Alchemist Chronicles
Chapter 9 - The Metatronic Stone
1900, Cameron, Amestris
Cameron, east of Central, in the east Amestris, a baby is brought into the world. Her mother and father at the hospital in the delivery room. A natural birth without any problems. A little girl is safely delivered, cleaned up, examined for any health problems, then given back to her mother.
Nurse - "Here you go, Ms. Nara Rambo. Your newborn daughter is in the clear. She's clearly excited to meet you. Her wailing is definitely letting us know that she's here to stay." The nurse says, chuckling lightly.
Nara - "Thank you." She tells the nurse as she leaves the room. When her daughter gets comfortable in her arms, her wailing slowly turns into sniffles. "Hey there little one." She says, then releasing the straps off of her gown to feed her daughter. Her husband next to her brushes his hands on his daughter's cheek and the little one wraps her tiny fingers around his index finger, as she's drinking her milk.
A half an hour later the nurse comes back into the room. "So, have you and husband thought of a name yet?" The husband and wife look at each other then looks back at the nurse.
Mr. Medesto Matos - "Marisol. Marisol Meadowbrooke Rambo." The wife smiles and nods her head.
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1911, (Switching between Sheb and Briggs)
Major General Grumman has several important documents that Brigadier General Olivier Armstrong requested. He decides to send 2nd Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye and Ari begs to go along for the trip, to which Chris reluctantly agrees. Since this is Ari's first trip up north to both Sheb and Briggs, she is being escorted by two Amestrian officers that Mustang picked himself. The first officer being Warrant Officer Nathan Mccartney and the second being Corporal Drake Dixon.
They make it to Sheb by late afternoon and decide to crash for the night at a hotel.
When the next day comes, they leave, traveling to Briggs. They make it to the gate and walk through the only passageway to get there. (Luckily for them there wasn't that much snow on the ground since it's the middle of summer)
Just a few feet away from the fortress, 1st Lieutenant Buccaneer, Captain Miles, and a few other Briggs men meet them halfway. Introductions take place and then they continue to Briggs.
Olivier is in her office when they enter Briggs Fortress. Miles escorts Ari and Riza to the office, while Nathan and Drake are sent to work within and outside of the fortress.
Miles knocks before he enters the office. "Bring them in with you, Miles." She says. He salutes and holds the door open for them. They walk in and Olivier points to the chairs in front of her. They both sit down as Miles closes the door, then stands next to them.
Olivier - "Are those the files that General Grumman ordered you to bring to me?" Pointing to the folders on Ari's lap.
Ari nervously says. "Y-Yes Ma'am!" She tries to hand it to Miles.
Olivier - "Don't hand it to him! (Ari flinches) Stand up and hand them to me." Ari nervously stands up, takes a deep breath and walks forward. She hands Olivier the folders. Olive takes them and lays them down on her desk. "Tell me, what is your name, child?"
Ari - "It's Marisol Rambo. Ari for short, ma'am."
Olivier looks at Ari questionably 'She has the same eyes as my old friend... I wonder' she tells herself, then asks her. "Are you familiar with the name 'John Rambo' Ari?"
Ari - "N-No ma'am."
Olivier - "Hmmm. Interesting..." Ari gives her a confused look. "Well then it was nice meeting you, Ari. It was nice seeing you again as well 2nd Lt Hawkeye." Riza nods respectfully at Armstrong.
Ari smiles. "It was nice meeting you too, ma'am."
Olivier smirks. "Miles and Hawkeye, the both are you are excused. I would like to speak to Ari here, alone. " The both of them salute at Armstrong, then Riza looks at Ari. "I'll be fine, Ms. Riza." Ari tells her when she turns to look at her. Riza nods, then leaves with Miles.
When the door closes, Olivier leans forward and says. "Grumman has told me several things about you. (Ari looks back at Olivier) I need you to confirm what's true. Start at the beginning, Ari. Tell me everything." Ari takes a deep breath and starts.
Several hours later, both Olivier and Ari are walking through Briggs, Buccaneer catches up to them. "General!"
Olivier - "What's going on, Buccaneer?"
Buccaneer - "Reports from the north tower just came in. It seems Drachma is trying to infiltrate through Pefesy, using it as an entrance into Amestris. Shall I send some of our men over there?"
Olivier - "Why? Is Bradley already out of soldiers?" Ari smiles and Buccaneer smirks. "How serious is the situation over there, 1st Lt?"
Buccaneer - "If they are asking for our help first instead of Central, what does that say in itself, General?"
Olivier scowls. "Fine, send a few. But you and Miles are to take the 4 through to-"
Bobby comes running from down the hall, stopping right in front of Olivier. "General! We've got trouble!" "Yes I already am aware of that Bobby." She replies. "But sir, one of the men that came in with Hawkeye has disappeared." "What!" "Dixon I believe was his name, sir." Biting her bottom lip quickly, then turning to Buccaneer. "I'm already on it sir!" Buccaneer says, saluting to Olivier. He then takes off running with Bobby right behind him.
She sighs. Turning, she lowers herself to Ari's level. "Little squirrel. It seems one of your friends has disappeared." Ari looks at her confused. "Mr. Drake isn't my friend, ma'am. He's just a creepy question mark to me."
Olivier - "A question mark, eh?" Ari nods her head. "Yeah, he's a weirdo." Raising an eyebrow at her, Ari flinches, thinking that she's in trouble. Olivier then laughs. Ari chuckles nervously. Bringing a hand to face and calming down, she stands back up. "Come on kid. You're gonna help find the question mark." She says as she begins walking, Ari sighs, following right behind her.
Making it to the front of Briggs, Ari follows her outside. Olivier then turns around and tosses her a knife with its stash. "Since you are here, you will stay with me and never leave my side. Since he was sent to work outside, he should still be in the area. That is where you come in shrimp. Your height will be used as an advantage. Any objections? Get over them." Ari gulps and squeaks when Olivier looks down at her. "Were you planning on making any remarks, little squirrel?" Nodding her head quickly she says. "N-No M-Ma'am!"
Miles - "General!" Olivier looks at him. "We have sightings of Dixon at the base of the west mountain. Shall we proceed?"
Olivier smiles. "Proceed as follows. Miles stay here at the base until further notice. Keep Hawkeye and Mccartney busy with work. Have everyone else on standby. Yes, Ari is coming with me. AND can someone tell Buccaneer to get his ASS OVER HERE Now!" Other officers scramble, running to find the 1st Lt.
Miles - "But General, she's just a child."
"Yes she is, but she's a Rambo." Olivier replies. "Loyalty, endurance and self-discipline is encrypted in her blood." Miles raises an eyebrow at her. She ignores it.
"General!" Buccaneer yells. She turns and looks at him. "You called?" He says as approaches her.
"We're leaving." Olivier replies. "And the kid?" He asks. "She's with me. Deal with it." He then picks Ari up, putting her over her shoulders between his head. "Now we can see her." He says, grinning at Olivier. She smirks back.
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Dixon, who is in the forest, just west of Briggs is walking towards a group of men at the foot of the west mountain, who are wearing (rebels) uniforms who are against the Amestrian military.
"About time you showed up." One of them asks. "Where's the girl?" Another one asks.
Dixon - "She's back at the Fort. I last saw her with The Ice Queen of Briggs. Besides isn't this what you wanted?" He asks as he pulls out a Philosopher's Stone. "A present from the man himself." He holds it up to them. "So. Who's the highest bidder?"
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Walking through the forest towards the west mountain, they hear an explosion in the distance. Buccaneer takes Ari off of his shoulders, putting her feet first on the snow-covered ground below. Olivier and him stand in front of her.
Reaching the middle of the forest, they see Dixon walking towards them.
Olivier - "Stop right there traitor!" He stops. "Just what in the hell-"
Dixon interrupts her. "Relax Ice Queen. I took care of it. No worries."
Olivier pulls out her gun, pointing it at him then firing several shots at him. Dixon tries to dodge the bullets.
"What The Hell!" Dixon yells when she stops firing.
Buccaneer - "Hey uh Boss." "What!-" She turns, yelling back him. Then she notices Ari standing behind him, holding onto his jacket tightly, staring petrified at her. She stares back at her, putting her gun back in its holster.
Dixon - "Do you think bringing the kid out here would have done any justice?" "I would never use a child like that, you scum!" She sharply replies.
Buccaneer - "What were doing over there in the first place, Corporal?"
Dixon - "Heard about some things back in Sheb. Wanted to see them for myself."
Olivier - "And exactly are these 'things' you are talking about?"
Dixon smirks. "I thought you already knew about them ... Icicle of Briggs."
Olivier pulls her gun out again, pointing at him.
From her left, she hears footsteps walking towards them.
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Back the fortress, Hawkeye approaches Miles. "Captain Miles!" She yells. He turns and looks at her. "Where's Ari?"
"General Armstrong took her with her. I would suggest staying inside of the fort, 2nd Lt. She'll bring the girl back intact. Don't worry."
Riza temper flares. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Is she nuts! She's just a kid!"
Miles - "You've seemed to have forgotten, Lieutenant Hawkeye. (He takes off his goggles and stares directly at her) That kid is Rambo's granddaughter... Like I said before, she will be just fine."
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"Well, well, well, Olivier. It's been awhile since you sent me off to the war in Ishbal."
She turns to him. Glaring at the man, then smirks. "Warren Officer Reed. So you're a traitorous bastard as well. By your appearance alone, it's no wonder why you never even made it to Ishval."
He shrieks. "Shut it you bitch!" He points his gun at her. She then points hers at him.
Dixon - "Quick on the trigger, but what about the child, Ice queen?"
Olivier shouts to Buccaneer. "Keep an eye on the shrimp, Lieutenant!"
Before he can reply, several more men come out from behind the trees. "I told you that bringing that kid wouldn't do you any justice. Now hand her over!" Dixon yells.
Before he could say anything else, a smoke grenade is toss in between Olivier, Ari and Buccaneer. It goes off, covering the entire field. Olivier falls to her knees, coughing, covering her mouth, trying to breathe.
Once the smoke begins to clear, she stands back up and sees Buccaneer walking towards her. "Where is Ari, Lieutenant?" She asks.
He sighs, looking at her. "She's gone, General." Taking another deep breath and leaning down next to her ear, he continues and whispers something in her ear. He then steps back.
"Let's get moving then." She says.
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Ari runs, not looking back. Dixon and Reed are both chasing her, calling out to her. As she is running, something catches her eye to the right. She runs straight towards it.
Both running to a stop, trying to catch their breaths. Dixon stands up, looking around trying to see if he can spot her.
Ari makes it the edge of a wall, looking up and seeing the cliff. Walking slowly but quickly, she finds a medium hole. Crouching down and crawling through it, she stands up in a compact cave with scratches across the bottom walls. She walks a little farther and a blue glowing light catches her eyes.
She slowly walks towards it. She stops walking when a Greywolf comes limping around the corner, glaring at her with his piercing blue eyes. Biting her lip, she slowly steps back but flinches when she steps on a rock. The wolf then walks behind and around the stone as its still glowing. Looking at the wolf, then to the stone to quickly look back at the wolf, who is still watching her. The wolf suddenly howls.
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Dixon - "Dammit! Where in the hell did she go?"
Reed - "She's still around here somewhere. Let's keep looking around. She can't hide forever." Then they hear a wolf's howl. "I think we just found her Mr. Dixon."
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When Olivier and Buccaneer walk passed a few trees, he stops, looking in a direction.
Olivier - "Who's there, Lt?"
Buccaneer replies. "Dixon and Reed." He points to them. They then faintly hear in the distance, a wolf's howl.
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Ari puts her hands up, whispering loudly. "Please don't!" She nervously bites her lip when she hears voices coming from the hole she just crawled out of a few minutes ago. Then she hears something bouncing off of the rocks.
"I think I found something!" Dixon yells. "Can you fit through?" Reed asks. "Nope. Can you?" Reed nods his head. "Alright well if she's in there. Time to fish her out." He takes out a grenade, tossing into the hole. They back up from the hole. A minute later, the grenade goes off.
'BOOM' A explosion goes off. Ari gets knocked to the ground by the energy of the blast. When she pushes herself up and stands. She then sees the wolf knocked out on the floor. Then she turns her head and sees the hole completely covered. She runs over to the wolf, but freezes when he wakes up and tries to stand.
Taking a deep breath, she tells him. "Let me help you." Biting her lip, she slowly walks towards him. He's completely locked on her, but she trying not to focus on that too much. She walks and bends down next to him, wraps her arms around his chest and begins dragging him. He starts wiggling himself out of her grip and she freaks out, dropping him. He whimpers in pain.
"I'm sorry!" She says. Noticing his fixed gaze at the stone, he then looks at her. Without her even realizing it, the stone glows brightly. She looks over her shoulder, stands back up and walks over to the stone. She picks it up. Suddenly feeling light headed, she puts her other hand to face before she passes out.
(Metatronic refers to the full-light presence spectrum of awareness of one's spirit.)
{Dream Sequence starts}
Ari opens her eyes. She rubs her eyes then sits up and stands. Looking around, everything is white including the ground beneath her. 'That is the Metatronic stone, Marisol' Ari turns around. There is a figure of a woman standing in front of her. "Who are you?" She asks 'That will come in due time. Do not be scared, Marisol. Everything will be ok.' Ari looks at her confused. The woman smiles. 'A stone that can sense a spirit's pureness by the range of its conscious' "So... That means what exactly?" 'It means you have an exceptional heart of serenity. The stone chooses who it wants to be its wielder. It has chosen you.' ..."What if I can't handle it?" 'Like I said before do not be frighten by its power. But stay cautious, using the stone's power to a high extent will start to remove the user's own life force. (She pauses briefly) Besides you're one of the many feathers of Empyrea from our tribe. Remember that.' Ari looks at her baffled. "Huh?" 'It's time to wake up, Marisol' The woman claps hands.
{Dream Sequence ends}
Ari jolts up. The roof of the cave begins shaking, debris falling from the ceiling. 'Oh no!' She quickly stands up. She's still holding the stone. Putting it in her pocket, she walks over to the wolf, who is still watching her. Taking a deep breath, she talks. "Look Greywolf, I'm helping you whether you like it or not. I am not gonna leave you here to die." Ari bends down, wraps her arms around him and begins dragging the wolf the same way it had entered the cave.
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Both Olivier and Buccaneer draw their guns, pointing them at Dixon and Reed. They turn around when they hear clicks from the guns.
Dixon - "Heh. I was beginning to wonder when you were gonna catch up to us."
Buccaneer - "Then it's a good thing you didn't hold your breath."
Olivier - "Enough small talk! Take us to her."
Reed - "You have to a bit more specific about who this 'her' is?'
Olivier - "Quit being a smartass. Where's the k-" They all turn their heads when they hear a cave collapsing in itself. Dust and debris kick up into the air. Clouds of fog surrounds all of them. Both Olivier and Buccaneer then hear a gun shot.
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Ari is able to drag Greywolf just a few feet away from the cave. She lays him down gently. Greywolf is out cold. 'Poor guy' She says as she looks down at him. She then sits on her knees and opens her bag, digging through it to see if she has anything. She finds a few gauzes, a safety pin, some wipes and an antiseptic bandage.
Quickly wrapping up his wounded leg, he wakes up. She flinches and slowly crawls back, away from him. He looks down at his leg, then at her. His ears are flattened right up against his head. He lets out a light whimper. He blinks. She gently bites her lip nervously. "You were bleeding Greywolf. I-uh...I-I just couldn't leave the wound open. I'm sorry." One of his ears perks up. She smiles as he yawns. She crawls back over to him. Then they both hear and see rocks from the cliff falling down in front of them. She places herself over him as the fog of dust reaches them. Ari flinches when she hears the gunshot.
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Once the fog settles, they both look up and notice that Dixon is missing and Reed is on the ground, dead.
Buccaneer - "Damn. He got away. Well, there goes our chances of ever finding the squirrel."
Olivier smirks. "I wouldn't be so sure. She's still alive."
Buccaneer - "What makes you so sure?"
Olivier - "If she's anything like her grandfather, then she's definitely alive." She starts walking back to the fort. "Let's head back. She's probably already there waiting for me."
They make it the end of the forest that leads to the Briggs fortress. Olivier stops and turns to her left once they make it out of the forest entirely. She sees something unconscious on the ground, a second later realizing that's it's Marisol.
Both her and Buccaneer rush over to her. Flipping her over, checking her pulse, Buccaneer picks her up and carries her rushing back to the fort with Olivier right behind him.
End of Chapter 9
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(A.N.)~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When I first came up with the whole idea concept of a type of stone, I knew that I didn't want it to be the philosopher's stone. After looking up a variety of things and playing some video games. I came across the word Metatronic. The whole metatron idea came from the Zone of the Enders video game series (great game by the way if none of you have played it, highly recommend you do!). Hideo Kojima (yes the same dude behind metal gear solid) is behind this game as well. Anyway like I was saying, in Z.O.E, there is a substance that the player (you) collects to regenerate health as well as enhances Jehuty's (the very AWESOME robot you control) attributes as well is called Metatron. I wanted something that stayed in that whole life force energy type of field of power.
The Metatronic Stone - A stone that can sense a spirit's pureness by the range of its conscious. It also uses the wielder's life force, depending on how much of the stone's power the carrier uses. Example: The more power that is released from the stone uses a greater amount of life force. The power that the stone uses is, healing attributes relates more towards Alkahastry than Alchemy. It can also enhance the decomponents and structures of anything made of metal.
Nara is Native American for Happy
Medesto in Spanish/Latin means Humble, Modest, etc.