The Lightning Alchemist Chronicles-Finding the Stone

By BlackNinjagirl

Chapter One: First Meeting

"Rai!" Mustang called out to the 12-year-old girl in front of him, who had spaced out for some reason. "Get it together, we can't have you spacing out like that."

The girl, who was named Rai, was about 5'3" and had hazel eyes and light brown hair with the bangs separated on the left and going over to the right with a little bit hanging on the other side and the back of her hair pulled back into a ponytail at the base of the neck and was wearing a red jacket with a built-in belt over a black tank top that had a bit of automail peeking out on her collarbone, accompanied by black pants that had a white racing stripe down the outsides with a small zigzag at the bottom of the pants like a lightning bolt and black boots. The pants had a belt on it that had a belt buckle with a lightning bolt that popped out from the buckle and a chain that had the ring around a belt loop on her pants that had a chain trailing to the pocket on the right side—the chain on which hung the watch of a State Alchemist.

Rai was currently standing in Lieutenant Colonel Roy Mustang's office across from Mustang, who was sitting at his desk, after he had sent for her with word of a mission for her.

"Sorry Lieutenant Colonel," Rai said apologetically. "It's just, I'm still getting used to everything."

Mustang chuckled. "You'll get used to everything soon enough. Now, I have a job for you. There's a train leaving tomorrow at four o'clock, and I want you to be on it."

Rai blinked. "That's it? You just want me to get on a train?"

Mustang smiled lightly. "No, that's not all." He leaned on the desk to get closer to the shorter alchemist. "Keep a sharp eye out while you're on that train. I have a suspicion something might happen while you're on it, and I want a full report when you get back. I have faith in you, Lightning Alchemist," he added, referring to the younger alchemist's call name.

Rai blinked again. "Yes, sir," she replied before saluting, though she still looked a bit puzzled as she about-faced and walked out.

Mustang smirked once she'd left and turned to his subordinate, Second Lieutenant Hawkeye, who had been standing a few feet away from Mustang and Rai the entire time the two had been speaking. "Likely she'll end up meeting Edward and Alphonse on that train."

Hawkeye chuckled. "Probably. Don't tell me you're trying to play matchmaker."

Mustang looked innocent. "Who, me? I would never!"

Hawkeye smiled. "Though, having friends her own age might help her out some…she did lose her brother a few years ago…"

Mustang nodded. "I know, Lieutenant, I know…"

The next day, Rai was on that train, sitting in a seat next to a window and staring at it, while a few seats away a kid about her age wearing a red jacket sat with a large suit of sighed. "Train rides are so boring…" she muttered. "There's nothing to do and nobody to talk to." She crossed her arms. "Now if Hughes were here, it might be more entertaining…then again, he talks about his wife too much."

It wasn't long before she caught movement and saw a guy whom she recognized as Warrant Officer Falman walk up to the kid in the red jacket and the suit of armor and heard him say, "There is a kid with him, and he is small."

The kid looked mad and jumped up, yelling, "WHO'RE YOU CALLING A RUNT SO TINY HE CAN ONLY BE SEEN WITH A MAGNIFYING GLASS?"

She giggled despite herself as Falman waved his hands and said, "Relax, kid. The Colonel said it, I was just repeating-"

It was then two guys got up from their seats, pulling out guns and pointing them at Falman, who had pulled out his own gun, and one of them knocked out Falman before he said, "No heroes today. Everyone shut up and get your hands over your heads-or say hello to a bullet."

Mustang's suspicions were right, Rai thought to herself before getting up and putting her gloved hands up as a clear sign of surrender as she noted everyone else, including the suit of armor and the kid, get up and do the same. Maybe if I can take them off-guard…

After a bit, the guys walked over to the kid and the suit of armor, and one said, "Helmet. Take it off."

The kid, thinking fast, pointed behind them and yelled, "Look!"

The guys, being the usual idiots Rai had often dealt with before, naturally turned and looked, only to find nothing there, and when they turned back around to face the unusual duo, one of them was caught by a knee in the face by the kid, knocking him other guy whirled to face the kid, and, seeing her chance, Rai snapped the fingers of her right hand and sent a lightning bolt in the guy's direction, but too late-the armor had already knocked him out, and the bolt ended up bouncing off of the armor and hitting the kid, Rai covering her mouth in shock. "Oops…"

The kid turned to glare at her. "What the hell was that for?"

"It was an accident," she said apologetically. "I was aiming for the other guy, but your armored friend knocked him out before it got to him…I really am sorry about that."

The kid huffed before he saw her silver watch chain. "Wait…you're a State Alchemist?"

She grinned. "Tried and true."

"You dumb kids, what're we supposed to do now?" some random guy asked them. "Don't you think they'll notice when two of their men have gone missing? What's going to happen to us then? They'll want retribution. We'd have been safe if we'd just cooperated until we got to Central."

"That's right," another agreed.

"What were you thinking?" another asked.

Rai snorted. "If you'd have waited, you might just have ended up as corpses at the end of it," she retorted. "Terrorists don't give a damn about hostages. Take it from experience."

The armor looked at the kid. "What do we do next?"

The kid scratched his head. "I didn't plan that far…"

One of the guys got up and pointed his gun at a nearby little girl, Rai looking alarmed as he did before she readied her right hand to snap again and zap the guy, this time hitting him for sure, but the armor kicked him in the back, making the bullet miss, and the kid took the guy's gun before looking over at the girl.

"Are you guys okay?" the kid asked the girl, and she nodded, then the kid looked at all of the other passengers and then at Rai before looking back at the girl. "Sorry about that. Your big brothers will take care of this somehow, okay?"

"And big sister," Rai interjected, glaring at the kid.

"Yeah…and big sister," the kid added with a nod before turning to the aisle. "We'd better get started, Al."

"Right," the armor, apparently called Al, agreed.

"Oi, I'm helping too," Rai interjected irritably.

"Wait! Over here!" the three heard someone call out, and turned to see Falman moving out from one of the seats, tied up. Rai was the first to run over, the kid and Al following close behind her, and the kid set to work untying Falman.

"This is embarrassing. So what are you guys? Freelancers?" Falman asked the kid and Al, not noticing Rai behind him.

"Just two good old-fashioned alchemists," the kid replied.

"Oh, sure, ignore me, why don't you, Warrant Officer Falman," Rai huffed teasingly. "And as for you, quit acting like I'm not here! That's a little annoying, you know."

Falman blinked and spun around to see Rai, looking startled. "Rai! What're you doing here?"

Rai shrugged. "Mustang," she said simply, as if that explained everything, which, judging by Falman's understanding expression, did.

"Ah, I see," Falman said with a nod.

The kid blinked. "You don't look like someone from the military," he commented as he finished untying Falman.

"Well, there's a reason for that—we have a special passenger on board," Falman explained. "The front car kind."

Rai looked about to snap her fingers in victory but caught herself just in time—if she did that she'd end up zapping someone else. "That explains why Mustang sent me on here."

The kid looked thoughtful. "And they decided to bring us down with them…" He turned to the armor. "Al, I'm going up top to throw a surprise party—you go with him from below."

Rai stepped forward. "I'm coming with you up top," she told the kid, adding with a grin, "I'd hate to miss a good party."

Al nodded. "Ah…yeah, okay."

The kid looked at her for a minute, then nodded. "Alright, let's get moving."

The two of them got on top of the train while Al and Falman went through it, taking out the cronies.

"Why'd you zap me earlier?" the kid asked Rai once they were on top of the train.

Rai snorted. "I told you I didn't mean to, now drop it already."

He glared at her, but continued going. "Sure you didn't."

Rai huffed. "Stubborn moron," she muttered, but followed him anyway.

A tree came out of nowhere and knocked the kid off, and Rai, alarmed, quickly caught him, thankfully ducking the branch in the process, and she helped him back up on top of the train.

"You alright?" she asked him.

"Yeah, thanks, that was a close one."

"Watch for branches next time, alright?" she told him.

He nodded and looked forward, his eyes widening. "Watch out!"

She blinked. "What?" she asked him before turning to look, but too late-they were both knocked off.

Luckily for them, they were caught by a strong hand, and Rai opened an eye to see a familiar face, making her grin. "Hughes!"

The man, apparently called Hughes, smiled at her. "Well, if it isn't Rai. Good to see you again." He looked at the kid he'd also caught. "And you must be Ed. Mustang told me about you and your brother." He looked them both over. "You know, there's a real art to train-walking, but it seems you two have yet to learn it."

Rai blinked. So his name is Ed…and the armor is his brother? Okay, Mustang has a lot of explaining to do when I get back. She scowled at the train-walking remark. "And you hang around Mustang too much."

Hughes laughed. "I suppose that's true." He looked up at the top of the train as Rai grabbed onto the ladder and started climbing up. "Well, guess we'd better work together, guys."

Rai got to the top of the train and waited for Ed to get up there with her, as well as Hughes, and then the three of them made their way to the engine.

They got to the front of the train and Ed stuck his head down just as Rai did on the other side and stuck his tongue out at the guys, Rai making a face of her own at Ed across the guys, and then both retreated, going into laughing fits once on top.

One of the guys blinked. "What was that?"

The other guy shrugged. "Probably a stray branch or something."

The two of them continued doing this a few more times, until finally, the both of them did it on the same side, making faces at the guys yet again, before both went to the top again, high-fiving and going into laughing fits once back on top.

The first guy poked his companion. "That was something, I know it!"

The second guy, exasperated now, looked in that direction, while Hughes leapt in the other window, sticking one of the daggers he had on him at all times in the first guy's hand, making him yell, and the other guy to spin around and look at him.

"Who the hell are you?.!" the first guy managed to say before Ed swung in and caught him in the jaw with a boot, Rai leaping in after him.

The conductors took their chance and punched the two guys while they were on the floor, Rai grinning and dusting her gloves off as a sign of victory, the sound resulting the unusual sound of metal against flesh. "That was easy."

Ed blinked at her, having heard the sound, and opened his mouth to say something but seemed to decide against it and hopped out the window, climbing the ladder outside of it.

Rai frowned. Was he going to ask about my automail? she wondered, then shrugged and followed Ed out the window, about to go to the ladder when she heard gunshots and he went back down the ladder to evade them.

She saw him draw a small transmutation circle with some chalk and then slap it so that a cannon appeared on top of the train, and he went up behind it, a cannonball flying out of it a second later, to which there was a yelp and a thudding noise, like it'd hit someone.

Rai looked slightly impressed. Nice shot, she mused to herself before climbing up after him, climbing over to the hole that was above the head car and looking in to see what was going on.

"We've lost all contact with the other cars," she heard one of the guys say, and smirked. Sounds like Al and Falman made quick work of them.

"Damn it!" the guy in the middle, who had one arm under his coat, growled out.

"What's going on?" another guy asked, blinking and looking at the guy in the middle, who was apparently the leader.

"Mustang's reneging on our deal, that's what," the leader growled.

"You should have known your ragtag group of extremists wouldn't have lasted for long, Bald," Rai heard a guy from the stall nearby say.

The leader, apparently named Bald, huffed and a gunshot was heard, the guy yelling in pain and Rai heard shrieks from inside the stall as well, indicating he wasn't alone. "You just shut up!" He turned to the other guys. "I want a fresh sweep of the train, now!"

Rai grinned. Wow, he's a bigger idiot than the rest of them. This might actually be fun. She giggled at the name. Bald? That's a funny name for a guy who actually has hair.

"Hey!" Rai heard a conductor yell, and looked over to see one of them had popped out the window. "Don't mess with the tinder! It's the life of this train!"

She saw Ed nod at them. "Right, got it!" she heard him yell back, and she watched him get a thoughtful expression, then an evil look.

She looked back in the car and saw what appeared to be a microphone with Ed's hairdo pop out of the door.

"Hey, you gun-toting extremists! Can you hear me all right, or did you blow your ears out playing target practice?" she heard his voice say, and giggled almost soundlessly at the remark.

"What the hell?" one of the guys said, blinking.

"Let these hostages go! You have no right to drag innocent people into your personal politics!" Ed's voice continued.

"You're one of Mustang's secret agents, aren't you? Interfere and I'll kill off these hostages, one by one!" Bald yelled.

"You're just itching to draw blood, aren't you?" Ed's voice continued. "Alright." There was a small flash and a pipe appeared. "Passengers, hold on to your seats, because there's going to be some turbulence!" he exclaimed before water gushed out of the pipe and knocked all except the guy named Bald out of the car.

She looked over to see Ed walking over to her and high-fived him again. "Nice one, Ed."

Ed grinned. "Thanks."

She looked back down into the car and heard Hughes say something along the lines of him needing a shower, but she couldn't quite make it out, it was too soft for her ears, though she could tell it seemed to piss Bald off because she heard gunshots again and Hughes grunting before a thud was heard as if Hughes had fallen backwards.

"What's the matter, don't like my company?" Bald taunted.

There was no answer from Hughes at this, which seemed to piss Bald off more.

"Before I finish off the General, I'll take care of you," Bald continued, a sadistic grin on his face.

"Me first!" Ed yelled from beside her and leapt down to get Bald in a double arm lock, and she had the chance to see that both Ed and Bald had automail arms, but Ed's was the right arm, Bald's being on the opposite side, the left side.

Rai's eyes widened, her curiosity piqued. Ed has automail too? But Bald's is on the same side mine's on…how did Ed get automail?

Intrigued, she leapt down to land behind Ed then ran into the room where the guy and the others were. "Is everyone all right in here?" she asked them.

The guy was holding his ear, which apparently had been what Bald had shot, for there was blood seeping out from his hands. "Y-Yeah, we're fine here."

Rai looked at his bloody hands. "Sure you don't need that bandaged?"

The guy nodded. "Take care of Bald."

Rai nodded and ran out of the stall, skidding to a halt near Ed and Bald, who were still in a double arm lock.

"You wanted power too, isn't that right? That's why you got that arm!" Bald exclaimed.

Ed glared at him. "I have my own reasons for getting this arm. And, don't you ever lump in my reasons for getting this arm with your own!" he yelled, crushing Bald's automail gun arm and making him stagger backwards, Al punching Bald so the man was knocked out.

Hughes nearby chuckled. "Well good grief. That was something different."

Rai looked at Ed. "I'm curious…how did you end up with automail?"

Ed spun around and blinked at her. "Why do you ask?"

Rai merely took off her left glove, revealing her own automail arm.

Ed didn't appear surprised. "I heard the sound you made earlier when you dusted your hands off and wanted to ask you if it was automail, but I figured you had your reasons."

Rai nodded and put the glove back on. "Well, I guess I'll have to figure you'll tell me when you feel like it, and I'll tell you my own reasons then. Until then, we can keep our reasons to ourselves."

Ed nodded, smiling a little. "Deal." He gave her a long look. "I heard you say the name Mustang several times…do you know him?"

Rai laughed. "He's my boss, actually—has been for the last year." She scowled and crossed her arms. "He's also arrogant as all hell and tends to piss me off quite often cause he likes to set things up so that other people tend to take care of stuff for his benefit." She sighed. "Anyway, we'd better get a seat before someone fusses at us for being in the front car when we're not supposed to."

Ed nodded. "Right."

The three of them got a seat together and chatted, Ed and Rai bickering almost nonstop the whole time, and it had eventually had gotten so bad neither of them would talk to the other, though Rai didn't move to another seat-she merely started chatting with Al instead.

It wasn't long before they got to Central Station, and they got off just in time to see Mustang fry Bald with a mere snap of his gloved fingers.

"Ah, there you are, Mustang!" Rai yelled upon seeing him. "You've got some explaining to do!"

Mustang looked over in their direction and grinned. "Well, good to see you three have met each other."

Rai ran over and punched him with her flesh arm. "You moron! You set that up! You're always trying to set things up so it looks like mere coincidence, but I know better!"

Hawkeye, who was standing nearby, didn't look surprised, and neither did anyone else, including Hughes—they were used to Rai's temper.

Mustang rubbed where she'd hit him. "That's some right hook you've got there."

Rai glared at him. "Be glad that wasn't a left hook or it'd hurt worse and you know it."

Mustang frowned a little. "Good point." He looked at Ed and Al as Rai huffed and walked over to Hawkeye, who she liked better than she did anyone else. "Well, if it isn't Ed and Al. You two have made quite a stir-the General is even considering letting you two take the Alchemy Exam."

"But you said we always could take it!" Ed protested. "That's the whole reason we came!"

"Don't be silly, Ed, they would never have let kids take the exam," Mustang retorted. "But, thanks to the fact that you saved the General, you're getting the chance to." He walked over to Ed and put a hand on his shoulder. "Whether you take the Exam or not is still up to you," he told the other before walking past him.

Ed whirled around. "Of course I'll take it!" he yelled after the Flame Alchemist. "And pass! I would've done it anyway!"

Rai smiled a little at him. I'm sure you will, Ed. I'm sure you will…

[Edit] It just came to my attention that I did not have a physical description anywhere in the story, so I modified the first chapter to correct my mistake. Apologies for that!