The Reality of Alchemy

The thought I remember the most before being sucked inside that large, black gate was I'm going to die. As it opened and dark tendrils wrapped around my body, I closed my eyes and pictured my family and how I would never see them again. And then, before my consciousness was ripped from me in blinding pain, I pictured my brother. As a tear leaked down my face, I sent out my last thought. I'm sorry…brother.

Chapter One: Alive

"Where do you think she came from?"

"…I think she came from the other side."

"Do you mean the other side of the gate? But, how?"

"I don't know, Al. That's what we're going to find out."

I must be dead. These two guys are talking about a gate. I can only hope they were referring to heaven's gates. Then again the gate I faced was massive darkness. Great. I'm in Hell. It would explain the pain I was feeling. But where it was coming from I couldn't tell.

"I think she's waking up, brother." I moved my head towards the younger sounding voice. He sounded sweet and innocent, but he kept echoing.

"Hey, can you hear me?" The older voice asked towards me. I focused on moving my lips to answer yes, but all that came out was a gasp of pain. My eyes shot open and light flooded my senses as I clutched at my left shoulder.

"Son of a bitch." I managed. And then I looked at my left shoulder to see that my arm was gone. My eyes grew wide as I took in the white bandaging tinged with blood.

"Hey, it's ok! Relax, tell us what happened." I looked up to see the young voice coming from a large suit of armor with glowing eyes. Beside him, a boy with gold eyes and a braid of blonde hair staring at me intently.

"I…why did it take my arm?" I sputtered, looking only at the gold eyes. Something about him made me feel like I could relate to him. He furrowed his brow at me.

"Did you see a gate?" He asked, taking me by surprise. I answered him, seeming to confirm a working hypothesis in his head.

"I went through it. I thought I was dead." A moment of silence passed between us and the armor spoke.

"I'm Alphonse Elric. This is my older brother Edward. We found you two days ago outside the cemetery. Do you remember anything?" I looked at Al and shook my head.

"Only black tendrils, pain, and-" I stopped, remembering my brother. My eyes must have deceived me, because Al put a hand on my right shoulder.

"It's ok. We're gonna help you figure out what happened and hopefully send you home."

"Al." Ed interjected. His head was down and I felt my hope fall. So I spoke my suspicion.

"You might not be able to send me home." Ed looked at me suddenly.

"What did you do…before the gate appeared?" He asked me sternly. His voice was on edge and I felt the fear that was in his eyes.

"I don't remember." I answered honestly. I looked away from him, feeling ashamed. "I only remember that I was with my younger brother. We were with a man with gr-" I was cut off by a wave of pain from my nerves and I gritted my teeth. Al jumped up and ran out of the room, calling for a girl named Winry. Ed stood and grabbed my shoulders as gently as possible and pushed me back on the bed.

"Hang in there, ok? You're lucky you landed here. My friend is the best mechanic in town."

Mechanic? I don't have a car! My mind was whirring and I tried to focus on Ed, but I was overwhelmed. I was hurt, confused, and traumatized. If I didn't know better, I would say shock was setting in.

"Edward, what did I tell you?" I watched through my fuzzy vision as a wrench hit Ed square in the forehead. He hit the floor, legs twitching, a tiny drop of blood running down his face. Winry, I assumed, wore a green bandana, a black tube top, and a jumpsuit, the sleeves tied around her waist. Her long blonde hair framed her face and her blue eyes shined with a fierce determination. She stood over Edward, hands on hips, her face scrunched up with anger. "I told you not to ask her questions, she could go into shock!" She shouted. I studied her face to the best of my ability and I noticed that despite her obvious annoyance with Ed, her eyes were soft towards him. She stepped over her friend and came right to me, checking me over and placing her hand on my forehead. She raised her brows and met my eyes while adjusting my bandages.

"You're certainly a fighter, aren't you?" She noted, saying it more to herself than to me. As my focus became clear again, I noticed that she had gloves sticking out of one of her back pockets. They were covered in grease and dingy, having been used and washed more than once.

"What kind of mechanic are you?" I asked her, now curious by what Ed had told me. She smiled, sitting on the edge of my bed.

"I'm glad you asked. Hey Ed, get up and come here a minute." She told him. He scowled, getting up from the floor and standing by her side. She then rolled up his right sleeve, revealing a brilliantly made metal arm. I felt my eyes widen, having not realized he had artificial limbs. It was then I understood why I was brought here.

"I have no money for a prosthetic limb." I confessed, my hope thrown in the garbage. Winry kept her smile.

"You don't have to worry. Ed has you covered. Don't you?" She turned to him, her eyes promising another wrench filled beat down unless he agreed. He sighed.

"Sure." He announced, his eyes meeting mine. "I'm gonna go talk to Al and contact HQ." He left the room, a determination to his walk. I looked at my shoulder.

"Why are you helping me?" I asked, feeling vulnerable. Winry had turned her back to me, working on something I couldn't see.

"Well, when those two found you, they couldn't just let you bleed to death. So they brought you to me. Plus Ed has a soft heart for those who go through Hell. And he saw something in you that reminded him of himself." She stated. She was facing me again, holding up a tape measure. "I'll let you ask him questions later, but right now, I need to prep you for automail."

"Is that what you call metal limbs?"

"Yup!" She said gleefully. "It's going to be about two years of rehabilitation, but in the end, you will have an arm again." Her face turned serious. "It's no walk in the park. Surgery is painful and connecting the nerves will be grueling, but we don't give this option unless we know you can handle it."

Winry measured my right arm and jotted down some notes on a chart. I winced, pain dancing through my upper body. I took a couple deep breaths, trying to keep my strength from waning.

"How long did Ed go through rehab?"

"A year."

"Then I will do the same."

. . .

End of chapter one! The following chapters should be longer. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed it! Please review and let me know what you think! Thanks!