You Only Had to Ask

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.

June, x785.

After the brawl came to an end and everyone finished breakfast, the wizards of Fairy Tail all headed upstairs to train in the guild's training facilities. Meanwhile, Maes led Edward and Alphonse upstairs, as well, to observe the way the Fairy Tail wizards train. More specifically, to watch the way the wizards Alfonzo and Elicia lead in training.

"These training rooms are pretty sturdy." Edward said while knocking his Automail fist on one of the walls in the training room. "This place must have cost a fortune."

"Yeah, if I'm not mistaken, the walls should be an adamantine/orichalcum alloy." Alphonse added while examining the walls, as well. "But with their properties, that should be almost impossible."

"Well, they call Alfonzo the Master of Metals for a reason, you know." Maes replied.

"I guess." Edward replied as he turned his attention to the center of the training room. "But it doesn't really look like they're doing anything different than any other person I've seen training."

Like Edward said, the people in the training room, Alfonzo, Elicia, Cana, Laki, Alzack, Mirajane, Bisca, Marin, and Sun, were going through what appeared to be basic training. For example, Alfonzo was going through his weapon forms with his tonfa. Meanwhile, Elicia was doing a gymnastics routine.

"Yeah, that's what it looks like from the outside." Maes replied with a smile. Then, he pointed at a device near the training room's entrance. "But if you take a look at that, you'll see just how insane their training is."

Following the direction of Maes finger, Edward and Alphonse looked towards the device. And when they did, they both looked on in disbelief.

"Does that thing say that they're training at thirty times normal gravity?" Alphonse asked in a disbelieving tone. "That should be impossible."

"Well, when circulating magic power through the body, there's a lot you can do." Maes replied. "Or... that's what those guys say, at least. I mean, I wouldn't know. I don't have enough to circulate."

"That means I should be able to train like that, too." Edward muttered.

"Theoretically." Maes replied. "But if your body isn't strong enough to handle it, it could be pretty dangerous. I've seen one of the guys pressed to the floor because he rushed into the gravity field without knowing how high it was set."

Then, Maes pointed towards a line that was carved into the floor and ran around the training room.

"Speaking of which, don't step past that line." Maes said. "Everything inside of it is affected by the heightened gravity."

"Yeah, but even if their bodies are strong enough to handle the pressure, it's still pretty dangerous, isn't it?" Alphonse asked curiously. "I mean, the difference in air density could lead to sudden suffocation, right?"

"Well, they've spent a while getting used to that." Maes replied as he turned his attention to the training wizards. "But that won't be a problem for long. Apparently, while Alfonzo was installing new training facilities in the Mermaid Heel guild hall, he found a way to exclude the air from the effects of the high gravity. And he'll be upgrading all the training facilities after today's training is over."

"How is that possible?" Edward asked with his brows furrowed. "That should be physically impossible."

"Well, magic can do all sorts of crazy stuff." Maes replied with a shrug, clearly not understanding the mechanics behind such a thing.

Like that, Maes, Edward, and Alphonse continued to chat while the wizards of Fairy Tail continued to train. Then, around lunch time, the training for the day came to an end. And with the end of the training, the gravity, which had been cranked up to forty-five times normal gravity by the end of training, had been switched back to normal, as well.

"After seeing them train like that, I guess it makes sense that Fairy Tail is the strongest guild in the kingdom." Edward said.

"Yeah, I couldn't imagine training under such high gravity." Alphonse added.

"Anyway, why don't we head downstairs and grab some lunch." Maes said with a shrug. "Unfortunately, it won't be as good as breakfast, though. I don't have enough guild points for that."

"I'm okay with anything." Alphonse said, sounding rather energetic. "I'm just glad I can taste again."

"Yeah... I'm still curious to know how he did that." Edward said. Then, he narrowed his eyes. "More importantly, how did he know about Al's condition."

"I'm sure he'll talk to you about that later.' Maes said.

"Yeah, he said he would." Alphonse added. "Besides, he might be able to give you the feeling back in your left arm, Brother."

"As nice as that sounds, Winry is my Automail mechanic." Edward said while shaking his head. "And I won't wear anything unless she's the one who made it."

"Oh ho!" Maes exclaimed in a teasing tone. "I bet Winry would be happy to hear just how loyal you are."

Immediately, Edward looked away awkwardly while he blushed. Before he could retort, however, the training room's door was opened abruptly.

"Alright, let's go, Alfonzo." Laxus said confidently. "It's time for our fight."

"*Sigh* Are you really so eager to get your ass kicked again, Laxus?" Alfonzo asked with a smile. "If you are, I'm happy to grant your wish."

"Enough talk, just come with me to the tenth floor." Laxus said through gritted teeth. Then, he turned around and walked back through the training room's door. "Unless you're scared of losing."

With that, everyone in the room looked at the open training room door with blank gazes.

"Man, Laxus is really putting it on thick, huh?" Alfonzo said while shaking his head with a wry smile on his face.

"It's almost like he's forgotten how many times he's lost over the years." Cana added.

"He's probably just hoping to land a lucky hit to get a [Soul Armament]." Laki said as she toweled off.

"Still, I doubt Alfonzo will lose." Alzack said with a shrug. "I mean, unless Laxus learned something new."

"I can only hope." Alfonzo said as he headed towards the training room's door. "It will be more fun that way, after all."

A moment later, Alfonzo stopped his steps next to Maes and the Elric Brothers.

"You guys can come and watch, if you want." Alfonzo said. "After that, we can sit down and talk. And since you want to probably keep things secret, we can head over to my place to talk. If that's fine with you, that is."

"Sure." Edward replied. "I wanna see how strong you guys really are, anyway."

"Yeah, this should be interesting." Alphonse added. "We heard about the match between you and Laxus a few months ago in Sorcerer Weekly. So, seeing you two fight in person might be good for us."

"If you can keep up." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. "But since we both handle lightning, it might be hard to follow."

"Don't underestimate us." Edward said, clearly proud of his strength. "We're no pushovers."

"That's not what I meant, but whatever." Alfonzo said with a shrug. "Oh, and there's a good chance everyone watching will find out about your secret, Al. So, you should think twice."

"Huh?" Alphonse exclaimed in confusion.

"It's thanks to a detection spell our guild uses." Alfonzo continued. "It's the only way most of the guys in the guild can follow a fight between me and Laxus."

With that, Alfonzo walked away, leaving the training room shortly afterwards. Meanwhile, both Edward and Alphonse turned their gazes towards Maes.

"Is that true?" Edward asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, it's true." Maes replied with a nod. "They have the ability to track people by the flow of their magic power, or magic power signature, as they call it. But since Alphonse doesn't have a body to flow magic power through, they'll all know something is up."

Hearing that, Edward's expression turned hesitant.

"But I wouldn't worry about it if I were you." Maes continued with a shrug. "Although you might get a few questions about it, no one will pry into how it happened. And even if they knew, I don't think they would care. They're a band of ruffians and hooligans, after all."

"What did you say about us, Hughes?" Cana, with a liquor bottle in hand asked as she walked by. "That's offensive, you know."

In the next second, Cana unleashed a massive belch that echoed down the hallway.

"See what I mean.?" Maes said with a smile. "Ruffians and hooligans that are hard to dislike."

"I see." Edward said as he watched the rest of the wizards leave the room. Then, he turned towards Alphonse as he continued. "Well, it's up to you, Al."

"I believe Mr. Hughes." Alphonse replied after a moment of consideration. "I mean, anyone who would start a bar brawl like they did this morning, probably wouldn't care about our circumstances."

"That's right, Al." Maes said with a smile. "And if you were to join the guild, they would do everything in their power to help you get your body back, too. They consider everyone in the guild family, after all."

"We can think about that later." Edward said after a few moments of contemplation. "We should probably hurry to the tenth floor if we don't wanna miss the fight."

With that, Maes, Edward, and Alphonse put their conversation on hold. Then, they rushed over to the elevator, which had a line forming in front of it for all the people who wanted to watch the fight between Alfonzo and Laxus.

Eventually, all those who were interested in the fight, which made up almost all of the guild, Winry, Edward, and Alphonse, were gathered in the large training room on the tenth floor.

"This seems dangerous." Alphonse muttered as he looked around at all the people in the room. "It's surprising this many people can fit in here and still have space for a ring, though."

"Oh, that's because Fonzie used a bunch of space expansion seals in this room." Elicia, who happened to be standing next to the three visitors said.

"You're Elicia Taylor, the Magic Seamstress!" Winry shouted excitedly. "I love your clothes."

"Thanks." Elicia replied with a smile. "Since you came to visit, you should come by our house and let me make a few pieces for you."

Hearing that, Winry's face lit up happily. A moment later, however, she deflated just as quickly.

"*Sigh* I don't have the money for any custom pieces." Winry said in a downcast tone.

"Since I invited you, it's obvious they'll be free of charge." Elicia said with a smile. "Besides, since you're friends with Sun, I'd be happy to make a few things for you.'

"Seriously?" Winry asked excitedly. "Thank you. Thank you so much."

"Don't worry about it." Elicia replied. "You have no idea how much I love making clothes. And since you're so pretty, I'm sure they'll look great on you."

"You two can talk about clothes later." Maes said, interrupting the conversation with a wry smile. It looks like they're about to get started."

And just as Maes said, both Alfonzo and Laxus were engulfed in arcs of lightning, with Alfonzo's in a violet color and Laxus in yellow. Then, they both vanished from where they stood in a burst of speed. An instant later, Alfonzo ducked a straight punch covered in lightning. After that, there were only a few people in attendance that could follow the action with their eyes.

"This is insane." Edward said in a shocked tone. "And I thought I was fast. But those two are on another level."

Before anyone could respond to Edward's utterance, Laxus cast his [Lightning Dragon's Roar] in Alfonzo's direction. Instead of trying to take it head on like he did in the tournament, Alfonzo opted to avoid it. However, because they were standing behind Alfonzo, Winry, Edward, and Alphonse found themselves terrified.

Before leaving the ring, however, a translucent barrier appeared around the ring, as a result, the [Lightning Dragon's Roar] simply fizzled out upon contact.

"*Pant* *Pant* I saw my life flashing before my eyes just now." Winry said while patting herself on the chest.

"Yeah, I thought we were about to get roasted." Edward chimed in.

Although Alphonse didn't say anything, he had a similar feeling to Winry and Edward.

Meanwhile, Elicia, after hearing Winry and Edward's comments, could not help but shoot an accusatory glare in Maes' direction.

"Sorry, I forgot to tell them about the barrier." Maes said with a sheepish smile while scratching the back of his head. "But yeah, Alfonzo took everything into account when he built this place. Or... That's what I've heard, anyway."

After hearing Maes apology, Winry, Edward, and Alphonse stared at him with aggrieved expressions. A moment later, however, they turned their attention back to the fight.

"I don't even know why I'm watching this." Winry said. "I can't even tell what's going on most of the time."

"Yeah, neither can I?" Maes replied with a shrug. "But the atmosphere makes it fun."

Hearing that, Winry, Edward, and Alphonse took a moment to take in the reactions of the other people watching the fight. And to their surprise, most, if not all, of them looked like they were following the fight.

"I guess they're all using that detection spell you talked about, huh?" Edward said.

"That's right." Maes replied.

"Looks like the show is about to end." Elicia said, pulling the others out of their conversation. "Fonzie won again."

Just as Elicia finished speaking, Alfonzo avoided Laxus' [Lightning Dragon's Iron Fist] before grabbing Laxus outstretched wrist and creating an anti-magic bracer around his forearm. Then, with a quick spin, he threw Laxus over his shoulder, slamming him into the floor before jabbing an Eskrima stick towards his throat, only to stop it less than an inch before it struck.

"You still have the bad habit of overextending when you think you've won, Laxus." Alfonzo said as he pulled his weapon back.

"I'm still not even sure how you caught me." Laxus grumbled as he sat up.

"Visible light." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. "I made it look like my hand was further away by bending the visible light."

"Damn it." Laxus muttered. "I had [MPD] active, too. But it's still hard to ignore what my eyes are telling me."

"Anyway, you lose." Alfonzo replied. "So, I get to ask you to do one thing for me, no questions asked,."

"I know." Laxus grumbled as he stood up. "So what is it?"

Instead of answering immediately, Alfonzo walked toward the spectators. Towards Elicia to be specific. At the same time, Elicia reached into one of the pockets in her skirt. Then, she pulled out four pendants, that she handed to Alfonzo.

"Thanks, Lici." Alfonzo said with a smile and a nod.

Now, with the pendants in hand, Alfonzo turned back to Laxus. Then, he tossed one of the pendants at the Lightning Dragon Slayer, confusing him greatly.

"What I want you to do is tell me what kind of [Armament Spirit] comes from that." Alfonzo said with a grin. Then, he tossed the other three at Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy. "And that goes for the three of you, too."

"Wait, if you were gonna give me one of these, why the hell did we even have this fight?" Laxus asked in a disbelieving tone.

"You should ask yourself that question, Laxus." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. "I mean, if you wanted one, all you had to do is ask. Banking on landing a lucky hit to get one was pretty stupid."

With that, Laxus could only look at Alfonzo dumbfoundedly. Meanwhile, Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy were overjoyed at the opportunity to have their own [Soul Armaments].

'I wonder if the dragons inside of Natsu, Gajeel, and Wendy will end up as their [Soul Armament Spirits].' Alfonzo mused. 'And if they do, what kind of release states will they have. And if they don't, will their [Spirits] have draconic features? And then there's Laxus, a second generation Dragon Slayer. I'm so curious to find out about what will come of this.'