Unshakeable Genius

Chapter 1: One way crossroad

L was dead.

Dead.

He knew very well the likelihood of dying while solving the Kira case.

It was a career risk honestly, and he understood the dangers of the lifestyle he lived.

During the Kira case, L had rigorously studied death and the afterlife to find a solution to spontaneous heart attacks with no justifiable cause.

And this was nothing he had heard of before.

A vast white expanse of nothingness, the chilling sensation of being watched, surrounded by an eerie expanse of nothingness.

Aside from the gate.

It was huge. So huge L reckoned, that it would take more force to open than it was worth. It was incredibly impractical entry that could serve no purpose other than decoration.

And decorated it was.

Deep engraved murals dug into its stone body, a rough but presentable design whose meaning was beyond L. It was charming in an archaic way, it reminded him of Stonehenge in its timeless, forbidding manner.

The cold grey stone seemed completely out of place in the vast expanse of white.

A tingle ran down L spine. Saying he had a bad feeling about this would be a massive understatement.

And then, the seemingly unmovable doors slid open with a monumental groan.

L froze in terror.

Beyond the gate sat an eye. Its amethyst iris contracting. It stared him down as he slowly backed away from the demonic presence, amused as he kept eye contact.

L looked away as a bubbling darkness appeared in the gate and he realised his mistake. The darkness exploded into arms of shadows, reaching and tearing through the air like missiles. And he was their target.

They caught him as he stumbled, grabbing and gripping each limb and anything they could get hold of.

As they whisked him through the yearning abyss, he could only ponder his chances of survival.

10%? He thought numbly. Then again, I'm already dead.

11% then.

Excellent odds if he said so himself.

What happened next, L couldn't be sure. The sensation of falling but at the same time flying, pushed and pulled like the rope of a cosmic tug of war.

It lasted forever but was over in seconds. Then there was only darkness.

When L next awoke he was surprised to find himself in a dark room.

From what he could tell it was cream coloured, sparsely lit guest room, not quite maintained enough to be the often used bedroom. A small, used coffee table surrounded by two rickety chairs sat in a corner while a dusty chest of drawers leaned against a wall, cracked and worn from use.

This observation took L three seconds to process and one more to factor in the giant standing in the room.

He was a tall, muscled man who stood while above L's perpetually slouched height and his refined muscles outweighed L's somewhat lanky figure.

He doubted he take the man in a fight, he looked like he could probably snap L in half over his knee.

Fight was out, so that left flight.

L blinked rapidly to return his sight but it was slow endeavour and the only exit beside the behemoth of muscle. His element of surprise was lost too as the man seemingly awoke from a nap at L's sudden awakening.

That left hiding.

He slowly pulled the sheets over his face and curled inwards to appear small and harmless, half-closing his eyes to watch as the man-mountain opened the door and called something out.

An unrecognisable call returned before distant clattering and the distinct, repetitive thump of someone climbing stairs.

L allowed himself a glimpse before curling back into himself.

The woman who now stood in the hallway could be considered tall ordinarily but she was dwarfed by the man beside her. Her braided dark hair swung as she turned to him.

"Sig, you go man the counter, I'll talk to our…guest."

The man nodded and plodded off as L's heart raced. He didn't like the sound of that. Not one bit.

His muscles tensed as her footsteps came closer and closer until she was beside the bed.

L braced himself, straining his weakened limbs.

As she leaned forward to pull the soft covers from over his head he sprang forward in a burst of movement, flapping his arms in an undignified but effective manner as the cover flew and tangled itself. The woman stepped back in surprise and L bolted for the door, reaching for the handle mere inches away, fingers brushed the cold brass.

Before it was replaced with uneven wooden planks that met his face at a terrifying velocity.

Before he realised it, he was face down with his arm outstretched.

L sighed. Oh well. He felt a sudden tug at his foot before he was held upside down by this deceptively strong woman. L could see a her freezing displeasure at his escape attempt behind those dark orbs.

"And what exactly did you think that would accomplish?" Her tone was chilling and frigid. Her foot was out stretched in his path, she had tripped him.

L managed a small smile in the face of her building wrath. "I'll be 50% honest with you that did not go according to plan."

Her eye twitched. She pulled a fist back threateningly.

"You've got till the count of three to tell me exactly who the hell you are or I'll make you wish you had stayed in that bed."

Three seconds. He had made quality cover stories in less time than that, but mostly he had some idea of what was happening and where on earth he was.

"1."

L kept smiling. "It's rude to ask someone's name without giving your own." He felt blood rushing to his head as the woman held him by his ankles and his arms lay limp.

A deep, shuddering breath. "2."

"I mean, it's simply just good manners for the host to introduce themselves." L continued, "And to be honest it seems like manners are currently lacking."

"Why you-!" She growled, hurling her fist forward.

"Izumi!" She halted. The giant had come to his rescue. "Put him down."

"But-"

"Put him down." Izumi grunted and dropped L at Sig's request, once again meeting the floorboards face first.

"He was being a brat, Sig! Trying to make a run for it in his condition, the idiot." Izumi grumbled as L got to his feet.

The giant approached, Sig, and offered him an arm as he slouched and wobbled. "You alright, lad?" L nodded slightly. "What's your name?"

Sig. L thought. And Izumi. Strange combination, one might ponder their origins. Sig, he thought, sounded German or even Russian. Izumi however sounded eastern, perhaps Japanese. They spoke English but their accents had flickers of something he couldn't identify

He picked a name that fit his apparent location.

"Eraldo."

Izumi scoffed. "Don't lie to me!" She snapped impatiently.

L didn't show his surprise at her immediate accusation, correct as it was. She must have noticed his hesitation was too long for just his name. Perceptive. He'd have to watch out for her.

"Well, Izumi was it?" L drawled slouching and reaching to put his hand in his pockets only to realise his current clothes had no pockets. At her confirmation he continued. "I've got no name but my own and no reason to lie to you."

"Well then, Eraldo, care to explain why I found you floating face down in the lake?" Izumi replied scathingly, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Ah, well, you see I was having a bit of trouble with my boat." She raised an eyebrow. "I was trying to get the cursed things motor running after it stalled, and wouldn't he know it, last thing I remember is falling port side off the boat when I knocked my head on the rudder."

Izumi didn't believe him and they both knew it but Sig seemed to be clueless to her narrowed eyes being directed at their guest. "But there were no wounds or bruises on your head." Sig asked in confusion.

Ah. "Well, the water was rather cold so it must have stopped the swelling, you see."

"It's summer and we found you face down in the water." Izumi glowered. "Had we come across you later you would have drowned."

What a wrench in his plans. He had no other excuses, not without knowing his situation. L hated being in the dark. There were no other options, he would have to…tell the truth.

Internally swallowing his pride. "Alright, you got me, I have no idea what I was doing in that lake. I have no idea where I am, in fact."

Izumi narrowed her eyes at him, but didn't deny his claim. "Who are you really? And don't bother lying."

"You may refer to me as Ryuzaki, I am an independent detective working to solve the Kira case." It was a gamble, but the odds were in his favour, Kira was known internationally for his crimes.

"Kira? I've never heard of that." Ryuzaki blinked in surprise before pulling up a chair and sitting in his signature stance, biting his thumb.

"Truly? I find that strange, Kira is rather famous after all, do you not watch the news at all?"

Izumi frowned at him again. "I do keep up with the news, as twisted as it is by those military dogs. But, I have never heard of Kira."

It was L's turn to raise an eyebrow. "Military dogs? And which military would that one by?"

"The Amestrian Military. Have you never heard of Amestris?"

"Yes in fact, I've never heard of it. Is it somewhere in Europe? Could you show me a map?"

Sig grunted. "I'm sure we've got a few gathering dust." He left, wandering through the house to find the maps, while Izumi's scowl deepened.

"No, it's not is this…Europe, but Amestris is west of Xing, south of Drachma, east of Creta, north of Aerugo. Ring any bells?" Izumi listed the each place to L's growing confusion.

"None." By then Sig had returned and L snatched a map and rolled it out. His shoulders slumped, his hands shook imperceptibly. He dropped the map and ran and hand through his hair. "Toto, I've got a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore." L mumbled to himself.

"What was that?"

"I said, I don't recognize any of these places."

END

Author's note: So, this was my first fanfiction. Tell me what you think of it and correct me if there are any mistakes in FMA lore, I've not finished the series yet. I'm using FMA brotherhood as my reference source.