Crystal Shards

“Ow my head.” I said clutching it in my hands the next morning. I looked at the alarm clock – four thirty – eight P.M. two days after Izumi told her story – great. I didn’t know I was capable of sleeping that long. I got up and pulled on my shirt, and my State jacket. I hated that jacket so much. I opened the door and made my way to the front of the house - no one was there. My head was clouded and I couldn’t see straight so I eventually collapsed on the couch. There was a note on the table with my name on it.

‘Vanity.

Went to find Al.

Ed’

My eye twitched. How come he had to be simple? I turned the page over hoping for more. There was.

‘P.S. Went to Devil’s Nest.’

I smiled and ran out the door toward the bar. I’d seen it the night I was sent to by groceries. When I ran down the stairs into the building Ed was locked in a bloody fight against a man with black skin and random red lines on is upper half.

“Ed!” I yelled as he got thrown into the wall. I started to brawl against him – nothing worked and Ed was passed out so I couldn’t get any help from him. I threw a punch at him with my right hand which had a ring with a diamond embedded in it, it left a long scratch on him. I smirked. He was basically compressed carbon. He tore of my jacket in one swift move and tore some of my shirt in the process leaving a small bloody scratch behind. The odd thing though was that it started to heal.

“So you’re like one of us.” He said smirking at the mark on my lower back.

“I’m not like you.” I said trying to trip him.

“You’re more human than any of us.”

“I am human!”

“I take it you’re Vanity then.” He said grabbed both my wrists and pushed me into the wall, stepping on my feet so I couldn’t move. I squirmed trying to get free. “I’m a Homunculus, a fake human.”

“What do I have to do with you then?” I asked as his head rested on my shoulder.

“Your family got close to creating the perfect human with out coming out a Homunculus. Although your mark is faint you still are one of us.” He bit down into my shoulder. I let out a yowl of pain as I felt my collarbone snap between his teeth. Izumi burst in through the door I’d kicked in and landed a solid punch to his jaw which caused his black skin to turn to flesh. I slid to the floor clutching my shoulder in pain. If what he said was true I’d be able to heal my arm, so I focused. I felt my muscles knit together and the flesh melt together. I could literally hear my bone fuse together as if it had never broke.

Was what he said true, that I was a Homunculus? I didn’t want to believe it. He fled once Fuhrer Bradley had arrived – I thought it was odd how he just randomly appeared here with backup, but I brushed it off. I couldn’t move anything but my head because the rest of my body was very sore. The medical unit came in and started to check the three of us too make sure we were OK. Ed was bloodied and beaten so he needed some care but I was just bruised so they left me as I was.