LIORE
“…And that’s all I heard, before the bird came at me.”
“Bird?” Guts asked.
“Yeah! I heard this crackle, then when I looked in again, this falcon tried to grab me! I was almost lunch…” Puck quivered, holding his head in his hands.
Someone knocked on the door.
“Hello?” Came a female voice, and Puck dove under the bed. “It’s her! She can see me, gotta hide, you’re on your own…”
“Sorry, what was that?” The girl sounded puzzled, and Guts hastily stowed his autocrossbow away in its pouch. “I said, come in.”
“Right, right. Sorry, for a second there you sounded- I don’t know, my ears must be playing tricks on me.“ The door opened, to reveal a pink-haired girl, her hands full of towels and cloth, balancing a tray with a jug of water on top.
“Anyway, I’m Rose, pleased to meet-“ Rose stopped and stared, as Guts looked back.
“Sweet Leto, what have you been through?” She whispered, taking in the scarred, bloody, maimed man in front of her. The water jug slipped from the tray, and shattered on the floor, as she jumped. “Oh! Oh no, I’m sorry…”
“It’s okay.” Guts pointed. “That fountain in the next room had plenty of water, I drank my fill.”
Taking her eyes from Guts for a second, she glanced to where he was pointing. “Oh, you mean the sink? Well, that’s okay, it’s just that the pipes get a little rust in the water, so it’s not the cleanest…”
“Sink? Is that the little fountain with the standing water in there?” Guts scratched his head.
“Standing wat-“ Rose looked, straight at the toilet. “Ulp! Uh… You’re.. uh… not supposed to drink from that…”
“Huh? Why’s that?”
She told him. By the end of the explanation, she was blushing and Guts was faintly green under his grime. “…And then you pull the lever, and flush. That puts in fresh water and takes away…”
“I get the picture, thanks.”
“You’ve never seen a toilet before?”
“I’m not from around here.”
“You must be from far off, then… Or have you never seen a city before? I thought most towns had at least water-closets now…”
“Well, I’m from someplace that isn’t as nice as this.”
“I see.” Again, her eyes played over his injuries.
“Ah, anyway, Father Cornello wants to have dinner with you, if you feel up to it. You might want to freshen up first, though, uh…”
Guts smiled. “Yeah, I know. So, is there a well around here anywhere? I could stand to wash a bit.”
“Well? No, but- Oh, right. You didn’t know about that so you wouldn’t know about a bathtub.”
“Bathtub?”
It was as good as it sounded. After Rose demonstrated the tub’s faucets and left, he peeled off his grimy clothes, and eased his bulk into the warm water. He winced as the stump of his right leg stung, but aside from that, it was damn near the best thing he’d ever felt.
“Ahhh…” I think I’m starting to like this world. “You ought to try this, Elf. Second most fun I’ve had with my pants off.”
“No way! I’d get my wings all soggy.” Puck landed on the edge of the tub, and eyed the layers of grit washing off of Guts. “Remember to keep your arm outta there, no sense in wasting good powder.”
“I know.” Guts submerged his face for a second, scrubbing it clean.
“I wonder what’s for dinner?”
“I’ll bring you back something. Now that we know there’s people here who can see you, it’s better if you stay hidden.”
“Aww…” Puck kicked at the suds. “C’mon, I’ve been living off of cactus for days, I could use something that didn’t taste like sour socks…”
Guts flicked suds at him, and Puck sputtered as he dodged, nearly falling into the tub. “You JERK!” A storm of suds came flying back as the small sprite sent his wings into overdrive, and Guts was forced to cover his face, chuckling.
“Seriously, though.” Puck said, and Guts glanced down at him. “You’ll be going in without backup. Are you at least gonna take the sword?”
“Nah.”
“Well, how about the knives? And the crossbow?”
“Nah.”
“Are you nuts? This guy’s rotten! He’s a phony priest, with some weird not-Cray Cray, and falcons that come outta nowhere! What if he’s some kind of Apostle?”
Guts nodded. “I thought of that. If he is, then this’ll let me know.” He tapped the brand.
“And if he is, then I’ll have one good shot. I’ll just have to make it count, is all.” He clenched his metal hand.
“Your funeral.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence. So, I saw that Rose brought in a crutch with that bundle of stuff she dropped off. Are there any clothes in there?”
There were, and they fit.
One Hour Later
The large dining room echoed with the sound of silverware on china, as the acolytes cleared away the last round of empty plates from the table, and replaced them with yet another main course. They’d gone through better food than Guts had seen in years.
“A mercenary, you say?”
“Yeah.”
“You must have seen part of the troubles in Ishbal, then. Terrible business, truly. Sad that such unbelievers would be so desperate as to spend their lives in fruitless rebellion.”
Guts grunted, and picked his teeth with a chicken bone. As evidenced by the spread on the wide oak table, Cornello wasn’t the type of priest that believed in eating in moderation. He had the gut to show for it, too.
Guts had taken Father Cornello’s measure in the first few minutes of meeting him, and knew that he wanted nothing to do with this “Prophet”. And he knew what was coming, too.
“Truly, it’s sad when the faithful must defend themselves, against the heathens. But, you’ve already had to do that once today. However, your skill… Truly, you have been blessed, my son, to fend off an angry mob while so direly injured…”
Yeah, here it was. Guts grunted, to show that he was listening.
“…In fact, it can be nothing less than a sign. Leto gave you strength, my sun, strength that can be used for the betterment of his children! Cray has already told me, that there is room in the Templars for a new recruit… Possibly even a Knighthood, for one who was qualified. Why not stay here, and lend us your strong arms? We can guarantee you food, shelter, and salvation for your eternal soul…”
Guts put the chicken bone down.
“I’m looking for a woman.” He said, interrupting the older man’s rambling.
Cornello quirked an eyebrow. “Well, Leto forbids the pleasures of the flesh prior to marriage, but I know of several young women among the faithful who are seeking a strong husband…”
“No. I’m looking for a woman, she would have shown up about four days ago. Dark skin like an Ishbalan, but with black eyes. About a foot and a half shorter than me. Black, curly hair. She’s mad, and can’t talk in words, simple-minded.”
“And I need to find her.”
Cornello listened in silence, and considered.
“No… I don’t think we’ve had any travelers come through here like that… I’m sure I would have seen it in a report.”
Guts rose, tucking his crutch under his arm. “Thanks for dinner.”
“My son, you never did give me an answer to my offer…”
“I need to find her. It’s important.”
Cornello spluttered. Guts started making his way to the door, the crutch hitting the marble floor with repeated Tak-tak sounds.
“How dare… I mean to say, my son, it is late, and the city gates are closed. Come, stay the night. In the morning, I’ll ask Cray to check with the guards, and see if they’ve seen anyone like that at the gates.” Cornello was smiling that false smile again, but Guts was listening with half an ear. He was staring above Cornello’s head, at an alcove with a stained glass window,
And the tiny green sprite, crouched on it, staring down at him. What’s Puck doing here? He agreed to stay in the room… Damn, what if someone sees him?
He forced himself to look down at Cornello, who was beaming at him in what he seemed to think was a fatherly manner.
“All right.” Said Guts. “Thanks for the hospitality.”
“Oh, it’s nothing, my son. Merely Leto’s command.” Cornello gestured, his red-stoned ring flashing in the light.
Guts nodded, and left.
Cornello sat back, waving the waiters away. After a minute, the room was empty, and the bald priest was left study the table.
From behind him, he heard a fluttering THUMP. He didn’t bother to look around.
“He was behind that spy, all right.” It was Cray’s voice, again. Cornello frowned. “Looked right at me, saw me, and stopped his reaction. I could see it in his eye, he recognized that shape.”
“He’s got a damned good poker face. I couldn’t read him at all. Whatever that scarred bastard’s been through, it’s made him hard and deadly.” Cornello muttered, gnawing on the remains of a spare rib. “He wasn’t interested in a job, though. A real pity, I can use men like that.”
“In the end, he’s just human. You’ve got plenty of other minions to scurry and kneel for you.” Not-Cray took a seat, and helped himself to an apple, studying the green fruit with a sneer. “To follow you blindly, and bring you the best food, the finest comforts… Lay down their lives for you… Oh, I’m sorry, for Leto, I mean. And his prophet on earth.”
Cornello shrugged. “They were born to follow. Who am I to deny them their wish?”
“Heh. At any rate, this crippled guy is a threat. Maybe not as much as the alchemists, but I don’t like the looks of his pet chimera. I don’t know why I can’t figure out how it flies, or that invisibility trick that it’s got…”
“It’s no matter. I’ll have him taken care of after my sermon tomorrow, Cray will see to it. He might be good with a sword, but bullets trump blades any day of the week.”
Cornello smiled, and Cray laughed, tearing a bite from the green flesh of the apple…
And in the hallway back to the pilgrim’s quarters, Guts thumped his crutch steadily along the floor, as he made his way back to his room.
Dumb sprite. The hell was he thinking? Ah well, at least this answers one question.
Cornello wasn’t an apostle. The brand had stayed quiet all through dinner. Just a normal man. Just corrupt, just greedy. Just a parasite, feeding on the fruits of his flock, and preaching false salvation.
Guts scowled. It’s none of my damn business. How’s he different from any other priest? No, I need to get out of here and find Caska…
He stopped. There was someone standing outside his door. It was a huge man in spiked armor, at least seven feet tall. There was an unfamiliar red symbol on the side of the armored man’s arm, some kind of snake and cross.
The man was knocking on his door.
Guts stared at him. “You want something?”
The armored man JUMPED at least a foot in the air, landed lightly, and spun around. “OH! Uh, sorry, you frightened me, I didn’t hear you come up…” He rubbed the back of his helm with one gauntlet, looking almost like a kid caught in the middle of mischief.
Guts blinked. He doesn’t move right, for someone wearing all that armor… And his voice, it sounds like he’s a kid under all that. Who is this guy?
“Um, are you the other visitor? My brother and I are new here too, and we’ve got nothing to do, so we were wondering if you’d like to talk, or play cards, or something…” The armored man pointed across the hall.
Guts looked him over for a second, then nodded. “Sure. I’ll meet you there in a minute.”
He opened the door, and nearly fell inward as his crutch cracked under him, and gave way! Staggering against the doorframe, the door flew open, and he was left clutching for balance. “Damn!”
“……” He heard the armor shift behind him, and he swung around, reaching for a pouch at his side. An ambush? But no, the armored man was still, looking past him…
“Huh?”
Guts followed his gaze… Straight to a small green figure, curled up in the middle of his bed and snoring.
Guts pulled himself up with the broken crutch, stumped over to the bed, and pulled the sheet up over the sleeping sprite. The little guy was exhausted, he didn’t even stir as Guts put a wrapped napkin of leftovers next to him.
“What… What IS that? Is that a chimera? It’s so tiny…” Yeah, the armored guy definitely sounded like a kid.
Guts shook his head. “His name’s Puck. I’m Guts.”
“Oh! Uh, sorry, I’m Al. Alphonse Elric. And my brother is…”
“Al, everything okay? I heard a crash…” The door across the hall opened, to reveal a short teen with blonde hair and golden eyes. He was wearing black clothes, and one of his arms was made of metal…
Guts stared at him. The kid stared back.
“This is my brother, Ed. Edward Elric.” Al finished.
“Hey.”
“Hi. Uh, are you all right?”
Guts frowned. What was it Puck said? Oh yeah... No red coat, but everything else matches.
“This’ll sound funny… But are you alchemists?”
Ed’s eyes went wide, and Al turned his head to stare at Guts. “What?” The armored man said, shocked. “How’d you… Have you heard of us… I mean…”
“Come in, sit down.” Guts moved over to one of the chairs, and eased himself into it.
“There’s some stuff you should know, about the head priest here…”