Losing Track of Time

A/N: Being that I wrote the last chapter when it was really early in the morning and I was extremely tired and somewhat delusional, I made a slight error. When Roy was addressing the three soldiers who would be going with Ed and Kat at the end of the chapter, I wrote that Riza, Havoc, and Armstrong had entered. I then wrote Breda in for some reason. So to clear it up, Breda is not in this story, it's supposed to be Armstrong.

Chapter Four: Falling Hope

"Dad, are you sure about this?" Kat said with concern in her voice. Ed scowled at her, but his face fell a second after when he looked at her. They were in the back of Hawkeye's car, Hawkeye at the wheel, Armstrong in the front seat, and Havoc sitting in back with him and Kat.

"Kat, I am absolutely positive. Please trust me." He said quietly. Havoc gave a side glance down at Kat and then to Ed. Ed avoided his gaze as the car drove further out of Central. They were heading to Resembool, to where the Rockbell house once stood. Ed had a feeling that he would find what he needed there; Envy. But he was also afraid of finding his brother.

Alphonse was like a ticking time bomb. Because he had lost his humanity a few years ago, the chance of him remaining sane was slim. It was only a matter of time before he became what was intended of his now true nature. Ed felt his face hide behind his bangs. I have to find a way to restore his humanity. He was lucky enough to last as long as he did in the armor…I don't know if his soul can withstand another break away from his body.

Kat watched her father with anticipation. He was tired, dark circles under his weary eyes. His face was showing signs of pain from his broken body he refused to get patched up. And the worst part was he was beginning to ware out. He was aging faster than he should be. And he wasn't even in his forties! But his laugh lines were already showing and when he raised his brows, his forehead would wrinkle. It scared her to see her father growing older because she didn't want to lose him. She was afraid of that. She had almost lost him so many times before. Because of that his years had been shaved. She wasn't ready to face the fact that her father wasn't immortal. He wouldn't be there her whole life. He would die one day.

"Edward, you do realize that this will make you vulnerable if you do not have your injuries checked." Riza broke in both the Elric's thoughts, staring at the oldest one through her rear view mirror. He looked back at her and then back out his window. Armstrong grunted.

"Edward Elric, you are too stubborn. You should listen to your superiors." Ed twitched.

"I'm 38 years old! I can make my own decisions!" He shouted. Armstrong swung around in his seat, his once blonde strand of hair brilliant silver, but his muscles unchanged. He began to sparkle, and somehow he had lost his shirt, making everyone uncomfortable. As he flexed, he boomed loudly in the small vehicle,

"WE ARE STILL OLDER THAN YOU, EDWARD! YOU SHOULD RESPECT US IN THAT MANOR AS YOU DID WHEN YOU WERE 15! AFTERALL, WHO HAS MUSCLES LIKE THESE AT MY AGE, HMMM?" He proudly revealed every muscle that could be seen, but Ed just blew his hair from his face.

"Looking flabby if you ask me." He spat, making Armstrong's sparkles vanish and his face fall. He checked over himself for sagging and he mumbled how unfair Ed was being on judgment. Kat smacked her dad and he flinched. "What the hell was that for?"

"For being a jerk to your friend."

"He is not my friend, Katie!"

"Oh, really? Then why would he volunteer to help you in such a dangerous task that shouldn't even involve the military?" She combated. Edward looked at her, stunned by her words. She flicked her ponytail behind her in frustration. "It's true, Dad. This is a family issue that has nothing to do with the military. Sure, the homunculi are involved, but it is a totally different situation. So you should be grateful that our comrades are putting their lives on the line, yet again, for us!"

It was like Ed had gotten a smack in the face. He stared at Kat in disbelief, but knew she was right. He looked at all the people in the car and frowned. Leaning farther back into his seat, he cleared his throat. "You're right, Katie. I apologize. To everyone. I never realize how much you all do for me." He looked at his daughter, who was avoiding his gaze. But he grabbed her flesh hand in his and she looked at him. "Forgive me, kiddo?"

Kat stuck her lip out a minute, but decided to cave. She squeezed his hand back and laid her head on his shoulder, a slight grin on her face. "I will forgive you completely if you take back what you said, Dad."

"What?"

"Do you not see Alex crying in the front seat and studying his every toned muscle?"

"…No…" Kat picked her head up and glared at him, making him shiver. In her automail hand was a wrench. "I mean…Armstrong, I take it back completely! You still have the biggest, most tone muscles I have ever seen in my life!" The sparkles lit back up and Armstrong looked at the Elrics in the backseat with tears of joy and relief.

"THANK YOU SO MUCH EDWARD! IT MEANS A LOT COMING FROM SUCH A DEAR FRIEND!" Ed put his head down and frowned. Dear friend…No Armstrong. I am no dear friend. I am a falling hope of a friend, a ticking time bomb on my own. I don't deserve friends like you.

.-.-.

It was a three day drive before they reached Resembool. As they pulled up the driveway to the vacant lot, Kat found herself comparing it to the past she had witnessed just yesterday. Except there was nothing to compare. It was then she began to regret burning the house down. But she wasn't given a choice. It was her Dad or the house and she made her choice clear.

Riza parked the car and everyone filed out. Ed led the way to where the front door was and he began to sift through the remains of the house. Kat followed suit and together they searched for anything that gave them another sign of Envy or Al. Riza walked to the cemetery, where she began to search for clues there, Havoc following her. Armstrong walked up the hill to where Edward's childhood home used to stand, feeling it best to cover all grounds.

Kat watched her father clap his hands and create a wall. She jumped back. "Dad?"

"I'm putting the house back together, Katie. Please know I won't make it a retreat and if you'd like, we will burn it down again when this is over and Al is human again." Kat stayed silent, watching her dad reconstruct the Rockbell house wall by wall until finally he clapped his hands one last time and the roof was together, making the house whole again. He stood back and admired his work, staring at every detail. The yellow paint, the white porch, the balcony on the second story where Winry's room was; it was all there again. He jumped up on top of the roof and glared down at the ourroborus that stared up at him. He then bent down and ripped away the shingles.

"Kat." He called to her. He heard her hoist herself up to him and kneeled down to see what he found. She gasped.

"Dad?" She said in horror as she fell from her knees. In Ed's hands was a picture of Winry, Ed, and Al when they were children. Winry's face had a red 'X' through it, along with Al's. Ed's face had a circle around it, as if marking him for something. He crumpled the picture in his fist and stood.

"Envy, you bastard! You marked Winry before she was ever pregnant didn't you! And then you took her away from me! And now you're taking Al? WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT FROM ME?"

Kat flinched at her father's anger and watched as Armstrong came running towards them, something clutched in his hand. She jumped down to meet him, taking what she now saw as another picture from him. As she looked at it, the man remained silent, but a small smile spread across his face. Kat looked up at him and cocked her head.

"This is a picture of me…" She told him. He nodded and grabbed her hand.

"Katie, we should take you and Edward somewhere safe. I couldn't bare it if something happened to both of you under my watch." He pulled her forward a little, but she pulled her arm back. He didn't let go. "Katie, what are you doing?" He asked gruffly. She growled at him, putting her hands together and knocking the muscular form backwards with a blast of spiritual energy until he smacked into the large tree behind the house. Edward came around, jumping down from the roof and landing next to his daughter.

"What the hell was that?"

"Dad, you really need a new line of questions." Was all she replied as the man stood back up, his face twisted into a demonic smile. Ed glared.

"Envy. Where is Armstrong?"

"Whatever do you mean, Edward Elric, I'm right here!"

"Don't play dumb with me! What did you do with him? What did you do with all of them?" He sternly asked, clearly pissed off now. Kat shared his anger, holding her fighting stance. The fake Armstrong rippled and suddenly changed, but it was not Envy. Edward felt his jaw drop as he realized from the very beginning that it could never have been Envy. "Alphonse?"

"Edward Elric and spawn. So nice to see you again!" Al spat, his smile full of sharp teeth and malice. Kat took a step back, no longer hiding her fright. Ed put a hand on her shoulder.

"Alphonse, do you remember who I am?"

"Sorry, Mr. Fullmetal, but that Al died shortly after time travel. You have Envy to deal with now…the new and improved Envy!" Suddenly, Al lunged forward, kicking Ed square in the face. Kat flew back, avoiding a punch to the teeth and she clapped her hands, sending a wall of spiritual energy towards the non-human, but missing him entirely.

"He's fast." She muttered. Al turned to her as Ed tried to stand up and fight. She began to kick and punch at him, running through every fighting move her dad taught her, but he countered them all, grabbing her wrist and throwing her down. Ed stood up and lunged at him, but Al threw him down as well, holding him on his back by his throat. Ed sputtered, gasping for air as he watched Kat struggle to move as well.

A gunshot rang through the air and Al screamed, a bullet hole in his heart. He fell forward, momentarily dead, giving enough time to Ed and Kat to scramble away from his still form. Hawkeye ran forward, a bloody slash across her forehead. "Edward, is that really Alphonse?"

"No, Lieutenant. That is not Alphonse. That is Envy." Ed confessed, his eyes filled with pain of this new fact. It had sunken in when he had looked into his brother's eyes and saw nothing but the urge to kill. Al never gave that look, not even to his enemies. He didn't believe in killing. But Al was no longer human, and Ed's worst fear had come to life. Alphonse Elric was gone.

"Dad! He's coming towards us!" Kat screamed, Al charging from behind. Ed clapped his hands and slammed them down to the ground, letting out a loud roar of frustration. The alchemy crackled the air and huge chunks of the ground came up from under Al and smashed into him, sinking back down. Kat froze as she watched Ed crush his brother, but he turned and began to run again, grabbing her by the arm to follow. She did so, barely being able to keep up with the man's pace.

Riza began firing her gun again and Ed flinched, trying his hardest not to picture the bullets hitting Al. It startled him, running from his own brother. He just couldn't accept the fact that he was himself no longer.

Armstrong popped up from behind the hill running towards them, his shirt gone and his chest ripped and bloodied. Slung over his shoulder was Havoc, who was unconscious. Ed met Armstrong and took Havoc and they ran towards the Rockbell house. Armstrong went to assist Hawkeye as her gun firing increased and she began to shout.

Ed burst into the house, laying Havoc out on the ground. The soldier was bleeding profusely from the shoulder and his face was bruised and swollen over his left eye. His leg looked as if it had been snapped and the knee was bent the wrong way. Ed held back a gag as Kat began to stop the bleeding in his shoulder. Ed quickly snapped Havoc's knee back the right way, causing him to wake up in writhing pain.

"Son of a bitch!" Havoc screamed, clutching at his knee, but Kat held him down, allowing Edward to snap the knee back completely.

"You've gotta hold still as best you can, ok, Jean?" Katie said to him. Havoc began to sweat, his forehead shining and his breaths shallow. "What went on out there?"

"Al…he came over the hill….attacked…he looked like Ed at first and tricked us, OWWWW!" He ended with as Ed finished his crude work.

"Yeah, you can't even walk. This isn't good. Al is strong and he's already hurt all of us. We have to find a way to hold him…" Ed thought a moment, and then realized what he could do. He reached inside his shirt and pulled out a locket. Kat looked at him and her eyes squinted to see what it was he was wearing. She looked at him.

"Dad, what is that?"

"It's a locket, Katie. It has your mother's and your picture in it, but it also has a piece of your Uncle Al's DNA. And hopefully it will be enough to hold him back."

"I wouldn't count on it!" Ed and Kat turned around to see Al standing in the doorway, covered in crimson. He was smiling maliciously, watching them intently. Ed stood and walked in front of his daughter and Havoc, blocking them completely. "Oh, Ed! That won't keep me away for long! If I want to kill the little bitch and the weak bastard at your feet, all I have to do is wave my hand and snap your neck."

"I won't let you."

"Even if you hurt this precious body?"

"You're not my brother, anymore. And I will do whatever it takes to protect my daughter." Ed threw his locket at Al and the homunculus laughed as it flew towards him, but as it made contact with his skin, he froze. Ed walked calmly over to him, taking in a deep breath at Al's eyes watched him. "Kat, get Havoc out of here and into the car. Drive him to the local hospital and get him help. Find the others on your way, make sure they're alive. I'll stay here."

Kat pulled Havoc to his feet, slinging an arm over her shoulder. She stopped at the doorway and they both looked at Ed and he stared down the evil being in front of him. Havoc winced.

"Chief, you gonna be ok to do…whatever you're thinking?" Ed glanced over at him and slowly gave a smile.

"I need to have a talk with my brother."

Ok, I'm gonna start accelerating this story from here on out and it will move faster within the next couple chapters. Not so sure I'm happy with it, but I hope y'all approve anyway. Happy reading, please review!