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Envy: Hey, I wonder why the next chapter in the manga isn't coming out till the 17th?

Liz: You probably shouldn't bring that up Envy.

Envy: Why?

Ed: Take a look at the authoress for a second...

Envy:... huh... sadistic smile, foaming at the mouth, twitching, hammer in her hand... I'm thinking we should run...

DIE!

All: AUGH!

I shivered and pulled my cloak closer around me. It was the dessert but at night time the temperatures dropped a considerable ammount. I was almost to Lior now, the familier city reconizable by it's giant church. It looked stranger now... which probably had something to do with several of the surrounding buildings reduced to rubble. It had seen it's share of hard times with the military hadn't it?

Al had told me that a rebellion had started in Lior led by the same priest Cornello. I had a suspicion though that the guy whose arm had been ripped apart by gears wasn't the guy who had confused his followers.

"Envy, I may respect you more now but" I sighed smiling slightly. "You really are a jerk."

Understatement alert.

It was only once I had entered the city I figured that it might've been a good idea to get some sort of disguise. I had after all helped deface these peoples prophet and crushing all of their many hopes and dreams.

It's ok though, because no one freakin REMEMBERS me anyway!

...twitch...

The other problem was, even though it was night, there seemed to be some sort of crowded gathering that night and as we all know, crowds are not my thing. I decided to go the back ways to find where Ed was. He had probably thought to disguise him self, which made things tougher.

Of course I forgot that alleyways have a habit of spitting out people who want to kill me/ kidnap me whenever I go through them, a habit that you would think would make me much more careful when I walked around at night.

My sensible voice wishes that were true.

Who was this person? Take a guess.

"Lighting Alchemist." a deep voice said from behind me.

I turned in time to be slammed against a wall.

I found myself staring down (HA! I"M HIGHER THAN SOMEONE FOR ONCE!... course my feet weren't touching the ground but that's not important!) into the red eyes of an all to familier Ishbalan intent on killing state alchemists.

"Scar." I breathed and, figuring our previous truce was off, I tried to struggle out of his grip. His hand came up over my face and he pushed my head back against the wall. I froze. Already my life was being threatened again. Just. Flippin. Perfect.

"Where is Fullmetal." Scar growled.

"I don't know" I whispered. "I swear I don't know."

"You're lying" Scar accused.

"I'm not!" I protested. "We were seperated! I just got here to look for him!" I closed my eyes. "Please let me go. Please don't kill me."

There was a hesitant pause as Scar released me and I dropped to the ground. I took a few calming breaths and stood. He turned and began to walk away.

"Hey wait up!" I trotted after him.

"Why are you following me?" He asked not breaking his stride.

"Well you have the uncanny ability to find us state alchemists when it's least convenient." I reasoned. "So I figured I'll have a better chance of finding Ed if I follow you, if you know what I mean." I shrugged. "Hope you don't mind."

"Suit yourself lightning alchemist." Scar said shortly.

"Just call me Liz" I sighed. "I can't stand it when people refer to me by my title. Makes me feel like I'm an obedient dog."

"You are" Scar said simply. "A dog of the military."

I smiled slightly "You missed my phrasing there. It makes feel like an obedient dog... and obedience isn't my thing."

I saw a ghost of a smile on Scar's face as his pace quickened.

I smilied to myself and hurried after him.

Ed didn't see me but he saw Scar and he was running fast. I struggled to keep up with Scar. I was exhausted and I needed to get some more energy. Scar pressed his hand against a stone wall and caused a crack to shoot through it all the way to a pipe. The pipe shattered in the middle and caused hot steam to shoot out in a deadly cloud, blocking Ed's escape. He whirled around, glaring at Scar.

"If you've come all this way to find me you must have an idea of what I'm planning." Scar spoke sharply.

"God you've got to slow down." I panted coming up behind him. "And what is it that you're planning?"

Ed's eyes widened "Liz! H-how are you here?"

"Long story, tell you later" I waved the question away. "Now whose planning what?"

"Well there's a rumor that he's trying to do something really stupid" Ed turned his eyes back to Scar in an accusing glare "Like create the philosiphers stone!"

Scar's eyes narrowed in an obvious answer to Ed's accusation "You shouldn't interfere."

"Wha?" I looked between the two. "That's crazy! That means..." I thought about what would happen if the homunculi got a hold of the stone... not so much them, but their master that they mentioned so much. "How are you gonna pull all those human souls out of your pocket!"

Both of them ignored me and Ed began to talk "There's something I've been meaning to ask you Scar." Ed's voice was quiet but every bit as angry. "Four years ago there was a chimera in Central, part human, part dog." I felt my eyes widen. What did that have to do with anything?

"I returned it's soul to Ishbala."

"You killed a little girl!" Ed hissed.

"Wait... Nina!" I whirled. "You killed Nina?!"

"Out of mercy" Scar growled. "What could you have done for her."

A big fat load of nothing that's what... but still...

"Those aren't the kind of desicions that we're aloud to make damnit!" Ed snapped.

"Anything else you'd like to say now?" Scar asked tensely after a short pause.

"With that kind of messed up logic" Ed's eyes narrowed. "I bet you think it's alright to sacrifice Rose and her people too!"

"Huh?" I asked confused. What did Rose have to do with anything? Why would Scar think of sacrificing people were being simalerly supressed by the military just like the Ishbalans? Did this mean I'd have to here Rose talk again? God you miss alot when you're kidnapped don't you?

"And how is it that you know about Rose?" Scar asked.

Ed didn't answer so Scar, back to his normal self I guess, charge Ed hand extended.

"Does that make me a threat?" Ed clapped his hands together and transmuted his arm into a blade (He loses so many good pairs of gloves doing that) and charged Scar. Scar tried to get his hand over his face but instead Ed's wig (That looked so dang funny on him) slipped off in Scar's hand and Ed was able to jump back before charging again. He elbowed Scar in the face but the man was able to grab the automail and try to destroy it. For some unknown reason, it didn't work. and Ed jumped away again and kicked his leg up to hit Scar on the side of his head. Scar tried once again to explode the automail but failed.

By this time I had figured out that Ed was switching the materials of the metals so that Scar didn't know what he was trying to explode, which he explained to Scar right after I made this realization. It was a clever idea to say the least.

"I've been changing the metals in my arm to keep you guessing!" Ed growled. "But these metals have some different properties and it's screwing up the design. So I'm gonna have to make this quick" He charged Scar again.

He kicked and punched at Scar in attempt to hit him until he finally managed to punch him with his automail fist (ouch) and knock him into a door. "You idiot!" Ed yelled grabbing Scar by the collar. "What makes you think you can sacrifice an entire city for your cause? You have no right to play God with these innocent people like that!"

Scar grabbed Ed's arm, his flesh arm. "Have you forgotten Ed? I can destroy human flesh as well!"

Ed let out a yell and raised his blade arm.

"STOP IT!" I yelled.

I heard a sudden swishing sound as Ed's arm was pinned to the wall by two nails... two sharp, familier, shoulder destroying nails. In their shock, Scar forgot he was supposed to be destroying Ed and Ed forgot he was supposed to be destroying Scar.

"Wow, didn't take long to run into you guys again." I smirked. "I almost went two days without seeing you!"

"A shock isn't it?" Lust smirked slightly as well.

"Great, the homunculi." Ed's eyes narrowed.

"Please, feel free to call me Lust" Lust said... lustfully.

"And I'm Gluttony!" Gluttony said in his mentally retarded way.

"Do you know why we've told you our names Fullmetal?" Lust asked.

"Yeah" Ed grinned. "You've told me and now you have to kill me right?"

He clapped his free hand against his still pinned to the wall, automail one and slammed his hand against the wall. In a simaler way to Scar, a crack was sent running through the stone and cracked two pipes causing deadly steam to cover Lust and Gluttony.

"Nice Hello Ed, really" I sighed sarcastically.

"Well why don't you try helping!" Ed snapped.

"You seem to have a handle on things pipsqueak" I shrugged.

"NOT THE TIME LIZ!"

"There's always a time for insulting your hieght."

"AUGH!"

Meanwhile Lust and Gluttony were back on their feet, all of their burns gone.

"Oh yes that burns!" Gluttony said sarcastically... woah, woah, woah? Gluttony? Sarcastic? You mean like... with an actual sense of humor... as in he has one of those? MY GOD WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN! HE NEVER GET'S MY SARCASM! WHEN DID HE GET THIS INTELLIGENT! And just the idea of Gluttony mocking anyone is just hilarious! How the heck does a mentally retarded, fat... thing mock anyone and get taken seriously?

Whatever... I digress.

"You can't get rid of us that easily kid, we're not weaklings like Greed." Lust smoothed down her hair.

Thank god I wasn't the one being called kid or someone would've had Hell to pay.

Scar was on his feet now walking past Ed, his eyes fixed on Lust.

She frowned "Relax Scar, we're just trying to help you."

"I don't need help from the likes of you" he growled.

"If you are going to make a philosiphers stone as you say then we're going to help you whether you like it or not." she smirked laziliy.

Scar fished a strange necklace from his pocket and held it up "Do you know what this is? You gave it to my brother."

"I don't know what you're talking about" Lust said frowning, an obvious bit of confusion on her face.

"You know more than you think!" he snapped raising the necklace a bit more. Lust's eyes suddenly widened and cold sweat broke out on her face. She looked genuinly... shocked, and afraid... her usual nonshalant expression no longer on her face.

"What is it Lust? What's wrong?" Gluttony asked conserned. Lust suddenly began to collapse but Gluttony caught her with a gasp. He turned looking quite demonic "I hate you!" he growled. "I hate you for hurting my lust!" then, with her over his shoulder he launched himself up into the air, grabbing onto a roof ledge and with a yell, carving a hole in the stone wall with his teeth before swinging safely inside.

"That was strange." I commented.

"Just what do you know about that homunculous?" Ed asked Scar sharply.

Something suddenly clicked in my head. Envy had said Lust was an Ishbalan woman... Scar recognized Lust... the necklace... one that his brother gave to her? All of the pieces suddenly clicked into place my head.

"She... she was created by an Ishbalan" I whispered. "And you recognize her... she collapsed because of that necklace..." I turned to look at Scar. "Scar... did your brother... did he ever preform a human transmutation?"

Scar's eyes widened "How did you know about that."

Ed stared "Yeah... how do you?"

I opened my mouth for an explanation then closed it, staring at the ground.

Scar looked like he was about to start attacking things again but a voice came through the darkness "Wait!"

We all turned to see... Lyra... and... Rose? That's the most random appearance I've ever seen.

"Lyra?" Ed stared, seeming just as suprised as me.

"Perhaps you should tell them how you know that strange woman Scar." Lyra said. "Yes, I think that's what Rose is trying to say."

Ed's eyes widened "You mean... she's a mute now?"

Rose smiled slightly and nodded.

...this might seem a tad bit mean of me but... BONUS!

I sat, deep in thought after Scar finished his story about his brother and the woman Lust had been made from. We had also gotten a little more info on exactly how his brother had died and exactly what his arm was, an in complete philosiphers stone.

"So that's it. Your brothers plan was to make philosiphers stone inside of him." Ed breathed. "And that arm was taking the souls of all the Ishbalans, dying in the war. And that's why your arm can deconstruct things."

"Yes" Scar's fist clenched. "Because it is an incomplete philosiphers stone. But it hasn't been enough, I still need more lives."

"You think that gives you the right to use Rose as some charasmatic puppet while you sacrifice her people!" Ed snapped.

"Calm down" Lyra said. "You misunderstand his tactics, Scar isn't going to sacrifice anyone from Lior."

"Tell me Lyra" Ed glared. "What the Hell are you doing here anyway?"

Lyra looked down at the ground "After Dante was killed I didn't know what to do. I went searching for a place where I could do some good with alchemy. Here I learned about Scar and his plans for Justice." she looked up at us. "You don't have to worry Edward. When the military arrives, the people will have already slipped out of the city through a secret passage. Then, Scar will activate the array."

Oh yeah cause that's so much better.

"Solidiers have lives just like us!" Ed protested. "I don't care what you think of the military, they're still-" Ed stopped abruptibly as he saw Rose glaring at him in silence from the doorway. Her baby suddenly began to cry and-... wait... BABY! WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN!?

Rose rocked the child comfortingly and dissapeared into the next room.

"You have no idea what the solidiers have done to the people of Lior" Scar hissed with a quiet, vicious voice.

"Like what, what'd they do to Rose?" Ed asked suspiciously.

Judging by the baby I had a good idea.

"Some soldiers took her to their camp. Whatever they did to her their... left her unable to speak." Scar sighed grimly.

Yep... I was right... God that's awkward.

It was true... some military people were corrupt bastards... but they did have lives... they had families some of them not to mention there was Mustang and his subbordinates. Could I let them die? Still this seemed inevitable... and I still owed Scar for saving my life once and foiling one of my suicidal attempts. I owed him. But Ed would obviously try to stop this as hard as he could wouldn't he?

So whose side was I on?

...I hated asking myself that question.

THOU SHALT ALL PERISH!

Envy: Good lord it's just a manga chapter!

Liz: Lighten up!

DIE!

Ed: AUGH!

Al: sigh... review!