The Truth Within the Truth: A Fullmetal Alchemist RP

[nuba km]

Ken was surprised by how quickly the fight came to stop and impressed by the monk deciding to save someone else live, even they stood a thread to their live, thought it was a stupid move to pull, every alchemist is a thread to his people and he should have taken the chance to take at least one out with him.

"How do we get out of here?"

Ken heard one of his team said, by another one talking about making an exit in the wall, but he person just made a small hole to look through if it was save, though ken took a more direct approach, he placed his hands on the ground and he condense the stone blocking the entrance into the walls of the cave. This lit up the cave and revealed the devastation of the landscape to everyone in the cave, They would never have use enough mortars to cause this devastation to just kill one monk ken thought, before he started leaving the cave 'the quicker we get back to base the quicker the injured can get proper medical care.' he said to the rest of the team 'those anyone need help walking?'

 

[CrazyBlaze]

James sat on the ground as the artillery strike hit outside the cave. His head was still shaky and everything was spinning.
"How do we get out of here?" James turned towards where he heard Leo talking.

"If anyone could guide me to where the stone is the weakest I should be able to make a hole. I have bullets that have Caesium and water in them. In case any of you don't know what it is, Caesium is a very reactive metal and when mixed with water it creates an explosion. Think about the size of a hand grenade. I should be able to blow a hole and we should be able to make our way out."

 

[Redryhno]

"If anyone could guide me to where the stone is the weakest I should be able to make a hole. I have bullets that have Caesium and water in them. In case any of you don't know what it is, Caesium is a very reactive metal and when mixed with water it creates an explosion. Think about the size of a hand grenade. I should be able to blow a hole and we should be able to make our way out."

Goddammit, the fool's going to bring down the whole cave on our heads, I gotta find some way to move. Stop him before the place takes anymore punishment.

But try as he might, his muscles wouldn't respond in the manner he commanded them to, and so he settled for simply leaning heavily on the cave wall, able to stand on his feet, though his legs felt like jelly.

"James," He croaked, his vocal cords just as exhausted as the rest of his body, "Don't do that, we already have an exit and shooting in the dark with explosives isn't the smartest move just yet. Didn't you just hear what I said about the structural integrity? What Ken just did was a risky move, but he knows the workings of the Stone. So just put that damn gun down."

 

[Jedoro]

"Is this really what we're going to be dealing with daily?" He asked his fellow soldier. "How are we even going to, uh, keep up with the others like this?"

"Well, I think the Fuhrer, or whoever chose this team, thought all my automail would help," Elias replied, tying the final knot on his field dressing, "but I think our best bet is to use our weapons to at least throw guys like the monk off-balance, if we can't hit them."

'those anyone need help walking?'

"Not walking," he said to Ken as he stood up, leaning the machine gun against his leg as he picked up his detached arm, "but it'd be nice if someone carried my weapon back to camp. Or reattached my arm, but that's a bit more tricky."

 

[Fragrance of Mtn Dew]

Marlin watched sadly as Torul was presumably killed in the bombardment. Though he chose that manner of death and saved a comrade in the process, Marlin was still sad to see him die. All the knowledge he had was lost forever as well. Marlin took a moment to recall the old monks last words and made a mental note to look into the reasons behind the war as he had been asked before turning his attention back to his wounded comrades.

Even though Marlin had been in the fight as well, he seemed to be the only one to attack Torul and get away unscathed. Thankfully, none of the injuries seemed too severe save the soldier who had his automail arm ripped off. Still, he wanted to do something for them but healing alchemy wasn't anything he had studied. "Hmmm.... I wonder if I could.... No, that wouldn't... Perhaps if I were to...." Marlin muttered to himself, pondering what he could do, while the others were talking.

"I suppose... This is the only thing I can do..." He said as he set his jar down and filled it with his alchemy. He took the canteen he had been given earlier and filled it before bringing it over to the Stone Alchemist who seemed exhausted from the battle and had trouble speaking and standing. ".... Drink this... It will help recover your energy..." Marlin said quietly to Kallu as he handed him the canteen. Then he turned back to the others. ".... You should all drink your fill before we head out again... It's important to stay hydrated in this dry desert...."

 

[CrazyBlaze]

James groaned as he grabbed his nose and cracked it back into place, leaving it a little bit crooked. He struggled to his feet, swaying just a little.

"Right, right. Blowing things up in an unstable cave. Bad idea," James replied as he looked at the hole Kallu had made as he heard Marlin tell everyone to drink up. "Right good idea. On future missions we need to be more prepared. We should remember to bring canteens with us next time. Kallu, when you are done with that could you pass it here please. Once everyone has had their fill we need to move out. The sooner we make it back to camp, the better."

 

[Redryhno]

Kallu took the offered canteen and drank a few sips, pausing to catch his breath in between each. He appreciated it, though he knew that what he really needed was a few hours of rest and meditation to recover the strength taken from him for the massive transmutation. He was proud of himself, for the feat he had accomplished, but not the death of the Master Monk, that he still felt was unfinished. He did feel better after the water however and was able to stand and walk with support, though he still wobbled every fifth step or so that he took.

He walked to James and handed him the canteen, as he had asked for it next and proceed outside his dome, pausing to turn around and look at it in all it's glory. He was surprised by how well it had stood up to the bombardment, there were a few good sized holes in it, but nowhere near what he had expected, the temple, on the other hand, looked as if it had been plucked from the ruins of Xerxes.

They have incredible aim, these guns we have, I pray that we never have them turned on us.

 

[TheIronRuler]

Leo walked slowly to the crude entrance Kallu had made. He fell back into his stance and took a deep breathe. He continued to preform a series of somersaults and move intricate moves where his feet would touch the earth and transmutate it. He went through the entrance and held up walls of rock on both of their sides, meeting with each other at an arch on top. As he continued moving forward in the tunnel he created he never stopped moving fluently and working on the earth.

 

[nuba km]

ken grabbed elias's gun and slung it over his shoulder, 'seeing as I haven't heard any other complaints lets go back to camp now' Ken left the cave and started heading back the way they came, walking through the devastation ken seemed to be not even phased by it.

 

[Jedoro]

Elias moved to keep up with Ken, not wanting anyone to be alone in an unsecured area. Good thing these are watches, he thought as he got out one of his canteens, because there's no way Victor and I brought enough for everyone. Yeah, this was a short mission, but if we're going to keep to support roles, we've got to make sure the watches are squared away. Taking an awkward drink with his detached arm pinned under the working one, he kept scanning the nearby buildings, looking for any signs of an Ishvalan ambush.

 

[CrazyBlaze]

James took a long drink from the canteen and then handed it to whoever wanted it next. He exited the cave and took a long look at the devastation. All this to take down one old Ishvalan monk. And we didn't even take him down ourselves. We need to be more prepared for next time. Otherwise there might not be a another time.

James walked swiftly to catch up with Elias and Ken. Safety in numbers after all.

 

[CJ1145]

As Victor walked out from the cave, he looked to his left and saw the shattered remains of the monastery. If there were any escapees, they weren't going to be followed now. That was unfortunate for his squad, in a way, but he was glad he wouldn't have to do any more killing today. He looked down and saw the charred remains of a man, partially buried under the sand. He had to look away; he couldn't see a man in that kind of state.

He walked with the others down into the village, and it was very clear that there was not going to be resistance of any sort. Off in the distance, gunshots and explosions could still be heard. But all was quiet on their front. No one had even been around to move the bodies they had left in their wake. They got as far as the courtyard where they had encountered the monks before the sound of a backfiring car caught their attention. Or, rather, a truck; a massive personnel transport truck pulled into the courtyard as they made their approach. It parked next to the wall the Stone Alchemist had made earlier that day, and unloaded its delivery. Over a dozen soldiers clambered out and passed by the Special Forces team towards the monastery. They were likely the cleanup force, by Victor's guess.

Two individuals stepped out from the front section of the truck, waving their friends down. Colonel Grand and Lieutenant Banagher hustled over to them. The Colonel was more pressed to speak with James, while Banagher started up a conversation with the others.

The Lieutenant inspected the bodies, kicking his foot around in the dirt for some reason. "You fellas really did a number on this place, huh? Here I was getting worried about you; looks like you can handle yourselves just fine. Don't know just how much of this is legal, but the Colonel told me all about your assignment. Gotta say, taking down a monk like Torul takes skill, you all should be proud. How'd you do it?"

[hr]

"Lieutenant Colonel." Grand began, attempting some form of military protocol. "Based on your presence here, and the lack of any plainly visible casualties to report, I assume your mission was a success. If you wish, this truck can take you and your men back to the camp to spend the night before heading back to the city."

James looked up at the horizon. The Colonel was right; none of them had really noticed, but the sun had finally gone down in nearly its entirety. Night would be on them soon, and would put a stop to most of the fighting so the combatants could rest.

 

[Redryhno]

"It wasn't that much of a challenge," Kallu said, breathing heavily, "The man spoke to us about what his views on Alchemy were, and they were surprising, given that he was an Ishvalan. To summarize, he was very committed to his creed and died when the shells hit I assume. There's a piece of his robe here,"He pulled the cloth he had taken from where it had been caught on the stone fragments left behind by the blasts,"The man was honorable and a worthy warrior. There's a hole in world now that he is dead, regardless of whether he was Ishvalan or not. Now if you'll excuse us Lieutenant, we are exhausted and the rest of the day off is mighty inviting."

 

[Jedoro]

"Thanks for the lift, sir," Elias said to Colonel Grand as he walked over to the truck. He didn't get in just yet, but he did place his detached arm in the back. He'd been with his platoon for years and had developed the habit of being the last soldier out, with his lieutenant being the first. Even though they were all gone, it wasn't much trouble to continue doing so.

It didn't seem like it'd be a long wait, with James, Victor, and Kallu already catching up. Elias took a deep breath, leaned against the truck, and took another drink of water.

 

[CrazyBlaze]

"We are all alive sir," James saluted. "Injuried but moving and breathing. I think the biggest injury may have been our egos. The old monk hit us pretty hard," James turned to face the rest of the squad. "Everyone on the truck. We are moving back to camp for the night. We return to the city in the morning."

James stepped up onto the truck.

"Do you need a hand up Sergeant?"

 

[Jedoro]

"Do you need a hand up Sergeant?"

"No, sir," Elias replied, putting the canteen away. "I can get in on my own, just waiting for the rest of the team. Uh, old lieutenant and I agreed I'd bring up the rear, make sure no soldiers fell behind. Not implying anything about the watches, just an old habit."

Doesn't seem like anyone knows just how much automail I have. Wouldn't that be worth telling the watches?

 

[sage42]

Tasha let out a sigh of relief when she heard that they were heading back to East City. It probably wouldn't be for long, but any time away from the front lines was a good thing. She saluted Colonel Grand. "Thank you for the artillery support during the fight, Sir. It sure made things a hell of a lot easier." She said before heading for the truck. She climbed into the truck and took a seat near the entrance. She turned to Elias. "So Sargent, mind if I take a look at your arm there?" Se said gesturing to the auto-mail limb.

 

[Jedoro]

"So Sargent, mind if I take a look at your arm there?"

"Right, right, forgot you said you'd take care of that," Elias apologized. "Few times it's given me trouble, Dad would take a train out to fix it. Mom's better, but he never wanted her near a battlefield. It's just steel and whatever wires are made of, nothing exotic. Careful with the wires, though, it's got a blade that comes out above the wrist."

 

[sage42]

"Careful with the wires, though, it's got a blade that comes out above the wrist." Tasha's eyes flashed. "Really? Interesting modification, though fitting for a solider." She said examining the arm more closely. She tapped her finger along the forearm. "Hmm, Steel alloy. Certainly not the best for combat, but far from the worst."

She rapped her knuckle on the joints along the arm. "Good joints, at least you take care of your auto-mail. I've seen to many people ignore their maintenance." She peered more closely at where the arm had been removed. "At least the old man broke it off where he did, most of the pieces are easy to replace. Hell I think I may even have some in my own kit back in East City." She tugged at one of the wires and the blade extended. Tasha just laughed. "Ha, brilliant!" She tugged the wire again and the blade retracted. She set the Automail arm back down with a smile and a nod. "That'll be no problem to fix. You'll have to wait till I can get my hands on proper tools though. Hopefully they'll have something back at camp." She looked down at her own hands.

"If you don't mind me asking Sargent, what happened?" She asked. She then smiled and held up her hands. "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours."

 

[Jedoro]

"I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours."

Elias smiled back, but it quickly faded as he thought about his soldiers who hadn't been lucky or wealthy enough to get automail.

"Ishvalan grenade, ma'am," he began, leaning his head back as he remembered that day in the war. "I was with one of my squads, clearing out buildings, when the damn thing rolled through the doorway. I was stacked to enter the next room first, so I grabbed it and tried throwing it back." As he said that last sentence, he felt the phantom sensation of still having his old arm, so he tried to repeat the motion of throwing the grenade back around the corner. When he realized all that had moved was his bloodied shoulder, he sighed.

"Captain told the company I was in rehab, regaining the use of my damaged arm, but I actually went home to get a replacement. Wasn't enough left of my arm to be useful, so Mom tore it out and gave me a whole new one." Elias took another look at the mechanical socket as his left eye twitched in pain.

"So, both at once or different occasions?"