Before we start, Amestris is a large country, and there are many stories that were not told.

This story is meant to be as canon as possible, it will start off around the time of the Ishbal Civil War. There will be many original characters, but I will try to tell the untold stories of main characters as well. Expect some Roy, Riza and Maes to come in, as well as some stories from the Briggs and the infamous Armstrong family.

I will promise you right now, if you have seen a scene from the anime, or manga, I will not re-describe it for you. This will be all original content.

Now, if you wish to skip right to the story, ignore the rest of the bold print, if not, take a second and read. Hope you enjoy it.

Josh

As for what you are getting into, I love the Ishbal Civil War. Yes that sounds pretty messed up, like someone saying "I love WWII" but the Ishbal war has so many stories to be told. The sheer amount of alchemists that were gathered into that small area makes it a brewing ground for awesome stories. Second, I love the Briggs, the cold, brutal atmosphere and its unique characters are very intriguing, and the story will without a doubt move to this area after the Ishbal War is complete.

Another big part of this story will be alchemy itself. I personally found the idea of alchemy to be quite interesting. It is all so scientific. I may go on rants about my personal ideas of how alchemy works, and I will try to introduce interesting styles of alchemy, not simply say "Blank uses lightning alchemy, she snaps her fingers and uses static electricity" This seems to be a prevalent idea with OC's. In fact, lightning alchemy seems much more difficult, and I hope to maybe research real lightning and come up with a plausible way to make it usable, but that will not be for a while. End Rant.

Prelude

The cries of outrage were drowned out by screams of pain. Hands reached for side arms, but paused before coming back up to slashed throats. A flutter of cloth as a hand caught a wrist, disarming then bringing the arm out, then back. The crack of a bone was followed by a deafening gunshot and a startled cry suddenly became faint. Suddenly the gunshots became rapid. She looked up for a second again. The blue clothed figure had a handgun held in one hand and what looked like a combat dagger in the other. A split second later, the gun was somewhere on the floor with all bullets spent, and the dagger was buried in the chest of another Amestrian soldier. Then, the strangest thing happened. The blue clothed man struck at another soldier's throat, and flashed with blue lightning as the air suddenly dropped a few degrees. The soldier dropped immediately, a pale hue in his face. As his head connected with the floor, his whole neck shattered like it was painted glass. The woman on the floor gasped, "Alchemy?!"

Chapter One. The Journey West.

East City, 1900

"Why is daddy always listening to the radio." The pale blue eyes of 9 year old Nikoli Zhan stared upwards into his mother's eyes. She simply smile.

"He is worried of course. So much is going on right now, especially with the Ishbals." She looked away and murmered quietly, "Maybe we should have taken grandfather's idea and headed east, there is no way that Xing could be any less safe than here." Nikoli glanced up at her questioning, but she dismissed his unspoken questions with a glance. With a quick look at her watch, she promptly left the room, leaving his questioning gaze wanting. His father was a Major in the military, officially, but in reality was nothing more than a researcher. Having spent much of his younger years researching alchemy, he seemed to have centered his focus on one area, an area that the military was very interested, lightning. Of course, the idea of blasting bolts of electricity was appealing, but with many other things, reality was much different. Nikoli still could remember the times he would sneak out of bed, creep along and eavesdrop on his father at work.

"It is impossible! Even if enough static was created, how would it be aimed? It would be impossible to control! The closest area to discharge would the ground, and the path of least resistance would be the alchemist himself!" Nikoli's father groaned to himself, his hands pressed up to his temples. He must have noticed something was up though, as he magically turned to glance Nikoli, barely visible in the dark hallway, peeking out from the corner of the wall.

"Niki! What are you doing up so late? Come here young man!"

Busted, Nikoli thought to himself. "My name's not Niki! That's a girl's name!" he blurted out, hoping to redirect the conversation from his late night sneaking. It failed of course as father's eyes seemed to pierce right through him.

"Well, then, I am sorry SIR Nikoli. You weren't awoken by Daddy talking to himself were you?"

Nikoli giggled to himself, "No Daddy, I came to see what you was doing." He said with a large grin.

"What you WERE doing, you mean; and as always, Daddy is working, clutching at straws as he tries to build his dream. Niki, when you grow up, I want you to find something useful to do, not this silly alchemy." Nikoli's father said with an exasperated look.

Nikoli giggled at the memory, and then became sad as he looked over to his father's empty desk. Where was he? It seemed like he was always working, and when he wasn't at work, he was too busy to even say hello. Nikoli frowned deeply before returning to his toys. Like mom always said, "Sometimes adults have to do adult things, they don't always get to relax and play, so make sure you enjoy yourself now."

Nikoli's mother did not have time for such childhood enjoyments, she was on the phone, eyes full of worry, not that he could see of course from the other end, but he could definitely hear her.

"Charles, do you think it will come to… come to that? W-war?" She asked quietly, hoping for a swift "NO." The pause only made her heart sink lower.

"Look Dear, you know that this country has a history, I do not know how far this could go! It's like shooting fireworks next to a powder keg, who knows what will set it off. If it happens, you know what to do, you take Nikoli, and you get the hell out of here! You hear? No stopping for me, I will come if I can, but you just run, get to Xing, get someplace safe."

"I...I don't want to lose you, Charles, I'm scared; I'm so scared Charles…"

She wept softly to herself, blocking out the rest of the world as Charles silently listened on the other line. From the top floor bedroom, young Nikoli pulled his covers up higher, listening to his mother's sobs.

6 years later, Present Day.

The harsh sun beat down on Nikoli's head, his Xingese rice hat, (a name his grandfather absolutely hated, calling it that in front of him would have been followed with a swift beating.) It was nothing compared to the harsh desert behind him. It really had been 5 years; 5 years since the declaration of a civil war, and the Ishbalian extermination began. That night, his Mother did exactly like she promised. She bundled together enough supplies, and grabbed him and took off. A short bus ride east, then a bribed caravan ride to the border. That bloody desert, it seemed to suck the moisture right out of your mouth. Nikoli smiled to himself, remembering his first moments in Xing, the bamboo forests and the odd wildlife, and of course, his grand uncle and his seemingly calm exterior that concealed his eccentric interior. A small chuckle escaped; then turned into a grunt as he collided with a solid blue uniformed mass. Suddenly sitting on the sand, he looked up to a solid mass of muscle, topped with a lock of golden hair.

"Hmmm, little boy, you have an interesting hat there. Have you checked in at the boarder yet? Can't have people sneaking over without us knowing."

Normally getting questioned by a massive man in a uniform would have been intimidating, but this man's voice seemed to have a deep kindness in it. Glancing up, Nikoli could have sworn there was something shiny, no something sparkling around the man's head. He blinked his eyes rapidly, wondering how hard he had landed.

"N-n-no sir, I haven't yet. I'm Amestrian, coming back from an, uh vacation. Yes, spending some time away from home sir." The man looked down on him questioningly, but despite Nik's stereotypical Xing hat, he was only one quarter Xingese, and three quarters Amestrian. He smiled innocently up at the uniformed man.

"Hmmm, well I guess I could let this pass, I will have to ask your name though." Before Nik could say anything, the man cut him off.

"I am Major Alex Louis Armstrong, the only son of the legendary Armstrong family, a family rick in culture, art and love! You have no doubt heard of this legendary dynasty?"

Nik tried to say something, but the Major was far from done.

"No? Well I will have to EDUCATE YOU!" His muscles burst his uniform. Nikoli recoiled in shock, trying to edge backwards away from the strange man. He turned his back and burst into a history lesson, most of which went unheard though because Nikoli turned and ran at the first moment that the Major's back was turned.

"…and at the turn of the century, the Armstrong family had- oh? Where did he go?" Armstrong turned in surprise. "Hmmm, I will have to tell him the rest of the story later then!"

Nikoli torn down an alley, half out of breath before a cold sounding voice echoed down, "You, maggot! Where do you think you are going now? This is our alley here kid." A rough looking young man; flanked by a pair of even younger, and rougher looking kids, stood at one end of the alley, wielding crude instruments that were barely deserved to be called weapons. The leader waved his jagged broken bottle.

"Maybe let's give him a couple scrapes, eh boss? Teach him a lesson he won't be forgettin' soon" The three boys started walking closer. Nik closed his eyes for a second. Xing was famous for its martial arts, and he had not spent 5 years there sitting on his butt.

Xing 1901

"Daddy who it the strange boy? Why is he here? Why does he smell so bad?" A little Xing girl squeaked as she pulled on an older man's shirt. The man smiled.

"That there would be your cousin Dai, I believe his name is Nikoli, am I right?" He turned, still smiling to the little boy. Nikoli looked up with a happy face before nodding." They both stood there for a second, content with life, enjoying the heat of the sun beating on their faces.

"Alright, enough. You son, have work to do. If a man does not work, neither shall he eat!" The man's face was just as content, but there was an edge. Nikoli frowned as the man grabbed his collar and dragged him down the dirt road towards the fields. Having come from the family of a State Alchemist, life had been rather easy, what in the world could his Uncle make him do for work?

He found out soon enough. By the end of the day, he was about to collapsed, having worked in the rice fields for the whole day. Without even saying hello to his mother, he passed out on the rough patch of rice stalks that these people called a bed. True, this was not anything other than what the other people living here did, but coming from the lap of luxury to this was a shock to say the least. In the morning, the kitchen table was a blur of conversation. It was mostly in Xingese, but Nikoli caught an odd word, something about the "Sensei" and lunch.

The man who had greeted Nikoli suddenly turned to face him. "Perhaps this boy could even learn a thing from the Sensei." Nikoli noticed he had switched to Nikoli's native language. The rest of the table seemed to follow suit.

"As long as he can still help out, I am sure the Sensei would love to pass some more knowledge on. How many children does he have learning and helping out? It is really wonderful, one child learns, then the child teaches 5 or so other children, who teach another group each. With him in the area, you can really notice the sheer amount of Alkahestry that is around, this clan has never been stronger!" A plump woman with short black hair piped in.

Nikoli wondered at what they meant by "Alkahestry" it sounded much like "History" which young Nikoli was most definitely not interested in. But, as the world seemed to work as an 11 year old, he was not included in the decision process. His mother frowned briefly as it "Alkahestry" was some sort of disease.

"The truth is, he always seems to want to learn alchemy, just like his father. I guess it must look different from a young one's point of view. Let him visit the Sensei, maybe he can at least learn some self defense. This Sensei teaches that as well, does he not?" She asked.

The table nodded with a chorus of "Mmm" as they continued their meal. Nikoli glanced around, but it would appear that his fate was decided.

Over the next months, Nikoli went with many of the other children in the village to visit the Sensei. The man was an elderly fellow. A long white ponytail sprouted from an otherwise bald head, and a long thin beard almost matched it in length. He taught the children many things; it was almost just like school back in Amestris. They learned about leadership, looking out for the younger children, the importance of helping their family, and keeping the family's honour. They learned about what the Sensei called the "Dragon Pulse" a force that flowed through life, from the tops of the mountain, down to the life below. They also learned how to fight.

East Amestris, Present Day

And fighting was something he remembered well. A harsh yell dropped him out of his short daydream as the boy on the left ran in front of the other two, wielding a wooden club. He clearly meant to have the first hit, and no doubt impress the young man and the other boy. He raised his right hand high and prepared to swing.

Nikoli had other plans though. With a quick step forward, he was suddenly much closer than the charging boy thought. Nikoli lifted his left arm, and slammed it into the inside of the boy's raised wrist, moving his whole arm and the club to the left. He then twisted, bring his right shoulder back, then slammed his palm hard into the boy's chin. The young man with his broken bottle had caught up, and apparently had been in enough fights to know stop and gawk. Nikoli grabbed the first boy as he started to fall limp, and shoved him back into the leader. With the sudden weight on him, the leader fell back as Nikoli jumped, not at him, but past him to the third boy. A stomp kick to the knee brought a crack of bone and a whoosh of air as he followed to kick with a swift punch to the upper stomache. The boy fell with a grimace of pain, unable to cry out with the wind knocked out of him. The leader had just managed push the first boy off of him when Nik twisted and slammed a foot into his head. The man fell back with a cry of pain.

Loud footsteps, like a group of men in heavy boots caused Nik to turn away from the fallen boys. A group of soldiers suddenly were far too close for comfort. A rough hand gripped Nik's shoulder and hauled him backwards. Other soldiers grabbed the fallen boys.

"Brigadier General Fessler! Looks like these kids were scrapping pretty good. You should take a look Sir, it looks like this one escaped unharmed. Nikoli struggled of course, but even with martial art training, a scrawny 16 year old cannot easily get out of being held by two burly military men. A man in a prestine blue uniform waltzed forward.

"Hmmm, looks like he is a fighter alright. Assault will not be tolerated in this city however, you have been found guilty of violating the law. You have two options. Death, or serve out your sentence in the military." The man spoke frankly, with a faint grin.

Even the soldiers were taken back by the severity. "Sir, but-"

"There are no buts Colonel, it appears we have a few new recruits for the war effort." Fessel frowned at the boy with a shattered knee. "Except him, he will not make a good soldier."

A single shot rang out as the boy jolted backwards, a new red hole in his forhead, rapidly leaking blood. The Brigand General just smiled and motioned for the soldiers to take them away. A soldier started forward to move the body, but Fessel stopped him with a glare.

"What do you think you are doing? Leave the trash." He said flatly, before walking ahead. Nikoli stood there stunned as the soldiers shoved him along, and then into a car. The younger boy was weeping softly, and the young man was just as shocked. Even the soldiers appeared to be disturbed, but they held their silence as the car drove true to a military compound.

Closing remarks

Ok, so it started relatively slow. I did need to introduce a character, but rest assured, next chapter will start telling the stories of existing characters, and not just brief cameos from Armstrong and Fessel. I'd love a review, and please, if you found it even a bit interesting, try reading the next chapters when they come out, I hope to make them better than this.

thanks

Josh