Chapter 1

Burning scolding flames engulfed the entirety of the building. The smoke rose in billows of deadly carbon dioxide engulfed the night sky, changing the color of the usually gorgeous deep dreamy blue into a hideous mask of tones of sickly green to a dusty vomit like gray.

"We need to get in there!" The screams of children drove the boy, Edward Elric, to a point that he was ready to dive through the glass window into the searing embers; but there was one thing stopping him. A well placed body between him and the heat. This

body belonged to Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist. He held steady, no emotion betraying his stern detached features except the small quivers of his hand, which was curled up in a hard fist.

"Fire may be my cliché, but I'm not flame-resistant neither, are you!" Roy did not want to stand there as children cried for some sort of savoir but he did not want any more casualties, especially after he promised that no more of his subordinates would every die as long as he was in charge of the orders.

"But…" Before Fullmetal even finished his protest, a kitchen pan came hurtling out of the kitchen window bring daggers of broken class with it. A middle aged panicked woman stuck her head out the window.

"Oh god, please! Help me, my kids are in there!"

Edward couldn't just stand there and watch the horrific sight of the distressed woman. "I'm sorry colonel…"

And before the colonel could do anything, Ed ran off towards the flame-consumed house. He then in a mad moment of cracked heroism crashed through the ground floor window. Roy dashed for the house screaming for Ed to get out of there at once but the crackling of the burning wood droned out his voice.

A sound caught Roy's attention. A noise that sounded as if the house itself was taking in a deep breathe, foreshadowing disaster to the experienced pyro.

"Ed!"

But he's shouts were useless for at that very moment the house in a boom of sparkling embers collapsed.

Roy unable to think straight just stood there in pure shock. In his mind this couldn't of just happened. This tragic event just couldn't connect to his brain. At this moment a blonde marksman approached, awestricken at the collapsed house.

Running madly he was about to jump into the still burning embers mess when Riza gripped the Colonel's arms back.

"Stop, Colonel!" Riza struggled to keep a hold of the crazed man.

"I have to help him."

Riza wouldn't let go for she knew that the man could be oddly dense at desperate moments. "Help who?"

Roy stopped trying to get away surprising Hawkeye as he turned his body so his eyes meet her brown eyes. She found tears forming in his deep dark charcoal eyes. "Fullmetal…Ed…"

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Next Time: Enter Al. Can Roy accept his subordinates fate? Can Ed accept his own?