The Price of Life [Fullmetal Alchemist]

Chapter Thirty Four

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Alphonse's head is reeling. Where are his brother and Ling? He has no clue of where anything this monster's stomach leads to. The helplessness eats away at the boy so fiercely that he only hears his name being called after a couple of repeats.

"Ed? Alphonse? Ling!" Sonia calls out as loud as she can, her body twitching. She's surrounded by the trees, laying against the one Envy threw her at. Al gets up immediately and runs to her, Mei's tiny panda Xiao Mei running after him. Gluttony stays away, curious but cautious.

"Sonia! You're okay, right?" As gently as the suit of armor can, he props her upright against the tree. She groans in pain. Her limbs twitch in pain.

"Envy's a damn good throw," she says sadistically. "My back feels numb. And my neck feels all tingly."

"Can you get up? Walk maybe?"

"I'm sure I can!" she says arrogantly, propping her knee up then pushing herself up by putting her hand on it. She wobbles, then falls back into the dirt, screaming in pain. Al goes to help, but she writhes like a fish out of water.

"Envy threw you into this tree pretty hard. Your spine... it might be dislocated, Sonia."

"No, that can't be. I don't need another stupid injury! We can't go to a doctor right now! Where's Ed and Ling?"

Al balls up his fist. "Gluttony. He swallowed them. I don't... I don't know how to get them back."

"This is just fucking perfect, isn't it?"

The homunculus, now right behind Alphonse, speaks up almost meekly. "You are... hurt? Father will be upset that I ate a sacrifice, but if I bring both of you to him, maybe he will not punish me. He can help fix you!"

"You mean he can fix my back?"

Gluttony nods and the two alchemists look at each other.

"We have to go, Al. Plus, his father might know how to get Ed and Ling back."

"Okay. You're right." He turns to Gluttony. "Take us there."

"Yes, let's go!"

"You're going to have to ride in my armor, is that okay?"

Sonia smiles. "Well, I don't have a choice, but I don't mind. Reminds me of that time in the Fifth Lab."

Al nods his armored head. He picks her up from the dirt she put herself in and tries to make her as comfortable as possible inside his cold and hollow armor. He closes it back up, her now inside.

"You can't feel me twitching, right?" she asks, forcing the words out. Her possibly dislocated spine is pressed against the hard metal; the pain feels almost too much to bear.

"I'm sorry, Sonia. We'll be there soon enough, hopefully."

She tried not to think about the physical pain she was in, but then realized something that was possibly worse.

'If we're going to see this glutton's father, will I get to meet the man who created the rest of the homunculi? Even my sister?'

Al sounds different within the armor to Sonia, but the fear in his voice is still prevalent.

"Are you sure this is the right way? Because this is..."

"Alphonse, what is it?"

"This is the way to Central Command."

They walk towards the sewers, the stench making Sonia scrunch up her nose. Alphonse and Gluttony are obviously not fazed and keep along the wall. She hears some ferocious growls, but the homunculus informs them that they're just guarding so no one else can intrude.