The Sliders Series

by Dixxy Mouri

After Kyle and Alex do something stupid, the gang find themselves working for a very upset Keeper of the Realms. Will eventually be a giant cross-over spanning multiple series. HIATUS.

1. Episode One

Episode One- Happily Ever After?

"Burg is so near, Alex," said Luna, resting her head on Alex's shoulder. "How much longer are we going to have to stay on this stupid boat?"

Alex sighed. "Another day or so. We've only been out to sea for a few hours!"

"I know, but I miss everyone," she said. The two were on a ship headed for Saith, which was a fairly easy walk back to Burg, their hometown. Well, Alex's home town. Luna was. . . special.

"Alex! I'm hungry! When are we gonna eat??"

Alex turned to see the ever impatient Nall hovering behind him. "Go find the captain. He said free food for anyone who helped save Lunar."

"YAY! FISH!" said Nall, zipping off to get the promised food. The young lovers laughed as the small dragon zipped off to find the captain. The captain had been more than generous to give all of the Five Heroes and Luna free passage on his boat. The friends figured that at most those on the main continent would need to use that. Alex and Luna could easily fly with Nall.

"Well, it's good to know things will be getting back to normal," said Luna. "We had fun, but I want to rest before we do anything else like that."

Alex grinned. "I want another adventure, but yeah, not just yet. Kyle and I were already talking about looking for unexplored caverns in the Saylan Desert," he said.

Luna's eyes widened. "The Saylan Desert!? Alex, no, no, and no! Kyle can go get himself killed but you are staying in Burg!"

"Aw, but Luna, I was a Dragonmaster!" said Alex.

"WERE a Dragonmaster," said Luna. "You aren't a Dragonmaster anymore, so you can't go getting yourself killed!"

"It's not like I'd be going alone!" said Alex. "Kyle has magic and-"
"Alex, no means no, you're staying in Burg!" she said.

"But you just-"

"This discussion is over," she said.

"But Jessica, Alex and –"

Jessica fumed at her fiancé, folding her arms. "Kyle, we're getting married in three months. During that time I would prefer it if you DIDN'T die on me!"

"But I'm not gonna die! We took care of Ghaleon, so how bad is Saylan Desert gonna be?" pleaded Kyle.

"It's unexplored terrain! Who knows what lurks out there?" said Jessica.

"But you used to love adventures!" said Kyle.

Jessica sighed heavily. "Not this one, Kyle."

"Aw, but Jessica-"

"I'll bet Luna told Alex the same thing," said Jessica. "The Saylan Desert is REALLY dangerous."

Kyle knew the fight was futile. He would need to just give up and forget about going on anymore adventures, or, sneak out behind Jessica's back. Then he'd need a way to sneak Alex away from Luna. But how was he going to do that?

An idea hit his head. "Um, Jessica?"

"I said no, Kyle."

"Actually, I was just gonna go get a beer. Mind if I go to Black Rose Street and pick up Nash? The guy needs a vacation anyways," said Kyle.

Jessica raised an eyebrow. "I thought you and Nash didn't like each other!"

"Well, you aren't big on beers and I don't think Mia's much of a drinker, so it's either Mel or Nash," said Kyle.

"I don't think Nash is much better," said Jessica.

"Do I really want to go drinking with your father? Remember the last time he got drunk and started dancing naked on the roof of the mansion?"

Jessica's decision was obvious. "Bring Nash."

"Kyle, what are you doing dragging me to bar?" asked Nash. The much smaller mage was bewildered why Kyle, who often spoke of killing him was dragging him to a bar to go drinking. "I'm a bit of a lightweight, Kyle. Last time I went drinking I got sick all over the Grand Hall."

"We're not going to be drinking, Nash. We're plotting," said Kyle.

"Plotting?" asked Nash. "What are you plotting?"

"You see, Jess told me that I couldn't go exploring the Saylan Desert with Alex, so I need to sneak out behind her back," said Kyle. "That's where you come in."

Nash sighed. "What do you want me to do?"

"You know of anything that can be used to teleport people long distances?" said Kyle.

"Yes, but Mia will get mad," said Nash, scratching his head.

Kyle shook his head. "That's part of the point! We are men. Well, I'm a man and you and Alex are still boys since you aren't exactly eighteen yet, but we can't get bossed around by our girls! It's our manly duty to do this!"

Nash knew that arguing with Kyle wasn't going to go anywhere. Kyle might try to bring him to a burlesque house next, which would cause Mia to skin him alive. "All right, I'll do it. Follow me. Lemia has a few of these high-powered dragonfly wings left over from an experiment she tried. They should be like one-time use White Dragon Wings."

"We'll need at least three or four of them, since we need to go to Burg, from Burg, to the Saylan Desert, and back from the Saylan Desert," said Kyle. "This is gonna be great! You can come, too."

"Oh joy," said Nash. "I'll get eaten alive!"

"You'll just electrocute all the monsters! Or shoot them up with your arrows," said Kyle. "It'll be FUN."

Nash stood up as the two left the Seagull Tavern. "Every inn on Black Rose Street has been booked up with citizens of Vane. It's very crowded and can get loud when wizards screw up."

"Screw up?"

"Abra kadabra KA-BOOM."

"Oh, I get it. Cool!" said Kyle. "Any KA-POWS!?"

Nash sighed heavily. "This is going to be a LONG journey."

"Oh, get some thick skin and build up some muscle. Maybe Mia will LIKE a big, brave, strong man," said Kyle, flexing an arm. "If you go on this adventure, you might put some muscle under your skin."

Nash lifted his arm and frowned at the skinny arm under his tunic sleeve. "Maybe, but I don't know. . ."

"Do it and I'll send my men from Nanza to the Vane relief effort."

"Deal."

Meanwhile, in Burg, Alex was going into withdrawal. But Luna was oddly happy that Alex was staying at home. Confused as to why he refused to come out of the closet, but happy, none the least.

"Alex, aren't you hungry?" asked Nall, banging his paw against the door to create a slight tapping sound.

"No, I'm depressed, Nall."

"But you gotta eat!"

"I'm going through withdrawal."

"Well come out of withdrawal! Whatever that is! Just come on! Your mom made curry."

"Mom's curry gives me gas."

"Alex! That's gross!"

"Well, it DOES. . ."

"Yeah, she does use a lot of beans. Beans, beans, the musical fruit, the more you eat, the more you-"

"NALL!"

"Coming, Luna," said Nall. Before he left, he whispered the word "toot". Then he began singing the other verse. "Beans, beans, they're good for your heart, the more you eat, the more you-"

"NNAALLLL!!!!"

"Eiyp. Bye!"

SMACK! DONG!

"My aim's getting better with the frying pan, isn't it, Alex?" said Luna.

"I didn't eat all the fish, Luna, it was Nash, I swear it," Nall mumbled from his crumpled position on the floor. "I'm going to bed. I'm not hungry anymore."

"Alex, please come out of the closet."

"Mr. Sock and I are having a conversation, you're not invited," said Alex.

Luna frowned. "This is serious."

KNOCK-KNOCK!

"Come in!" yelled Luna.

"Why hello, madame, I'm here as a traveling salesperson, may I please speak to the man of the house?" asked a rather short salesmen and his rather tall friend. Both wore big cloaks and funny looking black mustaches. They also wore dark glasses and seemed almost familiar.

"Alex's father is away," said Luna.

"Alex will do," said the taller salesperson.

"He's speaking with a sock in the closet," said Luna. "He can't-"

"DEAR ALTHENA HE NEEDS OUR PRODUCT!" said the shorter of the two. "This product you see, is good for blending, sewing, washing clothes, drying clothes, slicing, dicing, sautéing, broiling, julienne, grinding flour, and ESPECIALLY bringing depressed boyfriends out of withdrawal.."

Luna smiled. "Please, please talk to him!"

"Thank you, ma'am," said the taller of the two. "We will join 'Alex' and his sock in the closet."

The other salesman sniffed the air. "Is. . . something burning?"

"THE CURRY! Oh no, now I have to go out and buy something else to eat!" said Luna. The former Goddess darted to the stove, only to find it was too late. After disposing of the ruined curry, she prepared to leave. She grabbed a small bag on a table near the door, preparing to rush out. "Please, please fix Alex! I need to go!"

The salesmen exchanged looks. "Perfect," said the taller salesman. "Alex!"

"Kyle? What are you doing here?" asked Alex. "Would you like to meet Mr. Sock?"

"We're here to- Mr. Sock?" asked the shorter salesman, obvious Nash at this point.

"He hasn't gotten his doctorate yet, Nash. But he will then be Dr. Sock," explained Alex.

"Should we drag him to the men in the white coats before going away?" asked Kyle.

"He'll be fine, let's get him out of there first," said Nash, opening the closet. He then yelped. "Alex! You're wearing. . . you're wearing one of Luna's dresses!"

"And her make-up," said Kyle. "And you're talking to a sock!"

"Mr. Sock is my friend," explained Alex.

"He's snapped. Let's go bring him to the springs and throw him into it. Bring a change of clothes and his weapons," said Nash.

"If that doesn't work?"

"Maybe if I cast a Confuse spell on him or something," said Nash. "That or Thunderbolt him."

"Either works. Come on."

After saving Alex from the brink of insanity, Kyle explained his plan to the former Dragonmaster. "Kyle? Nash? I love you guys," said Alex. "Luna is going to be so mad!"

"Isn't that bad?" said Nash.

"Nah, it's funny, she can't DO anything," said Alex, grinning to himself. After the boys equipped themselves with their weapons and special armors, Nash brought out the tiny green wings they'd use to transport themselves across Lunar.

"What exactly is that?" asked Alex.

"It's called a Green Dragon Wing. They're almost like the White Dragon Wings, but you can only use them once," said Kyle. "They're really neat. But be warned, Nash screwed up the first time and we ended up in some ugly woman's room."

"I don't think I ever want to be in contact with that much blubber for the rest of my life," said Nash, shuddering.

"She thought he was a one of those teleporting Chip N' Dales Dancers," said Kyle.

"I'm going to do Nash a favor by not asking," said Alex. "All right, we're off to the Saylan Desert!"

"Bring us to the Saylan Desert!" said Nash. In a bright flash of green, they were gone.

"This is absolutely PATHETIC!" said Nash. "I KICKED one of the monsters and it died!" The Saylan Desert had proved to be not much of a challenge to the traveling boys. Alex sighed heavily. It wasn't much of an adventure after all.

"Ho, ho, Alex!"

"Laike? Laike's in the Saylan Desert?" said Kyle. "Hi Dyne!"

"My name is no longer Dyne," said the former Dragonmaster Dyne. "I simply came here to explore. Now why are the three of you out here?"

"Well, Alex and I had talked about exploring this pathetic excuse for a monster-filled wasteland when Jessica and Luna kind of said 'no'," explained Kyle.

"Kyle talked Nash into helping us sneak out, although they had a close call when they went to get me," said Alex.

"What kind of a close call?" asked Laike, raising an eyebrow.

"He went into a serious case of withdrawal," said Nash."

"How bad?"
"He was wearing Luna's clothes and talking to a sock," said Kyle.

Laike stared in shock at Alex. "I have no idea what to say. Sounds to me like they almost lost you."

Kyle nodded. "Nearly. So, how have you been?"

"All right, I'm considering coming out to Lemia and Mel that I'm-"

"You're GAY!?"

"No, Nash, that I'm alive," said Laike. "I phrased that wrong, didn't I? Well, I certainly hope you three understand that Luna, Jessica, and Mia are going to kill the three of you."

"We know, but what they don't know can't hurt us. You see, we'll tell them we decided to go to some other place. . . like Pao to visit Tempest or something," said Kyle.

"Devious, isn't he?" said Nash. "Well, see you, Laike!"

"Bye, Laike!" said Kyle. "Hey, Nash, see that rock over there? I'll race ya!"

"You know I can run faster than you, you ignoramus!"

"HEY! GET BACK HERE!"

"Good day, Laike," said Alex, taking off after his friends. "HEY! WATCH IT! WE ONLY HAVE SO MANY HEALING NUTS!"

That night, their camp was quiet, the crackling of the fire being the only sound. All three travelers stared up at the sky and the Blue Star, each lost in his own thoughts.

A beer would be nice right about now. . . nah, I want whiskey! No, wine. But then again a martini would be good, too. . .

I wonder if a simple levitation spell would get Vane to fly- no, we tried that already. What about asking Myght for a bunch of high-powered engines?

Well, Luna and I missed the festival this year thanks to the crisis, but is it too late to possibly play in Meribia?

"Squawk. . ."

"Huh? What was that?" asked Nash, bolting upright.

"I heard it, too," said Kyle. The boys were at their feet. Kyle and Alex were ready with their swords and Nash had an arrow notched and ready to shoot. "I don't see anything. But I know I heard a bird."

"There's a black dot in the distance," said Alex. "You can see it over the Blue Star."

"Yeah, I see it, too," said Nash. "It's getting bigger."

"It's coming our way," said Kyle. His eyes widened. "Uh oh."

"Uh oh what?" said Nash.

"That's a Terracon," said Kyle. "They're giant, man-eating birds."

"How do you know that?" asked Alex. His eyes widened to see Kyle had suddenly begun to shake nervously. He was scared. "Kyle?"

"Wh, when I was, four, one, one of those, those things, took, took off with my, my, my mother," he said. "I, I never, never saw her, her, I never, never saw her again."

"Um, should we run?" said Nash.

"Get, it, get it away form me!" said Kyle.

"Let's GO!" said Alex. The three boys began to scream and run away. The giant bird screeched and dove in.

"IT GOT ME!" screamed Nash. Past of his tunic had been caught on the great, green bird's talon. It began to lift off, Nash slightly passed panicked.

"HEY! LET HIM GO!" said Alex. He drew his sword and gave out a battle cry.

"BEHIND YOU!"

Alex looked behind him just in time for the bird's beak to catch him by the front of his shirt. "KYLE! HELP US!"

Kyle stared up at his friends, frozen solid again. The bird squawked again, wrapping its talons around Kyle before he could react. They three were then whisked away, into the night.

"I'm going to kill him, I'm going to kill him, I'm going to STRANGLE THAT DUMB BASTARD!" said Jessica, pacing back and fourth in Mel's mansion. After Jessica and Mia had run into each other, both realizing that they both had a missing significant other, had come to the conclusion that Kyle had dragged Nash into his plot to go to the Saylan Desert. When Luna had flown in on the back of Nall, stating that Alex had vanished after two strange salesmen came to their house, they realized it had (somehow) been Nash and Kyle. And finally, when Laike decided to confront Mel with his secret, he told the worried girls where their friends were located.

"Is that your pet name for Kyle?" asked Mia.

"No, I'M ANGRY WITH HIM!" said Jessica. "Laike, how did you get here form the Saylan Desert so fast?"

"Green Dragon Wings," he said.

"Ugh, Kyle must have gotten them from Nash," said Mia.

Luna fumed. "Well, looks like we'll have to go to the Saylan Desert and bring them back," she said.

Laike gulped. "Well, Althena's powers might have been lost to this world, but it appears as if her temper towards misbehaving Dragonmasters hasn't changed much," he said dryly.

"I won't ask," said Jessica. "Are you coming, or do you wish to wait for my father?"

"I'm going to wait for Hell Mel," said Laike. "You kids will be all right, right?"

"Of course we'll be all right!" said Luna. "Nall? Please had back to Caldor Isle and tell Alex's parents where I'm going?"

Nall, who'd been kept busy by a plate of fish, looked up and nodded. "Can I finish eating first?" he asked.

"Of course you can," said Jessica. "Mia? Lead us to the Green Dragon Wings."

My head. . .

Alex groaned and he forced himself to sit up. He looked around to find himself in a cage. He felt it swaying and he had a feeling it was one of those hanging cages he read about in books.

"Glad you're up," said Kyle. "Help me and Nash find a way out of here."

"What?" asked Alex, looking around. He saw that Nash and Kyle were also in the cage, Nash working on one of the bars with a file. He also discovered they were suspended above a pot of boiling water, where a bird similar to the one that they'd been captured by was slicing carrots and putting them into the pot.

"I know, shock, help us!" said Nash.

"Meals aren't supposed to escape," said the bird.

"They talk?" said Alex.

"Yup, you'd better believe it. Humans are a delicacy to these guys," said Kyle. "We're in trouble, BIG trouble."

"No kidding," said Nash.

"Why don't you try to zap them with your thunder power, Nash?" asked Alex.

"I used up all of my magic a few hours ago," said Nash. "They've also got our weapons."

Alex cringed. "If I had at least a little magic, I could try and use one of the Dragon spells," he said.

"But you lost your magic," said Nash. "I'm not mad, really, you did it to save Lunar. BUT WHO'S GONNA SAVE US!?"

"Nash, calm down," said Alex. "We can't panic. That's the way we're going to die."

"Right, right," said the thunder mage. "But how are we going to get out of here alive?"
"I don't know, but we're working on that," said Kyle. "Anyone got an idea?"

"HEY! LET THEM GO YOU DUMB BIRDS!"

"Was that. . . Jessica?" asked Kyle.

"It was, and she's got Mia and Luna with her!" said Nash. "Jess! Mia! Luna! Up here! Help!"

"They want Kyle al la Orange Sauce, Nashed Potatoes, and Alex Pot Pie for dinner tonight!" said Kyle. (Note: "Nashed Potatoes" is an inside joke that Princess Janara accidentally created one day in gym class)

"Get us down!" said Alex. "We'll never, ever, EVER go out behind your backs again!"

"WE'RE SORRY!"

"Apologies and punishment later, FIGHT NOW!" said Jessica, smacking one of the birds with her mace. Mia summoned up a Flameria while Luna began to throw poison darts at their enemies.

One of the birds looked at the captives, licked his beak, and pulled a lever, causing the bottom of the cage to open up. Kyle, Alex, and Nash yelped, but were luckily able to grasp one of the sides of the cage. "Start swinging, then jump when you think we won't land in the pot," said Alex.

A burst of flaming swords filled the air. When they cleared, many of the monsters lay dead, the rest injured beyond the point of fighting. Alex and the other two jumped down from the cage. The girls rushed over and hugged their respective men, Kyle and Jessica sharing a kiss.

Then the girls took the next ten minutes to scold the guys. "What were you thinking?!" "Did you think I wouldn't find out?!" "See if I ever let you out of my sight for the next year!"

"Shouldn't we get out of here before the calvary comes?" suggested Nash.

"Point taken," said Mia. "Trouble is, we aren't sure which was IS out. We got here by Green Dragon Wings."

"Well, let's get out weapons so we can help you ladies when we run into trouble," said Kyle.

"We saw them in a glass cabinet down the hallway," said Mia. "Follow us."

Well? What did you think? This doesn't exactly state the plot quite yet, this just kind of begins to set things up. The whole plot of this series is stated in episode two and the ball begins rolling in part three.

This is the first time I've written really long parts. Normally, my parts are two and half to three pages long. The parts for this fic will range from four to seven or eight pages with a smaller type than I'm used to.

This is my second Lunar fanfic. The first is entitled Shattered Heart, which is a Mia/Nash romance story. Nash is my favorite character, just to let you know, so if he seems to be hogging the spotlight, please e-mail me at CyeSage@netscape.net and I'll be sure to make sure that the other characters get some fame, too. Anyone who writes fanfic will agree that their favorite character tends to be the main focus of most of their stories. Heh, you should see my Ronin Warrior Fanfics. Cye has LOTS of fun in those. . .

-Dixxy