PHEW! Finally updated something besides Paradise Acquired! Sorry if it's shorter than what I'm used to writing. I can write long chapters for Paradise Acquired because that's what I have the largest vision for, but don't worry. After a few chapters, this will get longer ones as well. Regardless, on to the usual business.

Disclaimer: Fullmetal Alchemist is property of Hiromu Arakawa-dono, and Fairy Tail is property of Hiro Mashima-dono.

Many thanks to DJ everything, king cool 12, ObsidianSpade, Itharax, catlove3131, Guest, Touhou is Life, and ef07! Everyone else became a nice meal for Gluttony! Yay!

Thank you also to those who favorited and followed, and enjoy the read!

City of Liore

"God has given us a great trial, my children!"

Devout believers on the cult of Leto looked on in near fanaticism, hands folded in prayer, as Fr. Cornello stood above, at his lofty pulpit, his hands aloft as he fervently preached.

"Wicked heathens have spread insidious rumors, trying to shake our faith, and now the military seeks to oppress us!"

People nodded in full agreement! How dare that pint-sized alchemist try to frame him! He was their promised messiah, the one sent to serve the divine message of Leto!

"But we must hold tight to our faith!" Only a trained onlooker could see though, that the usual calm facade of Fr. Cornello was gone, replaced by a truly sinister face as he looked down on all of them. He clenched his fist, "The time has come to rise up, weapon in hand, and fight in the name of the great god Leto!"

The people could begin cheering, fanatic looks of devotion engraved on their face, as they all began to take up weapons and torches. One even shouted, "Yeah! We fight under the protection of Leto! Down with heathens and heresy! Death to all who oppose the god Leto!"

However, a few brave souls gathered on the other side, daring enough to speak in opposition, "No! Don't be fooled! He spekas only lies! Are you so blind that you can't see what the alchemist exposed! He's only a fraud who cares for himself! Oof!" The man fell to the ground as a rock struck him in the head, HARD. And he did not get up again.

"Hold your tongue!" The man who through the rock yelled, insane loyalty flaring in his eyes, "We aren't pawns of the heathens like all of you are!"

"Better then being pawns of a false prophet!"

"You son of a bitch! Die you heathen bastards!" Each side charged at one another, wanting to rip the throat out of the other side!

High above, in the church of Leto, a evil smile formed upon one person's face, belonging to the homunculus, Lust the Lascivious, "Eh heh! Human foolishness never ceases to amaze me!"

The riots continues as each side also took up weapons, glass breaking from thrown rocks, as peoples' heads were smashed by rocks, boards, whatever they could get their hands on. A lone child, huddled in a random corner began crying, not understanding such horror, or why they were fighting.

"Wouldn't you agree, Gluttony?" She turned to her very round companion.

"Fools, all of 'em!" Coming from the homunculus with one of the lowest I.Q.'s…

They both heard steps coming into the tower, as "Fr. Cornello" stepped into the building. "Fools indeed. Sad but true." A condescending grin plastered on his face.

"Well, well, if it isn't the father! Lust relaxed on the balcony, casually pronouncing her assets, as she usually did.

Gluttony just cheerfully agreed, "Yeah, 'Father!'"

Lust just sighed, Gluttony was an idiot, but he could be quite adorable at times, ah, little brothers… "Anyway, sorry to put to all this trouble!"

Fr. Cornello leisurely approached, "Don't be. I'm not in a hurry to get back to that guild of mine. They might be endearing, but they're still fools. All of these humans are. I'd like to see how the country of my birth has changed in the time I've been gone. It's been so long since I've had an actual vacation!"

Lust chuckled, "Regardless, the Fullmetal boy's interference was annoying, but it turned out better for us than expected. We'll actually finish ahead of schedule."

Now it was "Cornello's" turn to laugh, "Just downplay a little information, act a little innocent here and there, spout some empty rhetoric to believers and make sure the people like you, and they'll believe anything you say. I certainly have gotten a lot of practice at that these last few years! It's a perfect recipe for humans to slaughter each other! They're so predictable!"

"Hatred only spawns more hatred, all while they try to act civilized. They're nothing but animals! Until all the land is dyed a beautiful crimson red…" Lust casually touched her ouroboros tattoo, "No matter how many times it repeats, they never learn." Was that pity on her face? "The humans only seem to consist of fools willing to play into our hands…"

Gluttony looked out, "Are lots of people gonna die again, Lust?"

"Yes, Gluttony, they will."

"Yay! Can I eat all of them after they're dead?"

"No."

"Awwwwwwww!" Gluttony just started sucking on his finger again.

Lust turned back to Cornello, "By the way Envy, can you lose the old man appearance. It's making me want to kill the guy all over again."

Cornello almost seemed to look disappointed, "Oh come on! I was just staying in character!" Red electricty started sparking as his appearance started changing. "But if you insist… I'll go to my younger, cuter model!" Envy the jealous once more regained his usual appearance as a homunculus, "What do you think?" He smirked.

"Huh? A… a monster?! What is this?!" What have you done?! Where's the father?!" Cornello's assistant pastor gasped at the entire situation. What the hell was going on?!

Envy turned to face the poor human, slight annoyance on his face.

Lust just sighed, "It's your call."

Envy shrugged, "He called me a monster. I'd say that's quite rude."

Gluttony seemingly popped out of nowhere. "Can I eat him? Can I? Can I?"

Envy patted him on the head. "Not just yet, fatso. There's something I've been wanting to do for a while." The assistant pastor backed up in fear, as Envy's form once more began shifting, this time into a well-muscled salmon-haired individual wearing a vest with no shirt, baggy pants, a scarf, and a strange tattoo on his right arm. Envy had once more resumed his form as Natsu Dragneel, the Fairy Tail mage.

"What is this madness?!" The pastor looked on in horror.

Lust just looked on in curiosity, "Now why are you taking that form again Envy?"

"Natsu" smirked evilly, as he lit his hand on fire, "Back in Fiore, you can't so much as fart the wrong way without the council getting on your ass, so I couldn't do anything in this form! But now…" His grin only grew as he approached the pastor, "I've always wondered what roasting humans looked like…" The screams of the pastor echoed through the town, drowned out by the riots below.

Gluttony continued munching on his meal, while Envy had gone back to his regular appearance. "How's the meal, Gluttony?"

"Roasted human is delicious! Envy, can you make me more?"

"I'll see what I can do." Envy stretched and lounged and the balcony as well, looking pretty bored.

"Ah, by the way, did Father ever tell you about Shou Tucker?" Lust asked.

"Hm… I remember something about him… Wasn't he a specialist in Chimeras?"

"Yes, he's dead now."

Envy's eye twitched, "So I why should I care about a human like him?"

Lust answered, "Because of who killed him. Did Father ever tell you about the man that's been a pain in our side here?"

Envy took a pondering posture, "Um… I think. Kills people using his right arm, only state alchemists though?"

"Yes, that's the guy."

"Wait, wasn't the Tucker guy stationed in East City? Isn't that where the Flame Colonel is stationed, or did that change since I last reported back?"

"It is."

Gluttony continued eating his meal, "Lust, isn't the little alchemist in East City too?"

Lust narrowed her eyes, "The Fullmetal brat? Although I'd like nothing more than to slice him to pieces for what he did, Father needs him as a sacrifice… And Gluttony, don't speak with your mouth full."

"But he was so yummy!" Gluttony started licking what was left of his hands.

Lust turned back to Envy, "We'll handle the situation here. How long do you have before you have to head back?"

Envy grinned, as he transformed back into Natsu, "Well, there wasn't exactly a time limit on that mission now, was there? I've got probably a month before the Fairy Tail goons start getting worried. They're amusing, but they're just as destructive as the humans down there, even more so probably, of course my contributions didn't hurt."

Lust smiled, "So up for a vacation to East City."

Natsu pumped his arm, "I've always wanted to eat that Flame Colonel's flames! Now I'm all fired up!" And he started taking off, "Um… Lust, what was the guy's name again?"

East City Headquarters, Two Days Later

"Scar? Because of his face?" Colonel Roy Mustang sat down, together with his right hand Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye, facing his oldest friend Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes, and Major Alex Louis Armstrong.

"Ah, we don't really know anything about him, so that's all we have to go on." Hughes replied, concern evidently engraved on his face.

"Our target is both unidentified and elusive. The only information we've been able to obtain about him is the large x-shaped scar on his forehead." Major Armstrong also added.

"I've heard stories of such a man… That's who you're hunting down?" Mustang folded his hands together.

"By order of the military police command center, in addition to normal workload… I need a break…" Hughes sighed.

Major Armstrong once more entered the conversation, "He's killed five people in Central, for a total of ten across the country, all State Alchemists."

Hughes lowered his head, so that the light glared off his glasses, "Five days ago, he even took down old man Grand…"

Mustang was shocked. He had worked with Grand back in the Ishvalan War. He knew how powerful he was! "The Brigadier General? But he specialized in weapon transmutation! He was a walking armory!"

"That's how powerful this guy is. You should increase your escort, and lay low for a while. Nobody will blame you. Please, do this for me… as a friend."

Mustang looked down, deeply disturbed, until they heard running come down the hall. It was one of the regular grunts, a pretty average man. He quickly stopped and saluted all four of them. "Pardon my intrusion, sir! I have an order directly from Central for one Lieutenant Riza Hawkeye!"

Hawkeye saluted back, while everyone's eyes narrowed. Directly from Central? Just what kind of mission was it? At this time? Hawkeyes quickly responded, "What kind of mission?"

The soldier took out a folder and handed it to her, "The mission details are in here, sir!"

Hawkeye took the folder and saluted again, "Very well, dismissed!"

"Yes, sir!" The soldier answered, and quickly headed off to his next destination.

Hawkeye quickly turned to open the folder, until she noticed that everyone was trying to look over her shoulder to see inside it. She cleared her throat, "Do you mind?" They quickly returned to their seats, acting innocent, while she quickly scanned the contents, eyes narrowing.

Mustang turned to his Lieutenant, "What is it, Hawkeye?"

Hawkeye looked to her boss in concern, "I've been assigned to help with another recent string of murders."

Hughes stood up quickly, "They can't do that! You're one of the people best qualified to help protect Roy! Surely they can pick someone else!"

Hawkeye just shook her head, "This order comes directly from the desk of Fuhrer King Bradley himself." Everyone just stared in shock. The Fuhrer himself asked for her assignment, "Based on the mission, I'm also one of the soldiers best qualified to help out with this mission." She handed the folder to Mustang, who scanned through the contents quickly as well. It had to do with burn victims. Dead burn victims. "There apparently has been a recent series of deaths in the past couple of days, in which the victims apparently seem to have just spontaneously combusted."

Armstrong's eyes narrowed, "Then how do they know they're murders?"

"There isn't much information to go on, but based on some evidence, such as door tampering, and footprints, they seem to indicate someone is behind this. Considering how long I've worked with the Colonel, and the research my father did on flame alchemy, they want to bring me in to help try to identify the means of death, while keeping the colonel on the low given the recent murders of State Alchemists."

Hughes rubbed his stubble with his hand, "That is true. No one else would have as much experience with burnt corpses as either of you would. However, you leaving puts Roy at serious risk."

Mustang smiled, "Glad to see you're so supportive…"

Hawkeye saluted, "I'm off to my assignment then." And departed, but not before turning around, "Oh, and Colonel, don't do anything stupid. You know you're useless in the rain. Please take care of him."

You could almost see a giant "Useless" just crush Mustang right then and there, while Armstrong and Hughes saluted back, and Hawkeye left.

"Ha ha, I never get tired of her." Hughes laughed, before his face grew serious again, "But be careful Roy, you and Tucker were the only State Alchemists of note in the area, right?"

Mustang's eyes widened in horror, "Oh no!"

In Another Part of East City

"I've been thinking about this for a long time now, Al." Began one figure sitting out in the rain, clad in his ever present red coat, the famous Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric, sitting next to his armor-clad younger brother, Alphonse Elric in the rain, both looking rather depressed. "We put so much faith in alchemy, but what is it really? 'Alchemy is the science of understanding the flow of matter and its laws, the process of comprehension, deconstruction, and reconstruction. The world flows too, and it must also follow laws. Everything circulates, and even death is included in that cycle.' Teacher definitely made sure we knew that…"

He looked down, "I thought I knew that, but in reality, I didn't know anything… I thought we learned that with mom, but in reality Nina showed us we know nothing at all." Memories of the poor girl drifted through his mind, and of her unfortunate fate and subsequent death, at unknown hands. "I'm hopeless… I thought the rain could help wash away that gloom, but I guess I was wrong…"

Now Al looked up to the heavens, and the pouring tears it brought forth, "At least you can feel the rain, Nii-san. I can't even get that consolation. I want to get my body back, I want to feel the rain, even if it does mean going and trying the impossible."

"You, boy, are the Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric, correct?" They both turned to the newcomer, a strange man with an x-shaped scar on his face, wearing clothes with many crosses on it. 'Where did he come from?' Al thought. Ed just blankly stared.

The newcomer lifted his hand, and clenched it, rushing forward, but Ed still stared, lost in his own thoughts, until, "Nii-san!" Ed gasped, as Al suddenly pulled him away, and the stranger narrowly missed.

Ed quickly gained his bearings and slammed his palms together, summoning a wall to get between them and their assailant, but he quickly destroyed it. His eyes were masked behind his sunglasses, as he slowly made his way to the brothers.

Ed sat there paralyzed, 'Who is this guy… What does he want…' The man slowly moved closer, 'This is bad. This is bad. This is really bad…' He clenched his hand again, 'I have to move… now!' He mentally kicked himself. "Let's go Al! Run for it!"

They both took off, heading for some nearby stairs, but the man just destroyed the balcony, and hopped down after them. "You're not getting away." Energy flashed from his palm, and destroyed the stairway, sending them down. Al grabbed onto what was left, and Ed, leaving him dangling downwards, only to see the man touch his palm to the wall, and destroy what was left, sending them plummeting down.

They landed hard on the stairs below, but Ed reacted quickly, "Al, grab on!" And he transmuted a platform to get them away, but it was also swiftly destroyed, but this time they were ready, and they hit the ground running, trying to get as much distance as possible between them. "Damn it! What the hell is this guys problem! Making enemies isn't something I… well, I never really avoided it…" He slightly sweat-dropped at that. "But there's not a reason this guy should want to kill me!" He looked back, only to see the man running after them, and they quickly turned into an alleyway.

Problem is, the guy was expecting it. He sent a burst of energy down, and blew up the wall next to them, knocking them down. "Ouch… guess it can't be avoided, Al…" He transmuted a nearby pipe into a knife, "Guess we'll have to fight!"

"Be careful, Nii-san!"

The man smiled, "As long as there are creators like you, there must also be destroyers."

"Well, then, just who the hell is our 'destroyer'?"

He smiled, "Gutsy one, aren't you? Well, you can call me… Scar."

Al and Ed braced, and charged forward, Ed rushing forward on the right, and Al swinging forward on the left, one of their usual combat techniques. Scar smiled, "Too slow." He dodged Ed's slash, and Al's punch, and reached back, and placed his palm on Al's side, and blew it straight to pieces. "Al!"

Scar looked back, and saw… nothing?! 'There's nothing inside the armor?' How is that possible!

"You bastard! Ahhh!"

Scar turned to see Ed rushing frantically towards arm, his swing incredibly wild. 'He's lost his cool… Now it leaves him incredibly open.' Reacting quickly he grabbed Ed's arm, and blasted it. "Too slow."

Problem is, Ed's arm didn't go ker-splat like it should have. With a strange metallic clang, Ed was sent flying back. 'Why the hell didn't that arm explode? These brothers become more troublesome by the minute.' Scar thought.

Ed quickly regained his balance, and stood up, taking off his red coat, exposing his automail arm. "An automail arm. I see why my attacks didn't do the damage I expected then… most unusual." Skar walked out of the alleyway. 'I believed his arm was made of carbon, so I had my attack set to disassemble carbon, but his arm isn't made of carbon, it's made of steel…' He's eyes narrowed, 'So then…'

Ed slammed his palms together, and transmuted his arm's guard into his usual blade. "Nii-san… don't!" Al desperately cried, trying to get to his older brother. "Just run away!"

Ed furiously cried back, "You idiot, I'm not gonna leave you alone, Al!"

Scar was mentally processing everything that happened rapidly, 'How could this alchemist transmute without any circles… unless…" Scar quickly realized, "You press your hands together to make a ring, and then you perform transmutation… Now I see…"

"Ahhhh!" Ed rushed forward quickly, but Scar was too fast, and grabbed Ed's automail arm with his right hand, while pinning it with his left.

"Then I will have to start by destroying this abhorrent right arm of yours…" Ed just stared in horror as the energy flashed… and his arm exploded. He was just in too much shock to register the pain, as Alphonse shouted, "Nii-san!"

"Now, you will not be able to use your heretic's alchemy." Ed tried to back up in fear, but with no right arm to support himself, and ended up crashing to the ground. "I will give you a moment to pray to god…"

Alphonse had never felt more useless in his life, "Nii-san! Run away! Nii-san!"

"Unfortunately, there isn't any god I'd like to pray to." Ed just dryly responded. "Am I the only one you're trying to kill today? Or are you going after my brother Al, too?"

Scar looked at him, 'Impressive boy, he cares about his family…' He responded, "If he interferes, I will eliminate him, but Fullmetal Alchemist, you are the only one receiving judgment today. You alone…"

Ed matched Scar's shaded gaze, "Then in that case I want your word. Promise me you won't hurt my brother!" Ferocity evident in his eyes.

Al's spectral eyes widened, "Nii-san! Don't do it!"

Scar was impressed by the boy's bravery, even in the face of death, 'Poor soul, you would have made a great follower of Ishval.' He answered, "I will keep that promise."

Al tried to get up, only for the metal in his body to crumple without the opposite side to support him. "No, Nii-san, what are you doing?! Run!" Scar's hand slowly reached for Ed's head, "Stop! Don't touch him! I'm begging you, please, no!" Scar's hand inched closer and closer. "Stop it!"

*BANG!*

Ed's eyes widened at the sudden gunshot. "That's enough!" A voice came from somewhere, a familiar voice. Scar turned, to see the state police surrounding him. 'When did they get here? I must have been too distracted…' He thought, as he saw Roy Mustang, gun pointed straight up in the air, surrounded by his men, and Hughes at his side, also pointing a gun at him.

"You won't be killing anybody else today, Scar. I'm taking you into custody, where you will pay for the murder of at least ten state alchemists."

Scar turned to him, anger in his eyes, "Alchemists alter things from their natural form, perverting them to something else, something grotesque… They profane God, the true creator of all things, trying to become creators themselves!" He clenched his hand, "As an agent of God, I am here to hand down his judgment! If you interfere, I will eliminate you as well."

Mustang smiled, "Is that so?" And he handed his gun to Hughes. Havoc cried out, "Colonel Mustang, sir!"

Scar recognized the name, "Colonel Mustang… the famous Flame Alchemist… Voluntarily receiving judgment… God has truly been merciful to me!" And he began rushing forward.

Mustang advanced, his fingers ready to snap, and burn this guy to nice crisp. "So you know who I am, and still want to challenge me? Bad decision!"

Hughes's eyes widened in horror and realization, 'Wait, it's raining!' He cried out, "Roy!" And rushed forward.

Several things happened at once. Roy snapped, and… nothing happened. His eyes opened in shock, 'What happened to my flames?!' And Scar rushed forward, ready to end Mustang's life, and he would have, had it not been for Hughes kicking Roy's legs out from under him.

"Gahh!" Roy screamed, as his eyes met Scar's deadly gaze.

Hughes reached out into his sleeves and pulled out six knives, throwing them in rapid fashion with lethal accuracy. Scar barely dodged all of them, getting small thin cuts here and there, as Hughes grabbed his weapon, and began firing. Scar was forced to retreat. 'Damn… he's forcing me away from the Flame Alchemist.'

"Hey, Hughes, what the hell did you do that for?!" Mustang yelled, annoyed.

Hughes brandished his weapon, "You know as well as I do, Roy, though I could never get you to admit it. You're useless on rainy days!" Once again, a giant useless sign fell on Roy's head. 'First Hawkeye, now Hughes…'

Havoc held his hand out, "Oh yeah, it's pretty hard to get a spark going in the rain." He stated matter-of-factly.

Scar took cover behind a wall, "It is fortunate you cannot create your unholy flames, State Alchemist, for I will destroy all who interfere with my mission, right here and now!"

"I'd like to see you try it!" Scar turned to see the giant hulk of a man ready to smash him into a pulp. 'Where the hell did he come from?!' Scar never even heard him! "A newcomer!" He shouted.

"Ugh!" Major Armstrong slammed into the ground with enough force to shatter it. "You have to be quick to avoid my fist… Not bad, not bad at all." He lifted his fist out of the crater, "You said you were going to destroy us all…" Soldiers began rushing to help Ed and his fallen brother. "In that case, why don't you start by defeating me! We'll see how you fare against the Strongarm Alchemist, Alex Louis Armstrong!" As he bared his hands, covered in his alchemical gauntlets.

Scar braced himself, "Yet another State Alchemist. God is putting them in my path!"

Armstrong stood tall, "Not backing down?" He bent down, and picked up a large stone, "In that case, your courage warrants you a demonstration." He threw up the stone, while sparkles somehow flew from his face, "I'll show you the art of alchemy that has been passed down the Armstrong family for generations!" The stone fell down, and he readied his stance, when it was close enough, Armstrong cocked his fist, and punched!

"RAARGHH!" Alchemical energy flew from the stone, as it was transformed into a lethal arrow of destruction, flying directly at Scar!

'It's fast!' Scar thought wide-eyed, as he just barely dodged the deadly weapon, creating a massive crater in the wall that he was using for protection.

Ed just stared impressively at Major Armstrong's amazing demonstration (even though they were both technically the same rank), while he asked the question that had been on his mind, "Who the hell is this guy?"

Havoc almost seemed to be attempting to get as much in between Ed and Scar as he could, trying to almost shield Ed as he answered, "That's the same man who murdered Mr. Tucker and his daughter."

Ed stared, as Scar destroyed the series of jagged pillars sprouting to impale him, transmuted by Armstrong, "It's him!" Havoc however had a different response.

"Major, watch what you're doing! We don't want to destroy the city, do we?!"

Armstrong just sparkled some more, "What do you mean?!" Destruction and creation are two sides of the same coin. You must destroy to create. That is the law of the universe!" Even more sparkles flew as his uniform shirt seemed to have magically disappeared, while he flexed his impressive physique.

Everyone just stared, as Ed commented, "Did he have to strip?" while everyone else blanched.

Havoc responded, suddenly not so eager to be between Ed and Scar, more trying to hide behind Ed, "Are you surprised? He's clearly insane."

Armstrong just flexed his… strong arms more, "Hmph! Non-alchemists may fail to see the inherent truth in that statement, but we understand don't we Scar?"

Mustang was standing off in the background, as he registered everything, "So this killer is an alchemist too?"

Ed's eyes widened, even as no one registered the two figures standing on the roof. "That's it! The three stages of transmutation are construction, deconstruction, and reconstruction, but just stops at deconstruction."

"But if this guy is an alchemist, doesn't that mean he's strayed from whatever the ways of his god are?" Havoc asked.

And Mustang asked the final question, "And why target only State Alchemists?"

"RAGH!" Armstrong put an end to the conversation as he smashed more spires into existence. Scar destroyed them, but was unprepared for Armstrong rushing forward, arms in a boxing stance, and sparkles at the ready.

Scar could barely dodge as Armstrong swung rapidly from both sides. In contrast to Ed who had a very loose fighting style, Armstrong's swings were very tight and controlled. Scar couldn't even prepare his transmutation to counter-attack.

Armstrong smashed into the ground, forcing Scar back, but he reacted quickly right hand rushing forward to kill this unbeliever, but Armstrong smacked his arm away, causing Scar to again retreat, furiously mentally analyzing the battle, 'He's unusually coordinated for his size, and his strength is almsot superhuman… That combined with his alchemy… he's going to be tough to beat.' He backed to a wall, 'Shit!'

Armstrong loomed over him, "I have you cornered Scar!" But Scar's eyes narrowed, as he saw Armstrong's arm was slightly elevated, 'But there's a moment where his swing is too wild, and it exposes his right side.' He saw his opening, 'There it is!' And he rushed forward, when Armstrong leapt back.

"What?!" Scar exclaimed, only to see the soldiers getting ready to aim at him. He moved to dodge, but this time Armstrong took advantage of his distraction, swinging and just clipping Scar, enough to shatter his glasses. Armstrong then moved back to allow the soliders room to aim.

Blood splattered the ground from the area where Armstrong had clipped Scar, while he looked up, revealing his red eyes, and startling everyone. Mustang was astonished, "His eyes…"

Armstrong was shocked too, "Red eyes, and brown skin… That means…"

Mustang exclaimed, "Of course! He's an Ishvalan!"

Scar sighed, "Perhaps there are too many." He thought, 'I overestimated my abilities.'

Mustang held his hand up, signaling his men to fire on his command, "You're not getting away Scar! You might as well give up!"

Scar began to reach down to blast a whole into the sewer, when he saw movement up on the rooftops. What looked like a person… seemed to jump up into the air?! "What the hell?!" He shouted.

Mustang and Armstrong didn't believe him, until they heard a voice. "Karyu… no Hoko!" Fire Dragon's Roar!" And a brilliant blast of flame blew out of the sky, forcing everyone back.

*BOOM!*

The explosion shook the entire area, shattering windows, and damaging the road. Mustang, having experience with this type of thing, was the first to recover. "What the hell was that?!" Only for the culprit to come crashing down, with a loud boom, digging a giant crater into the ground, and sending up smoke into the air.

"Heh, I haven't gotten to let myself loose this much in a while!" Said the figure, clad in his regular attire of vest, pants, sandals, scarf and ever-present pink, "It's SALMON, DAMN IT! Say it's pink again and I'll roast you!" Um… Salmon-colored hair.

Mustang coughed, trying to clear the smoke out of lungs, as he looked at the new arrival. He was definitely a foreigner, judging by his hair color, 'The only people with those types of hair colors only come from Fiore, but what's he doing here?' Mustang knew quite well of the land of Fiore, having had to aid in treaty formation, as well as the occasional recruit who came from Fiore. Although their little outburst did leave him questioning their sanity. He quickly grabbed a gun that a soldier had dropped at pointed at the arrival,"Who are you, and what are you doing here!"

The figure grabbed his bicep in a triumphant pose, "Natsu Dragneel, Fairy Tail mage!"

Mustang narrowed his eyes, 'A mage? Here? How could they get the clearance?'

"I can answer that." Mustang turned to the new voice, and his jaw dropped. It was an approaching woman, and she was HOT! "I hired him to protect me from Fiore." Lust said, as she twirled her hair.

"Now who are you and why would you hire, such a destructive… mage, for protection?"

"Because he's one of the most capable there is at his job, and considering I'm one of the Fuhrer's top informants, it's vital I'm kept safe, and you can call me Solaris." Lust answered.

"Wait, Solaris, you're an informant for the government?!" Havoc cried out.

"Yes, Havoc, dear."

"Wait Havoc! You know this woman!" Mustang cried out.

Havoc rubbed his head in embarrassment, "Um… Yeah… I'm kind of, sort of, dating her."

Roy clenched his fist in anger, "Havoc… If we weren't in the rain, I'd be roasting you! How dare you date such a beautiful woman without letting me know!"

Natsu grinned, 'Ah, jealousy! My favorite emotion!' He gleefully got back into a fighting stance, serious for once, "I hate to interrupt your little love fest, but we have a criminal to capture if you don't remember!" Everyone turned back to Scar, who had taken quite a bit of the explosion, and had just succeeded in getting back up.

"I'll handle this!" Natsu yelled, "Karyu no Tekken! Fire Dragon's Fist!" And he lit his fists on fire, and rushed Scar.

'This guy's even faster than the hulking brute!' As Scar leapt back, only for Natsu to unleash another roar in his direction. 'Damn it! I might actually lose this!' Scar thought, as Natsu unleashed wave after wave of flaming fists that Scar not only barely dodged, but was singed by the flames coating Natsu's fists at the same time.

Natsu swung a hook right towards Scar's face, and taking a chance, Scar destroyed the ground under Natsu, hoping to unbalance him, but Natsu leapt back, and this time he slammed the ground in return, destroying Scar's balance. 'Shit, his strength is greater as well? Is this the power of a mage?'

"Heh, you might as well give up, scarface!" Natsu commented.

"What was that?!" Scar yelled.

"You heard what I said, after all, you have a scar for face, so you're scarface!"

Scar was really getting annoyed now. He was usually in control of his emotions, but this person was just pissing him off now!

Lust watched Envy in action, as he continually taunted Scar, 'Envy really does get into this persona. I've seen him act as different people before, but it really is like he is a different person."

Scar's eyes were riddled with rage, "Not only do you protect these heathens, but you dare blaspheme God with your cursed magic as well?" His right hand clenched, and he grinned, "Time to face your maker… pinky."

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?! IT'S SALMON, DAMN IT!" Natsu yelled, only for Scar to appear right in front of him. 'Damn it!' He thought, as Scar grabbed Natsu's head.

Mustang was shocked, "Shit. Hurry Fi-"

Alchemical energy flashed, as Scar quickly channeled it into Natsu's head, leaving everyone speechless, while Lust just stared. Natsu's arms dropped to his side, as Scar smiled. 'One down.' He thought, at least until Natsu's supposedly dead corpse grinned. 'What?!' thought Scar as Natsu suddenly grabbed his arm.

"Heh, you were too quick for my punches to connect, so I'd figured I'd draw you in closer." Natsu spoke, despite the blood leaking from his eyes and mouth. He took a deep breath.

'Shit!' Scar thought, trying to break free.

"Karyu no Hoko! Fire Dragon's Roar!" And Natsu's roar sent Scar flying back into the nearby apartments.

'Ungh… How is that possible… no one' s ever survived having their brains fried before…' Scar could barely get up. He placed his palm on the ground. 'I need to get out of here…' And he blasted a whole clean into the sewers.

Natsu ran forward, until the smell hit him, "Kuso! It stinks!"

Lust sighed, "That's the end of that, I guess…"

Mustang, Armstrong, and Ed, and everyone else just stared, not quite sure, one, how the guy just survived his brains getting fried, and two, what the hell just happened, and considering three of those guys were alchemists, that's saying something.

Havoc regained his bearings first, as he approached the giant hole. "Bastard's in the sewers."

Mustang quickly took charge, "Stay put."

"You don't have to tell me twice! I don't want to die!"

"Sorry, Armstrong, but thank you for buying us enough time to surround him."

Armstrong shrugged, his shirt somehow reappearing on him. "I was hardly buying time. It was all I could do to keep myself from being killed."

Mustang turned to the newcomer, "And thank you… uh, sir, for the help. We apologize we couldn't catch him.

Natsu gave his usual smile. "Heh, he was a good fight! I'll beat him next time!" And he started laughing, and considering his face was soaked in blood, and he was battered and bruised, everyone was more than weirded out.

"But… uh…" Ed stammered out, "How exactly did you survive?"

"I can answer that." Lust said, "He doesn't have a brain to fry."

"What was that L- er, Solaris?!" Natsu yelled, "That little thing he did hurt!" He mentally added, 'If it weren't for my regenerative powers, I'd be needing a gravestone!'

Everyone sighed, "Oh is it over now?" Armstrong and Mustang turned slightly to the voice, quite annoyed with its owner. "Lieutenant Colonel Hughes? Where have you been all this time?!" Armstrong nearly yelled.

"I thought it best to lay low."

"So wait," Roy yelled, a giant red tic mark on his head. "First you save my life, and then you hide?! Didn't you consider backing us up more?!"

"Of course not!" More tic marks appeared on Roy's head. "A person like me shouldn't get dragged into a freak show with you pack of pseudo-humans! It's bad for my health! Don't just stand there! We've got things to do! Deploy troops! Circulate his description!"

Mustang and Armstrong just stared, 'Did he just change the topic on us, and get away with it?' They both thought.

Ed still wasn't registering what the hell just happened, until he remembered, "Oh no! Al!" He got up to where Al had managed to sit himself up at. "Al, are you alright?" As he checked to make sure his younger brother was okay.

"That suit of armor is Elric's younger brother, isn't it…" Armstrong asked.

"There's got to be a really long story behind this, isn't there." Havoc responded. Both Mustang and Hughes looked down, Mustang having first witnessed what happened, and having told the story to his confidant, Hughes.

"Come on Al, do you hear me?" They all looked on with his concern for the younger Elric, until his metal fist came up, and let a haymaker loose on Ed, shocking them all.

"Aaahhhhh!" Ed yelled as he was sent twirling.

"You idiot! Why didn't you run!" Al yelled. "What kind of idiot are you?!"

"No way! I'm not just gonna run and leave you behind!" Ed yelled back.

Everyone just stared blankly as the brothers continued their squabble, "Which is exactly why you're an idiot!" And Al sent Ed twirling again.

Ed just rubbed his face with his only arm, "Why do you keep punching my face like that? You could've been killed you know?"

Al lividly responded, "And maybe I wouldn't have been! Choosing to die is something only an idiot does!"

"Hey, easy on the idiot stuff, I'm still your older brother, got it!" Ed yelled, trying to reestablish authority.

"I'll say it all I want to!" Al grabbed Ed, picking his smaller frame up easily, "Survival is the only way Ed. Live on, learn more about alchemy! You could find a way to get our bodies back and help people like Nina! You can't do that by dying!" Al's arm broke off, leaving him armless. "Oh great! Now my arms come off because my brother's a big fat idiot!"

"We're really falling apart, aren't we, brother?" Ed asked. "We look like we belong in a junkyard."

"But we're alive, Nii-san."

"Good grief, I've stumbled into an extra special freak show, haven't I?" Hughes asked, slightly disturbed by the whole thing. Mustang just smiled, "Yeah, sorry."

Hughes walked over, and took off his jacket, putting across Ed's shoulders, "Don't worry. I won't tell upstairs about this. If this got out, things would get complicated."

"Yeah," Mustang responded, "Yeah, the older brother aside, I wouldn't know how to explain the younger brother's body.

Natsu chose now to pipe in, "Um… yeah, can we go now? Cause we've got elsewhere to be."

Mustang turned to "Solaris", "I know we don't have anything to offer, but can you please not report this to the Fuhrer. It would make this whole entire situation much more difficult."

Lust responded, "I suppose I can keep quiet. Less paperwork for me, but I expect you to catch that man."

Mustang saluted, "Yes, Ma'am!"

Lust began walking off, "Let's go, Natsu. We do need to get to Central after all."

Natsu waved off. "Bye! See ya shorty!"

"I'M NOT SHORT!" Guess who.

Everyone just sweat-dropped at the entire situation, while Hughes smiled at Mustang, "I don't envy you. This is one tough customer you have to deal with."

Mustang looked down, "And now we know he's Ishvalan."

"I'm going to head back to base, and begin preparing what I can." Hughes said. "I'll see you there." And he left.

Mustang looked off, "That just leaves one problem." He looked at the entire street, which was riddled with craters and damaged buildings, "WHO'S GONNA PAY TO FIX ALL THIS!"

Back at East Headquarters

"The Ishvalans were a race of people to the east. They believed their god Ishvala was the one absolute creator. Even after annexation, they still gave us problems, until one day, thirteen years, a military officer accidentally shot and killed a young Ishvalan girl. The entire region erupted into civil war and before long, the entire East Area devolved into civil war. After seven years, High Command ordered the State Alchemists in… It was a massacre to say the least." Roy finished, sitting at his desk in his office, "That man is an Ishvalan survivor. Perhaps his revenge is justified."

"No way! There's not justification for revenge on innocent people! He's just using his god as an excuse to act as an agent of justice" Ed yelled, looking at Al, tied up on the ground.

"Regardless, Scar is coming at us with full force." Mustang finished, "We can't let ourselves be killed by him. Next time, there will be no more talk."

"Yes sir!" Everyone replied.

"Well Ed, Alphonse, what do you intend to do now?" Asked Hughes.

"We need to keep moving, but before we can do that, we need to get my arm fixed so I can repair your armor, I'm the only who knows how you're soul is bonded to it after all. Which means… we need to pay a visit to our mechanic…"

After everyone had left, "Are you certain you will be safe, Roy?"

"I'll be fine, Hughes. It'll take a lot more than a guy with a vendetta to kill me."

Hughes took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, "I don't know. I'd hate to think of what happened if I hadn't been there to knock you down."

"I'll be fine, Hughes. I've been in more difficult situations before, and I've come out fine. You're just being a worry-wort."

Hughes stood up, and opened the door, "That's the thing though that worries me, is if I don't worry about you. I'm surprised you haven't made any mention about that strange mage from Fiore, and the fact he survived an attack that's killed ten prior victims?'

"I've seen mages in action before when I once traveled to Fiore for a mission assignment. Don't worry, they're sturdy people, although I'm jealous that guy can use flames in the rain. Although he's quite destructive, I don't get the feeling he's a threat. I can't explain it though, but I have a feeling we'll see a lot more of him in the future. Regardless, Have a good night, Hughes." Mustang smiled, as Hughes left.

Hughes couldn't help but be troubled. He had almost seen his best friend die, and he wasn't about to let that happen anytime soon. His eyes narrowed as he began calculating his next move. 'Where did that guy say he was from? Farty? Fae Trail? Umm? Ah! Fairy Tail!'

Hughes walked straight to his assistant's office from Mustang's office, and came in. "Uh, sir? What are you doing here so late?" The officer asked, having been woken up from a small nap.

"I need you to post a request to specific guild in Fiore, and tell them post-haste."

On the road

"So what did you think of the Fullmetal brat." Lust asked.

"He was an interesting kid. Shorter than I thought too." "Natsu" said.

"I must admit, you really do get into your acting persona. I almost couldn't tell it was you, and I've known you for at least a hundred years."

"Natsu" transformed back into Envy. "Lots of practice, although I can't wait to see what happens… when the Fullmetal realizes just what we will do to ensure to keep him alive…" They both grinned sinisterly, as their laughter echoed throughout the area.

And the next chapter is finished! I hope you enjoyed it, anyway, my usual update schedule is going to be a little wonky, as I have a few chapters to work on as penance for my hiatus, but I should be back to normal by next week! Anyway, some changes to my ending A/N, a review response! Of course, I'm not going to reply to small reviews, but those that leave something besides just update soon! It's great! I know, I know, that might be annoying, but it's my gift to those who take the time to leave some form of critique.

ef07: Thank you so much for the help you have given me in preparing the ideas for the next couple of chapters! Good luck on your stories, and thanks for always looking for typos!

king cool 12: Thanks for that! I'm glad they seem to match up with canon somewhat. Scar I thought was a little OOC, but I think that after a while they should begin to match up, especially since I use canon as reference, while trying to make it my own.

DJ everything: Um... wow... points for energy. How can you make something energetic by typing?! Regardless, I'm glad you like the Natsu/Envy plot, and hopefully you will continue to enjoy it, although I imagine people will hate him for that very concept at points in time.

As always, please review, or I'll have Major Armstrong and his sparkles come visit you... Cheers!

Shinigami