I want to thank Sugarbowl99, SakuraSagura, Waterai88, Horselvr43vr123 and Wild Horsefeathers8753 for their reviews of this story. This is for all of you. I hope you like this update and I shall endeavour to keep it going.
Blind Observation
Chapter 1 - of Priests and Believers
Sheesh! he thought with a pained groan, and I thought Lior had been horrible with all that fake nonsense, theses people are WORSE! He had finally found a place to sleep and now he couldn't get to sleep. It was a culmination of many things.
The bed was too lumpy.
Alphonse wasn't around.
And that damned chanting coming from the street below kept him awake even though he had the window and the curtain shut. Alphonse would have said that Edward was just complaining because he could. Edward would admit, if only to himself that Al was right. He wouldn't be telling that to his little brother any time soon.
Finally fed up with it all, Edward pulled the pillow over his head. The chanting was getting to him. These people of Nyy were crazy. But he all ready knew that. So why was he repeating facts that he all ready knew? He was tired, that was why.
Groaning. Edward relit the lamp on the bedside table then he opened his traveling trunk. One pair of pajama's were on top with a note; Edward, don't do anything dangerous or stupid. Oh, and Colonel Mustang says not to blow up any buildings. Love, Alphonse.
Edward would have crumpled it up and thrown it across the room if it had been from anyone else but Alphonse. Putting the pj's aside, because he had no intent of changing into them - he pulled out a book, opened it and found his copy of the report Mustang had insisted he couldn't keep.
This book looked like the other beginner books of alchemy the brother's carried with them, some of the books were more complicated and they were still looking through those, using their own books to cross reference or make sense of an array they didn't understand. No one knew what they did on the train when no one was around and they weren't working on one of their overwhelming problems. A little Alchemy on the lock and he had it open. Only he or Alphonse knew how to open it. This was the one book that Edward hid better than the other books.
In the edges of the pages were notes that Edward or Alphonse had made. Points to look into. The report took up a few pages till Edward turned to blank pages. From the case he took up a pen and started jotting down his initial thoughts. From these he would re-write a report telling Mustang exactly what he wanted the man to know. How Mustang knew more than that, Edward wasn't sure, but he did know one thing - that most of Edward's more brilliant thoughts were in this note book which only he and Alphonse ever read. If Mustang ever got his hands onto this book, Edward would kill the man and gladly go to prison for it.
1 - Chanting. Not sure of the translation.
"Déesse, oh déesse, ici notre prière et venger notre trahison !
Prendre Amestris dans vos mains et écraser sa militaire !
Faire des ennemis connais votre grande puissance." - at least that's what it sounds like.
2 - There is one huge Church that people are always going in and out of. Even thought it's midnight, and its still raining, the church still seems to be a very popular place. I think I will take a tour around that bloody fair they have going. I won't be able to go to sleep till they shut the hell up!
That done, he threw down the pen, closed the book and relocked it with a bright blue light showing the alchemical reaction. Throw on his boots and coat, Edward decided that a bit of a tour by night would be a good idea.
- - -
The fair as Edward referred to it was more of a gathering. The Priest was dressed in dark blue robes, he held an alabaster staff with a Moon Stone on top that glowed with each reply to his…whatever they were.
"Croyants de Nyy, Éloge ton déesse de la guerre et la destruction!"
"Déesse être loué!" the crowd roared. Edward was getting a headache from this. He scrubbed at his eyes.
"Les enfants de Power est parmi nous, Il est notre espoir, Il a été envoyé par notre Nyyrikki déesse!" The Priest said, there were three thumps of his alabaster staff.
"Louange être à la déesse de la guerre et la destruction!" the crowd replied. Edward crossed his arms and decided that it would be a good idea to find someone who knew what was going on. He looked around and found a man who wore a sort of Military uniform reminiscent of the Colonel's. It had the gold braid and everything.
"Ummmm, excuse me, but…do you know what is going on?" Edward had approached the man, it was no more than three feet away, the man had snowy white hair and a monocle over his right eye. He didn't look to be an alchemist.
"Oh, hello there! You must be out of town," the man smiled. It wasn't a nice smile at all.
"Er, yeah, I'm…"
"Edward Elric, Alchemist for the People, I have heard of you," The man replied.
"Oh, I hadn't thought anyone would, all the way out here, I usually stick close to Central," Edward replied.
"Apparently you're superior officer thought your skills could be put to use out here, what's on your mind, son?" the man asked.
"What are they saying, I can't understand a word of it," Edward admitted.
"Nothing much, its just their religious thing, to tell the truth I don't know much. They are praying to their Goddess of War and Destruction," the man replied.
"Ah…" Edward filed this away.
"Yes, the Nyy Sect is closely watched by the Military. They aren't deemed a threat, its just a bunch of bowing and scraping to someone that doesn't exist,"
"Can I have your name, sir?" Edward asked. The man gave another smile.
"My name is Harold Clinton,"
Why does that name sound so familiar…? Edward wondered, then it clicked.
"You almost assassinated King Bradley!" Edward cried out in shock. The man nodded. Edward was surprised from the back by four large hands, two on each of his arms. Then something poked his neck and he was out faster than he had thought possible.
Harold nodded to his men; take him into the church and to the holding room. He'll have to be conditioned before the people are told," he ordered. The four men saluted. One took the Alchemist into his arms easily and they all made their way around the circle and into an alley way.
Harold continued to watch the night time ceremony.
- - -
Priest Bill Flagon's eyes grew wide when Harold told him of the capture of a child. Sun-bright hair, gold eyes, and he was, in fact the Fullmetal Alchemist. The most powerful child in Amestris. Not even an adult could compare to the skill of Elric.
"That is good news," Bill rubbed his hands together.
"You'll have to brainwash him, we didn't dare detach the Automail, I don't know how and no one else seem to as well and I didn't want to damage the boy, so we had to come up with some imaginative restraints," Harold explained.
"Ah, we shall start right away," Bill gave a deep bow before sweeping out of the office and taking the stairs to the basement of the church where they would keep the Elric Child till he could be trusted to do as they wanted.
"Alchemist for the people, at not time before has it been more true," Bill said to himself as he walked down the darkened corridor.
- - -
TBC
- - -
A/N - It's short at 6 pages. But, its an update. Enjoy. Please note that the language I used is French, but it really has nothing to do with the plot. So don't worry about what it said. Though I may put up a translation later if I do this again.