I don't own Fullmetal Alchemist or any other already copyrighted material I may have missed.

And just a heads up, but I'm chronically editing and reediting old material.

YAAA, I GOT MY FIRST REVIEWWWS!

"Meli teh Dark One" and "gingersilvertonge," THANK YOU!

The first five words of the summary are meant to scare off people who spook easy. If the rubber-guts Kurt Russell horror movie, "The Thing", makes your skin crawl than this might not be the fic for you. You won't be considered weak if you don't read this. Rated M with good reason. Culturing maggots on rat corpses as a crude method of cleaning the rotted flesh out of infected wounds is a decent example. Try to grasp how it feels to undergo surgery strapped to a table without the comfort of sedatives or painkillers, the sensation of having someone playing with your organs. Or how about what runs through your head watching lunch pour out of a hole in your stomach while screaming as digestive acids eat at the exposed nerves. I read this paragraph to a friend over the phone and she complained that she just ate dinner. Sorry Annie.

Some of the above-mentioned scenarios actually happen in even greater detail later on.

This fic contains intense segments of graphic imagery, small child molestation and rape, nauseating gore, torture, mutilation, language, screaming, tears, extremes of emotion in the raw, and puppy kicking. There's also a lot of teary fluff and the occasional poor attempt at humor; mainly bitch jokes and cute stuff. Some of it is pretty dark. Many good people die to the suffering of others and I can assure you that I will earn every word of my profile.

THIS IS NOT A YAOI! In the words of the great and powerful Yoda, that I do not own the copy write for, "You must unlearrrn what you have learned." And that goes for all the sick-minded readers, you know who you are!

There is a strongly romantic cannon-couple in later chapters, but absolutely nothing of a romantic nature between the men or between the women in this fic, ardent yes, but not in a romantic sense; all relationships are strictly hetero. There is a love that forms between some of them, but it is a love of family and deep abiding respect and of devotion toward the well being of friends be they male or female. Some come to understand and even cherish this closeness. I'm not homophobic, far from it. Many of my friends are gay, lesbian, or bi-sexual. Just felt like keeping it clean.

Hate, fear, shame, grief… our control, or lack there of, over these help to define us, determining who we are and become, but so do love, trust, and happiness.

Everyone seems to have forgotten that things were very different back then. I've tried to make things accurate to the times. The only real exceptions are curse words, certain fields of medicine, psychology, and color photography and any other bits of misplaced technology found throughout the show. It was a time when gay meant happiness, people said "with family" instead of pregnant, and toothpaste was uncommon and expensive, so they brushed with "toothpowder."

IMPORTANT

LEGEND:

I get really creative with the English language, so hopefully this will help to break it down. Some of this is the slap-in-the-face obvious, but I'll list it anyway for good measure. I'm not calling anyone stupid, just keeping it professional so bare with me, there's some pretty important stuff in hear.

"Quotes," – talking aloud, weather it is to him/herself or one or more other persons.

Italics alone – one's thoughts.

Italics without quotes in the middle of a sentence – emphasis

Can shift mid-sentence "from talking" to thinking "to talking again."

The same applies to underlining and "underlining with quotes", sometimes using a mishmash of all four.

Underlining – speaking with gestures, eyes, body language, and the like, such as shaking a fist to show anger or rolling your eyes in frustration. Some of it is self-explanatory, but later on there's a character that mostly talks this way and giving it words paints a better picture of what's being said.

"Underlining with quotes," – the same as just underlining, except the quotes indicate mouthing silent words. Sometimes when someone tries to speak it comes out far too quiet to pick up.

All of the above can be combined with the following levels of volume.

Level 1: "Italics with quotes," – talking in a hushed or low, harsh voice, such as whispering, or reprimanding someone in a low key to emphasize anger.

Level 2: Normally structured sentences – normal voice

Level 3: All First Letters Capitalized – yelling and hollering, like calling for someone, but not screaming

Level 4: ALL LETTERS CAPITALIZED – screaming

("Any of the 4 levels of volume,") – a sentence enclosed in () indicates a distant or muffled voice, like listening through a closed door or yelling from a distance.

Looks easy enough to me, but then again I'm the writer so I could be wrong, just felt like saying that to cover my ass.

I know that was an awful lot of rambling, but most of it is meant to either warn or inform you. Some of this will be posted at the start of every chapter. There are a lot of you that skip strait to the story, I know because I'm one of them, and this is the best way to make sure that I got most of you before it's too late. There'll be a line after it for those that already read it.

REREAD THE PREFACE AND THE BEGINNING OF THIS CHAPTER, I MADE SMALL BUT IMPORTANT CHANGES!
Broken Stride

By … Lady of the Northern Mountains

I.e. K. L. Nelson

Ch.1 Dogs of War

He was only just shy five feet tall, and yet he had been carrying nearly two hundred pounds of dead weight across his shoulders for a good four miles. Open lacerations ran down the back and front of his left shoulder and upper arm, a bite from an earlier battle.

The cold, damp air was heavy and the ice-skimmed puddles proved it was below freezing. His clothes had quickly become laden with cold sweat so he long since cast off everything above the belt save for his gloves and cuff; he was actually warmer bare-chest.

One thing he was grateful for was the electrical lighting. Thankfully the cave-in hadn't cut the wires, or he would have never made it this far without tripping on the mine's rail ties. They also gave him a path to follow he hoped would lead him to the surface.

Anything still dry was either butchered for bandages or used to keep Roy warm, he wasn't the one soaked through. He knew he could have transmuted them dry, but their coats were more than enough and he didn't want to carry any more than they needed. Even so Roy was stripped to his belt as well. Being shirtless had its advantages; it kept them both warmer, and it let Edward feel Roy's breathing and heartbeat. Their coats were merely thrown over the man like a blanket. Edward had no use for them; they would have been sodden in no time. It was warmer that way and it helped keep them dry, the farther from Edward the better.

Despite his wounds, Roy's legs hung over his left shoulder so more of the weight was transferred to the prosthetic leg. The pain was almost more than he could stand, but he needed to save the real one for the long trek ahead. The man was so much larger than Edward that his arms and legs fell straight down and his feet were close to dragging, the young alchemist could feel them brush the rail ties from time to time. His right shoulder was wrapped to cushion the metal and keep him from banging his head. An added bonus was that Roy wouldn't have to suffer from having his groin crushed down on an automail shoulder for hours on end, a thought that made Edward cringe noticeably every time it came to mind. He had to keep moving or they would freeze to death, and he was cold and off balance as it was. If he couldn't get Roy out of there, neither of them would make it out alive; weak and hurt as he was, Roy was now the only thing that kept him going.

Roughly two hours after he first set out Edward's legs finally gave way and he fell forward. He was pinned. For a moment all he could see were bursts of color, even when he closed his eyes; the fracture in his upper arm had spread just enough to catch a nerve. The weight across his back was constricting his chest, making breathing nearly impossible. There was no way he could use alchemy, his arms were still locked around Roy's arm and thigh and his hands were well above the ground. Feebly scraping his boots across the stone floor he tried desperately to drag his feet up so he could roll Roy off his back, but he was too weak. If he couldn't get out from under him he would either suffocate or die of exposure; which ever came first. It was hard enough just trying to lift his head much less get back on his feet, with or without Roy.

Not caring whether or not he lived, something he hadn't done in weeks, Edward began praying to a God neither of them believed in for the strength to save him. Equivalent Exchange would never let him live it down if the man died. He knew it was selfish, dying trying to save someone who just sacrificed his life to save him, but his pride wouldn't allow it. In his mind, Roy saved his life and he wanted to return the favor… Even if it takes my last breath.

Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, and Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist, were walking side by side about twenty-feet ahead their unit so they could talk. Both were ranking State Alchemists, a publicly hated position in the military that often earned them the title "dog of the military"; or "State Dogs", officers that metaphorically wore a leash around their necks.

Passing through the small mining town of Saultoff on his way back to Central after delivering a message, his first mission in nearly a month, Edward heard some suspicious rumors. The town was within a few miles of Central's northern border so he decided to get off at that train stop and take a walk. Being so close to Central they didn't even have a main hospital. There had been a number of chimera sightings in the tunnels since a small cave-in and he felt that they might have escaped from a secret laboratory performing illegal experimentations. Over a dozen coal miners claimed to have caught glimpses of massive, strangely shaped animals and a sudden drop in the rat population immediately following the cave-in.

"Fullmetal, are you sure about this?" They had to keep their voices to a minimum, the abandoned mine amplified the slightest pin drop.

"Not in the least, but it's worth a shot." Turning his attention to his commanding officer he saw that some convincing was in order. "My information is second hand, so there's no way I can be positive." Edward took note of a side tunnel without tracks as they walked on without pause.

"So you ordered a ten man unit on a whim?"

"Yes."

There was a long silence.

"Fullmetal, if this is wrong I'm taking you down with me." His voice held a tinge of anger.

"If this is wrong I'll cuff myself."

Having picked up on the word, Roy couldn't help catching a glimpse of the leather cuff on Edward's left wrist. A mild depression settled heavily on his heart, it brought back memories he'd have rather left unstirred. Edward hadn't notice, and Roy preferred it that way. No sense reminding him.

Entering a clearing they glanced about, but didn't stop; strangely enough there was electric lighting at the mouth of another tunnel opposite them. Edward grew hopeful.

"Colonel, tell me this, why would there be running equipment in a supposedly abandoned coal mine?"

Roy's matter-of-fact words seemed almost meant to insult his subordinate's intelligence without his realizing it. Since the incident he had been trying to avoid putting any emotional stress on the young man.

"This doesn't prove a thing. It was abandoned because they found a richer source two miles farther north of town than this one and couldn't afford to keep it running. Both mines are angled towards each other at roughly the same depth, so there is bound to be a conjunction somewhere along the tracks. They are probably using it as a quicker way back."

Hearing something behind them they spun as two chimeras emerged from the side tunnel, splitting them from the group.

They were massive white dogs with long fur, long muscular tails, black markings, and rams horns. Though they were both four-feet at the shoulder one was slightly larger and had a black muzzle, back, and sides. The other had slightly longer fur, a smaller frame, and a black chest and head with a white muzzle and a blaze up the middle of its face.

They looked like mates, but chimeras where sterile, and neither male nor female at that. Alchemists had yet to produce chimeras of either sex. They looked intelligent and completely stable, acting more like something born than created, something with only one set of memories. If it weren't for the voracity that lied in those amber eyes they would have been something truly beautiful to behold.

Everything happened almost too fast to register between first sight and the attack. The smaller of the two chimeras went for Edward and Roy while the other turned its ravenous eyes on the group. Their unit was still in the tunnel.

There wasn't enough time to use alchemy. The chimera pounced on Edward before he could transmute a blade and pressed its crushing weight into his ribs and waist, pinning him on his right side. Sparks flew as his automail shoulder was ground through his jackets and into the stone floor. He could hear gunfire and screams as the other one tore through the unit. Clamping its jaws over his entire left shoulder and upper arm it pulled back, trying to rip a chunk of meat off its helpless prey; Edward screamed.

Roy snapped his fingers only to find that his gloves were damp from all the humidity, so he tore up an old wooden rail tie instead and shattered it over the creature's skull between its horns without hitting Edward. It yelped and scrambled back sideways, half dragging Edward as he kicked and struggled desperately to free himself from its jaws. Every time he hit or clawed at the creature's face it bit down and wrenched his shoulder till he stopped. He could feel its teeth gripping bone. It also seemed to do it whenever he tried to press his hands together, like it knew what he was capable of. What's more it had attacked the smaller, and normally weaker, of the two prey items, leaving itself open to attack from what it should have perceived to be a greater threat.

Somewhere in the back of his mind Edward was sorting it all out and came to the conclusion that either it was all coincidence or it knew that wet gloves prevented Roy from using his alchemy, making 'him' the greater threat. The only way it would have known about his gloves was if it recognized the type of transmutation circle and knew that all the humidity would have dampened them. It must have picked up on the watch chains to know Edward was an alchemist as well. Damn thing saw me transmute the path through that barricade earlier.

Slowly it turned to glare at Roy with Edward still in its jaws, dragging his heels and lightly gasping with exhaustion and the pain this caused him. Its eyes were cast in an eerie glow with the distant lights. Baring its teeth around a mouthful of shoulder it crouched low to the ground with raised hackles, rattling its throat like a starving predator defending its kill. Roy was slowly backing off, trying not to provoke it further, when Edward suddenly cried out in pain and quit struggling as the chimera sunk its teeth even deeper. He could feel his arm fracturing down its length. It was trying to dispatch its prey. Infuriated, Roy grabbed a heavy, jagged rock and threw it at the beast's head.

"LET HIM GO!" It hit and cut open the sore spot where he broke the board earlier. In pain and frustration, the creature whipped its head and threw the blonde crashing into him. They toppled head over heals and Edward let out a strangled cry as his wounded shoulder was mashed between Roy's back and some sharp rocks. Immediately rolling off him they scrambled to their feet.

He was expecting an incoherent teenager suffering from shock. Instead he beheld one wide-eyed, standing strong, Edward Elric, pissed, panting, and ready to kill something.

The beast charged and they bolted to the side, just narrowly evading its teeth. It smashed head first into the wall with such force that its feet left the ground, its horns doing nothing to cushion the blow. Wasting no time, Edward transmuted the back plate of his forearm into a blade while the Colonel armed himself with another board. Headstrong as usual, the teen rushed the chimera without a second thought.

"No Ed Stop!" Roy dropped the board and tried to catch up before it was too late, from that angle he could see exactly what was about to happen. Edward rushed over and aimed for its chest, but the creature turned last second. As it rounded to strike him with its tail, Roy floored him from behind, deliberately taking the blow in his place. It brushed Edward's hair as he went down and hit Roy below his arms outstretched, smashing him in the sternum.

Dazed, seeing stars, and wondering what the 'hell' just happened, Edward looked up and saw his friend crash back through a corroded pipe and half-slide half-tumble to a halt twenty feet away, a cloud of dust settling around him; he didn't move. "COLONEL!"

Catching a glimpse of motion Edward dove into a summersault up onto his left hand, spun a 180, and landed squatting on his feet and left hand with the blade up and away as he once more dodged the chimera. His wounded shoulder almost gave way under the pressure and he grit his teeth and cut loose another scream. Using the force and angle with which he landed Edward dug his hand and the toes of his boots into the ground to gain momentum, sprinting back at the beast before it could turn.

"THIS ONE'S FOR MUSTANG!" Shifting like it had earlier only gave Edward a larger target and he settled for between its lowest ribs, catching his wrist in its rib cage. It scrambled back sideways and toppled over onto its right side, gasping and dragging Edward with it. Blood sprayed everywhere as he pressed both his boots hard into its side and violently ripped back. He was expecting more resistance and stumbled, crashing to the floor on his left forearm and jarring his shoulder. This time he couldn't have screamed even if he wanted to as the sensation had momentarily stunned him and it took a second to adjust. Not bothering to make sure it was dead he transmuted his arm back in mid stride and scrambled for Roy cradling his arm, just pressing his hands to use alchemy stung. Despite it all Edward didn't blame the poor beast, it was obvious from the get go that they had attacked out of hunger. Someone drove it to this, that's who he blamed.

When Edward finally got to the man he tried to wake him, but it was no use; Roy was comatose and bleeding down the left side of his head. A bullet hit the wall a few feet off and he turned. The larger chimera, hearing its friend's cries, was headed straight for them. Edward knew that there wasn't enough time to counter it, so he did the only thing he could to protect Roy; he threw himself on the man to shield him from the attack. With the chimera only ten feet away part of the mine came crashing down, killing the larger one and trapping some of their unit as a large, flat-sided boulder crushed the smaller chimera's lower back legs.

Looking over his shoulder Edward saw the thick wall of unstable debris that now lay between them and anyone left alive. Weakly he staggered to his feet so he could assess the damage.

Digging was out of the question, that section of the mine was dangerously unstable. He didn't dare even attempt alchemy; there were men trapped somewhere under the debris. Transmuting a path would surely kill some if not all of them. The vibration might have caused a second cave-in anyway. Even the stone floor wanted to crumble as the boards creaked overhead. Shit… the idiots tunneled over a cavern!

Still cradling his arm, Edward turned to his commanding officer and sighed in defeat; he was forced to carry him. Just sitting Roy up was difficult enough with a busted arm, but it was nothing when compared to getting the man on his back.

Pulling the man across his shoulders he hooked his arms around the man's left arm and leg and staggered to his feet. It hurt terribly with Roy's legs hanging off the left shoulder, but not as much as he thought with his arm not taking the pressure. Hearing a low whimper he glanced back at the smaller chimera. It was still alive, but with its back legs shattered it was as good as dead. There was nothing he could do short of putting it out of its misery and Roy was already on his shoulders, so he moved on.

As soon as they reached what he felt was stable enough ground, Edward gently set him down and rolled him on his side to take a closer look at the left side of his head. His hair was matted down with blood. A bone deep gash cut above and before his left ear, the weakest part of the skull. All he could do was clean it as best he could with a shred of cloth and puddle water, stripping a sleeve for a wrap.

Next he examined his own wounds. There were four lacerations where the chimera's fangs dug into his shoulder and upper arm, but they weren't nearly as bad as he thought. When it shook him he could feel its teeth gripping bone and was expecting torn muscle and severed arteries. Thankfully his arm wasn't stiff or swelling up… yet. They stopped bleeding for the moment and needed stitches to keep them from reopening, but it could wait. Everything else consisted of bloody scrapes, cuts, and bruises that looked, and felt, far worse than they actually were. He transmuted the cold blood and sweat off them. Picking up a small stone he wrote a message on the wall, just in case.

MUSTANG'S HURT

MEN TRAPPED IN THE DEBRIS

TRYING TO FIND ANOTHER WAY OUT

FULLMETAL

Last minute his curiosity got the better of him, so he pulled Roy to the wall with his right arm and pushed him against it. Clapping his hands, he touched the floor and transmuted a barrier of stone over and around to seal him in, but left a number of small holes at the top for air and a large impression of the crest of the fuehrer on the front of it. If something should happen to him he wanted Roy to be safe, the crest was so they could find him. There could be more of those things out there. Feeling it was safe enough, he left Roy to take another look at the chimera; and put it out of its misery. His heart ached for it in sympathy and he still blamed whoever created and mistreated it for the attack.

The poor beast was bleeding to death and whimpering in pain. Laying on its side it stared up at him as he approached with its head up and back. It cowered in fear with its ears flat and eyes wide in trepidation. Its spirit was broken and it shook allover. Edward couldn't help but take pity on such a helpless wounded animal. He calmly approached it without fear, his arms and hands open to show he intended no harm, and he didn't make the common mistake of staring at it directly the way a predator would. It was too fearful of retribution to bite. Each step was carefully taken. Slowly he knelt in front of it and started stroking the side of its neck, trying to calm it down.

"…Shhh… It's ok…"

Its eyes softened as if it understood. The creature had been poorly treated in the past and this was probably the first time it had ever been shown human kindness. It was gentle by nature; something drove it to kill. Lifting its head it sniffed his bite wound and started licking the blonde's shoulder, trying to clean it with a tongue almost as broad as his chest as if to say it was sorry. It stung a little, but he let it knowing he couldn't do better and continued stroking its head and the sides of its face. Chimeras are 'never' this stable. What the hell are you?

Pulling away he looked it over and realized just how thin it was. Under all that fur, it was just skin stretched over bones. It didn't get like that overnight; they had been starving themselves to death and came close to it when humans were the only things available. Probable wiped out the rat population. He didn't have the heart to slice its throat or stab it and decided it was more humane to let it loose consciousness and bleed to death in its sleep. It wouldn't be long in coming, but he still wanted to relieve some of its pain. Walking over to the boulder he lifted one end and cautiously let it drop back off the chimera's legs so it could shift its weight and move.

Something stirred to the right of them and the chimera whipped its head to it and rolled up onto its elbows. As it moved he saw that it wasn't sterile; it was a bitch. She whined in the direction of the sound, calling to something. Leaving her to investigate he realized a small part of the side tunnel they came from was still open. As he got closer he heard something moving and breathing behind a boulder in front of the entrance. Transmuting a blade he peered over the edge.

It jumped at him from the shadows. Startled, he fell back expecting it to attack him, but when it poked its head over the boulder he could only stare in shock. A white, lop-eared puppy was staring back at him and yipping playfully. It was marked with a black head, black-flecked white muzzle, a white blaze up the center of its face, and a large black saddle patch on its back. The black of its head bled a little down the sides of its neck and the backs of its white forearms were fringed with thicker fur that would grow longer with age.

She whined to the puppy again and it crawled over the boulder, its ears bouncing to its gate as it ran past Edward and up to the bitch. Another female! She was an elegant little thing, prancing more like an adult. Certain traits never carried. She didn't have horns and her tail was like that of a long-coated dog's.

The bitch's eyes were half-closed and her head hung low to the ground, teetering from side to side as she tried to hold on a little longer for her child. The puppy cautiously approached her mother's massive form, now sensing her pain. Whimpering, she reared up licking the blood off her face as the bitch nuzzled her. Spreading her elbows to maintain balance she fought hard the sleep she knew would separate her from her baby; she was loosing the battle.

Edward shed a tear over the heartbreak before him. It reminded him too close for comfort of when his mother died holding his and his brother's hands. The bitch's head sunk lower and the puppy stopped licking and started whining. Her head was now on the floor and the pup jumped back and released a squeaking bark. It was the equivalent of a child screaming "Please Mom, Don't Leave Me!"

Her eyes seemed distant. Freezing on the spot, the puppy stared for a moment at her mother. Slowly she took a step closer, stretching her neck forward and giving a feint, pain filled whine, but the bitch gave no response.

Now, for the first time since she noticed her mother, she turned and looked up at him. She knew her mother had passed on.

She looked like a mutt, and a pretty one at that. As she stared up at him with those eyes, watery and emanating the same hurt and loss that he and his brother had suffered, Edward knew there was no way he could let them cart her off to some lab. She could easily pass for a stray. He was glad that he had transmuted her mother's blood off him and Roy. Her only sent on him now was from petting her and letting her lick the bite she gave him.

Those blue eyes reminded him of a little girl he once knew. He, along with his brother, had lived with her family for a few months; she was like a little sister to them. The name just seemed to fit. God I miss her. Lifting the pup in his arms, he stretched his coat around them and held her tightly in a comforting embrace, cradling her so she sat on an automail forearm with her legs around him and her front paws hooking over his shoulders and around his neck.

The puppy was huge, two-months-old at most and already nearly fifteen pounds. And her paws were enormous, filling the palms of his hands. Her age, weight, and paws told him that she would grow to be a very large dog, easily over a hundred pounds, but still never reach the size of her parents by a long shot.

Having found a shoulder to cry on she snuggled up tighter, clinging to him as she softly whimpered tremblingly into his shirt. Everyone knew dogs couldn't cry, but Edward could feel his shirt dampening with her tears. He had never seen something so human in an animal before, and he began to wonder how he was going to hide what she really was. Though he didn't realize it, he needed someone like her in his life, now more than ever. Someone to take care of, to comfort, and comfort him in return; easing a little of the pain in his chest.

"You're coming with me," he muttered in a soothing voice, and kissed her warm, soft fur. "…Nina."

With that, he returned to Roy. Hefting the man onto his shoulders he whistled for Nina and trudged on, hoping it wouldn't be too long. She followed him like he was her guardian.

I left some really big things open and open they'll remain. This fic is almost as much mystery as angst.

I started writing this in late February and the rest of the fic is 76 pages as of 02/20/06 and going strong. This fic is so long that my style of writing will probably change many times before the end. I still have a very, very, long, way to go. Don't hate me for this. I'm chronically skipping back and forth and so far there is little that I'm certain of.