A/N: Morning, guys! Thank you very much for the patience and I hope you will enjoy this new chapter. There will be some blood and some swearing, but that's nothing new. Thank you for your support and don't forget to leave a review/follow/favourite.
Without further ado, on with the story...
Chapter 21 – Game of mirrors
Edward stretched his feet in front of him, humming softly as he waited for a sign from Roy. He took a sharp intake of air, feeling his lungs expand to their full capacity and then deflate like balloons. "What is taking him so long?" he muttered under his now even breath. He took another deep breath and looked up at the unmoving sky, not a single cloud shifting from its place. It looked more of a painting than anything natural was supposed to.
Quizzical, he rose up from his spot under the tree he hid behind, the one of the few that Roy hasn't burnt. He didn't ask too many questions about the reason why the man was randomly firing up the grass and trees, and neither did he pay too much attention to what was being explained to him. He was tired of hearing Roy pretend nothing was wrong and that infuriating way of his that made you believe everything was going to be fine, even though around you bombs were flying and the whole world was crumbling. The man really needed to learn some honesty and how to properly communicate the situation at hand to others. Or maybe Edward needed to learn how to read between the lines.
From the precious little he actually listened to, he extracted the bits of information that he needed, which would very well suffice. He faced more complicated situations, he told himself, mentally revisiting what he knew.
Invisible mirrors. Time bending or something like that. Crazed alchemist trying to kill Roy, not like that was something new. The man who was supposed to kill Roy saved his life instead, and that wasn't new either. And lots of burning trees.
That was a proper summary, wasn't it? Very unlike the long agonising reports he had to give after he completed the most pitiful task. He could never comprehend why the military had to overcomplicate things with dozens of details, when they could be a bit more down to the point.
Or maybe it was only Mustang who loved coating everything with a few thousand more words than what was needed. After all, the man had the tendency to talk only to hear his own voice, so this conclusion shouldn't be surprising at all.
Edward turned his head to look at the crooked tent. The structure was so tilted it was no little wonder how the fabric was not torn around the edges. The young man scrutinised the short distance to the tent, wondering why he didn't see any signs from Roy, who said he would announce him when he needed his help.
Perhaps Roy needed his help and didn't get to show him, Ed thought grimly. If so, he would better move from behind the tree his darn commanding office had asked him to hide behind. He couldn't even see what was going on around the corner of the tent, so much for providing backup.
He encircled the surprisingly large tent, moving faster by the second. Breaking his fast pacing into a run, he pressed his hands together in front of him, waiting for the appropriate moment to press them on the ground. Roy instructed him to transmute only where his fire has left the soil devoid of its vegetation, so he followed the burnt trail underneath his feet.
The next thing he knew, he was pressing his palms to the ragged ground. He watched a patch of land in front of the tent erect from the ground, sending both its occupants up. Roy caught the other man by his collar, and Ed could see how a shiny coin fell into the crevice that the ground created in its uplifting.
He resumed his running to catch the falling object, but a sudden burst of light halted his steps. The light was so blinding, so terrible, he had to shield his eyes from its power. The sun beamed so bright, he realised, and its rays seemed to want to burn his orbs. He pressed his hands again on the ground, wishing everything to be fine. The horrifying shrills of a voice he knew so well determined him to look up at what he previously deemed to be a beam of light, only to find it gone.
Only now did he realise it was not a sunray, but its reflection in a sudden burst of blood.
The amount of red spraying up in the air was overwhelming, and the height from where it was spilling made it look like it was raining.
A blood rain that immediately hit Edward's face, daring him to look back up at the lifted ground on which Roy and the strange man seemed to be fighting.
He just couldn't tear his eyes from them.
But they were not fighting, apart from Roy, who was bending backwards, bleeding profusely. Blood flowed freely from his abdomen and from his mouth, dripping on the ground. The other man had his hands pressed to Roy's stomach like he was transmuting, liquid oozing from the wound that formed around his gloved fingertips. With great effort, the bleeding stallion of a man pressed surprisingly firm hands against his aggressor's chest, and almost in an instant, they both disappeared.
Mortified by the image, Edward felt the ground shifting under his feet, his knees buckling and dropping under his weight. The liquid that touched his face was slowly dripping down his cheeks, helped by the tears that were falling freely from his golden eyes.
"Roy... no, my love... no..." he barely whispered, his voice breaking under the heavy taste of salt and copper from his bloodied tears.
XXXXX
At the begging of the week, in a hotel room in Central City
Alphonse threw himself on the large bed that was occupying a good part of the room and placed his hands under his neck. He looked up at the spotless ceiling and at the equally neat lamp situated perfectly in its middle, lighting every corner of the chamber.
He sprawled on the mattress, suddenly feeling small and alone. For someone who lived for so many years in a suit of armour, the size of his human body constantly made him feel shrunk, though not as short as his brother. He took a certain pride in that, he had to admit.
He knew it was only a misconception born out of habit. Frankly, he was more than glad to accept the smaller frame of flesh than the massive plates of metal. But now, in that empty bed in that empty room, he could see himself getting smaller and smaller, and lonelier by the minute.
Now that he thought of it, he had never stayed alone anywhere, not even when his soul was attached to an iron cage. He had lived almost all his life with Edward, and then he moved with the Rockbells and got married to Winry, meaning he never slept alone. He always had at least one person sharing the roof with him, if not the bedroom. This realisation donned on him, making him realise how unfair he had been to his brother.
There had been so many times when Edward had to be alone, forced by various circumstances, including himself leaving for East instead of remaining in Central with his brother. It was only normal for the older Elric to search for the company of others. He was only human, after all. They all needed someone to be close to them, to befriend and love. He knew it, and he believed in it, but he couldn't comprehend the wrongness he showed to the only blood relative he had left after their father finally laid to rest next to their mother.
Roy had always been there for both of them, to lift them up and push them forward in his own way, making them doubt him and even hate him, with the sole purpose of their protection and wellness. Al was convinced the General wasn't a bad person, he only had to act in bad situation. Mustang, despite his cheerful and boasting personality, with all his selfish attitude and lack of scruples when it came to business and reaching his goals, he not once did something that, in the long term, affected negatively the Elric brothers.
Al smiled, thinking of what Winry told him to bring some common sense into his head after he learnt about Roy's relationship to his brother. Maybe the need to feel some other person close brought them together, both being rather lonely souls, alone under their respective roofs.
Whatever the reason was, Alphonse decided he would do anything to make sure his brother was happy and safe, just how Edward did for him when they were so brutally orphaned. And something told him that his sudden arrival to the Central City was closely related to his brother's safety.
With that thought, he climbed down the bed to look out of the window, hoping to calm himself. Before his eyes, the city was going to sleep, the many lights coming from the houses around the hotel shutting down, leaving only the public lights and the moon to shine in the dark.
He heard a short knock at the door and he hurried to answer to it. Slowly opening his door, he looked around the frame to see his nightly guest.
"Good evening, Alphonse. May I come in?" Roy asked with a great smile on his face.
Al wasn't surprised to see the General at his door, after all, Major Armstrong had informed him that he would probably show up to discuss things at large, though he couldn't help feeling shaken by the man's appearance. He knew his face quite well, always smiling and perfect teeth showing like pearls, just like they did now, but he didn't remember seeing his usually determined eyes so tired and bloodshot. Even the usual disarray of his hair seemed a little excessive.
The dark eyes shifted, their elongated lines turning round as eyebrows rose on his forehead. Al shook out of his state and nodded. "Sure, come in, please" he said, feeling his ears turning red from embarrassment.
Roy tilted his head as in saluting the decision and stepped inside the hotel room. He shrugged off his long overcoat to reveal the dark clothes underneath and hung it neatly on the hanger nearby. He took a seat on one of the chairs and crossed his feet. He methodically folded his hands in his lap, all the smiles on his face fading to make way to a grim and tired expression. He sighed and looked up at Al.
"Thank you for coming all the way here, Alphonse. It means a lot to me, and I can't begin apologising for making you travel such a long distance without giving you the reason why to. I hope the Rockbells didn't mind it, if so, I apologise" he started, his face showing the regret of their lack of communication.
Al was taken aback by the string of apologises. He didn't remember ever hearing Roy saying he was sorry so many times in just a few sentences. One single apologise was too much in the General's vocabulary, not to mention two. "No problem, General, I mean- you're quite part of the family, and if you need help, you don't have to apologise"
"If it is so, please, let's not formalise ourselves, Alphonse. I've told you to call me by my given name, I'm so tired of ranks and titles, I hear them all day long" Roy said with a little smile softening the strong line of his jaw, leaning forward to look the younger man in the eye.
"Yeah, sorry for that, habits die hard. So, Roy, what brings me here? Are there any problems? Is brother alright? Or is there some-"
"Edward is fine" Mustang interrupted. "Don't worry about him. He is not the reason for which I brought you here, although not entirely" he added, leaning on the backrest. "The reason is a bit more selfish, as it concerns me for the biggest part"
Alphonse shifted in his seat, wondering what that meant. "What do you mean?"
"At the end of this week, there will be the yearly exercise of troops. It is fairly rumoured that I will secure certain deals with foreign dignitaries, smoothing my way to the presidency. I will soon become Fuhrer, Al, and I'm afraid I will most certainly be subjected to attempts of assassination, hopefully not successful. And mind me stressing the word 'hopefully'. But you never know the outcome of such things, they might get out of hand. They usually do, as I work with only a handful of people" Roy explained. He rose from his chair and approached the one on which Al was seated. He dropped to one knee in front of the young man, taking his hands in his. "Alphonse, please, if such thing happens, and especially if I am murdered, I ask you to take your brother and make a run for it. You will go to the address I will provide to you, to Havoc's storage. He will be waiting for you, and you do exactly as he instructs. Can you do it?"
Al's mouth dropped open. "Wait, what are you saying?! Murdered? Roy, what is the meaning of this?"
Roy sighed and let go of his hands. He brushed his fingers through his hair, lowering his gaze to the floor. "I'm not saying I will be killed, I'm just being precocious. Over the years, there have been many attempts to my life. In the past few months, the aggression only grew, and I have confirmations from direct sources. Many want me dead for my ideas, because I have followers, you see? The other nations are afraid of my ascension, and at the moment, the only relatively stable ally is Xing, which is not entirely the most well seen alliance by the other countries we've been at war with. I try to bring peace, but armistices are bricks on thin ice. Really thin. I am considered dangerous, and all in good sense. I want to make sure that the one person I care about won't be caught in the fires like it happened before"
"But no one knows about you two, right? Apart the team. Why should you be so worried?"
"No, but our professional relationship is well known. And I might have stalkers. No, I definitely must have. Edward has been living with me for too much time not to be suspicious, unofficially and off the records as it is. I can't guarantee there hasn't been anyone connecting the dots so far, despite all our efforts to be stealthy. He might be in danger, and you are the only one who can provide him with the needed safety. And if I am paranoid, at least you will see him sooner than you planned. There's some good coming out of it" Roy offered, trying to lift the gloom.
"I don't know what to say... of course I will make sure brother is safe, don't worry about that, but are you sure it isn't too much? I mean-"
"Alphonse, despite what you have previously implied for a reason to why Edward couldn't come spend the holidays with you last winter, the truth is that he couldn't because he saved me from suffering a violent death at the hands of my only uncle, who murdered both my parents when I was five in front of me and my aunt, and whom I burnt to death after he tried to kill Ed while he was being hospitalised. I cannot be cautious enough, you see?"
Alphonse gulped. He stared at the man bending his knee in front of him, begging for help. If Roy willingly accepted to humiliate himself in front of someone so younger than him, he must have had only the best intentions.
He nodded and extended his hand. "I promise you I will do anything to help you and brother. I will make sure he is safe"
Roy caught the offered hand and shook it vigorously. "Thank you"
XXXXX
Winry pulled her ponytail higher on top of her head. She felt a chill run down her spine as the wind turned a touch colder against her cheek. Night was slowly creeping, and the time for the fireworks was nearing.
But she still couldn't find her husband and her best friend.
She has seen Edward and Roy briefly on a distant stage, but then lost sight of both of them. Alphonse must have been not too far away from the two, as she suspected he was called all the way to Central to chaperon his brother.
Though for the life of her, she couldn't see them anywhere.
She tried to look over the crowd, but her slight frame wasn't of great help. She pushed her fist deeper in her skirt's pockets and continued walking forward.
She got past tents and tables and benches and children playing and she still couldn't see the Elric brothers. It was as if they weren't there, she must have walked around the entire parade grounds with no success. Almost giving up, she stopped under one of the trees and plucked a leaf to play with. She rolled it in her palm, watching the dark green turning shades brighter in the spin.
"Aren't you the Rockbell girl?" someone asked behind her.
Winry turned around on her heels. "Oh! The lady commander of Briggs and her assistant! Major General Armstrong and Major Miles, right? I haven't seen you since the last time I've been to the North!"
"What are you doing here?" Olivier asked rather rudely, frowning. "Do you have any idea where-"
"Hello, Miss Rockbell" Miles saluted, holding back his curious superior.
"Hello... it's Elric, I'm married now..." Winry idly commented, eyeing the other blonde female who looked weary.
"Pardon me, Misses El-"
"Call me Winry, Major" she said, turning her gaze back to the dark skinned Ishbalan. "Have you seen my boys? Alphonse and Edward and Ro- I mean, General Mustang? I've lost them in the crowd, I've been looking for them for hours"
"Weren't you with them earlier? You could have asked where they were going" Major General Armstrong suggested.
"Well, you see... I wasn't actually with them, more like stalking them... And now I have a very bad feeling about them... Roy Mustang sent your brother all the way to Resembool to bring Al here, and I took the next train to see what was going on. I think something happened, I didn't exactly see my husband around, and both Ed and Mustang parted ways and I couldn't really keep up with neither. I've started tailing Mustang, because Ed remained in the same position for a while, and then the General disappeared when I've turned my head, like he wasn't even there! He couldn't just vanish like that, right? It was a fairly open space" Winry explained to the Northmen.
"You mean Fullmetal doesn't know his brother is here?"
"No, not really" Winry shook her head, looking down. "I have no idea where they are, I've been searching for all three for a few hours... I'm sure something happened, I can feel it"
Miles looked at his right, to the woman he swore he would follow anywhere. "The Major General and I have met briefly with Edward. Something strange indeed happened while we were together - it was like the earth was calling us to it"
"What the Major means to say is that we were all pulled to the ground, but only us three, because the others around us didn't even notice we were sprawled on our backs. Your friend Fullmetal told us, me and Miles, to go to a tree, and when we reached it, we lost him. He looked like he vanished, or like we had something in front of our eyes that was preventing us from seeing him. He said it was the earth flow that was being toyed with, something to do with alchemy"
"Oh... it means we need to find Al or Mustang! They must know what is going on!"
Olivier snorted. "Yes, girl, what do you think we were doing? But guess what, we can't find them anywhere! We were going for Mustang, but not even his pet subordinates know where he is. Hawkeye went on one of the higher platforms to look from above. We've met with her a little while ago. Though I don't think she has found anything, she would have sent a note"
"I don't think the General is the answer to our quest, right now" Miles said as he put a hand on Olivier's shoulder. "I say we look for Crendell"
"That turncoat of a man? Why should we look for him?"
"Because, despite your animosity towards him, you must not forget he had been stalking the General for a good while now. Where one is, there must be the other too"
XXXXX
"So, tell me, my friend, why has our dear Roy asked for you here?"
Alphonse rolled his eyes. "I am not your friend, Mister Crendell, nor do I have to answer to your questions"
"And here I was thinking your brother was dense. What is it with you, Elrics?" Albert Crendell asked as he took out a cigarette from his pocket. He wasn't an avid smoker, by no means, but trying to pull out any information from the younger Elric proved to be incessantly difficult and frustrating. He was starting to reconsider his opinion on Edward's temper, if all the men in Central said that his little brother was the milder and kinder one.
If that's how all Eastmen were, no wonder Mustang loved him so little, he concluded.
"Sir, I don't know who you are, you might be lying for all I know. You have shared your part of the story, in which you were with the General, and I have offered myself to help you find my brother. I'm trying to understand what is going on myself, so I would deeply appreciate if you didn't question me so much. I don't mean to be rude, Sir, but I need to think"
Crendell lit his cigarette with urgency. If he wanted answers, he should obtain then in other ways, he pondered. Or maybe he had to hit some other chords, somewhat more sensible. "I've met your brother briefly, but I must say he is one hell of a man. Short of temper and much else, but he seems to be very caring. I've heard of the many things he did for you and how he got you out of danger, you know, the military police knows a bit too much for its own good. From what I could gather, he is a good fellow, and loyal"
"That's my brother, he is never one to think too much before acting when others are in danger or when some others are being crass, but he loves us all very much" Al agreed. "He has been there for me many times, I'm forever thankful to brother"
Crendell smirked. 'I've caught you, kid' he mentally laughed. "Mustang has been quite the fatherly figure to you two, I've heard. He is still very protective over Fullmetal, I had the honour to work with them both"
"Yes, he has always supported us" Al commented, not liking where the discussion was going. Did that green eyed man really believe he was going to say anything about his brother and his lover that might put them in danger? He wasn't a great supporter of their relationship, but he didn't want to harm them in any way. He knew how the military sanctions for fraternisation worked, and more so to those with the same gender. He wasn't about to tell to a police officer about that, he wasn't as stupid as he believed.
"Maybe more than just supported. I have heard a few rumours, you see..." Albert said, mirth playing in front of his eyes. Maybe he could learn more about his little fire alchemist, he has always wanted to know more about him and his life and thoughts.
He shifted his gaze to look at the younger man, when he noticed he wasn't paying attention to what he was saying. He inhaled the last fumes of his cigarette and then crushed it under his foot. It didn't do him much good, the youngster being annoying still.
Alphonse, however, didn't mind his partner's frustration. He put a hand above his eyes, shielding them from the lowering radiance of the sun setting, and tried to focus better. "On the Truth's name... is that...?" he asked himself. He broke into a fast pacing that resembled too much with running away.
Crendell barely registered the fleeing man, starting to run after him a little too late. 'The little fucker can run!' he judged, struggling to match the pace after Al, who was going like a man with a purpose.
He almost bumped into the blond when he suddenly stopped, a young woman looking at them both. Or through them, more likely.
"Winry, what are you doing here?" he asked, his face turning grim.
XXXXX
Roy felt like he was drowning, his vision blurring and white spots bleaching the darkness around him. He struggled for air, but his lungs couldn't receive it, he gasped and turned and gasped again, falling deeper into the abyss, drowning and drowning.
Water filled his mouth and his nose, and he tried to cover them with his hands, only he couldn't. Images flashed through his mind, waking something he didn't know he had in him. A certain rush made his vision clearer and his struggle so much easier, and with a force he couldn't believe he mustered, he reached for the surface.
The first to get out of the water were his hands. He frantically moved his feet, struggling to pull his head out. He pushed forward, and finally, he thrived.
He managed to float above the water. Air invaded his chest, his nostrils flared with the excitement of being alive. He looked up, hoping to see the sky and the birds, but what he saw was a tree, a tree standing right above him, its branches hitting him in the face.
The next he knew, he appeared to be flying. Only he was falling. His body crashed into the vast crown of leaves, and he fell forward. He collapsed on the ground, drenched and dirty, and saw a great hole into the sky, the sky which looked like the surface of a river. The hole closed, birds getting out of the wetness, screaming in agony as they flew with their little feet up.
Roy groaned in the terrible pain that pulsed inside his belly, but he couldn't tear his eyes apart from the shocking show above him. He fell from the sky, he realised, a sky so close he could touch it with his hands. He fell from a tree too tall to see the tips of its branches, a great arbour that kissed the massive sky.
A sharp wave of heat enveloped his abdomen, burning him from the inside, and then vanished unexpectedly. He pressed a shaking hand to his stomach, where blood stained his moist clothes. He remembered now, he had been injured, but there was no wound. His uniform was torn, but the skin was soft against his fingertips.
"What is this..."
He slowly rose to his feet and pulled back a few strands of wet hair from his eyes. Step after step, he dragged himself forward to where he saw Jensen sprawled on his back, dark mud shining on his body.
Roy continued walking at the same agonisingly slow pace, not fully trusting his legs. He dropped to his knees next to the fallen man, pressing his fingers to his neck to see if he was still breathing. "Hey, Jansen, are you alive?" he asked and then chuckled. If he were dead and answered so, it would have been hilarious.
Mark Jansen opened his eyes and frowned, his vision blurred. He could hear someone talking, but couldn't say whom and what he was saying.
When his senses came back to him, he noticed a heavy combatant boot pressed to his chest. "What is the meaning of this?" he inquired with far more authority than he was supposed, given his position.
Roy cocked his head to the side. "Are you seriously asking me this?" he said and pushed Jansen with the tip of his boot. "Come on, get up"
To that, Jansen obeyed unquestioningly. He rolled to his stomach and pushed his arms into the ground. He slowly rose up to his feet, doubling over when powerful cough stopped his breathing. He covered his mouth with his hands.
When he looked at them, blood seeped through his loose fingers, staining his white gloves.
"What have you done, Mustang..." he mumbled. He looked down at his mud covered body, not believing what he saw. "How have you broken the seals of time?"
"The seals of what?" Roy asked dumbly. "What are you talking about?"
"Of what you did! You were supposed to die from blood loss when I've put my hands on you, Mustang... what have you done? How have you healed yourself? Why am I spitting blood when you should be doing so?"
That's what Roy asked himself as well.
Jansen smiled, showing his bloodied teeth. "Heh, Mustang, I think you've done unconsciously what I've been trying to do for many years. You have inversed the effects of my alchemy. I have inflicted a damn wound on you with alchemy, and you deflected it to me"
"But I was bleeding..."
"In that time, in that dimension. Now, you've just merged all my goddamn dimensions in one, you have opened all my careful circles of mirrors. You weren't bleeding in any other but the one in which I've wounded you, and that one's now just another thread in time. It no longer exists. How have you transmuted the ground? Your type of alchemy doesn't do that. That was not the typical alchemy" Jansen asked, coughing some more blood for the effect.
It worked just fine on Roy, whose skin bleached a few tones. "That wasn't me..."
Jansen didn't listen to Roy. He just looked at his hands, the mud on the white leather turning red. "Do you practise the Xingese alchemy? I don't know its name, but I know how it works, alright. If it's so, that explains how you have broken my mirrors... I've heard you've gotten your stars by making Xingese alchemy work with the Amestrian one..."
"But it wasn't me!" Roy repeated, this time louder. That stopped Jansen, who turned his feline eyes to him. "Combined alchemy? Destructive and constructive alchemy, all at once? How can that be? It was only you there, right?" He couldn't believe there was someone else moving in the time bubble in which he caught his target.
Roy narrowed his eyes. It must have been Edward, he left him there. Was he alright? He must have been the one who lifted the ground. He didn't do anything but press his palms to Jansen's chest and wish to disappear along with him.
The blood... Edward told him blood could unite two different Earth flows, coming from different persons.
He transmuted at the same time as Edward. That's what they did. That's what broke the mirrors. That's what happened.
Edward wanted to bring salvation, Roy only destruction.
He couldn't help but smile. He finally found the true application to what they have been researching the previous year, during the long nights they have spent together in his living room, trying to find a formula to combine alkahesty with alchemy.
That's what they've lacked and the reason why their formulas, despite their wonderful theoretical value that brought him and Fullmetal their promotions, couldn't be as effective as they've hoped in practice.
It was the power of thought that lacked, it was not the words they said or the images they have conjured in their minds, it was the powerful bond that connected them that made it possible.
"Mustang" Jansen said, disrupting Roy from his reeling train of thoughts. "I don't know what you've or how you've done it, but it seems I have underestimated your capacity. I didn't think someone who destroys so much with his power found the way to access the deeper flow of the Earth"
Roy smiled. "But it wasn't me. It was Edward"
"Edward? Who is... oh, you mean Fullmetal! Was that child around?"
"He was the one who lifted us from the ground" Mustang explained. He bended to pick up an object from the ground. "Is this your amulet?" he asked, lifting a dented coin higher for the other to see.
"Yep" Jansen replied honestly. "That's the real thing, the one you've plunged for was only a mirrored image, unusable. I can mirror anything with alchemy, but there is no alchemy if I don't have my coin, you see?"
"You mean you aren't really an alchemist?" That was surprising.
"Just half of it. I've learnt how to use the power of the Earth, and I've used it with the help of that little thing. How to say... I've found that amulet when I was a boy of ten, and I've played with it. I've noticed that when I thought I want to be somewhere else and pressed my hands on it like I was praying, time stopped. I've guessed it was some sort of magic, but a few books made me understand it was alchemy"
"So you're saying it wasn't talent, but luck"
"Yep, Mustang, that's what makes us different. I've became a state alchemist because I was lucky to have alchemy given to me, you became because you were born with it" Jansen said, his voice with a hint of a scorn. A fit of coughing prevented him from talking again, some more blood chocking him. Roy shifted to help the man stand, but the alchemist cleared his throat in dismissal. "Guess I didn't understand what I was playing with"
"Guess not" Roy agreed with sympathy. "You've really puzzled me after that encounter that we had all those years ago. But to tell you the truth, not the trees and the burning vegetation, neither how the time never changes around you nor how I seem to have fallen from the sky really confuses me, but how we return to the good time. The one in which I've lived all my life, in which the parade was and where people want to shoot me dead"
"Eager to go back, right?"
"Yes"
"Too bad. I don't think it is possible"
Roy frowned, his dark eyes turning into liquid fire. "Jansen, let me put this straight to you. I don't like the word impossible right now, so you'd better make sure it is not. I see again after being blind, so don't talk to me about anything being impossible"
XXXXX
The sky suddenly turned darker. The moon was shy on the dim lit sky, the faded circle it was. The night was coming.
Edward looked up with teary eyes. He didn't understand. Roy was right in front of him, and then disappeared. He might be dead, for all he knew, and he couldn't even bury him because he had no body to dig a grave for. And now, the sky was dark and the air was chill.
The tent stood straight and proud, not crooked to the side. The grass was green under his feet, not brown and crisp from the fire. It was as if nothing happened, and he had merely skipped a few hours. He couldn't have. It was impossible.
A nearby soldier noticed him and came to him breathlessly. "Sir, are you alright?" he asked, shaking his shoulder. "You have blood on you! Sir, are you hurt?"
Edward lifted his head to look at the man. "Have you seen anyone from the Central Command? Or of the staff?"
"Sir, you are wou-"
Edward raised his voice and grabbed the soldier by the collar. "I asked – have you seen anyone from the Central Command?"
"Sir, I..." the soldier started, but regained his composure soon. "No, Sir, I have not" he replied.
Ed groaned. "What division are you from? I mean, from which part of the country are you?"
"The North. Briggs" the man replied, suddenly fearing. Ed noticed the change in the man and shook his head. "Let me guess, crazy she-male Armstrong hasn't broken you yet?"
"The...? Oh, I have been stationed there for only a week, and then we came to the parade..." he explained. "Sir, I only want to help, but please-"
"So you're not really a Northman. Lucky you, breath while you still can. But you know your commander, right?" The man nodded. "Have you seen her?"
A simple nod made Ed's hopes rise higher than he would have expected. "She was with Major Miles and another young lady when I've last seen her. I went to salute her, but she growled at me. I can direct you to her, if you want. But first you should check if you are wounded, you have blood on your face, Sir"
Edward touched his forehead. Indeed, there was blood. But not his.
He lifted his sleeve and wiped his face clean. With newfound determination, he commanded "Take me to her"
XXXXX
Alphonse stared at his wife with disbelief. He didn't think he saw right. He was sure he didn't see right. Winry was in Resembool, that's what Granny told him when he called to check if they were alright. That's what she said.
Yet Winry was in front of him with a look that spoke of how much she didn't want to see him there.
So he must be seeing right.
"What are you doing here?" he repeated. "I thought you were in Resembool, you said you had an order to fulfil. Granny even told me you were sleeping when I called because you have worked all day"
Winry looked at her feet win embarrassment. "Well... Technically I was sleeping..."
"Yeah, but in another city! I thought you were safe at home-"
"And you were doing God knows what in Central. Oh, please! You and your brother have always pushed me away every time you two got in danger, and let's be serious – Mustang does the same. He called you here, meaning you two are in danger! Maybe three, because that one is too over-sharing when it comes to blowing things up! Of course I came here, stupid!" Winry stopped, her breath raged. Her voice got louder and louder by the word, and by the time she was finished, she was left breathless.
Crendell patted a stunned Alphonse on his back. "Is that your girl? She sure doesn't mess around. I like her"
His merriment stopped when he noticed a too familiar face rushing in their direction. "You fucking shit of a man, what are you doing with him?"
His smile fell. "Major General, pleasure to see you"
"Absolutely none from my part. No wonder why we have this confusion! Where is Fullmetal and that hey-headed Mustang?!"
Miles rapidly followed after her. He felt like a dog, always having to temper his superior who for the life of her had to scream at everyone she didn't like, forgetting most of the times that she shouldn't. After all, that's why they were that close. She only listened when he spoke to her, or at least most of the times.
"We beg your pardon, General, but we believe you might-"
"Oh, please, Major, spear me the diplomacy. We all know between the Armstrongs and myself, there is little love. I will cut your chase – I was with your precious General Mustang. If you would listen to what I have to say, you might have a better idea to what is going on"
XXXXX
"So, tell me more about your alchemy, Jansen. Tell me about the trees" Roy said as he helped the man stand. The Mirror Alchemist was in a rough shape, sporting most of the injuries he had inflicted to Roy when they were still in the other dimension.
Jansen easily pulled his gloves off his metallic hands, listening to the oily rustle of his joints. "Trees? There's nothing to the trees. It's to anything that resembles any form of vegetation. The roots are connected directly to the Earth flow from which alchemists take their power. I have to disrupt this normal Earth flow, so I need places where the vegetation is destroyed, so it won't alter my doings. If I need to get back to the normal flow, I go to trees. But mind you – only those who have a mirrored shadow. Otherwise, any object that bended when I've toyed with the flow can do"
"Like your tent"
"Yep. There's nothing much to it besides being careful how many times I disrupt the time. For every disruption, I have to search for another tear in the artificial dimension. Simple"
"I have found someone on the ground as I was roaming to find you. He could see me, but he could only move what was made of metal in his body"
"Oh, that" Jansen made disinterested. "If someone enters a time bubble such as mine and is not a target, he simply glues himself to the ground. Only metal can move, though, but don't ask me why, because I don't know"
Roy nodded, thinking of other things to ask. There were many other questions that needed an answer, but he had to satisfy his scientific curiosity first. Before he could ask, Jensen continued. "This is artificial alchemy, as it came from an artefact. Artificial is also what happens inside my mirrors. Because it is all about the mirrors. I create them from the humidity in the air, and they form a bubble around me and my targets. Meaning a target must be dead before I close the mirrors, because if it weren't, it might be still alive in the real flow"
"This means you might be fine outside this dimension"
"Not necessarily. No, I highly doubted. The dimension in which we were has turned back to the normal flow of time. Technically speaking, I was wounded in the real flow. It also means you are fine in the real dimension, where now it might very well be night, or day. No one can see you, but you are fine there. Drenched, but alive and kicking"
"And you might be dead" Roy said, frowning. "How can you still walk?"
"I don't know. There are no books on this. Look at my hands – you have burnt them in the real flow, and when I vanished, creating a new dimension to escape, they were still burning. In the flow that I've created, they were burning, but as I came back to normality, they were only half burnt, like when you were in front of me. I've only lost the hands and not the entire arms"
Roy sighed. "And then, if what you say it's true, why couldn't we return?"
Jansen lifted the broken amulet. "Because of this"
"Because it's broken? Hah, anything that is broken can be fixed" the raven haired alchemist said with conviction. If alchemy couldn't fix the artefact, maybe something else could change their situation. There must have been some rift somewhere.
"Yes... they say you have the tendency to repair what was broken" Jansen jested.
"Don't mock me" Roy spat, gripping the man's shoulder better. He helped the wounded alchemist walk, as they searched for a rift in time, but he suddenly didn't feel like doing so.
"I am not" Jensen defended himself. "I merely commented your deeds. I've heard how you've helped the Elric brothers, and your subordinate that was crippled. I know about your Philosopher's Stone and how you've regained your sight. I was being appreciative"
"You know about-"
"Mhm. Don't worry, not too many do, but my curious nature couldn't let go finding the reason why you had taken such a break from your duties after the day when the time stopped. I know about that, too, you see? I don't blame you, no, nor do I mock you. You have set yourself a goal, why should blindness stop you?"
Roy thought of the time when all he could see was darkness. The time when shades of grey danced in front of his discoloured eyes. He shivered at the memory, it had been terrible. And how he got his sight back was even more terrible, thinking about Edward's limbs.
But they have made a choice, and they had to look forward.
"I will answer your question, Mustang"
Roy crooked his brow. "What question?"
"Look over there first" Jansen said, pointing his automail fingers to an empty patch of grass. "Burn that part, Mustang"
"Why should I? You might-"
"Want to escape? Please, I'm done for, I will bleed out soon enough" he pointed to his mud stained clothes, turning a deeper shade of crimson. "And if I don't, those who hired me will have my head. You know, Roy Mustang, I've decided I don't want to kill you"
"How so?"
"Just like that. They weren't paying me enough to kill you, anyway. Your head is worth more, you see?"
Mustang snorted. "I am really curious how much my head costs, but more than that, who are those who wanted to kill me this time?"
Cold blunt fingers touched his cheek. "Not yet. Burn that first"
Roy pondered his options. The man might be lying, or he might be truthful. He had no certainty over what was going to happen.
Nor could he sit there and rot, so he pointed his fingers to the designated spot and snapped them.
XXXXX
Edward felt some veins pop when the scared soldier pointed the blond General to him. Indeed, the man had taken him to where Major General Armstrong stood, apparently snapping and shouting at someone. However, he didn't pay that much attention to that as he did to the very image of his brother and his childhood friend.
"What is the meaning of this?"
Crendell turned and let out a guttural chuckle. "I say, this is quite the family reunion!"
"What is that scum doing here?" Edward asked, not minding his language. If Roy was indeed dead, he would have the man's head. He could pledge it was his fault everything happened.
"The General was telling us about the encounter he had with General Mustang, he has been looking for you" Miles said, hoping to minimise the amplitude of the scene that Edward was going to cause.
"I know that! He found me and then, guess what? He fucking disappeared!" Edward exploded. "And you, you fucking bastard, I can swear you have something to do with what happened, you piece of shit!"
"Brother! Stop swearing, the General was trying to help" Alphonse tried to reason. His eyes widened "You are bleeding!"
"Not my blood and not your business!" Ed cut sharply. "What are you two doing in Central, as a matter of fact? You said you wouldn't be coming"
Winry raised her hands in surrender. "Surprise? Don't shoot!"
"Brother, are you alright?"
"I... I just can't. Doesn't matter why you are here. Just..." he sighed, finally letting down his guard. He was so set on finding someone he knew that he didn't allow himself to think of he had seen. Al sensed his brother's distress and hugged him tightly, bumping into Crendell and sending him to the ground.
"Hey, watch out!"
"Shut up" Al dismissed Crendell and enveloped his brother in a warm embrace. "Brother, what happened to you?"
"He's gone..." Ed said, struggling despite of himself. He didn't want pity, he wanted to know what became of his lover. "Let's just get out of here, it's too open"
"What did you say? Who is gone?" Armstrong inquired. "Oh, no..." she muttered.
Ed turned his eyes to her. "It's his blood" he stated and then pushed his brother away to walk to a more intimate place where they could talk.
XXXXX
Roy watched the flames burn a circle on the ground. "Okay, now what?" he asked.
Jansen smiled at him, his feline eyes clear in the bright flames. "Mustang... it was Aerugo. Look for a certain Minister Ermacora, he's easy to find. My respects to you, General" he said, clutching at his stomach as more blood oozed from his mouth. "Go into the flames, it's your ticket home"
He caught Roy's sweaty palms in his cold metal ones. The fingers felt cool against the heated skin, refreshing. They made the young alchemist long for the automail he knew so well. Jansen let go of him, leaving the broken amulet in his palm. "Go, Mustang. I hope I made the good decision. I leave that thing to you, maybe you can figure it out. I never really knew how to use it" he said and pushed Roy away into the flames.
Mustang could see the older alchemist crumble to the ground in a coughing fit. He wondered if that's how he would have looked if the roles were reversed, as they were supposed to. But they were inside a mirror. Everything was reversed.
As life drained from Jansen's form, Roy noticed that the scenery was changing. The sky was bending in half, like it was trying to catch them whole between its folds, the ground was getting narrower and rocks were crumbling under the powerful force of the earth. He backed into the flames, but he couldn't feel their heat.
He waved his hand to the dying man, who in return smiled at him. "It was five million cenz. You deserve another zero to the sum" Mark Jansen said as his head touched the ground.
XXXXX
Edward walked them all to one of the more isolated tents. There wasn't anyone there anyway, the crowd had gathered to the riverside to watch the fireworks. He didn't want to have anyone tailing him, all he wanted was a bit of silence to think how he could find Roy. He struggled with the memories of all the reports he has ever read, searching for something that might give him an idea. He knew he had to consult books, but there was no time, he didn't know what was going on. Something was nagging him, some sounds he didn't comprehend, when all he wanted was silence.
He felt so cold.
Alphonse came closer to him. "Brother, I'm sorry... but you need to listen to me! Edward!"
Oh, it was his brother who was talking, he realised. He didn't want to listen. "No, Al, I'm not listening. I'm not going anywhere with you. My place is here, I don't care what that bastard made you promise. I have nowhere else to go. So stop this, Alphonse. Please"
"So you were listening! Brother, understand, it is for your safety. The Major told us about your encounter, you must understand there is something wrong, we should at least search into it-"
"No. I must. Stop it, brother" Edward made, suddenly feeling tired. "And do I really need a whole entourage behind me?"
"Brother, be reasonable"
"Alphonse, stop it" Winry said behind them. "Ed, we will do anything to help you. Say the word, and we will find the means. Don't listen to your brother"
The older alchemist let out a sight. "Thanks, Win. I only need a minute and that fucking Crendell out of my sight. I don't trust him, I am sure he is behind this"
"Which I'm not! I saved Mustang from a bullet, I want to know what happened, too! You are being too presumptive" Crendell protested.
"You standing here listening to what I talk with my brother is reason enough for me not to trust you. Mustang told me not to put any faith in you and I have the habit of trusting his judgement when it comes to people"
"I don't know what Mustang told you about me, but you are the last to have seen him, from what I gather. We should share what we know and find him, yes?"
"I'm not sharing anything with you, none of the people I trust put any faith in you. Why should I?" Edward said, narrowing his golden eyes dangerously. "I don't care you outrank every one of us here or that you are from the military police, just shut up. Court martial me, if you want, just shut up"
All back-talking died in Crendell's throat as he heard both Elric brothers let out a high pitched yelp. They looked at each other, seemingly in pain. "Have you felt that, brother?" Al asked, stabilising himself. He felt a sudden nauseating sensation that brought bile to his mouth.
"Urgh, yeah..." Ed replied, holding his stomach. "This is strange... haven't felt like this in a long time..."
"Are you alright?" Miles asked, concern visible on his face.
"Now, yes... it felt like someone has used some powerful form of alchemy" Al hurried to reply. Ed patted his shoulder. "It felt like something died, frankly. Something powerful"
Great booms filled the pleasant wind as the sky was lit up by fireworks. Edward drew his eyes to the sky, smiling at the beautiful memory of the fireworks from the previous year. A tear shed and fell down on his cheek, but nothing more.
He would do anything to find Roy, dead or alive. He was his, the least he could do was to bury him.
The light played across his tired features, the sweat on his forehead shining when a new colour popped up into the darkness of the sky. He finally had silence, he mused.
His little family gathered around him, his brother and their best friend. Both Northmen towered behind them protectively as they all watched the sky.
Crendell felt out of place. He watched the five people in front of him, all sorrowful and solemn. They were a mismatched bunch, but they all had each other in need. He wondered what Mustang's team was doing, if they knew their boss was missing. They must have, the Major General told them so.
Perhaps they even found him, lost in the crowd. It must have been just a misunderstanding, that's all.
He kept a respectful distance from them. That was the least he could do. They all were probably thinking they lost a good friend, though for all it was worth, Edward's face spoke of something else.
He rested for a while on that thought. He enjoyed Mustang's company and constant chase. It quite pained him to think the man might be dead. He sincerely hoped he wasn't.
He looked at his side, feeling eyes boring into him. He subtly shifted his gaze to see if there was someone watching him, and let out a gasp when he saw who was looking. "I'll be damned" he breathed.
It appeared that Edward felt the same eyes on him, and was now looking at the dark man with a face that screamed of murder. "No way... You piece of shit!" he roared, crossing the short distance to the man at a neck breaking pace. "You bastard, you fucking bled on me and vanished, what are you doing here smiling?" he cursed, clenching his automail arm in a fist.
Roy stood defenceless in front of his lover, beaming with joy. He was dirty and had water still dripping from his hair, but he looked beautiful in Edward's eyes.
He still looked beautiful after Edward's metallic fist connected with his jaw. "You bastard! You got me worried!" Ed broke into a fit of anger, kicking and punching the older man who was now laughing. "Don't you fucking laugh, I thought you were dead! Dead, you hear me! And why the fuck are you wet?!" he hissed, his speech interrupted by the constant thumping of his blows.
Roy decided he had enough of Ed's beating, no matter how appealing it was to see the bubbling blond so upset about his supposed demise. He caught his short lover into a tight embrace, one that cost him another kick, but he knew it was worth the pain.
Ed suddenly jumped in his arms, wrapping his feet around his waist. "Roy... I'm happy you're alive" he said truthfully and kissed him squarely, their lips clashing with a force that could draw sparkles.
The first to react at the display was Crendell. "Umm... what is going on?"
Olivier Armstrong turned sharply at the man to silence him. "Shut up, Crendell" She spoke so low he feared she might choke him with her forked tongue. He backed a few steps, raising his arms in defence.
A few feet away from them, the two lovers held each other tightly, not caring about the prying eyes. They only had friends around them, friends and Crendell, whom neither knew what to do with.
Edward was visibly shaking in Roy's arms, shocked to have the older man in front of him in such a good shape after what he'd seen not too long time before. He was dirty, his shirt was torn and he was drenched in something that smelled like stale water and mud, but he was in one piece. He had so many questions and so much yelling that he needed to do, he didn't know where to start from, but that could wait for when they got home and made themself more decent. Or at least smelled more decent.
However, at that moment, they were in their own little bubble, lost in the joy of their encounter. They couldn't care less about the world and their own dubious smells.
For nothing could reflect what they had together, in their hearts.
A/N: That's it for now, I will return with some more interesting things soon, in the next chapter. Until then, thank you for reading and please don't forget to leave a review/follow/favourite. I'd love to hear more from you!
Thank you again, bye bye!