Full Digi Alchemist
Chapter 17
"This sure is familiar" Kari thought to herself as she walked the empty corridors of Central HQ "Except this time, I'm the one getting up late".
3 officers dashed past the girl, snapping her out of her thoughts and knocking her down.
"Oh, s'cuse us miss" One of the officers stopped, helping the bearer of light up.
"No, no it's alright, I'm perfectly fine" Kari smiled "What's going on though?"
"Oh" The officer said "Sorry, guess you didn't hear".
"Hear what?" Asked Kari.
"There's a big fight happening in the training grounds" The lady officer smiled in glee and pulled the teenager along "It's a five alchemist match up, things like this never happen".
"How come?" Kari asked, confused at the logic of the fight.
"Usually alchemists keep to themselves, they don't often fight one another" The woman answered "This is just too good to pass up".
The older woman led the younger down a path she had walked 3.5 years ago, passing the basic shooting gallery and entering the combat simulator room.
"Up here" Kari was led by the woman up a flight of stairs where several officers, Ed, Winry and their child, Roy and Riza and most of the Digi-destined were watching the five figures on the ware-house sized floor "Even the fuehrer is interested in this fight".
"Yeah" One of the three officers that passed Kari by said "Especially since his son's doing the fighting".
"What?" Kari thought as she looked down at the field.
She gasped as she saw who exactly were fighting.
At one side, standing evenly spaced, were Ken, T.K and Cody. Having replaced their usual attire, Ken and T.K were dressed in loose fitting clothing, allowing them maximum mobility and comfort. Kari also presumed that wince their alchemy usually caused a bit of damage; they should also wear something that they could afford to be ripped to shreds. Cody however was wearing his usual hakama and cotton jacket, though he had slid his right arm out of the sleeve and let it hang behind him, revealing finely chiselled muscles years of daily training had given him. You could practically see the muscles in his arm bulge and shift as he adjusted the grip on his wooden sword. Returning her attention back towards the two other boys, she saw that they each had readied their own weapons for battle. Ken was lazily swaying his whip from side to side, ever ready for it strike like a snake. T.K lowered himself into a fighting stance; his arms placed in-front of himself in an attempt to streamline attacks to the sides. The bracelet he wore jingled slightly, the medallion hanging from the chains span slowly.
On the other side of the floor, there only stood too fighters. The blond hair and cocky smile could easily be mistaken as Edward Elric's; instead it belonged to his younger brothers. Dressed in standard military pants, Alphonse had only a sleeveless green shirt and a plate of metal on his chest that strapped over the shoulders and around the waist. He didn't stand in any martial art stance, only upright with his arms crossed.
Last but not least was Davis, his trademark jacket hanging from his body as he swayed on the spot like he was drunk.
"Interesting style" Kari heard Edward tell Roy "Didn't expect a Xing style of martial arts since he had 3 years to train in Ishbalian combat".
"That's Davis for you" Davis' father smiled "You can never expect the expected from the boy".
Looking back at the dark skinned teen, Kari watched him duck and sway on the spot, every now and again his movements would jerk as the fabric of the jacket pulled at the shoulders.
"Oh bugger it" Kari heard Davis swear as he tore both sleeves off, revealing the tanned, well defined arms he had underneath (He was using the synthetic gel on his arm).
Several of the female officers cheered as more clothing was lost even before the fight had begun. Kari glared at the officers, but it was completely unmatched compared to the one the new fuehrer's wife gave them.
Finally seeing her group of friends, the bearer of light joined the other Digi-destined close to the edge of the platform, leaning against the metal railing with Yolie and Mimi at her sides.
"Alchemists, are you ready?" Roy yelled with a booming voice.
The five fighters all gave thumbs up.
"Then let the battle commence" Snapping his fingers, Roy set off a fiery explosion above the fighters.
"Go Ken" Yolie shouted
"Go Alphonse" Mimi yelled.
"Come on Kari" Sora shook the girl's shoulder behind her "Cheer your boy on".
"Yeah, make him win this fight for you" Mimi added.
"Come on, it's not like it'll hurt" Yolie also joined in.
"Alright" Kari said softly, drawing her breath in "GO DAVIS".
"What the?" Davis turned his head towards the box.
WHAM
A torrent of force hit the teen alchemist and sent him flying back.
"You look distracted Davis" T.K said, his bracelet medallion spinning madly.
"Sorry, someone said my name" Davis said, launching himself at his friend.
Up above the two, on the spectator block, a madly embarrassed Kari was ducking out of sight as her friends laughed at the scenario.
"Whoa" Alphonse said as he barely evaded another strike from the young samurai "You're quick with that thing aren't you?"
"Please fight seriously" Cody said, aiming a low sweep that Al jumped over "This is not your best".
"No, no it's not" Alphonse said, clapping his hands "But, I at least owe you a decent opponent".
Touching the metal plate, Alphonse jumped back and stood still. The metal had begun turning liquid, quickly racing over the 19 year old. The liquid metal bent and shifted as it began to solidify and armour the alchemist.
"Same old Al" Edward sighed as he looked at his armoured brother, looking the same way he did years before he re-attained his original body "Guess that suit'll always be a part of him".
"Impressed?" Alphonse asked, thinking how that wooden sword would break on slightest contact.
"No, not really" Cody replied, slamming the point of his sword into the floor, an alchemical symbol glowing on the hilt of his wooden weapon.
Blue lightning ran across the floor as the floor rumbled. Without warning, much of the ground swirled up around the sword and across the 12 year old's arms. A few seconds later and the young teen was now sporting a pair of rock covered arms, his giant fists gripping a massive rock katana with an edge sparkling like diamond glistening menacingly towards the armoured Alphonse.
"SUPERB" Major Armstrong's voice boomed across the empty room "SHOW THIS GENIUS OF ALCHEMY EXACTELY WHAT THE ARMSTRONG SEAL CAN DO".
Across the room, where the Armstrong's raving wasn't directed to, fought the three other fighters. The three of them ducked and weaved over the blows and counters of their opponent's.
"This" Davis said as he dodged a high kick from T.K "Is" He sidestepped Ken's whip "So" He managed to grab T.K's leg as he tried to land a side kick "Freaking" He hurled his friend at the bearer of kindness "Awesome".
"I'm out Ken" T.K sighed "Barely got the energy to talk"
"Just you and me now Ken" Davis smiled, shuffling his feet on the spot.
"Would you have it any other way?" Ken cracked his whip.
"No, probably not" Davis replied "I'm very interested exactly how strong you are with that thing".
"Strong, not a lot" Ken smiled as he held one of Davis' pistols "But quick? Well, that's a whole different story".
"When did you?" Davis checked to see that the gun was really gone "You sneaky-"
Davis stopped himself as he felt the warm trickle of blood on his cheek.
"Oh, it's so on now" Davis grinned ferociously as he extended two of his four arm blades.
"Whoa" Yolie breathed "I've never seen Ken fight with such…passion".
"The bonds of friendship fuel his heart" Winry said as she entered the group of girls "For him, it's like fighting a brother, he can put all his heart into his fighting and there will never be hard feelings".
"That's a very wise thing to say" Sora smiled at the woman holding the young Elric baby.
"I've spent enough time with Ed and Al to know that kind of fighting" Winry smiled "I'm interested on who will win actually".
By this time, both Ken and Davis were covered in a multitude of scrapes and scratches. Davis expected his Xing style to be most affective, but his friend was so quick it was hard to land a blow. The bearer of kindness also had the reach advantage, even though Davis had full access to his gun, he chose not to use it.
"Shall we take it up a notch?" Ken breathed.
"Sure" Davis smiled "Any type of alchemy in specific?"
"What ever you can use" Ken said, touching the seal on the handle of his whip.
Striking the ground, the whip's end glowed red before exploding in a wave of fire.
"Hey" Roy called as he watched the fight "That's my technique; he's got my seal".
"Guess you're not the only flame alchemist nowadays" Edward snickered.
A snap of the fuehrer's fingers later and Ed was patting his butt to stop the flames.
- - - - - - -
"I can't believe you finished in a tie" Yolie fumed, while Davis and Ken just laughed at each other.
"Guess we just wanted to win as bad as the other" Ken shrugged, a bit of soot under his eye.
"Argh, men" Yolie stomped off.
"Whoops, might have over done it on that one" Ken watched his girlfriend leave in a huff.
"Go, treat her to something nice" Davis handed his friend his bank card "Let's just say you owe me another match as payback".
"Gotcha" Ken smiled, taking the card "I'll beat you next time".
"Yeah yeah" Davis said as he entered the fuehrer's office.
"Davis" Roy said "It's about time you arrived".
"Yeah" Edward piped in "Especially since you called us to meet you in the first place".
"Sorry about that" Davis apologised as he sat down "I've been doing some thinking, and I might need your help on the matter".
"You mentioned you were trying to find an alternate access to this world of yours" Mustang said "This…Digi-world".
"That's the one" Davis replied "I want to see if I can use alchemy to make a whole in the dimension barrier".
"Making gates takes a lot of energy Davis" Ed said "The only times I've been able to do it were with red stones, either that or human transmutation".
"See, that's what I've been thinking" Davis replied "Those gates were to get Alphonse's body back, which you father did".
"And cost him his life" Ed said, a tinge of sadness in his voice.
"And the other time you told me was getting out of that homunculus' stomach" Davis continued.
"Yeah" Ed replied "I used the power of the philosopher's stone in that case, only because that thing was a gate itself".
"Those stories got me thinking on how the Digi-portal works with us" Davis continued "It's alchemy, we pay the toll fee with our Digi-vices to open the gate, and it drags us through that white zone and into an outgoing portal into the Digi-world".
"So?" Roy said.
"So" Davis replied "I want to see if I can create another Digi-portal, seeing how the other one is protected from entry".
"Are you sure you can use those Digi-vice things with this new portal?" Roy asked "They seem to be your only means of paying the equal exchange requirement".
"If my sensei were here" Roy sighed as he looked out the window "He was such a brilliant mind, but his brilliance died with him".
"Red Stone" Davis said as he snapped his fingers "What I need is philosopher's stone".
"No way Davis" Ed glared at the boy, though a glare of worry "That abomination can cause no good, I've told you a dozen times what it's made out of".
"I know that Edward" Davis said "But perhaps there's somewhere there's some already made, like the place you met that father guy".
"Not gonna happen" Edward said "We levelled that place into nothing, made sure none of his creations got out".
"There is" Roy began, rubbing his side as he recalled his memory "How about just beyond that place, that hospital basement where I fought Lust".
"There's a slight chance" Edward said "A back up of philosopher's stone might be around there, though I wish we destroyed that place along with the main base".
"Alright then" Davis cheered "I'll go check it out".
"Were you listening to me Davis?" Edward said "You're playing with human's lives if you use the stone, people mostly of the Ishbalian heritage".
"You're right Ed" Davis said "It is using the souls of probably my fallen people, but damned if I'm not going to try and see if my friends are in danger in the Digi-world".
The two glared at each other, wrestling with their gaze, waiting for the other one to crack under the pressure.
"Fine" Edward sighed, sitting back down "Perhaps using the stone like I have will change your perspective on them".
"Thanks you Ed" Davis smiled sincerely.
"Be careful about the stone's power" Ed called as Davis moved towards the doors "It's effects linger even after you've used it".
"Wonder what he meant by that?" Davis thought to himself as he exited the main office and headed towards his friends to explain the scenario.
Well, that's it for me for yet another chapter. I was going to turn this into a 15 page monster like the other one, but I don't just have it in me at the moment. Anyway, you know the drill; I shouldn't have to keep saying it by now. Enjoy - Wolvie
