“ you said you would keep trying! ”
They were in a shitty situation, to say the least.
Another explosion in the distance signaled that the chaos was pursuing into the town—exactly what Edward didn’t want to happen when he and Ling initially found this bastard roaming the woods. Rogue alchemists were becoming more common around Amestris due to the never-ending rumors of government corruption on top of the homunculi planning to sacrifice a good portion of what was living there. Edward’s view of the world had been skewed since he could remember, but working as a military dog showed him more evil than what he ever wanted to witness.
The rogue was strong—way too strong, leaving Edward skewed across the grass just outside the town covered in his own sweat and blood. He had went at the guy and entertained him for what felt like awhile, but the sheer strength and lack of fear the villian possessed had eventually laid him out. Ed was a powerful alchemist, a genius most would say, but he had limits… and he couldn’t die for this. He couldn’t go down as a dog when his brother was still suited up in armor.
But he couldn’t let those townspeople die for the warped agenda of a maniac either.
His head was down against the grass when Ling landed beside him; Edward assumed he had dropped from the tree above him but couldn’t be bothered to look. Golden hues met eyes with the Xingese man, his teeth clamped tight as pain reverberated through him from what felt like a fractured rib. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting when he saw Ling begin to speak to him - or at him, considering the words...
“You said you would keep trying!”
Now that really pissed him off.
Edward used the pent-up frustration to slowly push himself onto his knees, his breath inhaling sharply as he held back every urge in his body screaming at him to double over. He wouldn’t. He fucking wouldn’t.
“What… you think I’m done here?!” He spat the words at his counterpart, swallowing the blood collecting over his teeth so he could continue. The taste of iron against his tongue was sadly all-too familiar for someone with Edward’s track record. “This bastard won’t hurt anyone else, Ling, let’s go!”
In retrospect, Ling’s words were motivating—they were a way to get Edward back onto his feet against the normal odds. He couldn’t give up here. He had too much to do. He had to keep trying. He’d never thank you, Ling Yao, for saying such a thing—but know it was exactly what he needed to hear.
With a swift motion, his flesh hand lifted to his metal one and the familiar sparks appeared before the transmutation set in motion. The sharp blade that manipulated the original metal piece appeared in its full glory, along with the fire in his eyes that took him as far as it did in the past. He took one last breath before he kicked his feet forward, sprinting into the town after the culprit. For someone with as much strength and expertise as this guy, he was clearly an idiot to leave as obvious of a trail as he did. Just follow the destruction and you’ll find the perpetrator. It was almost boringly cliche.
Edward had fallen behind after being taken down initially, but he spotted the noisy bastard just as he turned into an alleyway—perfect!
“Ling!” He called, briefly glancing his way before clapping his hands together, triggering the start of another transmutation. “Down the alley! Surround him, I’ll trap him inside!” Just as he finished, he skidded on his heel as he made the turn following the same path as the enemy. Both his hands slammed down against the ground with a vengeance, the blue sparks flying around him before an earthquake-like eruption shook the ground. The pain he felt in his ribcage was very much prominent, causing him to wince as he exerted his energy and his transmutation was brought to life. From the opposite end of the alley, the Earth shot up like a shield to create a wall blocking the rogue’s escape.
“Alright, you had your fun—“ His voice was bold, blunt, and very much himself despite how badly his body wanted to collapse. He pushed himself upward to stand once more, only realizing then that the blade morphed against his automail had stabbed deep into the ground when his hands crashed down to transmute the make-shift wall. His expression fell as he struggled for an (embarrassing) second, then recomposed himself after he pulled the blade out of the dirt. “Show’s over, pal. They don’t give me handcuffs but I got other ways of keepin’ you down.”
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