It was the longest train ride of his life. And Alphonse Elric had ridden some long trains.
He spent the entire trip with his head against the window, staring at nothing in particular. As soon as he even tried to focus on anything he couldn't stop the tears from leaking out. He had already cried enough.
After Ed had told him the news, he had stared at his brother in disbelief, not quite able to understand what he meant.
"They finally word out of Xing," Ed had eventually said in Al's silence. "An operative managed to escape with a newspaper. They've been printing them all over Xing and well… that's what it said."
Al was suddenly very glad that he was sitting down. If not he probably would have collapsed.
"She's… dead?"
"I'm so sorry, Al." It had to be a mistake or a lie, it couldn't be true. "Mustang gave you condolences too, but he said that he needed you for political clean up. You are still the Ambassador… Al… really, I am so sorry."
Al hadn't been able to respond. The correct words rose to his mind for a response, but things were not find at all. Ed had left him then, leaving him free to let the realization crash over him.
The last words he had ever said to her... The last time he had ever seen her… How was he supposed to live with himself knowing that the last memory she would have of him basically yelling at her and then walking out?
She was grinning at him as he dragged her through the streets in Chengshi, laughing as he spun her around, crying the first time he kissed her, smiling as she showed him how to ride a horse right.
Never again… she was gone.
The tears began to fall again.
"Al, thank goodness you've come. You're the only person who might be able to help us figure out this mess."
He nodded, doing his best to keep his jaw steady.
"Alright, what's happening?"
"We don't even know that much. All we have is the information of one informant and a newspaper printing in a language none of us understand. The translators have done their best, but either their best isn't good enough or the newspaper is purposefully being vague and confusing."
"Both are entirely possible," Al said honestly, nodding. "Alright. Let me speak with the man. I'll look at the paper later." He didn't want to have to see the words printing on paper. It was bad enough the image existed in his imagination.
The man he was introduced to had dark brown hair that would have passed as inconspicuous at a quick glance among a large crowd of Xingese. A closer look would have shown green eyes no one could have confused as Xingese though.
"Ambassador Elric," the man said, rising to his feet when they entered the large conference room. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise," he responded, automatically shaking the offered hand. "Now tell me, what's going on?"
"Chaos," the man, who Al learned was named Abbots, said. "Everything is in chaos. The Revolution has turned everything on its head. There have been threats for years, but this is madness. The new government will need a miracle to get everything back under control. They've already declared the Republic of Xing in the Empress's death."
"The Republic of Xing? Who's the leader?"
"There isn't an official declared leader yet. Some of the citizens were talking about elections, but from what I gathered about the leaders of the Revolution, they're more likely to establish their own leader. I heard rumors that there was a Prince involved with actually giving them access to the Capitol itself. He knew all the ins and outs of the palace and led them straight there."
"One of the Princes?" Al asked, frowning. He couldn't think of anyone who would have done that. Some of the Clan leaders had supported the Revolution, sure, but one of the Princes? Maybe someone who thought that if they supported the Revolution they could rise to power.
"Yes. It was just a rumor, but I would believe it. They started making moves towards the Capitol late November and they just tore through the Chin and the Xing Provinces. It was terrifying. I was already on the move by then and all the news I got was second hand, but according to what I heard, they people on the inside infiltrating, and they knew hidden passages, no one saw them coming. At least not that they would be as powerful as they were."
"Do they talk about it in the paper?"
"I think so. I specialize in the dialect of Southern Xing, and I got that paper in the Ranghi Province, which is most definitely northern, so I couldn't quite understand all of it. Usually Xingese writing is pretty standardized, but the clan differences... they go deep."
Al nodded, completely understanding. "I can read most dialects, I had to learn to be able to study alkahestry. Most of those texts were written before the end of the War of Unification too, so they're not even remotely standardized."
"Well then I hope you can give us more enlightenment." Abbots exchanged a look with the Fuhrer who nodded, then gestured to a thick envelope on the table.
"Alright, Alphonse. Let's see what you can do for us."
Al approached it as if it was a bomb, gingerly extracting the thin paper they used to print the news in Xing. He unfolded it and laid it out on the table.
He took a deep breath before looking down at the paper.
"The Empress is Dead."
He expected the tears to start again, or for him to have to look away. As it was though, he found himself frowning and looking closer.
The newspaper clearly said the Empress was dead. And as he quickly scanned the explaining article, it told him the same thing. But something about the symbol seemed off, different. It wasn't until he looked at the extra-long list of obituaries that he realized why.
"She's not dead."
Mustang frowned at him, understandably confused.
"What?"
"She's not dead!" Al yelled this time, looking up with a dumbstruck look on his face. Then the smile began to grow. "She's not dead!"
"Alphonse, what are you talking about? The translation's clear as day. 'The Empress is Dead'."
"It's colloquial Xingese, specific to the region," Al said, voice becoming excited now as he showed the confused Fuhrer the newspaper. "Look, the symbol for physical death is over here. By the obituaries. This symbol if for a more spiritual death — the death of a part of you, the death of a legacy that kind of thing. They don't mean she's dead, it means she's been deposed."
"Isn't that just as bad?" he asked, still frowning.
No, it wasn't as bad. It changed everything.
"No. No, this means I have to go back."
"Al, you can't. There are no trains running to Xing, and I'm not sure they'd even accept a foreign train right now."
"I don't care how I get in. I'll walk across the desert if I have to. I have to get there."
23 January 1925
Mei and Ling were staring at each other. Ling's face was even, controlled. Mei's was openly hostile, eyes seeming to bore holes into her half brother. It was clear that if she had her way she would by flying across the room, kunai in hand, and probably tear him apart herself, but she knew that even though the guard standing at his shoulder was the mother of two, it hadn't dulled Lan Fan's warrior abilities in the slightest. Mei on the other hand felt like she could barely take the time to eat, let alone practice martial arts.
They were the only three in the room. Ling had probably been advised to take multiple guards in with him, since even though Mei's skills may have waned, everyone knew she was still a very skilled fighter. But true to his character, Ling had ignored the advice and put his trust completely in his wife.
"Mei—" Ling started, finally breaking the ten-minute-long silence.
"Snake," Mei spat back viciously. Ling opened his mouth, maybe to protest, but then shrugged.
"I deserve that. I did go behind your back. And for that I apologize."
"Not accepted," she said shortly. He sighed and leaned forward so his arms were resting on his knees.
"Mei, I didn't come here for your venom. I came here to ask you step down peacefully."
"Why?" she snapped. "So you can become President? I know all about your little deal with Hua. That's why you agreed to help them out. If you can get them access to the Palace and convince me to step down and you become the President. I never should have trusted you! Ever!"
"I made that deal to protect you!"
"You're a power hungry snake, Yao. You always have been, even in Amestris, and you always will be. I never should have believed Al when he said I could trust you."
"Al?"
"What?" Mei said, not understanding why he would have picked up on that particular word. And wishing he hadn't. She had been trying her best not to think of the blond, and succeeding fairly well, during her waking hours at least.
"You called him Al. Not Ambassador Elric."
She was flustered for a moment, stuttering over her words. "I… of course, I… he's my friend."
"You don't have to pretend, Mei," Ling said gently. "I know. Al told me."
Mei turned away from him again, hugging herself. "So what? I loved him."
"Loved?"
Mei opened her mouth to snap something back… and found her tongue unwilling to say the words. Her throat closed at the look of anger in his golden eyes as he stormed out of her room. "… love. I… I never should have let him go. He's the only person who's ever really cared about me. Not my grandfather, not my father, not my mother, or any of the servants who looked after me. Not the Fullmetal Alchemist, not you, not even my people… Al was the first person who ever cared… now even he hates me."
"I don't think it'd be physically possible for Alphonse to hate you."
"You weren't there. You didn't hear him. He probably wouldn't even care if they killed me."
"Don't say that." Ling said sharply. Mei was so shocked she whirled around to see his fierce expression.
"Why are you so passionate about it?"
"Because I know with every fiber of my being that he would care very much if they killed you. He would rather die himself than let any harm come to you."
"How do you know that?"
"Because I'd die before I'd let any harm come to Lan Fan. I may not have been there during your fight, but I know Al. And I know that look in his eyes. He'd be devastated if you were to die, Mei. Devastated."
She stared at her brother, for a moment forgetting the circumstances of why they were talking. "… do you really think so?"
"I know so. And if you really love him, you won't do that to him."
"… You just want me to step down so that you can be President—"
"Will you give up on that!" he shouted, shooting to his feet. Mei flinched slightly. "I'm not here for power! I'm trying to save your life! You're right! You step down and I become President. But I'd be here trying to convince you to step down whether I got anything out of it or not! You don't have to throw your life away!"
"You're asking me to live the rest of my life knowing that I've failed. That I will be remembered as the demise of the Xingese Empire. How can you ask that!"
"You're going to live the rest of your life knowing that either way, Mei, whether the rest of your life is thirty years or a week. But you can be happy. You could be with Alphonse!"
"They'll publicly humiliate me and send me to jail for the rest of my life!" she shouted back.
"Not if you cooperate. I will be President; I'll be able to shorten your sentence. 10 years. Then you can go and be with Al."
"He's not going to wait 10 years—"
"Al would wait till the end of the earth for you." She looked away again. This time, Ling moved around the small tea table separating them and put his hand on her shoulder.
"I will protect Xing, Mei. I promise that I will keep Xing safe. I will protect and care for it. I love my nation, but the Empire is the wrong way to care for it. There's too much infighting and mistrust. We tried to kill each other! All of our siblings did. But I will care of this nation. As a President. Not an Emperor. Just please. Leave being Empress behind. Be Mei for once and live."
She didn't answer.
"Please."
Mei couldn't meet his eyes. She stared straight ahead. Before finally, slowly, her head bowed.
"May my noble ancestors forgive me."
Then she removed her crown, placed it on the table, and walked away.