Convergence | One
Prologue | One
Earth, January 8, 1940, A.D
Lightning tore through the sky, branching out into small tendrils as it connected with the wet ground below. Thunder followed. The boom resounded inside the government-issued vehicle letting Edward guessing about the proximity of the strike to the car. He crossed his arms over his chest and huffed, another jagged bolt caught his attention. The electrical display made him wonder if his wife had purposely chosen that night to play the role of mad scientist, like the ones portrayed in films he’d watched in the recent past. Rain began pelting down hard.
”Just great,” Edward groused, his face scrunching up in annoyance.
“It's that goddamn cold front.”
Edward slid his eyes to the man driving the GV. Ice blue irises were looking back at him through the rearview mirror.
“Seems like it,” he replied in a rather snobbish tone before returning his attention to the moving scenery, thinking that the Private should keep his comments to himself.
Minutes later, Edward sighed. He wished he could make out more of the surroundings so he could pinpoint their current location. The heavy rainfall made everything look distorted as if he was looking through a wide-angle lens.
“Fucking rain,” he griped, oblivious to the clenching and unclenching of his automail hand. A sudden twitch in his right shoulder sent waves of red-hot pain to the rest of his body, making him hiss.
“Did you say something, Von Elric sir?”
“No need to worry, Private,” Edward snapped, disregarding the soldier’s inquiry with a wave of his natural hand.
Another spasm was all it took to make Edward forget about his surroundings. He cussed under his breath as he tried to relax his aching stub.
“If you don't mind me saying, you look rather pale, sir.”
Edward flashed his eyes at the Private. The look of genuine concern made Edward pinch his eyebrows together; that man officially made him feel like a jerk.
“How much longer until we reach The Annex?” He snapped, unable to restrain his irritation.
The Private’s eyes narrowed into angry slits. “About half hour, sir,” he answered curtly.
Edward didn't feel the need to reply.
A long period of time passed by before Edward felt like he could relax. He sagged down, sinking into the contours of the car seat; there was plenty of space left to stretch his legs in front of him. His short stature, although a nuisance, came in handy when he needed it the most.
Edward closed his eyes and waited for the ride, and for the pain in his right shoulder, to subside. His eyes shot open when another lightning bolt struck nearby. He closed them again before letting out a tired huff; the natural phenomena reminded him again about the reason of his current misfortune.
That woman is going to send me to an early grave, Edward thought then sighed again.
Five hours ago, Edward worked in the comfort of his ample office, alternating grading papers with sips of hot arabica when his assistant entered the office to hand him a message left by his younger brother. Edward used a direct phone line (one of the many perks that came with a well-earned tenure at the prestigious Virginia Tech) to call Alphonse, knowing already that this urgency had a name attached to it. What-or more exactly-who she was putting at risk with her eccentricities? Edward managed to grade two more papers while his security clearance was being checked, another paper was graded as the call was patched to his brother's private line.
Alphonse went straight to the point when the patch went through.
“Brother, Dee has finally lost it. She wants to launch the final phase tonight!”
He followed his panicked greeting by alerting Edward that a military agent was already on his way to escort him to The Annex.
The vehicle slowed down before making a sharp left. Edward only opened his eyes when the GV began bouncing on the road.
Finally! They had reached the unmarked road that led to The Annex.
The secret facility was the brainchild of a group of private investors and ran by the United States Navy at Naval Station-Norfolk, a military base established in the Virginia town of the same name.
The rain had subsided to a drizzle, and the pain in Edward’s right shoulder subsided to a dull throb, a discomfort he could get rid off once he obtained some medication.
After fifteen minutes down the bumpy road, The Annex appeared glowing bloody red against the dark backdrop. Edward's brow tensed with worry, the facility displayed that type of luminescence only when the auxiliary generators were up and running.
“Dammit-she’s really going all out,” he muttered in utter disbelief; Alphonse hadn't been exaggerating.
Edward caught the Private looking at him again through the rearview mirror. He shot him a warning glare before turning his attention back to the glowing building. Another five minutes went by before arriving at The Annex.
Edward jumped out of the government vehicle the moment it made a full stop. He ignored the drizzle soaking through his tweed coat and plastering his long fringe to his face as he made his way to the guard gate.
A beefy soldier with a sour look stepped out of the narrow shack when Edward approached.
“Identification and code,” he spat.
The man’s pinched eyebrows and scrunched up nose told Edward how thrilled he was for having to come out into the cold rain. Edward fished his military ID card (the kind issued to private sector contractors) from his coat pocket and handed it to the guard while spelling out his security code.
The soldier took the card with him, went inside the shack and picked up the telephone receiver.
Edward had the pleasure of waiting for his clearance under the cold drizzle. He crossed his arms over his chest and shifted his weight to his right leg. Amestris, Earth: no matter to which world it belonged to the military industrial complex was apparently designed to be a royal pain in the ass. Edward started tapping his automail foot on the wet pavement wondering how much longer he had to wait under the light rain. The cold drizzle had already soaked his hair and had finally penetrated through his coat. To add to his misery, the chill was making his automail port ache worse than before. Edward hissed as he rubbed his throbbing shoulder. He couldn't help but glare at the soldier while he talked on the phone. He also showered him with obscenities that didn't make it past the window glass.
The soldier nodded before hanging up. He came back outside and to tell Edward that his brother, Doctor Von Elric, was coming over shortly.
Alphonse flipped up the collar of his lab coat as soon as the cold drizzle hit his face. He looked up at the blanketed sky, wondering exactly when the weather had turned so nasty. His brow tensed with worry for his older brother, changes in barometric pressure always caused Edward unwarranted misery.
Alphonse hurried down the wet sidewalk and reached the guard gate in less than five minutes. His eyebrows pinched together when he saw Edward standing stiffly under the light rain.
“You could've offered him an umbrella, Private Collins,” Alphonse barked as he walked past the guard shack and towards his brother. He even offered the soldier a menacing glare, one that told Private Collins that his Commanding Officer was going to have a talk with him about his conduct.
And Edward couldn't help but grin wide.
Over the last ten years, Alphonse had become a force to be reckoned with acquiring strong leadership skills under the caring mentoring of his wife. It wasn't surprising that he became Chief Supervisor at The Annex and his wife's right hand.
“Gee, Edward, you look terrible,” Alphonse mentioned, his voice packed with concern and sympathy.
“Yeah, I'm fucking dandy,” Edward replied, rolling his aching shoulder. His bitter sarcasm always brought a smile to Alphonse’s face.
“Let's get you out of this miserable rain,” Alphonse offered, escorting Edward into the building. He looked over his shoulder and glared at the guard one last time before returning his attention to his older brother. “We need to hurry. I can't stall any longer.”
Edward’s face scrunched up into a frown. “Is it that bad?”
Alphonse raised his hazel eyes to the height of the towering building. “You have no idea.”
The facility workers greeted Edward as he trotted alongside his brother down the main corridor. He wasn't paying attention to their calls, though, he was much too preoccupied with his wife’s plans to even care.
They reached the test area. Alphonse pressed his twelve number access code on the security keypad. Edward didn't waste any time and pushed the double doors open once the dead bolts retracted into the locking mechanism.
“Dee!” Edward's loud shout echoed inside the large room. It was an impressive feat considering that the test area had been at one point in time a hangar reserved for cargo airplanes.
“Hey, Dee!” Edward called again as he walked past the main generators and past the icosahedron-shaped dome that housed a teleportation device (the heart of his wife’s outrageous experiment and the reason why Alphonse dragged him off campus) and headed towards the control room.
When he slammed the door open, he found his wife having a conversation with some of her subordinates. Startled by the sudden intrusion, she looked his way, only to frown.
“Why are you-never mind.” Her eyes slid from Edward to Alphonse who was standing closely behind. “So you went behind my back-” There was restrained anger in her gray eyes.
“What the hell do you think you're doing?” Edward cut his wife off. A stunt like that only served to unleash that controlled anger out into the open.
“What does it look like, Edward?” She sneered. “I'm creating history here!” She even threw her hands up in the air just for the sake of being dramatic; Edward wasn't amused.
“Stop the test Wendy or I will!” He bellowed, slashing the stale air with his automail hand.
Wendy scoffed and placed her hands on her hips. “On whose authority, dear? Do I need to remind you that you're longer part of this team?” A contemptuous smile grew on her face before adding, “Please refrain yourself from meddling into things that don't concern you. Remember your place.” With that said, Wendy raised her chin high and looked down her nose at the brothers before strutting past them, heading towards an icosahedron dome.
Edward’s entire body shook with seething anger. ”Don't you dare turn your back on me, woman!”
Wendy didn't bother to look over her shoulder, she kept sashaying the rest of the way to the dome. Once she reached the door, she punched in her security code into the panel and hurried inside.
Edward had no other choice but to swallow his pride and chase after his wife. He stormed his way to the dome and banged on the door when he found it locked.
“Wendy Ann Rockwell, open this door right now!” He yelled, banging on the door harder.
Alphonse, who had kept to himself the entire time Wendy and Edward made a scene, followed them to the dome.
“I got this,” he assured Edward as he punched in his access code.
The security panel didn't activate. Alphonse tried his security code two more times but the keypad remained unresponsive.
Blinding anger proved to be the best medication for Edward, he hardly felt the aching in his right shoulder. Edward decided to put his right arm to the test by connecting a jab to the metal door. But one solid punch wasn't enough so few more followed.
“Edward, stop!” Alphonse warned his brother as he trapped him in a restraining hold, but Edward had the audacity to fight back. “Don't make public displays of your automail!” He hissed, reminding Edward of where he was and who was around looking at them.
The red strobe light hanging above the metal door activated, and a siren shrieked inside the hangar. Moments later, the main generators added their buzzing to the infernal sonata.
“Al, let go-!” Edward kept thrashing against the restraining hold. He was at a disadvantage since his younger brother was a head taller than him-not that this was going to keep him from trying. His wrath gave him the necessary strength to break loose.
Edward left Alphonse behind and ran to the back of the dome, climbing the stairs in twos, until he reached the observation room. Edward yanked the door open and headed straight for the intercom. He looked down at Wendy through the thick glass as he pressed the TALK button.
“Dee, please stop this insanity.” Edward pleaded, his voice husky, as panic with switched places with anger.
Wendy stopped what she was doing and looked up, offering Edward icy glare before resuming her duties. She ran a hand across the backrest of the metal chair as she went around to the other side; one last inspection before activating the teleportation device.
No one would've guessed that the fate of the entire project rested on that ordinary chair. The circuitry latching to the frame like vines to a brick wall, and the state-of-the-art control panels, transformed the simple piece of furniture into one impressive machine.
Edward pressed the TALK button for the second time. “Think of the risks-even the foremost authorities on the subject1 admit to having problems understanding the science behind teleportation!”
Wendy stopped adjusting the settings in the main control panel and picked up the headset (the only link between the icosahedron dome and the outside world) hanging from the right armchair. She adjusted the device over her head, extending the small microphone retracted into the casing of the left pad, and pushed the TALK button on the control panel. She breathed a deep, exasperated sigh before saying, “Stop pretending that you care, Edward.”
Wendy lifted her finger from the TALK button but not before offering her stunned husband one of her best glares.
”Foolish woman,” Edward told himself, shaking his head in utter frustration. Her indifference couldn't hide the sadness that had crept into her jade eyes.
Wendy sat on the chair. She opened her white lab coat and the first three buttons of her red silk shirt. She then took the wired sensors hanging from the armrests and began adhering them to her temples, and to her chest, right next to the heart. She raised her eyes to the observation room but refrained herself from looking at Edward. Her attention went to Alphonse who had just walked into the room. She pressed the TALK button on the control panel.
“Alphonse, Wallace is going to take over tonight's test-” Her eyes turned distant for a brief second before whispering, “I'm sorry.”
Alphonse’s expression darkened, clearly affected by the change in plans.
”Wendy, you can die!” Edward yelled into the intercom in hopes that she would listen to reason.
Dread suffused Edward’s eyes, infusing them with a vivid shade of marigold; Wendy cracked a rueful smile. She couldn't remember the last time her husband looked so alive, the irony of the moment was exquisite.
“Then I will be a nuisance to you,” she answered defiantly.
Wendy went back to the task at hand. She turned a dial on the control panel, changing the channel to another frequency.
"Wallace, is everything in working order?” She said into the microphone and nodded when Wallace replied. "Good,” she added while glancing at the expectant brothers. “Commence the countdown.”
Wendy changed the dial back to the previous channel. With her eyes fixed on her husband, she pressed the TALK button one last time.
"Edward, two large folders await you back at the estate. One folder contains divorce papers, which you're going to sign immediately after confirming that the experiment was a success.”
Wendy paused as a wave conflicting emotions tore through her. Lacking the right outlet to work through her emotions, she was left with no other choice but to train her eyes on the teleportation equipment. When Wendy sorted out her sentiments, she raised her eyes at Edward. She encountered deep hurt and her resolve wavered again. But it was normal for it to waver, she reminded herself because they had a long history together…
Wendy took in a deep breath, her expression hardened.
“The other folder contains my will-in case I don't make it to the other side,” she added and took the finger off the TALK button before changing the channel.
Wide-eyed and shaken, Edward stared at his estranged wife as he let out a shuddering breath. He was just starting to grasp the severity of the situation when the loud buzzing of the generators snapped him out of his train of thought. The entire room began vibrating as the dynamos reached maximum speed. It didn't take long for ozone to saturate the entire complex.
Edward peeled his eyes away from Wendy and directed his attention to Alphonse, who was just as affected by Wendy’s recklessness as he was. “Is there a way to cut power to the generators?” He asked, interrupting his bitter musings.
“I'm sorry, Brother. Dee took the liberty to block me out.” Alphonse’s expression turned dark, realizing the full extent of Wendy’s betrayal.
Edward wanted to pull at his hair. When everything was looking bleak, Edward somehow found hope. He had a plan-a reckless plan that is-which involved the destruction of expensive equipment (and the incurrence of jail time), a plan he was about to execute when a second alarm triggered. The hairs on his head stood on end meaning that the generators had reached one-hundred percent capacity. The bizarre sensation was enough reason for Edward to start breaking the machinery. He was ready to storm out of the observation room, and get himself into all kinds of trouble when his automail leg gave out on him. He lost all sense of balance and fell to the ground hard producing a loud thump when he hit the concrete.
“Ed!” Alphonse rushed to his brother’s side.
“Dammit! They won't respond!” Edward hissed, taking out his frustration on the automail leg by striking it with his left fist. He would've spared his knuckles the pain of hitting a solid object but his mechanical arm was out of commission.
“It’s probably the electromagnetism created by the generators,” Alphonse suspected. “The control room is the only room that's insulated-but I've never would have guessed a force like this would affect your automail.”
Edward extended his hand to Alphonse before letting out an exasperated sigh. "Please help me up, Al," he asked quite irritably, resigning himself to the challenges that come with being a double amputee.
And of course, Alphonse offered his brother a helping hand.
“It's a good thing that we keep sparring, Brother-” Alphonse mentioned as he wrapped his left arm around Edward's torso. He lifted him up. “Ugh-you're heavy!” Alphonse heaved. He was having a hard time adjusting to the cumbersome automail.
Edward scowled, uttering a “shut up” as he shifted his weight to his right leg.
With his Alphonse’s help, Edward limped his way to the glass pane. He looked down from above and noticed that Wendy wasn't looking well. Her skin had turned a sickly color and she was having difficulty breathing.
“That's not good-” Alphonse mumbled when he noticed her shallow breathing.
Edward frowned. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Alphonse flinched, realizing he had spoken aloud.
Edward’s stomach lurched when he saw a curtain of fear falling down on his younger brother’s face.
“She's going into shock, Ed,” Alphonse informed him, strong eyebrows pinching into a deep frown; Edward's eyebrows simultaneously pinched in horror.
“Stay here. I won't take long,” Alphonse uttered (mostly to himself) before turning on a heel and rushing out of the room, completely forgetting that his older brother had lost his freedom of movement.
But Edward wasn't going to stop his brother not if there was something he could do for Wendy. His eyes went back to his wife. He kept pushing away all unsettling thoughts, the ones screaming to his ear that he was going to witness his wife’s death that night.
The disturbing thoughts were overwhelmingly powerful. Edward began feeling giddy, a symptom of an impending panic attack. It was a sensation he hadn't felt since he sacrificed his own life for the sake of his brother’s back at the amphitheater of the Forbidden City.
Wendy's labored breathing brought him back to the nightmare of the present moment. His wife looked worse than she did minutes ago, her life was slipping away. Edward cursed. His inability to change the current outcome threatened to rip apart what little sanity was left in him. Desperation urged him to sprint into action. He had to try something-anything, Wendy’s life depended on it! But in his current condition, he couldn't do much, except-
Edward limped to the intercom. After getting the device ready with just one hand, he pressed the TALK button.
“Can you hear me, Dee?” He was shocked at how shaky and meek his voice had come out. He cleared his throat as he waited for a response that never came.
Wendy was entering in and out of consciousness, the battle for life crushed Edward in unexpected ways. He buried his face in his natural hand and clenched his jaw tight so he could stop the urge to cry.
“This is all my fault!” He hissed through clenched teeth blaming himself for all that was happening.
Wendy’s ear-piercing shriek snapped Edward out of his current guilt trip. His pupils contracted into pins as he witnessed the unthinkable. His wife had sunk into unconsciousness-he hoped that Wendy was unconscious and not dead. Her inert body and the chair she was resting on began vibrating. The oscillation was slow but began rising to a level of intensity that made everything inside the room impossibly blurred.
The knot in Edward’s stomach told him that the event was far from over.
The vibration continued its steady rise until it erased Wendy and the teleportation chair out of existence, leaving an empty space when the oscillation stopped.
Edward didn't feel the cold sting of automail as his hand covered his gaping mouth, he certainly didn't notice how he had regained full range of movement. In the overwhelming chaos reigning inside his head, Edward couldn't register that the generators had gone silent, only the most basic body functions were at work. His eyelids rebelled, refusing to blink as he stared at the spot where Wendy had been occupying seconds ago.
“Brother…” Alphonse tested as he entered the observation room.
Edward didn't hear him at first, he only reacted when the strong impression passed through. Their distressed gazes met; Edward let his hand slide down.
“Did she make it to the other side?” He asked, wishing for a glimmer of hope amidst tragedy.
Alphonse's foreboding silence chased it all away. His brow furrowed under the weight of what he needed to relay.
“Brother…Dee didn't arrive at the target point.”
Amestris, Continental Calendar July 8, 1919
The mattress dipped to one side as Winry got off. The springs didn't squeak loudly, just like the salesperson guaranteed her when she was mattress hunting. The new acquisition was large, larger than anything she’d ever seen, and it was perfect. The purchase gave Winry a reason to have the master bedroom renovated. Her grandmother-rest her soul-would've approved of the many alterations made to her house. She would've gladly welcomed all changes if it meant that her granddaughter was thinking of settling down to have a family of her own.
Winry went about the room, gracefully undulating her curvy hips as she skirted around the bedposts, approaching the blond man still lying in bed.
Instead of going to her man, Winry took a detour to the vanity chair where an Amestrian military uniform was struggling to keep itself from falling to the floor. She picked up the dress shirt out of the bunch and slid it over her shoulders, lazily covering her ample breasts as she buttoned the shirt halfway up. The day-worn shirt still looked pristine, hardly any wrinkles were in sight. The delicate balance between sweat and perfume made Winry feel as if strong arms were hugging her half-naked form.
A coy look told Winry that her man had been reveling in the moment. Slate eyes lit up when she put on the blue wool jacket.
“You look so damn sexy, Win.”
Winry smirked.
“Such indecency, Mister Tringham!” She exclaimed, looking appalled but secretly loving the compliment.
A playful wink encouraged him to get off the bed.
He captured the little tease and pressed his body against her back, wrapping his arms around her midsection. His lips brushed over her right cheek before he nuzzled his face into the contours of her milky neck.
“Oh, but it is true, Miss Rockbell.” He planted a kiss. “You can make a military jacket look sexy as hell.” The words ended tickling her skin, making her wiggle away from the embrace.
“Flattery will get you nowhere, Russell,” Winry cooed before giving him a smile.
“Is that so?” Russell recaptured Winry and slid his hands south until they reached her firm behind.
“I think it's a little too late for that, don't you think?” He offered as he groped Winry over her exquisite pair of lace panties.
Winry raised a thin eyebrow at Russell before tearing herself away from his loose hands. She returned to the side of the bed and sat.
“Are you referring to this?” Winry lifted her left hand high so he could (yet again) appreciate the engagement ring adorning her finger.
Russell’s smile reached his ears. “Of course, Winry. What else would I be referring to?” He’d proudly slid that diamond ring on her finger a little over a month ago.
Winry’s eyes crinkled at the corners as their gazes met. Genuine love was always present in his eyes, reassuring her that what he offered was real.
“I can't believe it,” Russell mentioned, his silly grin made her curious.
“What is it?”
“I can't believe the most beautiful and brightest woman in all Amestris said 'Yes' to me.”
Winry smirked playfully. “Well…what can I say? Talented, kind, and a great cook; I wasn't going to let a stud like you go.”
Russell snorted, amused by the light banter. “And here I thought you just wanted to marry a powerful alchemist.”
Winry rolled her eyes being more than accustomed to his brand of sarcasm. The boasting, however, didn't sit well with her. Russell was a State Alchemist, and while she had learned to tolerate this, she couldn't entirely hide her displeasure of being involved with someone in the military again especially when she had them to thank for the gifts of grief and resentment, sentiments which have left indelible marks in her life. Winry raised her ring to eye level, preferring to pour her attention on the beautiful diamond than on the painful past.
By the end of the year she was going to become Mrs. Tringham-maybe she'll convince Russell of the benefits gained by keeping her surname, “All in the name of the family business”, of course. Thinking about the upcoming nuptials reminded Winry of the colossal task of having everything ready for the big event. They needed to find a venue in Resembool-maybe the wedding should be celebrated in Rush Valley? With Granny gone, it didn't matter if they celebrated the wedding in her hometown. All her trusted friends lived Rush Valley. She could have Dominic walk her down the isle, and Paninya would be her maid of honor. Russell only had Fletcher as his immediate family so hosting a small group of people at the Automail Mecca wasn't going to pose a huge problem. Select military members were going to be invited because the Emerald Alchemist’s wedding was an event they wouldn't miss for the world.
Getting married and starting a family of her own has always been one of Winry’s biggest dreams, that and becoming a master automail engineer. Her career goals have been met and now she had committed herself to a serious relationship, having children would come next. At last, the broken pieces in her life were coming together, the happiness she always wanted was within reach.
Winry’s enthusiasm dimmed and she lowered her hand, her mind wandering. If she was more sincere with herself she could admit that complete happiness wasn't something she could reach. Her parents and grandmother weren't physically present to celebrate with her a new chapter in her life, but this doleful sentiment ran deeper. Winry always imagined herself sharing everything with her first true love-
“Thinking about him?” Russell’s scornful question interrupted her musings.
Out of the many things people can do to annoy her, jealousy ranked high on the list. Winry sighed, hating her future husband’s insecurities. There was an ocean between Russell and Edward, they simply were too different to be held under the same light, but Russell couldn't see it. To him, Edward would always cast a long shadow over everything and everyone he cares about.
“I wasn't,” Winry replied, shaking her head in mild irritation.
Having shared the same roof with Russell for over a year had taught her the value in telling white lies especially when tempering a truth made the difference between strengthening or breaking Russell’s self-esteem. Winry returned her full attention to the shimmering engagement ring. Lying was something that didn't come naturally to her, the lies always left behind a bitter aftertaste.
Winry waited for a beat before asking, “Is Fletcher coming over this weekend?”
It was a good thing that she didn't meet Russell’s face when she asked the question otherwise she would've been forced to confront his mortification. Changing the subject was her biggest defense mechanism and a guaranteed way of pissing off Russell when she used it on him.
His groan confirmed her suspicions; she had screwed up.
Blue eyes connected with slate-gray and a timid smile was cleverly used as a peace offering. Russell didn't even flinch, so a coquettish wink and a playful nudge were used on him next. Thankfully Russell wasn't good at holding grudges, he always surrendered to her charms. Now that the lines of communication were open, Winry moistened her lips readying herself to offer an apology.
"Russell, I'm-" An invisible force struck Winry like lighting.
Russell’s eyes widened in horror as they witness Winry gulping for air as if she was choking on something.
"I can't breathe-I can't-!" She gasped, wide-eyed, her voice straining.
Winry suddenly leaped out of bed, ripping off the military jacket as if it had caught on fire. It crashed on the floor with a heavy clack as the buttons, ribbons and insignias made contact with the wooden surface.
Russell, who had been too stunned to react, finally snapped out of his stupor when Winry’s panting transformed into a hideous wheeze.
In an act of sheer desperation, Winry turned on a heel and got out of the room like a bat out of hell.
Russell cussed at himself for not having put his clothes on when he had the chance, now he was scurrying about the room looking for something to wear so he could go after Winry. He could hear her bumping against the walls as he put his military pants on. His fumbling hands tried to zip up his pants while discarding the waist cape as he flew downstairs.
The smacking coming from the kitchen alerted Russell of Winry’s whereabouts. He entered the place only to find the back door flapping in the tepid summer wind.
The first thing Russell saw when he swung the door open was a curtain of buttery blonde hair hiding Winry’s face. She was hunched over with hands on knees, her chest heaving.
Den approached his master, whimpering. His perky ears flattened against his head and his tail hid between his legs as he sniffed her. Russell noted the canine lowered its snout to the ground and that's when he noticed a large puddle of vomit. He took one step forward, and as he did, he caught Den backing away from Winry. A terrible feeling began forming in the pit of his stomach.
“Winry!” He called out to her, but she acted as if she hadn't heard him.
For some unknown reason, Winry took off, waddling towards the main road with the grace of a drunken man.
Russell went after her. As he trotted downhill, he noticed her stopping. Out of nowhere, the ground began to oscillate. A loud crackle ripped through the evening sky before everything began shaking violently.
"What in the hell-!" He cried out as he tried to maintain his balance on the unstable terrain.
Winry’s agonizing shriek reached the heavens just as a transmutation circle began carving itself on the ground beneath her feet.
Russell staggered and faltered but he did his best to reach Winry, who collapsed face forward on the field. Up close, he could see an intricate array surrounding her body. The earth shook violently again.
Jaws of blue light raised from the ground up engulfing Winry’s inert body.
Static discharges began licking his body. The pain was so intense that he had to backtrack to a safer place. He was about to call out to Winry when the blue light flickered and disappeared.
The bizarre event was over.
It took Russell some seconds to recover his sight, and when he did, his jaw dropped. Winry was no longer laying on top of the transmutation circle. He looked around, foolishly hoping to find Winry safe and sound, but she was nowhere to be found.
Then it dawned on him, to his dismay, that the strange transmutation circle was his only companion on the grassy field.
Earth, January 8, 1940, A.D - Twenty Minutes After The Experiment Was Completed
A cacophony of sounds surrounded Edward. To his left, the Z3’s2 beeped and blinked as they chug out row after row of numbers in hopes that the output could somehow provide the answers to the whereabouts of his missing wife. To his right, Alphonse was chewing out Wallace’s head for not stopping the test when Wendy clearly showed signs of distress. The loud racket conspired with his pounding headache to make him feel worse than what he already felt. Edward did his best to drown most of the noise surrounding him by simply ignoring it. His ears did perk up when Wallace spoke of the team’s courageous efforts in trying to stop the generators from reaching maximum capacity. His heart was stabbed all over again when he discovered that Alphonse’s code wasn't the only one that had been rendered useless. It looked like Wendy had broken all rules with her reckless actions.
But why? Edward mumbled to himself as he slumped in the only unoccupied chair inside the control room.
Edward folded his arms over his chest and closed his eyes so he could concentrate regardless of the pounding in his head. He went over the events that had taken place that night trying to find clues as to why Wendy pressed on with fucking experiment when all the data collected so far proved that more testing was needed before experimenting with live subjects. His lips curled into a deep frown as his thoughts led him back to the present moment. What Wendy did to her team (and to him in a way) didn't make sense. The sheer disregard for human life, it was as if-
She knew she wasn't going to make it… Edward tried to block the unsettling thought out of his head, but it was too late.
A profound sense of loss tortured his wretched soul. In an instant, he was forced to revisit old memories and buried sentiments, the misery he felt when he discovered that the Gate had spit him back to Earth replayed vividly in his mind. The unpleasantness of the past threatened to shake the delicate balance he had managed to reach with the aid of questionable methods. Edward shook his head, he needed to stay focused and in the moment and leave all traumas in the past. He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply. As he exhaled, he went over everything that’s happened in the recent past, including Wendy’s accusations against him as she strapped herself to the dangerous device. Why is it we only think about our actions when someone gets hurt?
Signs of desperation (of deep hurt) had been there all along, he just was too apathetic (too much of a coward) to acknowledge them. Edward’s face scrunched as he tried to suppress the guilt that wanted to crush him like the insignificant insect he was.
What hurt the most is that the respective authorities were going cut their loses by ruling out Wendy’s recklessness as suicide. Her legacy forever stained by her tragic ending.
“Omega point to Alpha point, come in Alpha point.”
Everyone in the control room went silent as the message crackled through the radio.
“Omega point to Alpha point, come in Alpha point-please come in Alpha point.”
There was a drop of distress in the call.
Alphonse's mouth hung open for a beat, his hand hovering over the device’s TALK button. He had been expecting (as did everyone else) a call from the Target Site. Alphonse cleared his throat before pressing the button.
“This is Von Elric at Alpha point. What's your 10-36?”3 Alphonse let go of the button.
Edward, who had been wallowing in guilt and sorrow, opened his eyes and sat straight. His eyes flickered expectantly as he exchanged looks with his younger brother. Like everyone else, he held his breath while waiting for a response from the Target Site. The team didn't have to wait long to receive a response.
“At 2139 hours, the systems activated on their own and…” The pause injected everyone with suspense. “We extracted a subject from the landing pad.”
Alphonse released the breath that he had been holding in his chest. He pressed the radio button. “Can you 10-13 that last part?”
“We extracted a subject from the landing pad, over.”
Edward left the relative comfort of the chair to join his brother.
“10-16 ASAP,” Alphonse ordered, raking his hand through his short hair in nervous agitation.
The telephone rang, Wallace picked up the call, handing the receiver to Alphonse.
“Alphonse Von Elric speaking.”
Edward’s eyebrows tensed at his brother’s husky voice; fear was a powerful force.
Alphonse shot a glance at his brother before continuing, “I need full details about the subject mentioned over the radio.”
The loud thumping in his ears muffled what was being discussed over the telephone. It didn't matter, Alphonse would repeat what he didn't pick up on the conversation.
Alphonse’s hazel eyes flitted nervously from the CRT screen 4 located in front of him to Edward and back again. A beat later, his shoulders tensed. He offered Edward a worried look before turning his back on him.
“You're saying that the subject is not Dr. Rockwell-? Okay-okay, I'll be right over in twenty.”
Alphonse handed the telephone receiver back to Wallace then dragged a hand down his face. He sighed long and hard before turning around to meet Edward’s hopeful expression.
“A Jane Doe materialized on the landing pad instead of Wendy.”
Edward’s golden eyes widened in astonishment; Alphonse shook his head in response, he too couldn't fully comprehend what was happening.
“I'm heading over to the target site to assess the situation,” he mentioned to Edward in a tired voice.
Edward’s expression hardened. Whatever had happened at the Target Site was something he needed to confront.
“You're taking me with you.”
The Target Site was in a classified location, not that it mattered, because Edward wasn't going to take a “No” for an answer.
“Wouldn't have it any other way, Brother.” Alphonse offered Edward his sympathy in the form of a kind smile. Then he turned to his assistant, “Wallace, please call the guard gate. We need a car stat.”
The ride to the Target Site was filled with copious amounts of tension, peppered with anxiety. Edward was at least thankful that it had stopped raining.
Alphonse came to an abrupt stop in front of the secret facility. He pulled on the hand lever so hard that the parking mechanism cried from the exerted force.
They exchanged irritated looks as they waited for the guards to finish running the security protocols. They both had to wait like schmucks, even when the two guards who were inspecting them were on the same basketball team as Alphonse. The irritating experience let Edward know that only a select few knew of the Target Site. Once they were properly ID’ed, they rushed inside the secret facility.
The Target Site was a maze of military tents with some domes thrown into the mix. The temporary constructions were setup so they would interlink. A large passageway connected the maze to the entrance of an old brick building, a rundown leftover from Colonial times.
Edward knew that looks were deceiving, especially when the military was involved. He had a good hunch that he was going to find a world of technological marvels inside the dilapidated structure.
They were both heading to the run-down building when a woman sporting a white lab coat crossed their path.
"Where's the Jane Doe?" Alphonse asked her. He was pretty confident that by now everyone knew about the mysterious woman.
The researcher pointed to the left and not forward as Edward had assumed. He missed his chance to see what was inside the old building.
The brothers had to cross a few tents and connecting passageways before reaching the medical ward, the one that was erected in case of emergencies such as the current one. A young medic saluted Alphonse before granting him access to the infirmary.
Unfortunately, Edward's civilian status prevented him from going inside.
Only a few seconds had passed by when Edward heard Alphonse gasp in shock.
"No…there's no way-!"
Whatever was unraveling inside the infirmary must've been quite unsettling for Alphonse to have sounded so affected.
Silence followed a telltale sign that something was horribly wrong.
A thousand things went through Edward’s head in the few minutes he waited in front of the infirmary-all were grim.
Edward paced back and forth waiting for Alphonse to come outside. Any moment now… He repeated the thought in his head like a broken record.
No sound or movement was heard in the infirmary. Edward clenched his fists so hard that the knuckles in one hand turned white while the bolts in the other whined. As if the chaos of that night hadn't been enough, the suspense of not knowing what was happening inside the room consumed what little patience he had left.
He couldn't wait any longer.
“I'm sorry,” Edward said, shoving the medic to the side and storming his way inside the infirmary.
Golden eyes widened in surprise as they settled upon the unconscious woman laying on the stretcher. Edward’s heart hammered hard in his chest realizing he was face-to-face with his beloved childhood friend.
“Why is Winry here-she shouldn't be here!” Edward roared, his voice stricken with panic and confusion.
Winry crossing to their side of the Gate…Edward shook his head in vehement denial.
“What the fuck is going on?” He asked, searching his brother’s face for a reasonable answer because the set of events that led to this moment defied all logic.
"I don't know, Ed," Alphonse uttered, his eyes shifting from Edward to Winry, frowning.
Edward let out a shuddering breath; things had just gone from bad to worse.
References
1 A reference to quantum mechanics and the people who contributed to it one way or another. Edward’s words refer to men like Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Weiner Heisenberg, Erwin Schrödinger, among others. (Source: Wikipedia).
2 The Z3 was an electromechanical computer designed by Konrad Zuse. It was the world's first working programmable, fully automatic digital computer. (Source: Wikipedia).
3 Ten-codes, officially known as ten signals, are brevity codes used to represent common phrases in voice communication. These were developed in 1937 and expanded in 1974. (Source: Wikipedia).
4 The first commercially made electronic television sets with cathode ray tubes were manufactured by Telefunken in Germany in 1934. (Source: Wikipedia).