A/N I am so sorry. There was a huge hiccup and somehow this got deleted. So I'm re uploading as fast as I can...cause apparently I have to fix all these again cause they keep uploading in huge paragraph form. I thought I had it fixed but I do not. So please bear with me as I re upload what was lost.

She should have seen this coming really. She'd known for ages that the whole of the Palace had been keeping a weary eye on them. Since they were children in fact. Yet some small part of her always told her that nothing would come of it. Ling wouldn't let anything come of it.

...well now she was seeing just how wrong her assumption had been. Only a week after the Promised Day...she was taken, and she was now separated from the soon to be Emperors side. She never even saw it coming really. Either because she truly had become so naive over the years, or because she let her guard down after everything that happened. Either way...she was far from the Palace now.

She still wasn't entirely sure what her predicament really was, but she knew she'd find out soon. What she did know was wherever she was now had a heavy stench of decay and general non cleanliness.
She was alone in a dark stone-faced cell. The walls were slick with the rain water that dripped in from an apparent hole somewhere in the roof. Normally she would take advantage of such a flaw, knowing the structure would be weak at that point. But with nothing but her mere hands, there was nothing she could do about it.
She shivered quietly, pulling into herself. All she wore was a hole ridden...well she may as well call it a sack really. It had the same texture and really looked nothing like actual clothing.
Judging by that, she hazarded a guess she was being sold into the slave trade. Though that would be the least of her worries. She knew of all the different 'trades' that ran in the underground of this country. Trades the Emperor seemed fit to turn a blind eye too.
She knew he always would. That's where he got a lot of the palace servants from after all. Slaves don't have to be paid.

She settled her arms on her drawn up knees and buried her face in them. She knew this was pretty much the end of the road for her. If she really was on the Black Market, she could really end up anywhere in the world. And women sold fast on the market. And she didn't have to have a huge imagination to know why. She knew the fate that would soon befall her if she didn't get away.

But she was well guarded. They knew damn well what she was capable of, and judging by how she was handled on the way here, she could tell the men holding her were Ex-military. Of course that'd be the case. They'd be the only ones with even a chance of keeping her in line. And so far they did it well. All her limbs were in metal cuffs, chained to the wall. Even her neck had a heavy metal collar around it. The chains had a short run to them, not really giving her much in the way of movement. She couldn't even reach the center of the room and she could barely reach the metal bucket that was meant to be her toilet. They never even saw fit to clean the damn thing.

Tears slowly slipped down her face as she slowly began to accept her fate. This wasn't like her. She'd always try to find some way out of a situation even if she had no weapons or anything else at her disposal. But the passed few months brought a change in her. She'd always been at Ling's side as far back as she could remember. And even when she was just kitchen staff, Ling would see fit to 'alleviate' her of her duties and drag her along for whatever scheme his mind could come up with. And she had no doubt when her grandfather brought her in for guard training, that Ling was actually the one to suggest it.

She spent years at his side. Quietly watching his back. Killing anyone who dared tried to touch him. But it had for the most part been a quiet existence in the shadows...not the direct fighting at his side she'd been doing for the last few months. She'd gotten too close to him. Allowing feelings she easily quelled, to win out at last.
And because of all that...she actually felt hopeless. All her training was being squashed by the overwhelming feelings of her heart. She lost all hold on herself.
So here she was...alone and unsure exactly where she was, crying into her arms. Dreading the future that awaited her.
After what seemed like ages, Lan Fan could hear footsteps resounding along the concrete floors. She waiting quietly, holding her breath as she waited to see who's cell the person would stop in front of.
Of course, it would be hers. She swore under her breath as she continued to wait, eyes locked coldly on the cell door.

Soon there was a clanging of keys, the click of the lock, and the door opened with a loud screech.
She couldn't help but squint her eyes as the light from the hall poured in, stinging at her.
For a long moment nothing happened. The person just stood there, silhouetted by the light behind. Then slowly, the form came forward. A man, as she supposed.

Still nothing was said as he walked forward, kneeling in front of her. She almost grimaced as the stench hit her nose. Blood, sweat, and what was that? Maybe a bit of opium permeating from the man.
She ended up scrunching her nose in spite of herself. The man just grinned, showing the multiple gaps he had from missing teeth. And the stench that came just from that made her think he ate from a garbage heap. His yellowing teeth driving home that this man lacked any sort of hygiene skills.
Lan Fan studied him for a moment as he continued to grin. Well, he was Xingese, so she was probably still in Xing somewhere. Good to know.
That's about as far as she got in her perusing before he reached forward and wrapped his hand around her throat, slamming her head back against the wall. She winced and swore to herself. With her instincts and chi reading she should have seen that coming. Not like she could do much about it, but still.

He continued to grin as he held her in place, turning her head from side to side, inspecting her.
"You're probably one of the prettiest ones we had in a while. I'd keep you myself if the boss would let me." He grinned a bit more, leaning forward and licking the side of her face from chin to just below her eye. She tried her best at this point to pull away but he slammed her head against the wall again.

"No no. Bad girl. Don't know what freedoms you had before but you ain't got em' here. So learn some damn manners."

The rage rising in her at this moment was something new. All her life she bowed down to everyone, spoke only when spoken too. Never losing control and speaking back. Always sticking to the shadows. Far enough away to not be seen, yet close enough to strike out and kill anyone who tried to harm Ling before they even got close enough to breathe on him.
Always subservient and loyal. Never striking out on her own.

That all changed with the events in Amestris. For the first time ever, she was constantly separated from Ling. Even having to leave him to Greed's charge. (not that any of them had a choice in that matter)She had hated it, but at the same time it afforded them some time to prepare. But it stung. It stung, and it burned, and everything that happened after that just piled on. Building the flames within her to the heights of a massive funeral pyre.
For the first time ever...she felt true and utter rage. Something she never afforded herself before because it blinded her. It's what got her caught to begin with the first time she met Ed and fought with him.
But it grew, and her Grandfathers death struck the final match inside. This new part of her did not seem to want to be extinguished. It just grew more and more. And this vile idiot was only fueling the flames further.
Within seconds, before the man had any time to react, she snapped her head to the side and clamped down on three of his fingers.

The metallic taste crept through her mouth, but she continued to bite down, ignoring the blood filling her mouth. His yells made her flinch slightly as he was quite close to her ear.
He lashed out and smacked her with his free hand, sending her crashing to the floor and causing her to tear her teeth across his fingers as she did so. He yelled again, furious.

"BITCH!" He raised his foot to stomp down on her but a voice from behind stilled him.

"That's enough Niu." His foot paused just above her head, hovering there for a moment before he pulled it back.

"Bitch bit me!"

"You should know better than to get too close to the prisoners. It's your own damn fault." His eyes were narrow slits as he approached, eying his companion up. Wisely the other, Niu as he was called, stepped to the side. But this did nothing to prevent the punch that connected with the side of his head.

Niu, obviously not being prepared for the blow, was flung backwards into the wall. He leaned against it for a moment before crumpling to the floor in a heap, holding the side of his head and looking up at his companion.

"How many times do I have to tell you!? Don't ruin the merchandise!" The other yelled, and for good measure, kicked Niu in the ribs. "Now go back to your patrols! And unless there's a good reason, do not enter the cells!" Niu let out the least manliness squeal possible, before scrambling from the cell, leaving the two of them alone.

Lan Fan looked up at this new character from the corner of her eye. If he had been anyone else she might have thanked him but, he was obviously the one running this place.
He just stood there, seemingly trying to calm himself. Breathing deep, he shook his head slightly, causing his ponytail to flutter back and forth a bit. His eyes, despite being dark, gave off an ice cold expression and a long deep scar ran from the top of his right eye to just below his bottom lip. He was definitely not a man to be trifled with.
Finally he looked down at her, running his eyes over her. She couldn't tell if he was just assessing her injuries or doing something more vile. But he seemed satisfied with the results, whatever they were, and bent down and hoisted her back to a sitting position.

"I would advise you not to do that again. You're not in the Palace anymore. Your...tendencies, will not be tolerated."

Lan Fan just glared up at him, that rage sitting at the pit of her stomach, slowly making it's way back up again.

"Being a guard is all you know isn't it?" He continued. "Well, there's use for that I suppose. If someone wants it. But not many girls here get turned into female ring fighters. You'll be expected to do...other things. They won't be kind if you try this on them. You'll get worse then Niu gave you." He turned away from her now, heading back for the door. But he glanced back one more time, a sardonic grin plastered to his face. "The best part of this is, knowing how much that weak Prince of yours...I mean soon to be Emperor, must be blaming himself for all this." Then he stepped out and slammed the door, locking it again.

And how right he had been. Ling had hardly been able to sleep once he got news she was escorted from the Palace. He knew very well what that meant and why it was done. He'd already been to see his father to see if he could turn the order. But to his surprise, he hadn't been the one who gave it. He should have known that. His father being on his death bed meant power turned to a regent. Or to put it more accurately, the Empress. Unless the council had overstepped their power, it was a good bet his mother had ordered her removal. It made a lot of sense this way really. For one, she never liked Lan Fan. Whenever she caught them playing together, she would send him to his room and later in the day he'd see a bruised Lan Fan in the halls. He could never keep his eyes on her in these instances because he knew he helped to cause that. He knew if he just ignored her, put her out of his life, she'd be safe. But he was never able to do that. It hurt so bad when he tried and he could see the same effects on her. They were meant to be friends, and she obviously thought the beatings were worth it. But to him it wasn't. He hated seeing her hurt. And that's when the idea entered his head. He asked Fu to train her, and he begged his father to let it be so.

At the time they were dealing with some internal conflicts so his father had no time for something so trivial, so he authorized it. His mother, he saw, was far from happy with it.
And now, after all this time, he understood the real reason why. He was so blind to things in those days. He had set his mind to gaining the throne and nothing else. When he turned fifteen, he had made his mind up to go to Amestris and search for the Philosophers Stone. But it was also the age in which young Princes' go through their 'training'. Bedroom practice to put it lightly. To insure the act is done properly to produce many children. Not only was he too busy to care, he just outright didn't care. Another thing he had made his mind up on long ago was he would have no harem. Just one wife and the marriage had to be of love.

When he thought about it a bit, he realized even if he hadn't been so busy, the thought of looking for someone never really crossed his mind. But after the time he spent with Ed, he saw some things that struck him. Only he didn't think about it till now. Ed had a mission as well he centered on. He cared about nothing else but nearly went insane protecting Winry whenever she came in the line of fire.

And then he thought about what he did. Risking Bradley, Wrath, killing him to get Lan Fan to safety. Putting everything he was reaching for aside to protect her. His friend from childhood. He had been doing the same thing as Ed...and that's when it struck him. Something he should have known all along. Something his mother knew long before. He loved her. And that's the reason she was gone now. It couldn't be allowed. And as a further blow, a deliberate blow, she sent her to human traffickers. To drive a point home and to defile her spirit and body.
He took a deep breath and loosened the grip of his tightened fist from his robes. No wonder Greed took to him so easily. He was too damn greedy, even if he always said it was a good greed. Because truth be told, it wasn't always a good greed. He knew what could happen to Lan Fan from the start. But he didn't want her to leave his side, so he ignored it. He put her in the position she was now in. He had to right this. He had to bring her home. But first...he had to find her.

He covered his face with his hand, taking in a shaky breath. It wouldn't be so easy to get away from the Palace this time. There were always eyes on him now. Either to continue the course of trying to assassinate him, or to protect him. How would he be able to find her? He needed to get information. Normally he could dig in the regional records but, none of the Emperors really cared to center on human trafficking or any kind of human injustice for that matter. So there'd be no reports on locations or arrests or anything. His best option would be to head to the slums and talk to underground traffickers. But again, getting out of the Palace. Lan Fan and Fu may have hated when he ran off, fearing for his safety. But they didn't really stop him either. They'd follow to protect him, Fu throwing protests at him, Lan Fan sometimes almost sounding like she was crying under her mask as she pleaded for him to be more careful.
He really did cause them trouble didn't he?

And now with Fu gone, he was responsible for Lan Fan.
Throwing caution to the wind, Ling snuck out of the Palace later that night. He decided a little sleeping powder blown at the guards would more than suffice. Sure they'd think an attack was on when they found them, but it wouldn't take long for them to find he was gone. He'd hear it from his mother and the officials in the morning but, he didn't care. He was going to find Lan Fan and bring her back. He had to.
Silently he lowered himself from the wall that surrounded the Palace, pulling the hood up over his head as he continued into the dark streets. While he used one hand to keep the hood tighter around his face, the other groped around to make sure his blades were secure where he placed them. He had no one to watch his back now, one slip up and he was finished.

He kept to the shadows, trying to stay hidden yet trying to not look too conspicuous at the same time. But he had a feeling that wouldn't be an issue. He had waited till well after midnight before striking out. Any of the people on the streets were drunk or on their way to do so.
Problem was, to find who he was looking for at this time of night, he needed to hit the bars. Not the safest place for a Prince nevertheless a soon to be Emperor. The other problem was figuring out which of the many bars the group he was looking for drank at. And one doesn't just 'ask around' either. Anyone looking for guilds like this are usually given passwords by trusted go betweens if they deem them fit as trustworthy.
He hazarded a guess the different guilds would drink close to their Headquarters, finding it easier to drag their drunk asses home quicker. But he wasn't even sure where the guilds hid out. The one he was looking for used a Roc as their emblem. So he thought to look for an area where there may be depictions of the Roc. And somehow, he was lucky enough to stumble on some. The damn bar was even named The Regal Roc. He wasn't sure if this was a good thing or a bad omen.

Regardless, he made one last check on his blades, before making his way inside.
The room inside was a moderate size and had two floors to it. Ornate banisters running along the length of the upper level. The smells of the bar were a mixture of various forms of alcohol,tea, cigarette smoke and a hint of opium. For a moment he slipped his arm over his mouth and nose, worried about a contact buzz or something from the opium that hung in the air.
He dropped it after a moment and headed for the top level. He knew guilds liked to sit in an area where they could keep an eye on anyone who entered.

And with that thought in mind, he berated himself silently, knowing the very action of covering his mouth was and act of the upper class. Sure he could have just as easily been someone who just didn't like all the smoke. Though why would you go to a bar then? But, he knew that simple motion may make anyone seedy run for the hills.
It didn't really look like anyone noticed though as far as he could tell, and he finished his assent to the upper level. The next hurdle was looking around and not making it look like you were searching. But sometimes...people just present themselves. He could hear loud hooting and he glanced towards the back of the room.
He raised a brow.

A Xingese man, probably about his age, was dancing about on a table...naked as a jaybird. He was singing some old folk song Ling had remembered hearing at some point in his life, though where he couldn't say. But it was about the Roc. Last bit of proof he needed that that's who he was looking for. But now he had to approach him.
Needless to say he wasn't looking forward to it.

Slowly he made his way over, trying to keep from any direct eye contact with the man.
He was quite obviously drunk. His buddies and other people were laughing at him, while a girl was trying her best to pull him from the table. Swearing at him repeatedly. Finally she seemed to have had enough and swept his feet out from under him, causing him to fall very unceremoniously to the table then to the floor.

"How old are you!? Five!?" She screamed at him, throwing his clothes on top of him. "Put those back on you moron!"

He gave her a rather half-assed pouty look before obliging, much to Ling's relief.
The crowd slowly dispersed while his buddies were clasping him on the shoulder, teasing him and pointing out 'how small it was.' He got a little hot about it and starting screaming about being cold in there, which Ling realized it kind of was. The massive hole he realized was in the ceiling didn't help but, he supposed it helped the drunk idiots ego a bit.

"Excuse me?" He finally said as he stepped forward. The drunk guy tilted his head at him, instantly suspicious even in spite of his inebriated state.

"Yuh? What you want?"

Ling thought for a moment, knowing he had to speak carefully. He was vastly outnumbered and he wasn't sure if this small group was the only friends the drunk had in the bar.

"I need some help...would you be willing to offer me some information?"

The drunks suspicious look didn't drop and his buddies were positioning themselves around Ling.

"I mean you no harm. I'll even pay you. I just have a simple question."

"And why should I trust you? Probably some soldier in disguise or something." He reached behind his back as he spoke, no doubt reaching for a blade.

"Have you known anyone from the Palace to care about what goes on underground? Only matters to them if you attack them directly. Just give me some info, I give you the money, and you never see me again."

The drunk kept his eyes on him, hand settled on the blade on the back of his belt. "Show me the money first."

"In the middle of a bar full of drunks doesn't seem like the best place..."

"Fine. Follow me." The drunk waved his hand as he stumbled his way to the stairs, some of his buddies grabbing him so he didn't tumble and break his fool neck.

Once they were safely on the ground floor, the drunk lead the way towards the bar, giving the barkeep a nod before heading to the backroom.

Ling was feeling even more vulnerable now than he had amongst the crowd. Yeah, he was worried he'd be jumped for the money but now he was trapped in a room with one way out and three guys blocking the door.

"Well? The money?" The drunk questioned as he flopped down in a chair by a small table.

Slowly Ling pulled the pouch out and slid it across the table to him, careful to keep an eye on the chi of everyone in the room. Looking out for any spike that could mean an attack. So far nothing.

The drunk looked through the pouch, eyes widening a bit. He pulled a coin out and bit into it, making sure it was real. "You sure you ain't at least a noble or something?"

"Yeah right. Like some noble would risk coming to this place in person." ~I am an idiot...~

"Alright." The drunk said at last. "Ask away. Though you may be getting more answers from this lot if we have em' I'm a bit off my rocker at the moment."

"Clearly." Ling mumbled as he took a seat. "...a friend of mine was...kidnapped. It's a good guess she may have been sold on the Black Market..."

"Rough." The drunk said as he leaned back in his chair. "And I'm guessing you wanna know where the traffic runs from here eh? Well just because I traffic, doesn't mean I traffic people. And what I traffic goes elsewhere I'm sure."

"So you're telling me you don't know?"

"No. I'm saying humans and guns and drugs are two different things. They change the route a lot with humans. Palace may not care but the people do. Vigilantes hunt them down all the time."

"Whats a more common path then? Or better yet, is there a pattern when they switch?"

The drunk waved his hand slightly, clearly his mind was beyond fried by this point. It was now that the girl spoke up, leaning back against the wall. She blew a strand of hair out of her face, looking all the more irritated.

"A pattern is the last thing they'd have. If they had to resort to using the same path more than once, they'd have people to cover their tracks. You're not talking amateurs here. And frankly I think you're wasting your time. No one who's thrown on the human market gets found again. Not usually in one piece anyway."

Ling had just about enough at this point. He got up, his chair falling to the floor behind him as he slammed his hands down on the table. "I know you guys don't really have anyone to really give a...SHIT about! But that doesn't mean you have to do everything to make someone already hurting feel worse!"

The three guys at the door started to move forward but the drunk put up his hand to halt them, turning his gaze slightly to regard the girl leaning on the wall behind him. "Don't be a bitch."

"Only speaking the truth."

"Sometimes a lies better." The drunk turned his gaze back to regard Ling again. "How long has your friend been gone?"

"...about a month..."

The girl gave a throaty grunt. "Friends sold pal, or dead."

"Qiao! Enough!" The drunk rubbed at his temples, headache already forming. "Ok man...so your friends a girl eh?"

Ling only nodded.

"Ok. Sex trade then most likely, sorry to say. But the chances of her survival are a bit higher."

"Also not the answer I was looking for...Besides, she's not the...quiet type. She'll bite back."

The drunk frowned a bit. "They're not thrown right on the sale block. They usually keep them at a way station sort of thing. They break them there. And they do break..."

Ling flashed him a confused look.

"...we had a friend taken too..." The girl spoke again. "She was destroyed...she killed herself not long after we found her."

The room just fell silent. The whole of the room just felt permeated with the feeling of defeat and Ling felt like he was probably already too late. But he had to bring her home...regardless of her state.

"...thank you for your help..." He said quietly as he turned for the door.

"Wait." The drunk said as he got to his feet with a bit of effort. "There may still be time for her. If she's as tough as you say she is...it'll take longer to break her. We have time to work out the route."

"We?" Ling asked as he looked over his shoulder. "You guys are...I only asked for information".

"We have a friend to avenge. In a way...we can by helping you." The girl said, far less bite to her tone.

"...you have no idea how much this means to me..."

"Sure we do." The drunk said, giving a bit of a grin. "What we wished we had when we were looking for our friend. Names Li by the way. This here's my sister, Qiao. And we're gonna help you take down those damn assholes."