[incomplete]

[winterarmstrong]

Who: Olivia and Ed
When: shortly after Olivia arrives
Where: outside the temple
Rating: PG at most
Warnings: None really
Summary: Olivia expects answers from Ed. The only problem is that Ed can't give her the answers she's looking for.

Comments

[alchemyxfreak]

Ed had never actually been to the temple, but it was an obvious enough location that he knew where it was without a thought - as most Purg residents probably did, by now. He had no idea who this woman was, but chances were that if she was familiar with Major Armstrong she was an ally on their world.

When he arrived, the first thing the alchemist noticed was the blood. There was a lot of it, and she probably didn't realize how limited the medical resources were in this place. A quick look at the way she carried herself and the uniform also told him that she was likely someone important in the military.

"You're injured." He started, automatically thinking of how easy it would be to get an infection here - especially restricted to the Lower Level. "You should go to the clinic before we worry about anything else. I'll explain on the way."

[winterarmstrong]

Yes, going to a clinic would be best, but she had other things to attend to first. She wasn't going to rest until she was sure that the building had been secured and that things were relatively safe. Most of the homunculus had been taken care of, but there were still the undead soldiers to deal with, as well as the Father himself. As much as her body wanted rest and treatment right now, she knew she couldn't do it yet. Not if she wanted to carve this military into her view of how it should be

[alchemyxfreak]

Clearly explaining on the way wasn't an option. Stubborn seemed to be the common factor uniting everyone in the Amestris military, because even though she knew something was amiss, she was going to hold onto the mentality that this area needed to be secured. He was going to have to think fast, to keep her from doubting him.

"There's nothing to secure here." Edward explained, glancing around before looking up to the Plate covering the Lower Level. He had to make her understand that she wasn't in Amestris anymore without making her suspicious of him, and that might be tricky - especially with her already blaming him for her arrival in a strange place. "Look, you're not in Central anymore. There's no Fuhrer, and you're the only soldier around here." He pointed upward to the plate, "There's no sky above us, and we're outside - I don't know what fight you came from, but trust me ... you're not there now. At least there's nothing in Central anything like this that I know about

[winterarmstrong]

If it had been any other soldier, Olivia would have been more willing to believe it. After all, she had lost a lot of blood, and it was possible that she had zonked out while she had been moved or something. And it certainly was quiet in this area, after all. But this was Edward telling her all of this, not some random soldier. At the very least, Edward should have known who she was and what they were trying to do in Central. This was all too suspicious

[alchemyxfreak]

What Olivia wouldn't realize was that dead or alive, Envy could still wind up in this place too. The fact that Mustang had killed him in the time and world that she was from didn't guarantee that he wouldn't arrive here. Of course, Edward didn't explain that to her, because not only did she not voice her concern out loud - but it wouldn't help his case any

[winterarmstrong]

Well that definitely sounded strange. Olivia didn't want to believe it at first. How could something take a person from one place to another without them realizing? And furthermore, how could there be another world? Olivia frowned at Edward, her distrust very clear now. What had happened to the Edward she knew that would make him spout such nonsense?

Then again, the whole deal with Amestris and the Father had sounded like too much to believe at first, and that had come true. Maybe he wasn't lying after all. Edward wasn't one to lie like this, after all. At the very least, she could give him a chance to prove that what he was saying was true. That's what she did, after all. "Let's say that you're speaking the truth right now," she said, "How do you intend to prove it? I'm not going to believe everything you say at the drop of a hat without a very good reason."

She was a little annoyed, but she wasn't fully angry yet. That annoyance was enough to get the point across, though: Edward better prove himself quick, or there would be nasty

[alchemyxfreak]

She wasn't going to believe him, and that suited him just fine. It didn't make anything easier on him, but he wasn't sure how he'd feel about this woman just blindly taking his words for the truth, either - she definitely didn't seem the sort, even if she apparently did know him... somewhere.

"Just look at this place," He answered evenly. Probably not the best argument but it was a logical starting point. "There's no running water or electricity anywhere, the sky is blocked out completely - does it look anything like where you came from? You don't have to take my word for it, ask anyone you come across. They'll tell you where you are, and why you're here - hell, go back into the Temple and ask the people there." He motioned in the direction of the building, folding his arms over his chest. "They can tell you what you did to land here, everyone else will only give you the general information."

He sighed, watching her warily. Things had changed since his arrival, a lot, so he wasn't positive she was unarmed - but even so, that hardly

[winterarmstrong]

Well, he definitely had a point there. Olivia had never been in a city that completely blocked out the sky like here. And he was also right about the danger of being bloody down here, too: if this place really was deserted, then there would be wild animals here, and even a rat could be dangerous to an injured man. She was really going to have to go along with him for now, even if she still didn't fully trust him. This didn't sit well with her, but she had very little choice here

[alchemyxfreak]

Considering the clinic was on the other side of the Lower Level, it wasn't the shortest walk from the Temple on the East side, but if he wanted to see to her getting healed it was the best - and probably only - option. "Right." He answered, leading the way, without another word.

He kept an eye on her, in case she seemed to need any help - positive that if she didn't, she wouldn't accept it, and if she did she certainly wouldn't ask for it. He had to admit, whoever she was, she had his interest. Of course, a year and a half in Purgatorium taught a person better of getting too curious about the unknown. Edward also factored in that she could be a part of this place, just as she had wondered if he wasn't a homunculus in disguise

[thisis_myworld]

Tsukasa had been cleaning off some of the surgical tools, left over from stitching someone up, but when Ed and Olivia came in he had moved them quickly to seats. He gently inspected her wounds and shook his head, sighing.

"I can heal everything except the arm. That needs to be popped back into place, and I'm not sure if I can do that on my own. I'm still new at this job, and I wouldn't want to heal it and have it set wrong."

He picked up his staff and held it up, concentrating. "This might tingle for a moment. Pha Repth!" The staff glowed, and then the spell settled around her, closing her wounds. He closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall for a moment, catching his breath.

[winterarmstrong]

Thankfully Ed had managed to explain magic to Olivia, or at least he had done it well enough that she knew that magic and alchemy were not the same thing, so she didn't resist when Tsukasa healed her. She sighed in relief as the pain left her body, and while the bloodstains remained she did look better then she had moments ago. She gave a nod to Tsukasa, and she said, "Good job," which would be the closest he could get to a thanks

[alchemyxfreak]

He was used to the concept of magic, as most people at least talked about it in Purg if they weren't also capable of it themselves. He did watch the healing closely, if only to satisfy his own curiosity about it - since so many people insisted that it was the same as alchemy, and he had so little experience seeing how it worked in a world that it could work.

Edward was, however, much more thrown off by what followed. Gaping as the General snapped her own arm back into place and making sure to stay out of the way so that Tsukasa could splint the injured limb. Just watching that happen made him wince, and he was glad he didn't have to go through the ordeal himself.

[thisis_myworld]

Tsukasa's eyes went wide, and he scrambled to get a splint. He managed to hold it in place and tie it off without dropping it. When it was finally done, he backed off, unnerved by Olivia.

[winterarmstrong]

Not too surprising, she thought to herself. They were both young, and it was likely that they had never seen something like that before. And truthfully Olivia would have had one of her soldiers do it for her, if they had been here, since it was difficult to do to yourself. But she didn't care much for how the kids were reacting. It was part of survival, and they would learn to deal.

And now it was time for the next part: questions. Olivia had a lot of questions for Edward, but she couldn't ask him here. She didn't know if this Tsukasa knew about the homunculus or not. So instead she looked to Tsukasa and said, "Who are you?"

[alchemyxfreak]

In all honesty, Edward wanted to get Olivia somewhere safe and private to discuss matters with her as well- as he was also interested in getting things cleared up, and now that the injuries had been taken care of that became top priority. It wasn't that he didn't trust anyone to hear what they were saying, but he knew that she wouldn't.

The alchemist decided to let Tsukasa answer for himself, wondering momentarily if he should suggest to Olivia that they leave now that she was better - or wait to see if she had questions for the healer, as he was someone else from this world that she wasn't familiar with.

He waited for Tsukasa to answer before speaking, himself. "You're going to need to find a place to stay now that you're healed." It was more an invitation for her to let him know when she was ready to leave. "I can probably clean your uniform too."

[thisis_myworld]

Tsukasa tried to look friendly, though probably ended up looking more awkward than anything else, and responded. "I'm Tsukasa. I work here at the clinic, and I also work at the tavern. What's your name?"