1Chapter Seven
Winry ducked down behind some bushes, hearing voices. Belatedly, she realized her rifle muzzle poked up above the branches. Yanking it down closer to her body, she peered through the thick underbrush. Winry recognized the three people who came out of the mill, Leatherby, Dance and Sabrin. Somehow, seeing the sheriff and the military attache didn't surprise Winry that much. Halia had shared her fears about them but Sabrin? What was she doing here?
Leatherby and Sabrin got on two of the three sleds outside the mill and sped off, leaving Dance standing guard. What did they have to do with anything? Winry didn't know but she knew that they had to be behind the killings. Of course she didn't know that, she corrected herself. They could have other reasons for being out in the forest. Halia hadn't trusted them, which might be influencing Winry's mind about them just now.
Winry's thighs began to burn from sitting in the snow bank. She needed to get past Dance but the woman never moved from the front door. Winry didn't want to shoot her; she didn't think she had it in her to kill. All she had was supposition. She didn't honestly know if Dance had actually done anything.
What Winry needed was another way in and enough cover to get to it unobserved. She huffed, just a little anxious. At the rate she was going, Al would have nothing to fear. He'd catch up to her. Winry slowly high crawled around the building, using the bushes as cover until she was out of Dance's path of vision. Her thighs and knees protested as she stood up and inched along the building. Seeing a broken window, Winry grinned as she peeked through. Her smile faded instantly when she saw Ed's back as he dangled upside down from the rafters. She could see another gutted body hanging the same way.
Reeling away, Winry tried not to be sick. She had seen a lot of blood, bone and gore in her young life but never had she seen life handled with such disregard. What if Ed was already gutted like that? Winry clutched at the window sill to stabilize herself before her weak legs gave out. She would die if she had to see it. Al would blame himself. Winry forced herself back to the window. Her fists clenched so hard they hurt. Even if Ed was dead, she couldn't leave him like this. She'd cut him down then go out the front door and kill Dance without a qualm.
As she heaved herself and her gun up onto the window sill, Winry saw Ed wiggling, pulling on his fetters. Relief washed through her, leaving her feeling puppy weak in its wake. She resisted the urge to call his name. He might not know Dance was standing guard and she didn't want him to accidentally alert her. Winry padded on snow encrusted boots over to the strung-up alchemist and touched his shoulder. He yelped, his body convulsing.
"Ed, shhhh."
"Winry!" His voice was tight. "I thought you were them back to cut off my fingers!"
"They'd come in the door, not the window, Ed. Hang on, I'm going to get you down from the rafters," Winry said, tension laced through her words.
"Excuse me for panicking. I have a concussion, I'm hanging upside down and someone is coming to cut me up to make meat pies," Ed babbled then squalled as Winry wasn't able to hold the rope tightly enough to slowly lower him. Ed banged his head on the flooring since his shackled hands couldn't catch him.
"Will you hush up? Dance is just outside standing guard." Winry raced over and started examine the cuffs on his wrists, her gun slithering over her shoulder and getting in her way. She paused, looking up from his shackles, her brow beetling. "Meat pie?"
"That's where all the missing people went! Sabrin made meat pies out of them," Ed rasped. His eyes widened to make room for the flood of concern as he fixed on her rifle. "Why do you have a gun?"
"Meat pies?" Winry turned green, gagging. "Why would you tell me that? I'm going to be sick."
"Sorry. Winry...gun?"
"Protection." Getting herself under control, she dug in her pocket and came up with a small tool kit. "I think I can pick this lock."
"We don't have time, Winry. Leatherby is on his way back with tin snips for my fingers. I'm going to tell you what to draw in the sawdust. Just put it close enough for me to touch," Ed instructed, the edge of panic leaving his voice.
"What did you do to your hand?" Winry's eyes widened, catching her first good look at the destruction of Ed's automail.
"Quiet, remember? Don't look at my knee, either. They...even if you get me out of these shackles, I'm not sure I can walk," Ed said, worry in his golden eyes.
"If I look at your automail, I'll scream," Winry ground out. "Tell me what to draw." Winry started sketching what Ed told her to in the sawdust, close enough that he could touch the array. He hesitated for a moment on some of the lines, trying to remember them. It had been a while since he needed an array. She glanced over at him and he nodded approvingly. "Is it right?
"What I can see of it." Ed flattened his living palm over the array and with a little flash, he altered the density of the steel, breaking it. He rolled and slapped his hand to his broken one and did the same to the other cuff. Groaning, he raised his automail hand "I think a finger just fell off."
Winry scooped it up, pocketed it then braved a look at his knee. "You got lucky, Ed. He crushed the joint together."
"How is that lucky?" Ed couldn't keep the whine out of his voice.
"It'll hold, at least for a little while. You'll have to swing from the hip but you should be able to hobble along without your leg falling off," Winry said very clinically.
He made a face at her. No matter what happened, Winry could talk automail. "There's a happy thought." Ed extended a hand to her.
Winry hauled him up with practiced ease. She let him get his balance then slid her arm around him. "Let's go, if you can. I think I can shove you out that window. I have no idea how you'll do in the snow."
"Need a moment." Sweat popped out on Ed's face. His stomach roiled and it felt like part of his head had slid off. "Getting sick..."
"That's the concussion. Take a few deep breaths, Ed." Winry tightened her grip and he leaned against her strong body.
"Got another problem," Ed murmured, his face flushing.
"What?"
"I have to..." Ed's coloring deepened. "I couldn't since I was upside down and it would have gone in my face."
"I don't..." Winry trailed off, noticing his tortured expression and what he was referring to suddenly hit her. "You'll have to hold it now, too. You can pee when we're safely out of here."
"Yeah, well...if I explode, you were warned," he grumbled the added soberly, "Winry, if Dance sees us or if Leatherby comes back, you leave me and save yourself." Ed tried to rotate his hip to lift and swing his non-functioning leg. It was harder than he expected it to be. It had been a long time since he had hobbled on a non-functioning prosthesis, not since he had first been injured and his stump matured enough to bear his weight.
"Of course," she said too quickly, too flippantly for anyone to take her seriously. Ed's face darkened but he didn't argue. He knew better than to do anything more than they already had to alert Dance. "Al's on his way," she added as he slowly humped along.
Ed paused, sucking in a deep breath as the leg sparked. His eyes fluttered.
"Sorry, Ed, I know the limb is backfeeding on your nerves." She squeezed his waist. "Just a few more steps and we'll be outside. I have a sled. We can get you out easily once you get on board."
"The trick is..." Ed trailed off, his head jerking back over his shoulder as a ruckus came from outside. "Sounds like Al's here. Damn it, I'm useless to him! Winry, go open the front door. Maybe if I can see what's happening, I can help him."
Winry's face darkened, her emotions mixing there. "Or we could use the time Al's buying us to get you to the sled."
"Winry, I can't leave my brother." Shock that she had even suggested it played over his face.
"Dance's gun isn't going to hurt Al. It'll kill us," she pointed out, exasperated.
The door banged open before Ed could fire off his indignant response. Al came in, dragging Dance by her heels. "She tried to shoot me!" Al took a step back, seeing the gutted, hanging man. "That person is..." He pointed frantically to the flayed man.
"They tried to do that to Edward," Winry said, more furious than the brothers had ever heard her. "We need to make sure Dance isn't going to get in our way again. She's involved in this."
"Put her down, Al. We can use the shackles," Ed said, pointing to them, his metal fingers flopping wildly. He took a hobbling step away from Winry, trying to look strong.
"Brother, what happened to you?" Al said, laying Dance down where Ed had been fettered.
"Leatherby wanted to be sure I couldn't escape." Ed clapped his hand to his broken one and the shackles grew up over Dance's wrists.
"Ed's going to need your help to the sled, Al." Winry looked at Dance. "Will this be okay for her? I don't want her to freeze to death."
"She didn't mind if I did," Ed said bitterly then sighed. "She should be okay. We'll come back for her. We have to handle Leatherby and Sabrin first."
"I don't understand what's going on," Al said plaintively, taking a step toward his brother, seeing how weak Ed looked but the blond alchemist glared, stopping him.
"The machine we were sent to find out more about isn't a machine. It's probably an alembic array," Ed replied, his body trembling as fatigue overtook him.
"They're trying to make a Philosopher's Stone," Al said, somewhere between excited and afraid.
"No, the White Stone," Ed corrected, weaving a little on his feet. Al reached out and steadied his brother.
"The what?" Winry's face scrunched up.
"The elixir of immortality," Al supplied, letting Ed lean on him.
"They're putting their failures into the meat grinder and baking them into the meat pies to hide their crimes," Ed ground out, his face green.
"Ed, quit saying that," Winry snapped, her cheeks draining of color.
"They fed us a human being," Ed growled. "Probably him." He gestured at the flayed man.
Gagging, Winry put a hand over her mouth, trying to control her stomach. Finally, she dropped her hand and said, "Al, take him to the sled. We have to get back. They hurt Halia. Sabrin and Leatherby might try to kill her now. Ed needs more caring for and Ed, no more about the damn pies. I can't function if I'm about to puke!"
"Come on, Brother. Winry's right. We have to stop them." Al scooped Ed up unceremoniously, ignoring his brother's flailing limbs. A dull thud on the sawdusted floor abruptly stopped Ed's tantrum.
"Was that another finger?" Winry's tone raised the temperature of the room several degrees as she hunted for the broken digit.
"Get me out of here, Al. I...this is so embarrassing." Ed covered his face with his living hand.
"He needs you to take him behind a tree, Al," Winry said with all the clinical coolness of a doctor and Ed nearly oozed out of Al's grip, red faced.
Al's helmet swiveled between her and his brother. "What...oh? Okay, brother."
"I can do this on my own," Ed grumped as Al carried him outside.
"You take care of your business while I see if Tyler can drive our sled. I'll take Dance's because all three of us can't go on one sled." Winry went outside, heading away from the brothers. She shielded her eyes against the bright afternoon sun.
"Good, do that," Ed said as Al carried him behind a pine.
Winry looked over Dance's sled, happy to see the key in it. "Tyler! It's Winry, can you bring the sled around?" She waved her had in the air.
Her answer was the sounds of an engine starting and the boy's appearance on the sled. The boy looked frozen, his cheeks brilliantly red. "Is it over?"
"Almost. You're going to have to go by yourself, Tyler. My friend has been hurt and I have to drive him," Winry replied, trying to remain cheery for the boy's sake. "Why don't you drive fast, Tyler? I won't be able to because Ed can't hold on well with one arm. I want you away from this place. Go home, stop for no one, especially Sheriff Leatherby. We'll come check on you later to be sure you're safe."
"Okay." Tyler took off without further prompting. The snow spat into the air as the sled plowed through it.
Over the rapidly diminishing whine of the sled, Winry heard, "Winry, Ed's very pale and shaking." Al sounded frantic.
Winry ran over to where Ed was supporting himself against the tree, steam curling up from the snow at his feet. Sweat coated his face. She laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, concern slipping into her tone. "Concussion catching up with you, Ed?"
"Yeah. Feel like I'm going to be sick." Ed trembled, his lips the color of old liver. Al helped him to the sled with Winry in their wake.
"Al, help him to the sled. Ed, all you need to do is hold on to me," Winry said, securing the gun to the side of the sled.
"Doesn't sound bad." He managed a weak smile. Winry got on the sled and Al helped settle Ed behind her. Ed crooked both arms around her waist, leaning his forehead against her soft hair. "I'll try not to throw up on you."
"I'd appreciate it." She smiled gently over her shoulder. "Hold on as tight as you can, Ed. If you really start to get sick, let me know." Winry turned over the engine.
Ed shut his eyes and buried his face in her hair. Fear scent clung to her but underlying it should have been Winry's usual sweet scent. Two days of not being able to bathe had left a mark. Ed didn't care. This was Winry and she was taking him home. Behind him, loping along as fast as he could make his armored form go, was his brother. They were all alive and they were safe for the moment. No one was going to make him into a meat pie.
Ed wanted to give in to his pain. His concussion reached up to fully claim him now that he allowed himself to rest a little. Ed didn't know how he would make it all the way home. His mouth started filling with saliva, a salty taste tickling at the back of his throat. Squeezing Winry hard, Ed yelled, "Winry, stop!"
Winry cut the engine. "What, Ed?"
Ed couldn't answer, twisting on the seat, nearly falling off. What was left in his stomach emptied, bile staining the snow green-black. He felt Winry's hands on him, holding him as he vomited. When he finished, his eyes ran and his nose dripped. He wiped them absently on his sleeve. "Sorry."
"It's all right, Ed." Winry's hands probed his head. "You have a lot of bumps and bangs on your poor head. You have to feel horrible. We're almost back to town. You just have to hang on for a little while longer."
"I just want to go to sleep and pretend none of this happened," he groaned, wincing at her touch.
She sighed gustily. "I know what you mean."
"Ed, Winry!" Al pointed as he caught up to them.
They followed his large hand to the sled rocketing at them. Leatherby was on his way back to presumably cut off Ed's fingers. Al didn't wait for Ed to give an order. They could see the curse words forming on Leatherby's lips as he spun his sled around. Al knocked him off the sled, clotheslining him with a stiff arm.
Winry flinched, not used to seeing Al so violent. She got her gun and leveled it on the sheriff as he tried to roll to his feet. Ed tipped himself off the sled on the opposite side to where he vomited. He slapped his hand to the ground. "Clear a space, Al!"
Al leapt back from where he tussled with the man. Ed concentrated, making rocks and roots spring from the frozen ground, trapping the sheriff in an earthen cage.
"You son of a bitch!" Leatherby snarled, trying to wrestle the bars apart.
"You can call me that? You, who were coming to cut me into bits?" Ed yelled back, using the sled to pull himself up.
"Winry, can you get Ed back on the sled?" Al asked.
Winry's hand shook, the gun muzzle trembling. She wanted to shoot the sheriff badly. Instead she put the gun away and helped haul Ed back up.
Al punched Leatherby, dropping him against the side of his cage. The sheriff didn't get up. "Just in case," he said. "We need to get back and Ed has to alert the military. They'll need to send soldiers to help clean up this mess."
Ed nodded wearily, sagging against Winry. "Good thinking, Al."
"We won't be able to wait until they get here to handle Sabrin. She's the alchemist, the one behind it all," Winry pointed out, turning the sled on.
"Al and I will have to handle her," Ed said, shutting his eyes. It was the only way to cure the double vision that started when he toppled off the sled.
"You're in no condition to do anything, Ed," Winry reminded him.
"This time he'll have to let his little brother handle things," Al said acerbically.
Ed didn't argue as Winry started towards the town. Maybe by the time they reached it, he'd have a plan to keep Winry and his brother safe.