Night had fallen and Ed was out in full force.

Having decided to wait till the evening to make the effort even more spectacular, Ed had waited till the sun had set before performing his alchemy. A fitting tribute and all together frivolous, he clapped his hands.

A ring of energy formed and a statue formed of Alphonse in what he considered to be a heroic pose. He clapped his hands again and more statues formed; Armstrong without his shirt and posing, Fuery looking heroic with gun at his side while petting Den, Breda with a sandwich, Havoc in mid-drag of his ever-present cigarettes, Granny Pinako with her pipe, and even Hoenheim, as much as Ed was frustrated with him deserved a spot on his little beachfront adjustment. May stood at the bottom of the group, hands folded into her sleeves, and Ran Fan's grandfather stood in the final position.

It would stand here on the beach, rimming a set of rocks that he also had transmuted into strong glass and marble. A statement that the Fullmetal Alchemist had been here, and he was leaving his mark across the universe.

Ed grinned as he tapped his sneaker against the sand. "Looks pretty decent," he said to himself.

He felt that he didn't need to add statues of those awake. They being on this planet was enough.

To say that Kelly was having trouble relaxing would have been an understatement. Perched on the tallest, rocky outcrop she could find, the waves crashing against the smooth stone far below her, she was throwing stones across the water almost absently. The way her eyes refused to remain still however, attested to the fact that she was alert and wary as ever. Unlike the other members of the crew, who seemed to have taken the shore leave well enough, the Spartan had never been comfortable with inaction. Zokez II may have been a rest stop, a play-planet as it were, but to be on a strange planet, disallowed weapons and worst of all, her armor put her slightly on edge. Of course, a Spartan didn't need weapons to be deadly, but they sure as hell helped when it came down to it. In stark contrast to other members of the crew who had happily shed the majority of their clothing in favour of beachwear, Kelly's attire had hardly changed.

Dressed in cargo pants, combat boots, and a tight singlet with 'U.N.S.C.' stamped across the chest (something she had undoubtedly done herself sometime) she was the picture of discomfort. Her too-pale skin seemed to gleam in the sunlight as she sat, ignoring the gleeful cries of the people surrounding her. She kept a watchful eye on any member of Stacy's crew who was within sight, all the while lobbing rock after rock into the sea. At the rate she was going, it was surprising that she hadn't run out of them yet.

R&R simply wasn't her thing. She could appreciate rack time as much as the next person. A good soldier knew when their body needed rest. But this, relaxing, not doing anything. Unarmed and completely open to enemy attack. She didn't like it. The Ohm were out there. Who was to say they wouldn't hit this planet next? And without weapons, completely unprepared for such an attack, how would a single member survive. Her entire life had been a battlefield. Honestly, she couldn't remember a time when she hadn't been fighting, recuperating from a fight, or preparing to fight. This sort of relaxation simply wasn't for her. At the moment however, all she could do was keep a watchful eye out for anything that may have signaled trouble. Leave the others to enjoy the water and the sun. She would make sure they were safe.

Luke caught up to Mara, jogging across the sand to put a hand on her shoulder.  Worry was etched on every line of his face (and at over six decades, there were a fair few), and carried through a thread in his voice when he spoke.

"What's going on?" he asked, brows drawn together and blue eyes fretful.  "Mara, what just happened?"


[[ooc: post in question.]]

As the motorboat puttered along in the open ocean, the princess sat near the edge with her arm dangling over the boat's side, fingers skimming the top of the water. It had been a few days since Lacus had mentioned a picnic, and, while Cagalli had had no idea what she was talking about, she didn't mind the prospect of more time with her friend. Now, however, the blonde was a little more in the know (or so she thought). From what she could tell, things were going to be nice.

She retracted her hand from the water and turned to Lacus, flicking a bit at her with a grin.

"How much farther is this island?" she inquired. "Not that the ride isn't fun, but I'm getting hungry."