Post by Mlle Bienvenu on May 2, 2005 15:57:18 GMT -5
"Where are you , ed?" Alphonse cried to the empty air. "I wish I could find you... I know.... I know you have to be here somewhere" Alphonse relaxed his mind, hoping he could perhaps hear what was left of Ed somewhere inside himself tethered to the transmutation circle that held him to the metal. Hoping that bond would lead him to Ed.
"Alphonse Elric, at last."
Alphonse turned and looked into his own ten-year-old face.
"That's my body!"
"Yeah, that's right." Alphonse stared down at his own hands, they were boy shaped, not like his armor at all, but undefined.
The boy wearing his face addressed him, "Have you come to release your brother?"
"Release him?"
"Yes, Allow him to pass through the Gate."
"No!" Alphonse said, horrified at the suggestion, "I've come to bring him back."
"Bring him back?"
"Yes, I've come to retrieve my brother's soul and put it back into his body."
"Is his body undamaged?"
"N...no.. it is..."
"And you would wish him to return to a broken body?"
"No! Of course I wouldn't!"
"Then your only option is to allow him to pass through the Gate."
"No!"
"Yes."
"No! He hasn't passed through the gate yet! He should be allowed to return without penalty!"
Truth laughed, "Penalty? Do you think I am punishing him in some way? Would it not be crueller to force him to remain trapped in a corpse?"
Alphonse felt angry tears well up in his mind, "That's not what I meant! You took Brother's arm and leg! And now you're trying to take his soul!"
"I can only take what I'm given." He indicated Alphonse's likeness which he wore.
"I never gave you my body!"
"Oh? Did you not put your own blood into the transmutation?"
"Y-yes..."
"Then was it not you who involved yourself in the transmutation? You and Edward have only yourselves to blame. As I told Edward when he arrived, I am not in the habit of punishing. I am merely what I am. Humans punish themselves all on their own."
"And what are you, exactly?"
"I can't tell you anything you don't already know."
"You can't, or won't?"
"Can't."
"Why not?"
"Because it would be like trying to describe a color that simply doesn't exist in the visible spectrum. Or work with a tool I simply don't have."
"If you can't answer my questions, then what good are you?"
"But I'm not good... I'm not evil either.... I just am. And besides, I didn't say I couldn't answer your questions."
"But you just said you couldn't..."
"Sometimes it's not a matter of learning new information so much as recognizing the importance of information you already have."
"Who are you!?"
"Who are you?"
"I asked first"
"and I answered."
"With another question!"
"Yes. Exactly."
"This is hopeless, we're going in circles."
"We are indeed."
"Where is my brother!?"
"I can't tell you anything you don't already know."
"Because I don't know where he is?"
"Precisely."
"But you said you saw him!"
"I do see him."
"But if you can see him, why can't I!? Why can't you tell me where he is? Is he close by?"
"When you're dealing with souls, it's not a matter of physical directions."
Al thought very hard, trying to hear Ed.
"Alphonse?" Truth interrupted his thoughts.
"What?"
"What would you do with Edward's soul if you had it?"
"I already told you! Put it back into his body!"
"And I'm telling you, it won't work."
"Why not!?"
"Haven't you seen enough homunculi to recognize the problem? Even if you bind a soul to a body, it doesn't make it a functioning human being. As Edward is so fond of pointing out, the human body is only a collection of so many elements. It might as well be a suit of armor as much as a human corpse."
"But he's still connected to his body! He's not through the Gate!"
"Yes... that's true, but you said his body is damaged, didn't you?"
"Yeah..."
"So as soon as you put him back, he would end up in the same state he is in now, unless you release him from the soul transmutation first. In which case he would be a homunculus unless you allow him to pass through the gate."
"But then he'd be dead!"
"That's true."
"So Dr. Marcoh was wrong..."Alphonse's voice cracked, "Ed can't be saved..."
"He wasn't completely wrong, he just didn't consider the problem of the damage done to Edward's body."
"What am I going to do!?"
"Allow Edward to pass through the Gate."
"I can't kill my brother!"
"Well then....There is one other option..." He looked up at him and he immediately knew what option that was.
"But the Stone requires sacrifice of human life!" Alphonse cried fretfully, "I-...I can't do that! I can't kill anyone! Not even... Not even for Brother!"
"Who said anything about killing anyone?" Truth read from an imaginary dictionary, "Sacrifice: Noun - Forfeiture of something highly valued for the sake of one considered to have a greater value or claim... Relinquishment of something at less than its presumed value.... Verb: To forfeit (one thing) for another thing considered to be of greater value. ... shall I keep going?"
"But it doesn't make sense! You can never get everything because you can never sacrifice everything!"
"All is one and one is all."
"I know!"
"Think about it Alphonse, if All is One, and One is All, then can't One fill the equation just as easily as All?"
"But if that's true, then why did all the Stones come out imperfect?"
"Did those people want to be sacrifices?"
"No!"
"There's your answer..."
"...will..... they didn't sacrifice their will. You can force someone to give up their body and soul...but their mind....their will....they have to do that willingly..."
"Now you're using your noodle, Alphonse."
"Take it... take it all...!"
"Alright then, let's go."
"Alphonse Elric, at last."
Alphonse turned and looked into his own ten-year-old face.
"That's my body!"
"Yeah, that's right." Alphonse stared down at his own hands, they were boy shaped, not like his armor at all, but undefined.
The boy wearing his face addressed him, "Have you come to release your brother?"
"Release him?"
"Yes, Allow him to pass through the Gate."
"No!" Alphonse said, horrified at the suggestion, "I've come to bring him back."
"Bring him back?"
"Yes, I've come to retrieve my brother's soul and put it back into his body."
"Is his body undamaged?"
"N...no.. it is..."
"And you would wish him to return to a broken body?"
"No! Of course I wouldn't!"
"Then your only option is to allow him to pass through the Gate."
"No!"
"Yes."
"No! He hasn't passed through the gate yet! He should be allowed to return without penalty!"
Truth laughed, "Penalty? Do you think I am punishing him in some way? Would it not be crueller to force him to remain trapped in a corpse?"
Alphonse felt angry tears well up in his mind, "That's not what I meant! You took Brother's arm and leg! And now you're trying to take his soul!"
"I can only take what I'm given." He indicated Alphonse's likeness which he wore.
"I never gave you my body!"
"Oh? Did you not put your own blood into the transmutation?"
"Y-yes..."
"Then was it not you who involved yourself in the transmutation? You and Edward have only yourselves to blame. As I told Edward when he arrived, I am not in the habit of punishing. I am merely what I am. Humans punish themselves all on their own."
"And what are you, exactly?"
"I can't tell you anything you don't already know."
"You can't, or won't?"
"Can't."
"Why not?"
"Because it would be like trying to describe a color that simply doesn't exist in the visible spectrum. Or work with a tool I simply don't have."
"If you can't answer my questions, then what good are you?"
"But I'm not good... I'm not evil either.... I just am. And besides, I didn't say I couldn't answer your questions."
"But you just said you couldn't..."
"Sometimes it's not a matter of learning new information so much as recognizing the importance of information you already have."
"Who are you!?"
"Who are you?"
"I asked first"
"and I answered."
"With another question!"
"Yes. Exactly."
"This is hopeless, we're going in circles."
"We are indeed."
"Where is my brother!?"
"I can't tell you anything you don't already know."
"Because I don't know where he is?"
"Precisely."
"But you said you saw him!"
"I do see him."
"But if you can see him, why can't I!? Why can't you tell me where he is? Is he close by?"
"When you're dealing with souls, it's not a matter of physical directions."
Al thought very hard, trying to hear Ed.
"Alphonse?" Truth interrupted his thoughts.
"What?"
"What would you do with Edward's soul if you had it?"
"I already told you! Put it back into his body!"
"And I'm telling you, it won't work."
"Why not!?"
"Haven't you seen enough homunculi to recognize the problem? Even if you bind a soul to a body, it doesn't make it a functioning human being. As Edward is so fond of pointing out, the human body is only a collection of so many elements. It might as well be a suit of armor as much as a human corpse."
"But he's still connected to his body! He's not through the Gate!"
"Yes... that's true, but you said his body is damaged, didn't you?"
"Yeah..."
"So as soon as you put him back, he would end up in the same state he is in now, unless you release him from the soul transmutation first. In which case he would be a homunculus unless you allow him to pass through the gate."
"But then he'd be dead!"
"That's true."
"So Dr. Marcoh was wrong..."Alphonse's voice cracked, "Ed can't be saved..."
"He wasn't completely wrong, he just didn't consider the problem of the damage done to Edward's body."
"What am I going to do!?"
"Allow Edward to pass through the Gate."
"I can't kill my brother!"
"Well then....There is one other option..." He looked up at him and he immediately knew what option that was.
"But the Stone requires sacrifice of human life!" Alphonse cried fretfully, "I-...I can't do that! I can't kill anyone! Not even... Not even for Brother!"
"Who said anything about killing anyone?" Truth read from an imaginary dictionary, "Sacrifice: Noun - Forfeiture of something highly valued for the sake of one considered to have a greater value or claim... Relinquishment of something at less than its presumed value.... Verb: To forfeit (one thing) for another thing considered to be of greater value. ... shall I keep going?"
"But it doesn't make sense! You can never get everything because you can never sacrifice everything!"
"All is one and one is all."
"I know!"
"Think about it Alphonse, if All is One, and One is All, then can't One fill the equation just as easily as All?"
"But if that's true, then why did all the Stones come out imperfect?"
"Did those people want to be sacrifices?"
"No!"
"There's your answer..."
"...will..... they didn't sacrifice their will. You can force someone to give up their body and soul...but their mind....their will....they have to do that willingly..."
"Now you're using your noodle, Alphonse."
"Take it... take it all...!"
"Alright then, let's go."
