Hey everyone I'm already back! Quite a surprise really, I've been fretting over my thesis for the past few weeks that I thought I would NEVER finish in time but...behold 15 pages and everything else finished, bound and handed in! ^_^ I'm so very happy that I finally handed in my thesis on Wednesday! I can't resist writing my stories either, especially this one since it's still growing and at the beginning point of its story line :3
I hope everyone reading this story enjoyed the last chapter with a bit of angst, a bit of mystery and a few emotional scenes. :) Should I include more descriptive battles and fights?
ANSWERS TO REVIEWS:
Lily: Yeah that too BUT I meant who was she talking to ^^
QuinzMoon: Aw really? Thank you that means a lot to me as a writer! :3 I tried keeping Ed in character but at the same time making him seem a bit more "battle hardened" since he is older in this story and more involved with the military. Well...if Lust is comfortable enough to talk to him...I don't know ;) hahaha Thank you that's so sweet! Gracie! :D I'm happy when my readers scream of happiness at my stories hehe Take care too!
Emma: Hihi, I've left a little clue somewhere at the end of the chapter where Lena and Greed have their conversation! ;) His real name will be revealed in the next chapter!
Pfeh: (blushes in embarrassment) Ah, thank you so, so much! :3 I'm happy that you like it :) haha Yeah, I'll have the roles reversed a bit, make Ed the more "mature" one where he may realize it quicker than Winry or even admit it :P Who knows? ;)
Enjoy! :D
The Good Soldier
"I'm not a traitor, if that's what you think," Greed's head was bowed, violet eyes staring down at his bandaged feet as he felt Ed's gaze bore into him.
"How do you explain Sloth? How did you even know his name or who he was and what he was capable of? Why was he after Olivier and you?" Ed's voice was calm but Greed wasn't a fool, he felt the air buzzing with tenseness and an anger bubbling just beneath his superior's surface if he didn't get the answers he so desperately wanted.
Greed sighed heavily, lifting his head to lock eyes with Edward, "Look...this all happened in the past alright? I didn't think they would even come after me anymore after all this time-"
"They?" Ed's eyes narrowed, gold eyes looking stricter than even the first time Greed was appointed to work under him.
Greed hissed, gaze averting to the side, "Yeah...they. Six of 'em to be exact," he felt shame stinging him deeply.
Ed sighed, looking down at the ground, "...Was it that gang you mentioned? The one you left after you met Lena and everyone?" his gaze softened, understanding the troubled past of his friend and comrade.
Greed sighed heavily, "Yes," with difficulty, he managed to once again look Edward in the eyes, "Lust, Envy, Pride, Gluttony, Wrath and Sloth," a wry smile spread over his face, jaw set tightly, "They were trouble and I knew it, but I joined anyway, I was the third one to join them. Lusty was second and that Pride brat was first. The rest followed later on." Greed looked like he was thinking, "I remember, a few weeks before I defected, that they had been planning something big," he locked eyes with Ed, "...it seemed far more daring than anything we ever did and that's saying something,"
Ed remained silent for a moment, before he scanned Greed's tense features, seeing true remorse, "...What do you think did they have planned? Were you involved in it?"
Greed grit his teeth, hands tightening into fists, "No...they must have suspected I would leave them sooner or later, so they kept me out of anything related to it. I've caught bits and pieces of it, but I still don't know when or where they will execute it. Nor do I know the exact details,"
Ed smirked, "That's enough for me right now," Greed blinked once in astonishment before he slowly began talking.
"They said they would rule the world, heh, honestly it sounded like something I would say," Ed fixed him with a small glare, Greed relented, "...Not that I ever thought of ruling over the world or anything," he coughed into his hand, "Anyway, they said they would need many...sacrifices for it to work," he winced at the word "sacrifices".
A tingling sensation overcame Ed suddenly and he looked down at his hand, pushing back the sleeve of his uniform to see the hairs on his arm stood on end. Ed locked his jaw tightly, thinking deeply. Ruling over the world...many sacrifices...
"Were you a cult or something? Following rituals or beliefs or something like that?" Ed's rapid questions made Greed click his tongue in distaste.
"Do I look like a voodoo priest to you? Hell no, nothing like that. I would call them anything but religious." He scoffed, crossing his arms, "But..." Ed perked up, "...I caught on to something before Sloth passed out...he said that..." Greed looked very uncomfortable, a rare sight for Edward to witness, "...there may be a chance that they're here,"
Ed rose an eyebrow, suddenly alarmed, "Here?"
Greed nodded, voice lowering into a whisper, "In the military. In our own ranks,"
Ed's eyes widened, his pupils shrinking microscopically as he tried making sense of the information he just gathered. Greed had suspicions his old, dangerous gang may be involved with the military and he himself had seen the insignia on Sloth, one of the State Military and the other...
Ed sprung up, if Greed were a man easily surprised, he would have been startled by the sudden action, "Wait! Immortality! How are you guys linked to that?" Greed's eyes widened and he rubbed uncomfortably at the back of his neck.
Greed sighed and slowly stood, wincing at the strain it put on his wounds, "...Immortality was always a big deal to them, they kept talking about ways of becoming immortal, kept playing with the idea. I thought of them as nothing but psychopaths after that, but they made getting money easier...Pride was the worst of them all, he kept blabbering about being the "chosen" or "favorite" or whatever and pursuing his goal of finding an elixir or something for immortality,"
Ed's eyes widened, "Elixir? What elixir? What did he say?" memories of old tattered pages and formulas filled Ed's mind at the mention of an "elixir".
Greed rose an eyebrow, looking confused, "Look, I know you studied alchemy but no need getting so worked up about it. He said something of an elixir, but I can't remember what he called it,"
Ed froze, finally finding the memory he was looking for, "The Elixir of Life..." Greed quietly observed as recognition fell on Ed's face, "The Philosopher's Stone..."
"Here now and I thought those were myths," Greed mocked lightly, finding Edward's behavior strange.
Ed looked at him, despite Greed's attempts at lightening the mood his face was serious, "Alchemists have tried attaining the Philosopher's Stone for centuries, nobody knew if it actually existed but there were several records of its supposed existence. Whether or not those are false is very vague but... according to history and alchemy books, alchemists defined the Stone as intangible, it could take on any shape or form but they all have the same abilities. They grant the owner of the Stone immortal life, a rapid healing factor and abilities far above a human's comprehension," Ed rubbed his chin, gaze hard, "What could they possibly want with it...they're no alchemists are they?" His gaze moved to Greed.
He resolutely shook his head, "No,"
Ed growled, "I don't understand, it doesn't make sense. None of it."
"What could they possibly use something like this? It's just a myth, apparently anyway, and what does the Stone of Life have anything to do with many sacrifices?" Ed's train of thought was interrupted by the arrival of Hughes, who smiled and saluted them both.
"Hughes, what's up?" the older man smirked, eyes flickering back and forth between Greed and Edward.
"Well, well, well Roy sent me here to see if you slaughtered good ol' Greed yet...apparently I came too soon," Greed growled at him, Hughes brushed it off with a smile, "Anyway, report back to Roy after you're done here," he looked toward Greed pointedly before disappearing again.
Greed groaned, "Great...not only will I get grilled by two of my superiors but Lena will grill me later too!" he shook his head dramatically and Ed sighed, feeling some of the tension leaving his stiff shoulders.
"...So...am I pardoned?" Greed looked at Ed, a unsure look in his eyes, waiting in suspense. It was no small crime keeping such important information like that from his superiors when it could involve in any shape or form the military or their operations. Usually, cases such as these were regulated in the court and the worst sentence Greed could get was either permanent suspension from the military or a very long sentence in prison.
Edward turned his back on him, Greed's worry spiked, wondering if he should've just told him that since the beginning and not worry about his past so much...
Ed turned, a small smile on his face, "I'm thinking about it," he grinned suddenly and winked, "You may be older than me, but I'm still your superior, now go and meet Mustang. It's him you need to worry about," Ed's grin was far too wide.
While Greed's fear instantly left him when he realized Ed would never consider sending him to court, much less prison, the thought of Mustang's possible ass beating made him...cautious.
"Right..." Greed muttered, mentally preparing himself for the earful he would get, "Thanks...sir," Greed was never ashamed to address Ed by his rank, as custom dictated but...
"Greed," Ed's firm voice caused the wounded man to stop at the exit of the tent. Greed looked at him quizzically, "Yeah?"
Ed turned his head just so he locked eyes with Greed, " 'Sir' makes me feel old," he flashed him a grin.
Greed barked out a laugh, waving his hand, "Tch, just wait till ya reach my age, then we will talk...runt," Greed grinned toothily before leaving the tent.
Ed sighed, burying his hands in his pockets, "Well...I guess that's better than 'sir'..." he shook his head, gold eyes trailing over telegrams, issue orders, maps and-
Ed's eyes widened.
Winry's letter...
Carefully, he pushed aside the other documents, gingerly grabbing the white envelope, on its front, in neat cursive handwriting, was written Winry's name and surname.
"Hello Edward,
You idiot! Why didn't you tell me sooner that you were injured? Did you break something? Do you have flesh wounds? Bullet wounds? I heard from Lena that when Greed says he is 'a bit injured' then that means hospitalization for a week! Tell me the truth, just how bad was that confrontation with Drachma?"
Again, Ed froze, a blush taking nearly permanent residence over his handsome features, quickly he gripped the letter in both hands and frantically looked left and right if any of his men were in the vicinity. Deeming it safe enough, Ed's eyes rapidly trailed over the words.
"That woman...calling me an idiot again..." Ed 'tsked', rolling his eyes, "Well...she seems...worried about me?" he rose an eyebrow, his earlier irritation gone.
"Uhh..." he scratched the back of his neck, blinking in confusion, feeling funny for some reason. Ed hung his head, rubbing his face with one hand, "Why do I feel so funny all of a sudden? I was fine a minute ago...heh...she sure has a weird effect on people..."
Ed had to snort at the next line.
"You know, I don't think it's very polite attempting to flirt poorly with a woman you've never even met in your life."
Ed rubbed the slight stubble on his chin, thinking he would need to shave again, "Flirt huh?" he shook his head, an amused grin on his face and a little voice at the back of his mind chanting:" Buuurnn!" Ed shook his head, ignoring the fierce blush on his cheek.
"Though I admit, Mei showed me a few pictures of Alphonse and he seemed sweet and cute. I have blue eyes if you must know, Mr. Wannabe-Sexy-Soldier,"
Another snort. Wannabe? "I think not," Ed commented idly, realizing he would've sounded crazy to anyone listening right now.
"I see, I didn't know there were rules to follow when there is a war. I realize it may sound naïve, but I actually thought that soldiers just...grab their weapons and head into battle really. That's really sweet, I think, I mean he is your younger brother after all so it makes sense for you to be protective."
Ed nodded to himself, "That's what I'm saying too...wait...she called me sweet...?" Ed's heart seemed to go into cardiac arrest before he finally figured out that he needed to breathe. He took a huge gulp of air in, nearly choking himself to death. He pounded his fist against his chest and much to his horror, Ling entered.
"Hey Ed! I heard you were choking what's-" he was promptly silenced by a very heavy phone smashing into his face, sending him crashing back outside into the dirt.
"I was not choking!" Ed's chest heaved with the effort to breathe, coupled by his near suffocation and the panic rising in him at being caught reading Winry's letter. Ed quickly zipped the tent shut, marching resolutely to the small desk at the other side of the tent.
He sat down heavily on it, finally calming down from his near heart attack, he carefully unfolded the letter and began reading again.
"So, Greed is the insane, incredibly dangerous twin huh? Well, I met him but only on occasion, we didn't really hang out. And when the girls and I have had a PJ party at my place, Ling had suddenly climbed in through my window and Greed fell in right after him so I wasn't really sure what to make of them till that point. But they are alright I guess, a bit crazy but they are good at heart. Lena keeps complaining how Greed behaves like a big cuddly bear when they're alone and he hogs her all to himself. Let's just say I wasn't surprised his name is "Greed"."
Ed snorted loudly, "Tch...I'm beginning to think I made a mistake proclaiming Greed to be the insane twin..." he gave a narrowed look outside, hearing Ling's groan of pain. He shook his head in exasperation.
"Say Ed, do you know if 'Greed' is his actual name or if it's just a codename or nickname or something? I've always found it unusual how his name was Greed to be honest but the more stories I heard from Lena, the more sense it makes,"
Ed rose an eyebrow, rubbing his chin in thought, "She has a point...I found it strange too but I just thought he wanted to be called that...then again, it does make sense for him to be called "Greed" but...what's his actual name?"
There was a moment of silence, before Ed shot up from his chair and unzipped the tent, spotting the near to unconscious Ling on the ground, heavy telephone slammed into his face. Disregarding the dying man, Ed picked up the phone and walked back inside, zipping the tent shut. Ling shouted after him, "Hey! How can you leave me here?!"
Ed shouted back, "You'll live!" Ling rolled his eyes and continued counting the stars that filled his vision.
Edward reconnected the phone to the wires and quickly dialed a private number he knew all too well, after two rings the caller picked up with a cheery, "Greed?"
Immediately, shame filled him, he heard the joy in her voice, the hopeful tone that she could finally talk to Greed after his long recovery...He really hated himself sometimes...
"Uh...n-no, it's me um Ed," he cursed himself for stuttering, feeling awkward at having to burst her bubble.
"Oh, hey Ed," her tone remained happy, but its energetic tune dropped once she realized it wasn't the man she had been having sleepless nights over worrying for his safety, "Um, sorry, that was rude of me I'm happy to hear from you-"
Ed quickly cut her off, his tone softer than usually, "It's alright, I understand. Greed is fine by the way, I just grilled him this morning. I think Mustang's having him stabbed on a pike right now," he joked, hoping it would lighten the mood.
Thankfully, Lena was one open for jokes, she laughed and it made Ed feel at ease, "That's good to hear Ed, thank you for taking care of him and getting him out of there. He may not say it, but he's happy when you can save his ass from time to time," Ed couldn't help but chuckle, knowing that information all too well.
"It's no problem, really, he's recovering nicely but I won't have him back on active duty any time soon so you don't need to worry for a while, okay?" he hoped she would get some sleep after his attempts at reassuring her.
Lena's tone suggested she was smiling, her voice turning softer, "Mhm, yeah thanks Ed. Anyway, how come you're calling?"
Ed quickly remembered the reason for his call and a grin stretched over his features, "Well...I was wondering...a few years back, when I met Greed and he became my subordinate...his real name had been marked as "classified"..."
"No," Lena's curt answer prompted Ed to look at the phone incredulously.
"Oh come on Lena! What's Greed's real name?!" he clenched his fist, wondering if he should beg or not.
"I'm not telling...besides...a certain sharpshooter already-"
"Hawkeye knows?! Why does she know and not me?" this couldn't get any worse.
"I don't know...I just felt in the mood to spill the beans," Ed grit his teeth at the accompanying snicker coming from Lena, "By the way, did you write Winry back yet?"
At that, Ed froze, adjusting the collar of his uniform, "Um, uh, w-well I- hey wait a minute! How do you know about that?"
Lena giggled, "Oh Ed, you poor naïve man... Anyway, Winry and I are waiting for your reply! Write faster man!"
Ed shouted comically into the receiver, face cherry red, "H-hey! Don't tell me you're reading them too-" the line went dead.
The subtle twitch of Ed's left eye indicated his irritation as he slammed the receiver down, embarrassment filling him, did they all read his letters? Mei too?! Lan Fan? Hawkeye? Oh boy...he was a dead man...
Ed shook his head rapidly, willing himself to sit back down at the desk and ponder over the letter.
"I have only met Mr. Kimblee once but he seemed nice enough. At one point he seemed kind of scary but he was the perfect gentleman to Riza and I before he was sent to the border."
Ed frowned, Kimblee? Nice? ...If one would stretch the word to capacity then yeah...maybe on some insane level Kimblee was nice...
"Well, I thank you kindly for it, maybe I should get a medal since it looked painful...Oh! And I heard Lena and Greed were caught doing something dirty through the military lines! Is that true? She wouldn't utter a word to me about it maybe you've caught them? I sure hope so! I need more blackmail material against her!"
Ed laughed out loud, covering his face at the prospect of Greed demanding utter privacy during his phone calls with Lena just to spice up a few things during their calls.
He supposed he could understand...to some level anyway. They've been together for long and being apart like this surely wasn't easy on them...he would have to ask Mustang or Hughes if any of the two caught them.
"I will don't worry, nothing much here that can happen to me unlike with you. So far, everything is fine. Business is going nicely, granny comes from time to time to see how I'm doing, though I just think she wants to ogle my poor assistant... Everyone else is doing good, doing their jobs and such. Oh right, I'm supposed to tell you that Ling doesn't have "doorphobia" but as Lan Fan put it "a intense hatred and reluctance to use doors for fear of someone standing behind them and attacking him" or something like that.
P.S. Not to worry soldier! I'll salute to her like a first class trained captain! *wink smiley*
Reading you soon,
Winry."
Edward smiled, chuckling softly at the comment about her grandmother ogling her assistant and Lan Fan trying lamely to defend her boyfriend's weird phobia. Ed probably spent a bit too long staring at the winking smiley scribbled cutely next to the sentence, he didn't really care, it looked...cute.
He had quite many ideas what to write her, he could include bits and pieces of recent happenings, but he would have to exclude the bits about the possibility of a Philosopher's Stone and Greed's connection to Sloth. He wondered if she would mind if he sent her a picture of himself.
Edward's good mood plummeted when he gazed down at the arm, clenching and unclenching it to hear the distinct machine-like sounds. He sighed, rubbing it almost gingerly with his normal hand.
He couldn't show her that, not if he wanted to keep their new pen friendship anyway. She would go running through the hills if she ever discovered his secret. But maybe...
He grabbed a fresh piece of paper and grabbed the idly resting pen in front of him and wrote the first thing that came to mind:
"Hey Winry,
What do you think about video calls?"
"Ah, listen, General I-" Greed began but was stopped by a hand motion from Roy who looked all too serious.
Greed fought down the urge to feel his throat constrict, wondering how bad this conversation would be as he shared a look with the all too relaxed Hughes standing beside his best friend.
Roy closed his eyes, "Greed...you have always been one of the better soldiers I've had the pleasure of supervising, along with Edward. You've made it one of your principles never to lie, as well as vehemently refused to fight women on the battlefield if the situation absolutely didn't call for it. You showed courage when rescuing your team mates from dangerous situations, showed your selflessness when endangering yourself to the enemy if it meant protecting your comrades," Roy opened his eyes, narrowed dark irises gazing evenly at Greed.
"However..." Greed's loose grip on his pants leg suddenly tightened, Hughes took note of it, his calm smile turning into a worried one, glancing briefly at Roy, "...you have withheld information that could prove to play a very vital part in this war as well as prevent internal strife within our very own military..." Roy's eyes narrowed, voice deep and sharp.
"What do you have to say about that?" Greed grit his teeth, bandaged hands clenched into fists.
"...It wasn't my intention to endanger any of you or prolong this war, sir. It was a rookies mistake on my part of thinking my past wouldn't catch up to me in some way..." Greed lifted his head, tired violet eyes locking with Mustang's, "But I honestly didn't expect them to be a part of the military, much less pulling stunts such as these,"
Mustang was silent, studying Greed's tense posture, the tightening of his defined jaw, the familiar, trustworthy violet eyes that looked so drained and apologetic now, the subtly shivering hands clenched into fists which rested on his thighs...
He sighed, closing his eyes in thought before he stood and looked down at Greed, who looked like he would be on death row.
Before Mustang placed his final judgment upon him, Greed added, "I will accept any punishment you deem necessary. Even if I get stripped of my rank and position in the military, I'll tell you all you need to know about them," Greed's violet eyes were no longer tired and apologetic when they lifted to meet Mustang's.
They showed the fire Greed was known for, fierceness, a protective gleam that suggested he would never endanger his comrades like that again and...
Roy smiled softly, worry lines and subtle age lines smoothing, making him appear younger, "What are you waiting for?" the amused smile Roy had confused Greed as did the question, "I thought you said you'd tell us all about them right? Report back to Elric and I'll see what I can do about locating them through our data base somehow,"
A minute or two passed before a small, roguish grin settled on his face, violet eyes lightning up in understanding and gratitude.
"Yes, sir," Greed slowly stood up, ignoring how the motion pulled at his stitches and patched up wounds, for a moment, he stared at Roy, before he settled a hand on his shoulder and squeezed trying to convey just how grateful he was without words.
Roy nodded and smiled, smacking his open palm against Greed's bandaged back, making the poor man nearly keel over, "'Atta boy Greed!" he was a whimpering, shivering mess as he walked back to their tent, rubbing his poor back.
"Don't you think that had been too much? He already got drilled by Edward..." Hughes piped in, gazing at the retreating man in pity and amusement.
Roy smiled, shrugging his shoulders, "Don't worry Hughes, Edward and I have been the least of his problems..."
"Oh right...there's still Lena to confront too." Both men winced in sympathy, Roy more so than Maes. While not as scary as his dear wife, Lena was a force to be reckoned with once somebody invoked her wrath.
"I'll slaughter him!" Lena jumped on the couch, fingers rapidly punching numbers into her phone to call the State Military.
"W-wait a second! He's still injured right? Don't you think he has enough-" Winry shrunk back when Lena suddenly turned her head around, a menacing glare on her face.
"THAT'S NOT NEARLY ENOUGH FOR WHAT I HAVE IN STORE FOR HIM!" Lena barked, impatiently waiting to be connected, "That stupid, overconfident, good-for-nothing-"
"Hello!" Lena's growl turned into a pleasant hum and Winry wondered how someone could switch moods so fast, "Could you please connect me with the Main Base where Major General Greed is stationed at? Yes, thank you! Have a nice day!" Lena smiled, before the telltale melody of the waiting line came back and the evil glint in her eyes returned.
A rather tired voice answered it, "Hello?"
Winry was almost shivering in the corner at how eerily happy Lena's grin looked, "Hello, is this Major General Greed?" wait...why didn't she call him by name?
"Yeah? Oh wait, sweets is that-"
Lena's mask of calmness and sweetness broke, "I'LL SENT YOU TO THE DARKEST PITS OF HELL YOU GOOD-FOR-NOTHING MORON! HOW DARE YOU MAKE ME WORRIED SICK BECAUSE OF YOUR STUPID, RECKLESS, UNPLANNED STUNTS?!" her voice boomed within the confines of her house, Winry winced, imagining Greed's eardrums to be shattered by now.
"Hey w-wait sweets I can-"
"SHUT THE HELL UP!" the voice fell promptly silent on the other end, "You'll listen to me now soldier so listen well and listen good!"
"Y-yes ma'am," Greed's uncharacteristically shaky voice replied.
Lena's gaze was sharp, "I will personally sign in and make Riza station me there with you if I hear you pulling this shit again. I'll stick to you like some psychotic mother hen does to her young ones, I don't care if the whole squadron will laugh at you, you deserve it."
"But-"
"I'm not finished!" she roared into the phone, causing Winry to fearfully grip her glass of water closer to her, "You will report to me every week so I know you're alright, if not, I'll call Ed and drill him for answers." Her gaze softened, the sharp edge slowly leaving her voice, "I'll try to do anything I can to not lose any part of you, I'll try to make sure you come back home to me in one piece Greed. I know I can't do much from here and that I'm acting irrationally now because of my anger, but believe me, I will at least try to make that all happen."
Greed remained silent, listening to her attentively, "...I know you're trying to protect Ling and the others, but..." she grit her teeth and Winry respectfully looked away after sensing Lena was about to cry, "...I know it's selfish, but protect them, protect yourself, but come back home after this war is over alright? I think the young one and I will like it, hm?" she smiled warmly.
"K-k-k-k-k-y-y-y-y-y-y-YOU'RE PREGNANT?!" Greed's frantic voice could be heard by Winry and she whipped her head around to look at Lena incredulously, her face portraying her shock.
Lena sighed, "No, do the math idiot, I'm not. BUT..." she smiled, "...well...once you return and things get more peacefully..."
The next thing that Greed said made Lena giggle and Winry wanted to know what it was that the man said, Lena's face brightened, after a small pause it turned bright pink and Lena covered her mouth, giggling. Winry blushed and turned her head, chanting formulas and all kinds of different metals in her head to try and tune out the conversation.
"Alright then, bye -yoku-" Winry immediately removed her hands from her ears, eyes widening. Did Lena just call Greed by a different name? She didn't pick up the whole name but... Winry turned back around and was met by Lena's calm expression, pink dusting her cheeks and a happy smile adoring her face. Winry couldn't bring herself to ask about Greed's real name right now.
"...It'll be alright..." she grinned brightly, wiping away the stray tear that almost spilled from her right eye.
Greed gently put down the receiver, sighing and grinning to himself like a maniac. It was true, his ears still stung from her roaring match earlier, but he was glad his girlfriend had more sense than that.
He reflected back on what he told her before they hung up, "Heh, can't wait to see little lookalike me's running around causing trouble. If some of them look like you that'd be perfect. And the process of making those little rascals will be even better, now won't it?" he snickered and grinned stupidly, shaking his head at himself.
"Oh, I see, using the military lines for your perverted little shenanigans are we Greed?" Greed froze, robotically turning around to spot Edward Elric leaning casually against a wooden beam, grinning.
Greed's eye twitched.
Sloth softly snored, eyes closed and his large, muscled form leaning against the stone wall.
Sloth's sleep was only disturbed by incoming footsteps and the jiggling of keys, slowly, he opened his eyes, letting them adjust to the light in order to see if they would question him again.
When his vision focused, he could see it wasn't the usual guard approaching him.
"Ah, good morning Sloth, had a nice nap?" the familiar voice of one of his comrades rang in Sloth's ears.
"Oh you poor, poor thing, locking you up like this. Let's get you out of here Sloth," the mocking voice of the man clad in uniform sounded all too familiar to him. He opened the door to the small cell where Sloth was restrained, breaking Sloth's restrains as well.
Sloth blinked up at him slowly, "...What are you doing here?"
The man smirked, "Why show some gratitude will you? I came to free you of course, Pride's orders." the man's smooth voice was highly amused.
Sloth nodded slowly, standing up, "I don't want to work again..." he drawled lowly.
The man rolled his eyes, "There's still more work to be done, now let's go."
"So...have you found our dear runaway brother?" the grin stretching over the soldier's face couldn't have been wider and more malicious.
Sloth drawled lazily, "Yes...he's part of the military...like Lust said..."
The man grinned, "Excellent, that will ease our job. We have located his lover so it should be easier to persuade him to come on our side again," he licked his lips, his long dark green hair falling around him in downward pointing spikes.
Red eyes glowed eerily in the darkness but they weren't from Sloth this time.
The smooth voice from before laughed maniacally, broad shoulders shaking, "Maybe I should pay her a visit sometime...it could be fun," his violet eyes shone with malicious intent, "How I love using my latest torture techniques on fresh prey..." he licked his lips.
Oho...another Homunculus revealed hm? I think we all know who this one is after all he has a knack for psychological torture...not to mention...that hair! Next chapter will be more focused on Ed and Winry!