Disclaimer - Following Karl's advice, I headed into the mountains. The roads were hard - as I went up snows started to blow down from the mountains. Each night was a battle against frostbite - every day a battle against hunger. The only good news was that the cold would prevent them from following me - they would simply use up too much energy. Eventually I found the old stronghold - a stone tower, looking like a crumbling ruin. I knew better however. In the bottom of it, I brushed aside foliage to find a trap door. I opened, and leaped inside. I was finally safe. I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist.

'Blackhammer, what is this appalling thing I see in front of me? This terrible object, whose mere existence destroys happiness from the world, leaving nought but despair in its wake?' I ask him, sitting at desk. Blackhammer had just placed the offending item in front of me.

'It's a scarf, sir.'

'I thought so, Private. Carry on.' I turned back to my papers.

'Em, sir?' Blackhammer continued. 'Don't you want to ask why I brought it in?'

I sighed. 'Alright – why are you showing it to me?' I asked.

'I made this. I was wondering what you thought.' He said, looking hopefully at me. I suppose he missed what I said earlier.

'Blackhammer, you are never ever to do any knitting ever again. The work should never have existed.'

'Oh. Well, you see, it's just I tried making it with alchemy.' Blackhammer said.

'Yes that would explain it.' I said. 'Wait a minute!' I shout, as the realisation hit my like a sack of soft bunny rabbits. They're more dangerous than you think. 'You managed to get your alchemy to work?'

Blackhammer beamed. 'Yes sir!'

'When did you do that, Private?' I asked.

'Well, I was on duty yesterday when you were off.' Ah yes – that day was my son's birthday. I took the day off to buy some towels. 'I didn't have much to do, and there was some left over rags, so I thought I'd give it a chance and give it a try.' He sighed, looking down at the blight in his hands. 'Well, this was the result.'

'But you managed to do the transmutation?' I asked. 'Quickly! It's time for us to do a test!'

Blackhammer acquired a bucket of water as I got my notes. We then headed out to the park again, the grass now dried of the weight of water to leave the blades free to blow in the wind. As before, I drew a transmutation circle in the ground, and placed a bucket in the centre.

'So, let's try this again!' I said. 'Private, transmute this water into ice.'

'Yes sir.' Blackhammer breathed in deeply, and placed his palms down on the circle. Suddenly, the light of a transmutation flashed in the air, sparking blue. In the bucket, water flowed together, forming solid rectangles of ice in the bucket. Ice cracked at the bottom of the bucket, moving upwards.

Then the bucket shattered, cracking into two. Ice spat out into small pieces. I jumped down into the dirt, squashing a something under my knee.

'Are you alright, Private?' I cried out.

'I think it went up my nose.' Blackhammer replied.

'Good to hear.' I said, pulling myself up. 'Damn, I have a beetle stain on my trousers. The sacrifice of duty, Blackhammer.'

'Yes sir!' Blackhammer stood up, and sneezed out the ice. 'What happened?'

'The ice has a lower density than water, Blackhammer. It expands on freezing, so without sufficient control of the alchemist, it puts pressure onto the bucket.' I brushed my uniform down. 'That's something you'll need to work on, Blackhammer. Still, certainly an improvement! Have you been reading more to understand the process?'

Blackhammer looked at his feet. 'Well, actually, no. I got distracted.'

'Blackhammer, this is very curious. How do you explain, that with no change in your skill, a completely different result?'

'Oh yeah, you're right.' He looked back at me. 'That is weird, Major.'

I waited a few moments. Then I said. 'That wasn't rhetorical, Private. I wanted you to tell me.'

'Oh! Um, it was because you made a mistake in the circle the first time?' He suggested.

'Blackhammer?'

'Yes, sir?'

'No.'

I thought about it myself. 'Without practise between, the two attempts should be identical. Equivalent exchange – one action will have the same reaction every time. Something must have changed. Blackhammer! What's different between now and then?'

'Um, a lot? It's not raining? You changed your gloves after your encounter with Larkoff? It's after noon now? Had I bacon for breakfast? You have new towels? There's a bird over there?'

'All reasonable suggestions, but I don't think so, Blackhammer.' I replied. 'I t seems there is something that I don't know of going on here.' And that could not be allowed! It was time for us to do a little digging! First – to the garden shed of knowledge!

'Please don't call me a spade again, Major.' Brightsilver said, clipping papers together.

'Sorry Corporal.' I replied. 'But I need information if there were any reports of events occurring at that time that might have interfered with alchemy.' A novice like Blackhammer might have been blocked if a lot of alchemical interactions were occurring at once, drawing on the same energy source. It's rare and only occurs for those without any practise, but it can happen.

'Hold on, I think I remember seeing something.' Brightsilver wandered into the back room, and after a few minutes came out with a couple of files. 'Here you go – these are the reports. One's from work at road repairs, calling to not use a pair of civilian alchemist because they failed to repair the road. The other's an appeal from a state exam an alchemist did. He failed after he couldn't get it to work, but he claimed he achieved it later so he should be able to achieve it later. It's still going through appeals, I think.'

I picked them up and flicked them open. 'They were both the same day as Blackhammer's failure!' I cried out.

'Yep. Both in Central too. Can alchemy just fail like that? Some kind of Alchemy flu?' Brightsilver suggested.

'Nonsense! The only fever Alchemists have is a fever for knowledge!' I replied. 'And sometimes actual fever.'

'Well then, guess it was just some unexplained event I guess. An act of god or something.' Brightsilver shrugged.

'Corporal, I have seen Blackhammer's earlier work. If that can exist, there is no god.' I wrote down the details of the cases. The reported times matched up with our incident too. This was huge news! As I suspected, the problem was in no way my fault! But more shockingly, it was not Blackhammer's fault! So who's? That was the mystery we would solve.

'Lets' think about this logically, shall we?' I said to Blackhammer, in my office. Alchemical books were scattered across them from my youth. The old textbooks still had three generations of hangman in the margins, though I personally thought firing squad was a bit more unfair. A bullet has only piece to draw after all.

'Anything blocking alchemy must have been somehow inferring with one of the elements of the alchemical process. So if we work out which ones have been interfered with, we should know where to start looking.'

'Right sir!' Blackhammer said. 'Well sir, there's three parts aren't there? Comprehension, deconstruction and reconstruction.'

'Well done, Blackhammer, you can read an open book.' I shut it. 'Well, there was no deconstruction as that would have lead to a change in the water's structure. So, was there comprehension, Blackhammer?'

'I think so?' Blackhammer said. 'I sort of felt almost like a load of figures and images in my head. It's hard to remember them again now.'

'That's one of the reason alchemists specialise, Blackhammer.' I said. 'The more we do of alchemy on a material, the more we understand it, and so we can do more and more with it. It's a cycle of learning. It's also how I got my fashion sense. But that means it was deconstruction that was halted.' I rubbed my chin.

'How does molecular knowledge of clothes give you a fashion sense?' Blackhammer asked. I did not deem this worthy of a response.

'So, blocking deconstruction either means increasing the energy needed, blocking the energy source from the alchemist, or changing the matrix of the alchemical circle.'

'Is that possible?' Blackhammer asked.

'Presumably.' I said. 'Since it did.'

'I mean, has any ever happened before?'

'Not that I know of, but it's a place to start! We should look in the library. It's quite possible there are records of similar events occurring in the past.'

'Will they still be left? After all, the library was burnt down.'

'No idea till we find out, Blackhammer! Now, I'll head down to the Central Library. You stay here and burn that scarf. Then feed the dust to the dogs.' I paused for a moment, thinking over my order. 'The blow up the dogs.'

'I thought it was ok.' Blackhammer whispered.

I took a walk through city. The streets were bustling, full of workers and soldiers, families and clowns troupes walking through the streets. I based them all by, heading for the library. I went inside and made my way straight to the newly expanded alchemical section, nearly knocking over a woman as I passed. It was her fault of course – she should have kept an eye out for others! Imagine, reading in a library!

As I headed in the direction, I grabbed a librarian holding a large pile of books. 'You there! Can you give me some assistance?'

'Um, yes sir?' He said, spinning around, nearly dropping the books. 'What do you need help with?'

'I need to get books on strange alchemical phenoma! Do you have any of those?'

'Um, sir, we do have over 3 million books in this library!'

'Is that a yes or no?'

'It means I don't know. There's a section on alchemy, but that's it.'

'You don't know? You don't know?! How can you be so terrible at your profession? You family must be ashamed of you, to dishonour they're legacy in this way!'

'My parents are automail mechanics. They have nothing to do with libraries.'

'Then you have made them ashamed twice then, once for throwing scorn on their careers, and by being terrible at yours!' I shouted, storming off. I would have to find it myself, if they use such ignorant assistants!

I eventually managed to find a few books that might some relevance. With my pile, I brought them to the clerk. 'I wish to take these books out.' I said. 'The four guides for alchemical training, and Winethirst's Alchemical Mysteries.' That one was of particular interest – it mentioned a large number curious events with certain explanation, but contained possible avenues for the cause. It was possible that something like Blackhammer's incident.

'Huh, I vaguely remember that last one.' The clerk said. 'Something special. Is it a new one.'

'I don't believe so – Winethirst was writing over 70 years ago.'

'Weird. Maybe it was from the other library before it burnt down.' The clerk said. 'Oh well.' She said, taking it and stamping it. 'Bring it back in two weeks.'

The next morning, I brought books in early, and started reading through Winethirst's book. Blackhammer arrived half an hour later. 'Good morning, sir. Learnt anything?'

'Apparently, two hundred years ago an alchemist managed to transmute ants into termites. This book suggests the explanation is incorrect taxonomy.'

'That doesn't sound too useful.' Blackhammer said.

'Well, it's simply a matter of reading through these books. Have some patience.' I replied.' Now, go organise the laundry.'

'Yes sir.' Blackhammer went over to the piles of washing, and started to arrange them for washing.

'If I can interrupt?' A voice came from the door. I looked over, to see the face of General Raven. Ah, this a bit awkward.

'Sir!' I said, leaping up and saluting.

'I just heard that you took a certain book out – Winethirst's Alchemical Mysteries, yes?'

'That is correct sir!' I said. I put my hand down, then saluted with both hands. It shows twice the respect.

'Well, that book is in fact in the public library by mistake. It's actually classified. As such, I'm going to have to ask for it back.' General Raven held out his hand. In my mind I sighed.

'Yes sir.' I handed it back.

'That's very good to hear, Major.' General Raven said, taking it. 'I imagine you'll get focus on uniforms from now on, yes?'

'Yes sir.' I saluted with both hands again. General Raven left, and I sighed out deeply.

'That an end of looking into that, sir?' Blackhammer said.

'I suppose so, Private.' I replied. 'Well, never mind. I suppose we should get on with the laundry.'

The investigation ended then, or so I thought. But another event happened two days later. As I began to walk out of my office to head home, someone tapped me on the head. I looked around to see Colonel Mustang standing in front of me. 'Colonel!' I shouted, saluting.

'Major, good to see you.' He said. 'I heard you had a run in with General Raven?'

'I meet him two days ago, yes sir! It was not a run in sir! No collision whatsoever!'

'Right.' The Colonel replied. 'So what were you looking into, might I ask?'

'Well, um, sir-' I began sheepishly.

'Did he say it was classified – your investigation I mean?' The Colonel asked.

'Well, no sir.' I admitted. 'I was looking into an alchemical failure that happened. For some reason, alchemy just didn't work.'

'Really?' Mustang said. 'Would you like to know, Major, that a few weeks ago no alchemy worked throughout the entire city, a quarter of an hour? Thousands of alchemists were blocked, I believed. And there was no official report about it?'

'Really?' I replied.

'If you find anything about it, or want to know more about it, give me a ring.' The colonel handed me his number. 'Be seeing you, Major.' Colonel Mustang walked off into the distance.

I looked at the number, as questions filled my head. How did this huge event happen? Why would it be covered up? Is it cabbage for dinner? Clearly I would need to think long and hard about this! But the only thing certain is that we must always be vigilant! So soon will it will necessary for me, Egbert Longwood, the Cloth Alchemist, to do his duty again!

My apologies for the delay in this one. Real life had toll. Curse you, real life.