Chapter 6

AN: Haven't been able to say thanks to my reviewers lately, but please don't take it personally, I've been busy with this chapter (and the chapters after this one). This story is getting to the point where it's starting to write itself (I love it when they do that). Even if I don't answer, I really appreciate the reviews.

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"This is Rockbell Automail, Pinako speaking."

Ed grimaced. "Hi, Granny, it's me."

"Ed! What did you break this time!"

Ed wished he was only calling about a busted limb. He wished he was asking for a maintenance call, that he'd hang up the phone and Winry would appear in a few hours, seething that he'd broken her masterpiece, yet ready and willing to fix it again.

But he wasn't calling about a missing arm or leg. He was calling about a missing Winry, and the only way she was coming back was if they fought for her freedom.

"I didn't break anything...it's...it's about Winry."

There was instant silence on the other end. Whatever Pinako had heard in his voice, it had obviously told her this was serious.

"What happened to my granddaughter?"

"She..." Ed struggled for the words that could explain the situation. "Me and Al, we've...we've made enemies. And one of the worst...he...he kidnapped Winry." He took a deep breath. "I'm calling you because...well, we're going after them...and..."

Pinako interrupted, "Will you be coming back?"

"I don't know," Ed admitted. "These people-" he wasn't really sure if the homunculus could be called people, but it was all he had, "-they're very powerful. And it's not like we've got a lot of allies...but we have to try..."

A sombre pause. Then Pinako spoke again, her voice tight with anguish. "If allies are what you need...I've got someone you should speak to."

Ed was about to ask the name of this 'someone', but then he heard a voice he never thought he'd hear again.

"Ed?"

Hohenheim. His father.

Ed's first impulse was to hang up on the spot. How dare he? How dare he leave and never return, even for the funeral, and then say his name like he still cared about them?

He wanted nothing more than to shout accusations into the phone before he slammed the receiver back into it's cradle. Pinako thought they could be allies? He'd sworn he'd never ask that...that bastard...for help.

But Hohenheim was a talented alchemist, and the more people they had, the greater the chance of getting Winry back.

"Ed?"

Ed took another deep breath, trying to rein in his temper. For Winry...

"We have a problem..."

"Is there anything I can do?"

The concern in his voice nearly sent Ed over the edge. He shut his eyes and consciously relaxed his body, attempting to get himself under control.

'Think of Winry,' he told himself. 'Beautiful, caring, always-enthusiastic-about-automail, Winry. Think about what the homunculi will do to her.'

"Have you ever heard of the Philosopher?"

"Yes, he created the first Philosopher's Stone."

"Well, Al and I found out what he did with it. He passed it down his family line, in his blood..."

"So someone is carrying a potential Philosopher's Stone in their blood?"

"Does the name 'Rockbell' ring any bells?"

Hohenheim's stunned silence was enough answer for Ed.

"Look, the homunculi took Winry, and I..."

Ed's voice failed him. The vows he had kept for so many years were hard to break in an instant. But as he had twice before, he forced himself to think of Winry. If anyone was worth swallowing his pride for, it was her.

"We're launching an all-out war," he continued. "And I'm...I'm asking you to...come to Central...and..."

Ed swallowed past the bitter lump in his throat. "And help us."

There was a brief silence. Then, "I'll be on the next train."

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"Izumi is coming here on the next train," Al said, "How...how did Granny Pinako take it?"

"Not too sure," Ed admitted, "Didn't talk to her for too long."

"Brother!"

"She put someone else on, okay!"

"Who?"

Ed swallowed. "Dad..."

"He's back in Risembool!" Al yelped.

"Not for much longer, he's coming here to help us."

"He is?" Al couldn't hide his bewilderment. "But didn't you once say you'd never ask him-?"

"Well, it looks like I broke that promise, doesn't it?" Ed snapped, his nerves already far too frayed to consider softening his words.

Al didn't answer. The younger brother was astonished that Ed had asked their father for help. It said volumes of how much he cared about Winry that he would even consider going to Hohenheim for assistance.

"Where's the Colonel?" Ed asked, Al's brooding silence unsettling him.

"He went to get the others...brother, do you really think we can win?"

Ed wanted to reassure his brother. He wanted to be able to say 'yes, we'll be fine', but he knew he couldn't. He didn't know if they could even survive the coming battle, let alone actually win.

"I don't know, Al. But we have to try."

'We have to get Winry back', was what he did not add. It was strange – everyone was worried that the homunculus had the key to the Philosopher's Stone, but to Ed, that seemed only a secondary consideration next to the fact that they had Winry.

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Her wrists were two foggy masses of pain, but Winry continued to saw them across the ropes. She didn't know if she was bleeding yet, and probably wouldn't know until the flow was heavy enough to trickle down her hands. The thought made her grimace a little. She was going to have to do some serious damage to herself to get loose, and she didn't relish the prospect.

As if she wasn't damaged enough already.

All Winry's limbs ached from the unnatural position she had been forced into. Her hands and ankles were beginning to go numb as the bonds interfered with her circulation, and her arms were started to cramp. The cloth in her mouth was turning sour – her gag reflex had asserted itself several times, and Winry was always forced to go still and take deep breaths through her nose until it subsided.

She didn't know how long she had been doing this, only that it obviously hadn't been long enough. Her hands didn't really feel connected to her body anymore, she couldn't tell if she'd even broken the skin yet. When she tried to roll the ropes off, they didn't feel any slipperier than usual, and all she got for her trouble was another swift throttling from the silk tied around her neck.

This was moving too slowly. She had no idea how long she had been fighting her bonds, but she knew Envy could walk through the door at any moment. Beginning to grow desperate, she jerked first one wrist then the other, frantic to cause enough injury to make herself bleed.

At that thought, Winry snorted, a sharp exhalation through her nostrils. To think she was actually trying to injure herself...

Her thoughts broke off, her eyes widening. She could hear the distinct click of a key in a lock. Someone was unlocking the door to her room...Envy?

Tensing for a fight (though privately wondering how she could possibly put up much of a struggle in her current position), Winry watched as the door opened, the creak of the hinges ominously loud...