Of Alchemists and Mutants

by metgear5

When an experiment involving alchemy inadvertently crosses with a similar experiment on another world Ed and Al will have to deal with new 'alchemists' in the form of the X-Men and Brotherhood.

4. Explanations and More Introductions

Chapter 4: Explanations and More Introductions

It wasn't unusual for the communications room of the Gate lab to be quiet. It was a top-secret facility after all, and only the highest-ranking members of the State would occasionally check in for progress reports. Now instead of being merely quiet it was dead silent, because it was empty except for one man whose conversation could barely be heard through the shut door. When Mustang had first asked to get a call through to Central it was a bit confusing. It was odd that a Colonel would make a call to the capital just to report the failure of today's test. It was even odder that he would order everyone out of the room while he was making the call. When he was overheard asking to talk to the Fuehrer things really got suspicious. That's when the rumors began to work their way down. The soldiers that had helped Hughes with the bodies from the battle outside weren't as tightlipped as they should have been. As a result half a dozen stories began circulating at once. That one of the soldiers had been literally been ripped open and half of his insides eaten, that one's head was so badly crushed that it wouldn't hold its shape. All of them sounded like exaggerations, and they were, but one thing everyone could figure out was that the strange looking man and even stranger looking woman that had come back with Mustang were part of what happened. The fact that they were currently being treated as guests made everyone except Hawkeye and Hughes very nervous.

Mustang was on the phone for about twenty minutes, ignoring the fact that someone probably had their ear against the door listening. He didn't have a problem with them overhearing any of this, they knew how to keep a secret, even if they didn't look like they fully comprehended what he was talking about.

"Understood sir. We'll get started right away." He said before hanging up the phone. In the hall Hughes stood up and walked away from the door as he heard footsteps coming towards it. Standing next to Hawkeye he just shrugged his shoulders. The only thing he could tell for sure was that Mustang had been speaking with the Fuehrer but not any of the details. The door opened and Mustang stepped out, pausing to scan the group with an accusing look. His eyes stopped for a second on Hughes who put on his best 'who me?' face. "Whatever any of you may have heard is top secret information and the only thing you need to understand is that Magneto and his men are now our allies. Everyone will receive a full briefing later but until that time you are not to speak a word of this to anyone. Is that understood?

"Yes sir!" The technicians responded. Satisfied Mustang turned and left the room, followed by Hughes and Hawkeye.

"So the Fuehrer really agreed to all this?" Hughes asked as they made their way back to the library. Like the others he wasn't about to trust Magneto after what had happened and was more than willing to say it.

"He believed the benefits outweighed the risks." Mustang answered. Hughes was about to say something else but Mustang continued. "He's also ordered limitations to this partnership."

"Limitations?" Hughes asked.

"You'll see." Was the only thing Mustang said. When they entered the library they saw Magneto sitting in one of several armchairs facing away from them, reading the book he had taken earlier. Mystique was at his side, apparently reading over his shoulder but he did not seem to mind. Hearing the door open Mystique turned to look at them but Magneto didn't move.

"Your leaders have reached a decision?" He asked, already knowing the answer. "I had not expected it to be made in such haste." Decisions made this quickly usually meant that it was bad news for the second party.

"I believe you'll find it reasonable." Mustang answered. Magneto was silent as he closed the book and stood up.

"Favorable can mean many things to different people." Magneto said as he walked over to the State soldiers.

"True, but we should both be able to agree on this." Mustang said. Magneto said nothing and folded his arms across his chest. Seeing that he wasn't going to be interrupted again Mustang continued. "Since you are from a foreign land and have offered your services to the State in a show of friendship your group will be considered military advisors for the duration of your stay. You will work alongside the State, and in accordance to your request you will have the final say on whether or not your forces will participate on assigned missions. However along with this there will be one condition that is not negotiable."

"Only one?" Mystique asked sarcastically. Mustang shifted his gaze to her in an annoyed glare. She gave him one of her best smiles in response. Deciding to deal with this particular problem later he returned his attention to Magneto, who was patiently waiting for him to continue.

"You'll be attached to my own unit, and we will act as the official liaison between you and the State. Your rank will be equal to mine but if you wish to use State manpower or resources it must go through me. Working with established State alchemists will help give legitimacy to the cover story that is already being prepared."

"And allow the best of your own army, alchemists included, to keep an eye on us." Magneto added. Mustang knew Magneto would easily see through his explanation and made no attempt to deny it.

"Would you do any different?" He asked the mutant leader.

"No." Magneto answered.

"Then you can understand our cautious approach." Mustang said. "I've given you the terms set forth by my superiors. What is your decision?" The room was silent for several seconds before Magneto answered.

"Your terms are acceptable." Though they gave no outward reaction Mustang could feel the disapproval from Hawkeye and Hughes. He would be lying if he said he wasn't a little apprehensive about this himself but this was the situation and they had to use it to their best advantage.

"Officially you aren't part of our military but since you'll be working with it you have been given titles and ranks accordingly. As I said before your rank will be the same as mine, Colonel. Being a state alchemist comes with a rank equivalent to Major, which means all of your subordinates now have command authority over anyone of lower rank. How you structure that command is up to you."

"And these titles, what are they?" Magneto asked.

"All State alchemists are given titles to differentiate them from civilian alchemists. As an example I'm known as the Flame Alchemist."

"Flame Alchemist?" Mystique asked with a knowing smirk.

"Some titles reflect the ability of the individual." Mustang answered calmly. "Others the personality. Yours is the former since a name based on your personality would be unprintable in civilian newspapers. We can't have any children reading something like that now can we?" He asked, his tone never changing. Mystique's smirk vanished and she narrowed her yellow eyes. Behind Mustang Hughes let out a snort of laughter.

"Sorry." He said, not sounding very apologetic. Mustang had really left the insult up to the imagination of his listeners and even though everyone had a different thought to what that name might be it was sure to be the most profane and disgusting thing they could think of.

"As a result you've been designated the Shape Shifting Alchemist." Mustang said, ignoring the glare Mystique was giving him. "When I explained your powers." He said to Magneto. "It was decided to designate you the Metal Bending Alchemist. Sabertooth's chosen alias is the Feral Alchemist. I've been tasked with giving the rest of your group their titles once they've been 'officially' brought into the fold." Magneto nodded in understanding.

"Mystique, please go and bring the others here. I think it's time that they meet with our generous hosts." Mystique said nothing but continued to glare at Mustang as she walked past him. Mustang didn't even acknowledge she was there. "My congratulations Colonel." Magneto said after the door had closed. "I've not seen anyone who has ever angered Mystique so easily."

"Roy does have a way with the ladies." Hughes commented. This time Mustang scowled and glared at Hughes, who only smirked in response.

"I see." Magneto commented and left it at that. "Now that the formalities are out of the way I believe we should get down to our first order of business, the X-Men."

As Magneto was finalizing his alliance with the State Winry and Pinako Rockbell sat at their kitchen table, listening to Wolverine tell them just how he preformed his alchemy. It had started off with a bit of very interesting information, that it wasn't. Not alchemy described with another name, as the two had thought when he had asked them if they knew about mutants, but a mutation plain and simple. That had gone over real well.

"Mr. Logan, my granddaughter and I are not fools. What happened outside could not have happened through natural means, even if you do claim to be a mutant." As a doctor Pinako had of course heard of mutations before. Genetic mutation could cause things as harmless as two different colored eyes to things as deadly as cancer. Mutations, however, did not allow someone to survive the massive amount of gunshot trauma that had been inflicted on Logan, let alone not have a scratch five minutes later.

"It's just as natural as your alchemists." Wolverine retorted, relighting his now very beat up cigar. "I heard what the Elric brothers can do, and I know a couple of mutants that can do the same kind of stuff. Call it what you want but mutant is what they are."

"I do not know why you would refer to alchemists in such derogatory way and I'm sure you have your reasons." Pinako said, becoming angry. "But I will not have you talk about Edward or Alphonse that way. They may be stubborn, foolhardy and a bit impulsive at times but they will not be spoken of as nothing but an abnormality of nature."

"How could you even think that?!" Winry demanded. "You don't even know Ed or Al and you're saying that they're freaks!"

"No, I don't know them." Logan coolly admitted. "And from what I've heard they're good kids but when you're born with powers like that a freak is what you are. From where I come from it's a hard fact of life and that doesn't change, no matter what."

"Well where you're from sounds like one of the worst places on Earth!!" Winry shouted. "You can't judge a person just because they can do something no one else can!!" Wolverine calmly puffed on his cigar as Winry vented, hearing this kind of speech so many times made it easy to tune out. The girl's heart was in the right place but right now he was using all the tact that, well that he used in most situations. When Winry had finished he looked over at the old bat, wondering if she would get into her own 'holier then thou' speech. Instead she was giving him a scrutinizing gaze, which he thought was because she was being more levelheaded then her granddaughter. He was partly right in that regard, she was being levelheaded but because she had caught something Winry hadn't.

"Why would you think the boys were born with the ability to perform alchemy?" She asked. The question got a confused look from both Winry and Wolverine but Winry quickly realized Pinako was right and turned to Wolverine with a questioning look of her own.

"Why wouldn't I?" Wolverine asked in return. Now Pinako was frowning and Winry was looking at him like he was from another planet, which was absolutely true. Now things were starting to get confusing. He knew he probably would be wrong on a few things with such spotty information from the bar but he didn't think he would get it this wrong. From what he could understand the Elric brothers had been able to do this kind of stuff since they were little kids, and by Wolverine's best estimation that meant they were mutants. Magic didn't exist on this world and the technological level, with the exception of the guns, looked like it was turn of the century. Well the X-Men didn't keep him around for his detective skills so he might as well stop second guessing and start asking questions. "So what's the deal then?" No sense in trying to pretend he knew what he was talking about anymore.

"They learned." Pinako answered. "They were very quick and gifted learners but they were not born able to perform alchemy. I suggest you stop trying to mislead us Mr. Logan. Do you expect us to believe you were born with those claws of yours?"

"What these?" Wolverine asked and brought up a fist. He popped his claws, getting no reaction from Pinako and making Winry jump a little. "I got these when someone 'volunteered' me for some Doc Frankenstein experiments." He retracted his claws and showed them his hand just as his healing process finished closing the wounds. "That's what I was born with." This time Winry and Pinako watched Wolverine very carefully for any signs of a transmutation circle activation. There was nothing and Winry gave her grandmother an anxious look. It appeared that he was telling the truth but that led to even more questions.

"I've never heard of mutations giving people powers like yours before, but it's hard to ignore what we've seen." Pinako said, willing to accept Wolverine's explanation. "That still does not explain where you're from or why you're here. I'm guessing there is a reason you have for coming here, and it's not coincidence."

"Looking for help." Wolverine almost spat, sounding like he hated having to say it. He didn't look like he wanted to say what he was about to either. "The team of mutants I work with, the X-Men, we kind of got stuck on this planet and we're looking for a way back home. And I ain't no alien!" He added before they could accuse him of being one.

"That's quite a contradiction. Claiming not to be from this planet but not be an alien either. I suppose you have an explanation for that as well?" Pinako asked. Based on what she had heard so far his next answer would be very interesting to say the least.

"Yeah, but don't ask me to go into any details." Wolverine answered. "The main reason is because of a guy we've had plenty of scraps with before, calls himself Magneto. He thinks that mutants should be in charge, and regular humans should be dead so it's up to guys like us to make sure that doesn't happen. We were trying to bust up his latest scheme, some kind of machine he built to take him and some of his flunkies from our Earth to an alternate one." He held up his hand as Winry opened her mouth to say something. "I said don't ask me for details. I'm just a dumb grunt and all this science stuff gives me a headache. So we're about to turn his new toy into a pile of junk when it decides to zap us instead. Next thing I know the six of us are waking up in the woods with a small town not that far off. The only thing we knew for sure was that we weren't on the same old mudball anymore. We figured I should go have a look around and see if I could find out if the locals were friendly and if there was anyway to get us back. Looks like it'll be easy enough to hide but I doubt this place can help us get home. Sorry if it didn't sound very exciting but storytelling isn't my thing." Pinako regarded his words before speaking.

"It is an incredible story." She admitted. "Though in light of what you've told us so far incredible shouldn't be surprising. In fact if it hadn't been for the unintentional demonstration of your mutant powers outside I doubt we would have believed any of it. "

"Believe what you want lady. All I know is that we're stuck here for good unless we can find Magneto and make him take us back, if he can."

"You might be mistaken in that regard Logan." She told him. "Not long before you arrived Ed and Al were called away to help with some sort of highly dangerous experiment for the State."

"No offence granny but I don't think even the most high tech gadgets your guys can make come anywhere near what Mags had set up." Wolverine replied.

"Alchemy can do incredible things." Pinako told him. "You'd be surprised at what is possible when it's applied in the right way." Wolverine grunted in response. He wasn't one to believe claims like that easily but dealing with magic back home had taught him not to completely dismiss them either.

"The experiment you thought I was part of?" He asked. "Good ears." Was all he said when they looked at him.

"Yes that one." Pinako confirmed, unsurprised to know he had heard them talking. "We don't know what exactly they were doing but I think you'll agree that the timing of the experiment and you arriving here is just a little bit..."

"Convenient?" Wolverine finished using the exact term she had used earlier. "Maybe, but without knowing what they were doing…"

"I think we'll be able to find out soon enough." Pinako said with a knowing smile. "Ed and Al will come back sooner or later, and if I know Edward it won't be that difficult to find out what the 'secret' project was."

"You guys don't like the military much huh?" Wolverine asked. Pinako shook her head no. "Good, neither do we." He paused before continuing. "I think it's a good idea to bring the others in on this now. I got a feeling this is something they would want to hear, and I'm finished playing messenger boy."

"Your friends are welcome to come here if they want." Pinako said. "And don't worry about room; I'm sure I've got plenty of space if you need it."

"Thanks but I doubt we'll be sticking around here too long if this alchemy thing is what got us here in the first place." Wolverine answered.

"Are they going to be able to get here without being seen?" Winry asked. "We could go with you to get them help guide you to them and back." She suggested. She wasn't exactly an expert in the terrain but she knew a few tricks if you didn't want to bee seen.

"Appreciate the offer kid but they can get here on their own no problem. As for going to get them, if you'll give me my shirt back I'll take care of it." Winry looked at her grandmother and Pinako shrugged in response. Winry got up and left the room to go get the shirt and Pinako looked back at Wolverine.

"We searched it already and didn't find anything." She told him, thinking that whatever he expected to find wasn't there anymore.

"That's cause you didn't look in the right places." He replied as Winry came back in with the blood soaked top of his uniform.

"Sorry but we haven't had a chance to wash it yet." She apologized as she handed it to him.

"Don't worry about it." He told her. "I've worn stuff worse off then this before." He pressed down on an X shaped button of the collar and there was a faint click followed by a beep. "Yo boss man, you hear me?"

"Loud and clear Wolverine." Another voice said. "What's your status?"

"Found some locals that are willing to give us a hand. It's a long story so you should probably come and hear it yourselves."

"Are they trustworthy?" The voice asked.

"Guess you're gonna have to find that out for yourself." Wolverine answered gruffly, sounding he didn't like having his judgment insulted. It was becoming clear that these two did not like each other. Without waiting for the other person to answer he went on. "I'm in a house on the Western edge of the town, not far from the woods. Don't think you can miss it."

"We'll be there as soon as we can." The second voice said, clearly becoming annoyed with Wolverine's attitude. "Until then, don't bring any more attention to yourself then necessary." Wolverine growled and turned off the radio.

"Smart ass rookie." He snarled. He turned back to Pinako and Winry, the former looking at him with a questioning look and the latter looking at the miniature radio in amazement.

"How did you manage to make a radio so small?" Winry asked as she reached for the shirt.

"Trade secret." Wolverine replied, moving the shirt away from her grasp. "Sorry but I might need that later." The look of disappointment on her face couldn't help but reminded him of what Hank would look like if you took away one of his high tech gizmos while he was studying it.

"It would be very rude to take what's his without permission." Pinako added. Winry turned slightly red at the statement. To take attention off her granddaughter Pinako addressed him directly. "Wolverine?"

"Codename." He answered. "Can't have every Joe on the street finding out who we really are now can we?"

"I suppose not." Pinako agreed. "Does that mean Logan is a fake name as well?"

"No that's real. Not much people can learn when you only got one name." Pinako was about to say something when they heard the door open.

"For the last time I'm not going back there!!!" They heard a young voice shout. "They don't have any idea what they're dealing with, and I'm not gonna die just because of their stupidity!!!"

"But they said they could figure out how to make it work." An even younger voice said, one that had an odd echo to it. Wolverine could hear two sets of footsteps but neither of them sounded normal. One sounded like he had an artificial leg and the other sounded like he was wearing metal boots. What was really strange was when he sniffed the air he could only smell one person. The second smelled like metal, kind of like a robot. The door opened and Wolverine saw a blonde haired kid shorter then he was, wearing a red coat with black pants and boots. Behind him was what looked like a walking suit of armor with a pair of glowing eyes.

"Yeah and I'll believe that when…" Blondie stopped when he caught sight of Wolverine. "Who're you?" He asked. He had never seen or heard of an automail customer that looked like this and strangers were not always a good thing.

"I was about to ask you the same question bub." Wolverine gruffly responded. Blondie tensed up at the remark but Pinako spoke up before he could.

"Edward, that's no way to speak to guests." She scolded. Edward did seem cowed by the old bat's words and didn't look angry anymore. That was about to change.

"Wait a minute." Wolverine spoke up. "Edward Elric, one of the Elric brothers?"

"That's right." Ed answered, glaring at the stranger. "What?!" He asked when the stranger gave him questioning look.

"I thought you were supposed to be the older brother." Wolverine said. Ed tensed up again and Wolverine could see a vein on his temple bulging.

"Brother." The armor said, trying to calm Ed down. It wasn't working very well. Wolverine frowned and looked over at Pinako.

"Okay what's going on?" He asked. "We got a suit of armor with a little kid's voice, and the older brother has a metal arm and leg and is shorter then…" He didn't get a chance to finish that before Ed was flying right at him.

"WHO YOU CALLING SO LITTLE HE'D DROWN IN A THIMBLE FULL OF WATER!?!?!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. He knocked Wolverine and the chair he was sitting in over but while Ed had speed and surprise on his side Wolverine had decades of combat experience under his belt. Even before he hit the ground he was acting, letting that experience take over his movements. Tucking his legs in and grabbing Ed's jacket he started using the momentum of the fall to his advantage. He continued to roll and pushed the irate alchemist off him with his feet, flipping his stunned opponent over his head. "WHAAAAA?!?!?!"

CRASH ….THUD

Ed bounced off the wall and fell to the floor hard, not quite knowing where he was or how he got there. Wolverine, on the other hand, got to his feet and turned towards the downed Elric. He didn't attack and waited to see what Ed would do. The clanging from behind let him know the armor had decided to make the first move and was rushing towards him. Hiding one fist behind his leg Wolverine popped his claws and got ready to slash. What he didn't know was that while the armor hadn't seen what he did someone else had. To his surprise Winry rushed forward and grabbed the wrist that had the claws extended.

"Don't!" She shouted as she held Wolverine's arm down. He had no doubt he could get out of her grasp easily but before he could do or say anything the armor went right past him and over to Ed, checking to see if he was all right. Looking back at Winry Wolverine retracted his claws.

"That was a dumb move kid." Wolverine said to Winry as she let go of his wrist.

"I couldn't just let you hurt Al!" She told him defiantly.

"I wasn't going to hurt him." Wolverine answered. It was true enough; he had only planned to give the armor, Al, a few scratches to make him back off. After sniffing the air a few more times to make sure he decided to ask a question. "Can that guy even be hurt? There's nobody in that thing."

"How did you know that?" Winry asked. "You didn't even look…"

"I don't have to." Wolverine interrupted. "I can't smell anyone inside that armor, just the metal it's made of. It's the same way I can tell shorty over there is part cyborg." Off to the side Ed, who had slowly regaining his senses, suddenly became very aware and tried to lunge at Wolverine again when the Al grabbed him by the shoulders and stopped him, barely.

"Let me go Al!!" Ed shouted as he tried to get loose.

"Brother, he didn't do anything." The armor pleaded. Ed seemed to ignore him as he continued to struggle.

"Better listen to him if you know what's good for you, rookie." Wolverine warned. That made Ed struggle even harder. Wolverine was beginning to wonder if he would actually have to knock some sense into the kid when he caught a whiff of someone else just before he heard him.

"Is there a problem here?" A deep voice from behind asked. Turning around he saw a giant of a man wearing a blue military style uniform. He was bald except for a lock of blond hair on his forehead and a mustache that hid any trace of his mouth. He glared down at Wolverine and Wolverine glared right back at him. This guy looked like he was used to letting just his size and intimidation handle most situations and if he was expecting the same thing with Wolverine boy was he wrong.

"Not unless you're gonna cause one." Wolverine shot back. Ed actually stopped struggling and looked at the stranger in disbelief. He couldn't think of any civilian, alchemist or not, who would have faced down Major Armstrong like that. No one who didn't have a weapon and at least ten other heavily armed guys to back him up at least. Though he couldn't see his mouth Wolverine knew the Major was now frowning disapprovingly, and he didn't care. That made the possibility of a fight even more likely.

When Armstrong assessed the situation when he first entered the house he believed that it had just been the boys fighting but when he saw a stranger he thought that it had been an ambush set for the two. Of course it could have just been a misunderstanding and the man didn't know who the Elrics were, so he entered the situation to let him know just who he was dealing with. Unfortunately this man seemed to take one look at Armstrong's uniform and show nothing but contempt. To the Major this showed that the man hated the military and there was a good probability he did know who Ed and Al were and attacked them because of it. Even if that wasn't the case someone with such a disregard for authority could be very dangerous. Figuring things would only get worse if he didn't subdue the man he started to move forward. Wolverine brought up his fists and got ready for baldy to make the first move when Winry got between the two of them, her back to the Major.

"Logan, stop it!" She ordered. She was related to the old bat all right. "He's a friend and he's only looking out for Ed and Al." Wolverine looked from her back to Armstrong, who had stopped moving but still had a stone serious face.

"I thought you guys didn't like the military." Wolverine growled.

"There are exceptions to everything Mr. Logan." Pinako said as she also stepped between the two of them. "They are very few in this case but the Major here is one of them." Wolverine regarded the Major with a suspicious glare before shrugging his shoulders and turning around.

"Whatever you say granny." He finally said as he sat back down, ignoring the angry look the Major was giving him and the astonished way the Elrics were looking at him.

"Your guest seems to have trouble with his manners." Armstrong remarked to Pinako.

"Never had much use from em." Wolverine replied. "You wouldn't happen to be one of those alchemists I keep hearing about?" Being insulted by the stranger Armstrong responded in his usual way.

"I am Major Alexander Armstrong: The Strong Arm Alchemist!" He proudly declared, flexing slightly to show off the muscles underneath his coat.

"Uh huh." Was Wolverine's only response before he turned to the Ed and Al. "So I'm guessing there's one hell of a story behind him?" He asked, pointing at Al and ignoring the stunned Major.

"What if there is?!" Ed demanded.

"Just figured I should know a little about who I'm going to be teaming up with." Wolverine replied. "Better save it for later though. Stuff like that gets boring when you have to say it more then once."

"Why the hell should we tell you anything?!!" Ed shouted. This guy was acting like he was in charge and it was really pissing him off. "What gives you any right to know?!?!"

"Because if granny over there is right you two helped cause this mess in the first place." Wolverine replied. That seemed to shock Ed into a calmer, if more confused, state. Even Al's motionless face seemed to be giving him a 'what are you talking about?' type of expression.

"Perhaps you had better explain yourself." Armstrong strongly suggested as he sat down at the table across from Wolverine. The brothers might not know what the stranger meant by that but he knew of one possibility, a very slim one, that it could be. As a military man he couldn't discount the risk of living things passing through the other side of the Gate that Dr. Thomas and his crew had created. It was one of the reasons Mustang's unit had been assigned to oversee the experiment, to deal with the unlikely event of something hostile coming through.

"I already told them what I know." Wolverine answered, glancing over at the Rockbells. "You want the whole thing you're going to have to wait until my buddies get here. We'll swap stories then; in the meantime I'm sick of playing twenty questions so deal with it."

"The hell with that!" Ed screamed, walking up to stand next to Wolverine and slamming his fist onto the table. "You're telling us everything right now!!"

"Ed!!" Winry shouted, fed up with Ed's attitude. Wolverine held up his hand to tell her not to bother.

"Who's going to make me small fry, you?" Wolverine asked Ed with a smirk. Ed took the bait and clapped his hands together. His arm began to glow as it changed shape, shifting into a nasty looking blade. Wolverine only raised an eyebrow at the display, having seen similar things dozens of times before.

"Sounds like a good idea to me!" Ed said angrily, brandishing his transmuted arm threatenly and pointing it at Wolverine's chest.

"That little show supposed to impress me?" Wolverine asked. That vein on Ed's temple started bulging again and this time Wolverine made the first move. Using one hand he grabbed Ed's arm/blade and slammed it onto the table, being careful not to put it through the piece of furniture in the process. He brought his other fist up and popped his claws right in front of Ed's face. He didn't point them at Ed, he didn't need to. All he needed to do was show what he could have done. Ed completely forgot about what he was about to do and focused on the metal claws in front of him. Claws that didn't come from anything attached to man's arm but out of his hand!

"What the hell are you?!?" Ed demanded to know.

"The names Wolverine, and I'm the best at what I do." Wolverine growled as he retracted his claws and let go of Ed's arm. "Ya got guts rookie but not much in the way of brains. Go off half cocked like that often enough and it'll get you killed. I'm not the bad guy here so why don't you just back off and be a good little kid until..." At the mention of 'little' Ed punched Wolverine with his flesh hand as hard as he could. Wolverine's head snapped to the side but that was more to keep Ed from breaking his hand then the force of the punch. Still…

"OWOWOWOW!!!" Ed yelped as he cradled his now throbbing fist.

"Ed, I think that's enough." Al said calmly as he led his brother away from Wolverine, and further injuries. Pinako sighed and walked over to the two so she could see just how badly Ed had mangled his hand. Al looked back at Wolverine but the look on the man's face told him not to say anything. Like Ed Al had a lot of questions for Wolverine but he had seen trying to force answers out of him was very counterproductive. He wasn't exactly a nice person but he didn't seem to be a truly mean one either. He wasn't trying to hurt Ed so Al decided to give him a chance. Other people weren't about to give Wolverine the benefit of a doubt so easily. Namely Major Armstrong, who was gauging just how big of a threat Wolverine really was and how quickly it would take to subdue him if necessary.

"Don't even think about it." Wolverine snarled at Armstrong, recognizing the look in his eyes. "I've taken apart guys bigger then you before without breaking a sweat." Armstrong's frown deepened, not just because of the threat but the fact that it didn't sound like an idle boast.

"Your current choice of actions may leave me no alternative." Armstrong warned.

"There'll be no need for that Major." Pinako said as she and the others rejoined them, Ed's hand now bandaged. "While Mr. Logan has proven himself to be crass and somewhat ill tempered he isn't dangerous unless provoked. Once his friends get here I'm sure things will start to become a bit clearer." Armstrong looked from her to Winry, who looked to be silently imploring him to trust this stranger, and then back to Wolverine.

"If the Rockbells are willing to vouch for you I will trust their judgment." He told Wolverine. "But I'll be keeping my eye on you, and your friends when they arrive." He warned.

"Hey, if there's one thing the X-Men are used to is people treating us like criminals." Wolverine answered.

Gate Laboratory

"X-Men?" Mustang asked. "Who are they?"

"They're one of the groups of mutants who insist on protecting the humans of my world." Magneto answered as he sat down at the library's table. "They have been quite a thorn in my side for many years and even now it appears I cannot escape their interference."

"How can you be so sure about that?" Hughes asked. "Wasn't it only your group that got hit by that energy surge?"

"I had initially thought that but after seeing the roof of this building I'm convinced they are here as well. There were two energy bolts, correct?"

"Yes there were." Mustang confirmed. "We couldn't figure it out at first but after meeting you we believed that your group had been separated during the transition. After finding the rest of your men you then confronted us."

"A sound theory Colonel but all of my followers arrived with me in the same general area. The only logical conclusion is that the X-Men were brought with us to this world."

"And that presents us with even more problems that we'll have to deal with." Mustang finished. "First and foremost we need to know if they present a threat to the State or its citizens."

"Unless they are driven to no alternative I do not believe they will resort to violence in a situation such as this." Magneto answered. "This world is unknown to them and they will most likely hide from the population at large. They may attempt contact with your government but I do not think they will take the news that you have allied yourself with me very well. If that happens they may become uncontrollable and consider your government their enemy."

"What if we inform them of the deal you've made with the State?" Mustang asked. "That you'd stay on this world and live a peaceful existence?"

"In all likelihood they will not believe you." Magneto answered. "They consider me a criminal and will insist that I answer for my so called crimes back on my own world."

"So capture or elimination are turning into the only options." Hughes stated. He didn't like the idea of having to send soldiers, even alchemists, out to fight a team of mutants with powers they didn't know anything about.

"I would prefer not to consider elimination just yet." Magneto responded. "There is still a chance they will listen to reason and that should be the first option we use. Failing that, if we were to capture them alive and send them back to their leader, Charles Xavier, relatively unharmed even he may see that this is the best alternative and leave us alone."

"And if he doesn't?" Mustang asked. The answer didn't sit well with him. It could mean all out invasion from that other world.

"I don't know." Magneto answered truthfully. "I'm hoping that it will not come to that."

"We'll have to deal with that when we get to it." Mustang stated. "In the meantime I'll have a search for these X-Men started immediately. I'll need physical descriptions of each one of them as well as what their powers are." He turned to Hughes before continuing. "Orders will be to initiate peaceful contact but not to confront them unless absolutely necessary. Send a message to Reesembol and tell Major Armstrong to bring Fullmetal back here immediately. I didn't want to bring him into this until later but if we end up fighting these mutants he'll need a full briefing."

"Fullmetal?" Magneto asked.

"One of the best alchemists the State has." Mustang answered. He would have had to tell Magneto about the people under his command eventually but he was going to keep as much information from him as possible. He might have more mutants up his sleeve but Mustang had a trick or two of his own. "I'll contact Central and alert them of this new development." He finished telling Hughes.

"With your permission Colonel I would like to have a look at any information on the State alchemists under your command. It will help in choosing which ones are suited for confronting the X-Men should it come to that." Mustang regarded Magneto for a second before turning to Hawkeye.

"There should be some personnel files here that he can look at. See that he gets everything he needs." He told her, knowing she'd hear the unspoken 'to know' at the end of the sentence.

"Yes sir." Hawkeye replied with a salute.

"I'll expect detailed reports of all your own men and their powers in return." Mustang told Magneto. Before the mutant leader had a chance to answer the door to the library opened and a new voice was heard.

"No need that that old boy, we'll be happy ta show off for ya." The strangely accented voice came from a blond man dressed in bright red and yellow costume. A mask covered his eyes but his mouth was still visible and they could see the man was grinning. Some sort of nozzle was attached to the top of each of his hands with a tube that ran from it to a liquid filled tank on his back. Next to him was a short man dressed in a filthy green shirt and black pants, looking around the room and it's occupants in a very paranoid way through thick goggles. There was also something else very unique about the two of them. Something that became painfully obvious when they inhaled. Hawkeye coughed once and covered her mouth with her hand, looking slightly nauseated. As usual Hughes wasn't afraid to let his own thoughts be known to everyone else.

"Oh man! Is that coming from them?" He asked, covering his own mouth and fighting the urge to gag. The smell was overpowering, like a piece of rancid meat that had been left rotting in a backed up sewer for a few weeks.

"That would be him." The man in red and yellow said, pointing to the man in green. "You get used to it after a while, believe it or not." Mustang didn't say anything or have any visible reaction but his eyes were burning and beginning to water. Not willing to risk gagging if he tried to talk he glanced over to Magneto for an explanation.

"Colonel Mustang, may I introduce Pyro, and Toad." He said motioning to the man in red and yellow then to the one in green.

"You're Mustang?" Pyro asked before the Colonel could comment one way or another. "You're the sot that calls himself the Flame Alchemist?" He asked, sounding surprised that the answer would be yes. "So what the hell makes you so bloody special?" The scowl returned to Mustang's face as he waited for Magneto to reprimand Pyro for showing such insubordination. After several seconds of silence he realized Magneto was going to say nothing and turned to face him, even more annoyed.

"They are not soldiers Colonel and you should not expect them to act as such. So long as they are willing to fight and obey the orders of their leaders I will allow them to assist me in the cause of mutant liberation."

"Such attitudes in your subordinates can be a serious liability." Mustang said, glaring Pyro.

"In a war for the survival of your species such liabilities are acceptable." Magneto countered.

"Tough luck mate, but guess that's what life does to you sometimes." Pyro said. "Now, back to that little discussion we're having. Why should some bloke like you be called the Flame Alchemist when you got someone like me?" Since Magneto wasn't willing to discipline Pyro Mustang decided he would have to. Slipping on a glove he continued to glare angrily at the insubordinate mutant. "What's that then? Going to challenge me to a duel now are you?"

"Something like that." Mustang replied and snapped his fingers. The area in front of Pyro and Toad exploded into a wall of carefully controlled flames. The blast made Toad jump and scramble behind Pyro but the other mutant watched the display very casually, almost like he was bored. The flames burned themselves out the two fire wielders stood facing each other.

"What, was that it?" Pyro asked, sounding like he had expected more to happen. Mustang's scowl deepened. "That was the best you got? Oooo you can make stuff blow up. That makes you and at least another dozen guys that I know, big deal. No wonder you blokes wanted our help so badly." Mustang began clenching his fists to try and keep his anger in check.

"You're saying you can do better?" Mustang challenged, surprisingly calm in spite of how angry he was becoming.

"You bet I can." Pyro answered and aimed the nozzle on his right fist. Hughes and Hawkeye nervously prepared to go for their weapons but Mustang remained motionless. A jet of flame shot from the nozzle and hit the stone floor several feet in front of Mustang. This time it was the Colonel's turn to look unimpressed.

"This is better?" He asked, not taking his eyes off Pyro. "Showing you can aim a weapon any common foot soldier can use? It's hardly grounds for any special consideration."

"Sure any idiot can use one of these babies." Pyro agreed, adding another burst of flame into the fire on the floor. "But it takes real talent to this." He added as he shut off his flamethrower. "Go on then, say hello." Mustang couldn't figure out what Pyro meant until the mutant glanced down. Mustang followed the line of sight and felt his eyes widen at what he saw. Hughes and Hawkeye, who had been watching the Colonel's reactions, looked down and had similar reactions.

"What the hell?" Hughes asked, giving voice to what they were all thinking. Sitting at Mustang's feet was a large dog, one that was made completely out of fire. The details weren't perfect but they could make out fur, teeth, eyes, even a tongue that hung out of its mouth. When the 'dog' noticed Mustang was looking at it the 'tail' began wagging, just like it would have with a real dog.

"Aww, he likes you." Pyro said. "Why don't you shake and be friends?" The dog raised one of its front paws and held if out to Mustang, who was not even going to think about shaking it. "Don't like dogs huh? Maybe you're more of a cat person." The fire that composed the dog broke its form and began swirling, reforming itself into a tiger, complete with stripes composed of differing colored flames. The big cat slashed with its 'claws' but Mustang remained perfectly still, not willing to let the mutant scare him. The claws missed but they were close enough so that Mustang could feel the heat. He didn't even blink, daring Pyro to do better.

"The son of a bitch is crazy." Hughes muttered, though Hawkeye could only guess if he meant the Colonel or Pyro.

"Not bad Colonel." Pyro admitted. "Why don't you give yourself a hand?" The flame began to swirl again and molded itself into a more humanoid shape. One that was wearing the uniform of a State Alchemist, and had an almost perfect copy of Roy Mustang's face! Despite his best efforts the real Mustang couldn't keep the shock from registering on his face at the sight of his fiery double. The flame Mustang brought up his hands and began clapping. Of course the only sound that could be heard was the crackle of the flames but it was still very unnerving to see something like that acting so human. "And now for the grand finale!" Pyro announced. The fire Mustang stopped clapping and held out one of his hands. The calm, composed look on the fake Mustang's face changed to one that was pure insanity. Mimicking what the real Mustang had done before the duplicate snapped his fingers and the flames that composed his body swelled outward and disappeared with a flash of light and heat, leaving only small column of smoke where he had been standing. "So, shall we start discussing that title now?" He asked Mustang with a triumphant smirk.

"There… is… no…discussion…" Mustang managed to say through teeth grinding together so tightly he was in danger of cracking them. He was also clenching his fists so hard that his knuckles were bone white. If that wasn't proof enough of how agitated he was his face was red with anger and the veins in his temples were beginning to throb. The male ego is a notoriously easy thing to bruise and Mustang's had just received the equivalent of being beaten to pulp with a metal baseball bat. Mustang wasn't one who was prone to loose his temper that easily, with his Alchemy he couldn't afford to. Right now though, he was looked like he was ready to explode, both figuratively and literally.

"Roy, I think it's time we started making those calls." Hughes said cautiously. He had to get his friend's mind back on track and away from turning Pyro into a pile of ashes. At first Mustang didn't acknowledge that Hughes had spoken but he turned to look at his two subordinates.

"You're absolutely right Maes." He agreed, sounding far too calm for Hughes or Hawkeye's liking. "There are more pressing concerns right now." He turned back to face Pyro and his voice became just as angry as it was a second ago. "Vendettas are best left for another time." He said, promising the mutant in no uncertain terms that this was not over. Not by a long shot.

"Heh." Was Pyro's only response as Mustang passed by, giving him a glare that would have told most people they were lucky to still be able to walk after what they had done. Hughes and Hawkeye followed behind, giving him similar looks as they passed him. Only after they had gone and were out of earshot did Magneto speak.

"I'm sure there were other ways of getting your retribution on Colonel Mustang then convincing Pyro to put on such an overzealous demonstration." He said to no one.

"But that wouldn't have been nearly as much fun." Mystique said as she entered the room, seeming to walk out of the shadows on the wall. It had been easy for her to 'disappear' into the background and watch the two men go at each others throats. Once she was inside the room Magneto used his powers to push the door shut.

"A bit much was it?" Pyro asked, not really thinking it was.

"Nothing that would jeopardize our alliance," Magneto answered. "but in the future I suggest we use a bit more discretion in situations like this."

"Heh, better not let Sabertooth around these guys then." Pyro said. "His idea of discretion is breaking yer neck in three places to make sure you're dead."

"That's why I told him to stay in the woods until we needed him." Mystique said. "I also thought it would be a good idea to have one more surprise waiting in the wings so he's out there to."

"Under the current circumstances it is probably the wisest thing to do." Magneto said. "Any more incidents such as this and they may come to see us a threat and not a worthwhile ally." He turned towards Pyro and Toad. "I trust that Mystique has fully explained the situation to you so I expect you to abide by the terms that have been set forth. If you do not you will suffer the consequences." He didn't need to elaborate on what those consequences would be.

"Yes sir." Toad said.

"No problem boss." Pyro added.

"Good." Magneto said and raised his hand, opening the door to the room. Pyro and Toad stood up and walked out before Magneto re-closed the door and turned to Mystique. "Now my dear, I'm sure you heard our little discussion about the X-Men and the selection of alchemists that would be needed to fight them. I don't believe the Colonel is putting forth sufficient effort into this and it would benefit both our sides if we were to help him."

Back at the Rockbell's the mood was a bit calmer. Well, quieter at any rate. Ed, Al, and Major Armstrong were keeping a wary eye on Wolverine, who now slouched in his chair with his arms folded and his head down, looking like he was asleep. Pinako, in turn, was keeping an eye on all four of them to make sure they behaved themselves. Winry had gone out back to the workshop's scrap pile to see what she could find in the way of spare electronic equipment. She was hoping that Wolverine would allow her to at least look at his radio so she could figure out how to build one of her own. As she was searching among the mounds of junk she noticed something felt strange. Looking up she saw that a thick fog was beginning to roll in. She wasn't the only one that noticed the strange weather, in the house Pinako glanced out the window and saw the fog becoming thicker.

"That's strange." She commented. "Fog usually doesn't come up this fast or thick." At that comment Wolverine raised his head and looked out the window. "Your friends?" Pinako asked him.

"Yep." Wolverine answered as he got up and walked to the door. Pinako followed him was soon joined by the boys and Major Armstrong. When they got outside they saw Wolverine standing calmly, looking out into the fog bank.

"Do your friends always go through such theatrics when arriving someplace?" Major Armstrong asked.

"It's either that or get shot at." Wolverine replied without turning around. Sniffing the air a few times he turned towards one particular direction. "Took you guys long enough." He commented to someone who didn't seem to be there. There was no answer but slowly outlines of people became visible coming through the fog. As they came closer Pinako and the others were able to make out more details. There were four of them, all clad in black clothes and even though each person had on a completely different outfit it still gave the impression of a common uniform. The one leading them was a red haired man that wore a yellow visor that had a thin red line running lengthwise down the middle. The serious and professional manner that he carried himself with showed he was in charge of this particular group.

The second man also had red hair but his eyes were visible, and were quite odd, being completely black with red irises. In addition to his uniform he wore a long brown coat not unlike the one Wolverine had stolen earlier. He seemed more casual then the leader and moved in a more relaxed manner.

The third man appeared to be more normal then the first two. Apart from his black hair that was cut in an almost military style the only thing that would set him apart from most people was his size. He stood about a head shorter then Armstrong but had a very similar build to the Major, indicating great physical power.

The final member of the group was a dark skinned woman who had long white hair, which only seemed to highlight how youthful she was instead of making her seem old. Her eyes were solid white, giving the impression she was blind even though she moved with stunning grace. Her own uniform, while technically not that revealing, still looked more then capable of making the male half of the species stop and stare like idiots.

"You never told us you were in contact with someone from the government." The visored man said, ignoring Wolverine's barb.

"He got here after I called you guys." Wolverine replied. "And according her he's one of the good guys." He said, glancing at Pinako.

"What about those two?" The visored one asked looking at Ed and Al.

"Same deal." Wolverine answered. "And it looks like the midget is the one that dragged us here in the first place."

"WHY YOU….!!!!!!" Ed shouted and rushed at Wolverine. He was almost within arms reach when Al managed to tackle him from behind. "I'LL SHOW YOU WHO'S A MIDGET!!!!" He shouted as he tried to get up from being pinned on the ground.

"And they say I have a temper." Wolverine commented.

"Ed, what did I tell you about acting in front of guests?" Pinako asked sternly. Ed calmed down, involuntarily, and Al let him up. "I'm Pinako Rockbell, this is Edward and Alphonse Elric, and that this Major Armstrong." She said motioning to each in turn. "Logan has told us you have quite a problem on your hands." The visored man stepped forward.

"Yes we do." He told her. "On behalf of all of us I'd like to thank you for the help you've given us so far." Pinako waved the comment off.

"There's no need for that. I don't want any thanks for doing the right thing. Even if I don't know who I'm helping." She told them with a half smile. The visored one nodded in understanding and started introductions.

"My name is Cyclops. This is Gambit,"

"Bonjour." The other redheaded man said in an odd accent.

"Colossus," The large man nodded his head in greeting.

"And Storm." He finished and motioned to the woman, who smiled warmly at them.

"They certainly are an interesting looking bunch." She said while looking over the group. "But Logan said that there were five that came with him, and I only count four."

"Yeah, where is the elf anyway?" Wolverine asked.

"He was a bit apprehensive about how people here would react to him so he decided to keep out of sight until we knew it was safe."

At that moment Kurt Wagner, better known as Nightcrawler, was currently peering around the corner of the house where he was hiding. He was always a bit cautious when meeting new people, especially ones who had never seen mutants before.

"Excuse me, are you one of Logan's friends?" An uncertain sounding voice from behind him asked. Nightcrawler turned around and saw it was a blond teenage girl. The girl also saw him, and that was not a good thing.

Winry had at first had paid no attention as the fog started rolling in. Like most people she wasn't bothered that much by a little fog. When she noticed that the fog was becoming so thick it was getting hard to see, on the other hand, she decided that something was up. Hearing voices in front she started walking around the house to see what was going on. The fog made it difficult to see where she was going and she nearly tripped a couple of times before resorting to using the side of the house to guide her. As she got closer she recognized Logan's voice as well as one she had never heard before. It looked like his friends had arrived. As she got closer she noticed a person at the corner of the house, it looked like he was hiding but he wasn't trying very hard. It was more like he was waiting for something. He didn't seem nervous at the sounds of Logan's voice or the second person so there was a chance he knew them. If that was the case why was he hiding? It was possible that it was one of the other mutants Logan had talked about but it didn't make sense to come here alone. Deciding to find out she approached him to see what he looked like.

"Excuse me, are you one of Logan's friends?" She asked. Whoever it was turned around and Winry felt herself gasp. Now that she was closer she saw the stranger very clearly and she wished she hadn't. Standing in front of her was something that had blue fur covering his face that surrounded two yellow, pupil-less eyes and pointed ears. There were three fingers on each hand and three toes on each foot. To top that all off it had a tail that, unlike any other animal's tail she had seen, this one seemed to move like it was another arm. It had a surprised look on its face for a second then started to smile which, unfortunately for him, had the opposite effect he had intended, showing Winry a set of long canine teeth.

"Guten Tag mein freund." It said. He was trying to sound friendly but the sound of a strange language coming from someone looking like him was something the girl was not prepared for. Her face drained of all color and her pupils shrank to pinpricks. "Oh dear." Nightcrawler sighed, knowing what was next.

"So why would he want to hide from us?" Ed asked Wolverine. "I thought you trusted us."

"If Logan trusts you we'll accept his judgment." Cyclops answered. "We're not trying to hide anything from you but….."

SHRRIIIIIEEEEEKKKKKKKK!!!!!!

All heads snapped in the direction of the earsplitting scream and while the X-men did seem concerned that quickly passed as they figured out what was going on. The rest of the group however…

"WINRY!!" Ed and Al shouted as they turned and tried to run where the scream had come from. Tried to being the operative phrase as Wolverine grabbed Al's arm and Ed by the collar of his jacket. Al stopped out of sheer surprise but Ed tried to keep going and Wolverine ended up yanking him off his feet, making him fall flat on his back.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!?" Ed shouted as he shot to his feet.

"Calm down midget, she's fine." Wolverine growled. Ed would have gone into a rage again if he didn't think he'd heard that last part wrong.

"What?!" Ed and Al asked in unison.

"Sounds like she just met Kurt, and he's harmless." He said as he let the two of them go.

"You're sure?" Al asked looking back over to the now silent area. That scream sure didn't sound like Winry had run into something harmless.

"Kurt wouldn't do anything to hurt your friend." Cyclops assured them. "It's just that…people usually don't react well when they first meet him." Ed gave Cyclops a suspicious look. "It's kind of hard to explain. Maybe you should go see for yourselves."

"The bat and the tin can." Wolverine said suddenly. "They're the ones least likely to go ape shit when they see Kurt."

"HEY!!!!" Ed protested.

"See." Wolverine added.

"Mr. Logan is right Ed." Pinako broke in. "This is no time for immaturity so you'll stay here." She said with finality. "Come along Al." She said as she started walking towards the source of the scream. Al looked from Pinako to his brother, then to Wolverine. Deciding to put his trust in Pinako's judgment he turned and began to follow her.

"Gambit, you'd better go with them. Just in case." Cyclops said.

"Better to be safe then sorry no?" Gambit replied as he went to catch up with Pinako and Al.

"Hold on." Ed said as he tried to follow, only to have Wolverine grab the back of his jacket again.

"You heard the bat." He growled. "Stay put." He emphasized with a sneer. Ed balled up his metal fist and was about to swing when Major Armstrong grabbed his wrist.

"I don't think you should be risking that fist as well Ed." He told a stunned Ed and a surprised Wolverine.

"Funny. I'd half expect you to want to go charging over there with the midget here." Wolverine said as he let go of Ed's jacket. Ed tried to lunge but Armstrong kept his grip.

"Normally I would but since this situation calls for tact and not force it would be a good idea that people such as myself and young Edward here to not become part of it yet." The Major said. "I can use tact but since Miss Rockbell has appointed herself envoy to you people it would be wise not to try and change that. And Edward," He said as his face seemed rise in a smile, it was hard to tell when he seemed to have no mouth. "already showing he has no tact at all, would be an even worse choice." Wolverine gave a gruff laugh in response and Ed was about to try and knock his block off when they were interrupted by one of the weirdest noises he had ever heard.

When Winry had stopped screaming she realized something strange. The monster that she was looking at was not trying to attack her. As a matter of fact it was turned away from her, covering its ears and wincing in pain. When it realized the screaming had stopped it slowly turned around and faced Winry again.

"You have a very strong voice my friend." He said in an odd accent with a good humored grin. He was showing his fangs again but before those could really have an effect on Winry he continued. "And I thank you for having such a kind response when you saw me."

"K…Kind?" Winry stammered, caught off guard by the thing's words. Screaming in terror at the top of your lungs wasn't something that most people would consider kind.

"Yes. Normally when people have seen me after screaming they have either fainted or are running away. It is nice to only have the screaming every once in a while." He replied, still smiling.

"I..I…" Winry really didn't know how to respond. Despite this thing's demonic appearance he was not vicious and was even telling jokes to try and put her at ease. Seeing that she had calmed down a little it started speaking again.

"To answer your question yes I do know Logan and was expecting to meet him here, but it is a pleasant surprise to see he is keeping such good company." He said. Winry blushed slightly at the compliment and the thing stood straight before going into a deep bow. "Kurt Wagner, better known as The Incredible Nightcrawler, at your service miss." Winry really didn't know what to think about this thing now.

(Kurt.) She corrected herself. He had a name and was acting like a perfect gentleman, which was really a confusing contrast to his appearance. Not knowing what to do she tried to take a step back but tripped and fell, landing in a sitting position. The next thing she knew Nightcrawler was standing over her. She was about to scream again but the only thing he did was offer her his hand.

"Winry!" She heard Al shout. Turning towards the sound of the voice Nightcrawler saw Gambit accompanied by a large suit of armor and a very short old woman. The old woman seemed visibly surprised but she stayed in one place. The armor, on the other hand, started moving towards him aggressively. Thankfully Gambit snapped out his Bo and extended it so it blocked the armor's path.

"Easy there mon ami. Kurt's just trying to be helpful is all. He mean the girl no harm." He told them.

"Of course not." Nightcrawler answered, eliciting a gasp from the armor and a start from the old woman. It looked like neither of them had expected him to sound the way he did looking like this. "I cannot leave her on the ground now can I?" He asked and again offered Winry his hand. Hesitantly she accepted and he helped her to her feet. "I am sorry for frightening you miss. I'm afraid looking like this it is unavoidable."

"That's all right." Winry replied. "It's just that when Logan told us about mutants I didn't expect…"

"That some of us would look so different?" Nightcrawler asked. "That is the cross some of us must bare that comes with being who we are."

"You were.. born this way?" The armor hesitantly asked. To Al Nightcrawler looked like a chimera, the result of an alchemy experiment gone wrong. He couldn't imagine anything actually being born like that. As soon as he spoke the words he realized how rude he was being and shrunk back slightly.

"Yes I was." Nightcrawler answered. Even though it was armor he was still able to read the body language. "Please do not feel sorry for me. I have learned to accept how I look, and the gifts I have been given." Before anyone could ask what those gifts were there was a small flash light, followed by a noise that could only be described as bamf and Nightcrawler disappeared in a cloud of foul smelling smoke. A spilt second later there was a second bamf and Nightcrawler was standing next to Al, who jumped back with a surprised yelp. "Such gifts do have their advantages do they not?" He cheerfully asked the still spooked Al.

"You…You just…" Al started.

"Teleported." Nighcrawler finished. "Any place I can see, I can be there in an instant.

"That was incredible." Winry said as she walked over to them. "You can do that just by thinking?" Nightcrawler nodded. "What's it like?"

"Would you like to see Miss Winry?" Nightcrawler asked. Winry was taken aback by the question.

"You can take other people with you?" Pinako asked. When Nightcrawler nodded again she frowned. "Is it dangerous?"

"I cannot take a person that much larger then me but she will not be a problem. I would not ask if I thought she would be in any danger." Nightcrawler assured her.

"I don't know." Winry said, unsure if she really wanted to say yes.

"Don't worry Petite. He's done this plenty of times and everyone come out ok." Gambit told her.

"Grandma?" She asked, still not knowing what to do. Pinako wasn't one who easily trusted strangers with the safety of her family, but again her instincts were telling here that she could trust these people. Nightcrawler seemed to be just as concerned about her granddaughter's safety as she was, and she believed him when he said he wouldn't try if he thought it would hurt her.

"If you want to try I'm not going to stop you." She finally said. Winry nervously looked over at Nightcrawler, who smiled reassuringly at her. Finally she looked over at Al.

"I think you should try it Winry. It looks like fun." He told her. Like Pinako after getting over the shock of what Kurt looked like he instinctively trusted him. Despite how everyone had acted when they first saw him Kurt was still very nice to all of them and seemed like a caring person, regardless of what other people thought of him.

Making up her mind Winry turned back to Nightcrawler.

"Where would we go?" She asked him.

"How about we give your short tempered friend out there a little surprise?" He asked her. He had heard everything that had gone on and, being the joker that he was, thought it would be fun to give Ed a little scare.

"I don't think Ed will like that." Al warned. Ed was a bit on edge already and this might cause him to loose his temper again.

"With the way he's been acting lately I think it will do him some good." Pinako said. Al's shoulders slumped forward with a loud rattle as Pinako decided to pull rank.

"So what do I do?" Winry asked now that everything was decided.

"Nothing." Nightcrawler said as took one last look around the corner to get an idea of where everyone was. "Just keep you eyes open, relax," He told her, putting his hands on her shoulders. She shuddered a bit but Nightcrawler didn't take offence. "And before you know it…" Both disappeared with a bamf and puff of smoke.

Bamf

"We are there." Nightcrawler finished as they popped back into existence next to Wolverine.

"GAAAA!" Ed shouted and stumbled back. Major Armstrong's eyes widened at the sight but when the X-Men didn't react he guessed that this was the Kurt they had just been talking about. It was still hard not to do anything.

Winry blinked once and suddenly she found herself standing next to Logan, with a very surprised Ed and Major Armstrong off to the side. She hadn't felt anything at all. One second they were on the side of the house and now they were in front of it.

"You just had to show off, didn't ya elf?" Wolverine asked. He sounded annoyed, but not quite angry at what Kurt had done. Winry was about to defend him when Kurt answered for himself.

"It is a weakness." Nightcrawler admitted with a smile. Wolverine shook his head but didn't say anything else.

"It can talk?!" Ed shouted, still not quite getting it. "What that hell is that thing?!?" Even though Ed was using same terms Winry had only a few minutes ago she was still furious that he was thinking that way.

"He is not a thing Ed!" She told sternly. "He's a person and he has a name!" Ed shrank back and to spare him any more of Winry's wrath Nightcrawler decided to introduce himself.

"Kurt Wagner, better known as The Incredible Nightcrawler, at your service sir." He said with a bow. Now Ed was really confused. This guy looked like a chimera reject but he was talking like a normal person. Things took another weird turn when he heard Al running up to them. Behind him were Pinako and the one called Gambit.

"What was it like Winry?" Al asked excitedly. "What did you see?"

"Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?!?!" Ed demanded, fed up with being kept out of the loop.

"You'll want to sit down for this." Cyclops told them. "It'll take a while to explain."

"Well we have plenty of time." Pinako said as she started towards the house. "Please come in and make yourselves at home. I'm sure whatever you have to say will be quite the story."

As the X-Men were accepting the hospitality of the Rockbells Magneto was taking full advantage of hospitality offered to him by the State. Specifically he was headed down to the records room to retrieve the files Mustang had promised him. Accompanying him was a disgusted looking Lieutenant Hawkeye.

"You weren't required to come with me." She said as they entered the room, sounding just as disgusted as she looked.

"I wish to see just how much information the Colonel is willing to give us." Magneto replied, ignoring her tone of voice.

"You'll find that out after you get the files." Hawkeye told him. "And his decision is final." She added. She turned to the clerk, a young brown-haired women with a nervous look on her face. Most likely the result of the strange man with the face hiding helmet.

"We..We prepared the files as per your order ma'am." The clerk said, pushing forward a small stack of folders. Hawkeye picked the folders up and began flipping through them. As she got to one in particular she stopped and began frowning. She looked back up at the clerk, who swallowed nervously.

"I think classified information was something Colonel Mustang would want not to be seen by someone who hasn't been cleared." She told the clerk sternly.

"I'm sorry ma'am." The clerk said, looking away from the Lieutenant's stern gaze.

"Sorry won't help if you keep on making mistakes like this." Hawkeye said as she handed the folder back to the clerk, who glumly put it on her desk. After scanning the rest of the folders she nodded and handed them to Magneto. "If you want anything else you'll need the Colonel's approval." She told him, sounding like that was not likely to happen. "As for you," She said to the clerk, who came to attention with a start. "Make sure something like this doesn't happen again."

"Yes ma'am!" The clerk practically squeaked as she snapped the best salute she could.

"Carry on." Hawkeye replied, returning the salute. The clerk visibly relaxed when Hawkeye turned her attention back to Magneto "The Colonel should have gotten through to Central by now, so he'll want you to report to them on the X-men so the search can begin."

"I'll give him as much assistance as I can." Magneto replied are they left the room and headed towards the communication's center. Once they were gone and the door to the record's room shut the nervous look on the clerks face vanished and was replaced by a look of absolute smugness. Picking up the file Hawkeye had found she placed it within the folds of her own clothes, calmly left the room and locked the door behind her.

Several minutes later the same woman approached the room carrying a cup of coffee, from the opposite direction she had just left. Unlocking the door and entering the room the first thing she noticed was that the files she had selected on Lieutenant Hawkeye's orders were gone but she paid it no mind. Only authorized personnel could get the key to this room and Hawkeye wasn't one who would let just anyone have that kind of authorization.

On one of the upper levels the second 'clerk' entered the library and after making sure no one had followed her, shut the door. Taking the folder Hawkeye had found, as well as several others, and after hiding them the 'clerk' began to change back to the blue skinned, red haired true form of Mystique. It had almost been too easy. Once the real clerk had gone on a break it had been simple to pick the locks to both the door and the file cabinets. After gathering everything that looked important she had signaled Magneto through the radio in his helmet and soon after he had 'suggested' that he accompany Lieutenant Hawkeye as she retrieved the files. After that all it took was acting the part of a simple clerk who almost made a huge mistake. Hawkeye would figure the clerk had learned her lesson and wouldn't need to talk to her about the subject again, and the clerk would just figure the files were taken by the right person when she wasn't looking. As long as she got the files back before they were missed no one would be the wiser.

As Mystique was reflecting on the ease of her assignment Magneto was on a three way call with Mustang to Central headquarters. He had given them descriptions of each of the X-Men and what their powers were, as well as his suggestion on what to do when they were found. Mustang backed him on the 'talk first' policy and Central said they would take it under consideration as it consulted other military leaders on its implement.

Unfortunately there was one man who was not keen on using a peaceful approach with the X-Men. Lt. Colonel Frank Archer was always preparing for the next war, and the appearance of these mutants was an opportunity he could not pass up. Though he appreciated the powers these mutants were said to wield they were also group outside of the State's, and therefore the military's, complete control. Policy never stayed intact very long and they could not depend on Magneto's forces to always be cooperative. However if he could get some of the mutants from the second group, the X-Men, to one of the labs who knew what kinds of things they could create. Knowing he had to act swiftly Archer waited until Mustang and his mutant friend finished their report before putting in a direct call to the Fuehrer himself.

The wheels of conflict had already been set in motion.