"Pain," Colonel Roy Mustang said,"is an evil himunculus, no matter what she says, she's evil all the way. She travels with 6 of the himunculi, excluding Pride. There's another one named Torture, which very little is known about him. Pain is the reeincarnation of Izumi Carter's dead sister, Nigaya. She believed Torture, who was once called Bruce, was her soul mate and the two were soon to be wed. Nobody knows exactly how either of them died"
"Well," Ed said with a sigh,"I've never seen nor heard of this Torture person, but we'll keep an eye out for him"
"Be careful while searching for him, Elrics. Do you know why they call him Torture"
"I don't think I wanna know," Ed said."C'mon Al"
"Wait, Ed." Colonel Mustang said."Let me come with you. There's really nothing I can do back at the Military Organization Headquarters right now about Scar. They'll have to depend on themselves to search for him"
"He just goes on and on, doesn't he?" Ed whispered to his brother, Alphonse.
"Oh all right, Colonel, you can come with us,"Ed said."What harm could it do"
"Colonel," First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye said as she came running up to him,"we have some information on the whereabouts of Scar, sir"
"Good, good," Roy said."Elrics, you follow us"
They walked and followed Riza until they reached an old-looking shop with a sign they were unable to read.
"The man who lives here is a close relative to Scar," Riza said.
"He used to work in Lab 4, right?" Ed said.
"Yes," Riza said."How'd you know"
"Lucky guess"
"Colonel Roy Mustang, I repeat, Colonel Roy Mustang," the voice of someone talking through a walky-talky said."Your help is needed by Dock #6, I repeat, your help is neede by Dock #6"
"Riza, come," Roy said."Elrics, you stay here until I get back"
Roy and Riza left to help at Dock #6.
"Well, now what?" Alphonse Elric said.
"I guess we should go inside," Ed said to his brother.
"Hello?" Al called as they walked into the house."Is anyone there"
"Yes," a buff-looking man said."This is my house/shop. Are you friends with that kind military woman"
"Yes," Al said slowly."Who are you"
"I'm Bronco. I'm 62 years old, but you can't tell because I work-out. Who might you be"
"Well"
"We're two alchemists; our names aren't important," Ed interuppted Al quickly.
"O.K., then. I'm a close relative to Scar; second cousin or something like that. Riza, or whatever her name is, asked me a lot of questions about him, I figure you want to know the same stuff I told her. My half-brother was closer to Scar than anyone else, including his own mother"
"What is your half-brother's name?" Ed asked him.
"Bruce," Bronco replied."He was a very kind man; always looking for ways to help people. He died 4 or 5 years ago"
"I see," Ed said."You have the Ishbaalan skin tone, but not the eye color. Are you a mix"
"Yes, I am," Bronco replied."If you want to know, I worked as a scientist down in Lab 4 for 30 some years. I retired at age 51. I was pretty top of the line, but I got a heart attack and retired early. Nowadays, I'm a blacksmith, selling custom weapons and armor. Did you, by chance, get that armor here?" he said while pionting at Alphonse.
"Uh...Uh-" Al stuttered.
"No, he didn't," Ed replied for Al.
"Can you even talk?" Bronco asked Al.
"Yes!" Al responded."I can talk"
"Well, why's your kid answering for you"
"WHAT!" Ed yelled."HE'S MY YOUNGER BROTHER! AND WHO ARE YOU CALLING A KID! A DWARF! SHORTY! A SHRIMP"
"Um...uh...I never said all that stuff"
"S...Sorry...Bronco," Al said."He doesn't like being reffered to as a kid or short or he freaks out"
"I see..." Bronco replied.
"I'm 15 you little"
"Hey!" Bronco said."None of that, you hear"
"Ed! Al!" Colonel Roy Mustang said.
"Oh," Ed said."Colonel Mustang, when did you get here"
"About two seconds ago," Roy said."I could hear you all the way across town"
"I'm very self-concious about my height,"Ed said.
"Anyway," Roy said,"the accident at Dock #6 wasn't too serious. A child who is trying to learn alchemy accidently transmuted a fire extinguisher into a flame thrower and burned his hand. 1st degree burn; not serious at all"
"Colonel," Ed said,"Can I speak to you alone"
"Of course," Roy replied.
They walked to a corner of the house.
"Do you think," Ed said,"that Bronco's brother Bruce is Pain's Torture"
"It's very likely," Roy said.
"Bronco," Ed called to the shopkeeper,"could you keep an eye out for my mother? Her name is Pain. She has long black hair and two markings underneath her right eye"
"Of course I'll look out for her," Bronco told Ed.
"Could you tell her we went to Dock #6"
"Of course I will! I guess this means you guys will be leaving, right"
Yeah," Ed said,"we'll be seeing you!"
MEANWHILE, IN DISSAPORA FOREST...
"I'm so glad," Lust said,"that Dante was able to bring us back"
"Yeah," Envy said,"but I still hate who she loves, that dirty, rotten, crackhead Honhemheim"
"Isn't he on the other side of the gate?" Wrath asked."I thought he might be, because I think I saw him pass me while I was there"
"Yes, he is on the other side," Lust said,"I was there when he left"
"Ah," everyone heard Pride say,"my comrades"
"What do you want, Pride?" Envy asked him.
"Envy,"Fuhrer Pride said,"the military has become a burden. Kill me so it will be over"
"I thought Colonel Mustang already took care of that..." Lust said
"He did, but that ugly old hag Dante had to"
"HOW DARE YOU CALL MY MOTHER AN UGLY OLD HAG!" Envy cried.
As Envy said that, he took out his knife and stuck it through Fuhrer Pride's chest several times.
"Serves you right, you ugly Fuhrer. You never made much of a leader anyway!" Envy said, enraged.
"Envy," Sloth said softly,"why do you hate Honhemhiem so much"
"He is technically my father," Envy replied,"and he left my mother, Dante, for a woman named Trisha. She had two children, the two Elric brats, but she died. Then the Elric brothers tried to bring her bac"
Envy stared at Sloth for a while and took ouut a picture of the woman his father left Dante for and compared Sloth to it.
"Y-y...you're...you're Trisha! So those two brats are my half-brothers"
"I suppose..." Sloth replied.
"Lust?" Gluttony said,"Can I eat him?" he pointed to Pride's dead body.
"Yes, if you want..."
