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Mun
Name: Masamune
Livejournal Username: dammitmasa
E-mail: gamehiker@gmail.com
AIM/MSN: Masamune3x (AIM)
Current Characters at Luceti:
markofthewise
onebluebamf
dakingofawesome
originaljackass
tintobrat
Character
Name: Ling Yao / Greed
Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist
Gender: Male
Age: 15 / Over 200
Time Period: After Volume 22
Wing Color: Golden as Ling, Black as Greed
History: Ling and Greed
Personality
On the surface, Ling comes across as a pleasant and silly if not a bit naive young man who is always smiling and has a tendency to overestimate just how far he can travel on an empty stomach. Not much seems to phase him, as he'll simply continue to smile even as people go about fighting in front of him or even demean him. This in itself is mostly a cover, so he can fool people into thinking he's a bit simpler than he actually is. The average person is less likely to suspect the chipper, smiling tourist. Even if he does have a sword.
However that belies a young prince who has an unmatchable determination to achieve his ends. They are not entirely selfish ones either. His goal is to become emperor, true, but it's only be doing so that he can save and ensure the safety of the Yao Clan. He takes this goal very seriously and thought he might only be the twelfth son of the Emperor of Xing, he knows that he will divine the secret of immortality and become the future Emperor. Nothing can shake him from this conviction, to the point that he willingly allowed Greed to take over his body with no fear that his existence would be suppressed, because he sees himself as no mere boy.
It's this determination that will make him do just about anything to achieve his ends.
This was especially spurred on when he witnessed Ran Fan tear off her own arm to protect her master, ensuring that his mission would not end in failure. This conviction drove him to become even more ruthless in his pursuit. Yet in spite of all that, there are lines he will never cross, because it is his belief that a King must serve the interests of his people, never the other way around. There are few things that can truly upset him, including insults to his own pride and dignity. However he is extremely protective of those he cares about, Ran Fan and Fu in particular. He also cannot tolerate anyone who truly looks down him or indeed, humanity itself. It is both his devotion to his people and his pride as a human that first allows him to overcome Greed, even if only briefly.
Bonded with Greed, Ling has become an observer to the monster he shares a body with. However, he is not content to merely let Greed do what he wishes. He judges the 'monster' very harshly and declares that, when Greed kills his only remaining friend, that he will take control of his own body if Greed is unable to control himself. Since then, however, he and Greed have a sort of mutual understanding and respect. Though they might not call themselves friends, their relationship is symbiotic and both are willing to share the body they inhabit, so long as what Ling does isn't something that will keep Greed from his own goals. At the very least, they both respect one another.
--
While Ling is subtle in how he operates, Greed is anything but. As a manifestation of Father's own avarice, he lives up to his name with a never ending need to have everything. In his own words - he wants it all. Money, power, women, sex, status, and glory. He demands the finer things in life. His original incarnation shared Ling's own desire to achieve immortality, should his Homonculus one day ever fail him, which always was a real possibility should his Philosopher's Stone ever be completely used up. It was because of this that the original Greed turned his back on Father to pursue his own interests, because he wanted far more than what his 'family' could ever offer him.
Ultimately that Greed died and was absorbed into Father. What the old Greed chose to keep above all was his friends, his band of chimeras he had rescued from military experimentation. Though he may have abandoned them to try to save his own skin, he valued them more than any of his other possessions. At first nothing of this remained in the new Greed, who was quite willing to play the loyal puppet to his Father. But after killing Bido and confronting the old Greed's memories as well as Ling's outrage at his crime, the new Greed was once again on his own, having thrown away his allegiance after a battle with Wrath. In his emotional breakdown, he briefly lost control to Ling.
Yet things have remained much the same. Greed considers himself a loner and wants nothing more than to gain everything. His personality is caustic and he never betrays any sense of loyalty to the people he does associate himself with. The only 'friends' he keeps are those that fall in line with him and follow his orders. In this respect he sees Ling in much the same manner. Consequently he lets Ling have free reign at times, but only with Greed's permission. Ultimately he feels as though he can discard his allies on a moment's notice, because he has set his goals on more than being Emperor like Ling. No, he wants the entire world. What Father wants, he wants even more. Nothing will come between that.
However, what Greed truly desires is just friends. Though he has not exactly realized this himself, Ling has seen straight through him and saw how much he treasured his previous gang of chimeras. They were never just 'possessions' to the old Greed. Likewise, Greed truly values Ling as a friend and a moral anchor, even if he doesn't show it. Likewise, his 'new' gang comprised of Edward Elric, as well as Heinkel and Darius. Likewise he comes to value Ling's own associates, Fu and Ran Fan, in much the same light. Unfortunately this conclusion is still a long way off and will only come at the very end (past his canon point) when he sees all of Edward's friends calling out his name in the battle against Father. It will be then that Greed will come to understand what will truly fill that empty space in his soul.
Strengths
Physical:
Ling himself is an excellent combatant, having learned from a very early age the necessity of knowing how to defend himself from would be assassins. He is a prodigious combatant skilled in the martial arts as well as being an excellent acrobat. His true skill lies mainly in that of the sword with talents that make him nearly a match for even King Bradley. He is also skilled in the use of various bombs, though he rarely carries them himself. He possesses an incredible amount of strength for his size, being capable of lifting even the likes of Gluttony on his own. Like most Xingese combatants, he is able to read the flow of the Dragon's Pulse and detect the Qi of living beings. Although most Qi cannot be distinguished from one another, unusual spirit energy, like that of a Homonculus, stand out prominently.
What Greed provides are the natural abilities of the Homonculi. Powered by a Philosopher's Stone, he can instantly heal from any wound small or great, with only little cost to his stone. He also possesses superior strength, dexterity, and speed to humans. His unique ability is the "Ultimate Shield". By re-arranging the carbon in his body, he can cover his skin into indestructible Graphene. He can cover all of his body this way or just certain parts. Because fully covering himself makes him look hideous, he prefers to cover bits instinctively during battle for defense. Rather than using a weapon, he prefers to let his own clawed hands be his only weapons.
Mental:
Ling Yao is a very clever individual who has been trained by the best the Yao Clan has to offer in not just combat, but in education. Although he has a keen mind, he is no alchemist and has no proclivity toward it. What he might lack in scientific knowledge, he makes up for in sheer cunning. He is skilled in guile and deception, often hiding his intentions beyond an innocent or clueless facade. Beyond smarts, he has an incredible strength of will and when he chooses to become one with Greed, he does so willingly and maintains his own identity within. He's even strong enough that at times he can force control of his body from Greed, though he rarely does so and never for very long.
Greed is equally cunning and thanks to his two hundred years of life, quite capable of getting what he wants. He is fiercely independent and in his first incarnation, refused to kneel to his Father even up until the end, where he was boiled alive while cursing his father and siblings even to the end. Even in his second incarnation he becomes much the same way and refuses to follow orders from anyone. He only works with Ed when the other chooses to follow Greed as the leader of the operation.
Emotional: Although young and in many ways inexperienced, Ling is a tough kid who has shown many times to show no hesitation in the fact of the strange things thrown at him. While Edward hesitates at the human-like appendages on Envy's true body, Ling does not hesitate in attacking and killing these monstrous visages, despite their pleas. His determination to protect the future of his clan is a major driving force and although he's stumbled a few times, it's kept him driven at all times. Yet beyond that, Ling maintains a jovial and almost childish side that enjoys joking around, watching other people's troubles, and being something of a pest. Although some it is put upon, some of it does reflect the sort of person he'd like to be.
Greed is not barred by any sense of moral compass and thus lives for his own ambitions. Things that bother humans thus have no effect on him. But despite his greed and selfishness, it only means he values that what he does all the more. Whether it's simple possessions, or 'friends'. Nobody messes with those he values and gets away with it. He's avarice and he want it all, power and money and most of all friends.
Weaknesses
Physical:
Because they are two separate entities, there are some abilities and knowledge that don't transfer between the two. Although Ling can be active while the Ultimate Shield is on, only Greed can consciously control it. Likewise, Greed's ability to regenerate is also controlled by his own will and is something Ling must request to be used should he be in control. Likewise, Greed is unable to make use of Ling's ability to detect Qi energy. Despite being much older and experienced, Greed is not quite as proficient a fighter as Ling, being used to fighting weaker humans for all his existence. Consequently Ling demonstrates a greater prowess in combat, even if he can't make use of Greed's homonculus abilities.
Weaknesses:
Physical:
Because they are two separate entities, there are some abilities and knowledge that don't transfer between the two. Although Ling can be active while the Ultimate Shield is on, only Greed can consciously control it. Likewise, Greed's ability to regenerate is also controlled by his own will and is something Ling must request to be used should he be in control. Likewise, Greed is unable to make use of Ling's ability to detect Qi energy. Despite being much older and experienced, Greed is not quite as proficient a fighter as Ling, being used to fighting weaker humans for all his existence. Consequently Ling demonstrates a greater prowess in combat, even if he can't make use of Greed's homonculus abilities.
Despite his change to a homonculus, Ling still seems to require sustenance and is prone to passing out when he hasn't eaten in a long time, a trait he had even before merging with Greed. He is just as vulnerable as any human while in control, capable of being hurt and wounded, unless Greed voluntarily makes use of his regeneration. Likewise, Greed's own Ultimate Shield is not entirely without weaknesses. An Alchemist is capable of rearranging its structure into something weaker, like charcoal, to make his skin brittle instead. He also is unable to simultaneously heal and harden his skin at the same time, a fact King Bradley took advantage of when dealing with the first Greed.
Mental:
Although cunning, Ling isn't quite a genius like Ed and Al and matters of alchemy and alkahestry are things he doesn't quite understand, even if he does grasp the basic principles. More than that, Ling often overestimates his own abilities and is quite vain. Some instances are simply pushing himself farther than he can handle, leading him to collapse from hunger in the middle of the street. Some of his own ambitions end up costing more than he initially bargains for. One hefty cost for his own avarice costs Ran Fan her arm and later leads to him accepting Greed into his body, a move that could have ultimately proved costly to his own goals had things not ultimately ended the way they did with Greed's death.
Greed suffers from a fair amount of shortsightedness in regards to his ambitions. His desire to have everything leads him to make some foolish choices. The first Greed, despite being nearly functionally immortal, still desired to have absolute immortality and was eager to transfer his body into a suit of armor like Al's, despite the inherent drawbacks to doing so (like not being able to enjoy all the women and food and riches he wants). He's also never content to 'settle' for anything. Ling offers the chance at ruling all of Xing, a huge country in its own right, but Greed wants nothing less than the world itself. Additionally, because Greed is a creature of energy of souls and energy, his ability to control Ling's body will be effectively halved by being in Luceti. Consequently, his ability to stay in control will be weakened, making it possible for Ling to more easily take over.
Emotional:
Ling's own determination about his whole self-declared destiny is a point of hubris for himself and in a way makes him arrogant and overestimating his own abilities. Consequently it was his own confidence at being able to handle a Homonculus on his own that led to Ran Fan sacrificing her own arm for his sake. Likewise he made what many would call a foolhardy decision in accepting Greed, even if options were limited at the time. It's also interesting to note that he's sensitive about his eyes, which is part of the reason he keeps a smile on so much.
Greed's own weakness is himself. His greed blinds him to what he truly wants and desires and although it may drive him forward, it drives those that he might come to see as friends away from him. His arrogance, pride, and insatiable desires are a common source of his problems and the very reason he wasn't able to work well with Father. He simply is unable to conceive the idea of being a 'team player' in any situation where he's not in charge.
Samples
First Person: Q&A Please. I intend to answer each one twice as Greed and as Ling.
Third Person:
Pride... Gluttony. Both of them were dealt with. Things couldn't be be better for Greed the Avaricious. With those two gone, all that stood between him and Father was Wrath and Sloth. He was confident that Sloth could be easily eluded. As for Wrath, neither he or that shitty brat he was sharing a body with would be content until they had a rematch and personally settled things with King Bradley. But even as he escaped from his former allies into the dead of the night, on the way to Central, he became aware that something was wrong. These woods felt wrong. Though neither were exactly experts in Amestris geography, Greed could just tell something was wrong. Had he been going the wrong way?
Greed. Let me out, just for a moment.
Greed rolled his eyes. What could that whelp tell him that he couldn't figure out for himself? Reluctantly, however, he nodded his consent. "Fine. But make it good."
A moment later, Ling had reasserted himself in his own body. As always, he took a moment to stretch his fingers and toes, as if to remind himself that this truly was his body. This moment soon passed and he then set his hand along the ground, checking the Dragon's Pulse. Something was indeed strange. This land was definitely not Amestris. He could not feel that horrible sensation of life underneath the soil. Yet it was not like Xing or any other land he had ever been to.
"It seems we're not in Amestris any longer, Greed."
What? The hell's that supposed to mean!? Well, tell me where we are, you brat!
Ling got back to his feet, crossing his arms and surveying their surroundings. Some of these trees looked vaguely familiar, but others were of a kind he'd not come across anywhere in his travels. "I'm not sure. It's nowhere I've ever been. However..."
Something... to the east. He could feel it, only vaguely. It was as if everything was cloudier and took twice the effort to concentrate on. "The east, there's something-"
Immediately Ling was back inside, suppressed again. He hadn't been fighting to take control, but he did note that it seemed almost as if Greed had been clawing his way back. The usual take over of body and senses was not nearly so graceful as before. However it was regarded as a curiousity for now, while Greed reasserted himself and began to move and speak.
"All I needed to know. Way to make yourself useful there. Now, time to find out who the hell was idiotic enough to mess with Greed."