Hm. Well. Quick update of my life. I have a new camera lens which my mom told me to consider my early Christmas present – one of the highlights of the past two months(Happy Tears Here!) xD

I went to my second Nickelback concert and rocked. Out.

On other news, this story has been posted for two years! I've come a long way and I love you all lots.

The Lovely Daaaarlings!

Jessigato: And here's ANOTHER update! xD Indeed he has. She's a tough cookie.

Katsekala: I love the suspense! Mwahaha.

IceFire Dragon Alchemist73: Here's to hoping.

Fmagurl123: Haha, I liked that part. At first I almost did forget their names so I decided Riley would! =D Aww, thank yew! Radley is definitely more in this chapter.

yumixJaganshi: WITH THE HELP OF EDO OF COURSE. Kukuku.

PixieStixys: Yay, I've done my job then! xD LAWLZ, now that is something I would love to write… "You're drinking your damn milk whether you like it or not!" "Then why don't you have some too?" "…Brat." Ooh, starburst! Yum. X3

Lani99: You're back! (Happy Tears) And it's no big deal. We've all been a little busy.
RAINBOWS? Holy shit!
IT IS TOTALLY EPIX. I've missed the last few episodes though, which sucks.
I shouldn't update just so you will find me. Kukuku…

Want to Be a Lovely Daaaarling? Review! Bwahaha…

I don't own FMA, okay? So no need for legal avengers to stalk me through form of small electronics waiting for the opportune moment to make me a POW.
I do own Riley and other original content, so if you steal them, there will be legal avengers looking for you.

And Sugar We're Going Down is officially my break-up song. Hah. xD

Chapter Thirty-Three:
The Cycle of Blackburn
Part One

There was a painstaking silence in between us all. The kids were happy, but I was tense. Gregory and Blackburn were staring each other down. I wasn't sure what either was going to do, or who would make the first move. I was getting more and more nervous about the whole ordeal.

"Gregory…," Blackburn spoke finally, his voice calm and smooth.

Said man nodded. "Blackburn."

"I assumed Kevin would have come instead," He said before gaining a small smirk, "I'm flattered you've bothered."

He didn't know…? I scowled, glaring at him. Gregory, knowing I was starting to lose my temper, narrowed his eyes at Blackburn. "Kevin couldn't come."

Blackburn raised a brow. "Why not? Has he gone soft already?" He asked.

"He's dead," Was my quick and blunt response.

The man's eyes widened, but he quickly regained his posture as he moved his eyes onto me. "And who are you?" He questioned.

I paused and glanced to Gregory before looking back to Blackburn. "Riley Mauler," I replied.

He took the answer in surprise but quickly covered it. "You're his daughter…" I nodded. "I should have known. You look a lot like him. And what about Claire?"

"We aren't here to talk, Blackburn," Gregory growled.

Blackburn looked to him and sighed. "Very well then," He said before running toward us. Gregory immediately dodged to the side, pushing me back before he did. The speed of Blackburn was surprising; I almost didn't notice him grab the kids. He stopped behind us, untying the children and looking down at them. "Go," Was his simple command. They nodded and took off into the woods. Turning back to us, he transmuted pieces of the ground into a sword. "You don't want to fight, Gregory."

Gregory unsheathed his own sword and Radley knew what Gregory's response was. The two readied themselves and I… Glancing to my pocket, I thought about what I had. There was my knife, but it was dull and useless compared to Blackburn's sword. Aside from that… There were Maes' blades.

No. I wasn't using them. I couldn't.

Glaring at Blackburn, I decided to go with what I used best. Sulfur. Blackburn ran forward, jumping at Gregory. Their swords clashed, so I clapped and rushed forward to grab Blackburn's wrist. I grabbed hold of him but before I could do anything, he jumped away from Gregory and reached for my wrist. I pulled his arm toward me and as I dodged his hand, I threw my leg up to kick at his stomach. Blackburn grabbed my ankle and kneed me roughly in the stomach, causing me to let go of his wrist. He grabbed my neck and swung me into a tree. I flinched, holding my stomach as I tried to stable myself on the ground. I had almost forgotten he trained at the dojo, but that was a rough reminder.

The two men in front of me had engaged back in a fight so I took my time trying to get my breath back to normal. Once I had managed to do so, I rushed back in. Behind Blackburn, I swept my leg around and tripped him over. As expected, he caught himself and flipped back to his feet, but Gregory had already foreseen this. Ramming his elbow into Blackburn's side, he slashed at his face. Blackburn gripped the handle of Gregory's sword and ducked under it, twisting his arm around. Gregory spun under his arm to avoid broken bones, and kicked at Blackburn.

Blackburn dodged back and I had my go at him. I reached my hand forward and he dodged to the side. Aiming for the back of my head, he managed to grab my collar. He yanked me back but I grabbed his arm and pulled him in front of me, my knee positioned in front of his face. Within an instant, he used one hand to grab my knee and push himself up, and his other hand to grab my hair. Yanking me in front of him, he wrapped an arm around my neck tightly and used my hair to keep my head back.

I could feel the clip opening in my hair as Gregory froze stiff. Blackburn's breathing hit my neck as he smirked at Gregory. "You might want to rethink your strategies, Gregory."

"Don't do anything you'll regret later, Radley…," Gregory muttered cautiously.

Blackburn let out a bitter laugh. "Don't try to reach a mutual first name basis with me now. You know I never do anything I regret," He said, tightening his hold around my neck. My brow twitched a bit at this. Leave it up to me to get in this mess. This was Mustang's fault. I was sure of it.

"Don't hurt her," Gregory warned her, holding his hand up for added effect.

I could feel Blackburn's chest moving from his chuckle. "Why? You two are here to kill me, are you not? Why should I let her go?"

"She was your god-daughter," Was Gregory's calm response.

Blackburn fell silent and still. His grip loosened and Gregory gave me a look that told me to act on the opportunity. The thought of using one of Maes' blades crossed my mind but I ignored it. I couldn't use them. But there was nothing else… Quickly, I took one of Maes' blades out of my pocket and shoved it into Blackburn's arms. He let out a yell of pain and as he stumbled back, I snatched the blade from him and ran toward Gregory. Feeling a hand at my ankle, I saw myself falling back to Blackburn. Gregory grabbed at me, but I had already been pulled back. I flipped over to see what Blackburn was doing, and saw his sword coming down at me. I began to flinch.

A loud clang screamed in my ears as I saw a familiar blond in front of me.

"Ed…?" I mumbled.

He didn't respond as his auto-mail blade was pressed against Blackburn's sword. Glaring up at the man, Ed smirked. "That… Was a really bad decision!" He exclaimed as he shoved Blackburn back and swiped at him.

Blackburn dodged back. Making sure he was far enough away, he scowled. "Who are you?"

Ed didn't reply to him as he turned and grabbed my hand, pulling me up to a stand. "Thanks…," I grumbled. I was grateful to him, but still slightly annoyed; just how many times was Ed going to save me this week? He smirked slightly and nodded.

We turned back to Blackburn as Gregory reached our side. He wanted to say something to Ed about coming when he told the boy not to; but reluctantly held his tongue. "So this is Blackburn…," Ed muttered, looking him over. I nodded as I glanced down to the blade I was holding. Blackburn's blood covered it. I couldn't help but scowl at this.

Gregory and Blackburn began to fight to their full potential, leaving Ed and me in the corner. They were fast; they didn't lead their own units in the Rebellion Army for nothing. I sighed, watching the two as I waited for an opening to get to Blackburn. "How'd you get here?" I asked lowly.

Ed smirked a bit. "Al distracted Hannah and Winry. He should be here soon."

The ground began to shake and Ed and I braced ourselves. A rock wall shot up in between us, causing us to stumble away from one another. The wall crumbled as Lisa and Mark jumped out from the bushes. I twitched, "When will you two give up?"

Lisa glared at me as Mark glared at Ed. "We have backup now," Lisa said with a grin before taking out a necklace. My eyes widened when I saw a red stone at the end of it. Mark had done the same. Ed and I looked over at each other in surprise.

The Philosopher's Stone…?

Lisa slammed her hands on the ground and the stone glowed. The trees around me shot up in height and quickly extend around me like a cage, blocking the sight of Ed and Gregory. "Damn it!" I muttered as I looked around.

"Try to escape this," I heard Lisa sneer from behind the tree cage. Suddenly a branch molded from the "wall" and shot at me. I let out a yelp as I barely ducked, holding my head. Another came at me lower from a different area, and I dodged as quickly as I could.

I listened closely and managed to pick up light footsteps running around. It stopped to my right, and a branch came at me from the same direction. Dodging it, I looked over to the source. "She has to place her hands on the exact spot in order to shoot the branches there… So if I could follow her steps…" Clapping, I waited for another move from the girl. A branch molded from behind me, and I spun around, hearing it. I ducked under the branch as it reached across to the other side, and ran to the source. Slamming my hands on the wall, I exploded it.

Lisa let out a loud yell as she was thrown back from the impact, and the walls around me exploded. I saw Lisa trying to get back up, and I quickly looked around. Mark was fighting Ed with a spear; Ed was trying to take him seriously. The kids had some nice abilities, sure, but they were still kids – weak and stupid. I then looked to Gregory and Blackburn. They had heard the girl yell, and Blackburn quickly looked over, giving Gregory an opportunity to knock the sword from his enemy's hands. He turned his attention back to Gregory and I walked over to Lisa. She had passed out by now, and the necklace lay in her hands. The stone, however, was a different story. It had completely disintegrated. I sighed, "So much for that…"

I looked back to Ed to see him punch Mark in the face, getting a bit annoyed. It surprised Ed a bit, but he couldn't dwell on it as Mark was sent flying in the air. He hit the ground hard, and coughed a bit as he began to get up. Blinking in confusion, he looked down at the necklace in his hands as it began to shake. Ed's eyes widened and he rushed forward, "No…!"

But it was too late. Just as he reached Mark, the stone shattered into pieces. "Damn it," He growled out before standing back up. Mark rushed to Lisa's aid and I looked back to Gregory and Blackburn. The two were starting to slow in battle. When their swords clashed again, I could see both of them shaking slightly. Gregory gave in and as Blackburn's sword came down, Gregory slashed at Blackburn's stomach.

Both of them were hit.

Our eyes widened. Both men stumbled away from each other, their swords on the ground. Gregory was holding his shoulder while Blackburn held his stomach. I rushed to Gregory's side quickly. "Are you alright?"

Gregory shook his head, "Ignore this. This is nothing."

Blackburn glared at him, chuckling bitterly. "You haven't changed in the least…," He muttered before clapping. As he pulled his hands apart, a sword began to mold and form from his hand. My eyes widened; how did he manage…? Ed doing it was one thing – He had auto-mail. But Blackburn… I looked to Gregory to see him just as surprised. Blackburn smirked. "Let me explain and wipe the surprised looks off your faces. After years of research, one learns how to manipulate his own body, including their bones," He readied himself to attack as he finished, "That's something only talented alchemists could possibly begin to understand!"

He ran toward us and I scowled. I heard Ed clap at the same time I did as we both headed toward him to attack, we were stopped. A big armor jumped in front of Blackburn, grabbing his wrist and swinging him into a tree. My brow twitched as Ed almost stumbled over. "Al… You make it look easy!" Ed exclaimed.

Al turned to us and rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Sorry I'm late, Brother."

Blackburn stood from his place on the ground, glaring at Al. "I'm growing sick of people interrupting us," He growled out before slamming a hand on the ground.

The ground shook violently and I grabbed hold of Gregory to keep us both standing. Al balanced himself as well. Ed scowled, feeling uneasy as he ran at Blackburn with his auto-mail blade. He swiped at Blackburn, who blocked it with his bone-sword and kicked at Ed. Ed jumped over the leg and came from below Blackburn, aiming his black at his enemy's neck. Blackburn stepped to the side and elbowed Ed in the face. Grunting, Ed flipped back to catch himself. Blackburn didn't give him much time to retort, as he swung his fist forward. Ed grabbed it in his one hand and Blackburn shoved his sword into Ed's shoulder.

I almost reacted, but had to be rational about it. I began to sneak behind the two as Ed smirked up at Blackburn. "Is that all you got?" He asked. His coat started to rip, showing the auto-mail shoulder.

Blackburn's brows furrowed. "Interesting limb, boy. Tell me; what's your name?"

"That isn't your business," He growled. "Now, Riley!"

I smirked from behind the two. Blackburn looked over his shoulder and noticed me coming at him. It was too late for him to move; I had grabbed the back of his coat. Ed jumped back, rushing to Gregory and Al to avoid the impact. "Now it's my turn," I growled to Blackburn.

What happened within those next few seconds was confusing, and fast.

My hands had heated up, just as I intended. Also as I intended, I exploded his jacket. But what I didn't intend, was for him to grab my arm and break it. With alchemy. Because of the searing pain in my arm, I had lost control and concentration, causing the explosion to be even bigger than my initial plan. Blackburn and I both screamed in pain as we were thrown back.

"Riley!"

I landed harshly, doing a few flips and rolls before I finally landed hard on my back. Groaning, I looked up, holding my arm, and saw Ed already kneeling beside me as Gregory and Al rushed over. Ed cautiously grasped my arm and I flinched, hissing in pain. He quickly let go and gritted his teeth, "Damn it…"

"What happened?" Al asked, confused as he and Gregory reached us.

Gregory sighed. With a shake of his head, he explained to us, "You have to remember. Blackburn is an expert at human alchemy."

"So he… Transmuted her arm?" Al asked.

Ed glared at the ground. "No, Al… He didn't finish all the stages of alchemy. He only got to the deconstruction level when the explosion separated them," He muttered.

I held my arm as I nodded, "Good thing I lost my concentration then…"

We all then looked to Blackburn. Unfortunately, he was still moving. He slowly and shakily got to his feet and rubbed his bloody chin. "Tell me. Who was it… That you tried to bring back to life?" He asked, smirking blankly at Ed and Al. The two tensed and he chuckled bitterly. "You don't need a circle, and he's a hollow armor. It's obvious… But what I don't get," He trailed off a bit as he looked at me, "Is why you don't need a circle."

My finger twitched. "That isn't your business," I growled in response.

"I suppose it isn't," He shook his head as he clapped, "You see, I use stones. You may have heard of them before?" Seeing our narrowed eyes, he nodded. "You have. With these, I don't need a circle…," He said as he slipped out a small yet bulky pouch. My hands heated up. I felt them stinging quite badly, and I winced as I clenched them.

I looked down at my hands when I felt them stinging a bit. I could faintly see a pink circle on them. "What…?" I thought as I clenched them. When I heard Scar let out a yell of pain, I looked up to see him holding his arm. We all looked over and saw Marcoh with a glowing stone in his hand. "Dr. Marcoh?" Ed mumbled. "Don't you have any sense? You should be long gone by now!" He shouted.

Unclenching my hands, I looked at them to see the same as I did then. A faint, pink transmutation circle. Blackburn noticed it too. He smirked, "Just as I thought… Your father used his ink on your hands, didn't he?" When I glared at him, he nodded. "I noticed it when we perfected it. The ink always reacted to the stones. Your father always was a convenient type of man."

"Shut up…," I growled, growing angry. This asshole was talking down to me; and about my father like they were equals. The same way Kimblee talked down to me. The association wasn't helping my temper any.

Gregory noticed this and placed a hand on my shoulder, "Calm yourself. You're useless if you're angry."

Ed sighed, shaking his head. "It doesn't matter. You aren't moving from that spot," He said. Ignoring my glare, he said firmly, "You aren't fighting with a broken arm."

"The hell I'm not," I hissed, sitting up more, "This is personal, now."

Ed glared, "Will you stop being stubborn for once?"

I instantly looked at him and replied with, "Will you?"

He went silent. We both stared each other firm in the eye for a few minutes, when he finally sighed. "Fine…"

Smirking, I slowly pushed myself to a stand. Gregory stood as well and I looked over at him, "You're the one that needs to rest. I'm taking care of him."

Gregory didn't believe me, but wasn't going to argue when he had to kneel down to grasp his shoulder better. "Alright. But remember, Riley – He was trained at the dojo as well."

I nodded and looked to Blackburn, who was trying to get some of his strength up. He was oblivious of what we were saying. I walked passed Al, but Ed quickly grabbed my wrist. Looking back, I saw him glaring at me. "Be careful, Riley. I don't care if you want to do this on your own or not. If he endangers you, we're stepping in."

"…," I sighed, "Alright. Better than nothing." And so, Ed let go of me and I turned to face Blackburn, who was smirking at me.

Life was going to end for one us – Then and there.

One my chapter after this and the Cycle of Blackburn chapters will be over! xD

Chapter Translations!
Třicet Jedna is Cvech.
Trisdesimt Du is Lithuanian.
And this chapter is Haitian Creole!

Be Responsible. Don't Flame and Drive! Rawr.