Verse: Dragonfable-The world of Lore, post Ravenloss War, pre-Entropy, pre-Sepulchure's Siege of Falconreach, pre-Drakath-Dragon. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood-Amestris, post episode 63.
Summary: Ed, intending to use his own Gate to bring Al back, finds that the Truth has other plans. In exchange for returning his brother's body and soul to Amestris, Ed is thrown into Lore, a world that is, in his eyes, completely backwards. There, he meets Kael, an experienced Dragon Mage and Soulweaver. He is determined to find a way back to Amestris, but with the chaotic and often nonsensical laws of magic governing Lore, he finds himself in way over his head.
Pairings: None yet, beyond the canon.
Rating: Rated T for violence, blood, gore, and possible (but unlikely) character death.
Author's Note: This is a random idea I've been playing with for a good long while. When the Ravenloss quest chain in Dragonfable was first completed, I couldn't help but notice the similarities between parts of it and Fullmetal Alchemist: the Gate, the Wheel of Judgment, the little black hands that hold the Wheel of Judgment, Envy, Greed, Lust… I can go on. (Seriously, I CAN'T have been the only one who noticed…)
(I would also like to add that some of the Soulweaver abilities also seemed to me like references to Bleach and Soul Eater, the Bleach reference being the Repentance skill with its black butterflies, and the Soul Eater references being the Soul Burst skill with its whole "deal a concussive strike to your opponents soul" bit, as well as the concept of madness overtaking the Chaosweavers.)
Kael (pronounced KAY-ell) is based off of my own Dragonfable character, Hikari. They're pretty much the same, though I felt that giving her a different name would be best, seeing as "Hikari" means "light," which, considering her role in the plot, is kind of silly. I COULD tell you about Kael/Hikari and her various stats, but I'm just gonna let the story do that bit. :3
Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever, own either Dragonfable or Fullmetal Alchemist (in any of its incarnations). I am merely toying with their characters to suit my own fangirl-ish tendencies. Kael and Nirin, however, do belong to me.
Wielder of Souls
Chapter 1
Gate's Breath
Central
The Country of Amestris
The screams of the Homunculus of the Flask had fallen from the air, but that did not stop the last echoes of them from ringing in Edward Elric's ears as he knelt next to the hollow, broken armor that had housed his brother's soul up until a few minutes before.
"What?" he heard Colonel Mustang say quietly. "What happened? Did we win?" Poor bastard was so blind he couldn't even tell it was over.
"Yes, sir," Lieutenant Hawkeye replied gravely. "However, Alphonse has not returned from the other side."
Mei, that little girl from Xing, sat on the other side of Alphonse's armor, face buried in her hands, muttering the same apology over and over as she tried to stifle her tears.
"It's not your fault," Ed told her in a hoarse voice. "It was Al's decision."
"Ed."
He looked up at Ling. The former homunculus held up a tiny vial of red liquid. "I have a Philosopher's Stone. Use it to get him back."
Ed gritted his teeth and pressed his right fist, now flesh and blood again, into the cracked and charred ground. "I can't. I promised Al that we wouldn't use Philosopher's Stones to get our bodies back."
'There has to be a way…' he thought to himself. 'There just has to be…'
"Edward." Ed's breath hitched at the sound of his father's voice. Two pairs of golden eyes met, one fearful, the other grave. "Use my life to bring Alphonse back." Ed's jaw dropped in utter horror. "There is just enough left in me to bring back one person."
The dismayed look on the young alchemist's face turned to one of fury.
"You… complete dumbass. There's no way I could do something like that! It's our fault, mine and Alphonse's, that we lost our bodies. I have already said over and over that I will not use human lives to bring Al back!" He raised an accusing finger toward his father. "And why do you even feel the need to give your life for him?"
"Because I am his father." Ed lowered his arm and turned away. "This isn't about need or reason. Both you and Alphonse are dear to me, and all I want is for you both to be happy. I was wrong to abandon you and your mother, and it is partially my fault that the two of you ended up the way you did. I am sorry.
"I've lived long enough," Hohenheim continued, the look in his eyes making him seem far older than Ed had ever seen him. "At least let me act like a father in the end."
Ed screwed his eyes shut in the effort to hold back tears. "Don't be ridiculous! Never say anything like that again! I'll kill you if you do!" Tears were flowing freely now, making clean streaks through the blood and dust that marred his face. Salt from the tears stung as they passed over the many cuts on his face.
"I'm sorry, Edward."
Ed forced himself to look away from his father and back to the empty armor that was all that was left of his little brother.
'Think!' he thought to himself. 'You're the youngest State Alchemist in history! You can think of some way to make this work!'
As he stared down at his hands-they were still slightly mismatched; his newly reclaimed arm was much bonier than the other-revelation struck him. It could work… It had to.
Mei's crying caught Ed's attention. She was lying there, forehead pressed to the ground, shoulders shaking as she sobbed his brother's name over and over. His eyes slid from May to everyone around him in turn. Everyone he had ever come to care about…
Balling his hands into fists, he got to his feet.
"Mei." the girl looked up at him with a tear-streaked face. "Stand back a bit, will you?" Without waiting for her to reply, Ed walked over to a stick that was laying on the ground and picked it up. Slowly, he began sketching out a transmutation circle. It had to be perfect…
"Hey!" Ling shouted as realization dawned on him. "That's… a human transmutation circle!"
"Yeah," Ed confirmed. "Everyone," he looked around at all the surrounding faces, "I'll be right back." He raised his hands. "This is the Fullmetal Alchemist's final transmutation."
He brought both palms together with a resounding clap. Blue lightning sparked around his hands, and before it could die away, he pressed both palms to the ground at the center of the transmutation circle. The entire circle flashed blue and white as the familiar rush of energy washed over him.
People were calling his name, but he didn't hear them. One more bright flash, and suddenly…
Everything went white.
A great stone door loomed behind him. In front, a figure, featureless save for a lipless mouth, sat cross-legged on nothing.
"You're here to bring your brother back, aren't you?" Truth said in a voice that echoed Ed's own. "But how are you gonna pull a whole person out of here?" Truth tilted its head to one side. "What price will you offer this time? Your body?"
Ed smirked. "I've got your price right here." He jabbed his thumb at the door behind him. "This is my gateway of truth, which means it's up to me how I use it, right?"
Truth's momentarily dumbstruck mouth turned upwards into a grin as it laughed. "Is that really what it's come to…? You sure about this? If you lose your gateway, you'll never be able to use alchemy ever again."
"Yeah, I know. But if that's what it takes."
The corners of Truth's mouth lifted into an even bigger grin as it began to laugh in a way that made Ed's stomach drop.
"No can do," Truth laughed. Ed's face slid first into alarm, then to pure, unadulterated fury.
"What do you mean, 'no can do'? It's my freakin' gate! My decision how to use it! And I want to use it to bring my brother back!"
"And I'm telling you that it's a price I won't accept!" Truth shouted back, making Ed fall silent. "Not for this, anyway."
Ed glared at the figure in front of him. "What?" he ground out through gritted teeth.
"The way I see it," Truth began, "everything works out equally. A body for a body, a life for a life. You give your body, a body will be made, but it takes a little extra, like an arm or a leg, to bring it into reality. Your brother is here, body and soul, no assembly required, which means you pretty much only have to pay the transport fee."
Truth smirked before continuing. "Your gate is a part of your soul. Part. Souls are valuable things; they make up an entire existence, not to mention each individual soul is linked to the hundreds of others it comes into contact with throughout a lifetime. What you are offering is only the very small part of your soul that allows you to work alchemy. And, true, it would be enough to send your brother back, entirely whole, but…"
Ed gulped as his heart dropped into his stomach.
"But," Truth repeated, "It would not be enough to send you back home."
"So I'd be stuck here?"
"Not necessarily. I can send you somewhere else, for a small price. A limb, for example, or your sight. Taking your sight is very easy, and not quite so messy."
"What's the difference between sending me home and sending me somewhere else?"
Truth leaned forward. "Desire. You want to return home, which makes it far more valuable. What matters here is how much something is worth to you. If you were to pay the price for your return home, then it'd be too much. You'd probably end up a disembodied soul just like your brother was, and we don't want that, now, do we?"
"Where would you send me?" Ed asked through gritted teeth. Why couldn't things just work out the way he planned?
Truth shrugged. "No idea. That's out of my jurisdiction. I'll basically just point you in a random direction, and then it's up to whoever else is out there to decide what to do with you."
"What's the price?"
"I could take your sight, your other leg, I could even take your right arm again, if you wish. It'd be something familiar to you at the very least."
Ed gripped his right arm with his other hand. It had taken him years to get that arm back…
"Just do it," he muttered, fighting against the urge to punch Truth in the mouth, find Al, and walk right out of there.
"The arm, then?"
"Yeah."
"Alright, then. One arm in exchange for being tossed into a random dimension." Truth raised a hand, and the door behind Ed opened. Dozens of black hands shot forward, wrapping around Ed's right arm. He bit back a scream as the arm was eaten away all the way to the shoulder. There was no blood, not yet. Clapping his remaining hand to the, once again, empty shoulder socket, he gave Truth a look of absolute loathing.
Truth turned to look over his shoulder. "Al, you're free to go." Ed caught a glimpse of an emaciated figure sitting a ways behind Truth. Al…
"What?" Al looked up through shaggy, dull blond hair.
"You can go," Truth repeated. "The door's there, just head on out. I won't stop you."
"Wait!" Ed shouted, drawing Truth's attention again. "Aren't you gonna take my gate?"
"Nope," Truth said almost lazily. "I did say that your gate was a sufficient price to send your brother home, but I also said I wouldn't take it for this. Besides," Truth added with a smirk, "I've already been paid in advance."
"What are you talking about?"
Truth grinned. "Can't tell you that. Just know that someone already paid your brother's price. Lucky, eh?"
"Brother?" Al called weakly as the little black arms began pulling him through his own gate. The poor kid was trying to fight them, but he wasn't strong enough to do any good.
"AL!" Ed started running towards his brother, but more of the black arms were looping themselves around him and dragging him backwards. "ALPHONSE!"
Al screamed again just as the door swung shut, blocking him from view.
Truth was not smiling now. "It's too late, Alchemist. The price has been paid. No going back."
"You BASTARD! I'll get you for this!"
"For what? You agreed, the price is paid in full, and he's going home. It's what you wanted, isn't it?"
Ed didn't get a chance to answer. His gate swung shut before he could, plunging him into darkness.
Ravenloss
The World of Lore
It was over.
The hiccup in time finally settled back into motion as Kael fell to her knees next to the Equilibrium Gate, shedding her Soul Claws as she did so. This was not the first war she had gotten involved in, but this one was, perhaps, the most exhausting, despite being the shortest one by far. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she took a sip from the small flask of blue potion she kept in her belt pouch. A wave of cool, refreshing energy passed over her, steadying her shaking limbs within moments.
Somewhere among the piles of rubble and dead bodies, a wounded Chaosweaver let loose a screech of agony as it struggled to remain on the plane of the living. Before long, the poor creature's cries grew weaker, and then faded completely.
Elsewhere, the human survivors of the battle were working to lift bodies from the rubble. Chaosweaver carcasses were set aside in a pile for members of their own kind to collect and dispose of, while the human casualties were being carried, one by one, through the portal that would lead back to the surface.
Sighing, Kael got to her feet and pulled her claws back on. She set off down the destroyed square to join the other Soulweavers in the cleanup effort. Taking hold of one dead Chaosweaver by a leg, she pulled it from the rubble and began dragging it to the nearest pile. The pile of bodies she came to was too high for her to climb, so she simply set the carcass she was carrying at the bottom of the pile.
Returning to the mound of rubble, Kael began shifting chunks of wood and masonry aside in order to dig out the other bodies that lay beneath. The next one she came across was the broken form of a dead mage. Judging by what was left of his clothes, he had been pretty low-level. There were many like him among the dead; it was common for beginning fighters and magic-wielders, in their haste to earn a name for themselves, to try to take on battles that were too much for them to handle. It rarely ended well.
Kael left what remained of the mage next to the portal for someone else to take above ground and returned to the rubble pile. She could make out part of another body at the bottom, but she had to shift a heavy wooden beam to get to it. She was able to lift one end of the beam easily enough, but when she tried to drag it away, she stumbled and nearly dropped it. A second pair of hands reached out to help support the beam as she struggled to regain her balance.
"Thanks," Kael said with a faint smile as she recognized the blond hair and green eyes of Izaac.
"No problem," Izaac said, hoisting one end of the beam onto his shoulder. Kael did the same with the other end, and together they were able to move it off to one side where it was out of the way.
"How are you holding up?" Izaac asked.
Kael sighed heavily. "Not bad, but I've been better." She brushed a few sweaty strands of hair out of her face as her eyes roamed the chaotic scene around them. "Tomix left this morning."
Izaac nodded. "I saw him leave the city. He really should have rested a bit before leaving, but he just kept muttering something about finding that Ally of his."
"Aspar." Kael wrinkled her nose at the mere mention of the spirit. "Tomix told me that Aspar was the elemental spirit of kindness, but I don't believe it. Something's off about him, but I can't put my finger on it."
"Have you told Tomix?"
"I've tried," Kael replied in a resigned voice. "But he won't hear a word of it. He's so convinced that Aspar is trustworthy that he's become blind to anything that suggests the opposite."
Izaac rubbed the back of his neck. "That's Tomix, all right. Stubborn to a fault."
"And deaf to anything he doesn't want to hear."
Izaac nodded again in agreement.
They returned to shifting the rubble in silence. Finally, they were able to get to the body at the bottom. The body was in pretty bad shape: neck broken, limbs bent every which way, and blood that had long since pooled and congealed on the ground. Kael's breath hitched in her throat when she recognized the corpse's face.
It was Char, the small child she had met mere days after she had begun her training as a Soulweaver. She could still hear the young Chaosweaver asking in a timid voice if she would please buy some of his goods so he could buy food for himself and his little brother. Kael had taken pity on the poor kid, and bought a couple of the items he had held out her.
Bending down, Kael gathered Char's body into her arms and carried him over to where members of his own species were dragging more bodies away. One of the adult Chaosweavers looked at her strangely as she set the tiny body down on the ground. A tear ran down her face as she turned around and walked back to Izaac without a word.
"If you need a break, it's fine," Izaac said quietly. Tears were running freely down Kael's face, but she shook her head, drying her eyes on her dirty shirt sleeve.
"I'm fine," she insisted. "I should find Kinder, though…" She scanned the surrounding area in the hope that she would see another little face poke around a corner somewhere.
"Who's Kinder?"
"Char's little brother. He was trying to take care of him and their little sister after their father went mad." Kael rubbed her nose with one metal-clad hand. "I hope he's alright."
"We'll find him," Izaac assured her, but he wasn't able to keep the doubt from his voice.
A cold hand on Kael's shoulder made her look up. When she saw Aegis staring down at her with an impassive face, she smiled sadly.
"I'm fine, Aegis, really," she said, though she wasn't very convincing.
"Why do you weep?" the spirit asked. His voice always brought images of snow and ice to the front of Kael's mind.
"I suppose it's because I knew him."
"You knew many of the fallen, yet you do not weep for them."
Kael wiped some of the dampness from her face. "Char was an innocent child. He didn't deserve to die."
Aegis watched her with slanted blue eyes for a moment before reaching out and touching one of the tears on her cheek. It froze instantly and fell to the ground where it melted and was soaked into the dust.
A sudden rumble shook the ground. The rubble pile they had been standing next to collapsed, sending chunks of stone rolling about the square. The shaking faded a moment later.
"What was that?" Kael said as she steadied herself.
"Earthquake," Izaac replied, running a hand through his hair. "It's weird; we don't usually get those down here."
Kael looked up as Aegis rose into the air, a frown etched on his face. "Aegis? What is it?"
"Something is wrong." Aegis stared at where the Equilibrium Gate stood on the other side of the square. The Gate, normally a violet-tinted window that looked out on the outskirts of Pellow Village, had gone dark.
What occurred next happened very quickly. It began as a low hum of energy emanating from the blackened Gate. Within seconds, the humming became a high, ear-splitting screech that rent the air to pieces. Kael clapped both hands over her ears in the attempt to block it out just as Aegis writhed in mid-air as the sound bit at his essence. The screeching escalated, becoming louder and louder until it was well past deafening. There was one, last cry from the gate, punctuated by a surge of energy that momentarily filled the entire city with bright, white light. All thoughts of removing bodies and clearing rubble were forgotten as humans and creatures alike stampeded blindly in the attempt to escape the searing light.
It was over as quickly as it had begun; the light vanished, leaving spots floating in Kael's vision as she squinted to see in the darkness.
"Kael, are you hurt?" Izaac's voice came from somewhere on her right.
"I'm fine. You?"
"Can't see very much, but I'm fine, otherwise."
Kael scanned the air above her for any sign of her Soul Ally.
"See Aegis anywhere?" she asked.
A pause as Izaac searched the darkness, as well. "I don't see him," the other Soulweaver replied. "Weird. A spirit like him should be like a beacon in this dark."
"Aegis!" Kael called, starting forward. "Speak up if you can hear me!" Her eyes were beginning to adjust to the darkness by then. She could make out the Gate, once again a purple-tinted window, glowing dimly a short distance away.
A low moan met Kael's ears from over near the Gate.
"Aegis?" She hurried across the rubble-strewn ground, tripping over splintered wood and crumbled masonry.
It was Aegis, all right. He was lying face down in the dirt, helm askew. The light that normally emanated from his skin had gone out, signaling that he was unconscious. But Aegis hadn't been the one who had moaned…
There was a second figure lying on the ground. Kael rummaged in the pouch she kept tied to her belt until her fingers met the smooth surface of a crystal. A whispered word and a rush of energy later, the crystal was glowing brightly in her hand.
Now that she could see what she was doing, she bent down to examine the second figure.
It was a young man, more of a boy, really, filthy and covered in blood. He lay there, curled up in the dirt, left hand pressed against a gaping hole in his shoulder where his right arm should have been in the attempt to staunch the alarming amount of blood that was pouring through his fingers.
Kael turned him over so he lay on his back. He was conscious, but only barely, and he made no protest at her touch. Reaching once more into the pouch she kept at her belt, she pulled out a vial of blood-red potion and uncorked it. Gently, she pried his hand away from the bleeding wound and tipped the tiny bottle so that a few drops of the potion fell onto the wound, mixing with the blood. There was a faint hiss and a brief whiff of singed flesh as the potion cauterized the wound, effectively halting the flow of blood from it. For a moment, the boy's face contorted in pain as the potion did its work, but quickly settled into a grimace of discomfort.
Placing one hand under the boy's neck, she tilted his head back and poured a small amount of the potion into his mouth. He choked a little, but managed to swallow it.
After re-corking the vial and stuffing it back into her bag, she passed her hands over the boy's face and chest. Her eyes were closed as she touched the boy's soul with her own, examining it. The boy's soul was whole and untainted. A little worn, perhaps, but whole. Satisfied, Kael withdrew her hands and called over to Izaac. "Little help, here!" She heard footsteps as Izaac approached, followed by a murmured curse of alarm. "Can you carry Aegis? I need to get them both above ground; there's not much I can do for them down here."
"Sure." Izaac bent down and lifted the unconscious spirit into his arms with a grunt. "This guy's heavier than he looks."
"Yeah, you'd think spirits would weigh next to nothing," she replied as she hooked one arm under the boy's knees and the other under his shoulders. "Oh, fuck," she cursed softly as she lifted the boy into the air, staggering for a moment. "What's this kid made of, stone? I should've made you carry him."
Izaac laughed dryly in reply. Fortunately, the portal back to Falconreach was only a short distance away, so it didn't take long to reach it.
The boy's eyes were open as Kael carried him up to the portal, but only just. Looking down at him, she caught a glimpse of golden irises before the boy shut his eyes again, evidently falling into unconsciousness.
"Can't remember the last time I was above ground," Izaac muttered as they stepped up to the portal.
"I think it's been a week for me," Kael replied absentmindedly. "Wow, only a week. Feels a lot longer than that." She glanced down at the portal, then back up at Izaac. "Ready?"
Izaac nodded, and together, they jumped into the swirling light of the portal.
Author's Note: Well, there's the first chapter done. I will admit that, as usual, I really have no idea where this story is going. It's just one of those things that I'm making up as I go along.
Please review! I thrive off of constructive criticism, but feedback of any kind is loved and appreciated!
Next Chapter: Kael and Izaac arrive in Falconreach, Ed regains consciousness… but how will he react to a world of magic?