Okay, here's chapter three! This is probably the fastest update you guys can hope for, because I've been working on this every chance I've had. Maybe I can still improve, who knows. Anyway, time to reply to my one very thourough reviewer of the previous chapter.

Melissa: Wow, jeez, thank you for taking the time to critique the story so much! I really, really appreciate that. When you said Andromeda was a Mary-Sue, it's not that it bothered me that you said it- it just bothered me that you're RIGHT! So I've been trying, in this chapter, to make her a bit more unique. Even if she wasn't totally Mary-Sue (and maybe she wasn't, maybe we need a third opinion) she was getting there, so I'm trying to flesh her out. Yeah, they already got the automail, I guess you must have just skimmed over that part. That whole scene was only like two paragraphs. And...WHAT? A historical reference I didn't know about? Gasp. Thank you. That makes it a lot cooler. I'll change it to Xerxes next time it comes up! Thanks again for the advice/criticism, and I hope you enjoy the chapter!

And so, without further ado, here's chapter three, everybody! Hope you like it!


The late-afternoon sun was beating down harshly on the little town of Lahkaneihah, and even inside Los Peinahklaht's dim little building the temperature had risen a lot. Ed was becoming increasingly grateful for Winry's new automail system- he now had temperature controls on both his right shoulder and his left ankle, and they were working so well he barely noticed the extra weight.

The four teenagers sat at that tiny table for over an hour consulting the two maps, trying to distinguish the best route to the center of the desert, which is a lot more complicated than it may sound. There were many obstacles to consider, such as places where the sand was unstable, prime territory for bandits and high-risk sandstorm zones, and the route could also never stray too far from any of the underground wells and springs.

"Water is the most important thing in the desert, and there's only enough if you know exactly where to find it." Capella explained.

"Plus we try to avoid juicing cacti whenever we can," Andromeda added. "I don't know about you, but I get kind of annoyed when my fingers are impaled."

"Cacti?"

"Yeah, you know... one cactus, two cacti?"

"Uh... sure."

The Elric brothers looked back on the route they had decided on- the path they would take was marked in red, with the water sources marked in blue and a large star on the destination, Myahno Idenah. It looked like a long trip, and, the guides had told them, it most definitely was.

"But twenty days is a lot better than fifty."

"Wouldn't it be forty days all the way to Xing?" Al asked.

"Nuh-uh." Andromeda shook her head. "Even though it's twice the distance, the eastern side of the desert has a lot more obstacles to cross. It might even take sixty days, a lot more if you run into bandits."

Ed and Al just said "Wow."

"That's right." Capella said, nodding. "And because you're not crossing any of the most dangerous parts of the desert, our fees are considerably lower- the insurance deposit especially." She turned toward her sister. "Would you do the calculations now, An?"

"Joy." She opened a drawer below the shelves, so small and nondescript that it was the kind of thing you could look right past for years and never notice. "Oh, the infinite delight of practical mathematics..." she muttered sarcastically, pulling out a tiny abacus, a pad of paper and a dull pencil. "...Still don't see why I should have to do all this. I haven't got any more education than you do..."

Her sister smirked back. "But you hang around with all those friends of yours from the village, and the ones in New Optain... All the way down the border. Lots of them."

"So?"

"So you pick things up that way." She waved the younger girl away with a thin, airy hand. "Go on, calculate."

--

"Eleven thousand sens?" Edward said, echoing the two sisters' verdict. His eyebrows were raised in mild disbelief. "Isn't that kind of a lot?"

Capella shrugged. "Not really. Even if the voyage is shorter, crossing any stretch of the desert is dangerous, and it costs us quite a lot to keep all passengers safe."

"And fed, too." Andromeda added. "And we have to take the animals into account as well..."

Alphonse raised a finger to get her attention. "Could you excuse us for a minute?" The girls nodded and he turned to his brother.

"That really is a lot, Ed," he murmured. "Are we going to have enough?"

Ed checked. There were seven thousand sens left in his research grants-- he'd given Sheska quite a lot for Marcoh's research notes. They couldn't afford to wait for next year's grant to kick in. Time was running out. They still needed four thousand more, which would have to come out of there own pockets.

Which contained not much more than the 520 sens Ed had borrowed from Colonel Mustang.

"That's all you have?!" Al exclaimed in a whisper-yell. "How were you planning on paying for a hotel in Lahkaneihah?"

"With my travel expense account, like I always do."

Al was silent for a moment.

"...You have a travel expense account?"

"Duh."

"How much is in it?"

"Eight thousand."

"And does this not qualify as 'travel'?"

Edward eventually realized what his brother was talking about. Even with the automail cooling his metal joints, the heat had put him in a slight daze, which he supposed his brother was immune to. "Oh, right. ...Yeah, I guess that means we have enough, then." They turned back to the two sisters.

"Sold."

They grinned identical, satisfied grins- the two didn't look like sisters at all until they smiled, but then the resemblance was unmistakable.

"Alright then," said Capella, "The caravan will leave in five days' time, because we must run an advertisement in the local newspapers in case there are any others who need to go to the same place."

"It's cheaper for each person if there are more passengers." Andromeda added.

"And Los Peinahklaht have an agreement with one of the hotels in town- you can stay there until it's time to leave, and they will serve meals and everything-- it's included in the price of the trip." She handed Alphonse a small slip of paper bearing the address.

--

Los Peinahklaht
Order of the Desert
Expert Guide Agency
Caravan for the Central Oasis
camp in the mid-eastern desert
leaving in five days. Route alter-
ations or extensions negotiable.

The ad gave a phone number and the address of the building. Ed had found the tiny box ad buried deep in the classifieds section of the Lahkaneihah Weekly Journal the following day. The newspaper was spread out over a table near the window of a restaurant on the main street, where he was waiting for his lunch to be served- he hadn't been there too long. His brother wasn't there-- Al had decided to check out the local library rather than sitting in the restaurant looking strange for not ordering any food, and so Edward dined alone. It was peaceful, just sitting there... but he had a feeling that it wasn't going to last.

--

Back on the outskirts of town, there was a crash as Andromeda's chair tipped over.

Surprise.

"Don't tell me you fell asleep again, kid."

She looked up sleepily from the sandy floor to see who had spoken. "...I can't help it, Aquila! It's so boring sitting here all day waiting for someone to wander in."

Aquila grinned down at her- she was thirty years old, about average height and very solid-built, which suited her general toughness as well as the five guns holstered onto her belt. Her nut-brown hair was twisted into a loose bun and her bangs framed the sides of her face. "I hear you. What d'ya say we close up for awhile? I've got some errands to run downtown, and you could obviously do with some free time. Go hang with your sister. You're free."

Then she spun and walked out, flipping the sign on the door to 'closed' behind her. Andromeda smiled as she picked herself up off the floor for the umpteenth time and half- skipped down the hall to find Capella, where they could engage in their favourite pastime at Ceiyo-Cheiidah- talking about the customers.

They sat together in the kitchen, close to the back of the building, where the windows were large and uncovered and the light poured in from outside. Here, at least, there was space to sit comfortably, and the brightly-painted walls extended to the living room, where there were two large, soft armchairs and a big fluffy sofa.

"So," said Capella, sliding a glass of iced tea across the table to her sister, "Now we have a big problem."

"Totally. You forgot to give me a lemon wedge with this."

"Sharah, I'm serious."

"What's the problem?"

"The Elric brothers!" Capella hissed, as though it should have been obvious. "Aquila's the only other person at the camp right now, and they're Thesenehkkehn!"

Then Andromeda realized what she meant. "Oh my god, you're right! They're military! I didn't realize... the state alchemist thing... Jeez, this isn't good, this is not good at all."

"Andromeda, what if they were sent here to spy on Aquila? Or they might already be prepared to arrest her, I'm sure they have enough evidence, and I bet the military is dying to make an arrest to prove they're still good at something, now that they still can't catch that Ishbalan terrorist..."

"So what do we do now, cancel the caravan and send them back to where they came from? That'd look way suspicious..."

"You're right, we can't do that." She shook her head. "But we can't take them, either. Aquila would never help the military, even if it turns out they don't know who she is."

"But then..." Andromeda looked doubtful. "We'd have to take them without her."

Both sisters were getting very worried now. "But we've never led a caravan alone," Capella faltered nervously.

"...And... we could run into- into the New Moon drahshnahkt..."

Capella suddenly became confident again at those words. "We can take them. We have to fight them."

Andromeda nodded. "You're right. Vendaiah."

"Not only that, but I think... I think, after all this time, we can handle the desert on our own. It's been, what, ten years?"

"Twelve." Her sister corrected. "You were five when we came, remember?"

"And you were only two. I think twelve years' experience is more than enough to serve us for twenty days, don't you?" Capella said, reassuring herself as much as Andromeda. "We've been here longer than Lyra, and about as long as Aquila and Alphecca."

"Well..." she sighed. "Okay. I guess we're ready."

"Right." Capella confirmed, raising her iced tea. Their glasses clinked together, and it sounded like a plan.

"Now pass me a lemon wedge already!"

--

Four uneventful days later, Ed and Al found themselves standing outside a large garage behind Los Peinahklaht's building with their luggage. Even though it was right on the edge of the desert, the place smelled like a barnyard.

Capella and Andromeda opened the large wooden doors to reveal two tall covered wagons, with large barrels attached to the sides. The tires seemed very out of place on the old-fashioned vehicle, as they were about a meter high, extremely wide and made with thick rubber treads.

"Whoa," Ed said, examining the wagon nearest to him. "Big enough tires?"

"They have to be like that," Andromeda explained, "so that they don't sink into the sand." Her voice trailed away as she scampered into the garage and disappeared behind the wagons.

She returned shortly, however, leading several large animals behind her. There were six camels, their long, skinny legs looking mismatched with their big, lumpy bodies. They were held by a thick leather harness, and stood there chewing their cud, looking somewhat dazed. Beside them, looking equally dazed and strange, was a different creature, the likes of which the Elric brothers had never seen. It was shaped similarly to the camels, with the same skinny, knobbly legs, but its fur was a darker brown, its neck was longer, it lacked humps and its ears were different.

"What the heck is that?"

Capella came out from the inside of one of the wagons. "You're not bringing Perseus, An."

"Yes, I am."

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am!" Andromeda yelled stubbornly. "What if we need him?"

"...Okay, but you're responsible for him." She sighed. "Edward and Alphonse... Meet 'Perseus'..."

"...rescue llama extraordinaire." Her sister finished, gesturing toward the creature and swaying her hands around for dramatic effect.

A large glob of llama-spit issued from Perseus.

Ed and Al applauded briefly, amid some laughter.

"We," said Capella, after they had all calmed down, "will be taking this caravan." She motioned to the wagon nearest to them. "Our necessary supplies and provisions have been packed, and all that remains is for us to load the cargo to bring to Myahno Idenah, hitch up the animals and for you two to place your luggage inside the wagon. We would normally offer to help you, but..." She glanced up at Alphonse, who was a good two feet taller than her. "...I think you'll probably be able to handle it."

Andromeda scampered back to the main building after her older sister. Once they were safely out of earshot in the small storage room, she said, "Aquila's still in town, right?"

Capella nodded. "And you left the note in the kitchen, didn't you?"

"Yep."

"Good."

Andromeda began to head towards the door again, but she was interrupted. "Where do you think you're going?" Capella demanded. "That wasn't code. We really do have to load this cargo."

The Elric brothers ended up helping them carry most of the large wooden crates into the caravan. At first the wagon had seemed spacious, but it soon became crowded with luggage. As Andromeda hitched up the camels, Capella showed Ed and Al how to arrange the boxes into furniture. They piled them against the canvas walls to form four chairs, with a crate between each to serve as a table. She placed blankets over the splintery wood of the 'chairs' to make them more comfortable, and placed unlit lanterns on each 'table'. The canvas ceiling was high enough that Alphonse's head just brushed it, and it provided wonderful relief from the afternoon sun. It was a cozy sort of space once you got used to it.

The camels outside had bushels of food, blankets and other supplies piled on their backs, the barrels attached to the caravan were filled with water (along with several more inside) and there were, Capella told them, storage compartments under the floor as well as in some of the crates.

"So there isn't any need to worry about running out of food or water." she assured them. The back of the wagon had a cover that they could open and close, and the driver's side, where four of the six camels were now hitched, was open but had a sort of awning over it to provide the driver shade.

Andromeda appeared at the back of the wagon, which was so high off the ground that they almost didn't notice her. "Okay, the animals are all ready." She clambered up to sit on the edge of the floor. "Who's driving first, me or you, Capella?"

Her sister moved towards the very front of the caravan and took the thick reins in her hands. "I'll drive." She said. She turned back towards the Elric brothers as Andromeda took a seat opposite them. "Ready to go?"

Without a second's hesitation, they nodded. "Ready."

She turned around again to face the camels and shouted, "Tseih! Ai Nesethairah!" and they were off, the caravan rolling out into the endless sea of dunes, away from civilization and everything the two brothers had ever known, into the harsh desert world of the two sisters that they scarcely knew, and had no choice but to trust.

And there you have it. Please, ple-e-e-ease review!! I'll get to work on the fourth chapter as soon as I can, but it'll probably be at least a month before it's done. :) Also, if you'd like to see some drawings of my characters, go to my profile and you'll find a link to my deviantart account, where they're posted.

-Elaine/smart one