Bane; "Ummm… Firstly, I'm trying a new…uhmm…'switchy' style for the last chapter, and this one. It helps the structure of the sections if I do it like this, but if most of you find it not to your liking… I guess I could find some other way to position it…"
A; "I don't like it."
Bane; '(
A; -.-' "Kidding, Bane, I'm kidding."
Bane; 3
A; -.-' " Bane's…happy..." –twitch-
Bane; -.-'
Bane; "Bane has done research on decay and the effects time has on the body; 97 of everything during the autopsey has been researched and made to fit the description. This chapter is graphic, but for the sake of my readers, has been toned down from it's originally gruesome state. None-the-less. If you are weak of stomach, we suggest you take caution."
"What's your name again?"
She remained silent, unwilling to satisfy his need for cruel mind games. He spoke to her as though she weren't a beaten prisoner; as though she were a person again.
"Winry, wasn't it?"
The blonde had kept her eyes averted until this point, whereas she found reason to break from the floor. Winry didn't feel that she could take any more of this, any more of being mocked, cut, bruised. She spat at him, waiting for him to wipe the stray spittle from his broad, highboned cheek. He didn't bother, only offered a half-smirk. Big Mistake. With one hand, he relieved his pocket of a butterfly knife; beautifully made, illegal, and uncannily efficient.
"So, Winry, how many things have I done to you with a blade?"
She didn't reply, only stared up coldly with a gaze that could tell of her utter distgust. He didn't scare her anymore. Nobody did.
"Okay, then answer me this; how many more things do you think I can do with this?"
He indicated to the lethal object in his palm. Winry paused for a moment, then told him exactly what he could do with it. The man smiled malevolently at her daring.
"I've got a better suggestion. I'll give you a sampler, and we'll just see if you approve."
Her silent screams of agony lasted until the next morning; whereas it was already time for the next round.
"Al, go get the shovel out of the basement."
"Why do I have to—"
"Because I'll come back and find you prodding the jawbone again."
"But Brother—"
Edward gave him a warning glance, and Alphonse scurried downstairs. He himself made the way to the hallway closet. There, he discovered a plain white sheet. Ed carried back to the kitchen with a grin; he was sure Pinako wouldn't mind if they used it.
Riza pulled at her collar anxiously, hoping her better instincts hadn't mislead her. That's where the boys would be now, right? With Al having his body back, it was only natural that they'd go to see Winry and Pinako…
The Colonel hadn't bothered to tell her of Ms. Rockbell's abduction, though he knew nothing of her grandmother's fate. And so there she was, walking through the streets of Resemboul, unknowing of what misery she could soon stumble upon.
They had set out a collection of knives, thin, large, butcher… Yeah. They were all set. So what if they didn't have the proper tools, how hard could it be?
"Brother?"
The shovel had been placed to lean against the refrigerator. "What, Al?" came the distractedly snappish voice of Edward.
"You do know something about this, right?"
"Well… the subject kind of interested me one day, so I looked into in the library."
"And? What did you find?"
"A book…wasn't really helpful, and it really wouldn't be of much help here."
"Why not? Any thing could help, Brother."
"Just trust me."
"Brother, what did it say?"
Edward let out a long sigh and grimaced.
"I only read a page… and it was the Table of Contents…"
"That can be useful. Did it list any techniques for starting?"
"Yeah. Kind of."
"Well then...?"
"Nothing we can use, though."
"Wha—why not?"
"Because."
"Brother! Tell me what the book said!"
Edward looked him in the eye, his gaze showing what seemed like hesitancy.
"I'm sorry I brought it up."
Alphonse returned a glare full of what was obviously demanding curiousity. His older sibling sighed again, and told him. Al burst out laughing.
"Touch the body. Feel the body. Fu-- the body."
Without really touching it, she ran her fingers an inch over her gash. It wasn't healing right; the bruising around it didn't seem to be getting any better, and the purplish- blue swirls were becoming disheartening to look at.
The aching continued, the pain only interrupted by her frail victories of gaining momentary slumber. She shifted slowly, as not to increase her agony, and thought about how much she would give to have the whip back again. It the past week it had been nothing but re-opening; recutting all his work. He was working at her raw and tender flesh, and weakening her way past the point of defiance now.
Winry was only waiting to die, now. She wanted simply for the tormentor to go too far; to cut too deep. The girl wished just for an end before she was thrown into a state of mind in which she would want Edward to come and find her. She hoped never again to reach that state of mind.
"So I think we should start by cutting little checker pieces out of the face, and see where that gets us."
Al looked mortified.
"B-Brother! You… You wouldn't really—"
"Al, chill out. I was kidding. God, I mean, we're sitting next to a month-old-dead-body and you still can't take a joke!"
A; "Sounds like someone I know."
Bane; -.-'
Edward held no expression of humor as he pain-stakingly moved Pinako from the wall to the white sheet. Her lower jaw still hung limply to the side, but her nose was in even worse condition than it had been only a few days ago.
"Brother, do… do you think that there's still blood in there…?"
"I don't know, Al, I really don't know."
The skin was, to some point marbled. At least, where the epidermus hadn't caved in. In one or two places, the ribs had broken skin, and white strips of calcium were visible.
Most of the veins could be traced due to the lack of flowing blood. In fact, the position of the body indicated as to why the legs and lower arms had a darker tinge, and a bit…fuller look to them. Hypostatis had occurred to the body, and there had been nowhere else for gravity to pull the crimson fluid… but downwards. It only took a few minutes of examination for Edward to realize this; but on a much simpler scale.
With a small vegetable knife, he cut a twomilimeter gash into one of the main channels in the lower leg. An oozing from the slight wound began; a mixture of texture and color. It was a crude mingling of claret and reddish brown. The 'fluid' was sticky, and its viscosity was strange. Under the circumstances, the body, as decayed as it was, would have been underground. The corpse would be fully decomposed, and the smell would reflect the soil around it. However, it was not underground… it was in a kitchen, reflecting its own rancid fragrance.
"That's…nice…"
Al drew back a little bit, but forced himself not to flinch. Edward simply sighed and got up. He disappeared upstairs for a few minutes before returning with a pair of tweezers.
"What are those for?"
"The bullet has to come out sometime."
She was sobbing now; trying to hold everything in- but failing miserably. It didn't matter to the man. It simply meant, to him, the days work was over. He dropped the blade to the ground, and made his way to the door. It was shut with a deafening click, and after a moment she heard him shout at one of the maids not to bring her meal that night.
The infection at her sternum was beginning to tole on her health. And still, he cut at the wound, the already past-raw flesh burning at the lightest touch.
They had stopped inducing her with narcotics to delay and strengthen the pain later on. The tormentor saw fit to inflict as much agony as he could; he thought he could sense her will weakening, hour by hour.
Alas, his mistake. Now so close to death, her resolve had been strengthened. She would die before any information passed her lips; her dear Edward was safe.
Bane; "Okay, the actual clues come up next chapter… and that should come out some time before the end of this week. (1/10 as of today tues.)
And right now, I'm a bit upset with A… so… sorry, people.
Bane; "Umm, a couple of people mentioned how they found it humorous; the thought of the Elric brothers performing an autopsy. I would like to take the time to hug you all right now. Because yes. It is funny. Especially if you have my detailed imagination."