AUTHOR'S NOTE:
HOLY FUCKING SHIT THIS TOOK ME FOR EVER BUT I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!
AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Okay long story short, life and that writer's block in the way but shit is getting fucking better and I'm slowly but surely getting my mojo back! So yeah! also no that quote in last chapter is not Nightmare Before Christmas - though I fucking love Nightmare Before Christmas - try again!
The Next chapter is still in the making but here is EIGHTEEN!
GUYS!
I'M BACK TO RISE!
I'M BACK TO FLOW!
I'M BACK TO FLY!
I'M BACK TO SOAR!
I'M BACK TO WAR!
LET THE TRUTH BE TOLD!
I FEEL ON FIRE WHEN MY PASSION FLOW!
GET READING!
Edit - I almost forgot to mention. THANK YOU Taranodongirl1 ! I freaking love you for helping me with this! just... AHHHHHHHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH!
"Hamilton!
Sir!
Meet me inside
(Meet him inside! Meet him inside! Meet him inside, meet him, meet him inside!)
Son.
Don't call me son.
This war is hard enough, without infighting!
Lee called you out. We called his bluff,
You solve nothing, you aggravate our allies to the south!
You're absolutely right, John should have shot him in the mouth, that would've shut him up.
Son.
I'm notcha son.
Watch your tone. I am not a maiden in need of defending, I am grown!
Charles Lee, Thomas Conway; These men take your name and they rake it through the mud!
My name's been through a lot, I can take it
Well, I don't have your name; I don't have your titles; I don't have your land. But, if you-
No.
-If you gave me command of a battalion, a group of men to lead, I could fly above my station after the war!
Or you could die and we need you alive!
I'm more than willing to die!
Your wife needs you alive, son, I need you alive!
Call me son one more time!
Go home, Alexander. That's an order from your commander.
Sir...
Go home." - The Hamilton Musical
Chapter Eighteen:
Conflict! Will a Resolution be Found?
"A sound soul dwells within a sound mind and a sound body."
"Humankind cannot gain without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's first law of Equivalent Exchange."
A strike of lightning illuminated the church, the windows causing the shadows in the room make the figure of a skull for a moment before the light faded as suddenly as it came. For the moment that the light was there Roy could clearly see the sneer that Edward had. The look in his eyes was something that was more than a little off putting. It was something that told the Colonel that if Edward could, he'd do something more than just beat the ever-loving hell out of him.
Roy knew that he might be able to hold his own against the kid, but that kid had more than enough skill to be able to likely win. He knew more Alchemy, he had martial arts more than a little engrained into him thanks to Curtis. Amnesia or not, Ed was engrained with knowledge and that information was just dormant like a sleeping bear, just waiting to be awoken and utilized.
"Edward, I already know about your amnesia, Hawkeye told me about it." Roy stated, "However, I need to know… What kind of Alchemy are they using here?"
Edward gave him a confused look, as though he thought that Roy was the one who was insane.
"Alchemy… What are you talking about?"
"This can't be happening… chimera or not… my… my brother would never do that…" Alphonse thought covering his mouth. He had frozen in his tracks his mind running several hundred miles per hour trying to figure out what the hell would drive his brother to work for such a place and do such a thing.
"Alphonse…" Maka said concerned, looking at the shocked Amestrian who was practically petrified. He didn't answer her. "Alphonse? Are you alright?"
He just couldn't believe it. These people… His brother… were actively, physically consuming the souls of people – their fellow human beings! He felt sick, light headed. He didn't even realize how obvious and clear it was because Maka and Soul were guiding him to a bench.
"Take it easy there, kid." said Soul, "You look like someone threw some ice-cold water on you."
Alphonse held his head and couldn't figure out how to articulate what he felt or was thinking. The words were there he just couldn't get them out!
"Alphonse, what's wrong?" asked Maka.
Alphonse hugged himself and closed his eyes, "Its… hard to explain… you won't get it… I'm gonna go back to my brother's dorm…" he got up and was about to walk away but Soul grabbed his shoulder.
"Wait," Soul said, "we're going with you. You never know what can happen this time of night…"
"Soul is right," said Maka, "There have been several Witches that have stayed hidden from the DWMA for years just using Soul-Protect while they were here in Death City of all places! We wouldn't want you to get captured and experimented on."
Alphonse felt a memory being dragged up from the depths of his mind.
"How do you create a Philosopher's Stone?" asked Dante.
Alphonse felt his blood rush into his mouth causing him to turn his head and spat it out. He couldn't fight the woman, he couldn't even attempt to do so. He was strapped to a table. He could only move his head.
"Bite me." he growled at her.
"Why would I do that?" she said holding up a lighter before flicking it on, making a flame. "You'll do it for me, now, won't you?"
The flame flickered as she moved it close to his arm. He closed his eyes and looked away.
He snapped back to reality. "A…. a… Witch?" he asked, "Those women on flying broomsticks from fairy tales?..." he gave a nervous laugh.
"Wow, you and your brother must be from the depths of the public…" Soul said. They began walking to the dorms.
"Tell me about it," smiled Maka, "Don't worry Alphonse, you're not the only one give us that answer. Witches exist but they can't be killed by simply pouring water on them… well, unless that water was created by a Weapon or a Soul Resonance. Witches are dangerous but not all of them are evil. They think of themselves as beings that are better than humans and Lord Death. A good amount of them love to kill us humans. However – they and us have a common enemy."
"The… ch-… I mean… the Keishin…" said Alphonse nervously.
Maka nodded.
"Keishin like to target us and Witches to get powerful. If they gain too much power their Madness Wavelength will spread like wildfire. I mean don't get me wrong we all have a little Madness Wavelength but… with Keishin its kinda different." Soul said putting his hands behind his head.
"Different how?" asked Al.
"The best way I can explain it is… imagine a caterpillar that can become two different things. The common one it can become is a better person and the other one is a monster. Now when a human chooses to do crime and fallow their own madness, they are that caterpillar that is becoming a monster. When they start eating human souls, they're in the cocoon stage of that caterpillar." explained Maka, "But when they eat a Witch's soul, they've become a monster and will start hunting down more humans and more Witches."
"But what about Soul?" asked Al, "He eats Keishin souls, what will he become when he eats a Witch's soul?"
"I'll become a Death Scythe," smirked Soul, "a Weapon that can be wielded by Lord Death. Maka's dad is a Death Scythe, and Professor Stein has made two in his time, nearly made three if it wasn't for Maka's dad choosing her mom to be his new Meister."
"However," said Maka, "We need to collect ninety-nine Keishin souls before we collect a Witch's soul."
"Why?" asked Al.
"It's the rules." sighed Soul, "We almost made it too…"
"But we mistook –" Maka's sentence was cut off by a new voice.
"Me for a Witch when I'm actually just a cat with a ridiculous amount of Magic Power!"
The kids turned around and saw… a woman with purple hair, a witch's hat and a black shirt and black mini-skirt.
Soul's face went red and he looked away while Maka simply smiled.
"Oh, hey Blair." smiled Maka.
"Hi~" Blair purred. She looked down at Alphonse that… somewhat reminded him how a staving wolf looked at large piece of fresh raw meat. "And who's this cutie?"
"This is Alphonse, he's FullMetal's little brother." said Soul.
Much to Alphonse's dismay, Blair put him through an unwanted – quite awkward hug.
"I should've known!" said the self-proclaimed magic cat, "Hey, wanna go to my place and take a bath with me?"
"Uh… n-n-n-no thanks, I need to get back to my brother's dorm..." stuttered Al, gently shoving the woman away.
"Awe…." Blair pouted.
"Actually…" Maka said, speaking up, "Alphonse… I think maybe we should take you Professor Stein…" she looked at him with concerned green eyes.
Alphonse stared at her, mortified.
Were they going to try to transmute him?!
"W-why…?" Alphonse asked, looking at her like a deer in headlights.
"I know why… that." said Soul pointing at him seeming a bit concerned himself.
"Awe, what's wrong?" Blair said looking down at him, even bowing to his height, not even concerned that she was… essentially showing her underwear to the world.
"If you want me to be clear with you Alphonse,… you've been really jumpy, even from day one." said Soul, "I mean, you're seriously giving Crona a run for his money, and he can't deal with anything."
Maka gave a sorrowful nod, "And your soul… isn't much better. I mean it's not as bad at your brother's but… it's not healthy. I'm sure Professor Stein could see more than me but… from what I see… I see a soul that is… what's the word?... Mistrustful… yeah that's it. Mistrustful."
"For a good reason…" Alphonse thought.
"Look, we'll take you to the school to see Stein, and when he's done seeing what's wrong, we'll take you back to your brother's dorm. How's that sound?" Soul suggested. "We won't leave the school without you either, we'll wait there for you."
"That's a good idea, Soul." Maka smiled. "C'mon what do you say?"
Alphonse didn't know what to do. He was pinned by three loons and one of them could turn into a full-on weapon… the woman likely knew Alchemy, since it always gets confused with magic, but… He took a long breath and sighed.
"Alright…" the Alchemist said.
He couldn't help but think, "If anything bad were to happen, I can always fight my way out and use Alchemy…"
Blair said goodbye and wished them a good night before leaving, letting the trio take off to the school. He was quiet while he walked. He just couldn't fathom it. His brother… eating human lives like candy and being a chimera… It just, wasn't possible. How could they have pinned him? How could his brother lose?...
He decided that it would be best to try to probe for as much information as possible. He might as well see if this 'seeing chi' thing that Meisters have is even possible.
"Maka… you said that you can see my soul… what does it look like?" Alphonse asked.
"Your soul looks a bit like your brothers but it's not identical," she said with a small smile, "It's a bit smaller in size and it has that same symbol on your back, but it also has… a rather weird drawing on it too…"
"What do you mean?" Alphonse said, not impressed.
"Well…. Okay, the drawing… it has one…. Two…. Er…. Nine… nine circles, a hexagon, an upside-down triangle… six half circles… eight strange symbols…. And a bunch of writing…." she gave a small hum before reading the strange writing, "Pale white and black with false citrine imperfect white and red. The peacock 's feather in bright colours, the rainbow in the sky above. The spotted panther, the green lion the crow's beak blue as lead. These shall appear before you in perfect white, with many others. After the perfect white follows the grey and false citrine also. And after these shall appear the substance invariable, Then you shall..."
"Then you shall?..." said Soul.
"That's all it says." Maka stated before noticing that Alphonse covered his mouth and gagged as though he was about to vomit.
"That's…. that's the…." Alphonse thought, tears running down his face. "The human transmutation circle we used to try to bring back mom…."
"Alphonse!" Maka rushed to him and put a hand on his back, "This is serious… we need to get you to Stein, now!"
Ling sighed as he rubbed his face as he sat before the two other people that didn't know of the situation that Edward was in before now that he had just told him. Winry looked to the side, glancing at the window, waiting to tell them her side of the story.
"So… that's the situation with Eddy…" Ling said, practically breathlessly, but also nervously.
Mei's head hung low as she sat cross legged and looked at a wall, almost seeming uncomfortable. Her little panda was seemingly trying to comfort her. Izumi on the other hand grinded her teeth, in what could only be a mix of seething fury and despair, trying to hold back her tears which were pouring down, she put a hand to her face as if to tell her tears to get back where they belonged, but they refused and continued to poor down. It had been the first time anyone had seen her cry, and Ling was not sure if he should run for the hills in fear of what the woman might do to the school and who ever gave Edward amnesia.
He was technically her son after all…
"Well… that explains why his chi felt so weird…" murmured Mei.
"And why he fell so easily into this insane cult of a school…" Izumi said without a breath. She then took a long breath before looking at Winry, "So what did that 'god' say about Edward?"
Winry practically began shaking, "Well…" she knew that they weren't going to take this well… considering what they and herself had to deal with…
The so-called god took a long sigh, "Well, I'll re-iterate it again just to make sure you all understand the situation fully. A pre-keishin is when a human gives up their humanity so that they may fall completely into the madness and consume human souls. The more souls they consume the stronger they become and the less humanity they have until they're past the point of no return."
Lord Death let the information set into them.
"FullMetal was a pre-keishin before he came here…" he said finally.
The Amestrians' eyes went wide with shock.
"Ed would never do that!" exclaimed Winry covering her mouth.
"FullMetal would never commit such an act, not even if it'd kill him!" growled Mustang.
"That is true I'm sure," nodded Lord Death, "His soul is strong, and I do often see remnants of determination and loyalty in it that run so deep that it goes right to the core of his being. He likely would've never done so unless… someone forced him into it… which I'm sure was no easy feat." The god sighed, "I'm more than sure it was probably one of the Witches that defected from the Witch's Realm to target the DWMA."
"Why do you say that?" asked Jean.
"Because it was a family of Witches that exorcised the souls from FullMetal and the leader of the Witch's Realm who sent him here to go to school to ensure that he doesn't end up going on the path of Madness." explained Lord Death, "The Mizune Sisters were targets of the DWMA for a short while but that was because a Defected Witch had convinced them that one of the members of the school had killed their eldest sister. Luckily, we cleared that up and they stopped their attacks. Mabaa, however, who is the leader of the Witch Realm, I have an acquaintanceship with her. She loathes keishin and she has a small dislike for the school, but we have an understanding. So long as she and her kind that are in the Witch Realm understand that if they don't attack us, we won't attack them. It was the Mizune sisters who got rid of all the human souls that he had consumed; however, this is what caused his amnesia."
"How?" asked Hawkeye.
"When one falls into the Madness this way, the human will slowly forget things that tether them to their sanity. Names, dates, faces, loved-ones, dreams, goals, accomplishments, places, until they forget their own name and then… they're no longer human, the transformation is then complete, and their humanity is lost forever." said Death somberly. "In the day, they go about in a façade, acting human but never truly being human, but when night rolls in they take on an appearance of that of a monster. Their only desire to kill and consume like a ravenous beast. I've tried millions of ways of trying to bring true keishin back to their humanity, mind, body, and soul… but I have still yet to find an answer. The only thing that I have found to work is to find them in the earliest pre-keishin state and exorcise the human souls they've consumed and even then… they're left with a vulnerability to their madness… and if the exorcism isn't done by someone powerful enough or with the experience then they get what FullMetal has now..."
"Maddification… an illness that can only be described as a chain tethering it's victim to their Madness and tries to use it to drag them into it by making them suffer as much as possible whilst they're in the sane world."
They stared at Death for a long while.
"Is there a cure?" asked Roy.
"No, unfortunately." said Lord Death, "FullMetal is the second case I have seen. The first one being over a thousand years ago and… that one didn't end well. That was when I first learned of an Exorcism Wavelength. We are currently trying several things to keep FullMetal's Madness at bay, so I must warn you all to try not to push his emotions over the edge. Doing so could do a lot of damage to him. And from what I've seen, his Madness is quite powerful, I could only imagine what he must have endured to cause him get it…"
The room went silent...
Winry sighed, "That's all the information he gave us… but that… soul eating thing…. I just…." she looked out the window again, looking past her reflection.
"There is no way in hell Edward would do such a thing!" growled Izumi. "He knows how a Philosopher's Stone is made! He knows the cost of it! He knows the payment of Human Transmutation! He would never do such a thing!"
Mei was speechless the only thing she could get out was, "That's impossible… he's… he's too… How?..."
"Eddy… Ed never told me that…" murmured Ling, "He's… he's too stubborn for that to ever happened…. I just assumed that the gate took his memories or something…"
"That's what I thought…" Winry sighed, "But… I guess we were wrong… There's more to this situation than we'd like…"
The blonde looked out the window again, frowning. She looked into the eye of the moon and a bad feeling crept up her spine. This world was so unlike her own, she wondered just how someone could do such a thing to her childhood friend…
Mustang stared at the young soldier that looked genuinely confused. The colonel let a low growl come from his throat. "You know exactly what I'm talking about, Ed…" he then got an idea.
"FullMetal, tell me what this first and most important Law of Alchemy."
Ed then automatically said, "Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's first and most important law of Equivalent Exchange." He then swiftly covered his mouth as if shocked that he even knew such information.
The young alchemist glared at the elder.
"What kind of alchemy is going on here, Major Elric?" asked Mustang, "As you said, something of equal value must be lost, so how is it that people can turn into inanimate objects? And don't tell me its magic, you and I both know that magic doesn't exist."
FullMetal's glare was like a bunch of daggers. He snarled at the Colonel. "And what if it is Magic, huh? What then?" his voice was dark and shaky. Holding back a lot anger and Madness.
"How would that work?" asked Mustang, "How does one lose in magic? Where is the equivalence?!"
"Soul Wavelengths!" exclaimed FullMetal, "The wavelength is what is lost! Normally a Soul Wavelength dissipates after it reaches a certain perimeter, however Witch Souls are different in the fact that their perimeters are further than any Human Soul could even dream of reaching – they're also stronger but more susceptible to Madness – when using Magic, they're actively sacrificing their powerful wavelength to do so."
"And how is it that their 'magic' lingers?" asked Mustang.
"How is it that what Alchemy does is permanent unless someone else intervenes?" Ed countered with a growl. "It's the same thing, just sacrifices something different, bastard."
Before the Colonel could even try to retort there was a sudden feeling that something was behind him. The look on Edward's face also seemed to be that of shock and confusion, he was looking past the fellow officer. Roy looked behind him only to see a group of mice that suddenly climbed on top of each other then with a puff of smoke the mice were gone and….
Oh, dear, that may be a long skirt, but holy hell was that short top.
"I've heard enough of this. FullMetal, let's go home." said the pink haired woman in the mouse hat.
Alphonse didn't know what to expect when he entered the infirmary, nor did he know what to expect when he saw the Professor walk through the door. He was shaking like a cornered rat. Maka and Soul waited in the room with him and when Stein entered they waited outside for him. Much to his shock, anticlimactically Professor Stein just, checked his pulse, his temperature, and then began asking rather odd questions and saying things that were just as odd.
"That is a rather odd Soul you have…" Stein said, "Are you naturally this distrusting?"
Alphonse didn't answer.
"You're waiting for something to happen, but the fact that whatever it is that isn't happening is putting you off even more and making you trust everyone even less, am I right?"
The Elric swallowed a lump in the back of his throat and didn't answer.
"Maka told me that when she brought up the strange diagram on your Soul you started to get emotional, why is that?" asked Stein.
"That's personal…" said Alphonse, he could feel that he was shaking, he tightened his grip on his ankles, but he couldn't stop shaking.
Stein just watched the boy's behavior and didn't say anything for a moment. He suddenly seemed to express light surprise and then walked over to the window light a cigarette using just his fingertips – much to the Elric's shock – and then finally speak.
"It seems that someone along with your brother got into some trouble with the Witches that had been taking care of him…"
"What?"
"Your brother did tell you about the Witches that took him in, right?"
"Y-yeah… he did…. The Mizune Sisters, right?..."
Stein nodded, "That's right."
"H-how is it that you know that they got into trouble?"
"Didn't you take notes on Soul Perception?"
"Y-yes! I did. It's just…"
"Just?..."
"I'm a firm believer in Equivalent Exchange and 'seeing is believing'. I cannot truly grasp something if I can't experience it for myself and if it has no Equivalent Exchange."
"Please elaborate on this Equivalent Exchange."
"Humankind cannot gain without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. Think of it this way, if you want a twelve-foot metal statue, you'll need twelve feet of metal to make that statue."
"Well, you're going to have to take some more notes. Ever heard of Entropy?"
"What does thermodynamics have to do with this?"
"The energy of the very soul that is in our bodies is what gives all of us our abilities like a temporary enhancement that will eventually fade or fade at the will of the user. Our Souls produce a Wavelength that fades when it enters a certain radius. Soul Wavelengths actually produce three minor waves that are nowhere near the strength of the original wave when they reach that radius, the energy of that original wave is lost." explained Stein.
"What does this have to do with Soul Perception?" asked Alphonse.
"The way a Meister uses Soul Perception is similar to the way a Witch uses Magic." Stein stated, "Well… similar in the fact that we use our Soul Wavelengths to do what we need it to do. You see, when a Witch Casts a Spell or uses Magic she is sacrificing her Soul Wavelength to do so, except the energy she uses will never be as powerful as the Wavelength she sacrificed to use the spell. If you were to find a Witch that had a soul that had a Wavelength that made your hair stand on end because it's so powerful, the power of her spells will be powerful but will never be as powerful as the Wavelength she has. Us Meisters have powerful Souls, but it's a matter of how concentrated and calculated us and our souls are, and that allows our Wavelengths to be concentrated into ourselves, sacrificing one Wavelength to allow us to use Soul Perception – allowing us to see the souls of those we analyze, those we hunt, and know them."
Alphonse felt the hair on the back of his neck when the light reflected on the professor's glasses, making them have an eerie, supernatural glow on them.
The professor tilted his head, making the reflection stop, and gave a small, gentle smile, "Maybe you'll even get to my level of expertise and be able to tell the nature of the souls to the point where it's almost like mindreading."
Alphonse gave a nervous laugh.
The professor then asked a rather odd question, "Are you and your brother really interested in that ancient form of chemistry?"
The Elric gave a confused glance at the teacher. "Alchemy?"
Stein nodded.
"Yes, why?"
Stein took a drag of the cigarette before breathing out the smoke, "I read up on it. I had a feeling it might come in handy when it comes to explaining things to you and your brother. I guess you could consider Soul Perception a form of Spiritual Alchemy that fallows both Entropy and Equivalent Exchange rather than solely Equivalent Exchange. Our souls and its Wavelength can linger, and it can fade. It can even change. Just think of it this way, to use Soul Perception, or a Soul Resonance, We the Meisters sacrifice a Wavelength or two in order to use the abilities. Though with Soul Resonance us and our Weapons also need to sacrifice multiple Wavelengths."
"I… I kinda get it…" Alphonse murmured.
He did honestly understand, but at the same time, he didn't. It troubled him when it came to the whole Keishin thing. It didn't make any sense.
"What's troubling you?" asked Stein.
Alphonse was a little startled when it came to that question. He swallowed a lump in his throat.
"How do people turn into Weapons, and… how do people turn into Keishin?..." Alphonse asked.
Stein stared at him for a moment and took a long drag of his cigarette before exhaling the smoke, for a moment the smoke curled into a skull before dissipating.
"That's a rather odd question to ask…" Stein said rather bluntly. He smirked at the teen. "But one I can answer. I have dissected both. In order for me to explain Weapons, I need to explain Keishin. I suppose the best way to describe a Keishin is a person who skinned their soul alive to rid it of their sanity that tethered them to follow morality and the like. The way that people become Keshin is via criminal activity which in a sense starts to damage the soul's morality and thin the barrier that protects it from Madness. Think of that barrier as a shell that encases the soul – after all, human souls are blue and Keishin souls are red. The more sinister the crime the more damage to the barrier. Now when the Keishin-to-be has done enough crime and the barrier is thin enough they gain the ability to eat souls. When this happens what little barrier they have left is essentially skinned and Madness is able to pass right through it and begin to scar the soul. However, there is a bit more to it than that. After all, people like me and your brother are somewhat exceptions to it than the average person. Even you are an exception."
"What do you mean?" asked Alphonse carefully.
"Simple, we're more susceptible to Madness than the average human-being. I was personally born with a very thin barrier and a naturally powerful Madness. We all have a bit of Madness in us – Kid has the Madness of Order, much like Lord Death himself. I have the Madness of Knowledge. Your brother has the Madness of Anger, as do you. There are also Madness that aren't all that specific, but rather just something that hasn't yet to be linked with a specific wavelength. Your friend that is currently in trouble with your brother and the Mizunes is just one such example like Spirit, the current Deathscythe here. They both have a rather unhealthy fondness for women they believe are attractive. If we dive too deep into our own Madness then we could easily damage our souls from the inside out and become Keishin far more easily than the steady process I described earlier." Stein said.
"How can I have this Madness of Anger?" asked Alphonse, "Unlike my brother I'm very calm and I have always been the one who reeled him in when he got too upset!..."
"But only recently have you displayed anger beyond what you thought you were capable of…" Stein said. "Ask yourself, have you ever got so temperamental that you rivaled that of your brother's temperament?"
Alphonse swallowed a lump in his throat.
Back at Amestris, he had often got into a heated rage that the members of the military claiming that brother was either dead, went off the rails, or…
His grip on his ankles tightened.
"And thus, the evidence shows itself to you." Stein smirked. "Don't worry, you aren't the first to have it, and you'll never be the last. Just remember to be patient and you won't have to worry about a damn thing. As for the whole Weapon thing. You see, well over a thousand years ago, the Keishin population had gotten out of hand and the Witch population had become a bit problematic when it came to their attacks on humans. Lord Death couldn't handle both at the same time, so he enlisted the help of one of the only somewhat sane Witches at the time. Her name was Arachne. Much like me, she was a scientist and she loved to preform experiments on both humans and her own kind. Lord Death asked her if it was possible to make him some weapons. She obliged."
Alphonse felt his blood run cold.
"You can guess what she made. She got a human, several normal weapons, and Lord Death-knows-what-else, and made the first Weapon, if you want evidence of it, look no further than Tsubaki Nakasuka, she is a descendant of that first Weapon. However, Lord Death couldn't wield them. So, Arachne made more, but he still couldn't wield any of them."
"Why couldn't he?" asked Alphonse.
Stein smiled at Alphonse's thirst for knowledge. "Simple, their Soul Wavelength. You see, Lord Death has a very, and I do mean very powerful Wavelength. So, no Weapon can be wielded without feeling like they're being torn apart just being in physical contact with Lord Death. You see, when a Weapon transforms into their Weapon form it's like they turned themselves inside out. Their physical form takes the place of the spiritual one and their spiritual one takes the place of physical. So, when you pick up a Weapon in their weapon form, you are essentially picking them up by their soul and their soul is very vulnerable to your Soul Wavelength. When Lord Death tried to wield the first Weapon, it was the equivalent of Lava being used to cook duck. Impossible."
It then clicked.
"So, basically that's why Meisters need to feed Weapons Keishin souls and Witch souls?" Alphonse observed, "It not only decreases the population of both and it empowers their own souls so that way they don't get damaged by… Lord Death's Wavelength… To put it into an Alchemic lens: a human who wants to become a Keishin sacrifices their barrier to gain the ability to eat souls and become a Keishin, thus sacrificing their own humanity in the process as well. Weapons sacrifice Keishin souls to strengthen their own souls, so they can be held and wielded by Lord Death."
"Exactly." Stein smiled, he sounded very happy with Alphonse's observation.
"What about his son?" asked Alphonse, still suspicious. "His son goes here, doesn't he? He doesn't wield a Deathscythe. Why doesn't he? After all the old saying goes, like father like son…"
"Observant…" smirked Stein, "That's a simple one, the soul grows with their bodies. Like yours, its still developing, Kidd's soul is very powerful – about as powerful as a full-grown adult, but not a full-grown Grim Reaper. I'm sure when he reaches around twenty, or twenty-one he will have to let Liz and Patty be wielded by someone else and wait for them to become Deathscythes or he's going to have step up his game right now, so he won't have to deal with such a thing."
"Makes sense…" Alphonse sighed, "There's still another thing that bugs me thought…"
Stein raised an eyebrow.
"What is Madness?" asked Alphonse. "What's the point of it? Why does it exist?"
Stein raised a brow, "That's a good question. Well, Madness is there to make itself powerful, isn't it? Madness is linked with chaos, without a good balance of both Madness and Reason we wouldn't have society. Madness is an enigmatic force that can mentally influence people and their behaviors. Everyone has a piece of Madness in them but when it comes to Madness Wavelength…" he took a drag and exhaled the smoke, "Madness is there to increase its hold on the world and destroys reason. Think of it this way: Madness is chaos and Reason is harmony. Evil and Good. Black and White. Yin and Yang. We're just here to keep everything in balance and in order to do that we have to risk our lives and kill keishin. Though that's not to say that there have been Meisters that haven't died to Kieshin and Witches…"
Alphonse sat there and thought about the knowledge he was given. He gave a murmur, "I think I get it now…."
"Don't worry," said Stein. "I'm sure by tomorrow or even next week you'll understand it…"
"I hope so…" said Alphonse, "Thank you Professor."
"You're welcome, have a good night…" smiled Stein.
"Likewise…" said Alphonse before getting up and leaving.
Maka and Soul waked with him all the way home. They asked him he felt better only to be met with a simple nod and a muttered "Yes…".
After going up the stairs in the building and making it to the apartment only to see Mustang and Riza arguing and hear that his brother was gone…. That the Mizunes had took him because the were not happy with the way that Mustang was arguing with him.
Alphonse honestly wanted to cry… This mission was frustrating.
The next day FullMetal sighed as he focused on his homework, basic science and math along with soul studies, he was merely just looking his answers over. He would also occasionally look up from the homework to see his moms in their five-form, pacing back and forth. He honestly wondered when they were gonna separate due to their, likely, arguing and stress. He looked at the clock, he gave it five minutes. They've been at this for about an hour since he woke up, they were gonna give sooner or later.
He remembered how he got into the situation he was in at the current moment. He was arguing with Mustang and then his moms came in like rats out of hell and – well, Mustang was going to need a blood transfusion… and a trip to the hospital, after the way Hawkeye was aiming the gun at his head…. Well… it was expected.
But what was really expected was the arguing. Oh, the arguing. They got off easy, they really did. If his moms didn't have the patience of a friggen saint, his friends would likely be dead both literally and figuratively. His moms just didn't like the way Mustang had confronted him about the school and Lord Death – heaven forbid Mustang and the others discover Mabaa… better put that thought in the back of his mind… - FullMetal remembered the fight very well. The shouting, the rage…
His madness almost took hold…
He shook his head to forget about it.
He couldn't help but be grateful that his moms got him out of that situation, it would've ended rather badly.
Suddenly there was a loud bang and yelling of 'Chii'. FullMetal looked up from his papers only to see his moms arguing loudly. He looked at the clock.
"Hmph, seven minutes. That's a new record." he mused.
He got his papers and book-bag before silently going to his room. He knew for a fact that getting in the middle of their fight would be about as beneficial as jumping head first into a volcano – it will never end well.
When he got to his bed room he couldn't help but look at it with a sense of shock. It felt like decades since he had seen it… not to mention the fact that every time he woke up there, ever since he first met the Mizune sisters, the sheer thought of having the same room, open to him for as long as he felt the need to stay in that home, was rather alien to him. He remembered how every time he woke up in that room he felt as though he was in another world entirely and that the room didn't rightfully belong to him. It was a welcoming room to him though. It had a single bed, a couple of drawers, a walk-in closet, a large black-rimmed mirror over one of the dressers. His bed had black blankets, his pillows were black and white, some shaped of the card suits (Spades, Hearts, Clubs, and Diamonds) with their respective colors, his mouse paw slippers were by the bed. The dark red curtains covered his window to prevent the sun from entering the room. He had left them that way…
He remembered that day… it was the day that he had first gone to the D.W.M.A.
He could feel the sunlight hitting his face. He rolled over and had his pillow cover his face. However, he could still feel the sunlight on him so he forced himself to get up and closed the curtains before lying back down and closing his eyes to fall back asleep. To his dismay he heard his door open and footsteps coming towards him.
"Metty, it's time to get up!" said his moms sweetly in their Five-form, "You don't want to be late for your first day of school!"
Yikes, he forgot about that…
He sat up and rubbed his eyes whilst giving a small yawn, "Okay… I'm up…"
"I'm gonna go prepare breakfast, okay Metty?" they smiled, "Try to hurry, school starts at Seven."
He nodded before stretching and watching his moms leave the room. He looked at the clock, twenty minutes before six… He sighed got out of bed and began fixing it. When he finished he went to the restroom to do the usual morning routine.
It didn't take long for him to finish.
He once again looked at the clock, he still had a good forty-five minutes to go before he had to get to the… D.W.M.A…
As he adjusted his hat his mind wondered to that nickname that his moms gave him… Metty. It was a play on the 'Metal' in his name 'FullMetal'. It was odd, a small part of him loathed it… like bad… really bad. That part of him honestly felt humiliated and would rather claw his eyes out in the most painful way possible than being called 'Metty'. But the other part of him, the main part, didn't mind it. He mainly didn't mind being called 'Metty'. Why was he so torn about it?
Was it the Keishin part of him? Did it still linger inside of him somehow? Like an unsettling echo from the depths of his soul?
He shook the thought out of his head and swiftly made his way to the kitchen. He saw that his moms had prepared a simple breakfast for him and themselves. They went back to their original forms and they all began eating.
"Are you excited for your first day of school?" asked one of his moms.
He nervously picked at one of the eggs that he hadn't eaten. "Um… well… I'm actually kind of… you know... nervous…"
One of his moms almost choked on their food, "Our son, nervous?! Why?"
He shrugged, "I don't know…"
Another said, "Surely there's a reason…"
He sighed, "Well… I don't know… I just… the thought of going to school… It gives me this odd feeling of… not belonging, I guess… I get this feeling like… I haven't been to school in a long, long time…"
His moms exchanged looks.
"Maybe he graduated from human school early when he was younger…" murmured one his moms.
"Maybe…" murmured another.
He gave a small, silent, sigh and continued eating. A small question whispering in is mind. What if no one likes him?
When they finished eating they began to pack the necessities and his moms made sure his hat was straight and his hair kept, that there was nothing on his face and his whiskers were nice and cute-looking. The sisters went into their five-form, before they opened the portal to let him go to the school, put a hand on his cheek and smiled at him.
"You'll do great." They said, "I love you." Then kissed him on the forehead.
They had done that many times to him. They said that they loved him and kiss him on his forehead or cheek – hell, sometimes on the lips. Every time they did that it felt… odd. I gave him a really depressed feeling while at the same time, an alien feeling. Was his birth-mother dead?... Something told him yes.
"I love you too." he replied with a small smile.
They opened the portal and he left to the D.W.M.A.
He took a deep breath and walked into the room. He threw his bag by the dresser and put the papers on top of said dresser however, for a single moment he looked up at the mirror only to see the madness side of him grinning at him. He jumped back and summoned his blade-claws only for the madness that was reflected at him a moment ago to disappear.
He stared at the mirror for several moments trying to comprehend what happened. After the moments were up he took a long breath and sighed only to start coughing till blood began to flood his maw. He swiftly ran to the sink in the bathroom that his room was connected to. There were two master bedrooms in the Mizunes' Rodent Castle, his was the second, theirs were the main one. When he got to the sink he let the blood out of his mouth and continued to cough up more blood.
It took a full minuet and a half for it to finally die down. If he were to leave the room and someone were to walk in, they would assume that a murder had taken place and the killer forgot to clean the sink. He stared at the deep crimson that was the blood that now coated the formerly pristine marble that made the sink.
He then began to snicker that became a chuckle, then a laugh.
It was so pretty!
It surpassed the beauty of rubies, silver, and gold!
Not even diamonds could compare!
He needed more!
MORE!
He chomped down on his tongue. Forcing himself out of the madness along with a yelp of pain. He covered his mouth to comfort himself. He took a long breath, turned the sink on and used the running water to wash away the (pretty) blood and wash it off of his face as well.
"I am sane…." he said glairing into his reflection. "I am not a Keishin… I am not a monster…. I'm not a killer… I am sane…."
He stopped the running water. He could hear that his moms were still arguing. He sighed, they will likely stop in an hour or so…
He went back to his room and laid down on his bed.
Though as comfortable his bed was, it didn't pick up his mood. He wondered why he was so unlucky that caused him to have to deal with his past running to him so quickly and suddenly that he couldn't even have a moment to breathe. What was it that they were all blabbering about?!
Why were they so bugged about Weapons?! Why?!
He rubbed his head and pondered on the questions like a tactician wondering if the decision he was about to make would help him win a war.
Riza paced back and forth, she would occasionally pinch her brow, huff, or even send a rather intimidating glare at the man in question… Roy. For a beautiful blond woman, it was rather mortifying as to how much she looked like a sabretooth tiger when she's mad. Mustang knew that there was no way in hell he could get out of this situation without at the very least, losing two of his limbs. He knew this because at this very moment was Curtis who was outside the apartment building, she was going on a long walk due to the fact that at this moment one of the two boys who were the closest things to sons that she was ever gonna get was with another woman who claimed to be a combination of the five remaining Mizune Sisters. They also claimed to be Witches.
This predicament was getting worse and worse by the minute…
Currently, Mei, Jean, Winry, and Alphonse were at the DWMA.
Jean was going to go interview Sid, a living, breathing, dead guy. A literal Zombie. Winry was going to sit in on one of Professor Stein's classes, whilst Aphonse participates in the class.
Mei was going to be in the library, studding every book she came across. If only he could join her…
Ling, was walking the streets of Death City, looking for information on these 'Witches'.
Right now, Edward was with the Mizune Sisters, according to the 'Witch', she believed that Ed needed a 'break'.
Roy sighed and looked up at the ceiling, he wondered just what was going on in this world.
Winry, Jean, Mei, and Alphonse walked up the large flight of stairs that lead up to the DWMA.
"Are you sure that you want to go to these classes, Winry?" asked Alphonse. He looked up at her questioningly.
"Yeah, I'm sure." smiled Winry, "I mean, I read that book of yours, and all of it sounded pretty interesting, despite sounding so far-fetched. Besides, you guys need another perspective on all this, so… I thought, well I'm no Alchemist, so I won't be looking into it too scientifically, but rather the technicality of it."
"I do suppose that she is right," said Jean, "I mean, this place has the Chief on its leash, so there must be something that they did to do so… Amnesia or not, the Chief is a genius, he would know if something about this place is wrong."
"But you also forget, he is smart scientifically and when it comes to fighting, but when it comes to everything else… he's a moron." said Mei, "Even Alphonse suffers from this."
"HEY!" Al barked.
"She's right," said Winry, "Sometimes, you two, despite all those smarts, don't think things through…"
Al sighed in defeat. "I know…."
When they reached the top of the staircase they saw the building for all its glory.
"This place is still…. well… freaky… I mean, I don't know why but this place is just… it leaves me speechless…" said Winry.
"Indeed." said Alphonse.
"Well I don't blame you two…" said a smooth voice fallowed by some footsteps.
They looked at the speaker. It was Death the Kidd and his Weapon Partners Liz and Patty Thompson.
"This place is a work of art, everything about it is perfectly symmetrical." said Kidd smiling, "Absolutely perfect."
"You're one of my brother's friends…" said Al, "Death the Kidd, Liz, and Patty, right?"
Kidd nodded.
"Just call him Kidd, for short." said Liz, "It makes things a lot easier, since he has the same name as his dad."
"Yup!" exclaimed Patty.
"We heard about a certain debacle that occurred last night…" said Kidd, "So, FullMetal isn't going to be here for a couple of days?"
"The Chief has been very cryptic lately, we just want some answers…." said Jean.
"Chief?" Liz questioned.
"I'm guessing that he was right to assume that he was a part of the Military." Kidd stated, "You call him Chief because despite his age he is a higher rank than you?"
"Second Lieutenant, Jean Havoc. Edward is a Major. So yeah, he is a higher rank."
"Edward…. So… the name FullMetal Alchemist is a code name?"
"Title." Alphonse said, "He earned it when he was in the Military."
"Well that does clear a lot of things up." Kidd said.
"Guys, lets finish this conversation later, we need to get to class, the earlier the better." Liz said.
"Oh, you're right big sis! You're so smart!" Patty smiled.
"Hm, yes." Kidd said.
They began to walk to the building. The others fallowed.
"Um, do you think your teacher would mind if I sat in for this lesson?" asked Winry.
"Oh no, he wouldn't." said Kidd, "However, if you really want to go to school here, you're going to have to try to either keep up with this class, or one of the NOT classes."
"Not?" asked Mei.
"There is a system here in the DWMA. You see, there are the normal students, then there is FullMetal and us, we are the ones that go on missions and hunt Keishin and evil Witches. Ninety percent of the student body are in the NOT class. NOT stands for Normally Overcome Target Class. They mainly do homework, study the soul, and do intensive gym classes so that way they can physically stand the work they will have to go through when they finally get to EAT Level. Which is the class we're in. EAT stands for Especially Advantaged Talent Class, we're the remaining ten percent. We go on missions, get paid, and we actually have the chance to graduate early should we actually collect all the souls needed to make a DeathScythe, a weapon that my father and I can wield." explained Kidd, "Though I attend this school by choice, and besides, Liz and Patty aren't DeathScythes."
"Well I know where you'd end up…" stated Alphonse, looking at Winry smirking.
She rolled her eyes. She knew that she wasn't really the best fighter, nor did she know how to properly fight. She shrugged, "Well even if I do end up in the NOT class, I'll still be learning about the souls and all that. And hey, maybe I'll learn how to fight like you do Al."
"That's true." hummed Al.
"Half-truth actually." said Kidd, "Alphonse is a Scythe-Meister, like Maka, because he is able to wield FullMetal who is a Scythe."
"Yeah," said Liz however she was cut off by another voice.
"So what kind of weapons are you familiar with, Miss Rockbell?" the voice was monotoned and devoid of emotion.
Everyone jumped at the voice and looked in its direction, which was behind all of them.
"Professor Stein?!" exclaimed the professor's students.
Winry composed herself, "Oh… I-I'm not really familiar with any weapons at all… unless you count a wrench as a weapon. I have a pretty good aim when I throw it…"
"And she hits really, really hard…" commented Alphonse. He couldn't help but also wonder if he even could wield a Scythe properly… Was it anything like using a spear?...
"Where exactly do you aim?" said Stein, turning the screw that was nailed through his skull.
"The head…" Winry murmured.
Stein raised an eyebrow. "How often do you hit your target?"
She thought for a moment, "I… never miss…. Heck, there were times where Ed tried to dodge them, but they would hit him anyways…"
The screw clicked.
"Interesting…" Stein said, his eyes pierced hers. "You aren't lying to me either. I see a very emotional soul that is emphatic and strong-willed. You are very enthusiastic about something, but I can't seem to pinpoint it that well, telling by the shape of your soul, I'm guessing it has to deal with machinery. You are also very suborned, and when you make a decision you tend to keep to it no matter what so long as they coincide with your sense of duty and morality… Very befitting of a Meister."
Mei's and Jean's jaws drop, whilst Alphonse looked at Stein in a mix of shock and horror. Winry, too was blown away.
"How did you…" Winry couldn't even speak.
Stein gave a cheerfully pleasant smile. "I'm the best Meister here. I've been studying the soul longer than you've been alive. My Soul Perception allows me to be able to read a soul like a book, seeing it's shape and nature rather easily. Not every Meister is able to see the souls of the living like myself, or Maka, but others can sense them. You might fall into either. It really depends. There have been some Meisters don't realize they can see souls until they've out right graduated. So, don't dwell on it."
Winry, swallowed a lump in her throat, "I was wondering if I may sit in for the class today…"
"Well that won't be rather productive for you…" Stein said, "But I wouldn't mind you participating. If you wish to attend this school, you will land either in NOT or my class, EAT, depending on your performance today. This sounds like a rather interesting experiment, I can only imagine the results…"
Winry felt nervous.
Everyone stopped walking. Winry looked at the door they were in front of. There was a small sign on it.
CLASS CRESCENT MOON
This was the classroom that Alphonse talked about. Stein was their professor here… He was the one that Alphonse talked to last night and was also the one who wrote that book that Ed gave him.
Winry snapped back to reality when she heard Mei speak up.
"Um, Mr. Stein, where is the library? I heard this place has wide array of books to read so I thought it would be interesting to see it for myself."
Stein looked at Mei carefully. "Second floor, third door on your immediate left. You can't miss it."
"Thank you." said Mei.
"I'll see you two after school I guess…" said Jean. "Oh… do you guys allow smoking in the building?"
"Yes." Stein chuckled, "Trust me, I wouldn't be working here if they didn't."
Jean was a little taken aback by that statement, but smiled back, "Thanks. Have a good day." He then hurried off to catch up with Mei.
The students, professor and Winry all walked into class. Winry sat down next to Alphonse. Behind her was Kidd, Liz, Patty, and two people that she didn't really recognize. She swore she saw them before, but she couldn't exactly pin point where. Stein had walked out of the room for a moment before coming back.
"Hey…" said one of the people she didn't recognize. It was a boy with white hair and red eyes. "Aren't you one of FullMetal's friends?"
She nodded, "Yeah, Winry Rockbell."
He looked a little wide eyed at her, the person who sat next to him was a girl with dirty blond hair and green eyes, she also seemed shocked a little.
"So, you're the person Maka reminded him of, when she hit him with a book that one time…" he murmured. "'Name's Soul Eater."
"That isn't weird at all…" Winry thought. "Nice to meet you.
"I'm Maka Albarn." smiled the green-eyed girl. "I'm Soul's Meister. So, what are you doing here? Want to attend a class at the DWMA to see if you want to join the academy?"
"That's exactly why she's here." smiled Kidd.
"So, any idea what's going to go on today?" asked Winry. "Your Professor said that he wanted me to participate."
Many more students began to walk in, and took their seats.
Maka shook her head. "Nope, Stein's sporadic like that."
"I remember that time where he had us just do a full week of dissection lessons just to satisfy that curiosity of his…" sighed Soul, "He even dissected an animal that was going extinct just because he didn't want it to die off without at least dissecting one."
Winry swallowed a lump in her throat while Alphonse stared at Soul shocked. The bell rung. Class started.
"Alright class," said Stein, "We're going to have a hands-on class today. And luckily for you we have a rather interesting topic for us to start with today. I'm sure you all remember when you first started school here, correct."
There were a lot of 'yeah's' and 'uh-huhs'.
"Now, when you all were first paired with Weapon's, you didn't really have a choice in the matter, did you?" Stein continued. "You were given a partner who would be compatible with your Soul Wavelength. As you know, should someone try to wield a DeathScythe, it would be rather easy but only if that Meister knew how to wield the kind of Weapon that that particular DeathScythe is. Take for instance our resident DeathScythe, Spirit Albarn. He is a Scythe, so the Meisters that can wield him aside from Lord Death, Death the Kidd, and myself would be: Maka and Alphonse."
"Now, when it comes to new Weapons and Meisters, we can't really pair them with just anyone. Each person has a particular preference. If that Meister prefers hand to hand combat, then they'd need a melee Weapon, like a Knife, Scythe, Baton, or even a Hammer. But if they prefer being in the backline, they'd need something along the lines of a gun or a bow. Miss Rockbell do mind coming down here?"
Winry felt her heart sink. She nodded, got up and walked down to the ground level of the room.
"Class, meet Winry Rockbell. She is thinking of joining the academy, so let's see if we can figure out what kind of weapon would suit her best, should she join." Stein smiled. "Now miss, Rockbell, you said that when it came to fighting, you mainly used a typical wrench, correct?"
Winry nodded.
Suddenly the door swung open and in walked a zombie. She remembered Havoc mentioning he had met a zombie when he first arrived. That must be the same zombie – Sid.
"Hey Stein, got that wrench for you!" said Sid, throwing the tool to the teacher.
Stein caught it and handed it to Winry, "Thanks Sid."
"Mind if I watch?" asked Sid.
"Be my guest." Stein smiled.
"Now let's see…" he looked at the student body. "Kilik Rung, mind being her opponent?"
"OPPONENT?!" Winry felt her heart sinking further.
She and Alphonse couldn't help but think the exact same thing, "This can't be good…."