A/N: My apologies for the wait between chapters. Honestly, this is why I don't put myself on a schedule. Also, I'd like to thank those who have left reviews so far - reviews are never required, but always appreciated. I'm glad those who have found this little fic have enjoyed it so far, and I hope you will enjoy this chapter as well.

Chapter 2

As Karla stared up at the headquarters, the honk of a horn sounded near her. She looked over to discover a car driving in her exact direction, and she jumped out of the way just in time to see it speed past her. Oh, yes. That was right. In big cities like this, cars were a danger, since not everyone apparently knew how to drive. It wasn't as if Karla knew any better; as a matter of fact, she had no idea how to drive, either, but that wasn't the point at the time.

After an angry glare at the car that had dared to try and run her over, Karla walked up the steps to the massive building, her heart anxiously pounding in her chest despite her outward confidence. Oh, lord, what the hell was she doing? Perhaps her mother had been right, perhaps she should have stayed in Virnikov... No, that was a horrible thought to have. That would be admittance that she was wrong and succumbing to desires that were not her own, and like hell she would do that. The entire reason she was here was to prove her and the rest of those damned people wrong, not run away at the last moment like a coward.

Then again, she really had wished she would have figured out where a hotel was before coming here. Or had wished she'd even thought of that in the first place, for she really did look like a total idiot just standing here outside a military building holding a suitcase. She sighed, giving the building one last once-over before finally pulling the door open and walking inside.

The place was bustling with blue-clad soldiers, some at desks and tables, others going from room to room. This first room, what Karla guessed what the lobby, was no tiny place. It was truly massive, bigger than anything she'd seen in her life, and how in the hell was she going to find anything in here? She was quickly feeling more and more idiotic the longer she was in here, and another sigh escaped her. "Well," she muttered to herself, "there's only really one option..."

Karla stepped up to the first desk she saw, approaching the woman sitting behind it. She stared at her for a moment, watching her do some sort of paperwork; when it became clear she wasn't going to notice her of her own volition, the girl cleared her throat rather impatiently.

"Yes?" the soldier asked, looking up at her.

Oh, sure, you only decide to notice me then. "I am here for the state alchemy exam. I inquired about it at North Headquarters, and they sent me down here."

The woman raised an eyebrow as she looked over Karla with scrutinizing eyes. "How old are you?" she finally asked.

The Drachman's eyes narrowed, and she had to bite back the scathing retort that instantly jumped to her mind. What kind of idiotic question was that? "Seventeen. With all due respect, why? I was under the impression that the exam had no age limit."

The woman continued to stare at her, then responded, "No reason." She then pointed to a door on Karla's left, which had a clipboard hanging on the wall next to it. "Right over there. Sign in on the clipboard, then go right in."

"Thank you." Damned nosy woman. She left the desk and went to the door, signing her name on the clipboard in the most elegant script she could muster. After all, she wanted to impress these people enough to enlist her. It was either this or nothing; if she didn't manage to get in here, she would be stuck in Central with no way back to Virnikov. She'd only had enough money saved up for the train ride here. But then, how would she have expected to afford a hotel room? Oh, lord, she was stupid sometimes...

She entered the room after this, which held only six others, sitting at desks and looking both terrified and impatient at the same time. As she sat at her own desk, setting her suitcase down next to her, she noticed she was the only female in the room. Well, wasn't that wonderful? She should have expected this to happen. They all seemed to be older than her as well, which only irritated her further. Being older meant the possibility of them being far more skilled at alchemy than she was, but she'd be damned if she let them beat her out on this. Besides, she had her own secret weapon, which would most suitably be demonstrated in the physical portion of the exam.

Just then, the door behind them opened, and a soldier entered to begin handing out piles of paper. Karla looked down at hers and noticed that the several-pages-thick booklet was the written exam, and inwardly, she groaned. She'd never been one to enjoy taking written tests, and this was no exception. As the man at the front of the room sat at the larger desk that lay there, Karla began, writing answers to the questions at a quick pace.

After the written exam – which took Karla a little over an hour and a half to complete – came a psychological assessment. The psychiatrist presiding over these, Karla felt, had treated her as little more than an idiot who was in far too over her head. He had asked inane questions, such as "Do you have any fears?" and "Would you be able to cope with the possibility of killing someone?". To these, the girl had answered no and of course she would, what kind of person did he think she was? After all, she had been around death most of her life; it was a permanent fixture in Virnikov. No, she'd never actually killed anyone, but she had full confidence that she would if she had to. She knew how to fight, how to defend herself.

Once the infernal, infuriating brain-probing had ended, she and the other applicants had had only to wait little less than an hour before they'd been escorted out into a large field behind the building. This was where Karla was now, watching the men demonstrate their alchemical skills to an overseeing board of officers. She was at the end of the line of applicants; some fool had decided to place her last in demonstration. Oh well, at least this gave her a chance to see what she was truly up against.

As the first man went up, the redhead eyed him with interest, intrigued at just what he could do. Her expectations were dashed, however, as he merely managed to alchemically create a wall of earth in front of him. Well, that was awfully simplistic, wasn't it? Even a child could do that, she thought. Oh, she most certainly had this to her advantage. The applicant returned to his place in line, and the next went up to take his place. It continued like this, dull demonstration after dull demonstration, and Karla swiftly became more and more confident in her own abilities. After all, in comparison to people with skills like these, she should definitely come out on top, shouldn't she?

Once the last man had stepped back into the line, Karla stepped forward, her eyes narrowed with determination. She would get this right the first time, damn it.

"Your name and specialization, please," the officer in the middle of the board ordered.

"I am Karla Chernikova, and I am a user of blood alchemy," she replied, her voice sounding strong and confident.

The officer exchanged a glance with the man next to him, then nodded at her. "You may begin."

With that, Karla drew a small knife from a sheath on her waist, then raised her right sleeve and made a shallow cut into her flesh. Using the blood that surfaced from the wound, she drew a transmutation circle around the cut, then pressed her hand against it, mentally contorting the iron within into the shape of a blade. As she pulled back her hand, a small crimson knife surfaced from her arm, of which she took hold as soon as it was finished forming. Now wielding both blades, she imagined she was in combat with an enemy, slashing the air in an imitation of an attack for a moment. Once she was through with this display, she knelt in front of the board of officers, her head down and her long hair spilling over her shoulders.

The area was silent for only a few seconds, and she looked back up to see the middle officer stand first, and the rest followed. She got back to her feet and sheathed her silver knife as he spoke, "The state alchemy exam is now complete. You will know your results in two days; you are to report back at that time to receive them. Good luck to all of you. You are dismissed."

At this, Karla turned and followed the rest of the applicants back into the building, where she stowed the crimson knife in the straps of her boot. She really needed a second sheath; that would prevent her from accidentally losing her second weapon. She was confident that she had passed that exam with flying colors. How could they refuse her? After all, there were plenty of other uses for her style of alchemy, especially in combat. Oh, yes. She had this completely taken care of. Now, she merely had to play the waiting game.