Disclaimer: see part 1.
Warnings: AU; lots of incorrect information about homunculi
Beta (and lotsa' nitpick ): Mufurc
Note: This is the second story in the "Equivalent trade" – series. Greed's affection for Alphonse is still quite Platonic… Although an SD Greed is sitting on the top of my monitor, booted feet dangling lazily; he smiles at me showing off his pointy teeth and keeps humming Queen's "I want it all". Now honestly, how could I resist?
Note2: Because the story is rather light in the sex department, I decided to introduce the new chars and I also added some scientific babble. Hey, it's a SERIES.
Note3: Please, keep in mind, that this is an alternate universe story. Forget about that Greed turned into raspberry juice and that his bones crumbled to dust. Those things never happened in this particular universe. Plus, because I've just watched FMA 35-42, Martel is alive as well, because I like her. Just forget about the eps after the 34th.
Equivalent trade
Part two
The pain vibrating in his brother's small cry stabbed a knife into Edward's heart. He clapped his hands together and put them on the ground to raise a wall between Al and the attackers.
"Stupid me," he cursed under his breath. "I should have known that they WOULD put up a gunfight on the main street." He turned to his brother, who sat in the shadows, biting his lips, pressing a hand firmly against his thigh. As Ed knelt down next to him, for his greatest horror, he noticed the blood on Al's white glove.
"You've been shot." For a fleeting moment, the Fullmetal Alchemist felt very small. But he shook his head and proceeded to pull his brother to his feet.
"Hang on, Al, I'll take you out."
"B… brother…Rush Street thirteen's back door… Take me there!"
"Huh??"
"I've been there before. Trust me, it's a safe place."
Ed hesitated for a heartbeat but he had no better idea; so he threw his arm around his brother and began to hurry down on the shady alleys. The night descended quickly, hiding them from the attackers.
"Okay, and what now?" Ed panted as he stopped in front of the metal back door of a large three-story building. "What is this place anyway?"
"Just knock and tell them that the Elric brothers are here," Al whispered with a weak smile. He lost a serious amount of blood; he was struggling to stay conscious.
Ed shrugged and banged his fist to the door. A small window opened and a pair of dark eyes glanced out.
"What?"
"The Elric brothers are here! Open up, my brother is injured!"
"Should I care?"
Ed's amber eyes flashed and he raised his hands to clap but Al was quicker.
"Tell Dolchet that Alphonse Elric needs help!" He said loudly and then collapsed.
"Al!!" Edward knelt down and gathered his brother into his arms. The seconds seemed hours until the door opened and a tall, broad-shouldered guy stepped out.
"Get in. I'll help to carry him."
The thug lifted Al's slim body easily and brought him into the building. Ed followed quickly, glancing around nervously.
The blue-clad boy was laid on a leather-covered bench and the man examined the injury with experienced eyes.
"Simple gunshot. Just a scratch but it hit a major vein, that's why it's bleeding so badly. Could you bandage it? I'll call the doctor."
"Why are you helping us?" Ed looked up. "What is this place?"
The thug grinned.
"Welcome in the Devil's Nest. And I'm helping you because I was ordered."
He left the older Elric and went to the phone which hung by the entrance. Ed didn't hesitate much; he transmuted some bandage and quickly wrapped it around his brother's thigh. It wasn't the best first aid job ever but hopefully it would do.
By the time he finished, somebody came running down on the stairs. Ed looked up and his brow furrowed. The swordsman in brown and blue clothes looked very familiar.
"Dolchet." The thug bowed his head. "The one called Alphonse has a shot wound, I already phoned to Doctor Nelson."
"Good job, Max." The swordsman nicked his head and turned to Ed. He leaned closer and sniffed the air, then smiled.
"Good evening, Edward Elric. Come with me, the boss already opened a room for you."
He picked Al up and started to walk up on the stairs. Ed – there was nothing else to do – followed him. The swordsman went to the third floor and opened the door. They were in the public part of the building now, on a richly ornamented corridor. The floor was covered with a thick green carpet; golden knobs glittered on the mahogany doors.
Dolchet hurried to the end of the hallway and stopped in front of one door.
"Open it," he told to Ed. "The key is in the lock."
Ed obeyed and then, he watched as the swordsman gently laid his brother on the bed.
"Sit down; the doctor will be here soon."
Ed went to the bed and settled down next to Al.
"Dolchet, right?" He looked at the swordsman. "You seem familiar."
"It was two years ago, in the previous Devil's Nest." The man smiled. "You have a damn good right hook."
Edward's amber eyes widened from realization.
"You were one of Greed's men!"
"Ssh! Keep quiet around the injured!" Dolchet folded his arms. "Yes, that's right. I'm his right-hand man."
"Then why are you helping us? Why is this place called Devil's Nest? And why did Al say that this is a safe place?"
"Two months ago, he came here looking for a guy called Ken Evans. And Greed told him…"
"Greed is dead," Ed growled. "I killed him with my own hands."
"Oops, I shouldn't be here then…"
The Fullmetal Alchemist tilted his head to the side, where a tall, dark-clad man stood in the door. Next to him was a shorter guy, wearing a brown coat and holding a black bag. The latter rushed in with quick steps and knelt down next to the bed, throwing off the coat and rolling up his sleeves.
"What were you two doing?" Greed walked in. Ed pointed a shaking finger at him.
"You. Are. Dead. I saw you. We buried you. I killed you, for Heaven's sake!"
"If you want to shout my head off, please, come with me," Greed held his hand up. "We shouldn't disturb the doctor."
"I'm not going anywhere!" The look in Ed's eyes was murderous. "You can't seriously think that I'll leave Al in the hands of your henchman!"
"Excuse me," the doctor interrupted politely. "I'm not working for Greed. But feel free to stay, I think, you'll find it rather interesting." He reached into his bag and pulled out something. He held it over the wound – the bandage was cut off earlier – and Ed caught a glimpse of something reddish-pink. Suddenly, there was a bright flash of light… and the wound disappeared.
"That's… that's an incomplete Philosopher's Stone!" Professional curiosity took over Edward and he stared at the doctor. "Where did you get it from?"
"About five years ago… I met a man named Tim Marco. We got acquainted and we traveled together for a while. He presented me with his trust. I got to know, that he was experimenting with the Philosopher's stone during the Ishbal War."
"I knew him," Ed nodded.
"Ah, really? How's he doing?"
"He died two years ago."
"What?" The doctor was shocked. "Oh my… I didn't know…"
"He gave it to you?"
"Oh, yes. He gave me this stone that I could help more people. Like in this case. He's your brother, right?
"Yes. Will he be okay?"
"Most certainly. I closed the wound so the only thing we have to worry about is the blood loss. But I've dealt with so many patients who lost more or less blood that I'm an expert in transmuting it…" The doctor chuckled a little. "It'll take some time though. Please, would you all leave for a while? I need to concentrate. Don't worry; I won't do any harm to him."
"Okay…" Ed sighed. "Please take good care of him."
"I will." The doctor reached into his bag and pulled out a set of small vials, jars and boxes; the boy recognized some of them. It was everything one needed to create blood; besides the adequate array of course.
"Come with me, kid," Greed beckoned to the golden-eyed alchemist. "I guess you have some questions…"
"You bet." The blond youth glanced back on the doctor, who was already lost in concentration; then followed the homunculus.
The tall man led Edward into the next room, which was just as elegant as the previous one; except, it was actually a suite. Greed sat down on the dark grey leather couch and motioned to the alchemist to take a seat too. Dolchet immediately stepped behind his boss, like a good bodyguard.
"Would you like something?" The homunculus asked. "To eat, to drink?"
"No, thanks. The only thing I'd like are answers. How it is possible that you're still alive?"
"You surely remember that I'm also called the Ultimate Shield. I can adjust the carbon in my body as I wish, creating a diamond-hard outer cover. But it works in the inside as well. When you stabbed your blade into me, I kind of formed a tunnel around it, so you couldn't scratch my most vital parts. I played dead until you buried me and then, I dug myself out."
Ed gaped at the homunculus.
"Do you know, how… bad it sounds? You're telling this like you'd talk about your lunch!"
Greed laughed.
"I know I'm making it seem like it's easy but in fact, it really is." The look in the violet eyes suddenly turned serious and the dark-clad man leaned closer.
"Hey, kid, I'm sorry. I know how you felt, Al told me about it. I understand that you're angry but I also guess that you can understand that it had to be done. You wouldn't have been able to kill the other homunculi if you hadn't finished me."
Ed folded his arms and leaned back. Greed was right but it did nothing to ease the anger the young alchemist felt.
"I'm not going to thank you."
"I wasn't expecting it, really." Greed smiled.
Ed opened his mouth to continue but in this moment, something unexpected happened. A small figure stepped through the door and launched towards the homunculus. The strange thing was that the door never opened.
Edward nearly jumped up and clapped his hands. Thank Heavens, his wits were quick enough to recognize, that the newcomer was a little girl, who crawled into the black-clad man's lap and threw her arms around his neck.
"Who…" Ed began but the door opened and a young blonde woman stormed in.
"I'm sorry boss, I told her that you're busy but she didn't listen! I couldn't stop her…"
"I'd be surprised if you were able, Martel." Greed smiled at the woman, clearly amused. Then, he placed a kiss on the little girl's forehead.
"Edward, let me introduce you Vanity, my… daughter."
The Fullmetal Alchemist's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he stared at the girl and the man alternately. She had pale skin, large violet eyes and brown hair caught in a ponytail. She was wearing a simple dark blue dress.
After some uncomfortably silent seconds, the girl offered her hand to the blond youth.
"Hi. Who are you?"
"I… I…" Ed shook his head. "I'm Edward Elric."
"Very nice to meet you!" Vanity chimed then turned to Greed. "Look, uncle! Tony has just arrived and he brought this for me!" She held up her wrist on which a golden bracelet was glittering. There was a violet gem inlaid into its middle.
"Oh, it is very pretty." Greed's voice was gentle. "It looks good on you, precious. But now, please listen to Martel and go to take a bath. Uncle has a guest and you know that…"
"That when you have a guest, I shouldn't burst in," the girl finished on a bored voice. "I know, but I miss youuu!" She buried her face into the fur lining on Greed's vest. "You haven't played with me at all since Monday!"
"I know and I'm sorry, sweetheart. I've been really busy. But this doesn't mean that you can break the rules. Now go with Martel, be a good girl. Tomorrow I'll take you out for some ice-cream, okay?"
"Okay!" Vanity jumped down from the homunculus lap and took the hand of the blonde woman. The latter turned to Ed, who was still totally dumbfounded.
"Hello!" She smiled. "We don't know each other yet so let me introduce myself. I'm Romi Martel."
"H… hi. Edward Elric." The young alchemist shook the woman's hand. She smiled and began to lead the girl out.
"Goodnight, princess!" Greed called after them. Ed heard Vanity's happy laughter as the door closed.
"Something wrong?"
The golden eyes slowly turned cold. Dangerous flames began to flicker in them and Ed clenched his fists.
"How could you do that, Greed?"
"Do what?" The homunculus looked puzzled.
"She's a homunculus too. You made a homunculus to play with? How could you? Did you murder her?" The last words were shouted. Dolchet grabbed his sword, ready to protect his boss from the alchemist's anger.
"Listen to me, will ya?" Greed sounded angry as well. "I didn't make her! Geez, you haven't changed at all, except that you've grown a little."
The comment caught Ed by surprise. Greed took advantage on the sudden silence and began to talk.
"I have nothing to do with her creation. I found her on the streets, half naked and starving. I recognized that she was a homunculus too, and I took her in. I also managed to find out what happened. His dad was an alchemist who came here two years ago to speak with Dante… Unfortunately, she was dead. The man wanted to find a medicine for his daughter's illness. But he failed and the girl died. The guy, in his final desperation attempted human transmutation."
"What happened?" Ed asked quietly. Greed let out a disgusted hiss.
"We found him. Or at least we guess it was him; it's damn hard to identify a corpse, when the head is missing."
"How did she take it?"
"She doesn't know, what happened." Seeing the young alchemist's dismay, he explained. "When a homunculus is born, he or she doesn't remember anything. Its mind is blank; knowledge on the world is still there but it bears no memories on its family, on its past life. As the years pass, the memories surface; the older a homunculus is, the more things it remembers. Vanity doesn't know that she's not human. None of us would know, unless somebody tells us."
Ed calmed down. He felt kind of strange; he only knew Greed as an enemy and here he was, taking the role of a father.
"When will you tell her?"
"I don't want to tell her," Greed said gravely. "I don't want to be the one who causes her pain. She'll remember and ask questions on her own. The Ouroboros mark is on the middle of her back so she won't notice easily but she'll see that people don't usually have powers like we do. On a day, I'll be forced to tell it to her; but I remember the day when I was born and I was told the truth. Even without a soul… it hurt."
"Um… well…" Ed scratched his head. "Y'know… I'm sorry. You're not a bad guy after all. You kidnapped my brother but I guess, he forgave you long ago… and I know he doesn't want me to hold grudges so… let's bury the past."
The black-clad man smiled.
"But don't forget: we're the dogs of the military and if our ways cross each other, we'll take you down."
"I'll try my best." Greed winked mischievously.
There was a knock on the door and Dolchet opened it. The doctor stood there. He looked a bit exhausted but he smiled proudly.
"The patient regained consciousness," he announced. "You can go and see him… What was your name again?"
"I forgot to introduce myself; forgive me." Ed stepped to the brown-haired man. "I'm Edward Elric."
"Oh, the famous Elric brothers! My name is Elias Nelson."
"Al! Are you okay?"
"Yes, brother, don't worry." Alphonse seemed a little pale but he smiled. "Doctor Nelson did an excellent job. Come to think of it… Doctor, when can I get up?"
"I'd say you should stay in bed for the next day," Nelson said seriously. "I restored your blood but it takes a little while until everything returns to its perfect working order. The day after tomorrow, you're free to go."
"You can rest assured, I'll catch those bastards on my own," Ed ruffled his brother's golden hair.
"No! I can't let you go alone!" Al nearly jumped up. "It's far too dangerous! Please brother, wait a little!"
"Who are you chasing now?" Greed asked.
"We only know their street names," Ed shrugged. "They're called Stray Cat Kyo and Snatch."
"Never heard of them," the homunculus shook his head. "They're not my men so maybe I can help. Tomorrow morning, I'll talk to Tony Ross and we'll see what we can do about those guys. Ed, feel free to stay with your brother. And this is your last chance to ask for food!"
"Okay, I give in."
"Then, goodnight to everybody." Nelson took his coat and bowed.
"Dolchet, escort the doctor out." Greed told to the swordsman, who nodded.
"Doctor Nelson!" Ed called after the brown-haired man then he turned to his brother. "Just a minute, I'll be right back."
Al nodded and the small-framed alchemist hurried out.
"Greed…"
"Yes?" The tall man turned to the boy sitting on the bed.
"Why… why are you helping us? There has to be a reason. It is equivalent trade, it always is."
Greed looked into the caramel eyes for a long moment, and then he leaned down and placed a kiss on the boy's forehead.
"I have my reasons and one day you'll get to know them. But now, rest. Your brother will come back soon."
And with that, the homunculus left the puzzled boy alone.
The end
Note4: Huh, I struggled so much with the names! But I like them. Hey, isn't Vanity just a darling? And how do you like Martel's first name?
Special thanx: to Galek for the information on wounds and blood loss; and to Mufurc for Marco's name and for the note on the abilities of the incomplete Philosopher's stone.
2004-VII-08