The Unforgiven Split

The year and the geographical location of this story doesn’t matter. There is one person to be concerned with and his name is Alex. Alex is a middle-aged man; average as can be. Alex becomes trapped on an eternal train that does not intend to stop. He is on a journey that uncovers a forgotten past and reveals a revelation within himself that is his doom.

Asleep on a train, Alex dreamt of walking through the galaxy watching matter and planetary spheres orbiting their celestial star. He was alone and at peace wondering around our galactic universe with no destination or an inkling of what he was supposed to do or where he was headed. He couldn’t remember a time in his life being in a place so beautiful. But then, an unexpected event started to take place. He tried to understand what was unfolding in front of him as his body began moving faster and faster. He was overcome with fear, scared out of his mind. The speed was tremendous crushing his body as he sailed uncontrollably. Whole galaxies were flashing by. Thoughts of dread and death entered his mind. His body started to sizzle and eventually catch fire like a shooting star entering Earth’s atmosphere. Alex screamed in agony, overcome by rage and hate as his skin melted off his bones. In the distance he could see himself asleep on a train. A gravitational pull was drawing him closer and closer. He could hear rail cars screeching and clacking on its tracks. Suddenly the horn blew. The noise was so loud it was like a knife stabbing him in the ears.

In a panic with sweat dripping from every pore of Alex’s body he jolted awake. He looked around to catch his bearings. The only thing for certain, he was on a train. He bent over in his chair putting his hands to his face relieved that everything was ok. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the sweat from his face and neck. As he sat in his seat, Alex tried frantically to remember how he had gotten on the train. The more he thought the less he remembered. He couldn’t remember anything about his life. The only thing that he did know for certain was his name, Alex. He leaned back into his seat and looked out the window. His eyes widened and mouth fell open in fear. He could see nothing but darkness. In the distance was an endless wall of fire with shadowy figures lurking in the darkness. Alex looked towards the front of the train and on the side of the locomotive appeared the number 33. Alex thought to himself, we are not in Kansas anymore.

Alex was a nervous wreck, shaking like a cold wet puppy. “Where the fuck am I?”, he yelled. What the hell am I doing on a train and how did I get here, he thought. He looked down in front of him and on his tray, there was a glass of bourbon. Alex picked up the glass and guzzled it down as quickly as he could. A few minutes later the shakes went away, and he was finally levelheaded enough to stand up and explore. Alex stood up grabbing the back of the seat in front of him bracing himself from the sway of the rail cars. “I sure would like another bourbon”, he thought to himself. “Hell, who am I kidding I’ll take the whole damn bottle.” He baby stepped into the aisle looking around trying to make any sense of what was happening to him. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary passenger car with ordinary people. A couple seats down from him an old man was hunched over, glaring out his window. “Hey old man”, Alex shouted. “Do you know where we are going?” The old man slowly looked over towards him. His face pail and lifeless. His eyes were as empty as the darkness. His voice was the sound of death and he whispered, “This train doesn’t stop, we are all stuck here.” Alex’s heart began to pound from the sight of the old man and his voice brought a cold gust of air that sent chills up Alex’s spine. Paralyzed with fear, Alex found a pen in the seat next to him. He picked it up and stabbed it into his thigh. Screaming in agony and stumbling forward, he collected himself and sped off looking for someone else to talk to.

When Alex entered the second rail car, he smelled a familiar fragrance that he could not quite put his finger on. As Alex walked slowly down the aisle, the lights flickered on and off making it hard to see. He searched for signs of life when suddenly a woman in the corner turned towards him. Her face looked like a murderous butcher had gotten a hold of her. There was blood dripping from her face onto her once white silk dress. Alex fell to his knees screaming in pain. The women walked up to Alex and stared into his eyes with a soul piercing gaze. He screamed for help as he fell to the floor. His body convulsing with every stab wound as the woman hovered over him still just staring. Blood started to trickle from his face. Everything went dark as the blood seeped into his eye. He screamed in fright frantically trying to wipe the blood from his eyes but there was too much. Alex pulled out his shirt tail and started wiping. When he was able to see again the woman was gone.

His heart began to harden. With legs trembling a lump grew in his throat as he tried to hold back tears. Alex screamed for help again but with no response. He crawled on all fours to the next train car. Another woman appeared standing in the middle of the aisle but this time her arms and a leg were badly broken and bent backwards. As Alex crawled closer to the woman, he reached out towards her in attempt to gain mercy. At that moment both arms and one of his legs shattered in multiple locations. Alex fell to his face sobbing and screaming “Just kill me, just kill me already.” The pain was so immense he threw up and laid in his vomit unable to move. When he managed to pick his head up the woman was gone.

Alex’s mind started to shift as he laid there on the floor in a pool of his own blood and vomit. Struggling to breath, Alex whispered to himself, “Why me? Why is this happening to me?” Slowly his memory started to come back. He thought that the agonizing pain activated the memory receptors in his brain, but he knew that wasn’t the case. His brain had made the switch. Alex was gone, his other personality taking over once again. He is two people. The darkness inside him had committed those horrendous murders, not Alex. Unfortunately, in purgatory his victims know no boundaries. Two souls trapped in Alex’s body require double payment

He picked himself up off the floor and smiled. He walked into the next train car and standing in front of him was another woman, bloody, missing her hands and feet. Alex’s smile quickly faded as he turned and tried to run. Before he could take a step, his appendages were hacked off one by one. For a short time, Alex became catatonic. He finally realized there was no escaping. This was his hell, trapped in a purgatory for the sins he had committed. The victims he had murdered, 32 in total, flooded his memory. He remembered the victims faces, how he murdered each one, and the way it made him feel. His victims are trapped in the same purgatory seeking revenge on their perpetrator. The number 33 flashed in his mind. Alex realized its significance. This was his hell, therefore, making him victim number 33.