Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction / Cowboy Bebop Fan Fiction ❯ Once More, With Pirates ❯ Mindphlux ( Chapter 16 )

A/N: Yes, I did the evil cut scene. You'll survive. Really! I also did the evil Pinky and the Brain reference. I blame Havoc. It's all his fault. Okay, okay…it was a dare! Also, “Mindphlux” by Velvet Acid Christ is instrumental, but there is some speech at the beginning. Considering the chapter, it was too perfect to pass up. For that, I wish to thank my friend Raven for this particular piece of music.

Chapters: 16

Word Count, This Chapter: 3260

Word Count Total: 47,678

Words Left: 2322

 

 

 

Mindphlux

 

These gates; Twisted Space; Laying upon great spans - Velvet Acid Christ (Twisted Thought Generator)

 

 

 

Fullmetal poked his head and an arm into the small space that went through the rockfall, and tried to shine the light in the hole. It was big enough for him to fit in, that much was fact. But whether it stayed that size, or even whether it was clear all the way through, he couldn't tell. One thing was for certain, he hoped he was flexible enough to crawl over and around some of the boulders he was certain he'd find along the path.

 

Sensors weren't telling anyone anything, unfortunately. And the four person team that was already there when they'd arrived said that they were no longer picking up any life signs, either. Nor were they hearing any more voices.

 

He started to climb in, to see if he could get a better look, but felt a large, strong hand grasp an ankle and hold him in place. He pulled his head out of the hole, and nearly cracked it on the ceiling; which for the Fullmetal Alchemist was a rather bizarre experience. It wasn't that the tunnel had gotten smaller at this point, but because the hole in the rockfall was near the ceiling and Fullmetal needed a little help to reach it. That help came on the shoulders of a large and dour Klingon who was not about to let him go spelunking without discussing it first.

 

“Come on, Worf,” the boy said. “I can't tell if we can open this up unless I get in deeper.”

 

“You can't just… alchemize it, like you did the last one?” Geordi asked.

 

Fullmetal peered into the hole again, and shook his head. “It's too thick, for one. Plus the area is too unstable. Until I know a little more, I don't dare. Equivalent Exchange might be another quake somewhere else.”

 

“Too bad we don't have anything you can use to support the weight while you do,” Geordi said.

 

An idea struck the boy, and a canny look flashed in his eyes. Spike was the only one who caught it, though. “Ed? I know that look, what are you planning?”

 

Fullmetal turned back to the hole, and started to lean in. The grip on his ankle tightened, and he glanced down at Worf. “I wasn't going all the way in. Honest.”

 

He peered into the darkness again, and said, “But I think I might have a solution.”

 

He clapped his hands and slapped the wall of fallen rock before anyone had a chance to stop him, and in a flash of blue light, some of the rock seemed to melt, and shift, while the rest remained undisturbed. When the light faded, there was an outline of a perfectly formed arch embedded in the rest of the stone that went over the top of the hole, and down into the floor of the tunnel.

 

He heard Worf growl low below him, and he looked down to see the Klingon rubbing his eyes. “Warn me next time.”

 

“Er…” The boy colored, and felt the heat rise on his cheeks. “Sorry.”

 

“That's very pretty, Ed,” Spike said. “But what's the point?”

 

“I believe I can answer that,” Data said. The android faced Fullmetal, and said, “You are intending to create arches as you move through the tunnel, and once to the other side, you will remove the rock within it, am I correct?”

 

“You got it,” the boy said. He looked back at the hole, and added, “Provided it actually does go all the way through, that is.”

 

“The hole does go all the way through,” Mustang said. “But whether it's clear enough to enable you to reach the other side, I can't tell.”

 

“How well is the air moving?” Data asked.

 

Mustang's eyes seemed to unfocus a moment, then he said, “There's good exchange. But what is coming out is rapidly becoming fouled. We don't have much time.”

 

That was all the boy needed to hear. He took advantage of the loosening of the Klingon's grip on his ankle, and leapt into the dark hole before he could be stopped. A part of him suspected that it was deliberate, but he wasn't going to waste time asking.

 

Fullmetal coughed, and wrinkled his nose as a gust of air hit him full in the face. Even through the breathing filter covering his nose and mouth, he could still smell something sour and rank. There was something familiar that mingled with the foulness of the odor, but he couldn't quite place his finger on it.

 

He caught the hint of his own breath in the chill air, and his cheeks started to tingle from the temperature drop. He was grateful for the pressure suit, though silently cursing himself for leaving the gloves behind. But if he was going to do any alchemy, he needed those gloves off. Unlike the white ones he generally wore, the gloves that came with the pressure suit were far too thick for him to be able to create an array with a clap.

 

His hands were feeling the iciness of the rocks and he had a little further to go before he needed to create the next arch. It was worse for the automail hand, because it conducted the cold as well as it could conduct electricity, and it went all the way up to his shoulder where the docking port fused with his flesh. It was causing a bone-deep ache that was liable to get worse before it got better, and he sincerely hoped that he could get through to the other side before his automail froze up, and the nerves in his shoulder decided to go on strike.

 

“Hey, Ed,” he heard Geordi call out to him.

 

The boy started and cracked his head on the top of the tight tunnel. “Ow! Gah, dammit.” He complained as he rubbed the top of his head.

 

“You alright in there?”

 

“Yeah,” he said. “You just startled me, is all.”

 

“Sorry about that,” Geordi said, and the boy could swear he heard a laugh. “I need you to keep talking to us.”

 

“Great,” he mumbled. “What do we talk about? The weather?”

 

“Sure, if you want,” Geordi said. “As long as you keep talking. I want to know you're still conscious in there.”

 

“Okay. It's cold. Next subject?”

 

A low rumble alerted him to another possible quake, but it quickly passed without much shaking, and no new rockfalls. At least none where he was at.

 

“Getting a little cranky, Ed?” He heard Spike ask.

 

Fullmetal rested on his stomach a moment, and rubbed at the port on his right shoulder. The cold was really starting to seep in, and make it hurt; and no amount of adjusting from the pressure suit was going to help in this case. He sighed and said, “Yeah. Sorry. It's the cold.” He caught another powerful whiff of the foulness that waited for him on the other side, and groaned. “Augh. And the air reeks!”

 

“Yeah,” Spike said. “I've been getting hints of that too. You might want to prepare yourself for an ugly sight once you reach the other side.”

 

Fullmetal shuddered at the thought, and started crawling again. “That might explain what part of that smell is,” he said. “But there's something else. A kinda chemical smell I keep getting hints of.” He was brought up short by a boulder blocking the path. He pushed on it, and it moved slightly. Well, that's a good sign, he thought. At least it isn't wedged in tight.

 

He tried crawling over the top of it, since pushing it was a waste of energy, and a pain in the ass, besides. But he found that he could easily be wedged in, if he did. He backed up a little.

 

“Is it familiar?” Spike asked.

 

“Huh?” He blinked, and readjusted his thoughts. “Oh, the smell? Yeah, but I can't place it.”

 

He pondered the boulder. He couldn't move it but a little bit, but he had another alternative. Except it was a tight space, and doing alchemy in a space like this had its risks. On the other hand, he thought, I'm getting nowhere in a hurry, unless I do something about this. He had two options he could see. If he just blew it into small pebbles; just stop at step two, he could get past easily. It may or may not cause a reaction elsewhere with the shockwave. Less energy, less time involved, but higher risk.

 

Or he could break it down, and make it part of the surrounding rock. Complete the process all the way to the third step. A gentler process that would have fewer risks. But that also took a little longer. He estimated that he was about where he needed to be to make the next arch, too. It would be a simple enough process to blend the boulder in with the rest of the rock he'd use to create it.

 

He chose the later, and clapped his hands. The area lit up with a phosphorescent glow that forced the boy to close his eyes, and turn his head as much as he was able in order to prevent temporary blindness. But the boulder melted and ran like quicksilver into the cracks and seams of the tight space, and his path was soon clear.

 

There was, he discovered, another benefit to the choice he made. Having never alchemized rock in such a small space before, and not in such extreme cold, it came as an unexpected, but quite pleasant surprise. Oh sure, he bored a tunnel under Mugyar's mansion in Xenotime, but that was fairly loose soil in comparison and not nearly as cold.

 

A wicked grin spread across his face, and he took a moment to relish the heat generated from his alchemy. Especially on his automail arm. The metal warmed up and expanded in the shoulder port, and there was a new but a most delicious pain, as the nerves relaxed around the wires fused to them, and started sending the appropriate signals to his brain again. Of course, he thought. If I'd thought about it, I would have known that the energy involved would generate heat. A simple equation and I forgot about it. I must've been colder than I thought.

 

A low groan escaped, as he mentally chastised himself for the neglect.

 

“You okay in there, Ed?” He heard Spike ask. And Fullmetal felt heat of a different kind. He neglected to take into account that the rocks surrounding him were also very good at amplifying sound.

 

“I'm fine. Just remembered something I forgot.”

 

“What? You left the oven on at home, or something?”

 

Fullmetal snorted and started crawling again. “Yeah, something like that.”

 

He realized he'd reached the end of the second arched area he'd created, when he felt a drop of water hit his nose. “Great, we've got water seepage here,” he said.

 

“Remember that the groundwater is contaminated, Edward,” Data said. “You will want to keep any from getting into your eyes.”

 

Fullmetal jerked back as another drip fell in front of him, and hit the rock. He then noticed the small puddle forming in front of him, and the odor that was coming up from it. “Looks like our contaminated water is at least partially responsible for the stench,” he said. He shined his light directly on it, and gasped. Memory came flooding back with a deep thunder, and he was suddenly very certain what the underlying chemical smell was.

 

“That's not possible,” he gasped.

 

“That didn't sound good, Ed,” Geordi said. “Talk to me. What did you find?”

 

Fullmetal didn't hear him, because the sound of rushing memory roared in his ears. As if hypnotized, he slowly reached down, and touched the tip of one flesh finger into the puddle in front of him. The contaminated water reacted instantly with a bright flash, then faded. His fingertip tingled.

 

“Ed,” Geordi called again. “It sounds like water rushing in there. You need to get out now.”

 

Fullmetal was staring at what could only be the basis of the Philosopher's Stone. Something that shouldn't exist in another universe. It wasn't logical. Not when Alchemy was nothing more than fable here.

 

“Ed!” Spike yelled. “Dammit! Worf, give me a boost.”

 

“You can't fit in there.”

 

“Bullshit, I'm skin and bones. Get me up there! Ed!”

 

0o0o0

 

 

Jet's light hit a large pair of doors at one end of the corridor, and he came up short. “Would you look at that,” he said.

 

“Did you find something?” Riker asked as he joined him. His light hit the double doors, and illuminated the symbol that dominated them even brighter.

 

“What are the chances,” Jet said, “of a company logo showing up in two different universes?”

 

Havoc caught up with them, aimed his light at the door, and then gasped.

 

“Or three?” Riker asked.

 

Havoc shook his head. “Not a company logo. It looks more like an alchemic symbol.”

 

Riker raised a brow, and asked, “You're an alchemist, too?”

 

Havoc almost laughed at that. “Me? Oh, hell no! But I work for one, remember? I see reports that come across his desk. Especially from Fullmetal.”

 

He scratched the back of his head, and said, “Let me think. When did I see that damn thing…” His expression went from a scowl, to one of comprehension. “Oh, I remember. From Tucker's place.”

 

“Shou Tucker?” Jet asked.

 

Havoc gave him a surprised and very puzzled look. “Don't tell me, that jackass is in your universe too?”

 

Jet shook his head, and glowered. “Nope. Ed mentioned him in connection to Lab Five and those chimera he and Spike ran into, though.”

 

Riker looked from one man to the other, somewhat lost. Then he shook his head, and reached for the door. It was, of course, locked. He scowled, pulled out his phaser, and set the power on it. Then he took aim, and sent a needle beam at the lock. After a moment, the door popped open.

 

“That was easy,” Havoc said.

 

Riker continued to scowl as he took a cautious step into the dark room. “Too easy, Lieutenant.”

 

“Are you thinking what I'm thinking?” Jet asked.

 

Havoc suddenly grew a wicked grin as he stepped past Jet. Just as he entered the room, he said, “Yeah, but I don't think we could get Fullmetal to hold still for the hula skirt.”

 

Jet stared at him befuddled, then blinked and shook his head. “Havoc, sometimes you scare the hell out of me.”

 

The three of them shined their lights around the large room. Several old-style desks were in the middle, and there were banks of seating along the walls with darkened consoles.

 

“Looks like a bunch of access terminals,” Jet said.

 

“And no power source,” Riker said. He tapped his combadge, but got no response. “I was afraid of that,” he said.

 

Havoc came forward, and said, “I can run to the outside of the complex and call for a portable power source.” He pointed in the general direction of a bank of consoles and added, “Most of this is pretty much beyond me, now.”

 

Jet looked around, and said “Get Ed down here, too.”

 

“Ed?”

 

“The stringbean.” He faced Havoc and Riker with a grin. “She's one hell of a hacker.” He nodded at the dark consoles, and said, “My guess is that we're going to have some corrupted files in there, and if anyone can get anything out of them, it'll be her.”

 

Riker nodded, and Havoc took off. Then he shined the light on the one other door in the room, and said, “While he does that, let's see how hard this next one is to get through.”

 

Jet knelt down at the door, and shined his light on the keypad near the lock. “I don't think your phaser is gunna open this one.” His right hand rested against the door, and a brow shot up. “Riker lay a hand on this door. What do you feel?”

 

Riker rested his hand on the door a moment, then gave Jet a slight smile. “Something's still running in this place.”

 

“A separate power source,” Jet said as he lightly tapped at the keypad. “I'll bet you good woolongs that the answers are there, too.”

 

Suddenly, the keypad chirped and blinked. Jet grinned. He looked around, shining his light on the desks, then headed right for one of them. He picked up an ashtray, and took out the butts, but left the ashes. “Well, good thing there are still smokers around,” he said as he knelt back down next to the door, and started pressing the ashes in the tray to a finer powder.

 

Riker knelt down near him, and watched curiously. “What are you going to do with those?”

 

“Old B and E trick,” he said as he sprinkled the ashes on the keypad. “The ashes won't work nearly as well as chalk, or graphite, but it might do some good.” After he finished blowing off the ashes, he leaned back and smiled. “Not perfect, but it's something.”

 

The keypad now showed several keys with ashy smudges that looked remarkably oval in shape. “Well, that narrows it down.”

 

Riker grinned. “I thought you were a cop?”

 

Jet started tapping in number combinations, and said, “Was. I'm a bounty hunter, now.” He spared Riker a glance. “But to catch a criminal, you gotta think like one.” After the fourth try, there was a dull clank as a bolt slid back, and a soft hiss of air.

 

They got up, opened the door, and stepped into a small chamber. Jet looked around, unimpressed.

 

“Clean room,” Riker said.

 

Jet grinned. “Do you care?”

 

“Not particularly, no.”

 

The next door wasn't locked, so they just went through…

 

And stopped dead in their tracks.

 

The room was enormous, and filled with more computer banks. But that wasn't what brought them up short. They were standing on a wide cat-walk, looking down at least three storeys, and the room was large enough to fit the Bebop in comfortably.

 

There was still power, and the room was illuminated by a soft pinkish glow coming up from the floor. In fact, the entire floor glowed with that pinkish light, and Jet realized that it was moving. The floor was the lid of a giant tank full of red liquid.

 

But it was the enormous circle with arms protruding from it that dominated the room and rendered the two men nearly speechless. It looked just like the logo on the door, and reminded Jet very much of the structure of the astral gates. Except this thing was not made of any metallic alloy he'd ever seen. It wasn't made of metal, at all. Clear, flexible tubing ran from the tank in the floor, into the giant ring, and it pulsed and throbbed like a living thing.

 

“Dear God,” Riker whispered. “What have they been doing here?”