There were only people on the top deck of the bus, their faces only visible through thin swipes against the condensation-drenched glass. Though hastily cleared, those little patches of clarity showed a totally different being compared to the murkier outlines that suggested they had features which were definitely not human.
Great horns that curved in impossible arcs, somehow managing to be through the glass, through the roof and not there all at once. A woman's bored face on the body of a large, fur-covered snake that writhed rhythmically. Eight heads all crammed into one tiny clear patch, jostling about to peer down at you, snarling at each other over the slightest movement.
A single patch kept clearing itself with no creature behind it, no visible hand or even the vaguest outline. You got the feeling that this was a space meant for you. The sole reason that this bus was still parked when the timetable stated that it should have left ten minutes ago. No others arrived - it was scaring them off.
Taking a deep breath you walk forwards. The driver doesn't ask you where you are going, he doesn't take the money you offer, he only tells you to take a seat. You head upstairs, wondering exactly what you will see, what you have seen and what is even real at this point.
When you reach the end of the stairs, that seemed far longer than they could feasibly be, you see only normal people. You see only humans whose faces match the ones you saw from the bus stop. The inhuman things are now waiting where you stood, staring up at you with a distinct air of impatience.
The bus moves as soon as you take your seat, right where the glass clears itself.
It continues to clear itself as the bus finally pulls away.
Suddenly everyone else seems a lot less human.
Great horns that curved in impossible arcs, somehow managing to be through the glass, through the roof and not there all at once. A woman's bored face on the body of a large, fur-covered snake that writhed rhythmically. Eight heads all crammed into one tiny clear patch, jostling about to peer down at you, snarling at each other over the slightest movement.
A single patch kept clearing itself with no creature behind it, no visible hand or even the vaguest outline. You got the feeling that this was a space meant for you. The sole reason that this bus was still parked when the timetable stated that it should have left ten minutes ago. No others arrived - it was scaring them off.
Taking a deep breath you walk forwards. The driver doesn't ask you where you are going, he doesn't take the money you offer, he only tells you to take a seat. You head upstairs, wondering exactly what you will see, what you have seen and what is even real at this point.
When you reach the end of the stairs, that seemed far longer than they could feasibly be, you see only normal people. You see only humans whose faces match the ones you saw from the bus stop. The inhuman things are now waiting where you stood, staring up at you with a distinct air of impatience.
The bus moves as soon as you take your seat, right where the glass clears itself.
It continues to clear itself as the bus finally pulls away.
Suddenly everyone else seems a lot less human.
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