Cow Folk 2: Cow Again Tomorrow [d10 train]

COW FOLK 2: COW AGAIN TOMORROW
a d10 train blitz thread

It all made him want to throw up. The constant shaking, the loss of firm earth beneath him, the people and the talking and the moving. Everything about it was too much. He stood to the side of the train, where the escort let go of his arm after shoving him ahead like he was a man made of straw. He stood and let the vibrations overwhelm him, a jittering, caffeinated feeling that probably came from the cup of coffee he had in the justice building, or the second, or the third. But the unease that tightened his throat and turned his armpits into marshes was man-made, was a product of the giant, lumbering steel machine that disconnected him from the earth, something he’d never felt. Something he never thought he’d feel. Even in bed he felt the ground just below, its rumblings a constant and tireless reminder of life.

How symbolic, he thought, to have lost that reminder. Maybe he was made of straw after all. The others on the train remained on the opposite side, near the tables of food and drink. Headed to the Hunger Games and he was a scarecrow.

Exover resigned then to sniff out the buffet trays and grab whatever he wanted before returning to his side of the train. His nose twitched. Broccoli with, he couldn’t be for certain, but garlic goat cheese? A stuffed fish, with more seafood inside, no thanks. A basket of grilled potatoes, some corn, one giant fried turkey, and with one last inhalation Exover got a whiff of something more familiar: Emberstatt. The victor one, obviously, but that was the extent of his knowledge. Those games were years before he was born, but he learned enough of them through meals with Reggie. Reggie who led him to the stage when no one volunteered, Reggie who helped him dye all his socks the same color, Reggie who cared for him when not a soul else did. He owed it to her to talk to him, to break the silence he inspired in others. With a heavy sigh, he turned and took a few uncertain steps toward the 59th victor. “Hi, uh.” He pulled his collar with his pointer finger and swallowed. “We’ve had meat.”