Mustang clenches his fists as his lieutenant gives another horrifying report. Riza was normally stoic, so the subtle fumbles in her calm voice were all the more noticable. White hot rage burns in the colonel's eyes. He folds his hands in front of his mouth, with his elbows planted firmly on his desk, and forces his eyes shut.

"This is the fifth attack, correct?"

"Right," Hawkeye replies just as the two Elric brothers enter the room, "He's attacking state alchemists regardless of gender... and age." She glances at Edward. Mustang dismisses her silently and she leaves.

"What was that about?" Ed asks. He notices the tension in the room, especially from Mustang, and decides it's not a good time to bug him.

"Yeah, Colonel, if someone wants to attack state alchemists why specify the gender or age? Don't they normally just go after any state alchemist, like Scar?" Alphonse adds.

Roy looks down at his desk to avoid eye contact with the brothers. "This is different. This guy isn't killing state alchemists. He's not even just attacking them, not in the way you'd think."

The Elrics look at each other in confusion. Ed offers a small shrug. They both return their gaze to the colonel as he stands up and walks in front of his desk. He still looks down, seemingly studying the grains of wood in the flooring.

"How old are you, Fullmetal? 15?" Mustang asks. Edward simply nods. "So Al is only 14..."

"What's this about, Mustang?" Ed asks. The Flame Alchemist seems to ignore him.

"So I'm guessing you're both old enough to know what rape is."

A chill runs down Ed's spine. A sudden wave of understanding nearly knocks him over. Finally his golden eyes meet with Roy's. They're dark, cold, and filled with mixed emotions that Ed can't quite pinpoint. Anger, determination... Fear? The young alchemist shakes his head.

"Of course I know what that is," he says- though it comes out more quietly than intended, "Why would he do that to state alchemists specifically?"

"We're not sure yet. It might be revenge, but from the small amount of information we've gathered about him, we know he's not Ishvallan. He has dark hair and pale skin, but that's all we know. The victims don't remember much and there are no other witnesses that we've found."

"How does he do it?" Al asks. He sounds more serious and angry than either Ed or Roy can remember him ever sounding before.

"He attacks from the dark, either at night or just from a dark alley. He grabs his victim from behind and knocks them out before they can react. He takes them to a remote location for a week and assaults and tortures them. He keeps them drugged enough that they can remember the attack, but not much else. Then he knocks them out again and drops their unconcious body in a random location."

Ed clenches his teeth and fists. "That son of a bitch! We have to catch him, Colonel. I wanna beat him to a pulp and make him pay for what he's done."

"Careful, Fullmetal," Roy says calmly, "He's targeting state alchemists, remember? You're on the potential victim list. I don't want you going anywhere near him, especially on your own. I'm assigning you a bodyguard until we catch him."

"A bodyguard? I've already got Al. I'll be fine."

"We're not taking any risks. Just be greatful." The dark-haired alchemist circles back behind his desk, ignoring Edward's light protests. He sits and begins skimming through the papers, effectively dismissing the Elrics. He stops Ed before he gets out the door. "Be careful, Fullmetal."

"Yeah, yeah. You too." As sarcastic as the reply seemed to be, it brought into light the fact that Mustang was also a potential target. Ed's hands become clammy as he shuts the door behind him.

Upon exitting the colonel's office he is met with the gaze of Mustang's whole team.

"You alright, Kid?" Havoc asks, a cigarette ever-present in his mouth.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm stuck with a bodyguard until we catch this creep though. I'm guessing that bodyguard is one of you?" A few of them chuckle. Noticeably, Hawkeye is not one of them.

"We'll have to fight over who gets you first," Breda jokes, "But after that we're taking shifts."

"What, none of you can stand to be around me for more than one day?"

Breda and Havoc erupt with laughter. Fuery and Falman chuckle. Hawkeye remains silent, as does Alphonse. Despite joking around with the older men, Ed still feels tense. The hair on the back of his neck stands up and his muscles are stiff.

He feels like someone is watching him.