"...let me explain something about how our country goes to war, Miss Altava, as I've no doubt that you're wondering how a kill count that high is even possible, much less something that any single human being can carry out and still retain any claim to their humanity."
His voice is even, calm; there's still that cold, dark void behind his gaze.
"The war started as an attempt to suppress a riot in that particular region; in the fray, an Amestrian soldier accidentally shot an Ishvalan child. The child died; the rioting escalated. The war continued for several years; neither side was willing to back down. It became a case of who was going to be proven right, and who was going to be dead. As the people of Ishval had been receiving illegal weapons from the neighboring country of Aerugo - one with a history of hostility toward Amestris, wanting to see us destroyed from the inside - the war looked as though it could sustain itself indefinitely.
As such, a special division of the military were called in to the front lines. State Alchemists."
He pauses for a moment, taking a sip of that tea in front of him; his tone has remained perfectly even the entire time.
"Amestrian alchemy consists of far more than turning lead into gold - that sort of thing is actually illegal, given that it's good for nothing but upsetting the economy. Rather, it's the general power to transmute substances into one thing or another, as long as it adheres to the general principle of Equivalent Exchange. You cannot create from nothing, nor can you render into nothing - for something to be gained, something else must be lost, and vice-versa. It's a very simple concept. The consequences for breaking it are horrible, as a toll is often exacted against the alchemist in question. But that's not the point right now.
The point is that some of this alchemy can be weaponized. Human beings capable of being used as literal flamethrowers, or capable of shifting the very surface of the ground itself. These are the people who bear the title of 'State Alchemist.'
Obviously, I was one of them at the time. The State Alchemists ensured that a war that had carried on for several years came to a close in a matter of months.
My kill count is nothing that was carried out with a gun, or any sort of traditional weapon. Due to the nature of what I can do, it was highly destructive from the start. Most of my kills were done at a great distance; those that were close-up have remained with me. I've never forgotten their faces; it would be highly disrespectful to do otherwise."
no subject
His voice is even, calm; there's still that cold, dark void behind his gaze.
"The war started as an attempt to suppress a riot in that particular region; in the fray, an Amestrian soldier accidentally shot an Ishvalan child. The child died; the rioting escalated. The war continued for several years; neither side was willing to back down. It became a case of who was going to be proven right, and who was going to be dead. As the people of Ishval had been receiving illegal weapons from the neighboring country of Aerugo - one with a history of hostility toward Amestris, wanting to see us destroyed from the inside - the war looked as though it could sustain itself indefinitely.
As such, a special division of the military were called in to the front lines. State Alchemists."
He pauses for a moment, taking a sip of that tea in front of him; his tone has remained perfectly even the entire time.
"Amestrian alchemy consists of far more than turning lead into gold - that sort of thing is actually illegal, given that it's good for nothing but upsetting the economy. Rather, it's the general power to transmute substances into one thing or another, as long as it adheres to the general principle of Equivalent Exchange. You cannot create from nothing, nor can you render into nothing - for something to be gained, something else must be lost, and vice-versa. It's a very simple concept. The consequences for breaking it are horrible, as a toll is often exacted against the alchemist in question. But that's not the point right now.
The point is that some of this alchemy can be weaponized. Human beings capable of being used as literal flamethrowers, or capable of shifting the very surface of the ground itself. These are the people who bear the title of 'State Alchemist.'
Obviously, I was one of them at the time. The State Alchemists ensured that a war that had carried on for several years came to a close in a matter of months.
My kill count is nothing that was carried out with a gun, or any sort of traditional weapon. Due to the nature of what I can do, it was highly destructive from the start. Most of my kills were done at a great distance; those that were close-up have remained with me. I've never forgotten their faces; it would be highly disrespectful to do otherwise."