38: Transmutation and the Truth

Edward's breath seeped slowly from his lungs as Christin dropped to the floor. His brain refused to function. All he could do was stare at what he had done. Blood flowed from the wound in her stomach, creating a miniature ocean around her body. He heard something drop to the floor and looked away; Aislinn had collapsed, blood flowing from the exact same spot as Christin. Her body didn't regenerate like a normal Homunculi's would.

"No! Look what you've done! Everything's ruined now!" Envy screeched. "Robin, get over here and handle this!" he barked. Robin darted over to the edge of the circle opposite where Christin and Aislinn lay.

"I brought her back once; I can do it again!" he assured Envy. Alphonse rushed over as Edward sunk to his knees and pulled Christin's limp body onto his lap. He had almost lost her once; he didn't want to risk her dying again.

"Roy?" Riza asked, alarmed by his sudden perk. He glanced out the window nervously. Something was very wrong, apart from the war raging above everyone's head.

"Something's not right…" he muttered, breezing out the doorway to go zap some enemy ships with his alchemy.

"Sir, what's wrong?" she pressed, following him.

"I don't know exactly, but I know something big is happening… something bigger than this new war," he replied, giving his gloves a firm tug before stepping outside.

"Sir…" she started, cut off by his sudden action.

"In case I don't come back," he grinned, pulling out of the kiss enough to speak. "If Christin makes it out of here alive and I don't, she'll be in your care, Riza." He strode away, snapping his fingers at the sky and sending orange sparks of flame at a plane hovering foolishly overhead. It exploded in a fiery blast.

"Roy Mustang, you idiot…" she muttered, heading somewhere out of range of falling debris.

"I hope she's okay… I just know Christin's involved with this more than I know… if she doesn't make it out alive, I'm gonna roast her," he muttered, zapping another enemy plane.

"Hang on, I'll get you out of here, okay?" Edward sobbed.

"Ed… I'm really sorry… I took things the wrong way…" Christin gasped. She was trying to heal herself, but lacked enough energy to do so. "I'm such a fool…"

"No you're not. You'll be fine, I promise!" he cried.

"I… I need a little bit of what I gave you…" she replied, motioning for him to lean closer. "Remember… when I saved you from that fire at Pinako and Winry's place? I… I gave you some of my life force… that's why I almost died… and why you lived…"

"You saved me; I know that!" he snapped. "Stop talking and save your strength!"

"I didn't want to… tell you this… because I feared your reaction…" she said before kissing him. He felt some of his energy drain from his body and flow into Christin's.

"Tell me what?" he asked, slightly dazed.

"That's enough!" Envy barked. He picked up Edward by his collar and held him in the air. "I'm sick of you interfering with everything! I'm going to kill you for good this time!!"

"He belongs to me; don't touch him!" Christin cried. Light flashed and when it faded, Edward could see a thin white strand of something stretching from his chest to Christin's. "See? Because I shared my life force with you, we've been bonded eternally. Kind of like an Imprint in that stupid Twilight saga or the House of Night series. That's also why you can't leave me alone."

"Imprint? What do you mean?" Envy asked, puzzled.

"It's not something you would understand. You lack humanity so it's not a concept you can grasp. Love is not something someone like you can see or feel, Envy, and for that I pity you," she sighed. "Love is something that binds us together, attracts people to one another. But this Imprint thing goes beyond that. It ties us together for all eternity, a permanent bond of love that will never fade. Wow, I just sounded like cheesy fanfiction…"

"So you love each other, big deal. I don't care about petty human emotions," Envy sneered.

"That's why you'll never be a human, Envy. You don't understand how we feel. We get happy or sad or angry and get hurt and fall in and out of love. That's something you'll never do," she replied, walking over to Aislinn's unconscious body. She pressed a hand to her forehead and the Red Stones in her body began being rejected. In a few moments, she had changed into almost an exact replica of Christin, save for a faint scar of the Ouroboros tattoo on her forehead.

"I don't need a lecture! I'm going to kill you all and take over this world!!" Envy raged, dropping Edward and backing away. Christin slowly approached him, herding him away. He smirked before speaking, "now Robin!!"

A loud clap resounded in the ballroom and Edward, Aislinn, Alphonse and Christin were sucking into the light emanating from the circle carved into the floor.

Edward stared at the Gate, fear paralyzing him. The last time he had seen this, he had died. He looked all around him, but saw nothing except that white expanse of nothing, save for the massive door before him. Was he going to die now? He had been transmuted by Robin, he knew that much. Would he cross through the Gate again and land in Germany or maybe London like that first time? Where was Alphonse? He had been near him when they were transmuted. So had Christin and Aislinn; where were they? He stared as something flashed in his peripheral vision. He turned his head slowly and saw flashes of the people he had been with a few moments ago. His eyes widened when he saw his teacher Izumi materialize and smile at him. Did that mean she was dead? No, she couldn't die. She had beaten him and Alphonse senseless so many times… there was no way she could've died, right?

"Back yet again, are you?" a voice asked. He whipped his head around and saw the Truth sneering at him. "Did you come to get these?" he waved Edward's human limbs tauntingly. "While you think of an answer, I'm going to have a chat with your lover."

Christin blinked and looked around. Where was she? What was all this white… nothing? What was up with that strange door in front of her? Oddly enough, she wasn't scared. It felt almost exactly the same as when she talked with her Mother Goddess. That flow of energy that swam through her entire body… but where was she?

"Nice to see you again," a voice greeted her. A white blob materialized in front of her.

"Who are you?" she asked, feeling strangely calm.

"You don't remember? We talked not too long ago, but I did wear a different face, so I'm not surprised you don't recognize me," the blob instantly morphed into her Mother Goddess. "Is this better?"

"You and Mahweyna are the same?" she asked. "How?"

"She's just a different facet of me. Amestris has the Truth, Creta has the Mother Goddess Mahweyna, the people of Xing have their Great Dragon… it goes on and on, really. Now, about your little visit today…"

"Where are my friends?" she demanded.

"Oh, they're here. You just can't see them right now, but I'll fix that in a bit. I bet you wanna know why your life's so messed up, huh?" Truth giggled. "When you were born, I chose you as a special person who serves as a direct link to me. Your lover Edward has seen me, which is why he needs only to clap to transmute. A normal alchemist needs a circle. You, however, don't need to do either, because we're connected directly. Your sister Aislinn is the same, though Envy has thrown everything off course. He sent you through the Gate, not knowing you had a twin. When he found out about her, he tried to kill her and resurrect her as a Homunculus. And that's basically it. The life you knew is one you were never supposed to live."

"I'd been living a lie?" Christin asked. "You're sick."

"Hey, don't hate the player; hate the game. I would've brought you back, but I didn't know where you landed. You were so far out of my reach, so far away that I had no control over you anymore. By some fluke you were able to return to the other side of the Gate and you met the Elric's. Your power was awakened and you were able to return home. Aren't you happy?"

"Do I look like a toy to you?! Stop jerking me around!!" she cried.

"Ooh, you sound just like Edward. No wonder you two get along so well."

"Where is he?" she demanded.

"Right here," Truth replied. Three bubbles materialized, with her unconscious friends inside. "But, since they're not like you, with the exception of Aislinn, I'm afraid I'll have to take something from them before they go back. It's just how I work, honey," it responded to her shocked look.

"No. here's what's goin' on, Truth or whatever your name is. You let Alphonse go free, same with Aislinn. Edward gets his human limbs back and you let him go too," she dictated. "You may take whatever you wish from me in exchange."

"You drive a hard bargain, as I need you to fix everything. But since, Aislinn is back to her former human glory, I guess she'll suffice. This is going to hurt, but it's your payment for setting you and your friends free." Christin nodded and braced herself.

"Brother!" Alphonse cried softly. "Brother, wake up!"

Edward blinked groggily and rubbed his eyes, screwing the palms of his hands into his eye sockets. He freaked when he felt the skin of his right hand against his face.

"Al, what happened?" he asked, scrunching up his pant leg. Sure enough, his limb was flesh and bone again. Why?

"I don't know exactly. I saw the Gate, but then I passed out," he sighed.

"Me too… hey, where's Christin?" he asked, looking around the now abandoned ballroom.

"I don't know that either. Aislinn went after her a while ago…" Alphonse pointed towards the exit of the building. Edward stood up and swayed a bit. He was slightly dizzy, so he sat down again.

"I really need to talk to her…" he muttered, drawing his legs up under his chin and folding his arms across them.

"About what?" Alphonse asked. He instantly blushed; it was not his place to ask something like that.

"Promise you won't laugh?" Edward asked, burying his rd face in his arms.

"I promise," Alphonse replied gently.

"I…" he paused and sighed. Alphonse held back a snicker as Edward's eyes looked up at him through slits in his bangs. "I wanna ask her…"

"I didn't get that last part," Alphonse said.

"I wanna ask her to marry me…" Edward admitted. He nuzzled his face further into his arms and waited for the coming mockery. "Why aren't you laughing?" he asked after a few minutes.

"It's not something I should be laughing at. I think it's great that you feel that way, Brother. Really," Alphonse grinned. Edward felt a smile worm across his face too.

Christin stumbled through the underground city. Her throat stung horribly and she felt very empty inside. Why… of all the things the Truth could have taken from her… why those things?

"Christin, where are you?" Aislinn's voice rang out over the empty buildings. Christin tried to call out to her, but her throat hurt so much that she couldn't. So she leaned against a wall and waited. About half an hour later, Aislinn appeared. "Hey, Ed's looking for you. Why'd you wander off like that?"

Christin shrugged. It's not like she could've answered. She sulked and followed Aislinn back to the ballroom. Once inside, she was smothered in someone's arms.

"You're okay… I was so scared you'd died again or something…" Edward whispered. Christin began sobbing; she realized how stupid she'd been. Edward had been nothing but good to her and because of one slip up she treated him like shit. And now she knew that what Robin told her was a lie; she was originally from this world... maybe. Perhaps that was why she felt so out of place in her 'home' world. She always knew that something wasn't right, that she didn't belong. But then… what of reading the story 'Fullmetal Alchemist'? And watching the anime? And her complicated love for Edward? Was that all just some illusion or a fabrication? Or maybe… that was her way of staying connected to this world. She didn't know anymore, nor did she care.

She started speaking, though her throat still stung a bit. Her voice sounded perfectly fine in her head, but she knew what had happened… what equivalent exchange had been made to get them out of the Gate.

"What's wrong? Why won't you say something?" he asked, cupping her face in his hands. He watched as she moved her mouth. "It helps if you actually speak, you know. I can't read lips."

Fresh tears trickled down her face. She continued to speak in her voiceless language, trying to tell Edward what happened.

"Christin, say something; you're starting to freak me out," he urged, rubbing his thumbs across her tear-streaked cheeks. His fingertips brushed against her throat, which vibrated like his own did when he spoke. She broke their gaze to scan the room. Her greenish eyes fell upon the puddles of blood slowly dying on the floor. She pushed his hands away and hurried over to them.

"What are you doing?" Aislinn asked.

"Are you going to paint with blood?" Alphonse inquired as Christin knelt down near the puddle. "That's just nasty." Christin shook her head and dipped a finger in the red liquid. She drew lines carefully across the floor, making sure her writing was legible though her hand was quivering.

Edward leaned over Alphonse's shoulder and watched as Christin wrote her message in blood on the floor. Why was she doing something so morbid? Why didn't she just talk? And why did he have his limbs back. She moved out of the way and tapped the area near her writing.

"When I talked with the Truth, I bargained for you three to be let go without paying. In exchange, I paid the price. That's why you have your human limbs back, Ed," Aislinn read aloud. "I don't get it; why can't you just say that?"

"You're not making any sense…" Edward sighed. Christin grabbed his hands and placed them on her throat. She then started using her voice box like she would if they could actually hear her speak. Edward felt the vibrations of her voice box. That was odd. It was working, but no sound was coming out. Christin knelt down in the puddles again, dipping her blood-stained fingers in the liquid again. She ground her teeth together as she wrote her next message.

"The Truth sealed both my voice and my powers in exchange for your limbs and getting you out alive," Alphonse read.

"You can't speak?" Edward asked, dreading her reply. She still didn't speak much, but he loved it when she did. She nodded slowly, a grim smile spreading across her face.

A/N: things are going to calm down a bit in the next chapters… well, Envy is at least. I hope y'all aren't too mad at me for smushing part 2 in with part 1, but it's a lot easier for me. Read and review pleeze!!!

Until chapter 39…