unexculpable | ➤ 5th Transmutation

A. » Action/Locked to notalwystrthful「1652 Albright Lane ☼ Early Morning」

[Ed was actually on his way out, he never stayed at this house for too long. The only reason he came back at all was because he would be droned if he didn't sleep in here once every three days.

He took the stairs two at a time, pulling his hair back into a ponytail along the way. He didn't know if Lust was here and he didn't want to find out, he almost made it to the door, but something caught his eye. Leaning up against the wall was a fairly large box with his name on it, written in crisp, bold letters.

He couldn't think of anyone who would send him something and he knew that people often recieved things from home in the mail. Was that what it was? Was this something from home? It could be, but... maybe it was from Olivier? Some project she wanted him to work on? Or Diana? It could be materials for that... slime stuff they were working on for the trolls. There was only one way to find out.

Ed didn't take his time opening it, but maybe he should have. His eyes widened and he stood up on shaky feet, stumbling backwards until he slammed into the wall behind him.]

No. No, no, no, no. I don't want this damn it!

["Water, 35 liters. Carbon, 20 kilograms. Ammonia, 4 liters. Lime, 1.5 kilograms. Phosphorous, 800 grams. Salt, 250 grams. Saltpeter, 100 grams. Sulfur, 80 grams. Fluorine, 7.5, iron, 5, silicon, 3 grams, and trace amounts of 15 other elements."

He could see it all happening in his head. The voice, one he knew to be his own, was so clear. He could see himself and his brother standing next to the pile of ingredients. Everything they needed to create the body of an adult human being.

The brothers knelt down outside of the circle and with a nod of determination, they down and placed their hands on the carefully drawn lines of chalk.

Ed swallowed hard, unmoving, barely breathing as the circle lights up. A bright blue light engulfs their father's study. The light illuminates the boy's faces - grinning, hopeful expectant, excited. For a minute everything seems like it's going like it should. That changes fast.

Things that look like long, thin pitch black arms rise up from the circle, writhing and twisting in the air and in the very center of the circle an eye cracked open.

His stomach clenched and he gasped for breath, trying to hold back the scream that was trying to force it's way out. For a minute, he was able to hold it back, but that didn't last long. It was far too late to take this all back. Far too late to close the box and pretend this never happened. He stumbles forward and falls to his knees, his heart pounding in his chest. He could already feel it.

The light from the circle changes to a deep, piercing red. The hands that erupted from the ground surround the two small boys -- grabbing at them, pulling at them, tearing at them. Al screamed, terrified, tears streaming down his face, his hand stretched out reaching for his brother as he was torn to apart -- pleading, begging and disappearing piece by piece.

The scream clawed it's way out of his throat -- shrill and pained and terrified -- as his leg was ripped apart. Blood trickled onto the floor, quickly pooling under him. Ed's arms buckled and and fell flat on his stomach, coughing and choking, his throat already raw from his agonized screams.

He was alone again. No one was here to help him. He was alone and terrified and there was so much blood god there was so much blood.]

B. » Action「Around Town ☼ Evening」

[Those who know Ed, or at the very least have seen him around frequently, might notice something a bit... off about him. For one, he looks incredibly exhausted -- his face is pale and honestly he seems like he might be sick, but that isn't quite the case.

Upon closer inspection those with an observant eye will notice three other things, the first of which, and the most obvious, are the pair of white gloves he's wearing. It's been colder than this and so far Ed's never bothered to wear gloves. They're not even thick ones, so it would be safe to assume he's not wearing them to keep his hands warm. His right arm looks... different somehow. It's impossible to see why, the long sleeved shirt is doing a good job of covering everything up. And... is something wrong with his left leg? Is he limping?]

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From:

notalwystrthful.livejournal.com

[ As sick as Diana's been lately, she knows that there's always work to be done. And, so, when she's on her way to visit Ed for today, she stops in her tracks and hears screaming. Okay, well, some people have been weirder than usual, but she's used to Mayfield pulling stunts like this again. Though, that scream is definitely unsettling - blood-curdling, uneasy...

Whatever it is, she starts to make a run for the door and barges right in to see Ed. Ed and blood. Blood and... Ed.

For a moment, she's rendered completely immobile and speechless. Never in her thirteen years has she witnessed this amount of gore. Never in hr thirteen years has she seen something this horrible and awful and just... wrong. Her stomach is lurching, feeling like she was definitely going to throw up at the mere sight.

But, her voice and strength returns. She makes her legs move so that she can go over to him and gingerly wraps her arms around him. She doesn't know what is happening and that terrifies her. She likes to know things and this is something she doesn't know - why can't she know? Dammit! ]

Ed! Ed, it's going to be okay! Just try to hold on, all right?

[ What the hell does she do here? Does she try to get some help or does she just... wait for whatever the hell is happening to be done and over with?

Dammit! ]

From:

unexculpable

[What was happening at this moment, this memory, was not meant for anyone else to see or witness. Part of it even Al shouldn't have to see. He didn't need to think about what Ed did to get his soul back. But he did. He would always remember. It would be a sin to forget.

His leg was gone and staying on his hands and knees proved to be a balancing act that he couldn't accomplish. Edward falls to the side, clutching the bleeding stump that used to be his leg, sobbing and screaming in agony.

Al's name slips past his lips in strained whimpers and gasps. His brother. Al was gone. Gone, gone, gone and it was his fault. He rolled onto his stomach just in time to see something move in the center of the circle.

"M-mom?"

There was desperation in that tiny voice and that word, that one little word, would be his breaking point. An odd sort of gurgling groan emanated from the circle's center and Ed's eyes widened in horror. Whatever was there it was clear that it wasn't what he was expecting. Something dark and human, but not quite, groaning and gasping and twitching. A thin hand rose from the floor, reaching for Ed. The weight of it's arm was too much for it and it slammed to the ground, fingers extending and curling, like it was asking him to come closer, to help it.

It was human, but distinctly not -- it's face tight and gaunt, it's head lolling backwards like it's neck had snapped.

Ed screamed -- his voice coarse and wavering.

"NO. This wasn't supposed to happen. It wasn't supposed to be like this!"

He chokes back his tears, using his arms to pull himself across the room, leaving a trail of blood behind him.

"Alphonse, no! No, dammit. You won't take him too."

He somehow manages to knock down the suit of armor that had been propped up in the corner. Using his own blood, Ed quickly creates a seal inside of it.

"Give him back! He's my brother! Take my leg. Take my arm! Take my heart, ANYTHING, YOU CAN HAVE IT! Just give him back! He's my little brother, he's all I have left!"

He could barely register that Diana was there at all. The memory of that one naive, misguided, terrifying night kept spinning in his head. He could feel it -- the pain, the hurt, the terror, the helplessness, the hopelessness -- as strong as the day it happened. And that dreadful, awful sinking feeling in his stomach. The knowledge that he was alone. Completely alone. His mother dead, his father as good as dead, and his brother... his brother was just ripped apart right in front of his eyes. There was no one left for him. No one.

Ed grits his teeth and claps his hands, the familiar blue light surrounding him and the armor as he touches the seal. He sobs and gasps, pulling himself towards the wall, struggling to sit up. It was too much. All of it was too much. The black arms are back and they surround him, pulling at his right arm, taking it piece by piece until there's nothing left.

And right now Ed was reliving it. Feeling each muscle and ligament unraveling, his skin dissolving, every cell breaking apart and fading away. Another scream claws mercilessly at his throat, somehow sounding more agonized and blood-curdling than the last and his right arm is gone. And his blood. More of his blood. Seeping and rushing out of him, leaving him dizzy and disoriented and he knew he was losing way too much, knew that he had to stop this. Had to stop the bleeding, but he couldn't move, couldn't do anything but scream and sob and grab pathetically at Diana's sleeve.]

I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorryI'msorryI'msorry.

From:

notalwystrthful.livejournal.com

[ Again, Diana finds herself useless in this situation. She wants to help him, dammit. After all, she's a prodigy, so why couldn't she use her brilliant mind to help him out? She desperately racks her mind for an answer, finding everything she can think of to be rendered ineffective. ]

No... no, you don't need to be sorry. Okay? You don't need to be sorry. [ His blood has stained her coat and whatever else she was wearing, yet she didn't seem to mind. He was in agony and she couldn't help him. All she could do is just... sit there. In his blood and try to help him through this.

Though, what did her mother tend to do when she was upset? Ah, right. She threads her fingers through his hair and tries to calm him down. ]

It'll... It'll be over soon, okay? [ There's a pained cough on her end, but she tells herself that she'll be okay. He's the priority here, not her. ]

I'm sorry there's nothing I can do.