Iserlohnn - continued

Disguises and Disasters

Edward studied the Port Array disk Winry had created and sighed. Metal was indeed her element. It looked almost as good as the workmanship that had been done on the Iserlohnn Disk – the basis for all the other designs Edward had created since returning from the Princess’s homeland. He put the disk into his back pocket, checked that the Princess’s disk was still safely in his possession, and then he approached the curtain separating his part of the hospital room from Tenshi.

“Are you guys ready yet?” he asked impatiently.

“Almost!” Winry called from behind the curtain.

The Princess and Winry had come up with a plan to disguise Tenshi so they could get him out of the hospital without attracting the notice of Kenton’s goons. Edward was certain the hospital was under surveillance. Their leaving would be noted. So the plan was for them to go in pairs at different times and take different routes to the safe house. Tenshi had to be protected. As one of the seven Divines, he held the secret to unlocking the power of The Gate. Kenton was already enough of a powerhouse that he didn’t need the means to adds to his already extensive arsenal.

“Just what are you doing to him anyway?” Edward demanded as fetched his cup of coffee from the hospital tray table and took a long drink.

“You’ll see…!” Winry cooed in a teasing voice and Edward grumbled.

After a few more minutes Winry flung open the curtain revealing her masterpiece.

The half full cup of coffee slipped from his hand and fell to the floor with a shattering crash. Edward stared at Tenshi momentarily too shocked to speak.

Tenshi didn’t look like Tenshi anymore. Gone was the small slender boy and in his place was a petite buxom girl with oversized eyes and curls of soft hair that begged to be touched. A long sleeved frilly black and white dress styled to make a curvy figure where none really existed added to the illusion of femininity. Tenshi’s automail legs were well hidden beneath a pair of thick black stockings and the shoes were simple black leather flats. He looked up at Edward and nervously wrung his hands that were hidden beneath a pair of black lace gloves.

“Edo-sempai…” Tenshi whispered.

Edward glared at Winry. “What have you done to my Kohai?” he roared.

“No one will recognize him! Wasn’t that the idea?” she shot back.

“Yes, but couldn’t you do that without making him look like a china doll?”

“What’s going on in here?” a familiar voice inquired.

Edward turned around to see Colonel Mustang enter and he was casting a very appreciative eye on Tenshi.

“Don’t get any ideas!” Edward warned.

“Why? Is she yours?” the Colonel inquired.

“See Edward?” Winry remarked. “I know what I’m doing!”

“He’s no one to go by!” Edward stated discounting completely the lecherous look in Mustang’s eye as the Colonel mentally undressed what he hoped to be his next conquest. “Put a dress on Riza’s dog and he’d want to fuck it!”

Tenshi had had enough. He tore away from Winry and raced past Mustang and Edward and out of the room. Mustang turned to pursue but Winry caught him by the arm shaking her head. The Colonel looked confused but didn’t argue with her.

“You go after him Ed!” Winry ordered.

“ME? Why?”

From out of nowhere came the Wrench of Doom and she clocked Edward over the head with it knocking him onto his back. “Because YOU are the insensitive bastard that got him upset!”

“Him?” Mustang queried.

“Yeah,” Edward moaned from where he lay on the floor clutching his head. “That was Tenshi in disguise.”

Mustang raised an eyebrow stating, “Good disguise.”

“Thank you,” Winry said to him then rounded back on Edward commanding, “Get up! Go out there and apologize!”

Edward knew better than to argue with her. He stumbled to his feet and went off to find Tenshi.


Dr. Ferguson and Katarin stepped out of the hospital’s main entrance and into the early morning sun. The Doctor was in civilian dress and the Princess was wearing the heavily embroidered gauzy clothes that were the fashion in Iserlohnn. Katarin used her headscarf to shadow her face as she followed the Doctor down the street.

Both women were nearly bowled over by a small girl in a frilly black and white dress who tore blindly past them. She was in tears and it took a moment before the two of them realized who the girl really was. They both exchanged a puzzled look but soon got the answer to their unasked question when Edward raced past them in pursuit of the tearful Tenshi.

Edward paused. He sensed someone was watching him and he scanned his surroundings. He caught his breath when he spotted Kenton Ares in his usual white suit eyeing him from across the street. Edward looked around for Tenshi and quickly spotted the little alchemist standing by the doorway to a dress shop. Tenshi had not seen Kenton, a good thing in Edward’s opinion, but Edward wasn’t sure if Kenton had seen Tenshi.

Kenton flashed Edward a confident smirk before disappearing into the morning rush hour crowd. When Edward was certain he was gone, he made his way quickly through the busy street to Tenshi’s side.

“Go away!” Tenshi said not looking at him.

“Not without you,” Edward told him.

“I said go away!” Tenshi ordered hitting Edward in the chest with his fist but there wasn’t a lot of force behind the blow. He tried to hit Edward again with his other fist but Edward caught him by the arm. Tenshi moved to kick Edward but Edward evaded the attack easily and pinned him again the wall.

“Tenshi, listen to me. We can’t stay out here. We HAVE to get to that safe house,” Edward stated softly but firmly into Tenshi’s ear. “I’m sorry I hurt your feelings. I didn’t mean to. It’s just…I can be a jerk sometimes…”

Tenshi looked up at him. Edward’s gold eyes reflected his concern for his young charge and Tenshi stopped struggling to be free of Edward’s grasp. He buried his face into Edward’s chest and Edward embraced him. A chorus of “Awwwwwww!” coming from a group of onlookers made Edward blush. He rolled his eyes skyward and sighed.

“Let’s go,” Edward said and he took Tenshi by the hand and led him away from the crowd that commented on what a cute couple they made as they headed down the street.

“People think I’m a girl,” Tenshi said as his feet worked double time to keep up with Edward’s long strides.

“Yeah, and you fooled Kenton too.”

Tenshi stopped moving which pulled Edward to a dead stop as well. “I did?” he cried incredulously.

Edward nodded. “Yeah. I saw him on the street when I came out after you. He saw me but he missed you.”

Tenshi smiled. “Winry’s disguise worked.”

“She did good but as soon as we get to the safe house you HAVE to get back into your normal clothes. Seeing you looking like this…it’s disturbing.”

Tenshi made no comment as he once again followed Edward’s lead.


As Colonel Mustang and Al were leaving the hospital, a State Army Jeep screeched to a halt in front of them and Jean Havoc emerged saying, “Colonel, Major Armstrong’s been kidnapped!”

“WHAT?” Mustang exclaimed.

“Get in, Sir, I’ll explain what I can. Lieutenant Colonel Hughes is on the scene already. He can brief you better,” the young Lieutenant stated as he waited for Al and the Colonel to pile into the Jeep before resuming his place behind the wheel.

As they drove off to towards Central State Army Headquarters, Havoc said, “The Major’s quarters were broken into and the room was trashed. It looked like he put up a huge fight before whoever or whatever grabbed him.”

“Whatever?” Mustang prompted.

“Well, there were bloody marks on the walls that looked like they were made by the claws of some huge animal,” Havoc said. “The guys at Intel are baffled.”

“A chimera maybe?” Al speculated aside to Mustang.

Mustang nodded. “Could be,” he replied quietly back.

The rest of the ride was made in silence. Once the Jeep stopped in front of the entrance to the Officer’s Quarters, Al and Mustang climbed out and made their way inside. They found Armstrong’s quarters were indeed a wreck and there were very obvious signs that a fight had taken place in that room. Hughes and his investigative team were there gathering evidence and trying to make sense of what happened.

Hughes spotted Mustang and Al and approached the duo saying quietly, “Looks like he was jumped by one of those…things from Lab 5.”

“What are the chances he’s still alive?” Mustang wanted to know.

Hughes shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

Al gazed around the destroyed room looking for something…anything that would give them hope that Armstrong was out there and alive somewhere. He sighed heavily and waited to see what the two Colonels had in mind….


Katarin and the Doctor were surprised to find they were the first team to arrive at the safe house. The Princess had thought Edward and Tenshi would get there first but was kind of happy that they didn’t. The house was furnished but beyond that had nothing they needed to make the house their temporary home. The women decided to rectify this matter and, after leaving a note telling the boys where they had gone, headed off to the marketplace they had passed on the way there.


It was late afternoon by the time Tenshi and Edward arrived at the safe house. Edward found the note Katarin had left and sighed. He was kind of glad they stopped for food along the way because Edward had a feeling the Doctor and the Princess were out for a nuts and sprouts run instead of out to get what he considered “real food”.

Vegetables are what food eats, thought Edward as he made his way into the kitchen. After the lousy hospital meals he had a major craving for a thick juicy T-bone steak. The burgers he ate for lunch barely made a dent in his desire for meat. Tenshi watched perplexed as his Sempai stalked around the kitchen lost in thought.

“Edo-sempai what is it?”

“The girls went for food,” Edward told him. “Not sure when they’ll be back. You might as well get changed. You don’t need to look like that while we’re in the house.”

“You…don’t like it?”

“It’s a great disguise but no, I don’t,” Edward stated. “If it was me I’d have made you up to look like some old geezer. You’re a GUY and I know some guys think going in drag is cute but I don’t like it.”

Tenshi sighed. Cute and Edward didn’t go together at all. He knew Edward did have a soft side but one had to hunt very hard to find it. Edward noticed Tenshi was looking a little downcast and he gave his Kohai’s slender shoulder a gentle squeeze.

“Look, I’m sorry I was so harsh before. The outfit fooled Kenton and that’s what it’s all about right now, staying out of sight and out of mind. It’s just that…in this house its okay to be ourselves,” Edward explained.

“I know. I’ll change,” Tenshi said quietly and headed off to do just that.

The moment Tenshi was gone Edward quickly surveyed the house room by room. He would only need the Port Key in order to escape back to the safe house if there was a problem so hiding the Iserlohnn Disk would insure it didn’t fall into the hands of their enemy. If only he knew where it was hidden then Edward wouldn’t have to worry about any of his friends revealing the disk’s location if they were captured. They weren’t trained to resist torture – he had been taught that and much more as a dog of the military. It would fall to him to keep their secret and Edward liked it that way.

It made things a whole lot easier in his opinion.

Edward soon found the perfect hiding place – inside the fixture that secured the crystal chandelier in the dining room to the ceiling. He had to put a chair on top of the dining room table in order to reach that spot but the effort was worth it. He had the disk stowed and the room back to normal before Tenshi reappeared clad in his usual layers of soft fabric designed to conceal his Automail and make him look ordinary.

“Much better” Edward complimented as he approached Tenshi. “If the girls don’t come back soon I may have to duck out to get us something to eat.”

“By yourself?” Tenshi queried.

“Yeah, by myself,” Edward answered and added quickly before Tenshi could argue, “Look YOU are the one’s he’s after, not me. Besides, if the rest of our friends get here while I’m out you can be here to tell them where I went!”

The logic of Edward’s statement was flawless. Tenshi knew Kenton was after him and he only bothered with Edward because Edward was in his face making it clear he wasn’t going to let Kenton get to ANY of the Divines. Edward was a thorn in Kenton’s side. Tenshi knew that a creature like Kenton would eventually make getting rid of Edward as important as collecting all the Divines. He just hoped none of Kenton’s people were following them when they made their was to the safe house. Edward was a skilled fighter but he was still only one man. He could only do so much.

Edward dug into his pockets and noted he wasn’t exactly rolling in hard currency at the moment. Crap, he thought to himself. He should have made a stop by the paymaster’s office when he was at Central picking up the supplies but that thought didn’t occur to him then. The banks were all closed so he wouldn’t be able to get to what he had in his account until the morning. He had enough to get them a couple of burgers and a drink but that was about it.

He felt Tenshi’s eyes on him and he said, “I hope a burger is okay with you because that’s all I can afford right now.”

Tenshi shrugged. “I don’t care. Anything. Just be careful, okay?”

Edward grinned. “No problem.”

He was about to head out the door when the doorbell rang.

The two boys exchanged a look. Edward motioned to Tenshi to hide himself and, as the Lightning Alchemist took cover, Edward went to the door.

It was Lieutenant Hawkeye and she gave Edward a sharp salute before stating, “Major Elric, the Furher has ordered me to bring Mister Hikaru to him immediately.”

“What’s this about?” Edward asked.

“He’ll be briefed when we get there,” she told him.

“Fine, I’ll get him,” Edward said as he ducked behind the door long enough to motion to Tenshi to come to him. Tenshi did as he was told and soon both alchemists were in the doorway.

“Come with me Mister Hikaru,” She said indicating the state military car that was idling in front of the house.

Tenshi looked at Edward nervously. “Should I…?”

“Not without me,” Edward said and he signed to both Hawkeye and Tenshi to wait while he quickly scribbled out a note saying where they went and left it on the dining room table. He then followed his Kohai and the young officer to the car.

“It isn’t necessary for you to accompany us,” Hawkeye told Edward but he ignored her climbing into the backseat of the black car next to Tenshi.

“Yeah, well, I’m responsible for Mister Hikaru so you’re stuck with me,” Edward told her.

Hawkeye looked a little peeved but she made no further argument. She got into the driver’s seat and proceeded to take them to the Furher’s estate. Tenshi eyed Edward perplexed. He had never been to the Furher’s home and neither had Edward.

Something made Edward very uneasy and he whispered to Tenshi, “You know that gold pocket watch your mechanic gave you?” Tenshi nodded and Edward continued, “Let me borrow it. Just in case I have to pull your fat out of the fire.”

Tenshi handed it over to him saying quietly, “We just used this for a Ward. It might not be…recharged, if you know what I mean.”

“I know,” Edward agreed. “But it’s the only thing you own that’s really connected to you. I’ll just have to hope for the best.”

“Or hope you don’t need it.” Tenshi whispered trying to hide the fear in his voice.

The car stops in front of the main entrance and the two Alchemists are shown the way to a parlor room by the Furher’s butler. The room they are left in was nicely appointed and looked like a very upscale living room to Edward. Tenshi wasn’t sure what to make of their situation. Why would the Furher want to see him? He hadn’t exactly distinguished himself in State service the way Edward had. He stayed close to Edward’s side and tried to hide how nervous being there made him.

When the twin doors leading into the drawing room opened both Edward and Tenshi came to attention. The Furher accompanied by his secretary Juliet Douglass and Lieutenant Hawkeye entered the room. Both boys had seen the Furher and his secretary at a distance but this was the first time they were within handshake distance of the pair. Something about the woman was frighteningly familiar to Edward. When she looked up and their eyes met Edward’s heart stopped beating for a split second.

Juliet Douglass was his late mother’s identical twin.

Edward knew it couldn’t be possible for two people to look THAT much alike and not be related but there it was. Put her in the clothing of simple countrywoman from Resembool and she could pass for the late Tricia Elric.

“You must be wondering why I had you brought all the way out here Mister Hikaru,” the Furher said in his usual nonchalant way. “Well, you see, we got some bad news. It seems your brother Toshi has escaped from prison and word is that he is after you.”

Tenshi paled. His brother Toshi had been incarcerated at a maximum-security prison for causing the train wreck that had nearly killed Tenshi. Had he not been found by the kindly old mechanic that saved his life and later replaced his mangled limbs with ones of Automail Tenshi would have been dead years ago. Toshi was after the gold bullion the train was transporting but he and his cohorts were captured before they escaped across the border into Xing. The immenseness of his crime got him a life sentence in a prison hard labor camp and it was from this place that he somehow managed to escape.

“Don’t look so worried,” the Furher went on. “We have made arrangements for a safe place for you to stay until Toshi is recaptured. So you have nothing to worry about.”

“He already has a safe place to stay,” Edward stated.

“With you?” The Furher said more than asked. “You are skilled, Fullmetal, but you are still only one man. Toshi is said to command many.”

“A bunch of thugs with guys?” scoffed Edward. “Not a problem.”

“Edward, this doesn’t concern you,” Hawkeye told him. “Come with me.”

“But-“

“Go with her Fullmetal,” the Furher said his hard gaze boring into Edward.

Edward met his sharp expression with his own determined look. “Fine,” he said in a tone that made it plain he was less than happy with the arrangement. To Tenshi he said, “I’ll wait for you outside.”

Tenshi nodded unsurely and Edward followed Hawkeye out of the room. She closed the doors behind them and said, “You can wait here or in the car.”

“Here is fine.”

She turned sharply on her heel and left him standing alone in the entranceway. When she was clearly out of range, Edward pulled out Tenshi’s watch and attempted to use it as the focus for a Scry. His attempt to open a pathway to allow him to see and hear what lay beyond the double doors was barred by what he quickly realized was a block put there by an alchemist who was well versed in the use of Scrying Circles.

Edward cursed to himself when he recognized whose Alchemical signature was on the block. Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist. Edward knew enough about Scrying and Scry blocking to know blocks could be broken but he hadn’t read that book yet so he didn’t know how to get past the Colonel’s barrier. Momentarily defeated Edward flopped into one of the soft armchairs in the hallway and waited.
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There WILL BE MORE I Promise!!
Thanks for your patience!