Chapter 2

"Ah, the Fullmetal Alchemist and his brother, how…unexpected," the suit of armor observed. Frustration was beginning to seep into his voice. "How can I help you?"

"You can start by telling us who you are," Ed demanded.

"I could, but where's the fun in that?" The suit asked sarcastically, "but you can call me Rickert."

"Rickert, huh? What the hell kind of name is that?" the taller one asked.

"A fake one, obviously, but I feel like I need to give you a name, since I know yours."

"How courteous," Ed said concisely.

"And what about you, Mr. Cold Shoulder? You haven't said a word," Rickert said sarcastically.

"You're under arrest for murder," Al said seriously.

"Oh, you're no fun."

"So, are you going to give up, or are you going to make this difficult?" Ed asked.

"Both choices are so compelling, but if I had to choose one, then I'd choose the latter," Rickert said flatly.

Suddenly, he clapped his hands and touched the rooftop, shooting a row of spikes at Edward. He side-stepped, dodging the attack easily. Al rushed forward into an immediate counter attack, kicking at the hunched suit of armor in front of him. Rickert rolled away from the attack, sweeping his leg at Alphonse's feet. Al jumped back into a handspring. Ed swung his left leg at Rickert's torso, connecting with his chest. The collision reverberated in the armor. Ed furrowed his brow, and then jumped away from Rickert towards his brother. "Did you hear that, brother?" Al whispered.

"Yeah, I did," Ed responded, "you know what to do, right?"

"Yeah, I'll do it."

"Right, let's do this." Ed rushed forward, jumping for a high kick. Rickert dodged backward, and then counter attacked, punching at Ed. He dodged right then hand sprang away. Al clapped his hands and slapped the rooftop, sending a row of columns shooting up through the ground. Ed climbed the stairs, and then jumped forward, bringing his left leg down into an axe kick. Rickert blocked the assault, grabbed Ed's automail leg, and through him off the roof. Ed barely caught the edge with one arm. Al rushed forward to attack Rickert when the armor swept his leg at Al's. Al vaulted over his assailant, catching the helmet through the eyeholes with his fingers and used his weight and momentum to pull it away from Rickert.

"Hey, give me back my head!" Rickert yelled to Al. Just as he thought, this man was hollow. Ed picked himself up onto the roof.

"Al, he's hollow, isn't he?" Ed yelled to his brother.

"Yeah, he is."

"I'm not going to say it again: give me back my head," Rickert said coldly. Ed rushed forward to aid his brother when Rickert clapped his hands and touched the roof, shooting another row of spikes at the brothers. They dodged easily but Al was caught off guard by Rickert attacking him almost immediately. He got punched in the face, causing him to recoil. He stumbled backward then was hit in the gut by Rickert's knee. Al fell forward onto the rooftop, his consciousness fading.

"Al!" Ed yelled. Suddenly, Rickert swung his leg at Ed, crashing it into the side of his head. Ed was thrown back, but he recovered quickly, but not quickly enough. Rickert had thrust his hand up; his palm collided with the bottom of Ed's chin. Ed collapsed; his vision was starting to blur.

Rickert bent down, leveling his head with his opponents. He whispered something in the young man's ear that visibly upset him. Edward tried to get up, but his body did not allow it. His muscles ached and his head pounded. "Wait…you…bastard," the Fullmetal Alchemist managed to squeeze out. But his call was missed and he soon slipped into the darkness of his mind underneath the afternoon sun.