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[ Rushing headfirst into a conflict with only a minimal plan and hoping it works is truly the Elric way.

That is to say, following Wrath down to the ruins of the underground city was enough of a gamble. Wrath may have spent the past three years living in the woods outside of Risembool like an angry feral kitten, but he was still, you know, one of the homunculi. Though, Rose had told Alphonse that he had given them some vital help against Envy and Dante, so what little remains of Al's kiddish gullibility these days extended to thinking okay, I'll give him a chance, what do I have to lose at this point?

Uh. A lot, apparently. He was not expecting to have to deal with the 100 foot tall abomination that used to be Gluttony trying to eat them both, nor was he expecting Wrath to just...lay down and die. "You were willing to sacrifice yourself to get your brother back, right? I'm not going to let that happen again."

(Look. Look. It's not his fault that he and Ed have the kind of relationship where they'd jump in front of a train for each other, it's the sheer amount of bullshit they've been through. Which, a few years ago, included having to dig up their mom's grave and use one of her bones to kill the homunculus wearing her face, who they made, by the way, that was nice to find out. Not that Al remembers that at the moment, but he will momentarily. Truly, nothing nice ever happens in the 03 universe!!)

When Alphonse puts his hands down, he's not sure how this is going to work, or what's going to pop out of the other side--well, he's hoping to suddenly have Ed tumbling out, of course, but things never happen the easy way. For all he knows, it'll be Ed but catatonic, or it'll take half of the environment around him, or the worst of all--nothing. To have gotten this far and sacrificed this much and just have no result...it might break him a little.

Still, he's holding out hope. He may have become an unhinged little gremlin in the 3 years since Ed vanished, but he's still Al, which means he's still got his ever-present optimism! It's just...you know, less blind optimism, now.

Anyway. There are lots of hands. There's always so many weird, grabby little hands when the Gate is involved, and it skeeves him out, because he can remember the hands grabbing him that night when they were kids, pulling him away from the basement and out of Ed's grasp, past a doorway that no one was ever meant to cross more than once.

And yet.

And yet.

Here he is crossing it a third time.

The circle flashes again, and he's being subtly tugged past the threshold. His feet skid into the blackness beyond the doors, and he almost screams, but--he finds a hand inside that's solid, one that's attached to a real arm and not a spindly tendril. Putting all of his weight into tugging on the arm, he throws himself backward, back through the doorway, and lands on the concrete courtyard hard enough to knock the wind out of him.

He doesn't register the fact that he's still gripping Ed's arm with more force than is probably necessary, but uh, give him a minute. Three years worth of stuck-in-a-suit-of-armor memories just zoomed back into his noggin and he needs a moment--several moments, maybe a few months worth of moments for the entire thing with Sloth--to process it.

So, um. Welcome to the empty underground city ruins that Definitely Isn't Xerxes, Ed?? It was already in pretty bad shape, but Gluttony and Wrath wrecked the surrounding area even more, and there's a waterway nearby filled with red stones. Al is laying on his back kind of staring at the sky with a raptured look on his face, but he's breathing, at least. ]

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[ Al raises an eyebrow in question, but doesn't verbally ask further. ]

I wonder if that's what made things happen differently for you. How you met the people from Xing, and it made everything change...there's a word for it. Butterfly effect, maybe?

[ Though, that begs the question of what the hell Dante is getting her rotten little hands on in Ed's universe.

He hums in thought for a moment before looking over his shoulder at Ed. ]

Brother. Do you...do you remember Martel? I was thinking about her.

[ They were not happy thoughts. ]

I don't know? But it does sound like things turned out differently for you. Or you remember more than me or something. It's...weird.

[He is trying to figure this out but it is rather confusing. Of course this would take time to piece it together. And probably, take time to figure getting Ed back home. He figures it would have something to do with the Gate. But of course what that requires, at least from his experience and knowledge so far, human transmutation.....he can't. He isn't sure if he can accept that cost. So again, he's going to have to try figure another way.]

Huh? Martel? Y-yeah. What about her?

[ Waving it off. ] I just don't like not knowing what's going on. I guess it's instinct to try to solve it.

[ Al shrugs, a little restless.

Hmm. He notices that momentary stutter, Ed. ]

Is she...okay? [ In his world. ] She was killed when I was trying to hide her from someone. It's probably wishful thinking, but she had a kind heart...I hope there's some version of her I was able to keep safe.

I get that. I'm sure working together we'll figure something. Figure some way to fix this.

[If they work together. Ed isn't sure how much everyone else here might know about their situation, how similar certain things might have played out or what. But he glances down and to the side for a moment, shaking his head in answer to Al's question.]

She....no. Same thing happened to the Martel I knew. I helped clean out the armour afterwards, to make sure to be careful of the seal....

[ There's a long, long pause from him.

Not being able to eat or sleep in the armor were the most topical concerns, of course, but honestly? Not being able to cry was pretty bad, too.

For Nina, for Hughes, for Martel. It was borderline hellish. ]

I see. [ A shorter pause this time. ] If you'll let me be honest for a moment, the seal breaking wasn't even my biggest worry at the time.

[ It was, yknow. The everything. Didn't even have the luck the other Al had of being unconscious when it happened. ]

I know, you were probably trying to protect her. Keep her safe, right?

[From the little context he managed to get around what happened, at least back home. He can't automatically assume it was the same for this Alphonse but he maybe has some sort of understanding and empathy at least. Vaguely. Assuming it was something along the lines of what went down back home. Which, from the context of what Al has said it sure sounds similar enough. Ed of course wasn't right there when it happened, but. He gets the idea at least. And saw the aftermath, back home.]

[ And boy was there ever an aftermath to deal with. :') ]

'Trying' being the key word here.

I don't know exactly what happened, but she left to do some reconnaissance and got into a fight with Fuhrer Bradley. That's when she found out he was a homunculus. [ His voice wavers, a little. ] He started chasing her, so I had her get into my armor to hide from him.

It...didn't matter. He knew she was there. He just...he just ran his sword through me and thanked me for helping apprehend her.

[ He takes off one of his gloves and wipes at his eyes with the back of his hand. ]

Edited 2023-09-22 05:13 (UTC)

Yeah, sounds pretty similar to what I gather went down back home too. More or less, I guess. I mean. I don't know if he thanked Al like that, but. I hadn't been there to help at the time.

[They had lost so many. Not just Martel. But Nina and the others as well. Still. It just gives more determination to persevere and figure this. A way to get their bodies back as a means to repay everyone for their help over the years. And stopping whatever is going on with the homunculi and Father, the military.]

....I don't know. I'm thinking with everything. Maybe it might be better to quit. Leave the military.

[Because he hasn't yet had that sit down with the Fuhrer with Winry being threatened if he were to quit. But it does all just feel like. Too much.]

That's...

[ He bristles a little, because he's not sure how he feels about the use of "Al" and not "you"--this whole alternate world business has always felt personal in a way he can't explain well. He's spent too much time watching the other version of himself drive cars and build rockets and play cards with Ed after work to feel like they're wholly different people at this point.

The change in subject he doesn't mind, though. ]

Are you sure? [ Said evenly, neutrally. ] You joined for the paycheck as much as you did for access to the classified information.

[ And Al would have, too, but. Physical exam. ]

[Ed isn't sure how to exactly distinguish which one he is talking about exactly. So he just figures saying 'Al' works. He's still getting the hang of this, not as used to the idea of it as Alphonse, in having been watching some other version like that.

Still, he purses his lips, glancing to the side. He's learned a little more, during his time with Envy and Ling. And the more he learns, the more everything just puts a bad taste in his mouth. The more he hates the military and the history around it. What they did. What the homunculi did in encouraging and starting it....]

I know. But. I don't need their help, their records if I'm looking into alkahestry. Other ways to figure fixing things. Besides the Stone. I only used Envy's because that was the only choice. I'm not.....I'm not using one to fix things, to keep my promise. I have enough money. And I'd figure something else if I had to. I'm not worried about that.

[ He'll get used to it. But at the moment, it's very, very weird.

Al listens quietly and nods, but shoots Ed a strange look when he mentions not using the stone.

The way he's hearing this story, he assumes Ed is talking about those imitation stones that homunculi tend to barf up when they get hurt. Not the real deal. That would trigger a very different reaction that Ed might not like so much. Not that he'd ever get involved in the making of one, but if they discover that Dante had a backup stone hidden somewhere in the opera house, uh...well, it's already here, you can't unmake it. May as well use it. That was pretty much his line of thought when he used the one that got fused with his armor to yoink Ed's soul back from the Gate. ]

There's not much you can do with a red stone, anyway... How did you get one from Envy, come to think of it?

[ Did he knee Envy in the gut like he deserves?? ]

A red stone? You mean the Philosopher's Stone.

[Right? Unless Al meant something else but he was pretty sure the other had to mean the Philosopher's Stone. From the context and all. Ed's still not the most comfortable talking about it because of the way the Stones were made. But like he said, they were trying to figure an alternative. Another way to fix things and get their bodies back. Al's body being the priority, at least, to Ed.]

Envy gave it to me to use. We had no other choice. It was that or die stuck inside Gluttony, slowly succumbing to hunger and thirst. Which was pretty gross. So much blood, everything he had been eating over however long he had been alive. Mostly stuff they wanted to hide, to destroy I guess....

[Like part of that mural from Xerxes.]

....no. I mean red stones.

[ The lack of recognition on Ed's face is concerning, to say the least.

Al waits until they get to the next landing area and puts his glove back on, stooping low to clap and transmute a small bridge jutting out over the torn waterway. At some point it was probably some kind of aqueduct, but now it's just a path full of shredded concrete and tiny, dull red stones.

He plucks a few of them out of the water and holds them up. They sure do look like Philosopher's Stones, albeit kind of in a costume jewelry sort of way. They're also a much duller color than the real deal. ]

Have you not seen these before?

[ Also why is he not surprised that Gluttony is a walking bag of holding.....Al kind of feels sorry for him. A little. Mostly the one he knows, who went catatonic after Lust died. ]

They're...they almost look like Philosopher's Stones. But not quite?

[He doesn't seem surprised in the least that Al transmutes without drawing out a circle. Probably because his Al could. Let alone the arrays on his gloves, similar to Mustang, but on the palms instead. Ed shifts, coming closer and peering at the stones in Al's hand. That they seem duller red than the ones he had seen. Than the one Marcoh had had. That Envy had. He hasn't encountered something like this. Though he supposes it wouldn't be surprising if some people had been attempting to make Philosopher's Stones and hadn't quite gotten how they were made. What was required.]

[ It's mostly the array on the palm of the gloves, tbh. He had to complete his Ed cosplay somehow. ]

Basically. They're imitation stones made by crystallizing Red Water. If you have one, you can transmute without a circle, but they're pretty unstable and break after a while. They've caused some pretty harsh rebound, before.

[ He rolls them around in his hand. Clink clink. ]

You said you got a stone from Envy. You...you don't mean a real Philospher's Stone, do you?

[ There's no way. Not with how rare they are, not with the toll it takes to make them. Envy wouldn't just have one laying around, and even if he did, he wouldn't just give it to Ed to use.

...would he? Would Envy even be the kind of person to cooperate with Ed if it meant life and death? He killed Ed. Finding a way to murder their dad seemed to be the only thing that kept that nutjob going. ]

Red Water? The -- yeah, the one Envy gave me was real. I used it to open the Gate to get us out. Envy wanted to get out too. We all had things to do. People waiting for us. Al waiting for me. Lan Fan waiting for Ling. Envy and....whatever they have planned.

[Ed is only starting to piece together what they have planned. There's more to it. But he is in the process of figuring it out. It's a start. He isn't sure what to make of the Red Water, imitation stones. He does recall the one that the priest had in Liore, but that had been a while ago. He hadn't had the best look at it, given it got destroyed and broke.]

Yeah, it's not a creative name, I know. [ Looking a little sheepish. He lets the stones fall back into the water. ] They use cinnabar to make it, so that should tell you enough.

[ It feels strange having to explain this to Ed. Mostly just because they were usually both an equal amount of bookish nerd and there wasn't much tome knowledge he knew that Ed didn't. Or vice versa, really.

At that second bit, his jaw drops. ]

He just gave you one? [ Sorry if he sounds a little desperate and incredulous, this would be just his luck that this alternate Amestris apparently has numerous real-ass Philosopher's Stones floating around, one of which their insane mystery brother has. Had??

Half of those names don't ring a bell, and he doesn’t even bat an eye at the admission of Ed using one of the stones, but Al still ends up looking noticeably distressed. ] If you're saying that you had a reason for using one, then I believe you. You don't have to justify it. [ A huff. ] But how did you find out that Envy had one? Wait, how many are there in your Amestris?

Cinnabar? Yeah. He gave me that one to open the Gate and get us back home. Only. I haven't gotten back home, I ended up here....

[But hopefully Ling was back at least. That he could reassure Al back home. He's not sure he cares on if Envy got back home but hopefully he was at least somewhere that others could stop him in any case. Ed tries not to think too much on that. That he doesn't have any control over that, least of all right now.]

How many what? Philosopher's Stones? Well, the homunculi have one each. Uh, Kimblee has one. Marcoh has one......

[ "No, how many Envys--yes, how many stones, dummy" he thinks but doesn't say.

Al bustles past him and back onto the stairs, resuming his climbing with gusto. ]

I get that-- [ that Envy gave him the stone because they were stuck, he means ] --but, I don't know. It's a lot to believe, considering everything Envy's done.

[ Mostly the extremely personal vendetta, the Ed-murdering, and all of the attempts at patricide. ]

That many stones... [ A stormy look crosses his face. ] There aren't any left, here.

You don't think Envy has some sense of self preservation as well? I doubt I'd have been given the Stone for any other reason if there were other options. But -- what do you mean that there aren't many here? I know there aren't many back home either. I mean, considering how they were made.

[Not that this Ed has any clue about the other Envy. The relationship there between them, that the other Envy killed the other Ed so he should probably be relieved to not be found by the homunculus. Of course he is oblivious to the history here. He follows Al, letting the other set the pace as they resume climbing.]

[ An anxious shrug. ]

Only long enough to find Dad and kill him. After that, all bets are off.

[ People with self-preservation instincts usually do not jump headfirst into transdimensional portals.

His frown deepens. ]

No, there aren't any stones left, Brother. There were only ever two or three complete ones, and all of them are gone, now.

[ Gonna leave out the vital factoid that he got turned into a living stone. That might be a bit much to hear all at once. ]

Edited (grammar that I caught hours later lol) 2023-09-24 17:47 (UTC)

What's Envy got to do with Hohenheim? I mean. I get that Envy seems to hate humanity in general, but?

[Their father specifically? Ed isn't aware of the particular relationship and history there with this world's Envy and Hohenheim. So of course he's oblivious and confused as to Al saying that. Specifically pointing out Envy wanting to target Hohenheim like that.]

Well. Then...then we figure another way. Like I was doing back home.

[Because he doesn't exactly want to make a new Stone. And he assumes neither does Al, given his talk of the trouble with the Gate when one needs a Stone to open it. So of course they will just have to figure a workaround somehow.]

[Ed shifts in approaching more, reaching a hand to Al's head almost instinctively in some attempt to reassure the other. Because of course he does. He's the older brother. That's his job. To help reassure and support Al. To look after him. To take on that responsibility. This might not be Alphonse from his home, but that doesn't matter. It's still Al.]

[ Well, that's what finally gets him. A head pat. The last time he remembers Ed doing that was when they were little, with all of their collective 8 limbs, and he wasn't a 7-foot-tall suit of armor that Ed had to stand on a table to reach.

He crumples. ]

There aren't any other ways. [ Funny, now he really doesn't want to cry, and it's happening anyway. ] There are no other ways...! A stone can open the Gate, but there aren't any left! The only other option is to give it one of its kin back. [ He wipes at his eyes with his coat sleeve, but it doesn't help much. He's completely forgotten to answer the question about Envy at this point. ] And there aren't any homunculi left here, either. Wrath, he...he led me down here so I could use him and Gluttony to open the Gate.

[ A noise that sounds like a hiccup goes through him. He motions to the destroyed city around them, as if saying "well, here we are." ]

That's it. I don't know what else we can do. I've spent the past three years looking for a way to get to you, and I found nothing, Ed. [ Ah, the rare use of his actual name. ]

I'm sorry. I'm so sorry...

One of its kin -- oh. The homunculi...?

[Ed puts a hand to Al's shoulder, when the other starts to cry. Listens to him. He isn't sure what to make of the idea of Wrath helping them, but maybe some things were different here for all he knows. There certainly seem to be some differences for all that their worlds seem similar in some regards.

It's the apology that gets Ed. That has him finally reaching to Al's back to pull him in closer. The first proper hug in how long now? Years. Probably longer, for this Alphonse. As far as Ed can figure at least. He may not be the same Edward, but that doesn't matter. Not right now, for him to be able to try reassure the other.]

Hey. We'll figure something. Together. I'll help. If there's a way he ended up in that place with the rockets, and I ended up here. We gotta be able to replicate that. Just. Without the homunculi. We'll figure something else.

[They have to. He can only imagine his own Alphonse getting furious at Gluttony right now back home. He can't be sure how long it's been already. But he has to get back. Just. After this. At least he has this moment of hugging Al again. After so long.]

[ There's a second where Al doesn't respond, just goes limp and lets Ed hug him without response. It takes his brain a moment to catch up.

And then he's practically knocking Ed over with his own hug in turn, drawing in a shuddering breath.

It's not like they hugged particularly often as kids. He remembers there being more getting irritated and pushing each other around, if anything. But this stirs a calm feeling in him, one that reminds him of being so little that the face he matches it with is Trisha's.

...he thinks, vaguely, he remembers Ed and Trisha fighting, hearing Trisha tell Ed to stop hitting him with books, but he doesn't know if it's real or something his mind cooked up to fill in the gaps of 'which one was it? which one of them was ruffling his hair that day? which one of them made sure he ate even when he was feeling sick? which one of them went to the ends of the earth and back for him?'

One of those people he can't touch anymore, but the other is standing right here. ]

...I'm sorry. I don't know why you ended up here, but...I missed you so much.

[ He says it quietly, still crushing Ed with his hug, because he doesn't want to let go quite yet. He thinks he earned a slightly longer-than-normal hug from armor time served. ]

I don't know what else I can do, here. But I'll give it my best effort.