Disclaimer: I don't own any of FullMetal Alchemist's plots, ideas, characters, and themes. I do, however, own OCs, made-up characters, and my own ideas and plots.

Chapter 25

What Malice said... I couldn't get it out of my head. My spirit was far from eased. Alphonse was in their possession, and Edward was no doubt going to come after them, and that's exactly what my sin wanted. My heart sank at the thought, and grew tenfold each time it passed through my mind. Margaret watched me with her soft moss eyes, a hand on my shoulder. We didn't move from where Malice left us, and if anything, we had just sunken back to the ground to sit in each other's company. Although I appreciated all of them simply being there for me... it wasn't enough.

I stood up again, and as before, my legs didn't obey me as quickly. When the children tried to help me up again, I held up my hands, telling them to leave me to it. Margaret's hand remained on my shoulder as she followed me up. On my feet, I looked up at the "sky", still stained with Malice's darkness, but drifting away like rain clouds that have done their share. Considering them, my lips drew into a thin line.

"I can't sit here any longer," I whispered. "It doesn't do me any good. I feel like a coward, hiding."

"Are you ready?" Margaret asked tenderly. I looked at her for the longest time, reading her expression. She was considerably worried.

"Truthfully, no. But it's better this way."

Margaret nodded, closing her eyes. The other children, with Rosalyn and Cid at the front, reached out to me. Cecilia had crawled to me and tugged the leg of my pants. I smiled down at her, and at the rest of them. I closed my own eyes, and followed the exit out of my mind. It was easy now, that Malice no longer tried to lock me up, like when she tried at the Alchemist's.

When I joined the villains, I was silent for a good few moments. My heart tugged when I saw Alphonse bonded by the hands and sitting uselessly. Malice was sitting right in front of him, I wasn't sure why, but she was. Finally, Greed stood beside her, facing the door as some chimaeras returned from their break. Martel was still probably enjoying her freedom a little longer. The conversations of the chimaeras remained within their boundary, so they didn't think to tune in anything other than their own words.

Malice noticed me nearby. She flashed me a quick smirk, one hardly anyone but myself could catch. She didn't say anything, and if she did, it'd be a little amusing to see Greed or Alphonse's reaction.

Greed crouched down, a thoughtful look on his expression. Malice looked back up at him from her lounging. "I promised you can kill them," he said. "But you can actually kill Armour-kun?"

"If you know where to strike," she replied. "There's a blood rune inside. That's what you'll be asking Edward about. As long as no one who's a threat knows about it, I believe it's pretty safe."

Greed nodded. Malice's eyebrow arched questioningly as she realized something she should have realized long ago. "Are you intending on transmuting your soul into armour, Greed?"

"When it calls for it, I suppose. Think about it; no need for sleep or food, and you could go on forever without getting tired."

"But we're already able to do that."

Greed leaned in slightly toward her to speak under his breath. "Philosopher Stones only last for so long. And look who's talking; you sleep pretty much all the time. You eat occasionally."

"I know," Malice sighed. "That's because of my general makeup, I think. But I don't find them so inconvenient."

Greed leaned back again and laughed. "That's all a matter of opinion."

"It was Urami I told about the blood rune to, not you..."

Alphonse's voice seemed very drained, and I pitied him. I was apologizing so much to him, with words I didn't think were enough. Eventually Malice glanced at me coldly, annoyed, trying to intimidate me into silence. Her attention returned back to their prisoner. He looked up at her as well.

"Who are you really, Malice? All I know is who you're not."

"I'm a homunculus, like Greed. What's more to know? It's all black and white."

"But what was your purpose? When we met, you totally had us believing you were simply a girl that needed help finding her memories."

Malice saw Greed turn around on the spot in interest, glancing from her to Alphonse. He began to understand why Malice knew much about the boys, and why she seemed so intent on killing them herself.

"...what happened to Urami?"

"Edward must have told you who she was. Just a figment, a means of escape." She looked at me briefly but firmly. "That's all she was. But I guess it takes more explanation to make things clear. And what do I have to lose in telling you? You're not going anywhere anyway.

"I think that the truth slipped past the both of you, since Edward wasn't present and there wasn't any opportunity for you to find out, because I killed the Alchemist. That man created me using the souls of many children. He managed to avoid the cost of human transmutation doing so.

"I was created anew. This body was created a year ago, but technically I've only just awakened. The Urami you knew?" Her words lashed at me like strikes from a whip: "Consider that a faulted version of myself. That was an inexperienced reflection, someone who didn't know who she was and what to follow; her sense, or her heart. She was sent by the core source of the homunculi to kill you and Edward —specifically Edward— and remove all threats to their plan. But she loved you brothers too much, and that ended her. I was born when she fell, like a phoenix born of the ashes."

The ones who listened to this —Greed and Alphonse— were both silent, and Malice smiled.

"Confused, aren't you?" she said, more so directed at Greed. He ran his fingers through his spiked hair, smiling crookedly.

"Not full detail, but I know how you roll. At least I've got the gist of it."

"I'll tell you more about it sometime, depending on how things turn out." Malice leaned forward, her head dipping up, so she could look up at Alphonse's lowered face. "Any more questions?"

Martel walked into the room with a roasted delicacy on a stick protruding from her mouth. Malice turned her head and acknowledged her, almost missing Alphonse's words.

"I won't believe Urami is just a figment. Does she still exist in you, trapped?"

Malice said nothing as she rolled onto her feet. She greeted Martel as if she hadn't heard Alphonse's question, until she retraced her steps backwards. She bent down, one hand on her knee, and the other placed on the front of his chest plate. Her finger tapped on the surface consecutively, at an equal interval, a very subtle indication.

"I've already answered that question."

I wasn't sure what she meant when she said that, whether I existed anymore or not. But what difference did it make, really? It was a depressing thought. She felt the emotion that threatened to overwhelm me, and a cunning grin crossed her features. She straightened up and flipped Alphonse's helmet off, through which Martel slipped into as she discarded her finished snack.

"There's a few days left I reckon; probably a week until the Fullmetal Alchemist arrives," she said musingly. "Until then, we just wait I guess. The other brother is the key."

She turned to leave, as it was her own turn to take a break. She said more to herself than to anyone else;

"And when keys aren't needed, they're discarded."

I saw Greed watch her leave, a small smile on his face. I didn't understand why he would look at her in such a gentle way, even though she was a complete monster. I reminded myself that he himself was a monster, at least as far as I knew. The two of them worked well together, despite how they started off, and it irritated me. I was trapped at all sides and Malice was living life comfortably, and what's more, it looked like she got to keep someone when I had to lose my own. Edward. Was Margaret's word genuine though, that Malice was eventually going to lose everything? Maybe in the far future, but certainly not anytime soon...

"You've finally came out to join in, have you?" Malice said to me after a few moments of the door closing behind her. I didn't want to talk to her. She sensed my scorn, and since it was an emotion she was so accustomed to feeling herself, she scoffed. "Will you stay to see if Edward arrives?"

I turned to glare at her. I'll not only be here. I'll try with all my might to stop you from doing anything you intend to do.

She laughed more strongly as she made her way to her room. No one was around to dub her insane. "What other tricks do you have up your sleeves? Not that you have sleeves anyway... my Stone is well out of your reach."

I don't know how, but I will. She sensed it for what it was; a bluff.

I was suddenly reminded of my thoughts previously, when I looked at Greed. My form stopped, while my sin continued to her room. We were still bound, though, so she felt the spiritual tug between us, and she looked at me over her shoulder. She, being the stronger of us two now, could easily rip me forth, but she was curious. I saw it in her eyes.

If we switched roles, I said slowly, trying to imagine it myself, I would try to kill Greed.

Malice's eyes widened. She turned fully so that her whole body faced me. For once I finally got her attention, and she was taking me seriously. I then had no doubt that she actually felt for Greed, and that astounded me. Not only was she not supposed to, she had no right to. Her eyes seemed confused, like her mind was trying to compute something, but then they grew cold. "...you wouldn't."

How do you know? I know you want to kill Edward and cause me that much pain. Well, wouldn't me killing Greed do the same thing to you? Isn't Edward to me like Greed is to you?

"So what if it is? Comparing things has no meaning to me. I don't care what happens to you, because all you are is a parasite."

So I've heard... but you're right. I wouldn't kill Greed.

"Then why the hell bring up some kind of philosophy?" Malice's lips spread wickedly. She turned her back on me as if to finish the conversation, but I wasn't finished. As I followed her to her door, and as she wrapped her fingers around the doorknob, I told her very clearly.

Margaret said we were alike, but I know fully well where we're set apart. I know for sure that, no matter how much I hate you, I'd never kill the one you care for. Never.

She froze where she was, in the middle of turning the knob. Her eyes looked distant as they travelled up the wood; she looked like she was taking my words into consideration. For one naïve moment, I actually thought that it would change her mind. She rolled her shoulders as if to channel the words out of her head.

"That kind of thinking, human side, is what got you into this mess. Trying to do what's right in a world of wrong gets you nowhere. Especially when there are people like me dominating in it."

You're wrong.

She looked at me, and we held gazes for a long while. I couldn't read her expression. "So you say that you can make a difference. That you, no matter what destiny's signed you up for, can always try to change it."

They didn't sound like questions, but they didn't sound like statements, either. I held my head high and said nothing, but my expression told her that what she repeated was true. I had to at least try and protect Edward and Alphonse however I could.

Malice didn't say anything either, so she went inside her room. Being still connected to my body, I followed. She went to freshen up in the washroom, and then she left her room once more. I figured she wanted to leave The Devil's Nest to walk the streets, and I grew uneasy of the thought of her roaming the streets. It reminded me of the florist, and I hope she didn't kill anymore after that event. It turned out, however, that she had killed two other people in my absence, and fewer people stuck around at night because of that. More police officers monitored the corners, now looking for the murder or any case relative to his or her location. Malice slipped by their surveillance without any amount of effort. I wasn't sure if she had any intention of killing someone that night.

Perhaps she was still thinking about what I said. I'm not sure. I guess that's just me and my wishful thinking.

Malice and Bido walked through the forest away from Dublith, a couple of days after she and I last talked. I stayed outside our mind, forcing myself to stay and try to keep her in line, even though I had no effective method of doing so anymore. Luckily she wasn't doing anything right now that was against my morals. She was simply on recon once more with her traditional partner, checking the perimeter of the area to make sure that nothing would interfere with their business.

Malice and Bido somehow always found something to talk about. They would often talk about something humorous that happened at The Devil's Nest, or Bido would share his experiences in Laboratory 5. Malice had no similar stories to that, as most of our life was in my perspective, but she commented with smart remarks and the two of them laughed together. I was slightly envious of their carefree attitudes, but I was also still intrigued. Malice had a different way of treating other people when she wasn't trying to hurt them.

Something was up when they circled around a canyon that hindered their way. Usually they would go through it, but recently the rain of a storm filled it with plenty of water, and the pesky insects that came with it would prove annoying to fend off. So they decided to go around it, and when reaching the far rock face, they heard noises that no form of nature could provide. There was a lot of human activity, and Malice and Bido approached cautiously. I, being curious myself, left them as far as my body could let me and overlooked the canopy. Some smoke trailed up from the trees, and I noticed many spaces where trees were removed.

There was a path up ahead, and there were soldiers along it. Foot infantries and officials in vehicles were making their way, either first embarking or they were reinforcements. Malice and Bido soon saw this through trunks of the trees. I returned to them to see it through their point of view.

"What are they doing here?" Malice asked Bido under her breath. He looked at them, with a very small hint of distaste in his eyes. They reminded him of the Laboratories and how the militaries used him for experiments.

"I have no idea. To have soldiers on the march like this, it's as if some sort of war is about to start."

Malice looked at them closely, took her bearings. The both of them hid deeper into the trees when a line of soldiers walked closer to the treeline.

"No," Malice whispered to him. "That looks like too little a group for them to try and fight a battle. And within the borders of Amestris? There aren't any civil wars nearby; we've been on recon for a long while and nothing's broken out."

I looked at them, then at the soldiers. Their numbers were dwindling as they neared the end. When the last few soldiers disappeared down the path, Malice and Bido sat normally. I was still looking after the soldiers, and then my nostrils flared. A sudden idea appeared in my mind, and I couldn't help but say it aloud.

They're not ready for war. Malice looked up at me while Bido was busy trying to work things out in his brain. They're ready for extermination.

Malice caught on, and her eyes widened. As a matter of fact, she took her bearings again and determined the direction they were heading, and their location in relation to the destination. A twisted expression of anxiety and anger flashed upon her features.

"For the love of—!" she cursed. Bido looked at her in alarm. She jumped out of the undergrowth and forced her fingers roughly through her bangs and the crown of her hair. "They're heading for Dublith!"

"Dublith?" Bido exclaimed. His alarm strengthened. "No!"

"Someone must have tipped them off! I don't think the others can put up with a fully-armed squadron..."

"Then let's go!" Bido disappeared through the foliage, his tail remaining for a second as a reminder of where he used to be. Malice shot off after him, and I was pulled along with them. "We have to warn Mr. Greed and the others!"

"Will we even make it in time...?" Malice's doubts lingered for a second, but her mind made itself up. Her muscles tensed, and she pushed every fiber in her body for speed. It was no trouble running from Lust and Envy, so why would running back to Dublith be? She had to think of her destination, think of her friend waiting. That was enough motivation. I found myself admiring that strength, and wished I had more of it within myself.

Once arriving in Dublith, it was already apparent that some sort of military operation was taking place. The streets were crowded with wary people, speaking of the roads downtown and the commotion down that way. Soldiers in uniform stood at the corners of the streets to stop anyone from entering the danger zone. The way to The Devil's Nest was barred, at least for anyone human. Bido and Malice continued to hurry toward their destination by rooftop, sleekly avoiding attention from below.

They dropped into the alleyway that ran along the side of The Devil's Nest, and gunfire soared through the air, irritating their ears. Bido seemed frightened; the dislike he held for the military quickly transformed into worry and fear. Malice considered his expression before nearing the mouth of the alley. Under the darkness she watched as more soldiers guarded the staircase to the entrance. She eyed the ranks, blood-thirst crawling up to the surface of her being. The gunfire continued to sound, and she heard familiar shouts and bodies hitting the ground. The sounds made her tense.

"They're hunting us chimaeras," Bido said softly to her, and his worry wouldn't wash away. His hands came together nervously. "Mr. Greed..."

"Greed's okay," Malice told him firmly. "He's gotta be. I'm going inside."

His eyes widened in horror. "Th-They'll get you too!"

"I'd like to see them try...—" She was saying, when she caught a piece of a name. Her eyes shot back to the outside streets and she pressed herself closer to the stone to stay in the shadow as she moved closer. She caught it again.

King Bradley.

A sudden fear wretched its claws around her core, as if trying to crush the iron casket she set up to protect herself. "Pride's here? He's here?"

What's wrong? I asked her acidly. She didn't react to my question quickly, frozen with some sort of mental paralysis. Bido watched her desperately, hoping she had something planned. When she didn't move at all, he reached out to her, setting a hand on her shoulder. She flinched under his touch and stared at him in shock. They didn't say anything.

You'd be smart to run now, I told her plainly. If Pride's in there, you're as good as cooked. He'll take you back to them.

Malice considered my words closely, and she looked like she wanted to take my advice. In some ways, I expected her to. But then she said, at last, "...Greed's in there."

Bido blinked. So what? I sniffed. I wanted to see what she would do. Sure enough, her expression of fear disappeared, and her brows furrowed.

"Fuck Bradley," she hissed. She pushed Bido back into the shadows. The Ore started to cover her body, starting from her fingertips and working fast. "You stay here. Don't be seen."

His expression was heart-wrenching to look at. "But, wait!—"

By the time he finished that word, the Ore had completely covered her face, and she burst into the light. It was one single leap, straight for the wall facing The Devil's Nest. Her armour confused and disoriented the soldiers, directing the sun's glare like an all-way mirror. Her feet met the opposite wall and she absorbed the landing, and in the next second she twisted around and kicked off, propelling herself to an upper window, meant for the residents living above the rowdy night bar. They would have been in for a surprise as she crashed through the glass with a purpose, but it seemed like they were evacuated. Pride was making it seem like a responsibly-taken maneuver, that he was using his power for the good of the people. What a façade.

She heard through the floorboards the activity down below. She calculated and sensed them; seven people were on their feet, while fading souls were rendered stationary and injured on the floor. Those could only be the chimaeras keeping guard outside their headquarters.

She now heard shouts from outside; the soldiers she passed were sending warnings inside. She stopped, and at the same time, the ones below did, too. Everything was quiet for a second, and then the unleashed storm of artillery fire ripped the floor. Open contact, the bullets ricocheted off her skin, spitting orange sparks. She wasn't accustomed to this, and flinched the first flurry of shots, but then she saw the opportunity of this. The floor grew weaker, and would just prove easier to dispel for her entrance.

She plummeted through the floorboards and delivered the dire, mortal wounds to the first four soldiers in sight. Their throats slit, they fell to the ground, curling like withered leaves as they tried to stop the bleeding. The other three held their guns high and directed at her.

She looked at the chimaeras that lay dead, many of them she recognized by name. She couldn't explain the feeling she felt, the deep hatred she had. She thought it was simple blood-thirst, but it ran much deeper, so much deeper that it hurt her, made her sick. I realized that she was ultimately angry, not because her own soldiers were down for the count, but because she was losing people that she saw at her own level. Seeing them dead haunted her with an even worse image of...

This only made her purpose of coming even more urgent. The bullets blasted at my sin, but to no avail to the humans present. Before they had even hit the ground, she was gone, searching.

"Greed!"

She heard the footfalls of soldiers both behind and in front of her. The halls that lead off from the bar seemed much more longer and narrower than she usually found them. They also didn't prove easy to maneuver with a riled mind; she dropped in an area she hardly set foot in, and moving forward was the only thing she could do. I had no idea on the matter either, since I wasn't the one able to explore before. When a soldier rounded the corner, she struck them without mercy and let them fall, dead or barely alive. The chimaeras she passed were dead and dying, and I wondered what Malice would really do if she saw Roa or Dolcetto. She didn't stop to investigate their bodies, to determine if they were still alive, because she just didn't think of it. What blinded her, along with the mental image she wanted to reject, was ignorance.

"Greed!"

Greed tilted his head slightly, turning his acute ears, hearing down the hall from the last room, where the interrogations were supposed to take place. In the end, he ordered his underlings away, taking Armour-kun with them. He had to stay behind for the fight, and this was where he resulted in transforming himself fully into the Ultimate Shield. His opponent lay crumpled against the wall, presumingly dead, but he heard the boy's rasp breathing. He heard the gunfire, and he heard Malice calling for him. Her voice echoed with an anxiety he wanted to ease, but he couldn't leave.

"Dead?"

Edward came to them much earlier than Malice had anticipated. He was indefinitely faced with the task of filling papers, but the Führer accepted his papers without any effort at all. It was irresponsible to Edward, but it was also a stroke of luck. He returned to Dublith this morning, and he found his master slightly injured and his brother gone. When his master told him that his brother was being held for ransom, he came by himself to resolve whatever matters they had.

She warned him about her. She was here in Dublith the entire time, and he didn't know how to feel. He was definitely shocked, for he thought their confrontation would be far in the future rather than the current day. The pain throbbed in his chest at the memories, and his flesh burned where her deadly touch kissed. But this was not the time; it was selfish to think about her now. She wasn't even here personally. His brother was more important to him. He kept repeating the sentence in his mind.

Greed watched as the Fullmetal Alchemist's eyes opened, glaring at him. The boy heaved himself forward with all his might. He struggled to his feet and wavered.

"Good," Greed smiled with his eyes. "Kids like you should be more lively."

Edward tried again. He hurled his automail fist up in an uppercut and caught Greed under the chin. The screws and parts Winry put so much care to enhance fell apart and scattered, leaving his fingers stringy. Greed chuckled at his determination, and grabbed his face. From there he threw the boy into the remaining crates that weren't destroyed yet, and they splintered under his weight. Blood spurted from Edward's mouth at contact.

"You can't beat me no matter how many times you try," Greed said simply. He walked to where Edward fell, and picked him up by the scruff of the neck. "You better spit out the secret of the soul."

Edward's breathing continued to come in slow gasps, but Greed could have sworn he said something under his breath. After a second, he spoke louder.

"Thanks man."

"Huh?"

"The blood in my head has lessened a little... I'm thinking more clearly now... My mechanic sure is incredible... It moves even in this condition..."

Edward rattled his pathetic-looking fingers. Alone, they had no strength within them to deal anymore damage, or at least try to. The fact that his arm could still move, however, was all that he cared about. He slammed his hands together and then pressed them against Greed's forearm. Lightning shot up and Greed let go, briefly startled by the feeling. Edward collapsed to the ground and Greed observed his arm, curious on what just happened. As far as he knew, nothing.

"Still resisting, huh?" he sighed. He flexed and held his fist up for attack. "Enough of this. Be obedient and go to sleep!"

I wanted to stop Malice from furthering her hand of slaughter, but I couldn't do anything. The soldiers were unlucky to face something so monstrous. I tried reaching for the Stone, but that defense she set up proved too tricky to breach. She didn't even notice me trying to get in, but that was probably because she currently had her focus all on one thing. I tried to think more deeply, but nothing else came up in mind... I was afraid that my words were empty, and I wouldn't be able to do anything for Edward...

Malice continued to make her way deeper through the catacomb-like hallways of The Devil's Nest. Everything seemed longer. So far, she didn't run into Pride yet, but she didn't see Roa, Dolcetto or Martel yet either. It was a situation Malice could not quite decide on what to do when it came to it, but something else was calling her forward right now. Her decisions now were simply instinct, and her instinct told her to destroy every living thing who meant them harm, and beat them to their destination.

She finally reached the hallway she inhabited for the majority of her stay. She far surpassed the soldiers; they hadn't reached this far yet, and she felt some relief. She heard them approaching however, which reminded her that there was no time to lose. At the end of this hallway was the room where she saw Greed last. Currently, the hallway seemed so vacant that speeding through it seemed surreal. She stopped when she saw the door, half-open, and Greed, full in the Ultimate Shield. At first she was just happy to see him; the relief she felt overwhelmed me, but I saw something before she did.

He held his side, which was vividly red and showed the twining of his muscles. Blood oozed over his hand before his body slowly regenerated the wound, and even then, it took another moment for his Shield to activate again. Malice took this in at last, and her relief diminished slowly. Who was he fighting? He was in the Ultimate Shield for a reason, and if he was being dealt heavy damage on, the opponent had to be a difficult kill...

"Greed?"

Greed turned to the door and saw her a few feet into the hallway. He straightened up his composure, looking as good as new. However, his former wounds were still burnt into her memory. "Sweetheart," he called back.

I had gone ahead of her to see who it was. My heart felt like it was going to wretch itself out. He wasn't supposed to come so soon. Malice misinterpreted, or ignored this. Only upset emotions billowed in her as she reached the door. "What the hell is this?"

She pushed the door aside fully and stepped inside. Her eyes searched out the intruder, and there he was. Edward Elric, having arrived much earlier than his awaited date. His eyes beheld her with disbelief, and he didn't think it was Malice at first. All he saw was a metallic humanoid... thing. Her voice sounded the same though, echoed as it was. She dismissed the Ore that confused him so, with a forbidden snarl lingering on her revealed mouth.

"You're not supposed to be here yet," she said coldly. Her eyes narrowed further. "And you brought the military with you. That's quite uncivil."

"So is abducting and holding people for ransom," Edward returned acidly. Malice bared her teeth. The soldiers were coming, and she was so close! She had expected to kill Edward at her own leisure, but now it seemed like her chance was spoiled...

"You have a lot of blood to spill, despite being so small. Didn't know you had it in you."

Edward's expression turned childishly murderous. I could've laughed —I remembered memories of his short-temper well—, but Malice's humour was a severe one. I was wishing with all my mind and soul that she would spare him. I had no power here.

"I didn't expect you to beat him up this badly," she told Greed. The other homunculus shrugged.

"He wouldn't spit out the secret of the soul. Tough little shit..."

"What did he do to you? I saw you; you were hurt."

"Alchemy tricks. He figured out how the Shield worked."

She didn't care on how Edward did it. "Are you okay?"

"Your concern flatters me."

Malice tried her hardest to keep a straight face, but her lips betrayed to a smile, though bitterly undone by the annoyance of another source. "We have to leave, immediately. The others have all fallen, and the military has a large extermination team, most of them waiting outside. And," she moved closer to him, and spoke under her breath. "I hear Pride is with them."

"Pride?" Greed repeated questioningly. "Haven't seen him in a while..."

All of this, Edward couldn't hear. He was angry as it was, being treated like he didn't exist in their breathed words. He bled almost profusely, and this was bad, considering he had just only recovered from the scandal in Korius. And as each moment passed by, Alphonse was getting further and further away, and Edward needed to get to him.

His time of recovery was enough. He focused his sights on Malice, and remembered all the pain and suffering she had caused the people around her, especially himself. Izumi had told him of the series of murders since he left, and he could only link the killings to her, with her constant need for sadistic deeds. What's more, he also saw the florist's wife walk by before he left for The Devil's Nest... the poor, poor woman.

To top it all off, he blamed what happened to me on her. He didn't believe me as a separate entity, but he wanted to imagine it like that. That she killed me. That made the hatred grow, and it gave him the will to attack, even though attacking Malice looked like attacking me.

My sin didn't expect him to lunge, but she wasn't surprised, either. Her arm morphed into the Ore and struck his attack away. His hands clapped together and he pressed his palm against her arm, where the sparks danced. He grimaced when his trick didn't work. He didn't know what the Ore was made of, whether in a pure form or an alloy. Malice considered the dying alchemy tiredly and then fixed her eyes on Edward.

Greed's fist spiraled around and landed in Edward's abdomen. It sent the boy backwards, arms pressed to his stomach and sprayed spit dotting the ground. Malice blinked at Greed's action, who straightened up again calmly and sighed. I watched Edward with a pleading look on my face, even though no one could see it now. Malice looked at Edward heaving, his eyes scrunched up a little but still glaring at her. Like always, to her, those golden orbs were just asking to be ripped out.

My relief soared. She had decided to run, and leave Edward behind. She wanted to kill Edward slowly, but there was simply no time. She reached up with her hand in a rigid motion and immediately pulled it down. The hatch in the roof's ventilation ripped itself free and crashed to the ground. Edward flinched at the impact a few meters away and wondered what she was planning. She turned to Greed and took his forearm, cold and firm.

"Come on, we have to go."

"But I thought this was what you wanted," he replied, signifying Edward. "He won't negotiate, so he's yours now."

"There's no time for my pleasures," she said regretfully, but her eyes darkened. "Besides, I still have Alphonse."

"If you dare even so much as—!" Edward shouted, suddenly leaping at her again. She rolled her eyes and her fingers clenched together in front of her, the metal limbs that gave Edward motion her targets. The joints locked, and Edward couldn't move them. He stumbled with a useless leg, close to falling forward. When he didn't, Malice placed her foot on his stomach and kicked him back, where he buckled.

"Sit down and enjoy the fire," she told him, walking past. She enveloped herself into the Ore again, for she heard that the soldiers had finally arrived in their hallway. They were running in fast. "I guess it pleases you at least a little that chimaeras have died because of you."

A look of hurt lingered in his eyes at the thought. Malice didn't see it, but I did. I realized that maybe it wasn't him that intended them to come at all. It may have just been a coincidence that they came at the same time he did, or someone must have stuck their nose into his business. All in all, I couldn't blame him for any deaths. He wanted to save lives, not end them.

"Until next time, Fullmetal Alchemist."

The soldiers burst into the room at last. They saw Edward, and refrained from directing their guns at him as others went in to retrieve him. They pointed their artillery at Malice and Greed, who acted quickly and jumped into the air duct up high, Greed leading the way. Malice threw a lasting glance at Edward, who regained control of his limbs but was acting wild. For another day, she wouldn't touch him.

End of Chapter

A/N

Sorry for the delay these past weeks. I've only now been freed from school and exams. And for the first few days I've just been lazing about XD

Things are getting heavy. The next chapter's started, so rest assured, I'm not gonna randomly stop writing. Unless that's what you want, lol... in that case, I'd be wondering why you're still watching for new updates. XD In any case, expect some activity. If not fanfiction, art; I'm always working on something so come by and check out some art if you're interested. The URL is on my profile. :D

And I know that King Bradley is not Pride, at least not in the manga and Brotherhood anime. Please be patient with me, I've got things thought out but not written yet :)

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I enjoyed writing it, although I felt like I was using the same words often. Critique? I'd love to hear what you guys are thinking. Also, it's a good self-esteem boost, haha. You don't have to say how good it is, just tell me your favourite parts, what ticks you off, and what you overall think of things. Okay? -heart- I like talking about it with people; also helps me with new ideas.

See you all later. Thanks for reading this far~

-Vixen