It never ceased. Over the countless long hour drives with Claude and Marie during our summer trips to Claude's parents' home, it was either my stomach or my head that complained. Now, the three-day train rides didn't make a difference. My head throbbed painfully with each pulse that raced through me. Someone was clearing their throat and I slowly opened my eyes.
The Colonel watched me with a blank expression with his chin resting against his hands, elbows on his desk. It was hard to tell if he was going to give me a hard time or not. Clearly he had more heart than that after hearing what I had just been through.
"I'm aware of what you've been through, Lightning." He said. "However, your attention is needed since I'll be giving you some important information."
I lowered my hand and sat up straighter in my seat to attempt to heed him, but my head began to swim even more. I blinked a couple times to focus my eyes better and then turned and looked at Edward. He sat there slouched in his seat, arms crossed over his chest, glaring at the Colonel. The train ride wasn't very smooth for him either. The two of us had finally got some sleep during the voyage and I woke to find myself with my head on his shoulder. I remember jumping in my seat and backing away from him, my face flushing as red as a tomato. I hoped that he fell asleep before I did so he wouldn't catch me falling asleep on him.
"The two of you managed to catch the killer in a matter of days after he slipped through the fingers of the authorities for years." Mustang spread our reports across his desk, skimming the descriptions of the case. He picked mine up, glanced at it and then raised his eyebrows at me.
"So tell me, Jensen. How exactly did you come upon the graves?" His dark eyes scrutinized me as if perusing me to get to the point by telling the truth.
I purposely left out the part of my dreams giving me visions. The images of the girls running through the woods and leading me to their bodies were still fresh in my mind. At times I saw them even just by blinking my eyes. I didn't want to include that in my report by showing the Colonel that I might be a little insane to be seeing dead people.
"U-um…well, I…" My throat was dry from my mouth hanging slightly open while deep in thought as I tried to come up with a good explanation.
"You gave us a mission to figure out where these kids were disappearing to, right Colonel?" Edward shrugged and folded his hands behind his head. "We did our part by following the research and the clues we found and went from there. Enough said."
A mixture of relief and annoyance filled me. It took a weight off my shoulders to know that Edward was trying to cover for me, but I didn't find it necessary for him to lie like that by giving such a brief reason.
"You knew where they were buried, didn't you Jensen?" Mustang ignored Edward.
I raised my eyes and regarded him. He regarded back and I knew I could not make something up to protect myself. He already knew.
"I didn't at first, sir." I told him, shaking my head.
He continued to gaze at me, then looked at Lieutenant Hawkeye and nodded. She nodded in response and then turned and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her.
"You had premonitions, didn't you?" He said with a quiet intensity.
I started and sat back farther in my seat. Edward's foot slipped off his knee and banged against the floor.
"H-how do you know this?" I asked.
"When I read your file and saw your background, the name of your uncle Julius jumped out at me. There isn't an authority figure in the country who doesn't know what he's done to the people of the town he lived in…and to you." His dark eyes pierced through me during that last statement.
Hearing this, my breathing became shallow and my heart pounded against my sternum. For a while, there were no words queued in my brain. I felt paralyzed.
"That's why Wilson took her, isn't it?" Edward exclaimed. "But how did he come to know about her?"
"I asked myself the same thing and I think it's because he either once worked with Julius or he did up until the three of you found him out. Julius has had many people work for him over the years ever since he started his experiment. Some are still working for him today and the investigators have come across their names but their whereabouts are unknown."
"So if they don't know where they are then how did they learn who they are?" Edward asked.
"There have been many sightings from bystanders over the years, although some of the investigators have made up names for these subjects." Mustang tapped the desk with his pen. "We also know that some of them travel in pacts and tend to wear the same clothing as each other."
My mind suddenly flew back several days to the train ride to Dupol before everything started. I remembered seeing a group of people sitting in the car with us a few rows down all wearing the same type of clothing as each other. I didn't pay any attention to them because I figured they were a part of some cause that wanted to change the world with some wishful thinking.
"Colonel, I remember seeing a group of people like that on the train to Dupol." I told him.
The Colonel's eyes sparked a little. "Did they get off before you, or were they already on when you got on the train."
"I didn't notice them until about halfway through the trip." I shook my head. "Though I don't think they got off before us, and they definitely didn't get off with us."
Mustang folded his hands on top of his desk. "That means they headed east." He gazed at the surface of his desk for a moment as a pregnant silence lingered in the room. Occasionally, the sound of footsteps paced back and forth in the hallway.
Regarding Mustang again, I noticed there was something he wanted to ask us but he seemed to be dwelling on whether that was necessary or not. Then he stood and walked to a file cabinet in the corner of the room. He pulled out a manila envelope and placed it on his desk.
"Do either of these people look familiar?" He asked opening the envelope. Inside were documents that looked like criminal records with pictures of people attached to them. Most of the pictures were out of focus and so blurry that anyone would have a difficult time recognizing them. Some didn't even have their faces showing, but their outlines as if they were taken at night from several feet away. However, one stood out to me. His grin glowed in the photo like a full moon on a dark, starry night. A shock of black hair curtained the right side of his face. I glanced at the name that he was supposedly given.
Keegan.
"Him!" I exclaimed and pointed at the photo. "I saw him on the night of the ball, just before the hospital caught on fire."
"That guy?" Edward leaned up to scrutinize the photo. "Are you sure it was him?"
"Well, I could sort of see him. His face was half lit by the moonlight." I looked up from the photo and to Edward, without realizing he had leaned over so much his face was inches from mine. His face was pinched in a small scowl, his golden eyes which usually carried warmth and mystery were now hard, and flickered a little as the wheels in his head turned.
"Are you sure it wasn't just a trick of the light?" Edward asked. His eyes remained on my face, causing me to squirm inside.
"He was…tall…and kind of muscular." I tried hard to focus on Keegan's outline instead of Edward's face, and his innate smell.
Edward suddenly sat up and faced the Colonel. "Wouldn't that make her a witness?"
"To a point," Colonel nodded. "She didn't see where he came from and where he disappeared after the explosions."
"But what about those voices we heard in the gardens?" Edward mused. "Colonel, did you see anyone there before they took off?"
"No one was there." He responded almost immediately. His face was completely solemn.
Edward and I were silent as we stared at him. "Um, are you sure you didn't see anyone." Edward asked, his scowl growing deeper.
The Colonel merely stared back at us as his face remained solemn and expressionless. "Unfortunately for you, I cannot reveal that information to you. This matter is for the police and those of the military who are involved in the investigation."
"Kale is involved in the investigation!" Edward pointed at me. I felt my face and neck grow hot. I looked sideways at him and shook my head. "She's the one who saw him, and you said she makes a valuable witness."
"She does not have enough information. She did not see where he came from, or where he vanished to afterwards." The Colonel stated.
"She, who? I'm right here!" I glanced back and forth between Edward and the Colonel.
Edward and Mustang both turned to answer me when a sharp rap at the door interrupted them. Mustang growled and glared at the door as Lieutenant Hawkeye burst into the room without waiting for a reply.
"Sir, sorry for the interruption, but we can't hold him back any longer."
"What?" Mustang asked.
Before the lieutenant could answer, there was a rush of movement from a giant mass that almost knocked her over. A second later, everything stopped and I realized the giant mass was a person.
He was tall with a muscular build. The sunlight pouring through the room glared off of his round, bald head. A blond handlebar mustache sported over his mouth, and his sharp, bright blue eyes pierced the room. It took me a while to realize I was gawking at him.
"Major Armstrong, what is the meaning of this?" Mustang yelled. "I'm in the middle of a status report!"
"My sincere apologies, sir" the tall man bowed, his bass voice boomed in the small room. "I come bearing news about new sightings of the terrorists in your region."
"My region?" Mustang frowned. "We just got a report saying they were heading east."
"I'm not so sure about that, since one of them walked into our office and confessed. He turned himself in."
"Turned himself in?" The Colonel replied incredulously.
"Could this be a sign of a guilty conscious?" I asked, still gaping at the large man standing in the doorway.
Edward shook his head. "Nah, I don't buy it. His friends could be using him as a spy or a distraction in order to take advantage of the state."
"Even so, there's one more thing that may come as a shock." The Major indicated by lowering his voice. "He claims to know the Lightning Alchemist and wishes to see her."
I gasped and gripped the back of my chair as I felt the blood drain from my face. He knows me? How is this possible? I thought.
Every eye in the room was fixed on me. Some were bewildered while others were accusing; waiting for an answer. The news had come as such a shock to me I almost panicked, and that would have made things seem even worse. I would have made myself look really bad.
There had to be a logical explanation. Why would someone from a terrorist group claim they know me? Are they trying to use me to get a certain bit of information?
Before speaking, I took several deep breaths to stay calm. "He knows me? Why would he say that?"
"He didn't say why or how he knows you," The Major stated. "Just that he does and he needs to talk to you."
"Yeah, sure he does!" Edward shouted angrily. "He's probably leading her to a trap."
"We have the man in custody in the prison. He's behind bars and is kept under heavy surveillance. I am offering to escort Lightning to him."
Mustang leaned back in his chair. "If that is the case, then you have my permission to go. Unless she denies the request." His eyes shifted to me, waiting for an answer.
My eyes lowered to the floor. "I don't know what he wants with me. I don't even know anyone who would be in a terrorist group."
"Nobody would know someone personally who would be involved in one." The colonel implied. "However, those people would not be directly involved in the group and only perform on the sidelines and used only when they were desperately needed."
"You think Kale's a part of the terrorist group? That's ridiculous!" Edward shouted as his face turned red.
"That's not what I'm saying," said Mustang. "However, I would like to hear how Lightning is going to respond."
I glanced at him. "He claims he knows me? Fine, I'll go and see what he wants."
"Very well," Mustang replied. "Major Armstrong, you may escort her to the prison."
"Sir." Armstrong saluted and stepped to the side of the open door. I took that as he was waiting for me. Just as I stood up, a hand firmly gripped my wrist.
"I'm going with you, Kale." Edward said, his face filled with determination.
"Um…" I started.
"That's not a good idea, Ed" Mustang said. "The prisoner asked to see only her, we would lose any sort of trust he might have with us if someone else shows up. Besides, Major Armstrong will not be far away, so there's nothing to worry about if something happens."
Edward's metal hand gripped my wrist harder. "I don't care," he said, not taking his eyes off me. "We're partners and I should go with her."
"It's okay, Edward." I said softly, smiling at him. "Major Armstrong will be there."
His eyes flickered a little, and then seemed to dim as if the flame inside of him was dying. His face remained solemn, but his lips pursed. A sigh escaped through his nose as his metal grip loosened on my wrist, and then he dropped it. I brought my wrist up against my chest and rubbed away the soreness.
I turned to Major Armstrong, who was waiting patiently by the door, and walked toward him. Then I turned around and said to Edward, "Don't worry, I'll tell you everything, Ed." I was about to step out of the room, but I stopped myself and saluted Mustang. Then, I turned and walked out of the room with Major Armstrong following.
From the office, I could hear Mustang chuckling and saying, "She'll be okay, Ed. She's strong."
Edward responded in a tone I had only heard him use when talking about his brother. "Yeah, I know she is."
Major Armstrong and I were out in the hall way when he spoke to me. "You have a very loyal partner, Lightning. He would do anything for you."
I smile to myself as those words sank in. "Of course," I said. "He's my friend."