Chapter Text
WARNING! POSSIBLE TRIGGERS, THIS WILL CONTAIN VIOLENCE, PAIN, BLOOD, SLIGHT GORE, AND SOME MENTION OF TORTURE! (I have a really difficult time using swear words in my writing, I just can't use them well at all, so forgive my silly substitutes!)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the rights to FullMetal Alchemist, or any of its related content. I write for my own pleasure and I am only borrowing the characters to play with.
Chapter 6
A Father's Duty is to guard his children, protect them from harm and keep them safe, even at the expense of his own life.
"Edward." His name echoed in his ears. Mustang almost never called him by his name. It was always "Fullmetal" or "Shorty" or something. Never Edward.
"C..Colonel..?" He couldn't breathe. A strange terror was crushing his chest, somehow familiar but he couldn't think of why. He couldn't think. His hands shook as he tried to press harder on his coat, desperately ignoring the dampness that was spreading through the cloth.
"Edward, look at me." Mustang murmured, his voice urgent and full of pain. Ed shook his head, his eyes oddly blurry. His heart pounded in his ears. Why couldn't he stop his hands from shaking??
"Please, Edward. You have to leave me here and run." Ed only shook his head harder, refusing to listen.
Why was his face so wet, it had stopped snowing, why wouldn't the bleeding stop??!!
"EDWARD!" His eyes flew to Mustangs face despite himself, and his chest squeezed even tighter at the look on his face.
"The bullet is still in there, I can...I can feel it. I will b..bleed out before we reach the soldiers from Briggs. You have to leave me here. Go. Run." The Colonel urged, his eyes frantic.
Something shattered in his head and suddenly fury flooded through him.
"NO! Do you freaking HEAR ME, MUSTANG?? I REFUSE to accept this! After all this effort, all the pain you have gone through to protect me, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO DIE HERE!!" He screamed. Mustang gaped at him as Ed furiously wiped his eyes with one bloody hand, the tears falling even faster now. I can't believe I am actually crying over this stupid Bastard!
"What about your promise to Lieutenant Hawkeye?! You promised her that you would become Furer and change this stupid country! And what...w..what about Al? How am I going to get his body back without your help?" A sob caught in his throat and he choked it back.
"What about...what about me?? Are you going to just make me think that you are a better father
than my real father and then...j..just die?" He ground out, his voice cracking as he swiped at his eyes again. Mustang just stared at him, his eyes wide in shock.
"But, I..." The Colonel trailed off, shock and fear twisting on his face.
"Now, help me figure out a way to get us BOTH out of this, Mustang. A man who plans to become the Furer should be able to do that much!" Mustang was quiet for a moment.
"Where did you hear about that?" He finally whispered and Ed snorted, wiping his nose with a ragged sniff.
"Lieutenant Hawkeye told me a few months ago, when I returned her gun. She told me about Ishval too." Mustang winced, pain that had nothing to do with the bullet in his side crossing his face. Then something hardens in his eyes, something Edward has never seen before. Mustang's good hand reaches up and digs into Ed's flesh shoulder, almost hard enough to bruise.
"I want you to swear on your brother's soul that what I am about to ask you to do you will never do again, Edward. I will only give you permission to use this once, and you must swear to never use it again, understand?" Ed wiped his eyes, frowning at the Colonel in confusion.
"What are you..."
"SWEAR IT, Edward! I might have a way to stop the bleeding long enough for us to get to safety, but you have to promise me before I tell you." Ed struggled to think past the pounding in his ears and felt his heart stutter when Mustang's word finally penetrated.
"I swear on Alphonse's life to only use this once and never use it again, or tell anyone about it. Happy?" Mustang's lips twitched a little at the forced reluctance in Edward's voice but tightened as a shudder wrenched through him. Slowly, Mustang lifted his left hand until the glove he wore was in front of Edward's face.
"Take it." Ed's eyes widened in surprise, but the growing wetness under his hand stopped him from protesting. Hesitantly, he pulled the glove off.
"Put it on." Ed stiffened, part of him feeling very uneasy about where this was going.
"I won't explain more than you need to know, I made a promise I will not break, but you are smart enough that you can do this." Mustang stated, ignoring the new fear that was filling Edward's eyes.
"The most basic part of Flame alchemy is manipulation and control of oxygen. You don't want to create an explosion, so keep it simple and you are going to need to focus all of your concentration on keeping the air flow very small and focused." Ed felt the blood drain out of his face as he realized exactly what Mustang had in mind.
"WAIT, just what..." Ed was almost at a full blown panic now. I can't do this...I CAN'T DO THIS!!
"You are going to have to sear my side closed, with the bullet inside, because we don't have time for you to dig it out, understand? That is the only way, and the more you argue, the more I bleed, and I wasn't exactly in the best shape to start with. But this will give us our best chance. Do you understand, Edward?"
"But, I...I can't, I don't even know where to start, Mustang, I could kill you!"
"You can, Edward. You are the FullMetal alchemist and my subordinate. I believe in you." Ed couldn't breath as he stared at the look on Mustang's face. It was...Proud. Confident, trusting and...proud. Mustang's eyes held no doubt, only a warmth that reached right into Ed's chest and squeezed.
He silently nodded his head once, unable to speak and Mustang smiled, looking even more confident than before. Shakily, Edward pulled the glove over his Automail, Mustang keeping pressure on the wound. Ed stared at the red array on the back, remembering what Mustang has said about control.
"Ed, I..*cough*.. I need to warn you. I will probably scream, but you can't stop until the wound is closed, understand?" Edward flinched, his heart jumping into his throat. But they had no time, every minute he hesitated put Mustang that much closer to death. He drew in a deep breath, clapped his hands and snapped.
Fire flared, reducing the blood soaked coat to ashes instantly and Edward bit his cheek hard, focusing everything he had into controlling the flames. The transmutation fought him, but he held steady and ignored the horrible smell that surrounded him.
Ignored the distant, agonized, screaming that was echoing in his ears. Ignored how Mustang twisted and strained, but never pushed him away. Ignored the tears that made it almost impossible to see the wound.
The fire nearly escaped him twice, and he flinched when Mustang jerked in response. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, it was done. The wound was sealed closed, the horrible burn a vivid red against Mustang's pale skin. He fought to put out the flames, swallowing a scream as the transmutation recoiled, searing his arms. Pushing the pain away, he gripped the Colonel's shoulder, his heart in his throat.
"I'm...al..alright, Ed. Got to hurry..." The voice was weak and rough, but it was there. Edward nearly sobbed in relief, but more shouts were coming from the bunker, and he pushed it all away. Lurching to his feet, he quickly pulled Mustang's arm over his shoulder and ran with everything he had left. Mustang groaned, leaning on him heavily, but he kept up somehow.
Soldiers came into view as they reached the trees, shouting at them, but Edward ignored them as he kept running. His eyes had caught sight of a large gleam of silver behind the soldiers, and he headed straight for it with a burst of speed.
"BROTHER!!" The Briggs soldiers hesitated as the large suit of armor hurried forward, yelling. Then gunfire exploded around them, the men chasing them trying to stop Ed before they reached safety. He ducked and kept running, Briggs soldiers rushing past him to return fire. He stumbled and crashed to the ground with the Colonel at Al's feet, his brother crying out in concern. Ed gasped for breath, his lungs burning, his sight growing dim.
"Edward!" Lieutenant Hawkeye skidded to a stop next to him going down on one knee to shake his shoulder. He flinched as she jostled his burns.
"Edward, where is the Colonel?? What happened?! Did you find him? Where is Roy?!" She urged and he dimly felt surprised at the frantic tone in her voice. Then the mangled body panting next to him stirred, a ragged cough escaping his lips.
"Riza?" The lieutenant froze, a flood of emotions crossing her face before she went deathly pale with sheer horror. Havoc slid to a stop next her as she choked, one trembling hand covering her lips.
"Colonel?"
"Bloody hell..." Havoc trailed off, gaping at both of them in shock. "What happened??"
"He needs help, pl..please. Bullet still inside, multiple seri..serious injuries, hurry..." Edward gasped out and Hawkeye jerked back as if he had slapped her. Spinning on her knees she scanned the trees desperately.
"MEDIC!! MEDIC, NOW!!!" The world faded into black around him as Havoc crouched next to him.
"Ed? Hey, chief, stay with me!"
"Brother!"
*****