Dear Sheska,

Before you came to visit me, I had already written all that I thought should be written and then I realized that I have been unfair to you and that so much more needed to be said. To begin with, while I did borrow "The Art of Confidence", I also took another book. It was a book on lock picking. It was wrong of me to take it without permission and in hindsight it was wrong to even think of putting such techniques to use. Both of these books can be found in my living room on the coffee table. Please take them back and forgive me.

This is not an opportunity to blame yourself again. I will not have it. I've lied to you Sheska; I've lied to a great many people. I am all too used to it but I want to be honest. Above all else I want someone to understand.

I lied about my mother. I did know her. I did hold her. I loved her. I'm sure of it. What child wouldn't love their mother? I never meant to harm her. I didn't, I swear I didn't. It seems that no matter where I go I can cause such pain and destruction and not see until it is too late. Death follows me because I cheated it.

When my mother gave birth to me, she almost died and I wasn't breathing when I came out. She wasn't meant to have children. Her body was like a death trap, not a place to foster a developing baby. The doctor called me a miracle and warned my parents never to have another child because I had weakened her. I knew her for the first two years of my life as well as any two year could know their mother.

Then it happened. Despite the doctor's warning my mother became pregnant again. Neither she nor what would have been my brother, made it out alive. I had killed them both.

Christine had tried to convince me that I hadn't. She told me that I needed to get away. I needed to have a goal for myself; something I wanted more than anything else. I had no goals. I had no dreams. What I had was a world of soldiers all around me and battlefield that was never far away. After Christine's death, I forged my father's signature and ran off to boot camp in the middle of the night and never looked back.

When I saw Riza for the very first time, I saw someone who possessed a quiet strength, a tactful beauty and poise and a mind as sharp as her shooting skills. It was in her that I found my dream. I can not say how I uncovered that something terrible was happening to her but when I knew, when I saw it, I could only think of the abuse that Christine had endured. I couldn't let her die too. I couldn't stand to lose anyone else.

My actions were illegal, immoral, and unbecoming of a soldier of Amestris.

Having received this letter, I am sure that you are more than aware that I intend to continue this trend of debauchery but please know that I do it with the very best of intentions.

I won't be coming back from this and as you are my only friend, I leave to you any and all assets upon my death.

I thank you for simply being someone for me to talk with. You need to stop putting yourself down all the time. Your skill with memory and love of books is something to be proud of. You deserve to be happy.

I hope that one day the doctors can find a cure for your mother's condition and you two can go back to the once tightly knitted bond that you once held.

I'm glad I knew you,

Sarah

When Sarah was done writing her last letter on this Earth, she tucked it underneath her pillow. She couldn't bear to look at it or worse yet, reread it. It marked her final destination and she didn't want to have to think about it anymore. The closer her impending doom was, the more anxious she became.

Night had fallen and with it, the darkness had come to envelop her cell. The moon was high in its fully circular stage. Sarah longed to see a glimpse of starlight but this was Central and no light could be found passed the luminescence of the streetlamps.

Sarah was still in Central's holding cells, rather than an actual prison. Apparently there had been a recent surge of over crowding and they had yet to find an open cell to place her in. This had worked well to Sarah's advantage. There was only one thing left to do; escape.

Sarah rolled back her sleeve. She felt over the bumpy and tarnished flesh, thinking back to Christine and wondering briefly if she would approve of what she was doing.

"I'm not an idiot. Tell me, who did this to you."

"Mustang did this to me. Mustang is responsible for all of it."

She clenched her teeth to stop herself from screaming as she dug her way deep into her own arm. She peeled off the scab that had formed and just kept at it. She was tugging and ripping herself apart until she could no longer take anymore of it and she wailed the throatiest, ear piercing cry that anyone has ever heard. All of her hate and bitterness swelled to the top and the blood pooled its way out of her arm and drizzled down onto her pants and onto the floor.

Two men who had been posted to watch over her and the other prisoners came running towards the sounds of her cries and were horrified to find her in such a state.

Frazzled by the sight of the blood, one man called to the other as he fiddled with the key trying to open her cell.

"Get the medic!" he screamed

The other went flying down the hall in the opposite direction.

The man entered Sarah's cell and rushed towards her, unsure as what to do. This was her chance and so she took it.

Sarah saw the gun in the man's holster and with dexterity, she swiped it right off of him and before he could tell that it was missing, it was already pointed at his face.

The guard lay writhing around in agony at Sarah's feet. Sarah still held onto his gun and kept it directed at him as she struggled to catch her breath. It hadn't been the most intelligible idea but it had worked thus far and she knew that it would be the quickest way out. The only problem was trying to escape completely without passing out first.

The guard, who she had shot in left hip, was trying to prevent his own blood from leaking through.

"Take off your jacket." She could hear her fellow inmates shouting and getting all riled up from the gunshot that had but moments ago gone off.

"You bitch!" He spat at her.

There were footsteps approaching. The other guard was returning with the medic.

She pointed the gun at his forehead, "Take off your jacket or I'll shoot you again."

There was no time for her to fully address what she had just said. This wasn't her. This was fierce anger and the deathly passion of insanity.

The man did as he was told. Sarah picked up the military jacket, tore off the sleeve and tied it tightly around her arm. This makeshift tourniquet would have to do for now. There was no time. She had to get out of there.

Sarah put on the rest of the torn jacket and held the gun close to her. She ran out of the cell and down the hallway. The inmates were cheering her on from every angle, the guard and the medic had spotted her but where soon distracted by the wounded guard in her cell. The shouts rose up around her from every point and the adrenaline kicked her legs into overdrive. Oh what bliss! What sheer erratic bliss!

When she ran down the stairs, trying to get out of the building there were shots coming at her from those who had once been her allies. She ducked and dodged them as best she could, running, and panicking, and never once daring to slow down or look back or even to think of where she was headed. She could feel her heart getting ready to burst out of her chest and she could picture the arteries growing and contacting and aching and the red liquid that filled her pushing its way out fight to break free from the flesh of her miserable form. Yes, she was getting closer. Yes, she was shooting back and hitting and missing and gasping for air. Before she knew it, she was passed the front gates. All of the chaos was left behind her. She herself had only been barely missed.

She kept going.

Maes Hughes was sleeping soundly in bed; unaware that anything was amiss. Beneath the covers he held tightly to Gracia, whose head rested perfectly upon his chest and moved up and down, slowly and steadily, as he breathed. Her light brown hair touched and scratched against his stubbly beard.

Then the phone rang.

Hughes' sensitive ears picked up on the sound and his hand moved almost as fast to pick up the receiver. Gracia nuzzled deeper into his chest; an unconscious move brought on by her desire to keep him safe and at home.

"Hello? This is Lieutenant Colonel Hughes." He was groggy but alert

As the officer on the other side of the line spoke, Hughes sat up in bed. This caused Gracia to awaken.

"I see. Get as many men as you can to survey the area, hopefully she hasn't gone too far. I'll be down there as soon as I can."

He hung up. Gracia released him from their bed.

"Maes? What's happening?"

"It seems that Riza was right to have Roy stay here with us…"

Hughes got dressed with speedy precision and marched his way into the living room, where he found Roy still asleep on the couch. His feet were dangling over the sides.

Hughes turned on the lights and shook Roy awake.

"Come on, Roy. We've got to go."

Roy squeezed his eyes shut tightly and yawned a bit, "Hughes? What are you doing?"

"Roy," Stated Hughes somberly, "Sarah Colt has escaped."

Roy stood at attention all at once, "When?"

"About thirty minutes ago."

"Why didn't you say anything earlier!" Roy went right over to the phone, prepared to call Riza to inform her of these new developments.

"I would have." Hughes stressed "But they didn't call me until just now. It seems that on her way out her injured many people. Naturally they were far too busy making sure that everyone else was alright."

Roy shook his head angrily and picked up the receiver.

It was then that they heard the approaching sound of little feet, hitting against the wood floors. A light yawn came from down the hall and into the living room stepped out Elicia. She had been awoken from her dreams.

She rubbed her eyes gingerly, "Daddy? Why are you dressed for work?

"Oh sweetie, you shouldn't be up at this hour." He really hated meant to wake her up too. Her sleep schedule was sure to be damaged by his recklessness.

"I have to go catch a bad person but I'll be back later. In the mean time, you need to go back to sleep."

At the same time Roy was speaking to Riza. Hughes could hear broken up bits of their conversation but his focus was elsewhere. "She's broken out. Hughes and I are heading over to the Central Holding facility. I need you to meet you there. Please, keep your guard up."

Elicia shook her head as Gracia came into the room.

"Uh-uh, I'm going to wait till you get back."

"Elicia," Gracia spoke, "Your daddy won't be back for a while and you need to get your sleep."

Roy had gone to get dressed and before Hughes knew it, he was ready to go. Hughes looked at his wife and daughter with great reluctance. It was after all his fault that Elicia had been awoken and if he had the time he would have read to her or sang to her, anything to make sure she would sleep well that night.

But there was no time and he would have to leave Gracia to handle it.

Sarah was still going; still running around with feverish anxiety. Her blood loss had seemed to slow and it cracked and crusted around the torn jacket sleeve. Her mouth had gone dry so time ago and she was now gasping for the freshness of the cool night air, which stung and iced the sweat falling from her brow and neck.

Sarah felt herself swaying to the indecipherable rhythm of her erratic heartbeat. She was too afraid to look behind her. Had she left a trail of blood behind, somewhere back in the distance? Did it truly matter?

She turned off into an alleyway and fled into the damp and dirty passage way. Coming to an abrupt halt, she allowed her knees to give way and before she could catch herself, she felt her whole body give way.

She lay there on the naked ground; her clammy hands felt around for a pulse, while her head spun and knocked about. She was alive…for now.

Oh as terrible as it was Sarah felt in that moment like she could curl up into a little ball and sleep and never wake up…or if she did wake up Christine would be there. She had, after all, first found her there in an alleyway very similar to this one.

Sarah laughed faintly, "Oh Christine, I promise I won't sleep here. I'm being silly and you know it. You were silly too once, that's why you're not here anymore."

She laughed a little bit louder as she pictured herself there with Christine, like it was all a perfectly ordinary conversation.

Sarah put her palms to the ground and began pushing herself upwards while bile came dangerously close to exiting her throat. Swallowing it all back in deeply, her body swayed as she came to her knees.

"I have to save her. I have to save Riza. You'd like her Christine, you really would."

Sarah dusted off her hands on her pant leg and adjusted her makeshift tourniquet. Clutching steadily to the wall of the alleyway, she began to pull herself up.

"She's everything I could never be. She's everything you could have been if you never met him."

She stood at last.

"That's why she has to make it out of this okay. She's the only one in all of this that deserves to."

Sarah knew that before she could do anything to help Riza, she'd have to make a stop off somewhere to stitch herself up. She looked down at her pants and finally noticed that there were holes in them. Pulling her pant legs up, she saw that she had several gashes on her legs, from were the bullets had grazed her.

"Christine? If you're there…somewhere...please be kind to me, if you can still be. I need a sign. I need somewhere to go. I need help."

Sarah came out of the darkness and stepped into the full view of a near by street lamp. She looked up and across the way. She saw a light on in one of the apartments and in that apartment window; she could make out the faintest etching of what appeared to be a small girl.

"What is a little girl doing up so late? Christine…do you think that maybe she's just as alone as I am?"

Thank you: Fmalover07, Chain-Of-Souls, writer's legend, Ink Tsubasa, Can'tTakeTheSky, YesMyLord666, Brook Uchiha-Spark Alchemist

EDIT: I just wanted to let you all know that I'm back on working on this. I thank you for your patience and your continued support.