Old Afterclaps

**Old Afterclaps** is the name of a train and entity that haunts the long-abandoned railway lines of Wyoming. Although he in function no longer works for the Industry, he still does his job in "collecting" people who have done or plan on doing morally dubious deed, doing so with quite a deal of force, though he used to send souls who hadn't passed on to the Industry and reprimanding runaway Demons. It is unknown what "collecting" means in this context, but it is undoubted nothing good for those he captures.

## Personality

Old Afterclaps is one of the wiser characters of hfth, seeming to have some deeper knowledge of what's going on with the world then even Nikignik. He has a verbalised distain for Indescribables, and expresses a curious streak to Nikignik.

## Description

Old Afterclaps is a Steam Locomotive, the exact make and model of which is unknown. The sound of his engine (exclusively called a "burning furnace in/for his chest") has been compared to that which a heartbeat makes, he is described as being set ablaze in Episode 73 - Retributions, and he carries chains which are his main for or weaponry, though they are also described as his "burden", exactly what this might look like visually is unspecified. Although how this might be possible is unknown Afterclaps does have two eyes, their placement unspecified.

## History

Old Afterclaps is an agent of the Industry who permanently holds a post on earth, being made by Syrensyr to hunt down wayward Souls and runaway Devils. It is unknown how long he has been alive for but given that he is a train assumption can be made that he has been around since at earliest 1804. When Earth went into quarantine by the Industry after the Black Rains Old Afterclaps was left to his own devices, and he now wonders what is left of the Wyoming railway, though he mentions that his job wasn't as active as it used to be as there "weren't so many wrongs to right these days" referring to the dwindling population of the human race.

### Season 2

Episode 84 - Interference: Nikignik sits on a railway crossing sign in Wyoming, morning the events of Episode 83 - Hopes when Old Afterclaps crosses paths with them. He greets them, and Nikignik verbally acknowledges his ability to see them as strange, but Old Afterclaps tells him that he "[hunts] souls and stories and sins." so he could see them just fine. This allows Nikignik to guess who it was he was talking too. Afterclaps makes a comment about how the years broke people down, and Nikignik tells him to speak for himself as they weren't broken, but Afterclaps asks him that if he wasn't broken then why was there a wayward god crying under the stars of his rail-line. Nikignik defends himself, telling Afterclaps that they weren't crying, but he supposed his presence had set off some form of radar dish in Afterclaps to 'get back to work'. Afterclaps takes offence to this, telling Nikignik that all gods were the same, they didn't care about anything smaller than them, and Nikignik starts to scold him for not knowing anything of life or loss as he could not dream. Afterclaps tells him that that might be the case, but he was still doing his own thing despite his purpose, which made him and Nikginik similar in some ways.

Nikignik explains to him what he was doing on earth, and Afterclaps relates to this by telling him of the lives that he'd saved, and how despite these people's lives being small things, they were good, so the feeling of having done right y them was worth it. He builds off of this by asking why if Nikignik cared about the people he told stories about so much, he didn't help them. Nikignik explains to him that it was because 'good intentions' could always go wrong, that it could spiral out of control and cause the very thing that he was trying to prevent. It was easier to report what happened, good or bad. And what if humanity did have hope and his interfering was what ruined it. Afterclaps tells Nikignik that if he wasn't a coward and was just standing on the side lines watching people suffer, he'd burn him up from the inside out. To not be afraid to help these people, if he was so inclined, he could call it penance for the past. Nikignik comments on how beautiful the night sky from where they were was, and Afterclaps asks them if they thought they'd stay long. Nikignik asks him who he was talking about, and Afterclaps tells him the Stars, r was Nikignik going to let them go out. Afterclaps leaves Nikignik where he found them.

## Known Abilities

* Old Afterclaps, despite being a train, can speak. Or at very least he is understandable to Nikignik
* Old Afterclaps is capable of seeing Nikignik, the only other characters able to do this are other Indescribables and Harrow Blackletter
* Although it is unstated if this is still active, Afterclaps has/had a direct transport line to the Industry which he used to send it souls and demons

## Relationships

### Nikignik

Afterclaps meets Nikignik in Episode 84 - Interference, where he comforts them. Though this quickly turns to a scolding for Nikignik standing by while the characters suffered. Their interaction ends with Afterclaps asking Nikignik if they [Nikignik] were going to let the stars go out and leaving them alone.

## Trivia

* At the end of Episode 83 - Hopes the sound of Old Afterclaps can be heard