I forgot to write the diclaimer, so I'll just do it in this chapter.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist. Hiromu Arakawa (author and artist of FMA)does. The chracters I do own are Hikaru, Ayumi, and any other characters that aren't from the original FMA series.
Chapter 3: Rebirth
Ed began to wonder about the meeting he had with Roy and why he had asked him about Hikaru, as he walked down the main hallway of the hospital with Al. But all that hard thinking made his head hurt and he had to scratch his head with rage.
You feeling ok, brother?" Al asked in concern.
"Yeah." Ed replied as he returned to his calm self. "But I was just wondering about the girl who saved us from Scar. She never gave us her name or at least gave me the chance to say 'thank you' to her."
"So my brother has a cute little crush on his cute, little savior?" Al laughed and teased.
Ed blushed a light shade of red on his face. He ran up and attacked his brother with a barrage of punches and kicks. Al continued to laugh, feeling that he hit the jackpot.
"Boys!" a nurse shouted from one of the rooms. "This is a hospital! Keep the fighting outside!"
"This is your fault…" Ed mumbled in anger over to Al. Al continued to chuckle a bit at his brother's short-tempered personality.
The two left the hospital and stared into the clear sky. Al heard something rustling in the bushes and rushed over to see what it was, while Ed lost himself in his deep thoughts.
I wonder why that girl saved us. he thought. But I do kind of feel as if we actually met somewhere before that whole Scar event. She's so strange. She doesn't talk much and when she does it's usually something strange or weird. Man, this is so complicated! I can't get my mind off her! It's as if she's haunting me. But the thing that bugs me the most is what she said the last time she whispered to me. Something about 'my wings' and…
Suddenly Ed was knocked out of his deep thoughts as a small, orange kitten landed on his face.
"What the hell?" Ed shouted as the kitten jumped off his face. "Alphonse…"
Ed glared at his brother with glowing eyes of evil as Al quickly stopped laughing and soon began to whimper in fear. Ed slowly walked over building Al's suspense and stopped when he was directly in front of his brother, who was now on his knees begging for mercy. But being the good big brother he is, Ed just kicked off Al's armored head and then walked pass him.
"C'mon Al." Ed spoke as he turned around to see his brother putting his head back on. "We have to get to Resembool, so I can finally get my arm fixed, and then I'll fix you back together afterwards."
"All right!" Al replied as he got up and ran after Ed. "I'm coming brother!"
Around the same time Ed and Al left the hospital in Central, Hikaru carefully made it back home. She grabbed a sturdy gripped vine at the backside of her house and climbed up it to her highest balcony, which led to a secret lab room. She walked inside and took off her black cape. She hung it on the coat rack and walked over to a small round table. There she opened a thick red book that contained information about Alchemy and the Philosopher's Stone. She then reached over to the shelf and a grabbed a small, thick brown book on Clay bodies and Golems. Hikaru then looked into the mirror that was to the right of her.
"Do you have the body ready yet, Hikaru?" the reflection asked.
"The body should be getting close to finished." Hikaru replied. "The only thing missing should be the soul. Shall I extract it now?"
"What did the books I stole for you say?" the reflection said as she revealed the identity of the mysterious thief that the military is currently after.
"Well a Philosopher's Stone is not required." Hikaru answered as she reached into her pocket. "I just need my gloves."
"Those are the gloves that you had since you we were still infants. I can't imagine that you would still keep a hold of that and keep in a good condition after all these years," the reflection said a bit surprised. "Then again, those gloves are special. That's probably why you kept them in safety."
"Shall I extract it now?" Hikaru repeated her earlier question as she began to slide on her gloves.
"Since the body is ready do as you may," The reflection answered with confidence.
"All right then. I'll begin now." Hikaru said as she tightened the grip on her gloves. She reached her hand forward into the mirror as if the glass was liquid ooze. Inside the mirror Hikaru managed to grab something and carefully pulled it out. Out came a transparent figure that almost resembles Hikaru, but with more slanted eyes. It was the soul of Hikaru's reflection! Hikaru carefully carried the soul over to its new body that was lying in a human-shaped casket made of clay. She placed the soul into the clay body and closed the casket lid over the fake body. On the lid she carefully drew a small transmutation circle and clapped her hands to perform Alchemy. She then placed her hands on the circle and a blue light began to surround the clay casket.
In just a matter of seconds the casket lid began to slowly move and slide off on to the floor. Then a naked body rose from the casket and began to slowly look at the surroundings around her. Then she turned herself around to look at Hikaru directly with an emotionless look on her face. Her long, ebony hair is about the same length as Hikaru's, but a bit longer and straighter. She stood up and began to check her new body. She was exactly the same height as Hikaru, and almost exactly resembles her. The only difference is the slight straightness in her hair and her eyes. Unlike Hikaru, the body that the soul of the reflection occupies doesn't have crimson eyes. She has a more dark blue, close to black, colored eyes. The body motioned with her fingers for Hikaru to stand up. She grabbed Hikaru's hand and placed it on the cheek of the body she created for her to feel the success of the transmutation.
"Hikaru," the body spoke.
"Yes?" Hikaru responded without any emotional feel for the success.
"The transmutation was a success," the body answered. "I say you may actually be more skilled at alchemy than that child prodigy, Edward Elric." She let go of Hikaru's hand letting it drop back to her side and continued. "The ways you put this body together and made it feel like a living, breathing human is spectacularly amazing! My skin feels so tender like and my hair feels just like yours. This body looks as if it were actually the real me if I had lived through the years and grew along with you. You even captured the eyes perfectly! I feel alive again!"
"What do you mean by living and growing along side me?" Hikaru asked a bit confused.
"Don't worry Hikaru." The body said as she gently rubbed Hikaru's head. "The boy with the wings you desire most will answer everything for you."
"Ok…" Hikaru said still really confused. "Oh! What should I call you now? Since you now have a body like a human, you'll need a name."
"All right then," the body replied. "For now please refer to me as L."
At about the same moment Ed and Al's train arrived in the sunny fields of Resembool. There was a soft breeze that blew through the vast blue sky and the trees swayed along with the wind. As Ed breathed the air he felt a sort of relief in him as if coming to Resembool would solve most of his troubles. He let the wind blow through his golden blonde hair a bit before following his brother down the dirt road.
It took the two brothers about a few minutes to arrive at the Rockbell Automail Workshop and the soft breeze suddenly stopped blowing. Ed and Al walked up the stairs of the workshop and noticed a piece of paper attached to the locked door. It said,
"WELCOME TO THE ROCKBELL AUTOMAIL WORKSHOP! But right now the shop is closed due to the fact that we are on vacation in the West. We will back soon in the later future.
THANK YOU!
-Winry and Pinako Rockbell"
"Great," Ed sighed as he read the notice, "Whose going to fix my automail now?" He then looked at Al and then the bag carrying all of Al's broken parts. "Without my right arm I can't perform Alchemy and I won't be able fix you back to normal, Al."
"It's ok, brother," Al reassured him, "Remember I can still walk around even with a huge chunk of my upper body missing. So I'll be fine."
"I hope your right Al." Ed said. "But no matter what I still need my arm fixed. I just need to know a place that can fix automail as good as this workshop."
"Oh! Edward Elric!" A very loud manly voice was shouting from out of nowhere. "I know the perfect place where you can get your arm fixed!"
Ed and Al turned around and were almost scared to death by seeing Major Armstrong running rapidly towards them. Ed shouted like crazy when Armstrong began to hug him tightly and Al hid in the bushes too scared to come back out.
"Major!" Al shouted from the bushes, "If you continue to hug brother like this you'll end up breaking more of his body parts!"
Armstrong realized what he was doing and quickly let go of Ed who panting and begging for air.
Damn. Ed thought. He didn't have to choke me like that. He just had to show up at a moment like this. Was he stalking us? But wait… didn't he say that he knows a place that can fix my arm as good as the Rockbells?
Armstrong noticed Ed was in real deep thought and partially explained what he came here for, "You're looking for another mechanic, right Edward?"
"Yeah." Ed answered. "It seems that my mechanic is on a vacation in the West. I need someone who's just as good, or even better than her. The sad thing is that I don't know who…"
"Fortunately for you," Armstrong continued, "I know a place with a mechanic who is just about as good as your mechanic."
"You do Major?" Al shouted in excitement as he jumped out the bushes.
"Of course I do!" The Major nodded proudly as he began to flex his muscles. "The mechanic lives in a dark forest close to here known as Elendia. There's only one house in that giant abandoned forest and the house is about the size of a luxurious mansion, so it should be easy to find."
"Wait a minute!" Ed exclaimed. "I heard of Elendia before!"
"You did brother?" Al asked.
Ed nodded and explained. "I can't believe you don't remember Al. Mom always told us not to run off there. She said it was large, very dangerous, and easy to get lost in. Yet I'm surprised that someone actually lives there now. But Mom said that Elendia was once part of Resembool, until the nature and plant life took over the area. Now the two places are separate and the people of Resembool renamed the area, which is now a forest, Elendia."
Al and Armstrong were surprised to see that Ed actually had some knowledge about the mysterious forest of Elendia. As the three looked onward at the lush growing forest, the once sunny sky became dark and in a matter of minutes rain began to start pelting on them. Ed turned his head from the view of Elendia to his brother and Major Armstrong. He had a determined look on his face as if he were ready to wander into danger no matter what the cost is.
"Ready to go off to Elendia, the lush forbidden forest of the hazardous unknown?" Ed asked Al and Armstrong.
Al and Armstrong turned towards each other and then they both answered, "Why not, Edward!"
An urge of excitement ran through Ed's body as he jumped off the porch of the Rockbell's workshop and into the hard, pouring rain. He threw his left fist in the air to show strong determination and shouted,
"All right! Onward to Elendia!"