The wind brushing past his cheeks smelled of freedom and victory, even if he was still bound and confined.
He didn't really know what the plan was, but he had never been one to think before acting anyway. After successfully kicking out the tail light, he was so overjoyed that he failed to remember he had yet to free himself completely. He tended to act solely on instinct and adrenaline, and while it may not be considered ideal to most, he always made it out alive at the end of the day- and right now, he was really counting on that.
The road beneath him and the fields alongside him blurred with speed, and the lack of other cars or general noise of the city, he realized quite quickly that his captor had opted to take side roads out of Central in order to avoid getting caught. The idea of someone seeing his restrained hands hanging out of the trunk and calling the police for him was quickly out the window, so again, Ed had to take matters into his own hands.
In order to get anything done with any kind of efficiency, he really needed to rid himself of the rope and plank barring him from alchemy. Of course, he couldn't use alchemy to break the ropes, and he didn't have a knife at his disposal to cut them with, but he did have the shards of pearly red broken plastic still jutting out of the tail light socket.
Grinning with joyful anticipation, he placed the thinnest part of the rope on the largest shard and began sawing away.
It was tedious work, and the twine-like rope dug even further into his flesh wrist and pressed against the healing burns, shredding the gauze that Havoc had replaced earlier that day. His every joint in his arm quickly tired out, and he had never been so grateful to have one not made of flesh and blood before now. He relied mostly on the automail to do most of the work, and after 10 good and long minutes and a few times being tossed around in the trunk, the cord was reduced to threads before finally snapping.
He couldn't help the barking laugh of victory that escaped from his throat as his bindings unraveled and the wood fell to the floor of the trunk, needles pricking at his fingertips as feeling returned to his hand.
Even if he wasn't entirely out of the woods yet, the return of movement to his arms and his greatest weapon was greatly encouraging. Sometimes, it felt great to be underestimated.
Clapping rather haughtily despite the burning in his wrist, he revelled in the buzz of alchemy running through him as he touched his ankles and the rope immediately severed and fell away in a pile.
For a moment afterwards, he just leaned back and enjoyed his small successes, realizing rather quickly that he had no idea what his next step was.
He could easily transmute the lock on the trunk and get it open, but then arose the problem of being in a vehicle moving rather quickly down some abandoned road- he could always jump and try to roll out the impact, but jumping out of cars was usually something he saved for when all of his bones were intact.
Another rather prominent issue was his captor behind the wheel. He wouldn't be able to transmute something in order to keep him from getting away without being able to see him, and even if he could tie him down the man would certainly lose control of the car with Ed still in it.
Thus, Ed was stuck with two big problems with similar painful outcomes.
He never thought he'd say it, but he was really beginning to miss being stuck on the couch.
Xxxxxxxxx
Edward was gone.
He was really, truly, gone- taken from him without leaving behind the slightest clue suggesting his whereabouts.
Even as burning tears tracked down his face and the air still felt acidic in his lungs, he couldn't help but zone out- a hollow chasm of regret and guilt looming in the pit of his stomach. He felt almost numb, despite the stinging sensation encasing him everywhere else.
How could he have been so useless? How could he have let them swipe Ed away right out from under him? Those drachman bastards had rendered him completely useless with the poke of a single syringe, not giving him the chance to protect Edward or even fully understand what was happening before he was restrained in artificial sleep.
His thoughts and worries swarmed and the drug within him continuously dragged him down, but he wouldn't allow himself to give in. Not only did he not have time to indulge in even the suggestion of rest, he didn't deserve it after everything.
What gave him the right to sleep soundly while Edward was plagued with nightmares? While he would wake up in the dead of night screaming and swimming in sweat? While Edward was out there right now, alone and in pain with god knows what happening to him?
How could he have let this happen?
He was only budged from his thoughts when a gentle hand was laid on his shoulder, and he had to fight the urge to jump as he was pulled so abruptly from his daze.
Maes looked to him with a sad smile, but there was determination as hard as steel in his eyes- keeping his hand on Roy's shoulder as he knelt next to him in the grass. The contact was very restrained for the overly-affectionate man, and it was clear in his face that the only reason he wasn't enveloped in a bone-crushing hug was for the sake of Roy's stubborn pride in front of his subordinates.
"We'll find him, Roy." Was all he said, even if it was quite obvious he was biting his tongue- either wishing he had more to offer or keeping himself from nervous rambling. Perhaps a little of the two.
Roy just looked away, his eyes finding solace in the unruly grass that was long overdue to be cut.
"What it we don't, Maes?" He retorted, not meaning to sound harsh, but letting his frustration reflect in his tone. "What if we don't find him? What will we do? It was my job to protect him, and now he's gone. Do you think they're hurting him? Oh my god, he's already so broken everywhere..." He blathered, unintentionally letting his worries out in one big blob of words. "God damnit, he's too damn small to be this hurt!" He yelled at last, everything within him building to a breaking point.
It seemed as if Maes had surpassed the point of caring about his pride, because soon he was wrapped up in his arms rather tightly.
"Roy, you stubborn mule!" He chuckled with crestfallen abandon, resting his head on Roy's shoulder. "This isn't your fault, and I promise you, we will find him. I won't rest until we do, and I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say that." He said, followed by several strained agreements from the team.
Roy couldn't help but smile at his friends' loyalty and valor, even if it was quickly replaced with a look of apathy as the weight of everything began to sink through him again. He knew his team would keep their word, but he could only hope it would be enough. He couldn't afford to fail Ed again.
So even if it still felt as if lead was coursing through his veins, he slipped out of his best friend's arms and sauntered to his feet, ignoring Mae's small noise of concern as he staggered a bit upon straightening up.
Maes' brows pinched together and he opened his mouth to protest, but before he could say anything, Roy spoke over him.
"I need everyone spitting out anything they observed from our attacker and I need all of our borders secured." He ordered, trying to assume professionalism even when his voice was raspy and straining and hardly commanding. "Put a bulletin out for everyone to be wary of any suspicious activity along with the best description of our guy we can scrounge up." Clasping his hands behind his back, he took a deep breath in through his teeth, riding out the waves of nausea that still threatened to take over his body. "We know that the perpetrator will be planning on fleeing Amestris as soon as possible with Fullmetal, and I trust that you all will take the appropriate actions to ensure this doesn't happen. If you find anything, report directly to me. Understood?"
A flurry of tired 'yes, sirs' flooded the air, and although Roy felt a twinge of guilt for pushing his exhausted team so hard, he knew they would do anything to find Edward even if he hadn't told them to.
He often let it slip his mind how lucky he was to have them, and he wondered idly if they knew how much they meant to him.
Did Ed know how much he cared about him? Probably not, considering he never really expressed it openly, often hiding his endearment with his professional exterior as well as the playful banter he often indulged in. He was sure arguing wasn't he best way to tell someone you loved them, but he wasn't quite sure how to do it any other way.
Perhaps he should swallow his pride and tell them more often, especially Edward. He would never forgive himself if the boy were to never understand just how much Roy cared.
In that moment, he made himself a silent promise. When they found Ed- because they would find him- he would never take him for granted ever again, for he never truly understood the power in the boy's mere presence until his absence left him with a gaping hole in his gut.
They would find him, and he would tell him, and then he would hug him until his eyes popped out if that's what it took to make him feel his love- because after this, Roy began to realize that life truly doesn't have second chances, and mercy was more rare than he had ever thought before.
Xxxxxxxxxx
Edward had always hated waiting, but now it was beginning to reach a whole new level of hatred.
The trunk was unlocked, his arms and legs were free, he even had his hands poised to clap, all he needed was a split second of stillness in order to follow everything through. Except, it had been fifteen long minutes of steady speed without pause, so either the drachman bastard was just blowing any stop signs or lights or the road he was on was more desolate than he originally thought.
He was straying further and further away from Central with every passing second, and it was physically painful to have all of the power he needed in order to escape but simply lacking the chance to use it. Every unhalting minute was infuriating, speeding on down some abandoned road in the trunk of the enemy like a sitting duck.
He wanted so badly just to throw caution to the wind and ignore the consequences and just get himself out of that damned car even if it meant crashing, but he knew better than to be reckless in a situation like this.
A nagging voice in the back of his head that sounded suspiciously like his commanding officer wouldn't let him be as thoughtless as he usually was on missions and in perilous situations. He didn't have as much leeway now as he normally did, and any wrong move could end up being disastrous. After all, he didn't want all of his well thought out plan to go to waste.
And so he waited, and he waited, even if it felt like his skin was melting off in the insulated interior of the trunk along with the sun beating down on the aluminium body of the car. Sweat poured off his face in buckets and dripped down off of the tip of his nose, but he didn't dare make a move prematurely.
He was just about ready to scream in overwhelming frustration- when it happened.
The all-too familiar squeal of brakes rang in his ears, and he felt an invisible force pushing him back as the car gradually slowed to a stop.
With his heart fluttering in his chest, he wasted no time.
He slammed his hands together so hard he could feel the sting on his flesh hand, and with the sound of alchemy charging the air, he said goodbye to his fear and everything that had been holding him back these past few weeks.
It was about time he got to bash some drachman heads.