paixaorpg | Secret Meeting? [Closed/Completed]

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Secret Meeting? [Closed/Completed]

Character(s): Edward Elric and Marluxia
Content: After talking to an anonymous voice on his journal, Ed agrees to meet him and find more info about Paixao and how to get back home.
Setting: Cafe Erestat
Time: Not too long after Ed's intro post.
Warnings: None I can think of. Maybe some cursing from Ed.

It didn't take Ed long to find the cafe. It was within sight not far from the entrance of the gate, so he took a seat at one of the outside tables and waited, fiddling around with the communication device the guy at the gate had given him before shoving him inside the city. The first thing he found was the map, which he looked over carefully. This place definitely seemed pretty big, about the size of East City back home. Did the dome that covered him now extend over the entire city? And how was it that there seemed to be a sun along the inner edge of it? And why were the people here so fixed that it was inside a castle? A lot of other questions were swimming in his head, but he was still more concerned about getting back where he belonged. Sure, he didn't want to deal with him, but Al and Winry were waiting for him back in Central.

Ed looked up and looked through the crowd of people. The guy he had talked to on the journal couldn't be one of the normal citizens here by the way he talked, so he had to look different from them. Hopefully, he wouldn't be a candle stick. Or anything else that wasn't supposed to be inanimate.

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Marluxia stepped out of a corridor of darkness a couple blocks away from the cafe and walked the rest of the way. It took him a moment to locate the young man he had spoken with on the network amongst the sea of blonds already in the cafe, but Marluxia soon managed to catch a glimpse of the young man's face and made his approach.

"You wouldn't happen to be looking for someone, would you?" he asked, putting a smile on his face.

Ed saw this guy coming right when he turned the corner. It was impossible to miss the head of pink hair amongst the sea of blond. Ed smirked. "Maybe. You wouldn't happen to know anything about castles, would you?"

"I may know a thing or two," he replied with a small chuckle. "I don't believe I gave you my name. I am Marluxia, but it would be better for us both in the end if you would keep that name to yourself. May I have this seat?" He gestured to the seat in question.

"Ed." He motioned with his hand, indicating that he had no problem with Marluxia taking a seat at the table.

"I guess this 'organization' tries to keep an eye on people, huh?" It was almost as if the homunculi had somehow followed him here. Who to trust? Who not to trust? In the end, Ed would take the information he got and just trust himself.

"It is a pleasure." Marluxia nodded, noticing the distrust in Ed's eyes. It was good for him to have some distrust in others, that meant he had someone with some amount of intelligence on his hands. But Marluxia also had a feeling that he was going to have difficulty with Ed because of this. A shame, these double-edged swords, but a pawn was a pawn.

"They do," he replied, and motioned to the rest of the cafe, waving his hand in a lazy circle. "Through their presence within the city, through those they pull under their wing within the city, through whatever they can. They seek to keep you here in order to get what they want: information on how the heart works."

It all sounded interesting until the word 'heart' was mentioned. "The heart? All you need is an anatomy book for that." Unless, of course, the people in the organization really were that clueless. Ed doubted that if they were able to use people like Marluxia suggested.

"Not the physical one," Marluxia was quick to explain. "The one that holds emotion. The sort that connects to the hearts of others, forming bonds. Nobodies--those lacking hearts--cannot feel or connect to others. All they have are the memories of when they were once whole."

"You mean the soul then."

The mention of Nobodies caught Ed off guard. Al came into his mind, and he couldn't help but wonder about his body. It would make sense for something to be unable to feel anything without a soul, but that logic didn't really do anything to lift Ed's spirits. The sooner he got out of here and back to Al, the better.

Ed gave Marluxia a look of disgust. "So you mean to tell me that there's human transmutations going on here?" How else could a soul be ripped from its body? Ed wasn't going to have any part in it, even if it meant having to look for another way out. He had more than enough experience with that.

Marluxia 'hmm'ed quietly. "I have a feeling that the definition of a soul is different for you and I. Souls merely animate the body from what I know. Its presence determines life and death." It could be easy to confuse the two, he supposed, judging from tales from other worlds he had heard before. "As to that question of yours, that isn't how Nobodies lose their heart. Often they are stolen by the Heartless, creatures formed of the darkness born within the heart. They steal in order to increase their number and live only on instinct. There are a few around here and in the worlds in the other floors. You'll recognize them by their yellow eyes."

Ed's head started to hurt. He could see how people would call a soul a 'heart.' Cheesy love songs were always about that kind of crap. Still, the idea of being that existed that could steal them from people, not to mention that people created those things in the first place out of 'darkness' in their 'heart...' He put his elbows on the table so he could lean forward and rub his head. This was ridiculous.

"Ok, let me see if I got this. There are these things called heartless that are made from some sort of 'darkness' in people's souls. Or hearts, or whatever you call it. Then they just go around and start stealing hearts from other people, and somehow, that makes more heartless?" Oh, there it went. All reason and logic just flew out the window. Ed sighed. There was just too much to point out with everything he was just told, so he just decided to roll with it and figure out the holes on his own.

Ed looked back up at Marluxia and gave him a suspicious look. "There has to be another way to identify these things, right? I mean, my eyes are yellow, but I've got a soul. Heart. Thing."

Unable to help himself, a small smile touched with amusement appeared on Marluxia's face. "When the heart is removed from the body, the darkness that dwells within overtakes the heart, creating a new form for it to walk in. Heartless tend not to have humanoid form, and the closer they are to being humanoid, the stronger they are. The same can be said of Nobodies. While they look more human than the typical Heartless, the majority are far from human-looking. The ones indistinguishable from any other human make up the Organization."

He chuckled and cocked his head to the side. "It might be best to leave what you know of your world behind. Surely you must agree that differences in the way things work are possible?"

Wow. this guy sure knew a lot. Maybe too much? Surely, the Organization running the place wouldn't have wanted some guy going around spewing secrets...

Ed dug the crystal flower he had picked earlier from his pocket and gazed at it a bit before looking around again. It did seem like this place ran by its own rules, and it looked like they didn't really match the ones he knew so well. "You might be right. Though, I have to ask. How's a guy like you know so much about this Organization anyway? You can't expect me to believe that they'd let someone walk around and tell people all their secrets, do you?"

Again, Marluxia couldn't help but laugh. "Sharp, aren't you?" He didn't seem to be bothered by the question at all. In fact, it had only managed to add to his amusement. "I keep myself anonymous on the network for a reason. The Organization wants me dead for all that I know about them--the revelation of Castle Oblivion first and foremost. But, what I told you can easily be found through a good look through the message boards. Plenty are those who have sought out information on the Organization, gathering it in the hopes that it will be what they need to defeat them. Foes of the Organization here have also kindly divulged what they know."

Ed gave a smug grin. "I guess I have to be, being a State Alchemist and all."

"The message boards?" Ed pulled out his journal. "I'll assume you mean these things." He still had no idea how they worked, but then, there were more important things to be concerned about. "If everything you're telling me is true, then wouldn't the Organization be able to track what's on these too? If they can't I'd have to say these guys are pretty stupid, considering it looks like everyone has one."

This brought up a point though. "If people are figuring stuff out about this organization, then why aren't they doing anything to stop it? They have us here for a reason, so I'm betting they don't want us to escape, unless they're already doing something and no one else has realized it yet." Like the 'experiments' that took place in Laboratory five back in Central. This place was cloaked in dark secrets just like the military.

“They can indeed,” Marluxia affirmed. “They have access to each and every one of the people within these domes’ posts, save for their own. If one of their own posts is locked, you will be hard pressed to get through if you can at all.” Not that Marluxia didn’t think there weren’t people within the city walls capable of breaking the locks eventually. From what he had noticed, there were more than enough people in Paixao familiar with technology, and a few of those who were incredibly skilled.

“Did I not already tell you?” he began in response to Ed’s other question. “They seek to keep everyone that is here trapped. Their arms reach far and deep within these walls and to those beyond. I wouldn’t be surprised if many ills that have befallen the city are of the Organization’s machinations.” Marluxia paused and frowned a little. “Many,” he repeated, thinking on more recent events a little more. They didn’t seem to have the Organization’s touch. Caused by the arrival of more disruptive “visitors,” perhaps?

Ed thought about that for a minute. If people were freely talking on these message boards, then the Organization must be pretty confident about their ability to keep everyone trapped here. Hadn't Lumiere mentioned earlier that no one has figured a way out? Surely, not everyone kidnapped were idiots. Still, there had to be a way out...

He leaned back in his chair. There was one last thing Ed had to know about. At least, for now. "Is there any way to tell who's in the Organization? Do they have uniforms or anything that makes them stand out from these guys?" Ed waved at the crowds of people around them.

"Yes and no," Marluxia replied. "Typically they wear black, hooded coats, and black boots, but as these coats have become more widely recognized, the Organization has chosen not to wear them while in the city."

He stopped a moment to grab a waitress's attention, ordering a cup of tea before he turned back to look at Ed. Marluxia was silent for a moment as he thought, wondering whether or not he should continue. It might serve Marluxia well to give Ed a description of his former coworkers, but he was not one to give so much without a stake in turn.

"What is it you intend to do when you find them? Cause their downfall?"

"I'm not sure yet. At the very least, someone needs to get them to free everyone from this place. If that means getting someone else in power, then so be it."

Ed still had a lot to learn about the organization, and he knew it. At the very least, he had to know who he was looking for and what the members of said organization were capable of.

He sighed. This situation was just as bad as the one back home concerning the Philosopher Stones.

There. That was what he wanted to hear. Marluxia kept his expression thoughtful despite the wave of triumph that ran through him. Lacking a heart had its advantages. "I'm sure you will find no end to the people willing to help you in that goal. At the very least you have one of them before you now," he said.

Ed quirked an eyebrow. "I assume you've already been working on a plan then." Marluxia seemed to know an awful lot, and while it was suspicious, it was the only thing Ed had going for him.

"I'd think setting up some kind of resistance movement would help, but it'd be hard to do since you said the Organization can see everything posted over the network."

"Of sorts," Marluxia replied. "I act as the guiding hand to freeing all of you. It's up to our visitors to decide how they will act. You must remember, I cannot make myself too visible or else I risk my exposure and my death."

"I guess I'll have to look around myself then. Since these guys know what you look like, it'd be kind of stupid for you to try to go undercover."

Ed stretched in his chair. "Where's the headquarters for the Organization? That place has to be worth checking out."

"I would not suggest trying to find them," Marluxia said, his smile fading to a frown. "Each member is powerful in their own right, nevermind the fact that you would be likely to face many of them--as well as any other Nobodies they might summon, I should add. I have told the people of this city to attempt to make it to the top of this castle, and I would suggest the same of you. You will have a powerful foe waiting for you, but his defeat will mean your freedom."

Ed frowned. This felt a lot like the situation with the Fifth Laboratory. Sure, it was dangerous, and he even had someone advise against it, but he couldn't pass this up! Not if he could get information from it anyway. Still, he could at least pretend to heed what Marluxia was saying.

"I'll take your word for it. I guess I have some exploring to do, though I have to ask if you know anything about this 'powerful foe' you just mentioned."

"He is the leader of the Organization," Marluxia said, hoping Ed would be able to appreciate just how important that was. "And now one to fall easily. Xemnas is..." Marluxia scowled. "the most powerful of them all." The words tasted like bile in his throat, perhaps even more so because of just how true they were.

For once, something made sense. The leader (not to mention the most powerful member) of the Organization being the final obstacle to this place? It sounded a lot like the system Amestris had. No one messed around with King Bradley.

Ed did notice that Marluxia didn't take this Xemnas guy lightly. It was obvious that he would be the biggest problem, but right now, Ed was sure it was safe to just poke around and see what else he could find. "Well, we've got to figure out how to get through the rest of this castle. We'll figure out something for him by then." They had better. Ed couldn't stay here forever.

Marluxia returned Ed's statement with a nod. "It won't be simple, but I assume you already know that." While nowhere near the level of the Keyblade Wielder's, the blond's optimism was promising. The need to go home... To connect with ones lost... Even if he lacked a heart, Marluxia fully understood its needs. Perhaps if he were to remind the people here what they truly wanted that would be enough.

"A pity I won't be able to attend the welcome home party."

"It can't be too much worse than what's going on back home." Conspiracies within the militaristic government, homunculi, the fact that the thing he needed to get his bother's body back was made up of human souls, etc. Sure, there had to be danger ahead here as well, but Ed doubted it'd be as bad as the stuff he had left behind. He had a lot to learn about Paixao.

He smirked at Marluxia's statement. "It doesn't sound like a party anyone would want to go to anyway."

That all depended on what was occurring back at Ed's home. Judging from his mention of "human transmutation," whatever it was could not have been anything pretty. Especially if those using it were the inexperienced, from what he could guess.

With a final smile, Marluxia moved to stand. "I wish you the best of luck."

Ed also got up. "Thanks." He turned on the journal and looked up the map before turning and walking away from the cafe. Before he did anything, he'd have to get a feel for the castle...city...place. Still, he felt pretty confident that he could get out of Paixao, especially with the information Marluxia so kindly offered. Ed wasn't naive enough not to suspect that he didn't have his own agenda, but if they could work together, perhaps they could both get what they wanted.

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Secret Meeting? [Closed/Completed]

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Sorry for shortness but that's all I got out of him. DX

S'ok. Happens to me all the time. <333333333

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Sorry for the shortness. I'm in kind of a rut lately.

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