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It was supposed to be a simple mission.
Makoto and Yusuke had uncovered the truth behind Shou Tucker’s speaking chimera experiment easily enough, and they had stolen proof of it and sent it directly to the two State alchemists that had been visiting the Tucker house those past few days. They’d even left a simple calling card on Tucker’s desk, stating their exact intentions to expose the truth behind his work (despite Makoto’s argument that the calling card was entirely unnecessary and would only attract unwanted attention).
They had made a horrible mistake when they didn’t account for Tucker’s daughter, Nina. By the time the Elrics had gotten there, they were far too late.
“Utterly barbaric,” said Yusuke, looking downcast as they observed the Tucker house safely from a distance. The two of them were hidden in the shadows of a nearby alley, just behind the house and out of sight from the soldiers guarding the front entrance, fully dressed in their thief outfits. Makoto glanced over to Yusuke, seeing his expression as dark and stormy as the current weather.
(It wasn’t hard to guess what he was so upset about. She had only heard secondhand about what happened between Yusuke and Madarame in his palace; she couldn’t imagine how he was taking this.)
When they heard about what had happened to Nina, they knew they had to at least try and fix things somehow. Cover or not, they could not leave a little girl in such a sorry state. Not when they could have prevented it.
“I don’t know if this will work, Fox,” said Makoto. “I know Mediarahan can fully heal any injury, but this is completely different from anything I’ve healed before.”
“We will not know until we try,” said Yusuke. “We failed to protect his own daughter from him.”
Makoto frowned bitterly. “We didn’t know.”
“Perhaps not. But I cannot stand aside and do nothing if there is even a small chance that we can fix this.”
“Yeah. I agree.” Makoto looked back towards the house. “But remember that we’re taking a big gamble, coming back here. I hope you realize that.”
He gave her a wry half-smile. “It would hardly be the first time we’ve participated in gambling, Queen.”
Makoto leveled him with an exasperated look, but said nothing in response.
Quietly, they slipped into the house’s grounds, and then effortlessly infiltrated the house itself. From what Makoto knew, Shou Tucker was going to be tried in Central City, but he was effectively under house arrest for the short time it would take for Central City to send a military transport to take him there.
They silently made their way through the house, looking through empty rooms, until finally they came across Tucker’s library full of research, where they’d found the evidence of his actions in the first place.
Makoto did not like this place, but they had to look. She took a moment to steel herself, and she and Yusuke both peered in.
The room looked darkened, but much the same. Before the military came to investigate, its sole inhabitants had been various chimeras; to Makoto’s relief, the room was now entirely vacant, but still filled with books and research notes. The military had not been particularly careful in their investigation; the room was messy, and not in the sense of organized chaos.
The two of them stepped inside to investigate. They didn’t step far into the room before they realized that the room wasn’t vacant. A hunched-over, four-legged creature with long hair emerged from the shadows of the room, slowly approaching them.
White-hot rage burned in her chest. Whether it was hers or Anat’s, she did not know or care.
She knew who this was.
“Oh my god.” Makoto kneeled down to the chimera. She had heard what happened, but seeing it in person somehow made it so much worse than she’d imagined. “Nina.”
Yusuke gripped his sword tightly, at a loss for words. “This is...”
“What- Who are you?” Makoto and Yusuke looked up to see Shou Tucker standing in the door. “H-how did you get in here? There are military police outside!”
Crap! We’ve been spotted. This is bad! Makoto thought.
“Shou Tucker, I assume.” Yusuke addressed him coldly. “Words cannot describe how much your actions sicken me.”
“...So you’ve heard too, then?” Tucker gave him a hollow look. “You don’t understand. I had to continue my research. I was going to lose my license.”
“And you think that justifies this?” Yusuke shot back. “You’re no father. You’re nothing but a monster!” Behind his fox mask, Makoto could see the cold anger in Yusuke’s expression, his eyes glowing like molten gold. “How could you do this to your own daughter!?”
“Your eyes…” Tucker stepped back, his face panicked. “What the hell are you? Are you here to kill me?!”
“...No. I will not kill you.” Yusuke gripped the hilt of his sword, and cold ice crackled up from the floor and formed around Tucker’s legs, effectively freezing him in place. Quick as a blink, Yusuke closed the distance between them and slammed the hilt of his blade into his head, making him drop to the floor unconscious. “But you will stay put and face the consequences of your actions. Consider yourself lucky that you are not the one we came here for.”
Meanwhile, Makoto was struggling to keep Nina calm after Yusuke was finished.
“Nina- ah!” Makoto held her hands up reassuringly. “Nina, listen to me. I don’t know if you can understand me, but we’re here to help,” she said. “We are here to help. Okay?” She swallowed bitterly at her next words, but she had to calm Nina down. “He’s fine. Your father’s just asleep. I promise.”
Makoto’s reassurances calmed Nina, but only partially. Makoto and Yusuke could both see the obvious distress she was in after what she’d just seen, and a part of Makoto hated seeing Nina react like this over the man that did this to her.
“Priestess.” Makoto startled a little as Anat spoke up. “Call me forth. I would like to speak to the both of you.”
Makoto complied. A blue pyre formed, and Anat appeared, towering over the three of them. Both Yusuke and Nina were startled in surprise at her appearance. Anat crouched down, closer to Makoto and Nina’s level, carefully taking in Nina’s poor state. After a minute, Makoto’s persona spoke.
“Simple healing skills alone will be of no use here,” said Anat. “She is now so tied to the other creature that the only thing remotely capable of separating them is the very same act that did this in the first place.”
“Alchemy?” Yusuke asked.
“Alchemy…” Anat turned to face Makoto. “And your own unique healing skills. You will need them both in equal measure.”
“But I don’t know alchemy!” Makoto protested.
“Do you want to fix this?”
“Of course I do!”
“Look closer into your power. Dig deep into yourself,” said Anat. “Remember your own past knowledge, and what you have learned about alchemy from the research you and the Emperor have conducted. You are much closer to the Truth than you realize.”
Yusuke bowed his head in thought. “Alchemy is essentially atomic manipulation. Through understanding the makeup of a material, it can be entirely deconstructed or reconstructed at its most base level,” he recited. A small hint of pride surfaced when she realized Yusuke had retained that information from their studies into alchemy; she tended to handle the information side of things while he practiced drawing transmutation circles.
Anat nodded. “Knowledge is every alchemist’s greatest weapon. It is yours as well, Priestess.”
Makoto thought about Anat’s words, thinking back to her research on alchemy with Yusuke. It was a vast topic to research, and her studying skills had been invaluable as they learned just how much knowledge of every material’s makeup and atomic structure went into each transmutation.
But Anat was telling her that her powers were closer to transmutation than either of them believed. Makoto racked her brain, trying to remember every detail.
Atomic manipulation.
Blue flashes of lightning as materials were rearranged on an atomic level.
The main element of her powers were explosions, bright blue blasts of pure nuclear energy.
Energy that came from nuclear fission and fusion.
...
No way. It couldn’t be that simple.
...Was it?
“I sense you understand now,” said Anat.
“How do you even know that would work?” Makoto asked.
“...I do not know how to explain it,” Anat said carefully. “This world feels different. I simply sense this. It is like a new instinct.”
“Strange,” said Yusuke. “Kamu Susano-o seems to agree.”
Makoto shook her head, still almost dizzy from the revelation she just had. “But I- Anat, I still don’t actually know how to do this!” Makoto paused as she realized the implications of what Anat was suggesting. “And I can’t use nuclear skills on her!”
“Do not worry, Priestess. I will guide you. Your nuclear and healing skills in tandem may be exactly what we need to separate and restore them. It may even be the only thing in this world capable of helping her now. This child does not deserve such a fate.” She turned her rage-frozen expression towards Nina. “But this will be difficult, and very risky.” The goddess of love and war leveled her with her gaze. “Are you ready for this?”
Makoto was quiet for a moment, as she looked at Nina. “I don’t feel ready. But I- I don’t know what will happen to her if I don’t do this. I have to try.” A moment passed, and then Makoto nodded, set in her determination. “I’m ready.”
Scar trudged into the Tucker house, slowly making his way down the hallway to wherever the State Alchemist had hidden himself.
News had spread about Shou Tucker’s actions, and what he’d done to create his chimeras. It had caused a bit of a stir in East City, and as a result reached Scar’s ears rather quickly. It was bad enough that the man was a state alchemist, but what he had done was unforgivable.
The Devil’s work, they’d called it. He couldn’t agree more.
He walked down the empty hallway, only to quietly pause when he heard more than one voice. They seemed to be coming from an open door just further down the hall.
“-alright?”
“I’m fine, Fox. Just exhausted, is all. That took more out of me than I expected,” said a woman’s voice.
“I see.” This voice sounded masculine. “But… that your powers are capable of this...” A pause. “Well, I’m glad you are both alright.”
A third voice spoke, one that made Scar pause. “You did well, Priestess. But you both know you cannot be discovered, and I can sense you are nearing your limit.”
This voice sounded… strange. It did not sound like a voice that belonged to anything completely human. A flash of blue light emanated through the doorway, along with a soft, crackling whoosh.
“She’s right. We need to leave before the military arrives,” said the boy.
Avoiding the military? They probably weren’t State Alchemists, then.
Though that raised the question, if they weren’t with the military, how did they get in the house? He thought about the two now-dead guards at the front entrance. These intruders had to have come in a different way if they hadn’t even been noticed.
Scar silently took a few steps back and stepped into another doorway, where he would be hidden out of sight from anyone that stepped foot out of the other room. He saw no point in confronting non-State alchemists, but there was the possibility that they wouldn’t feel the same if they saw him. Also, his curiosity was piqued by what little he had heard from these intruders.
“I agree we should leave, but I don’t like the idea of leaving her with her father,” he heard the girl say.
“I don’t like it either,” the boy said. “...My ice will keep him here for some time. Long enough for the military to arrive.”
“But he saw us.”
“Can you perform a Makajama?” the boy asked.
“No.”
“...It can’t be helped, then. We have our masks on, so we must simply hope he cannot identify us. What do you believe we should do if he does?”
A long pause. “... I don’t know. I’ll think of something. We can’t afford to let our guard down. For now, I think we should move Nina and Alexander upstairs.” Scar heard some faint shuffling as they moved.
“Here. Let me lend a hand.”
“Thanks, Fox.”
“Are you sure you’re alright, Queen?”
“Yes. I’m fine. Just tired,” said Queen. “We have a lot to think about.”
Scar heard more movement, and eventually two figures emerged, walking past the doorway where he’d hidden himself from their view. There were only two people walking by, both of them wearing masks and (frankly, ridiculous-looking) outfits. A dog followed closely behind.
His eyes widened when he saw that the steel-masked woman was carrying a young girl.
Impossible.
He shook his head, frowning. He wasn’t here for that. The girl looked fine, if exhausted; nothing like the chimeric monster he’d heard about. It was highly unlikely that she was Shou Tucker’s daughter. She wasn’t who he was here for, anyway, and he did not plan to target a small child.
“I’m surprised Alexander is already awake, if I’m being honest,” said the steel-masked woman.
“Woof!” The dog slowly walked along with them, staying very close to the woman carrying the girl.
“I suspect he will keep her safe until the military arrives for Tucker,” said the fox-masked boy. “He seems quite close to her.”
“I certainly hope you’re right about that,” said the woman.
Scar remained hidden as the two headed upstairs. He waited some time, but they didn’t come back down. He stepped out of his hiding place and listened in the silence. No sounds were coming from upstairs, either.
Odd. They must have left.
Scar brushed off the bizarre encounter and entered the downstairs study. He only had business with Shou Tucker.
“You’d better have a damn good reason for dragging us here, Mustang,” Edward grit out as he stepped into the gates of the Tucker household. “I’ve had enough of this damn place.”
“You both know that Tucker was going to be sent to Central to put on trial,” said Mustang, leading them both to the front door. “Unfortunately, it looked like that State alchemist killer paid him a visit before he went anywhere.”
Edward scowled. “So?” he asked. “What does that have to do with us?”
“There’s more,” said Mustang. “It’s about Tucker’s daughter.”
Ed felt an icy prickle of dread, but didn’t show it. He refused to show it to Mustang of all people. “Care to elaborate?”
“It’s not what you’re probably thinking,” said Mustang. “...It’ll be easier if I just show you.”
“And why the hell can’t you just tell us!?”
“Brother, I’m sure he has a good reason,” Alphonse reprimanded half-heartedly.
“Trust me on this, Fullmetal,” said Mustang, an odd look in his eyes. “You’ll want to see this for yourself.”
Edward scoffed, but said nothing. With that note, Mustang opened the door and led them inside the house.
The house was chaos. There were already multiple military personnel inside, mostly gathered further down the hallway where Tucker’s study was.
Colonel Mustang had an expression somewhere between conflicted and completely baffled as he took in the scene next to Edward and Alphonse. In the front entrance area stood Hawkeye, looking vaguely uncomfortable as she turned to address them.
Alexander was curled up across the floor near Hawkeye, asleep and impossibly whole.
And there, wrapped in a blanket and being carried by Hawkeye, looking exhausted but completely unharmed and not twisted into a horrific nightmare that would haunt him for weeks, months, the rest of his life-
“NINA!” Edward and Alphonse yelled in unison.
“Not so loud,” Hawkeye reprimanded both of them. Her expression remained as professional as possible while carrying a sleeping five-year-old girl, but she kept stealing glances at Nina with an almost uncertain look in her eyes.
“I can’t believe it,” said Alphonse, approaching Hawkeye. “Brother, look! She’s really okay!”
Edward just gaped in shock.
“She’s a bit disoriented and tired, but otherwise she seems fine.” Hawkeye eyed Nina carefully. “At least, as far as we can tell.”
“But-” Edward’s train of thought stuttered and crashed as he realized something, and he whirled towards Mustang. “Wait, how the hell did this happen?! I thought this wasn’t even supposed to be possible!”
Mustang frowned. “I don’t know. Most of the scene points to that killer who’s been targeting State alchemists lately. But this…” He glanced at Nina. “Tucker was a bastard, but he was still one of the best in his field. This? This kind of alchemy makes him look like a joke. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.”
Edward looked back towards Alphonse, Hawkeye and Nina.
This level of alchemy… it was suspicious.
Possibly a lead on restoring their bodies? The Philosopher's stone? Ed didn’t know. Tucker’s research had been a dead end, but this looked promising. If they could find whoever did it, that was.
Edward shook his head and filed that mental note away for later. Right now, there were bigger things to worry about.
Mustang seemed to take Edward’s lack of response as a sign to continue talking. “This just raises more questions than answers.” He frowned, deep in thought. “This doesn’t seem like that serial killer’s work. If it is, why would he do something like this only now?”
Edward thought about it, and paused. He reached into his pocket, pulling out the small bundle of stolen research papers that had tipped them off in the first place, with a small, red letter that had been carefully tucked between the pages, clearly stating Tucker’s true intentions to the reader in plain typewriter text.
“Maybe there actually was someone else here,” said Ed.
Mustang looked at the card. “Wait, isn’t that the letter they found on Tucker’s desk?”
Edward scowled. “So what if it is?”
“Sounds like we might have a rogue bioalchemist on our hands,” said Hawkeye.
“God, I hope not. Dealing with a serial killer is bad enough.” Mustang mulled over the information. “If they’re the ones who broke in and got that information in the first place, they could have possibly gotten in a second time.” He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “But that doesn’t prove that they’re the one who changed Tucker’s daughter back. We don’t have any solid information.”
Hawkeye nodded. “So we’ll just have to keep an eye out.”
“Exactly.”
Edward caught Mustang’s knowing glance.
Oh, motherfucker, so that’s what he was playing at. He should have figured Mustang wasn’t giving him all this information without any strings attached.
“So you’re basically just tossing us a lead on what we’re looking for and hoping we’ll sniff out the culprit for you while we’re at it, huh?” Edward accused.
Mustang smirked. “Good to know we’re on the same page, Fullmetal.”
“Go to hell, Colonel.”
“A-Anyway,” Alphonse interrupted, before Edward could go any further. “So, what’s going to happen to Nina and Alexander now?” he asked.
“Officially, we don’t do anything. There’s no military protocol for this sort of thing,” said Mustang. Edward bristled a little, but Mustang ignored him as he continued. “Unofficially? She’s five years old, her father was arrested and killed, and she doesn’t have any other family that we know of. Anything we do for her, we’ll have to do it ourselves.”
“We can’t exactly dump her on the sidewalk and expect it to end well,” said Hawkeye. “She’ll have to stay in someone’s custody until we can figure out her situation.”
“Oh! Maybe we can keep her?” said Alphonse.
“What?! Hell no, Al! We can’t take care of her!” Edward objected. “She’s not one of those stray cats you always hide in your armor!”
“Not us, Ed. Granny Pinako!” said Alphonse.
Ed deflated a little. “...Oh.”
“I have to agree with Fullmetal on this one. I doubt you two would be capable of this kind of job,” said Mustang.
“Shut it, Flame bastard!”
Riza looked to Mustang. “Sir, maybe you should ask Hughes if he’ll be willing to take Nina in for now. I don’t think it’ll take much convincing.”
Mustang nodded. “Not a bad idea, considering he never shuts up about his wife and daughter.”
“We’ll also ask Granny about Nina next time we see her,” said Alphonse. “Resembool isn’t far from East City, right Brother?”
Edward folded his arms. “No promises that the old crone would take her, though.”
Hawkeye nodded to Alphonse and Edward in approval. “It would be a big help.”
At that moment, one of the military personnel around the house approached Colonel Mustang.
“Sir? You’re needed in the other room,” he said.
Mustang sighed. “I’ll be there in a moment.”
Hawkeye turned to face Ed and Al. “Do you two mind watching her for a few minutes?”
“Not at all,” said Alphonse.
Hawkeye nodded. “Here.” She carefully gave Nina over to Alphonse, and then followed Mustang further into the house, leaving them alone.
“I’m so glad she’s alright, Brother,” said Alphonse.
Images of what Tucker had created rose to the surface of Edward’s swirling thoughts as he stared at Nina.
“...Me too, Al,” he finally admitted.