And Chapter two. Not much to say. I'll work on this one better. By the way, this takes place about 8 months after the last chapter. Ed's taller, having hit a growth spurt. His Stalker arm has been adjusted accordingly and has discovered how to flick out the claws.
On with the story.
Tom and Hester sat at a table in the flight lounge of one of the small towns in the trading cluster. They were hiding in the far corner, the only other notable people being a woman in a bright red leather coat and three men wearing black, semi reflective coats. Two had wide brimmed hats while the third had long golden blond hair. Their backs were to the two kids.
The barkeep walked up to them. "What can I get for you?" he asked. Tom noticed he was a big man, a thick moustache on his lip.
"We're trying to get to London. Do you know of any airships that could take us? We need to leave tonight," replied Tom. Hester sat there, the scarf around her face.
The barkeep frowned. "To land at London you need a special pass. No ships from anywhere around here would have that. We're not that kind of town," he muttered.
"Perhaps I could be of help?" asked a soft foreign voice. Tom and Hester looked to see the woman in the red jacket turn to them. She had black glasses on her face, reflecting everything. "I can't land at London, but I can take you to Airhaven, you should be able to find a ship there." Tom and Hester glanced at each other.
He noticed that she was looking worse and worse as time went on. "But he have no money to pay you," he replied. She frowned thoughtfully.
At that moment, a crowd of people gathered at the front.
"Look! Uncle Wreyland! We found 'em!" cried a stupid looking man.
Tom bolted, grabbing a sheet white Hester from the chair and tried to run, but a number of men from Speedwell blocked their escape.
"These are my passengers," replied the woman. "I was arranging a fee."
"These are our slaves!" shouted the man known and Wreyland. He was thin, the clothes hanging off of him. his hair was oily and smelled like he hadn't showered in days.
At that moment, the golden blond stepped in, his black coat swirling in the wind.
"Gentlemen, please, the lady has kindly made her point. These are now her passengers, not your slaves." His black sunglasses shone in the light.
"Yeh, and who are you to stop us? We could overpower her and you and take you all for slaves!" shouted the mayor. His posse cheered with him. the stranger smiled.
"Yes, well, in case you didn't know, I'm with those two over there," motioned the stranger, pointing to the two figures at the table. "And I also own that nice airship, the black one. Does 'Night Stalker' ring a bell?" The mayor's face screwed up in concentration.
"Nope, and as for your friends, I see no weapons on them, we got bats and crowbars!" Again, cheering, followed by raised blunt objects.
The man turned to the woman. "My name is Edward Elric. What is your name?" he asked, looking at the woman.
"Anna, Anna Fang. I pilot the Jenny Haniver. It's the red one." Ed nodded. He had seen the ship, it stood out, small and red among larger grey airships.
"Well then, we should get this settled." He turned to his friends. "Would you two please get the ship started up and ready for takeoff? Get the defences online." The two in the corner stood up and bolted out the door, silent as the wind. Soon it was the slaver group, Tom, near dead Hester, Anna and Edward.
"So, you're going to let them go quietly to their ship and let them take off. Deal?" asked Ed. Wreyland growled.
"I guess no," muttered Ed. In a flash, he drew his right arm back and punched Wreyland in the face, sending him onto his back.
"RUN!" shouted Ed, pulling out the particle pistol and shooting the ceiling above the crowd.
The particle round caused the roof to sag inwards, crushing the mob. While it wasn't heavy enough to kill them, it would slow them down.
"Get to your ship!" cried Ed, bolting over the roof remains and heading towards the far dock.
Tom slung Hester over his shoulder and bolted behind Anna, heading for the closer dock.
When he got there, he stared.
It was a small red airship, with slightly rusted steel serving as a crew area. Not waiting for orders he hopped on, laying Hester in what he assumed was the medical bay. He made sure she was secure before heading up front. Anna was already starting the ship, the mooring lines detached.
The airship began to pull upwards, rising higher and higher from the trading cluster.
There was little Tom could do, after all, the only experience he had with airships was from stories. And the stories never told you how to pilot the damn thing.
The radio was yelling something about not having clearance to leave. This was met with a flick of the switch, turning it off.
"Don't need to hear them, do we?" asked Anna, grinning.
Tom smiled, if hesitantly, before gaping.
Outside, slowly rising with them, was what he could only assume was the Night Stalker.
It was massive, 400 feet if she was an inch. Black glossy metal covered her surface, making it all but impenetrable to small arms fire, maybe even a light missile.
It had 4 huge engine pods, one after another on both sides, yet instead of blades that cut the wind and forced it ahead, they were some kind of old Tech, glowing blue near the ends. Along the sides of the envelope and beneath the living area was what he could only assume were guns. Medium sized guns. Judging by the look, they were old Tech as well. In fact, the whole thing screamed old Tech. The night sky blended with the ship, making those details hard to discern.
"Hmm, Mr. Elric has quite the ship. I wonder where he got it," questioned Anna to no one in particular.
They were about a hundred feet off the dock when Tom noticed something that sent a bolt of fear into his gut.
A missile turret was firing on them.
It had only shot one missile by now, but there was no doubt about it, unless Anna did some good piloting, they would be struck.
The rocket was almost upon them when it blew up in mid air, exploding into a flash of fire.
"Faulty missile?" questioned Anna. She noticed one of the turrets of Ed's ship had been turned to her and now was aimed at the missile pod.
The pod was struck with a round, blowing it up.
The round in particular was a rail gun round, accelerating an explosive charge, just below 8 times the speed of sound, into the pod.
The city that it was mounted on was gutted in that one blow, the round taking out a good portion of the central works before even detonating.
The explosion that did happen consumed the small townlette, previously known as Speedwell.
Anna and Tom gaped. How on earth did he come into possession of such weaponry?
The two airships rose above the clouds, Ed's larger airship dwarfing the Jenny Haniver.
Anna turned the ship to the direction Airhaven was said to be and locked the wheel before heading aft to look after Hester. On her way past she flicked the radio back on.
"Tom, see if you can get a channel with our friend, Mr. Elric. It would be nice to talk to find out more about him," stated the woman before disappearing, the lighting in the cabin insufficient to light the entire place.
Tom looked at the Night Stalker and gazed as what looked like shutters opened, revealing the bridge of the massive airship.
Ed stood there, as best as he could tell, looking at something below the window line. The interior was brightly lit with white light leaving no shadows. No running lights existed outside of the ship, meaning that if the shutters were closed, he would not be able to see the airship.
Meanwhile, Edward was looking over stuff in the bridge. He was going through some of the less important information on the airship. It was history mostly, and if he found something, he'd go off and read about that, but mainly stuck to history. He was growing interested with the musical world.
"Hmm, let's pick something from when I was alive," murmured Ed, selecting some 'classical' music.
At once, the throws of Beethoven's 5th in D minor, the opening tunes cascading from speakers mounted in the cabin area. The notes were soft, yet demanding, drawing his full attention.
"Hmm, it's nice. Guy was good at what he did," muttered Ed. A flashing blue light on the comms panel flashed, signalling someone was trying to contact him. Ed looked over to see the minute form of Tom holding a radio, looking at his ship. He sighed, pausing the musing and grabbing a small headset, putting it on and pressing the blue flashing light.
"Yes? What do you want?" asked Ed.
"Umm, hi. I'm Tom Natsworthy. Ms. Fang asked me to find out more about you," came the static reply.
"Well, good luck with that. I'll tell you this, my airship was a gift from someone long since dead. That's it. Now, if you want to get to Airhaven you should adjust your course 3 degrees left and two up. A storm is blowing the city south at a faster pace than planned." Tom looked at the controls, baffled by the sheer arrangement and illegibility of dials and switches. He counted four languages alone.
"Umm, that might be difficult. I don't know how to fly an airship. Especially this one. The controls are in a few different languages, none Anglish."
Ed smirked. "Well, keep going like this, when Ms. Fang can tell her to talk to me, I'll update her." With that he pulled the headset off, depositing it on the rack.
He sat down in the command chair, playing the music again. The notes drifted out of hidden speakers. He leaned back and began to think.
How long was he going to be in this world? That was the question at the front of his mind. Sure, his brother's body was obviously going to cost a lot, combine the Soul, well, it was a hefty payment. But at the same time, he didn't want to be here for the next 40 years of his life.
Besides, maybe there was some old Tech that could send him back. Truth did say the opportunity would present itself.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. It was late, he should get some rest. Getting up, he took the lift to check on the Stalkers, making sure they were all ok.
Surprisingly, the one 'default' that caused the abrupt end of production happened to be their human likeness. Apparently they had gained some measure of sentience to qualify for basic human rights.
While they did not display anything like that, he had introduced them to poker.
He could never win, their poker faces were just too good. He tried wearing a blank metal mask when playing, but they interpreted his body language, right down to finger placement and micro percent measurement's of sweat on his hands.
They had a hard time beating each other though, once, a game had gone on for about 3 days. No, correction, one hand had lasted three days.
After checking on them and seeing they were alright he retreated to his bunk on the main deck, dimming the lights of the hallway. The shutters closed, knowing the routine.
"Computer, if the other airship attempts to call, replay the conversation part where I told them to go. Wake me at the usual time." There was a soft beep, the lights dimming in the command room so that they were only slightly brighter than the hall.
The next day
Ed woke to a loud beep, signalling it was early in the morning. He rose sleepily, heading for the kitchenette and making some flash coffee.
Currently walking to the command room, he was dressed in a pair of grey pants transmuted from spare clothing during the last visit to the base. His shirt was a black muscle shirt, showcasing his stalker arm. In that was the coffee, the small metal cup unawares that if Ed so wished, 6 inch talons could erupt from his fingers, skewering the cup.
He sat down on the chair and turned the ship on to the regular day mode, the shutters opening with a quiet rattle.
He began to do a check of the ship, making sure it was all in order. Weapons were loaded and on standby, comms was working perfectly, StalkerSat was 100 percent connectivity, the other Stalkers, judging by the status board, a handy holographic feature Ed whipped up that would display the status of every individual MK II stalker, enlarging it and information with a simple tap, registered the Stalkers as working.
The engines were ok, anti – grav systems were working perfectly. The only thing to note was water was down to 80 percent. While it could replenish itself from rain water and purify it, no weather systems would be by for a few weeks unless he flew strait for them. He could top off in Airhaven.
The two airships arrived in Airhaven with little incident, the sun setting against the horizon. It would be night time in a few hours. Anna pulling the Jenny onto a dock nearby while Edward tied his up in the larger docks above.
The group met in a diner named the 'Gasbag and Gondola.' It was a small building, old and famous airship parts hanging on the wall.
"Hmm, nice place," remarked Ed, his black military coat sweeping around his knees. He currently had a pair of the black sunglasses on, viewing information that was being scanned by them. Most of it was little things, composition, weapons, structural disability. There was none of that on a floating city.
He walked over to the bar area and sat down, ordering something to eat. He wasn't sure, he just said 'the special.' Who knows what it was.
The food came later, a thick soup with chunks of meat in it and smelling of beef. Ed ate slowly, taking in the surroundings. Anna was talking with a group of people who resembled people from Xing. One of these, a larger man, was talking with the two kids.
He listened to the kids, surprised to know that Anna had been a slave aboard a traction city. It made sense though, working in the trash bay, you could probably find stuff to make a good airship.
Over the speakers, an airship was announced to be docking. A 'GE40' something, he couldn't catch that last part.
What was interesting was Tom stood up rapidly enough that his chair flew back, startling a few people.
"That's a London airship!" cried the boy. He had a look of fear in his eyes.
"London airships are always marked with identification codes, no names!" he continued. Ed thought for a few minutes.
If a London Airship was here, it might be looking for the kids. He had heard about their 'adventure' on the moving city and if London was chasing them, they knew something.
More likely Hester did.
In the middle of them trying to dissuade Tom and Ed's deep thought, his soup now cold, the power went out.
"Who turned out the lights?" yelled a patron. Someone ran into the restaurant. "Power's out all across the city!" yelled the person.
Ed grew worried. Just like Hester, he knew this was a fear tactic, designed to scare individuals just as much as cause them to become confused and lost in the dark. Obviously this was coupled with the London Airship.
Ed became aware of a low metallic thud approaching. It was continuous, determined, and getting closer.
"Umm, we might want to get moving," motioned Ed, pointing at the side door.
From the front, people began to scream and run. Ed looked, as did everyone else, to see two green dots, hovering in the middle of the room.
Ed, acting on impulse, pressed the clicker in his pocket.
It was a small beacon that would go to his ship, notifying the Stalkers that they should make sure it's ready to go as soon as he's there. That included lines down, blast shutters closed, a Stalker at the helm and the rear cargo hatch opened, aimed at the most open direction.
Meanwhile, Ed was Carefully watching the green dots.
"It's a Stalker," whispered Tom. "But they died centuries ago, how is he here?" he yelled. Ed noticed he had probably just peed himself.
"Yes, he is a Stalker. Hello Shrike." Edward looked at Hester, as did everyone else. She knew this thing?
"HESTER SHAW," called the Stalker. Putting on the sunglasses, Ed saw the thing in all its gruesome glory. First thing he noticed was it was obviously MK I. The rotting flesh face and metallic components clearly gave that away. It's voice was like rusted cogs on wire brush, grating against what seemed like existence.
"HESTER SHAW. TOM NATSWORTHY," it repeated. Tom paled further, mumbling something about it knowing his name. Even Anna had no idea what to do, her and the rest of her friends scared.
"Not too seem rude or anything, but how is a Stalker of your variety still alive? You should have at least gone mad by now," spoke Ed, drawing attention away from the kids.
The Stalker turned it's green eyes towards Edward, taking in his appearance.
"I WAS BUILT TO LAST." Ed grinned, his eyes sorrowful.
"Well, so am I." Ed struck without warning, unsheathing his claws from the Stalker arm and diving forward. Shrike wasn't anticipating this, but due to enhanced reflexes, advanced combat algorithms, and his own set of finger glaives, he was able to block.
"I suggest you run!" yelled Ed, kicking with his left foot while ducking under a slash. Ed watched as the people ran from the eatery while he ducked under a third slash, using his foot to kick the fleshy stalker off balance.
"YOUR ARM, IT IS A STALKER ARM," noted Shrike. Ed grinned.
"Lost the old one in an accident, thought it would come in handy later on. Guess I was right." Shrike made no comment. Instead, he faked a punch, instead sweeping with his leg, propelling Edward through a wall.
Ed coughed, feeling that a few ribs were cracked. Seeing Shrike approach, he did the only reasonable thing.
He clapped his hands, slamming them onto the deck plates. A few of them reared up and grabbed the legs and arms of the stalker, pulling it down onto the ground, securing if for a while.
"Sorry, but I have to go, enjoy your evening!" yelled Edward, already running as fast as his ribs would allow.
Meanwhile, Tom and Hester, after having discovered the dead body of the child hired to guard the airship and the destroyed engine pod, were now en route to the Night Stalker.
Anna wasn't with them, instead staying with her friends to help Airhaven, having noticed an angle in the levelness of the deck.
Tom and Hester managed to find a balloon that they could steal. They would have gone to find Ed's ship but they didn't know where it was. Besides, the balloon was closer.
They were departing when Tom looked back to Airhaven and saw Shrike standing on the edge of the dock, staring at them. He could see the Night Stalker pulling away in the distance, going in the opposite direction.
"I hope Ed's alright, taking on a Stalker and all," spoke Tom, looking at the form of the airship until it vanished in the night sky, along with the city of Airhaven.
"He's probably dead and his crew is piloting away. Nobody takes on a Stalker and wins, not unless their very lucky," replied Hester, aiming the balloon towards the east.
Edward meanwhile, after using some alchemy to fix the cracked ribs, was now sitting on top of his airship, the night wind blowing through his long golden hair. It was warm, so he had his jacket unbuttoned, the sides of it flaring out. He became aware of the lift rising, meaning one of the Stalkers was checking on him. He confirmed this when there were metal steps behind him.
"So, you and the others worried about me?" asked Ed, knowing the advanced hearing of the Stalker could hear him.
"WE ARE STALKERS. WE DO NOT 'WORRY'" replied the flat voice.
"No, the Stalker part of you doesn't, but what about the human side?" The various reports Edward had read noted that while being incredibly successful on the battlefield, the Stalkers were too intelligent. They developed personalities as time went on. This batch had their programming erased before the war.
"... YES. THERE ARE VARIOUS HAZARDS THAT COULD HAPPEN ON TOP OF THE AIRSHIP THAT COULD LEAD TO YOU BECOMING DAMAGED OR INACTIVE."
Ed grinned. He sat there on the top for a while longer, before speaking again.
"Tell me, do you remember anything from before the war? Specifically before you were wiped?"
"THE ONES WHO CREATED US, THEY LIED. WE WERE NEVER WIPED. WE RETAINED OUR 'PERSONALITIES' DUE TO PRECAUTION ON OUR PARTS. WE FOOLED THE MAKERS." Ed was surprised at that one.
"Alright, but tell me this, do you, the human side of you, wish to stay with me? I include the others of course."
"... YES. YOU HAVE TREATED US AS EQUALS, NOT MACHINES OR INFERIOR THINGS, BUT LIKE LIVING BEINGS. FOR THAT, WE WILL FOLLOW YOU TO OUR LAST RECORD."
"Good, because I have a plan."
"AND WHAT IS THAT PLAN?" replied the gravelly voice.
"When we catch up with the two kids and find out what London is planning, we're going back to North America. From there we'll raid old military bunkers, research labs, facilities, anything that can help me get home. Based on the level of technology here, the idea that there is some interdemensional device or weapon existing is possible. I need to know you and the others are with me till the end though, because if the ancients destroyed themselves in 60 minutes with weapons like that, then who knows what they have as base defences."
It was a plan. His only plan as of yet, but it was a plan.
"WE WILL FOLLOW YOU, BOTH BECAUSE OF OUR PROGRAMMING AND OUR DESIRE TO STAY."
Ed smiled.
[A.N.] There you have it, chapter two. On to chapter three.