Fullmetal Alchemist Fan Fiction ❯ Unknown Sacrifice ❯ Reunion? ( Chapter 7 )

Unknown Sacrifice

AU from Manga chapter 35

Chapter 7 - Reunited?

 

Things were going as expected. Entering the building turned out to be easy; Hawkeye and Havoc took out the two guards with tranquilizers. Al had than ally-ooped the Colonel onto the wall and he helped the some of the team over while Hawkeye assisted the rest with the grappling hook she had thrown.

 

Entering through a battered window on the first floor, the group consulted the blue prints of the lab that the Colonel was able to secure. There was no idea about where Ed was being held, so the map did not help the main party much. Mustang could have burned it with no loss. But it was helpful for Fuery. His job was to cut the building's power and security system.

 

After a last look at Lab 5's plans, the short officer hurried to the control room. A quick salute from Brenda and Falman indicated that they too were leaving. They had been assigned to guard the grounds and keep an eye on the jail next door for any activity. Not much was expected though; from what Alphonse could recollect most of the action would take place in underground rooms that shielded the alchemic light from transmutations.

 

It was this fact that led the assembly of Mustang, Hawkeye, Al, Havoc, and Armstrong, toward the stairs at the end of the hallway. Great care was taken to minimize noise, from tiptoes for the military personal to cloths slippers for Al. It would not do to alert their target before they arrived, giving them a chance to escape. If they lost Ed…

 

Hawkeye wrapped her arms around herself and shivered. The lower they went the more cold the air became. The silence of the group was a little unnerving as well. Al, and well Armstrong too most of the time, tended to be bright personalities. Their lack of words seemed to increase the sobriety of the mood.

 

And the colonel in front of her was not talking either. She knew how hard it was to lose Maes, and the loss of Ed would be even more devastating. The blonde was the child of the group, not that anyone would inform him of it for the result would something akin to being taped to the ceiling. But Edward had a life to live, a goal to see achieved, and Roy had always done what he could to help; keeping him out of prominent danger, slight morsels of the Stones, but always far enough distance that the brothers figured their path out on their own. To have Ed leave this earth before he, or anyone, wanted or expected him too, would send Roy into an even deeper depression than before. It would feel like he failed not one, but two teenagers when they needed it most.

 

Havoc would have loved to leave his flashlight behind, but its presence might alert the homunculi to their entrance. As it turned out, there was no need for them. Despite the lack of human attention outside, the inner passages they were currently exploring were lined with small iridescent green lights near their feet. The blonde just kind of shrugged it off; light beams could have given off their presence too.

 

Mustang momentarily stopped. Being taller and after sifting slightly to the left, Alphonse saw it was a fork in there path that had caused it. After a brief pause, the colonel chose to turn left and the rest of the group trailed after. Al was glad the alchemist was leading the way. He was totally lost and confused. His first time down here had been after the place was partly destroyed and half the trip was not carried out by his own hollow legs. Al was shocked to see that the damaged caused by the button Barry had pressed was non-existent. He guessed it would be rather inconvenient to have a hole in the wall of your laboratory.

 

Eventually the path they were on lost the upper half of the right wall. Mustang had them all crawl from then on. It would not do to have them get caught after this far. He kept an ear out for any sound that could indicate Edward's position. Sadly after numerous corners and an achy hand from pressing it onto a small piece of gravel, nothing had changed. Roy risked a sigh; this was not getting any where. He was no closer to Fullmetal now than he was at the beginning of the night.

 

Then he heard it, the unmistakable sound of singing. He froze, and Hawkeye halted quickly as well. Sadly, Alphonse was not as skilled, nor was Havoc after him. The noise was not a pleasant one and Mustang was surprised it had not drawn the attention of the singer.

 

“What is it Sir?”

 

Mustang turned and glared at his first lieutenant. He held up his index finger to his lips and then cupped the hand around his ear. Hawkeye nodded and relayed the message down the line.

 

It was definitely getting louder.

 

“Shrimp for dinner, shrimp for dinner! Yay, yay for shrimp! They fit in your mouth `cuz they are so small, shrimp, shrimp for dinner!”

 

Being the tallest of the group, Armstrong barely had to stand on his tip-fingers to see over the wall. After a couple tense moments he returned to the rest of their levels and everyone crowed around to hear his report.

 

“That was Envy, from what Alphonse has told us of the homunculi. Pretty boy, long green hair?”

 

Al nodded an affirmation, and the Strong Arm Alchemist continued reciting his sightings.

 

“From what I could tell, he was very smug. He was also carrying a box on one of his shoulders. I have to say the song he was singing was toward the box. Almost as if…”

 

“It contained Ed.” Mustang finished for him.

 

“It can't be!” Al said in an anxious whisper. “If Brother was in that box he would be having a hissy fit because of that shrimp song. If Brother was in there, we would be able to hear him complain. Envy just loves getting reactions out of him.”

 

Everyone had to admit, armor-boy had a point there. That boy was not one to keep quiet when even the slightest remark of height was mentioned. If he was being kept captive in the box Envy was carrying, something was preventing his outburst.

 

“Which way did Envy go?” Mustang asked harshly.

 

“That way,” Armstrong pointed over Flame's head in the direction they had been traveling.

 

“There's a door over there that he went through.”

 

“Let's go,” the colonel's voice was tense now, his body alert for anything, fingers ready for a snap. He heard his sharpshooter adjust her gun into a more reachable position for being on all fours, and then follow after him. The rest of the group fell into place.

 

Mustang pushed their tempo, taking that “shrimp for dinner” line a little too seriously. Crawling along the rest of the wall they reached an entry to the adjacent room. Taking a deep breath, Roy plunged in.

 

The area was partially lit; it seemed the little green lights on the wall below them had burned out. The room was made out of cement, like the previous ones but it was the floor that caught everyone's attention. Into it, someone had engraved a large and complex transmutation circle. It was deep enough that the light that was there could not penetrate the knife's markings. An octagon covered most of the floor, leaving about a meter between its edges and the far wall. There was more room on this side for researchers to stand and take notes. Just in side it was a large circle, whose intricate workings included waves, swirls, and spirals. The main sub-circles were located on opposite sides of the shape, equilateral triangles containing smaller circles inside.

 

Envy was walking to one of the triangle markings and emptied the box he had been carrying. Out tumbled a small, battered, blonde body that could only be Ed. Fullmetal was so still, not a hint of movement, that everyone in the rescue group held their breath. He did not look alive, but they did not dare to acknowledge otherwise. The blood on his shirt from where Lust pierced him did not help matters either.

 

The homunculus then retreated to the wall underneath him, shielding him from the military's view. Mustang did not allow any one to elevate themselves further for fear of discovery. Muttering voices ensued, and Roy disobeyed his own orders and stuck his head to see the event going on below.

 

He snapped his head back, took cover behind the partial wall and beckoned the others to gather.

 

“Scar is here too. The woman, Lust I think, just reached into Envy chest and pulled out a Philosopher's Stone. What in the world could they be up too?”

 

“A Stone hmm,” Alphonse was thinking, “that must be how they regenerate. They use the souls stored inside it.”

 

“But now that it's out, Envy can't heal himself, right?” Havoc posed the question.

 

“Yeah,”

 

Roy's mind went blank. That evil fiend was no longer invincible! He could finally extract revenge for the lost of Maes, and ensure no one would die by his hands again. He was prepared to leap over the obstacle at his back, snap and burn the bastard down to the last atom and then send it into the deep darkest corner of the known universe where…

 

Riza placed her hand on her colonel's arm and shook her head no. It would not do to go jumping off of balconies into God-knows-what type of situation. Yet she knew if things got bad enough, there would be nothing she could do to stop him. Tilting her head upward, she invited him to check their prey's status with the rest of the team. She went to join them herself and felt Mustang submit to her sense.

 

Scar was now kneeling at the edge of the transmutation circle. Envy had moved to the other triangle, and it was now obvious that something was going to happen to Edward for the green haired youth's benefit.

 

The scarred man placed his hands on engraved lines and the pinkish glow that the transmutation was a pure indication that he was using the Philosopher's Stone. It started at the outskirts of the shape, moving inward and getting brighter. By the time the light had reached Ed and Envy it was so thick and bright that it was impossible to see them. They were behind encircling walls of light that hid anything that could be happening.

 

I really didn't want to end it there, but my muse ran away. Sorry! Please don't bombard me with rotten stuff!

Rather proud of this chapter, I want to improve my writing and tried to immerse myself into different characters in preparation to creating my own some day.

And a big thank you goes to ------SMOE!!!! My wonderful beta who helps me. If you're baking cookies, give him one.