Quenched by the Red Water Alchemist

Chapter Seven – Vacation of Survival and Evil Part I

Yock Island was slowly coming into view as Sig steadily rowed towards it. Sadly (and only to Ed), it looked smaller than the last time they had been there. Edward was leaning over the edge of the boat looking at his reflection and Alphonse was twittling his leather thumbs trying not to think about the harsh training.

"Teacher…Manson isn't going to be on the Island again is he?" Alphonse asked nervously. Izumi laughed in response and looked over at Edward who still didn't seem to be interested.

"Manson is engaged to a beautiful woman and moved to the northern part of Dublith. He doesn't work for the shop anymore though. But he comes and visits us every once and a while."

"Really, well that woman must be blind." Edward smirked as he remained leaning over the edge of the boat.

"Well, she loves him because he's wonderful with children." Sig replied.

Edward rolled his eyes, "Oh yeah trying to killing them must be his hobby."

"That wasn't his fault Edward." Izumi scolded "I made him do that."

The closer the boat got to the Island the harder the waves rocked against it. And since the waves were so strong one happened to splash in Edward's face and soaked him completely.

"I hate this place already. Damn it, how long are we going to stay here now?" He asked.

"About two weeks. One if I happen to be feeling generous."

Alphonse and Edward felt dread wash over them. They had survived a month before right? Then why did two weeks seem so bad to them now?

"Alright, here is some food to start you off and a knife. Oh three bottles of water." Izumi handed Edward a brown sack. When he opened it up he saw the same brown knife he had used against Manson. The memory was faint but he still remembered it.

"You leave him alone…" Edward staggered up onto his weak feet. He held the knife in front of his face. Scars and bruises were all over him. "You leave…my Brother…alone!"

The Masked Man had Alphonse gripped by his shirt and he was half way unconscious.

The Masked Man let him go and as he did Edward felt his vision die on him as well and he went falling to the ground.

He hated this place. It was covered in bad memories. And right as the terrible memory faded he realized that they had fully arrived at the Island. Alphonse was the first to get out of the boat and soon after that Sig and Izumi followed. Edward remained, terrified of the wilderness. It was like it was his first time there.

"Ed, are you coming! Don't tell me you're scared!" Alphonse yelled. Edward wrapped his arms around him and took his first step into the wet dirt. Yep, it was the all the same. Squishy and dirty.

"I should've won that fight." He huffed.

After Edward got out Sig got back inside the boat and Izumi walked over to the edge and stick one foot inside then looked back at their pathetic image. "Well, boys I'll see you in two weeks…like I said I'll come pick you up in one week if I'm feeling generous. Al, take care of your brother!"

"H-hey?! Shouldn't it be the other way around?" Edward yelled.

Izumi smiled, "No…it shouldn't."

With that Izumi stepped fully inside the boat and Sig slowly pushed the boat back into the water and began rowing away back to the main part of the Island.

Edward watched as they grew smaller and smaller and every time he noticed they were getting farther away he felt a sick feeling wash over him like the murky water around the Island.

Back on the boat however, Izumi was starting to regret leaving them alone. "I don't know if it was the best thing to do…" she told Sig. He didn't reply. "What if something bad happens to them again? Then this time I'll be the one at fault."

"They'll be fine Izumi." He finally told her. She took one last look at the Island before it completely disappeared.

~ Back on Yock Island ~

Edward plopped down onto the ground and closed his eyes, "Alphonse, that's it! I think I'm ready to die now…"

"Stop it Brother. You can't say those kinds of things. We still need to get our bodies back you know." Alphonse was by a tree harvesting fruit and starting a fire for his Brother. If Alphonse hadn't of been there with him he would probably already be dead.

"So, she didn't tell us what we were supposed to think about while we we're here."

Al looked over at him. He was right. Usually Izumi would want them to learn something while they were there but this time she just dropped them off. Was this a vacation from the outside world?

"We're just here because she doesn't want me to think about Venllie or Alchemy or even the Philosopher's Stone. She just wants survival to be out number one priority."

Edward was right. That would be something their teacher would want them to think about. Her lessons were somewhat helpful. After all, she was able to get a depressed Ed to eat. It was like she was some type of miracle!

"So, dinner should be ready soon. I'm going to go fish. Do you want to come with me or stay here?" Alphonse slowly began walking away from him and back to the shore.

"No, I'm gonna stay here. I'm tired anyway." Turning away from him he closed his eyes and yawned.

"Alright, I'll see you in a while."

With that Edward Elric was alone. Left to think about his troubling memories and gaze upon the wilderness of the Island. However, just as he was about to fall asleep he heard a strange voice flow into his ears.

You are sad aren't you little boy? Didn't you say that you we're feeling better? What happened to you?
He picked himself off the ground and looked around. No one was there.

Venllie would be very disappointed in you Edward Elric.

It was like his heart stopped. Whoever this person was they knew Ven. Or...was it just a part of his imagination again? "Who's there?!" he called.

He waited for a response, but it never came. Just thinking he was only hearing things he began to let his head fall back on the ground. But the voice came back, this time even louder than what it was before. His eyes widened, and he picked himself off the ground and scanned the area.

"Come quickly if you want answers." The voice was extremely close. The voice was welcoming. The voice was...mysterious.

"Where are you?" Edward asked.

Suddenly, in the shadows of the forest a figure wearing a black coat and sunglasses appeared. He was also wearing a hat and was way taller than Edward. "Don't worry," he said "I'm no foe. I just want to help you."

Who is this man? I can't go with him! Not without-...

"You must come with me. Please. You must be alone too."

He remained in the same place, only staring at him. But then something deep inside told him to go with the man. So he did.

They both walked into the forest, Edward walking in the back and the strange man guiding them to their destination.

"Where are you taking me? And how the hell did you get on this Island?!" Edward said finally.

The man didn't answer. He didn't even look back at him. That made Edward angry.

Finally, he came to a quick halt in front of a cave. Edward looked around not remembering the cave at all. Then back at the mysterious man.

"Inside, there is a magic liquid that has been forming the cave. If you let it touch you, you shall become pure and all your nightmares will disintegrate in the light."

Edward chuckled and turned his back on the man, "Oh please. I stopped believing magic tricks a long time ago." As he turned around he saw that the man had disappeared without a trace.

"Wha-?! F-fine. I'll go in. But I swear if this is some type of game I'll find that man and give him a piece of my mind."

Before walking in he checked around him one last time and headed in.

Back on the other side of the Island Alphonse had made it back from his fishing trip only to see that his brother wasn't there.

"Ed? Brother?!" he looked around and still couldn't find him. Panicking he noticed footprints in the dirt. He began to follow them all the way until they led up into the woods. He stopped at the edge and continued to search.

"Brother...where did you go?"

Walking in the dark, Edward traveled down the narrow path the cave had to offer. He could hear rushing water that sounded like it was coming from the back of the cave and with every step he took he felt heavier and his breath becoming shorter.

The feeling felt very familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had felt the pain before. It wasn't with Venllie and the other Homunculi. No. It was long before that. He had been with Alphonse and was solving some weird case. Was it with the...fake Elric Brothers?!

That was it. Russell and Fletcher Tringham! The Red Water! Suddenly, Edward stopped dead in his tracks and began having a coughing fit. He felt his heart slow and his body become weak. This was it...he was going to die. It was strange. Earlier he has said that he was ready to die. But, that wasn't true. He didn't want to die.

Falling to his knees he tried crawling back away from the cave. But his body broke completely. "Al! A...(hack) Alpho-..." his body hit the ground and his vision died.

This is it...I'm going to...


Well, I'll be evil and cut it off here. :D I'll update part II really soon. I'd say before Friday. Oh and next week is Spring Breeak! Oh yeah! So more typing, homework, and video gaming!

Claire Elric: Thank you very much for your strong support. I hope that you're able to enjoy this one as much as the first one!

Victorious-Mind: Thanks for the review! I love Mustang, that's why I added him into this one too!

f tastarossa: Yeah is was something about the period in your username! XD Anyway, you're welcome and thank you for the support!

To Be Continued...

Kok0roxGuardian