Full Metal Alchemist,
The Search For The Third Elric.
*******
“I found you!” Shouted Alphonse Elric, his brown eyes dancing with delight as he peered into the open barrel.
“Why am I the always the one who‘s found first?” I whined, trying to climb out of my hiding place. I toppled the barrel over and crawled out of it, flashing my brother a wide grin. He offered a hand, which I accepted and he pulled me to my feet.
“Let’s find brother.” He said, referring to our older brother, Edward, who was a year older than Alphonse, and merely minutes older than me. He led off and we quietly walked towards our mother as she hung linen on the clothing line.
“What are you two doing?” She asked and I pressed a finger to my lips before pointing to the tree we were stealthily approaching. She smiled and nodded, going back to what she was doing. We looked up and spotted blonde hair among the green leaves of the tree.
“I see you brother!” Al yelled, his head tipped back to see blonde haired and golden eyed Edward. A soft laugh came from high above us and he dropped down from the branch he was poised on.
“My turn to be it!” I said excitedly and Ed shook his head.
“Let’s go do something else.” He said and I hung my head in disappointment before our mother spoke up.
“Do you think, you could run go pick some fruit for me?” She asked in a slightly breathless voice and we instantly nodded, racing each other to the large apple tree down in the orchard.
“I win!” I said, placing my hand and the trunk of the tree, and turning to smirk at my brothers. “Again.”
“No fair.” Edward panted.
“How?” I demanded, swinging myself up the tree like a little monkey.
“It just wasn’t.” He said with a pout. I plucked a piece of juicy fruit off the tree and dropped it.
“Heads up.” I said, and Edward immediately looked up, staring in surprise as the apple hit him in the nose and bounced off.
“Hey!” He hollered and beginning to climb up after me.
“No you don’t.” I said, frowning at him. “It’s my turn to pick the apples and you know it.”
“Fine.” He growled, hopping back to the ground and picking up one of the baskets we’d brought. “But drop it at the basket, not my face.”
“But that takes all the fun out of it.” I argued, tossing a plump apple at him, which he caught in the woven basket.
We continued collecting fruit for mother well into the afternoon, running back to the house, eager to show Mother what we had collected. We each had a basket, filled to the brim with freshly picked fruit. I ran into the house first as always, and stopped dead in my tracks.
“Mommy?” I asked in horror, spotting her sprawled out on the ground. There was a soft thud as I dropped my basket and rushed to her side, Edward and Alphonse close behind me. She let out a soft groan and I whimpered, tears falling quickly down my cheeks.
“Al, call the doctor, and Aunt Pinako.” Edward ordered and Alphonse hurried off to do as he said. “Ella, stop crying and help me get her onto the bed.”
“Mommy.” I whispered after we had gotten her settled into the bed. I tucked the sheets around her still body, and I looked up when the doctor entered the room. As he examined her, I clutched one of her hands tightly, holding on as though my very life was at stake. Edward and Alphonse stood quietly behind me, both unable to speak.
“We just have to wait.” The doctor said quietly to Pinako. “I can tell you this isn’t some sickness she contracted yesterday. She must have been dealing with this for years. Not telling anyone.”
“Honey.” Mother said, her eyes still shut. Edward jerked and his brow furrowed before he led us into dad’s study.
“These are all letters he sent us.” Edward said, slamming his hand down on a pile of letters. “If we mail something to each of these addresses, explaining everything-”
“Someone is bound to know where he is and can tell him to come home.” Alphonse finished.
“Damnit, I don’t want him here.” Edward said darkly, his head bowed. “But it’s the only way. She has to see him.”
Later that evening, as the wind blew fiercely against the house, howling eerily, Mother regained consciousness. “Your dad, he, left us some money.” She said weakly and my head shot up from Alphonse’s shoulder, where I had been dozing. “I’ve never touched it, I was, saving it for you children. Use it, and take care of each other.” She said.
“Don’t be silly, we’ll use it with you.” Edward promised, with a worried smile.
“Edward, would you be a sweetheart and transmute something for your mother?” She asked her voice still faint. “Yes, I know. A ring of flowers would be nice. You see, your father, always, used to make them for me.” She trailed off, closing her eyes. My own gold eyes widened in pure child terror as her gentle hold on my hand loosened.
The funeral occurred the later that week, while the pain was still fresh, and the memory, vivid. I believed that a cut that deep would never heal. During the quiet funeral, my tears flowed freely, and I cried until I couldn’t cry anymore. After the funeral, Ed, Al and I remained at her grave until early evening.
“Brother.” Al said, his voice shaky, looking up to Edward for guidance. “I’m hungry, and I’m cold too. How are we going to do this? How are we going to live without her?”
“We’re not, Al.” Ed said quietly and I glanced over at him from my seat on the ground. “We’re going to bring her back.”
*******
Edward and Alphonse found a teacher hesitant, but willing to teach them alchemy, and they went off to her home town to begin their studies immediately. I, on the other hand, stayed alone in our large, empty house, being taught a different type of science by Aunt Pinako and my friend Winry Rockbell. Pinako was an accomplished automail engineer, and she taught us everything she knew. Several months passed, with no sign of my brothers’ returning.
Running down the road towards Winry’s, I passed a cluster of trees and I spotted a man from who lived nearby. Before I could call out a greeting, a heard an explosive noise and watched in horror as he slumped the ground. I stopped abruptly and I heard myself cry out in dismay, my eyes wide.
A group of burly men stepped out of the trees and they looked over at me, hideous sneers on their faces. Unable to move, I just stared as one raised his smoking gun and fired another shot, which struck my in the chest. I fell backwards, my sight dimming, blood streaming from the bullet wound.
*******
“So where are we going to dump the bodies, boss?” A deep voice said from above me and I held my breath, waiting for the other man to reply.
“Here seems good.” The leading man said, and I felt strong arms pick me up and place me gently in the grass. “No one will find these two until they’ve rotted.” I listened, waiting for the carriage to roll away, my heart racing with adrenaline.
When I deemed it safe, I sat up and I opened my eyes, looking around myself. Sitting in the soft grass in a forest that was unknown to me, I felt my side and pulled away my hand, looking at the warm, red blood in shock. My head spinning, I rose to my feet, swaying slightly. One hand pressed to my injury, trying to suppress the blood flow, I stumbled off along the road, looking for help.
“Hello?” I called weakly, my blonde hair falling into my face. “Is anyone out there?”
I heard a rustling noise to my left, and I felt my hope for survival drain out of my body. ‘A wild animal is going to attack me, and I’ll be too weak to fend it off.’ I thought, my eyes frantically searching for some sort of a weapon. The rustling grew louder and I let out an inhuman wail as a figure rose out of the bushes. The man glanced me over distastefully, finally striding forward and slamming his fist on the back of my head.
*******
“She’s a mess.” A male voice said to an unknown person and I let out a loud groan of pain before my eyes fluttered open.
“Hello.” An elderly woman said, smiling kindly down at me. I sat up and stared at her, glancing down briefly at my freshly bandaged wound. “What happened to you, my dear?” She asked and I slowly blinked at her.
“I-” I started, clearing my throat. “I got shot.”
“Why would you do something like that? “The man demanded with a smirk, and I shot him a furious glare.
“I didn’t do it on purpose.” I spat.
“Calm yourself.” The woman intervened when he looked like he was going to reply. We both fell silent, our eyes shooting daggers at each other from across the room. “Could you tell me what happened?”
“Well, I was running over to my friend Winry’s house when I saw a man I knew get shot. The spotted me and shot me, and I guess they thought I was dead and dumped me here.” I said.
“Where were you?” She asked and I gave her a confused look. “What‘s your name?”
“Estella Elric.” I replied and I watched in surprise as her eyes widened. “Have you heard that name before?”
“Yes.” She said before narrowing her eyes, studying my appearance. “Have you heard of Hohenheim of Light?”
“Yes.” I said. “He’s my dad.” Their reactions to this news was shocking to me, as they were both extreme. The man let out a horrible scream of fury, and her hand flew to her throat in surprise. “I, don’t understand.” I said, a frown worrying my brow.
“It’s nothing.” She said with a smile. “Envy?”
“Yes?” He asked, stepping forward. “How should I kill her?”
“What?” I asked and the old woman frowned at him.
“You will not kill her.” She ordered and his lips curved into a snarl.
“Why not?” He asked furiously. “She carries his blood in her veins, she has what I cannot have.”
“What do I have?” I asked him, trying to scoot away from the one called Envy.
“Go, terrorize some village girls.” The woman suggested, shooing Envy from the room. “Now, let’s get you settle down for the night. You need bed-rest before you can begin your training.”
“Training?” I asked as she gently tucked the blankets around me, forcing me to lie down.
“Yes dear.” She replied. “Alchemy training. Naturally you would want to follow in your father’s footsteps, as you have an advantage.”
“Advantage?” I asked sleepily and she paused in the doorway, her hand on the light-switch.
“Yes, Hohenheim is an excellent alchemist, and you most definitely have his genes for it.” She said and on that final note, turned off the light and closed the door firmly behind her. Incapable of keeping my eyes open any longer, they drifted shut and I fell into a deep sleep.
*******
After almost five years of training underneath the woman, who called herself Dante, I found I was an incredibly skilled alchemist. I had no difficulties with anything she got me to do, the only hassle being the transmutation circle. A battle was scheduled one morning, between Envy and myself, to test my alchemic power. I wasn’t allowed to leave, forced to stay and train until she deemed me able to continue in the world.
*******
“Hey, Envy!” I called, running to catch up with my friend. We were forced into each other’s company quite a bit during the first year and we were surprised to find we had a lot in common.
“Yeah?” He asked, stopping to let me catch up. His green hair loose, and his violet eyes flashing dangerously, he looked like a threatening opponent. He was tall, slim, and wore a black half top, black shorts, and was barefoot except these sock-like things, that covered half his foot and his ankle.
“Are you ready for this?” I asked, falling into step beside him. “You know you have no hope of winning, not fighting against me.” I said arrogantly, a trait I had picked up from him.
“I will win.” He replied and I shrugged, grinning.
“Let yourself believe that.” I said, my smile turning into a falsely mocking smirk. We entered the battle grounds and faced each other in the middle.
“Ready, Steady.” Dante said slowly, backing away from the pair of us. Envy’s gaze locked on mine and we concentrated hard, waiting for that one little word. “Go!” Dante shouted.
Envy immediately threw a kick at my face, which I dodged and ran backwards, drawing a quick transmutation circle into the soft dirt. Pressing my hand to it, I transmuted the dirt into an ice monster, which was roughly the size of a large lion. It let out a fierce roar, causing the ground to shake. Envy looked remotely surprised, but ran past it, towards me. I had thought he would attack the monster, solving my problem of dodging his physical attacks.
“Damn it.” I hissed to myself before ordering my monster to defend me. I transmuted some water from a nearby stream into a long sword, which I held tightly in my hands.
My monster leapt in front of me, landing neatly on it’s massive paws. Growling, it lunged at Envy, snapping it’s dagger-like teeth. He kicked one of it’s legs, shattering the ice. There was a pause before I placed my hand on the transmutation circle and healed my lion. It swung it’s tail at him, sweeping him off his feet. Unfortunately Envy landed right on top of me, and I crushed the transmutation circle drawn in the soil. ‘I still have my sword.’ I told myself, rolling out from under Envy, and springing to my feet. Envy smashed my ice lion with one quick punch before sprinting at me. Holding up my sword, I waited until he was in range before slicing it into his stomach. I stumbled back and stared as he healed himself right before my very eyes.
“What the?” I asked, and he took advantage of my confused state, snatching the weapon from my hand. “Shit!” I swore, throwing myself to the side, landing on the dirt. Ruffled, I drew a transmutation circle and pulled a long spear-like thing from the ground, rolling onto my back just as Envy stabbed the spot I had been merely moments ago. He went to slice me again and I held up the spear, blocking him. He played the aggressor in the battle and I was forced to block each of his deadly blows.
“Use alchemy!” Dante shouted from the sidelines and I looked over at her, taking my eyes off my enemy in the battle. He struck me with the flat of his sword, knocking me off my feet. I landed on my back and had no time to flip over and draw a circle in the dirt. Using the tip of my spear, I carved a transmutation circle into the palm of my right hand, wincing in pain as I did so. Envy’s eyes widened when he saw this and I pressed my hand to the ground, using the rocks underneath the soil to form a cage around him.
“Give up… I win.” I said, panting with exertion. I watched in astonishment as he easily bent a bar out of the way and calmly stepped out. “What the hell, Envy?” He tensed up, ready to strike and I stumbled to my feet, my hand dripping blood.
“Stop.” Dante ordered and we turned to look at her. She was staring into the shadows and my eyes strained to see the outline of a young woman standing there. “Come out child.” Dante said, and Envy and I exchanged a look of scepticism.
The woman stepped out of the darkness and I coolly surveyed her. She had chin length dark purple hair and light violet eyes. She looked like a dangerous opponent and Envy and I studied her, our bodies both poised in case she presented herself as a threat.
“Now, what is your name.” Dante asked sweetly.
“Lyra.” The girl informed her and Envy spoke before I could stop him.
“And what are you here for?” He demanded. “Surely you have no reason to be this far out in the forest.”
“I’m looking for Dante.” She said and Dante’s eyebrows lifted.
“Why?” I asked and took s step forward. “Why do you need her?”
“I need training before I can enrol in the military as state alchemist.” She said and I blinked.
“A state alchemist?” I asked, tipping my head to one side. “What’s that?”
“An alchemist, who works for the state.” Lyra said slowly, as though I had a mental disability. “You take a test and you get paid and everything. The main thing is, you get to help people.” She said after I shot her a dark scowl.
“Then they have access to all of the information the military has?” I asked. “Like, on people and such?”
“You aren’t thinking about going after your brothers, are you?” Envy asked me, his violet eyes searching my gold ones.
“Yes, I am.” I replied. “If I join this military, I can gain the money and power to find them. Dante only takes one apprentice at a time anyways, and I’ve had you for five years now.” I said, turning to the older woman. “Would you permit me to join the army?”
“Yes.” Dante agreed after a moment of silence. “Come visit anytime though.”
“Thank you.” I said, grinning. I saw Envy frown out of the corner of my eye and I turned to look at his face. “I’ll come back and visit you Envy, and whip your ass in a fight again.”
“Like you could.” He answered immediately, ruffling my hair affectionately. My eyes widened and I gave him an incredulous look, which he countered with a smile.
“Uh huh.” I said, edging slowly away from him. “Well I’m going to be on my way now.”
As I walked away from Envy and the others, I heard Lyra speak to Dante. “Does this mean I’m your apprentice now?”
“Wow, bright kid, isn’t she?” I muttered to myself, even though Lyra seemed to have more than my sixteen years.
*******
After walking for hours, I finally hit civilization, boarding a train headed for Central. I leant back against the seat, my heart beating quickly with the prospect of seeing my brothers for the first time in years. My plan was to take the state alchemist exam and then look for Edward and Alphonse. There was no doubt in my heart that I would pass the test, just that they might not let me take it in the first place, considering my age. I fell asleep quickly, my dreams optimistic and joyful. I awoke when I felt the train slide to a smooth stop, it’s wheels screeching with the effort. I stood and leapt off the train car, bolting out of the train station.
“Oh crap.” I said to myself, looking around myself. I stood in the streets of Central, but there were tall buildings, cars, carriages and winding roads everywhere.
Having lived in a rural town when I was younger and spent the last half a decade in a isolated house, the crowded streets and horde of people overwhelmed me. A large man bumped into me, and I fell flat on my face. Flipping onto my back, a snarl on my face I watched as he walked right by me, not offering either a hand up nor an apology.
“Hey, buddy!” I called and he turned to glare at me. “Watch where your going!” I spat and he shook his head and walked off.
“Damn kids.” I heard him mutter to himself.
“Fucking adults.” I said, loud enough for him to hear me. I then ducked into a store, snickering to myself as he whirled around, a look of fury on his face.
“Can I help you?” A woman asked me and I turned to see that I had entered a flower shop.
“Uh, yeah.” I said, blinking. “Could you direct me to the military place?”
“Military place?” She asked, confused before realizing what I meant. “Central Headquarters?” I nodded, deciding that that sounded about right. “Continue down this street and eventually you’ll hit it, it’ll be on your right.”
“Thanks ma’am” I told the florist with a grateful smile, bolting from the shop. I ran down the street and accidentally bumped into a man, and he fell to the pavement. “Sorry!” I said, pausing to look down at him. It was the same man as before.
“Hey, you!” He shouted and I turned on my heel and continued down the road, laughing to myself. After a few minutes, I slowed to a walk, my breathing laboured, and watched the right side of the road, my eyes looking for a sign of a big building, that could possibly be Central Headquarters.
“Well, that might be it.” I said sarcastically to myself, jogging over to the front steps and tipping my head back to stare up in awe at the giant green and white banner. “Holy crap.” I murmured to myself, my confidence fading slightly.
I heard an explosion from behind the behind and I ran to look, staring in amazement when I spotted two men fighting using alchemy. The tall one with black hair merely snapped his fingers and created fiery explosions. The smaller, blonde one clapped his hands and seemed able to do some sort of metal alchemy. I approached them quickly with the intent of stopping their battle.
“Miss, stop!” Another man shouted from behind me, but I took no heed and soon I was in between them.
“Move!” The smaller one bellowed, and I clapped my hands and extended them, transmuting some water in the air into ice, that covered both men from head to toe. I stared at the two of them, both poised to use their alchemy, the dark haired one’s hands ready to snap, the other’s merely an inch away from each other.
I heard the sound of one person clapping and I whirled around to face a huge audience all clad in blue, who had obviously been watching the spectacle. The man who was applauding walked over to me, a grin on his face. He seemed to be a higher ranking military man, and I furrowed my eyebrows, contemplating my options.
“Very nice.” He praised and I blinked in confusion at him. “But, do you think you could unfreeze my men?”
“Sorry.” I apologized, turning and reversing the effect, leaving the men breathless, but alive and well. Embarrassed, I turned to look back at the man. “I- I thought they were actually fighting.”
“Perfectly alright.” He said before looking over at his men. “No harm done.” He said easily, and they both nodded. “Now, miss, may I ask why you are here?”
“Yes, I wish to take the state alchemist exam.” I replied, and he chuckled.
“Don’t think you are a little, young for it?” He asked. “You need to train and study for many months before you could even think to take it.”
“Sir, I’ve trained as an apprentice for five years.” I said quietly, looking hopefully up at him.
“Oh? And was your master?” He asked.
“An elderly alchemist who called herself Dante.” I said and his eyebrows lifted in reaction to the name.
“Then I think we could make an exception.” He said. “The written exam is tomorrow morning, 9 o’clock sharp.”
“Thank you sir.” I grinned, immensely pleased.
He turned to face the two fighters with a broad smile on his face. “Very good job men.” He said.
“Thank you Fuhrer.” The taller one said.
“But we are done yet!” The younger looking one protested.
“That’s enough Edward.” The leader said and I jerked, looking over to the smaller one.
“That can’t be him.” I mumbled to myself in utter disbelief. “Sir?” I asked, trying to attract their attention.
“Oh.” The Fuhrer said, realizing that I was still there. He waved one of his soldiers over and motioned for them to lead me away.
“Where are we going?” I asked the man, following him into the building.
“To your new room.” the man replied curtly, and he opened the door for me. “Sleep tight, Miss.”
“Thanks.” I said and he exited, leaving me to inspect my room alone. More tired than I had first thought, I collapsed on bed, exhausted. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow, still fully clothed.
*******
“Oh lord, I slept like a rock.” I said, yawning and stretching the next morning. I glanced over at the glowing alarm clock with sleepy eyes and fell off the bed with a scream. “IT’S EIGHT-FIFTY-NINE?!” I screeched, running for the door. I ran to the large room where the exams were being held at.
“Nine o’clock precisely.” The Fuhrer said with a smile, nodding me over to a seat. I sat down, panting as they handed me a pen and an exam paper.
