The door ahead slid open with an eerie whisper, revealing a carriage that seemed older than time itself. Its walls were lined with rows of seats, each occupied by a frozen passenger. Their eyes were wide, pale faces staring straight ahead, lips parted in silent screams.
Evelyn stepped forward cautiously, the hairs on her arms standing on end. "This… this is wrong," she murmured.
Alex swallowed, glancing around nervously. "Are they… alive? Dead?"
The whispering voice returned, soft, coaxing, and hungry:
"Find the one who moves… or join us forever."
Evelyn's eyes scanned the frozen faces. One figure caught her attention—a young girl with tattered clothes, clutching a small locket that glimmered faintly in the dim light. Her eyes blinked slowly, locking onto Evelyn's.
"That's her," Evelyn whispered. "The one who's still… here."
The girl spoke, her voice hollow and echoing: "You shouldn't be here. You will… become like us if you fail."
Evelyn stepped closer. "Tell me what you remember. We'll help you."
The girl's lips trembled. "My brother… he… disappeared on the tracks. I… I lost him. I never… saw him again…"
A sudden shiver ran through the carriage. The rows of seats began to twist, stretching into a labyrinth. Every path looked the same. Shadows flickered along the edges of their vision, whispering threats.
"We have to solve her memory," Evelyn said, tightening her grip on Alex's arm. "It's the only way to get out."
Maya studied the locket. Inside was a tiny, faded portrait of a boy holding a book. Etched faintly around the edge were the words:
"Only what is remembered can be set free."
Evelyn's mind raced. "We need to piece it together—what happened to her brother, the story she lost… everything."
The friends moved through the twisting aisles, each step pressing them deeper into the shadowed labyrinth. Faces of the frozen passengers seemed to flicker, some grimacing, others smiling faintly, but all watching.
Evelyn reached out, placing her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Tell us everything. We need to remember it right."
The girl's voice shook. "He… he waited on the platform. I… I went to call him, but… he was gone. I never… saw him again…"
Evelyn pieced it together with the others, reconstructing the memory out loud. Slowly, the frozen passengers began to stir, returning to life. The shadows shrank, and the labyrinth dissolved into a single path.
The girl smiled faintly, fading into the light. "Thank you… now go… before it changes its mind."
Evelyn exhaled, feeling the weight of the carriage lift. "Every carriage… it's getting worse."
Alex swallowed hard. "And the next one… it will be worse still."
The next door loomed ahead, glowing ominously, leading down into deeper darkness. Evelyn took a deep breath, her fingers tightening on the railing. "Then we keep moving. Together."