In Weakness
He claps his hands but he's not fast enough. He's been hit one too many times, or he slips, or he loses his concentration. The alchemy never starts. The earth tilts up as he falls down. Metal lands on the road, skin lands on the metal. Blood fills his mouth, blackness fogs his eyes. He struggles for as long as he can against that blackness, but it's no use. It's completely shutting him down.
Just when he understands what it means to be dying alone, and regrets it—he sees something move in front of his face, a last blurry image before he falls painfully asleep. He hears something familiar. Black boots squelching in a puddle from last night's rain. An angry voice high above him, igniting the air with heated threats for his enemy. A blue uniform against the gray sky.
Roy doesn't hate Ed. Sometimes Ed forgets that.