Alriiiiight! Here's the prologue of my little ToA AU! Alright, here's a practice to get yourself ready to read it. Think about EVERYTHING you know about ToA, alright? Got it? Everything? Good:

Now forget it all. No one is exactly the same as you remember them, so just sit back, and read the originality of it all! Thank you so much!

Oh yeah... I guess I could give a small paragraph of those you may see along the way...:

Private Luke Fabre: Is the son of a famous Malkuthian Blacksmith. However, Luke's ingenuity made him desire a different path. He instead became a Engineer who created a moving alarm system which he calls "Mieu". He was fed Anti-Dragon Propoganda from his youth, and now holds much disdain from the creatures of the Sky. His main desire is to become a great Dragon Slayer.

Captain Van Grants: Brother of Tear Grants. He is a captain of the Malkuthian Army, but it seems like he is skillful enough to climb the ranks quickly. He suspects his sister of being a Dragon Singer...

Tear Grants: Sister of Captain Van Grants of the Malkuth Army, Tear is assumed to be a "Dragon Singer" an evil Human who can speak with Dragons. She is always being watched, especially because of her constant crossing the Malkuth-Kimlascan border. She carries a Lute where ever she goes.

Anise Tatlin: A young Dragon Singer, who rides a Dragon named Tokunaga. She communicates with her friend with a drum, and is even good enough to beat the drum while riding no-handed. She was born in the Kimlascan Mountains and hates Malkuth and her own Human Race, acting more Dragon than Human.

King Jade Curtiss IV: King of Malkuth, and in essence, the entire Human Race. A man to be feared, whose lance arm is unparalleled. However, he prefers not to rule, leaving that to his Consul and Mother, Dist and Nebilim, respectively. His main love in life is to hunt down Dragons for sport with the Royal Family's heirloom, the Dragon Lance.

And now, with all that BOOOORING stuff out of the way...

READ ON!

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Corrivalry
Prologue

Luke kicked his feet up on the table and stuck a weed that was picked outside in his mouth. Guarding the border was so damned annoying, he was going to have to ask his superior to put him somewhere that had more action. A Dragon Slaying Unit, perhaps? He smiled a bit at the small contraption that whirred at his feet. He made it himself, after all. Its main purpose was to alert him of danger. He called it the Mechanical Innocent Evacuator Unit, or "MIEU" for short. It continued to whir, expelling a puff of smoke every once a while, which was obvious, as it ran off of coal.

Luke was a soldier of the Malkuth army, although he was an engineer by trade. His entire family worked on being blacksmiths, always forging steel to give to other people so they could kill things. Luke much preferred another lifestyle: to make stuff for HIM. After all, the only person he could trust was himself. He left his home after his family and twin brother Asch laughed at his desires, and soon trained to be a soldier. However, he probably should have just stayed at home. This guarding was so boring! The only people who came by were Dragon Slayers anyway. It took every fiber of his being to keep from asking them to take him with them. To kill a Dragon of the Kimlascan Mountains was a great feat. Luke wanted to know what it felt like… just once…

The soldier cried out when Mieu began to screech; a horn from its stomach blared at him as a small red light popped from its head and whirled around at high velocity. Luke fell backwards in his chair from the noise.

"Mieu, ya dumb Thing!" He shouted over the noise, ready to punt his creation, "What are you doing that for!?" Mieu continued to blare, and suddenly looked up at the line that separated Malkuth from Kimlasca. Mieu was alerting Luke to a woman that was crossing the line illegally!

"Hey! Hey you!" Luke cried, rushing from the guardhouse, half because he wanted to catch the woman, the other because that screeching was so damn annoying! "What do you think you're doing?"

The woman looked up, and she blinked at him, despite the fact that one of her eyes was covered by her light brown bangs, "I… Uhm…" She looked away, "I forgot the guard station was over there…?"

"Luke, turn off your creature!" Luke stopped when he heard his superior's voice come up from the station as well. Captain Van glared at the private, "It's causing a racket!"

"And if it didn't," Luke said defiantly, walking over to turn his machine off. Mieu whined a bit and returned to normal, puffing smoke again as usual, "This lady would have continued on her merry way without us knowing anything."

"And whose fault would that be?" Van asked as he walked by Luke, approaching the woman. She glared at him and his brows knitted, "You… are not allowed to cross this border, Tear."

"That's only because you accuse me of things I do not do!" Tear hissed as Luke blinked at the two. They started bickering like a married couple, "I have just a right to cross this border as any Dragon Slayer!"

"And you say you are going to Kimlasca to slay Dragons…?" Van asked. He glanced at the lute strung across her back, "Your… instrument speaks different." Tear simply hissed in response.

"Is this Tear woman a Dragon Singer?" Luke asked with darkening eyes, approaching the embroiled argument, Mieu at his feet. Luke had heard of Dragon Singers, they were Bards who spoke to Dragons by singing. It was something like… according to bards, a song can tell a story simply by the notes that were played. Speaking normally would be no different. Of course, speaking with Dragons, the enemies of the Humans, was a punishable offense. Dragons were evil creatures that stole artifacts from the Humans thousands of years ago to stockpile their hoard of precious materials. The Engineer didn't like thinking of Van knowing an evil woman like her.

"I am not," Tear said decidedly, standing tall and erect, "I am simply a Bard. One can bring a lute along where ever she pleases if one wishes to. I am here to slay dragons!"

Luke cast the bard a wary look, and suddenly, a light appeared over his head, and he smiled at his superior, "Master Van Sir, I have a perfect idea!" He said brightly. Van turned to the private, "I'll take Tear myself! I've always wanted to go on a Dragon Slaying expedition. If she is out to slay dragons, we can return without incident. However, if she is a Dragon Singer, I shall arrest her on the spot and bring her back. How does that sound?"

Tear blinked unexpectedly at Luke, and Van appeared in deep thought. The two stared in anticipation at him, and he finally sighed, "Fine. Luke, go with Tear. And do not let her out of your sight. Take her and bring her back here…" he turned to the woman, and then looked back at Luke, "Safely and in one piece."

"Yes Sir, Master Van Sir!" Luke replied with a salute, clapping his heels together. Mieu whirred and puffed some smoke out. He looked towards Tear and she nodded slowly back.

"Ahh, before you leave," Van said quietly, pulling Luke aside. Tear crossed her arms and looked away. The Captain took a small paper from his breast pocket, and handed it to Luke, "Take it, but whatever you do, don't give it to Tear. It's a passport that will allow you to cross the border at any station, no questions asked. It's signed by the king himself."

The Engineer took the paper thankfully, and stared at the wax seal upon it. Luke never felt so free! "Thank you, Master Van Sir!" He said exuberantly.

"Well, are we ready to go?" Tear asked, "We haven't got all day…" Luke looked up and gasped when he realized she was already walking off! With a cry, he ordered her to wait up and rushed after the woman, Mieu trying its best to keep up. Van smiled a bit at his subordinate as the three were off.

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The group continued on a bit, their footsteps coming down upon the base of the Kimlascan Mountains. Eventually Mieu's tiny footsteps could not climb the rocky mountains so Luke had to carry his creation. It whirred and buzzed even so, and Luke coughed every time it blew smoke in his face.

Tear screamed when Mieu's alarm suddenly went off, blaring loudly in Luke's ear. The Engineer clamped his hand over one of his ears, although that didn't help much; his other ear was still being blasted at. Tear gave a cry and pointed at a Dragon that was swooping upon them. Luke ducked and the creature flew right over the two, away from them. Tear whirled around and blinked, "It's… almost as if… She's fleeing…"

As if on cue, a blonde man leapt over the two of them, sword bouncing at his side. He had abandoned using it, as he could not reach the flying creature, but went instead to his bow and arrow. Sliding down the mountainside, he drew back his bowstring; three arrows were knocked expertly nocked in the string. With a cry, the Dragon Slayer released the arrows, which flew straight and true, directly into the Dragon's shoulder blade, incapacitating its wing. The Dragon let out a scream that was even louder than Mieu's wailing, and crashed to the ground, creating a shockwave that made Luke and Tear fall onto their rumps.

The Dragon Slayer let out a whoop and dragged his sword out, rushing down to meet with the Dragon. Tear stared as the man prepared to kill the wounded dragon, and Luke gasped when she leapt up, "Stop! Stop, don't you dare hurt her!"

"Oh no you don't!" Luke shouted, standing up to stop the woman. Mieu was still in his arms, however, and it puffed some smoke in his face. With a cough, the soldier dropped to the floor, the robot flying from his hands. Mieu sailed through the air and slammed into the ground, bolts and springs flying in multiple directions. Luke would have rushed to his creation's side, but his head hit the ground with such force that he passed out then and there. Tear didn't notice the soldier's plight as she rushed the Dragon Slayer, her lute out and ready. The Dragon Slayer heard the woman's footsteps, and leapt out of the way just in time; her lute was almost brought upon his head. The man raised his sword, but once he realized it was a woman, he dropped backwards, practically tripping over himself with a cry.

"Leave that Dragon be!" Tear shouted, "I…"

"You're a Dragon Singer!" The Dragon Slayer cried. He grasped at his sword, and looked at Luke. He glared at Tear and suddenly heard a screech on the horizon. Looking up, he saw a Dragon in flight. Turning back to Tear, he scrambled up, "The soldier's life will not be in vain. I will make sure your face is shown on every wanted poster in all of Malkuth! You will be a traitor to your country!" And with that, the swordsman rushed off, although it was more like scrambling away from the woman.

"Tokunaga, land softly!" The Dragon Rider sang, aided (strangely enough) by a small percussion instrument that she was able to beat in time to her song, riding her mount with no hands to assist her sitting upright. Tokunaga gave a cry and dropped to the ground next to Tear, making her cry out unconsciously, "Tear! Are you okay?"

"Thanks to you, Anise," The woman replied as Tokunaga preened himself, "I'm sorry I got myself into trouble."

"Don't worry about it!" Anise replied, sliding off her Dragon and snuggling his head as he cooed, "You're just going to have to pay me back someday! We're going to have to tend to that Dragon's wounds, and head back to the hideout. Ion's worried sick about you."

"Understandably," Tear turned and stared at the unconscious Luke. Anise blinked, and Tear turned back to the girl, "I'm going to do what I can for the wounded Dragon. Could you have Tokunaga carry him back?"

"Him!?" Anise cried, understandably shocked. She glared at Tear and stomped her foot, "But he's a Malkuthian soldier! He's an ENEMY!"

"But he's hurt. It's King Ingobert's wish that we care even for our enemies," Taking her lute up, she strummed it and began to sing, "We are to help even our enemies, is that not right, Tokunaga?" The Dragon nodded in response, giving a gurgling noise as emphasis. Anise growled angrily.

"Stop turning Tokunaga against me, Tear!" She said, getting slightly jealous. It was obvious; Tokunaga and Anise grew up together, and Anise hated any thought that maybe the Dragon loved someone more than her. She mounted her Dragon and asked him with the assistance of the drum to pick up Luke and the small machine, still broken from its rough drop.

Tear placed her hands on the wounded Dragon and began to sing that everything was okay. She would use the Ancient Daathic Magics of healing to recover the Dragon's wing, even going so far as to spit the offending arrows from the body. The Dragon stood and roared, making Tear grab her ears, and suddenly she felt the sensation of the Dragon grasping her in its taloned foot and lifting off.

"We're going home!" Anise proclaimed, pointing ahead with a smile, "To Baticul!"

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Captain Van stared at the report that the Dragon Slayer had given him, the blood rushing to his head in anger as he read it. Tear had attacked the man with a legion of Dragons, and dragged Luke away? He strode through the castle halls and pushed the door open, into the audience room. The royal family, five in all, was entertaining themselves in different ways. The Royal Consul sat upon a fine chair, reading off the day's taxes, while the king's little sister sat among her cousin's Rappigs, laughing gaily at his jokes. The king's mother smiled as she sat by her son's side, puffing up with pride at his success.

"What is it NOW, Van?" Dist the Royal Consul drawled, dragging himself away from his duties to fluff up his collar and stand, "Can't you see we are attempting to have SOME peace and quiet in this place?"

"Yeah!" The king's cousin, Peony, said irritably, "You interrupted my joke! Now Nephry can't laugh at it!"

"Calm down now, Peony Dear," Nebilim said, smiling at her sister's son, "Captain Van, as you can see, we are busy now and my son does not wish to be bothered."

"It's just that, Your Ladyship…" Van said through gritted teeth as he stared at the man upon the throne, "The Dragons have appeared to make their first move…"

King Jade Curtiss IV of the Malkuthian Kingdom's eyes suddenly lit up from behind his glasses, his red eyes flaring with delight. Nebilim gave a soft cry when he stood up and grabbed at the Royal Family's heirloom, the Dragon Lance, "Well then," He said with a smile, "Let's slip the Dogs of War, shall we?"

TO BE CONTINUED…

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I hope you guys enjoyed the prologue! Tell me how much you liked it in a REVIEW!