Very sorry for the lateness of my fics and my two week absence. I am back and I have a lot of work to do, I plan to be back on track within a week or less.
As well, this is the last main chapter. The next one is an epilogue that takes place several years after this chapter.
Disclaimer: No I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or character's within. Warning: This chapter is depressing, more then the rest were. Be Warned of this.
A flash of light blinded him and he closed his eyes in response. When he opened them again he was sitting in what looked like a study, or some kind of office. Books and test tubes lined the tables and shelfs. He looked farther around the room into the eyes of a young boy. He looked even further then this, down to the ground and noticed and array of some sort. Painted white and a bucket in the middle, looking as if filled with grains and chemicals. Unwillingly he tilted his head to the boy before clapping his hands down to the white, intricate, circle on the floor.
A bright yellow stream of light beamed up from the circle. A mix of colors blending into it and creating a masterpiece. He saw it fade to a dark purple and black. He looked down at his leg and saw it fading away with it. He looked around the room until reaching his hand out to the fading boy.
"Brother!" And now he knew the young boy was a sibling a brother. A name called to him and he called back.
"Al!"
He blinked once and stood in front of a dark gate. Surrounded by an almost blinding yellow light. The doors of the gate creaked open to reveal an infinite amount of faces. Though you couldn't tell who they were. Just black figures with eyes and a large grin caressing their expression.
A pair of hands reached out to him and grabbed at his leg, tearing it from him. Not a very comfortable feeling for one with such a small age and body.
Flash
He turned to the crowd of white clothed men. A red liquid filled the glass surrounding the walls, and several large pipes circled in the room. The room-despite the glowing fluid- was dark and eerie. Placing a strange glow around the humans-and several non-humans. He eyed the room further, seeing the armor he'd seen in pictures. Though now, it looked deformed-a gap in the thick suit. It almost looked like bite marks, but he couldn't place anything that would, that could bite through thick metal.
Then he remembered, as if it were common knowledge. The humonculi were capable-they being almost capable of anything. He looked around the room once more, seeing one of them looking at him playfully.
"C'mon of Chibi-san. You can do it. It's for your precious little brother." The-dark green haired- sin remarked.
Ed found himself moving over to a black circle. He should have known not to go near it in the first place.
Black...marking death. In his mind he found it asking. 'Death of me ...or them?'
He went to place his hands down on the circle-after weakly clapping them- yet hesitated before caressing his fingers to the floor. He looked over at Al apologetically.
"I'm sorry Al."
Flash
Ed opened his eyes to himself running after the same sin as before. A small boy managed to grab the sins foot from behind and Ed tackled him during the small opening. He punched at the sin, still in control of a second force. It had to be past memories, yet hidden away in a dream. Uncontrollable, confusing, yet recognizable. He laid atop the sin, punching him in the face furiously. Faces he couldn't place flashed under him. He knew they must be important to him in his life, though he only found a full mental grasp when Roy's face lit up.
He felt himself speak, but he couldn't place the words. Other names slipped through his mind, yet he couldn't place them all together.
A face flashed under him and he knew it. The face of his father, of himself. He didn't understand why he knew it, but he did.
A bright flash hit him again and he looked back the already remembered gate. He looked at it this time, though now he knew what it wanted and his body automatically driven gave that price.
Flash
Now he sat there, staring into the blue eyes of someone familiar, younger...taller then he war. Memories windled as he looked around the home where he sat. A nice table with some coffee in mugs. Still steaming from the brown liquid. It seemed friendly enough to the human eye. He bgan to sort through the incoming memories, remembering the faces he'd already seen scattered throughout the dream.
His mother, Hughes, Scar, Marcoh, Sheska, Fuery, Winry, Falman, Breda, all the people he'd met on his long journey's. Then the memories of the ones he'd met after the amnesia had taken over. Roy, Riza, Havoc and his daughter.
"You okay, Edward?" The tall man asked from across the table. His name...
"Yes Alfons, just thinking."
He didn't know the mans name had escaped his lips, without thought even. Memories continued to flow through in waves, all scrambled and miss placed throughout his mind. Everything was clearing though, but it still felt as if he was watching it all from the sidelines.
Flash
He stood on a circled chapped hallway lining a round large room. He looked up the dimly lit ceiling, seeing a dragon snake circled around the top circle walkway. Blood dripping from a still moving body in the dragon's mouth. He found himself yelling up to the man in the dragon's mouth, though he couldn't think as to why or what his words had meant. "Forget the portal, I don't need to go back!"
"Give Al, ...my regards."
Flash
He saw the bomb explode. He didn't need to tell who was in there or what happened to them. He had just left Falman there. He knew the man was dead by the explosion. He should be worrying more as to the soldiers also in that infirmary tent. Even as a leader of this mission he focused on the loss of one of Roy's team. When in reality it was wrong of him. He was a General now after all.
Ed felt a single tear fall down his cheek. All he could give in this war, all he was aloud to give. The time to mourn was not now. Even if his mind was still scrambling, he felt he had more control over his memories. Acting as if in a surreal moment between dream and reality.
The soldiers in the tent also included several young state alchemists. Among them several Ishbalins who were in need of medical help. They had killed their own men. Something even years of military service could not be answered.
And now Scar, a powerful leader in the fight back, was lost to an explosion, probably meant for Edward himself.
Flash
Ed saw Fuery running. He didn't know why the always nervous man of Roy's team was running out but Ed watched with his eyes. A large man, shooting at Havoc as the blond was turned away. Fuery had seen the man aiming and ran into the guns directed path. After the shot echoed off the destroyed buildings, Havoc looked back at the shooter. Him, among several others ran over to the man and surrounded him. Havoc approached him separately as the gun was taken away from the shooter.
A tortured grin on his face as he shot the man-point blank, between the eyes. No last thoughts, no hesitant breaths. Just bang and the guy was dead. He walked over slowly to Fuery, knowing he wouldn't live much longer. He saw him in pain, but his bod was going to bleed out. No time to save the savior.
Ed watched the scene, feeling completely helpless. His mind still organizing what was going on. He could see Havoc speaking to Fuery, trying to blink back an onslought of tears that were about to fall.
"Two men lost in minutes, both apart of my team. Were going to lose this war aren't we?"
Flash
He looked around the – as his torturer had turned around- and could only see darkness. The walls were made out of solid concrete. He had learned that the hard way. The wall-also covered with blood- supported the backs of the men alive and the dead bodies of those who had fallen quickly.
He looked down to his bare body, feeling disgusted in himself. The man had him feel dirty and violated. Letting any Ishballan with a need of revenge do whatever they wanted to humiliate him.
He drifted from that area of his mind and saw that blood was dripping down the lower part of his chest. The whole of a gun shot. Blood and tissue so thick inside it, until you could no longer see through it. Though it didn't hurt, nothing did anymore. All he could feel was a tingling numbness. His feet dangling as he was held by ropes from the ceiling.
After seeing moving his feet a failed plan, he bit down on his tongue. Trying to drown in his own blood. He knew death was the easy way out, but at least it was an out. The man turned around from another victim-though the other wasn't nearly as bad as Ed- and saw Edward's painful attempt to kill himself. He placed a small ball of fabric in his mouth, removing his option of biting down.
"I love the protest, but please don't try to kill yourself. At least not until Roy finally gets here. Then you can do whatever you want." The inhumane man said to him as he pulled out a lighter and cigarette from a jacket pocket.
'Roy...Alice.' He needed to see them, if he was going to die. At least one more smile from them.
He felt heat on his skin and came back to the reality of the dream. All that awaited him here was a burning in his thigh. The bastard marking him. He breathed through the pain-only enough to wonder what markings the beast of a person was laying into his skin.
'I.M. here'
Two messages in one. I.M. For Ishbal Massacre, while it also stated that the man, the beast, would always be 'here' holding him back from moving on.
Ed-Still in his dream state mentally- yelled out in pain; emotional and physical. "Help! Please!" Roy woke up under him immediately. Roy picked up the phone behind him dialing Riza's number-Ed still yelling out in pain from the nightmares and memories.
"Riza! I need you help here to watch Alice while I bring Ed back to the hospital." Roy tried to keep a semi-calm, though it washed away quickly. Both hung up the phone and Roy turned back to Ed still yelling, sobbing out for help that no one could give.
"C'mon Ed, wake up." After seeing that it had no affect , his words unable to reach him. He removed himself from under the blond. He turned back and placed the blond in his arms.
He stood next to the door, holding Edward. Riza ran through the door and before she realized, Roy had al;ready ran through the door.
Roy ran to the still running car, opening the driver car door. He placed Ed on the passenger seat. He was no longer crying out, but when he was placed in the car, he moved as far from Roy as possible. He held himself as he cried in that position. Loud, ear ranching sobs.
A light rain came to a pour outside, making Roy hasten his drive on the almost empty streets. They arrived at the hospital and Roy quickly stopped the car and removed himself and Ed. He ran into the building, Ed still sobbing violently.
A tall, brunette and stressed looking nurse motioned for him to put Ed on an empty bench. The nurse grabbed a small needle from behind the nurse station's counter, before attempting to inject it into Ed's flesh arm. A metal fist was thrown in her direction for trying to touch him. She dodged it quickly and called another nurse to help her.
The other rushed over and held Ed down as they injected him. The nurses released him, expecting the medicine to have calmed him down. Ed flinched and recoiled back into the same pisition as he was in the car. Sobbing violently, the only noise filling the room.
"You!" The tall nurse yelled to Roy. "He's still reading badly. We can't give him another injection or it'll kill him."
"Do it." Roy responded through held back tears.
The nurse looked at him skeptically. "Do you know what you say-"
"Do it!." She took another needle from the location she grabbed the first one from and with the other nurses help injected him once more. His violent sobs came to only low mumbles and slow whispers.
The nurses left them to sit at the bench, knowing he didn't have to much longer, before the injection took it's full effect.
"Roy?..." It sounded chocked and Roy stiffened slightly as he reacherd over the nurses station while the other nurses weren't attending it.
He moved back over to Ed, hugging the small blond to his chest. "I'm here Edward." Roy grasped the needle, injecting more then a lethal dose into his own arm. He knew that it would either kill him, or put him in an un-wake able coma.
"It's too much Roy...I can't live with all this." Roy began to run his finger soothingly through Ed's hair.
"I know. Thats's why it's over. You'll be able to leave now." Roy said and tears slowly began to drip down his cheek.
"Thanks Roy."
"That's my line. Thank you, Ed, for everything. Thanks to you the rain has finally stopped." Right outside, the rain that hadn't stopped since the start of the war, finally faded to morning light.
Most depressing thing ever...sorry if it's so sad, but I warned people. Hope you liked it and all that's left is a short epilogue. This is probably one of the only stories I've ever liked. All my other writings to me fail in comparison.
Thanks reviewers and readers.
Oh, points go to whoever can tell me the origin's of the last line Roy says.