Russian Rebound Reversal
Chapter 5: Ivan's Awakening
"Excuse me, Dr. Hermann. But I think this patient's waking up."
Huh? What's going on? Where am I?
Russia wondered where he was as he drowsily fluttered his violet eyes open, his pupils having trouble adjusting to the bright light suspended above him. The first thing he saw as his eyes gradually opened was a man in a white lab coat meticulously examining a clipboard and a young woman in a nurse's outfit staring at him. He was also able to get a good glance outside the window in the room, which indicated it was already sometime in the late evening. How long had he been out?
"That's impossible," the man previously referred to as a doctor said candidly to the nurse, "He didn't even have a pul-"
Where did that strange figure go? Maybe if I take a look around...
The nation struggled in his attempt to force himself out of the bed, pushing the white bedsheets aside and rotating his lower body to the side.
"He's trying to get up!" the nurse's shrill voice shouted.
"What? Calm down, Nurse Miller," the doctor said, taking his eyes off of the clipboard. "Sir!" he yelled, suddenly noticing what his patient was trying to do, "You can't get out of bed yet. You still need time to heal," he told Russia as the nurse gently got a hold of him and put him back in a laying position down on the bed.
"Why not? I'm perfectly fi-"
A sudden jolt of pain struck the left side of the nation's chest, triggering his hands to go straight towards the source, clenching it tightly. It felt like a high pressure developing in the area around where his heart would have been, almost as if something was, growing. And whatever could have been growing in there was leaving a weak pounding within his chest. "Oww...My heart..." he groaned, "What happened to me?"
"We're not sure," the doctor answered while taking a short glance at the clipboard, his other hand running through his course hair, "According to the results of the tests we ran on you earlier, every function in your body is working just fine, except for your pulse or heartbeat, which we can't seem to detect. The only thing we know that happened to you is that a few hours ago you were found in the middle of Central Command after appearing out of a transmutation circle. "
A transmutation circle? Why does that sound familiar to me? Was it something that Truth person showed me?
"Central Command?" Russia asked curiously as he slightly tilted his head a few degrees to the side, resembling a confused puppy, "Would you mind telling what country I'm in?"
"You're in the country of Amestris. Are you not from here? What's your name, son?"
Hmm...Amestris. I've never met that country before. Maybe when I do and get better I could make it become one with Mother Russia, da?
"Uhh...My name's Ivan Braginsky," the nation answered with a small hint of hesitation in his voice, "I'm from Russia."
"Russia? I'm afraid I never heard of it before," the doctor said, flipping back a few pages on the clipboard and jotting down the information on his new patient, "Is it small or far away from here?"
"Well, I'm not sure how far away it is from this country, but I can assure you it is not small," Russia stated, clearly taken aback, his temper slowly boiling. The doctor flinched a bit at the nation's sudden rebuke.
How dare this man say that he never heard of me before? I'm the largest country in the world. Oww...Heart again...owww...
Now it was Ivan's turn to flinch, the pain reentering and the pressure within his chest rising to a higher extent.
Hmm..I need to watch it or my heart's going to give out, Russia thought as he calmed himself down and set the pain aside.
"Do you remember what happened to you before you came here?" the doctor asked, unaware of Ivan's inner turmoil.
"Well, I was in my house," Russia began simply, trying his best to tune out the pain, "And a glowing circle with these odd designs appeared beneath me. I'm not sure if it was a dream or not, but I was in this place that was completely white and a strange figure started talking to me. I was pulled into these huge stone doors and information was drained into my head. Then the figure took my heart away and I woke up here."
"Took your heart away?" the doctor echoed, placing an index finger on his chin, "Then it must have just been a dream. It's too illogical not to be. You would be dead if it literally ripped your heart right out of yo-"
The sound of a bed creaking interrupted the doctor, immediately followed by a deep yet feminine-sounding groan coming from another side of the room divided by a curtain. From under the curtain Russia saw two feet making a sudden appearance.
"Oh, Mrs. Curtis," the nurse said while walking to the other side, "You're still injured. You shouldn't be out of bed either."
"I'm sorry, but would it be alright if I spoke with Ivan in private for a while?" Ivan heard a woman's voice ask from the other half of the hospital room, "I think I know what happened to him."
"You do?" the surprised nurse replied. A slender hand appeared from behind the curtain and pulled it over slightly so only the nurse's head was revealed. Then to the doctor she asked, "Dr. Hermann? Is it alright with you if Mrs. Curtis speaks with Mr. Braginsky in private?"
"Eh, I don't see why not. It won't do any harm," he answered,, tucking the clipboard under his arm. That being said, the curtain was drawn back further and a fair-skinned woman with long black hair worn in microbraid dreadlocks emerged from behind. Russia also noticed a strange tattoo located on the left side of her collarbone, resembling a snake-entangled cross with wings and a crown. "We'll leave you two alone for a bit. Just give us a call if you need anything, okay?"
"Don't worry about me," the woman said assuredly, "I'll be fine, but I'll be sure to call you over if anything goes wrong with Ivan."
And with that the doctor and nurse each gave a quick nod and headed out of the room, leaving Russia alone with Mrs. Curtis.
"You think you know what happened to me?" Ivan asked her trying to get right to the point as soon as she seated herself down in a stool next to his bed.
"Yes, I do. Wait, I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself. My name's Izumi Curtis. I believe I heard you say your name was Ivan, right?"
"Uh-huh. But you know what I was talking to the doctor about? Everything about that gate and the white figure?"
"Yes. But Ivan, I need to ask you something important first. Do you have any close friends or family members that, you know, passed on? That you really cared about?" she asked in a concerned, almost motherly tone.
"No, but what does that have to do with what I saw?"
"So you didn't commit human transmutation to bring someone back to life? You just appeared at the Gate for no reason?"
"Well, yeah, I was just opening up my fridge and it all just, well, happened. But that figure, it did mention something about me getting caught up in an alchemic rebound that I got involved in somehow."
But just how did I get involved? Maybe Britain? He uses magic, which seems close enough to alchemy. Who else could it be?
"And when you saw that figure, did it call itself the Truth?"
"It did. But how would you know?" Russia asked curiously, "Did you ever meet it yourself?"
A look of regret washed over Izumi's face. "Yes, I did. But I deserved it, unlike you," she told him, placing a hand and looking down onto an area around her stomach, "Years ago, I tried to resurrect my baby, and lost parts of my inner organs as a result."
"Your organs?" Russia repeated, "I'm sorry. That must have been hard to go through."
"But I overheard you telling that doctor that you lost your heart as your toll for seeing the Truth," Izumi reminded him, sympathy showing in her voice, "And you didn't do anything. I knew the Truth was cruel before but this is just ridiculous. Forcing knowledge onto innocent people that didn't even ask for it and taking things away from them just for the hell of it."
"Da, I know," Russia answered, "But because the whole thing was an accident, it made a deal with me. It let me choose which body part it would take from me as the toll, and I chose my heart since it had been giving me problems before."
My heart...I hope nothing too bad happened in Moscow...
"Wait, but why would you just give away your heart like that?" Izumi asked, "Even if it haf some problems, it's one of the most vital organs in your body, next to your brain. If I had the choice, I would have given away an arm or a leg, since you don't need those to survive."
"I know, but when I had my heart, it would pop out of me sometimes and it got annoying after a while," the nation recalled, "People always acted all weird and freaked out when it happened so I thought giving it away would be a good idea."
Izumi just stared blankly at Russia for a moment as she tried to wrap her mind around what he just told her.
"Heyy, Mrs. Curtis," Ivan said placing his hand onto her shoulder and nudging her lightly, "Did I say something wrong?"
"I-Ivan? Are you, a normal human?" she asked finally after coming out of her trance, taking Russia's hand off with her own. The touch of her skin felt surprisingly soft, yet firm at the same time. "Because living without a heart? That just doesn't make any sense."
Vot der'mo,* I shouldn't have brought that up so carelessly. Now I have no choice but to tell her I'm a country. Well, I guess it's a fair trade since she told me about her committing human transmutation, which I think would be illegal here, but still.
"I'm not exactly sure about how I should put this..." Russia muttered just loud enough for Izumi to hear, rubbing a sweaty hand behind his bare bandaged neck. Wait a second, his bare neck?
"Oh no...my scarf!" Russia stammered, suddenly self conscious of anyone seeing the bandages on his neck, "My sister gave that to me. Where'd it go?"
"Your scarf? I'm pretty sure it would be in the drawer of that stand next to you, along with that coat you were wearing," Izumi answered, "The hospital staff took them off of you so they could run those tests on you. That bulky winter wear you had on would have gotten in the way."
Russia hastily scrambled his arms to the drawer and pulled out his beloved scarf, sighing in relief and holding it to his face for a moment. He immeditaly wrapped it around his neck.
"Wait, we were talking about me telling you my secret, da? I will, but you have to promise not to tell anyone."
"My lips are sealed," Izumi said reassuringly, "I'm sure it can't be anything that bad."
Russia sighed. "I'm just going to be blunt," he stated, his violet eyes coming into dead contact with her blackish blue, "I'm the embodiment of a nation."
"What?" Izumi responded sounding confused, "You can't be serious."
"But I am. Remember that country I was talking about with the doctor? I am my country, Russia. Ivan Braginsky is just my human name I was given," he explained, "My heart is supposed to represent my capital city, Moscow. Hopefully nothing too bad happened there by me giving it as a toll. If there's any damage there I'm pretty sure after it's all fixed up my heart will fully grow back and I'll be good as new."
"Wait. If by any chance you are the embodiment of that country Russia, does that mean there are other nation personifications, too?"
"Ugu*, for every nation, really," Russia answered, "There's my allies America, China, Britain, France..."
"Hm, none of those places ring a bell to me."
"What? You heard of none of them?" Russia asked with wide eyes, "I mean, America's a world superpower. Everyone knows about him, and all the other countries too. Especially with a world war going on."
"A war? There aren't any wars going on in the world. None that I know of," Izumi said, "And I'm pretty sure everyone in Amestris would be aware of it if it was as large-scale as a world war."
The people in this country don't know about the world war? That's impossible, unless I'm in another world. Could that be true?
"That Gate," Russia suddenly thought aloud, the disturbing scene he'd been through earlier that day flashing through his mind, "Do you think there could be another side to it? Maybe I'm from a different world and the Gate took me here."
"That's a possibility," Izumi pondered, "Different countries. Different world affairs. Different world. It's the only explanation that would make sense to me." She paused in thought for a second. "And that circle Edward drew that you came here from. That, plus another use of alchemy that somehow involved you, must have caused the rebound that brought you here."
Eduard? Could Estonia be here too? That would make things interesting~ Although it may probably just be a coincidence. I'll ask anyway.
"Edward? Who's he?"
"Oh, he's just my old apprentice," Izumi answered, "It's a long story to explain his whole childhood, but to say the least, his mother passed away when he and his younger brother Alphonse were little. They went through alchemy training with me and those naive boys committed human transmutation to try to bring her back, although I warned them to never attempt such a thing. As a result of it Ed lost his left leg as the toll and Al lost his entire body. Ed gave up his right arm to bind Al's soul into a suit of armor."
Oh well, so it's not the same Eduard after all...
But Izumi wasn't finished. "Then the damn brat goes against my teachings and decided to become a dog of the military!" she added while wearing a pissed off expression, an eerie dark aura surrounding her as she pounded her fists into each other.
"That boy joined the military?" Russia asked, ignoring that Izumi just stole the scary purple aura that originally belonged to him, "Why? How old was he then?"
"Becoming a dog of the military, or as they call it, a state alchemist, means you can get unlimited access to research that would be restricted to normal civilians. He wanted to use the research to find a method for him and his brother to get their original bodies back." Izumi explained, "That stupid boy was twelve years old when he became a state alchemist. On the downside, becoming one of the military's dogs also means you have to swear complete loyalty to the state and follow every single order you're given, whether you like it or not, right or wrong. And if war broke out, to become a human weapon."
"Oh," Russia sighed, a bit indifferent towards that last part, "So, where's this Edward kid now?"
Once again a saddened look showed on Izumi's face, but only for a split second. Within the next she returned to her normally stern expression.
"It's really complicated. To make a long story short there was this homunculus named Father that tried to obtain the power of God for himself and destroy the country," she started, not confusing Ivan too much. He already had a gradual understanding of alchemic terms since he had seen the Truth. "You see, Edward had this artificial limb to replace his right arm called automail, which was completely destroyed while we were all fighting him. His other arm was impaled and he was rendered helpless. His brother Alphonse gave up his own soul to restore Ed's original right arm to continue fighting. After we were finally able to defeat Father, Ed transmuted himself to get his brother back, but you showed up instead. Wherever Ed ended up is anyone's guess."
"So Ed used alchemy? It sounds familiar. I think the Truth showed it to me when I was in the Gate."
"Really?" Izumi asked, "Do you remember anything about it?"
"Maybe some of the basics, I gue-" A fit of coughing followed Ivan's unfinished words. He looked onto the hand he coughed into and saw a few drops of blood.
Nyet... My...heart... It...can't be...giving out...already...
Blackness clouded the nation's conscience. He tried his hardest to keep a good grasp on reality, slipping in and out of consciousness...
I thought it...just grew...back...
"Oh no. Ivan! Are you alright?"
Russia felt Izumi shaking him back and forth repeatedly in a vain attempt to wake him up, but the darkness eventually took over, and the nation had no choice but to give in.
FMAxAPH 4EVA! (Sorry this doesn't fit the mood)
"Doctor! Ivan's passed out! You have to get in here!" Izumi hollered as she ran towards the door.
"Passed out? Be right there!" she heard the doctor's voice reply from the hospital hallway, his rushed footsteps drawing closer towards the room.
"How did this happen?" the doctor asked as he hurriedly walked inside.
"I'm not sure. He was in the middle of talking and he started coughing blood into his hand and passed out. It must be something wrong with his heart," she said in a tone a mother would use in worry for her child.
"Calm down, Izumi. You can't afford to worry yourself over this young man. You're not in the best shape to begin with," he said trying to assuage the woman's concern, which wasn't working, "Just try to get some rest for now while you can."
"Oh, Mrs. Curtis~!" Izumi heard a cheery sing-song voice call from the hallway as the doctor was about to gesture her towards her bed. The nurse from earlier, owner of said voice, made her way in the room, "Your husband just called the office. He said he'll be here to visit you soo-" she stopped when she noticed Ivan, "Oh no...What happened to Mr. Braginsky?"
"Bad timing, Nurse Miller," the doctor sighed exasperatedly, pinching the bridge of his nose and turning his head in the nurse's direction, "Ivan just passed out, and we need to operate on his heart, stat."
"Alright doctor. I'll get the operating room ready for you," the nurse said immediately, switching to a more taking-her-job-seriously disposition, "And Mrs. Curtis. Your husband should be here in a few minutes," she added on a lighter note as she spun on her heel and hurriedly walked out of the room.
In a few minutes she and another nurse returned with a stretcher. They lifted Ivan off of his bed and quickly strapped him in. Izumi could still see him breathing shakily, but just barely. The light from the ceiling lamp intensified the paling of his clammy skin. He already looked pale before; he probably lived in an area with a cold climate. But now, he was paler than any person alive ought to be, and the thought that this young man could possibly die made Izumi wonder.
This man, this young man she had just met, lost his heart for no apparent reason. How is that justified? How could that possibly follow the law of equivalent exchange? It didn't, and it gave the woman a feeling of betrayal within herself. It went against everything she believed and put her faith in. And now, this concept she kept for so long engraved in her heart, mind, and soul, just seemed to laugh and slap her in the face.
Man, I'm such a softie, aren't I? Feeling pity for every sad soul I meet. If anything happens to him, does that mean his entire country will suffer? If that's the case I just hope he was lying about being a nation.
While Izumi was pondering her thoughts, the hospital staff left and pushed Ivan out of the room, taking him to surgery.
"Izumi!" a familiar gruff voice caught her from surprise, "Are you alright?" She was still facing Ivan's bed when suddenly her husband Sig came up from behind and locked her in a warm embrace in his gargantuan arms.
"Oh, I'm fine dear," she said with a false smile, "My roommate was just taken into surgery."
"You don't look that fine to me. What's wrong?" Sig asked, seeing past his wife's façade, "Was he that silver-haired young man I saw in the hallway? He didn't look too good."
Her smile dropped. "Yes, that was him. His name's Ivan. He seemed fine until he started spitting up blood. There were problems going on with his heart, and they had to operate on him right away."
"Oh, that's too ba-"
"But there was something else about him," Izumi interrupted, "He saw it. The Truth."
"What? He committed human transmutation?"\
"No, he didn't." She stopped to think for a moment, "Wait, did anyone tell you about Ed? What he did after we defeated Father?"
"Yeah. A military officer told me. What's he got to do with this?"
"It's just a theory," Izumi started, "But I think Ed's transmutation and another that occurred at the same time caused a rebound. One that made Ivan show up here. He told me he's from another world, located on the other side of the Gate. When he had to pass through, he came across the Truth, and he lost his heart," she finished, leaving out any parts that would lead her husband to thinking he wasn't human.
"His heart? I wonder how he could have survived that. Are you sure it wasn't just a part of his heart?"
"He didn't go into details," she lied. She felt terrible, doing this to her husband. But she promised not to reveal Ivan's secret, and she wasn't going to break it.
"Do you know when they're going to let you out of here?" Sig asked.
Good. He changed the subject.
"The doctor said I'd be out in a couple days," she answered, laying back down on her bed, her husband sitting beside her. Then a thought occurred to her, "Do you mind us taking in a guest for awhile?"
"A guest?"
"Like I said earlier Ivan's from the other side of the Gate and has no place to stay. I thought he could stay with us until we figure out a way to send him back. I'll have to ask him first. But he really is a pleasant young man."
"Well, I guess if he has no other place to stay, sure. I'm fine with that."
"Thanks, hun," Izumi told her husband, leaning in to give him a kiss on the cheek.
If Ivan makes it through the surgery, she thought, I'm not sure if there's a God out there, but if there is, just make sure Ed and Ivan are okay. I don't come to you for help that often, so please let something good happen in my life. Just this once.
Translations:
*Vot der'mo (Вот дерьмо) - Oh crap
*Ugu (угу) - Russian equivalent of "uh-huh" or "yeah."
(If any of these are wrong please correct me.)
A/N: Sorry for the late update! Writer's block and stupid parents trying to force me outside for the summer everyday are the worst. xP
Anywho, I give my utmost thanks to all of my readers, especially the ones who favorited, alerted, and most of all for the lovely reviews! Thank you xXAxelRoxasXionxX, Rose Thourn, coolj0401, BlizzardNight, Habato, SpartanCommander, Box of Tomato Fairy, RowanQuill, somniorum et nives mortis, Manga-Otaku121344, and Alisiya. and. co for the reviews! You have no idea how much they mean to me. Keep up the awesome reviews everyone! ^-^