Burne Adley

"Barren like the deserts of Xerxes." A Raven haired boy groaned as he looked at the ruins of a lost civilization. "That quote makes perfect sense now." 

The boy looked around, searching for any and every bit of information he could find about the civilisation of this ancient country. But alas, all he could find were the abandoned abodes of the deceased.

Even to this day, the sudden disappearance of the Xerxesian civilisation was a mystery. 

The boy, who didn't look older than sixteen walked through the abandoned roads of the jolted pavements of Xerxes. The sun was ablaze over his head yet he seemed unfazed. The curiosity in his eyes shone far brighter than the sun as he looked at the scriptures carved by the inhabitants of the country.

"Gramps used to tell stories about this fallen country but most of them were about the ancient kings and the battles they fought to make Xerxes one of the strongest countries in history." He chuckled. "But look at this place now… not even animals want to live here."

He wasn't exaggerating. The place was barren to the point that no living organism other than arachnids, insects and reptiles like the snakes and scorpions could be found. And he found it peculiar as forests were surrounding the lands on the outskirts but no fauna could be found.

The landscape was beautiful. Hills, lakes, forest running through the outlines… yet the lack of life in the area gave it a gloomy feel.

The place was said to have turned barren abruptly. The country that was once the most populated became desolate overnight.

Xerxes had become a great mystery for the historians yet the roads to this path have been blocked by the councils preventing anyone from entering it. 

To some it was a mystery, for the rest it was a tragedy. 

The boy didn't seem to care about the rules as he had entered the territory in secret and it wouldn't be farfetched to say that if he was found, he would be executed or at the very least thrown into prison for an indefinite period. All he cared about were the secrets hidden inside this goldmine of a place.

He adjusted the monocle of his right eye as he started walking towards the abandoned castle. 

"Don't let me down, Xerxes."

…

…

[Hidden Location]

Inside a massive hall, seven figures were seen sitting around a round table. Each of the figures were the representatives of a certain major country. 

The meeting was organised in the hopes of easing the tension brewing between the countries as their current sitch was leading towards war.

"I would love to believe that this meeting would ease the tension between the nations but unfortunately that is nothing more than a pipe dream." Sneered an annoyed old man. 

"Sir Vernon, we know that. But we are here to delay the war not prevent it. The past actions of the leaders had already ruined the friendship between the nations and while we are trying our best to mend those relations, the people haven't forgotten the injustice they have suffered." Came the voice of another elderly man.

"And what is the point of this delay, Jeremiah?" Vernon asked in annoyance. "Our soldiers will die no matter how much we delay. And the other countries are not making it any better." He looked at the leaders of the countries. "No offence to anyone but the five major nations are already in chaos and I don't plan on increasing the burden on Drachma by trying to help the rest of the nations."

"Führer Vernon, we would prefer if you don't ditch those countries so easily. It would be problematic if they joined hands to try and overtake our lands." Said a middle-aged man with an eyepatch. "Amestris have received news that the southern nations are forming an alliance and we cannot afford to let them do that. We have to keep our feuds on hold till we can solve this issue."

"That's rich coming from you, King Bradley." A brown-haired man said with visible annoyance on his face. "Considering Aerugo haven't been able to be at peace because of your endeavours."

"Let's keep our inner feuds for later, gentlemen. We have a greater issue to deal with right now." Said Jeremiah. "As long as we don't find a solution for this issue, I, Jeremiah Burnet, on behalf of the Creta Empire, would like to appeal a truce between the nations." 

"Do you believe that this truce would last?" Vernon asked. 

"Honestly… no. But we need to maintain peace for as long as possible if we want to win this war without major losses. And if we can get away with fewer deaths, I would be happy to uphold the truce." Jeremiah replied, making Vernon frown.

"For the past few years we have been barely able to keep the peace, the tension between the nations are increasing." Vernon said. "And many of the smaller nations have seen this as the perfect opportunity to attack our countries in the hopes of starting the world war." He bashed the table with his hands. "Drachma will not tolerate such injustice!" He bellowed. "As long as we can get rid of those pests, I am willing to form an alliance." 

This statement made Jeremiah put on a smile, while King Bradley raised an eyebrow. This drew Jeremiah's attention.

"Are you not happy with the decision, Bradley?" He asked the eye-patched man.

Bradley remained quiet for a while before releasing a chortle. 

"No, it's probably the best possible outcome." He looked at the other leaders. "I, King Bradly, on behalf of Amestris, accept this truce."

The rest of the men who were quiet also followed behind.

"Luca agrees to the proposal." 

"Veina agrees to the proposal."

This left another man at the edge of the table. All the leaders looked at the elderly man as he said.

"Xing agrees."

__________

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[Ruins of Xerxes]

[Burne Adley]

Burne had heard stories about the ancient country of Xerxes from his deceased grandfather. A country so beautiful that the kings of the north wanted to conquer it, a country so rich that the sultans were envious of its wealth, and a country so strong that not even the alliance of the seven nations could face. 

"Yet now it lays… barren and sad." The man sighed at the ruins of the ancient marvel of a country. 

"But at least this is the right location." With a soft chuckle, he looked at the small compass that pointed towards one of the ruined structures. 

Putting the compass inside his pocket, the raven-haired boy walked towards the broken structure. 

The place was dusty with rubbles laying everywhere. The beauty of the architecture could still be seen despite the destruction. Burne smiled as he dragged his fingers softly through the old painting and patterns engraved on the walls.

Walking inside the ruins, he was greeted with the sight of a beautiful throne, one that belonged to the ancient king of Xerxes. 

Made entirely of gold and jewels, the throne stood atop a silvery dais as a semi-broken canopy hung over it.

He walked over to the throne and started examining it. 

"There has to be some clue." He mumbled as he looked at every nook and cranny of the throne. "Anything…"

He clicked his tongue as there was nothing on the throne. His excitement started to dim as he was unable to find the thing he was looking for. 

It didn't take long for his excitement to turn into disappointment.

"After years of searching… it turns out to be a lie. 'The truth could be seen from the throne…' or so was I told" He paused. "No. Grandfather was never wrong. It has to be here."

He searched for a long time just to be greeted with disappointment. 

"All these years, and I have been searching for nothing." He let out a sad sigh. "Looks like I failed gramps." He groaned. 

Tired and crestfallen. He sat on the throne. 

'I spent so long searching for those secrets. And when I find the place that was said to be the key to unravel those mysteries. I fail.'

He dipped his head back with closed eyes.

'I have spent years researching, years searching for any and every clue I could find about it. But looks like I fai-" Just as he opened his eyes, his pupil dilated. 

"You have got to be shitting me…" 

Above him, in the ceiling, there were scriptures. The same scriptures that he had been looking for all this time. Looking at the scriptures for minutes, he smiled. 

The smile soon turned into laughter and laughter turned into maddening cackles as he mumbled-

"The Philosopher's stone."