Title : Whispers of a Nightmare

Genre : Anime/Manga

Category : Full Metal Alchemist

Disclaimer : Nope, this one belongs to someone else as well.

Summary : Takes place after the incident with Nina. Something's wrong with Ed, and Al just can't quite figure out what it is. Serious situations and angst ensue.

Warnings : Angst, mild language, violence, and other issues that shall go unnamed for now. I don't want to give away too much of the plot just yet, now do I? ;)

Rating : T

Chapter 1 : The Banshee's Cry

The room was quite; still. There was no movement in the sterile peace, except for that of a large suit of armor, but even that was just a shift here or there. The place reeked of ammonia and other various chemicals that were supposed to keep the area clean, though Al didn't care one way or the other, just as long as Ed was okay.

The suit of armor moved once more, growing tired of looking at the few military pictures that lined the white walls. He would have let out a sigh if there had been any air in his lungs, if he had lungs for that matter. The steel suit clanked lightly as he propped his right hand under his metal chin, his soul filled eyes returning to his brother once more.

Al's heart sank as he realized Edward looked no better than he had since he rushed him in there. He still looked so pale and fragile, even smaller than he usually did. His normally bright golden hair looked almost dull in the din of the room, his matching golden eyes hidden away in a deep state of sleep. He seemed so helpless, so...un-Edward.

Brother...why? Why'd you do this to yourself? You know you weren't in this alone. I'm always here for you. Why?

Al wanted to cry at that very moment, the pain welling up inside his soul. He felt awful; guilty in a way. He knew Ed had been keeping something from him, but this? He couldn't understand it. It just didn't make any sense. But then again, half the time anything Ed did never made any sense anyway, but this time his acts were unjustifiable.

How could you keep this from me brother? How? After all this time...and you kept this to yourself for so long...Brother...

He couldn't help it any longer as he started to shake, his steel shell clanking miserably. Even though there were no physical tears falling, his soul was a mess. Emotions hit him all at once; fear, anger, sadness. He couldn't contain them any more. It was just too much. He felt so lonely, so pathetic, even if he was twice the size of anyone he came in contact with. He felt so small...

He jumped as the door opened, a familiar figure stepping in. Al straightened up immediately, even standing at attention, clumsily knocking the chair out from underneath him. Thankful that there were no tears to wipe away, he still felt embarrassed at his sudden burst of emotion, hoping that Mustang hadn't heard any of it.

"Good afternoon, sir," Al acknowledged the Lieutenant Colonel, offering a slight bow at his entry.

Mustang nodded at Al's presence, his onyx eyes immediately traveling over to the twin-sized bed, his heart wrenching at the sight.

"Has his status changed?" Mustang questioned, stepping up to the side of the hospital bed, concern filling his hardened dark orbs.

"No, sir, he's still about the same as before," Al answered, doing his best to keep his voice steady. "There hasn't been much of a change...," he trailed off, his steel face seemingly falling downcast.

"I see," was Mustang's quiet reply. He knew it shouldn't be, but he could feel his heart continuing to sink with every second his eyes met Edward's still body. The boy just looked so tiny, smaller than what his thirteen years had brought him to be. He could feel the remnants of anger that he had tried to stifle before he came swirling back around his head, threatening to appear once more.

His eyes drifted to the two arms that were visible, just above the bleach cleaned hospital sheets. The automail arm was mostly intact, though he could see that a few pieces were still missing, leading him to his next set of questions.

"Have you made arrangements to get this fixed?" he inquired, gesturing towards the steel arm, his eyes wandering to his flesh one, taking note of how thin it was.

"Yes, sir. Winry, er, she's an automail engineer from Rizenbul, the one who helped construct Brother's arm, she should be here any day now," Al replied, still a bit weary of the Lieutenant Colonel's presence. Now he finally understood how Ed felt...

"And his leg too? I heard that it was pretty badly damaged as well," he went on, shifting the covers slightly to get a glimpse of the artificial limb. His eyes narrowed upon the sight, seeing wires and various pieces of broken metal, barely hanging on.

"Yes, it was, sir," Al responded, his voice quiet now, more reserved. He stood back away from the bed, his gloved hands folding in front of him. "The whole incident was pretty bad. As you've probably heard," he added, his voice growing fainter, more woeful.

"So I did," Mustang murmured, guilt tightly winding its way around his heart and squeezing it, so tightly he was sure it had skipped a beat. He opened his mouth to say something, but cut himself short. He gave Edward one last glance before looking up at Al. "I'll be back tomorrow. If his status changes, please contact me." And with that, he was out the door, back into the flooded hallways of the hospital.

Al stood there in silence for a moment before seating himself in the chair that he had picked up from the floor, placing it by his brother's side once more. Hesitantly, he reached for Edward's hand, tears surely slipping down his cheeks if they could. He ran his other hand through his brother's golden hair, a shriek escaping through his suit of armor as quite a few strands came out in between his fingers.

"Brother, what have you done...?" he whispered shakily, his steel suit clinking once again.

Six months earlier...

Al lifted his head up, glancing around the small inn room. It took him a moment to get out of his dream state, not fully conscious, yet not asleep either. He heard a noise from across the room, his eyes falling on the lone figure of his brother, standing near the window. He had a bed sheet draped around his shoulders, shivering from the cold that was seeping into the room. He went to say something when Edward's whisper of a voice cut through the silence.

"I'm sorry, Nina. I'm so sorry. I failed you just like I failed Mom and Al. I'm so sorry…" he trailed off, pulling the sheet tighter around himself, moonlit tears falling to the floor. "I'll make it better…I promise," he whispered, leaning his head against the window sill.

Silence entertained the room once more as Al continued to observe his older brother. Something had been off about him the minute they left Central and received their new mission. He'd been acting strangely, hardly speaking a word, let alone an entire sentence. And he hadn't been eating anything either, at least not to Al's knowledge, which was definitely out of the ordinary for his brother.

They'd been in Kiase for three days now, another bump in the road along the way to find the Philosopher's Stone, and they still didn't have any leads in the case they were assigned to. Apparently, there was someone there in the small town using Alchemy to commit murders, thus the need for the State to investigate. There were rumors though, of a red stone too, that is.

Edward accepted the case from Mustang without any lip, thus causing the Lieutenant Colonel to worry. He knew it wasn't like Ed to just take the case and go, especially silent at that, leading the Lieutenant Colonel to have a lengthy lecture with Al before their departure. Al tried to shake it off, explaining to Mustang that Ed was just being Ed and he just needed a little time to recover; but inside, he too felt worried.

Before either of them knew it, morning had come, though no sun entered through the curtains. They were both greeted with cackles of thunder and traces of lightning. A perfect wake up call.

"Brother, it's time to get up," Al whispered, shaking Ed slightly, the older alchemist balled up in the thin sheets, wrapped as tightly around him as possible. "Brother? Brother, wake up," Al tried again, shaking him a little harder, at last getting a response from Edward.

"What is it, Al?" he mumbled, sleep still rooted in his voice. He rolled on his side, pulling the sheets above his head in attempt to block out sunlight that wasn't even there.

"Brother, come on. You have to get up. Don't you remember where we're at? We're here to do work, and I think I might have figured out something," the childlike voice came from the sterling suit of armor.

"Al, you shouldn't worry about it. It is my case, remember? I'm the one with the leash around my neck," Edward stated, the sheets still hiding his muffled voice.

"No, brother, we're in this together, whether you like it or not," Al responded calmly, gently pulling the covers out of Ed's grasp. "It's time to get up. Now. Besides, you need to eat something. I'm sure they have something downstairs," he prodded, slowly pulling Ed up by the arm.

"Actually, I'm not very hungry, Al, so I think I'll just lay here a little while longer," he muttered, burying his head in a pillow. "You can go ahead without me," he murmured, trying his best to fall back asleep.

"And do what?" Al shot back, a bit sarcastically, gloved hands going to steel hips.

"Do what you always do…you know…whatever…"

"That's it." Before Edward knew it, he was being picked up and dropped on the floor, barely having enough time to catch his balance.

"Hey! What was that for?" the shout came from the blonde alchemist's mouth. "I just wanted five more minutes!"

"We have work to do, Brother, and like you said, it's your responsibility. And you're not getting anything done by just laying there," the younger brother returned somewhat hotly, giving Edward one last glance before heading for the door. "Oh, and don't forget, you were supposed to report to Colonel Mustang this morning and give him your findings so far. I'll be waiting downstairs."

Edward stood there, mouth hanging slightly open at his brother's minor outburst. For some strange reason, he could feel tears wrapping at his eyes, the chill of the room making him shiver thanks to being coverless. Silently, he went over to his suit case and pulled out his usual attire, black pants and his black over shirt. He quietly slipped them on, his stomach growling all the while. With a quiet sigh, he pulled on the over shirt as he went into the restroom.

He gave his teeth a quick brush and washed his face, then began the slow process of untangling his hair. He tried not to catch sight of himself, but the mirror was too much for him. He met his own eyes, slowly pulling the brush out of his hair, eyes narrowing slightly. Pictures flashed before his eyes faster than he could stop them, the hate that was implanted deep within his soul growing stronger with each passing second.

His hands gripped the counter, squeezing it so tightly that part of it crumbled in his automail hand. He could feel his teeth gritting automatically as his mother's face, then his brother's face, and then finally Nina's raced through his mind. His heart broke further with each passing frame.

"I'm so…sorry…," he whispered, his jaw clenching tightly. "I won't rest until I fix this. I won't…" The self-hatred that had made a home in the pit of his stomach grew, making its way through his system, flashing in his eyes. He could feel the tears welling up, sneakily presenting themselves behind his eyes, readying for an all out attack on his cheeks.

"No!" he exclaimed, slamming a fist down on the counter, it cracking underneath the force. He stared himself down, his breathing becoming more erratic and deeper. "No, I don't deserve the pleasure," he mumbled, gritting his teeth even tighter until he thought they might possibly break.

He gave himself one last glance, anger more than present in his eyes as well as his face; and headed for the door, another long day ahead of him.

He made his way downstairs, pulling on the long red coat that kept him covered. He searched the crowded room for Al, but the tall suit of armor was no where to be seen. A small pang of guilt etched its way across his heart, along with a little worry as well. Winding his way through the early morning crowd, he went outside, feeling even worse as he saw his brother standing in the rain. Putting on his cynical mask, he walked over to him, putting out his best brotherly tone.

"Al, what are you doing out here? You're gonna rust over if you're not careful," he chided playfully, his face falling at his brother's next sentence.

"Have you contacted Colonel Mustang?" Al asked without even turning to give so much as a glance at his smaller older brother.

A sigh followed his question. "No, not yet, Al. I mean, I don't really see the point of it. The man's probably got spies watching us anyway so what's the use? I mean, seriously…"

"Brother, you'd better call the Colonel before he does send someone out looking for us," Al returned, his tone softening slightly as he caught sight of Edward out the corner of his vision. "Go ahead, Brother. You know how he gets."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'll be back in a minute," he muttered, giving in much more quickly than what Al had predicted. "If I'm not back, then he'll have burnt me to a crisp through the phone." And with that, he disappeared back inside the inn, mixing in with the thinning crowd.

With shaking fingers, he slowly dialed the number, not wanting to hear the voice that would be screaming at him from the other side of the line. It didn't take long for him to hear it.

"Lieutenant Colonel Mustang, future Furher speaking. How may I help you?" the deep voice cut through the silence, Edward twitching as soon as he heard it.

"It's me, sir," Edward replied, somewhat sheepishly. "Um, I was supposed-"

"You were supposed to report in yesterday, Full Metal. Or were you just too busy to remember?" He continued, not giving Edward time to answer. "You know the terms and conditions, and you know what you signed yourself up for. You do remember me telling you that I wanted you to check in each day, don't you? Or is that little world that you call reality consuming all your time?"

"No, sir, I was just a little busy is all," he replied, teeth gritting once more. Anger was slowly but surely becoming his constant acquaintance, and there were no signs of it finding a new home soon.

"Too busy to follow orders? Direct orders from your superior officer? I think we need to have another sit down when you come back, Full Metal, so I can explain to you what my expectations are," he continued on, knowing how deeply his words were crawling underneath the boy's skin.

"I don't think that's necessary, sir," he stated, the urge to scream at the man that was supposed to be his superior officer growing stronger and stronger, like a tidal wave about to strike land.

"Well, we'll find out, won't we?" he let out, the blonde alchemist already envisioning the smirk that was sliding across the Colonel's face. "Do you have anything to report?"

"Actually-"

"I can assume that's a no then. I'll be expecting another call tomorrow, Edward. And I expect information as well."

A dial tone almost smacked Edward in the face, his features contorted in to a scowl. He angrily slammed the phone down, not caring about the strange looks he received from the few people that were around him. Once again, he'd been treated like an irresponsible little kid, and once again, he'd been lectured about his job and the military.

"The next time I talk to him…I swear I'm gonna turn him into-"

"Are you ready to go, Brother?" Al cut him off, turning around to face him. His half-cheerful mood changed as he saw the look on his brother's face. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's nothing, Al. Let's get going," he muttered, shuffling into the light rain, the thunder and lightning lightening up a bit, though it still matched his downcast mood.

"Have you eaten anything yet?" Al asked as they got a little ways away from the inn, trying to put a little life into his brother's hopeless ones.

"No, Al, remember? I told you I wasn't hungry before," Edward grumbled sulkily, trying to shrug off the innocent question. But Al wasn't taking no for an answer.

"But Brother, you haven't eaten anything for awhile now. How could you not be hungry? It's been over three days. That's not good…"

"I've eaten," Edward lied, letting his hair fall securely in his face as he continued to walk a little further ahead of his brother, curiosity getting the better of the younger one.

"No, you haven't. I haven't left your side since we've been here, and you haven't sat down to eat anything since then. Why aren't you eating? It's not because of what happened back at Central…is it?" Al questioned, his tone growing fainter.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Al, that I'm not hungry!" the thirteen year old alchemist spat, turning to face his little brother who wasn't able to stop in time, knocking Edward down.

"Sorry, Brother," came Al's soft response as he tried to lift him from the ground, only to have the smaller one refuse, rainwater staining his knees.

"Don't worry about it," Edward mumbled, continuing on. Trying his best to hide the redness that had flushed his cheeks, he acted as though nothing had happened, even though his walking was a bit unsteady. "What was it that you were going to say earlier?" he asked, slowly changing the subject from his eating habits to their assignment.

"Well, I was thinking about it, and the killer manages to somehow transmute the victim's heart to metal, right?"

"Right."

"Well, that's probably something you'd be able to do too, right? I mean, not that you'd want to, but that's your specialty."

"And your point is?" Edward queried casually, releasing a light yawn.

"My point is, Brother, that what if the murderer has automail as well? Wouldn't it be a lot easier to find him if that's the case?" Al asked, hoping he was right.

"Although that's a good possibility, he could also be a highly skilled alchemist. I can't believe Mustang actually sent us out here," the Full Metal Alchemist mumbled, the scowl reappearing on his face. "If the case was so complicated then maybe he should have dragged his lazy a-"

"Brother, don't forget your own words. You're a dog of the military now, remember?"

"Gee, thanks for the pick me up, Al. I really appreciate it," the words slipped through the side of his mouth.

"Brother…" Al's voice trailed off, his metal head hanging. "I was just saying…" Al looked up, hearing the sound of his brother trip again. "Brother…Brother?" the terrified voice melted through the metal. "Is that…?"

Edward was speechless, his golden eyes drifting to the horrific sight in front of him. Blood littered the ground before him, his boots skirting on the edge of the crimson puddle. Bile automatically found its way up his throat and onto the ground, he unable to contain it. He doubled over, not wanting to look at the thing that lay a few feet from him.

"Are they…?"

"Yeah, Al," he choked out, body trembling. "They're dead."

Author's note : My second attempt at Full Metal fan fiction. Sorry if it sucked, but the anime is so good, it's hard to make a fan fiction that even comes close! Just to explain a few things real quick :

1. This takes place in between the time Edward became an official State Alchemist and the time he and Al went to Liore. So that leaves three years to play with if I'm correct.

2. I don't know if anyone sees Ed's problem just yet, but the angst and brotherly conduct will continue to get worse throughout the story, if anyone reads it, that is.

I think that's it. Feel free to leave me a review and let me know what you think. It's always nice to know if anyone liked it or not, or even suggestions on how I can improve. Thanks! Oh, and before I forget, you gotta check out "Nothing I Won't Give" by Vic Mignogna. It's quite an inspiration for this story, to be honest. Later!