So I may not have the lay-out of Central City completely correct, but as I always say- it's fanfiction, so get over it.
Winry's train arrived promptly and she was greeted by the Elrics. They all walked back to Havoc's house together, chatting about the recent happening around Risembool. When they reached the apartment, they went in and Winry set up shop in the living room. Ed took off his shirts and reclined on one of the couch-beds.
Winry got started with the tune-up and noticed the dent in the plate. "Ed… What's this dent for? It looks like an impact point…" Ed turned away and refused to meet her eyes. Winry glared and waved her wrench. "Edward Elric, you tell me what this is or I'll clonk you one!"
Ed turned and met Winry's eyes slowly. "We were investigating a murder of a guard. The man that killed him shot at us. I knocked Al down once and blocked another bullet with my arm. We're fine though."
Ed couldn't tell if Winry wanted to cry or hit him, but he just sighed and closed his eyes. Winry's voice was quiet. "You stupid boys. Always in danger…" She quickly finished her adjustments on his arm and packed up her equipment.
Ed stood and moved his shoulder in a circle as he always did, making sure the changes felt ok. "If you want to head back out to Risembool, I'll walk with you back to the station…"
Winry cut in. "It's fine. I want to visit Mr. Hughes again. He said I could stay with him and I think I'll take him up on that offer. I love Gracia's cooking a lot too." She smiled. "I'll see you guys later."
She waved as she left, closing the door behind her. Ed turned to Al. "I think maybe we should go check out the slums again, don't you?"
Al nodded. "Let's take a guard though, so he can drive us. It'll be quicker." Ed grudgingly agreed, and the pair set off towards Central Command. Once there, they sought out Mustang, but he was currently out of the office. Instead, they found Hughes, who was just leaving.
"Hello Hughes! Winry was just heading over to your place. Would you happen to have an officer you can spare to drive us out to the slums?" Ed waved at his superior and walked over.
Hughes smiled back. "Hello boys. If you want a car and an officer, just head down to the front and ask the guard. And by the way… Elicia is turning 3 tomorrow! Want to see pictures?" He reached into his pocket to extricate his wallet.
Ed laughed nervously. "No, that's alright Hughes. We've seen her picture plenty. Plus we're in a hurry. See ya!" The brothers scurried downstairs, where they easily procured a vehicle and a driver. Hughes just shrugged and turned to show his pictures to a nearby officer.
On the way to the slums, Ed and Al talked in hurried whispers, making their plan on where they would look. The driving officer gave them an odd look. "If you guys are looking for the murderer, Colonel Mustang is currently looking into that. So I wouldn't get any more involved."
Ed waved a hand. "We were the ones that gave him the clue to send him in this direction. We are going to help catch him, since we could recognize him easier. We saw him, after all."
A few more minutes passed in silence. The wind blew gently through the car, flowing in the open windows and carrying the sweet scent of the outdoors with it. Ed looked out the windshield, seeing how close they were. What he saw was something fly into the middle of the road, bounce twice, and come to a stop. There was a small flame and it was disappearing.
Al saw it at the same time and yelled, "It's a bomb!"
Ed shoved his brother to the right door and reached up to the front, grabbing the wheel and turning it to the right. They didn't pass over it, but it was within a foot of the car when it exploded.
For a small bomb, it had a lot of force. The explosion sent the car flying sideways, knocking it into a guard rail. It rested there for a split second before the rail gave way and it and the car tumbled down an incline. The car landed with a jolting crash on the shore of a river and slowly sunk further and further into the rushing water. It flowed into the car easily by way of the open windows, sinking it even faster.
Al was a bit disoriented from the crash and the driver was badly wounded. Ed shook his head and quickly sprang into action. He clapped, touching his hands to the roof. It opened totally and he hauled the driver out. He pulled Al up as well. The younger brother easily made it to the shore. Ed picked up the officer and leapt, barely making it. He laid the driver down and then cursed.
"My pocket watch fell out! I have to get it." Ed turned and leapt back to the car, which had remained stationary for the moment. After clambering in, Ed grabbed the watch off of the floor of the backseat. As he stood with a triumphant grin, the car shifted. It fell to the side and flooded instantly, sinking towards the bottom. The river, along with being fast and strong, was rather deep.
Everything was in slow motion due to the water. Ed clapped and reached for the side, trying to make a hole. It seemed to take forever, and he was running out of air. When the side opened, Ed swam, or more so walked, out. He couldn't swim with his auto-mail, so he clapped again and a large hand made out of dirt lifted him up to the surface. He proceeded to gulp in a few breaths of air before rolling off the hand and onto the shoreline. Al rushed over worriedly.
"Brother! Brother, why did you go back? You could have died! And all for a watch…" He helped Ed to sit up and looked back up to the road. No one had seen since they were in a more desolate part of town. "What about him? He needs help."
Ed touched the man's neck. "No, he's dead…" Ed's voice was a little strained as he struggled to stand. He coughed out a bit of water and turned to the incline. He weakly clapped his hands and made a crude staircase. Without waiting for Al, he climbed up and sat on the road. Al joined him and after a few minutes they began to walk towards the slums, intent on completing their mission.
When they were almost there, a car approached them. It was Mustang. Ed quickly clapped his hands to his outfit, drying it a lot. Mustang rolled down the window. "Fullmetal, what are you doing out here? Were you going to try to investigate again?" His eyes narrowed angrily.
Ed sighed and nodded, too tired to fight back. "We were… but there was a… bomb in the road. I swerved the car, but the bomb got us and we flipped down an incline into the river." He couldn't bring himself to meet Mustang's glare. "The driver… he's dead, down by the banks of the river. But I managed to save Al and-"
He was cut off by a wave of Mustang's hand and a harsh look. "That's enough, Fullmetal." His eye caught a scratch on Ed's cheek. "Get in. We're heading back to Central Command. We couldn't find any leads on the perpetrator." He signaled out the window and an officer from a car behind them stopped.
"Go down the embankment. An officer is down there, as well as the wreckage of the car. Although by the way Fullmetal looks, I would assume that it's partially or fully sunk. Report back to the Command Center when you are done." Mustang nodded to the officer, who saluted Mustang and headed down with a few others from the car in the rear.
Ed and Alphonse climbed into the car with a dejected sigh. Mustang decided to lay off since they had almost died. Again. How many times had they put themselves in harm's way? Too many. The ride back to Central Command was a quiet one. Once they reached it, Mustang turned to tell them to go get their injuries treated. However, they were already inching away from the car. With a glare Mustang just rolled his eyes and waved them away.
This is probably the longest chapter yet… Wow. I suddenly got my muse. … By re-reading my own story. XD I read it and was like, 'Wow, I wonder what happens next!' Then I realized that it was up to me to decide.