"Given that you did not contract our services beforehand, that would not be unreasonable. But it seems to me that your route will now be significantly more trustworthy in the future."

"That is true."

Does Mr. Random Merchant want to aggressively negotiate with Ms. Stone-Faced Alchemist? He's thinking about it. But he's also obviously nervous about offending her.

... he lowballs a figure at 40% market rate.

She immediately counters with 60%. And taps a finger on her arm impatiently.

He takes 60% quickly, not able to believe his luck. "I'm indebted to you. Ask for my name if you find yourself in this city again; if you don't find me you'll find one my friends."

He shoos her away as fast as he can and practically shoves the money into her arms. 

Easy enough. Back to Hohenheim.

"Oh, you want to leave so soon?" 

He might be eyeing the bar over on the opposite corner. 

"Is there not an impending apocalypse we are to avert? Soonest begun is soonest done."

"You're right," he says. "I'll buy our passage on a ship in the morning."

He does that -- and there's plenty of money left over. They board easily, having few belongings between them.

Primitive technology, somewhat dirty. Serviceable, though. As long as the boiler doesn't catch fire.

The trip is long and boring. Which is good for them, because it means they can devote more time to their projects. 

Which is alchemical theory, mostly. Though some more history would be welcomed. What else does Hohenheim know of what Homunculus has been doing?

"Well, that's a big question. Where do you want me to start?"

"Tell me about Amestris. How is it administered? What forces does he command besides the other homunculi?"

"I don't know very much about how he structures his military ... it has gone through major upheavals in the four-hundred or more years since the country was founded. I do know that many of the top military offices have been held by the same families for generations. I also know that they're continually at war with all three of their neighbors. I suppose that requires a large level of institutional organization."

"Does he intervene directly? Is he known to the people as Homunculus?"

"He does not. Most of Amestris doesn't know that homunculi can exist."

"This begins to sound familiar. I suspect there is a great deal of institutional inertia among the officer class, especially with the generational inheritance. If Homunculus has not disclosed his plans, it is likely that the revelation will provide opportunity to subvert some or all of the leaders, and the common soldiers will follow. They will be invested in Amestris for itself, whatever ideals they have built it up to represent, not what Homunculus plans for it. And when they learn that his plans threatens their country, they will oppose it."

"In Xerxes, he implemented his plan by telling the king he would grant him immortality. He may have done something similar here."

"It is unlikely he would spread even that hint of his intentions very far, given the scale of the enterprise. It may be that the very highest have been so inoculated, but their subordinates are unlikely to be."

"We can't know what constitutes the very highest. There could be as few as three, as many as fifty."

"We can perform additional reconnaissance when we arrive. Tell me about the neighboring countries they are at war with."

"There's three -- Drachma, to the north, which is allied with Russia; Aerugo to the south, which is allied with Roma; Creta to the West, which is a former British colony.

"Drachma contains more fertile farmland than Amestris but Amestris has more grazing land and ore; at some point Father erected a mountain range along the northern border and Drachma has been trying to cross it ever since. Creta used to be the most powerful presence in the area but its influence has decreased ever since it gained its independence; British campaigns from there are most of the reason for Amestris' national language being English. Aerugo is very small and mostly known for trade; it has access to a large amount of coastline to its south and has a substantial navy. We'll be travelling through it to get to the Eastern Desert, which will take us to Amestris."

"Are any of them in a position to offer a substantial military distraction?"

"Drachma is fond of spies. Otherwise, not to my knowledge. Amestris has the most powerful land forces of all of them, and certainly the most powerful alchemy."

"Not entirely unexpected. But if we can't use them, neither can the enemy."