Hello! I have come with a new multi-chapter fic! This story will be very different than anything I've ever written, so this will be an adventure for all of us! This is an AU from the moment Envy does the unthinkable. While this is not exactly a parental story, there will definitely be some parental moments scattered throughout this fic that I hope you all will enjoy.

Before anything else, I have to give a shout out to the incredible YAJJ. She's one of the coolest cats I know and writes AMAZING parental fics. If you all haven't checked them out, you totally should. She helped me organize my ideas and is helping me make sure I keep everyone as in character as possible and write some of the more emotional aspects of this fic with the emotion they really deserve. She is a blessing.

Also, I need to give a shout out to my roommate, who's had to put up with me randomly screaming my ideas for this and for continuing to live with me anyway.

I do not own Fullmetal Alchemist or its characters.

Arm still poised to throw the knife he held tight in his grasp, Lieutenant Colonel Hughes stared at the woman before him. Suddenly, he couldn't feel the pain in his shoulder any more, or feel the blood flowing down his arm.

Gracia?

"You look surprised!"

No. Not Gracia. Second Lieutenant Ross had been standing there just a few seconds ago. But…how?

"What the hell are you?"

Whatever it was smiled.

A single shot resounded through the quiet night.

Blood splattered on the walls of the phone booth. He stumbled backward, his knife clattering on the ground. He barely had time to look down and see the dark red stain blossoming on his chest before he crashed to the ground. He tried grabbing on to the phone to keep himself up, but the blood already on his hands only caused him to slip.

Then he tried to breathe.

A massive rock might as well have been sitting on his chest. He couldn't catch his breath. Excruciating pain stemmed from the bullet wound and dispersed throughout his chest every time he tried.

Then he saw it.

That same red flash from before, that same crackle of energy.

His agony-filled eyes watched as red sparks danced over his wife's body. The bottom of her dress disappeared, revealing a pair of pale, muscular legs barely covered by black shorts with a black cloth wrapped around it. Long, black hair sprang out from the top of its head, only kept in its place by a black headband.

Whatever it was looked so…young. Not much older than Ed.

"Hey, Hughes? Hughes?"

Roy.

His call went through. He had to tell Roy. Looking to the side, he saw the phone swinging by his head.

It took Herculean effort, but he reached for it with what little of his rapidly draining strength remained. A pained grunt escaped his lips, his entire body protesting the movement.

"No…."

His voice was barely audible, but he couldn't help but gasp as that creature leaned over him. It picked up the phone, just as his fingertips were about to touch it.

"You okay? Hughes!"

He couldn't do anything but watch as it hung up the phone. He slumped against the back of the phone booth. Whatever it was, it was talking. Whatever it said, he didn't hear.

I didn't tell Roy….

He watched the blood cascade from the wound to the concrete, streaming toward his fallen family photograph.

Whatever it was, it walked away.

He finally sucked in a deep breath, but exhaled a cry of agony. He brought his hand up to the wound.

It wouldn't help stop the bleeding.

He saw the blood cover his picture, one of his favorites. He knew he didn't have much longer.

His eyelids grew heavy.

"G-Gracia…."

A black car stopped in front of the phone booth. Someone jumped out.

"Hey! Hang in there!"

Whoever it was knelt in front of the Lieutenant Colonel, not minding the fact that he was kneeling in blood. Shrugging off his jacket, he placed it on the man's chest and put pressure on the wound.

"I need you to hold it there."

Clenching his teeth to try to prevent another pained cry from escaping, he applied as much pressure as he could to the wound. Any attempt to stop it was proven in vain when he found his arm sliding around the man's shoulders and he was lifted off the ground.

Whoever was trying to help him was practically dragging him to the car.

It was a waste of time and effort. He wasn't going to make it. This man had to know that.

Wait. Maybe he could give one last message to Gracia and Elicia for me. Maybe he can tell them how sorry I am and how much I love them….

"Tell…t-tell my wife—"

"Shut the hell up! I'm not telling your wife anything because you're not dying!"

He yanked the passenger door open and got Maes in the seat quickly, but gently to not irritate his wound any further. He jumped behind the wheel, tires screeching as he flipped the car around.

Once again, the Lieutenant Colonel's eyes threatened to droop shut.

"I need you to stay awake! Keep pressure on the wound. We're not far from the hospital."

Despite the darkness threatening to overcome him, those words caught his attention.

Hospital? No! He can't take me there! Whatever that thing was…and that woman…they have connections to the military! They'll know I'm not dead!

"No…hospital…."

That thing saw the picture of my family. It knows about Elicia and Gracia. If it knows I'm still alive….

He didn't want to think about it. Those things were willing to kill him without a second thought. He didn't have a single doubt they would go after his wife and daughter.

"I don't exactly have a lot of options if you want to live!" the man snapped, never taking his eyes off the road. "I saw that woman shoot you before transforming into…into…hell I don't know what I saw!"

Maes lurched to the side when they made a sharp turn. He couldn't stop the pained whimper that escaped him when he collided with the passenger door.

The hospital came into view.

"No…." the Lieutenant Colonel moaned.

"You're just going to have to trust me."

He was surprised when they drove straight past the front entrance and around to the back of the building. A firm, yet somehow gentle, hand on his chest kept him in place as the car screeched to a stop, preventing him from flying into the windshield and dashboard.

Within seconds, Maes once again found his arms slung across the man's shoulders. The two staggered toward the lone door.

"Dammit!" the man swore as he fished around his pockets.

Finally producing a set of keys, he unlocked the door. Quickly and quietly, he practically dragged Maes down the hall. He peered down the next hallway. Seeing no one, they continued on.

It was getting harder and harder for Maes to remain conscious.

"We're almost there."

It was as if the man could sense it. The Lieutenant Colonel forced his eyes to stay open, forced his feet to trudge along the best that he could.

"Dr. Knox?"

"Son of a bitch," the doctor muttered under his breath.

They weren't exactly racing down the hallway, so it took no time at all for a young nurse to catch up with them.

"What are you…oh my!"

Her eyes widened when she saw the state of the injured Lieutenant Colonel.

"Follow me," Knox ordered, continuing on down the hall.

"But, sir, why are you going to the morgue? That man needs to go to an operating room!"

Morgue? Why's he taking me to the morgue? I'm not dead…yet….

"Just do as I say!" he snapped. "Actually, go on ahead of me. Clear off one of the tables. Don't let anyone else down here."

Thankfully, the nurse didn't ask any further questions. She ran down the hall and disappeared behind a set of double doors.

Dr. Knox stumbled through them shortly after with Maes in tow, practically carrying all of the man's weight.

"Help me get him on the table!"

The young nurse did as she was told. Without needing to be asked, she cut away at his jacket and shirt.

"What happened?" she asked.

"He was shot," Knox explained as he rummaged through his supplies. "From the looks of it, the bullet just missed his heart. Seems like something else punctured his shoulder." Finding everything he needed, he walked back over to the table, looking over the injuries. He handed the nurse a clean rag. "Keep pressure on that shoulder wound. It won't stop bleeding and he won't last much longer if that keeps up. I'll get the bullet out."

Grabbing another cloth, he wiped the blood away from the bullet wound on the injured man's chest. Now clear of blood, he could see into the wound. It would take some digging around to find and extract the bullet.

He picked up a scalpel and some forceps.

"I'm really sorry, but this is going to hurt."

Maes was barely coherent enough to hear what the doctor said before his vision flashed white and a stabbing pain shot through his still throbbing chest.

A scream threatened to escape him. He clenched his teeth to try to stop it, reducing it to just a pained groan; however, the nurse still winced at the sound.

She couldn't even begin to imagine how much this hurt.

"Hold him down!" Knox ordered as Maes involuntarily writhed on the table.

A firm hand on both shoulders, the nurse had to use all of her strength to hold him still.

The Lieutenant Colonel's eyes bulged out of his skull as the doctor dug deeper into the wound. The darkness that was trying to claim him earlier was making a comeback.

"I found it!" Knox whispered. "Hang on! We're almost done!"

After what seemed like an agonizing eternity, the doctor pulled the forceps out of the wound, a bullet clamped between the metal.

However, Maes didn't see it. His eyes closed. He couldn't fight to stay conscious any longer.

"Hey!" Knox yelled, gently slapping the side of his face. "You need to stay awake!"

"I'm…sorry…." Maes slurred, his body going limp.

Gracia…Elicia…I'm so sorry. Ed…Al…whatever your on to, you need to stop. Conspiracies be damned! You boys are going to get yourselves killed. Roy…Roy….

Everything faded to black.

"Dammit!" The doctor turned to the young nurse. "I need you to get me an IV and O negative blood. He's going to need a transfusion if he's going to make it. Go!" She turned to leave. "Make sure no one follows you and don't tell anyone about him. The military doesn't want it known that he's here."

She nodded, heading out the door.

He sighed, praying that she would do as he asked. Whenever he mentioned the military, no one ever seemed to question him. Given his past, he was quite grateful for that.

Grabbing a needle and the proper thread, he stitched up the bullet and shoulder wounds.

"You're going to be fine," he whispered, even though his patient was unconscious. "You're going to be fine."

He sincerely hoped that would be true.

*break*

He first became aware of the dull throbbing in his chest.

I thought I wouldn't be able to feel pain after death. I've already lost my wife and daughter…my friends…the friends that I've come to call my family. I thought, at the very least, the pain would end. Why the hell….

"Can you hear me?"

That voice…wait! That's the guy who found me in the phone booth. He shouldn't be here.

But he is….

That has to mean….

It took more effort than he ever thought would be necessary for such a simple task, but Maes managed to peel his eyes open.

I'm alive.

Dr. Knox hovered over him, arms crossed over his chest.

Now that he wasn't on the verge of bleeding to death, he finally got a good look at the man. Blood covered his shirt and pants.

My blood.

Meeting his eyes, he could see a sense of weariness in them, but also a tad of relief.

Without thinking he tried to sit up, but two firm hands on his shoulders pushed him back down on something soft.

"You need to rest," Knox said sternly. "I'm sorry. I know an autopsy table probably isn't the most comfortable thing to lie on, but I couldn't think of a better place to take you that had the supplies I needed since you didn't want anyone to know you were here. The nurse brought a pillow for you to try to make you more comfortable. Don't worry, she won't let anyone know you're down here."

Maes nodded, relieved the man had understood what he meant in the car. The doctor walked over to the other side of the table. That's when he noticed the IV the man had set up. After checking the bag of fluid, Knox turned his attention back to the Lieutenant Colonel.

"How—"

Maes couldn't even finish his question before he fell into a coughing fit. Knox handed him a cup of water. Nodding in thanks, he gratefully accepted it and had to keep himself from drinking it all in one gulp.

"How can I ever thank you?" he asked.

This man saved his life. There had to be something he could do.

The doctor's eyes turned cold.

"Never mind that. Now, I would really like you to explain what the hell happened."

Well there's the first chapter! This chapter will probably be the shortest. Hopefully Maes and Knox weren't too OOC. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed it! Let me know what you think! Until next time!