A/N: Hello reader, it's me again! Sorry for not updating last week, I was preoccupied by another fic of mine. Thank you to everyone who followed,favorited, or reviewed! Your support meant a lot to me! I especially tank Griselda Banks for their constructive criticism! I found it really helpful and have made notes to edit my previous chapters later. If anybody else has any constructive crit or confusions, please tell me! Now, with no further ado, let the story continue!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.
Chapter 3: A Man Made of Steel
Ed had no clue what the Colonel had done to the monstrous creature that he had only caught a glimpse of, but he was pretty sure that he didn't want to know. Judging by the sounds of thundering explosions and raindrops punching the ground angrily, the battle had lasted quite awhile. But at some point in time, all those sounds had just vanished.
Ed was certain that the five minutes he had spent crouching in the darkness of the basement in his own little world of silence had been the longest five minutes of his life. Seconds crawled by slowly, each tick waiting a century to be followed by the next tock. At one point, Ed had even convinced himself that he would spend the rest of his life there, in that dark room, not ever learning how he had ended up there in the first place.
The thought had scared him enough for him to try standing up, but the concussion that he had acquired when he had been thrown into the basement didn't allow his already weak body to cooperate with his wishes, and he tumbled back down the moment he tried to lift his shoulders off the ground. It was as if the earth had glued him to the floor.
So he laid there and waited, his head pounding, nausea building inside of him, as he wondered if Mustang was even still alive and what he would do if he wasn't. Then, the bubble of silence that had surrounded him was suddenly popped as an inhuman scream suddenly rang in his ears. Ed had never heard such a terrible scream before. It sounded as if the being that had produced the sound was being dragged deep into the earth by a demon, never to be free again. Ed used his automail hand to cover one of his ears, but his flesh arm was unfortunately broken and in a cast, so the terrible cry was far from blocked out. The scream lasted for a whole, torturous minute, before abruptly stopping.
And then Ed waited once more, in silence.
He was beginning to believe that the scream had come from Mustang and that the man was dead, when the door to the basement opened. Thankfully it was the Colonel who walked in and not some human-bird chimera. Then, he noticed the knife in the man's hands, completely covered in a red liquid. He gave Mustang a half horrified, half questioning look, which was either unnoticed or ignored, for he got no response. The Colonel proceeded to open a drawer near the entrance and took out a long candle which he lit with a snap of his fingers. Light spread throughout the room like a growing puddle on a rainy day and Ed could finally see his surroundings.
The room itself was rather empty, save for a couch and a coffee table, but along the walls were three doors, each probably leading to another room. The walls, ceiling, and floor were all a dull, lifeless gray. The only colorful things in the room was the blue couch and a single, half dead rose sagging in a plastic bottle of water. It was a rather depressing sight.
The Colonel placed the candle on the coffee table before helping Ed get to the couch. After having treated his subordinate's injuries, Mustang went into the one of the rooms and returned with a pen and notepad.
"I know you're probably freaked out at the moment, especially after what you've probably just seen." Roy said monotonously. "However, I need you to write down everything you know about the King. And I mean everything. I have to know in order to even begin dreaming about overthrowing that tyrant." He handed Ed the pen and notepad.
The young alchemist wrote as quickly and legibly as he could with his automail hand, before handing back the notepad to Mustang.
What the hell is going on?
Eventually, the two alchemists had arrived to the conclusion that Ed had amnesia. The Colonel hadn't been happy about that and had immediately ordered Ed to sleep. refusing to read Ed's questions and demands that he had written on his notepad. A few moments later, the young alchemist was alone on the couch in the now dark room once more. Mustang had gone into a room of his own and despite the walls between him and the Colonel, Ed could still hear him snoring away. The young alchemist however, was having trouble sleeping himself, because according to Mustang during their brief "conversation", he had lost a years worth of memories. He was having an understandably hard time computing that fact.
People simply don't fall asleep on a train only to wake up a year later. On top of all that, he happened to have been MIA for a year, so Mustang had little information to tell him about what had happened to him in that time. With a million questions pestering his mind and little time to process everything that had occurred that night, Ed laid on the couch, wide awake as he stared into the darkness unblinkingly.
He didn't know how many hours he'd spent wondering about what had happened to him. But eventually, he got tired and finally fell asleep.
Ed was rudely awakened by the sound of the Colonel's voice.
"Get up Fullmetal. Today, I'm giving you a tour of your new home. After you heal, I won't always be around so you'll have to know where to get any resources that you might need. Weapons, clothing, food, and anything else you can think of are usually found in the supply room." Mustang gestured to one of the doors nearby. "However, if you run out of anything important, you'll have to know where to find it." Before Ed even had time to process his words, the Colonel dragged him to his feet and guided him to the van.
As they drove down the streets, Mustang pointed out different buildings that had different supplies available. "That's the grocery store. I think it's obvious, but most of the fruits, vegetables, and meat there are no longer edible. However, if you're in desperate need of food or water, there's canned meals and bottles of water there. Remember, only come out here if it's an emergency and only come out during the night. The King's drones and minions are usually out here during the day and even with the heavy stench of blood here, they'll probably detect you. However, if you do bump into another chimera or anything else that has the ability to move, don't try to fight it unless you have to. Your best option is to get back to base. They can't get to you through those steel doors. Also..."
Ed soon lost interest in whatever Mustang was talking about, considering that he was starting to sound more paranoid than informational. As the young alchemist absently took note of the important locations that the Colonel had pointed out, his mind once again wandered to the realm of his imagination, which was still trying to figure out what had happened to him in the past year or so.
About half an hour later, Ed was suddenly interrupted from his thoughts as the stench of death suddenly disappeared. He blinked and saw that they had somehow ended up at the edge of the forest that Ed had woken up in last night. Confused he wrote something on the notepad that he had bought along.
What are we doing here?
Mustang read the note and then explained. "As you might recall, we were being chased by a large group of enemies last night. I'm fairly confident that I took care of all of them last night, but it doesn't hurt to check twice. We're also low on food supplies and I don't plan on eating canned food everyday. I'm going to hopefully catch a few animals and gather some fruits and berries. While I do that, you stay here and don't try to leave. You hear me?" Ed rolled his eyes and scribbled something down before showing it to Mustang.
Do I look like I'm capable of leaving on my own? The Colonel was not amused.
"I'm serious, Fullmetal. There will probably be something that makes you curious while I'm gone, but don't leave. It'll probably be one of them trying to lure you out. As long as you stay here and don't open the door however, you'll be perfectly safe. Okay?" Ed nodded. Assured, Mustang opened the door and disappeared down the road leading into the forest.
For several hours, Ed waited patiently and silently for the Colonel to finish doing everything he needed to do, doodling on his notepad absently. Then, a shadowy figure appeared down the road. At first Ed thought it was Mustang. Then it got closer. The pen fell from Ed's hands.
Is that Al?
Sure enough, an armored figure that looked exactly like his little brother was approaching him, slowly but surely. At first he was ecstatic, overjoyed to see his brother. He knew that Al was capable of taking care of himself, but he had still been worried about his sibling. He was about to unbuckle his seat belt and open the door to greet his brother when he remembered the Colonel's warning.
There will probably be something that makes you curious while I'm gone, but don't leave. It'll probably be one of them trying to lure you out. As long as you stay here and don't open the door however, you'll be perfectly safe. Was this a trick? Was it merely an illusion? It certainly didn't look like one. Surely this was his little brother! But as he thought about it, he realized that this couldn't be Al. His real brother would have been just as excited as he had been to see Ed, especially if he had been MIA for a year. He would have been sprinting down the road to finally be reunited with his older brother. But this stranger, this illusion, was coming towards him at the pace of a garden snail. This wasn't Al.
But as long as I don't open the door, I'll be fine. He thought to himself and relaxed. A few minutes later, the fake Al arrived and stood in front of the car. Ed glared at it. Nice try, but I'm not opening the door for you. You're just an illusion trying to lure me out of the car. But the suit of armor did nothing to try and coax him out. Instead, it just stared, straight through his eyes and into his soul. Ed found himself petrified with fear. What does it want. He vaguely wondered through the haze of horror and panic fogging his mind.
Then, just as Ed was starting to find the stranger's stare unbearable, the fake Al raised a fist slammed it into the van, leaving a dent. Before Ed could process what had just occurred, the not-Al climbed onto the car.
The sound of breaking glass shattered the night.
A/N: I'm a bit concerned about this chapter's pacing, but it was really fun to write! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Follow/favorite/review if you haven't already. Again, reviews are especially encouraging and appreciated. Constructive crit is also welcomed! Thank you curligurl0896, Brenne, The SoulEater Alchemist, Rufescent, and Griselda Banks for reviewing last chapter! Until the next time I update (hopefully next week, but no promises!), I, EndlessStars, bid you farewell!
