Author's Note: Here it finally is everyone! I sincerely apologize for leaving you guys hanging for longer than usual, but I ended up getting stuck on how I wanted to write this chapter. I am pleased with the end result, and I hope you all enjoy it!
Hughes looked down; horrified by the two familiar faces of his best friend and of Edward's brother. They both lay still on the ground, and were soaked in blood. He couldn't be sure if only one or both of them had been wounded that severely to produce the pool of blood that they now laid in. His mind whirled at the all too real image that was sprawled out before his eyes, and he almost couldn't bring his shock-stricken body to move and react to the situation. But with effort; Hughes snapped out of his fearful state and moved his stiff legs closer to the two men on the ground, leaned over, and carefully lifted Alphonse from atop of Roy. He made his way to the car and placed Al in the passenger seat, then went back for his friend. He picked Mustang up gingerly, and started back towards the vehicle as quickly as he dared. And after carefully lying him down in the back seat, wrapping a makeshift bandage around his bleeding chest, he hopped into the driver's seat and sped down the road directly towards the hospital.
As he drove well past the speed limit, Hughes's mind raced. How on earth did Roy manage to get himself shot this time? He usually was fairly quick on his feet, and would have definitely noticed if a gun was pointing at him. He was probably doing something reckless; like trying to protect Ed or Al in an impossible situation, and obviously failed miserably. Even though he wanted to be furious at his brave-hearted idiot of a friend for putting himself in such danger, he couldn't bring himself to be upset about that right now; not when Roy was barely clinging onto his life. He could hear the shallow and labored breathing from the dark-haired man from the back; knowing that he probably only had minutes left to live before he bled to death, or before the bullet simply took it's toll and killed him first. He then quickly glanced at Alphonse, visually assessing his health. He didn't seem to be on the brink of death like Roy did, he only appeared to be in a deep sleep. His breathing was slow, but normal, and he looked weak, most likely from a lack of food. Al would probably recover fairly fast, but Roy on the other hand was another case altogether.
Finally reaching the hospital, Hughes skidded to a halt and parked clumsily next to the curb. Practically leaping out if the car, he rushed into the building yelling for help. Aid was swiftly at his side, and he led them back out to the car where the injured men lay unconscious. Within seconds, both men were on stretchers, and being rushed into the building. As Hughes followed, Roy and Al were being taken in opposite directions; Roy to the emergency room, while Al was being pushed to a regular hospital room to recover. The green-eyed man was torn; he didn't know who to follow. Both meant a lot to him, and he didn't want to abandon either one. Pinching the bridge of his nose, whilst lifting his glasses from his face, he tried to decide who to accompany. After a brief moment of uncertainty, he decided it best to keep an eye on Roy at this time, seeing how his condition was severely worse than Al's.
Hughes ran down the hall, catching up with Roy and the doctors who pushed the stretcher that he laid on down the white hall. Finally reaching the operating room, they ushered Mustang's motionless body inside. When Hughes tried to follow, he was ordered by the nurse to wait outside; he grunted his reluctant understanding an sat down on a bench a short distance away from the room where his friend was fighting for his life. Resting his head in his hands, he could hear the muffled and urgent tones of the people inside the operating room as they worked rapidly to save Roy's life.
As the minutes dragged on like hours, Hughes thought it best to check on Alphonse; knowing all too well that he wouldn't know the extent of Roy's injuries, or even if he was going to make it, anytime soon. It was best to put his worries on the back-burner for now; because worrying about Mustang wasn't going to help him get better any sooner. Finalizing his decision, the man with the glasses stood up and headed back down the hall towards the room where Al was placed. Upon reaching the room, he entered it quietly; not wanting to disturb his rest. He walked over to the bed, and sat down on the chair that was placed conveniently beside it. He looked more peaceful now; as opposed to not even a half hour earlier when Hughes had first found him. He simply sat and examined the young man with intense eyes. He didn't appear to be psychically abused at all, just deprived of the necessities like food and water. Hughes wasn't sure what to think of this, considering that Al had been kidnapped barely a week ago, and that whoever took him hadn't even left a single scratch on him. It was all too odd. But then again, maybe it wasn't. Maybe they really, whoever "they" were, didn't have any intention of actually harming Alphonse; they only took him to get to Ed. But if they had done just that, then they knew enough about the Elrics to know that they would sacrifice themselves for one another in a heartbeat if it was to save the other. They knew that this would have been the easiest way to capture Edward; taking Al instead of trying to kidnap the blonde in the first place. Hughes grimaced at the thought of these sick minded people taking advantage of the boys in this way.
While sitting deep in thought, he didn't even notice the nurse come in the room. It took him more than a moment to realize her presence, and he removed himself from his thoughts and turned his attention to the nurse.
"How is he doing?" he asked.
She stepped quietly to the other side of Al's bed; checking his stats before responding, "he's doing fine, for a young man who has been deprived of food and water for six days that is." she answered.
He nodded, "Hm. Just as I thought." he said as he glanced back at Al before he spoke again, "and what about Colonel Mustang? Do you have any word on his condition yet?" he inquired quietly.
"I haven't gotten the official word yet, but from what I had seen it looks like he'll be okay. But I cannot be certain, so please Lieutenant-Colonel do not take my word for it. I would not want to give you false hope. His wound was very severe."
"Understood. Thank you."
"You're welcome." she said as she left the room; leaving Hughes alone with Al again.
He sat there, for what seemed like ages before he realized he hadn't contacted anyone about what had happened. He promptly stood up and headed out of the room to find a telephone. He got lucky when he didn't have to search far for the phone, and he picked it up; dialing to Central Command.
"Hello?" he heard Hawkeye's familiar voice say.
"Riza, hey it's me."
"Hello Hughes, did you find Colonel Mustang yet?"
He let out a deep sigh before answering the lieutenant's query, "yes, I found him, and I found Alphonse too."
She paused, "if you found them, then why haven't you brought them back here?"
"Because, Roy was badly wounded, and he is still in surgery. And as for Al, he is asleep right now. He just needs a good meal and some rest."
"I'm glad to hear Alphonse is safe, but what happened to the colonel? Is he going to be okay?" she asked; the faintest hint of worry in her usually formal voice.
"No one has really talked to me about him yet, except a nurse who couldn't give me any concrete details. But I think he's going to make it. He got shot in the chest. And from the looks of it, it barely missed his heart,." he stopped, "very similar to my gun-shot wound that I received from that homunculus Envy."
"I see. Well we will be down to the hospital to accompany you shortly."
"Thank you, I'll see you soon then."
"Yes sir."
With that, Hughes hung up the phone and leaned against the wall. He stayed there, for what seemed like an hour, but was really about ten minutes. And in that time, he was soon bombarded by all of his friends who were in Roy's command. They all bore concerned expressions as they greeted Hughes and then headed to see Alphonse. Despite all their fears for their commanding officer, they were all relieved to see Alphonse safe and sound; even though it now meant that they now had lost Edward. It was a bittersweet reunion; and everyone wished things were under better circumstances.
As Hughes and the rest of the command crowded into Al's room, a doctor finally appeared. His green eyes darted over to the older man as he made his way through the group and greeted him.
"Hello, I'm Lieutenant-Colonel Maes Hughes, I'm the one who brought Colonel Mustang in."
"And you brought him in just in time Lieutenant-Colonel, any later and it might have been too late."
"So he is going to be okay?" Hughes asked earnestly.
"Yes, he should be. But he is still in critical condition. He's seems to be a tough one though, so I expect a full recovery."
"Do you have an estimation of how long it will be until he is able to return to work and such?"
"I do not, it is really up to him; or, I suppose it would be better to say his body. Some people would heal in weeks, while others might take months. It simply depends on him."
"When can we see him?"
The doctor paused, looking at his watch, "I would say it would be okay to visit him in an hour or so. The anhesthia should have mostly worn off by then. So you all may be able to speak with him and see how he got shot in the first place." he finished with a serious tone.
"Thank you doctor...?"
"Daniels."
"Thank you doctor Daniels. We are all forever in your debt for saving our commanding officer." Hughes thanked him sincerely.
"No debt, it's my job." he reassured them before walking away.
"Well I'm sure happy that the colonel is gonna be okay!" Havoc blurted out.
A simultaneous shooshing erupted from the room, warning Havoc to quiet down because Alphonse was still sleeping soundly.
"Sorry!" he said meekly.
Hughes smirked, Havoc was such a goof. And as the smirk began to fade, he looked to Hawkeye and saw that she was already looking at him.
"Hughes, have you called Miss Rockbell yet?"
Alarm flashed throughout his body at the sound of Winry's name; how could he have forgotten to call her of all people?
"No, I'm afraid I haven't. Let me to do that right now though-"
"Allow me." was all she said before walking out of the room to the telephone.
Maes was actually relieved that he didn't have to call Winry and Pinako; he was exhausted. He knew there was no reason that he should be, but he was. The adrenaline that had been pumping through his body earlier was long gone, and all he was left with was this heavy feeling of tiredness. He was about to slump into a chair when Riza returned looking as serious as ever.
"I called Miss Rockbell and Pinako and informed them of what has happened in the past few hours. They will be heading here immediately and will be accompanied by Major Armstrong since he is still currently with them."
"Thanks lieutenant."
She nodded and took a seat of her own, "Hughes?"
"Hm?"
"Maybe you should call your wife and let her know what is going on, just in case we're here late. I know how she can worry about you if you aren't home on time. Unless of course you have already called her."
"No, I haven't. Thanks for reminding me. I don't know what I would do without you or the guys right now. I'm so scatter-brained at the moment; I can't seem to remember to do anything important right now. The only thing I did right after bringing these two here was call you."
"Well it's a good thing you did sir." she gave a brief smile.
"Yes, it sure is." he said as he started to get up from his chair, "I'm going to go call my wife now." he smiled.
"Very good."
After having been departed from the room for several minutes, Hughes was surprised to see everyone crowded around Al's bed when he returned. As he got closer, he could see that the younger Elric was now awake; he looked drowsy, but nevertheless, he was still up.
"Give him some space everyone!" Hughes ordered.
Breda, Havoc, Falman, and Fuery all immediately took several steps back as Maes made his way closer to Al's bed.
"Hey there Al, how are you feeling?"
"Tired. And hungry." he said weakly.
"We'll fix that up soon." Hughes promised as he looked towards Hawkeye; she understood and went to fetch a nurse.
"Where's Ed?" Al asked warily.
Hughes gritted his teeth before answering, debating whether to tell him the truth now or later. Deciding it was best not to lie to the young man, he told him the truth, "he exchanged himself for you Al." he said quietly.
"What? No! Why would he do that?" he questioned worriedly.
"It's Ed, Al. You know he would do anything for you; you're his little brother."
"He was supposed to come save me...not just surrender." he whispered.
"I'm sorry Al, but we'll get him back. I promise. There is no need to worry. Besides, we all know how tough Ed is, he'll be fine. He knew what he was doing." he reassured him.
All Al could do was nod as he looked up to see the nurse bring in a plate of food. Hughes watched as Alphonse eyed it hungrily; the nurse was explaining to him that he should take it slow when he ate, considering he hadn't eaten in six days. His stomach could have shrunk a little, and if he ate too fast or too much, it could damage it. Alphonse nodded and grabbed the plate very eagerly considering his weak condition, and he began to eat as slowly as he could force himself to. Hughes smiled at the sight, relieved that Al was going to be alright.
Glancing at the clock he realized that they would probably be able to finally check up on Roy, and he informed everyone that he and Lieutenant Hawkeye were going to visit Mustang first; everyone else had to stay with Al and make sure he was eating his food at the proper pace and not eating too much.
When he was sure they all acknowledged the order, Hughes stepped out with Hawkeye and they walked step in step down to where Roy was being kept. As they got closer to the room, Maes braced himself for any shocking image of his friend. The Colonel was usually a very serious-looking man who was strong. Walking into the room, he saw a weak Roy Mustang; a man who needed weeks of recovery before he would be able to function properly on his own. The only upside of his new appearance was that he was awake; barely, but he was conscious. Hearing a low groan of pain escape the dark-haired man's mouth, he slowly walked over and sat beside the bed, with Hawkeye looming over him.
"How are ya feeling there Roy?" Hughes asked sincerely of his friend.
He grunted, "I've been better."
"Yeah, you have." Mars chuckled, "But I'm glad to see you awake now. You had me really worried earlier."
"Sorry." was all he mumbled in response.
"But look at it this way, now we have matching wounds! Our friendship is forever marked permanently on our bodies!" he joked with the bed-ridden man.
A soft chuckle was heard before Roy spoke again, "I suppose we do don't we?" his relieving expression soon disappeared and was replaced with a more serious than normal one and he asked, "do you know if Fullmetal is alright?"
Hughes could feel Riza's eyes on him as he hesitated to answer, knowing how his friend would react, "No. I didn't see him when I found you and Al. Whoever the people were, they were long gone. But you were lucky I decided it best to follow you, otherwise you would have died if I had showed up any later than I had." he answered with a morbid tone.
He watched as Roy's eyes darkened with rage; "I should have been able to save him."
"Roy, you got shot, any normal man wouldn't have been able to save Ed either."
"But I'm not a normal man am I?" he growled as loudly as he could, "I'm the flame alchemist...I shouldn't have even got shot in the first place. If I had just burned those evil men a few seconds sooner, none of this would have happened...and I could have saved both Elrics." he finished regretfully as if remembering the recent memory like it was happening right before his eyes.
"It wasn't your fault Roy. Don't worry, like we kept promising Ed that we would get Al back, I'm going to promise you that we'll get Edward back too. It's either that or he'll break his way out of wherever they took him." Hughes smirked; trying to reassure him that everything would work itself out.
He nodded, "Al is okay then? Does he have any injuries? He was passed out when I got to him."
"Yeah he's in better condition than you are in. He just wasn't getting any food, so he'll be good as new in a few days I'd think."
"That's good...did he say anything about the people who took him? Like why they want Ed? Or who it is that wants him?"
"No, not yet. But he just woke up a little bit ago, and he's eating. I thought I would let him regain a little strength before I questioned him."
"Good thinking Hughes." he murmured as he winced in pain.
"Did you want me to get a nurse sir?" Riza finally spoke.
"No, it's okay Lieutenant." he tried to give a reassuring smile but failed.
"Very well. Would you want to see the others? I can go fetch them and stay with Alphonse."
"Sure, why not. Guess they should know they still have to put up with me right?" he said, this time managing a smirk.
"I'll send them down soon." was her response as she saluted him, leaving the room.
"You should get some sleep Roy." Hughes suggested.
"I'll be fine Hughes. How long did the doctor say I had to be here anyway?"
"He couldn't say for sure. Could be weeks, could be months. Depends on how fast your body heals."
"Wonderful." he said sarcastically.
Maes went quiet for a moment, then spoke again; quietly, "so Roy, how did trying to stop Ed from giving himself over to those men go?"
He watched as Roy's body stiffened, and then as he grimaced from the pain that it caused in his chest, "it obviously didn't go well Hughes. I couldn't stop him from leaving, even when I begged him to stay..." he finished at nearly a whisper.
"Did you tell him how you feel about him?" he asked carefully.
Receiving a glare from the dark-haired man before he spoke again, Maes gave him a sympathetic look; "In a sense...yes. I told Edward that I cared for him in more than an officer/subordinate way. But that still didn't keep him safe with me."
"I see that look, don't you dare regret telling Ed how you really feel. Besides, you can't take it back now. And I guarantee you admitting that to him will just give him more motivation to make it back home safe; for Al and you." he paused, and smirked, his eyes glinting mischievously, "did he tell you he cares about you too at least?"
It took a moment for him to reply, but when he did, his voice nearly cracked from a seeming sorrow, "yes...and that's why I tried to rescue him before they could take him away. Instead I ended up getting shot like an idiot."
"I'm glad you both finally admitted your feelings for one another." Maes smiled.
And just when Roy was about to respond, both men were interrupted when Mustang's command barged in.
"Hey colonel how ya feeling?" Breda asked.
"Yeah Mustang, how are you doing? I'm sure glad you're alright." Havoc cut in.
"I'm fine guys, just a bit of pain where the bullet hit me." Roy reassured them.
Hughes watched as the men let out a relieved sigh that they seemed to have been keeping in since they had arrived here at the hospital. Now, it was time to wait. Time to wait for Winry to arrive. Time to wait for Roy and Alphonse to recover, and time to wait and see if Ed would need rescuing or not.
Author's note: I hope you enjoyed the longer than normal chapter! Stay tuned for the next update! And as always, thank you so much for reading!