Snippet #1368320

Pierre silently followed Stella as she lead them down the narrow corridor on the train. As they passed compartment after compartment, he could catch snippets of people's conversations: young couples professing their love for each other, old men arguing with their wives, and the occasional spirited debate between two bright minds. Pierre had always liked witnessing the clash of intellectuals, but he was hardly entitled to barge in on a room full of strangers just to fulfill his desire.

It didn't take long for the trio to reach compartment 27D, and even less time for Stella to open the frosted glass sliding door. As the alchemists filed in, Pierre noticed that there were already some people in the small space. Not that that was unusual; in the world of locomotive travel, it was commonplace for complete strangers to be stuffed in a small wooden box together. Pierre sat down on one of the overstuffed red velvet seats, carefully extracting a book from his bag before stowing it underneath him. He didn't like to put his luggage in the overhead compartments, there was too much of a risk of it falling on his head.

The book was entitled A Tale of Transmutation: The Evolution of Alchemy Throughout the Ages. Quickly flipping to the place where he had left off, Pierre almost immediately shut out the events of the surrounding car. He had gotten through a few pages before he felt a minor sense of foreboding; someone was watching him. Glancing around, Pierre easily found the source of his uneasiness. Seated next to him was a young man, probably several years younger than Pierre himself. The man had a deep tan and black hair, both generally southern traits. He also had strikingly green eyes, not exactly a common sight in Crossroads. He was staring at Pierre with a curious gaze that made Pierre slightly uncomfortable. "May I 'elp you?" Pierre asked, softly closing his book and setting it on his lap.

"You're an alchemist, aren't you?" the stranger asked. After receving a wary nod from Pierre, he continued. "So am I. I've been working in catalytics recently, so I'm hoping that this supposed 'Eternal Knowledge' will help me in my research. That's why you're going to Southgate, right? Of course that's why, what other reason could there be? I hope Southgate won't be anything like this city; being from a desert country myself, I hate the cold..."

Pierre sighed. Whoever this man was, he was talkative. It would definately be a long ride.