The Price of Life [Fullmetal Alchemist]

Chapter Two

The Alchemist's Suffering-Part One

"Mustang!" Ed shouted as he entered Roy's office. He plopped his short self upon the chair. Al sat in the other chair next to him.

"What is it now, Fullmetal?" Edward smirked.

"You owe me, Colonel."

"It scares me to hear that coming from you," Roy replied, intertwining his gloveless fingers together. "So what is it that you want?"

"I want to know more about bio-alchemy. Do you know a place like a library or an expert that knows about it?"

"Right now? You just got back from a mission. You're in such a hurry."

"Well my arm and leg won't just grow back if I wait long enough!" He retorted, and the Colonel rolled his eyes.

"Fine, fine." He snapped his fingers. "Sonia."

"Huh?" Sonia replied. Ed and Al were startled. They didn't even realize she was in the room before. She was reorganizing Mustang's files, which he made her do. (What a lazy bastard. Yet, she did agree to come to work with him today.)

"Look up the file, 'Sewing Life'. It should be under that, or 'Tucker'," Roy said.

"Okay. Hm... Tucker..." She looked at the bottom shelf. "Ah, here it is." She picked it out and got back up, but not before hitting her head on the shelf above her.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" she cried, rubbing the spot on her head that she hit. Roy sighed and rolled his eyes at his sister's clumsy actions. He snatched it from Sonia's hands.

"Chimera," he read. "An artificial fusion created by alchemically combining two genetically different life forms."

"What does that really mean?" Al asked.

"What I'm saying is there's a a chimera researcher in this city. His name is Shou Tucker, the 'Sewing Life' alchemist. He got his State Alchemist license two years ago when he created a chimera that could talk." By this time Sonia had stopped prancing around and listened to the story.

"It could talk?" she asked, amazed, placing her hands on his desk to lean in.

"Wait, it spoke like a human? The chimera he made?"

"Apparently so. I never actually heard it speak, nor I have seen it; I wasn't in charge at the time. But it could understand what you told it and it spoke... Yet all it said was 'I want to die.' It didn't eat and eventually died of starvation soon after." Mustang ended the story, leaving everyone stunned.

"Sonia," he said, turning to her. "If they're going to go, I want you to go with them."

"What?!" both Sonia and Edward yelled. "Why?!"

The Colonel smirked. "Someone's got to keep the pipsqueak in line. I figured you. Both of you work together just fine." Al had to strain his brother at the word 'pipsqueak'.

"I don't need a babysitter!"

"And I don't need a baby!" Sonia yelled back.

"Oh, please!"

"What are you trying to say?!"

"Well I don't know, you are Mustang's sister! Anyone who knows him knows how he is with women!"

"What-ever! We're not even blood related, you idiot!"

Al leaned over to Roy. "Um, Colonel? You might want to take back the part about them getting along..."

He chuckled. "They'll be fine."

Eventually, Roy, Sonia, Edward, and Alphonse all piled into the car. Both Sonia and Ed had their arms crossed, unhappy about the situation.