Railroad Tracks

Along the countryside there is an old set of railroad tracks. The metal railing is rusted and broken in several places, and the wooden planks between the rails are all damaged either by weather exposure, bugs or both. The only signs of life along the forgotten tracks are a small lizard scurrying through the dirt, and a young blonde man walking along the path.

This young man heaved out a sigh. Unfortunately, he'd gotten lost once again. That was never a good thing since he had an uncanny ability to lose his way and find trouble. It never failed, and since he had already lost his way, he was expecting something bad to happen at any second.

He wore a old red shirt that looked like it had seen better days. The sleeves were faded at the elbow and there were a few small rips on the sides. There was a golden symbol on the back of his shirt. It was a cross with a crown and wings above it and a serpent coiled around it. The symbol of alchemy.

The young man, whose named was Van, sighed as he continued on his long journey. He looked up at the sky and felt the sun beating down on his back. He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"What a day." Van Elric sighed. Then he noticed something in front of him; it seemed too good to be true (and it undoubtably was) but he didn't care. Van ran forward and looked, rubbing his eyes just to make sure it wasn't a dream.

It wasn't. He was standing at the top of a hill, and at the bottom was a sleepy desert town.

Quickly Van ran down the hill, finally feeling as if things were looking up for him. He knew it was just a small town where exciting things never happened, but at least that meant he wouldn't get himself in too much trouble. (Somewhere deep down inside he knew that was too much to hope for)

Van charged towards a small saloon that was a fixture at the entrance to town, eager to get something to eat. It had been almost a week since he'd been in an actual town, and his food supply had run out two days ago.

What he did not, and could not know, was that in this small bar was a meeting that would change his life... as well as the lives of several others.

-Desert Near Town-

Edda Rince was having a normal day. Currently, he was being attacked by a large amount of Sandshrew, Sandslash, and a few other miscellaneous Pokemon. Same ol’ same ol’. It didn’t help Edda was a coward as well.

“Ahhhh!” Edda shouted, then reached down for a Pokeball on his Pokebelt.

“Isaac! Earthquake!” Edda shouted, tossing the Pokeball behind him as it exploded in a flash of red light, the Dugtrio appearing and giving a shake, then shattering the earth around it, sending the Pokemon chasing Edda sprawling.

“Return!” Edda shouted, bringing back Isaac and then heading off again at speeds most humans would find difficult to reach. Edda had a lot of experience running…

Hopefully he wouldn’t run into anyone!

-Desert Saloon-

A half-elf looked at his pet red-tailed hawk, as the bird down another shot of whiskey. Shaking his head, Redbird sighed and sipped his water.

Zor, the teenage hill giant, relaxed in a corner, enjoying…something Redbird didn’t want to know what…

He was getting odd stares from people, but that didn’t matter much. He was use to stares.

Desert Town Sreets

Agaven Lynx was not a happy kitty.

Not at all.

At first, the first thing you can think about this guy is "HOW is a panther demi-human surviving in such heat?" Well, the answer is simple. The only reason that Agaven Lynx was not yet dead from overheat was the fact that a cat's body has higher internal body temperature.

That still made him suffer in the heat though. The sun was blazing ruthlessly down on him, his black fur absorbing the heat rays, forcing the hair to ma down as sweat trickled down the half-cat's body.

What he wouldn't give for a drink right now...

Swearing lightly, he trudged on through the streets, eyes seeking a bar of some sort to cool himself in. And of course, he was the ultimate attraction, being a demo-human feline that was dressed in what looked like a dark-purple, almost black dress with yellow and black trims and catches. Yet, no one would even dare talk to him in fear of angering the cat, for his crystal-emerald, slitted eyes were somewhat pissed off at his current situation and were glaring in every direction.

The fact that a huge, double-ended scythe was clipped onto his back only aided in the intimidation bonus.

In other words, there was an angry, black half-panther, half-human with a huge weapon trudging through the streets, searching for some sign of a place where he could buy himself a drink and cool off.

A Home in Desert Town

"Keep you head down Mel!" A young man yelled as he ran at a simular looking girl swinging his fists over and over. The young girl dodged and brought her hands up ready to catch his own. Instead of doing so she ended up flat on her bottom....Apparently her idea for defence did not work.....He had knocked her down without her even noticing it. With a smirk the young man, her brother, pulled her up carefully. He gave her a kind smile but she mearly rolled her sapphire eyes.

"Okay Jason enough training...It's not even like we're going to use it...." The girl, Melanie Narroh, stated as she pulled her long raven hair into a ponytail which still reched her waist.

"You never know Melanie, one day you may need it....Anyways Kanna said I have to train you."

"But were not even training with our elements" Melanie sighed "This is just brute stregth which I dont seem to have...." Melanie never liked to do this sort of thing, the girl's intrest usually lied in other pastimes. But it really wasnt her choice, her mother Kanna made sure they trained and made sure they hid their powers....And what momma said went......

As Melanie spoke Jason flicked his wrist and a bright light came from his hands. Melanie looked to him and smiled. 'That's what i'm talking about!" She ran up and did the same as him, except out of her hand came a dark ball of light...A shadow.

"Sure you wanna do this little sister?" Jason warned with a grin. Even though it was fun to beat the girl in battle she could get hurt and he would never let that happen.

"Of course" She replied running at him.

-Desert Town Streets-

“Ahhh!”

This signaled Edda’s arrival, as he was met now with a Golem chasing him. Thankfully he had lost him in the run towards the town, but Edda had a large lung capacity, again, something garnered with years of experience.

Slam! Unfortunately Edda was busy looking behind, to the right, left, and above him. It escaped him to look in front of him, and hit the strange half cat/half man creature in the streets.

Edda, being a normal human, fell as though he ran straight into a brick wall.

“Ow…” Edda muttered, rubbing his nose, “What did I hit?” He looked upwards.

“Oh…Uh oh…”

Desert Town Streets

The streets were mostly deserted. Agaven just simply walked amongst them, observing the near-empty town which held no surprises at all. At least, he thought so.

Until some hume bumped into him, running from something or to something at as much speed as he could muster. Agaven was a stocky guy, muscular and of medium weight. He was built primarily for incredibly strong, FAST attacks. So it took him no effort to withstand the blow of the running hume. He was a foot taller than any hume anyways, so it would be embarasing if he got knocked over.

The only disadvantage is that this guy's mood was not improved any. So, being the typical feline that he was, he gave a low growl before he stuffed it back down his own throat, hoping that he didn;t scare the human.

"Hey hume! You know of any bars or anything around here? Anywhere I can wet my parched throat?"

(By the way, I have updated the signups thread with pctures of my three characters. Don;t mean to brag, but they are amazingly done and drawn, so I advise you at least take a look and admire the worksmanship. They were drawn by a very good friend of mine and are simply INCREDIBLE. Especially Saifer's. Check em out! ...Please?)

((I'll go check the pics out, HA))

Desert Town Bar

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN I'M TOO YOUNG?!!" shouted a teenaged boy in a blue uniform.

The bartender responded, "This is a bar, son. You best be walking outta here if ya know what's good fer ya."

"WHAT?! Look, not only am I a state alchemist, but I'm also the son of Pri--"

"I don't care, you're still a kid, I'm NOT letting you get a drink. Now get the hell out of my bar before I get some guys to MAKE you get out."

The young man, Adalberto, slammed his fist on the table. "Make me get out, huh? You really wanna try that? I'm not so sure you want to do that... this bar might not survive the struggle..."

Outside Desert Town

Standing on a barren, sandy hill outside of the small town was a man with a cruel smile and a patch over one eye. He had gigantic muscles that would make an Armstrong jealous. His teeth were bad and his nose was puggy and short as if someone had beaten it in with a baseball bat. He looked like the typical crook; but he was far from that.

"Alrite boys; let's get ready. That saloon there has enough cash to keep us fat and happy for a while." The man grinned, gritting his teeth. "Get all the cash and kill anyone who gets in the way."

Desert Saloon

Van was sitting an sipping on a cold coke he'd bought when he got in. With a sigh, he took off the red jacket he'd been wearing. He had a white shirt and a black vest on beneath; what he did not realize was that his moneybag was in his jacket, and when he hung it on the back of his chair, the bag of cash fell out on the floor. A letter also fell onto the floor -- and the letter was much more valuble to Van than the cash.

Van didn't notice. There was someone a few feet away banging his fist on the counter arguing with the bartender. Van caught a few bits of what he was yelling about, and when the words 'State Alchemist' reached his ears he groaned.

"Great, another State Alchemist." Van sighed and rested his head in his left hand. "Just like being home with the old man."

Desert Saloon

"I said NO!!" the bartender finished. "Look... you can stay if you want, but I ain't given you no alcohol, you got that?"

Adalberto clenched his fists, and was about to try and start trouble... but then he realized that it wasn't worth it. Why get into a fight that could destroy the bar just over a drink? "Fine... you win."

Feeling defeated, he walked away from the counter, only to notice... the symbol for alchemy nearby. He walked over to Van, curious, and asked, "Hey... you're an alchemist, aren't you?"

Desert Saloon

Van had just finished his cola when suddenly he heard a voice. The alchemist who had been yelling before was standing near him, and he seemed to have noticed the symbol on Van's jacket. Van sighed a bit. He found alchemy to be absolutely pointless since it couldn't accomplish as much as a few simple pills; but he was the latest in a long line of talented (Although usually misguided) alchemist.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." Van said, turning to Adalberto. "You are too."

A Home In Desert Town

"Dang it, I'm lost." Ginni Aran was lost, but then again, being that she was a wanderer, that was no surprise. She sighed and rubbed the back of her neck.

"Huh?" Ginni noticed she was standing outside a house. She wondered if whoever lived there might be able to help her figure out where she was. She approached the door and knocked on it a couple times.

Desert Saloon

"Yes... yes I am." answered Adalberto. "But what brings you here? I've never seen you in this town, and considering how small this town is, I'd have thought I'd spot another alchemist before now."

Desert Saloon

Van shrugged his shoulders. "I've been looking for a doctor named Griffin. I heard he was passing by this way, but I couldn't find him."

Van sighed. "I'm Van Elric. You are?"

Desert Saloon

Adalberto pointed to himself with his thumb as he closed his eyes and bragged, "I am Prince Adalberto! I am the Thunder Alchemist!" His expression changed a little just after that, "Well... I'm also a state alchemist. But lately I've been wondering if being a state alchemist is all that great. I learned all my alchemy on my own. All the military ever does is butt in and give assignments."

Desert Saloon

Van shrugged his shoulders. "State Alchemist, huh? Yeah... I know a few State Alchemist." Van was speaking about his cousin, his best friend and his father, so maybe saying it so casually was a bit of a understatement, but he hadn't seen any of them in a long time. Infact, the letter that had fallen out of his jacket was unopened and had never been read.

"Thunder Alchemist?" Van's eyebrow rose in curiosity. "So... you transmute electricty? Never seen a electric alchemist." Van leaned back in his chair and smiled. "Eh, I dislike the idea of working for the Military. Seems like everyone else in my family does, 'cept my ma... sounds like you don't like it either."

Van used to want to be an State Alchemist, when he was young and ignorent to the hypocracy of alchemy.

Train Station

Stepping off the train was a young man with dark hair and thick glasses. His hair was twisted into a ponytail and his eyes were dark green. He was dressed in the standard uniform of a Military Officier. On his belt was a pistol, although there was no spot on his belt for extra ammunition clips. There was a reason for that.

Just as he stepped off the train, a pay phone rang.

"Right on time." He smirked and walked over to the phone, picking it up. "Hey dad.... Oh, is this a business call? Okay Fuhrer, what do you want? ... Huh? Van? No, I haven't seen him in about a month... Look for him? Yeah, I guess I can.... Come on, you know he won't agree to that! ... Dad, listen... Dad, he doesn't get along with his father... for the same reason! Van doesn't want to be an Alchemist; and he sure as heck doesn't want to be a State Alchemist.... no dad, I'm not asking my best friend to betray everything he believes in just for... What?... You're kidding me.... You're not kidding? Damn it old man, are you serious? ... No, no I won't! ... Yeah I know you're the Fuhrer and you're my boss, but I don't... Come on... Fine, I'll do it, but haven't you ever heard of karma? Or at least irony? Fine, fine, I'll said I'd do it already. Goodday, sir."

The young man slammed the phone back on the hook. "I really wish mom would keep him on a shorter leash."

Desert Saloon

"Ya, I transmute electricity. Actually, just about any kind of energy, really. But, ya, I can't say I like being in the military all that much. If I could find some decent clothes somewhere, I'd get rid of this stupid uniform. I never really chose to be in the military, it was just kind of done for me since I'm the son of a powerful monarch. My mom is the ruler of a kingdom... but that country is so small compared to the rest of the world. So, while I may hate the military, I do like traveling."

A Home in Desert Town

The battle of the elements continued in the house for almost twenty minutes before Melanie was knocked to the ground once more. The girl was spent energy wise and her brother simply was not, that was their difference in skill. Jason understood what it meant to use his element wisely, that and the practice battles they had were most often in the daylight givin him an obvious stregth. He stood above his younger sister and looked down. Melanie who was sucking in air in effort to breath looked back at him, eyes wide and hands still glowing black. Her long hair covered most of her face now leading Jason to roll his eyes.

"We're done" He stated pulling her back up carefully, their respected energies dissapearing from their palms. Melanie frowned but said nothing....She was a pretty sore loser. A knock at the door tore the two from the awkward silence.

"I'll get it!" Melanie stated exitedly, for itwas not often they go guests. Jason mearly nodded and followed down the stairs to the main hallway where the front door was located. As they reached it Jason turned for the back door to the kitchen.

"I'm going to the salon, if it's for me tell them i'm there"

Melanie smiled, nodded, and opened the door revieling a girl who looked about the same age as herself. "Hiya! May I help you?"

(Eep! I'm a little late...)

Some apartment in the desert town

"Parflesnarfs and mudwalks, staying up for long talks, Rockfish is the place to be, for me..."

A teenage alien with purple-hair sang happily as he swung his feet back and forth like a child. He paused his singing for a brief moment though, as if listening for any sign of life that he might have disturbed. The silence must have satisfied him, however, for he continued to sing, but this time slightly louder...

"Zooming down the zip line! Come on in, the water's fine--"

"SHUT UP, KALE!"

Kale winced as the all-too-familiar female voice boomed from the other room. The red-haired girl poked her head out of the room of which she had previously been sleeping, only to give the poor boy a death glare.

"Every night, Kale, EVERY SINGLE NIGHT I have to put up with you waking up at one a.m., asking me if you can play a board game! Every night!" The girl became slightly more agitated as she spoke. "And EVERY NIGHT I never get enough sleep! Is it too much to ask to let me have a nap during the day?!?!" With that, she became even more angry, causing her hands to glow with ghostly looking flames.

"R-Rina, I'm sorry..." Kale cowered; he never understood why Rina was so angry when she didn't get sleep. Well, maybe it was the fact that on his planet, they only slept three hours each night? ...Yeah, that was probably it. "I... I thought you were done with your nap, 'cause you were in ther for a long time, and I didn't think I'd wake you up with my singing 'cause I thought I was being quiet and I was hoping when you woke up we could visit Melanie or go shopping or...play a board game, maybe?" As soon as he realized what he had just said, Kale quickly backed up a little. "...Umm, or not?"

-Desert Streets-

Edda composed himself, as he might be a coward, but he could recognize threats, and this strange creature didn’t seem to be one...at the moment.

“A place to get a drink?” Edda wondered, looking around, “Uhh…No…I’m new around here. I got a Water Pokemon though that could help though!”

-Desert Saloon-

Redbird, being half elf, couldn’t help but over hear Van’s and Adalberto’s conversation.

Getting up, he headed over to them.

“Hey, I overheard you needed to find a doctor. I’m a Ranger, so I can help you find this guy,” Redbird said.

-Cave A Few Miles From Town-

A Hyuuga walked catiously in the dark cave, waving a flashlight about. The cave was small, so he saw no reason to activate his Byakuguan yet. His mission was simple anyways. Find this box in the cave and return with it. Make sure no one opened it either.

Simple…Right?

Desert Town Streets

The demi-feline sighed heavily, drooping. This was no time to get angry and release the Dragon's Tear. This was NOT the time, simply put, and it woud not do him any good. Repressing his bestial side, he just shook his head.

"Crap. I thought at least somebody would know, but why is EVERYONE I meet a stranger to the town? Are the people here trying to KEEP me from a bar or somethin'? And what are you blabbing about, anyways? And what's a Water Pukmoon?"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Desert Town Bar/Saloon/Whatever

The door opened, and a dark elf walked into the bar, whistling to himself, hands swinging by his sides openly and in a non-threatening manner. He was dressed in a green/brown adventurer's shirt that looked like it was mended by him personally several times. After that came a pair of pants and a pair of VERY fancy-looking boots. Probably enchanted by the looks of them. Then came the bracers on his hands, which also looked like they had some sort of a swirl in the tiny red crystals that were embedded into it. The swords on his back completed the picture.

Looking lazily around the saloon/bar/whatever, the elf yawned and walked over to the counter and put his hand up for the barkeep to notice.

"Oi! Some water? I'm parched."

He looked as if he has come from far away as well. He wasnt dusty, but he wasn't immaculately clean. As an elf, his face and hands were spotless, but his clothing knew wear. Hewas a traveler, but it was unknown why he wandered the world. Most elves of his stature stayed in their vales and homes, while this one was walking about...

A Home in Desert Town

Ginni sweatdropped and rubbed the back of her neck. She offered a small smile at the girl who'd answered the door. "Hi... Uh, this is really embarressing, but I'm completely lost."

Ginni sighed and hung her head. She was always surprised that she was bad at directions. Both of her parents were great at adventures; but her's always turned out badly.

Desert Town Saloon

Van wondered what it was about him that always made sure he met Monarch's kids. He shrugged his shoulders and looked at Adalberto. "Yeah... traveling is nice, but sometimes I--"

Van stopped when someone headed over to them. Redbird offered to help him find the doctor he was looking for, and Van sat back in his chair. The gears in his head were clicking and turning.

"I'm looking for Doctor Rosenthal." Van told him. "He's supposed to be a researcher whose trying to improve on existing medical alchemy from Xing. I've been looking for almost a year and I can't find him."

-Desert Town Streets-

Edda’s eyes opened wide in shock. This guy didn’t know what Pokemon were!

“Well…they’re…These creatures with different powers…Let me just show you!” Edda said, pulling out two different Pokeballs.

“Sol! Zaurak! Come on out!” Edda shouted, as the Pokeballs burst in a beam of red light.

The light solidified, and Sol, a Charizard appeared, grinning happily and giving a thumbs up sign. The other was a smaller, blue figure. It was Zaurak, the Vaporeon.

“This is Sol and Zaurak, two Pokemon. They come in many different shapes and sizes,” Edda explained. He didn’t go to so many Pokemon schools just to sleep…

-Desert Town Saloon-

“I bet I can help you find him. Describe him to me, and tell me where he was last seen,” Redbird nodded, then paused as the dark elf entered.

Being a half-elf, Redbird was wary of dark elves.

Icarus, the alcoholic bird, screeched as the dark elf sat down. He had almost spilt his drink!

Desert Town Saloon

Adalberto noticed Redbird pause for a moment, as if something caught his attention. "What's the matter? Is something wrong?"

A Home in Desert Town

Melanie smiled cheerfully and backed up allowing the girl acsess into her house. It was alot cooler than the muggy outdoors which would lead to at least some sence of comfort. "Come on in" she said happily as she turned towards the kitchen. "You're in desert town right now, there's not much really here though. I can get you a map to places around here though."

-Desert Town Saloon-

Redbird’s semi-pointed ears twitch as Adalberto spoke to him.

“It’s…it’s nothing…” Redbird answered.

-Cave A Few Miles From Town-

Gankyou, the glasses wearing Hyuuga, froze when he found the altar. He had been told time and time again it was perfectly safe.

Nevertheless, he placed his glasses in a very safe container, then went through the hand signs to activate his Byakugan.

His veins around his eyes shot out, pulsing as chakra fed into them. What had been blurry scenery now changed into crystal clear cave.

There was the box, sitting there all smug. No traps could be seen, so Gankyou walked forward and stared into it.

He couldn’t see through it, no matter how much he focused. Shrugging, he picked up the box, then sighed as the cave rumbled.

“I knew this would happen,” he sighed, then turned to run…

A Home in Desert Town

"T-Thanks." Ginni said, following her into her home. She looked around and sighed happily; it was a lot nicer in here than out in the heat. She was used to the desert, and it didn't bother her like it did some people, but she still prefered the cooler air of the house.

"I'm Rem, by the way." She introduced herself using her proper name. Rem was her actual first name, Virginia being her middle name, but she prefered Ginni. Rem was such an uncommon name and she thought Virginia made her sound too old. "Rem Aran."

Desert Town Streets

"Pff, what a day. Can you believe dad is giving us new orders now?" The alchemist who'd gotten off the train was complaining to a alchemist who accompanied him. "Honestly Z, the sooner we find your cousin the better the in my book. I need to get home and give Mr. High-and-Mighty Fuhrer a piece of my mind."

This is how he behaved. He knew his father was the ruler of their country (not to mention a powerful warrior in his own right) but he had never gotten used to seeing his father as such a powerful man. To him, his dad was just his dad. Unless there were a bunch of important people around. Around the head's of state, he behaved himself.

As they walked down the streets, he stopped when he noticed a very large man and three others entering a saloon. "Uh oh, I recognize that face... Come on Z, and get ready to transmute."

Desert Town Saloon

The very large man walked inside the saloon, and his three followers did as their name suggested, and followed him. He strolled to the middle of the saloon and then raised a large weapon from his back. It was a gun, and of such a high-power that it could probably collapse a wall.

"Alright, this is real easy folks; putcher money on the tables and my buds'll come and get it... be a hero and I'll take your head off." He sneered.

Van sighed. "Great, my day keeps getting better." He shook his head. Then he heard the door open again.

The large man turned around to see the State Alchemist from the train enter. The large main aimed his large rifle. "Don't move, punk!"

The State Alchemist smiled a bit. "You have no idea who I am, do you?" He grabbed his small pistol and raised it out in front of him, one of his gloved fingers resting on a circle carved on the gun's trigger.

"You think that TOY is gonna beat me?" The large man asked.

"Pyre... that's what they call a funeral fire," The Alchemist said coldly. "I'm the Pyre Alchemist, and believe me, you won't enjoy finding out why that's my name."

The great Alchemist Hawkeye had been the master of fire alchemy until one of his students, a young man named Roy, had taken that name from him. Being that Maes Mustang was decended from both of them, he was truly a frightening thing to behold when he had so much as a tiny spark.

Maes blinked when he saw the large stack of alcohol bottles on the counter behind the name. He sighed and put his gun back on his belt. "Oh, right, we're in a bar, aren't we? Might not be the best place for fire..."

The large man looked angry. "Hand over your money and quit yer yappin!"

Desert Saloon

CLAP!!

SHOOM!!

Four large walls of solid rock rose up around the three followers. They were trapped inside of the rock, unless they could manage to jump through the roof, or could punch through solid rock.

Z Elric had entered the bar. Z was the State Alchemist who had signed up for this mission alongside Maes. For several reasons of course. For one, Maes was Z's childhood friend. Also, Z never could resist an adventure filled with action. Plus after hearing of a chance to see his long gone cousin, Z had rushed to follow after Maes.

Z smiled, and rose off the ground. "I don't think you have the upperhand anymore." Z said. He clapped his hand, and the knife he had been holding glowed red. "Catch!" Z threw the knife right at the gun. If the knife hit the gun, it would explode on impact. Of course anything the knife hit would explode, but Z had good aim, and he doubted the man could move fast enough. Besides Maes was right next to him. This would be easy.

Desert Saloon

Adalberto grinned a bit, not knowing how else to react, and then said, "It's starting to look like a State Alchemist convention, isn't it?"

A Home in Desert Town

"I'm Melanie Narroh, I live here with my older brother Jason" Melanie flipped through some papers on the kitchen table before going to the fridge and pulling out a long bottle of water. She placed it and cup on the table and motioned for the girl to take it. "Drink up Rem" she said happily as she went back to the papers. Finally she found what she needed and held it up to the girl. "Here is a map of the surrounding areas."


Desert Saloon

Jason walked through the town towards the Salon, the sun was high so there would probably be someone to hang out with there. As he got closer to the Salon the young man noticed that the comotion in the small town was a bit too much, espeically near the salon. Quietly Jason slipped in just in time to notice the fight that was comensing. For now he just leaned against te back of the bar and watched. He then noticed those men were doing alchemy....Well that was pretty unique for these parts. Of course travelers came by with the ability but by the look of it these one's were way stronger.

"Bandits trying to rob the salon? Heh, that was stupid"

-Desert Town Saloon-

Two blades sprung from Redbird’s scabbards as the men entered the bar, but he relaxed when the men seemed to be trapped. One of the blades glowed slightly, though it was hard to tell in this light.

Zor, the teenage hill giant, had also gotten up, brandishing a large and menacing club should the men escape.

Icarus…he just ignored everyone.

-Desert Town Street-

Farther down the street from the saloon or anyone else, two small figures walked down the street.

One was feeling the heat, his black fur not going nicely with the beating sun. He was also a hedgehog Mobian, who greatly resembled his father.

The other was a blue echidna, who seemed perfectly fine, a treasure hunting hat resting atop his head.

“Knucks…” the hedgehog said finally, stopping in some shade, “Are you sure Café was last seen around here?”

“Of course I am,” Knuckles II answered, tilting his head so he could peer upwards, “I have a very reliable source.”

“Then let’s get going already…” Chatrol sighed, shaking his head, “I might be half Ultimate Life Form, but I’m not going to wait forever…”

Desert Saloon

The large man seemed a bit unnerved. His three followers had been boarded up by stone walls created by Z, and he had several people theatening him with blades, guns and a good old fashion beating. He swallowed hard and looked all around -- in every direction was danger.

"T-This ain't how this was supposed to go." He muttered.

"Well, you screwed up." Maes said, stepping forward. "I think it goes without saying that you're under arres--"

The large man fired a shot at Maes' head, but he was too slow and the National Alchemist avoided the shot by dropping down to his knees. He aimed his gun and transmuted the trigger -- a thin wave of flames erupted forth at the man, igniting the hand holding the gun and causing the man to scream and jump backwards.

However, as he went back, he bumped into the stone. And by "bumped into" I mean "crushed it under his giant rump".

The three men were free. One rushed at Redbird, another ran towards Z, and the third came after Adalberto.

Desert Town Home

Ginni smiled and accepted the drink. After a moment in which she downed the entire thing, she smiled. "Thanks! It's been a while since I had anything to drink. Uhh... two... no, three days I think."

-Desert Saloon-

Redbird grinned and said a small chant as one of the men rushed at him. Slicing forward, his two long swords became covered in flames and he sliced at him with the burning metal.

He was aiming to take out any weapon the enemy might have and to wound the man. He wasn’t out to kill the guy…yet…

Zor thundered upwards, brandishing his club, and also charged at the guy who rushed at Redbird, knocking down anyone or anything that got in his way.

Desert Saloon

Adalberto looked at the guy coming right at him.

"So you want to play, eh? Fine... maybe if the bartender sees this, he'll let me some alcohol!"

Adalberto had some gloves on that had transmutation circles on them. This allowed him use of alchemy without having to draw transmutation circles. As the man was running closer to Adalberto, Adalberto simply pointed at the man with his index finger.

"Is it a chill you'll feel in your spine?"

An almost unseen force came from Adalberto's finger and flew towards the thug. The thug quickly twisted in pain and fell to the ground.

"Or is it just the charged particles I sent through your nerve system?"

Adalberto smirked, as he stood over the man, looking down with his hand behind his back.

"That must have really hurt... so tell me, you still feel like going at it with me?"

Desert Saloon

Throughout the entire monologue sessions and the fight, the dark elf did not even budge. The two swords over his back did not move from their scabbards, the elf did absolutely nothing at all. In fact, he bore a lazy expression on his face. He looked bored... And this was boring him even more. Drinking he water that was given to him, he didn't pay attention to his surroundings.

Or he seemed like it util he talked.

"Hey, guys, can you take this outside or something? I don't much like it when I am interrupted, you know?"

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Desert Streets

Lynx was susprised. He never saw creatures like these and this was his first time seeing such a strange being. Carefully examining them, he noticed that they tended to lean to an element, each of them, thus making them...

Three-trick ponies.

"Interesting... I never saw creatures like these. You said something about one of them being able to produce water... Would it be true and would the water actually be drinkable?"

-Desert Town Streets-

“Drinkable?” Edda asked, then grinned, “Zaurak here,” he waved his hand to the blue Vaporeon, “Has some of the best water around! Water Gun!”

Zaurak sighed, shaked his head, then pointed his mouth towards the sky, and fired a small fountain of water upwards, like a water fountain, from his mouth. It was incredibly clean and fresh!

Desert Town Train Station

A man dressed all in a white suit with a white hat and a white tie stepped out of the train he had been on. His face was pale and he looked very out of place in the desert. He was dressed like he was going to some important state luncheon with a lot of rich people; when in fact, he was going on a spree.

"Excuse me sir, would you like to donate to the local hospital?" A man with a overly-large smile approached him.

The man in white looked up at the smiling man. His eyes seemed to flicker.

The man in white walked away from the train station, leaving the smiling man on the ground... and the other half of the smiling man sitting a few feet away.

Desert Saloon

One of the random thugs looked over at the Dark-Elf who was telling them to go outside and, being he was a nameless villain doomed to defeat, he charged at him brandishing a small gun. "You watch yerh mouth!"

The thug's leader was growing, and he looked at Adalberto and Redbird. These guys were so high-and-might; well he'd knock them down a peg! (Or so he thought)

The thug leader ran at Adalberto and drew a large knife.

A Home In Desert Town

"That long?! That's horrible!!!" Melanie exclaimed "Three days without a drink....Wooooow....." The girl sat down at the table and motioned to the water "Then drink as much as you want. If you dont mind me asking what are you doing traveling like that without stopping or anything?"

Desert Saloon

Jason raised an eyebrow as one of the guys causing comotion flicked out a gun. He sighed and decided he didnt want to stay in the shadow any more, he liked the light more anyways....."I think you should listen to him" Jason stated motioning to the dark elf with a smirk "I dont really appreciate people trashing a the town my sister is in. That and he looks like he's about to kick you ass. Do you really want to risk that humilation?"

Desert Saloon

Adalberto looked at the oncoming thug leader. "Hmmm... this guy could give me trouble. But the bigger they are, etc, etc."

As the thug leader got real close to Adalberto, Adalberto decided to have a bit of fun. Rather than hurt the thug leader, he decided to temporarily handicap him and see how he'd react. Just seconds before the thug leader could reach Adalberto, Adalberto put his hands together, and had them spread out, almost as if they were holding something round. Then, a bright burst of light shot out right in front of the thug leader's face, blinding him.

Desert Saloon

"Just couldn't take it outside, could you..."

As the man bore down on him, Sai put his glass down and suddenly his bracelets flashed. And suddenly, he was no longer seated in his stool. There was the sound of blades drawn out of their scabbards and a blur of a shape that belonged to the dark elf. In a second, he was already sitting back on his stool, his blades sheathed. All this did not take any longer than a second.

The thug... Just stood there for a second. He just stood there, until blood spurted out of the slashes caused by the dark elf. The cuts and slashes were everywhere, covering the body of the thug from head to toe. The thug leaned back, and his body split into pieces, parts of his limbs falling apart as if someone has just made a connecting glue vanish from in between two different items. The elf paid no attention to his work and just simply sipped his water.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Desert Streets

The cat looked somewhat dubiously at the spouting water fountain. He wasn't entirely sure about this, but by this point, he was already beyond dehydration and would drink blood to replenish himself. Without further ado, he put up his clawed hand, ad a small stream of water bent itelf from the fountain, splashing itself into Agaven's face. The cat sighed, opening his mouth and taking several long gulps of water before splashing himself on the face once more and letting the water return to it's original stream.

Surprisingly, the water WAS clear and without anything unwanted mixed in. Agaven sighed, and the cool water immediately mellowed out his mood.

"Thank you. I was already at my limit, having spent 4 and a half days without any source of water. You have my sincere gratitude."

-Desert Saloon-

Redbird kept up his flaming swords, ready for an attack…

-Deserts Streets-

“Four and a half days…” Edda whistled, “That’s a long time without water…Why didn’t you cut up any cactuses or anything?”

Edda was, as it’s been repeatedly said, a coward. This also meant he knew how to survive. Plus with the number of Pokemon Training school his father had made him attend…

Farther down the street, Chatrol and Knuckles II paused, as the blue echidna had suddenly froze, twisting his head around.

“I can feel…A gem…I think…It might be part of the Master Emerald…” Knuckles II said, then promptly ran off down the street.

“Hey!” Chatrol shouted, racing after him, “What about Café?!”

A Home In Desert Town

Ginni shrugged her shoulders, still drinking happily. "I got lost. It's not big deal." Ginni shook her head and set the glass back down. "I'm sorry to impose on you so much."

Desert Saloon

Van looked around the room at all of the fighting and all of the bleeding and he was visibly shaken. He did not like violence and death. He was trained as a doctor first and foremost. He had seen his childhood friend die, he saw his father's metal limbs and he detested pain and violence. This is why he chose to heal people, and why he hadn't become a State Alchemist like his cousin Z.

"Are you out of your skull?" Van yelled at the Dark-Elf. "You didn't have to kill that guy!" Van was shaking with the level of anger that would've resulted if his father had been called a spec of dust so small he couldn't even reach his chair.

A moment later, however, the leader interrupted by screaming. He was suddenly blind and he was randomly aiming his gun around the room and shooting. A bullet whizzed close to Jason but did not hit him. That was the last straw for Maes.

He raised his gun and transmuted the trigger. A burst of flames erupted from the nozzel and covered the leader in flames, burning his skin and making him scream. The flames were localized to his upper chest, but it was enough to make the man scream and fall backwards.

Maes' eyes were narrowed behind his rim-wire glasses.