You know the drill. I don't own FMA. I do own Kaia and that annoying red-headed kid from earlier. And I own the Academy. And Kaia's awesome skills. But that's it. On a side note, I'm not sure if my rant from the first chapter actually made any sense regarding the time frame. Pretty much I'm taking the original story and using all that information as a jumping board. Hughes, Envy, and Hoenheim are all still with us. The homunculi are missing Greed (unfortunately) and Wrath (cuz I hate him). This is all going to be original plot, so if you're trying to match this story with the original then you should really stop or you'll get really confused here in a second. One more thing. I have based this on the original anime, not Brotherhood. I have, sadly, not been able to read the manga because my library doesn't have volume one and I can't read it online. Anyhow, I'm starting to ramble so I'll shut up and get to it now.
Chapter 3: Arrangements
There was no way that could have just happened. Ed lifted his head to stare into her face. It was without expression. Kaia turned and squatted down next to him.
"Now, what is your name?" There was no emotion in her voice, just a gentle curiosity. Ed got on his hands and knees. He was running out of options more quickly than new ones presented themselves. He was unarmed, on the ground, couldn't use alchemy, and clearly outmatched in hand-to-hand combat skills. Her gaze was boring a hole in the back of his head. Ed could see no desirable course of action, so he decided to be unpredictable. He lunged.
The sudden movement startled Kaia, but that was probably even worse for Ed. When startled she goes into automatic combat mode. She rose and side-stepped in one fluid movement, tripping Ed and sending him sprawling once again. He scrambled to his feet to continue his useless attacks. She dodged every one, but didn't counter.
"If you don't stop this I'll have to restrain you," she warned as Ed used a particularly reckless kick. She sighed as she grabbed his leg and used his momentum to throw him. Ed skidded to a stop on the balls of his feet and charged again. He swiped with his left hand, but she grabbed it, twisting it uncomfortably behind his back as she reached for his right. He heard a small gasp. She had made contact with his auto-mail. She released his left hand.
"Wow! This is absolutely incredible! What kind of suspension does it have? Who designed it? Is it pneumatic or hydraulic? I saw the metal through the rips in your clothes but I never thought you would have a prosthetic limb!" She had gone all starry-eyed and his glove was suddenly nowhere to be found.
"Hands off." She practically deflated. There was most definitely nothing in the file saying that she was such a gear-junkie.
"Give me one good reason not to kill you here and now," Ed bluffed.
"One, I'm a better fighter than you anyhow. You couldn't kill me. Before you interrupt, two, you still can't kill me because you don't have your alchemy." She ignored Ed's amazed look and continued. "Three, I know that you're in communication with someone at an HQ somewhere. If you went through the trouble of establishing something like that I can't be trivial enough to kill. Four, I have you pinned."
He couldn't argue with her logic. Wait, pinned? It was then that he noticed he couldn't move. Four tiny knives had pierced his boots, two per leg. He had no clue how she got them there or why they were so strong, but it posed a huge problem.
"Let me see this earpiece." Kaia plucked the cylinder from his ear and inserted it into her own. She unclipped the mike from his clothes and reattached it on her own.
"Fullmetal, answer me! Fullmetal! What's going on?" The voice rang through the transceiver along with quite a bit of static.
"Geesh, calm down. You're going to blow the speaker. Who do I have the pleasure of speaking to?" Kaia twirled her hair around her finger. Ed couldn't help but watch. It was obviously well practiced.
"Colonel Roy Mustang. What have you done with Fullmetal? Where is he?" Mustang sounded genuinely concerned, in a fear-invoking, irritated way.
"He's standing right in front of me. Don't worry, he hasn't come to harm. He's not going anywhere fast though." Kaia bound his hands as she spoke. She used some cord pulled from her backpack. How did all this crap fit in there anyhow? And why did she bother to carry it around?
"Fine. You have control. Exactly what is it that you want?" Ed would have been surprised to hear Mustang admit defeat so quickly.
"I want to know exactly what's going on. What are these images that I saw, who you represent, and most of all why you sent this kid after me." Kaia swung up to the branch that Ed had previously occupied. She wrenched her knives out of the bark and dropped to the ground.
"We'll have plenty of time to talk later. Put Fullmetal on the line."
"It isn't typically the role of the defeated to give commands, but I'm interested to see where this will end. I will put him on." She reequipped Ed with the communication devices.
"What did you do, Fullmetal?" Mustang practically screamed.
"Listen! I thought I was doing fine and she attacked me out of nowhere!" Ed felt himself becoming angrier. Kaia raised an eyebrow.
"You thought you were doing fine? You break into my mind, stare obviously through windows, and hide in bushes and you thought you were doing fine?" Kaia circled him. Ed's face turned slightly red.
"Stealth isn't really my style." He turned his head away.
"Obviously." Kaia leaned in so the microphone could pick her up. "Was there anything else you wanted to discuss with him? Otherwise I would like to speak again."
"He's not good for anything else," Mustang said irritably.
"No, there's not," Ed relayed. Kaia took back the devices.
"As I see it you have no choice but to answer my questions. I have a hostage and you don't know where we are. If any attempt is made to triangulate our location from the broadcast then I will destroy it and your man. Are you ready to cooperate?" Kaia's hands drummed on her legs.
"No."
"I was hoping I could bluff it. Oh well. It's just loosing an advantage I didn't expect to have in the first place. No, I won't hurt him. Would you be so kind as to tell me why you've made contact?" Mustang sighed and a whoosh of static buzzed in her ear.
"This is going to be a bit hard to believe."
"Try me." Mustang sighed again and started.
"We come from a land unlike any you may know. Are you familiar with the idea of alternate dimensions?"
"Yeah." Kaia's expression didn't change. It looked as if she were accepting everything Mustang said. She was a strange girl.
"It's true, in a sense. We come from an 'alternate dimension' in which our homeland is called Amestris. We both work for the military there. One of our superiors found you somehow and decided it would be worth bringing you back here for study."
"He works in the military? He's just a kid." Of all the things to bring up she chose that. She didn't question the fact that there were worlds other than her own, or that a military from one of those unknown worlds wanted something from her.
"You mean you believe all that I told you just now?" Mustang sounded just as surprised as Ed felt.
"Yeah, why not? It lines up with all the things I've seen today. I have no other reasonable explanation, and yours seems awfully simple for a lie. When people lie they usually make up a whole bunch of useless details because they're nervous. I'll accept your answer." She said all this as if it were a matter of little importance.
"Will you agree to come to our headquarters?" Mustang was also treating the entire situation as ordinary.
"Yes. Is tomorrow morning suitable? I have a couple of things to tie up." Kaia turned her back to Ed, concealing her expression.
"Come tomorrow. Fullmetal will bring you. Be warned, his methods may seem…unconventional, but please accept them. As he is your guide you will need to arrange to meet him," Mustang started.
"Way ahead of you. I'm not letting him out of my sight. This could be a great opportunity. I'm not letting it get away." Kaia removed the rope from his hands as she spoke. Ed rubbed his wrists.
"We have a deal."
"Sounds like a plan, Stan." Kaia removed the knives from Ed's boots.
"I look forward to meeting you," Mustang said. The line went dead. Melodramatic as always. Kaia finished and stuffed the knives back in her bag.
"Well, looks like you're stuck with me for now. Come on." She threw her bag over her shoulder and strode off. Ed sighed and went after her, having to hurry to keep with her brisk steps.
"How am I supposed to know you aren't leading me into a trap?" He stumbled over a tree root.
"I suppose you'll just have to trust me. Besides, do I look like the kind of person who could lay a trap to capture someone like you?"
"No, but you don't look like the kind of person who would carry knives in her backpack either. Where did you get those things anyway?"
"I take the weapons carried by anyone I defeat. I've actually got quite the store now. You'd be surprised how many thugs there are in the worse off parts of town." She tossed her hair over her shoulder.
"Why have you been in those parts of the city?" Every word the girl said was making him more curious.
"That's where I live. You'll see it for yourself soon enough." They continued walking through the business section of town. Soon they had reached the homes of the rich.
"It really disgusts me how some people live like this while others are forced to sleep on the streets. And really what difference is there between them? It's just some official green papers and numbers in a bank. Money is worthless. Our world would be better without it." She scowled. "But what would I know? After all, I've never been in a world without an established money system." She looked over at him and smiled.
"Yeah," he said softly. 'This girl must be bipolar or something. One moment she's criticizing the state of the world and the next she's grinning her face off. Who knows, maybe she'll attack me again.' Then he noticed she was watching him.
"You're very strange you know," she said. "You seem to stare into space a lot. Are you worried about something?"
"No." It was a lie. Ed had been worried about leaving Al alone with Mustang and Tucker, especially since Mustang probably wasn't in a very good mood anymore. She just watched him, but looked away.
"I know you're lying, but that's your own business." Ed stopped, looked at her, and closed his eyes. He continued walking. He looked at his feet, up at the sky, at the buildings, anywhere other than those eyes that seemed so out of place.
They passed into the area of middle-class houses, and then into what Kaia had earlier described as 'the worse off parts of town.' People watched from every corner, many of them fingering weapons of some sort. A couple of shady bars blared music from open windows. A group of drunks stumbled out from one of them. They whistled and catcalled.
"Hey pretty lady! Wanna come have some fun with us?" one shouted. Kaia disregarded his comment.
"They might come back later, but there are too many witnesses here. I can't do anything for now." Kaia held her head high and turned into a darker, more secluded alley. They continued through a multitude of dark passages until Ed was thoroughly lost.
"What exactly are you trying to accomplish here?" Ed panted.
"I'm trying to avoid a conflict. If they can't find me they can't fight me," she said simply.
"Why don't you want to fight them?" he asked. Kaia stopped suddenly. She glared at him.
"I have no intention of revealing my live combat techniques to you." She turned away and kept walking.
'Sheesh. Here I am thinking that she's starting to warm up to me. Guess not. It's better off anyways. She's as annoying as hell. Who does she think she is anyway? She calls me a kid even though I'm older and threatens me with all of her stupid tricks. She doesn't have the guts to do anything.' And with his self-inflicted negative attitude, Ed walked on. He glanced at the back of Kaia's head. She seemed even more rigid than normal.
"Not that I really care, but shouldn't you be looking out for those creeps from earlier?" He quickened his pace to draw level with her.
"What do you mean?" she asked, not even turning to him. She was infuriating.
"What do you mean? What do you think I mean? Those guys obviously wanted… something from you. Don't you think you should keep watch in case they actually find us?" Ed fumed.
"I know what you meant in that sense. I was asking regarding the fact that you think I'm not watching. I don't have to watch with my eyes. I could hear them coming, smell the stench of alcohol on their breath and clothes, but most of all I could feel their presence." She still didn't look at him.
"What do you mean by 'feeling their presence.' I don't go for all that mystical crap."
"You know the feeling you get when someone's watching you, right? How you feel all tingly and the hairs on the back of your neck stand up? It's sort of like that. I'm just a lot more sensitive to other people." She finally turned to look at him. Her eyes caught his and she looked deeply for a moment, but broke away, running down the path.
"Hey! Wait!" Ed booked it down the alley, trying to keep her in sight. He was about to pass an intersection when a giant hand reached out from the shadows and twisted his left arm. He yelped. Moments later Kaia appeared. The men jeered at her.
"Look! The pretty lady came to help the kid!"
"I wonder if she'll come with us if we make her a trade."
"Settle down boys, I think you're scaring the little girl."
The little girl comment seemed to have and impact on her. She snapped.
"Guess I have no choice now." Kaia dropped her bag and grabbed the nearest man. She flung him over her shoulder and bashed his head into the wall. Probably a small concussion, but definitely non-lethal. She took on the one holding Ed next. A couple of quick blows to some nerve endings in his neck and shoulders had him quivering at her feet. After being released Ed scooted up to a wall to stay out of the way. Kaia made quick work of the seven or so other members of the gang with jabs, punches, kicks, and throws. She used some moves usually shunned by respected martial artists. Two guys had been finished by having their heads clapped together like in the cartoons. She had taken one of their motorcycles and used it to knock quite a few of the men off their feet. In any case, they wouldn't be getting up very soon.
Kaia brushed off her hands and picked up her bag. She looked over at Ed.
"Come on," she said, staring him down. He rose from the ground to join her.
Their trek continued through a few more twists and turns until they were let out onto a dimly lit street. The sun had long since set and all sorts of characters had sprawled themselves on porches and streets, but they all seemed to shrink in Kaia's presence.
"Why are they all so afraid of you?" Ed whispered.
"Why do you think? I made an example of one of them." She said it so casually that you might think it was perfectly normal for fourteen year old girls to go beating up weathered thugs. They turned one more corner and Kaia looked up at a run down house with chipped pink paint.
"We're going in through the window," she said as she began to scale a tree. "Try to be quiet."
They reached the top and Kaia tapped a quick rhythm on the boarded up window. There was a brief pause and someone on the inside tapped back. Kaia tapped once more and the boards were slid out from the inside. A small girl, maybe six or seven, stood in the gap.
"Kaia!" she said, reaching her arms out. "Who's that?" She pointed at Ed.
"It's just one of my friends from school. He's going to stay the night with us." Kaia climbed through the gap and beckoned for Ed to follow. He did, getting his foot caught on the frame and doing a face plant. Kaia didn't bother to catch him. They crept down a hallway and into a dark room. The little girl entered and fumbled around on a desk. She hit the switch for a lamp and dim light filled the room. Kaia entered. Ed followed.
The room wouldn't be described as comfortable. There was a bed that looked just about fifty years old and a table made of a cardboard refrigerator box reinforced with duct tape. A small nest of cushions lay in the corner with a blanket strewn on top. The lamp and various elementary school art projects were strewn on the table. Kaia dropped her bag on the bed and turned to the little girl, bending down slightly.
"Lucy, go get us something to eat for dinner, okay? Make sure to get some for Ed too." She straightened, turning back to him. She glared as though challenging him to say something. He kept his mouth shut. His gaze faltered and she turned away. She grabbed her bag and sat down on the floor, pulling out books and binders. By the time Lucy came back with food the area immediately surrounding Kaia was a jumble of papers and reference materials. Lucy passed out PB&J sandwiches, chips, and juice. Kaia nibbled on her food as she worked. Ed nearly inhaled his food, but a flash of color in the papers caught his eye. He paused in his vicious consumption to investigate. It was a very familiar drawing. He eyed Kaia to see that she was completely absorbed in a textbook. He slipped the paper out and began to read.
His eyes first alighted on Truth. He read the words surrounding.
I am the world. I am the universe. I am God.
I am Truth. I am all. I am one. But I am also
You.
Those were the words Truth spoke to him on the day he opened the Gate. His eyes darted around the page, finding familiar phrases surrounding each picture. He started to read the one set around the Gate.
Pale white and black with false citrine.
Imperfect white and red.
The peacocks feather in bright colors,
The rainbow in the sky above.
The spotted panther, the green lion,
The crow's beak blue as lead.
These shall appear before you in perfect white.
Those were the words he and Al had written on their transmutation circle when they tried to bring their mother back.
"You could have asked you know." Kaia's voice startled him. "I would have let you see it."
Time must have slipped away from him as he studied the drawing. Kaia had apparently finished her homework because all of her stuff had been packed up again.
"How do you know about all this?" Ed asked, gesturing towards the page. Kaia looked at him for a second, as if debating whether to answer.
"I would guess that these are snippets of your memories. After all, you were the one who broke into my head." She said it in such a simple manner. Ed couldn't help but think it was true. After all, what other explanation did he have?
"You can try sleeping on the bed if you want, but you'll be better off on the floor. It's a lot more comfortable." Kaia grabbed a blanket and pillow from stacks in the corner and laid them out on the floor. Ed followed suit. Kaia got up and put her hand on the switch to turn out the lights. She stared at Ed for a long moment and then took out the light. She huddled under the blanket with her back towards him as her breathing slowed. Her hair, now strewn about her shoulders, glinted a silvery-white in the moonlight. Ed cast a glance up at a timepiece above him. It was almost midnight. He spared one more look to Kaia and shut his eyes. The musty smell of the thin carpet beneath him fuddled his brain. Darkness enveloped him.
Well isn't this fun.
Ed and Kaia: *glare*
Oh stop, you're just mad because I made you sleep in the same room. It's not like anything's going to happen. There's a seven year old there for goodness sakes!
Al: I think you should really change topics now.
Yeah… Anywho…Next chapter we finally get some more characters in here.
Mustang: And I make a couple grand appearances.
Random Mustang Fangirl: Any scene with you in it will be grand, Mustang!
Mustang: Yes, I know.
How did she get in here anyway? Oh well, fangirls are everywhere. I'm going to get rid of her now. *pulls out chainsaw*
Tucker: Review.
Kaia: That was honestly kind of creepy and demonic. Perhaps we should let Al say it. What's wrong with his body? He's all furry and backwards.
Ed: I'll explain it later.
Al: Review! The authoress requires sustenance!
