{Hey everyone, once again, sorry for the wait and the shortness of this chapter. The others are busy right now, so I'll be doing all the talking today. Please enjoy!}
Chapter 21
The Day
Hey Al,
Sorry for making you worry, but I swear that I'm fine. I'll even repeat myself. I am FINE. Yeah, sure, I chosen to be one of these champion people, but it's not that big of a deal. Three little tasks and everything will be over. We've been through worse stuff than anything a school competition could throw at me. Our first task is coming up here soon, and I've been doing some research. It's surprising how little I can find considering their huge library.
Enough about me, how have you been? Have you been doing any research while I've been gone? You need to keep me up to date so I can help. And don't you dare go out and try to fight those monsters by yourself!
Edward would admit only in the privacy of his own mind that he was worried about his brother due to his recent dream. In all actuality, they barely knew anything about the creatures they are trying to stop. He would feel much better once his brother was by his side again. Then he could keep him safe.
Make sure to keep in touch with Colonial Bastard too. I hate to admit it, but he really is an ally we cannot afford to lose right now. Keep Winry up to date she starts to worry about us then I'll have worse things to worry about than the Homunculi - my arm, for example, or my head staying attached to my shoulders. She hasn't bothered me yet, but maybe you should pay her a visit. And remember to write back soon.
Edward
Even after his second trip up to the Owlry, Ed was so tense he decided to return to the library. At least there he could lose himself among information.
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Edward spent the rest of his time before the first task buried among books in the furthest corner of the library. Each day was spent engrossed in information and expectation of a response from Ryuunoske. Only the thought of how Al would react if he never left the library drove Ed into the Great Hall for meals. Classes, of course, were still mandatory if he wanted to keep up his "good image," but even those would have been skipped if he didn't expect Mustang to send another demon letter if he stepped out of line again.
Despite the sheer amount of activity he found to engage his mind, the day of the first task came all too soon. The missing letter from Ryuunoske weighed heavily on his mind. Still, he figured that if worse came to worse he could just use his alchemy.
Edward pondered the consequences of such an act as he sat in the champion's tent. On one hand, it could show the power of Amestris and surely help him complete the trial. On the other hand, Mustang would probably be furious if he revealed such a key portion of their military. Scaring their potential allies, after all, would not lead to a quicker or better alliance. Not to mention that he hadn't even revealed his automail yet. He had no data as to how the wizards would react to the "new" technology or power. It could possibly destroy the building relationship he had worked for so far. Well, except for Neville, but he was a naturally curious and accepting person, which Edward knew is an abnormality for society. Neville, after all, had been the only one to actually ask for instead of demand answers. As such, he was also the only one to receive any answers. Ed still wondered why he gave the information so easily to the boy; maybe because he remind Edward of Al.
Either way, he'd have a little more time to think it over, anyways, since he found out during the instructions that he will be competing fourth. The only downside was that he would not be able to observe the other's attempts at the task. Not to mention that he had a much smaller vocabulary when it came to casting spells. It was like putting a first year student of another language against a native speaker.
At least he had known before hand about the dragons. If the shock that had initially accompanied the news attacked him now, he would not have recovered in time to fight. And Edward knew that he would have to fight. There would be no other option if he was to insult a mother by endangering her young. No mother Ed had ever encountered would allow such an act without the fiercest of fights. The proctors did, however, give him one weapon to work with.
Edward glanced at the tiny dragon in his hand. She didn't appear to be overly dangerous, but he knew better than anyone to not judge based on size. Since he apparently had some time to steep in his worries, Ed decided to use this time wisely. These models were supposed to be exact miniatures of their gigantic counterparts, right? Then they should have the same weaknesses and strengths. He started with examining the biology of the dragon. He picked her up by the tale and looked around for sections not covered by scales or spikes. With a small stick he found on the ground, Ed poked at the dragon's stomach, testing exactly how sensitive it is. He decided that it would be a great target for his attacks. But he didn't actually need to kill the thing. Placing her back onto his hand, Edward poked at the dragon. When she lashed out with its tale and cut his finger, he decided to find a different tactics to get her to move. He placed different objects he found and transmuted around his palm to see if he would be able to simply lure her away from the nest, but the dragon refused to move.
As he observed the creature, her mannerisms, especially tale movements, reminded him to the cats Al would bring home, which gave him an idea. Pushing aside his glove slightly, Ed reflected the light off of his wrist and onto his opposite palm. The dragon perked up and stared at the dot of light. As Ed angled his hand to move the light, the miniature followed, completely focused on the light. Edward had found his ace in the hole.
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In much too little time, He found himself surrounded by the world's largest natural spotlight and the roar of the crowd. Everything was lost in the noise; he couldn't even tell if the crowd was supporting him or the dragon, which was crouching right smack in the middle of the arena. She was definitely larger than the model he had left in the tent. She was roughly taller than two Major Armstrongs flexing on top of each other and probably as wide as one. Two small horns grew back from her head as if they had been smoothed back with hair gel. The eyes were distinctly reptilian and held a craze for blood lust masked with deep suspicion. Somehow, they reminded Ed of a mix of Barry the Chopper approaching him with a meat cleaver in hand and the war-crazed criminals he sometimes spotted being led to the jail. Overall, she looked more dangerous than any creature he had ever faced - aside from the homunculi because he assumed that once the dragon was killed it would stay dead.
Peering from behind the safety of a boulder, Edward cursed his stupidity as he saw the dragon raise her head and look around. Of course he should have checked her sense of smell. It was his largest giveaway and his plan wouldn't work nearly as well if he had to run from the hungry beast. Luckily, she seemed to be too confused by the smells and sounds of the crowd to accurately place him. Still, the dragon was most definitely on guard. With no time to waste, Ed put his plan into motion.
He rolled his sleeve partway up his arm, enough to let the sun noticeably reflect off of it, but not enough for an audience member to clearly see what was "on" his arm, and covered the gap with his opposite hand. Moving just to the side of the boulder, Edward moved slowly so as to keep from attracting the dragon's eye. He removed his hand and angled his arm to shine the reflected sunlight on the ground in front of the dragon. A few movements of the light were required before the beast notices its presence, but one she did, her entire body froze.
The dangerous tail began to move to the left, then the right, and back to the left. From the angle, Edward could not see her eyes, but he was sure that they were locked on the dot. The audience, for once, was silent. This tactic was so unlike the ones previously used. Ed took a hesitant step around the beast, shifting the dot. Judging his safely from the jerk of the dragon's head to follow the light, he jerked his arm to move the light across the area from himself. The goal was near. A few more steps were taken, and Edward crawled towards the best while making sure the mother's focus was kept on the light.
Tending with the dragon, Edward surged forward for the egg as the mother pounced on the reflection.
Reviews:
ReginaDC21: {Thank you! You'll have to wait and see for some of those. There is a chance you'll get your wish, we're kind of trying to figure out where we going with the story so it might be taking a big turn.}
BulletWitch1985: {Thank you! I hope that you enjoyed our description of the dragon then! And yes, I think we all want to bang out heads against the desk along with him right now,}
TouchDouche: {Thank you!}
Nekosongbird: {Thank you very much! And yes, Al is still in his armor.}
Lady ShadowStorm: {Thank you! Yes, we are hoping to incorporate some more characters soon. We just need to figure out which ones and how.}
Kit-Storm666: {Here you go. Your hex may have worked, just not in the way you intended...}
Celestabelabetha: { Thank you! And I finally understood that reference!}
{I apologize if any of these seem rushed. I have to run to a class but I wanted to get this out as soon as possible. See you guys later!}