Note: Allen's pentagram is above his eye, so I made a mistake in the last chapter. Sorry.
As you can see, Lenalee is not mad at Allen anymore.
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"You're part of an organization who's trying to 'rid the world of evil?'" Roy asked Allen and crew skeptically.
"Yes. We were sent here to look for Innocence," Allen motioned towards Riza. "It seems that Miss Hawkeye is compatible with the Innocence we found. That means she can be trained to become an exorcist."
"So you want to take First Lieutenant Hawkeye away?" Roy raised an eyebrow. The group was gathered in Roy's office, after he'd safely seen his subordinates home. Riza was also there, admiring the new decoration on her gun.
"Look, Mr. Mustang. We're trying to save the world. And, with the man we're up against, we need all the help we can get," Kanda told Roy.
"I'm sorry, but your story doesn't seem to legitimate," Roy told them. "Who is this 'Earl of the Millennium'? What exactly are 'akuma'? And why do you want Riza?"
Lenalee, Lavi, Kanda and Allen looked at each other, starting to run out of arguments. Suddenly, something flew into the room through the open window. The 'something' landed on Allen's head. It was a small, golden golem with stumpy little legs and wings. Black Hayate barked at it.
"Timcanpi!" Allen cried happily. "I forgot that you came with us! Did we leave you back at the shed?"
"The journey probably made it pass out, and it might've just regained consciousness," noted Lavi.
"Well, we can contact my brother," said Lenalee. Within seconds, a screen shot out of Timcanpi's mouth. There was static for a few moments, but the face of Komui Li soon showed up. His desk was piled high with paper, and, for once, he seemed to be making a half-hearted effort to do some work. Roy, Riza and Black Hayate watched in fascination.
"Hey you guys!" Komui waved at them. "Did you find it?"
"Yeah, but we have a bit of a problem," explained Lavi. "See, we also found a potential exorcist."
"You found the person compatible with the Innocence?" Komui put his pen down, all work forgotten. "Well, that's fantastic! What's the problem?"
"We're in a country called Amestris. Apparently, they've never heard of the Dark Religious Organization," said Kanda. "And they're a little reluctant to let us bring the compatible back. The Innocence has already fused itself with her."
"Am-e-stris?" Komui took a sip of his coffee. He pulled a large record book in front of him. "Never heard of it. How do you spell it?" The exorcists looked at Riza and Roy.
"A-M-E-S-T-R-I-S," said Roy. "I'm Colonel Roy Mustang. This is my subordinate, First Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye."
"I'm Komui Li, the head of the Science Department at the Dark Religious Organization. I'm also Lenalee's big brother. Nice to meet you," said Komui, flipping through the record book. "By the way, Allen and Lenalee, Miranda mentioned that you encountered three interesting humans when you were fighting akuma in Germany?"
"Yeah. One of them was a girl who looked about my age. She told me she was definitely human, but some super-human. Two other people showed up, too: a man and a woman. The girl, Road, she called them…" Allen furrowed his brow. "Um… hor…ho… Lenalee, what did she call them?"
"Homunculi," replied Lenalee. Roy and Riza gasped.
"I've heard that word before. I think it was the word for created human in alchemy," said Komui. "I'll have to read up on it, though. Alchemy's been extinct for so long, I don't think it's even in the dictionary anymore!"
"What are you talking about?" asked Roy. "Alchemy is still going as strong as ever! The military here uses it. I'm an alchemist myself! Don't they use it anymore in the East?"
"You mean in like China and Japan? No," answered Komui.
"No, I mean Xing. That is where you are, right?" said Roy.
"No. I'm in… well, the Headquarters. I'm not at liberty to reveal where it is." Komui frowned. "That's weird. There's no mention of an Amestris in here. The Organization keeps close tabs on all the countries of the world."
"I've never heard of any countries named China, Japan or Germany either," replied Roy.
"Wow. Maybe we did get into another dimension!" Lavi was excited.
"Don't be an idiot!" Kanda scowled.
"It seems that way," said Komui. "Allen, get Timcanpi to send my golem a video of your battle, okay? I'll look more into your situation, and get back to you in the morning. Right now, I have a mountain of work that I'm supposed to be pretending to do!"
"Gotcha. Timcanpi?" Allen looked at the little golden golem. It seemed to nod in understanding. Allen waited for a few seconds. "Did you get it?"
"Yes. I'll see you in the morning. Bye, everyone! Take care! Don't get into trouble, Lenalee!" The exorcists waved at Komui, and Timcanpi disengaged the screen.
"These homunculi you're talking about… what were they like?" asked Roy.
"Well, it was a woman and a man. The woman was rather pretty, I thought. She was pale, with long black hair and a red tattoo on her chest," Lenalee told him. "She had these wicked nails that could extend and slash things. The man was short and fat, and had sort of a crazed look on his face. He kept on drooling, and ate some chairs in the room."
"Timcanpi can show you the video if you like," Allen offered.
"No. It's okay." Roy's face was grim. "Thank you for your time. Lieutenant Hawkeye, would you kindly find them a hotel to stay? There's a little inn on the corner of Main and Silver. Get them two rooms there and charge the expenses to my account. Also, here is some money for breakfast," Roy took out his wallet, pulled out a few bills and handed them to Kanda. "Come back here tomorrow at twelve. Excuse me. I have an important call to make."
"Yes, sir," Hawkeye saluted him. Roy picked up the phone. "Who are you calling, sir?"
"The Elrics."
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"Stupid Mustang! Calling out of nowhere and telling me to come to Central for a stupid assessment!" A short golden-haired boy grumbled as he walked down the street with his friends behind him. "As if he doesn't know we've got better things to do!"
"Calm down, brother," a large suit of armor told him. "He might have something important to tell us, but didn't want to be eavesdropped."
"Central's not so bad, Ed," a blonde girl assured him. "Besides, aren't you looking forward to seeing everybody again?"
"Seeing Mustang?" Ed scoffed. "Are you kidding? He didn't even have enough dedication to show up and meet us at the train station!"
"Thanks for coming to meet us, Winry," the armor told the girl. "Roy did sound pretty urgent when he told us to catch the next train to Central. We barely made it on. It was moving when we boarded!"
"No problem, Al," Winry told him. "So, Ed, how's your arm and leg feeling? You didn't damage them again, did you?"
"Typical. Always worried about the machine more than me," Ed laughed. "They're fine, Winry. But man, am I starving! I think I'll grab a bite before I go see Mustang."
As he said this, they were nearing the corner of Main and Silver streets. Kanda Yuu was standing in the shadow of a small inn, waiting for his comrades. He heard their voices, and turned to see who approached. Kanda saw a familiar face. Never mind that the familiar face didn't have the familiar white hair or pentacle over his eye. Never mind that the familiar face was wearing a red jacket instead of the flappy exorcist's robes. Kanda saw the person he was waiting for. He unsheathed his sword, and just as Ed and his friends passed, he stuck it out like a bar to block them. Ed nearly walked into the blade before quickly stopping.
"Excuse me," said Ed. "Can we pass?"
"Found you, Beansprout," Kanda pointed the tip of the blade at Ed's throat. He squinted at him. "What did you do to your hair?"
"Don't call me short!" Ed screeched. Al held him back as he screamed for Kanda's murder.
"Um, do we know you?" Al asked him.
"Where did you go? We agreed to meet back here at twelve. Lenalee and Lavi are looking for you right now," Kanda ignored Alphonse, and kept his blade at Ed's throat.
"Kanda! What are you doing!" A horrified voice called from Kanda's other side. Lenalee and Allen raced to the inn. "Unsheathe that sword now!"
"Lenalee? Oh, you found him," Kanda acknowledged Allen.
"I am extremely sorry for Kanda's terrible rudeness!" Lenalee turned to Ed, Al and Winry. "I hope none of you are hurt!"
"No, we're alright. Apology accepted," Winry laughed at the indignant expression on Ed's face.
"That's good. Again, terribly sorry. We have to go now!" Lenalee waved at the group. Yanking on Kanda's ear, she pulled him away. Allen apologized as well, and followed them.
"What were you doing?" Lenalee demanded.
"I thought he was Beansprout," explained Kanda, freeing himself from Lenalee's grasp.
"How! I'll admit they look a bit alike, but they don't even have the same hair colour!" Lenalee exclaimed.
"Well, maybe he dyed it or something," shrugged Kanda. "If I had hair like that, I would."
"Show-off," Allen muttered, glancing at Kanda's long, sleek locks.
"Hi guys! You found him?" Lavi joined their stroll down the street.
That morning, the group had eaten breakfast together at a small diner. Kanda, Lenalee and Lavi had finished first, and decided to explore the city (well, Kanda wanted a nap). Allen was still only halfway done his mountain of eggs and bacon. They had all agreed to meet at the inn at twelve and go to Headquarters together. But when Lavi, Kanda and Lenalee regrouped at the entrance at noon, Allen was nowhere to be seen. They had waited ten minutes before Lenalee and Lavi decided to go looking for him. Kanda decided to stay at the inn, in case Allen turned up.
"Where was he, anyway?" asked Kanda.
"Back at the restaurant," said Lenalee.
"What? You were still eating?" Lavi questioned in surprise. Allen blushed.
"Actually, no. When you guys left, Kanda threw down some money to pay for the meals. It turns out the money only covered his own meal…" Allen blushed deeper. "I had to stay behind and do dishes to pay for the other food, because the owner thought the rest of you had dined and dashed."
"Kanda! How much did you pay?" asked Lenalee.
Kanda revealed an amount, which was only one-fifth of the money Roy had given them. "I didn't expect the food to be so expensive," said Kanda.
"Speaking of food, I'm starving!" exclaimed Lavi. "Do you think Mustang-kun will pay for lunch?"
"Maybe. Let's hurry up and go," said Lenalee.
"Yeah. Might as well get the meeting with as soon as possible," agreed Kanda. The four put on some speed and headed towards HQ.
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"Well, Ed? Are you full?" Winry watched with disgust as Edward shoved spoonful after spoonful of stew into his mouth at the very same restaurant Allen had washed dishes for.
"Yeah," Ed pulled out some money to pay for it. "I'd better get to Mustang's office. I want to get this assessment over with as soon as possible."
After Ed paid for his food, the trio walked out of the restaurant. They hadn't taken two steps when Ed tripped over something on the sidewalk. As he cursed angrily, Alphonse bent down to retrieve what had made Ed fall. It was a large, many-faceted crystal ornament as big as his fist… well, maybe not his, but it was the same size as a human fist. It was shaped like a heart, and clear. It seemed to have an ethereal aura, and when he held it up to the light, it shined in many colours.
"Wow. It's beautiful," gasped Winry.
"Someone must've dropped it," said Al. "It looks expensive. I'll put an ad in the paper for it, and see if anyone comes to claim it."
"You can do that later. Right now, we've got to get to HQ," decided Ed. He plucked the jewel from Al, and tucked it into his pocket. The three of them raced towards Headquarters.
"Edward. You haven't grown at all," Roy commented wryly when they entered his office. "And you're late." Riza and Black Hayate were also there.
"Whatever. What's this big important assessment? Hurry up and finish it. You know I've got better things to do," said Ed.
"No assessment. I didn't want anyone to eavesdrop. There are some people I want you to meet," Roy told him. He looked at the clock. "Actually, they're late, too."
"We're so sorry!" suddenly, four people clad in black burst into the room. "We got a little bit lost!"
"You again!" Ed pointed rudely at Kanda.
"Well, if it isn't Pipsqueak. Come to think of it, Beansprout is a little taller than you," Kanda noted, just as impolite as Ed did.
"Oh, have you met already?" asked Roy.
"Yeah! Straight-fringe tried to murder me!" Ed yelled, referring to Kanda's silky bangs. Kanda reached for his sword, but Allen reached out and caught his arm before he could. He used his left hand, and his red, disfigured limb showed very clearly. Everybody who didn't already know about it gasped.
"Allen, why don't you show us the video of your fight?" suggested Roy. "Please close the door, Lavi."
Lavi obeyed, and everyone gathered to the middle of the room. Timcanpi opened its mouth, and projected Allen's battle with the akuma. Lenalee looked away, but everyone else watched in amazement. All of the sudden, two figures that Ed and Al recognized entered.
"The homunculi!" Ed gasped, pointing at the woman in the green dress, and the fat man. He turned to Allen. "Where is this place? What's happening?" They finished watching the rest of the fight. Then, the exorcists explained about akuma, the Earl, and the Dark Religious Organization. Roy, Ed and Al told them about alchemy, the Philosopher's Stone, and the homunculi.
"You know, I just realized something!" exclaimed Lavi. "Those hormo- herman- the man and woman became really weak when they tried to get close to Allen, Lenalee, and the Innocence in the clock!"
"Maybe they're weak against Innocence!" Lenalee caught on.
"That would make sense…" Ed said slowly. "Since they're living sins, and Innocence is a holy tool."
"So you believe us now?" asked Kanda.
"Yes," nodded Roy. "This evil must be stopped."
"I'm glad I'm able to help, and I'll do anything I can," nodded Riza.
"This is all very nice, but how are we getting back?" said Kanda. "Another portal hasn't exactly opened to transport us back."
"Oh, that reminds me. We found something weird when we were coming here," recalled Ed. "I don't know if this has to do with anything, but, you guys might be interested."
He pulled out the crystal he'd tripped over earlier. Everyone gasped when he held it up. It was no longer clear, but now glimmered pink. Someone knocked on the door.
"Come in…" said Roy, his eyes fixed on the heart.
"Mustang! I've gotten some reports that you have guests from out of Amestris?" It was a man with black hair and a patch over his left eye.
"Fuhrer King Bradley!" Roy gasped. Taking their eyes off the heart, he, Riza, Ed and Al quickly saluted him.
"So, who are these guests of yours?" the Fuhrer stepped into the room. He was about a meter away from the exorcists, when a change came over his face. They twisted in agony, and he crashed down onto his knees. The exorcists felt their Innocence glowing. The cross on Riza's gun glowed as well, and the heart-shaped crystal changed into a brilliant crimson. Something red gleamed from behind the Fuhrer's eye patch, and the group gathered in the room could make out the faint shape of an Ouroborus.
"Never mind… I'll see you later…" the Fuhrer gasped, crawling out of the room. As soon as he'd gotten a safe distance away from them, he slammed the door shut, and they could hear his footsteps thudding down the hall.
"That's our leader," explained Roy, looking perplexed. "I wonder what's wrong with him today?"
Allen's cursed eye matched the Fuhrer's aura to that of the man and woman from before. "The Fuhrer… I'm not positive, but I think he's-"
Suddenly, an agile woman with short, blonde hair burst into the room from the window. She slithered over to the group. She was panting, as if she'd run the whole way there from wherever she came.
"Hi, Marta," Al greeted her. "What's wrong?"
"You're not going to believe this!" the woman proclaimed. "The Fuhrer is a homunculus!"