Edward blinked, then blinked again. He was desperately trying to distinguish reality from illusion, and it wasn't working. All he knew was that he and Ritsuka had just undergone something… extraordinary, and now, he was standing at the foot of the Gate, still holding Ritsuka's hands in his.

Only, the Gate seemed different to Edward, though he couldn't explain exactly how. He wasn't feeling the same awe-inspiring dread that he normally felt standing in the presence of the wide-open Gate. This was… something else. Connected to the Gate, yes, but not quite the same. Sort of a sub-Gate. Ed wondered if it was possible for alchemists to manipulate the Gate in such a way as to create their own little corners of it. If anyone is crazy enough to attempt something like that, it would be this asshole, Ritsu. Or my father. Both of them are out of their fucking minds.

There was something else, though… Edward himself felt different. He could still feel the presence of the Red King behind him, strong and reassuring and paternal, in a way his father had never, ever been. It had changed him, though he was loathe to admit it. Looking over at Ritsuka, he could see that he had changed, too. His eyes seemed to glow with an inner light, and he had lost his shaky, hesitant exterior.

Ritsuka spoke to him, and his voice, too, evinced a new inner strength. "Edward. We need to get out of here. This man, Ritsu, is up to no good. He is an evil scientist who used to work with my father, I remember now. You mustn't listen to what he says. He's untrustworthy. I witnessed this same ritual before, with my brother Seimei in your place, and the outcome was… not good."

"The same ritual? Do you mean to say that this was how your brother…"

Evil laughter rang out all around them. Edward automatically pulled Ritsuka closer to him. "Cut the crap, you stupid bastard. We opened the Gate, that was our end of the bargain. Show me where Al is, and we can all go home, or wherever it is you think you want to go."

The ground under their feet began to tremble; lights and colors churned within the Gate. Edward didn't like this situation at all. He was an alchemist, damn it; the laws of the natural world bent to his will, not the other way around. Ever since he'd walked into this place, alchemy had been happening to him, outside of his control, and he was not at all cool with it. He held tightly to Ritsuka as the two of them struggled to keep their footing. There was something appearing in the Gate; he couldn't quite see yet, but he was beginning to sense… a very familiar presence.

Ritsu laughed again, and the sound was projected all around them somehow, in a way which Ed found exceedingly annoying. If it's one thing I can't stand, it's crappy maniacal laughter. What's with this guy?

"By all means, please continue, Aoyagi Ritsuka. Do tell Edward Elric all about how I murdered your noble, kind, devoted brother Seimei. How very horrible of me, depriving the world of such a saintly figure. Did it never strike you as odd that you were the only one who had that opinion of him?"

"Ignore him," Ed told Ritsuka loudly, putting a firm hand on the small of his back.

"Did you ever ask your Fighter how he got his Name? What sort of kind, noble soul gives someone a scar like that? Your brother Seimei was one sick bastard. Worse than me, even, and that's saying something."

Ed could feel Ritsuka's breath catch; his hands were trembling. "Ritsuka, don't! Don't listen to him! He's deliberately trying to fuck with you. Screw him! He's a liar!"

"A liar, hmm? Oh no. I am not the one who is lying. I did not murder Aoyagi Seimei. You witnessed the act, you little brat. The miserable bastard killed himself. He drove a knife into his heart right in this room, just to foil my plans. Ask your precious Fighter if you don't remember. He'll tell you, if he deigns to, that is. Why do you think you lost all of your memories prior to that act? You witnessed something you shouldn't have. You left me no choice but to remedy that."

"You're lying!" Ritsuka screamed. A bit of the old Ritsuka was coming back. His face looked pale and terrified. "I didn't lose my memories when Seimei died! It was two years before…"

"You thought what we wanted you to think, Aoyagi Ritsuka, and remembered what we wanted you to remember. We decided which memories you got to keep and which you lost. Your father kept you out of things for a reason. You would have been better off listening to him."

"Liar! You murdered my father, too!"

"I most certainly did not. Your father died committing a sin far worse than any of my own. A sin that I imagine your new little boyfriend is quite familiar with, being that he's missing a few important body parts, in case you haven't noticed. Human transmutation. Payback's a bitch, isn't it, Edward-kun? The Gate has no mercy, takes no prisoners. Aoyagi Kenji found that out when he tried to bring his oldest son back from the dead. Didn't work out as well as he thought it might have. Bled to death in his own home. And for what? You know exactly what was created, don't you, Edward-kun? Fortunately, I was there to make sure nothing happened to the… results. And now I have a servant to replace the one I lost in that whole unfortunate incident. Touka koukan, wouldn't you say?"

Ed ground his teeth. Bastard. So that's what that thing is. A homunculus. Great. Can't wait to have to fight his stupid ass when we're done with crazy fuck #1.

Ritsuka faltered; Ed caught him and held him upright. "Ritsuka. Look at me. You are strong enough to make it through this. That bastard is nothing. Your life is your own. He can't take that away."

"Such noble sentiments from someone who risked everything on the fleeting hope that he might be able to save his dear little brother. Even to the point of bargaining with someone who was clearly… untrustworthy. Tsk, tsk. I'm afraid you should have listened to your Colonel, little one. But go ahead. Try anyway. Try to bring your dear Alphonse home. He misses you, after all…"

Ed knew he was being baited, but he couldn't stop his blood from boiling. Ritsuka was trying to get his attention but… something else was happening. Someone was calling him from inside the Gate. Al…! Al, can you hear me?

As he peered into the swirling colors, he could see someone floating there, weirdly suspended, light blue cords trailing off of him in every direction. His brother, Alphonse Elric, embodied. The image was fuzzy and hard to make out, but it was definitely Al, and he was most certainly made of flesh. It was so strange: he looked both tiny and huge at the same time. Tiny, because he was used to seeing him as a 7 foot suit of armor; huge, because the last time he had seen him in the flesh, he was… ten years old? It couldn't have been…

Ed was jarred from his reverie by the strangest sensation he had ever felt. It was as if his insides were struggling to get out. There was a nasty tugging happening in the area of his stomach, nauseating him, and he felt as if he was being yanked, twisted, and pulled towards the Gate, from the inside out. He started to fall, but Ritsuka caught him before he hit the ground. The agony was increasing minute by minute. Ed imagined being torn apart by wolves might be only slightly more painful. What the hell is happening?

He tried to think, despite the excruciating pain. The painted runes were keeping his body firmly planted in this world. The Gate, with Al's soul inside it, was pulling him out. Al was inadvertently pulling his body and soul apart. But why is this happening? Why can't I pull Al out?

Suddenly, the truth hit him like icewater in the face. My body. That crazy old fuck wants to take over my body. He planned this entire thing. He manipulated the Gate, he set up the array, he arranged everything. That miserable fucking prick…!

Ed struggled desperately against the force of the alchemy, but it was useless. He tried to communicate to Ritsuka what was happening, but it was impossible. He could only cling to him in torment as the Gate pulled him further and further away. Damn it, Roy, you were right, I should never have… left you…

The pain abruptly changed course, and Ed screamed like he was losing his limbs all over again. His left hand was on fire. Literally on fire. Ritsuka jumped back, petrified. Ed watched in horror as his Name, Faithless, was slowly being incinerated from the inside out. The emotional anguish of being forcibly severed from his Fighter was almost worse than the physical pain. His last conscious thought, before he passed out on the floor of the cage, was: Roy, what have you done?