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Riza knew of fear. She saw it in every Ishvalan she sniped from a distance. She saw the terror in their eyes as they watched their family and friends and neighbours fall thanks to her and the other snipers in the area. She saw the tears and the wails and the begging to the heavens for salvation, but she knew they would only get a bullet through the skull.
Every day since she had been deployed, Riza began to question the rebellion she and the other soldiers had been told. If it was really a rebellion, why were there no official civilians? Why were there no children? Where were the innocents? Amestris saw none.
She gagged at the memory of shooting a woman in the back as she fled down the streets, only to see a bundle in her arms moments later, the bundle wailing its little lungs out, until they, too, fell as silent as their mother.
A hand gently patted her shoulder, and she snapped to the present, eyes wide at Maes. He had a sympathetic look, knowing all too well the thoughts swirling in her mind. He had them too. The lack of sleep made it obvious.
They were having a lunch break together, one of the rare times they shared a moment of rest together - it was rarer for the two of them and Roy to have breaks at the same time - and they chose the outskirts of Ishval in hopes of getting further away from the screams that echoed in their heads. The war was nearly over, the population of Ishval was barely a fraction of what it had been, and neither knew how many would survive, or if the government wanted any survivors outside their own military.
It was while the two were eating when a foot soldier ran up to them, breathless.
“Lieu-Lieutenant Colonel… Mustang…” He gasped, holding a hand up when the two jumped to their feet before he took a very deep breath and began again. “Lieutenant Colonel Mustang requested… assistance, from both of you.”
“What’s happened?” Maes asked, his bland sandwich forgotten on the sandy floor, soon followed by Riza’s.
“He’s been shot.”
Riza and Maes ran to the medical tent soon after, pushing through the flap as quickly as they could. They heard the sounds of the injured soldiers groaning and moaning in pain, but most were bemoaning and complaining over their injuries and being unable to get back into the fray - as if they wanted to continue the murder of Ishvalans - but neither cared for those soldiers.
Roy was sitting up on the medical cot, which was a reassuring sight for them both, but his face was pinched and his uniform top had been shattered apart.
“Are you okay, man?” Maes asked as they reached their friend.
For some stupid reason, Roy shrugged in answer, only to double over with a low groan. It was like he had forgotten the wound in his shoulder, and Riza came forward immediately, checking it over.
He had been shot cleanly through the shoulder. The shooter had obviously been trying to aim for his heart, but either the shooter had poor aim, or Roy had moved just enough away to avoid instant death. It was a through and through shot, which was the good news.
The bad news was it looked like major muscles had been impacted, considering Roy’s arm hung lifelessly by his side.
“Has no one even given you a wrap so you don’t lose your arm?” Riza asked, already leaving Roy and Maes to grab the supplies needed. Roy had no time to answer before she was back, sitting on his bed.
“I got here like ten minutes ago, really. A squad of us got ambushed by some men who had managed to get their hands on fallen weapons,” Roy answered. “I was the least injured, actually, so the nurses focused on the others. ‘Sides,” he gave a crooked smile, trying to be playful but the pain in his face made it fall flat, “I got myself a pretty nurse to help.”
“Wow, thanks, Roy. I think you’re pretty, too,” Maes teased, grabbing the gauze that Riza had brought over to unwind.
Roy spluttered, but gave a low whine when Riza began to inspect the wound, cleaning up the blood so she could tell how badly he had been injured.
It turned out it wasn’t too bad of an injury, which was a small blessing in this hellhole. All they needed to do was bind it well enough and ensure Roy wasn’t stupid enough to move his arm too much, but it didn’t stop him from using his alchemy, nor did it stop him from fighting in the extermination.
“Just get some rest, sir,” Riza said, putting away the rest of the gauze once she and Maes were finished dressing the wound. “A nurse will probably discharge you in a few hours. Might as well enjoy the cot while you can.”
Roy sighed and nodded, casting a small smile to the other two as they left.