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Saturday 15 December 2018

The Last Carriage

During an overnight rail journey the train unexpectedly slows and stops at a small station shortly after midnight. Passengers who are still awake are politely informed that supplies are being collected. Although it is dark, the station looks to be old and in a state of disrepair. A damaged sign reveals only part of the station’s name. Nobody is seen outside the train, but passengers in the penultimate carriage hear clanking noises towards the end of the train, followed by a slight jolt. After about 15 minutes the train resumes its journey.

The next day when the train reaches its destination, observant passengers note that nobody leaves the last carriage.

Possibilities

1 The railway staff are part of a cult serving a small tribe of ghouls using the disused station as a base. The train stops at night and the final carriage is replaced with an empty one. The guards are brutally efficient in silencing non-sleeping passengers in the final carriage. Most passengers are destined for the ghouls’ dinner table, but a few are to become ghouls themselves.

2 The occupants of the last carriage were taken over by the Great Race of Yith who, when fleeing the Flying Polyps, chose to spend time in the present. Rather than move directly among mankind, they have chosen to hide themselves away for a short time and learn about the world. They are currently living in the abandoned station, aided by human allies.

3 The unfortunate occupants of the last carriage have become the victims of a cult obsessed with youth and beauty. Gas rendered them unconscious and they are now prisoners at the station. During the next full moon, the cult sacrifices the prisoners, using Steal Life to regain their lost youth.

© Robin Low

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