Golden Gift

Chapter Two: Materia Knowledge

"Ed look! Ed look! ED! YOU'RE NOT LOOKING! OOMPH!" Zack shouted as he promptly ran into a tree aided by the time materia.

"Hmmm? You're doing great Zack." Ed said offhandedly as he flipped through the pages in the book on material.

A week passed since Ed arrived in the plains of Gongaga. Marcus had been a generous host to him, but once Ed was familiar to the terrain and monsters in the area, he had taken himself to the small hotel in Gongaga rather than inconvenience the man.

True to his word, he paid Marcus back by transmuting his lesser metals into mythril. Of course, that was after he completely dissected the new metal and made notes of it for himself. The man was so excited of the excess he had even paid him in gil, the current world's currency, so that he could begin to fend for himself.

Though Ed was certain the man had given him less than the real value of the metals, he was not complaining. The man needed to make a living and he was already generous enough to host him when he wasn't obligated. Ed wouldn't blame him for shortchanging him; he expected it.

"Ed!" Zack whined. "You're supposed to help me with my training. How am I supposed to get better if you don't help me?"

"You need to concentrate. Your problem is your ability to focus. That's the reason why you couldn't control yourself after inducing haste. Concentrate on doing one thing and stop daydreaming." Ed commented as he glanced up. He found Zack tangled into a tree. How the boy managed, he will never know.

"Eh…little help?" Zack laughed sheepishly.

Ed sighed and tucked the book under his arm as he yanked the younger boy out. When Zack first introduced him to materia he was skeptical. Magic was nonsense that non-scientists used to explain the unexplained. How would a little orb produce something similar to an alchemic feat with nothing but the user's mental capacity to cast? Ed scoffed when he saw the first materia Zack showed him. He gave no thought to it as he grasped onto the small orb. He never expected to feel as though he opened the gate. Zack had to pull the materia from his hand before he went insane from the knowledge.

After Zack took the materia away, Ed found the knowledge was still in his mind. Unlike the natives, he was capable of using the knowledge without needing the materia. Shortly after, haste became his favorite skill to use to aid him in speeding through what little books Gongaga had about the world he was in. He had no use for Zack, but he still found himself using the money from Marcus to buy the boy an armlet and a material.

Why did he bother? Ed wasn't sure. For the past week, weird dreams plagued his sleep. Broken dreams that made little to no sense. There were too many of them to remember anything clearly, but Zack was in all of them.

Ed yanked the boy out of the tangle of vines and the boy yelped as he toppled to the ground.

Was Truth trying to tell him something through his dreams? What does it mean if it is him? The only reason he stayed in Gongaga for so long was to make sure nothing happened to him, but nothing happened. While he was concerned for Zack, he needed to leave. He needed more information and this little village had none.

"I'm leaving tomorrow." Ed noted when the other started his next attempt.

Zack turned to him in surprise; he lost his concentration and cast slow on himself. "Whhhhy?" He dragged out.

Ed's lip quirked up slightly. "I need to find a way home and I've already gone through every book in your village pertaining to materia. I need more information."

Zack looked annoyed as he frowned thoughtfully. Since he was slowed, he was no longer able to blabber on like normal. "Maaaaarrrrccuuuussss."

Ed raised a brow. "You want me to talk to Marcus? He doesn't have a clue about materia."

Zack shook his head slowly. "Plaaaaaccess."

The blond rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I do need to know where I could get the information." He agreed. "Thanks Zack." He clapped a hand on his shoulder and turned to leave.

"Edddddddddd!" Zack whined.

A sly grin crossed the blond's face as he glanced back at the younger boy. "Don't worry, monsters don't venture this close to the village. Have fun practicing." He laughed and left for Marcus' hut.

With a quick cast of haste, Ed cleared the distance within the hour. Leaving Zack behind ensured a safer trip with less chances of them running into monsters. Even though the youth absorbed everything he taught like a sponge, he was still a novice when it came to combat and he really wasn't in the mood to babysit.

Knock-knock…

"Marcus, I need to talk to you about something." Ed said as he let himself in. Marcus rarely locked when he was home.

"Sorry Ed, I'm a little busy." The man said as he hammered away at a glowing red blade.

"It's all right. I'm not going to take much of your time. I just wanted to know if there was anywhere around here that would have an abundance of information on materia."

"Why'd you ask?" Marcus lifted the hammered blade and tested the heft and balance.

"I need to leave Gongaga. It's time I find a way home."

"You mean that other world you were talking about?" Marcus studied the blade again until he was satisfied and dipped it into the cool bath. The water hissed and steamed.

"I'm not crazy. Everything I said is true." Ed retorted.

"I'm not saying you are. As impossible as it seems, I believe you. I've never seen anyone that uses magic the way you do."

"It's not magic, it's science!" Ed argued.

Marcus ignored his protest. "And the alchemy you use, there's nothing like it here. You melded mythril into your prosthetic without the middle step of melting and shaping."

"Then what's the problem?" Ed asked. "If you believe me what's the problem?"

"I said I trust you, but that doesn't mean other people would. If you go about you're from another world how long do you think it'll be before they ship you off to some institution?"

"I won't tell anyone what I told you and Zack. I just want to go home Marcus. There's nothing else left in the village for me."

Marcus sighed as he drew the blade from the water and carried it over to the grinder. "Are you sure you want to go? It's a dangerous world out there and you're barely used to the monsters in this region."

"I'll stock up on potions and remedies." Ed was determined to leave.

Marcus breathed through his nose as he set the blade aside and turned to Ed. "…There are three places right now that are studying materia, but I would rather you go to Cosmo Canyon first before trying the other two places."

"Does it have to do with Shinra?" Ed asked. "Or do you just want to keep an eye on me?" If he remembered the map correctly, Cosmo Canyon was only a river away from the Gongaga forest.

"The reason I'm suggesting Cosmo Canyon first is because of Shinra. The people of Cosmo Canyon don't take what the company is doing well. They think the company is killing the Planet."

"Killing the planet?" Ed frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"That's what you'll have to ask them. I don't really know much." Marcus answered truthfully. "But from what I heard, the company isn't all that innocent as it puts itself out to be."

"…All right, I'll ask them when I go." Ed said as he grasped onto his chin thoughtfully.

"Before you go, I have something to give you. It's not much, but it's better than being weaponless. It's dangerous nowadays to travel without a weapon or two at hand."

"I don't need a weapon Marcus, I have my alchemy and I can make weapons out from my surroundings." He argued.

The man snorted. "I've seen those so call weapons you make to spar with Zack. Those are nothing more than toys. Whatever you make can't match a blade tempered and honed to perfection in the roaring flames. Now where did I put it?"

Ed gave a weak smile as the man rummaged about. Marcus was truly a kind man. He helped him again and again despite the fact Ed was a stranger.

"Ah-ha!" The weapon maker exclaimed in triumph as he pulled out a belt with two scabbards. "I made this a while ago, but with the war and everything, daggers had gone out of style and most people prefer to use swords, spears or guns. Not many people order daggers or short swords anymore. I think you'd put it to better use than my weapon rack."

Ed took the belt and pulled the blade from its scabbard. He was surprised to see that the blade was made of mythril and a magic guard. He could see the empty materia slots gazing up at him. Not likely he would need those.

"Marcus, You don't have to—"

"I insist." The man clapped a hand on his shoulder. "I have one more thing to give you."

"Marcus really. I don't—" Before he could protest more, the man slipped a green orb into his hands.

Ed felt a jolt as information poured into mind with every little detail on how to treat and handle wounds. Marcus pulled it away when Ed was immobilized and inserted the orb into one of the slots. Ed let out a gasp when the grip of knowledge released him.

"I know you said you can use magic even without materia, but you never know when you might actually need it. Best to have it with you just in case."

"Thanks…" Ed said breathlessly as Marcus returned the blade to the sheath. He has to be careful with the materia when he uses the blade.

"Now where's Zack? I'm surprised he's not with you. Ever since you appeared, he's been glued to your hip… Almost literally, so how did you give him the slip?" Marcus asked curiously.

Ed grinned. "Nothing to do with me. More like he accidentally cast slow on himself and probably still trying to cast haste to reverse it, nothing to do with me at all."

Marcus slapped his knee laughing. "Well, that's to be expected, but really, you should probably give him a proper goodbye before you leave."

"I still need to buy some supplies before I go. So, I'm not exactly leaving just yet." Ed grimaced at the thought of having to say goodbye to Zack. He could feel the headache coming on already.

"Good luck." Marcus said with mirth as he reached out for a farewell handshake.

Ed smiled and returned the man's sentiments. "I'll stop by before I head to Junon."

"J-Junon?"

"I'm not a complete dunce Marcus. Even if you didn't tell me to go to Cosmo Canyon, I would've gone to Junon or Midgar."

The man sighed. "Best of luck to you then."

"Thanks."

o.o.o.o.o

Zack couldn't believe that Ed would leave him hanging like this. After telling him everything he knew, he expected the older boy to trust him to go find Marcus together. Instead he left him back at Gongaga without even helping him with the slow spell.

Just a little more!

He was almost ready to cast again. After the initial screw up, he tried casting haste again and again, but by the time he built up enough energy, a distraction always gets him and he ends up casting slow on himself again. Half an hour and annoyed, Zack decided to give up and wait for the spell to wear off. By then, it was too late for him to venture out to Marcus. The hottest part of the day is over; all the wild monsters would be out hunting.

Even with how rash Zack is, he wasn't stupid. Whenever he ventured to Marcus, he always chose high noon when the monsters hides from the sun and scorching heat. Each time he ventured out, he risked getting a heat stroke, but at least he knew he wouldn't get mauled to death by monsters.

Zack sat at the entrance of the village and grumbling about all the things he's going to do to Ed while he waited for him to come back. By the time the blond did return, he forgotten everything he planned to do and tagged along to complete Ed's shopping trip.

"Hey Zack, you do know I'm leaving tomorrow right?" Ed asked as he handed Cinna, the shop keep, the money for the bag of supplies.

"But you're coming back right?" Zack commented cheerfully. "You're going to come back and continue training me right?"

"I'll come visit." Ed said quietly.

Zack looked disappointed. "Visit? Where are you going that's going to take you away for so long?"

"I need to find a way home Zack. I can't stay forever, you know." Ed said gently as he ruffled the spiky-haired youth's head. "Besides, it's not like you're going to stay in Gongaga forever. You wanted to join the military right?"

"I'm going to become SOLDIER!" Zack lit up.

Ed grinned. "Then we'll meet up in Midgar."

"Just you watch Ed, I'm going to become a First Class SOLDIER like Sephiroth! How cool would that be?" Zack chattered away for the rest of the trip.

o.o.o.o.o

Clap, haste. Clap, slow. Clap, confuse.

Ed went through his preliminary spells before he drew out his twin mythril blades. He left before the crack of dawn to avoid Zack and his goodbyes. The boy was incorrigible. Sure, he enjoyed his energy, but there should be a limit to how much energy he needs to deal with. He decided it was easier to follow the path of the water rather than venturing through the open plains. It was less likely for him to get lost and it was closer to where he needed to go. He came across mostly Beachplugs with a pesky guard skill, but he rather spends more time fighting those things than Touch Me Frogs.

Thrust, parry, sidestep, back-step, back flip, hand spring, dodge.

By the time Ed stopped for a break, he could see the other side of the riverbank. Crossing the river might be a problem. He could easily make himself a boat or a raft, but he'd risk the current dragging him out to sea.

Before he could decide what to do, a cry for help caught his attention. "Someone help me!" A man cried out.

Ed searched for the voice and found it by a bridge some distance down the river. It was hard to see from where he stood, but at least he didn't have to worry about finding a way across. Ed clapped his hands again to renew his haste as he hurried towards the cry for help. As he neared he could see a group of flying penguins attacking a lanky man.

With another clap, he cast confuse on the birds and charged in with blades ready. However, the skin was so thick; it was near impossible for him to penetrate the monster. The birds retaliated slamming their pudgy body at him and nearly knocked him off his feet. Ed planted his feet firmly as he slid back, flailing his arms to catch his balance as he nearly stumbled. The birds squawked angrily and charged again.

Ed gritted his teeth as he clapped again and he touched the ground. In seconds the spikes on the ground skewered the offending monsters.

"I've never seen a Quake materia do that." The man murmured when the monsters gave their last twitch.

Ed returned the ground back to normal with a grimace; he didn't want to show off his skills to anyone just yet. "You okay?" He asked. "What were you doing out here all alone? Don't you have materia or weapons?"

"Well, yes… I lost it when the monsters ambushed me. I'm not really a fighter you see. I'm more like a scientist." The man explained.

Ed perked up with great interest. "Scientist? What's your specialization?"

"I study bestiary and the link materia has to Planet. I'm Fuhito." The man glanced at him expectantly for his introduction.

"Just call me Ed." Ed replied, eager to get pass the introductions. "You spoke about materia, how well verse are you on the matter? I'm actually heading to Cosmo Canyon hoping to get some more information."

Fuhito's glasses glinted as he pushed it up the bridge of his nose. "Are you planning to make yourself more powerful with materia?"

"I'm not interested power." He waved off the notion. "I've had enough trouble to last a lifetime." Ed answered. "I actually want to learn a little more about the planet and how materias came to be. The books in Gongaga weren't all that helpful."

"Ah, you're from Gongaga. Strange, you don't have that distinct accent they have." The scientist noted.

"I'm a bit of a traveler, not from anywhere really." Ed continued. "Do you need to go look for your things? I could help you out a little before I continue to Cosmo Canyon."

A faint smile touched the man's lips. "That would be much appreciated." He said as he walked off with Ed following close behind him. "So what did you do back there with the Quake materia? I've never seen one that does spikes from the ground before."

"Really? It always did that." Ed lied, not wanting to bring up the topic of alchemy with a stranger he just met.

"Is that so? Do you think it's possible for me to study the materia? It might be a new branch." The man suggested enthusiastically despite his cool tone.

"Maybe some other time." Ed replied as they came across a claw on the ground with three materia slots with one linked slot. "Interesting weapon."

"Near useless during an ambush though." Fuhito said as he slipped it back onto his hand. "Now…" He turned to Ed coolly. "You said you wanted to go to Cosmo Canyon right? I'm actually staying there right now, I could show you the way."

"Really?" Ed asked.

Fuhito gave a faint smile. "It's only fair since you save me."

"Equivalent exchange huh?" Ed grinned. He likes this Fuhito character.

"Something like that. You are very lucky." He continued as they walked into the canyon.

"Why do you say that?" Ed asked as they trekked through the barren lands.

"Because it's an invite only village. We don't normally let people into the village that easily especially with Shinra growing in power." He explained as a dark expression crossed his face. "They're killing the Planet with what they're doing."

Ed frowned. "Marcus said something similar when he spoke about Cosmo Canyon. Exactly how is Shinra killing the planet? They're just an electric company right? Albeit a powerful one to have a army of its own."

"They're killing the planet by drawing its life force out of it."

"What does that mean?" Ed questioned curiously.

"Mako energy, as they call it, is actually part of the life stream. The life stream is fueled by a cycle of life and death. Regardless if it's a plant, human or monster, everything is interconnected."

"So essentially the life stream is a flow of souls that keeps the planet alive… and they're using it to power light bulbs!" Ed said in disbelief. The thought was unthinkable. "How could they use souls to do that?"

"What do you think materia is?" Fuhito stared at him confused. "Materia is solidified mako energy."

Ed paled as he looked at the hilt of his blade and the soft glow of his cure materia. These things were essentially philosopher stones. He felt sick.

Fuhito chuckled. "Don't look so horrified, materias form naturally in mako springs for the most part. No one had to die for it to be created… though Shinra is studying on how to mass-produce these materias. You never know what they do to get results." He shook his head.

That didn't make Ed feel any better, but he said nothing as they continued in silence. That hadn't been what he was looking to learn when he went in search on information on materia. Maybe there's a connection to his world from this world after all. Maybe alchemy is a lost art and these materias were what replaced it. Rather than being all is one and one, it became all about one.

"Ed?" Fuhito's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "We're here."

The blond alchemist looked up in surprise as he took in Cosmo Canyon. The village was built into the side of the mountain. A leather banner stretch at the village's entrance held up by two bamboo trunks marking the village as Cosmo Canyon. He could see the glow of a bonfire a short distance away and the observatory at the peak of the village.

"Are you going to stand there or are you coming up?" Fuhito asked as he ascended the stairs. Ed shook off his awe and hurried up the steps. Two guards stood at the top with spears crossed to block their path. "This is Ed, he's my guest."

The guards looked at one another for a moment before reluctantly removing their weapons and allowing their entrance. Immediately as they entered a girl spotted them and rushed over with a bright smile.

"Fuhito you're back!" She called out cheerily.

"Elfé." Fuhito returned the greeting as she stopped short a few feet from them. "How are you feeling today?"

"Much better, Shears was training me. Guess what? I could kill a Wyerd in one blow now!" She chirped excitedly before noticing Ed behind him. "Who's this?"

"This is Ed, he saved me early after a little mishap with my equipment." Fuhito explained easily. "It's nice talking to you Elfé, but I need to introduce Ed to Bugenhagen."

"All right, talk to you later then!" She chirped before running off. Ed found his eyes trailing after the girl as she left.

"Keep your eyes to yourself that girl is off limits." Fuhito commented as he urged him to follow.

Ed flushed red. "I'm not interested in her! It's just that… she has a materia embedded in her hand."

Fuhito became quiet. "That's for her to tell you if she's willing. It's a rather private matter."

"Fair enough." Ed commented as they trekked through the man-carved caverns and made their way up to the observatory.

Ed could understand the need for secrets and he has his fair share. Just as they went through another tunnel he caught something red at the corner of his eye. When he turned for a better look he only caught the flicker of flame disappearing. Not wanting to fall behind, his hastily followed Fuhito up the ladder and towards the observatory.

"Oh, ho, ho, ho!" A hearty bellow came from what Ed would call an odd geezer. The elderly man sat atop a floating green ball with his long white beard flowing over his lap. With that much beard, he could've made a decent wig for his baldhead. "Well, well. I never expected a guest of your stature to visit our Cosmo Canyon."

"Bugehagen?" Fuhito frowned in confusion.

"Thank you for bringing our guest here Fuhito. I would like to speak to him alone for a moment please." The elderly man said before Fuhito stiffly nodded and left. "My, my. I've never expected the Planet to send me her personal warrior."

"I'm no warrior." Ed frowned. "And I don't recall ever being sent here by the planet. Heck, I don't even know much about it."

"Maybe you don't know her by the name of Planet, but she did send you here to fulfill a task were you not?" Bugenhagen commented.

"…A task?" Ed's frown turned into realization. "You're talking about Truth! You know how to contact him?"

"So you know the Planet as the truth, interesting." The man stroked his long white beard. "I am sorry young warrior, I do not know how to make contact, only a Cetra could communicate with the Planet, but even then they can own obtain a vague message."

That sounds very much like a conversation with Truth, you never get a clear-cut answer.

"There are few Cetras left nowadays. It's a sad fact."

"Where can I find them? The Cetras I mean." Ed asked eagerly. If he could get in contact with one of the, he have hopes to getting back. Or at least have someone he could talk to about the gate.

"…That I do not know."

Ed's shoulders slumped dejectedly.

"However, you did come to learn more about materia have you not? The canyon's knowledge is your knowledge, you are welcome here anytime young warrior."

…Well, there's still that at least.

"…Thank you." Ed whispered.

o.o.o.o.o

CM Aeris: Three days, not too bad. I was stuck on the finer details for a bit, but I think I got some of the kinks out. As usual all reviews are appreciated!