A/N Chapter 2 is here! We hope to update weekly, so stay tuned.

"Main event? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Edward stood up off the ground, pushing his long bangs out of his face. He wheezed as he stood, grabbing his chest with his automail arm.

"There's not going to be a main event," Roy yelled, from the other side of Envy, "Edward and Ling are back. Everything that was supposed to happen already has."

"Alphonse, Ling, help Edward," Hawkeye commanded the other two teens. Al sprung into action, quickly running to the other side of the monster.

"Where do you think you're going?" Father asked quizzically, lifting his hand. Columns of stone grew from the sparking red ground, blocking the only exit from the chamber. The sparking subsided, and Father stepped down from the raised center of the room. Roy looked around, trying to figure out whether or not he could blow the rocks up and escape through the door.

"We're leaving," Roy yelled, fearing what that crazed Father person would do to them if they stayed. He snapped his fingers, sending flames toward the new blockades Father had raised. The deafening bang that filled the room afterward and the smoke that filled the air seemed to indicate his success, so Roy grabbed his Lieutenant's wrist and started running for the place the explosion had hit. Behind him, he could hear Al's armor clanking as he ran for it as well.

Roy focused on moving the dust particles in the air away with alchemy, and when he did, stopped straight in his tracks.

What had been hidden in the dust, was a red sparking barricade, twice as high as the first. Riza stopped, and clicked the safety off of her pistols. The Elric brothers and Ling also stopped, close behind the Colonel, all gasping at how quickly Father had been able to construct a new wall; and without even moving.

Roy raised his hand to snap, putting his other in front of Riza to signal that he was going to explode something else. He snapped, but before he could further ignite the air, the ground beneath them began moving. Roy lost his balance, and fell into Riza, who was also struggling to keep on her feet. The spot the five humans stood on began rising, and pulled closer to the center, away from the exit.

Father lowered his hand, and in doing so smoothed out his white robes, "I told you, I still have plans for you yet." Edward's eyes widened as he inspected the figure closer. He began to shake, and rubbed his eyes with his hands.

"You…" Edward began, and regained his footing on the stone with minimal difficulty, "What the hell are you doing here, Hohenheim?" he yelled, as Alphonse gasped. 'Hohenheim?' Roy thought. He wracked his brain trying to remember where he had heard that name before. It seemed so familiar; he must have heard of this person before. But where?

"Dad?" Alphonse yelled, now also standing. Then, Roy remembered. Ed had mentioned Hohenheim; the father that had abandoned the Elric brothers at a young age. The one whose absence pushed the brothers to attempt human transmutation. Their father was the ringleader of the homunculi who had terrorized Amestris and almost killed Roy and Havoc.

"Hohenheim?" Father asked, "How could you compare me to that lower life form?" He scoffed. So he wasn't Hohenheim?

"What does that mean, you bearded bastard?" Edward stopped in his tracks, still clutching his chest and cradling his arm against it, "You look just like him."

"I can assure you that lowlife is nowhere near us," Father gestured his hand as if he was swatting some kind of bug. Edward seemed like he wanted to do the same thing- only to Father's face. "Now, it is time to add the newest addition to our little family here."

Roy looked at Edward, completely confused as to what was happening. Ed looked back, mouthing something that looked suspiciously like 'What the fuck'. Roy's eyes scanned the room again, this time looking at the ceiling, and in the corners of the chamber. There had to be some kind way to get out of here. Ed caught on to what the Colonel was doing, and began doing the same. He caught sight of the pipes all leading to one spot in the darkened left corner of the room. There. They had to be going somewhere; and that somewhere would lead them out from underground.

Ed looked back at Roy, and noticed that the older alchemist was also looking at the same corner of the room. He nodded to Roy, and Roy moved his hand ever so slightly behind his blue military uniform. Riza caught on to what was happening, her mahogany eyes also glued to the left corner of the chamber. Alphonse and Ling were close to follow suit, exchanging glances, and shifting into fighting positions. "NOW!" yelled Ed, jumping into action.

Roy snapped, illuminating the corner, and confirming the group's suspicions that there was a path leading from it.

Ed started off running, and clapped his hands to turn his automail into a sword. He then knelt down, sending a barrage of rocks toward father and the homunculi. Riza shot at Father, letting Roy slip behind her to run with Edward. Alphonse saw what his brother was doing, and also sent sharp boulders toward the man in white.

After the rocks had all landed in the middle, covering Father from the group, they all tore off in the direction of the pipes. Ling led the group, his natural speed giving him an advantage. He almost reached the small pathway out, when Envy landed in front of the group. Ling drew his sword, but wasn't quick enough to strike before Roy sent flames toward the large homunculus. Envy howled in pain, sending its gargantuan green tail flying toward the group.

Ed clapped, ignoring the pain in his human hand. He needed to raise a wall between them and that crazed homunculus before they all got hit. Blue sparks leapt from the ground, and a growing barricade of rock rose up. But it was too late. Even with a three foot tall wall, Envy's tail obliterated any resistance, and sent all five humans flying backward.

Roy hit the ground with a crack, and rolled over twice before finally stopping. He propped himself up on his elbow, doing his best to ignore the stinging on all of his exposed skin. His rough landing caused the knees of his pants to rip open, and one of his elbows. The resulting scratches seemed to start burning, no doubt due to all the dirt and dust particles from the ground. He put his other hand on the ground trying to steady himself, but his arm only collapsed back down. Roy winced, feeling that the arm was most likely broken. His instinct was to glance over at Riza, who had only been hit with the end of the tail, and not been thrown quite as far. She was also getting up; her hair having been knocked out of its clip and her guns having been knocked away from her grasp, she looked pretty helpless, sucking in a sharp breath. Even she was visibly hurt on her side, at which her shirt had ripped, and Roy could see a deep gash from a rock she had hit on her way down.

Riza looked like she had literally had the life knocked out of her, after being hit the lightest, so he could only imagine how Edward and Ling felt. Roy looked behind him, maneuvering the best he could with his semi-functional arm, and saw that both figures were at least moving. Ling was able to regain his upright position, only relying on his sword somewhat for balance. The right side of his face was bleeding, as was his bare chest, but he looked alright for the most part with mostly flesh wounds. Edward, however, was a completely different story.

Edward tried, but was unable to even sit up, His automail still seemed functional, although his flesh arm looked injured beyond repair. It had been broken before, but it was completely shattered now. The various cuts on Edward's face- both the new and the old- had begun bleeding again, the bandages wrapped around his forehead now ripped into pieces and scattered around the room. His shirt was ripped at the left shoulder, exposing that bleeding body part to the stinging dust the commotion had kicked up. From Roy's vantage point, He couldn't see Fullmetal's legs, but the way Edward was wheezing, and remaining on the ground, one of them was most likely broken. Edward had already needed medical attention when he first arrived, but now… Now the situation had become ten times more desperate.

"Brother!" Alphonse exclaimed, the suit of armor also looking worse for wear. Al ran towards Edward, and helped his brother get into at least a sitting position.

"Al…" Edward wheezed, his breaths even more strained than before, "Al… Get out of here…"

"Fullmetal," Roy managed, as he used his uninjured left arm to stand up, "Fullmetal, we're all getting out of here." Roy looked up at Envy- the thing that had almost obliterated the entire group in a single blow. Roy glared; maybe he could do the same. A snap resounded against the cavernous walls, and the next thing everyone heard was screaming from the giant monster, and hundreds of other voices.

Once the smoke subsided, it was replaced by the smell of burnt flesh, and the sight of a blackened Envy. The faces that had once been part of the monster had now stopped screaming; they were now reduced to ash. Envy struggled to stand as its leg regenerated.

"YOU GODDAMN BRATS!" It screamed, and began toward the humans before the red sparks had subsided, "I MAY NOT BE ALLOWED TO KILL ALL OF YOU, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU'LL COME OUT OF THIS UNSCATHED!" Edward winced, and Roy braced himself for the impact to come.

"That is enough, Envy," Father's voice rang out above all the others. The ground beneath their group began moving again toward the middle. 'Not again' Roy thought. 'All of that couldn't have been for nothing.' All Envy could do was stop and glare, as the humans became further distanced from it. Envy was stopped for now, but was by no means placated.

"What's going to happen now really isn't so bad," Father said, as he stepped out toward Roy, "I still need you alive for later," Roy tried to back away, but tripped over Riza and landed on his backside. Father kept advancing, and the two soldiers scrambled to get up. "Stop moving," Father commanded to deaf ears.

Finally, Father sighed, and the sparking red ground lifted the Colonel and the Lieutenant closer to the bearded figure in white. Father lifted both hands, pressing one onto Roy's chest, and one onto Riza's forehead, "I want to show you that both of you are safe for this time," Riza squirmed, but was caught by the rocks father was controlling around them. Father's hand on her head began also sparking red, and Riza's body stopped moving.

"LIEUTENANT!" Roy yelled, and began thrashing on his own. Now, the red sparks were coming from the hand on his chest. He felt his lungs constrict, but then fill back up with oxygen. The stinging from his cuts subsided, and he felt like he could move his arm again. By the time he opened the eyes he didn't realize he had closed, Father had completely let go of both he and Riza. His Lieutenant was blinking in confusion, and examining her side which had previously been ripped open by a sharp stone. Not even a trace of a scar was left.

"What was that," She breathed, now looking up at the bearded figure, "How did you heal us so quickly?" Ling, Alphonse, and Edward were also staring, Ling's jaw hanging open in shock. No doubt the Prince was wondering how he could gain this ability as well.

"I told you I still needed my sacrifice alive- and for you, woman, consider it an act of goodwill," Father turned to the rest of the group, "My plans for the rest of you are slightly different," Father approached Ling, "I hear you have been seeking immortality. Do you wish to find it?" Ling's eyes grew wide, and he dug his sword deeper into the ground for balance.

"What are you suggesting?"

"You seem to be a skilled fighter. You could be very useful in our plans," Father reached out to his forehead, and a third eye opened up. Out of the new eye, a red liquid began to flow out into Father's hand. The liquid, quickly hardening, took on the color of blood, and glinted light. Edward coughed, realizing what the substance was, "This, Prince, is a philosopher's stone. And you are going to become the newest member of our little family."

Ling gasped, and dropped to his knees. "So you're going to turn that brat into a homunculus?" Envy's voice echoed from behind. Everyone stared at eachother in shock. "That's how a human-based homunculus is created."

"What the hell?" Edward gasped. He tried getting at least onto his knees, assisted by Alphonse, "Homunculi are supposed to be artificial humans. How would it work if they started out as the real thing?" Neither Father nor Envy supplied an answer, "Ling, you can't go through with this."

"Edward, it's a philosopher's stone. It's immortality. Lan Fan gave her arm for this- the secret that could help save our clan. I need to go through with this, Edward!" Ling's hands began to shake, "Lan Fan couldn't have sacrificed so much for nothing."

"Ling, don't you realize... what's going to happen to you?" Edward replied, the best he could, "It won't be you anymore," Ed's words were becoming more and more labored, "You don't know…"

"I need to do this. Nobody can stop me!" Ling snapped, Edward shut his mouth, "I didn't go to hell and back to come out with nothing. Ed, I can fight it. I'll come out of this alive," Ling broke off, and looked up at Father. It was obvious Ling was scared, but Ling did nothing to vocalize his doubts. "I'm ready," He said, and Father took one step closer. He would have taken two- had the explosion not sent chunks of stone flying to the center of the room.

"What the hell is this place?" A gruff voice resounded through the chamber, followed by two pairs of footsteps. Roy strained to see who had entered, and had to rub his eyes to make sure he was seeing correctly. Standing at the new gaping hole was the criminal the military had been chasing for the past few years; followed by a Xingese girl less than half his size, holding daggers in each of her hands.

Roy had been confused earlier, but now he felt as if he had stepped into a completely different reality. "Scar?" He managed, and held one of his hands up.

"You state alchemists are here?" Scar replied, equally bewildered. So he wasn't after Edward and Roy this time? "Are you helping this monstrosity?" Scar gestured to Father and the two Homunculi.

"State Alchemists?" The little Xingese girl dropped her fighting stance and looked hopeful, "Is the Fullmetal Alchemist here?" She asked Scar, her eyes shining.

"He does seem to be," Scar pointed, "What is he doing? What's going on?" Scar's tone became increasingly concerned, and Roy whipped his head back around to Father just in time to see the Philosopher's stone drop, and Edward leap on top of Ling.

The crimson stone fell in what seemed like slow motion. It hit Edward on the chest, on one of the bleeding gashes in his shirt. He fell as the stone did, landing on top of Ling, and knocking the prince to the ground. Father tried to reach his hand out, no doubt to reach the stone expected to drop onto Ling. Edward's recklessness hadn't been a part of the original plan, and the bearded man should have been more careful about becoming distracted.

Roy should have too- because the second Ed hit the ground and rolled off of his friend, an almost inhuman screech filled the chamber.

The noises coming out of Edward were nothing like he had ever made before; they were nothing like any noise Roy had heard anyone make before. Ed kept rolling on the ground, his arms grabbing at his chest as if he couldn't breathe. Roy thought he yelled something, maybe Alphonse and Riza did too, but he couldn't process any words, as he was too glued to watching the scene in front of him. Edward kept clutching his chest, and curled into a ball, still screeching, when Ling reached out for his friend. So far, this looked like the most pain Roy had ever seen Edward in, and felt compelled to reach for the child as well. Compelled until Edward's pain became explosive.

Edward's small body began sparking red, more energy flowing through it at one time than if Edward had been struck by lightning. Edward began convulsing, his arms flailing, and his entire body caught in an endless fit of spasms. His screaming was choked out, and Edward was hitting the ground hard, his appendages banging against the hard stone and his head bashing into whatever was near it. Roy took back his hand, not wanting to give Fullmetal anything else to hit himself with. This already broken child couldn't keep this up much longer. Roy couldn't take this much longer.

"You're killing him!" Alphonse screeched, running for his brother's flailing body, "Make it stop! Make it stop!" Al's voice was as frantic as Roy felt, desperation twinging every syllable.

"Fullmetal! Hey! Listen to us!" Roy didn't realize he was yelling until all the words had left his mouth. This couldn't be happening to Edward. None of them would even be down here if they hadn't been left alone in that fight. If Roy had stayed, Edward never would have gotten swallowed. They never would have had to enter this literal hellhole. Edward wouldn't be dying. It was all Roy's fault. He kept screaming. This was all his fault.

All Edward remembered from his haze before was jumping in front of Ling to stop him from killing himself. He remembered yelling, then pain, then screaming.

Edward felt as if both of his limbs were on fire. He could envision the third degree burns, the ashy look of charred flesh. He felt as if he were being deconstructed again- ripped apart by the truth in the portal.

He felt the energy flowing flowing through his veins, inflaming the flesh around them, threatening to burst. He felt his head and imagined it as a grenade, as volatile as one of the Colonel's explosions. He felt like he was dying.

"Hey, kid," An inhuman voice from behind Edward said, causing the young alchemist to open his eyes, "I can make it all stop. You just have to listen to what I say."

Edward kept sparking, but slowly the convulsions stopped. After what seemed like an eternity, the last shriek from Edward's mouth also escaped, and the child collapsed on the cold, hard ground.

Roy scrambled to get to him, followed closely by Riza, and met on the other side by Alphonse and Ling.

"Brother!" Alphonse exclaimed, holding Edward up in his arms, "Edward! Listen to me!" Alphonse almost never addressed Ed by his first name; only when the situation was becoming dire.

"Edward!" Ling exclaimed, examining Ed's chest for the wound the stone had entered. But there was no wound. Ed's chest looked as if he had never become injured in his life. Alphonse shook his brother, and immediately the young alchemist scrambled to his feet. Thank god. He was alive.

"Brother!" Alphonse said, also coming to his feet.

"I don't know who this used to be, but I sure as hell aren't your brother. The name's Greed." Maybe Ed wasn't alive after all.

"Why should I listen to you?" Edward spat, his voice starting to become drowned out by all the screaming others, "What is this?"

"Listen, shorty," Ed was ready to kill this guy now, "This is a philosopher's stone. Take a good look. You can either come willing, or be forcibly integrated. With the latter, I can't ensure your survival," The source of the dominant voice was one black face amongst the sea of red. A giant black mask, floating in front of Edward.

"What's… What's going to happen?" Edward's chest still felt as if someone had exploded a bomb inside of it.

"Just stop struggling, and the pain will stop. Then, you have the pleasure of becoming the new Greed," Edward's eyes widened at that.

"Greed… He's dead… We saw… he died…," Ed was at a loss of words. How was this the same homunculus?

"You must be talking about the old Greed," Ed now realized how similar the giant black mask looked to the Ultimate Shield, "Better think quick, kid. Time's gonna run out soon. What'll it be?" Ed contemplated his options.

He could let this 'Greed' homunculus take over his body, and remain conscious of what was going on, or he could reject it, dying forever. Edward squirmed at the notion of someone else controlling his body, looking into his mind. He couldn't just become a useless pawn for Father. But then again, he would be useless to Alphonse dead. He needed to do something. Maybe- just maybe- if he let Greed in, he could fight it out later. One small sacrifice for now, but later on, it could pay off. He needed to stay alive and fighting for Alphonse, and for Winry. He couldn't make her cry again. He couldn't put her through any more hardships than he already had.

"Sorry, kid. Looks like I'm going to have to use force," Greed started, but was soon cut off by Ed's frantic yelling.

"Take my body! Just do it, Greed! It's yours now!" 'And only for now' Ed added in his mind. He was going to stay alive. Winry and Alphonse were not going to be alone.

"If you say so," Greed replied nonchalantly, and Ed closed his eyes. He'd been to hell and back twice now. How bad could a third trip be?