Al was on his knees awaiting another blow from Envy's gun, but he sat alone in the darkness holding his head in pain as he hung his head and surveyed his surroundings as he tried to look for Fletcher, but he couldn't see anything in the darkness of the room but a figure moved in the shadows that soon moved behind him.

"Good afternoon worm, I'm glad to see you are alive still, but I'm going to change all that when the time is right," Envy said as he pulled out a dagger and held it to Al's throat, but he pulled it away as he pointed it towards his shoulders and looked for a place to hit Al with hit.

"What do you want with me and why do you want Fletcher?" Al asked as Envy moved the dagger down Al's right shoulder.

"You are no mere problem, but Fletcher was bait to lure you out of hiding because I know that his brother would seek you out for help to retrieve him," Envy said as he stuck the dagger in Al's right shoulder as Al screamed in pain.

Rose once again screamed in pain as she felt the hot sting of the dagger in Al's shoulder shoot into her arm, but as the friends charged on towards Envy's hideout they were hit with the darkness that seemed to seep from the hideout towards them, but they weren't going to let that stop them as they pushed forward into the hideout as they burst down the door.

"Well, if it isn't the searching and seeking brother and a former member of the once proud Homunculi with him," Envy said deviously as he pulled out another dagger and tried to charge Russell, but Russell knocked him on the ground.

"Find Fletcher!" Russell shouted as he motioned towards Lust as Rose helped Al up.

"Not so fast my friends! I have a weapon here in my hand that could destroy this entire building along with all of you!" Envy said as he threw a smoke bomb on the ground and ran to grab Fletcher as he snuck out the back, "Russell, here's a parting gift!" Envy said as he threw a dagger into Russell's right shoulder.

"Russell!" Fletcher screamed as he was rushed out of the room.

Russell tried to get up to run after his brother, but the dagger seemed to move in further into his arm with each movement; Rose helped Al up off the floor as the friends coughed through the smoke, but as Lust helped Russell up, she looked to where the smoke bomb lay on the ground and noticed that it had a second effect: it was meant to blow up the hideout!

"We need to get out of here now!" Lust said as she ran for the door with Russell on her back with Rose following closely as she noticed what Lust was talking about.

"Envy…he's getting away," Al said weakly as he stared back at the hideout when the friends were far enough away from the former hideout that was now covered in flames from the bomb.

"Save your strength Alphonse," Major Armstrong said as he came upon alongside Rose to help get Al back to Headquarters.

"Maj. Armstrong, what are you doing here?" Al asked.

"I just got back to East City and I saw the smoke coming from this alleyway and thought I investigate the situation."

Al went limp in the arms of Rose and the Major as they headed back to East Command Headquarters as the smoke rose into the sky and the local fire brigade was called to extinguish the flames of the burning home.

Mustang had gained his strength partially to the extent that he was found sitting in his chair at his desk as he waited for Al's return so that he could punish him properly for not telling him where he was going. As he sat in his chair, a thousand memories flooded back to him as the ages played over in his mind of the many times he had sat here and joke with Ed, the memories of how they used to look came back, but he was snapped from the memories as the screaming orders of Lt. Hawkeye and Lt. Ross to the other officers to help Al and Russell as Al walked into Mustang's office and faced him.

"Alphonse, I see you're back, what happened to you?" Mustang asked as he sat in his desk chair.

"I ran into Envy and all that happened is my fault and I take the full responsibility," Al said as he sat across from Mustang.

"Sir, Major Armstrong is back here at Headquarters," Lt. Hawkeye said as she opened the door to reveal the looming Major.

Al sat in the corner room as Major Armstrong and Mustang discussed what had happened since the arrival of Al and the others at Headquarters, he told about what he knew about the attack on the State Alchemist Killer, Scar in Lior to the events of the scuffle with Envy that had resulted in the bandage around his shoulder, to what he knew about Al's scuffle with Envy.

"And that's all the action you've missed," Mustang said as he got up and moved toward Armstrong.

"Do you know where or who he will strike next?" Major Armstrong asked as he moved in his seat.

"We haven't deciphered he maps Al and the others found in Lior yet, but I am sure he will go to the next place he can think of to hurt those that had ever been in connection with the Elrics," Mustang said as he sat on the edge of his desk, "Where do you think he's headed next Alphonse?"

All of his friends eyes were fixed on the weary Al as they looked for answer as he looked to the map on the wall, his mind was saying the possibility of Ishbal, but he knew that he liked to attack people close to him and others around him. The only possible answer would have been…

"The only places he could do harm would be the place of my home and the only living members of our remaining family," Al said as he looked to Winry who gasped with fright as she knew what he meant.

"What place is that?" Rose asked as she looked from Winry to Al.

"Risembool," Al said as a silent hush fell over the group.

Winry was shocked as she heard the answer to the question, but she wasn't expecting it but she wasn't interested in the situation until she saw how beat up Al was as she noticed the stab wound in his shoulder and the lump on his head from where Envy hit him.

"Alphonse, what happened to you!" Winry asked.

"I got into a fight with Envy and lost in the worst way, but don't worry about me," Al said slyly so as not to worry Winry.

Winry was worried, but she didn't show to him through tears as she pulled a wrench from her waist and whacked him in the head and as she prepared to whack him again, Major Armstrong stopped her by grabbing her hand and took the wrench from her possession.

"That is enough miss…Alphonse has been through enough for one day," Armstrong said as he stared down into Winry's face that was not tear stained as she let go and ran from the room.

Winry ran toward the doorway of the office, but as she stood in the doorway, she turned her gaze towards Al and through her tears said to him,

"I don't want to lose you Al, please don't anymore to try and stop Envy because each time you go after Envy you ended like Mustang or even worse something might happen next time like Scar! Your life is too short!" Winry said as she ran from the room back to her room.

No one heard anymore out of Al the rest of the day as he lay unconscious on his bed with a headache from the butt of the gun and Winry's wrench and the wound in his shoulder from the dagger that had been in his shoulder. East Command Headquarters was silent the rest of the day as Al slept in his room sleeping off the pain of the day's adventures and fight against Envy. Russell couldn't help but think that it was his fault that Al was in the condition that he was.

"Edward, forgive me for what I have done to your brother," Russell whispered silently as he watched Al begin carried to his room.

"Sir, what are we going to do with Al's friend, Winry once we have gotten to Risembool?" Hawkeye asked, knowing full will that if Envy was to attack in Risembool they would be headed to another city and Al would want Winry to be safe.

"If we are meant to move on to stop Envy after Risembool than she shall have to stay in her hometown," Mustang said as he looked to Winry sat with Lust, Russell and Rose.

"Sir, if I may suggest something, I think Lt. Ross and I would better off staying in Risembool and let you go to Risembool alone without us," Lt. Bloch said as he saluted the Colonel as everyone went about their business.

"That would be best and I think our expedition would be better of Dr. Marcoh and Shesca came along in case they are needed," Mustang said as Marcoh and Shesca entered the room.

Al lay in his bed unconscious, but sleep did not come to him like he hoped to obtain as his mind was haunted by images of his fight with Envy, but as he slept he felt a presence in the room that seemed strange. He awoke to see a vision of his brother at the end of his bed staring at him as if he was here to deliver a message for Al.

"Brother…is that you?" Al asked weakly as he tried to sit up to better view the vision.

"Al, you need to save your strength so you can find Envy. You need to leave now because Envy now has a head start and he is planning on killing all of you in Risembool. Please Al, stop Envy because he plans to find the Gate and find me so he can get rid of me as well, hurry!" the vision of Ed said as he vanished from sight.

Al sprung up in his bed fully awake and rushed from the room towards the main office where the others were still sitting around talking about what to do next.

"We need to leave now for Risembool!" Al shouted as he burst into the room out of breath and holding his arm.

"Alphonse, you need to rest," Lt. Hawkeye said as she jumped from her seat.

"What's the matter Alphonse?" Mustang asked as he pushed back his chair and moved towards Al to help him into a nearby chair.

"I had a dream or more like a vision from my brother of what is to happen and we need to leave now!"

"You're hysterical Al!" Russell said as he slammed his right fist on the table, but reeled back in pain when he realized which hand he had used.

"Let's hear him out," Lust said as she moved towards Russell.

"If what you say is true, then I believe we should go," Major Armstrong said as he moved closer to the companions.

"What if it was Envy?" Rose asked as she questioned the truth of the vision.

"If it was him, I would have noticed the symbol of the Homunculi like the one upon Lust's chest," Al said as he pointed at the symbol upon Lust's chest.

The friends looked at each other and questioned what to do next, but the silence was unbearable as the friends looked to each other and nodded in agreement of what must be done. The decision was made that they would leave for Risembool that night, but what no one knew was that the crow on the windowsill was watching the companions.

"I've got you now Alphonse Elric along with my other victims. The past shall become nothing more than a painful memory, Risembool shall become my personal dart board," Envy said as he ran towards an alley way where he hid Fletcher.

"What are we doing now?" Fletcher asked through his gag.

"We are heading to Risembool to cause some chaos for our friend Alphonse Elric, it shall be a visit home he won't forget," Envy said as he jumped into a baggage car of a train headed out towards Risembool.

Al and the others headed towards the East City train station with Dr. Marcoh and Shesca in tow as they boarded the next train headed for Risembool. Al lay sleeping in a seat by himself as Rose watched over him to monitor him because of his injuries from the days events, but as she sat watching Al, she noticed that the others were sleeping as well, especially Mustang who lay with his head on Hawkeye's shoulder. Marcoh and Shesca studied over some documents about Ishbal in case Envy decided to attack there as well along with maps of Xenotime and other towns that the boys had traveled to at one point or another. Still the night was quiet as they rolled into the train station at Risembool. Through the night of traveling to Risembool Marcoh and Shesca had not been seen the entire night as the two friends started to realize their attraction to each other was not like friends…a sense of love was forming. The train pulled into Risembool around dawn as the sun rose over the small town as a new day was beginning…a day that was going to bring much trials and tribulations for Al and the others.

Enjoy guys! Romance happens in this story and you will see almost the same dialogue in a completely different chapter, but changed around based around traveling to Ishbal so don't get confused when you see some of the same dialogue in a later chapter. Read, enjoy and review!