[zombie] How Not to Fight a Zombie 1
Second of the zombie apocalypse fic submissions!
How Not To Fight A Zombie
Fic Rating: PG-1
Pairings: implied Ed/OC
Spoilers: set after episode 12, and before 13, so if you haven't seen 1-12, why are you even reading this?
Warnings: 31 pages... enough said.
The crimson sun beamed down on the train as it glided along the railroad tracks. Inside it, Edward and Alphonse sat in silence. The search for the Philosopher's Stone carried on with no luck, as usual, and Ed knew his report to Mustang was due soon. All these failures were surely going to get him an earful of insults from the colonel, although this wouldn't come as a surprise to either of them.
In dread of the upcoming report, Ed lay back on his seat, trying to get a moments peace while he could. Alphonse stared out the window, the only thing his empty suit of armor would allow him to do. Their silence continued for most of the train ride. Only when the voices of a couple sitting in the seats behind Ed began to speak was the silence broken.
"I'm a bit nervous 'bout going back to Deadwood," a low voice stated, his tone matching his words. Ed hadn't been sleeping, but he heard this and chose to ignore it, keeping to his own business.
"Why is that?" a woman's voice responded softly.
The man's voice now took an ominous tone. "It's all the attacks on the town."
This, however, perked Ed's interest. Al obviously heard this too. After an exchange of glances with him, Ed sat up and leaned over the seat. "What attacks?" he asked, examining the middle-aged man who did not seem very happy to know that someone was eavesdropping.
Al, however, noticed the man's irritation, and hurried to his brother's side. "Sorry about my brother, he's a bit… rude," he laughed nervously, hoping to not anger his brother. Ed responded with a glare.
"Deadwood has been having all these strange attacks. The first attack wasn't really serious... just a slaughtered cow. The local police figured it was just some stupid prank. But steadily more and more dead cows were found… each with their heads were cut right off." He made sure to emphasize the fact by imitating a sliced throat.
Al made a small sound of disgust while Ed merely scoffed. "So what? There's probably a perfectly logical explanation for it. Did they check with a local butcher?"
The woman nodded in agreement. "He's right, maybe it's all just a misunderstanding."
The man shook his head and smirked. "According to what I heard, the heads were ripped right off. Nothing human has that kind of power."
The man seemed to think he was scaring them, which Ed found slightly amusing. He'd surely seen worse things than anything in a dumb ghost story. "I still don't see the big deal. Sure, it sucks for the farmer, but it's only a bunch of cows."
"It started with the cattle, but now there's rumor of these things raiding the town at night… stealing, kidnapping, and maybe a few fatalities."
Ed raised an eyebrow. "Maybe? How do they not know if they're dead?"
"When nothing but a trail of blood is left," he smirked with satisfaction, noticing that his tale was at least scaring Al, who half-way ducked behind the seat.
The blond's eyebrow rose slightly. "Didn't anyone think to follow the trails? Wouldn't that lead them right to the bodies?"
The man now frowned, his fun being ruined. "I guess no one was ever brave enough to look."
"Not even the police?" It was Ed who was left smirking.
The man gave him a half-hearted shrug. "Don't ask me, kid."
The woman swallowed hard, looking as if she was now regretting coming on the trip. "So what do they think it is?"
"You really want to know?" His mischievous tone sent a shiver down her spine.
Al nodded. "Yes, tell us."
He grinned evilly, again satisfied with their interest "Well… the townsfolk seem to think it's … zombies."
Al let out a small whimper. "Zombies?!"
The man nodded.
"Spare me the ghost stories, old man," Ed said, crossing his arms. "There is no such thing as zombies."
"Well it makes sense. Zombies eat brains and flesh, and it’s the heads that are gone and the humans that are disappearing."
Ed rolled his eyes. "Sounds like a crazed serial killer to me."
"Well you get your punk ass out there and follow those trails then… and when he-" the man motioned to Al "-comes back saying they ate your brains, we'll see who was right."
"Yeah… we will see," Ed stated as he returned to his seat, arms still tightly crossed.
"Uh…" Al glanced from his brother, to the woman, and back to the man. "Thanks for… warning us." He then turned and sat next to Edward.
"Oh please… zombies? That's so unscientific…," Ed muttered to himself.
"So what do you think, brother? Do you really think it's zombies attacking the town?" Al questioned, still a bit shaken from the grisly story.
Ed turned to him, a frown planted on his face. "Don't be stupid, Al, of course it's not." His face fell as he turned to look out the window. "We both know the dead can't come back to life."
A silence fell over the boys. Neither of them needed a verbal reminder of their nearly fatal mistake. The physical evidence was painful enough. "So what is it then?"
Ed shrugged. “I don't know,” another sigh escaped from him, "but I suppose we should check it out…."With that, Ed laid himself back down in the seat. Al wondered what it was that was causing such grief in Deadwood, but didn't want to bother Ed with any more questions. Traveling so much really took a toll on his brother, unlike himself, so he tried not to burden him any further. Still, he could tell the thoughts were racing in Edward's mind just by his concentrated expression.
The sun was nearly down by the time they reached Deadwood. The train’s smoke clouded the air above it, making it appear darker than it should be. Not quite the most welcoming sign after the information the boys had received while on the train.
"What now, brother?" Al asked, looking around the small town.
Ed shrugged. "I guess we'll just have to find an inn and see if anyone has seen anything."
"Right," Al said with a nod.
The two walked around town for a little while, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Finally finding an inn, Ed led the way inside. The main room was a bit small compared to some of the other hotels they'd been to. Having never heard of Deadwood before, Ed figured it must not be a popular tourist attraction, especially now with such rumors spreading.
A bright-eyed brunette greeted them at the check-in desk. "Welcome to the Deadwood Inn, would you like to check-in?"
"Uh, yeah," Ed answered, slightly irked with the stupid question. Why else would he be there?
She glanced up at them as she flipped through a notebook. "So what brings you to Deadwood? I can't say there's much to see here."
Ed and Al exchanged glances. The woman noticed this and laughed. "Are you interested in the zombies too?"
The door behind her creaked open, as a man pushed through it with a box in his hands. "That's all we've been getting lately… people calling themselves 'zombie hunters'… a crock of shit if you ask me,” he said as he dropped the box on the ground in the corner.
She shot him a dirty look for using foul language in front of their guests, but soon returned to her writing "Is that what you two are?" she asked.
Ed couldn't help but snort. "…No.”
The man now looked over at them. "So what are you here for?"
"Oh, don't be so nosy, Fred!" she scolded.
Fred smiled sweetly. "I was only trying to make small talk, Lisa."
Lisa rolled her eyes before turning back to the Elrics. "Now… what were your names?"
"I'm Edward Elric," he stated in his usual somewhat boastful manner. "And this is my brother, Alphonse."
Al gave a small wave. "Hi."
She nodded in return and wrote the names in her book. "Alright then… you're in room four," she said as she walked out from behind the desk, and lead them down a hall. "Here we are…," after opening the door, she handed Ed the keys and gave them another smile. "Enjoy your stay!"
Al nodded and entered the room, but before Ed could do so, she tapped his arm. "By the way… I do suggest you stay inside once it gets dark. Something funny has been going on around here, and I'd hate to see something happen to a couple of nice boys like you."
"Oh, don't worry about us, we'll be fine." Ed smiled at her. Her thick, brown hair and constant worry reminded him of his own mother, but at the reminder of why he and Al were really in Deadwood, he quickly shoved the thoughts aside.
Lisa gave him a final nod and left towards the main room again. Ed entered the room, setting his suitcase down on the ground and immediately walked over to the bed to lie down. Al had taken a seat on the couch, trying not to move so that his loud armor wouldn't disturb Edward.
Ed eventually dozed off, his quiet snore being the only sound, it seemed to Al, in the entire town. Soon enough, even his snore died away, leaving Al in the eerie silence of the night.
The next morning, Ed and Al set out to search the town. They roamed the streets, seeing children playing in their yards, neighbors standing around talking and laughing… nothing out of the ordinary. If anything were strange, it'd be how normal the town was. But thinking too soon, a shrilly scream rang through their ears.
"What the-?" Ed darted towards the sound, finding a gray-haired woman standing in front of her barn, horrified. "What happened?"
She slowly raised her finger and pointed inside the barn. Ed walked over to her and turned his head to look inside. The sight made Ed grimace as well. In the barn lay another cow, its head ripped off, with a puddle of blood surrounding it. He took a few steps toward it, using the sleeve of his jacket to protect his nose from the rancid smell. But as he neared it, he noticed a trail of blood, along with two sets of footprints. Ed's eyes darted from the trail of cow’s blood, to the footprints, and finally to the side door of the barn, realizing that one of the sets turned into a trail of two lines following the first set.
Ed spun around, quickly running up to the woman. "Do you usually milk the cow or does someone else?"
The woman blinked. "Wha- what?"
"Who else lives here?" His voice seemed a bit panicked, Al noticed.
"Well, my son- but I don't know where he went off to-" She stopped mid-sentence, realizing the possible fate of her son.
Ed cursed under his breath and sprinted off, following the trail.
"Brother! Wait!" Al called after him. "You stay with her, Al!" Ed called back, at such a distance now that Al could barely hear him.
The woman now started to sob. "You don't think- that my son is…,"
Al sighed and turned to her. "Don't worry… my brother will take care of it."
She looked up at him. "Are you sure? He's a small one…"
Al couldn't help but laugh, although he swore he could hear a faint but still familiar angry rant.
---
Edward was running as fast as his shor- he cursed himself for almost thinking it- legs would allow him. The woman's son was surely in danger, and figuring that most farmers go to milk their cows sometime near sunrise, he might have a chance to save the poor sucker. But from what exactly did the kid need saving? He pushed the thought of dealing with another killer out of his mind. Barry had been enough for him in his lifetime.
Ed watched the trail, which now led onto smooth grass rather than the dirt road like before. The tracks were becoming harder to follow, and by now the blood from the cow had been washed away by the previous night’s rainfall. The only clue he had left to follow was the separation of the grass from the son's feet being dragged, and even that wasn't easy to follow. After running for a bit, Ed stopped to catch his breath, and looked around. The trail was completely gone by now. He twisted his head around, searching for any clues to where they could've gone from here. Ed found himself in the middle of a giant field, a heavily wooded forest surrounding it. He continued on, walking now, through the forest. It was too silent for Ed's taste. There weren't birds chirping, or rabbits hoping around… not one squirrel in sight.
"That's reassuring,” Ed muttered to himself. Straight ahead, he could now see an opening from the woods. He picked up his speed again and ran towards it. The breach led to another field, where a nicely sized house sat on the edge.
He raised his eyebrow again. A house of that size in the middle of nowhere was a bit suspicious, considering the circumstances. Ed examined the long, two-story house. It was covered in brick, it had small windows with their shades closed, and the yard looked as if it hadn't been trimmed in years. The sound of a snapped twig behind him caused him to stop dead in his tracks. Without warning, a horrid odor filled his nostrils, triggering his reflex to cough.
"What the--?" he began, only to be cut off by a blow to the back of his head.
Edward awoke a few hours later, finding himself in a nearly pitch black room. His arms were tied behind his back, though his hands were free to move around.
"Great," he muttered to himself, working his way to stand up.
"Hello? Who's there?" a boy’s voice asked.
Ed blinked, realizing he wasn't the only one in the room, and clapped his hands, untransmuting the ropes from his arms. While the blue light shone through the room, he glanced over, seeing a teenager sitting tied as well.
"Hold on just a second, I'll get us out of here," Ed answered, transmuting the rope to connect to the wall, giving more light to see where he was. Taking the rope, he guided himself along the wall and down to his fellow hostage. The light lit the room up again, untying him, and connecting his rope to Ed's.
"Take the rope and follow it, got it?"
The boy nodded, but realizing no one could see, he responded. "Yeah."
The rope fell into his hands as Ed pulled his rope up to the wall he had been sitting against, and knocked on it. It was made of some sort of cement-like material, meaning that either it was cinder blocks or the same brick as the house was made of. Hoping that it was the wall to the outside, Ed quickly clapped his hands together, and transmuted a hole through the wall. The sunlight showered in, blinding them both. This wasn't going to stop Ed from making sure this kid -he kept calling him that, even though he was probably the same age as Ed was- got home safely," he grabbed his arm and pulled him out, running as soon as he was sure he hit grass. Soon both boys were sprinting towards the woods.
"I'm Chris, by the way," the boy said as they darted around the trees that now blocked their path.
"Edward, call me Ed," Ed replied. He could feel Chris's eyes glancing at him in between the trees.
"You're not from around here, are you?" he finally said as he ducked under a branch.
Ed jumped to the left, out of the way of a thorn bush. "No, now come on. Less talking, more running."
"Why?" Chris turned to check if they were behind him. "They're not following us." He turned back around, only to run into another branch. Seeing this, Ed grabbed his sleeve and pulled him out of the way just in time.
"Would you watch where you're going?!" Ed snapped.
"Sorry! I was just-" He stopped mid-sentence and sniffed, a look of pure disgust planted on his face. "Ugh! What is that smell?"
Ed, smelling it too, stopped, and bent down to his knees.
"What're you doing?!" Chris yelled at him, a couple feet away from him.
"Just go! I'll catch up!" Ed clapped his hands firmly together and then pressed them into the muddy ground. The ground flew up along the side, causing a six-foot-tall fence to form, stretching as far as he could see? "That'll hold them off." He stood back up and turned, surprised to see Chris still standing there.
Ed rolled his eyes and continued his run. "I told you to run!"
"You can do alchemy?" Chris ran alongside him, keeping his eyes on the path in front of him, but glancing over occasionally.
"I'll explain later!" Ed hollered to him through clenched teeth. He resented the comment, though he knew that was everyone’s first thought upon meeting Ed.
The boys continued to run, coming across another field and another set of woods, before running into the familiar giant suit of metal armor.
"Al!"
Al turned. "Brother!" He ran to meet them.
Chris raised an eyebrow. "Brother?"
"Where have you been, Ed? You've been gone for over two hours." Al stared down at him worriedly.
"I don't know, I was chasing his tracks when I came up to this house in the middle of nowhere, and the next thing I know, I'm in some basement."
"Are you alright? Did they hurt you?"
Ed smiled slightly. "Al, calm down, I'm fine. Jeez, you'd think you were the older brother!"
Chris opened his mouth to question, but Al waved his hands furiously, an obvious warning. He shut his mouth again. Al sighed, relieved; the fewer outbursts from Edward, the better.
Ed was leading the way by a few feet by now. "Are you coming?"
They quickly walked the rest of the way to the boy's home. Chris's mother ran out to greet her son, wrapping him in a tight hug.
"Mom! Knock it off!" Chris whined, trying to push his mother off of him. She continued to hug him tight, muttering 'what-ifs,' as usual.
Ed smiled sadly. He'd give anything to have his mother do that to him again. Both Elrics glanced at each other then turned to walk away.
"Wait-" the woman said, noticing they were leaving. The boys turned to look at her. "Thank-you…" she struggled to remember if he mentioned his name.
"I’m Edward Elric, and this is my brother, Alphonse."
Chris' eyes widened. "Edward Elric the State Alchemist?"
Ed hesitated, not realizing anyone out this far would have even heard of him. "Uh, yeah…"
"What the heck are you doing way out here?" he asked, only to receive a whack on the head from his mother. "Hey! What was that for?"
"That's none of your business." She turned to them and smiled. "I'm sorry about him… now you be sure to tell me if there's anything I can do to repay you for bringing my Chris home safely."
Al laughed. "No need. We’re happy to help."
She replied with a warm smile. "Thank you again."
Ed nodded and walked away.
"It feels good." Ed glanced up at Al, who seemed to be in a good mood. “to help people, I mean. Did you see how happy she was? I'm just glad… do you remember the one time we got lost when we ran too far from home? And Mom was so worried that she was out all night looking for us?"
Ed laughed. "We couldn't leave the house unless she told us to for two weeks… that wasn't too long before we started reading his alchemy books."
Al frowned. Again, Ed refused to call 'him' Dad, or even Hohenheim. Al wasn't sure Ed would ever get over such a grudge. Then again, he had a good reason to be angry.
"Does it strike you as odd that they know my name all the way out here?" Ed asked, contemplating whether this was a good or bad thing.
Al shrugged. "Gossip can spread fast, and we're not that far from Xenotime.”
Ed stretched, leaving his arms folded behind his head. "I guess… right now I just want to get to that diner we passed. I'm starving."
The two found themselves a seat inside the restaurant. Ed grabbed the menu and began scanning it, also noticing that everyone's eyes were on them. It was common, especially for Al, to have people stare. They weren’t exactly the most inconspicuous people when it came to small towns such as Deadwood. A pretty blonde greeted them with a bright smile.
"Hi, my name’s Gloria, and I’ll be your waitress for the evening. Can I get you anything to drink?" She continued to smile at them. Them, of course, meaning Ed.
Ed hadn't noticed. He had more important things on his mind than a giggly blonde. "A water," he replied flatly.
"Alright, and you?" she said as she took her chance to examine Al.
He shook his head. "I'm fine."
"Okay, I'll be back shortly."
Shortly was an understatement. The waitress had been in and back out within seconds, completely ignoring her other customers, though the others were too busy whispering to each other and looking over at the Elrics to mind.
"Here you go…," she carefully set the glass down. "Are you ready to order?" she asked in a cutesy, almost vomit-inducing way as she opened her notebook and readied her pencil.
Ed continued scanning the menu, before ordering. She quickly scribbled it down, taking a moment to flash her eyelashes at him, though she pouted when Ed chose to ignore her, and scurried off into the kitchen.
Al laughed slightly, noticing this.
Ed glanced from the menu to him and back. “What?”
“You didn’t notice the waitress trying to flirt with you?”
Ed blinked. Flirting? he thought, watching as Gloria walked back in with his plate, but as she set it down, her arm hit his glass of water, knocking it over and spilling all over him.
"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry." She scrambled to get napkins and began dabbing at his shirt. "I'm such a klutz!" Ed looked up at her twinkling green eyes, and noticed she was blushing. Feeling his eyes on her, she looked up to him, her face only a foot away from his. He shifted uncomfortably under her stare. Quickly noticing this, she blushed deeper. Leaving the stack of napkins, she promptly fled back to the kitchen again.
Ed sat up straight and looked to his brother. "I see your point,” he replied, sounding irritated.
Edward quickly ate his dinner, wanting to get out from under the uncomfortable gaze of Gloria, who, even behind the counter, continued to stare at him.
The moon now shined down upon them as they walked back to the inn. Ed, who had his arms crossed tightly across his chest, glared at the road in front of him. Ed liked being the center of attention, sure, but not when it was the attention of a giggly girl. Al noticed this and laughed.
"What?" Ed snapped.
Al snickered. "It's just… you should be used to girls by now, brother."
"The girls I know were never like that." Ed's hands were now at his side, balled into fists.
Al still couldn't help himself from laughing. "You don't pay much attention to them, but they sure do pay attention to you."
Edward rolled his eyes. "They do not."
"Do so." Al retorted.
"Do not!"
The battle of 'do not's and 'do so's continued for the majority of the walk to the inn, each answer being said a different way than before. Even as teenagers the two bickered like five year olds. Knowing how stubborn his brother was, and knowing he'd never admit it, Al finally gave in.
"Fine, Ed."
"Do no-" Ed caught himself and smiled smugly. "… yeah, that's what I thought." Al sighed. Edward really needed to learn how to act his age.
Ed slowed his pace until he had come to a stop. Al turned, giving him a quizzical look. He sniffed a moment before looking to his brother. "I smell smoke."
Al looked up into the sky, seeing black smoke coming from a couple blocks behind them. "Brother! Look!" But Edward was already running. Alphonse chased after him. The smoke was coming from the same diner they had just left. A few men stood outside, watching the flames light up the indigo sky. Ed ran up to the nearest man.
"What happened?!" he demanded frantically.
The man yelled over the roar of the flames. "We don't know!"
"Is anyone inside?"
The man shrugged. "There might be, whoever was in the back might've gotten out the door, but-" he didn't have a chance to finish. Edward and Alphonse had already jolted towards the door. "Hey, wait! You can't-" he called after them, but it was too late.
Edward squinted through the smoke, in search of movement. "Is anyone in here?"
"Over here!" a woman's voice called from a back room. The boys chased after the sound of her voice, to a closed door. Edward reached to open it, when suddenly a heavy support beam collapsed from the ceiling.
"Brother, look out!" Al said as he pulled Ed out of the way. Ed coughed as the smoke and dust of fallen beam filled his lungs. Al picked up the beam and used it to break open the door. Inside, Gloria laid unconscious on the floor, an older blonde woman hovering over her.
"Hurry!" Al shouted as he helped her up, then carefully picked up Gloria.
Ed clapped his hands together, making a hole in the wall ahead of them for a quick escape. Suddenly feeling someone’s eyes on him, she turned to see a shadowed figure run into the next room. "Al! Get them out of here! I think I just saw someone else!"
"Be careful!" Al yelled after him before fleeing himself.
Ed darted around the falling debris, calling as loud as he could before having another coughing fit. He'd have to be fast or he would go down with the restaurant, though that was the last thing on his mind as he pushed through the doorways.
He fought his way to where he saw the shadow run, only to find a girl leaning against a wall, coughing. "Hang on!" he called, watching as she fell to her knees. Ed ran over to her and lifted her up. "We need a way out,” he muttered to himself as he glanced around, seeing another door. Figuring that was the door which led to door to the outside, he felt a thrill of hope, but then sighed, watching as the flames slowly began to spread under the door. He then glanced backwards from which he came, he noticed with relief that the fire had not yet penetrated into the kitchen, but watched as the smoke snaked under the door and the debris, contaminating the air.
Once finished her coughing fit, the girl turned to look up at him, and before he could say anything else, she grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to the floor. A large, masculine figure stood above them, a thick, wooden beam in hand. It raised the beam above his head and swung. Seeing him, Ed grabbed onto the girl, rolling them both out of the way before being struck. They both sat up quickly, staring at the figure with wide eyes.
"What're you doing?!" Ed screamed at it. But it seemed to ignore him, and continued staggering forward towards them. Behind it, the tall, thin shadow Ed had seen before ran by, and out the door before he could get a better look at who it was. Though, Ed was more concerned with the thing coming at him, rather than the thing running out the door. The fire was now spreading closer, shining bright and hot, allowing Ed to look closer at the figure that lurched nearer to them. Its broad shoulders and muscular build shadowed down on them. A man? he thought, squinting through the smoke. No… The light shone against its skin, showing it to be pale white, a few green and brown smudges freckling it. His hair was long and disgusting, as were his fingernails. And then such an overpowering smell of rotted carcass filled Ed's lungs that he coughed again. Now there were four figures closing in on them, all looking more disgusting than the other. The girl grabbed a frying pan that sat beside her, and chucked it at the closest body. The side of the pan struck the neck with such force that it completely decapitated it. The body fell to the ground with a thud, sending the head rolling. All forms turned to watch, as did Ed and the girl. Is it dead? Ed wondered, watching it intently. But suddenly, did it just-?! Ed's eyes widened further as the body sat up, using its hands to feel around for the head. The girl let out a shrill scream as she pushed herself farther away from them.
The fire had now spread to the kitchen floor, inching it’s way towards the figures. They all groaned, as the white hot flame touched their opaque skin. Ed watched with amazement, as they turned and -literally- ran through the wall, causing it to collapse behind them.
Ed grabbed the girl and pulled her up with him. "We need to get out of here… now." He clapped his hands and placed them to the wall nearest him, forming a hole. The two jumped through it just in time, escaping the falling ceiling behind them. The two watched as the wall collapsed in front of them.
The girl sighed in relief and then turned to Ed, her blue eyes full of questions. "What the hell just happened?"
Ed glanced back at the restaurant. "We escaped from a flaming diner."
She blinked. "But what about-"
He interrupted her with a shake of his head. Now that she thought about it, it would sound completely crazy to anyone but themselves. Either way, this was going to be investigated. Whether it by these stranger heroes or herself, she knew what really happened and knew something odd was going on.
With a slight laugh, she stood up, giving Ed a hand up as well. "I'm Roxy, by the way."
"Edward Elric," he responded in return.
She crossed her arms and smirked, letting out a slight ‘hm’. He opened his mouth to ask, but was cut off by an unnerving groan. The two spun around, seeing the group of rotted figures, once again, coming their way.
Roxy rushed to pick up a piece of stray, sharp from being snapped in half, wood and swung it at them. One groaned louder, making her jump. Instinctively, they grabbed the wood also pulling her into them. Ed grabbed her wrist to pull her away, but was only pulled right into their arms as well. The horrid smell made him want to puke, but he held it in as they bent his arm back, forcing him forward. Considering how easy the other's head came off, these things were strong.
The grimy hands of those holding Edward and Roxy clamped tightly onto their arms, nearly digging into their skin. Kicking and thrashing, the two fought against the tight hold, in an attempt to free them, but to no avail. Edward stopped, deciding to save his energy for the right moment, but Roxy continued. Fed up with her constant squirming one of the bigger forms struck her in the back of the head, knocking her out upon impact. The one holding Ed had been distracted by the sound, and taking the chance, Ed clapped his hands together, forming his auto-mail blade. In a few swift movements, he was able to cut the hands of his captor as well as Roxy's, catching her on the way down. The pairs of hands writhed like worms on the ground in front of him and he transmuted large spikes, sending them through the middles of the other beings.
"Brother?" Ed turned to see Al clanking towards them, but as he turned back, the group of figures had vanished. "Are you okay?" Al asked, now standing above him.
Ed blinked, staring at the empty space where they had been, before replying. "Yeah, I'm alright."
Al then looks down to the girl lying on the ground. "She's not- is she…?"
"No, she just got hit," Ed answered, knowing what he was trying to avoid saying.
"Oh," he said and had he been permitted to, we would have sighed with relief. "Come on, we should get her to the hospital." Nodding, Edward lifted her up and followed him.
--
The morning sun peeking through the half-closed shades awoke Roxy. She sat up and stretched only to wince from the ache of her sore muscles. Remembering what had happened, she looked around, finding herself in a hospital room. A nurse walked down the hall, and once she saw she was awake, entered the room.
"Well look who's finally awake…," she said with a smile.
Roxy ran her fingers through her shiny, black hair. "What time is it?"
The nurse glanced at her watch. "Almost eleven..."
"I haven't slept that long in while…," she said, covering her mouth as she yawned.
"According to Edward, you took a pretty hard hit from the impact of the beam."
Roxy nodded, but upon realizing what she had said, turned to her. "…what?”
The nurse smiled. "You must not remember… he said that when the ceiling collapsed, one of the beams hit you and knocked you unconscious… I'm surprised you two made it out of there with only a few scratches… and a mild headache in your case."
She thought for a moment, remembering what Edward had said about not mentioning it to anyone. "Speaking of Edward… is he okay?"
The nurse read over her clipboard. "Yes, he's fine. He's still in his room. We asked that he stay the night just to make sure all the smoke he inhaled didn't affect him."
"Yeah, it was pretty bad in there." She nodded again, remembering how thick and harsh the smoke was, suddenly remembering she had still not thanked him properly. "Can I go talk to him?"
The nurse looked up from her clipboard. "Last time I was in there he was still asleep, but I can check for you if you'd like."
"Please." The nurse smiled once more and left the room, her heels clicking softly as she went.
--
She now entered Ed's room, finding him awake. "Oh, you're awake," she greeted him, much enthusiasm in her voice. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine," he answered.
“No fatigue or dizziness?” she asked as she made another note on her clipboard.
He shook his head. “No, I’m fine.”
The nurse laughed, turning to Al. "Is that his answer to everything?"
Al laughed in return. "Pretty much…," Ed merely rolled his eyes. Al then turned back to the nurse. "How're the others doing?"
"They're all fine," she teased, receiving a glare from Ed. "Speaking of which, Roxy wanted to come talk to you, would you like me to send her in?"
"Sure," Ed answered mid-stretch.
The two boys sat in silence for a moment, a gentle knock at the door breaking it. Roxy smiled from where she stood in the doorway "Hi."
Ed looked up at her, thinking about the events from the night before. "Are you okay?"
She smiled. "I'm good… I've got an annoying headache, but I’m good… What about you?"
Ed shot a glare at his brother, purposely avoiding using 'fine'. "I'm alright." Al suppressed a laugh.
She walked further into the room, sitting down in a chair at the bottom of Ed's bed. The three sat in a silence for a moment. Roxy glanced at both boys and then turned to Ed. "So have you heard from Gloria?" Ed groaned. Roxy couldn't help but laugh.
"What?" he asked defensively.
"She's not always that annoyingly giddy."
The mere thought of her irked him. "Oh?"
"There just aren't many teenaged guys around here, plus the whole 'new kid' aspect comes into play," she told him, though is wasn’t much of a reassurance to him.
"Great, so how long is she going to be like this?" Roxy shrugged. Ed just groaned again.
Al laughed. "I'm going to go see how she is doing," he said as he turned and left. Roxy watched him leave, and once he was gone, shut the door. Ed sensed what was coming, and crossed his arms.
She turned to him. "What really happened? After they hit me, I mean."
"Nothing, I just kicked them off, and when Al showed up, they were gone," he explained.
"But what were they?" she asked, a chill running down her spine just by the thought of the haunting figures.
"I don't know…," Ed said as he shook his head.
Roxy thought about it for a moment, then, taking a breath, opened her mouth again. "You being an alchemist, I know what you're going to say, but-" she began, only to be cut-off by him.
Ed crossed his arms. "There's just no way. Zombies don't exist!"
Roxy sighed. "Well you and I both know what we saw. Maybe it's just a couple of smelly old hobos or something… but either way they're attacking Deadwood and we've got to stop them."
Ed frowned. "We? I don't think so. Al and I can take care of this."
She rolled her eyes in return. "We're probably the only ones who even know about those things… plus, you two don't know the town like I do. I'm not asking to be part in your little journey… I'm telling you that you could use my help."
Ed realized that he might have just found someone as stubborn as he was, although he knew he wasn't giving up that easily. Some girl wasn't going to win this. "I don't care. It's too dangerous."
She let out a laugh and crossed her arms as well. "You think that just because you saved me that I'm some damsel in distress?" She turned away for a moment, before turning back, staring directly into his eyes. "I just want to find out what's going on and I can't do it by myself."
It was Ed who sighed now, as he looked out the window, reviewing the pros and cons of her helping. He wasn't used to help, he and Al would be fine on their own, but having a guide through the town could be helpful. Ed turned back to her. "Fine… just don't get in the way."
Roxy smiled smugly. "Good, now how do you suggest we go about this?"
He scratched his head. "Well, just to prove to you that they aren't zombies, I guess we will have to start at the cemetery."
Roxy nodded, glancing at the door. "What about Al? Does he know?"
Ed thought for a moment, considering it, but shook his head. "No, he'll just get scared. All we really need to do is check for disturbed graves, or any sign that it could be the 'undead'," he smirked as he said this, thinking it completely irrational.
"Let's just meet by the restaurant." She said as she stood up to leave. Ed nodded in agreement, only to sigh when the door opened, revealing Gloria and Al.
Gloria was smiling broadly, fluttering her eyelashes at Ed. "Hello, Edward."
"Hi," he responded dully.
She twirled a piece of her blonde hair around her finger. "I just wanted to come over and thank you properly… for, you know, last night."
Ed glanced at Roxy, who was obviously trying hard not to laugh. "Okay…," he responded, avoiding what he really wanted to say. Gloria walked over to him and planted a full lipped kiss on his cheek. Ed blinked, thrown off that she had made such a move. Finally, with another giggle, Gloria left, giving Al a nod on the way out. At that moment, Roxy burst out laughing, unable to hold it in any longer. Ed growled, using the back of his hand to wipe where she had kissed him like a little boy.
Al snickered. "You know-"
With an immediate glare, Ed stopped him. "Don't even-" He growled back as he jumped off his bed and headed for the door. "Let's go, Al." Al nodded and followed obediently.
As Ed walked out the door, he shot a quick glance back at Roxy. She, knowing that he was asking for a confirmation of their plans, returned with a quick nod.
---
Continued in next post.
How Not To Fight A Zombie
Fic Rating: PG-1
Pairings: implied Ed/OC
Spoilers: set after episode 12, and before 13, so if you haven't seen 1-12, why are you even reading this?
Warnings: 31 pages... enough said.
The crimson sun beamed down on the train as it glided along the railroad tracks. Inside it, Edward and Alphonse sat in silence. The search for the Philosopher's Stone carried on with no luck, as usual, and Ed knew his report to Mustang was due soon. All these failures were surely going to get him an earful of insults from the colonel, although this wouldn't come as a surprise to either of them.
In dread of the upcoming report, Ed lay back on his seat, trying to get a moments peace while he could. Alphonse stared out the window, the only thing his empty suit of armor would allow him to do. Their silence continued for most of the train ride. Only when the voices of a couple sitting in the seats behind Ed began to speak was the silence broken.
"I'm a bit nervous 'bout going back to Deadwood," a low voice stated, his tone matching his words. Ed hadn't been sleeping, but he heard this and chose to ignore it, keeping to his own business.
"Why is that?" a woman's voice responded softly.
The man's voice now took an ominous tone. "It's all the attacks on the town."
This, however, perked Ed's interest. Al obviously heard this too. After an exchange of glances with him, Ed sat up and leaned over the seat. "What attacks?" he asked, examining the middle-aged man who did not seem very happy to know that someone was eavesdropping.
Al, however, noticed the man's irritation, and hurried to his brother's side. "Sorry about my brother, he's a bit… rude," he laughed nervously, hoping to not anger his brother. Ed responded with a glare.
"Deadwood has been having all these strange attacks. The first attack wasn't really serious... just a slaughtered cow. The local police figured it was just some stupid prank. But steadily more and more dead cows were found… each with their heads were cut right off." He made sure to emphasize the fact by imitating a sliced throat.
Al made a small sound of disgust while Ed merely scoffed. "So what? There's probably a perfectly logical explanation for it. Did they check with a local butcher?"
The woman nodded in agreement. "He's right, maybe it's all just a misunderstanding."
The man shook his head and smirked. "According to what I heard, the heads were ripped right off. Nothing human has that kind of power."
The man seemed to think he was scaring them, which Ed found slightly amusing. He'd surely seen worse things than anything in a dumb ghost story. "I still don't see the big deal. Sure, it sucks for the farmer, but it's only a bunch of cows."
"It started with the cattle, but now there's rumor of these things raiding the town at night… stealing, kidnapping, and maybe a few fatalities."
Ed raised an eyebrow. "Maybe? How do they not know if they're dead?"
"When nothing but a trail of blood is left," he smirked with satisfaction, noticing that his tale was at least scaring Al, who half-way ducked behind the seat.
The blond's eyebrow rose slightly. "Didn't anyone think to follow the trails? Wouldn't that lead them right to the bodies?"
The man now frowned, his fun being ruined. "I guess no one was ever brave enough to look."
"Not even the police?" It was Ed who was left smirking.
The man gave him a half-hearted shrug. "Don't ask me, kid."
The woman swallowed hard, looking as if she was now regretting coming on the trip. "So what do they think it is?"
"You really want to know?" His mischievous tone sent a shiver down her spine.
Al nodded. "Yes, tell us."
He grinned evilly, again satisfied with their interest "Well… the townsfolk seem to think it's … zombies."
Al let out a small whimper. "Zombies?!"
The man nodded.
"Spare me the ghost stories, old man," Ed said, crossing his arms. "There is no such thing as zombies."
"Well it makes sense. Zombies eat brains and flesh, and it’s the heads that are gone and the humans that are disappearing."
Ed rolled his eyes. "Sounds like a crazed serial killer to me."
"Well you get your punk ass out there and follow those trails then… and when he-" the man motioned to Al "-comes back saying they ate your brains, we'll see who was right."
"Yeah… we will see," Ed stated as he returned to his seat, arms still tightly crossed.
"Uh…" Al glanced from his brother, to the woman, and back to the man. "Thanks for… warning us." He then turned and sat next to Edward.
"Oh please… zombies? That's so unscientific…," Ed muttered to himself.
"So what do you think, brother? Do you really think it's zombies attacking the town?" Al questioned, still a bit shaken from the grisly story.
Ed turned to him, a frown planted on his face. "Don't be stupid, Al, of course it's not." His face fell as he turned to look out the window. "We both know the dead can't come back to life."
A silence fell over the boys. Neither of them needed a verbal reminder of their nearly fatal mistake. The physical evidence was painful enough. "So what is it then?"
Ed shrugged. “I don't know,” another sigh escaped from him, "but I suppose we should check it out…."With that, Ed laid himself back down in the seat. Al wondered what it was that was causing such grief in Deadwood, but didn't want to bother Ed with any more questions. Traveling so much really took a toll on his brother, unlike himself, so he tried not to burden him any further. Still, he could tell the thoughts were racing in Edward's mind just by his concentrated expression.
The sun was nearly down by the time they reached Deadwood. The train’s smoke clouded the air above it, making it appear darker than it should be. Not quite the most welcoming sign after the information the boys had received while on the train.
"What now, brother?" Al asked, looking around the small town.
Ed shrugged. "I guess we'll just have to find an inn and see if anyone has seen anything."
"Right," Al said with a nod.
The two walked around town for a little while, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Finally finding an inn, Ed led the way inside. The main room was a bit small compared to some of the other hotels they'd been to. Having never heard of Deadwood before, Ed figured it must not be a popular tourist attraction, especially now with such rumors spreading.
A bright-eyed brunette greeted them at the check-in desk. "Welcome to the Deadwood Inn, would you like to check-in?"
"Uh, yeah," Ed answered, slightly irked with the stupid question. Why else would he be there?
She glanced up at them as she flipped through a notebook. "So what brings you to Deadwood? I can't say there's much to see here."
Ed and Al exchanged glances. The woman noticed this and laughed. "Are you interested in the zombies too?"
The door behind her creaked open, as a man pushed through it with a box in his hands. "That's all we've been getting lately… people calling themselves 'zombie hunters'… a crock of shit if you ask me,” he said as he dropped the box on the ground in the corner.
She shot him a dirty look for using foul language in front of their guests, but soon returned to her writing "Is that what you two are?" she asked.
Ed couldn't help but snort. "…No.”
The man now looked over at them. "So what are you here for?"
"Oh, don't be so nosy, Fred!" she scolded.
Fred smiled sweetly. "I was only trying to make small talk, Lisa."
Lisa rolled her eyes before turning back to the Elrics. "Now… what were your names?"
"I'm Edward Elric," he stated in his usual somewhat boastful manner. "And this is my brother, Alphonse."
Al gave a small wave. "Hi."
She nodded in return and wrote the names in her book. "Alright then… you're in room four," she said as she walked out from behind the desk, and lead them down a hall. "Here we are…," after opening the door, she handed Ed the keys and gave them another smile. "Enjoy your stay!"
Al nodded and entered the room, but before Ed could do so, she tapped his arm. "By the way… I do suggest you stay inside once it gets dark. Something funny has been going on around here, and I'd hate to see something happen to a couple of nice boys like you."
"Oh, don't worry about us, we'll be fine." Ed smiled at her. Her thick, brown hair and constant worry reminded him of his own mother, but at the reminder of why he and Al were really in Deadwood, he quickly shoved the thoughts aside.
Lisa gave him a final nod and left towards the main room again. Ed entered the room, setting his suitcase down on the ground and immediately walked over to the bed to lie down. Al had taken a seat on the couch, trying not to move so that his loud armor wouldn't disturb Edward.
Ed eventually dozed off, his quiet snore being the only sound, it seemed to Al, in the entire town. Soon enough, even his snore died away, leaving Al in the eerie silence of the night.
The next morning, Ed and Al set out to search the town. They roamed the streets, seeing children playing in their yards, neighbors standing around talking and laughing… nothing out of the ordinary. If anything were strange, it'd be how normal the town was. But thinking too soon, a shrilly scream rang through their ears.
"What the-?" Ed darted towards the sound, finding a gray-haired woman standing in front of her barn, horrified. "What happened?"
She slowly raised her finger and pointed inside the barn. Ed walked over to her and turned his head to look inside. The sight made Ed grimace as well. In the barn lay another cow, its head ripped off, with a puddle of blood surrounding it. He took a few steps toward it, using the sleeve of his jacket to protect his nose from the rancid smell. But as he neared it, he noticed a trail of blood, along with two sets of footprints. Ed's eyes darted from the trail of cow’s blood, to the footprints, and finally to the side door of the barn, realizing that one of the sets turned into a trail of two lines following the first set.
Ed spun around, quickly running up to the woman. "Do you usually milk the cow or does someone else?"
The woman blinked. "Wha- what?"
"Who else lives here?" His voice seemed a bit panicked, Al noticed.
"Well, my son- but I don't know where he went off to-" She stopped mid-sentence, realizing the possible fate of her son.
Ed cursed under his breath and sprinted off, following the trail.
"Brother! Wait!" Al called after him. "You stay with her, Al!" Ed called back, at such a distance now that Al could barely hear him.
The woman now started to sob. "You don't think- that my son is…,"
Al sighed and turned to her. "Don't worry… my brother will take care of it."
She looked up at him. "Are you sure? He's a small one…"
Al couldn't help but laugh, although he swore he could hear a faint but still familiar angry rant.
---
Edward was running as fast as his shor- he cursed himself for almost thinking it- legs would allow him. The woman's son was surely in danger, and figuring that most farmers go to milk their cows sometime near sunrise, he might have a chance to save the poor sucker. But from what exactly did the kid need saving? He pushed the thought of dealing with another killer out of his mind. Barry had been enough for him in his lifetime.
Ed watched the trail, which now led onto smooth grass rather than the dirt road like before. The tracks were becoming harder to follow, and by now the blood from the cow had been washed away by the previous night’s rainfall. The only clue he had left to follow was the separation of the grass from the son's feet being dragged, and even that wasn't easy to follow. After running for a bit, Ed stopped to catch his breath, and looked around. The trail was completely gone by now. He twisted his head around, searching for any clues to where they could've gone from here. Ed found himself in the middle of a giant field, a heavily wooded forest surrounding it. He continued on, walking now, through the forest. It was too silent for Ed's taste. There weren't birds chirping, or rabbits hoping around… not one squirrel in sight.
"That's reassuring,” Ed muttered to himself. Straight ahead, he could now see an opening from the woods. He picked up his speed again and ran towards it. The breach led to another field, where a nicely sized house sat on the edge.
He raised his eyebrow again. A house of that size in the middle of nowhere was a bit suspicious, considering the circumstances. Ed examined the long, two-story house. It was covered in brick, it had small windows with their shades closed, and the yard looked as if it hadn't been trimmed in years. The sound of a snapped twig behind him caused him to stop dead in his tracks. Without warning, a horrid odor filled his nostrils, triggering his reflex to cough.
"What the--?" he began, only to be cut off by a blow to the back of his head.
Edward awoke a few hours later, finding himself in a nearly pitch black room. His arms were tied behind his back, though his hands were free to move around.
"Great," he muttered to himself, working his way to stand up.
"Hello? Who's there?" a boy’s voice asked.
Ed blinked, realizing he wasn't the only one in the room, and clapped his hands, untransmuting the ropes from his arms. While the blue light shone through the room, he glanced over, seeing a teenager sitting tied as well.
"Hold on just a second, I'll get us out of here," Ed answered, transmuting the rope to connect to the wall, giving more light to see where he was. Taking the rope, he guided himself along the wall and down to his fellow hostage. The light lit the room up again, untying him, and connecting his rope to Ed's.
"Take the rope and follow it, got it?"
The boy nodded, but realizing no one could see, he responded. "Yeah."
The rope fell into his hands as Ed pulled his rope up to the wall he had been sitting against, and knocked on it. It was made of some sort of cement-like material, meaning that either it was cinder blocks or the same brick as the house was made of. Hoping that it was the wall to the outside, Ed quickly clapped his hands together, and transmuted a hole through the wall. The sunlight showered in, blinding them both. This wasn't going to stop Ed from making sure this kid -he kept calling him that, even though he was probably the same age as Ed was- got home safely," he grabbed his arm and pulled him out, running as soon as he was sure he hit grass. Soon both boys were sprinting towards the woods.
"I'm Chris, by the way," the boy said as they darted around the trees that now blocked their path.
"Edward, call me Ed," Ed replied. He could feel Chris's eyes glancing at him in between the trees.
"You're not from around here, are you?" he finally said as he ducked under a branch.
Ed jumped to the left, out of the way of a thorn bush. "No, now come on. Less talking, more running."
"Why?" Chris turned to check if they were behind him. "They're not following us." He turned back around, only to run into another branch. Seeing this, Ed grabbed his sleeve and pulled him out of the way just in time.
"Would you watch where you're going?!" Ed snapped.
"Sorry! I was just-" He stopped mid-sentence and sniffed, a look of pure disgust planted on his face. "Ugh! What is that smell?"
Ed, smelling it too, stopped, and bent down to his knees.
"What're you doing?!" Chris yelled at him, a couple feet away from him.
"Just go! I'll catch up!" Ed clapped his hands firmly together and then pressed them into the muddy ground. The ground flew up along the side, causing a six-foot-tall fence to form, stretching as far as he could see? "That'll hold them off." He stood back up and turned, surprised to see Chris still standing there.
Ed rolled his eyes and continued his run. "I told you to run!"
"You can do alchemy?" Chris ran alongside him, keeping his eyes on the path in front of him, but glancing over occasionally.
"I'll explain later!" Ed hollered to him through clenched teeth. He resented the comment, though he knew that was everyone’s first thought upon meeting Ed.
The boys continued to run, coming across another field and another set of woods, before running into the familiar giant suit of metal armor.
"Al!"
Al turned. "Brother!" He ran to meet them.
Chris raised an eyebrow. "Brother?"
"Where have you been, Ed? You've been gone for over two hours." Al stared down at him worriedly.
"I don't know, I was chasing his tracks when I came up to this house in the middle of nowhere, and the next thing I know, I'm in some basement."
"Are you alright? Did they hurt you?"
Ed smiled slightly. "Al, calm down, I'm fine. Jeez, you'd think you were the older brother!"
Chris opened his mouth to question, but Al waved his hands furiously, an obvious warning. He shut his mouth again. Al sighed, relieved; the fewer outbursts from Edward, the better.
Ed was leading the way by a few feet by now. "Are you coming?"
They quickly walked the rest of the way to the boy's home. Chris's mother ran out to greet her son, wrapping him in a tight hug.
"Mom! Knock it off!" Chris whined, trying to push his mother off of him. She continued to hug him tight, muttering 'what-ifs,' as usual.
Ed smiled sadly. He'd give anything to have his mother do that to him again. Both Elrics glanced at each other then turned to walk away.
"Wait-" the woman said, noticing they were leaving. The boys turned to look at her. "Thank-you…" she struggled to remember if he mentioned his name.
"I’m Edward Elric, and this is my brother, Alphonse."
Chris' eyes widened. "Edward Elric the State Alchemist?"
Ed hesitated, not realizing anyone out this far would have even heard of him. "Uh, yeah…"
"What the heck are you doing way out here?" he asked, only to receive a whack on the head from his mother. "Hey! What was that for?"
"That's none of your business." She turned to them and smiled. "I'm sorry about him… now you be sure to tell me if there's anything I can do to repay you for bringing my Chris home safely."
Al laughed. "No need. We’re happy to help."
She replied with a warm smile. "Thank you again."
Ed nodded and walked away.
"It feels good." Ed glanced up at Al, who seemed to be in a good mood. “to help people, I mean. Did you see how happy she was? I'm just glad… do you remember the one time we got lost when we ran too far from home? And Mom was so worried that she was out all night looking for us?"
Ed laughed. "We couldn't leave the house unless she told us to for two weeks… that wasn't too long before we started reading his alchemy books."
Al frowned. Again, Ed refused to call 'him' Dad, or even Hohenheim. Al wasn't sure Ed would ever get over such a grudge. Then again, he had a good reason to be angry.
"Does it strike you as odd that they know my name all the way out here?" Ed asked, contemplating whether this was a good or bad thing.
Al shrugged. "Gossip can spread fast, and we're not that far from Xenotime.”
Ed stretched, leaving his arms folded behind his head. "I guess… right now I just want to get to that diner we passed. I'm starving."
The two found themselves a seat inside the restaurant. Ed grabbed the menu and began scanning it, also noticing that everyone's eyes were on them. It was common, especially for Al, to have people stare. They weren’t exactly the most inconspicuous people when it came to small towns such as Deadwood. A pretty blonde greeted them with a bright smile.
"Hi, my name’s Gloria, and I’ll be your waitress for the evening. Can I get you anything to drink?" She continued to smile at them. Them, of course, meaning Ed.
Ed hadn't noticed. He had more important things on his mind than a giggly blonde. "A water," he replied flatly.
"Alright, and you?" she said as she took her chance to examine Al.
He shook his head. "I'm fine."
"Okay, I'll be back shortly."
Shortly was an understatement. The waitress had been in and back out within seconds, completely ignoring her other customers, though the others were too busy whispering to each other and looking over at the Elrics to mind.
"Here you go…," she carefully set the glass down. "Are you ready to order?" she asked in a cutesy, almost vomit-inducing way as she opened her notebook and readied her pencil.
Ed continued scanning the menu, before ordering. She quickly scribbled it down, taking a moment to flash her eyelashes at him, though she pouted when Ed chose to ignore her, and scurried off into the kitchen.
Al laughed slightly, noticing this.
Ed glanced from the menu to him and back. “What?”
“You didn’t notice the waitress trying to flirt with you?”
Ed blinked. Flirting? he thought, watching as Gloria walked back in with his plate, but as she set it down, her arm hit his glass of water, knocking it over and spilling all over him.
"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry." She scrambled to get napkins and began dabbing at his shirt. "I'm such a klutz!" Ed looked up at her twinkling green eyes, and noticed she was blushing. Feeling his eyes on her, she looked up to him, her face only a foot away from his. He shifted uncomfortably under her stare. Quickly noticing this, she blushed deeper. Leaving the stack of napkins, she promptly fled back to the kitchen again.
Ed sat up straight and looked to his brother. "I see your point,” he replied, sounding irritated.
Edward quickly ate his dinner, wanting to get out from under the uncomfortable gaze of Gloria, who, even behind the counter, continued to stare at him.
The moon now shined down upon them as they walked back to the inn. Ed, who had his arms crossed tightly across his chest, glared at the road in front of him. Ed liked being the center of attention, sure, but not when it was the attention of a giggly girl. Al noticed this and laughed.
"What?" Ed snapped.
Al snickered. "It's just… you should be used to girls by now, brother."
"The girls I know were never like that." Ed's hands were now at his side, balled into fists.
Al still couldn't help himself from laughing. "You don't pay much attention to them, but they sure do pay attention to you."
Edward rolled his eyes. "They do not."
"Do so." Al retorted.
"Do not!"
The battle of 'do not's and 'do so's continued for the majority of the walk to the inn, each answer being said a different way than before. Even as teenagers the two bickered like five year olds. Knowing how stubborn his brother was, and knowing he'd never admit it, Al finally gave in.
"Fine, Ed."
"Do no-" Ed caught himself and smiled smugly. "… yeah, that's what I thought." Al sighed. Edward really needed to learn how to act his age.
Ed slowed his pace until he had come to a stop. Al turned, giving him a quizzical look. He sniffed a moment before looking to his brother. "I smell smoke."
Al looked up into the sky, seeing black smoke coming from a couple blocks behind them. "Brother! Look!" But Edward was already running. Alphonse chased after him. The smoke was coming from the same diner they had just left. A few men stood outside, watching the flames light up the indigo sky. Ed ran up to the nearest man.
"What happened?!" he demanded frantically.
The man yelled over the roar of the flames. "We don't know!"
"Is anyone inside?"
The man shrugged. "There might be, whoever was in the back might've gotten out the door, but-" he didn't have a chance to finish. Edward and Alphonse had already jolted towards the door. "Hey, wait! You can't-" he called after them, but it was too late.
Edward squinted through the smoke, in search of movement. "Is anyone in here?"
"Over here!" a woman's voice called from a back room. The boys chased after the sound of her voice, to a closed door. Edward reached to open it, when suddenly a heavy support beam collapsed from the ceiling.
"Brother, look out!" Al said as he pulled Ed out of the way. Ed coughed as the smoke and dust of fallen beam filled his lungs. Al picked up the beam and used it to break open the door. Inside, Gloria laid unconscious on the floor, an older blonde woman hovering over her.
"Hurry!" Al shouted as he helped her up, then carefully picked up Gloria.
Ed clapped his hands together, making a hole in the wall ahead of them for a quick escape. Suddenly feeling someone’s eyes on him, she turned to see a shadowed figure run into the next room. "Al! Get them out of here! I think I just saw someone else!"
"Be careful!" Al yelled after him before fleeing himself.
Ed darted around the falling debris, calling as loud as he could before having another coughing fit. He'd have to be fast or he would go down with the restaurant, though that was the last thing on his mind as he pushed through the doorways.
He fought his way to where he saw the shadow run, only to find a girl leaning against a wall, coughing. "Hang on!" he called, watching as she fell to her knees. Ed ran over to her and lifted her up. "We need a way out,” he muttered to himself as he glanced around, seeing another door. Figuring that was the door which led to door to the outside, he felt a thrill of hope, but then sighed, watching as the flames slowly began to spread under the door. He then glanced backwards from which he came, he noticed with relief that the fire had not yet penetrated into the kitchen, but watched as the smoke snaked under the door and the debris, contaminating the air.
Once finished her coughing fit, the girl turned to look up at him, and before he could say anything else, she grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to the floor. A large, masculine figure stood above them, a thick, wooden beam in hand. It raised the beam above his head and swung. Seeing him, Ed grabbed onto the girl, rolling them both out of the way before being struck. They both sat up quickly, staring at the figure with wide eyes.
"What're you doing?!" Ed screamed at it. But it seemed to ignore him, and continued staggering forward towards them. Behind it, the tall, thin shadow Ed had seen before ran by, and out the door before he could get a better look at who it was. Though, Ed was more concerned with the thing coming at him, rather than the thing running out the door. The fire was now spreading closer, shining bright and hot, allowing Ed to look closer at the figure that lurched nearer to them. Its broad shoulders and muscular build shadowed down on them. A man? he thought, squinting through the smoke. No… The light shone against its skin, showing it to be pale white, a few green and brown smudges freckling it. His hair was long and disgusting, as were his fingernails. And then such an overpowering smell of rotted carcass filled Ed's lungs that he coughed again. Now there were four figures closing in on them, all looking more disgusting than the other. The girl grabbed a frying pan that sat beside her, and chucked it at the closest body. The side of the pan struck the neck with such force that it completely decapitated it. The body fell to the ground with a thud, sending the head rolling. All forms turned to watch, as did Ed and the girl. Is it dead? Ed wondered, watching it intently. But suddenly, did it just-?! Ed's eyes widened further as the body sat up, using its hands to feel around for the head. The girl let out a shrill scream as she pushed herself farther away from them.
The fire had now spread to the kitchen floor, inching it’s way towards the figures. They all groaned, as the white hot flame touched their opaque skin. Ed watched with amazement, as they turned and -literally- ran through the wall, causing it to collapse behind them.
Ed grabbed the girl and pulled her up with him. "We need to get out of here… now." He clapped his hands and placed them to the wall nearest him, forming a hole. The two jumped through it just in time, escaping the falling ceiling behind them. The two watched as the wall collapsed in front of them.
The girl sighed in relief and then turned to Ed, her blue eyes full of questions. "What the hell just happened?"
Ed glanced back at the restaurant. "We escaped from a flaming diner."
She blinked. "But what about-"
He interrupted her with a shake of his head. Now that she thought about it, it would sound completely crazy to anyone but themselves. Either way, this was going to be investigated. Whether it by these stranger heroes or herself, she knew what really happened and knew something odd was going on.
With a slight laugh, she stood up, giving Ed a hand up as well. "I'm Roxy, by the way."
"Edward Elric," he responded in return.
She crossed her arms and smirked, letting out a slight ‘hm’. He opened his mouth to ask, but was cut off by an unnerving groan. The two spun around, seeing the group of rotted figures, once again, coming their way.
Roxy rushed to pick up a piece of stray, sharp from being snapped in half, wood and swung it at them. One groaned louder, making her jump. Instinctively, they grabbed the wood also pulling her into them. Ed grabbed her wrist to pull her away, but was only pulled right into their arms as well. The horrid smell made him want to puke, but he held it in as they bent his arm back, forcing him forward. Considering how easy the other's head came off, these things were strong.
The grimy hands of those holding Edward and Roxy clamped tightly onto their arms, nearly digging into their skin. Kicking and thrashing, the two fought against the tight hold, in an attempt to free them, but to no avail. Edward stopped, deciding to save his energy for the right moment, but Roxy continued. Fed up with her constant squirming one of the bigger forms struck her in the back of the head, knocking her out upon impact. The one holding Ed had been distracted by the sound, and taking the chance, Ed clapped his hands together, forming his auto-mail blade. In a few swift movements, he was able to cut the hands of his captor as well as Roxy's, catching her on the way down. The pairs of hands writhed like worms on the ground in front of him and he transmuted large spikes, sending them through the middles of the other beings.
"Brother?" Ed turned to see Al clanking towards them, but as he turned back, the group of figures had vanished. "Are you okay?" Al asked, now standing above him.
Ed blinked, staring at the empty space where they had been, before replying. "Yeah, I'm alright."
Al then looks down to the girl lying on the ground. "She's not- is she…?"
"No, she just got hit," Ed answered, knowing what he was trying to avoid saying.
"Oh," he said and had he been permitted to, we would have sighed with relief. "Come on, we should get her to the hospital." Nodding, Edward lifted her up and followed him.
--
The morning sun peeking through the half-closed shades awoke Roxy. She sat up and stretched only to wince from the ache of her sore muscles. Remembering what had happened, she looked around, finding herself in a hospital room. A nurse walked down the hall, and once she saw she was awake, entered the room.
"Well look who's finally awake…," she said with a smile.
Roxy ran her fingers through her shiny, black hair. "What time is it?"
The nurse glanced at her watch. "Almost eleven..."
"I haven't slept that long in while…," she said, covering her mouth as she yawned.
"According to Edward, you took a pretty hard hit from the impact of the beam."
Roxy nodded, but upon realizing what she had said, turned to her. "…what?”
The nurse smiled. "You must not remember… he said that when the ceiling collapsed, one of the beams hit you and knocked you unconscious… I'm surprised you two made it out of there with only a few scratches… and a mild headache in your case."
She thought for a moment, remembering what Edward had said about not mentioning it to anyone. "Speaking of Edward… is he okay?"
The nurse read over her clipboard. "Yes, he's fine. He's still in his room. We asked that he stay the night just to make sure all the smoke he inhaled didn't affect him."
"Yeah, it was pretty bad in there." She nodded again, remembering how thick and harsh the smoke was, suddenly remembering she had still not thanked him properly. "Can I go talk to him?"
The nurse looked up from her clipboard. "Last time I was in there he was still asleep, but I can check for you if you'd like."
"Please." The nurse smiled once more and left the room, her heels clicking softly as she went.
--
She now entered Ed's room, finding him awake. "Oh, you're awake," she greeted him, much enthusiasm in her voice. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine," he answered.
“No fatigue or dizziness?” she asked as she made another note on her clipboard.
He shook his head. “No, I’m fine.”
The nurse laughed, turning to Al. "Is that his answer to everything?"
Al laughed in return. "Pretty much…," Ed merely rolled his eyes. Al then turned back to the nurse. "How're the others doing?"
"They're all fine," she teased, receiving a glare from Ed. "Speaking of which, Roxy wanted to come talk to you, would you like me to send her in?"
"Sure," Ed answered mid-stretch.
The two boys sat in silence for a moment, a gentle knock at the door breaking it. Roxy smiled from where she stood in the doorway "Hi."
Ed looked up at her, thinking about the events from the night before. "Are you okay?"
She smiled. "I'm good… I've got an annoying headache, but I’m good… What about you?"
Ed shot a glare at his brother, purposely avoiding using 'fine'. "I'm alright." Al suppressed a laugh.
She walked further into the room, sitting down in a chair at the bottom of Ed's bed. The three sat in a silence for a moment. Roxy glanced at both boys and then turned to Ed. "So have you heard from Gloria?" Ed groaned. Roxy couldn't help but laugh.
"What?" he asked defensively.
"She's not always that annoyingly giddy."
The mere thought of her irked him. "Oh?"
"There just aren't many teenaged guys around here, plus the whole 'new kid' aspect comes into play," she told him, though is wasn’t much of a reassurance to him.
"Great, so how long is she going to be like this?" Roxy shrugged. Ed just groaned again.
Al laughed. "I'm going to go see how she is doing," he said as he turned and left. Roxy watched him leave, and once he was gone, shut the door. Ed sensed what was coming, and crossed his arms.
She turned to him. "What really happened? After they hit me, I mean."
"Nothing, I just kicked them off, and when Al showed up, they were gone," he explained.
"But what were they?" she asked, a chill running down her spine just by the thought of the haunting figures.
"I don't know…," Ed said as he shook his head.
Roxy thought about it for a moment, then, taking a breath, opened her mouth again. "You being an alchemist, I know what you're going to say, but-" she began, only to be cut-off by him.
Ed crossed his arms. "There's just no way. Zombies don't exist!"
Roxy sighed. "Well you and I both know what we saw. Maybe it's just a couple of smelly old hobos or something… but either way they're attacking Deadwood and we've got to stop them."
Ed frowned. "We? I don't think so. Al and I can take care of this."
She rolled her eyes in return. "We're probably the only ones who even know about those things… plus, you two don't know the town like I do. I'm not asking to be part in your little journey… I'm telling you that you could use my help."
Ed realized that he might have just found someone as stubborn as he was, although he knew he wasn't giving up that easily. Some girl wasn't going to win this. "I don't care. It's too dangerous."
She let out a laugh and crossed her arms as well. "You think that just because you saved me that I'm some damsel in distress?" She turned away for a moment, before turning back, staring directly into his eyes. "I just want to find out what's going on and I can't do it by myself."
It was Ed who sighed now, as he looked out the window, reviewing the pros and cons of her helping. He wasn't used to help, he and Al would be fine on their own, but having a guide through the town could be helpful. Ed turned back to her. "Fine… just don't get in the way."
Roxy smiled smugly. "Good, now how do you suggest we go about this?"
He scratched his head. "Well, just to prove to you that they aren't zombies, I guess we will have to start at the cemetery."
Roxy nodded, glancing at the door. "What about Al? Does he know?"
Ed thought for a moment, considering it, but shook his head. "No, he'll just get scared. All we really need to do is check for disturbed graves, or any sign that it could be the 'undead'," he smirked as he said this, thinking it completely irrational.
"Let's just meet by the restaurant." She said as she stood up to leave. Ed nodded in agreement, only to sigh when the door opened, revealing Gloria and Al.
Gloria was smiling broadly, fluttering her eyelashes at Ed. "Hello, Edward."
"Hi," he responded dully.
She twirled a piece of her blonde hair around her finger. "I just wanted to come over and thank you properly… for, you know, last night."
Ed glanced at Roxy, who was obviously trying hard not to laugh. "Okay…," he responded, avoiding what he really wanted to say. Gloria walked over to him and planted a full lipped kiss on his cheek. Ed blinked, thrown off that she had made such a move. Finally, with another giggle, Gloria left, giving Al a nod on the way out. At that moment, Roxy burst out laughing, unable to hold it in any longer. Ed growled, using the back of his hand to wipe where she had kissed him like a little boy.
Al snickered. "You know-"
With an immediate glare, Ed stopped him. "Don't even-" He growled back as he jumped off his bed and headed for the door. "Let's go, Al." Al nodded and followed obediently.
As Ed walked out the door, he shot a quick glance back at Roxy. She, knowing that he was asking for a confirmation of their plans, returned with a quick nod.
---
Continued in next post.