Title : The Clouding Darkness
Genre : Anime/Manga
Category : Full Metal Alchemist
Disclaimer : FMA is owned by someone rich and intelligent; two things I am not. ;)
Summary : One mistake can be deadly. Let us watch as Al learns this lesson.
Warnings : I'd list a few, but then I'd give it all away, wouldn't I?
Rating : T
The fourteen year old ran as far and as fast as was possible, the blinding rain and chaotic lightning not able to hold steadfast the hallow suit of armor. He could hear the metal clanking noisily as rain water continued to pour down on him, drowning his metallic joints, he not even giving the chance of rust a second thought. No, Alphonse had other, more important things on his mind; like finding his older brother.
As things usually went in their case(badly); they had lost track of each other, for idiotic reasons, more or less. One thing led to another and before Al knew it, the words they were exchanging carried more weight than either of them could bare. Thus, leading the younger sibling on a hunt to find his older brother, senior by almost a year.
He couldn't exactly remember what he had said to Ed, something along the lines of, "Well, if you never would have tried to bring Mom back, then we wouldn't be in this situation, would we?" At the current moment, he couldn't quite recall if that was the exact phrasing that he had used, but either way, it was undeniably close enough. Close enough to make the sudden rush of guilt that was flowing through him increase rapidly.
Now, Al couldn't quite bring to mind what had started all of it in the first place, more than likely just mere frustration out of being lost in the middle of freaking nowhere, but that was pretty much besides the point judging by the current situation he was stuck in.
Luckily for him, the earth had transformed to mud as the rain continued to come down, abusing the ground for all that it was worth and turning it into the mucky, dirty substance; although, with this freshly presented variable to the equation, he was able to see Edward's footprints as clear as day. Thankful that the only thing he had to worry about now was sinking, he continued on, the footfalls leading thicker into the wooded area.
A quiet whooshing noise eerily made its way into his hearing, fear flooding his soul as he realized his brother's footprints were leading straight to it, undeniably not liking where this was heading.
With a hint of reluctance, he made his way down the hill and in between the thick fence of trees, his metallic boots making a squishing sound in the muck. Though as he looked down, something caught his eye; and if he in fact would have had a heart, surely it would have stopped.
Even through the sheet of rain that was continuing to bounce of his metal shell and the impending nightfall, he could make out the crimson substance that littered the small ledge that ultimately dropped off into a small rocky cliff, then down into the large lake that met at its edge.
Numbness struck his soul immediately as he saw something floating far out in the dark waters, and it only took a glance to see what it was. Though the red material was darkened by the black pool of water and grime, and even possibly blood, he knew it was Ed's.
If he could cry, the rain wouldn't have even been able to compare to the lakes he would have released; but fortunately for his sake, he couldn't, though standing there didn't help matters either.
But he couldn't help but have the tiniest strain of hesitance tug at his soul, utterly knowing that if he jumped into that water, he'd face the chance of his blood seal washing away, meaning it would be over; completely, definitely over; and to top it all off, he would have died in that horrible, metallic shell.
Now, of course, the feeling only lasted for a millisecond, an afterthought compared to the true emotions he faced, but still, it was there, plain as day. Selfishness immediately reprimanded him, guilt saturating his soul, though he knew what he had to do, he only prayed that it wasn't for nothing.
His metallic boots silently made their way into the oddly still waters, a thought of how Ed had gotten so far out into the black lake so fast making its way through the background of his mind; but he chose to ignore it and continued on, the water growing higher and higher against his metal body.
He could feel the fear seize his soul as he moved farther and farther out, the water rising at a rapid pace. It teased his chest plate, quietly making its way up and up until it reach the mouth piece of his helmet, the water silently leaking through his joints and filling up the suit, panic starting to eat at him quickly and efficiently.
"Ed! Brother!" he called out, worry hanging on every word that emanated from the metallic suit. He moved faster as he received no response, though the quicker he moved, the quicker the water seeped through the cracks in his shell, his attention span drifting from himself to the state of his brother. He couldn't lose Ed. He just couldn't…
"Brother!" he attempted once more, less than ten feet away from the older boy now. The water crept in nonstop, up to his mid-section now, the armor slowly starting to sink with each fresh step.
"Ed, please!" he yelled, reaching a gloved hand out as he finally made it to the unconscious blonde. "Ed, it's gonna be okay. Just hold on, please!" he begged, gripping the red jacket tightly in his large gauntlets, the tiny body eerily floating whichever way he moved it.
"Brother! Please wake up! Please! Ed!" the pained voice cried through the night air, lightning cascading across the sky, striking something in the distance. Thunder rumbled almost instantaneously, the heart of the storm obviously too close for comfort.
"Ed!" more pleas broke out of the steel suit, the water just inches from his blood seal, the thought of not actually making it back to the shore dead weight in his mind. "Brother!" he screamed, holding Edward as close to him as possible, sobs starting to meddle through the steel.
What happened next would be something that Alphonse Elric could not possibly forget, or be able to remember.
Golden eyes opened wide, taking in the storm and everything that came with it. Lightning sizzled brightly once more, giving the boy's eyes such haunting ferocity that it caused Al to stop dead in the water. At that instant, at that very second, he knew something was wrong, harrowingly wrong, and somehow, he would not be able to fix it.
Edward didn't say a word as he looked up into those soul-filled eyes that were normally so full of life and hope, but were now consumed with terror and fear. A smile instantly lit up the teenager's face, Al dropping the boy at the very sight of the demonic grin. He'd only witnessed that grin once before, and he knew who it belonged to.
He could feel the water wrap around his blood seal, darkness suddenly clouding his vision.
"No!" he screamed, his voice shrill with terror. "No! Ed! Brother!" he cried out, his sight spinning out of control. He reached a gloved hand out only to grab on to nothing but more water; dark, blood-colored water. The last sight he saw was Envy's hand coming towards his helmet, pushing him further down into the black pool, disappearing into the nothingness. After four years, it was over.
Yes, you can hate me now. But do let me know if it was good or not. ;)