AN: Sugar High: Gilbert and Thomas? Nice names XD. LOL "Gas prices are at an all time low!" That's awesome XDDDD.
The Way to a Man's Heart Isn't by Crushing His Ego Chapter 36: The Allusion of Fireflies
Riza sneered when she saw the guns pointed at Roy and herself. I can't shoot them all. My weapon only holds six bullets.
"Lieutenant," Roy said in a stern tone.
Riza glanced over at him, her gun still pointed at the men.
"My only order is to not get killed," he said as he looked over at her. "It would be kind of hard to finish this mission without you," he finished his order with a gentle smile.
All Riza could manage to do was nod. Then her amber eyes retuned to the stinking men in front of her.
Jackal scoffed, "I thought you said she wasn't under your orders, Lieutenant Colonel," he spat. Remembering what he had heard when he and Roy had fallen through the floor.
Roy just glared back at him. Riza stared as well. Her face serious, but her expression was hidden from the gangsters by the barrel of her silver pistol.
Hell's Fire, Shadow, and Lex walked over to the side, leaving the doorway wide open. The two teens stood quiet and alert next to their leader. Their expressions calm. They didn't participate because guns were not their weapon of choice. Hell's Fire's whip was destroyed when Reina and Sayo freed Roy. She would fight with her fists as a replacement. Shadow still had his sais. However, neither of which were a match for Riza's iron bullets.
Grimm stared with the others. Her cold-blue eyes set on Riza. Her black pistol was raised, awaiting the order to open fire. It was quiet as both parties waited for the order, and what type of dawn the storm would bring in.
Jackal smirked as the lightening flashed. "GO!" he shouted. The sound of his voice caused all the gangsters' eyes to widen. They immediately began to fire.
Bang! Bang! Bang! A countless amount of gunfire filled the once quiet air.
Reina's eyes widened as she felt Riza scoop her up and pull her to the side before they were hit. Roy had launched himself in the opposite direction. All of them missing the bullets.
"AHHHHHH!" Jazz screamed loudly as she covered her ears with her hands. Tears escaped her eyes as bullets whizzed over her head. Lucky for her the men didn't aim low enough to hit her.
Riza took cover behind a nearby beam. "Go hide!" she ordered Reina as she let her go and began firing back at the men.
"Right," Reina replied as she ran to the back of the building. Kenny, Blare, and Tommy were already there. They watched Riza return fire. She quickly reloaded her gun. Bits and pieces of the support beam she was taking cover behind chipped and were blown off as the edges of the beam were attacked by a countless amount of bullets.
"Come on!" Reina instructed. "We have to get out of here!" she shouted as she grabbed one of the boards that covered the window behind the boys. She pulled on it hard. Their plan was to escape out the window.
"Ok," Kenny replied nervously as he, Blare, and Tommy began pulling on the board as well.
"Mwu…"
"Huh?" Reina looked down. She saw Kiro, soaked and shivering below her. She smiled and picked up the wet cat. She held Kiro in one arm, and helped pull with the other.
"Jazz!" Roy shouted as he stared back at the little girl crouched in the middle of the room. He was on the left side of the gangsters. Riza on the right, behind the beam. He got down low to the ground. There was nothing for him to use as a shield. This is where the dark came to his advantage. He watched the little girl scream and cry out for help as the bullets continued to fly blindly into the darkness.
"Daddy, stop it!" Jazz cried. She opened her eyes, her tears falling down on Sayo's lifeless body. She looked into Sayo's face. Her skin was a very pale color. Though she had a small peaceful smile on her face, the sight was still frightening. I don't want that to be me. I don't. She cried to herself. She closed her eyes tight again and pushed her hands against her ears harder, hoping to block out the noise. Go away, make it go away. She prayed to herself. She tried to close her eyes even tighter; thinking that maybe if she couldn't see what was going on, then it would all just disappear.
"Jazz, get away from there now! This is a direct order!" she could hear Roy calling out to her. It seemed like he was a million miles away as the sound of his voice was swallowed up by the gunfire.
"Lieutenant Colonel!" Riza shouted as she continued to fire at the gangsters, bringing them down one by one, but not even making a dent in their number. She stopped every few seconds to reload again. With all the gangsters, it didn't take long for her gun to run out of ammo. She cursed herself, and the makers of the gun for the limited amount of bullets the weapon could hold. After a few minutes of this Riza's effort was finally starting to pay off. The wet sand outside now soaked up the men's blood, along with the cold rain.
Roy didn't seem to notice Riza. He was to busy yelling at Jazz.
"You little brat," Jackal snapped as his men fired all around him. The guns lit up as the shots ran out. It created the allusion of fireflies flashing on a cool summer's night. "All you ever were was trouble. JUST LIKE YOUR FOOL OF A MOTHER!" he spat as he aimed his gun at Jazz. The thunder boomed behind him as the smell of blood, rain, and gunpowder tainted the air.
Jazz looked up when she heard her father's voice yelling at her. She always came to attention when he yelled. If she didn't, then she usually got a beating for it. Her small eyes widened when she saw what looked to be fireflies surrounding his muscular form.
Roy tensed and jeered when he saw what Jackal was about to do.
"Sir, don't!" Riza shouted. Her voice was mixed with emotions of shock, desperation, and fear. These emotions also consumed her once calm face as she saw Roy charging at Jackal. She had never seen that expression on his face before. The lightening flashed, which made everything visible. She was glad she could only see him for a split second. His face was terrifying, full of nothing but hate and rage. So scornful, she prayed he'd never use that look on her. Though I won't let him intimidate me if he does. She thought as she reloaded her pistol. Once she heard the click of the chamber closing her mind went back to the Lieutenant Colonel and Jackal.
Jackal smirked when he saw Roy heading right toward him, "So you want to die before the little brat?" he asked, "Well that can be arranged," he raised his gun again. The dark barrel aimed for the spot between Roy's now wicked eyes.
Roy sneered. I don't care if I'm unarmed. He told himself. His face full of rage as his dark eyes glared scornfully into Jackal's gray ones. I don't even care if you shoot me, but I'm not going to let you kill her. The world around Roy seemed to vanish without a trace. Jazz, Riza, the kids, and the gangsters. It was all gone. He couldn't even hear the gunfire, but for some odd reason, the light from the guns still stood out. They flashed like the fireflies. The only feeling he had was his feet pounding on the ground, and the hate in his heart. Jackal was his only goal at this point. He didn't care what happened to him as long as his opponent was stopped.
"Heh…" Jackal chuckled as Roy came closer. "I know you are in it, too. This is the world you enter when you are about to kill someone. The world of the fireflies. It is neither fearful nor peaceful, just silent, like time itself has stopped, and the only things that are alive in this world are you, your target, and the millions of beautiful fireflies," he said with an evil grin. He held his gun firmly. He wanted to see the whites of Roy's eyes before he fired. I want to hear his blood splatter. He thought as his grin widened. He was just about to fire when Riza's voice cut through the men's gunfire.
"LIEUTENANT COLOENL!"
Roy glanced back as his body retained its forward motion. He would have ignored her if it wasn't for the tone in her voice. It was a tone he had never heard Riza use before. It was scared and full of desperation and sorrow.
"Lieutenant Colonel Mustang!" her voice radiated throughout the building. Her amber eyes widened when she saw how close Roy was to being killed. Then without thinking, she pulled her trigger.
Bang!
Jackal's eyes widened suddenly as he felt a great pain consume his chest. It felt like his upper body was being crushed. He couldn't scream nor breathe. His lungs incapable of expanding under the pressure of the force from Riza's bullet. His eyes began to roll back into his head and he began to fall backwards.
Jazz's brown eyes widened when she saw the blood coming from her father's body.
Riza fired again. She didn't know why she pulled the trigger a second time. She just couldn't bring herself to the fact Roy had almost been killed in front of her eyes.
Roy stopped dead in his tracks. He watched as the blood come spilling out of Jackal's chest, and the second bullet enter into his abdomen.
Jackal sneered as he watched the world changing quickly around him. Before he knew it, Roy was no longer in sight and the fireflies and the ceiling of the building was all that he could see. He cursed himself as he raised his arm, his gun pointed at where he thought Roy stood. Then, without even looking, he pulled the trigger.
"Eh!" Roy's eyes widened in shock. He could have sworn he saw the bullet barreling towards him. He jumped to the side in the nick of time. His wet boots slid on the floor as he stopped, his body crouched low to the ground. The bullet grazed his right cheek. A few trickles of blood seeped out of the new wound and traveled slowly down his face.
Jackal's body had hit the ground with a thud. His eyes glazed over as he stared at the ceiling. "The fireflies…. are… taking me to… another world…" he whispered with a smirk. In his mind, his custom of killing would continue even in the next life. He didn't really care where he ended up as long as there were guns there.
The man that stood directly behind Jackal stared in shock. "Why you!" he cursed when he saw his comrade was dead. He quickly pointed his gun at Roy. His gun was a large rifle type gun, not a small pistol like Riza and Grimm held. "I'll get you for that!" he shouted with rage as he pulled the trigger.
Riza's eyes widened and she pulled her trigger, almost as fast as the man had pulled his. "Watch out, sir!"
Roy's attention went back to Riza's then it flashed back to the man. His eyes widened when his mind registered what had happened in the last second. Before he could react enough to dodge the bullet entered his skin. Indescribable pain overcame Roy's limb. He cursed and looked down at his left arm. His white glove was being consumed by his own blood. The bullet went straight through the upper right part of his palm. Damn. Roy thought to himself as his body tensed from the sudden overwhelming pain. He grabbed his throbbing hand. It destroyed part of the alchemy circle.
His attention quickly went back to the men. He saw the one who had just shot him lying on the ground. Riza's bullet had entered his head, killing him instantly.
"You were lucky," a familiar voice came from behind him.
Roy turned around fast to see Hell's Fire right behind him.
"If she hadn't of shot and changed his aim that bullet would have lodged itself in your chest," she cooed as she looked over the man lying on the ground.
Roy scoffed, still holding his hand, trying to stop the bleeding. He tried to move his fingers, contracting the muscles around the wound. He flinched as the pain became worse. Some bones are broken, but I don't think there's any nerve damage. It's too early to tell. He thought as his attention went back to Hell's Fire. Well it could be worse, I could have been killed.
"Lieutenant Colonel!" Riza shouted and raised her pistol.
Grimm's eyes narrowed as she saw Riza point her gun at her sister. Sorry. She spat as she shot her black gun.
Riza sneered as she felt Grimm's bullet hit her pistol, knocking it off balance and off her target. The blow caused the gun to fire. The bullet lodged itself in the ceiling. She quickly looked over her gun. Great relief overcame her face when she saw it wasn't damaged. The bullet merely scratched the silver plating of the barrel. She looked up to fire again when a flash of light appeared in front of her suddenly. Before she could react to the fast movement she felt something cold come in contact with her stomach. "AHHH!" she shouted angrily as her abdomen began to throb. She felt the warmth of newly flowing hot blood on her burning skin. She flinched as she covered her wound with her free arm. The wound she had gotten from Grimm was now much deeper then before. Her face held a pain-oriented jeer as she glanced up. She saw Shadow standing in front of her.
He held up one of his sais. One of the outer blades was covered in dark blood, telling her he had just slashed her stomach, making Grimm's wound worse. His yellow eyes glared at her, a smirk on his pale face. "I'm sorry," he said calmly, yet his voice held a hint of dark hate. "Did that hurt? Allow me to finish you off and put you out of your misery," he finished as he brought the sai up over Riza's head, the blades facing down towards her.
Her eyes widened when she saw the sai flash as it came down towards her. Her military training kicked in and without thinking she drew her pistol and shot.
Shadow just smirked as he jumped to the side. The bullet wasn't hard to dodge. Even at point blank rage, with the shocked state of mind Riza was in at the moment, the gun was way off, making escaping the bullet a piece of cake. She shot more for distraction then defense. "Are you losing your nerve?" he asked in his creepy, hateful, calming tone as he stared at Riza. The smile still on his face.
She just glared back at him. She just realized it, but she was panting. This was taking way more energy then she thought she had. The adrenaline rush was beginning to ware off, leaving her lightheaded. On top of that her stomach was aching and bleeding, and she had a splitting headache, yet another side affect from that time-of-the-month. The stress and noise of it all was just increasing her pain, and clouded her judgment on both shooting, and common sense.
"Are you going to shoot me, Lieutenant?" Shadow asked.
A growl escaped Riza's lips as she swallowed the pain and the sick feeling she had and raised her weapon gun once more. She was about to shoot when Grimm interrupted her attack again. Damn. She thought to herself as she glanced over at Grimm. She saw the brown haired teen's gun pointed at her, ready to fire again.
"I got it!" Kenny shouted as he pulled the last board off the window, reviling the outside world.
"Good job!" Reina said happily. "Let's go!" she chimed. Tommy and Blare nodded as they climbed out the window.
"Tell me, Lieutenant Colonel," Hell's Fire said seductively as she ran her hand across the fabric of Roy's shirt collar. "Have you always been in love with fire?" she asked as she looked up at him. Her red eyes calm and casual as she stared deeply into his dark ones.
He didn't reply. His gaze went to Riza. He saw she was in trouble and wanted to help.
"Colonel," Hell's Fire said as she ran her fingers up Roy's bruised throat and placed them on his chin. She pulled his gaze back to her. "You know when flames join together they get stronger, do you not?" she asked. "How would you like to join my fire and burn the rest of this city to the ground?"
Roy's face became serious as he stared at Hell's Fire, "No," he replied sternly.
"What?" Hell's Fire snapped back. Her red eyes became scornful. No one had ever told her 'no' before. All the men had wanted her and she always turned them down. Now, she finally met someone she saw worthy of her, and he had disobeyed her wishes.
"If you will excuse me," Roy said as he moved to walk passed the dark haired teen, "I need to help my Lieutenenant."
Hell's Fire sneered as Roy walked passed her. "No one puts water on my flames!" she snapped as she turned around to face Roy's back. Her eyes flickering with fire-like rage.
"Now you die!" Shadow said coldly as he held his sai over Riza again. In the few moments they had been fighting Shadow managed to slice Riza's right leg. Just above the knee. She now knelt on the ground, her abdomen and her leg bleeding and burning.
She growled again as she tried to stand up, but her injured leg quickly gave way beneath her. She looked down at her injured limb and cursed as a bead of sweat traveled down her brow. Then her amber eyes went back to Shadow, waiting for him to attack, and hoping she could figure a way out of this.
"Say hello to Jackal, would you?" he asked with a smirk, his blades barreling towards her.
Roy dashed behind him. The dark hid his form from the gangsters, making him hard to get a fix on. This allowed him to avoid her bullets. "Don't even think about it," he snapped as he grabbed Shadow's arm before he could attack Riza.
"Why you…" Shadow jeered as he glanced back at Roy.
"Sir, watch out!" Riza shouted as she watched Shadow draw his other sai.
Roy's eyes narrowed as he jumped back fast, missing the blade that was meant for his chest. He let go of Shadow and went back into the darkness a bit.
"Get back here!" Shadow snapped as he charged after Roy. Somehow he managed to get in front of Roy, blocking his escape. He smirked, "No where to run," he said coldly as he held his blades up, pointed at Roy's throat. He walked forward slowly, forcing Roy to back up.
"Stop shooting!" Grimm ordered as she saw Roy's back come into view.
The gangsters all held their fire, wither they wanted to or not.
"Eh.." Jazz said as she lifted her head from Sayo's body. She had been crying over the cold body since her father was shot. Once she realized the gunfire had stopped she quickly got up and ran away. Safe in the back of the building. She looked around for her friends, but they were already gone, hiding in some other building. She got down low behind one of the support beams and peeked around the side of it, watching the battle from a safe distance.
Hell's Fire sneered angrily as she watched from the sidelines. "Shoot him dead. The fumes from his smoke do nothing more then clog the air. It's better for the earth if you rid him of it."
"Stop it, Hell's Fire," Lex snapped. The teen quickly fell silent, but her rage did not subside.
Riza's eyes widened when she saw Grimm moving her pistol towards Roy. She's going to kill him.
"Turn around," Grimm said coldly.
Roy did as told. He could feel the cold steel of Shadow's sai against his back. "What do you want with me?" he asked, already knowing the answer.
"You're a solider," Grimm replied. "You know the answer to that."
Roy smirked with a bit and gave a cool sigh with a shrug of his shoulders. "Well I guess you got me," he said. His voice was cool and somewhat comical. His left arm and hand burned and stung from the wounds, but he didn't show a hint of weakness. "But…" he began, his voice became serious, "If you kill me, then let my Lieutenant go. She is injured and is no longer a threat to you."
Riza's eyes widened when she heard this. Why is he saying that? She asked herself as her amber eyes were overcome by shock. Her pupils hit the floor, still wide and trembling as Grimm and Roy made a deal.
"Ok," Grimm replied after a few minutes of bickering and discussing between the two. "I have decided. We will kill the Lieutenant Colonel and allow his subordinate to go free," she said as she looked back at her father. He nodded in approval. Then she turned back to Riza. "You have my permission to leave this place," she said as glared at Riza.
Riza was still overcome by the shock of it all. Her wounds did not aid her in her search to find comfort.
Grimm watched for a moment with a bit of confusion, and then she looked away from Riza. Not caring what she did from now on. "Now," she said as her eyes narrowed on Roy, "It's time for you to fulfill your end of the deal."
Roy just nodded; no emotion was visible on his face. He bowed his head a little and closed his eyes, waiting for the blow. Even if I'm killed, at least my suburbanite and the kids, the one's I am supposed to be protecting, will be safe.
Grimm smirked as she got a better aim on Roy, the lightening flashed behind her.
"NO DON'T!" Jazz cried from the back of the building. Riza looked over at Roy. Her eyes were full of tears, but none of them fell. Then she got up suddenly. Her leg ached and gave way, but she fought it all the way.
"Please, let him go," Riza panted as she stumbled across the floor. Her blood dripping on the wood as she stumbled to the left and right. Her body falling continued collapsing beneath her, but she pulled herself back up each time. Her eyes remained on Grimm, hoping she would show them mercy, but prepared incase she didn't. Her gun was clutched tightly in her hand, the next round ready to fire. The pain she felt began to consume her mind. Everything became still and numb, but she still kept her head enough to get to Roy. She stood between Grimm and her superior, blocking the Lieutenant Colonel from her dark pistol's deadly round mouth. She stared at Grimm, dead in the eyes. The teen could see the sweat traveling down her forehead as the lightening flashed again. The sound of Riza's gasping lungs were heard in the cold silence.
The thunder boomed as the gangsters stood quietly behind Grimm, awaiting orders. Shadow stood quietly as well, he made no move toward Riza unless instructed by either Lex or Grimm.
A disgusted look appeared on Grimm's face. "Do you want me to shoot you, Lieutenenant?"
Roy looked back up at Grimm suddenly when he heard this. He saw Riza standing in front of him. Her silver pistol raised. His eyes widened when he saw how weak she was. Her breathing slow and unsteady as she tried to consume one good breath. The bleeding had become worse as she tore her wounds open when struggling to get to Roy. "Lieutenant Hawkeye?" he asked in a confused tone. He had made a deal to let her go. Why was she still standing here? Trying to defend him in this weakened state.
"Lieutenant Colonel, sir. Forgive me for disobeying orders, sir," she replied. Her words spaced by her slurred breathing. "It was an order that I help you on this mission. I'm sorry; Lieutenant Colonel, but I can not leave you, not matter what." Her amber eyes fixed on Grimm. She saw Grimm's face in another flash of light. The teen wasn't exactly thrilled at Riza's response.
"Well…" Grimm began with a cold smirk. "It looks like all bets are off," she said as she raised her weapon.
The two women glared at each other for a moment or two. Riza's mind became clouded as fatigue began to set in. Her sense of reality began to drift away and the fireflies returned, though there was no one firing.
What is this? Riza wondered and scoffed as the light of the fireflies crowed her rage of sight. She could see Grimm's form, incased in the fireflies' glow. The girl smirked once more.
"Don't worry; we'll be sure you won't be alone too long. You can follow all your precious Colonel's orders in the afterlife."
Riza sneered again. The lightening flashed and a single shot was fired.
Bang!
AN: So what'd ya think? Who got shot? Grimm or Riza? Mwahahahahaha! Sadly, you'll have to wait and see, because the next chapter is the office chapter. That may turn out to be extra evil and last two chapters instead of one. Who knows? I DO! But I'm not telling!