Chapter 1: The Meeting
Edward Elric and his brother Alphonse were one day walking down a tunnel in Lab 4.
"You know," Ed said to his brother,"I thought Lab 4 burned down. At least, that's what everybody else has told me."
"I know," Al said in response,"Maybe it was a different Lab they're talking about."
"Maybe..."
They continued walking down the tunnel until a sudden explosion blew off half of the wall. Red Water was pouring everywhere.
"C'mon, Al!" Ed called to his brother.
They ran back the way they came as fast as they could and were stopped by a young-looking woman with long, jet-black hair.
"Going somwhere, Edward?" she asked Ed.
"Well I'm trying to escape the RED WATER RUSHING DOWN THE BLOWN-UP TUNNEL!" Ed said impatiently, trying to get past the strange woman.
"Tsk, tsk,tsk, Edward," the woman said."Not so fast. You don't want more limbs to be lost, now do you?"
Edward stared back at her angrily.
"I didn't think so," she said."You better follow me."
"What the heck do you want with us?" Ed yelled.
"You'll see soon enough," the woman said.
With a snap of her fingers, they were whisked away to what seemed like an abandoned council room.
"My name is Pain," the woman said."My first name is Nigaya. If you don't understand what I mean by first name, maybe this will help clear things up. I am a himunculous. I have been traveling with Lust and Gluttony. I wish to come with you on your search for the Scholar's Stone."
"Lust already tried to get Envy to disguise himself as Winry and come with us, but that didn't work out too well for her. And now she's sent you do it? C'mon, I was in the middle of doing something, so if you can just snap me back to-"
"Listen you little pipsqueak-"
"Who are you calling as small as an ant you can kill with a magnifying glass!"
"What are you talking about? I said nothing of the sort!"
"You might as well have!"
"Both of you, stop it!" Alphonse yelled."Pain, we don't want to be rude, but we can't have anybody extra holding us down on our journey. We aren't even searching for the stone right now. We're doing something for Teacher."
"Alright, then. Even though I know where to look for the Scholar's Stone..."
"You do?" Ed and Al said in unison.
"Yes," Pain said."We could search for the stone together."
"Oh, yeah right!" Ed said."I thought you looked shifty the first time I laid eyes on you!" All the sudden, his prosthetic metal leg creaked. A bolt had fallen out.
"Dangit, Wrath!" Ed said angrily."I thought it was an equivilant exchange..."
"Wrath?" Pain said.
"Yes, Wrath, the himunculous that took my right arm and leg. Well didn't technically TAKE them but has them."
"Wrath...Wrath is my nephew. I'm Izumi's dead sister. She probably has never mentioned me. Our mother tried to bring me back, and that's why I'm like this. Wrath is Izumi's deceased child, so he would be my nephew. My mother took a bone from herself to bring me back, so she died from collapse of weight. I have another side to me; my mother's side which I want to bring out and get to know."
"Oh," Ed said sheepishly,"so Lust has nothing to do with this? Sorry I misjudged you."
"That's alright Edward. I didn't give you a very good first impression, whisking you off like that,"
Pain said.
"Brother," Alphonse whisered to Ed."Should we trust her?"
"I think we should at least give her a chance," Ed said.
