Preface

12 years ago

Solf, Age: 11

Zolf, Age: 10

Chasten, Age: 8

"Christine, run!" Solf, my oldest brother called out, his back being slashed by a bulls whip. His face was also drenched in blood. But I could even move, I tried my hardest but it was as if my foot were glued to the carpet! My other big brother, Zolf, was collapsed on the ground cringing in pain of being stabbed in the gut by a steak knife. I couldn't just leave my only to big brothers and mom and dad to die in the hands of people in black masks! I had to move, I had to help protect them, my body's shaking, I couldn't stand seeing this horror.

"Oh, we forgot their little girl," said the tall, male one with the knife. The voice sounded so familiar, but it wouldn't be them, they were so sweet to my brother's and I, they were my parent's best friends! The man stepped closer and closer, I finally could move my legs, but I carefully move backwards, at the same pace he was coming. His arm rose, the sharp blade shining crimson with Zolf's blood dripping off the tip. He backed me up into the corner, I could not move any further. "Aaaaahhhh!"

Boooom! The next thing I heard were two explosions and bodies thumping on the on the ground. I opened my eyes to see Solf and Zolf standing in front of my and the two strangers lying on the ground with a giant hole in each of their chests. I was to shocked to speak. "Are you okay, Christine?" My big brother, Solf smiled back at me.

"I thought we promised we would never use our alchemy again!" The feeling of shock was replaced by anger, their eyes widened. But than Zolf, the middle sibling, just ignores me and starts looking at the corpses.

"I'll be right back, I'm going to check up on mom and dad," Solf said calmly, "and stop poking the bodies with mom's umbrella, they're dead!"

Zolf looked at him with a smile, " I know" Solf shook his head and walked towards their room. "Hey sis, come here," Zolf waved his hand down towards him. He is more immature than I was, but I came to him anyway. " They must be Ishvalan. Their brown skin and the red eyes are great give aways.

" But Maria and Gabriel would have told us of other bad Ishvalans right?" I grabbed on to his arm, still scared that they will get back up like in those scarey movies.

A minute later big brother walked back in with an unsettled look on his face, "Zolf, Christine, I'll have to watch over you two for a while." His voice was sort of torn, I could tell mommy and daddy were dead.

I ran up to him and hugged him. "Why? Why, did they have to die? Isn't their some way we can bring them back, like with alchemy or something" Slap! His hand flew straight across my face. I looked at him tears swelling up in my eyes.

"Don't ever say that," his voice was furious, "you know bring back the dead is forbidden, not allowed!"

"Babies," Zolf mumbled under his breath, but just loud enough for us to hear. " Um... Solf, you might want to look at this." Solf walked over and his face went into complete shock, " Christine, don't come over here." My curiosity denied his warning and I came to see what the big deal was.

No! It couldn't be, this couldn't have been Gabriel and Maria that have been so kind to us! Our only Ishvalan friends, our best friends, and they tried to kill us! I saw the anger boiling in Zolf, he loved mom. He was the closest to mom out of the three of us. Mom and him are the ones who thought of thrilling things to do all the time. Dad and Solf were the ones who always worried for the family, always polite. I was in the middle. I loved to do thrilling things but I was always cautious for our actions. Now we were on our own, the rest of the family past away over the years and nobody ever really cared for our family they despised our alchemy abilities. 'As long as we stick together we'll be okay' Solf kept reassuring me. But I wandered for how long!