A/N: Yeah, I know, I'm a horrible person. This is two days late.
…
Whoops.
I do have an excuse, though. I was a Speech and Debate tournament for most of Saturday and was too tired afterwards to do anything else. Sunday, my mother hijacked the computer all day. She has a bad habit of doing that. Unfortunately, I'm just going to come out and say that this will be happening again. This weekend, actually. I have another tournament then, an even bigger one. And the next weekend, I'm going on a ski trip. I'll update when I can, but don't be surprised if I occasionally miss a day. I'll try to warn you in advance, but I may not always. If I ever discontinue this story (which I will try my very hardest not to) I will let you know. Otherwise, I WILL update. That is a promise.
On a happier note, I got 3 reviews last chapter! Yay! That's a lot for a small crossover section like this one. Many thanks to AnimeSnowflake, .dragona, and Isana for reviewing! You're amazing! Virtual cookies to all! And in answer to your question, .dragona, this is the first anime-verse. It will follow that plotline, but with the Yu-gi-oh crew, it'll probably change up some, so that way I'm not just rewriting FMA with random pointless Yu-gi-oh characters. This will be the last chapter that follows the exact same storyline as the FMA episodes. After this, it'll start to change.
DISCLAIMER: (forgot this the last two chapters... whoopsie-daisy.) Yo no tengo FMA o Yu-gi-oh. English? I don't have FMA or Yu-gi-oh.
Atem, Yugi, and Tea wandered aimlessly through the halls of the massive temple. Joey and Tristan had run off some time ago, and while Atem had been assuring himself that they were getting into no more than their usual mischief, it was getting harder and harder for him to believe himself. Not only had they seemingly vanished into thin air, but Ed, Al, Rose, and Father Cornell had vanished along with them, making the entire situation all the more suspicious. So he, Yugi, and Tea had decided to take a walk, both to calm down and to keep an eye out for Joey and Tristan.
Suddenly, there was a large chorus of shouts coming from near where the sanctuary was. Atem could hear a large amount of people running, among them the distinctive banging of Alphonse's armored foot. Unsure as to what was going on, the friends decided to stay hidden in the shadows and to try to see what was happening.
As they ran past, Atem felt his eyes widen and heard a small gasp from Tea beside him. Ed, Al, Joey, and Tristan raced past, pursued by a large group of black-clad temple workers, shouting angrily for them to stop. Ed's shirt and pants were torn, revealing his right arm to be completely made of metal and, if the flash of silver on his leg was any indication, his left leg was metal too.
What the hell?
"Joey! Tristan!"
"What's going on?"
"What happened?"
Whether the two of them didn't hear their calling or were just flat out ignoring it, Atem wasn't sure. But they all simply rushed by without a backwards glance.
Atem, Yugi, and Tea immediately began to follow them, when they heard Father Cornello's voice coming from behind them.
"Ah! There you are," he said, smiling warmly at them. "Please, come with me. There is something I would like to show all of you."
"Please, Father Cornello, our friends—" Yugi began.
"Do understand, this is of utmost importance. I need you to help me so I can help you save your friends from those heretic Elrics."
"Save them?" Tea asked, starting forward. "Wh-what do you mean?"
"I will explain everything to you in due time, but I must first and foremost show you something. It will make more sense if I do."
Atem shared an apprehensive and anxious look with his friends.
But, he mused, we've wasted enough time here already that Joey and Tristan are probably long gone, and this looks to be our best chance for answers.
"Alright, we're all ears," he said to the Prophet.
Cornello smiled, but Atem felt malice behind the warmth. "Thank you. Rose, please go get their other young friend. He should be here too."
A mildly amused glance passed between Atem and Yugi. Kaiba had already made it quite clear what he thought of the "ridiculous old crone" and would sooner believe that Atem was indeed a Pharaoh than anything that came out of Cornello's mouth.
Once Kaiba joined the group, grumbling about being disturbed for such a pointless thing, they were lead to a small room with nothing but basic furnishings, much like their own. There was a bed placed in the center of the room, with white curtains pulled around it, hiding a vague figure.
"R-Rose," it croaked. "Rose."
Rose's eyes lit up, and she took a step forward, her breath coming in amazed, hopeful gasps. "Kain."
"Wait, Rose." Cornello held her back gently. "The great Sun God Leto has seen your faithfulness and he has rewarded you by granting your wish. But the healing process isn't quite finished yet; we need more time."
"What is this?" Atem wasn't sure how to react; whatever he was expecting to happen, this certainly wasn't it.
"My boyfriend, Kain. He d-died a while ago, but Father Cornello is bringing him back now. He's really coming back!"
"Idiot girl, the dead don't come back to life," Kaiba snarked.
"Then what do you call that?" she demanded angrily, gesturing over to the figure on the bed. Her face softened. "It's a true miracle."
Kaiba snorted and reached to pull back the curtain, but Cornello grabbed his hand. As he turned in an attempt to free himself of the crone's surprisingly strong grip, two temple workers grabbed him, restraining him. Cornello gestured for them all to leave, locking the door behind them.
"What does this have to do with Joey and Tristan?" Tea demanded.
"Those two have been ensnared by the Elric brothers' web of lies. These Elrics are deceitful, evil beings whom are well beyond hope. I'd had hope that, by showing you this, you could convince them to turn away from this darkness and return to the path of light. I'd prefer not to lose as many children as I can. Please, I beg your assistance."
Atem wasn't sure what to believe. While the Elrics had yet to do anything to harm them, he was still suspicious of them. And here appeared to evidence of a true miracle, of a person being brought to life!
On the other hand, the entire circumstance was rather strange. Convenient, if you will. Why couldn't they at least see Kain, even if he was healing? Would eyes hurt him, or something? And to some extent, they really had to trust their friends' judgment.
But they'd been wrong before. What if they were… misguided?
Atem heaved a sigh. This was getting way too complicated.
Cornello was still awaiting a response.
"I guess we'll try to talk to them and get them to see sense. We can try our best, Your Holiness," Tea said, taking control of the situation. Atem and Yugi turned to her in surprise; did she really believe him completely?
"Well, I won't. Sorry, but I just don't buy this at all," Kaiba said icily, without any note of apology in his voice.
"That's too bad. I have hope, though, that you will come to see the truth in your own time. As for you three," he turned to the friends, "thank you for your help."
Then he turned and left, the temple workers and Rose following him silently, as though they were obedient dogs.
Yugi turned abruptly to Tea. "Do you believe him?"
"I th-think I might," she stuttered. "I don't want to think Joey and Tristan are so horribly wrong and all, but… that just seemed like the real deal. You saw the miracle gathering earlier"—referring to what Ed had called "alchemy ignoring the laws"—"and even Ed said he couldn't do that with alchemy. I'm not sure the Elrics are evil, per se, but there's something off about them, that's for sure."
"Please. Even you geeks should be able to see how idiotic this is. Even the mutt figured it out. What's dead is dead. Period. If the dead can be brought back to life like Father Corny claims, then why are there plenty of people lying around and rotting in graves? Face it, this is just a load of shit."
Atem closed his eyes, massaging his temples. This was getting them nowhere. They needed to find Joey and Tristan. Hear their side of the story. Then he would be able to decide who he needed to believe. Hopefully.
"Come on," he sighed. "Let's find those two and see what's what." He glanced back at Kaiba. "Are you coming?"
"A search party for a mutt and a cheerleader with you dweebs? I'm headed back to the room." Kaiba paused for a moment. "Oh, and you'd better find a way to get us back home soon. I have a company to run and a little brother to raise."
Atem turned to Yugi and whispered, "What do you think? About all of this?"
Yugi looked troubled. "I don't know. I just don't know."
"Attention, people of Liore. Earlier this evening, heretics attempted to take the life of the Great Prophet Cornello."
Cray's voice boomed over the loudspeakers.
"One is short and blonde, the other wearing a suit of armor. With them are two foreigners with strange clothing whom have been corrupted by their evil."
All around town, people were coming out and talking angrily, arming themselves with whatever they could find, preparing for an all-out man-hunt.
"Father Cornello asks that you stay inside and take all necessary precautions until they are captured and brought to justice."
"They're over here!"
"Come on!"
Ed sighed, looking at the two boys panting beside him. A small part of him was happy, however, that despite the incredibly strange circumstances and all the evidence against them, these two managed to trust him and Al.
"I don't get it," the aforementioned suit of armor said. "If we really want the stone at all costs, we would've just taken it."
"Somehow, I doubt that bastard priest really cares about that," Tristan muttered, "and these people are as good as his puppets."
Then the broadcast came over the air.
"See what I mean?"
Ed paused. "Here, I've got an idea."
Atem, Yugi, and Tea headed towards the large angry crowd that had assembled around what was presumably their friends.
"What kind of depraved souls are you? How could you go after the prophet?"
"We welcomed you here. You made us believe you were good!"
Ed heaved an exasperated sigh. "Look lady, I didn't ask you to believe anything. That's your priest! He's a phony!"
"Joey! Tristan!" Yugi called.
"Yug!" Joey waved. "You guys alright?"
"We're fine but guys… what happened?"
"That priest is nothin' but a fake. He damn nearly killed us 'cause we figured it out." Tristan looked at Ed and Al a little sheepishly. "Well, they figured it out."
"A-are you sure?" Tea asked, her voice trembling. She had believed this man, believed that he was a prophet, believed that he could bring back the dead, but if what Joey was saying was true, then was everything else Cornello had said a lie? He'd said he wanted to "save" Joey and Tristan. Why would he try to kill him, then?
"Of course we're sure! It's hard to miss someone pointing a gun at us and firing!"
"Cornello's swindling you! He's only using alchemy!" That was Ed again.
"Liar."
The word was spoken with vehemence, malice, and the crowd parted to reveal Rose walking up to them.
"Just now, my boyfriend spoke to me."
Ed's eyes narrowed.
"You mean old Kain who we lost in the accident? He was a good kid! Good for you, Rose!"
"There, see? And he's not the first, there have been many others."
"Has anyone actually seen these people up close? 'Cause I heard they all left town as soon as they came back!" Ed shouted.
Wow, Yugi thought blandly. I'm going to take a wild guess and just say Cornello's a liar.
Suddenly, a large thumping sound could be heard. The crowd collectively turned and gasped. A line of impressive stone statues of their Sun God was marching towards them.
"Wanna call him a phony now?"
"Joey! Tristan!" Atem, Yugi and Tea surged through the crowd in an attempt to reach their friends as the statues began attacking them. One of the statues knocked over the suit of armor standing beside Edward.
"Al!" Ed called, and all three of them turned automatically, just in time to be delivered blows to the back of the head, knocking them unconscious. A few of the statues picked up the three unconscious ones, while the rest began bludgeoning Al.
"No!" Tea screamed, still trying to break free as the boys were dragged away.
"Let go of them!" Atem shouted. He attempted to call upon his Shadow powers, but for whatever reason, the response was slow and was taking too much of his energy and concentration. By the time he was able to get them focused, the crowd and the statues were gone, along with much too substantial an amount of his energy.
He swayed on the spot, suddenly dizzy.
"Atem!" Yugi cried, catching his friend. "What happened?"
"Something about this world…" he mumbled tiredly. "I can't use my powers properly." He then proceeded to swear under his breath.
"Let's find a place for you to sit down," Tea suggested, looking worriedly at the Pharaoh.
"No, I'm alright," Atem insisted. "We need to worry about Joey and Tristan right now; they're in more trouble." And Ed, he added silently, having decided that Cornello was a dirty liar and that the two brothers could be trusted in this regard, at least. He knew Yugi well enough to know he would feel the same way, but he wasn't entirely sure about Tea.
"We need to help Edward, too," Tea said quietly, unknowingly answering Atem's unspoken question.
"Do you believe them?" Yugi asked her as Atem closed his eyes briefly.
"Yeah, I do now. Joey and Tristan couldn't really miss an attempt on their lives, really. I just feel so stupid, y'know? Here I was, believing Cornello and all his pretty little lies, when he tried to kill my friends!" Tea exclaimed, blushing fiercely in embarrassment.
"Don't worry about it," Yugi told her calmingly. "He's had this entire town fooled for quite some time now. He fooled a lot of people."
"Not Ed and Al."
"Don't worry about it," Yugi repeated. "Just focusing on helping them."
After Atem caught his breath, they started walking back to the massive temple to find their friends. When the temple doors were in view, Atem said to Yugi and Tea in a low voice, "It might not be a bad idea to pretend that we still believe Cornello. We might be able to talk to them easier, and work out an escape plan."
"Yeah…" Tea trailed off. "I wonder… what does this mean for Rose and her boyfriend? What's going to happen there?"
"I don't know, but it probably won't be a happily ever after," Yugi said softly. His kind heart ached for the poor young girl. She really had nothing left.(1)
Then the trio once again entered the temple of the Sun God Leto.
"Hey Joey, Tristan!" Ed called. "You two alright?"
"I promise you, when I get my hands on that rotten priest…"
Ed grinned for a moment despite their circumstances, but soon his face turned somber again.
"Listen, there's something I want to ask you two about."
The two boys turned to look at him expectantly.
"What all do you remember about how you got here? Tell me everything you can, especially about… The Gate."
Joey looked confused for a moment. "Well sure, but why didn't you just ask us earlier on the train?
"There's something that even Al doesn't know. I'd like to keep it that way, but I need to know this and I don't want Al asking any questions. Or anyone else, for that matter."
"Why are you telling us this, then?
"I just told you, I need to know. Better it be just the two of you rather than all six of you and Al. This may be my best and only chance."
Joey closed his eyes. "We were just about to start the ceremonial battle to set Atem free…"
"The what?" Ed blinked.
"Never mind, it's not important," Tristan covered hastily, shooting Joey a glance. Ed cocked an eyebrow.
"Sorry, but that's someone else's secret. And I really doubt it has anything to do with what you're talking about."
Ed sighed. "Continue."
"So suddenly, there's this flash of light, and the six of us are in front of this Gate…" Joey quickly explained everything about their surprise journey through space and time into this world, ending with, "… then I woke up to you guys arguing about whatever it was you were arguing about."
"I've seen that Gate before," Ed whispered. "When we… tried to bring back our mother. I saw it. The Gate is what took my arm and leg and my brother's body as Equivalent Exchange. It may be the key to getting Al's body back."
They fell silent, unsure of what to say next, when the door opened to reveal Rose, Tea, and Yugi, each carrying a tray of food. Yugi and Tea went straight to talk to Joey and Tristan, while Rose walked stoically towards Ed.
"Oh, you came to feed me. And I thought you were mad. Ahh!" Ed opened his mouth as though he expected her to hand-feed him.
Rose set the tray down angrily, her pink bangs shadowing her eyes as she got up and began to walk away.
"I hope he's real, Rose." Ed was suddenly serious again. "I just don't want you to end up disappointed."
Rose fled.
Yugi looked back as she ran before saying, "So you guys have a plan?"
"Yeah, we'll be perfectly fine. Heck, Ed could get us out of here right now if he wanted. But we're gonna get this done, see this through."
Yugi sighed. "Alright. But please, be careful. You too, Ed. I don't—"
He was cut off as Father Cornello came down the stairs.
"Why have you lied to me, children? It seems I may be losing you and your other two friends to the darkness as well. Please come with me so I can assuage your doubts and fears." AS he said this, he grinned maniacally and ropes seemed to spring from the ground and attach themselves to Yugi and Tea's wrists.
"Hey, what're you doing to them?" Joey cried, struggling against the chains.
"Come along now, your other friends are waiting for you." The pure malice in his voice was undisguised.
Yugi and Tea were unceremoniously dragged along to the room where "Kain" was. They spotted Atem and Kaiba bound and gagged outside as well, and they could hear Rose's voice faintly from inside, talking to what she still believed to be her boyfriend.
Cornello opened the door and threw the four captive inside before taking quick strides over to "Kain's" bed.
"What's going on?" Rose shrieked.
Cornello didn't deign to answer her, instead simply throwing back the curtains to reveal what looked to be some hideous bird-thing which Yugi immediately dubbed the Extremely Frightening Chicken(2). Rose Gasped and immediately looked towards Cornello, waiting for him to explain it all away, still expecting him to have all the answers.
"Sorry, but even with the Philosopher's Stone, I can't manufacture a human soul, so I had to us the souls of these birds instead. Isn't that what you wanted?"
"Rose," the EFC squawked. "R-Rose."
Rose was trembling, too stunned to do anything. Cornello quickly left the room, locking them inside with the EFC.
The four bound captives struggled mightily to get free, but before they could, the EFC attacked Rose, who could only get it together enough to scream…
There was a crash and a thud, and Al stood there, having punched the EFC to the ground, leaving it quivering and choking.
"I guess I don't need to tell you that it's dangerous here. Come on."
"You tried to… bring your mother back to life?" Atem asked quietly.
"Yeah," Al said. "But it was a mistake. We've paid for it. We're still paying for it. I lost my entire body; Ed lost an arm and a leg. All we want now, though, is to get out bodies back to the way they were before. It's why Ed became a State Alchemist."
Well, that explains a lot.
"Whatever happened to your mother?"
"I should get going." Al stood up.
They watched silently as Al began attaching several wires to the large bell that had hung in the temple steeple. Then he picked up a switch and flicked it on.
There was a brief moment of screeching feedback before Ed's voice came out loud and clear.
"So what, is it the money you're after?"
"Oh, I can get all the money I want from the offerings. But you think too small. I'm making believers who would gladly throw away their very lives in my name. And why not? They believe I can bring them back to life. They aren't afraid to die. There is no greater army than those with a holy cause! Soon, I will have a big enough following to tear this country apart!" That was the false priest, his voice a far cry from the warmth he used with his followers.
"Makes no difference to us," Ed sighed.
"After all, there's no real way to bring back the dead."
"Once you kill us, we're gone for good." Joey and Tristan, adding in their two-cents.
"I'm afraid you're right. I'd only end up like you, Elric. And what kind of King would sacrifice himself for the sake of his mindless pawns?"
There was a brief pause, when suddenly Cornello's voice boomed out even louder than before.
"WHAT? How long has that thing been on?"
"Long enough for the 'mindless pawns tearing this country apart comment', I think." There was the sound of laughter in the background.
"How did you get my broadcasting equipment?"
"Al rigged it up!"
"Sure, you smashed him into pieces, but that was just some metal made to look like him!"
"No my children, they lie! Don't believe them!"
Yugi couldn't help but chuckle a little bit at that, though the situations didn't really call for it at all. But the nasty preach really deserved it. The smaller, some-what malicious part of him would enjoy witnessing Corny's humiliation that was sure to come; the bigger, sympathetic part ached for these poor people whose live had just been shattered.
Looking down, he saw Cornello racing out of the temple, to where the angry and frightened citizens of Liore had gathered.
"This I've gotta see," Kaiba commented, smirking. He began racing off of the rooftop, the rest of the group following.
When they reached the crowd, they could just hear Cornello saying, "—didn't fool me with that little display downstairs." He held up something silver the Yugi vaguely recognized as the pocket watch Ed had displayed to them earlier, his State Alchemist watch. "Without this, the only alchemy you can do is to your own metal arm."
"You're not the only one that can't stand doubters, preach!" With this, Ed clapped his hands together and placed them on the ground, releasing blue alchemical light. "Here's the real Hammer of God!"
And out of the temple rose a massive statue of the Sun God.
"Rings and watches have nothing to do with it; my brother's the Fullmetal Alchemist."
The stone fist struck the ground in front or Cornello, sending him backwards. He started crawling away, clutching his hand to his chest.
"No! I won't let you have it! You can't take it from me—Agh!"
There was a burst of purple light, and Cornello screamed in agony. Ed raced up to him, presumably to get the stone. The people had fallen silent.
"What's happening?" Rose asked, echoing everyone's thoughts. Al didn't answer.
"An imitation?" Ed's voice was quiet, terse, yet somehow managing to carry through the silent town. "After everything you put me through, even the stone's a fake? Quit jerking me AROUND!"
Not even Kaiba could think of anything to say to that.
(1) I don't really like Rose very much. She gets annoying. She's very whiny. And needy. And gets angry at Ed when he reveals Cornello despite the fact that a) her boyfriend was never coming back and b) Cornello was going to use them as "mindless pawns tearing this country apart". Why she doesn't get angry at Cornello is beyond me. She just strikes me as a Mary-Sue. However, they would be rather nice to her. So Yugi feels bad like the nice person he is, despite the fact that she annoys me like crazy.
(2) Extremely Frightening Chicken was dubbed thus by a friend of mine when I forced her to watch FMA. I have never been able to think of it any other way since.
A/N Again, sorry for the late update. I must admit, though, when I first started writing this story, I was having trouble figuring out how to make Joey, Tristan, and Tea even relevant characters. Now Joey and Tristan and pretty major. Still don't know what Tea's purpose is, except that she randomly believed Cornello. I never liked Cornello. And Atem's awesome Shadow powers don't work! O.o Don't worry, I will NOT make the Yu-gi-oh crew completely useless. Anywho, please review!