Team Genesis Book 1
Chapter 6:  The First Emerald

"Will you guys hurry up?" Damian demanded.  Rocco and Alexis went to the respective bathrooms to use the toilet and change clothes.  "If we don't leave now, Axel's gonna beat us to the emeralds."

"I'm almost done changing." Alexis responded.  "You can't possibly expect me to save the world in my school uniform."

"Well if they can do it in animes," Damian sarcastically remarked.  Rocco shorlty came out.  He switched out his white school shirt for a red vest.  He hooked the katana scabbard to his jean's belt loop.  "You changed too?"  Damian asked.

"It's my only white shirt," Rocco answered.  "Mom will kill me if I ruin it.  Besides, saving the world in this looks a lot better."

"I don't see the big deal.  I rather go without all that junk."

"Yeah, but you're one of the few people who still go around without clothes.

"I'm a guy, I can do that."

Alexis started to come out of the bathroom.  "Sorry to keep you waiting."  Rocco and Damian turned around.  Alexis was wearing a blue top that went down to her stomach and dark brown leather shorts.  The guys looked at her in awe.  "W...Wow." Rocco nervously let out.  "You look great Alexis."

Alexis giggled.  "Hee-hee.  Thanks."  She grabbed her backpack and put in on, checking to see if she could still spread her wings through it.  "Alright, I'm ready to go."

Damian's face lit up.  "Alright!  Here we go!"  Before he could take off, Rocco stopped him.  "Hold it buster," he said.  "We don't even know where to go yet."

"Whoops, right," Damian replied.  "Then hurry up and check that radar."  Rocco listened and took out the radar the old man gave them and turned it on.  In three seconds flat, it detected a chaos emereald.  "Alright, the first emerald is in a small town called Moonlake, 100 miles south of Emerald Town.

"Moonlake?" Alexis repeated.  "That's a really small town.  Why would the emerald be there?"

"Who knows," Damian replied.  "But that's what the radar says, so let's get going."  Damian turned around and reached both hands behind him toward Rocco and Alexis.  "Grab on then."  Rocco grabbed on immideatly, but Alexis held back.  "I'm not quite sure if I'll be able to hold on to you if you run at the speed you go."

"Relax," Damian assured.  "I'll only go 200.  We'll reach Moonlake in half and hour that way."

"Still not sure if I can hold on," Alexis replied.

"Here," Rocco said, reaching out his other hand.  "I won't let you go, I promise."  With a shy smile, Alexis grabbed on to both of them.  "Okay then," she hesitated.  "I'm ready."

Damian let out a big grin.  "Then brace yourself, cause here we go!"  With that, Damian took off at high speed from the school and south to Moonlake.  Once they arrived at the town center, Rocco confirmed their location on the radar.  "Okay then," he said.  "The emerald should be close by."

"This town really is quite small," Damian said.  "It shouldn't be too hard finding it.  At least not for me."

"Either way," Alexis started.  "I think we should do our best to draw as little attention as we can.  If Axel is looking for the emerald as well, we could possibly lead them to it."

"Right," Rocco responded.  "Let's split up and meet back here in an hour."

"Sounds like a plan," Damian chimed in.  The three split up and searched high and low for the chaos emerald.  But no matter how many holes, alleys, and baskets they searched in, there was no sign of an emerald anywhere.  The people in the town didn't know about the emerald either, much less of its location.  With a crushed feeling, the gang met back at the town center empty handed.  "I couldn't find it." Damian fussed.  "Sonic and Eggman sure made this look like some easy sport."

"You can say that again," Alexis chimed.  "I've looked just about everywhere."

"I had it worse," Rocco commented.  "When I asked about the emerald, someone tried to sell me a fake jewel claming it was one of the chaos emeralds."

"Wow," Alexis remarked.  "That's having some nerve huh?"

"Maybe the radar the old man gave us is defective?" Damian questioned.  "We looked everywhere and we haven't found even the slightest hint of the emerald."

"Not everywhere," Rocco answered.  He pointed at the town bank.  "We could try to check in there."

"Can't hurt I suppose," Damian replied.

The three entered the bank.  Compared to the rest of the town, the bank was actually very large and elegant.  There were several lines made to pay off bills and to make a transaction.  They stood there looking at the building in awe.  Rocco even started to think that this bank was better than the one over at Emerald Town.

"Excuse me," a chubby woman said from behind them.  She wore the bank's uniform and held a cup of coffee.  She was middle aged, but had silver hair and a cranky face.  "You kids here to make a transaction?"

"Erm," Rocco stuttered.  "No we aren't."

"Then your here to pay something off?"

"No."

"Here to visit someone?"

"No."

The woman rolled her eyes.  "Then get out of here.  We can't have kids lounging around here."

"Wait,"  Rocco quickly said.  "We're looking for something though."

"Pray tell," The woman responded with a sarcastic tone.  She took a sip of her coffee.

"Do you have any idea where a chaos emerald might be?" Rocco asked.  The woman spit out her coffee in shock.  She started at Rocco as if he said something he shouldn't.  "How do you know about the chaos emerald?"  Rocco showed her the radar.  "With this."  The woman stood there for a moment.  Her mouth was hanging with surprise.  "You three, come with me."  The woman took the three to the front of a line where the teller, a male badger, was discussing with an old man regarding a possible loan.

"Sir please," the old man said.  "I need the money desperately.  My wife and I are going through a very difficult time."

"I'm very sorry sir," the teller responded.  "But I can't approve your request due to your current history.  I want to help you, believe me.  But I can't do anything about it."

"But sir...." the old man argued.  The woman arrived and interupted the old man.  "Johnny, we have a slight problem."

The badger rolled his eyes.  "For the last time Joyce, the snack machine won't be fixed..."

"These kids here are looking for the chaos emerald!"

"WHAT!!!" Johnny hollered.  Suddendly all the eyes in the building fixed on them.  "So much for not drawing much attention."  Damian sarcastically remarked.  Johnny turned to the teens and looked at them in shock.  He turned back to the woman.  "Joyce," he started.  "Take care of this situation man here."

"Yes sir," the woman responded.

"You three," Johnny turned back to the gang.  "Follow me."  Johnny led the group in a small office in the back.  He closed the door and took a seat at the desk.  "Okay, I want answers.  Why are you looking for the chaos emerald."

Rocco stepped foward.  "We were asked to find the seven emeralds, and our radar led us to this town.  We've checked everywhere but here.  Judging by the way you guys are acting, I'd say it's here."

Johnny sighed and scratched the back of his ear.  "Yes, the emerald is here.  But I can't give it to you.  It belongs to the CEO of this bank.  He won't give it up unless if it's bought at his price."

"How much?" Damian asked.

"There's no way you can have this amount."  Johnny said.

"How much?" Damian repeated.

Johnny hesitated.  "A million rings."

"WHAT!?"  The group cried.

"Sorry, but that's the price he put."  Johnny responded.  "Either that or you have something of equal value to trade."

"Do we look like someone who has something of that value?" Damian responded.

Rocco looked down at his belt.  His Crimson Blade sheated with the old man's scabbard hung there.  He let out a long sigh and unlatched the scabbard from his belt.  "Rocco?" Alexis asked.  "What are you doing?"  Rocco set the blade in front of the badger.  "Will this do?"  Damian and Alexis jumped shook in shock.  Johnny took the sheated blade and took it out.  He looked at the red blade in awe.  "Impossible," he said.  He held it up and read the engraved inscription on the blade; L.E Milton.  "Where could you have possibly....."

"This blade belonged to my father before he died," Rocco answered.

"You're the son of Lance Ellot Milton?!" Johnny exclaimed.  Rocco nodded.  Johnny was left even more surprised.  "I'm a big fan of your father.  I almost couldn't believe he had died."

Alexis leaned over to Damian.  "What is he talking about?" she asked in a whisper.

"Rocco's dad was eight time consecutive World Blades Tournament champion," he answered.  "He was unbeatable.  No one could match his ability with the sword, let alone his champion record."

"Then how did he die?" Alexis asked.

"He died in a train crash when he was coming home from a mini-tournament in Spagonia."

Johnny set the blade back in its scabbard and let out a long sigh.  "I'll go talk with the CEO.  I'm pretty sure he'll make the trade.  Please wait in the lobby."

Rocco looked down with a gloomy face.  "Yeah, sure thing."  The three teens walked out of the office and went back to the lobby. The old man from before crossed in front of them crying.  "They denied me a loan.  Waaaah!"