Disclaimer: I forgot…Oh wait, yeah, I remember now. I STILL don't own anything but my OC's, the plot, and some town names. ¬.¬ Sheesh.

☺ ♪ ♫ ☼

Engel: Sacrifice

Chapter Eleven

Inside Of The Ruins

"Roaming sheep in search of the place you've never known

Better take a breath until you can hear the sign

Roaming sheep in search of the place you've never seen

Better watch your step until you can find the key

Roaming sheep in search of the place you may never reach

Better love yourself; tomorrow's another day."

-Final Fantasy III (Lyrics from Roaming Sheep)

The rest of the bus trip was held in silence, and Demonte offered to switch seats to keep Meryl company. Milly happily agreed to switch her seat, but BDN was hesitant.

"I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on you," He said, "I'd be breaking my orders if I let you switch."

"I know, but I think that it would be wise if you let me switch," Demonte argued and gestured a few seats back, where Meryl sat. "Didn't you see what happened?"

"Milly can comfort her, Demonte, she doesn't need you."

Demonte stiffened, feeling a little bitter towards the remark.

"Besides," BDN continued, "Since when did you start caring about peoples' well-being?"

"I wouldn't be talking about the well-being of other people, you know. I'm not the one who acts just for myself and puts my men in jeopardy. I work alone." He mumbled.

BDN arose from his seat, furious. "What did you say!?"

Demonte merely stared at him, insouciance replacing his bitter aura. "You heard me. To say that no one is needed, it's the same as saying that it was a mistake that God himself put you upon this desert planet."

BDN paused, sealing his anger within his clenched fists. "Sit down, Demonte," He pointed to the seat next to himself. "And shut up. Or you'll be on the next bus ride back to Mahogany."

Demonte didn't care one way or the other, but he wanted to find out what the Mafia was up to in the ruins, so he obliged and sat down. "Have it your way," He said, adjusting himself in the seat. "But you know I'm right."

"That's enough out of you!"

Demonte was awoken to a terrible jerk in the bus. He opened his eyes and glanced outside, absorbing his surroundings. It was mid-morning.

"The fog will make it hard to see," BDN said to him. "But we'll have to get by." Demonte sighed, feeling somewhat apologetically to last night's argument. But he refused to apologize. It just wasn't his nature.

"Attention passengers," Ingway came onto the loud speaker. "Please excuse the abrupt stop, but as you can see, we've made it to the Enora Precipice without interference. Once everyone is off the bus, we can figure out what to do next."

Everyone mumbled and within a few minutes, the seven were off the bus and discussing the layout of the ruins.

"As you all know," Ingway said, holding out a map of the ruins. "The Enora Precipice was excavated by Granus a few years ago and made into these ruins. These ruins led to another part of the planet, one that had not been discovered by this side of the planet."

"So in short," Vash said, "This is a bridge that leads to the other side of the planet."

"Correct," Ingway nodded. "Most of the cities there have been victims of the town burnings, but everyone is working hard to restore their towns to peaceful states, thanks to the donations made by other cities."

BDN took over. "Our objective is to stop these people from entering the ruins, destroying the only link we have to the other side of the world, and succeeding in crossing over to our lands and turning the Western Side of Gunsmoke into the same as the Eastern Side."

Everyone nodded and Ingway peered inside of the cave. "Good, then let's get moving."

The Governess of Sanction jumped in her seat as a chain of knocks came upon her door.

"Come in," Stefany called out as she returned to her paperwork, her heart still pounding in her chest.

"Governess, I have finally found you." Stefany glanced up. There in her doorway stood a man in a heavy long-sleeved dark shirt and matching pants. His black hair hung in his face but his eyes stared at her with intensity from behind his bangs.

"Who are you?" She asked, arising from her seat.

"My name is Badwick," The man told her. "I've been looking for you for a long time."

"Badwick," Stefany ran the name through her mind over and over again. "Oh yes, I remember who you are. Your parents owned some land a few years back full of Geo Plants, didn't they?" Badwick nodded.

"It was a very valuable piece of property." He explained. "A man named Morgan wanted the deed to our land and intended to go about getting it any way he could. Luckily, I managed to get the deed to City Hall before he could stop me." Badwick paused. "The land was entitled to me. But Morgan did not stop there."

"What…what did he do?" Stefany hesitated to ask.

"He murdered both of my parents." He lowered his head. "The land was burned to the ground about five months ago when my parents were both killed. I went searching for you immediately afterwards. I knew that Morgan was responsible for it all. And I had heard about you…" His eyes lifted. "Governess."

"Badwick," Stefany's eyes softened.

"I know about you and about what you are, so you don't have anything to fear. I don't want to attack you."

"Of course," She nodded.

"I want you to know that I've decided to join as well. I want to help."

Stefany's eyes widened. "Are you serious!?"

"I have the skills, the wits, and the will to do so." He looked at her, determination burning in his eyes. "Please, to avenge my parents' land that they both worked so hard to plow and defend."

She paused. "Are you sure? Once you do this, you will never be a free person ever again. You must be weary of everyone and everything…" She lowered her head. "…As even your closest friends may be the enemy also."

"I am well aware of the consequences."

She left her mouth agape, as though she had intended to say more, but stopped. "All right," She mumbled. "Come with me."

Demonte wandered the halls, gazing upon the ruins with curiosity. His companions walked farther past him, and Demonte felt himself slowing his pace purposely.

"You're not planning on getting lost, are you?" BDN pushed him from behind, surprising Demonte. "Quicken your walk there, pal."

"I didn't even see you behind me," Demonte held his heart with his right hand. "You nearly gave me a heart attack Old Man!"

"Serves you right," BDN said. Soon, the two were right behind Milly and Celestia.

"How far down do these ruins go?" Celestia asked Milly.

"About ten iles." BDN spoke up from behind.

"TEN ILES!?" Celestia shrieked as she spun around to gaze at Demonte and BDN.

"Then we have to cross the bridge and then go back up for another ten iles."

Celestia sighed and slumped over. "Man, that sucks. We just should've waited for them to come this way."

"By then, the bridge would've been destroyed," BDN said. "We have to make sure that they don't taint the ruins. It's the only way over to this part of Gunsmoke."

"You mean to say that the whole eastern side of Gunsmoke has been isolated up until a few years ago?" Milly asked.

"Well, besides its few inhabitants and cities, yes, it has." BDN announced.

"What's so important over here anyway? I mean, why do we have to protect the bridge?" Celestia glanced over at the larger man.

"There are a few scientific things being conducted over here. Besides, there's an important ruin over on this side of Gunsmoke." He replied.

"Oh," Celestia nodded and stifled a yawn. "I suppose that that makes sense."

But after three hours of nonstop walking, the seven became restless and offered to take a break.

"Boy," Milly said, stretching and then sat herself down upon a rock. "I haven't had to do this much walking since we were traveling with Mr. Vash."

From the opposite side of Milly, Meryl heard Vash grunt virulently.

"How far down are we?" Vash asked their navigator.

"About 5 and a half iles." Ingway replied. "With any luck, we'll be able to make it by dusk."

Everyone groaned and Ingway laughed. "Don't worry, once we find the men who are burning down these peaceful cities, it will all be over."

Or…will it? Demonte pondered to himself.

"I sure hope so," Vash smiled. "I really don't like adventuring very much."

Meryl lowered her head and tugged her knees closer to her chest.

"I think most of us are used to it," BDN said, standing up. "Another two minutes and we have to get back to the task at hand."

"Aww," Celestia sighed heavily. "Already?"

"Come on, you're all troopers!" BDN laughed. "You can do it."

"Yeah right," Celestia mumbled.

When the bridge came into sight, light poured into the ruin exit and blinded the eyes of Demonte and his companions.

"Finally," Demonte smirked. "It's about time."

"Don't forget, we have to cross the other side too," Milly told him.

"Yeah, it's a real pain actually." Demonte said, stretching his back.

They gathered around the bridge, looking down into the darkness below.

"I sure wouldn't want to fall into that," Celestia said, gripping the ropes on both sides of the bridge tighter. "I'll bet that there isn't even a bottom."

"Stop being so pessimistic," Demonte told her. "Then you'll definitely fall in."

Celestia scowled. "Hey! You're not helping!"

"Quick bickering you two," BDN turned his head. "If you want, I'll go first."

"Sure," Celestia and Demonte both replied in unison.

BDN prepared himself and started across the bridge. Ingway followed after, and then came Vash. Finally, Celestia and Demonte were the last.

"You go first," She told him.

"Why? Ladies first," He retorted.

"But you're supposed to protect the women!"

"Women? Where?" Demonte asked, looking around.

"Why you…!" Celestia wound her arm back and sent it flying towards Demonte's face. He caught it with ease and looked at her.

"You're too slow." He turned and began to walk across the bridge.

"Slow!?" She stomped her foot. "I'll show you slow!" She huffed after Demonte, shaking the bridge from side to side violently. On the other side of the bridge, Demonte met with his waiting companions and Ingway continued ahead.

"Ten iles left," Ingway told them. "And we'll be on the other side."

Rohgsworn licked his lips and turned, holding his arms behind his back. "Very well, how are things going?"

Loose Ruth nodded and bowed. "Better than anticipated."

"And Demonte?" Rohgsworn poured himself a shot of brandy and sipped off the glass.

"He's still with them. I told him to be careful, but I'm not sure if he understands the importance of this mission."

"I see," Rohgsworn nodded, "Then we'll just have to show him the importance. How is the Eastern Side faring?"

"They'll be there by nightfall. However…"

"Yes?" Rohgsworn seated himself in his leather recliner. "What's the matter?"

"They aren't alone," Loose Ruth said.

"Oh, who cares?" Rohgsworn laughed and waved it off. "They are equally matched in strength. They'll tear the interlopers from limb to limb. We will burn the cities as planned until we find the Granus Alchemists. We won't stop until we find out where they are."

"You mean that they aren't at Granus?" Loose Ruth asked.

"No, of course not. They know that they are being followed; they won't stay in one place."

"How will we know if we find them?"

"Easy," Rohgsworn withdrew a large cigar from his breast pocket. "They'll show signs, powers, and even…" Rohgsworn laughed. "…determination…"

"Finally!" Celestia laughed as she stepped outside of the ruins and stretched. "I sure am glad that that's over!"

"What about the trip back?" Demonte pointed out and Celestia stopped her victory dance in mid-air.

"Thanks a lot dream wrecker."

"I'm just pointing out the obvious," He shrugged.

"Great effort team!" Milly smiled. "We made it!"

"All right then, let's set up camp." Ingway gestured to the open space in front of them. From there, we will have night watchers."

"Let's hurry this up before the sun goes down and the fog gets worse." BDN commanded.

Tents were pitched as a fire was being conducted and everyone gathered around, planning the attack for when the enemies approached. Demonte volunteered to be the first night watcher and Celestia offered to assist him.

"So, this is fun," Celestia said, trailing behind her companion. "How far do you intend to go out to watch for the attackers?"

"Not far," He replied. Then he stopped and settled himself on the ground, leaning against a giant boulder.

Celestia joined him and yawned.

"So, it's nice to see that you've had a change of heart. I seriously thought that you were going to leave yesterday after that outburst."

"I seriously WAS going to leave. But then I thought about the Mafia and the burnings. I never heard anything about the town burnings until Stefany mentioned it to me back in Sanction." She looked at him, confused. "That's when you passed out, remember?"

"Oh…"

Demonte continued. "I just figured that it was the Mafia. Anyway, I was strictly ordered to stop Granus and find the Alchemists. It seems that Rohgsworn is acting on his own."

"Maybe, but…how are you planning on finding a needle in a haystack?"

"Come again?" Demonte asked, confused.

"I mean, how do you plan on finding the Half Eagle Alchemists if they look like exactly like you and me? You know, people?"

"Rohgsworn just said that I'd know, whatever that means. Anyway, I'm also looking for the Insurrection Task Force as well. Personally, I think that they are more of a threat than the Alchemists themselves are."

"Insurrection Task Force?" Celestia's face grew puzzled again. "Who are they? You never mentioned them to me."

"The I.T.F.?" Demonte tilted his head and bit his bottom lip. "I believe that I had mentioned them once to you before." Celestia continued to stare at him. "Maybe not. Well, they're the warriors from Granus that protect the Half Eagle and Granus. They've been interfering with Hell's Mafia for a very long time now. The I.T.F. always seems to be one step ahead of the Hell's Mafia in whatever we do. Fortunately, they haven't discovered our identity…yet."

"Yet?"

"They're close," Demonte looked at his partner. "There's no telling when they'll find out where we are hiding. I have to make sure that the I.T.F. are stopped before they get to that point."

"How will you find them?" Celestia asked, stretching her legs out and leaning backwards until she hit the rock's surface.

"I don't know. But I will," Demonte pushed himself to his feet. "I will."

In the distance, several shadows ran in the night. The soles of their shoes hit hard upon the granite and the sand. They heaved, lowering their breathing as they spotted a tiny light on the horizon. It was time.

"Anyway," Demonte looked down at Celestia. "Rohgsworn knows what he's doing. There's a good reason why he's after Granus, I'm sure of it."

"Maybe," Celestia said skeptically and turned her away from him.

Then a shot zinged by Demonte, only inches away from taking off his ear. "What the hell was that!?" He asked, as he grabbed his gun.

"I don't know," Celestia replied, becoming alarmed. "Could it be Hell's Mafia?"

"It's a possibility," Demonte said. "Wait here. I'm going to check it out. Warn the others to stay on their toes."

"Right," Celestia nodded and ran back to the campsite.

"I'll take care of everything…" Demonte ventured forward, until dark shadows blocked his path.

"Heh, so this must be the punk." A figure shifted. "The Boss told us that we'd find you here."

"Who are you?" Demonte held his gun closely to his chest.

"Hell's Mafia. We thought that you of all people would know that." It was a different voice that responded this time.

"I wish that I could see, but it's dark outside," Demonte leaned forward. "Remember?"

"Ch, typical smartass." Came an elderly man's voice.

"By the name of Hell's Mafia, I order you to identify yourselves! I shall not ask again…" Demonte cocked his gun and aimed it at the closest figure.

"This is amusing," Another voice, somewhat of a kid's, began to snicker.

"No, no, I'm tired out," The figure closest spoke. "After all, we have our orders."

"Sheesh, you need a humor bone," The old man spoke up.

"My name is Descartes, carrier of the boomerang."

The old man spoke up. "We are the Nebraska Family. This is my son Gofsef and I am the Professor. But listen up! We aren't here to answer to a snot-nosed brat like you! We're just after the goods." Demonte looked up at the tall shadow and shifted. The infamous Nebraska Family was associated in Hell's Mafia? How unspeakable…

"Ah, put a cork in it old man!" Demonte's attention was drawn to the younger member of Hell's Mafia. "My name is Tonis of Hell's Mafia. Altogether, we are here to overtake the ruins and make it to the other side."

"Well," Demonte paused. "Tonis, since we seem to be in the same boat here, do you mind me asking a few questions?"

"Such as?" Tonis asked.

"Are you the ones burning down the towns on the Eastern Side of Gunsmoke?"

"So what if we are?" Professor Nebraska laughed.

"All right," Demonte glanced at the Nebraska Family. "May I ask why?"

"It's simple," Descartes cut in. "We're out to find the Alchemists of Granus."

"Wha?" Demonte shook his head. "But 'I' was assigned that mission!"

"Guess you aren't going fast enough," The Professor snickered. "It's our mission now."

"Oh no, you don't," Demonte growled. "It's my money, it's my mission, it's my KILL! Not YOURS!"

"Oh my," Descartes shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, it's not nice to disobey your elders, kid."

"I'm hardly a kid," Demonte snorted. "And I'm not about to let you take what's rightfully mine. Go back and tell Rohgsworn that."

"Sorry kid," Descartes chuckled. "We answer to no one but Rohgsworn. We aren't about to just give up."

"Oh, and by the way," Tonis spoke up. "Loose Ruth already informed us that the infamous gunman Vash the Stampede is alive and well and he's traveling with you."

"That blonde bastard?" Descartes laughed and cracked his knuckles. "I've been wanting to get back at him for years now. Guess it's my chance."

"No, stop it!" Demonte ordered. "This isn't your fight nor your mission."

"Quiet punk!" The Professor said. "Either you're with us, or you're against us!"

"Well then," Demonte extended his arm out in front of him. "I guess that I'm against you."

"Oh what a shame," Tonis shook his head. "Rohgsworn won't be happy to hear this."

The three charged down the hill, leaving Demonte dumbfounded as he watched the men disappear into the fog.

"Huh? Hey! Wait!" Demonte started after them.

Dammit! This wasn't good…

Demonte watched as the campsite was stormed and his friends scattered. Two fled to the left, three ran southwest of the campsite, and one to the right. The attackers laughed and began to hunt each of the groups. Descartes went left as the Nebraska Family followed the group of three and Tonis went after the single individual. Demonte had no time to make a decision. Instead, he followed after the single individual, hoping that his other friends could manage to take care of themselves.

"Damn imbeciles!" Demonte cursed as he followed after Tonis. "Why the hell are they pursuing this!? Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!" He growled and turned sharply around a rock formation, hoping that it was a shortcut that would lead him to Tonis and his companion.

Then he heard gunfire.

"Crap!" Demonte lurched his body forward, pushing himself to go faster. He quickly leaped onto a small mountainside and skidded over the rocks as he looked over the other side. His companion was backed into a corner, and Tonis was closing in.

"Vash the Stampede…" Tonis laughed. "I knew it."

So…he had cornered Vash.

"Don't you recognize me?" Tonis asked, holding a hand to his chest.

"Who are you?" Vash demanded, cocking his silver colt.

"Geez, how dense are you? Does Inepril ring a bell?"

Vash gazed upon the figure wearily as he searched his mind for a clue.

"Vash!" Demonte shouted. "Get the hell out of there!"

"Great, more interference," Tonis shook his head. "Well then, I'll just have to take care of both of you." Tonis emerged with two pistols from inside of his coat. He aimed one at Vash and the other at Demonte. "So," He said, allowing the word to breathe through his lips. "Let's play."

LOL Okay, now here's the thing. I have NO idea where any of these towns are located much less where the Enora Precipice is. But for my story, it's gonna be on the EASTERN side, kay? If anyone objects and has accurate information (and hey, it doesn't have to be about towns either. It can be about people and their ages, name spelling, whatever, I don't care) please feel free to e-mail me. Oh, and R&R too. That always makes me happy. ♥ ^_^ I think most of you guys saw that I was having fun with my symbol menu in Microsoft Word.