M.P.O.: hey guys! i'm sooo glad you like this version better, and thanks for the reviews: bloddy raptor; mrawgirl09; and horselvr4evr123! this chappy's for you guys! anyway, not gonna bore you with the usual nonsense, so here you go!
Roy dropped the phone as the screams echoed in the silent room. Everyone was staring wide eyed at the black metal that emitted the terrible cries. After a few seconds the cries were silenced, and shuffling noises could be heard, then a man's voice saying "NO! NO DON'T…" before a venomous voice cut his off.
"DON'T WHAT? LET YOU LIVE? OK!" crashing sounds mingled with more screaming as whomever it was acted on their words. A single gunshot rang out and then all was quiet.
"Breda, Furey! Trace this call NOW!" Roy barked out orders, while picking up the phone again, this time setting it down on the desk. Al was sitting in a corner, staring at the place on the floor where the phone had been, his arms wrapped around his knees, his eyes wide and full of fear. Riza walked over and put a comforting hand on his shoulders, her face drawn with shock as she listened to the sounds still emitting from the phone.
"We got it! They're in an abandoned warehouse on the edge of town. It was down for deconstruction this week." Furey scrambled over to Mustang, a piece of paper clutched in his white fist.
"Let's go. Al you stay here, and don't argue with me!" Roy warned as Al looked up to retort. Then crossing the room in three long strides, followed by Riza, Breda, and Falman, they headed out, piling into Riza's car and tearing off down the paved road.
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The warehouse was quiet, for the most part. Ominous creaking noises echoed in the empty spaces every now and then. Ed stood near the wall, examining the blood that ran from the bullet wound in her shoulder. She shuddered, blinking as the last of the red in her irises dissappeared back into the pupil, and collapsed to her knees breathing heavily. 'Ugh, I hate it when that happens...' She thought, grimacing at the coppery taste of blood that lay thick on her tongue. Slowly, she stood up again, ignoring the drying blood that drenched her hair and arms, and wandered back over to the corner she had been tied into. 'Might as well make it look like someone else did it...' She thought wearily as she gathered the ropes and tape. The latter went around her ankles and back onto her mouth, while the ropes were tied around her hands several times, in a series of complicated knots designed to look like someone else had tied them. Inwardly she grinned at her briliance and curled up an as small a ball as she could, listening to the creaking of the old building.
'Maybe I should get out of here instea...'The thought was cut off as the roof collaped inward, effectivly burying the evidence against her. Ed rolled her eyes at the heavy beam that had landed on her, and clapped her hands together, preparing to get the damn thing away from her, when she heard sirens. Stopping with her hands inches away from the wood of the beam, she listened hard, thankful for her enhanced hearing. She sighed when she heard The Bastard barking orders before his foot even hit the ground. 'Just like you Mustang. Hope you didn't bring Al along...' She thought and placed her hands on the wood, watching as it melted away from her touch. What she didn't realize was that the beam had been supporting the rest of the roof which otherwise would have been, and now was, on top of her head. She groaned and blacked out with the thought 'I really need to quit doing this...'
Outside the warehouse, Roy was barking orders and watching the still crumbling building warily. One back corner had stood longer than the rest, but then collapsed as well, making him wince when he thought of the people who had been inside. They waited about twenty minutes for the rubble to settle before venturing out to dig. An hour later they had found three men, all dead, one with his throat torn open, and the others with their necks riped by what looked like animal claws. Breda had been digging in one of the corner area's for about ten minutes before he yelled for the others to come help him. Together, the four of them lifted and shoved the huge peices of ceiling away from the frail form underneath. Roy reached under and placed a hand on Ed's throat, exhailing in relief when he felt a steady pulse. Slowly, he pulled her out from under the pile, working as quickly as he could without hurting her furthur. As soon as she was free of the rubble, Breda, Riza and Furey let go of the roof, and closed their eyes against the torrent of dust that billowed up from under it. They gathered protectivly around Roy as he checked the blond alchemist for serious wounds, Riza keeping her gun cocked and ready for use.
'Damn Ed, what'd you get yourself into this time?'Roy asked himself, pulling as many splinters as he could out of her torn clothing and bare arms. Swiftly he cut the ropes on her hands and ripped the tape away from her legs before gathering her into his arms bridal style and standing. A nod of his head had the others walking in formation around him as they picked their way back throught the rubble.
Two men took Ed from his arms as they walked out of the rubble, laying her softly on a streacher and loading her into the back of a truck. One of them tapped the roof and the driver sped off, leaving a trail of dirt behind him as the headed to the hospital.
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The night was cool and clear, with not a cloud in sight to hide the full moon that rose overhead. A lone figure strode across the grass, hands deep in his pockets as he whistled tunelessly, a long golden braid swinging to and fro behind him. He stopped in the light of a street lamp to stare at the stars above him, the tiny dots of light reflecting in his golden eyes.
"I swear I'll find my way back Al." He whispered, before turning and finding himself face to face with a strange woman dressed in red and black.
"Who are you?"
"No one of consequence, youngling."
"Who you callin short?"
"You…shrimp."
"HEY!"
"Hahaha, I love it when they get angry."
He looked over the lady cautiously, his gaze lingering on the blood red eyes, and the long painted fingernails.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to be getting home now."
"Oh come now, this is a perfect night. Why not walk with me for a while?" She twirled a finger in his hair, pushing herself close to him and breathing on his neck. He shivered and pushed her away.
"No thanks. Go back to where you came from." He started to walk off, only to find himself held in the air a few seconds later.
"Should I do it? You would be a hastle to care for...not to mention feeding you. Oh well, I don't care." She grinned, exposing sharp fangs and tilted his head to the side easily, though he was fighting with all his strength. Two small points pierced his neck, and liquid fire poured itself through his veins. Unable to hold it in, he let out a scream, which sounded more like an unearthly howl of pain, and then fell limp against the woman's chest. She cradled him gently, and smiled, flashing those pearly fangs again.
Ed opened her eyes and sat up so quickly, she made the nurse standing next to her yell in surprise. About five seconds later, Roy and Al opened the door and bombarded the nurse with questions, not noticing that Ed was awake and staring at them in surprise. Grinning slightly, the somewhat flattered patient cleared her throat and everyone looked around at her.
"So, the great Flame Alchemist was worried about little ol' me, huh? That's rich." She snorted and fell back on the pillows, laughing. Roy looked flustered for a moment and then stood up straight, regaining his composure as he watched her rolling around on the bed. He noticed that there were no tubes connected to her veins, and that there was hardly a blood spot on the bandage around her shoulder. Raising an eyebrow in confusion (and interest), he cleared his throat and answered.
"One has to check on their subordinates, Esme…" He smirked when she stopped laughing and sat up again.
"Who you callin' short, hothead?" She growled, annoyed at his old habit.
"S-sir, I r-really think you must let her rest. S-she just got admitted a few h-hours ago." The nurse stuttered, staring fixedly at the silver watch chain at Roy's waist.
"Fine, but this young man stays her. Alphonse, behave, not that I need tell YOU that." He remarked, watching as Ed turned a delicate shade of red. He left, and the nurse closed the door grumbling something under her breath.
"Ok, Miss Esme, you should eat. How about some rice and chicken?"
"No thanks. I've already eaten today." She muttered, turning instead to look at Al who had sat down in a chair and hadn't taken his eyes off of her. "You know it's not polite to stare Al…" She joked, ruffling his hair when he blinked and looked away.
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About a week after Ed's admission to the hospital, she was released, mostly due to her outrageous temper. She bounced into the office bright and early in the morning, literally dodging a bullet from a sleepy eyed Riza.
"Hey, watch it now! Geese, remind me never to wake you up in the morning."
"Sorry, Ed." Riza yawned, covering her mouth as she sat back down and put away her gun.
"What was that?" A puffy eyed Brigadier General stuck his head out of his office, blinking wearily at Riza, one eyebrow raised feebly in what was supposed to be a questioning look.
"Elric."
"Oh, well then keep it down."
"Not sleeping on the job are you, Bastard?" Ed teased, flinging herself down in a chair and hanging an arm over the back. Roy just glared at her and slammed the door behind him.
"What's got his watch in a knot?"
"He stayed up all night signing paperwork at gunpoint." A smiling Breda walked into the room, munching on a donut, and pointly ignoring the evil eye Riza was giving him. Ed began to laugh; loud enough that Roy stuck his head back out to see what was so funny. She slapped a hand to her mouth in an attempt to stifle the giggles that threatened to burst forth, and stared him down, waiting until he had disappeared again before snorting. When she had finished with her giggle-fit, she relaxed on a chair, peering around the room as Riza finished up some paperwork. She frowned upon realizing that Al wasn't in the room. Turning to Breda, she opened her mouth only to squeak in surprise when the sandy haired youth jumped at her from behind her chair, yelling "BOO!" Ed, of course, turned around and dropped a fist directly onto his head, earning back a muffled "Sorry..." from the dazed teen.
"Don't sneak up on me like that. Made me think you were Greed or something, jeeze." She muttered, flicking a peice of hair behind her ear as Al emerged from behind her, rubbing the top of his head and looking slightly cross-eyed.
"That, hurt. you shouldn't use the metal one..." He retorted, grimacing as he patted the raised bump gingerly.
"I didn't." Came the simple answer. Al and the others in the office stared at Ed, a few mouth's hanging open. She opened one eye, glaring a them all and then leaned back, closing her eyes yet again.
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The next morning was damp and rainy, with dark gray clouds covering the sky, moving only occasionally to let loose a feeble ray of sunshine. Ed stared out the window, pondering a wide range of things, one of which happened to be: 'why's it always so damn rainy?' She looked away from the window when a door opened below her, shifting her attention to the room around her as she inspected the line of uniforms that marched into the room. In the raised seats around her, about a hundred men sat, their hands clentched with tension and a few muttering mathmatical equations under their breath. Ed just raised an eyebrow at the lot of them, twirling her pencil between her fingers as she tuned one ear into the Furor's opening speach.
About twenty minutes later, she stared down at a thick pad of paper, the first page filled with lines of print. And so, resigning herself to doom, Edward Elric once again sat the State Alchemist's Written Exam. She stared down at her paper, writting continuously, and only pausing to flip the page. As she wrote the answer for one question, she methodically read the next question, over and over, until only one page was left.
Her throat itched and burned like crazy, the dark half she had begun to call "Lilith" was yelling about her need for blood and trying to rip her way out of Ed's mental walls, but still she kept on, writting so furiously that when she went to turn the page, she began to write on the desk before she realized she was finished. She blinked, focusing on the clock above the table below, realizing she still had about fifteen minutes left. Another blink. and then a sigh, as Ed sank down in her seat, dropping the pen onto the desktop as she went.
Below, at the judges table, Roy looked up to see Ed staring at the ceiling, a full fifteen minutes before the limited testing time was over. She caught his eye and gave a small grin, wiping a hand on her forehead at the same time. He just sat there stunned. 'I didn't think anyone could finish that thing...Then again, Al did when he was only twelve, although he never went any farther than that. Guess it runs in the family?'
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Then next day was the Interrogation, for which Ed actually dressed nice. She pulled her hair into a nice ponytail, with two stripes of hair hanging beside her face, and donned a white blouse with her old symbol, the cross and the snake, splayed aross the front. Black dress pants and some leather boots finished off the ensemble and Ed smiled at herself in the mirror.
The doors were just as she remembered them, tall, white and intimidating. She stood somewhere in the middle of a long line of men, attracting a lot of stares from them, especially after she hissed at one of the guys who just couldn't take his eyes off of her. The fact that her eyes were turning red didn't help the matter. But soon enough, she was standing directly in from of the doors that so resembled the gate.
"Edward Elric." A voice called her inside and she pushed open the door. Inside, the three legged chair stood as still as ever, it's seat balanced upon the point like an equation upon the answer. Ed crossed the array in three long strides, settling into the chair and leaning back comfortably. Underneath her the array glowed for a few seconds, it's energy seeming to greet her and warming her all over. She sighed and opened her eyes staring straight at the panel of judges in front of her. The last time they had been shrouded in shadow, but this time she could see them as clear as day, her night vision paying off as she studied the Furor carefully.
"Edward Elric. Why do you feel you are ready to become a State Alchemist?" The man to the right of the Furor asked, studying what she assumed to be her file carefully. She thought for a few seconds, considering her answer. When she spoke, she answered in a clear tone, her voice strong as it echoed throughout the room.
"In my life I have seen and done much. I have seen my mother die in front of me, learned alchemy and through it lessons for later life. I have brought my brother back from the brink of death, and crossed the gate twice, though not whole. I once held the title of The Fullmetal Alchemist, but that is behind me. I wish to help the people still, using my alchemy to better our nation and our way of life." She finished by clasping her hands in her lap, studying the men without them realizing she could even see them. inwardly she smirked, and Lilith growled muttering to herself. 'If you don't hurry up, I'll break free.' The temptress taunted, glaring at her through the bars that enclosed her cell.'You wouldn't want that would you? If you get too hungry you won't be able to stop me, and then I'll go around killing as much as I please. and you and your precious military won't be able to do anything.' Ed glared at Lilith, making the beast cringe back into a corner.'Shut it will you? I'll get some food when I damn well please, and no sooner.' Ed growled again and turned her attention back to the men in front of her. They were asking her last question, the one she had been expecting.
"And what would your name be, if you could choose one?" at one the end of the table, Roy raised an eyebrow, waiting for her answer.
"The Fullblood Alchemist." She stated simply, shrugging as if it was obvious. One of the judges opened his mouth, but Ed beat him to it. "Because the blood that runs through my veins belongs to my country, therefore I share their blood as much as they do mine." 'But in a different way than you think...' She added mentally and grimacing in disgust. The judges all nodded, looking at each other before the Furor cleared his throat.
"Dismissed Ms. Elric. And good luck."
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That night proved to be a dark one, the clouds covering the sky like a think quilted blanket. Ed wandered the streets, hoping to find someone tasty enough to stop her stomach from doing flip flops. She remembered very clearly the first time she fed.
Flashback
The golden blond boy crouched in a corner, staring at his hands in horror. The normally white gloves were covered in slowly thickening blood, as red as the jacket he had worn in the other world. A tall woman stood in front of him, and placed a hand under his chin, forcing him to look up into her eyes. She grinned as she gazed into the fiery red eyes of her fledgling.
"Are you going to finish it or not? You know you want it. You cannot deny that which you need to survive. Come, drink your fill."
Ed shook his head frantically, staring wide eyed at the mangled corpse in front of him. The neck on the brown haired female was torn open, exposing the jugular in all its beauty. A low whine escaped his lips and he pressed them together to stop it.
"If you don't eat, I'll force feed you. Like a little baby."
Ed shot her a glare that seemed like it could have killed. Grudgingly, he shuffled over and dropped down beside the girl. Her glassy eyes frozen wide in an expression of shock, he stared at her for a few minutes before lowering his head and sipping hesitantly at the trickle of blood still flowing from the wound. His sipping grew in intensity until he bit deep into her throat, unable to control himself any more. The woman watched him with a smile, and closed the door to the room.
End Flashback
Ed shook her head and looked around. It took her a minute to notice the cute young man staring at her with a glass half raised to his mouth. Setting it down, he pushed himself back from his table and made his way over to her.
"Hello miss. Are you looking for someone?"
"Yes. Yes I am." She smiled at him, pulling on the mask of a lost young woman once again.
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Ed stared at her hands, slowly working the kinks out of her real hand, while the metal one kept pace for comfort. today She had chosen a fairly simple outfit. A red t-shirt with a black and silver orobourus on the front, shaped in the likeness of a dragon eating its tail. Blue jeans and white shoes adorned her lower half (naturally) and over it all she wore a black coat cut in the same style as her old one. Her hair was pulled into a french braid, something she had learned while she was in London, and hung to her waist, swinging lightly when she moved. She stood slightly apart from the few other men who had made it past both the Exam and the Interview, and stared at the door, her eyes shining like liquid gold.
In her mind's eye, she saw Lilith snikering at her and wiping her lips on a napkin daintily, as thought there had actually been food in front of her. 'Oh you just look so dashing...for a pipsqueak.'
'Oh, you'd love to get a rise out of me today wouldn't you? Of course...Just sit back and watch the show. I'm sure you'll have fun, even if you don't want to admit it.'
'We'll see. if I do have even a small amount of fun, I'll shut up for a week, how's that?'
'You're joking? You never make deals...Who am I kidding, you're just an entity I made up to deal with these damn cravings. Oh god, I am going nuts...' Ed shook herself out of her thoughts in time to join the others in a line. She caught a few of them eyeing her with something akin to desire, or jealousy, but one sharp look stopped that, and she fought back a smile as the doors opened and they marched out amidst the cheering of the crowd.
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Roy sat in a chair in front of the stands, carefully scanning the crowds for someone. A moment later a small grin rose to his face as he spotted Al, Riza, Falman, Breda, and Furey, clumped together at the edge of the stands. They all waved at him, and he returned the gesture, albeit a little less enthusiastically. The Furor sat on his right, about two seats down, and a few other major figures gathered around him as they came to claim their seats.
After about 20 minutes, a small troup of people came walking through the doors. He scanned the line, immediatly spotting the golden blonde beauty in the middle of the line. Roy stopped himself. Did he really just think Ed was beautiful? He shook his head bemusedly as the Furor stood and started his speach.
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Ed smiled and turned back around to face the piles of material in front of her. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Mustang struggling with some internal battle, as though he wanted to flame something. She snickered and watched the other alchemists' studying the piles of material with some tredeptation, tuning out the furor's opening speach as she considered what she would create. The first guy up fumbled with his chalk for a few seconds, before drawing an array, and slamming his hands down upon it. 'Who's he trying to be? Fullmetal?' She thought with a sly snicker, now looking at a ten story statue of the Furor. 'Suck up.' Lilith commented dryly. 'Yeah, they usually are...'
The next few guys were so nervous that their structures all fell apart at the slightest touch, thankfully none of them fell on anyone though, Ed thought. Finally they called out her name.
"Edward Elric." She snikered, seeing some of the men looking around a bit before they noticed that she had stepped forward and was already considering the ingredients with a critical eye. She heard their murmuring and nearly lost it then and there, wanting so much to turn and correct the idiots.
"...can't be an Elric..."
"Maybe the Elric brothers had a sister..."
"Did you not hear the name? They said Edward. This chic's just that! A chic! She can't be one of the Elric's..."
Ed smirked, clapping her hands together loudly and reveling in the silence that followed as she laid her hands on the ground in front of her. Blue streaks of alchemy ran across the ground heading for the larger piles of material that the lesser alchemists had not been able to move. Several different colored piles started to roll, running together to form two towering figures. One was made of a gray metal, fashioned into a old style suit of armor. Beside it, admittedly a lot shorter, stood an exact repilca of the Fullmetal Alchemist in his prime. His clothing was fasionably torn, showing off the metal limbs and pale skin underneath, while the statue's hair and eyes really glowed a strange golden color; the clothing was even colored to match. The two Elric brothers stood in a fighting stance, Ed holding his trademark staff, and Al, in his normal fighting stance, while around them sand, dirt, metal, and ice, whirled around their feet, frozen in a sort of whirl-wind that framed the two brothers. Rubbing her hands together, the real Ed stood back to examine her handy work, smiling broadly at the complete silence that filled the air. She frowned for a moment, thinking and then stepped forward clapping her hands together softly. Blue energy etched words onto the handle of the staff, clearly visible to those in the stands.
"An Alchemist Be Thou For The People"
M.P.O.: so what do you think? personally this is my favorite chappy so far, especially the ending. please let me know if you liked it or not! cookies to those who do reveiw!!!