Chapter one: Truth's Request
Ed lay sleepily in the uncomfortable hotel bed, longing for home. He replayed his proposal to Winry over and over in his head, wondering whether she even understood him. She must have, he assured himself, the way she answered, her blushing face. What if she didn't, though? All of that for nothing? No I can't let myself think that. He turned over onto his side and closed his eyes. I'll have to buy her a ring. Then she'll know. She'll have to know, damn it. She can't really be that stupid, can she? His eyes fluttered closed and he drifted into a dream- filled sleep.
The whiteness envelops his mind like quicksand. Truth sits in front of the gait, watching Ed's face with a cruel grin.
"I thought I could never come back here, damn it," Ed shouts at Truth angrily, "Equivalent exchange, remember!"
"It's true that equivalent exchange applies in most cases, but like I said, you beat me. Your undying love for your brother makes you an excellent candidate for… the other side of the gate. It's a time of many great wars in the world on the other side. Right now they are recovering from what the call World War I, but soon there will be another, even greater war, and the balance between the two worlds must be kept. It is yin and yang; one cannot exist without the other. I cannot change the fate of either world; I can only send people to change it for me. I have to carefully select these people, and they must be only the most caring, loving people. If you give me your word that you will help out, I can give you back your alchemy. You won't be gone long, and if you die in that world, you'll only come back to this one. Even I must operate under the terms of equivalent exchange, you see. I cannot force you to do anything. In the end, it will be your choice and yours alone, but you must give me an answer soon, or else that world will never be saved. They have created nuclear weapons, weapons with the power to destroy entire worlds and knock out an entire civilization with one blow. I will give you all the details if you decide to comply." On that note, the gate fades, leaving Ed shouting and cussing at the empty white space.