[voice; english] not a monster yet but GETTING THERE AHAHAHA

[steelbloodseal]

[The communicator turns on as though it'd been thrown against a wall. The scene shows Al... pretty much tearing the apartment apart. Smashed electronics litter the floor and other things... just seem warped by alchemy. Al himself is on the edge of the camera's vision; only his feet can be seen.]

Nngh. What's wrong with my head-- my seal? But I guess

Comments

[commentlog]

[priceoftruth]

[Ed steps into the living room to the sight of...absolute wreckage. Everything Al had been working on...

He can tell something's wrong before Al even speaks: when he does, the alchemist falls silent. Damn it. Damn it--

After a while he speaks, his voice low...and almost too even.]

Al...what the hell is going on?

[commentlog]

[artofautomail]

[ Of course Winry heard the sound of Al tearing everything up. And when she approached the living room and saw what was going on, she let out a small sound of shock.

She had never seen him act like this. ]

...Al?

[ Her voice was quiet, and she stood hovering a step or two behind Ed, unsure of what to do. ]

[commentlog]

[steelbloodseal]

[Al stops his tirade for a moment. He seems to almost calm down, just for a moment; his eyes dull back to their normal glow. Even with Malice, he's finding it hard to hate Ed and Winry. Eventually he will when he turns into a psycho monster, but for the moment he can't bring himself to hate them. Not entirely, anyway. His voice is calmer, but still has an annoyed edge to it.]

Nothing. I don't think. I don't know. Logic says something is, but...

[He shakes his head and kicks another pile-o-crap.]

I can't think right now. Could you guys just leave me alone? Please?

[commentlog]

[priceoftruth]

[Something's wrong. That's completely obvious, but...

When Ed's faced with something he doesn't understand like this, he's bound to get worried and wonder what the hell's wrong.]

Something is obvious.

[And, naturally, instead of minding Al's request he takes a few steps closer with the intent of inspecting his brother's armored body.]

[commentlog]

[artofautomail]

[ Winry stepped fully into the doorway. Her first instinct had been to run right over and find out what was wrong, but something was off -- and not just his physical appearance. ]

C'mon, Al -- you know we can't do that.

[ She walked forward as well. ]

[commentlog]

[steelbloodseal]

[Al's eyes glow again, and he steps back, lashing out at Ed with his arm. Every instinct is telling him to do something about Ed and Winry, to force them out no matter what. The Malice has made his thinking cloudy, and he can't quite focus on the fact that those two mean the world to him.]

G-get away from me! I told you guys to get out! I'll deal with it myself!

[Suddenly he stops. Something terrible is going on and Al doesn't want them getting caught up in it. He comes to the decision that yes, he'll use any force necessary to get them out of there. He doesn't want to hate them like he hates... well, just about everyone else right now. Hating them would destroy him. Al balls his fists and glances back and forth at them.]

I'm not gonna say it again. Leave, or I'll make you leave.

[commentlog]

[priceoftruth]

[Before he knows it, there's a fist flying at his head -- Ed ducks, feeling Al's hand hit his bangs, rather than his cheek.]

Shit--! What the fuck, Al?!

[He backs up a few paces, carefully staying in front of Winry. Something's wrong. Definitely, definitely wrong.]

How about instead of making orders, you help us figure out what the hell happened!

[commentlog]

[artofautomail]

[ The last thing she expected was for Al to lash out at Ed like that. Instinctively she backed up, giving Ed room to avoid the blow. She was too shocked to yell.

Winry stayed put as Ed retreated, but continued to stare at Al over Ed's shoulder. ]

Don't say that! Whatever it is, you obviously can't deal with it yourself! Now get a grip and let us help!

[commentlog]

[steelbloodseal]

[Al holds his hands up in a fighting stance, and he hates himself for it. Looking closely, his hands are shaking. He doesn't want to hurt them, he's NEVER hurt his friends... or so the rational part of his mind tells him.]

There's nothing you can do to help! I-I...

[His hands start shaking even harder. He's struggling to remember, to just ignore all of his rage for just a few minutes. The only unusual encounter he'd experienced was with Lady. Maybe they can help him, if there's anything than CAN be helped.]

There was a red light. And a lady. I couldn't see to well, it was dark, I was thrown into a wall, a-and she woke me up. [He conveniently leaves out the kissing part.]

Okay, that's all I know! Now get the hell out! I don't wanna hurt you!

[commentlog]

[priceoftruth]

All right, all right, just--

[Trying to absorb the information while trying to calm him down was almost daunting. Ed sighs.]

Look, you can't figure this out on your own, all right? Not by yourself. Just let me help.

[He clenched his hands into fists and approached his brother again, trying to at least get a damn look at him. Something wasn't right, and it wasn't just the stress that Discedo ordinarily put on him.]

[commentlog]

[artofautomail]

[ A red light, and a lady...and he woke up? None of that made any sense.

And Al seriously thought he was going to hurt them. She knew he couldn't, but seeing him like this was almost too much.

Winry watched Ed approach his brother again, ready to help at a moment's notice. They all were stubborn -- if Al didn't let them help, it wasn't going to end well. ]

[commentlog]

[steelbloodseal]

[With each step Ed takes, Al grows more panicked. He knows his brother and Winry are too stubborn to ever leave him, but with each step he wishes more and more that they would listen to him just once. Their refusal to listen and his broken mind just made him hate them. He doesn't want to, but he's genuinely starting to hate them.

Al panics and throws another punch at Edward.]

Why can't you just listen to me for once?!

[Now that he's upset, he can't stop. He advances for more attacks, striking out at Edward.]

I know I don't, I know I disobeyed you when I went off with Walter, and I'M SORRY! I keep getting punished for all the wrong things I did by everyone else, why do you you guys have to be like them?! I don't want to hate you!

[It's really a shame that Al doesn't have eyes. He would probably be crying right now. His voice still has a desperate, despairing tone that implies that he would if he could.]

[commentlog]

[priceoftruth]

[He ducks away from the punch; Al's formidable as it is when they spar. When he's being serious... Ed knows better than to take him lightly.]

Because something's fucking wrong, and you're obviously not fixing it on your-- shi--!

[That next attack catches him squarely in the jaw. His head snaps to the side, stars exploding in his vision for a minute with the force of that punch. Gritting his teeth, when the blurriness fades from his sight, he lashes out with a series of punches, aimed at pushing his brother back.]

You're a damn fucking reckless idiot and-- [A kick] --I know you know that! I'm trying to-- [He pauses, glancing for the quickest moment over his shoulder at Winry.] ...We're trying to help, all right?!

[commentlog]

[artofautomail]

You aren't going to hate us, moron!!

[ As soon as Ed was hit she was running over. Though she firmly believed Al was incapable of really hurting either of them, he would feel guilty later... ]

We're not leaving, so cut it out!

[ Winry desperately wanted to get closer, but didn't think it would be a good idea to get between them. She also doubted a wrench was going to work this time. For the moment she hovered off to the side a bit, fists clenched. Right then she really felt useless. But if they could just restrain Al for a little bit... ]

Ed, you have your chip out, right?!

[commentlog] jdsakl;rejwal; I'm so sorry I went away for the weekend ;;

[steelbloodseal]

YES I AM, WINRY!

[Of course he can't truly hurt his brother. The only way that could be possible is if Alphonse loses himself completely, becoming a creature that completely overshadows everything he is. Unfortunately, that time is fast approaching. It takes all of his effort to even restrain himself for going further than punches and kicks. Ed's ineffectual counter attack doesn't do anything but make him angrier, yet he still manages to not give himself completely to Malice just yet. After another punch to Ed's side, Al stops. He still holds his hands up, shaking even harder than before.]

There's nothing you can do to help Ed, you have to just accept that! If you want to help me, then get the hell out of here! B-before I do something I'll regret!

[His eyes snap to Winry, once again glowing a deeper red.]

I have my chip out too, moron. Whatever he does, I'll do worse. Unlike him, I can't feel pain.

[commentlog] SOB IT'S OKAY BB <333

[priceoftruth]

[The punch hits him in the ribs; he wheezes a bit and curses under his breath. When he notices Winry approaching, he puts a hand out to stop her.]

Stay back. Something's really fucking not right about this--

[He frowns for a second, listening to his brother talk, and then grunts a bit.]

Tch-- idiot. If you'll calm the hell down and stop breaking things, we can figure it out, all right? Just chill--

[He gives no warning before he puts his hands together and slams them onto the floor; the material making up the floorboards morphs, twisting up around Al's arms, yanking them out at his sides. It might not hold very long, but-- hopefully.]