the darkness with the blisters on your bodies! You know what, there used to be some poor chaps who were so unlucky that they had to do that. Now their bones are still hanging out there to dry. Such a bunch of rubbish.”

Then there was a loud bang inside the house. It seemed that someone had banged the table. Then the rough voice roared again. “Now get your ass out of my sight and check the machine, the boiler, every single one of them, even the rivets and shafts! Otherwise, one day, sooner or later, I will kick you all outside the shroud!”

Hurried and panic footsteps followed as five or six people wearing coarse uniform ran out of the zinc house as if they were running for their lives. One of them almost slammed into Wendell. The locomotive technicians who had just gotten an earful noticed the strangers standing at the doorway, but they almost did not dare to stop and look. Before the angry roar in the room snarled again, they left as quickly as possible.

Hao Ren and his teammates looked at each other before following Wendell into the house.

There was a large, messy desk inside, behind which a red-nosed man was sitting in an improper posture. His clothes were as dirty as the desk. He bit a stick in his mouth with his arms crossed as if he hated it so much. “Those new technicians are good-for-nothings, ill-responsible. Who let you come in here? Didn’t I say… Wendell?”

The red-nosed man finally noticed a group of strangers standing in front of him, but there was face he knew. He almost jumped to his feet in surprise, a reaction that was totally in opposition to his demeanor just now. He squeezed his thigh so hard that his mouth began to twitch.

“Wendell! My old friend! You are alive! Our ancestors must be protecting you. Is this real? I haven’t started drinking yet today!”

Wendell greeted this old friend of his. Though they were a generation apart in term of age, they hugged together like buddies. “Borcen, you loudspeaker, I have heard your voice from afar!”

“Nonsense, the sound insulation of this door has always been top-notch!” The red-nosed Borcen snorted. He pushed Wendell away, and then eyes darting on Wendell from head to toe as if looking at a rare creature. “You are back. And you don’t have any blisters or necrosis on your body. The ancestors must be very fond of you that you could make it back alive twice!”

“Yeah, the ancestors have blessed me.” Wendell smiled as he took Borcen’s hand off his arm. “Be careful; I can’t take your powerful clench with my age.”

Borcen finally calmed down from his excitement. Sighing, he said, “You daredevil. So daring that you have joined Light Seeker twice. I wasn’t even as crazy as you when I was drunk. You come back alone?”

Wendell lowered his eyes, face gloomy. “There are not many who could make it back from the darkness.”

“May their souls rest in peace in the eternal kingdom.” Borcen drew a few prayer gestures on his chest, his wrinkled clothes and casual tone made his prayer sound sincere. He then turned and looked at the group of strangers who had been standing there for a while. “Who are these people? Dressed in such attires, where do they come from?”

Wendell smiled mysteriously. He tried to suppress his expression so that he would look a little more solemn and mysterious. But the excitement had gotten the better of him, and it showed on his face. “No. They came from the outside.”

“Oh, outside, that’s far.” Borcen waved his hand casually as he still did not know what happened. When he finally realized it, he froze, his eyes widened, and he choked a little then burst. “From the outside?”

His voice almost shattered their eardrums.

Wendell grabbed Borcen’s shoulder with force. “Keep your voice down. The shock wave will destroy the entire station. Yes, they are from the outside; outside the Twilight Shroud, outside Twilight Capital! They come from Asgard.”

“Asgard, Asgard…” Borcen repeated the word a few times. “Ah, I know, it is the ancient kingdom. I have heard that the gods have personally ruled the place before. Oh, my god! Did you make it there? No, no, this can’t be possible. You are trying to amuse me, aren’t you? Your brain must be damaged by the darkness outside, or the toxins must have contaminated me.”

Wendell patted on Borcen’s shoulder with force. “This is not you. Since when you become so square?”

Borcen’s face turned solemn. “It is true?”

“It is true. It is not only true, but these messengers from Asgard also need your favor.” Wendell pointed to Hao Ren and his teammates. “I want to bring them to the Light-seeker headquarters. It is urgent, and the most convenient means of transportation I can find is your locomotive.”

Borcen rubbed his nose. “They want to hitch a ride? No problem. But I can only send them to the upper city. I can’t help when they reach the shaft that connects the upper to the lower city. You have to deal with the people in the Steam Assembly. But if the bureaucrats spot them, I guess you and your friends will have to go through a lot of red tapes. Their identity is just too special.”

Lily rolled her eyes. “Is the Steam Assembly not happy to see other survivors in the world? Will they make trouble out of it?”

“They won’t. The people in the Steam Assembly are humans too. Of course, they’re happy to know that there are other habitable zones outside Twilight Capital.” Borcen spread out his hand. “But a bureaucrat is still a bureaucrat. People like us living in the outer zone and bureaucrats don’t get along well.”

“Then just take us wherever you can,” Galazur said. “We will figure out the rest.”

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