Cardinal sin (2) : A laugh in Vain

14 - Elbow-length sleeves

Torchpit had only one hospital. In fact, you couldn't even call it an actual hospital. Rather, it was a clinic run by one old doctor and his son and daughter. They usually didn't get anything too serious, but that weekend was quite a rattling one.

A man named Edward Elric was brought in and treated for nine severe burns and several bodies were found lying near him. He said all of them except for one could be burned. The one kept intact, whom he informed them was Rebecca Catalina, a Second-Lieutenant in the military, was placed in a body bag, which was in turn put in a freezer while Elric recovered.

His wounds did not heal quickly, but he insisted that he needed to get out of Torchpit as soon as he could. The doctor made an effort to have in stable enough condition to travel. However, he did give instructions to rest in a hospital and get the proper rest and treatment he needed for his burns.

"And what of Rebecca Catalina's body?" asked the doctor as he helped Edward into a coat.

Cringing as he raised his arms to readjust his collar, Fullmetal said, "I want it loaded in the back of the wagon. It's bad enough I couldn't get a car. Just don't tell the driver it's a corpse."

The doctor was somewhat worried for the driver of the wagon, but he complied. His children hauled the body bag in the back of the wagon, explaining to its driver with reassuring smiles that it was nothing more than Edward's hefty belongings.

"He's got the craziest of jobs," one said.

"He's crazy himself," his sister added, and then they went to help Ed climb inside the wagon.

As they eased him down into a seated position on the hard wooden bottom of the wagon, the brother remarked, "A wagon is about the worst thing for an injured person to travel in."

"I've gone through worse."

"Well, I guess we'd better go now," said the sister. "Anything else you need."

"How many bodies were there?"

"Huh?" The siblings glanced at each other, then the girl said slowly, "Hum, there was Rebecca, the big guy with the thick eyebrows, the woman at the bottom of the pit, the two who looked like siblings and the guy who I guess was running away when he was killed. So that makes... six bodies. Huh... you are sure it was Catalina who killed all of them, right?"

"Yeah... but what about the other one?"

"The other one?"

"The guy in the old clothes and the messy hair. He was shot in the stomach."

"Mr Elric, there were only those six bodies and you there."

The doctor's children said their goodbyes and descended from the wagon. The driver set it in motion at once, eager to get a move on. He was still not sure whether or not the siblings were telling the truth about what was about the big black bag.

'Only six bodies... Vain must have gotten away and died somewhere in the forest. He must be dead; I was the only patient the doctor saw. Damn, because of that asshat, I won't be able to show my upper arms in public ever again. The scars left behind by these burn marks are going to be pretty nasty...'