Cast Iron Alchemist

by Inkwellblue

Anthony Elric's grandfather died. In his will he left Anthony a trunk, containing Ed's Amestrian artifacts. Anthony unwittingly transports himself through the truth to Amestris, and finds it's a very different place than his grandpa wanted it to become.

1. Chapter 1

Cast Iron Alchemist

Chapter one: the wannabe alchemist

A young boy stood in front of a grave. His grandfather Edward had recently died. This boy's name was Anthony, Anthony Elric. He was very close to his grandpa Ed, and enjoyed listening to his wild stories of the alchemist with a metal arm and leg.

Edward had lived a long and happy life, dying of old age at 89. He had outlived his wife, Winry, and his brother, Anthony's great uncle Alphonse. Edward had two children in his life time, a boy he named Curtis, and a girl he named Nina. Nina went to join her son at the grave. "Anthony," she said softly, "It's time for the reading of the will."

He nodded and followed her up to the funeral home. Anthony's father had died from pneumonia when he was young, so he always saw Edward as a father figure. Anthony sat down in the funeral home and brushed his blonde hair from his gold eyes. The Attorney read the will out loud for all to hear. He read out each inheritance carefully in a clear voice. "...And to my Grandson, Anthony, who loved to listen to my stories, hanging on each word, I leave the chest in my attic, the one with my name written in gold."

Anthony looked down, crying silently inside himself. When the reading ended, everyone one got up and left to the estate to collect their inheritance. Anthony carried the trunk into the back of his car, not even bothering to open it, and brought it home to his room, setting it in the corner. He spend the next hour reflecting on his grandfather, and his stories. His favorite tale was when the alchemist liberated the religious town from a false prophet. That was the first story he had ever heard from him. After a while he sat up and stared at the chest, contemplating whether or not he should open it. He stared for a long time before getting up and walking over. He opened it slowly, looking inside. On top of the chest was a jacket, red with a symbol of a snake wrapped around a cross on the back. He set it to the side and checked at the next objects. Next was an old, rusted metal prosthetic arm, and a matching leg. He looked them over for a second, on the palm and the sole each had a name etched into it. "Rockbell." He thought for a second but no relation came to mind, so he set them aside. Next was a pocket watch, silver with a lion emblem on the front. Anthony tried to open it, but it was sealed shut somehow. The last item in the trunk was a pocket sized leather bound note book. Anthony flipped through the pages. Inside were stories, some that he recognized from his Grandfather. There were also sketches of circles with unique designs and notes on different chemical builds. Anthony looked confused. "Is this some sort of novel?" he asked to the empty room.

He down and started reading. It chronicled stories that even he hadn't heard.

Over the next few weeks Anthony started studying the notebook, wearing the pocket watch and the jacket. Occasionally he would practice drawing the circles, which he had discovered in his reading to be transmutation circles. He came across one written on the back page, though it had no explanation. It was very intricate, with writing around the circles that appeared to be a strange language. After looking it over for a few more days, he finally decided to try and draw it, working in the basement.

He had to rewrite the designs many times, drawing symbol after intricate symbol on the concrete floor. After a week of practising, he finally came close to completing it. He drew on the last symbol, looking it over with pride. Staring at this design, he felt an incredible sense of nostalgia, nostalgia for his grandfather's legacy. He began walking upstairs, but he slipped and fell. Anthony's palm landed flat on the circle, and it began to glow. He stood up, both palms on the circle, an eye opened up beneath him. Anthony couldn't believe his eyes as, suddenly, tendril arms grew from the eye and grabbed him. He resisted as best he could, but the arms pulled him in beneath the eye. Anthony struggled as best as he could, but he passed out.

When Anthony came to, he was lying in a grassy field. He sat up and looked around, trying to get his bearings. He didn't understand what had happened. Just a second ago he was in his basement. Everything after that was a blur. He stood up, and spotted a young girl. Her hair was a chestnut brown, and she was wearing a green nylon jacket. In her hand were grocery bags. Anthony ran toward her. "Excuse me miss!" he yelled to her.

She quickly turned around and spotted him. "Sorry to bother you, but...could you possibly tell me where I am?"

She smiled. "No trouble at all. This is the town of Risembool, in eastern Amestris."

Anthony couldn't make heads or tails of the names she was using. She looked him up and down, examining him carefully. "hey, you aren't from around here are you? My name is Alicia, Alicia Rivers, what's yours?"

Anthony paused for a sec. "It's Anthony, Anthony Elric."

She looked surprised as he spoke his name. "Did you say...Elric? As in Edward Elric?"

Anthony replied with his own look of surprise. "Wait...how do you know my grandfather's name?"

She paused briefly, staring at the ground. "Come with me, there's someone who'll want to meet you."

Anthony stepped back, a bit suspicious. "Whoa, I need to find my way home, I don't have time to waste meeting friends of yours."

Alicia looked pleadingly at him and grabbed him by the arm. "Please, it'll only take a few minutes."

Anthony stared at her, taking in her serious expression, and then sighed. "Fine, let's get this over with."

She smiled and began to walk, strolling along the street with Anthony following behind. She walked up to a lemon yellow two story house. The sign out front read "Rockbell Auto-mail" Anthony stopped and stared at it for a second. "Rockbell, that was the name on Grandpa Ed's old arm and leg."

She looked over at him and walked over. "Yeah, this is the Rockbell auto-mail shop, it's run by my grandma Winry."

Anthony looked at her. "Your grandma Winry?" he asked, surprised.

She shrugged and nodded. "Well she's not my legitimate grandmother, but she's always treated me like family since my parents died."

Anthony sighed with relief and followed her in. "This Winry, is this the person you wanted me to meet with?" he asked.

She nodded, stacking some apples in a basket. "Grandma Winry will want to see you, Edward Elric is an old family friend."

Anthony kept stacking food, contemplating what was going on. Once they were finished, he took a seat, his head was spinning. What was going on here? How did he come from his basement to some place called Risembool in some land called Amestris? His head was filled with questions, but he had no answers. Suddenly, the door opened, and a tall woman with Silvery white hair entered. Alicia stood up and smiled. "Grandma Winry! How was the service call?" she asked happily.

The woman smiled at her. "It went well, though it was hard work connecting the nerve endings." She said, smiling as she looked over at Anthony. "Oh, Who is your friend Alicia? I haven't seen him in here before."

Anthony just stared in shock, as if he had seen a ghost. The woman staring in front of him was the spitting image of his grandmother Winry. He stood up, staring at her with utter surprise. "I-I'm Anthony, Anthony Elric." he told her.

His name had the same effect on Winry as Alicia. She stared at him for a short time, trying to make sense of his words. "Alicia," she finally said, "Go tend to your flowers while I tend to this young man."

She nodded slowly and walked outside to the small flower garden. Winry walked over slowly and sat down. "Who are you?" she asked, a crack in her voice.

she was shaking, clearly upset. Anthony was no better, he stared back at her with serious eyes. "Anthony Elric."

She began to cry, enraged. "Don't sell me that! There are no Elrics in Risembool." she told him in a fit of anger. It was clear she had pulled herself into a pool of denial.

Anthony stood up, staring at her still. "I am Anthony Elric, I am the grandson of Edward Elric."

This only sent her to hysterics as she fell to the ground, crying on her knees. "Quit lying to me! Edward Elric is gone, he's gone and he's never coming back, just like his brother Alphonse!"

Anthony pulled the pocket watch from his waist and threw it to the ground. "Then explain why I have this!"

The watch fell in front of Winry, a burst of nostalgia replaced her tears. "Where did you...?"

He glared at her, tearing up. "This was given to me by Grandpa Ed in his will, this is his pocket watch."

She quickly picked it up and brought it over to her work bench, using her tools to pry open the front lid. Anthony glared. "don't bother, it was welded shut or something!" She kept working and got it open. "It was sealed with alchemy..."

she stared in at the watch, Anthony leaned over and read the makeshift inscription on the lid. "'Never forget, 3 Oct. 11?' what happened on 3 Oct. 11?" he asked.

Winry was once again brought to tears as she explained it to him. "It's the day Edward Elric and his brother Alphonse Elric burned down their house"

Anthony's mind began to collapse as he heard that final comment. He fell to his knees, too shocked to stand, remembering a part of the note book explaining that. "Wh...What the hell are you talking about?"

She continued to cry, memories of the past boiling to the surface once again. "they burned down their home, right here in Risembool, So that they couldn't turn back as they set out to restore their bodies."

Anthony was filled with Reminiscing tales of his Grandfather's notebook, he pulled it from his back pocket and stared at it. "Are you telling me this book is about my Grandfather's life?"

She turned and looked at the familiar notebook. "Wh-what? That's his notebook. Where did you get this? Just who are you?"

Anthony stayed on the floor, his legs too weak to support him. His emotions were in a fluster as he spoke. "I'm...Anthony Elric...Edward Elric's Grandson."

Once they had all had a chance to calm down, Anthony explained everything to Winry, all the way up to his arrival in Risembool. Winry stayed silent, taking it all in. She slowly smiled. "So I did live my life with Ed, it just wasn't exactly me." she said quietly.

Alicia came in at that moment, wound up. "Ugh, I wish those Military groups would just quit it already."

Anthony looked at her. "Military?" he asked.

Winry answered it for him. "the Amestrian Military, they've been scouting for state alchemists for months now, and they have their eyes set on Alicia."

Anthony looked confused. "But...In the book Fullmetal...Grandpa Ed wrote that people chose to be state alchemists, they weren't enlisted."

Alicia joined the two at the table and poured a glass of water. "That was the old way, but that way Disappeared with President Fuhrer King Roy Mustang."

Anthony recognized the name from the book and smiled for a moment. "So Mustang actually made king huh?"

Winry shook her head. "Yes and no. Roy Mustang was promoted to king, but it was short lived, when a group of 'liberators' came and drove him out, they claimed that he was a dictator trying to get into the office after killing President Fuhrer King Bradley. A new ruler took over the country and changed the rules, President Fuhrer King Simon."

Anthony shook his head. "but Bradley was a Homunculus!" he debated.

Winry sighed. "Only Ed's circle of resistance was aware of that though, so no one would believe it. Roy Mustang was caught after helping his wife, Riza, flee from Central. It's a shame though, She was pregnant from what I've heard."

Anthony shook his head. "Full...Grandpa Ed fought to save this capital from destruction and liberate the people from the military, but now it's become so much worse."

Winry looked down and sighed. "I know, this world is dying, and no one can seem to help it. It's getting late Anthony, you can stay the night here, and stay as long as you want. Any relative of Edward's is a relative of mine aswell. Alicia, please show him to an empty room."

She nodded and stood up, taking him to a room upstairs. "Good night Anthony, I'll see you tomorrow." she said as she shut the door and walked across the hall to her own room. Anthony layed down on the bed and tried his best to sleep.

Anthony awoke from a horrific nightmare and rubbed his head, shaking it off. He stared at the window, expecting to see his street outside. All he saw were the dirt roads of Risembool, and he couldn't help but let out a disappointing sigh. He stood up and walked out of the room. Across the hall he noticed there was a light creeping under the door. Anthony knocked slowly. The knock surprised Alicia and she let out a squeak. "U-umm come in." she said quietly.

Anthony opened the door and looked over at her, sitting at the desk. She had some colored gloves out and a sewing set. "what are you doing?" he asked as he walked over and examined a grey glove.

She smiled. "I'm sewing transmutation circles into these gloves, when I put them on all I have to do is place my palm to the surface where I want to transmute my alchemy and presto."

Anthony looked over the glove, recognizing the circle from the note book. "so you're an alchemist? Cool, do you have a specialty?"

she nodded and showed him a green glove with another circle he recognized from the book, next to an entry called "Copy cat bastards!" Alicia smiled and kept sewing another green glove. "it's botanic alchemy, transmuting plants." she explained.

She put the glove on and demonstrated, growing a small sapling in a pot of soil on her desk. Anthony smiled. "Impressive, you're really good."

Without thinking he pocketed the grey glove. Alicia blushed a little and smiled. "Thanks, though I wish those military jerks didn't see it the same way as you. They haven't left me alone about making me a state alchemist for the past two months."

Anthony sighed, hating the world for not changing like his grandfather wanted. She took the glove back off and put it with its mate. "the fun part is that I sew the circle in using the same color thread as the glove, so I can clap my hands together and it looks like I'm doing alchemy without a circle, like the Fullmetal Alchemist."

Anthony nodded, happy to see his grandfather was remembered by more than just him. "Well, I'd better get back to bed. Good night."

She nodded and let him leave, continuing her work.

Anthony awoke the next morning and walked downstairs. Alicia was already down there, making breakfast. She set a plate of pancakes down on the table in front of him as he sat. He smiled and started eating, Alicia brought her own to the table and smiled. "wow, you can really pile it down huh?" she smiled.

Anthony nodded. "My mom always said I have a fast metabolism, I could eat anything." he explained.

She nodded and slid him over a glass of milk. Anthony stared at it for a minute, then shook his head. "no thanks, I don't like milk."

She shook her head back and slid it closer to him. "You have to drink your milk, how are you supposed to grow tall and strong?"

Anthony glared at her. "it tastes gross, and I'm plenty tall." It was true he was taller than his grandfather at that age.

she stood up and held it out for him. "Like hell, just drink it Anthony."

He pushed it away. "I said no, get off my back."

Winry came in in the middle of their argument and couldn't help but giggle. Alicia looked over at her and smiled. "morning grandma Winry, breakfast is on the counter, you have to eat fast though, you have to go repair Thomas's arm today."

she nodded and sat down, eating. Anthony looked over at her. "um, Gra...Miss Winry, can I go with you and help out? I want to be at least a little helpful to you, since you're allowing me to stay here and all."

she looked over at him and smiled. For a moment she saw in his determined eyes an old friend. "sure, I haven't worked with someone since my grandmother died. Alicia tried it, but I think she should stick to her plant alchemy."

Anthony nodded, and after breakfast the two went out. Anthony watched as she worked, handing her parts and tools as she asked for them. Anthony was smiling on the way back home that afternoon. "wow, that was an amazing job. Automail is pretty amazing too. A joint that doesn't tire out or require workouts to strengthen, I think it'd be amazing. Miss Winry, can you give me automail?"

She glared at him, her anger had been rising as he spoke. "Do you think people like having automail? These people have lost their limbs, they have no choice. How dare you!"

Anthony looked down, sighing. "I...guess I never thought of that. I'm sorry."

as they approached home they noticed a group of soldiers talking to Alicia. She was glaring back at them. "For the last time, I won't join the state alchemists, I won't be one of your military dogs!" t

he soldier glared at her. "This is your last chance, come with us now!"

she pushed him back. "I said no!"

the soldier sighed. "fine then, my orders are clear then."

he pulled a gun from his coat and pointed it directly at her, along with the other two soldiers behind him. Thinking on his feet, Anthony pulled the alchemy glove from his pocket and put it on, diving to the ground just in time to produce a shield of rock in front of her. The soldiers turned their attention to Anthony, and he glared at them. The leader put his gun away and glared at him, and Anthony glared right back. The two stared off for some time before they started walking away. Winry ran over to Alicia's side, she was on her knees, sweating in fear. "Are you alright?"

she nodded. "Anthony saved me just in time."

He walked over and watched the soldiers walk away. "So this is what it's come to? Obey or die? Damnit...This has to end."

That night, Anthony sat in his room, looking over his Grandfather's book. Alicia came in with dinner and sat down. "what are you doing?"

Anthony put the book down and picked up his dinner. "I'm studying Alchemy from grandpa Ed's book. I think if I understand it then I can help change this world."

As he began eating, Alicia smiled. "thanks for saving me earlier today. If you want to learn about alchemy though you'll need a professionally written book, I'm sure you can find one in the market."

Anthony looked up. "That would be great, thanks."

she nodded. "I need to pick up groceries, you can come with me tomorrow."

he nodded back and kept eating. "So, you use botanic alchemy?"

she nodded. "My mother was a florist, and my father was an alchemist. Botanic alchemy is amazing. It helps nature and develops new life, and as long as I have my gloves or a circle I can't run out of materials, because the earth itself is the blueprint for my alchemy."

Anthony nodded. "You're the opposite of Mustang then." he told her.

She looked over at him. "Fuhrer King Mustang?"

he nodded. "he was called the flame alchemist in the army, he used a glove with a fire transmutation circle and could create a spark with the snap of his fingers. He destroys, and you create. You're opposites."

she nodded and stood up. "I'm going to bed, you should get your rest too. Alchemy is partly physical, if you don't sleep properly, it can affect you."

he nodded and finished his dinner, setting the plate on the night stand. "don't worry, I'll be sure to get plenty of sleep." he studied for another hour before laying down to rest.

The market was bustling with business, the two could barely make their way through the crowd. Alicia led Anthony over to a book store and walked him in, handing him a membership card and a note. "here, you can use my discount card, they'll put the money on my tab." she explained.

Anthony nodded and smiled. "thanks, I should be done in an hour."

she nodded back and left to do her grocery shopping. Anthony walked through the store, examining all the books on the shelves. After some time of exploring he found the alchemy books on a back shelf. He started looking at the names to find the proper books. He ended up buying four books, "An Introduction to Alchemy", "the Alchemist's kitchen", "Guide to Advanced Alchemic Circles", and "A History of Famous and Infamous Alchemists". He walked up and handed them the note and the card, smiling. The woman behind the counter smiled back, adjusting her glasses. "So Alicia finally found herself a man huh? And a cute one too."

Anthony blushed and shook his head. "N-no! Nothing like that, we're just friends!"

she giggled and bagged the books for him. "I know hon, just kidding around with you, have a nice day."

he stepped outside and waited for Alicia. It didn't take her long to return with the groceries. "Did you find what you were looking for?" she asked.

He nodded and took one of the grocery bags. "The cashier is very friendly, but she thought we were a couple."

She blushed and shook her head. "D-don't mind her, she's always messing with me." she explained.

The two walked home. As they approached the house, they saw smoke billowing up into the air. Alicia panicked immediately and dropped the bags, running toward the direction of it. Anthony followed behind her, doing his best to hold onto the bags. When they arrived, they found the house had been set ablaze. She fell to her knees and began to cry. "Grandma Winry could still be in there!"

without a second thought, Anthony dropped the bags and ran to the nearby well, pulling up a bucket of water and drenching himself before running into the burning building. Alicia sat there in shock, watching the doorway as he led Winry out from inside, she had fallen unconscious from the smoke. She ran to her side and looked her over. "is she alright?" she asked.

Anthony nodded. "I could feel her breathing while I was carrying her. I Also saved some pairs of your gloves."

he handed her the grey, blue, and green pair. She gave him back the blue pair. "Anthony please, do your best to put out the fire."

he nodded and took the gloves putting them on while she attended to Winry, carrying her to the doctor down the street. He ran back to the well and used the water to put out the fire, though he drained most of his energy. The house was burned and dilapidated, but it was still standing. Alicia came back and saw him lying in the grass. "Are you alright Anthony?"

he nodded and picked himself up, breathing heavily. "I just overdid it a bit, how's Miss Winry?"

she nodded, smiling. "She'll be alright."

Anthony got up and looked at the house. "I don't think anyone can live here anymore, it's a total wreck."

she nodded and walked in. "I'll work on collecting whatever we can salvage. Oh who could have done this...?"

Anthony glared at the ground. "I think we both know that answer. Their orders were clear remember?"

she nodded slowly. "to think they would go to such lengths..."

Anthony nodded. "I swear, I'm going to stop them."

Winry hadn't been burned by the fire, but her lungs had suffered a serious blow. She was able to walk, but she couldn't over exert herself. The three were staying in the doctor's house, which was typically empty while the doctor was out making house calls. Anthony had been reading and practising for the past week while Winry recovered. He had transmuted a jacket like the one he had back home and took to wearing it as he worked. Alicia would watch him and correct him as he worked. Winry walked into the room as the two were practising and tapped Alicia's shoulder. "Bring your gloves, I have a little project I want you to help me with."

Anthony turned to her. "what is it? I could help you."

Winry shook her head. "no, only Alicia can, but I do need to ask you something before we start."

Anthony stood up to face her. "Anthony Elric, do you truly intend to face the military?" she asked.

Anthony looked at her with a serious look in his eyes. "I do, I want to make the world my Grandfather worked to create."

she smiled and nodded. "Then I'll need Alicia's help."

Alicia got up to join her. When she returned, she found Anthony transmuting a patch to his jacket, one of a snake wrapping itself around a cross. "What's that? It looks familiar." Anthony stood up and put his jacket back on. "Grandpa Ed drew this in his book many times, and he used to wear it on his old jacket. Now it's going to be the symbol for the Fullmetal Brigade." he explained.

She looked it over curiously. "What's the Fullmetal Brigade?"

he smiled and erased the chalk circle with his foot. "It's the rebel group I'm going to form to overthrow this government, to make this land the way the alchemists of yesteryear envisioned."

She sat down and lost herself in thought for a second. "Anthony, Can I join?"

Anthony looked at her and sat across. "What about Miss Winry?"

she smiled and a tear was brought to her eye. "Those soldiers burned down the house to finish off me. Being here will only make things more dangerous for Grandma Winry. Besides, I want to help turn this world into the world both you and the alchemists envision. I want to make a world where I don't have to worry about Grandma Winry."

Winry stepped into the room and smiled. "I figured you'd say something like that. Anthony, I have something for you before you leave. I know you wanted automail, but I have the next best thing."

She showed him a metal arm armor for his right arm. He walked over and put it on, smiling. "This is great, this will be another symbol of the brigade."

he put on one of Alicia's gloves and transmuted the engraved symbol into the shoulder, and a transmutation circle into the palm. "there, now I won't have to draw a circle whenever I want to transmute, and I'll be able to put a scare into our enemies by clapping before I do." he said, smiling.

Winry nodded, smiling. "Just be sure that you take good care of my little botanic alchemist over there."

with that statement, an idea shot through Anthony's head. "Yeah, the Botanic Alchemist," he said, turning to Alicia, "From now on that'll be your code name. Now I need one too."

Winry smiled and tapped his armored arm. "The Cast Iron Alchemist, that's what I made your armor from."

Anthony nodded. "the Botanic Alchemist, and the Cast Iron Alchemist, the first two members of the Fullmetal Brigade."

Alicia smiled and nodded. Suddenly, an idea hit her. "Grandma Winry, do you have any cast iron left?"

she looked over and nodded, bringing it to her. She put on a grey glove and transmuted the left over cast iron into a pair of masks. The first one bore Winry's left swept bangs, a style she kept since childhood. The second one Anthony took carefully, it's design had a pair of bangs sticking out if it, hanging on either side down the face, just like Edward's. He smiled and put it on, looking through the eye holes. "Then it's settled, We're gonna take down this government and reshape this world."

the next day the two prepared to depart. Alicia had made her own green jacket matching Anthony's red, with the symbol on the back. Alicia waved back to Winry as they departed, and turned to Anthony. "so, what's first on the brigade's schedule?"

he smiled as he walked into the horizon. "We're gonna find an ex-heir and sign them up."

Winry saw them off. As she looked out at their backs, for a moment she felt she recognized Anthony's as he walked away. Finally the two left from sight, ready to write a new chapter in the Amestrian history books.