Fullmetal Exorcist – Chapter 27 – Equilibrium
The restless sound of a beeping monitor stirred the conscience of a white haired patient. His fingers curled as he took in a deep breath, signifying his arrival to reality once more. The murmurs and footsteps echoed multiple times in his sensitive ears.
Allen's eyes fluttered open slightly, meeting the gaze of two concerned Inspectors. His head was still swimming slightly from the beating, and his back was aching so badly...
"Are you all right, Walker?" Link asked, and got a small nod from the boy. The two officers both sighed in relief, and Link went off to order more nurses to tend to the Destroyer of Time. Leverrier remained in a small seat beside the Exorcist's bed, and stroked Allen's head with his palm.
The boy was fragile, he noted. It was so amazing he kept his head together for several months, with everyone's help. Leverrier was sure Bradley could come out of nowhere again so he had kept himself posted next to Allen frequently. If not Leverrier, then Link.
"T…Than…k… Yo…u."
Leverrier nodded, smiling wistfully, warning the boy not to speak. The boy never truly had a real father, with Mana possibly only caring for his brother, and Cross the drunkard… From observations he learned before, Allen seemed to be at more ease with Leverrier himself than the other two now…
"Hang in there, Allen Walker…" He said sincerely. "We'll get you to the Silver Shield soon…"
Allen gave a small nod and sunk back to sleep with a small smile. Leverrier sighed. The world was a cruel place… to allow a child to lose his parents twice, be pushed away by others, and be admonished for a gift he had… The boy was persistent… That was a good trait.
"Allen…" Lenalee sank into her chair. The boy had been harmed in more ways than one, and nothing good would come out of that. Road had returned from the meeting, still pale from the knowledge. Alphonse had already left to tend to Allen.
They were resting in a study that the Elrics used frequently. As expected, most of the latest and oldest books fit the boys' interests: Alchemy, Ancient History, Codes, and Science. The walls were lined with them.
"Lenalee…" Road tried to call for her, but no answer came. It was only a few seconds later when she did hear a word.
"Allen will be okay…" A fist clenched. "He's been through a lot of pain with us before. I'm sure he'll pull through."
"That's good," Road smiled, and looked upon the table of the Elric's study. Mutus Liber… She found this interesting.
"Oi, brat."
Kanda twitched. Gripping his clipboard, he faced the red haired General.
"What?" He asked irritably.
"You got a minute?"
Kanda stared at the IV bag, and then to the man sitting next to the patient. He rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Yeah, I'll listen," He set his clipboard down.
"You feel sorry for the idiot here, don't you?"
Kanda seemed alarmed at this, but he calmed down and stared at the boy. "Yeah, I do. When the shorty channeled us, I witnessed fragments of his memory that took place when he was locked away."
"You think it's similar to how you became an Exorcist? Of course, you lived horrible lives back then, and then there was someone to pick you up, but then… you ended up killing that person, whom you end up loving. Am I wrong?"
"No, you're right," Kanda frowned. "But everyone's the same here. We've all seen something that we shouldn't have. That's the reason the Black Order was formed."
"I see you did your reading," Cross laid back on the chair. "No wonder Tiedoll thinks highly of you."
This only earned a scowl from the long haired man. "But I'd like to ask, Kanda: Do you think Allen will get out of this?"
"It's obvious," Kanda said. "The guy does whatever he wants. He'll want his sanity back for sure. By now he's probably not going to talk, and he'll probably act even more like a brat. I've already witnessed a good share of his memories when Ed was channeling us through bean sprout's mind. Besides, that 'Nea' guy was helping him, so that's not really much to worry about."
"The 14th?" Cross looked surprised and went back to his usual lazy gaze. "I'd imagined he'd do that."
"A Noah? Helping Allen?"
"Two reasons," Cross smiled. "The 14th wouldn't want his container to stop his awakening, and two… well… it's a personal thing…"
"And you won't tell me?" Kanda picked up the clipboard again.
"Looks like it," Cross sighed, getting up to grab a bottle of Romanee Conti, possibly.
Dorian walked about the healing village square as the rocks and fountains were rebuilding themselves again. Soon this city will not be so lonely anymore, and people, such as that charming young lady with green hair herself, will be bounding the streets. The war of the mind was over, and all that's left was the recuperation.
"Alchemy really does have its uses…" He said to himself.
Meanwhile, a young boy with brown hair and silver eyes looked up at him, titling his head in wonder. Dorian smiled, picking up the boy like a caring father.
"Of course, you helped, too," Dorian made the boy smile. "Little Allen."
The boy giggled slightly, quite happy with a so called brother with him. Dorian looked up at the setting sky. Soon the village will be filled with people, and the Exorcists will get him out and hear the truth. Trust was a very delicate matter for Nea, after all that had happened.
When he joined with his brother and best friend to form the trio that would vow to take down the Earl, he knew fully well that the rest of the Noah would stop at nothing to find their heads. The enemy sent disguised Akuma in the hopes of fooling him to trust a stranger, but those plans never worked later on. The three had become more reserved, less talkative, not exactly warm and welcome as they had been before.
As for the real Allen… He couldn't blame Allen for being so wary of himself, either…
Allen woke up in his own inner world again, a dark space of nothing. At least for him it was better than reality where Central officers unleashed hell on him. The only problem for him was that ever since he learned of the 14th, he always dreamt of sitting in a grand marble chair, chains wrapping around his small body like an Akuma's soul bound to its container. He tried to wrestle out of the bindings, only to be stopped by a pair of chains wound about his neck.
Seeing his fruitless attempt failing, Allen waited patiently for the next recurring moment of his dreams, the appearance of a young man, greatly resembling Tyki, but his hair cut short, no beauty mark under his left eye, and a bit more childish stride unlike the majestic steps of the Pleasure. Poor boy couldn't help but notice how much the man's overcoat seemed like the one the Earl wore. Everything was familiar, but he barely recalled anything.
"Are you okay, Allen?" the Noah asked, and Allen didn't move, merely frowning. All Noah were horrible, so what was the point?
"I don't need anything, Nea," Allen snorted. Dorian Nea Walker. The man had introduced himself a few months back, but to no avail would Allen succumb to the kindness, let alone let the Noah take away his chains. The boy had been around the cruelness of Noah for so long, he probably forgot the little ounce of human and hope that lived in the long-lived family of Noah.
"Allen…" Dorian frowned. "I'm pretty sure you want to get out of that already…"
"I don't need your help, Nea," Allen said bitterly. "I'd be happy to tell you how my life has been for the past years, but I'm can't trust someone who wants to take my body and become the Earl to release me."
"And you were so nice when I first met you…" Nea sighed in defeat, but his eyes wore an urgent gleam now. "Allen, please… I'll have to let you out, or else he'll come."
His warning was met with an awkward silence.
"Who?" Allen asked flatly. Dorian sighed.
"I was listening in on the conversation between Leverrier and Link yesterday," he said quietly. "Another Inspector was trying to take you, and they were trying their best to keep you safe."
"Yeah, right," Allen snorted. "You call a beating a second 'safe'?"
"That wasn't Leverrier, you know," Nea looked at the boy's defiant silver eyes. "That was the other inspector I was talking about just now."
Allen let out an irritated huff, and looked away. The boy heard him, all right, but he wasn't willing to accept any help. Seeing this conversation was going nowhere, Dorian took the initiative.
He approached the white haired boy, and with a flick of his wrist, the chains that engulfed the grand throne faltered. Allen only got up and was about to tackle Nea down when a raise of a hand called ceasefire.
"The man they were protecting you from just broke in, and you're in his possession. I was able to look at his face a bit, and I sensed danger. The man can break into mental barriers, Allen. He could be around here right now."
Allen closed his eyes for a moment, scanning through all perimeters of his inner world, and stared at the older man, shocked at his report.
"He is here," Allen looked at the door of the dark room. "We need to get away, fast."
Dorian smiled slightly, happy that Allen saw things his way now. Once they made their way out of the high tower, they noticed the pristine condition of the Ark, a beautiful white city that no one inhabited. Dorian's lingering glance did not go unnoticed by the young Exorcist.
"You wanted something?" Allen put a straightforward assumption.
"You need more than swinging around your sword to win a battle, little Allen," Dorian grinned. "I remember your little fight with that Level 4… You should try being like that Bakanda. I think he is probably better than you at strategies and fighting. It's a wonder you still live to this day, ne?"
"Shut up, Nea," Allen growled. "You're like an idiot with a mind of Lavi!"
"Alright, then," Dorian sighed. "Here's this. With the little time we have, I'll have to train you so that way we can fight that man if he comes back. We can stall enough time for your friends to find you. That clear?"
"Whatever, Earl wannabe," Allen turned around. "I'll train."
"Hey," Nea sighed at the boy's snarky behavior even as an invalid. "I have a different purpose for Akuma, you know!"
"Then explain the fact that you dress like that fat man!" Allen shouted back, running off to nowhere. "Are you planning to gain weight, too?"
"Hey! I'll get you for that!" Dorian began to run after Allen, who was already a mile ahead. They treated each other like brothers, just like Dorian had with Mana…
The "days" passed, and Allen progressed. While Allen in reality was in a very long coma, he had more time to stay in his mental universe. Dorian was satisfied with the boy's newfound coordination and skill. He had first started with a simple sword that Dorian had transmuted from one of the rubble. Now he was in full swing with his one Crown Clown's sword, putting more thought of calculation than just feeling and resolve.
Nea was getting warmed up himself, too. It had been a long time since he bothered to train when Hohenheim and Mana were still around, and the run from the Noah was still ongoing. They trained daily, with little regret, and they succeeded to hid themselves away from the rest of the Noah for centuries.
Now, the two boys were resting in a spare room. Allen was lounging on the couch, while Nea was eyeing the piano that sat opposite the couch.
"I wonder when that General will jump out," Allen thought aloud, but a small intent shook his mind, and he spun on his feet. Nea noticed this, too.
"Run," He commanded, and the other was already sprinting towards the door.
"Ahaha…" a new voice resonated in the room. "I'm afraid your decision to run will be annulled."
A shuffle of footsteps made them shrink back, backs colliding, and eyes sharp. Immediately, Dorian looked to the left, and with a small snap of the fingers, an explosion erupted on the side of that vast room. A small shout of pain alerted them to get moving.
"Quick!" Allen shouted, and Dorian complied, clapping his hands together and creating a large pillar shooting out of the ground. They burst through the ceiling, and jumped off at a high altitude, and they were sent plummeting. Dorian grit his teeth for his illogical decision, but Allen found the solution.
"Crown Clown!"
The two reached the ground to be cushioned by a cloak of white. Allen and Nea landed on their feet, respecting the teamwork.
"He's gone," they said at once. Dorian then turned to Allen.
"He won't be coming back soon," He said happily. "If that man gets hurt in your mind, he'll have to take a long time to recover."
Allen nodded, turning his attention over to the vast white city. "Yeah…"
Roy and Hohenheim sat in the second study, accompanied by Leverrier, Komui, Hughes, and Riza. They watched carefully as the two men shifted uncomfortably in their seats, trying to stare each other down. The reason why? Probably a contest of "who's the better father for the Elrics," but Roy would win anyways, so that wasn't the reason. Still, this was quite funny for the subordinates watching…
"Balancing, eh?" Hohenheim's glasses glinted. "You sure take the Law of Alchemy too seriously."
"Well said," Roy smirked. "But it still should work."
"Do you truly have a method for this? How are you going to balance Allen and Dorian's soul at the same time in Allen's body?"
A silence fell, and Riza and Hughes held their breaths. Obviously, Roy was hesitant (all this was a half-baked idea), and he was not going to give a straight answer, but Hohenheim beat him to it.
"I'd like to propose a new idea."
"And what is it?" Roy asked.
"I hope you have done your research on the House of Xerxes."
"Thank your sons for that. There was barely any material to start with, but we found the entire thing eventually."
Hohenheim nodded. "Good. I'll explain. With me being a Alchemist of pure Xerxian blood-"
"Your alchemic power is superior to all." Roy completed the sentence.
"Yes, and back to the concept of channeling. Ed and Alphonse, as half-Xerxians, have the most potential out of all Alchemic Exorcists to achieve the power level close to a pureblood, but not enough to perform a certain technique of channeling."
"Please go on."
"This technique is separating two souls from one body by giving the soul that is depending on the other a body of its own. Back at the time when Xerxes existed, the Noah house sought assistance from Xerxes to transfer the souls of the original 14 Noah from one body to another when the power bond between soul and body began to lessen.
"Alchemists developed a technique of channeling to complete the transfer, and later on, the Noah evolved to be able to transfer the 14 souls on their own. But after the House of Xerxes was reduced to ashes, the Noah began to regress, finding the transfer of souls more difficult by the century. Now, the Noah have plenty of trouble trying to transfer souls to a body of their own choice, and they are already aware of this.
"In the transformation of Noah, the body chosen is random, and in time, the body will digress to that of a Noah. In Allen's case, because the 14th did not truly bother to transfer his soul to another body, he has lost the ability to chose which body he landed in. He probably needs the help of an Alchemist with enough power."
"So you can separate the 14th from Allen Walker?" Leverrier asked. Hohenheim nodded.
"I can, but not quite. This is only temporary in a sense. The existence of the 14th's tangible body can only be true if Allen's body is not destroyed. If that really does happen, the bond between soul and body will be broken, and the 14th will have to spend another decade dormant in someone else's body before awakening. We don't have much time before the Earl does anything on a large scale, so the separation is necessary. Hopefully, if the time comes, we can fully separate Allen from the Noah."
Komui's eyes beamed with relief, seeing how Allen will be safe after all, once he recovers from his injuries. Leverrier was pleased, glad that the war would be close to its end.
"We'll begin this tomorrow," Roy got up from his seat. "Would you like to tell Al about this first? He's the one in charge of Allen's care."
"Um… yes…" Hohenheim stared at the floor. Roy saw the uneasiness, and smiled. Ever since Ed's outburst upon seeing his biological father, the man became very nervous upon the mention of the Elrics.
"I'm sure Al will be happy to see you," He said to raise the other's hopes. "Ed is just being himself. He hasn't seen you in a long time."
"Oh… right…"
A scratching of a fountain pen echoed in the silent ward, along with the slow beeping of the heart monitor. Al skimmed through the list of medical papers. He was proud of his staff, who were competent to give exceptional reports so he didn't have to take a second look. This made things a lot easier. All he had to do was read, and sign. Simple and easy.
"Um… Alphonse?"
The said boy looked up from his work, and smiled. Hohenheim was peering through the ward door, hoping not to disturb anyone. Al could see that the poor man was slightly terrified of stepping inside.
"Oh, Dad, welcome back," He pointed to the seat before him. "The air outside the ward must be pretty cold. You should come inside."
"Ah… right…"
For a moment, Al watched his father timidly let the door creak. He remembered how he used to be, the shy little boy who hid behind Ed whenever trouble passed by. Now he remembered where that shyness came from…
Hohenheim slowly made his way across, avoid eye contact with the younger Elric. Al only laughed.
"There's nothing to be scared about, Dad," He smiled. "Just take a seat."
Hohenheim stopped, and finally looked at him, his eyes asking, "What about Ed?"
"Brother will be fine," Al sighed, surprising his father with his answer.
Hohenheim took this as a welcome, finally, and sat down. Al finished signing some papers, set his fountain pen down. Hohenheim fidgeted with his thumbs. What to say? What to say? He's standing in front of his son, and he was speechless. Well, the boy had grown, so why can't he say "You grown quite a lot…" No, that was too common… How about… "I see you duties are quite demanding…" What? That was not fatherly! The mental battle raged on until a small creak from the door caught their attention.
"Alphonse?" A head peered from the door, purple locks dangling. The two turned their attention to the newcomer. Al smiled at her, and she beamed back.
"Road?" Hohenheim asked, and the Noah meekly entered the room with two mugs seated on a silver tray.
"Jeremy wanted me to deliver these to you," She said quietly, directing most of her eye contact with Alphonse, who nodded.
"Thank you," Al took both the mugs and set it down on Allen's bedside table. Road couldn't help but wear a small tinge of pink.
Alphonse noticed that she was standing there staring blankly at him. With a small hint of mischief, he got up, and pecked her on the cheek. This startled the girl as she fumbled with the empty tray. She looked up at Alphonse, who was standing right beside her. Her eyes questioned his actions, and the boy laughed.
"You were staring into space," he smiled. "I had to wake you up somehow."
Road was on her way to getting her face to take on a color of tomato red. Then her face slackened, and she returned a content smile. Road gave Alphonse a curt hug and then backed away quickly, eyeing the door.
"I… um… I'll be leaving now…" She stammered before quickly rushing out of the ward. Hohenheim watched the previous happenings, stunned by the interaction. Even more, Road Kamelot was here?
Alphonse noticed how shocked his father looked, and began stammering profusely as Hohenheim blinked.
"I didn't know Road was here with you," He was still gaping at the door. He then turned to his red-faced son.
"That was quite shocking. Usually, Road doesn't talk with others. She merely plays with them until they break (I find that quite disturbing). I'm happy she's warmed up a bit. But what's with the display of-"
"Oh… um… we're sorta close…" Alphonse couldn't get any redder.
Hohenheim smiled at his son's bashfulness. But once he turned his attention to his plans, Alphonse's eyes turned stone, and he listened with great vigilance.
"I see…" Alphonse nodded. "I can arrange that, but please make it quick."
"Of course, Alphonse," Hohenheim nodded back, and looked away. Alphonse noticed the wistful look on the man's face, so he cleared his throat.
"If you're thinking about brother," Al suggested, and Hohenheim looked back with surprised eyes. "You shouldn't be so worked up about it. Brother's been having a rough life these days, being an Inspector (Major). If he were a little more free, he probably would have been more nicer."
"I understand," Hohenheim looked at the floor. "I left when you two were around three, and I don't think Trisha would be able to explain anything to you so young."
"But I welcome you anyway," Alphonse smiled. "Your life after leaving Mom must have been really hard. You should at least have someone who's happy to see you."
"Thank you, Alphonse," the Sage smiled for once. This exchange met silence until a small stir from Allen's bed startled them. Allen rolled his head over slightly, still unconscious.
"The poor boy…" Hohenheim thought. "Trying to suppress Nea…"
A/N: Finally! and everyone rejoices! and yeah, Leverrier is another daddy for Allen-kun (never will happen in the manga, and probably anywhere else)! I've actually finished some more pieces on DA, so feel free to check them out (they're not related to FMA or DGM, but they're pretty! unless you love the secret saturdays and pokemon rangers, then you do have a reason to see them for sure).
As the poll, it's still open, but I've narrowed down the choices. The only choices left are Gil, Tsuna, Giotto, Lelouch, and Jack. You can still vote. And the poll closes when this story ends (I'll have a chapter or two done on Veteran's Day break).
Another sneak peek into Intangible Essence:
"Kanda? What are you reading?"
Allen pored over the small text. "Hm…"
Seeing that she couldn't read it well, she changed her attention to a stack of books. She examined the names on the spines. At least she got the basic idea.
"These are about medicine, aren't they? You're going to be a doctor?"
"Go away, bean sprout," Kanda growled.
"Kanda…" the girl sighed. "I didn't know you could read …"
Allen expected a snarky comment, but she heard a book closed gently and placed on the train seat. Kanda faced her with his cobalt eyes.
"Tiedoll taught me how to read and write," He explained. "The General was actually once a professor in the arts before becoming an Exorcist. All of his students know this. He also told me to study a profession. He thinks that the war will end soon, and that we'll have to get real jobs by then. With this, I have an alternative job... It's troublesome, studying in between missions and training, but the old guy is right anyways…"
"Do you like studying medicine?" Allen asked. Kanda looked up to think, and averted his gaze to the girl again.
"I guess I do… Marie is into music. Daisya was going to a scientist, but that's done for… Chaoji plans to be part of the shipmaking industry or something…"
Allen smiled. Tiedoll's students were so… accomplished… Life was set out for them… everything.
"I've never really had formal education… Mana only taught me the basics…"
Kanda raised an eyebrow.
"Hn. I'll teach you, then. Fortunately, this book isn't about medicine, so it won't be so boring."
Allen stared wide-eyed at the samurai as if he had grown two heads.
"What? You? Teach me?"
"Why not?" Kanda shrugged. "It's probably better me than anyone else… right?"
Seeing Allen's small nod, Kanda picked up his book, and pointed to where it had been placed.
"Come here."
Allen quickly got up. As soon as she sat down, Kanda motioned for her to sit closer. There, Allen saw the opportunity to rest on Kanda's shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her. Together they began the book aloud, enveloped in a new world…
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…"
I actually checked, and Hoshino said that Kanda is the dumbest of the four main characters, but I changed it all with the power of fanfiction. So Kanda's a doctor (and maybe a hot one).
Upcoming Arc:
After Allen awakens and recovers, Nea emerges in a corporeal form before the Order, and plans to help Allen discover his motives (because Nea loves puzzles). He introduces Allen to music and the code of music, but being the bastard (As Ed dubs him) he is, he lets the others do the work for him. Ed finds a man within the Shield's ranks who owns a vast archive of musical codes. His name... is Shou Tucker.
Review, please! I need suggestions because I'm getting some writer's block right now!