A Note from me: This chapter includes the brief introduction of a character integral to the secondary plot of this story. This character is an original creation, but is in no way meant for any purpose than to hold a role in the plot line. Also, please be aware this chapter contains bastinado as a disciplinary practice. If you are uncomfortable with physical discipline then you may want to skip this chapter. End note.
Lior had changed greatly since their last time in the city. Only a few hours into their work that day had proven to them that something drastic had taken hold of the populace; something that had motivated them to unite, to overcome, and press forward for improvement in their bonds as they rebuilt. It brought a distinct sense of revulsion crawling up the back of their throat, mingled with an acidic taste of bile. Humans made so much effort to improve, to triumph over their vices, but they knew how easily those efforts could be undermined-most of the time. The people they had encountered in recent years, the Elric brothers, Mustang and his unit, the warriors from Xing, these were people who seemed capable of overcoming their vices, and that confounded and unsettled them. More than that, they had concluded that Mustang's ideas about them and their own motivations were too correct too often, and it brought an overwhelming frustration upon them that they just couldn't seem to out maneuver him. Their mind had been set in a cycle all morning, mulling over their conversations with the man from the past few days while they lugged loads of lumber, bricks, and stone across the courtyard.
Falman hadn't needed as much help as he had implied the previous evening, and once they had finished bringing books into the main floor of the library, they had been reassigned to Fuery. Initially, the task of working with the reconstruction effort had been annoying to them, considering they had helped to destroy the city in the first place, it felt absurd to be aiding in repair work. On one of their trips back and forth to cart supplies, however, they had glanced up and to their left, and spotted the somber tower of the cathedral in the sky. From that moment onward, their thoughts had been a storm of debate, hashing out the dubious warnings they had picked up on in their warden's lectures and contrasting them with their own reasoning of finding a way to go to the tower. They paused in their latest trek across the courtyard, adjusting their hat carefully as their gaze lingered on the spire above.
I have to get up there, but if I ask to go, he'll need to know why, and that's not something I want to explain. I could just run for it, and he'll hunt me down and deep fry me, I can't change my appearance right now anyway. Damn it all.
A low grumble passed their lips as they turned their wheel cart around to push the next load of bricks to where Fuery was working with a group of other laborers. He was dutiful soldier, and as the sole individual in the area that knew the truth of their identity, had been keeping a fervent watch on them between his own tasks. There would be no hope of escaping so long as he was being so attentive.
The scaffolding the humans were using was aged in some areas, and over laden with heavy tools and bricks, plus the weight of the individuals climbing all over it, they couldn't help relating the image to an ant hill every time they looked at it. Setting their cart beside the base of the support structure, they observed the way the wooden bars of the frame shuddered each time a human walked across the narrow planks positioned as pathways around the building. They expected it to go down at any point, but hoped it wouldn't happen while they were near it.
On their next trip back to the brick pile the scaffolding finally gave out. Not all at once, but in a slow, groaning heave of creaking, snapping wood and alarmed human shouting, and a puff of dust and debris. They turned, staring at the chaos of injured humans and damaged equipment with a sneer of satisfaction.
How did they not know that was going to collapse? Stupidity at its finest, that's human intelligence for you, ha! Idiots!
A soft chuckle eased past their lips, but cut off sharply as they realized that in the commotion of freeing the trapped workers, there were no glances coming their way from the normally attentive Kain Fuery. Whether he was occupied helping those that were trapped, or was caught himself, they couldn't be certain, but he was no longer within their visual range, which meant they were no longer within his.
I could go, this is my chance!
Glancing around quickly, they slipped behind the pile of bricks and crouched down, listening to the shouts for help from the work area. Their time to move wouldn't last long, especially once Mustang arrived from his post a street over. They had to move now. Creeping along and keeping their head low, they snaked a path around the piles of supplies toward the secondary gate of the courtyard. Their hand closed around the metal bars of the gate, but as they began to push it open, Mustang's warning from the train came flooding into their mind. Envy paused, gnawing at their lower lip as they struggled with their resolve.
He's going to be pissed if I escape, he'll hunt me down, he'll-wait! Wait, I'll just, come back. If I go, and then come back before too much time goes by, maybe they won't notice. They're going to be busy sorting out that mess for at least an hour or two. I can do this. I'll go and come right back, and he'll never know.
Swallowing their doubts, they shoved the gate open and took their first few steps outside of the courtyard. They paused, listening for any shouts of alarm from the one person who could ruin their plans, but when they heard none, they began a hurried journey down the streets and through the alley ways toward the temple of Leto. It was a path they knew well, having spent enough time in the city previously to recall the quickest route to their destination.
Envy hadn't bothered to worry about the handful of citizens who had been startled by a military soldier racing down the roads; in earlier times, they would have applied more caution to their approach, but given that they had an estimated limit for time, they had opted to go for speed over stealth. It was around ten minutes or so of steady running that brought them at last to the entry of the temple courtyard. They paused at the gateway, their eyes traveling up the towering spire to the balcony at the peak. They would have to climb a lot of stairs to get there, but it would be worth the effort.
Followers of Leto were milling about the courtyard, attending to the tasks of their worship and maintenance of the grounds as Envy hurried past them. A man who was coming down the main steps of the temple was openly startled at their abrupt approach toward the door. He clutched his chest and called out to them uncertainly.
"Why is a soldier from Central coming here? We've only had peace at this place for a long time now."
Envy didn't want to waste their precious time with the human, but they did their best to allay his concern, hoping to ease their own access to the temple. Adopting a friendly smile, they raised a hand in greeting as they continued to walk up the steps.
"Hello there! It has been very calm around here. I'm not an official of any kind, more like a decorated errand runner, actually. I'm here with the reconstruction effort, but I had heard this temple has amazing architecture and I had to see it with my own eyes."
Lying was simple enough, and they had over a century of practice in offering false sentiment with their words. The disarming attitude they adopted seemed to satisfy the human, and his green eyes brightened a bit as they drew near to him.
"That's a relief! Yes, this place has quite the design. If you like, I can give you a quick tour of the inner sanctum and the grounds? The sculptures inside of Leto are very impressive, and the courtyard behind the main sanctum has been enhanced with a stunning fountain. If you would please follow me, I'll take you inside." Obviously eager to show off the highlights of their temple, the worshiper quickly opened the door and ushered the homunculus inside.
The two of them passed several doors that led to various private chambers for those who lived within the temple, but the main hall of the sanctum was a cavernous room with a soaring ceiling, hanging lights, rows upon rows of benches and a large alter at the base of a carven statue of the sun deity. The human was prattling on about various art work and craftmanship that had been used within the building, and was quite oblivious to Envy's abrupt detour around the left side of the benches and back out into the hall. They made a short dash to the last door at the end of the corridor and then began a long ascent up a spiraling tower of stairs.
Each step within the narrow alcove echoed thunderously within their ears, the sound seeming almost offensive, as if disturbing a place that should have been frozen in time and sheltered from intrusion. Their gradual emergence on the tower balcony felt more like an intrusion than a relief. Envy stopped short at the top of the stairs, their gaze fixated on the place where Lust had once stood. They could see her form as it had been, her long, midnight waves falling heavily around her pale shoulders as she leaned out over the railing; her sharp gaze riveted on the chaos below, a frown of disdain pulling her wine-red lips into a tight line. They took a step forward, then another, replaying the events of that evening in their mind. The way Gluttony had stood beside her, a simple, but loyal fool, happy if only he could eat and be patted on his round, bald head by her elegant hand. They remembered perfectly the way she had turned to regard them, her amusement at their efforts to help establish the crest of blood in Lior, the way she had teased them about keeping the priest's form, the way she had laughed when they had cracked a half joke about being cute. Her laugh was such a pleasant sound, but when they closed their eyes all they heard was the wind rushing around the tower. The images of their sister's face began to change in their mind's eye, mingling with the baleful glare she had given them in their nightmare. With a sharp inhale, they stepped forward and grasped the railing of the balcony, clutching it with a slight tremble to their hands as they looked down on the city.
"Why is that how I see you? You never looked at me that way, never! Why can't I get that face out of my head? I just want to remember you how you were. I thought coming here would help, but I can't get that look out of my mind." Speaking to the emptiness around them brought no answer or solace to them, and for a time they remained silent, listening to the wind, and clutching the railing as sadness and confusion bubbled away in their mind.
Staring across the roof tops of the city did little to ease their troubled thoughts, but as they scanned the buildings their gaze eventually came to rest on the reconstruction zone and a new thought tore through their distress over their fallen sibling.
"How long has it been? If I don't get back he'll be hunting for me, and I can't hide like this. I should go." Straightening up, they took one last look to the barren space on the balcony where the specter of their sister could be seen in their memory. "I didn't avenge you, is that why you're angry with me? I could have fought him harder, but Lust he was, so much stronger than I expected. I had no chance to take him down, but maybe that's not the point. Are you angry because I'm not fighting anymore? I'm just surviving, playing the game, you know how it is, you have to wait for the right moment." They swallowed against the lump forming in the back of their throat, a tension growing in their voice as they spoke softly to the empty balcony. "I'm just waiting, that's all."
The sound of a startled cry drew their attention to the right of the balcony, breaking their train of thought at the distinctly pained tone it held. Peering over the railing, they observed a figure moving away from a crumpled body, heading with purposeful steps toward a nondescript building against the wall of the courtyard, one that appeared to be a simple tool shed to any outward appearances, but held something important inside that they clearly remembered. Watching the person wrench open the door and quickly enter the shed, they felt an impulse to follow after them and hurried down the stairs as fast as their legs would carry them.
"Curse you Mustang! If it weren't for you I could have just taken the easy way down, but now I have to run all the way!" Huffing angrily, they burst out of the sanctum and into the back courtyard. As they darted past the form on the ground, they observed fleetingly that the figure seemed withered and aged beyond recognition. The strange appearance was little more than a passing curiosity as they came upon the door to the shed and quickly followed their mystery target inside.
The room was plain enough, relatively small, stocked with gardening equipment for tending the grounds. Envy knew better than what the simple appearance offered, and carefully reached up grasp the curved, iron bar of the light fixture on the wall, twisting it upside down and then pushing it slightly inward until a distinct click was heard. They smirked as the seal of a secret door loosened, and a gentle push against the wall directly beside the light fixture opened a narrow, darkened pathway to them. Before they could step inside, the door of the shed abruptly wrenched open, spilling light into the room and exposing them in the opening of the passageway.
Envy jerked around in a mixture of surprise and terror, assuming if anyone was going to find them at a time like this it would be Mustang; much to their shocked relief, it was not their warden in the doorway, but a group of worshipers. The men appeared distressed and the one at the head of the small group raised a hand to them, as if attempting to halt them in their tracks.
"What's happening? You left your guide, and now we found one of our brothers dead in the courtyard. Someone said they saw a woman come this way. Were you following her? Are you chasing her? Did she kill Lennis? What is that behind you? What's going on here?" His voice rose with every question, fear and anger mingling in his tone. Envy didn't have time for this, but they made some effort to placate the humans.
"Yes, I'm following her to find out what she knows. It's dangerous obviously, so you should all go back to hiding in your temple or cleaning up the mess in your court yard. Leave the woman to me." That said, they hurried down the corridor, ignoring the cries to wait from the group they left behind.
They followed the passageway down as it delved deep below the temple, twisting turns and low arches dotted with dimly flickering light provided a bleak path to where they knew was a wide chamber, marked with alchemic symbols on the floor, that had once connected to four other chambers of the same design via Sloth's nationwide tunnel. Stepping into the chamber brought a flood of memory back to them, but being in a place Sloth had toiled to carve out felt less intrusive than being on the balcony had felt. They observed the fact that, like in the tunnel way, the lights were on within the chamber.
"I didn't expect anyone to chase after me. You must be clever to have figured out how to get in here, but I suppose not every military officer is a complete idiot." The voice that echoed within the room was low and full, reminiscent of their sister's seductive timbre but lacking the honeyed richness her voice had held. They watched the figure of a woman emerge from across the room, her hands settled across her chest, slightly tucked below her breasts as she stood her ground to face them.
Envy observed her sharp features, the harsh gaze of gray eyes and the condemning sneer on pale lips. Her dark hair was pulled back into a thick braid that draped over her right shoulder, a few way ward strands falling around her face but doing nothing to soften the intensity of her demeanor. She was dressed in plain civilian clothing, but their perceptive gaze took note of telltale scars intricately patterned on her hands.
"You're an alchemist." The remark was made more to gauge her reaction than to acknowledge any surprise they may have felt, though they were deeply curious how she had known of the chamber and what her plans were.
"How astute of you. From what I can see, you're nothing but a private, it's a pity you came down here, you've wasted whatever future you might have had." Sighing almost regretfully, the woman reached a hand inside her coat and withdrew a small side arm which she leveled at them. "Sometimes being nosey and reckless leads to situations you can't back out of, too bad your superior didn't train you better."
As she cocked back the hammer on her weapon, they prepared to leap for cover, but the sound of footsteps and shouting had both of them looking toward the entry from the corridor as several of the temple worshipers spilled into the room. Envy slapped a hand over their face, groaning and tugging at the brim of their hat in agitation. They ignored the woman in favor of snarling at the stunned group of humans.
"What are you doing down here?! I said I would handle this! You stupid fools! Idiot humans you're just going to get in the way!"
The men gestured toward the woman who was now standing with her firearm resting against her hip and observing the scene with a mixture of annoyance and malice.
"We thought you might need help, you didn't appear to have any weapons when you came down here! We sent someone to notify the other military officers of the situation and thought we would see how far the tunnel went down." The man who they recognized as their tour guide from before seemed sincere as he explained, though the knowledge that they had sent for the military meant that Mustang would likely be on his way there, and that brought a sense of dread to them that they couldn't hide very well. A scoffing laugh brought their focus back to the woman.
She stood with her weapon still at her side, her other hand rubbing her forehead as she observed them all. Unexpectedly, she holstered her gun, and made a casual move toward the wall of rock on her right.
"This has gotten out of hand quickly. You've caused me more trouble than I needed today." Placing her hand against the wall, she initiated a transmutation, the surface of the rock fissuring in the direction of the group of worshipers. Envy watched as the rocks of the wall lurched out, slamming into the men from behind, hooking like claws as they propelled the group of four through the air and across the room. The landings looked rather painful, but their main concern was that they had spotted an ominous red glow during her transmutation.
She has a Philosopher's stone!
The homunculus shifted their footing against the stone floor, their hands settling against their lower back in an aloof stance they often adopted when sizing up potential threats. Narrowed eyes fixed on her form as she stepped in amongst the dazed and bruised men on the ground, a deep-set scowl etched into her face. She brought her hands out to either side once she was centered between the group, then dropped to a kneeling position and slammed her palms onto the stone at her feet. The crimson light of the Philosopher's stone bathed the chamber in a threatening glow as her next transmutation began to activate, and Envy found themselves surprised just slightly when the men around her began arching and shouting in pain.
They took a step forward, eyes widening as they watched what appeared to be fluid seeping out of their pores, the rapid drainage of the fluid creating a steady withering effect on their flesh and muscle tissue, till after a few short moments they had all collapsed, wheezing out ragged final breaths at her feet. The liquid swirled around her extended right arm, churning furiously in an unending spiral.
Envy blinked, uncertain exactly what they had witnessed. They had seen the Elric brothers control metal and stone and form it into moving shapes and even limbs before, and they were very familiar with Mustang's unique fire alchemy. They had witnessed kinetic explosions, chimera transmutations and transformations, but they couldn't recall seeing an alchemist work with liquid quite in this way before.
She drained everything from them? No, there's no blood in that, it's just the water. Rather impressive actually; but she has to get close in order to pull it out of a target, so if I keep my distance this should be fine. That looked painful, I'm not very interested in getting a first-hand experience on the process.
"That was an excessive way to kill those fools. I take it your specialty is with water, but I didn't come down here to fight you." They held up a hand, offering a non-confrontational grin in her direction. They watched her gaze grow suspicious, but pressed on carefully. "Call it a drop of wisdom, but fighting really isn't something I enjoy, people get hurt you know? What I'm more curious about is where you picked up that pretty stone you've got. The glow is a dead give-away, so please don't lie."
Her stance changed slightly, the tension in her muscles easing up just enough to make them feel a bit more confident that they could evade a physical altercation with her if they kept talking. She raised her brows as she regarded them.
"You want to know about my stone, and you don't care about the civilians, interesting. I thought the greedy types had been ferreted out of the military, seems they missed one."
Envy's face contorted into a scowl at her words. Their tone growing angry. "Don't call me 'greedy'."
She scoffed at them, then sneered as she took a few steps toward them. The water swirling around her arm continued to churn violently as she approached.
"It's tempting to offer you a little information, there's something about you that's almost peeking my curiosity, and that rarely happens." She halted approximately four yards from them, her gaze narrowing. "But I just don't have time to chat, and I'm not here looking for recruits!"
Abruptly, she lashed out with her arm, sending the spinning water out in a rushing stream that slammed into their face with unexpected force. They couldn't be certain if she was using the stone to increase the destructive power of her alchemy, but regardless, the impact knocked them off their feet and onto their back. Scrambling to their feet, they lurched to the right, seeking a path to get around and come at her from the side. Even with their powers locked away by Mustang's devices, they still had some skill in physical combat, though they'd rarely won against many of their more recent opponents.
Their forward momentum unexpectedly halted with a sharp jerk that brought them crashing to their knees, and as they snarled and whipped their head around to look at their feet, they discovered that there was a thick, spiraling vortex of water around their left leg from the knee down to the ankle. The pressure on their limb was surprisingly strong, a tumultuous current that they couldn't seem to drag their leg out from. The water was connected to the fluid the woman had circling her arm, and as she grinned at them, she raised her other hand into the air, her side arm pointed toward the ceiling of the cavern.
"Did you know that the foolish followers of Leto tunneled into the roof of this chamber without ever realizing what was below them? They had found the spring they needed for their fountain just beyond this structure, and they used pipes to bring that water to their fountain. Of course, Lior is a struggling city, rather poor since the rioting, so the metal they had to use is quite frail and thin. I imagine a few bullets would sufficiently crack it. How many do you think it will take?" She fired and the explosive concussion of the gun was followed by the screech of metal as the bullet ricocheted off the piping that they could just make out in the dim shadows above them. Envy glared at her arrogant sneer, attempting to yank their leg free of the current around it only to be jostled against the floor when she snapped her arm and the water surging about them. Her next shot thundered in the cavern, accompanied by the groan of impacted metal.
Damn this alchemist! If I could shape shift I would have killed her twenty times over by now! I can't do anything like this! I don't even have a weapon! Mustang you idiot! This is your fault! Where is he anyway? I thought those useless fanatics went to get him?
Their thoughts were interrupted by a third shot and the shriek of metal, followed by the sound of spraying water, and a light sprinkle of water splattering down onto the stone floor around them. Holstering her weapon, she spread out the fingers of her left hand in the falling water, her smile widening as the poorly manufactured pipes groaned and fractured, increasing the volume of water cascading around them. The array scrawled into the flesh of her hand began to glow with the crimson of the stone's enhanced power, and as Envy's face contorted with genuine fear, a sizable torrent of water rose up in a massive wall and then crashed down over them.
The water rolled them in a tumultuous circle, spinning them end over end in a looping current that they couldn't force their way out of. As they were dragged past the floor they attempted to latch onto a rock for stability, but the force of the rushing water pulled them backward, their fingers slipping from the edge of the stone as they were turned and tossed within the swirling stream. Their lungs began to ache from the exertion of fighting the water's flow, and it wasn't long before they were sputtering, the burning sensation of fluid filling their mouth and forcefully invading their lungs making them gag and jerk violently. Their eyes squeezed shut as they tried to fight the crushing force of the water surrounding them, the helplessness only added to their panic as they felt a dizzy numbness encroaching on their mind and limbs.
I can't breathe! It hurts! I'm going to die!
Fear gnawed at their mind, fighting the bleak shadows that were pressing in on their consciousness. If they were to perish with their access to their stone's powers cut off they had no certainty of their recovery. They had only witnessed one homunculus die in such a state before, and he hadn't come back until Father had found a new use for him. As they swirled about helplessly in the vortex they wished they could reassure themselves that they would be fine, that regeneration would happen, but they couldn't shake their doubts. Unexpectedly, the water around them began to warm, a strange sensation that they couldn't determine the source of given their disoriented state. The current seemed to slow slightly, then vanished altogether as their body hit the stone floor with a heavy, wet plop. Immediately they started retching the water from their lungs, coughing and heaving a mixture of fluid, bile, and saliva onto the ground as their lungs tried to expel the water and take in precious air.
Their limbs trembled as they gagged and gasped in a hunched over position, and it was some length of time before their ears had drained enough that they could make out the sound of their name being called. Blearily, they blinked at their surroundings, finding Hawkeye and Havoc standing just in front of them, weapons drawn, and Mustang with his arms raised as if he had just clapped, large tendrils of steam curling into the air around him. He lowered his arms and balled his hands into fists at his sides, his words laced with angry tones they remembered well.
"She's gone into the tunnels."
He turned then, and they suddenly felt uncertain if they would have been better off drowning to death as his furious gaze zeroed in on their soggy form. Mustang's boots slapped against the wet floor as he stalked toward them, his jaw tight with anger.
"What the hell did you think you were doing?!" The backhand that accompanied his outrage sent them sprawling onto the ground, and they had barely a second to shake the stars from their vision before he was hauling them to their feet by their uniform. Unable to keep from shaking in the wake of his fury, they were entirely unprepared for his next remark.
"You idiot! You had no business engaging an enemy on your own! I didn't bring you here so you could blunder off by yourself and get killed!" He gave them a rough shake, then dropped them to their feet, steadying them by fisting the collar of their soaked jacket. They wanted to question his statements, wanted to offer some sort of explanation, or lie to reason their presence in the chamber, but their throat was still burning and all they could do was cough and wheeze. Mustang's nostrils flared as he glared down at them, and then he began moving, hauling them back up the passage way out of the chamber. They passed Breda, Falman, and Fuery on their way out, all of whom gave them various looks of anger or disappointment as they were dragged by.
"Get down there and help recover the bodies, then seal off the entry way to this hell hole!" They responded to his order instantly, hurrying down to where Havoc and Hawkeye were below.
Much to their dismay, Mustang refused to look at, or speak to them as he marched them relentlessly across the courtyard of the temple and out to the street. A gathering of civilians and military personal stood about several vehicles, some marked with medical symbols. Their warden yanked them past the onlookers toward one of the last vehicles in the line, a small transport with a revving engine and a uniformed driver at the wheel. He gave a growling order to be driven to the hotel, and then fell silent, his burning gaze fixing on them from time to time as the car traveled down the roads. Envy did their best to avoid eye contact, the dread of what his rage would unleash on them stirring a tremor in their body that they couldn't contain. They were bleakly aware of several things that kept drumming ominously in their mind.
He's furious. I screwed up big time. What's he going to do to me? I'm soaked everywhere, and I lost my hat. That bitch tried to kill me! Mustang probably WILL kill me! Great, I almost drowned, and now I'm going to be barbequed. Why does everything I do always end up with my ass in trouble?
Their transport came to a stop outside their hotel, and their fear only grew as the colonel gripped their wrist in a vice-like hold, and pulled them from the vehicle. There was no denying the obvious spectacle they made as they were firmly escorted into the hotel and up to the room they were staying in with their warden. The shameful image of their short journey as they stumbled to keep up with his long stride, their soggy uniform slopping around their legs and their wet hair plastered down over their face, only served to further impress on them the severity of their situation.
Once they had reached the room, Mustang released his hold on their arm and locked the door. He paced back and forth, his arms folded over his chest as he seemed to be determining what he would do with his wayward prisoner. For their part, Envy attempted not to direct his attention to themselves any sooner than it would come, anxiously balling their fists at their sides and biting their tongue to keep silent.
The colonel halted mid-stride, then turned to face them, his right hand rubbing over his forehead, briefly massaging his temples before sliding slowly down his face. His dark eyes bored into the homunculus with resolute determination.
"Remove your wet clothes and shoes, then go and sit on your bed. I need to check your body for injuries." His voice was clinical, devoid of any emotion that would give away a hint to other intentions, and it deeply unnerved them how hard he was to read now that they were alone together. Warily, they began removing their jacket, shirt, and the rest of their uniform, watching the garments fizzle out into specs of alchemic ash as the connection between them and the energy that had created them was severed. Bereft of any barrier, they swallowed their anxiety, and took a seat on their mattress, watching with wide eyes as he approached them and leaned in close, his gaze sweeping their exposed form to examine the bruises that had blossomed on their pale flesh.
"You don't appear to have any serious injuries, lucky for you, considering the way we found you." His tone carried a strange note to it that they couldn't correctly place, though they distinctly heard the mingle of anger there once again. Mustang continued, his voice fluctuating between outrage, disappointment, and that other tone.
"You're going to have a lot of explaining to do, and do NOT mistake me, you're going to face a heavy penalty for what happened today. What were you thinking Envy? Escaping! I gave you a measure of trust and you threw it in my face! You ungrateful, selfish, conniving little-!"
"I was going to come back!" Blurting out in the middle of his furious tirade seemed the only option available to them. They brought their hands up, their palms facing him in a placating gesture as they swallowed thickly and tried not to let their voice waver. It was difficult to face his rage when they were so utterly exposed with his threatening presence looming over them. He stared at them silently, eyes narrowed and jaw tight.
Exhaling a long breath, the colonel took a step back and settled his hands on his hips, his gaze remaining stern, but less outraged.
"You were planning to come back?" He sounded incredulous.
"I was! I did sneak off, but I didn't try to escape, I knew you'd hunt me down and I was stuck like this anyway! I swear I was going to come back!" They bit into their lower lip as they searched his face for signs that he believed them.
I'm telling the truth damn it, come on Mustang!
Their warden stared at them with a sharp, calculating gaze as they squirmed on the bed uncomfortably. They hadn't pushed him this far, openly defying his commands so brazenly, and they were slightly terrified of what the repercussion would be, whether they wanted to acknowledge it or not. Slowly, Mustang reached out and took hold of their chin with his right hand.
"We're going to deal with the consequences of your actions first, then we will discuss what happened with that woman." The non-negotiable firmness in his voice made their throat feel dry, but they nodded slightly which satisfied him enough that he left them on the bed to rummage around in one of the dresser drawers.
A small pair of gray under shorts were tossed onto the mattress. They glanced at the garment a moment before looking back to where their warden was moving out a medium sized piece of luggage away from the baggage collection he had tucked against the wall. Mustang glanced over at them, frowning.
"Put those on, then I want you to hold your arms out in front of you."
Gnawing at their lower lip anxiously, they slid the shorts on, finding the waistband to be slightly larger than their current size, making the garment sit mostly on their hips. Under other circumstances they would have quipped at him about allowing them to simply form a perfectly fitted outfit onto their body, but they were certain this wasn't the time for such remarks. Mustang was quick and efficient, snapping the arm cuffs they had spent the night locked in back onto their arms as soon as they had offered them.
He reached into the bag he had brought over with him, removing a belt with harness buckles attached at the sides. Slipping the belt around their waist, he secured it and then turned them at the shoulders to face their bed.
"Lay down on your stomach."
It was difficult to climb onto the mattress with their arms locked together, but they managed to crawl into position after a moment and stretch out on top of the bed. Resting slightly on their elbows, they could twist about and peer back over their shoulder, watching as he secured the buckles of their belt to tethers fastened to the bed frame. The fastenings were pulled taut, and they discovered they had next to no room for moving to either side. Their brow furrowed as they tried to reason out what he was planning to do with them, but were startled when he bent their legs back and then locked them down against an unyielding, heavy surface. The straps tying their ankles and lower calves in place were fixed to a slanted object that left their legs bent at a comfortable level, and their feet raised in the air.
Mustang stepped around to their left side, and their eyes widened considerably as they observed a narrow, flexible rod held in his hands.
Shit! Is this what firmer measures meant?
"You and I have spoken about taking responsibility for your decisions. I want to know how much of that has really connected for you. So, I'm going to ask before we begin, what offences are you about to be punished for?" There was a note of genuine curiosity to his question, but his disapproval came out the strongest. They swallowed thickly, flexing their fingers against the pillow they had rested their arms on.
"Sneaking off?" It was a weak answer.
"And?"
They chanced a quick look at his face, finding his stern visage rather daunting given their position. Despite their best effort, they couldn't bring any other serious issues to mind that were as bad as their blatant escape. In a bid to placate him, they offered the only thing that they could think of.
"Making Fuery look incompetent?"
Mustang's frown deepened, and then he moved toward the end of the bed. They tensed, waiting, and the sound of a thin object swishing through the air, followed by a sharp pop of contact signified that he was done speaking with them. In shock, they realized that he had struck them across the center of the underside of their left foot. The pain was faint initially, but as the rod came down a second, third, fourth, and fifth time, the sting began to develop into a dull burn. Envy wet their lips as they grasped onto their pillow a bit tighter, frowning as he tapped the center of their foot with the end of the rod.
"The incompetent individual in this situation would be you, Envy. Not only did you damage what little trust you had earned before, but you've landed yourself in several stages of trouble, and you still have the nerve to make a snide remark about someone. Fuery carries no responsibility for what you did. You seized upon a moment when he was unable to watch you, pinned down by debris, and you used that as an opportunity to escape and pursue your own goals. It has been stressed numerous times that you are not a free individual. You are a prisoner of war, a captive of the military, under my watch. You do not have any right to do as you please, you have no rights other than the ones I deem fit for you to have, yet somehow you determined that it would be acceptable for you to flee and attend a personal errand, so long as you returned at a self-appointed convenient time." He sighed deeply, seeming to collect his composure.
"I should just burn you, reduce you back to that small, parasitic form you have, and put you back in a jar."
Envy's eyes went wide at the threat, a gasp escaping them as they tensed. Is he serious? He can't be planning to actually do that to me! I co-operated didn't I?
"I ought to do it, but I would prefer if this method is just as effective. We'll find out." His words proceeded a steady series of swishes and pops as the rod connected repeatedly with the center of their left sole. The pain blossomed into a throbbing heat, and as each strike connected with their skin, falling to land in approximately the same place as the one before, they began to flex their foot in growing duress. Their toes curled and spread, their legs jerked reflexively with each chastening blow. Wincing, they uttered a sharp hiss at a particularly biting strike.
Their mind reeled as they attempted to reconcile their situation. Why does this hurt so much? It's only the bottom of my foot! How long is he going to keep hitting me with that thing? It's burning!
It was becoming increasingly more difficult to keep from whimpering as the pain intensified, and to their dismay, Mustang brought the tip of the rod over to their right foot, lightly tapping the untouched skin as they reflexively curled their toes.
"I'm still unclear about your reason for going to the temple today, but that's something we can discuss later. What concerns me more, is that you created a situation that led to the loss of several lives. You may not think much of humans, but to arbitrarily lead them into a situation where they could be slaughtered is unacceptable." Their warden's stern words were punctuated by several snapping blows to their right foot.
Envy grunted in response, sucking in air through their teeth in a bid to not debase themselves by shouting out. Their attempt was potentially futile, they knew, but all the same they held on, determined to bear the pain as long as they could endure.
"I didn't tell them to follow me! I told them to stay out! It's not my fault the idiots died!" Their complaining growl was abruptly turned into a yelp as the rod cracked down across the center of both their feet at once.
"They saw you go through the door, they knew you were with the military since you had introduced yourself as an officer and paraded around the temple already, they believed you were chasing down a suspect in the murder of one of their own, and they were concerned for your safety!" Raising his voice in irritation, Mustang brought the rod down across their feet several times. "If you hadn't been there they would not have gone down into that cavern, they wouldn't have died. You should never have been there!"
Trying to hold out against the pain was a losing battle, and their last wall of stubborn defense crumbled with the continual build-up of heat and sting in their nerves. Every strike layered over the last, compounding the degree of pain radiating in their feet. Moisture pooled in the corners of their eyes as their breath hitched and their nails dug deeply into the pillow under their arms. Their head jerked upward at every blow, the tremble of their lower lip and the trickle of a hot a tear down their cheek a prelude to the chorus of shouts and cries that soon were spilling from their lips as he continued to punish them. Their feet were awash in pain, the sensation of each swipe of the rod digging in like a searing knife. Their muscles quivered as they jolted uselessly against their restraints, eventually dropping their head against their arms and sobbing without regard to their pride.
They weren't certain at what point he had stopped, but they did become aware of the fact that his hand was resting on the back of their head. The touch felt out of place, strangely comforting, and alarming all at once. He didn't speak, allowing them some time to take in several ragged breaths between their hitched sobs. He sighed heavily, his fingers curling in their damp hair briefly before he removed his hand.
"I've been lenient with you, Envy. Most of your disrespect I've ignored because that's part of who you are, and I know this is the hardest thing you've ever had to do in your long life. You agreed to accept the responsibility and the consequences of your decisions. Do you understand that your punishment is a direct consequence of your own actions?"
They sniffled loudly, unwilling to lift their head from the pillow as they considered his words. Gripping the material in their hands, they allowed a short, tearful, muffled reply of acknowledgement.
"I do."
Their warden tapped the rod against their right foot, earning a whimper and a shudder from them as their muscles tensed in anticipation of renewed chastisement.
"Are you going to try to escape again?"
Swish. Snap.
"NO!"
"Not even on a temporary sight-seeing trip?"
Swish. Snap.
"I won't!"
"That's good to know. Are you going to recklessly endanger the lives of others in the future?"
Swish. Snap. Snap.
The extra sting of the second blow brought a howl from their lips that was only marginally absorbed by their pillow.
"No! I won't!" They sobbed, trembling against the bed as their feet throbbed helplessly. "Mustang! Please, I can't take any more, stop!"
He paused, lightly dragging the tip of the rod over their sensitive soles.
"You can't? I thought homunculi were superior to humans? This isn't some unique punishment concocted for you alone. Humans have undergone this and other similar forms of corporal consequences for centuries, Envy. Are you unable to bear what an average human could endure?" His tone was slightly mocking, and a resentful barb of outrage reared up in their mind at the sound of it.
"I'd like to see you suffer this w-way and not want it to s-stop!" A series of poignant sniffles minimized their agitation. It was hard to do anything but whimper and cry by this point, their desire for their punishment to end far greater than that of displaying their annoyance at his teasing.
"There's one last thing I'm displeased with you about. You put yourself in a dangerous position, knowing you couldn't heal. You had no defense, no weapons, and you engaged an enemy. You are part of this team, like it or not, and that means you act as part of this unit when encountering an assailant. I would be furious with any of my subordinates if I discovered they had stupidly put their lives at risk. You will never again engage an enemy without my express command to do so. Is that clear?!"
His sharp reprimand was punctuated by one of the harshest strikes they had yet received across their feet. The blow resonated as a crack within the room, followed by a wail of agony and a renewed blubbering from the homunculus. Their weeping subsided after several minutes, and only then did they realize he had rested his hand against their back, providing a steadying pressure just above their waist. Their ears detected the sound of buckles unfastening, and the tension that had immobilized them during their punishment eased off as their restraints were removed.
To their shock, their warden guided them up onto their knees on the bed, staring into their tear-soaked face with an expression that was stern, but strangely sympathetic. They blinked, watching as he removed the uncomfortable cuffs from their arms before setting them back into the bag along with the other restraints. Envy took a moment to reach down and touch their aching feet, only to jerk their hand away when the pressure against the raised, welted flesh unleashed a flare of pain. They whined, catching his gaze and feeling their face flush as he shook his head at them.
"It's going to be painful for a while, I wouldn't try to rub my feet if I were you. Scoot over a bit, we're not finished yet." The colonel motioned for them to move with his hand, taking a seat beside them on the mattress as they anxiously shifted over a few inches and stared at him warily.
Why aren't we finished? Wasn't that enough? What else is he going to do? I've had enough!
They swallowed thickly, their lower lip wavering as they sniffled at the thought of what more he could possibly do. Instead of continuing to punish them however, he ran his hands through his hair and sighed lightly. Glancing at them from the corner of his eyes, he settled his arms across his chest and raised his eyebrows slightly.
"Do you have something to say?"
"My feet are on fire."
He smirked at them, letting out a huff of amusement.
"They aren't, though I imagine they feel like they are. I could always give them a little spark if you really think you need it." Another tease, but all the same they cringed at the thought.
"No! No, I'm fine like this."
"Good, then we should move forward, and that's going to require a discussion, and something you'll prefer over being punished."
"What's that?" They sniffled softly, adjusting to the ache in their feet as much as possible.
"Listening to a lecture from your warden." He smiled good humoredly, arching his brows for emphasis as they let out a heavy sigh.
"Lucky me."