Lancer (Fate/Crossover - Edward Elric)

**Lancer** (ランサー, *Ransā*) is the servant of ??? in the ??? Holy Grail War. He also appears in Infinite Paths as the servant of Keyneth Archibald El Melloi in an alternate version of the Fourth Holy Grail War.

*"There's no such thing as a painless lesson. They just don't exist. Sacrifices are necessary; you can't gain anything without losing something first. Although, if you can endure that pain, and walk away from it, you'll find that you now have a heart strong enough to overcome any obstacle. Yeah... a heart made Fullmetal."* - Edward Elric

## Profile

### Identity

Lancer's true identity is **Edward Elric**, also known as the Fullmetal Alchemist is the titular main protagonist of the anime/manga series Fullmetal Alchemist. After losing his right arm and left leg due to a failed Human Transmutation attempt, Ed became the youngest State Alchemist in history by achieving his certification at age twelve. Three years later, Ed has become fully engrossed in his search for the legendary Philosopher's Stone, an item with which he hopes to restore his younger brother Alphonse - whose whole body had been lost in the aftermath of that tragic experiment.

### Appearance

Edward is small for his age, standing at only 149 cm (4'11") at the beginning of the series, despite his attempts to appear taller, (due to the notation that he cannot stand regular milk). He wears his golden-blond hair long - usually tied in a braid that hangs down to his shoulders, but sometimes forgoing the braid for a simpler ponytail. He parts his bangs in the middle so that they frame his face on either side as they fall and, in the center of the parting, he leaves a single strand of hair sticking up like an antenna. In Chapter 56, it is revealed that he does this intentionally, presumably to add to his height. Ed's eyes, too, are gold, signifying his Xerxesian ancestry. It is revealed in one of the Fullmetal Alchemist art books that the reason why Edward wears all black is to hide any oil stains that he may obtain from his automail.

Early on in the manga, Ed receives a thin, horizontal battle scar just above his right eye, which remains because his subsequent battles cause the sensitive skin to tear open repeatedly. As of Chapter 76, however, the scar appears to have healed over completely. As the series progresses, some of Edward's facial features (his nose and chin) begin to take on characteristics similar to his father's. At the end of the series, Edward is shown to have grown noticeably taller, being several inches taller than Winry and finally being at least equal in height to Alphonse.

Near the end of the 2003 anime series, it is revealed that the Earth has its own version of Edward Elric, who is identical to that of the storyline save for having his hair and bangs cut short.

### Personality

On the surface, Edward displays an immature sort of personality. He is decidedly stubborn and strong-willed, frequently letting his pettiness and vindictiveness get the better of him (it is this stubbornness that contributes to Führer Bradley's decision to codename him "Fullmetal," as "Hagane" (literally meaning "steel") is a term in Japanese that denotes someone of obstinate disposition.) and often has to be restrained or reprimanded by Al or whoever else is present. He is somewhat selfish and self-absorbed, generally acting more out of self-interest than any sort of philanthropy as well as taking several opportunities to stroke his own ego or flaunt the governmental power and monetary license of his military position. He is largely hostile towards figures of authority and feels little incentive to follow orders with which he disagrees, earning him the distinction of being a loose cannon of sorts.

Edward is also rather quick-tempered, resorting more often to steel-fisted violence than calm negotiation to settle disputes (even going so far as to suggest that refraining from hitting Paninya because of her gender is a sexist notion and, therefore, against his principles). He has a reputation for being foul-mouthed and is an incurably sarcastic cynic, only too happy to bluntly and harshly relieve others of their comfortable delusions regarding God, reality, or their own self-importance. Edward has also displayed a propensity towards impatience and an inability to sit still for long, which perhaps contributes to his love of travel.

However, for those few people who have made an impact on him, Ed shows his deeper nature to be one of marked selflessness, unflinching loyalty, and great compassion. As someone who has had to suffer greatly at such a young age, Edward cannot ignore the true suffering of others and becomes sympathetic upon sensing pain and resolve in people's hearts. Though his solemn advice to such people is often tempered with brusque criticism, it is only because he genuinely wishes to place them on the most direct path forward. As one who has to struggle with a maimed body, he urges those with healthy bodies to use their strong legs to move forward, and as one burdened by the mistakes of his past, he stresses the necessity of people taking responsibility for their own errors. Though he will intervene on behalf of the oppressed if he concludes that a situation has called for it, Ed tends to help only those with the will - but not the means - to help themselves, in which case his recklessness and disdain for authority often has him bending the rules to dole out a Robin Hood-esque justice in accordance with his strong belief in the concept of Equivalent Exchange, earning him notoriety and popularity as a "hero of the people."

A defining trait of Ed's shown throughout the series is his guilt complex; as far as he's concerned, his and his brother's current states are his fault, partially because it was his idea to transmute their mother in the first place and partially because Al lost his entire body as a result of the experiment, while Ed only lost an arm and a leg. He was even convinced that Al hated him for what happened to his body, and was scared to ask him about it for years. As a result of this trait, he starts off as highly standoffish, trying to accomplish everything on his own and not accepting help from anyone but Al, as well as being convinced that he can solve all of his problems through Alchemy. Over time, however, he learns to depend more on his friends and share his burdens with others. But while he may work on his guilt, it never truly goes away, as even towards the end of the series, he's still beating himself up over Nina Tucker being turned into a Chimera, despite having saved countless other lives along the way.

of course, the most noticeable of Edward's dispositional characteristics is his Napoleonic denial of his shortness. Even in moments of relative composure, any and all references to his stature cause him to violently lose control of his emotions and lash out both verbally and physically. One of the most common reasons for these outbursts is if anything related to his size, since he has a complex about being shorter than average (his height is 165 cm). Distinctive to these outbursts is Ed's tendency to take even the most casual mention of his height as a gross insult and interpret it exaggeratedly, mistaking words as simple as "small" for phrases as contrived as "so-tiny-that-he-need-not-fear-being-crushed-by-a-boot-because-he-fits-so-easily-between-the-grooves-of-the-sole" and the like. Those unfortunate to utter the word "small" in his presence are fated to suffer one of his vindictive tantrums unless he is in the wrong and needs to be put in his place such as when Izumi Curtis calls him a runt while scolding him and Al in the manga. He also accepts Nina referring to him as "Little big brother" in the 2003 Anime. This part of his personality is presumably no longer present by the end of the series, given that he has grown to normal height by then.

Though Edward professes that he does not believe in gods, his spiritual sensibilities tend more toward the deistic than the atheistic. He does not pray but frequently acknowledges the existence of a God in his speech, whom he often blamed for the difficulty of his life. Ed's aesthetic sensibilities are also quite twisted in that he is a great fan of gothic or macabre fixtures and will usually transmute decorations filled with monstrous or demonic imagery and unnecessarily gaudy details, much to the dismay of anyone who receives a gift or service from him. He has also made it known that his trademark red coat is part of this general lack of taste, as it is what he says is: "a badass color [that] gets the blood going."

## Abilities

Despite Edward's small stature and young age, he is a remarkable combatant, useful in a down to earth anime like Fullmetal. Having apprenticed under Izumi Curtis, Ed was taught to condition his body through regular workouts and sparring as part of her philosophy, "to train the spirit, first train the body." As such, his slight frame belies a compactly muscular build that, in addition to his naturally high energy level and endurance, fuels his considerable strength and agility which allows him to throw people much bigger than he is. Due to Izumi's Spartan training, Edward has become a particularly competent hand-to-hand fighter, able to hold his own against armed opponents and even skilled martial arts practitioners. Besides that, his steel right arm and left leg augment his fighting strength by adding to his defensive and offensive capabilities as well as his speed - after he is refitted with a lighter, cold-climate automail in Chapter 70 of the manga.

As suggested by his unprecedented acceptance into the State Alchemist program at such a remarkably young age, Edward Elric is an alchemical prodigy of genius level intellect. From early childhood, he displayed proficiency for alchemy, acquiring self-taught alchemy skills and comprehension from the advanced literature in his father's abandoned study at an age that shocked even his mother. Having incorporated alchemy into his life during his developmental stages, Edward sees the world alchemically and is, therefore, able to solve complicated codes, puzzles, and mysteries much more easily than normal. He has also shown himself to be exceptionally adept at chemistry and reasonably competent with biology; indeed even his preparations for the failed attempt to resurrect his mother were indicative of these. Edward's near-encyclopedic knowledge of alchemical theory is astounding and contributed to his incredible success with emergency Soul Binding experimentation. He shows an uncanny level of focus that allows him to effectively shut out everything from his surroundings and devote all of his considerable mental power to whatever problem demands his attention, especially in the case of books.

Edward's skill with alchemy was so great that he was able to turn himself into a humanoid Philosopher's Stone stone in order to force his way into Pride, and then revert himself back to normal immediately afterwards. While in his Philosopher's Stone form, he was able to destroy Pride's Philosopher's Stone from the inside, reverting Pride to his pure form.

#### Combat Alchemy

As a result of having passed through The Gate and witnessing the Truth, Edward became one of the few alchemists who does not require a drawn Transmutation Circle to perform alchemical transmutations. By merely touching his palms together, he creates an energy circulation with his arms and transmutes by using his own will as a substitute for the necessary runes. This remarkable talent makes his transmutations both instantaneous and incredibly versatile, allowing him to use alchemy to its fullest potential in direct combat. In the 2003 anime, Edward was initially unaware of his new talent and continued to draw transmutation circles when performing alchemy, but after he accidentally used this ability to heat water to comfort the pregnant Gracia Hughes, he ended up using it regularly. In the 2003 anime, his skill with transmutation increased to the point he could transform his automail arm into a functional gatling gun for battle, as seen during his fight with Sloth.

With this quick style, Edward becomes a master of his surroundings and uses the substances therein to supplement his physical prowess in battle - creating giant earthen hands to lift objects, columns of stone to gain himself the higher ground and ogre-faced battering rams with which to strike opponents. Ed also specializes in transmuting weapons with which to do battle and often crafts menacing-looking swords and ostentatious lances when necessary, but his primary weapon is his automail right arm, whose forearm plating he transmutes into various blades.

Of course, the true genius of Edward Elric's combat alchemy lies in his aptitude for incorporating the alchemy styles of others into his own after merely having once seen them in action, which makes him very adaptable to various situations. So far, he has adapted Scar's use of the deconstruction stage of alchemy, Alex Louis Armstrong's gauntlets and stone spikes as well as Greed's carbon armor hardening into his combat repertoire.

Edward loses his ability to perform alchemy after using his Gate Of Truth as the toll in order to bring Alphonse back, though he still retains his knowledge of alchemy, full of the truth of this background.

### Skills

#### Class Skills

* Independent Action (B Rank): The ability to remain in this world even while rejecting prana supply from a Master.

Lancer was renowned in life for his independence, and is capable of living on in this world for to two days without an established contract. He can also survive for a short while after damage to his spiritual core.

* Magic Resistance (C Rank): Cancel spells with a chant below two verses. Cannot defend against Magecraft on the level of High-Thaumaturgy and Greater Rituals.

* Item Construction (B Rank): A skill used to manufacture items, whether they are mundane or magical, normally such a skill is part of the Caster class, however due to Lancer’s unique style of Thaumaturgy, Edward is able to construct anything with his Alchemy as long as he has the right knowledge and ingredients.

#### Personal Skills

* Alchemy (A Rank): A form of Thaumaturgy unique to Lancer's homeland, in which Alchemists draw upon the diastrophic energy released from the movement and collision of tectonic plates deep within the Earth's crust in order to power their transmutations. In which the alchemist identifies the components of an object, breaks them down, and then reform them into another object.

Lancer is also a child prodigy, having become a state alchemist when he was only 12 years old; as such he has a vast knowledge of Ancient Alchemical theory, Chemistry, Kinetic energy manipulation, biology, metallurgy, and physiology and many other topics that are relevant to his art, Finally since he managed to survive the failed attempt to revive his dead mother using Alchemy, Lancer had since then been able to transmute objects without a circle, a standard requirement for any practitioner of Alchemy.

During his legend, Lancer lost the ability to use alchemy when he sacrificed his own personal link to Akasha in order to revive his brother Alphonse, however Edward regained this upon his ascension as a heroic spirit.

* Battle Continuation (B Rank): The strength of vitality for predicaments. Also, the ability to withdraw from combat and reach allied territory alive after being defeated.

* Discernment of the Scientist (A Rank): The instinctive understanding of natural phenomenon and all creation, due to an extensive knowledge of the sciences.

Lancer was a genius at sciences, and is even capable of decoding puzzles, riddles and breaking codes rapidly due to his propensity to "view everything as an equation." This skill futhermore greatly aids him with his alchemy, granting him knowledge of whatever materials surround him.

* Librarian of Stored Knowledge (C Rank): The ability to recall knoledge stored in memory with perfect clarity.

Lancer possesses a nearly perfect memory and can recall even minor fragments of information he has come across in life.

### Noble Phantasm

#### **Automail; "Metal Limbs to Overcome Fate"**

A permenantly active Noble Phantasm. During his life, lancer lost his Right arm and left leg during a failed attempt to bring his dead mother back to life using Human transmutation, since then, they had been replaced by a form of prophetics unique to lancer’s world called Automail, which increases lancer’s Strength and Endurance by one rank.

Normally Lancer would only have one Automail limb since he regained his right arm later on in life, however because they were a significant part of his legend, he regained them upon his ascension as a heroic spirit.

#### **WHO ARE YOU CALLING LITTLE!?; "Wrath of the Pint-Sized Alchemist" C**

A Noble phantasm born from records of Lancer overreacting to people commenting about his less then average height, especially when they mistake his brother for the fullmetal alchemist, and later expressing disbelief at the famous state alchemist being so short.

A conditional mystery that increases Lancers Strength and Agility by one rank, whenever someone comments about his height, whether it is directly or indirectly.

#### **Equivalent Exchange; "To obtain, something of equal value must be lost"**

Lancer’s final Noble Phantasm, and the answer he came too at the end of his journey.

A crystallization of the event that marked the end of Lancer’s Legend, it is a Noble phantasm based on when Lancer regained his brothers Boy and soul from truth, in exchange for giving up his own personal link to Akasha, preventing him from ever using Alchemy ever again.

It is an all-purpose noble Phantasm that allows Lancer to perform feats on the level of True magic, as long as a price equal to the mystery is paid in advance.

For example if Lancer wishes to bring someone back from the dead, he must offer up another life as payment, whether it is himself, or someone else.

## References

https://fma.fandom.com/wiki/Edward\_Elric

https://hero.fandom.com/wiki/Edward\_Elric

https://vsbattles.fandom.com/wiki/Edward\_Elric

https://characterprofile.fandom.com/wiki/Edward\_Elric

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8865268/11/Infinite-Paths

https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/summon-a-servant-mk-5-five-servants-per-second-fate-stay-night-crossovers.285798/page-12?post=14343515#post-14343515