Ok so I won't be able to update for another week starting Tuesday cause I'm going on vacation... and my Gramother doesn't have internet connection at her house last time I checked... le sigh...
Thanks for the reviews. Five reviews is the most I've had on a first chapter before. Anyway, some more characters coming in this chapter, actually quite a few characters. Hopefully it will be interesting.
Also, if you think any of the characters get OOC let me know so I can change it because I don't want characters to be OOC... that's a pet peeve of mine...
So yeah, anyway... REVIEW!
Previously...
Al shut his eyes and awaited the pain to hit him but instead he heard a sharp metal clang of blade hitting blade.
"Brother?" He asked questioningly opening his eyes.
"Not quite." A voice muttered, dark humor creeping into the words. A blade was extended over Al, blocking the blade from falling. Al followed it with his eyes and realized that the blade melted into a flesh arm. His eyes widened as he realized how familiar the voice was.
"E-Envy?"
"None other" the homunculus smirked kicking out at the assassin causing the man to stumble back.
"Where the Hell did you come from!" the assasin snarled.
A familiar, malicious smirk crept over Envy's face as he raised his sharpened arm "The same place I'm going to send you." Both men lunged forward and their blades clashed violently. It was clear that Envy was just as fast if not faster then the Black Hand.
"What the Hell are you doing here?" Ed growled, trying to disguise the fact that he was almost glad to see Envy at that time... Well maybe not glad to see Envy so much as glad that Al was still alive.
"Window shopping, what does it look like I'm doing pipsqueak?" Envy growled launching a round house kick that sent the assasin flying from the alleyway and out of sight. Envy turned and called to another figure who had appeared in the alleyway. "I've got this guy! You deal with them Rusl."
"Rusl!" Ed's eyes bugged again as he recognized the second man. Rusl Tringham smiled as he looked between the two brothers.
"Yep, you had to go and steal my name Elrics?"
"That's rich coming from you" Ed growled and Rusl laughed.
"I know." He ran a hand through his blonde hair. "Geez Ed you don't have to take everything so seriously."
Ed gawked "I'm in the middle of the God forsaken Central, I was attacked by an assassin, my side is slashed, Al almost just died, and a homunculus is here and you're telling me not to take things so seriously!"
"Well I do sound like a jack ass when you put it that way" Rusl mused before walking over and bending down next to Al, gently placing a hand against his ribs. Al winced and gritted his teeth and Rusl sighed. "You've got some broken ribs... Way to run in to a kick like that Al."
"So wait…" Ed said slowly. "How long were you two watching us anyway?"
"Hmm…" Rusl put a hand to his chin. "Well we were following you for a few minutes before the officer stopped you and then-"
"YOU WERE WATCHING THIS WHOLE TIME AND YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!" Ed yelled before wincing and clutching his side again.
"Don't exert yourself too much, that's a nasty cut you've got there" Rusl bent down next to Ed and observed the wound. "And yes. I was going to intervene sooner but for some reason Envy wanted to wait it out longer… probably because he hates you but that's just a guess."
Ed blinked before narrowing his eyes and muttering vicious vows under his breath "…Oh I'm going to kill him… I'm going to rip him to shreds and-"
"I just saved your little brothers neck pipsqueak, be a tad bit more grateful." Ed jumped as Envy reappeared, his usual smirk plastered on his face. The blonde boy was able to get a good look at his old enemy for the first time. He looked almost the same, but there was something of about his face. It dawned on Ed suddenly that Envy had… scars… But that didn't make sense… how could homunculi get scars? Couldn't they regenerate?
Ed kept his glare steely "If you think I would ever-"
"Thank you Envy."
Both Homunculus and alchemist jumped at Al's words, obviously neither of them expecting them. It wasn't as if Envy had been being serious anyway.
"I almost died there… thanks…" Al murmured. His gaze was wary, like he didn't trust Envy (And Ed didn't really blame him for that) but the words were still sincere. Then again that was who Al was. Even after all that had happened he still maintained a natural acceptance of others.
"…No problem kid." Envy answered after a pause, eyeing Al like he thought he'd lost a little too much blood.
"Hey Envy what happened to that assassin?" Rusl asked.
"Bastard got away but he's not doing so well… I hope he bleeds to death on the way to New Central Command." Envy muttered.
"How'd he get away if he wasn't doing well?" Rusl raised an eyebrow.
"Grenade."
"That's a cheap shot."
"Yeah, pissed me off."
"Whatever, it's not like they can very well connect you back to us anyhow" Rusl shrugged easily.
Al suddenly coughed again and blood spurt out of his mouth.
"I think something was punctured" Rusl observed, showing a little less consern then Ed thought was nessasary for the situation. "We should get him medical attention fast."
"Damnit... hang in there Al" Ed hissed before winsing again and clutching his side.
Rusl's gaze turned on Ed. "And you're not in great shape yourself. Can you walk?"
"Of course I can-" Ed tried to force himself to his feet only to feel a wave of pain over take him as he fell back to the ground.
"Nice try" Envy smirked before turning to Rusl. "I've got the kid if you've got pipsqueak."
"I'm not even short any more you psychopathic lunatic!" Ed hissed.
"Ah so you admit you were before" Envy countered.
"Why you son of a-"
"Ok, shutup now, or we're going to attract more guards." Rusl rolled his eyes helping Ed to his feet, supporting the boy against him. "You two can attack eachother all you want when we get back."
"Looking forward to it." Envy smirked carefully lifting Al up, placing his arm over his shoulder. Al almost stumbled but Envy kept him up. "Careful kid… you don't want to puncture a lung… assuming that hasn't already happened" he added as Al coughed up a little more blood.
"So wait, where are you taking us…" Ed inquired, eyes narrowed in suspicion. He didn't trust anything that Envy was involved in.
"The Resistance of course" Rusl grinned. "Did you think there was another society insane enough to camp out in the backyard of the enemy?"
"The Resistance?" Ed's eyes widened. "Envy… is part of… the resistance?"
"I know, shocking right?" Rusl asked with a grin.
"Though I have a feeling there will be a few other surprises before this day is out" Envy had a look on his face that suggested he knew something Ed didn't which annoyed the alchemist to no end. He decided to change the subject instead.
"So Rusl, it's been awhile. How'd you end up here?"
"Xenatime was attacked. They thought we were supplying food for the Rebels" Rusl muttered bitterly. "Which we were… but anyways, only Fletcher, me and a few others escaped and we stumbled onto the resistance who obviously took us in." he shrugged. "It's like part refugee camp, part war zone."
"Contradictory." Ed muttered.
"In today's hell? Who really cares? Everything seems to be backwards" Rusl sighed. "Anyway, we definitely have had a time of it."
It was true that it looked that way. Rusl had a scar that started from his brow and ran down all the way down his face to his jaw line, dipping a bit at the corner of his eye and a chipped tooth could be seen when he grinned.
"What about you? We thought you were dead. Word was you were in the battle at the West and all the rebels basically went missing or died in that, except for the few we turned up of course."
"It was...Hell." Ed muttered after a pause, knowing no other word to describe the war. "You have no clue. I've never seen so much death in my life. It was like everything was happening around me, a chain reaction, and I couldn't stop it. Al and I are lucky we escaped. And I still have a little souvenir to show for it." He touched the scar on his brow. "Al and I are the only ones we really have left. Everyone else is dead…"
"What about that mechanic of yours?" Envy asked speaking for the first time and Ed briefly wondered how Envy knew about Winry.
Ed winced inwardly and swallowed "She's…dead…"
"Hmm…" There was something odd about Envy's face that Ed just couldn't put his finger on. Like he was musing over something ironic. "Really?"
"Why the Hell are you so flippant about it!" Ed snapped, glaring heatedly at the homunculus.
"Tch, I'm not prone to sympathy Elric" Envy said, his voice becoming cold when he spoke Edward's name, eyeing the alchemist distastefully "You should know that."
"Yeah…you're right… I do" Ed growled.
The walk continued in long silence until Ed recognized an eerily familiar part of Central. A dilapidated old stone building, half of the wall that once enclosed it to keep intruders out was completely gone and part of the roof sheared off. But he could still see the red five on the front.
"Lab five" he murmured in realization.
"So you remember" Envy smirked adjusting Al's arm on his shoulder. "Yeah, this place didn't get too destroyed. Guess it's not the first time it's been labeled abandon and has all kinds of interesting things going on inside."
"Hopefully not a production of philosopher's stones" Al managed a wry smile before he winced and coughed up more blood.
"Whoa, easy there kid." Envy steadied Al who was now very pale, before looking at Rusl. "Yeah, he's definitely not doing well."
"I'm fine…" Al stuttered, swallowing another cough.
"Try not to talk" Envy told him shifting him on his shoulder and it surprised Ed that the homunculus actually seemed to care... not a lot, but even a tiny bit of consern was suprising when it came to Envy. "You may have punctured a lung."
Ed felt concern flash through him "Al hang in there…" he looked at Rusl. "Will he be alright?"
"Don't worry." Rusl smiled. "We've got a great doctor; your brother will be fine."
"Halt!" a voice said causing Ed to almost jump out of his skin. "This is off lim- oh. Rusl, Envy it's you." The new comer grinned. "Way to get me all riled up."
"Mason?" Ed's eyes widened.
Mason turned his gaze on the golden haired boy "Edward! Well what do you know!" he laughed out loud. "Gee, I thought you were dead! Good to see you! Izumi will be thrilled... actually… she might kill you for making her think you were dead… but by Izumi's standards it's about the same thing."
"Teacher is alive too!" this was all becoming a little much for Ed to wrap his mind around.
"Hah! You think something as trivial as a war could take down Izumi?" Mason laughed again. "She's alive, and doing pretty well. On the other hand…" his gaze trailed to Al. "Seems your brother can't say the same. What happened?"
"Bad run in with one of The Black Hand" Envy explained. "Mind letting us through Mason? We need to see the healer."
"As long as you're not an imposter" Mason grinned.
Envy gave him a look that seemed to say 'Really? You're jokes are going to get that tasteless?' before Mason just chuckled and stood aside.
"Oh go on, you have no since of humor Envy."
"No I have one" Envy smirked. "That's why I'm not laughing."
"Right, I'll come and see you guys when I get done with my shift!" Mason waved at the two boys.
"Y-yeah" Ed murmured. This was so weird it was almost surreal. All these people he had believed to be ghosts were showing up and the even wierder thing was seeing Envy interact with the others. This was the homunculus who thought all humans were scum... so why was he working with them. And where was Dante in all of this. Even if she was dead, wouldn't Envy side with Pride and Sloth? They were homunculis after all.
The doors, once barred with barbed wire, were now only bolted by a large wood latch. Rusl drew a key from his pocket and opened the lock before pushing away the obstruction. The doors swung inwards with a kick of his foot.
"What about re locking?" Ed asked.
"Mason has a key." Rusl assured him. "Don't worry, we're careful. If you've noticed, Mason was wearing a standard officer's uniform, one that we stole. He blends in with all the other guards that get stationed out here so no one really asks questions… other guards hardly get sent to this section of Old Central City anyway."
The halls inside were dark, giving a convincing illusion that the place was abandon. Ed suspected they did that just in case anyone did decide to look inside. The long halls were so oddly familiar to him, it was eerie.
"No traps like the last time I went down here" Ed commented.
Envy flashed a smirk "Trust me pipsqueak they're there. But we're being watched you see" he nodded to the almost hidden cameras on the ceiling. "If we were intruders you better believe the traps would be activated. But only the people in the control room decide that." His eye brows rose as if an amusing thought had just occurred to him. "It makes for a good practical joke of course…"
Ed stared at the homunculus, deciding he was mentally unstable when Envy cracked up "The look on your face Fullmetal! I was joking."
Envy? Joking? Ed would have to get used to that.
It was several minutes before they came to a familiar set of doors.
"Ha" Ed smirked. "I fought the armored solider Number 48 in this next room."
There were two men stationed in front of the door, guns propped on the walls beside them. These two, Ed didn't recognize which was a welcome change of pace, surprisingly. He wasn't sure how many new faces he could take without passing out from shock. At a motion from Rusl they opened the doors.
Ed almost gasped at the sight before him. There were so many people! He hadn't expected the resistance to have such a huge crowd. People of all shorts wandered around, talking, staring at maps, carrying supplies. A kid darted past Ed and Rusl almost smacking right into them before tackling another boy about his age.
"Wow…" was all Ed could say. As they moved through the room he felt the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly prickle, like he was being watched. His gaze traveled up to the rafters where a girl with raven colored hair and pale skin was tracing what looked like a map with her finger. Her haunting, dark green gaze however, was not focused on the map but instead fized right on the blonde alchemist below. It was an uncomfortable stare... like she was boreing right through him like sunlight through a magniying glass, penetrates a bug. A chill went up his spine involentarily. After what seemed like eons, the girl's eyes flitted back to the table she had been staring at a moment before.
"Brother!" Ed tore his eyes away from the rafters and saw a beaming, familiar blonde trotted over to Rusl and him. "There you are."
"Fletcher?" Ed grinned. "You've grown."
"Edward is that you?" Fletcher laughed. "Well I'm fourteen. You've grown too."
"Hmph" Ed muttered. "Thanks a lot…"
"We'd stay and talk but as you can see Al isn't doing very well" Rusl cocked his head towards.
"That's Al-"
"Explanations later ok Fletcher" Rusl pat his younger brother on the head.
"Ok, see you." The younger boy trotted off.
"As much as I love heartwarming reunions," Envy's sarcastic voice cut in. "It may interest you to know that the kid here has passed out."
"Al!" Ed suddenly remembered his brother's injury in the midst of all the familiar faces.
"Well yelling his name isn't going to do anything, he's unconscious." Envy pointed out.
"Yeah, let's get him to the infirmary." Rusl followed after Envy into a smaller room that branched off of the first one. It had silver tile and plane stone walls that were lined with make shift cots and cabinets for tools.
Rusl released Ed who dropped onto one of the cots, his hand on his side. Envy set the unconscious Al down on the one next to him.
"I've got to run. I need to talk to the boss." Rusl waved. "See you later Ed."
"Sure." Ed waved wondering who the heck the "boss" was.
"Hey Healer!" he heard Envy call, a wide grin on his face. "I brought something for you that you might want to see!"
"Yeah I'm coming, hang on a sec Envy."
Ed felt his eyes widen. That voice… he knew that voice. It had almost been two and a half years since he had heard it but he still remembered it.
"…Ed?"
"W-Winry!"
If you hadn't noticed, I like cliffnotes... haha...
So yes, we have Envy, Rusl, Fletcher and Mason also here in this story and Winry of course, as hinted by this chapter's ending. And now I will let you wait a week for the next update... if I get enough reviews, I'll update as soon as I get back :)... bribery... teehee.
REVIEW!