"We're here." said the man who was carrying the Elrics on his wagon.
"If you follow this mountain path, you'll get to the Briggs fortress." he said. They had finally made it to the north. Snowflakes fell from the sky as a white blanket of snow covered the area for as far as the eye could see.
"Thank you." Myra thanked him.
"Oh yeah, you," he pointed to Al, "That's not automail, is it?"
"No." Al answered.
"Oh. Then you should be fine." the man said before leaving.
"What was that about?" Ed asked when the man was out of earshot.
"No idea." Al answered honestly.
"I heard there are bears up here." Ed said as they walked up the mountain in a snowstorm. The light snow that fell from the sky moments ago had quickly escalated into an all out snowstorm the further they went up the mountain.
"Hopefully we don't run into one." Myra said.
"The bears at Briggs grow to a height of up to two meters! Who'd be able to defeat one?!" Al said already wondering what they would do if they ran into one.
A big dark shadow loomed over the three siblings. They each turned around to face the figure before yelling out, "A bear!"
Ed immediately used alchemy to transform his arm into a weapon. "That's not a bear!" Myra pointed out as the figure, who turned out to be just a man, brought down his own automail arm, also in the form of a weapon.
All three managed to dodge, but the man shot something from underneath his arm. A net flew towards Alphonse, but Myra destroyed it with her alchemy using her astonishing speed.
"You're fast." The man pointed out.
It was then that the man's military uniform was recognized by the Elric siblings. Before Myra knew what was going on, Ed and the military officer began arguing about who had the better automail, which Myra sweat dropped to.
The man then accused Ed and Myra of being spies and launched his weapon at Ed, causing him to fly back, but still land on his feet.
Ed opened his mouth to speak, but Myra beat him to it, "Wait! We're on the same side!" she said as she stepped in between the two, facing the military officer.
"What is this pain? My automail isn't moving very well!" Myra could hear Ed say from behind her.
A thought struck her, causing Ed to look up at her. "It might be the conditions up here."
The man wouldn't listen to her and launched an attack at Myra. It was at that moment Myra felt a sudden pain in her chest, halting her actions.
"Not now!" Myra yelled under her shaky breath.
"Sister!" Al shouted, pulling her out of the way just in time and as Ed went to make a counterattack.
"Thanks, Al." she said.
When the two looked back up, Ed's automail arm was caught in the officer's weapon. Al stood up. "Brother!" he called.
Al threw his helmet at Ed, who used it to jam the officer's weapon, allowing him to be released from it. "Thanks, Al!" he called to his brother.
As Ed landed on his feet, the next thing they saw was security personnel from Briggs pointing guns at the Elrics as they put up their hands in a 'we mean no harm' position.
It was then that they noticed a giant wall looming over them. A woman and her bodyguard emerged on a platform. The woman revealed to be Major General Olivier Mira Armstrong, Alex Louis Armstrong's older sister. The man who attacked them moments ago was revealed to be Captain Buccaneer.
The Major General seemed very distrusting of the three. Ed gave her Alex's letter, but she tore it to shreds, claiming to judge the Elrics on her own.
"Come in, Fullmetal Alchemist." she said in a demanding way.
Ed was still gaping at the wall and moved a little slow. The Major General then threatened to 'rip that antenna' off his head, causing a terrified Ed to cower in fear and an also scared Myra to stand in front of him protectively, the whole scene looking sort of comedic to an outsider's point of view.
When talking to the Briggs nurse, she explained that normal automail would be useless against the cold in the north, and that Ed would have to call his mechanic to come up to the north to supply him with a flexible, lightweight automail resistant to the cold.
Now, the three siblings stood in a room with the Major General and her bodyguard. It was just a guess from her experience in the field, but with the goggles he wore, Myra thought of the possibility of the bodyguard being an Ishvalan. Although even if he was, the fact didn't seem to matter too much so she brushed it off.
Olivier sat in a chair as the siblings stood in front of her. "So... I hear you're on good terms with my little brother, Alex." she started the conversation. "Is he doing well?"
"Yeah." Ed said, relaxing somewhat after being thrown off beat a little by her question.
"As muscular as always." Al added.
"He's as cheerful as can be too." Myra said.
Olivier gave them a look that made them close their mouths. "Nevermind that." she quickly changed the subject. "Moving along, tell me why you came to see me without going through Headquarters first. Don't forget to include why that armour is empty as well." She looked at Al.
The Elrics exchanged a look. "It's actually... something we don't want a lot of people to know about." Myra spoke.
"You've got nothing to worry about," the nurse said, "Most of the people here have circumstances of their own. It's not uncommon for us to have things we don't want others to hear as well."
"My sister aside, it's the kind of thing that could get me court-martialed if it reached certain ears..." Ed said.
"Even I have secrets like that!" The Major General snapped, growing impatient.
Al leaned in towards his two elder siblings and started a conversation only they could hear. After Olivier snapped at their whispering, they decided only to tell her that they're on a journey to get their bodies back.
After explaining all that, Olivier spoke, "I see. So that's why you're looking for a girl who carries this cat around." The three nodded firmly. "I'd love to throw you out of my castle right now, but I'm highly interested in Eastern Alchemy. You three are acquainted with that girl from Xing, right?"
"Yeah, I guess you could say that..." Al answered.
"It's technology we don't have in this country. I want it." she stated bluntly. "You can never have enough technology. Eastern Alchemy can become a useful combat tool for us."
"Hang on!" Myra said.
"Eastern Alchemy is especially versed in medical purposes," Al explained. "Using that for war—"
"Be quiet!" The Major General said cutting him off. "You're nothing but dogs of the military. You live safe within city walls, but we are the ones who protect you. I am in charge of protecting the northern border. I will make use of any knowledge I get my hands on. Leave the search for the girl to us." She stood up from her seat. "I don't want you three out of the fortress." She turned to her bodyguard. "Major Miles,"
"Yes, ma'am." he called.
"Give these two boys work to do. 'If a man shall not work, he shall not eat.'"
"Yes, ma'am" Miles saluted.
"And you," she pointed to Myra who shivered at the woman's cold look. "I, myself, will give you work to do."
"R-Right." Myra responded. She gave Ed and Al a glance before quickly following the Major General out of the room.
"It seems like your younger brothers have secrets they are not willing to share." Olivier said as the two walked down a long corridor, alone except for Captain Buccaneer trailing behind them. "Don't worry I'm not going to pry the answers out of you. I know your past slightly differs from theirs."
"Yeah, it kind of does." Myra fidgeted with her hands nervously, wondering what exactly the Major General wanted to know.
"I don't know what exactly you three have been through, but I know it couldn't have been easy at your ages. And I'm not interested in the squabbles three teenagers have with the Fuhrer," she said, now referring to the Cloaked Alchemists.
"H-How did you know?" Myra asked taken aback, wondering how Olivier knew that she was once part of the infamous group in Central.
"I'm head of command here. I don't get left in the dark in these situations, even if they do take place in Central." she said simply.
"Right." The blonde teenager deadpanned.
"However, I am interested in the Cloaked Alchemists themselves."
"Oh?"
"For starters, I have no tolerance for the weak. But despite your looks I can tell your physically not weak, though on the inside you're still soft. Why'd someone like you have a part in disbanding your little 'group' to join your brothers when you're not even a state alchemist for protection?"
Myra knew she couldn't talk about the Fuhrer or the homunculi. "I can't... tell you that." she responded.
"What kind of hell did you and your cloaked friends go through to be put into a group to receive such title and reputation? None of it makes sense. You're all pretty skilled from what rumours I've heard." The look she gave Myra made it seem as if she was challenging her abilities.
"That's... classified. I can't say." Myra bit her bottom lip.
"I see. Would you happen to know any information that would benefit the north?"
Myra racked her brain, and after a few moments, answered honestly, "No I don't. I'm sorry. Most of the information I have is 'Central-based'."
Olivier searched the girl's golden eyes before concluding that the girl was indeed telling the truth.
She sighed, obviously annoyed that none of her questions could be answered. "The last thing I have to say to you is a warning; a former member of the Cloaked Alchemists traveling around the country. I don't trust you and I don't know what you've been through, but whatever your past is, you're bound to be in danger at some point."
"I already know of the dangers, ma'am. But thanks for the warning." Myra smiled.
"Now I'm still going to give you work to do so you shouldn't feel relaxed just yet!" Olivier yelled causing Myra's smile to falter.
Myra had heavy crates in her arms when she heard a noise coming from outside. She stepped out on a long balcony to see Ed and Al with evil glints in their eyes and Captain Falman anime crying in a corner.
Myra set the crates on the ground at her feet and couldn't help but giggle at the sight in front of her, catching the attention of the three males.
"Oh, hey My!" Ed smiled. "Glad to see you're still in one piece."
"Yeah, when you left with the Major General it got us worried." Al added.
"Don't worry, she's just making me carry these to the supply room." Myra gestured towards the crates.
"Ah, Myra, it's been a while." Falman smiled politely at her.
"Captain Falman! How are you? I heard you got transferred to the north."
"It's cold." he shivered causing the girl to grin in amusement.
"Did everyone at Central Command know you?!" Ed asked dramatically, using his arms for emphasis.
"Yeah! You know Hughes, Colonel Mustang, Lieutenant Hawkeye, Major Armstrong, Captain Falman..." Al counted them off on his armoured fingers.
"Mostly just people on Mustang's team." Myra smiled at them.
"Formerly." Falman corrected sadly. "We all got transferred."
"Yeah I heard. I'm sorry that happened."
"Eh it's alright. After all, I did get promoted."
It was then that Myra noticed the star on his shoulder. "Wow, congratulations!"
"Where are those boxed crates?!" A loud booming voice could be heard from back inside the building, causing the four people present to flinch.
"Well, that's my cue!" Myra said grabbing the crates and running to where she was supposed to be at the speed of light, leaving the remaining three to snicker where they stood.
(A/N: I'd love to hear what you guys think of the story. Please review to help me improve my writing and to make this a better story)