a/n: It's finally finished! I reworked this chapter more than a few times over the past however many months it's been since my last update, lemme tell ya.(don't worry, I won't really bother with all the boring details, or whatever.) I want to thank you guys for having patience with me, especially since i went from a fairly decent updating rate to a shitty, drawn out one. I still can't believe I've managed to write something with 10 chapters without losing interest, or changing my original base outline...Well, enough of my babbling! On with the story!

Just to reiterate:
'anything like this' the thoughts of whomever's POV it's in (for this chapter, it's all Ed)

Chapter 10: The Living, the Dead, and Everything in Between

Summary: In which Ed finds himself starting down a path that will have him questioning everything he thinks he knows; Including life, death, and everything in between.

Ed's boots hit the ground with a soft thud, the alchemist immediately crouching and surveying the area around him. He'd come out in a courtyard, the soft grass muffling the noise of his prosthetic limb. It did nothing to hide the light from the transmutation he'd just done, however, and he couldn't be sure the residual smoke from the fires had hidden it.

Eerie shadows littered the landscape, making it hard to tell what should be there, and what shouldn't. The dancing firelight wasn't helping either, making him feel as though he'd fallen into some sort of hellish nightmare where even the trees could turn out to be blood thirsty monsters.

Slowly he stood, a glimmer of unease skating through him. Ignoring the general chaos, it was ultimately too quite, and what's more, Alucard was nowhere in sight. 'How is that even possible? He stands out like a goddamned sore thumb!' Ed huffed, trying not to grit his teeth as he made his way towards the heart of the attack.

The alchemist slunk from shadow to shadow, all senses on high alert. The lack of monsters unnerving him a little as he tried to hammer out a mental game plan. If it had just been human enemies, all he'd probably have to do would be to overcome the leader and force him and his men into submission. Unfortunately, that sort of tactic didn't work so well on chimera's, who would continue to do more or less whatever they pleased regardless of their 'master'. Ed silently cursed the things into oblivion.

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Five minutes of stalking later found Ed nearing not only the end of the courtyard, but the beginning of the conflict as well. The roar of flames eating away at everything in their path, the thunder of gunfire and a shrill chorus of screams grew steadily louder in his ears as he ventured on. The lighting was getting better, but visibility was still dodgy as hell.

An unintelligible shriek, answered by laughter that made his skin crawl drew his attention, effectively distracting him long enough to trip over something and fall face first into the wet, sticky grass. Ignoring the slight throbbing in his newly flesh and blood arm, Ed flipped himself over to look for the thing that'd sent him sprawling. A leg, severed mid-thigh, lay innocently next to his foot. His gaze immediately snapped up, scouring the ground around him. Only now that he was looking for them did he see them; limbs, torsos, shadowy objects that could only be bits and pieces of humans littered the area. Slowly, he lifted his hand to his face, eyes widening as he realized why the grass was so slick. Blood, darkened by ash and dirt streaked across his skin, collecting in the grooves of his palm and the scars that he barely ever took notice of.

With more effort than he would have liked, Ed managed to stifle the rising horror he felt, as well as the bile that had risen to the back of his throat. Determined to put an end to this, he moved to climb to his feet, only to be thwarted. A hand latched itself onto his wrist with bone breaking intensity, nails digging into his skin as it yanked him back to the ground. Startled, and already more than a little on edge, Ed swung at his assailant, fist colliding harshly with a face.

The hand didn't let go, even as the head snapped back, nose now nothing more than a pulpy smear that marred the pale face. A guttural noise tore from the man's throat, head lowering to stare at him. The eyes that met his sent fear racing down the alchemist's spine. There was no distinction between iris and pupil, the color dull and the gaze seemingly emotionless. Blank, soulless eyes; the eyes of a dead man.

Ed jumped as the man grabbed his other arm, thrashing against the inhuman strength as his survival instincts kicked in. The things mouth opened, growling and moaning like an animal as it made to lunge, and he just barely managed to get his foot lodged against it's chest. It took three good kicks from his automail leg to dislodge the monster from his space, the last sounding as if it'd broken more than a few important things. He didn't care, the second it was away from him Ed scrambled backwards, sliding a bit as he regained his feet.

Within seconds he'd transmuted himself a blade from the ground beneath his feet, looking wildly around for more of them. His limited field of vision was devoid of life, sending his attention back to his assailant. From this angle, he was able to get a better look at the man, what he saw both startling, and confusing. Though the uniform was smeared with blood and ash, it was unmistakably that of a Briggs soldier, and what's more, both his legs had been severed. The stumps were a bit bloodied, but weren't actively bleeding, which Ed didn't think possible since they were clearly fresh wounds. Questions exploded inside his skull, the pace of them making his head feel light. He watched as the soldier drug itself towards him, blank eyes boring into him as it continued it's litany of noises.

He didn't know the why, or even the how, and he felt torn between wanting to kill the bastard, and not wanting to hurt one of Armstrong's men. The hand that reached out and grabbed onto his pants leg decided for him, sending his weapon straight down between the thing's eyes before he had a chance to check himself. The mutilated solider stilled instantly, dropping into a heap at Ed's feet.

With a grimace he turned and fled, determined to figure out what the hell was going on and put an end to it. He jumped and skirted around more fallen men and limbs, encountering only two more of the bastards before he'd managed to escape the courtyard.

The sound of his feet hitting the concrete was smothered by the sounds of fighting. The area was littered with carnage, bodies and weapons covering just as much ground as the blood and bullet casings they'd shed. And in the center of it all, a mob of white-clad soldiers were converging, movements oddly disjointed. He could see a few with guns, firing at something he couldn't yet see, the rest lunging much as the one who'd attacked him had.

He knew, simply by the way they made his hair stand on end, that these things, whatever they were be it men or something other, were the enemy. Without slowing his pace, Ed slammed his hands together, only slowing enough to set loose his transmutation. The concrete erupted around him, lifting him and sending him forward, a barrage of fists careening ahead of him to slam into the group. Before they had a chance to retaliate, Ed'd leapt from his perch, punching and slicing anything within arms reach. Once he'd got his footing, Ed crouched, swinging a leg out to knock away a soldier that was too close for comfort.

Despite his best efforts, they kept coming, no matter the wounds he inflicted, still they got back up. He soon realized it wasn't just tenacity, either. He'd caught one of them in the stomach with his blade, cutting him to the point that his intestines spilled out at his feet; He'd watched as the man stumbled back, caught himself, then continued his assault, as if nothing had happened.

"What. The. HELL?" Each word was punctuated with a swing, his adrenaline spiking as his mind told him to give it up and get the hell out of there.

Maniacal laughter erupted near him in response. Ed turned toward it, only to jump back as one of the men fell towards him. The body hit the ground with a thud, a neat, fist sized hole where the heart should be. The blonde looked up, eyes meeting a pair of familiar, wild crimson eyes. "Alucard!"

The Nosferatu's smirk widened into a feral grin before he turned, grabbing the nearest soldier's face in the palm of his hand. Within seconds the skull in his grip cracked under his strength, blood and brain matter squirting out between his fingers. A vicious jerk of the No Life King's wrist and the body and head were separated. Alucard laughed, tossed the head once into the air as you would a ball, then threw it towards the transfixed alchemist.

Ed jumped, pivoting just in time to see the severed head collide with the face of another one of the soldiers that'd been coming up behind him. The head snapped back and the soldier fell, face caved in from the force of the hit. The severed head(or rather, what remained of it) bounced off into the darkness.

"Just because they can see over your head doesn't mean they don't realize you're there, little boy."

Ed ground his teeth, turning back to stare daggers at the laughing man. "I'M NOT SHORT!" Alucard only laughed harder, and Ed'd had enough. He threw his hands together with a snarl, the alchemic reaction sparking viciously around his limbs and reflecting eerily off the Nosferatu's eyes. The alchemist dropped to one knee, slamming his hands flat on the concrete hard enough to make everything below his elbows sting. The transmutation exploded around them, tearing the ground up and molding it to his will. All the while his eyes never left Alucard's, watching them as they watched him.

Finally he let go of the power, sparks fading and bits of concrete and dirt falling unused to litter the warped ground. He stood, panting slightly to survey his work. The area he and Alucard occupied was mostly untouched, save for the scorch marks and residual dirt and debris. The area around them was another story entirely. The concrete was cracked, and in some places, missing all together. Great, gaudy cages had formed around the remaining men, who clawed and shoved at the bars once they'd regained their bearings.

The alchemist surveyed the one nearest him, the man missing an arm and a chunk of his torso that revealed at least two broken ribs. "What the hell's wrong with them?" He heard the Nosferatu chuckle, the sound coming closer despite the lack of footsteps. He glanced over his shoulder to see Alucard standing behind him, eyeing the caged soldier with a thoughtful(if somewhat vicious) look.

"They're dead."

Ed blanched, eyes snapping back to his captive. "What? No they aren't, they can't be, dead things don't just get up and walk around…" Another chuckle drew his attention, and this time he was met with the eyes of the other man.

"Oh? Are you sure about that, human?" His tone was smooth as silk, and tinged with something dark, something poisonous. It snaked into the alchemist's mind, caressing it, even as it made his heart constrict in fear.

Ed repressed a shudder, trying and failing to tear his eyes away from those of the creature before him. They glowed enticingly with their own internal light, something the blonde couldn't name flickering within them. "I-" Memories leapt from the depths of his mind, pounding into the backs of his eyes with brutal realism. All of them of Alucard, and the seemingly violent deaths he'd suffered in his battle with Father. Ed shuddered as he came back to reality, uncertainty planted firmly in his mind. "I don't know…"

The hellish gaze narrowed, lips thinning. Something akin to a growl reached the alchemist's ears, smoothing out the higher it climbed into the Nosferatu's throat until it seemed more akin to purring. The noise rolled easily into words, adding slightly to the accented vocalization. "Don't you? The proof is right before your eyes."

Ed turned back to the caged man, who was staring unblinkingly at him and gnashing his teeth. By all rights, the soldier should have been dead, bled out from wounds no man could come back from. And yet there he stood, railing against his imprisonment as if he had not a scratch on him. The alchemist spun slowly, taking a good look at the menagerie he had created. As the calculations burned through his mind, a chill crept into his limbs.

"How. How is this possible?"

Alucard met his gaze, the aghast stare reflected in the scarlet eyes going unnoticed by the one creating it.

"This, is what happens when deflowered humans are bitten by a vampire." The pristine white of the Nosferatu's glove clashed harshly with the backdrop as it swept outwards to indicate the nearest 'exhibit'. "Empty, ravenous, bags of meat who know only their hunger, and the call of their Master; Ghouls."

Ed shuddered despite himself. He had no idea what a 'vampire' was (although it sounded annoyingly familiar) but he was certain that there was no way in hell he'd ever let himself be bitten by one.

"Come Fullmetal, you're wasting time."

Ed blinked, then cast around wildly for the creature that had yet again disappeared from his side. 'Now where the hell did he disappear to-'

"Over here, Elric. Perhaps if you stand on your toes you'll be able to see me over the dirt clods you dislodged with that temper tantrum."

A vein twitched cheerily above his eye as the insult sunk in. "WHO'RE YOU CALLING SO SHORT THAT A PIECE OF DIRT COULD BLOCK OUT THE SUN IF HE STOOD NEXT TO IT?"

Alucard cackled. "So you can't see over them?"

Whatever restraint had been keeping Ed company decided that now would be a good time for a coffee break, leaving the blonde wide open for a meltdown. With no thought in mind other than making the aggravating man in red shut the hell up, Ed let loose a crescendo of destruction that made his palms sting and his eyelashes singe. Huge chunks of concrete came free of the ground, seemingly throwing themselves at their unmoving target. Within seconds the Nosferatu was gone from sight, swallowed by the jumbled mess of a transmutation crushing him down from all sides.

Dusting himself off, Ed made to walk pointedly past the obtrusive mound of rubble, only to stop short as a piece of it was broken off and dropped not an inch from his toes. Before he could come up with a witty remark, or walk around the obstacle, another chunk of his masterpiece came crashing down. And lo and behold from out of the dust emerged a familiar white clad hand, followed by an even more familiar crimson-clad body.

'God, this guy's a fucking cockroach!' He met the feral grin of the No Life King with his own 'if-I-could-burn-holes-in-you-with-my-eyes-I-would' stare. Instead of instilling terror, the only effect it had on the Nosferatu was to make his grin stretch inhumanly wider.

Ed watched warily as Alucard gracefully removed himself from what remained of the structure, half expecting retaliation. Instead, the No Life King dusted himself off as if being entombed was an everyday thing. It probably was. Scowling, the alchemist navigated his way over the mess they'd made, pointedly looking anywhere but the chuckling man behind him.

"Not bad, Elric, however if you wish to incapacitate your enemy, you have to fight with the intent to harm. Not encase them in dirt."

Ed clenched his teeth and pushed forward, stomping a bit more than was probably necessary. The sounds of amusement behind him stilled, allowing the eerie noises of a night filled with death to settle back inside his consciousness.

"I know we have so far forgone stealth-"

Startled by the sudden voice at his ear, Ed jumped higher than he would later admit to, whirling to face the man floating by his side. A fact that took more than a few seconds for the alchemist to wrap his mind around. People didn't just float over the ground, there was a thing known as gravity that tended to thwart such things.

"How the hell-Do you obey any of the laws of physics?"

Alucard flashed him a half grin, continuing to face the alchemist even as he floated towards the fiery hell they were headed towards. "But you should really try to walk more like a human, and less like a water buffalo."

"Hey, don't ignore me I asked you a ques-what do you mean water buffalo?" Ed leapt forward in an attempt to catch the smug bastard, but Alucard had already disappeared into the smoke and darkness. Fuming, Ed made his way into the cloud of smoke billowing forth from the still burning building, using the sounds of violence to guide him.

XxxxxxxX

Sleeve covering his mouth and nose, Ed squinted into the haze, trying to make sense of the chaos around him. Chunks of building cast gargantuan shadows against the smoke, backlit by flames that had raised the temperature enough to make him sweat substantially. Wiping his free arm across his forehead in an attempt to keep the perspiration there from getting into his eyes, he scanned what he could see of the immediate area for a flash of red. Nothing.

"Alucard?" He'd barely put any effort behind the word, but still his voice cracked, smoke rubbing his throat raw.

"Over here, Fullmetal."

Blinking away the tears trying to clear out his itchy eyes, the alchemist headed towards the place he'd heard the Nosferatu's voice drift from. It didn't take long before he found himself standing before a chunk of what was once a wall, blinking stupidly at the man that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. Considering how brightly colored his outfit was, Ed should have been able to see him from where he'd been standing when he called out, the place they stood now not five feet from there. He would have questioned it, had his voice been behaving(ignoring the fact that now probably was not the time, or the place), but just breathing was becoming difficult.

Alucard was looking down at him, head cocked slightly to the side and eyes aglow, a truly disturbing look on his face(from what Ed could see of it).

He cocked a brow in question, knowing full well the Nosferatu would be able to see it, regardless of visibility level.

The red pinpricks sparked, smile twisting to reveal more canines than Ed was comfortable with seeing, especially with the way they glittered despite the lack of direct lighting.

"I have found your…terrorists." The words were spoken so softly, that Ed was amazed he could hear what the other man had said. The peculiar way they seemed to come into existence right next to his ear, coupled with the way they seemed to twist around next to it, especially the emphasis on 'terrorists', sent a chill skating across his skin.

Ignoring it, Ed moved his arm just enough to mouth the word 'where', before quickly replacing it. Unfortunately, ash still managed to find it's way onto his tongue.

The No Life King's eyes widened, then shifted swiftly to the left. "Ten feet in front of you." His words had softened almost to a purr, traces of glee only apparent when coupled with the look on the demon's face.

Tearing his gaze from the somewhat frightening sight Alucard presented, Ed moved silently to press up against the wall separating them from their targets. Using his free hand to guide him, the alchemist moved along the wall until his fingertips grazed the jagged edging. Stealing himself for a potential attack, Ed peered around their cover.

At first, all he could make out was vague, moving shadows that looked suspiciously humanoid. Then, a breeze gusted in, shifting the smoke from the flames enough that Ed could clearly make out the figure standing on what remained of the front entrance's stairs. Shock jolted sharply down his spine, concern for his throat and mouth being overrun by ash forgotten as he sucked in a stifled gasp, now using both hands to support himself against the wall.

"Buccaneer?"

a/n: Oh-ho-ho, the plot thickens! And yes, I'm well aware Buccaneer died. Alucard's presence in this AU handily throws the Amestrian rulebook on what dead people can and cannot do out the window.

Until next time (which hopefully will be sooner in coming than this time was),

Tatty-bye!

deadpan_riot