When September Ends
By: Mustang'sBunny
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Gees. That's kind-of depressing when you think about it. And yes, the title is from the song "When September Ends" by Green Day. I thought it was a fitting title and "theme song" for this fan fiction. By the end you should understand, but really it has nothing to do with the story...
Oh, and please...NO FLAMES!
...
Chapter Thirteen: Taken
Ed (a couple hours after explosion)
Ed woke up in a cold, dimly lit room that appeared to be a building's basement. He was tied to a wooden chair by rope around his waist, his hands were bound behind the chair, and his legs were tied to the legs of the chair. Surrounding him were tons of mirrors, showing him how pitiful and damaged he looked. Someone had gone and taken out his braid, and his black military boots were missing, as was his jacket, revealing his black shirt that he wore underneath that. Aside from the mirrors, he could see a door that was on the wall behind him, and several carts that were littered with needles and weapons, not to mention doctor's tools. Upon seeing the needles filled with various liquids, Ed tried his best to squirm in his seat, but he was held fast by the rope. And with his hands bound, he couldn't even use alchemy.
"My, my, the rumors are true," came a voice as the door behind him opened and someone waltzed inside, although he couldn't quite see them in the mirror. "You are quite the aggressive one. Aggressive."
The man who had entered came in front of Ed, and gave a chuckle.
"The name is Darik. Darik. And I'll be your captor today. So tell me Edward, how are you feeling. Come on now, don't be shy."
"I feel like kicking you in your bloody face!" Ed yelled and attempted to leapt forward, but was again held back by the rope.
"Now, now, I wouldn't be doing that," Darik tutted. "Where I will allow such things, my friends will grow quite...fed up with it. Yes, fed up with it."
"Friends?" Ed growled. 'Oh great, more of them. Just what I need.'
"Yup, yup. There are plenty friends here," Darik grinned.
"What do you plan on doing with me?" Ed questioned as he continued to try to find a way to get free.
"It's not what I want with you. No. No! It's what the boss wants. As long as he pays that it..."
Darik gave him another sickly smile and walked behind him. Ed looked forward in the mirrors to see what the madman was up to. Darik was standing behind him, running his bony fingers through Ed's long blonde hair, causing a chill to run up the small alchemist's spine. Darik seemed to be only a couple years older than Ed, but he seemed more sinister than he was leading onto believe.
"Tell me, Edward, is there anyone back home waiting for you? Waiting for dear old you?"
"And why the hell should I answer that?" Ed growled.
"'Cause I could always ask the boss, and he'll go find 'em...and kill 'em. So maybe...maybe...you should answer my questions, hm?"
Ed glared at the man through his reflection in the mirror and bit his lip.
"Yes."
"Like a black haired man? Like him?" Darik asked as the door opened.
"Why?"
"Oh, no reason. No reason."
Another man had entered the room, this time a blonde with icy blue eyes, pale skin, that was almost Roy's age, give or take.
"Is he awake?" the man asked. His voice was smooth like velvet.
'Like Roy,' Ed found himself thinking with a deep frown. It was not good to be comparing his beloved Roy to one of his kidnappers.
"Yes. Yes," Darik said. Ed noted that Darik had an annoying tendency to repeat himself.
"Good, now it's my turn," the man said with a grin.
Darik waltzed back out of the room, leaving Ed with the blonde.
"I trust Darik told you why you're here?"
"No."
"Oh. Well, I suppose that's good for me then," he said as he pulled a knife from the pocket of his white suit and ran it across the back of his hand. "The more fun you and I will have."
The man stepped forward, directly in front of Ed and showed him the blade.
"See this?"
"No."
"Smart ass..." the man growled. "Now, I guess it's only fair to warn you, I'm not as nice as Darik. I have a temper, and I hate to lose."
"Poor you."
"The name is Erik," he said, giving Ed's cheek a shallow cut that made Ed gasp. Visions of when Barry the Chopper had kidnapped him surfaced and made it hard for him to breathe. "And I'm gonna be the one to torture you. Any questions?"
"Yeah, one," Ed gasped. "What...what did you do with Roy?"
"Roy?" Erik asked in confusion, but then a sudden light came into his eye, or so Ed thought he saw. "Oh. Oh! You mean that black haired guy?"
"Yeah."
"Oh, we killed him."
Ed's world fell apart. Killed?
"Sorry kid," Erik said while brushing Ed's jawbone with his index finger, although the young alchemist wasn't paying attention. "But don't worry, we'll be having so much fun, you'll forget all about him..."
Roy (three days later)
There was an immense dark silence that pressed down on his eyes. The colonel felt as though he was laying on his back, and stationary.
'Wait...what?'
He opened his eyes quickly, wondering what the hell was going on. Rain was pouring from the heavens and running down the window to his right, and he was laying chest up in a white bed. His surroundings were familiar...
"Central?" he wondered in a lethargic groan as he rubbed his head. He discovered as he ran his fingers through his black hair on the back of his head, there was bandages that were covering up what felt like an enormous bump that throbbed painfully when touched.
"Damn..." he groaned. "What the hell happened..."
He tried to remember what happened that would land him in the hospital, but he couldn't come up with anything. The last thing he remembered was...
"ED!"
"Roy! Thank god you're awake," came Hawkeye's concerned voice from the doorway.
Sure enough, that's where his subordinate was standing. She was wearing not only her uniform, but also a worried and tired look as well.
"I was beginning to fear the worst, Sir."
"Where's Ed?"
"Sir..."
"Where is he Hawkeye? And where am I for that matter?" Roy asked. "Central?"
"Yes. You see, when you went to see Ed, there was a terrorist attack..." she said, biting her lip.
"I...I remember now!" Roy gasped. "I remember seeing Ed, then an explosion, and...Ed! Where is he? Is he alright?"
There was a deafening silence. Hawkeye had left the door open when she had come in, and just as he asked the question, Al had been walking down the hall and confronted Archer who had stopped just outside Roy's door.
"Archer! Sir!" Alphonse cried out, running up to the man with a desperate look.
"Oh, hello Alphonse," Archer said with a smile.
"My brother! Is it true?"
"Oh dear, Alphonse, I'm sorry," Archer said sympathetically, causing Roy want to throw up from the fakeness of it all. "We tried to find him..."
"Tried to find him?" Roy questioned, just loud enough to let Archer hear.
"I see, you're awake now Colonel Mustang?"
"What do you mean 'find him'?" Roy asked.
"Why, haven't you heard?" Archer asked, forcing down a grin that almost over took him. "A terrorist came up behind you and hit you, causing you to pass out. Then a bunch of other terrorist came in and took Ed away."
From where he was seated, Roy saw Hawkeye bite her lip to the point where it was bleeding, and Alphonse turned as white as a sheep as tears started to stream down his cheeks. But nobody said anything.
"You mean...he was...kidnapped?" Roy asked in horror.
"Yes. That's what I'm saying," Archer said indifferently. "We're pretty sure that the terrorists want our military out of the picture and decided that it would be best to kidnap Ed to prove their point."
"What...what will they do to him?" Al asked in a frightened voice.
"Think about what he went through with Barry the Chopper," Archer said. "Now, times that by ten."
It was almost visible how much those words shook Al to his very core. Barry had intended on dicing up both Ed and Winry. Ten times worse? That was like the worst forms of torture. Ending most likely with death.
"What are we doing about the situation, Sir?" Hawkeye questioned Archer.
"We're establishing a communication with the kidnappers, so we can work out an agreement," Archer said. "But something tells me..."
Roy bend down his head, wondering what the hell he did to deserve this form of hell, Hawkeye avoided Archer's glance, and Alphonse rushed off to the bathroom, his face green from the words Archer spoke.
"Something tells me they won't be willing to give him up."
Finally! Done with that chapter! I know, it took me forever to update, but...now I have! I was reading through the first version I put up of chapter 12 and realized that there were some spelling mistakes, and (gasps!) no author blah blah at the end of the chapter! So, I might revise it. Sorry if you ever find spelling mistakes, I mean, I try to look them over, but I'm not really good at spelling...
So, here I am again, begging you to review! If you don't...Ed might not come out of here alive. Or maybe something will push Roy over the edge...? You don't want Roxanne and Roxas to be orphans again...do you? Well, review then! The more reviews, the better the outcome.
Oh, and the "Wo ai ni" thing from the previous chapter is Chinese just incase you didn't know. It does mean "I love you". I didn't make that up. I always kind-of imagined Xing kind-of like China...
I asked my friend to read through When September Ends, and I've been waiting for her feedback before I wrote anymore. Aside from my laziness and mental blockage (the plot bunnies have been alluding me...), you can blame her for not reading fast enough! So, until next time, catch ya later!
And please review! I love hearing from all of you!
Mustang'sBunny