Author's note:
Riza: Ed. *Pause, eyeshift* Eeeeeedward. *Arms folded, glares at him through the fringe of her bangs*
Edo: -Blinks- Yes-s, Lieutenant?
Riza: You didn't forget to mention who I was, did you? I seem to see a few of my words in here... *Pokes fic* Seems a bit co-authored here...
Edo: Ah, so you want some more credit? -Grins- Then I shall give it.
Riza: That would be a first. All my credit usually goes to General Mustang.
Edo: -Sweatdrop-
Riza: And to our readers! I love your reviews, they make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. More please!
Lust: *Knows credit is due as well, but more interested on the female form before him* Payment enough would be that uniform on my floor.
Roy: *Mental voice in Lust's mind* Oh hell no! My floor! *Mental pause, glad the sharpshooter couldn't hear that*
Riza: *Safety clicks off*
Lust: *Doesn't fear bullets* Ohhh..kinky.
Edo: o___________o;;
Roy: Shut the hell up you freeloading bastard!
Edo: -Takes a quick glance about- So~ anyways! Before we take anymore of your time up, make sure you check out Thousand Sunny Lyon, who is our Riza for this story; she is a wonderful writer and is continuing to help with the plot still, even Roy!Lust is, although he does not have a FanFic account -Tear- But that's all, until next time~
Chapter two
Being a young sin, it took time to perform what the older ones would consider "simple." Lust's body twitched a bit as flesh grew once more and bone regenerated within his neck. Bracing both hands upon the floor, he pushed himself from his own pool of blood and stood in place. It was a rather gruesome sight as the life giving liquid stained the white shirt and dried in streams streaks down his neck. With a quick jerk of his head, his neck moved back into joint with a sickening pop. Healing was still a slow task for him, but it would speed in time. Focusing his gaze then on the newest sin and formerly known as Edward, Lust's hands clawed, eyes narrowing.
Pride paused hearing the crack and pop of his fellow sin's neck, head turning and arm lowering at the sight of the other sin alive and well, "Luxuria…" The newest sin mused, soon returning his attention to Riza again. "Now, to take care of you..." He moved towards her again, before scowling as Lust began speaking.
"She's mine, Pride… I've already placed claim." Lust said darkly, moving away from Father, whom had remained rather emotionless as he eyed his odd machinery that was partially destroyed from the bullet that had rendered Lust unconscious just before. It seemed to have nearly hit him, but instead ricocheted elsewhere, hence the damage.
"That bitch got my clothing covered in your blood..." Pride began in a low growl, "Granted these…rags aren't exactly my style... But all the same!" He turned his gaze back to Lust with a sharp glare, furious, moving towards the other sin now, sneering, "Besides that, what possible use could she be? She's a pitifully weak and a useless human."
Lust just smirked, not really intimidated by the smaller sin. His mind was elsewhere. "This body already has an affection towards her...but I have an interest in her as well. " Dark eyes looked past the younger sin and to the woman, a suggestive look held within his eyes. "I am Lust…it's time to explore my nature a bit."
Riza had no intention of sticking around long enough to contemplate all of this; like the fact that Lust had risen again and began arguing over possession of her with the non-Edward. "Shit." Excruciating torture couldn't pull it from her, but Riza knew she was seven ways to screwed right now. Simultaneously spinning and shoving the gun back into the holster, Riza ran at full speed out the door. It was too late to save the two alchemists, but someone had to warn the military before the creatures infiltrated it.
Lust's and Pride's arguing stopped instantly as Riza bolted. Instead of seeming very angry about it though, Lust's eyes narrowed and his smirk deepened as his legs bent a bit; the idea of a chase excited him for some reason.
"Yes, go fetch her, Lust…like a dog." Pride grinned, moving to fold his arms over his chest and snicker, although his humor didn't last long. Just as Lust turned around to glower at Pride, the damaged machinery began to groan and smoke, sparks flying in an angry display. Lust's attention is pulled by the thickness of the air as well as Father's soft exclamation of disproval.
Lust sneered, irritated with the machinery's disturbance. "Damn it…" Not waiting for an order, he sprang forward, taking the same exit Riza had and taking on the chase.
Great, just great. Now the fun was destroyed and this situation had to be taken care of. Father had already begun his repairs of the machinery, his method seeming far too simple; merely looking at the destroyed parts of the machine and it being fixed. A sort of alchemy, but without moving a muscle…?
Pride looked towards the sparking machinery, before letting out a soft sound, tilting his head and looking around. He'd heard something. Riza and Lust were both unimportant now to this odd sound...and there it was again.
Everything was black. Not the kind of black that you would see outside at night, but true black—a color so dense yet pure did not allow any sort of light to shine through. Edward was awake though, he knew that much. How long had he been out? Only a few minutes at most maybe… The only thing he could recall was the excruciating pain from the red water entering his system, then nothing. Where was he anyways? Had he died? No, he could still move… Pushing himself up from being face down on…whatever he had been laying on, the Elric stood, looking into the black abyss.
"Hello?" He called, his voice cracking a bit as it echoed around him. Edward slowly rotated in a circle, his brows knitting as his voice soon died out to nothing. "Hello?" He tried again, only this time bringing his hands up and cup around his mouth.
It didn't take Pride very long to realize that the sound was coming from his own mind. He snorts lightly, "My body's previous owner…" He murmured to himself, eyes glazing thickly.
The darkness of his mind was due to a lack of awareness. Now with himself focusing on his little mental companion, the area around Edward would grow brighter. Except where the shadow began to loom from a far end, eyes blinking and staring, randomly.
"Can anyo—" Just as Edward had parted his lips to shout again, the Elric stopped, seeing one of the strangest of sights appear not in front of him, but all around him. Eyes…they were all just staring at him.
"So you're Edward Elric," Pride's voice sang as his form emerged from the shadows, surrounding by the eyes like a cloak. Edward turned instantly, eyes widening slightly as he noticed that the figure coming towards him looked exactly like…himself…save a few details. The sin's attire was different then what he wore in reality. Dark pants and a top that did not even cover his stomach, sleeves and his ouroborus on his shoulder fully visible; no automail as well, "Hm," he grinned, licking his lips as he eyed the other.
Edward's expression took on one of disdain at the other, finding the look on his face rather disturbing, really… "Who the hell are you?" He asked warily, although he was starting to get a good hunch as to what had happened to him…which was this; he was being possessed.
Pride chuckled darkly, "Mm… That information can come later. Just sit tight and enjoy the ride, hm?" With that, he turned to begin heading back into the shadows.
Huh? Edward made a face, his nose scrunching up slightly. "Like hell I will—hey! Where are you going?!" He blurted out as the look-a-like walked away. Just like that? That was all he was going to say? The sin did chuckle, ignoring Edward as his form faded as well as the light, causing the Elric to be engulfed by darkness once again. "Hey! Don't leave me here alone!" Edward shouted just before running toward the way Pride had vanished, "Do you hear me!? Get your ass back here you coward!" He yelled even louder; irate. There was no response, only silence.
…That son of a bitch.
Pride shook his head as he surfaced back into reality, rubbing slightly at his forehead and frowning, "…Interesting." He murmured; something would have to be done about Edward, he was already a nuisance and his time in his body had just begun.
Taking the corner sharply, Riza's boots skidded on the dust of ages past but she recovered fast, dashing down the corridor. There was not any way to outrun a homunculus, she knew that, but she had to try. Going down without a struggle just was not her style.
The distraction before seemed to have worked to buy her some time, but for how long? Riza tore down the steps of the cathedral, leaping the last five or so and landing in a half-crouch, springing off at a dead run immediately. The pack was weighing her down, so that was discarded within the first block. There went her flashlight, but it was no longer safe to use it anyway. The darkness surrounded her as she ran deeper into the city, not following her path exactly to make it harder for them to track her. Her gasping breath rang out like a rifle shot in the heavy silence that lay over the underground city like a blanket, and she tried and failed to stifle it. She only knew of one exit, however, and that could pose a problem.
This was the place. There was no doubt about it as he could practically feel the energy radiating in the air. His old acquaintance wasn't too far away and he was definitely up to something. But since when had that change from years ago? Even in the past, he had been scheming and planning for bigger things than what he had. Stopping midway down another street, the man reached and removed his glasses, cleaning the lenses with his handkerchief before placing the items back upon the bridge of his nose. He then placed a hand behind his head and let his fingers move along the band that held back his long, blonde hair. "This place is a maze... I'm afraid I'm lost."
It was too dark to see more than a few feet ahead of her, and a high wall had abruptly ended one of her detours. The Lieutenant had to backtrack, but the street she had turned down was unfamiliar. It was going in the right general direction at least, she thought as she ran through the empty residential district. One street over should put her right back on track. She turned a hard left at the next corner while looking over her shoulder and slammed hard into a firm object. At her speed it was like hitting a brick wall, and the officer rebounded off the object and smacked flat on her back on the hard concrete with a grunt and heavy exhalation of air knocked out of her lungs.
Hohenheim blinked after bracing himself. The impact had pushed him back and thankfully a wall had been there to keep him from hitting the ground. Or on the other hand, it would probably be more painful to his poor back later on.
A hand came to her head and rubbed her eyes to clear the stars that swirled in her vision, eventually dropping the hand and focusing on the figure before her. Riza gasped in recognition and stiffened on the ground, eyes widening in fear in that unguarded moment before she recovered. "You! You are one fast bastard," she growled vehemently. "So what are you going to do to me? Make me into another monster? Or just kill me?"
Curling his arm around, he rubbed his lower back before blinking once more in surprise. "…Make…you into a monster? Kill you?" There was questioning in his eyes, golden hues behind thin framed glasses. "I'm sure you have me mistaken for someone else." He offered a kind smile then extended a hand to help her up. There was no way this man was the same one as before. He was far too genuinely kind.
Edward growled as his irritation grew more prominent. He was not going to stand around and let this homunculus use him like some sort of puppet! "I know you can hear me!" he hollered, "So get back in here and give me some damn answers!"
Pride shook his head a bit, before looking towards Father, then to Lust watching him move towards the exit before scowling, "Well, I guess I could play with—Aah!" He twitches, scowling a bit more and moving to sit somewhere near Father, but not too close to get in his way, letting his eyes close.
Edward wasn't going to shut up, not until he had the homunculus' attention again and kept it. "Listen to me, prick—" Before he could finish his sentence that darkness became light again in his mind, and the shadows and eyes returned.
Pride didn't reappear though, "You're starting to get too loud..." He noted. "And by the way... I'm no coward." He did appear then, but a few feet behind Edward's form.
The Elric whirled around, coming face to face once again with his look-a-like. Scowling, he parted his lips to speak. "You—"
"What is it you want, anyways? I'm quite busy." Pride interrupted, perking a brow. The other's anger was... hard to understand. He was still new and well—he knew what anger was—but why was Edward being angry? He was Pride. Damn good and the little shit should be glad to be chosen to be his new body.
"What do I want? You have to ask?" The Elric snapped, "How about, get the fuck out of my body? That's what I want." Edward stated, now taking a step toward the other. "And tell me who you are." He demanded, lifting a hand to jab his index finger at Pride's chest.
Pride grinned at the other, uninterested in his first remark, "Who am I…? That's what you ask... " He moved, amused, not bothered by the other's rage, "I am a homunculus... The greatest and most deadly sin... Superbia!" He gave a toothy, but damn good looking grin,"...Or Pride for those of lesser intelligence levels..." He eyed the other's pointing finger, before watching him, "What'd you think you'll be able to do with that..? You're not a solid body...technically. And what you see isn't either... You'll simply pass through me." He paused, "Anyways, if you're going to keep me here, you'd better at least entertain me."
Edward sneered, "I'll entertain you alright, Pride…" He replied coldly. Yeah, he would give the sin a great show starting a fist in his face, that's what. Beat the shit out of him; that was the show, and he would not pass right through him like some spirit. Bringing his automail arm back and forming his hand into a fist, Edward stepped toward him. Swiftly bringing his arm forward, the Elric's fist came within inches of Pride's face, which had not even flinched, as he stopped short. Pride's hand had gone straight through his chest, jutting out the other side.
The sin laughed, "How very hot tempered. You are indeed amusing." He wiggled his fingers a bit, "But I have more skill here. If I wanted I could crush your heart without a second thought. Now... Is this really so bad that you'd rather be dead?" He mused, withdrawing his hand. He was cocky, alright. But that was just Pride.
Mortified, Edward looked from the hand to Pride. No, damn it! He was supposed to be able to punch Pride in that stupid face of his! He wasn't supposed to be some spirit thing! "Bullshit!" He blurted out, moving a hand to grab Pride's wrist, only to realize, like Pride had demonstrated, that he could not; he went right through it like air.
Well this—this was not looking good.
Pride smirked, tilting his head as he suddenly grabbed Edward's automail arm, examining it. "Ahh... This is what you've cursed my perfect form with, hm?" he began, changing the subject, "Metal limbs... The leg too, I can feel that. How very irritating... And with them in the way I can't regenerate them." He scowled, "What sort of foolishness did you do to stick us with this?"
Gritting his teeth in frustration, the alchemist flickered his gaze to his automail, actually a little stunned that the sin had grabbed his arm. How the hell did he do that? Didn't he just say that he couldn't touch him? "Well I don't know, smartass, you're the one inside my head, why don't you figure that out for yourself." Edward replied, his tone laden with the hate he held for the other. "If you can't handle the automail then get the fuck out." He snarled. Pride just snorted and rolled his eyes, dropping the Elric's automail before turning to walk away. "Where the hell do you think you're going?!" Edward shouted.
"I really don't have time for this... You're really not that entertaining now." Pride frowns, pausing to look over his shoulder, almost pouting, "Too bad... I'll just have to ask Father how to remove you entirely..." He wiggles his fingers in a teasing wave, "I'll just be on my way to do that now. Enjoy what time you have left."
A threat? Edward tensed, curling both of his hands into tight fists, scowling at the sin. How would he be gotten rid of? Edward shuddered; he did not want to know… "You're not leaving me locked up in here!" he snapped, striding after the other. Maybe if he followed him he would get out? It would not work, he knew that, but giving up was not his forte.
The sin laughs as he suddenly vanished, leaving Edward in darkness once more. Blinking a few times to watch Father mess with the machine, Pride let out a soft breath before standing, brushing himself off. Damn dust was everywhere, "We need a maid."
He muttered; irritated. He moved over to the machinery, smirking at Father, "So...you are my creator, hm? Father..." That much did register now. "Shall I go with Luxuria...? Or do you have another need of me?" He mused, "Of course... everyone needs me some way or another." He boasted, moving back a bit, just watching the alchemical reactions without much movement. This body seemed to have a natural attraction to alchemy. To watch it...wanted to study it or something... He wondered about that, but pushed the thought aside—he was getting bored now. "Maybe I'll go exploring anyways." He notes, looking towards the way Lust and Riza had both left, already taking steps towards it.
Father's patience began to wear thin, especially now that he could feel something coming...something very familiar from a long time ago. His eyes narrowed as he completed the repairs and moved towards the lab table just a few feet away. "Pride… Come to yourself and do not let the human control the situation." Father noted as the youngest sin continued toward the door. He had seen the mental battle with all of the homunculi created in this manner. The personalities fought back in the beginning, but he was sure that both Lust and Pride were strong enough to eventually completely overpower the original owners. But in the nature of this, he could not completely destroy the original owners as it would damage the body. So letting Pride handle it and Lust continue his chase, Father went back to his work and watched as the metal twisted beneath his alchemic fingers.
Riza blinked in confusion, squinting her eyes slightly to look at him more closely. It looked just like the old man she had seen before. If he was playing mind games, it was almost effective. After seeing the change overcome Mustang and Edward, there was no way she would trust this sudden gesture of chivalry. Hawkeye glared at the offered hand and scrabbled backwards, rising to her feet quickly in the small dust cloud she kicked up and taking a few steps back for good measure. "Oh indeed," she spat sarcastically. "And who would I mistake you with? Your twin?" She sneered, panting. The night's events had lowered the Lieutenant's tolerance and patience for anything, which was saying something. After all, she had worked under General Mustang for years. Riza stood slightly bent over, leaning to the side marginally as she gasped for breath from her run and the blow with the older man. Another gun and clip lay nestled to her lower back, and the landing had dug it painfully into her flesh. If she lived, that would bruise badly later. The officer made no move to collect it, the gesture proven useless against the robed man earlier. Wait, robed? Hawkeye took in the man's clothing in front of her. "You changed your clothes for the occasion, too?" The woman wheezed out a barking laugh. The wardrobe change gesture was probably part of the mind games.
The blonde man blinked once more, but he definitely knew where this was going. She didn't trust him for a reason and it wasn't just because he was a stranger. This was something much deeper. Looking past her, his eyes narrowed a bit. She had come from that direction and was out of breath, but not in too bad of shape...so he must not be far now. "Listen… You don't have to trust me, but tell me where you just came from. I don't believe there's time to explain, but this is very important. And as cliché as it sounds, our existence depends on it." His kind façade had taken on a more serious one, eyes narrowed behind his glasses and his shoulders set firmly.
Riza stared at the man, calculating. He seemed genuine, and his request seemed out of character for the type of man she was escaping from. "Are you... really not him?" Remembering the immediate danger, she looked around their surroundings and listened intently for the sounds of pursuit. Her gut feeling said this was not the same man, and she had no choice but to follow that feeling. "They're after me," she offered hesitantly. "One that calls himself Lust, especially—he used to be my boss... at least until last night. Another named Pride is there with the old man." Her eyes fell on the man in front of her, looking him up and down. Yes, he looked large and perhaps fit for his age, but being outnumbered was the least of his disadvantages here. "What makes you think you can face two homunculi and their creator that doesn't even need to move to perform alchemy?" The Lieutenant forced herself to stand up straight and took one last deep breath to quell the gasping. If this man was actually innocent, then she wasn't about to send someone else off to their demise.
His frame seemed to tense even further with her words. Yes, it was exactly what he thought and he wished he hadn't been right. Homunculus, yes he was very familiar with that name. Though, it seemed more of a title now. "I…have some experience in this subject. Don't worry." The man then gave her another smile. "Just show me the way and I'll make sure you get out of here safely." Hohenheim then nodded to himself in decision, "I'll make sure your boss gets out of here, too. There's still hope for General Mustang." So... he knew them?
Lust's eyes narrowed as his gaze shifted about the dark streets. Where was she? He could practically feel her and the other stirred within him. Lust couldn't help but smirk at that. He had felt the other, though weak, within during his time as the dominant persona but now was the strongest. He was threatening his precious female colleague and the alchemist was fighting even harder to gain a footing. Which actually, it was getting really annoying now and he would have to silence that voice soon. Lust turned another corner, boots skidding and bringing him to a halt at a crossroad. So either she weaved a bit through the city, or she had made it further than he had expected. But she was close, the sin could practically smell her. With a smirk, he picked a path and darted forward. Not far at all.
He was alone again.
Edward groaned, dropping to the ground in a heap on his knees. He stayed like that, just staring silently in the direction Pride had left in. "I'm not going to leave you alone until you come back in here!" He suddenly warned.
Five minutes later…
"Pride, Pride, Pride, Pride…!" Edward repeated the sin's name over and over again, "I know you can hear me!" He added in a shout at the end as he lay on what could be called…ground…the ground of his mind? It was so dark he didn't even care to know. "Get back in here before I start singing show tunes to you, dickhead!" Edward knew the sin could hear him, and like hell he was going to shut up—not until he got his way. "C'mon! You know you wouldn't like be locked away like this either!"
Pride snorted as he exited the room, "Like a little human could ever control Pride." He muttered. After a while though, he sneered at his little mind buddy's shouting, "You forgot sexy, smart and funny, Edo~" He mused. He tilted his head a bit hearing the other's chant of his name, letting out a sound out loud while he responded, "Oh-h yes-s... Keep chanting my name like that.... I lo-ove that." He smirks, though anyone looking at him wouldn't know why. He glanced around, rather enjoying his own little self made exploration mission. He licked at his lips before laughing softly to himself, "Of course I'd never want to be locked away like that... That's why you are there and I'm out here. Enjoying life..." He muses, "Not that that's going to change, I rather like this body… Very nice and slender and... Well, the metal limbs are a bit cumbersome...but maybe later I'll have them ripped out and regenerate my own limbs..." He notes, still not letting himself sink fully into his mind with Edward again. "I don't think I will be coming back for a while, little one... I've too much to do at the moment... Like find that little girlfriend of yours and help Lust rid ourselves of her." He chuckles.
"What?!" Edward screeched, "Get your ass back in here so I can rip off your legs and chafe away your pride!"
Pride was learning himself as he went along... Walking and closing his eyes, staying out of his mind too much to keep Edward at bay. He was able to almost sense Lust... At least he was pretty sure that's what that was...the sensation of a pull... He looked around, "Hn... Luxuria seems to know his way around already... what a shame." He shifted, focusing on that sensation, wanting to be better at it simply to be the best. That was just how he worked. He had to have and be the best. He followed that odd pull as he heard Edward again, laughing softly to himself, "Really... I thought we were through that already... You can't do a damn thing to me…" He grinned some, now pushing Edward back again. He was getting much closer to Lust now…
Riza didn't respond right away, pausing to think it over. She looked down the way she had come, still listening for sounds of approach. It might just be her imagination, but she thought she heard something. "You know him?" Slowly her head turned to meet his gaze levelly. "If there's hope for him, I'm going with you," she stated firmly. The attitude she exuded let him know there was no arguing. It may be grasping at straws to trust a complete stranger, but Lust had stated that Roy was not dead, so maybe there was hope. "Follow me then, I'll take you to them." Turning on the heel of her boot, Hawkeye started a brisk pace back the way she had come. "Chances are they'll find us first, though," she muttered.
"You'd be right." Lust stood at the end of the street, a smirk upon his lips and his hands upon his hips. Lowering those same hands, he began to stalk forward. His eyes locked upon Riza, not really acknowledging Hohenheim's presence. Again his mind is on one thing and Hawkeye is at the center of it. But in order to fulfill his wishes, he had to subdue her. Hohenheim knew this could potentially not turn out well so he shifted and placed his larger form in front of Riza. Lust raised an eyebrow before smirking again. "Do you really want to do that, old man?" But the older alchemist didn't back down.
If he wanted to die, so be it. Both hands began to claw and the smell of acid was faint in the air. The young sin had come to know his powers just hours earlier, but already he knew his strengths. Lowering his torso, he lunged forward, hands extended and ready for the strike. Hohenheim didn't move but just as Lust reached the two, a stone wall rose from the ground to block. There was a loud growl from Lust as the sin's claws dug into the stone as the acid began to eat away at it. "Go now." Hohenheim ordered. "I'm right behind you and will keep him away."
A small sound of shock slipped past Hawkeye's lips when the wall appeared without movement. If she had not just been convinced that this was not the same man from earlier, this would have driven her to run for the exit once again. No one had ever jumped in front of her before and she had almost moved against him. She grit her teeth at the order, reluctant to leave him and at the same time pained at what she was witnessing Mustang's body doing. But if the man was going to follow her, then maybe he could match the homunculus with his alchemy. "Fine, just...try not to kill him," she answered reluctantly.
As he rounded the corner, Pride came to a halt, a wry grin pulling at his lips. He had found what he had been searching for. "Oh Luxuria~ It's no fair to hide from me… I want to play too~" Pride called, singsong, laughing softly at himself. Oh he was go-od.
Turning to run in the opposite direction, Hawkeye only took a few steps before stopping suddenly, sighing vocally in despair. "No, I can't. It's Edward... Pride is here." The woman glanced over her shoulder at her new defender. Could the man handle two at the same time?
Lust dug his claws deeper into the stone, the acid eating away at the material until he was able to rip through it. It fell away in chunks and the sin jumped over the remaining pieces. Since the old man wanted to play, he'd finish him off quickly then have his way with the woman. The thought of those curves hidden beneath that uniform, the layers of clothing peeled away to reveal her very woman like form... Lust's smirk deepened and he lunged to finish this fight quickly. But he was stopped. In the same manner as the stone wall, a pillar rose from the ground and slammed into the sin's chin, forcing his head back with an gut wrenching pop.
Pride grinned, watching Lust get hit, unbothered, "Way to be a punching bag, Lust."
After temporarily dealing with Lust, Hohenheim turned and his eyes immediately widened upon seeing Edward's form. Riza had said two had been turned into homunculi, but...could it really be? No, it wasn't possible that it had happened to his son, but he could feel it. He took a slow step forward, questioning what he knew. "…Edward?"
Suddenly forgetting all about Pride as a familiar voice rang through his mind—the mind he was trapped in—Edward scrambled to his feet. Was that who he thought it was? "That bastard! What the hell is he doing here?" he blurted out, practically fuming now as the image of his father shot through his head.
Pride turned his head at the name, eyeing the man that looked like Father but he could tell was not. He eyed the man over. He seemed... familiar...but in a way...disliked. "Hn... Bastard..." He mimicked, feeling Edward's rage towards the man. "Why do we hate this man?" He questioned the blond in his head. He didn't know…and really, to be honest… Didn't care at all... But still, curiosity tended to win out.
The Elric scowled at Pride's question, "Like I already said. You're in my body, so figure it out yourself." He replied icily.
Displeased with Edward's response, Pride merely scoffed and watched the man curiously. He was sort of acting like Edward... But off… He could feel the same rage towards the man, but not sure why. It was confusing and he hated it...so he forced Edward back a bit more, wanting to be rid of the emotions.
Hawkeye looked from the old man to Pride and back again. Pride acted almost familiar with him. "No-o…" She said slowly, taking a few steps back upon realizing she was between them. "That's not Ed... Not anymore."
Wait a minute.
Riza blinked as a new thought came to her. Pride had Edward's thoughts, or memories at least, and Lust stated Mustang was still alive. Maybe, just maybe, he could be reached. While those two distracted each other, Riza turned and took a few steps closer to the stunned and hopefully battered Lust. "General Mustang!" She glared at Lust's form angrily. "Fight him! You have to!" If she and the old man lost this battle, it would be bad for her. There was no doubt what Lust had in mind for her as soon as he had his hands on her. "You can't let this happen!"
Thankfully for the General's sake, Lust was in control at the moment and his powers made it possible for the body to heal after the attack. Though, that didn't make it any more pleasant. Standing, the sin raised both gloved hands and snapped his neck from the slightly odd angle. Hearing the woman's yelling, his attention is immediately brought back to her and his goals. Oh no, no he never could forget about that. The dark smirk returned to his features, his form turned towards her, and he could go no further. Onyx eyes blinked and he turned to see if there was some outside force holding him in place, but finding none confused him further. Before he could place blame or even find his voice, his eyes glazed over and his form became still and rather relaxed.
"You will not go another step!" A voice echoed inside the mind and the General stood, barely supporting himself but at least standing. Even in his mind, he looked battered and beaten, put through hell. He was drained of energy and his stance was forced, even his mental clothes were ripped and dingy. Yes, his situation had been similar to Edward's, but at least the blonde hadn't endured the beating that he had.
"So…the human finally stirs. I thought you weren't going to make this any fun." A source-less voice echoed about the darkness, making its presence known despite not being seen. But that was soon remedied. Boots echoed with each slow step and the General soon faced...himself. The being was the same height, held the same projected ego, but the intentions and attire were completely different. Instead of the uniform, he wore a long, black coat that was rather form fitting for the item, bare chest only covered by a few leather straps, and the matching pants rose only high enough to barely cover the ouroborus tattoo on his hip. "A male form this time… Well, lust is lust no matter the gender, so this should be fun."
Roy steeled himself; standing taller. He would not appear any weaker than he already did. "Get out, you bastard. I won't—"
"And what will you do? Hm? You're weak and I'm dominant, superior." Lust interjected with a smug grin. But his expression soon fell when a burst of flames suddenly appeared with one quick snap from Mustang's hand.
"This."
Life returned to the body and Lust smirked once more in Riza's direction. His eyes roamed along her form, but his direction changed and surprisingly, he moved to stand by his fellow sin. Perhaps together they could end this threat. "You know, Pride…" Then to finish his sentence, he turned and thrust his hand forward into Pride's chest, using his inhuman strength to slam the other into the stone below them; pinning Pride's arms down at his sides. "Sorry, kid… Hawkeye!" There was that commanding tone again. "Get out of here now! That's an order!"
Pride seemed rather amused with the entire situation, though when Lust had slipped into his mind, he frowned. He thought he would be the unique one and have these problems—not Lust, too. When the sin surfaced though, Pride huffed; Lust had not remained in his mind for too long. Keeping his gaze focused on Hohenheim, the sin had barely noticed that Lust had come over, though suddenly feeling the hands on his chest startled him, causing him to fall to the ground under "Lust's" weight. "Get the hell off me you klutz!" He snapped, seeming disgusted and irritated.
"General?" Edward's voice suddenly rang from Pride's mind. He recognized that tone, but had Mustang really broken through and gained control of his body. Wait. Mustang was able to gain control…which meant that later he would… "Shit! Let me out of here so he doesn't gloat about this later!" He shouted frantically. Yeah, listening to Mustang go on and on and on about how he was able to subdue Lust and he could not do that to Pride was not something he wanted to deal with.
Hawkeye did not appear surprised with "Lust" pinned Pride to the ground. In fact, the only reaction she showed was a more stony expression at Mustang's order. "I refuse. I'm not going anywhere, General. I didn't come all this way to leave you once I found you," she stated matter-of-factly. Running from Lust was a different story. This was actually Mustang now.
Hohenheim stepped forward quickly and placed a hand upon Riza's shoulder. "Come on..." And before she could protest, "We're not leaving them, we just have to put some distance between us and them then regroup." It was obvious that the two military personal were very close and Riza will be reluctant to leave. Yes, he himself did not want to go. That was his son; his own flesh and blood taken over by a homunculus. It all went back to Hohenheim's own past... His son was fighting for his own existence due to something that was never his fault.
Only the other man's touch pulled Hawkeye's attention away from the two struggling on the ground. She shrugged from his grasp irritably, the move earning him a sharp look. "I am his chance. We are their only chance. If the General can be reached, then so can Edward. If you're scared, go ahead and run, a coward will be of no use to us anyway." With that, the man was ignored, Hawkeye moving away from him and quickly to Mustang's side, just out of arm's reach. Leaning in, bending at the waist, Hawkeye looked hard at her struggling superior. The intent, the aura, it was all Mustang. No unearthly presence lingering under the familiar skin of the man she served. With a slight nod of satisfaction, she moved in and knelt behind Pride's head. Slamming her palms on his shoulders and situating all her weight down on him, she helped to subdue the sin.
"If you have a plan other than running or us dying, I am more than ready to hear it, sir."
Author's note: Kushah~ Like where this is going so far?
Firstly, I just thought of this the other day, but I'm assuming that some of you may be wondering where this fits into the "FMA timeline" and honestly, I don't know. Only because the manga is not complete… I suppose that it would not really follow it, since in that Edward is a teenager…in this he is an adult (twenty-one), and he has not met Father or any of the other homunculi before. If he had, then the story would not have worked because he would have figured out what Father was going to do to him. But he didn't, so-o~ Place the story where you want x]
Secondly, a special thanks to Mel for the review; those are always appreciated, since I need to know how you all like this story and if I should keep it up.
