kevins8: yeah, i updated. thnxs for ur reviews everyone. anyways, don't feel like typing much cause i can't feel my legs, track and field, don't join, its suicide xx


Death?

"Owwww, what happened?" Edward moaned and tried to open his eyes but was forced to blink them shut quickly as the harsh glow of florescent lights attacked his already bleary vision. After blinking several times, he was able to get a fix of his surroundings. It took him only a moment to guess he was in a hospital, knowing that no other place had as many annoying machines that seemed to do nothing but beep and make noise. Trying to move his arms, he groaned when his automail failed to move. Knowing Winry was totally going to rip to shreds, engaged or no, Edward was already scrolling down a long list of pre-made excuses when the nurse came in.

She was carrying a tray with a needle and some antibiotics to his horror. The nurse placed the tray on the table beside him and stared down at Edward with concern. "Ah Mr. Elric. You seem better and recovered today. We were quite worried, especially because of what happened…"

Suddenly, it all came rushing back to him. The flash of light… Explosion… Edward tried remembering exactly what happened but all he could recall was a flash and then darkness. An icy sense of dread shot down his spine as his memories caught up to him.

"Winry, Alphone, everyone, what happened!"

"Mr. Edward, please calm down. I think you bette…"

"No of course their okay. What am I thinking? I mean, Al is a suit of armour for crying out loud, it's going to take way more then some explosion to knock him out. And Winry, she's always going to be…"Edward stared into the eyes of the nurse and even though already knowing it deep down inside, he tried to deny it, as if talking it away would make it not exist. But of course, in the end he had to face the truth, and no amount of talking could solve that.

"Mr. Edward, I think there's something you need to see."

Edward stared in horror as the nurse took out a copy of the daily newspaper. The front page was that of his home, the house he had build for Winry and Al in the middle of the city. Except there was no house or city left. Only the charred skeletons of the once bustling community remained, the ashes already being blown away by the wind…

"No, it can't be…" Edward heard the machine beside him give one long beep but barely noticed as the edges of his vision blurred and the world was swallowed in darkness once again.

"BEEEEPPP!"

Edward snapped out of his nightmare and realized he'd fallen asleep in his jeep. A yellow Honda driver was shouting something obscene through his window but Edward barely noticed. His jeep was parked in front of the train tracks, forming a one car blockage that caused the traffic of rest of the street to be at a standstill. Dimly, Edward remembered the cargo train coming in and him stopping. He was so tired then, the battle having left him drained, he had decided to close his eyes for a second and then…

"Don't think about it!" Edward repeated it over and over again in his head. He tried shaking off the grisly images in his mind and pushed down on the gas pedal, knowing that someone would call the cops anytime now if not already for obstructing traffic. Finding the army's general being the cause would result in no end of talk and Edward already had as much media coverage on him as law allowed without reporters actually bugging his house and hiding in his closet which Edward was convinced they did anyways. The rest of the drive was a struggle to stay awake as Edward had to stifle a yawn every few seconds. After an hour fight to keep his dropping eyelids open, Edward parked his car and approached the towering military headquarters in the heart of Central. Walking in the front door, Edward noticed everyone tense and go stock still as people noticed he had entered. Ignoring them like usual, Edward took the elevator which announced itself with a long "Bing" that resounded throughout the bottom floor. Edward stepped in, took the elevator to the very top floor, stepped out, and was immediately assaulted by one of the few people that didn't shy away from him when he entered a room.

"Aha, there you are." A red headed girl was standing before Edward with arms crossed and a thick scowl across her face. "Do you have any idea of how many meetings, conferences and interviews I had to reschedule because you decided to play hero? For crying out, you're the general, not some soldier! Do you have any idea how rash and.."

Edward tried to get a word edgewise but decided not to, knowing how Jenny's tantrums would only swell up if challenged. After three more minutes of solid shouting, Edward was finally able to stop the ringing in his ears. "Well Jenny, nice to see you too." Edward paused, seeing Jenny tap her foot in impatience, with ears perked up and nose held high, it was a sure sign she was waiting for something, probably an apology. Well, she was going to wait a long time, Edward mused. "You know, I did warn you before you took the job…"

If possible, this made Jenny's face even redder and Edward braced himself for another round of shouting. He wasn't disappointed. "Oh warn me, right. When I took this job, where was the warning of the bloody General of the Army bailing out on press conferences at the last minute? Of the general that sneaks out his office and going to the field to get himself killed? For god sake, I would have your room locked up and nailed shut if it weren't for the fact that the last time I did that ended up with you jumping out of the five story window!"

"Well I did say I was sorry, but I had no choice there, now did I" Edward grinned, the act looking alien in his normally strict and vigilant face, thinking back to the time when Jenny actually did end up nailing his door to make sure he couldn't escape for his press conference that night. He ended up jumping out the window after transmuting his daily schedule into an umbrella. That caused quite a stir around Central and needless to say, Jenny hadn't nailed his office shut since.

Jenny moaned. "Well, if you reconsider about tonight, all you have to do is tell me." She knew she couldn't convince him and that tonight's press conference was a goner but tried anyways. Already thinking about some new excuse for Edward, Jenny gave him today's schedule knowing that he wouldn't follow any of it. "You know, I really see no point in even giving you this."

"Who knows, maybe your attitude might rub off on me someday." This caused Jenny to pull her lips in a tight line, trying to see if Edward was trying to be sardonic. "Anyway's I'll be in my office but messengers enter at their peril" With a satisfied smirk, Edward knew his work here was done. He opened his mouth as if to say something more but quickly shut it, knowing he didn't want to push his luck any further, and opened the long oak doors leading to his office.

"And your attitude might rub off on me someday" Jenny sarcastically muttered under her breath as she watched Edward go through the wooden door and into his office. "Hah, seasons come, mountains crumble, cities fall, but that mule of a man is never going to change." Why couldn't he understand? Maybe she should tell the press he had chicken pox. See how he liked that. Yes, that's exactly what she was going to do. Whistling happily to herself, she picked up the phone and dialed the TBC network. "Hello, this is General Edward's office. General Edward cannot come tonight because of being confined to his office due to…"

Meanwhile, Edward was in his office and rolled his daily schedule in a ball which he casually threw in the recycling bin. A pile of unread schedules already build up a small mountain that was overflowing the bin. He then blindly signed the stack of documents lining his desks, not caring what they were and knowing that his aids wouldn't have let it pass to him if it wasn't important. Besides, he was the general, not some pencil pusher and if he did pass an odd law now and so, it beat the hell out of actually reading the ten page long reports that needed his approval. Besides, this would make his aids work harder next time, knowing any faulty law passed would be later blamed on them. Several hundred documents later, Edward sat up and stretched his wrist which was already sore from all the signing.

Looking around the room, Edward thought how vacant and desolating it looked. Everything in his office had a function, from sharpening pencils to typing out orders that would kill millions. People going in his office often remarked being not at ease as the barren walls of the dimly lit room closed in around them. Edward massaged his back and stifled a moan as his back tried to recover from the specially designed chair that forced the occupant into uncomfortable sitting positions. It was originally an interrogation chair until Edward ordered it into his office which caused quite a commotion when the press got wind of it. Edward thought about his doctors orders for him to get rid of the chair or face long term back problems but ignored it, knowing that whatever pain he got, it was no more then he deserved. Besides, it kept him from slacking off. Getting up from the chair, he stepped out of his office, Edward told Jenny he was going out for a walk and ran down the stairs and quickly got lost among the crowds on central. That is, lost to all by one.

She couldn't believe it. This was the day. Weeks spend carefully hiding and spying finally worked to her advantage. Knowing his daily routine probably better then the man she spied on, the hooded figure sitting in coffee shop knew that this was her chance her bitter sweet revenge. General Edward always took a short walk before his evening conferences, whose times always switched regularly. Not a lot of people knew that since he always took the precaution of wearing sun glasses and a hat with heavy gray jacket that covered him completely so he looked like any of the local populace. It was only through painstaking daily observations through a telescope in her motel overlooking the central headquarters that the assailant noticed how the general was always missing around 5pm when a man of his height in scarf and jacket always left the building. Considering the general's position, it was sill unbelievably reckless of the man but that worked to her advantage.

She tossed the waiter a tip and quickly left the coffee shop lest she lose sight of her victim. Putting her right hand in her pocket, she patted the small handgun concealed in it and grabbed the hilt in preparation. Lunging her way through the crowd, she stuck to her prey and waited for her chance. She wasn't disappointed as the general separated himself from the mainstream of people rushing home and headed for the Central Cemetery. The man practically signed his death warrant. The assailant couldn't believe her luck and the recklessness of the general by walking into an abandoned area without anyone for protection. Well it just made her job all the easier. Going through the gates of the cemetery, she watched her prey going deeper in and silently followed at a distance. This chase stretched on for what seemed like hours past countless gravestones and flowers giving in reverence to those who couldn't enjoy them any more. Suddenly, her target stopped near one of the many crosses marking the graveyard and fell down to one knee.

The assailant was shocked, seeing the cold blooded killer start to sob. She crept up from behind until she was practically standing a couple of meters behind him. The assailant was hesitant, shocked at seeing the general in such a state. This lasted for only a split second as cold hard hatred replaced her shock. Slowly, she took out her hand gun and loaded the bullet that would end it all. Steadying her hand, she raised the gun and aimed, knowing this was hardly necessary since it was impossible to miss at this distance. Aiming for the head, she put her index on the trigger, and fired…

In the distance, a bunch of robins took flight as the sun was just beginning to set, staining the sky in a crimson red.


who is the assailant? is this the end of edward? why is it that you can drive on a parkway but park on a driveway? why did my old french teacher have a huge mole on her forehead? well, truth be told, i don't know myself for half the questions but if u review, i'll do my best answering