"I have no idea what to do for my exams this year." Reina grumbled. She was laying on the couch in Roy's office.
"You could challenge someone." Hughes suggested. "You're a good enough fighter, I don't think it really matters who."
"Maybe…"
Fuhrer Bradley walked in. Reina, Hughes, and Mustang stood at attention.
"Hello Armed Element."
"Sir."
"I came to talk to you about your exams this year. They are in a week, right?"
"Yes sir."
"Good. If I understand correctly, you have beat almost all of my alchemists in sparring fights?"
"Well… I have had duals with many State Alchemists, and yes I won most of them."
"Good. For your exams this year, I want you to fight one of best alchemists in my force."
"Who?"
"The Flame Alchemist."
Everyone was silent.
"…I don't think that would be a fair fight." Reina spoke up. "Roy and I are very close. I don't want my colleagues to think the entire thing is staged."
"Don't worry about that. It will be a fair fight, as both of you now have orders to try your hardest to win. If I see any hesitation, there will be a problem."
"Yes sir." Reina and Roy agreed at the same time.
"Good. I will see you two at the exams." Bradley left.
"Well, this isn't good." Roy said, slumping in his chair.
"No kidding." Reina flopped on the couch.
"I wonder who will win that fight…" Hughes mumbled.
On the day of the dual, everyone gathered in the courtyard. Roy looked deadly serious, and for the first time, Reina doubted her abilities. She was about to make a fool out of herself in front of people that already thought she was a waist of state resources… No she wouldn't. She wasn't going to lose this fight. She couldn't let herself, and she actually had an advantage. She knew everything about how he fights, and he knows almost nothing. Reina suppressed her victorious smile as she stepped into the ring. Hughes introduced them, then did his usual ready, set, fight. Roy sighed, but quickly snapped his fingers together. Reina put all of her concentration on alchemy, keeping the air from changing. He looked confused when the courtyard didn't burst into flames.
'He's powerless against me.' Reina thought. She used her alchemy to move the ground beneath his feet. Roy rolled to the side, but ended up on his knees. That gave Reina enough time to lessen the space between them.
'The closer I am, the less of a chance he has.' Reina reasoned with herself.
"Not too bad." Roy told her, standing up. "But not enough." While he was on his knees, he had drawn a transmutation circle in the dirt. He tapped it with his foot, sending a giant fist made of stone into the ground where she was standing. Reina had a split second to think. She opened a hole in the ground under her, making a sort of slippery slide tunnel to the other side of Roy. The ground gave her a boost back to the surface. Reina had just discovered a fast way to confuse her enemies, since it took barely a second to get behind them. Roy tried a few more transmutations, but as Reina found new ways to change his alchemy, they all backfired. Finally giving up on his alchemic power, he changed to normal combat. That was just what Reina wanted. She was a lot faster than him, and had a lot more energy. After a few minutes of taunting him, Reina could see Roy getting tired. His attacks were slower and more impulsive. When she could feel her own energy levels starting to get low, she swung at him a few times, but he easily dodged. The look on his face said he was about to get cocky, thinking she was starting to make mistakes. Reina had him right where she wanted. His next step away was more of a shuffle, so she had a little lip come out of the ground. Roy caught it with his heel and fell backwards. As soon as he hit the ground, he tried to roll back onto his feet, but the stone wrapped around his wrists and ankles. Reina waited for him to stop struggling before she pulled a thin sword out of the ground. She tapped his chest with it, signaling the end of the dual. Both of them were exhausted as she helped him stand up. The fuehrer clapped his hands, obviously surprised with the out come. Everyone else clapped with him, and Hughes made his way back into the ring.
"And the winner is… Reina Sage, the Armed Element Alchemist!"
Everyone cheered. Hawkeye gave them each a bottle of water as they went back to Mustang's office.
"That was amazing." She said. "I didn't know you could fight like that."
"Neither did I." Reina admitted, collapsing on the couch.
"Where did you learn those transmutations?" Hughes asked.
"I'm not entirely sure."
"I'm never fighting you again." Roy grumbled, sinking into his chair. "None of my alchemy works. Not even my flame alchemy."
"Noticed that, did ya?" Reina taunted.
"How? How did you stop my transmutation?"
"I didn't. I just transmuted right after you did, not giving the spark enough time to light."
"…Why didn't I ever think of that?!"
Reina laughed. "I don't know. But I'm not using some of those transmutations ever again. I'm tired."
Just then, Havoc burst into the room. "Reina! That was incredible! Everyone's talking about you!"
"Everyone talked about me before this." Reina pointed out.
"But this time it's all good things."
"I figured."
"The Armed Element Alchemist, best alchemist in the military. That's what most of them are saying!"
"Oh goodie." Reina mumbled halfheartedly.
After the big fight, Reina was sent on one mission after another. She was assigned to the eastern border, taking care of any problems that surfaced. She was often gone for a few months at a time, jumping from town to town. Roy couldn't express how proud he was, or how worried. As Reina grew older, she became more beautiful, more smart, and more talented. Just after she turned fifteen, Reina was sent to the eastern border to check out reports of a chimera killing people during the night. Right before she boarded the train, she gave everyone a hug.
"I'll see you soon." She promised.
"Be careful."
"I will. Bye." Reina took her seat and, as the train pulled out of the station, waved at her family.
