Chapter 14: Chemical Reaction

Winry found herself unable to think, feel, or even register the past couple of hours. Her grandmother had given her life to save her and for what? She sat tied to a chair waiting for something; whether it was her ultimate death she couldn't be sure. Her wounds still cut deep, but she felt no pain. The ability to adapt had been a key trait that allowed her to work as a medic in the army however the loss of her grandmother had torn her heart. A sick thought traveled through her head, what about Al? She knew instantly as she had seen it with her own eyes that her grandmother was gone, but she had no idea what had become of Al. She never heard a gunshot but she was positive Al would not have let them pass; the only possible explanation was that they had done something to him. It was this waiting that caused her mind to formulate horrible scenarios and theories in her head. It was then that whatever it was she was waiting for walked into the room.

Bradley strode in followed by two of his guards, "Ah my dear I see you have been injured. I wonder, was it by my soldiers hands? Ah I remember now you must have gotten these when you were running away. Silly girl were you under the impression that you could escape us so easily?"

Winry pressed her lips together tightly remaining stubbornly silent. She would not talk to this tyrant.

Seeing her disposition to him he maneuvered himself so that his face was inches from hers. "Oh my, it seems I have upset you. I was rather hoping that you would be grateful to me, after all I have just saved your life."

Curiosity and anger got the best of her after a few moments. She decided to speak, "You saved my life? I'm assuming you did this out of the kindness of your heart?" She spat out that last word because she questioned if he even had one.

His face was unreadable as he kept his words monotone. "Well you see my dear after your slip of the tongue the city has added reinforcements. We are just not prepared for this hand to hand combat. But you see I have never really been all about brute strength, instead I have learned to count on my own brilliance and the powers that the mind holds. You see in about a half hour my soldiers will unleash a deadly chemical gas throughout the city. They will have about 5 minutes to live from the moment they breathe it in."

Winry just stared at him thinking about Anderson's family.

Bradley continued to look at her amusement playing in his eyes. "Aww I see you were trying to be a hero right? You were being a hero when you risked your life on the front lines and then again when you escaped our clutches to deliver that message. You're not as smart as I thought you were." There was brief pause before his body tensed and he started to scream, "THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS HEREOS! Its everyman for themselves, any fool who thinks they can save someone else is sadly mistaken. If I am correct you have witnessed this numerous times."

Winry looked defiantly at him.

"Hmm still don't believe me, well let me remind you then. Remember that man who you saved and then later he was killed in an attempt to save you? And now you will sit here as all those people you tried to save die. I wonder if after all this you will still believe there is such a thing as a hero."

Her face was wet with tears as she struggled to forget all of those deaths, "I have done everything in my power to help stop the pain of this war. You see I cannot imagine how a person like you can find the strength to live knowing what you have done."

With a smirk King Bradley walked back over to the door, "I hear that the man you love is in the city…now I do have some humanity left in me. You will stay here until the damage is done, then I will release you so you can see firsthand that people can't be saved. There is no power in love." For a brief moment Bradley seemed like he was lost in thought then as if something was eating away at him he spoke again, "All love does is bring about pain and suffering. I am releasing these people from their own stupidity."

Before he could leave Winry stopped him with her words, "Love doesn't cause pain, you feel pain from jealousy and death but not love. Pure love can heal any wound and has the most beautiful power, the power to heal ones heart. It is you who I feel sorry for, you that cannot love."

Her words seemed to have hit their mark as Bradley stood stunned for several moments. One of the guards cleared his throat loudly before he was able to snap out of it. He glared at her one last time before leaving the room.

"General Armstrong there is no news from the line."

Armstrong shook his head, "They're too quiet, it's the eye of the storm gentlemen."

Ed and Al sat next to each other for awhile each ignoring the other. Al shifted nervously before he found his words, "Brother…I'm sorry." His voice cracked a little.

Confusion etched on his face Ed just stared at him, "Why are you sorry, none of this is your fault. You know that right?"

Al put his head back into his hands, "It is my fault! I couldn't stop those men and now Granny is…she is…and Winry could be…"

Ed grabbed his little brothers shoulders and shook him roughly, "Snap out of it Al! I told you none of this was your fault, now drop it."

Yet there was something else to be said. "Fight with me Al. Join the army with me and we will end this together."

Al stared at him disbelief crossing his face, "But brother you said..."

"Yeah I know what I said. I was trying to protect you, but…well I need your help Al."

Al nodded his head solemnly. "I understand."

A voice came from behind them.

"Why is everyone standing around? We need to act and we need to act now. There appears to be several enemy scouts all around the city." Mustang looked from Ed to General Armstrong who had walked over.

"Brigadier Mustang I didn't see you there. You say your men have found enemy scouts around the city? I was under the impression they would be launching a frontal attack."

Mustang shook his head, "We need to take out these scouts immediately. The group that I encountered had chemical weapons on them. If this is the same for all of them this city could be taken down in a matter of seconds." His voice seemed to falter, "We are out of time…I have a feeling that we have fallen into a trap."

There was a moment of silence before he turned to the Elric brothers. "Now Ed the men I encountered reported to me that the young Ms. Rockbell is under the surveillance of King Bradley himself. We were also able to determine the whereabouts of their base. So obviously your mission is simple if you chose to take it; which I have no doubt that you will."

Ed looked at him with conviction in his eyes, "You know me all too well."

"Take down Bradley; leave the enemy scouts to us. I fear we are out of time, but we are still unsure of their plans so as of right now we will be to destroy these chemical bombs of theirs."

Ed saluted both the general and Mustang before both he and Al set off for the enemy's base.

"Why are we waiting to attack?"

The general's face narrowed with disdain, "Be patient, the Kings orders are to wait until Mustang arrives on the scene. I will radio each squadron when the time is right."

Bradley's voice rang out over their radios, "He has arrived, fire at will."

For the first time ever Riza had disobeyed Roy. She made her way after him towards Rush Valley. He had ordered her to stay, but the way in which he had spoken to her was unlike him. There had been a note of hopelessness that she had never heard before. His words came out as if they would be his last. She sped off in the military jeep desperate to arrive before something bad happened. A small voice in the back of her mind spoke softly, 'Its war of course something bad will happen. He could already be dead and you are throwing away your life for nothing.' A more determined voice clouded it out. 'Fight by his side, die knowing that you did all that you could."

Arriving at the city limits Riza felt slightly faint from the air surrounding the city. It wasn't until she noticed the bodies littering the ground that she threw her jacket over her face. Shaking slightly she made her way over to the nearest body and grabbed his wrist. She blinked several times before running over to the other bodies and checking their pulses. Breathing heavily she dropped to her knees, 'What was going on?' Every single one of them should be dead.

Ed and Al started to make their way to the base when a loud boom echoed through the air followed by a large cloud of smoke. Ed tried not to breathe it in but he knew it was too late as the sky blurred and the ground swayed below his feet. Shock consumed his senses as the world splashed in and out of his vision. He watched as Al slumped over next to him. One last though rang through his head, 'I have failed.'

"It is done."
"Ah I see, well done. Now have you brought the man I was looking for?"

"Yes sir we threw his body into the room you asked us to."

"Very well, prepare the men to leave immediately. We will set out for Central."

Bradley let an evil smile cross his face, "Take the girl to the room and leave her. We have no further business in this place."

Winry struggled against the soldiers who dragged her down the hallway. Finally with a strong push they sent her flying into a darkened room. Her shoulder was the first part of her body to hit the ground. Pain jumped through her veins as she struggled to get out of the ropes that bound her wrists. One of the soldiers walked briskly over to her and bent down. Closing her eyes she braced herself, only the tension around wrists released. Stunned she cracked open her eyes and watched as they took off the ropes and turned on the light. Before she could say anything they walked out. It was then that she saw it, a soldier's body lying in the corner. Struggling to her feet she made her way over to it. Her body started to shake as she recognized the familiar blond ponytail. Steadying herself she gently turned the body over instantly revealing Edwards face. A scream left her throat as she stumbled backwards. Once the shock left her she slowly put her head on his chest and let the tears come. Her eyes widened, it was faint…but it was still there. Sitting up straight she grabbed his wrist, instantly she felt his pulse.

Sorry to go back and forth from scene to scene

I dunno I just wanted u to get the full picture I see

hahaha ok ill admit it

this one is confusing

but the next chapter will explain what happened

be patient

Thanks for reading

Oh and one more note

I am surprised anyone likes this story

after reading other works on here

I see that I am out of my league

so thank you for your kind words you guys are great

Amy