LIORE
Smoke was rising from the cathedral.
Not much, and only white smoke, but it was definitely out of place.
Behind him were shouts, as Liore's townsfolk found the carnage at the deserted gate. Ahead of him were shouts, as townsfolk stopped what they were doing and hurried toward the temple, worrying about the trouble that had struck their beloved monument to Leto.
And through it all, the black swordsman moved on, limping his way through rapidly-thinning streets. Soon, no one was left to watch him come, tak-tak-ing his way along with the crutch.
"I still don't think this is a good idea. He's got more Templars, and they'll have more hand-cannons. And he's got that ring, whatever it is."
"It's not a great idea." Guts admitted, ignoring the ache in his side. That weapon hurt. Hand-cannon's a good name for it...
"Well, at least we've got a distraction, whatever that smoke is. What DO you think it is?"
Guts smiled. This one was an honest smile. "Cray said he failed to take care of the alchemists. After meeting those two, you think they'd let that happen without causing some grief? I think Cornello's in trouble."
Puck laughed. "Ha! You're right, fat baldy won't even know what hit him." He sobered up. "Still, they're just kids, even if one is a ghost in a shell. What can they do against that guy with his dark miracles, and his templar guard?"
Part of the Cathedral collapsed inward, to the shock and cries of the crowd around it.
Guts' smile got a little wider.
"Okay, okay, I'll just settle down now and keep an eye out for falcons... Grumblebrumblemutter..."
AN HOUR LATER
The town was on edge, and this made things more difficult. Guts hadn't counted on trouble at the Cathedral when he went to confront Cornello, or the resulting mob of people gathered around, searching for reassurance from their prophet.
If he tried to go in now, he'd have to wade through the blood of the faithful. Or end up dragged down by them... The odds weren't in his favor, no matter how many times he looked at the situation.
So, he bided his time in a dusty side-street and waited, sitting on a stone bench between two bearded statues. Occasionally, people would pass him by with curious looks, but this was a quiet part of town at this time of day. Still, he knew he'd have to move on in a little while. He sat in silence, and Puck was oddly silent too, watching every living thing suspiciously.
He was being hunted by a shapeshifter, after all.
And that was how the brothers found him, resting in the shade, his back to the city wall. He watched them approach from behind the sun, and saw how Ed stopped, and squared his shoulders before walking up to stand 20 feet away from him. The kid's pants leg was shredded, and there was metal underneath. His eye opened wide. Metal? A false leg, too? This was a new hope, but he hid it well. Ed was angry, and now was not the time to ask.
He watched how Al trailed behind his older brother, more nervous than usual.
"Hey." He said. I know what's coming...
"We had a fight with Cornello a little while ago." Said Ed, glaring.
"I saw the smoke."
"He used chimera... monsters, you could say, to fight us. But none of them was vicious enough to be a ten-man killer. So I asked him why he was holding that in reserve."
Guts nodded, eye half-shut. "I told you, you didn't have to worry about the monster at the gate."
"Damn it!" Ed howled, punching a nearby statue with his metal arm. The statue's robes chipped, and shards peppered the wall.
Guts didn't move.
"Why?" Al asked. "Why did you kill them? We didn't believe it from Cornello, but Rose was there... "
That was enough for Puck. He leaped out of Guts' cloak, and buzzed up to Guts' shoulder, pointing and shouting. "He didn't have a choice! Two thieves jumped him, and those people did nothing! And when he fought them off, those Ish-ka-bibble people came after him! He HAD to defend himself! And you know what? They were angry because he killed the thieves, sure, but what REALLY got them scared and angrier was that they said he used alchemy! ALCHEMY!"
Guts shook his head. "It doesn't matter."
Al recoiled. "What? Alchemy? Is that why... Did you... I mean, are you an alchemist?"
The wind blew down the street, catching Guts' cloak for a second, and fluttering the tattered cloth in the wind.
Ed glared him in the face, not moving a muscle. Guts looked back, evenly.
"Ten people dead." Whispered the older Elric brother. "And it doesn't matter?"
"He's NOT an alchemist! He's just a good fighter!" Screamed Puck.
Al shook his head. "A good fighter doesn't kill innocents. You can knock someone unconscious, or get away. Killing shouldn't be the only way!"
"Hey! You looked at his leg recently? MISSING, HELLO? How could he get away on that? Why, if he wasn't crippled, none of this would have-"
"Enough." Guts grabbed the sprite, interrupting him in mid-rant. He looked back into Ed's eyes, and knew that no other explanation than the truth would work.
"It doesn't matter how it happened, just the end result. And it doesn't matter how many, ten or ten thousand."
Ed glared.
"I'm going to find her. I'm going to save her if she's in danger, and guard her against everything that would harm her. I'm going to keep on doing this, even if this entire world's against me." Guts explained.
"Ten people? Hell, that's nothing. You heard right the first time, kid." Guts sneered.
Ed's face flushed, and his hands clenched into fists.
"A monster DID come to Liore. And I'm it." The words felt like jagged metal, and a part of him burned to say it. Worse, he wasn't sure if it was a lie... He hid the pain, and waited to see Ed's response. C'mon kid, get disgusted and leave. The alternative is not gonna be fun...
"Then we should stop you here." Said Ed, taking a step closer.
The wind blew down the street again, and Al looked back and forth between Puck and his brother. "Ed! I'm not sure... I mean... If he was defending... OOOH!"
Guts reached out for his crutch, and stood. Al flinched. Ed stood firm, and brought his arms up in a fighting stance.
"Don't." Said Guts.
The big man looked down on the small figure before him. Damn. He means it. Am I going to have to fight him too? I don't want this. I played this wrong. All right, let's try reason.
"I'm going to kill Cornello. Don't get in my way."
"Like hell you are."
Guts raised an eyebrow. "What? He's no innocent, not by a long shot. Cray made it plain enough, it's him or me now."
"And where's Cray now?"
Guts looked away, before he could catch himself. Al sighed.
"He didn't deserve that, and you know it." Ed hissed, his right arm shifting as a blade slid from it. "Sure, he attacked us, but he was just a dupe."
"Which is why Cornello needs to die. Next time it'll be this whole town. You'd defend that leech, to sacrifice so many?"
Ed's face filled with fury.
Guts put his hand on his sword's hilt.
Al panicked. "WAIT!"
The two looked at him, and he waved his hands. "Don't! Stop! Look... We'll take care of him."
Guts didn't move his hand. "How will you do that?"
"We'll figure something out. We'll expose him, and then the town will be safe. No one will follow him anymore..."
Guts looked Al in the eyeslit. "You can do that? He's got these people pretty fooled."
"They're good people, and he's been holding them with lies and trickery. We can show them the truth. We WILL show them the truth. Have faith in them! Have faith in Rose..." Al's voice steadied, and he stood up straighter. They're listening!
Ed looked back at Guts. "That's how it is. You leave, and you leave this to us. We can handle Cornello."
Guts looked down at him, staring for a minute. He doesn't want a fight either. But he will, to save their lives. Even the life of that damned priest. How can I...
"All right." The Swordsman sighed. "Try it your way, it doesn't matter to me. But..."
Guts loomed over Ed, his face serious. "If you have to, kill him. If there's no other way, you don't hesitate. Because he won't."
Ed glared back. "Leave, and never come back. And pray that we never meet again." The blade slid back into his arm, and Ed stalked off down the street. "C'mon, Al."
"Just a minute, brother!"
He moved closer to Guts, and Puck followed him with a curious look. Guts raised an eyebrow, and took his hand away from his sword. "Now what do you want?"
"Um... What Puck said... And I'm not being insulting, or anything... but..."
Guts waited.
"If you had both legs, could you have not killed all those people? Would you have let them live? I mean, could it not have been..."
Guts stared at him. His voice was hoarse, and for a second he started to speak, then stopped. Finally, he got the words out.
"I don't know. But I think I could have. And I would've, if I could."
Al nodded.
"All right." From a pouch on his side, he took out a piece of paper, and wrote a few sentences on it. He folded it, and handed it to Guts, who took it with a quizzical look.
"This is a set of directions, and a letter to a great mechanic who can make you a leg. Just... Just don't kill anyone."
Guts looked at the paper for a long minute. Then he handed it to Puck, who tucked it away in his cloak. He looked back to Al. "Why are you doing this?"
Al shook his head. "I... I don't know. I think you're a good person, who's had to do some bad things."
"And I think I'll be helping people. You might have to fight a lot more, if you're really going to guard that woman like you said."
"I am."
"This way, you can fight without killing. Or you can run. Really, she does good work, just show her that letter and she'll help you."
"...Thanks..."
For a minute, the two looked at each other, the empty armor to the hollow man. Finally, Guts put out his hand, and Al shook it.
From down the street, there was a flare of energy. Both looked around to see a gaping hole opened in the wall around Liore, and Ed standing next to it, glaring.
"Here." He waved them over.
"This way you can leave without killing your damned way through half the city."
"Thanks."
"Just go, and don't let the door hit your ass on the way out."
"Remember what I said." Guts collected his crutch, and limped out.
"Go. The next time I see you, you'll answer for what you've done." Ed muttered.
And Ed sealed the wall behind him.
He looked behind him, to see Al looking mournfully at the wall. "He had his reasons, brother. I don't think he was a monster..."
"Leave it. We've got to deal with the OTHER monster now."
Al bit back his words, as the loudspeakers around Liore crackled to life, calling for the townsfolk to rise up against the assassins who came for Leto's prophet on Earth.
"No one dies." Whispered Ed, as they ran, looking for the right place to fight. "How can we do this so no one-" And then, the idea came to him.
"Hey Al, want a twin?"
"What?"
One clap of Ed's hands later, and a statue was transformed into a duplicate of Al. "What are you doing, brother?"
"I've got an idea, here's the plan..."
TWO MILES FROM LIORE
Once they were well away from the wall and the sun was setting, Guts dug out the letter, and stared at it, gloom in his face.
"What's wrong?" Puck piped up.
Guts just stared at the small scrap of paper. A drop of sweat worked his way down his head.
"Hey, Elf?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you read?"
"Uh, no."
"That makes two of us..."