Tolly: Disclaimer time: The only alchemist that is mine is Blackpowder. The Thin-air Alchemist belongs to the member of my forum who has the same name. Thank you, Matt!
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Anna practically skipped down the street. The bruises on her back had faded, allowing her to wear a full backpack without pain. It was a beautiful blue-sky day, and she was looking for an old friend. She poked her head into a tavern and grinned when she spotted him up at the bar. She walked in and sat down beside him. "Hey, Thin-air."
"Hey," he said. "Feeling better?"
"Better or bitter?"
"Sorry about that, but how else was I going to get your attention?"
"What was it that was so important you had to almost ruin my exam?"
Thin-air, a.k.a. Matt, shrugged. "To let you know I was back."
Anna punched his shoulder. "Idiot."
Matt grinned. "Yeah, but you did let me live."
"Next time I won't."
"You say that, but I know you too well. Nobody's ever going to die on your watch."
"Maybe not, but I could do some pretty nasty things if you ever try that again. Remember the Tag-you're-it circle?"
Matt grinned, indeed remembering the transmutation circle that caused a person's clothes to completely unravel. "Give and you shall receive," he warned. "But for now, truce?"
Anna nodded. "Sure. It wasn't the first time a blast has sent me flying, and it probably won't be the last. But you still owe me."
"Didn't you get my flowers?"
"Come on, Matt. You know I'm not a flowery kind of girl!"
"True," Matt agreed.
Anna and Matt had met some years before, and at first, Anna had been skeptical of his story about being from a different world. But after he proved it to her, and she had gotten over her amazement, they became friends. Matt didn't quite approve of the military, and so he was a sort of vigilante alchemist, named Thin-air for his alchemical ability to transmute things out of 'thin air'.
"So," he said. "Did you pass? I mean, you did show that you could act quickly."
Anna proudly presented her new pocket-watch. "Introducing the Blackpowder Alchemist!" she said. "And to celebrate, you're buying me vodka."
"But I thought you took a vow of sobriety," said Matt as he paid the bartender.
Anna rolled her eyes. "I did." She had been to one too many rowdy family reunions, and with her particular alchemical talent, it was a bad idea to get drunk. She took off her backpack and produced a hip flask "I never said I was actually going to drink it," she said as she poured the vodka into the flask.
Matt smirked, knowing exactly what Anna had in mind. "You know, the State doesn't usually allow its dogs to do street performances."
"I'm not going to change my ways just because I became a state alchemist," said Anna with a defiant gleam in her eye. "They can put a collar on me, but they can't make me sit up and beg."
"Fight the power!" said Matt.
Anna grinned as she put the flask into her pocket. "I'd better get going. It's peak crowd time, and this is my first performance as Blackpowder."
"I'll come watch," said Matt. "I've got nothing else to do, and I haven't seen you perform in a while. Do you still do the human cannonball?"
"You'll have to see," said Anna. "Just don't be jumping on top of any of my explosives!"
"Yes, ma'am," Matt said dryly as they left the tavern. He walked over to a nearby bench and sat down to enjoy the show.
Anna, meanwhile, took three round black objects out of her backpack. They resembled small bombs, complete with fuses and on each one was one of Anna's explosive circles. Anna began to juggle them as she whistled a cheery tune. Every once in a while, she'd activate a circle as one of the bombs came into her right hand on its way through the air, and there would be a bright white flash.
These objects were what she called M-bombs. They were packed full of pure magnesium, which, when the circles were activated, reacted with the oxygen in the air to produce the bright flashes.
Before long, an interested crowd formed around her. When she had a suitable-sized audience, Anna caught all three bombs in her hat and put it back on her head. She left her hand on top of them, touching them through the fabric. "Ladies and gentlemen," she said in a raised voice. "You are about to witness the amaz--!"
The M-bombs in Anna's hat exploded in a large flash of white light. She ducked and yelped as though caught off-guard, and her audience gasped. Anna took off the remains of her hat and stared at it for a second with wide eyes. Then she tossed it over her shoulder, saying, "I didn't like that hat anyway." The small crowd laughed, relieved.
"As I was saying, you are about to witness the amazing pyrotechnical feats of Anna Johnson, known far and wide as Cannon Anna!"
"Pyrotechnical feats?" said a boy's voice. "More like alchemical tricks."
Anna turned to face the speaker. He wore a red cloak and his long blond hair was held back in a braid. He was short, and was made even smaller in comparison to the person who stood next to him in a 7-foot suit of armor.
Anna spared him only a glance before rolling her eyes and throwing her hands in the air. "He's right! I am an alchemist, but this show won't be as entertaining if you all think I'm using alchemy, so…"
She rolled up her sleeve to show her tattoo. "Like most alchemists, I need a transmutation circle to do anything. You!" Anna pointed at the boy who had spoken. "Come here."
The boy glanced up at his armored companion and stepped forward.
"What's your name?" asked Anna.
"Edward Elric," said he.
"Alright, Ed," Anna held out her right arm, tattoo facing up. "I want you to hold my arm so I can't use my alchemy."
Ed did so with his own right hand. Anna raised her eyebrows at the feel of a mechanical grip, but said nothing about it. With her left hand, she took out the flask of vodka and uncapped it with her teeth. "Anyone want to smell this and prove that it's just good old-fashioned liquor?"
A few people came up, sniffed it, and verified that it was plain vodka.
"Then here I go. Bottom's up!" cried Anna, and took a large swig of the vodka. Instead of swallowing it, she held it in her mouth and put away the flask. Next, she drew a match out of her pocket. She lit it on the bottom of her shoe and held it in front of her mouth. Tilting her head back so as not to harm her audience, she spit out the vodka, directly into the flame.
Woosh! A fireball sprang from her lips. Beside her, Ed jumped, obviously startled, but did not release her arm. There were cheers all around, and Anna bowed. With her 'assistant' still keeping a tight hold, Anna went on with her act, doing it all one-handed. She juggled torches layered with different elements so that they changed color as they burned, balanced a fiery spinning ball on her fingertip, and 'ate' matches by lighting and putting them out in her mouth, among other things, until it was time for her big finale.
"For this, I'll need to make something, because it sure wouldn't fit into my backpack," said Anna. "So you can let go now, Ed."
When Ed released her arm, Anna knelt down and began transmuting the ground, pulling up elements and shaping them into a huge cannon. When it was finished, she asked Ed to check its authenticity.
"No," he said, after looking it over. "That's definitely not a real cannon."
Anna pretended to look shocked. "Of course it's not! I'm not that crazy! If it was real, I'd be blown to bits when I tried to shoot myself out of there! This, ladies and gentlemen, is a cannon designed to shoot only human cannonballs."
"You're going to fire yourself out of that thing?" asked Ed.
Anna shook her head. "Technically, you're going to do the firing."
"You are insane, do you know that?"
"Yep." Anna hoisted herself up and into the cannon feet first. "Pull the fuse when I say 'Go'." she said, before sliding all the way down.
"Blackpowder! Full Metal!" someone shouted.
From inside the cannon, Anna groaned, and shimmied up to poke her head out. "Yes, Colonel?"
"What are you doing?" demanded Roy.
"Becoming a human cannonball. What's it look like?"
"Get out of there!"
"Spoil my fun…" Anna grumbled, but climbed out of the cannon.
"Full Metal," snapped Roy. "Get rid of that thing and meet us back at my office."
Ed shrugged at Anna, then clapped his hands together and began breaking down the cannon via alchemy.
So that's the Full Metal Alchemist? thought Anna. You'd think he'd match the size of his reputation. "Sorry, folks!" she called aloud to her bewildered audience as she followed Roy down the street. "You'll have to come back next time!"
"What makes you think there'll be a next time?" Roy growled.
"Admit it, Colonel. I make your life interesting."
"No, you make my life difficult."
"Maybe there's no difference. Challenges can be very enterta—"
Roy interrupted her. "I meant to tell you this at headquarters, but I'm hoping it'll shut you up. We received a message from your hometown. One of the mine tunnels collapsed…your father was in it."
Anna froze, her face suddenly very pale. "Which tunnel?" she gasped.
"What?"
"Did they say which tunnel it was?"
Roy recalled that the message had been specific about the collapse. "The north branch of mine eight," he said. "But--"
"Dammit!" Anna grabbed Roy by the shoulders. "When did it happen? How long ago?"
"A day or two at most, but what does it matter, Anna? Your father is dead."
"No! Not yet…the gas in that tunnel won't kill him that quickly." With that, Anna ran off in the direction of the train station.
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Tolly: May I recommend two things? One: that you be on the lookout for "Elemental Alchemist" and "The Philosopher's Crossing" (written by my fellow forum freaks) and two: that you review!
