May 18th, 1996
The full formal opening of the new international fusion cuisine concept restaurant Inspirations in downtown Central turned out to stir far more excitement among the societal elite of Central than Brandon Closson had been prepared for. Oh, he had expected some press. After all, they had done a preview meal for the food reporters for several of Central's magazines, and papers that reported on such things. Write-ups were one of the best ways to get the news out there and get people to come, and the initial reviews had been even more positive than he had anticipated. Food-adventurous people were encouraged to try the place out. In order to keep things fair, Brandon had insisted that, for the first week, there would be only minimal reservations, so that the general public had a real opportunity to get in and try the food.
He had returned from his honeymoon incredibly grateful for the excellence of his team. While they had hired all of the wait staff and additional kitchen crews before the wedding, his co-chefs had completed their training. Camelia, as one of his new heads of the front part of the restaurant, had all of her staff trained and ready to go.
Brandon was a little sorry that Dare and Lorraine couldn't be there, but he understood. As it was, in order to get his parents in without a huge fanfare, they had agreed to do their own preview dinner the night before, which had included them, and Julia's family as well.
Though Brandon hadn't been about to not include Julia on this evening, not of opening the restaurant he had dreamed of as a concept since high school. His stunning new bride would be with him tonight, greeting guests and making everyone feel welcome. As much as Brandon would have loved to have spent the entire night in the kitchen, he knew that as the owner and primary manager, he would not always have that privilege. Though he and the others would take turns at the front manager duties so that they all got to spend most nights in the kitchen, tonight he wouldn't be doing much cooking, if any. Tonight, he would be convincing everyone who came in the door that Inspirations was everything they could want in an affordable, yet unique, fine dining establishment.
Which meant wearing a suit, instead of his chef's attire, which would have been far more comfortable. Though with Julia beside him, looking fabulous, the night would be far from unpleasant.
While the preview write-ups in the magazines had all been complimentary, Brandon was still stunned by the lines showing up outside the doors nearly an hour before the evening opening. He hoped that, when they opened for weekday lunches, that crowd might spread out a bit. It was a good thing they had planned to have all hands on shift for the opening!
When the doors opened, right on time, Camelia and the rest of the serving staff hit the floor running—metaphorically—and in a much more expedient amount of time than even Brandon could have anticipated, the restaurant was full to seating capacity, including the side rooms, single seats at the bar, and the patio seating on the newly finished deck out the side of the building that filled the side-yard between them and the next building over. It was a small gap, but they had decorated it with high wooden walls, and colorful fabric drapes to keep out the 'city' views and cast shade, or keep off light rain.
The serving staff—dressed in the simple, professional attire of quality dark gray pants and vests for all staff, with the option of several colors of collared shirt underneath—were proving they were absolutely worth their pay. Friendly and efficient, and working hard to get everything exactly correct, but without looking frantic while doing it. Even the new hires who had come in without prior experience, but with a lot of willingness to learn and work hard.
The kitchen was running almost as smoothly, and where there were bumps with the newer members of the chef hierarchy, Ione, Thian, and Haoran had it handled. Other than a few tiny tastes to make sure everything was perfect; Brandon didn't need to touch the kitchen. Not tonight, hard as that was.
Brandon was not at all prepared for the arrival of the people he could only think of as the most honored of guests. "Did you really stand in line all evening?" Brandon asked in surprise as he greeted the Elrics himself. Grandpa Edward, Grandma Winry, Alphonse and Elicia, all dressed up for a night out. They could have waited a few days for when they started doing the later evening and limited number of reservations.
"Actually, Edward cheated," Winry admitted as she smiled at him and Julia. "He made one of the security guards your father has assigned to us stand in line."
"That's terrible." Brandon looked at Edward.
The Fullmetal Alchemist chuckled. "Hey, they get to eat too, and it's not like we didn't stand in line. Just not for two hours."
"Put us anywhere there's room," Alphonse smiled, with Elicia on his arm.
"Well, you're in luck. One of our small rooms just opened up." Privately, Brandon thought he was more in luck. He could only imagine the stir having them here would cause, but they might prefer a little private dining.
That was definitely a room he would check on personally, but for now he left them in the capable hands of the serving staff.
They weren't the only family, or celebrities, who came to the grand opening. Brandon felt both relief, and appreciation, for the recognizable faces in the crowd. Especially the ones who insisted out where they could be seen. It would be great for business. His father's best friend, General Fischer, and Alyse, came, also dressed for a night of fine dining. Several State Alchemists were visible in the crowd, and recently retired General Anastas and his wife came later in the evening, as things were starting to quiet down.
Aside from a variety of other military officers and government officials, there were also other local business owners, quite a few of their friends from high school, and a few actors Brandon recognized from television shows, and a couple of movies, from CV Studios.
He was not at all prepared for the arrival of Ian Elric and his wife, mostly because he was a little startled that Bonnie would want to make the effort to go out to a restaurant in her third trimester with triplets.
"Never stop having date night," Ian grinned at him. "Especially after you have kids."
"Good advice. I'll keep it in mind." For the future; well in the future on that second part. He suspected that meant they had left the older two home with Ian's parents, who were still staying with them. He was able to find them a nice quiet corner. "I really appreciate you coming," he said quietly as he got them seated personally.
"I'd never miss the opportunity to try great food and offer you a little free press." Ian winked at that last. "After what we sampled at your wedding, I've been dying to try the full menu."
"Not all in one evening," Bonnie clarified, though the warning look she flashed her husband implied she thought he might try.
Not that anyone who didn't know Ian Elric, except to look at him, would have expected the tall, lean man to have the appetite of a hummingbird, mostly because he had the metabolism to match. One that, given his choice of career, Brandon found himself envying a little.
Ian grinned. "No, not all in one night. Not if you can narrow it down to one dish."
Bonnie's face flushed slightly. "Not my fault. They're your kids too."
Brandon wisely chose not to comment. "You'll note we have several options on the menu that include the ability to sample smaller portions of multiple dishes, including the appetizers. If you want to try a wide variety, I'd recommend starting there."
Ian's eyes lit up. "Brilliant."
In the end, even though Brandon had to step away and continue to greet other guests, and work the room, and ask diners about how they liked their meals, and what they thought of particular dishes, he did see the sizeable check afterwards. He definitely hoped they were repeat customers.
"Thanks for coming out with me this evening," Ian smiled, keeping his eyes on the road as he carefully drove home after dinner. "I hope you enjoyed it."
Sitting beside him, the passenger seat reclined slightly so she could sit comfortably, Bonnie nodded. "It was nice to get out and be mostly just the two of us for a little while," she admitted, one hand lightly rubbing her stomach. "Though after all that food, I don't imagine these three are going to let me sleep much tonight. They're getting energetic."
"That means they liked it." Ian chuckled softly. "I know I did." Brandon's suggestion of trying the sampler combinations had been as brilliant as Ian had said. They had managed to try little bits of several of the appetizers, and between them multiple different main entrees. There wasn't a sampler on dessert, but that was fine because by the time they had gotten there, even Ian's stomach was notably full, so they had split a slice of a phenomenal cake with a particularly light, spongy bread, and a taste that he thought came from Xingese green tea.
The fact that they had both come away full was a testament to the quality of the food, because the portions had been, for what they ordered, imminently reasonable.
"Yes, well, you get to sleep while I have to entertain our little acrobats." Bonnie didn't sound angry, just resigned. "Still, I'm glad we went to support Brandon's new restaurant, even if it does mean my chances of showing up in a magazine with you looking like this have gone way up. Still, we should definitely go again. Did you see they have a discount menu for children?"
"You look radiant." Ian grinned reassuringly, hoping she believed him, since he meant it. "And yes, I did. Good thing too. We're going to need it."
It was nearly midnight, but everything was done. The patrons were gone. The kitchen and the dining areas were cleaned back to a sparkling finish. The doors were locked, the inventory complete, and everything back in its place. Only then did Brandon gather the entire staff together for a little impromptu first-night thank you. It was the only night likely that every single new employee would be on staff at once. Though if they continued to be this busy, he might have to consider hiring more if the current staff wasn't enough to cover all the shifts.
Everyone had a drink of their choice, as he stood in front of them. "Years ago, I had a crazy idea, that great cuisine could be combined and brought together in harmony the same way as people from other lands. That this could not only create camaraderie, but amazing new combinations of flavors that would inspire the people who ate them. Fortunately for me, I have friends, colleagues, and a love, who also believed in my idea, and have been willing to work with me to make that dream a reality. Today, we have embarked together on what I hope will be a long, delicious, and profitable venture. Our success will not be possible without every one of you here, and tonight you demonstrated that you are an exceptional team. From here, we'll only continue to get better. Thank you." He saluted them with his glass of wine.
The cheers and applause that met his words before they drank might also have had something to do with the large pile of gratuity, he had split evenly among all of the serving and kitchen staff at the end of the evening, but Brandon felt they had more than earned it. Besides, the better they were treated, the better service they would give. Everyone wanted to work somewhere they felt like they actually belonged. Even the dishwashers had gotten their fare share. That, on top of the fact he was paying everyone a good wage, would also discourage competition or complaint.
Only then did he dismiss everyone to head home for the night. He was grateful they weren't a breakfast establishment, because the one thing he fully intended to do tomorrow was sleep in! First though, he hoped Julia was in the mood for a little private celebration.
May 20th, 1996
No matter the threats in the world around them, life always moved on, and Ethan was particularly excited as he and Lia arrived in Resembool for the opening of his own long-imagined dream. The new medical research and development facility focused on alchemical development of safe new medications and treatments, had been something Ethan had hoped to open years ago. It was affiliated with the private practice he and Ren had built, though with the many other alkahestrist-trained doctors he and Ren had worked with to establish over the years, their practice had not only grown, but their affiliates. It gave them a little more time—being not the only alchemists available on duty at the hospital half the time—for other projects.
This project had always been meant to be a partnership between Ethan and his nephew, and it filled him with joy that Urey still wanted to take charge of managing the facility and continuing to oversee the implementation of that research. Establishing the facility in Resembool, on land purchased for that purpose right next to the regional hospital that Cassie, and Urey, had worked at for years, had been a small change to a plan that, honestly, worked in Ethan's favor. He had never had the time to oversee it all as much as he wanted to himself, outside of his own private research. With this, he wouldn't need to convince other facilities to back the research first, and he and Urey—and anyone else on their team who made major contributions—would reap the direct benefits of creating and selling new medications. Though part of Ethan's plan was, as always, to keep them as affordable as possible. A treatment was useless if it wasn't accessible to the people who needed it.
It did feel a little odd to be arriving in Resembool while his parents and aunt and uncle were still in Central, but they had assured him they were welcome to stay at the big house if they wanted. The family was taking turns keeping an eye on the place, and coming over to socialize with the animals, while they were out of town, but they would surely enjoy having more people around for a few days.
So, they had agreed to stay at his parents' house, even if it might feel weird to have it mostly empty. To compensate, they had decided to have the big celebratory party for the opening of the research facility at the house. It certainly made the most sense, and the house was already clean and waiting.
The mid-afternoon sun, blue cloudless sky, and green mountain fields stretching as far as the eye could see were a welcome and familiar sight. The scent of wildflowers and sheep was just as familiar.
Ethan didn't have to wonder long who was meeting them at the station. It turned out to be Urey and… Ethan swore quietly in Xingese. "Is that Yurian?"
It had been a couple of years since Ethan had been to Resembool, and apparently in that time, his nephew's son had done a lot of growing up! The last time he had seen the boy, he had been just entering the full onsets of puberty. Now, he was sixteen, and he definitely didn't look like a little boy anymore.
Standing nearly as tall as his father, which put him about even with Ethan at the moment, Yurian looked much like a leaner version of his father, though with slightly squarer features that, Ethan suspected, came from his mother's side.
Besides him, other than looking more middle-aged, Urey was grinning, and looking not much different than the last time Ethan had seen him, which was a good thing. Urey and Raina had celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary just a couple of months ago, and Ethan was glad to see that life continued to be good for his nephew.
Urey met them with warm handshakes, followed by hugs. "It's so good to see you. It's been too long."
"It has," Ethan agreed. "Though if this takes off, I suspect I'll be making a lot more visits to Resembool."
"You should have just moved here," Urey teased him as he bent down and picked up Lia's luggage.
"And have Ren and Lia kill me?"
Lia smiled. "Not that we don't enjoy visiting, but Central is home."
"I understand." Urey nodded.
"Can I get that for you?" Yurian offered in a voice that had turned to a warm baritone, gesturing at Ethan's luggage.
"Thank you." Ethan nodded, as his great-nephew picked up his bags. "Are we driving or walking this morning?"
"Walking." Yurian grinned. "Mom calls it part of the local experience."
"Or get out of the office and get some exercise. We prefer to call it alchemy training." Urey added before his smile turned proud. "Yurian's learned a lot since the last time you visited."
Ethan eyed Yurian as they walked out of the station and started down the road. He didn't mind the walk. It really was a beautiful day, and after the train it felt good to stretch his legs. "Is that so?"
Yurian's face flushed a little. "I've been working hard at it. Dad's taught me a lot. Grandpa and Uncle Al too, when they have time… and they're here," he added with a slight shrug. "Did they happen to say how long they'd be gone?"
"Just another couple of weeks I think," Lia responded. "They're enjoying Central, and I'm pretty sure Tore wanted their opinions on a few things while he had them in person."
"You mean without an insecure phone line between them?" Urey chuckled. "It wouldn't be the first time a President wanted their input. At least this time we can be pretty sure they won't be sent off into the Drachman mountains."
"That has happened with unusual regularity," Ethan admitted, remembering then that one of those missions had once included Urey, when he was only a little older than Yurian was now. If he remembered correctly, that mission had included Cal as well, and involved them busting up an alchemy lab trying to create philosopher's stones and homunculi. Uncle Al had come home with a tiger cub from that adventure. "But I really doubt they'll be sending Dad and Al anywhere."
"Good, cause Uncle Alphonse said he had a special lesson to teach Danielle and me when he gets back."
Danielle was Alphonse's student that Ethan had yet to meet. He supposed she must go to school with Yurian and the rest of the family in that age range, seeing as she was twelve. "Will we get to meet Danielle while we're here?" he asked curiously.
"Absolutely. She's been coming over to our house to get her alchemy lessons while they're gone. She's determined to impress Alphonse with new skills when they get back." Urey nodded. "She's also been helping keep the dogs and cats company up at the house, now that her great-grandmother is starting to feel better. She picked up on the basics of alkahestry impressively fast. It's only been a few months, but she can already help give Marion basic treatments for her arthritis, and other pains. Not for long periods yet, but it's definitely helped, which is what she wanted. So, of course, now she's determined to learn everything she can."
"She's really talented," Yurian agreed. "You might want to talk to her while you're here, Uncle Ethan. What she's most interested in is medical alchemy."
"And what about you?" Ethan asked curiously. He certainly would if the girl was interested. While Urey was an experienced alchemist, his experience was mostly laboratory work. He did have some healing skills that Ethan had taught him, but it had never been extensive.
"I wouldn't mind, but honestly, I'm really more into geology and elemental alchemy."
"Interested in lab work?"
"He likes being out in the dirt with the elements," Urey chided his son with a fond expression. "Though he's got a knack for finding instabilities in the earth, and he's managed to reinforce two mines north-east of town before they could cause cave-ins."
"It wasn't all that hard," Yurian insisted, but he looked pleased at the compliment.
"You know, a lot of State Alchemist missions involve mine and other safety inspections and repairs from those, and other natural disasters."
"Are you trying to steal my son away to Central?"
Yurian laughed at his father's exclamation. "Great-Grandpa told me the same thing. I told him I'll think about it, but right now I'm keeping my options open."
Ethan grinned. "Good answer."
The banter continued all the way to the Hill House, where Ethan was happy to find several people waiting for him. The house wasn't at all empty. Aldon was out in the yard refereeing some kind of game of chase that involved Yurian's younger siblings, and Wilhelm and Jacob, Edward's two huge fluffy dogs. Eight-year-old Brynne was almost as fast as the dogs, and was shrieking with laughter as they chased after her. She was trailing some kind of ribbon behind her, though Ethan suspected the dogs were more interested in the girl herself. Five-year-old Ewan looked the most like a clone of his father, especially at that age. He was of average height for his age, but stocky-built. Not that it kept him from running with energy that made it clear the boy was not at all sedentary.
Ethan watched his older brother come to a panting halt as they walked up. Grinning, Aldon met them at the edge of the yard. "That's one way to keep in shape," Ethan tweaked his brother with a laugh. "Too bad my grandkids don't live close enough. I'd have to give it a try."
"You can borrow some of mine while you're here," Aldon chuckled, and they exchanged a brief, brotherly hug.
"Even if you're kidding, we'll probably take you up on that," Lia replied as she hugged him next. "Where's Cassie?"
"In the house with Raina. They wanted to get a head start on dinner. Dad called and said if we didn't use the house for a few big gatherings while you're here he'd be very disappointed."
"Well, we can't disappoint Dad," Ethan agreed. "At least, not more than we already have."
Aldon snorted. "Pretty sure the statute of limitations has expired on anything we did that qualifies as disappointing to Dad. Unless you've done something more recently than like, thirty years ago or more and haven't told me."
"No more than you."
"Boys!" Lia laughed. "Can we go inside please?"
Inside they were greeted by Cassie and Raina, who assured them that Reichart, Deanna, and most of their family was also coming for dinner.
Ethan was looking forward to seeing them, and hoped that included the older ones, seeing as three of them were adults, and often busy with other things even though they still lived in the region, and close enough to at least drive into town for an evening.
By the time they got their things settled in their usual room on the second floor, and freshened up, people were starting to arrive, and the delectable smells of dinner wafted up from below.
Lia had been quite happy to come along with Ethan on this trip. He had hoped to build this business venture with Urey for over seventeen years. While the original plan had been to build it in Central, putting it in Resembool, and now, had turned out to be a far better solution. It also brought more business to the ever-growing small country town. It still didn't really qualify as a city, even a small one, but it was a much busier place than it had been the first time Lia had come with Ethan to visit, back in college.
The fact that it was happening was, she knew, a point of pride for both men. Ethan, who had worked hard to develop several medications already that had helped thousands, if not hundreds-of-thousands, of people, despite his own hardships. He was always determined to help others, even at the cost of risking his own life—and nearly dying for it—multiple times. Though those experiences had left him far more sympathetic and understanding of others immediate pains and issues that some physicians simply were not, no matter how good their intentions. While Lia never again wanted to face the possibility of Ethan dying from some highly fatal disease, she could not deny the impact those events had had on her husband and the choices he had made professionally, even after becoming a physicians and alkahestrist. Lia had been there for every major step of his career, by his side, and he by hers. It made her proud to be here.
For Urey, it was a major success, reaching the point his career had been meant to hit nearly two decades ago. Before he had lost Cayla in childbirth. Before he had lost himself in grief and depression for several years. Seeing him today, a caring father who could love Yurian without the constant reminders of that pain; remarried, in a good healthy relationship, with two more children he clearly enjoyed being a parent to… these things filled her with joy and relief.
Lia loved having Raina in the family, and not just because they were both educators in the same field. Though she did get great enjoyment out of discussing curriculum and teaching with her niece-in-law. Even if she had not had so much in common with Raina, she would have loved her for what she had done for Urey.
"Are you ready to go down to dinner?" she called to Ethan, who was in the bathroom just off their room, and shared with one other guest room.
"I'm coming," Ethan promised, stepping out a minute later, looking a bit less disheveled, and more comfortable in non-travel clothing. Even after decades of professionalism, at home he still preferred casual, comfortable clothing and not looking like Doctor Elric all the time. "You look lovely." He pulled her close for a brief kiss.
Lia smiled as she returned it. "You'd say that if I was wearing a burlap sack."
"I would never let something as rough as burlap touch your skin." Ethan whispered in her ear. "I'd have to remove it immediately."
"Which would be very awkward for dinner." Not that Lia didn't love that after so many years together, Ethan was still hopelessly romantic. She still preferred it to his awkward denial in the early months of their adult relationship. "Maybe we can explore that scenario later. Without the burlap."
"I'll hold you to it." Ethan grinned as he offered her his arm, and then they went downstairs.
The Elric invasion had landed, and within moments they were swept up into the delicious buffet of dinner and swarm of family that hadn't seen them in a couple of years. Letters and phone calls were not the same, and Ethan and Lia didn't talk directly to Aldon and Cassie's grandchildren that often.
Lia found herself deep in conversation for some time with Rhiana, who was now almost twenty-four, and working as a veterinarian. She had work all over the region, not just in Resembool, and her office was currently mobile, set up in a van so she could take everything she needed out to help treat patients on the farms. She saw everything from cats and dogs to horses, cows, sheep, and goats. Though she would also willingly look over any other animal that needed tending that didn't require a specialist. It was clear that she loved her job, and Lia suspected it might be years before Rhiana considered a family. Of course, after being the oldest of seven, she didn't seem at all inclined to want to be involved in raising more children, and Lia couldn't blame her! Lia would never have wanted to raise that many children, and the fact that Deanna was doing so on top of still helping work her family's farm, and loving it, was a testament to the other woman.
Only three of the seven were grown and out of the house now. Rhiana lived in town itself, in a little apartment above the shops, which meant she was close by, but always on the move with her patients. Owen, now twenty-two, had gone off for three years to South City to get professional training as an electrician, before recently returning to Resembool with certificates, and a beautiful fiancé that Ethan and Lia had never met. Though Lia decided, after a brief conversation, that she definitely liked Mila. She was friendly, down to earth, and clever. The two had met taking the same electrical training, and would be starting their own business together. Though Lia wondered if Owen hadn't originally been drawn in by her striking features. The quarter-Ishvallan woman had inherited the warm skin tones and white hair of that part of her family, which she had noticed through the several families she knew of mixed heritages, were often dominant traits, though she had sugar-brown eyes.
Cailean, now twenty, was there tonight without his girlfriend of two years, about whom Lia knew through Aldon's phone conversations he was crazy and very serious about, though he hadn't proposed yet. They were both working hard to save money to move to East City, because his girlfriend wanted to get into the university for their medical program. She was currently working the reception desk at the regional hospital, and Cailean was working as a manager at the local movie theater in town. He didn't have a grand career plan in mind for himself, but he made it clear over dinner he was happy to just work jobs to support his girlfriend through her medical training first. Once she was a physician, they could afford for him to do something else, and that meant he had time to decide what he wanted that to be.
Or at least, that was the plan he outlined over dinner when asked.
Reichart, sitting next to his son, and diagonal from Lia, was eyeing him seriously.
"When are you planning on going?" Lia asked, very curious as to more of the plan.
"We've almost got enough saved, so she's applied to start this fall." Cailean grinned. "What she doesn't know is I've been saving up a little extra."
"For something special?" Lia knew that expression. It would make sense, that if they were going off together, and probably planning to share living space to save money, that there might be a proposal in the offing.
Cailean's ears were turning red even as he nodded. "I don't know when we'll get married. That's up to her, but it's in the plan eventually. It wouldn't feel right not to ask before we go."
Lia noticed Reichart's expression looking relieved. She wondered if he was worried about his son taking after him, and Aldon, though with that well thought out of a plan—and a lack of children before the age of twenty—she didn't think they needed to worry. So far, this new generation didn't seem to have someone looking to populate Resembool with another half-dozen or more Elrics. At least, not soon.
There were always the younger four to consider. Hrafn was sixteen, heavily involved with local sporting activities, popular, and he worked hard on Deanna's family farm as well before and after school. Lia knew from Cassie that he was generally popular with all of his age group, and definitely enjoyed the attention he got from girls, though he hadn't—to anyone's knowledge—done anything particularly foolish.
Lochlan was just fourteen, and still figuring out being a teenager, and Dessa was twelve—and apparently good friends with Danielle at school. Pierce, being solidly the youngest, was only nine.
Lia tried to imagine having grown adult children, and still be raising a nine-year-old. She supposed it was more notable, really, that Reichart and Deanna had stopped after seven.
The only time to safely and quietly slip into the warehouse where the Arsenic related collecting of materials was stored was in the late evening. Edward had to admit, it gave him a little thrill to be doing anything related to a military investigation again. Tore had brought him and Alphonse over after dark, and the security guards had let them through without a moment of hesitation. After all, they clearly were there with the President of the Military's permission, since he was there as well.
"They won't talk to anyone, will they?" Alphonse asked as they entered Warehouse Five.
"Not a chance. James has been running detailed investigation background checks on everyone, to update files, and Spellers and Mahdan check out."
Inside, Tore turned on the lights, revealing several shelves packed with boxes stacked and labelled. "The first three shelves on the left are all Arsenic."
Edward looked around the room and let out a low whistle. "You've certainly collected a lot. And all of this is in the same shape it was collected? Nothing's been washed or modified?"
Tore nodded. "We've left them as untouched as possible other than removing items from bodies. The clothing items were folded for storage, but other than testing for fingerprints, we've left everything as untouched as possible."
"Did you find fingerprints?" Alphonse asked.
"No. They universally wear gloves when handling any of their equipment it seems. Even outside of combat."
"That's what you'd expect if they know what they're doing, and we have to presume they do, seeing their success rate so far." Of course, they hadn't been able to take out him and Alphonse, but if they went after them again, he was sure they wouldn't be underestimated a second time. "Let's take a look and see if we can find anything they've missed." That was why they were here, after all.
Edward grinned as they all pulled on gloves to keep from getting their own prints on anything. Tore had worn his alchemist gloves. Edward and Alphonse, of course, didn't need external circles to transmute, but they had brought gloves anyway.
It was, as he had been warned, a lot of varied equipment with very little consistency. It looked like a mismatch of whatever a terrorist organization could get together on the black market. Except… that it didn't. Edward had faced down, and hunted down, enough scum in his life. The more they looked through the items in the boxes and sorted them out—clothing, armor, weapons, and other supplies—the less random they looked.
Apparently, Alphonse noticed it as well. "Does this look purposefully bought to you, too?"
"Like they made a point of buying the same amount from different suppliers? Yeah."
Tore was staring at them, then looking at the piles the way Alphonse and Edward had sorted them. Nearly a perfect fifth of the items in front of them came from Amestris, Creta, Aerugo, Drachma, or Xing between them. Nearly perfect, because of a handful of specialty sidearms that were of Kartosian make, and the holsters for them. Everything that qualified as clothing looked slightly worn, but not actually old enough to be entirely surplus. "How the hell did we miss this?"
"Because it's not obvious when you're looking at it based on where and when you acquired it." Edward shrugged. Every item was tagged with that information, so they could sort it back the way they had found it later, if needed. "You might have noticed general trends, and I'm sure you did, but you'd expect terrorist organizations to have multiple sources of supplies. It's not like they can walk up to a military munitions factory and just order whatever they want, and we'd have noticed inventory missing, as would most of our allies." Though, for just a moment, Edward had to wonder how much of an ally the current President of Creta was. Not that he thought the man was involved. He was truly and righteously furious about the murder of his diplomatic team. "It looks like they weren't scrambling to purchase what they needed, however."
"Which means they have someone with money backing them, or as part of the organization. Possibly several." Tore scowled. "Which we already suspected, but this just proves it runs farther into the planning than just tossing money around. Though we haven't found a cash trail to follow yet. We're working on it though. That leads me to the other thing I wanted to show you." He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small vial.
"Is that the explosive?" Edward asked. He couldn't imagine what else it might be.
"A sample. I ordered most of it neutralized, but we've kept a little bit of it for further study, and as evidence when we put a case together. Eventually, there will be more trials, and I don't intend to let anyone walk." Tore handed it over. "Whoever their alchemists are, their skills are on par with anyone working in the labs in Central, though our investigations there have turned up nothing to suggest any of the work was done in a military lab. We are seeing if we can trace the flow of money by figuring out which mines or suppliers the rarer elements came from."
Edward touched his hands together before wrapping one around the vial. He took his time analyzing it. It didn't take long to identify the elements. By any rule regulating alchemical substances in Amestris, the combination was highly illegal, on top of being dangerous. "I'm impressed it's this stable," he admitted as he handed the vial to Alphonse, who did an analysis of the composition for himself. "They have at least one alchemist who knows enough to be dangerous to us, and possibly not to themselves."
Given the number of alchemists who did not pass the State Alchemy exam, or who retired when their commissions were done instead of re-upping, or didn't pass their evaluations and had their licenses revoked—much rarer these days, under the new system—there were dozens, if not hundreds, of people that it could plausibly be, even if the majority of them were unlikely to have gotten this good without blowing themselves up. So, either it was a foreign alchemist, or it was someone who had trained at least for a time in the State Alchemy program. Edward voiced that suspicion aloud.
Tore nodded. "That's something I've been concerned about, and anyone who has problems with the system the way it is now… is someone we should be very concerned about."
"Has anyone working in the labs said anything about recognizing the work at all?" Alphonse asked, his tone curious. "Sometimes, another alchemist may recognize the style of a colleague's work. After all, we all tend to have our own specialties."
"I've asked, and so far, no one has offered any real suggestions." Tore shook his head. "We keep looking. Of course, it's possible they have multiple alchemists and we won't be able to peg it down to anyone in particular without catching them."
Edward crouched down, picking up one of the garments from the ground. Feeling it over, he noticed some bits of sandy, red soil that didn't look like anything he'd ever seen around Central. Curious, he analyzed the sample for mineral content. It didn't match any of the locations where attacks had occurred. "You might try checking the mines, or small towns, out in the south-western plains, south of West City."
"What makes you say that?" Tore gave him his immediate attention.
"This soil sample." Edward held up the granules. "That's the only area they really match. They're definitely not from the Drachman mountains, Resembool, or anywhere here in Central."
"It's definitely a starting point. Though we'll have to go carefully, or they'll be on to us and move any operations." Tore stared at the soil for a few minutes. "Damn. I knew having you two in here would be a good idea, but you're making the entire rest of the military look bad."
"Unconventional thinking, that's us." Alphonse chuckled. "We should check samples on all of these uniforms. We might be able to identify some other general areas to look."
Which was, of course, the way Edward really wanted to spend his evening. But then, it had been his idea, and his discovery. "Well then. Let's get to it!"
May 21st, 1996
The opening of the Elric Medical Research Facility was not a hugely crowded event, though it was covered by the local newspaper, as well as a regional reporter for television, and the current Mayor of Resembool and several members of the city council showed up, along with ranking members of the Hospital administration from next door. Mostly it was friends and family, and the new team that would be working there. Urey was excited about the alchemists and alkahestrists who had agreed to be on the development and production teams, as well as the other non-alchemists as well. Not everyone had to be an alchemist to be good for this kind of work. Several of them were former or current colleagues of Ethan's, but some of them were also friends that Urey had met studying in East City years ago, and kept in touch with since. Others were new, but they were all enthusiastic about the work and the purpose of the facility.
The opening speech, which was thankfully mostly handled by Ethan, and the brief curated tour of the facility for the press, and those interested enough to take it, was mostly for public relations purposes. Urey had little doubt that the local writer would be able to get his article published in larger towns, possibly Central, given the fact that the facility was tied to the Elric name, and Ethan and Ren were so well known not only among the medical profession but by many who had been treated within the walls of more than one city hospital.
Being the general manager and Head of Research for the facility was going to be quite a lot to live up to, but Urey was looking forward to the challenge, and the rewards to come from being able to really focus on this type of alchemy the way they had wanted to. Ethan's limited work in Central could be expanded here. Testing and proof of concept would go much more quickly. They would no longer need to rely on a larger entity being willing to fund Ethan's research.
And almost all of that thanks to their first successful drugs on the market already; the non-addictive analgesic series designed specifically for patients dealing with long-term daily pain. Based on the original drug Ethan had developed for his father's use initially, which had been taken up by major pharmaceuticals and was now widely available, the first one they had designed to deal with the difficult pains associated with paralysis and partial-paralysis, nerve pain and sensitivity for auto-mail wearers, and Ethan had found that some of the existing compounds were effective for chronic cases of arthritis, and a variety of other nerve issues and other forms of ongoing pain. Being able to give those people relief, no matter how temporary, safely, was a huge boon. Ethan had kept the patent on those, and while they were currently being produced by a professional colleague's company, a much larger portion of the profits than Ethan's previous discoveries, continued to go to Ethan. With that money, they could afford the facility.
Having another company for mass production meant not having to worry about becoming a factory.
The building itself was, Urey felt, a work of architectural art in itself, which made it what he hoped would be a productive and enjoyable workplace. It was a functional square, but with an open courtyard in the center, to allow windows on inner and outer rooms.
The exterior was nothing particularly special, but the outer areas were all large rooms with huge windows and open spaces. Glass wall separators were the primary divisions. These work spaces were designed as offices and group brainstorming areas, with the interior walls solid, with boards for writing and projection, and comfortable chairs and couches, but also with desks and computers.
Laboratories that needed or could have light were on the inside ring of the building, which looked out on the square inner courtyard. These were accessed from the main hallway through longer ones that ran past the inside rooms, the ones where materials were stored, and labs with light-sensitive materials, were sandwiched inside, with excellent artificial lighting.
Everything was in light neutral colors, except for splashes of color in a painting here, the warm inviting fabrics on the furniture. There was room for Urey to work, and their first eight fellow researchers and employees. Six were part of the development team. The other two employees were professional office staff, because someone had to know how to organize paperwork, reports, handle phones and mailing, and keep financial records straight. While Urey would look over all that, even he wasn't about to try and do all of it himself. He would never have gotten to work on the research, and that was entirely the point of having this enterprise here in Resembool!
Each of his employees had already claimed their desk of choice, when they had a choice. The office managers were in the front lobby space, but that was more so they wouldn't have to deal with the chaos of the research team. There was room to add another five or six researchers, and up to two more other staff, as the company grew, if it did. They would worry about expanding the building if they ever needed more than that.
The tour itself ended in the central courtyard, which had a lovely Xingese style medication garden, and places for people to sit and think. Since the building was only a single story, it didn't cast too much shade, and the recently planted flowering bushes were quite happy to show off their pink, red, and yellow blossoms.
"I'm impressed," Aldon grinned as moved through the crowd to join him. "Ethan tells me you had a hand in designing the layout."
"I didn't do any architectural drawing, but yes, I did come up with the space allotment and how we wanted it to feel." Urey nodded. "It's not really traditional, but I think it will help with everyone's productivity and mental state. If nothing else, when we're all lost for hours deep down a research rabbit hole, we'll still get a reasonable amount of sun."
His mother chuckled. "That's a good idea. I approve. The atmosphere is very relaxing, but focused. You can tell each space has a purpose and it's organized and designed for it. I wish more spaces were this nice."
"I'd love a classroom like this," Raina added with a nod. "My students would adore it."
"You can always propose suggestions for the next school additions or remodels," Aldon suggested. "Not that Resembool kids don't get enough sunlight and fresh air, but anything that calms them down can't hurt."
"I was also thinking of the flexibility," Raina admitted. "Well, how long until we can pull you away from the press and head up to the house for the reception?"
Urey looked over at Ethan, who seemed to be wrapping up handling the press. "Soon, I think. I'm glad Ethan agreed to do most of this part. I'm not really into the politics part of medicine."
"Well, he's got the experience for it." Aldon followed his look over towards his brother. "You couldn't have a better business partner. It's nice to see this finally happening."
"Both for the research, and because if we're successful, I'll be making a lot more income." Urey chuckled. While the goal was collaboration and successful new medicines, there was good money to be made there as well, and he did have three children to support through whatever training they decided they wanted for their careers. Of course, if they succeeded in luring Yurian into the military as a lab alchemist and geological specialist, it might not be as expensive as he was anticipating. Though he sort of hoped Yurian got assigned someplace closer to home than Central if that was the case. There were State Alchemists assigned to all of the regional Headquarters as well, even if there weren't quite as many as there had been in the days of Fuhrer Bradley. So, not in Urey's lifetime, or even his parents' lifetime.
"There they go." Raina smiled as Ethan turned to join them, and the rest of the press was escorted to the exit by the office staff. She squeezed Urey's arm and, once again, he was grateful for her confidence in him, and her support for this chance he was taking. "Let's celebrate!"