EDIT: In case anyone was wondering, yes, I did just replace this part with another, longer version… and, no, this does not happen often – just be glad that I decided to combine parts 4 and 5 instead of leave you with double-cliff-hangers! Wahahaha! And now, back to my original A/N:

My original A/N: Hey, all! Thanks, everyone, for all of your intense interest in this piece! I'm glad you all think that it's going well! (I, however, still don't know what to think…) Well, I did have something in mind to say, but I can't remember it right now, so screw it – read on, dearest RoyxEd lovers, and please let me know what you think! Anyone and everyone, review!

I do not own FMA – but have you visited Roy-Fan-33's site yet?

"It Takes Love to Live, part 4"

'I have a mission for you, Fullmetal – if you're willing, that is…'

'Of course I am, you bastard! Now what is it you want me to do now?'

'There's a pocket of military resistance just about 30 miles south of here; apparently they're dealing heavily in weapons trade on the black market…'

'Is that all? I can handle that, no problem!'

'Are you sure, Fullmetal? This is pretty heavy stuff we're dealing with, here – and there's no telling how dangerous these people are… You know what, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked you, you're much too young – I'll have Investigations get right on it…'

'I said I can handle it!'

'Fullmetal, seriously now, I'm sorry, we can handle it, I – '

'Damn it, you can't keep treating me like some little kid! Now back off!'

"Nnnhh… No…"

'Well, well, well, what do we have here? Ah, a little spy, huh? Haha! This is going to be fun, now isn't it, guys?'

'Haha! Yeah, boss, you're right!'

'Can we teach this punk a lesson?'

'Yeah! Show that damn military that they should watch what they're doing!'

'Hmm, I suppose that will be alright… Just don't act too rough with him, now; we need to be fair, after all – the military will come expecting their lost dog, not a corpse…'

'Hahahaa! You got it, boss!'

"No… no…"

'Oh man, this is going to be good! Haha! Now come on, little dog, we have to teach you not to put your nose where it doesn't belong!'

"NO…!"

…

Roy stopped dead in his tracks, his blood chilled. He turned his head slowly from side to side.

'What on earth,' he thought, 'was THAT?'

Whatever the noise had been, it was certainly gone now. Roy continued to walk along through the dark, musty building, his eyes gradually adjusting themselves until he could see the pale forms of furniture, doors, and stairs. He didn't want to use any of his flame alchemy for fear it would attract a guard's attention… Roy's mind wandered, first to his conversation a few days ago with Edward, then to the ransom letter Hughes had shown him in the van, and then finally to…

Roy shook his head back and forth, letting out an involuntary shudder as well. 'This is why I hate the dark,' he thought, 'you're always left alone with your thoughts…'

…

"Aww, man, this really sucks…" Havoc sighed wearily as he made his way through cobwebs and navigated over rotten floor-boards. "Why the hell should I even bother? There's no one here…"

"BANG!"

"What the hell - !" Havoc shouted as he quickly ran back the way he had come and out into the open. He quickly looked left, right, and then finally up – there was smoke coming from a window on the top floor of the middle building…

"Shit!" he swore as he ran towards the building. He noticed the other assembled soldiers quickly running after him. "No, no! Stay out, stay out! You all stay out here and provide back-up! Don't shoot at anyone in the windows unless they shoot at you!" he shouted at the top of his voice.

Hughes reaffirmed these orders before tearing after Havoc into the middle building, pistol in hand.

"Damn it, Roy, what did you do now!" Hughes yelled as he followed Havoc up the stairs two at a time.

Havoc just laughed; laughed and prayed that they wouldn't be too late…

…

Hawkeye quietly traipsed through the second of the two buildings assigned to her; the first one had been so derelict there was no way anyone could have been inside of it… she sighed. There was obviously no one here… 'Maybe I should go check in on Havoc…' she thought, assuming that Roy wouldn't want to be bothered until she was needed. Yet when she heard a gun-shot from the building next door, she knew what she had to do…

…

Roy coughed, his eyes watering from the smoke. A deep, cruel laugh filled the room.

"HAHAHAA! It's going to take more than that to stop me, Mr. Flame Colonel!"

"Damn it…" Roy muttered, raising his gloved hand, complete with transmutation circle, out in front of him, ready to strike as soon as he saw his target.

Smoke poured out the window of the room; a small fire caused by Roy's alchemy smoldered in the corner, then died in a pile of ash. Roy shook his head, trying to clear his head as well as his eyes of the acrid gas. He had the strangest feeling… a feeling that had been present for a long time, but he was only just now becoming aware of it – an odd, floaty feeling, as if he wasn't truly in his body. Roy felt as if he was seeing everything in front of him from a point just above his head. He felt dizzy and numb… 'What is this…?' he thought slowly, trying desperately to regain his focus by shaking his head again – trying vainly to throw off that strange, out-of-body feeling…

The smoke cleared… a tall, well-built man stood in front of him, black, tribal-design tattoos covering his arms, his dark brown hair cut short except for long bangs that partially shaded his eyes. He smiled cruelly at Mustang – he could tell that his opponent was anything but able to fight – and that was a factor he was going to take full advantage of…

Roy shook his head again, eyes becoming vacant and distant. Inside his mind an argument was going on – and the part responsible for his current state was winning handily – the part that was telling him to give up, that it was all worthless – that life had nothing more to offer him, and so he should just go home… Until…

"Hahahaa! I do have to hand it to you, Mr. Colonel," the terrorist leader told him, an evil smiling curling around his lips, "that boy of yours – that Fullmetal, as you call him, is a real trooper – not many could stand up after doing what we do to spies, but he's just been one bundle of surprises after the next! It's been real fun, let me tell you! My boys were actually kind of hoping that no one would come for him, we've been having such a great time! Hahaaa!"

Roy's eyes snapped open wide, the voices in his head vanishing in an instant as a flood of anger came rushing through him – aware of his every move but having no say in them at all, he snapped his fingers, commanding pure power and heat throughout the second-story room.

"ROY!" Maes shouted, ducking behind the door frame as fire engulfed the room, Hawkeye and Havoc ducking for cover as well; yet as suddenly as the flames had appeared, they were gone, filled instead by a powerful, booming voice – a voice that was unmistakably Roy's, and yet not his at all…

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM! WHERE IS HE! YOU BASTARD, TELL ME WHERE HE HIS!" Roy shouted as the smoke cleared; that previous, dizzy feeling was gone, and was instead replaced with an anger and hatred so intense that it was blinding him. However, his inability to see things as himself remained…

The man, skin black and burnt, lay gasping on the floor; he tried to crawl away…

Roy rushed up to him, grabbed him by the throat and lifted him up off of his feet, narrowly glaring at him with distant, fury-filled eyes. "Where is he!" Roy spat, his voice, his stature, everything about him radiating with hate and rage.

The man struggled in Roy's grasp, finally managing to choke out, "…in… the cellar…"

Roy dropped the man immediately and barreled out of the room and down the stairs, completely unaware of the three people who were just outside the doorway.

Hughes watched Roy run past, stricken with shock. Havoc and Hawkeye watched as well, completely speechless. What they had just witnessed – the man that they had just witnessed – was not Roy Mustang… the man they had seen fighting so vehemently – the man who had just moments ago been shouting with such hatred – was a man empty and void – a mere soul-less shadow of the former Roy Mustang…

…

Roy raced through the building and down the stairs, his mind and soul seeming to suffocate as the darkness closed in – he no longer had any semblance of thoughts to be alone with, and so he was not scared – but when he noticed that his legs were carrying him but feeling nothing, he realized with a fading awareness that he was dying inside…

…

Edward trembled on the ground, violently coughing up blood – he weakly looked up to see a vicious smile curled on the face of his assailant, the man's eyes glowing in what was becoming an ever-greater darkness… Edward hazily realized through his fading consciousness that his body was failing him and that he was dying…

…

Hughes, Hawkeye, and Havoc did their best to try and follow the Colonel, but with the darkness of the building and the sudden emergence of the "missing" rebels, they quickly lost him…

"Shit!" Maes swore between rounds from his pistol and the occasional thrown knife. He desperately looked the way that Roy had gone – towards the cellar. He gritted his teeth. Roy would have to make it on his own again – right now, his back-up had bigger issues – and in need of back-up of its own…

…

Roy panted. He slowly stretched his hand out and grasped the handle to the only door in the cellar. He gripped it; it was icy and wet with condensation, and sent a dull shiver through Roy's spine. Roy forcibly slowed his breathing, squared his shoulders, and tried to regain and compose what was left of his conscious thought. With a final intake of breath, he turned the handle and swung the door open – revealing a site that made his blood run cold…

…

WAHAHAHAAAA! Ok, now you have to ask yourself, "is one uber cliff-hanger better than two uber cliff-hangers?" I think you already know the answer to that one… once again, just be glad that I had a fight with my conscience, and that parts 4 and 5 were combined… if you're interested in knowing, part 5 was going to be just those 4 paragraphs, but I didn't want to do 6 parts in this story… Heehee! Please review! Let me know what you think!