Disclaimer: I own nothing. That goes for all my chapters in case I forgot the disclaimer once...
Hello! You know what I would like even more than a review? Fanart! I'm very envious of Henrika! She has fanart! Help me out guys! I can't draw for beans!
Oh yeah! From now on, if you see a number (1,2,3)you have to scroll down to the bottom to read the side note, okay? If you guys don't like that, just put it in your review and I'll change it back.
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Adelina Rose fluttered her eye lashes, a bright light streaming through to her eyes. She sat up with a start to find she was in a hospital bed, dressed in a hospital gown. Her bed was facing a large window, the source of the light.
Looking around, she saw two other beds in the room, both to her right. The one to her immediate right was empty and the far right one had a young woman sleeping peacefully in it.
The rest of the room was white; white walls, white floor, white sheets, white pillows, white curtains, white night stands. It gave her an eerie germaphobic feeling. Like the room was too sterile.
Carefully, Adelina Rose crept from her bed, wincing at the sharp pain in her stomach. She gazed down and was reminded of her wound from Sloth, the homunculus. And then she remembered that Sloth had taken Callum! She had finally gotten her brother back, and now he was gone! Callum had only been in her arms for a few minutes.
Clutching her stomach, Adelina Rose staggered out of the room, pushing the sterile white door open, and nearly collapsing. She hadn't expected the door to swing open that easily. Leaning on the wall, Adelina Rose managed to right herself, strainging her neck to look about her.
She was at a cross section in the hallway. The hall went forwards and left. Nobody passed her, which was just as well because a doctor would surely make her go back to bed. Biting her lip in aggitation, Adelina Rose chose to go forward, trying to remain stealthy. That was a very difficult task considering her injury and her limited knowledge of the building.
Seeing a shadow around the corner, Adelina Rose ducked behind a waste basket. A doctor in a green uniform passed. He was fiddling with a shiny stethoscope, tapping it and winding it around his fingers. He seemed nervous. Passing by Adelina Rose, he did not notice her. She sighed out of relief.
Checking to make sure the coast was clear, Adelina Rose lifted herself slowly and walked around the corner, taking a right. She could hear two people talking, heading her way. She sought for a hiding place, and seeing none, began to panic.
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Lieutenant Maria Ross rounded the corner jabbering to Denny Brosh. She was talking about some important document or another, stating and restating how unnecessary it was for the developement of the government. Brosh yawned.
Looking up, he saw an odd looking girl in a hospital gown gaping at them. She began glancing around, her gaze darting everywhere. She was about to turn and run the opposite direction, when Brosh called out, "Excuse me, miss? Can... can I help you?"
Ross looked up at the girl too, noticing her for the first time. She had been so absorbed about what she had been babbling about, she doubted that she would have noticed the girl standing there, looking like a deer caught in headlights.
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An evil idea crossed Adelina Rose's mind as she stood staring at the two officers in front of her. It was possibly her ticket out of the hospital so that she could search for Callum. But she was wounded and it would be difficult to pull off... Oh well. More of a challenge.
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Edward mumbled, semi-conscious. He couldn't understand why he was sleeping. He had just found his mother, and now he was unconscious. It didn't make sense. Edward's mind drifted to Al. His memory was a little bit foggy, but he could have sworn that there was something he had to do. Something urgent that had to do with his little brother. He shrugged it away. It was probably nothing. Right now, Edward was too comfortable, snuggling up in something soft, feeling warm inside.
Time passed without measurement. Edward's thoughts were fleeting and he could not recall many things, least of all the date. But he woke from his semi-conscious state to someone gently shaking his shoulders. His eyelids gradually opened, revealing dull golden eyes beneath. He felt tired, and the person who had awoken him had a hazy outline. A feminine voice cooed, "Good morning, sleepy-head."
Edward's eyes closed and he mumbled, "...Good morning..."
He became a little more aware and felt he was lying on something soft. A bed or couch, perhaps? He felt someone sit down next to him. He could vaguely tell they were gazing at him. The woman's voice purred again. "How are you feeling?"
The boy struggled to stay aware now. Something seemed very wrong, but he was too groggy to know. He opened his eyes and focused on the figure sitting by him. Light was opposite her, so he could only see her silhouette, which revealed how perfect her body was. He also could see long, straight hair, ending near her torso.
"Come on, baby," she said softly, with a mother's tone. "How are you feeling."
Edward shook his head and tried sitting up, only to fall back over with a dizzy spell. He groaned and managed to mutter, "Awful. But yet peaceful."
"What do you mean, hon? Please tell me."
The voice seemed innocent enough, comforting, and somehow, familiar. He saw no reason to not answer. "My body is relaxed," he started. "I feel very rested. But I have no will to move. I feel rested, but my energy is drained. I feel... I feel... lazy."
"You feel... Sloth?" the woman queried sinlessly.
That word was also familiar. Why wouldn't his damn mind work. Something was going down, Edward was sure. But he couldn't focus enough. He growled, "What's wrong with me? Am I drugged or something?"
"Shhh, baby. You'll wake your brother up. You must be quiet now," the woman quickly soothed.
"B-brother! Al? Where's Al!" Edward sat up with difficulty, using his hands to hold himself up. He gazed at the woman, her face still hidden by the oncoming light.
She laughed a little, not unkindly. "He's lying right beside you. I though you two would like to share a room. Oh, yes; I almost forgot. You will find something very different about him. Now lie back and rest."
Edward felt himself weighed down again. He tried to scream, but his voice was choked, as though his throat was filled with an alien substance. Before losing consciousness again, Ed flipped over to face away from the window. The warm, soft thing he had felt before was a body. The face wasn't towards him, but Edward could tell from behind. It was his brother... in the flesh...
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Pulling tight the smart black belt and adjusting buckle, the stolen uniform was complete. Adelina Rose had knocked out two officers and stolen one of there uniforms. She had gone for the male officer out first because he had a radio that could communicate for help, and then she had gone for the female officer, with a bit of difficulty. The female officer was ready for an attack by the time Adelina Rose was upon her and put up a bit of a fight. But it was only a matter of minutes before she too was on the ground unconscious with her partner.
Dragging the two dead weights to a safe spot had been more of a problem than the actual process of making them dead weights. There was really nowhere to hide. And Adelina Rose worried that one of the two would wake up at any moment and sound the alarm. In retrospect, her brilliant plan was quite flawed, but she still saw it as the only way.
Luckily, Adelina Rose had stumbled upon a broom closet, pulled the two bodies in, and closed the door just before a nurse had passed by.
The uniform had come from the female officer, Lieutenant Maria Ross, the name Adelina Rose picked up from the name tag. But the girl was decent enough to leave the officer in her blouse and her tight fitted pants, which were for keeping sweat from her outer uniform. All that Adelina Roe wanted was the jacket, the name tag, the pants, the belt. And the hat, which she had had to take from the male officer. Adelina Rose hadn't bothered with his name. It probably wasn't important.
Silently opening the door, celebrating the well-oiled hinges, Adelina Rose stepped back out into the hallway, shutting the door behind her with care. Then she clapped her hands and reconstructed the lock so that there was no way out or in. The door would have to be broken down. That would give her even more time to escape.
For some strange reason, wearing the uniform, even though it was stolen, made the girl feel proud. She straightened her back and held her head high, the hat nearly falling off. It was too large for her head, and probably looked lop-sided, but every other officer she had seen, besides Ross, had housed one. So without it, her disguise would have been incomplete.
Adelina Rose marched down the hall with long strides, the pain in her stomach lessening with each step. She felt a sense of accomplishment; such a petty feeling in such a time of peril. Suppressing her good feelings, Adelina Rose focused on the tasks at hand. First task: finding Callum and retrieving him. Second task: finding Edward and possibly retrieving or helping him. Third task: eliminate all threats to Callum, primarily the homunculus Sloth. After all her top priorities were completed to standard, she could relax again and enjoy life. But her heart would not allow it as long as Callum was out of her reach.
Callum was supposed to be dead, Adelina Rose realized that. And she had accepted it after also realizing that he had gotten to live a full life. But now that he was alive again, she had to protect him and ensure his safety until he passed away. And Adelina Rose assumed his death would be before hers taking in the fact that she was several thousand years old and had not died once yet.
No one had yet stopped the girl or asked for identification, which was a relief, because Adelina Rose had no more identification than the already apparent name tag clipped to the blue jacket's chest. After some time of walking, the hall was became more and more crowded, and soon she was in a mob of people, all heading different directions. I must be near the lobby.
The front desk and entrance/exit came into view and Adelina Rose sighed with relief. She had made it wandering through the halls of the military's hospital(1) unnoticed.
Adelina Rose played with her sleeves nervously as she exited the building. It wasn't over yet. Someone could still notice. It was unlikely, but-.
"Oh! Excuse me, I haven't seen you here before. Did you just get out of military training?" came a cheery male voice from behind her.
Thinking quickly, Adelina Rose tore the 'Lieutenant Maria Ross' name tag from her shirt and hid it in her clenched hand Hoping the man hadn't noticed, she turned and tried to smile and act natural. But she kept thinking, He knows! He knows! He knows!
The man who had confronted her was about her height. He had black hair that almost appeared green. On his nose sat a pair of glasses. Quickly scanning his name tag, Adelina Rose read 'Lieutenant Colonel Maes Hughes'.
"Are you okay?" he asked waving his hand in front of her face.
"F-fine," Adelina Rose quickly responded. It came out forced and sounded very awkward.
"Well, like I said before, I haven't seen you here before. My name is Maes Hughes." He reached to shake her hand.
Should I give my real name or not? "I'm Ensign Margot Tarren. I... I'm only staying here for a week. To inspect." Adelina Rose shook his hand.
"Normally Ensigns don't do inspection on the military head quarters, Miss Tarren. And can I ask you what hotel you're staying at?"
Adelina Rose stuttered. "... Lieutenant Hughes! I'm sure you could be court-marshaled for such insubordinance!"
"Not intending to be rude, Miss Tarren. I just don't believe you. Why don't you come with me and we'll confirm all of your information. This way."
Hughes started walking away from the lobby and Adelina Rose followed. She memorized the route they took through the halls so she could make a quick get-away.
Now that Adelina Rose was not on the look out, she could think back to the previous events. And some things puzzled her. Like:
How did the homunculus get into the room without using alchemy? Homunculi cannot use alchemy.
Where had the homunculus taken Callum and Edward? Any exit other than the one leading through the military would have required alchemy. So, the homunculus had to have passed through the bustling main of Central Military Head Quarters, carrying two unconscious boys, unnoticed.
And who was the man who knew her secret? Had I heard the men ocrrectly? Was it really the Fuehrer?
Carefully, Adelina Rose analyzed the questions, using all of her alchemy knowledge, common sense, and knowledge on the previous events to bring about a conclusion or a pre-conclusion.
How did the homunculus get into the room without using alchemy?
It had a human accomplice.
Where had the homunculus taken Callum and Edward?
They couldn't have gone far unnoticed, even with an accomplice to help. They must still be somewhere in Central HQ. Or they could have fleed depending on the amount of time I was out.
Who is the man who knows my secret?
Definitely the Fuehrer. But how he found it is another question.
The situation was more serious than previously thought. The fact that the homunculus needed human captives and could not use their own human accomplices meant the feat they wanted was too dangerous or two complicated.
In worry, Adelina Rose wrung her hands, wrapping them together s tightly that they turned white. Edward and Callum were in mortal danger, most likely. And Adelina Rose was just walking around the hospital, doing nothing to help.
Anger boiled in her, as she followed the man. She was going to get caught anyway? Why couldn't she just kill him and run? Because she was different now. She was in control. She would never kill again, unless she absolutely needed to.
Determining that knocking the man out was the best solution, she made a quick grab for the gun residing in its holster on his black belt. He turned to face her just as she prepared to strike. Making a quick move, he jumped away from the blow. The man smirked. "I don't think you're going to shoot me."
Adelina Rose had the gun pointed at the man's head, the safety off, and her hand on the trigger. It was very simple. Just a little tug and she could end this man's life. A tear streamed down her cheek as shee lowered the gun. "You're right. I'm not brave enough."
Hughes smiled evilly and began to change before her eyes, his skin peeling like old wall paper. The voice changed as he said, "You should have pulled it, chimera. Now you've lost your chance. A chance to kill a homunculus."
The man finished changing and now had the appearance of teenage boy, whose green hair sprouted wildly from his head, kept out of his face by a band around his forehead. He had a tight fitting black top on and had a skirt-like bottom. His smirk was just like Edward's. Only it felt sinister.
Adelina Rose dropped the gun and tried backing away, terrified. The homunculus(2) advanced. He bent over and gathered the gun. Getting really close to Adelina Roses's ear, he whispered, "I would love to kill you. But my orders are to take you alive."
The homunculus raised the weapon and brought it down, thinking it had won. Adelina Rose grinned. Just as I planned. And then the gun made contact.
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(1)she assumed it was the military hospital due to the fact that military personnel were walking about it
(2)she could tell from the orobourus tatoo
Well, let me know how thenumber system works! -
Again, fanart would be AWESOME! Reviews are AWESOME too, but fanart would be AWESOMER! Just know that if you make me fanart, you make my day. How about that. And if someone makes me fanart, I makesmileyface. Okay?
PLEASE R&R!