Before Edward left Briggs he made sure nobody would be able to follow him… at least for a while.
"Figures," Al sighed as he looked down the long line of military vehicles disabled by Edward's handicraft. Mechanics were already hard at work changing tires nearby. "He knows he's walking into a trap and yet he still goes! Then he does this!"
"The team from Razkuul is still outside the town limits," Brigadier General Miles said. "It'll take time getting everything operational in here before we can send out any support troops if things get hairy. I'll give them orders that they'll be under General Havocs command if you need them."
"Okay," Al said finally conceding to the offer of more support from Briggs. Miles left the garage and Al stepped over to the closest jeep, kneeled near the front end and clapped. Placing his hands over it he repaired the first tire with a flash of blue light.
"You fix, I'll fill them up," Havoc said leaving to retrieve a portable air compressor.
After Al repaired the other three tires he opened the hood and looked inside. Everything looked alright. It looked like Edward didn't have much time to do much else but blow out the tires on everything in the garage. Or so he thought as he sniffed leaning down further.
"Hey, Al," Havoc said, kneeling near a rear tire. "The gas tank is leaking."
"I thought I smelled something," he grumbled as he dropped the hood with a loud thud.
"We should push the jeep out of the garage before starting the engine," Havoc commented as he got up and continued putting air in the other tires. "I don't get it, how did he have time to do all this?"
Al looked down at the ground. It bore the signs of being shifted and manipulated with alchemy. "It looks like he used the floor, probably created a bunch of spikes to puncture the tires and gas tanks." He shook his head trying not to lose his temper as he fixed the gas tank.
When Al and Havoc were done refilling with air and gas, they did a final inspection and loaded everything they were taking with them into the jeep. Just as they had the jeep in neutral to push out of the garage Lin rushed up to them looking extremely perplexed.
"We have a problem, Al."
"I know."
"No, this is serious. Ed took something from my room."
"What did he take?"
Lin looked scared of Al now. But Havoc knew what it was. "You brought those things along?" He asked angrily.
"I always carry them for myself," Lin explained. "I didn't think Ed would even think about them. He must have taken them sometime over the last three days..."
"Will you please tell me what he took?" Al asked exasperated.
"They're performance enhancers," Lin said. "They're in pill form. It boosts your energy but it has some side affects..."
"I think I know the rest," Al groaned knowing quite a bit regarding certain Xing medicinal products from studying their alchemy over the years. "Do you think he'll take them?"
"He's desperate," Havoc said. "He'll probably let himself be captured and taken to wherever Elysia and Richard are. Then he'll take the pills to get them all out."
"That fool!" Al cried out punching the jeep and wishing he hadn't. Shaking his hand he added, "We have to hurry. Come and help push, Lin."
"So can I tell Ed that we only came after him because he destroyed military property?" Havoc asked with a smirk. "We'll tell him he's under arrest. That'll really throw him off."
Al couldn't help the chuckle that escaped. Leave it to Havoc to lighten the mood of the situation.
He didn't need to be told where to meet. Telling him to come to Razkuul was one clue. Al collapsing in the train and asking about his body pulled from the Gate was another. The ruins of the abandoned building were all too familiar. The man standing next to them was too.
"Where's Elysia and Richard?" Edward asked getting straight to the point.
"Is that anyway to greet an old comrade?" Russell asked with a smirk.
"It's how I greet fucking lunatic kidnappers." He really wanted to punch Russell in the face but losing control would surely destroy what he had in mind.
"I can see the years haven't improved your vocabulary. So what's up with the gloves? I haven't seen you wear those since Xenotine."
"Never mind the gloves. Where are they?"
"Did you really think I was going to bring them all the way back here?"
"So you did take them into Drachma."
"Obviously. You brought this upon yourself, Ed. I knew all you were capable of was destroying people's lives." Russell said.
"Looks like you've contributed a bit yourself," Edward pointed out trying to swallow his temper that threatened to escape. He needed to stay calm so he could think clearly and stick to the plan. He wasn't going to let Russell push his buttons so easily.
"This is in return for what you did to me."
"I can't believe you won't get past that," Edward scoffed. "That's why you were never promoted beyond a Major, you thought you knew everything but you didn't know shit and you still don't."
"Coming from the person who had no clue two homunculi were still in existence."
"No wonder you're such good friends with the Drachmans," Edward said with a laugh, ignoring that touchy subject. "It was probably the only way they let you into their country; all this one sided bull shit, putting the blame of your incompetence on someone else, instead of taking responsibility for yourself. You were always a second rate alchemist. That's why you used my name in Xenotine. You were only able to ride on the coattails of others with no real ability of your own. No wonder Erika refused you." He knew he was pushing it with that last comment but then Russell deserved it. It was obvious he didn't take too kindly to the mocking words as his face reddened as he tried to maintain some control over his temper.
"Think what you want," Russell finally managed to spit out. "It won't matter. Amestris and Xing will be destroyed and Drachma will take control of the two countries. Everything you worked for will be destroyed and I will have the satisfaction of knowing I had a hand in it." He paused and composed himself. He looked a little fearful that he said more than he should have. "But I will be generous," he said, his tone smoothed over and calm. "Your wife and son will be returned, safe and sound under one condition."
"And what's that?"
"It's simple. You come with me."
"And then you'll just let them go?" Edward asked sarcastically.
"Of course."
Edward knew it was a trap but that didn't matter. It wasn't likely he'd be able to do much else. His best bet was to be taken where Elysia and Richard were then figure things out from there. "Alright, I'll go."
Russell laughed. "You haven't changed. Always willing to sacrifice yourself; putting yourself in harms way to be the hero."
"Just shut up and let's go."
"Before we do I need you to do something first."
"What's that?"
"Remove your arm."
Edward suspected this might come up but it still made him pause.
Russell scoffed in disbelief. "Are you actually rethinking this? Are you actually more concerned with yourself at this moment?"
Edward's eyes narrowed. "No!"
"Then what are you waiting for?"
"Nothing," Edward said raising his left hand like he was ready to unbutton his shirt to easily disengage his arm. But instead of reaching for the buttons he held his hand out and snapped his fingers. It wasn't hard to borrow one of Mustang's gloves from his desk before he left Central. He'd seen the older man use the ignition cloth plenty of times over the years to understand how it worked. But there was no way in hell he'd give Mustang any credit for using his technique. A flash of blue and red flame whipped out and enveloped the top half of Russell's body.
The fire burned and licked, eating away his shirt. When it finally died out what remained was a black, hardened shell over Russell's body and he began to laugh.
"That would have been a useful trick if it wasn't so obvious."
"It's useful that it tells me which homunculus you are," Edward said still holding his hand out and snapped again.
"This is pointless," Greed laughed over the roar of the flames, not letting his shield drop. "Why bother to waste your energy?"
"I have my reasons," Edward said clapping his hands together and dropping to the ground. A flare of blue light skipped across the ground. It circled around Greed's ankles. The dirt began to shift and turn, sucking him down to his knees. The ground hardened and he was trapped. Then the shield dropped.
"This is pointless as well, Ed," he said sounding amused.
"Am I talking to Russell now?" Edward asked.
"You're so smart, you figure it out," he mocked as he clapped his hands together but Edward was faster, snapping his fingers once more. Russell barely had time to switch with Greed to form the shield to protect their body from the flames.
"I can do this all day," Edward called out as the fire fizzled out. "You can either use alchemy or create the shield to defend yourself. You can't do both at the same time."
Despite the shield covering his face, giving him the same featureless stare whether he was angry or not, Edward knew he had officially pissed off the homunculus.
"My brother thought I was just rushing into things," Edward said clapping his hands together and placing them on the ground again. For three days he endured everyone and their pitying looks, tip toeing around him, thinking he was too depressed and helpless to do anything but mope. They were all wrong. "He underestimated me as did Russell," he added as two stone pillars shot up from the ground on either side of Greed and formed around his wrists, further trapping him in place. "Al didn't think I had a plan but I do. Russell didn't know that I fought Greed before and that I know how to get past the shield."
"I don't remember ever fighting you," Greed seethed.
"It was a long time ago," Edward said with shrug as if it didn't really matter. He stood up and started walking towards Greed. "I was only yay high," he continued holding his hand out hip high and smirked. He had no qualms poking fun at his shorter teenage self now that he stood about six feet. "Russell can probably perform alchemy now without a circle, right? He opened the Gate."
"What of it?" Greed said struggling against his bonds.
"He was careless. I told you he underestimated me," Edward said shaking his head, disappointed as he came closer, almost nose to nose with Greed, looking him in the eye. "I wondered if Al and Kimbley were connected in some way. You see, Al and I were when he was in the Gate. I bet Russell didn't know that either," he smirked then went on. "When Al collapsed on the way over here, he said it felt like something was torn from him. I knew immediately Kimbley was pulled from the Gate. So now I've got you both trapped. Russell can't use his hands to get out and to protect himself from being flambéed he hides behind you clueless that I know your weakness."
"The hell you do!" Greed spat.
To prove his point, Edward leaned back as he clapped his hands together and punched Greed in the face. The black shield crumbled away leaving a hole of gaping flesh exposed on his left cheek. He stared at Edward, shaking with fury and a bit of fear.
"So," Edward said clapping his hands again. "We'll just keep doing this until your Philosopher's Stone is worn out and you can't use the shield anymore, weakening you. Then you'll lead me to Elysia and Richard."
He heard clapping and someone say behind him, "What an excellent display of alchemy. I'm truly impressed. I guess I shouldn't have expected less from an Amestrian General."
"I was wondering when you'd join the party," Edward said turning around. He watched as Kimbley strode towards him casually.
"Better late than never," the Crimson Alchemist grinned wickedly putting his hands together.