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“So much for superheroes. We’ll find a way to survive.”
- Superheroes, Soul Extract
~
Nina raced towards the commotion with Winry at her side. When they reached the near edge of the rubble, Nina continued running right up an angled chunk of concrete and leapt into the air. She soared over the debris as Winry picked her way over, around, and through the wreckage that the alchemists left in their wake.
She caught up in time to come to her brothers’ aid, but was unprepared for the paralyzing panic that froze her in midair for a heartbeat. She did not expect to be struck down by fear alone at the sight of the giant. The man who killed what remained of her family, and came terrifyingly close to including her among them. Nina landed clumsily on a balcony overhead and took deep breaths in an effort to stop shaking.
The light of day did nothing to dispel the nightmare playing out before her eyes. She abruptly remembered a conversation with Winry, who could not imagine how Ed managed to lose an entire piece of his automail. Nina had no such difficulty imagining what might have happened.
She could only watch as they used alchemy as much as they could to keep a - well, not a safe distance from their enemy. There was nothing safe about the way Brothers prolonged this fight. Edward allowed himself to be pursued away from the evacuating crowds. From this height, it reminded Nina of a radio special she listened to about animals that lived in the desert. Monstrous beasts called lions could track other animals for days without losing focus. Ed’s angry voice reached her, but not his words, which lent him the ridiculous semblance of an offended squirrel. Alphonse retained more dignity, fighting tirelessly to maintain a strategic distance small enough for speech, yet large enough to react in time when shouts inevitably gave way to strikes.
Still not quite steady enough to fly, Nina shuffled closer to the railing and felt her shoe bump against a potted plant. She observed the building’s balconies with renewed interest, cataloging an arsenal of improvised projectiles.
Ed swore when potted plants fell from the sky like organic artillery. His confusion turned quickly to cheering when it became clear that he was not the target. Was he accustomed to people throwing things at him? Al shouted his thanks as Nina’s unmistakable silhouette glided across the street to take advantage of the balconies on the opposing building.
The fight finally seemed to shift in their favor. Nina tried not to think too hard about the fact that it took all three of them to achieve even this stalemate. She flapped her exhausted wings, propelling her straight up to reach the roof and search for more impromptu weapons. The additional height took her out of hearing range and revealed that Winry had nearly reached their location.
She dove back down, wings flaring to their fullest as she slowed her descent with a tight spiral. Even the wind rushing past her ears could not drown out Ed’s next words. An accusation.
Although Ed struck true, his words landed like the indiscriminate blast of a grenade. Al, Winry, and Nina were all struck speechless by friendly fire.
Nina stared at Winry, the vivacious older girl with the heart to claim a chimera as a little sister. Nina felt that fierce heart break as if it was her own. She had known that they were both orphans. At least Nina knew her own story. Winry had unknowingly followed a trail of destruction across the map to the same source. There was a cruel poetry to the eponymous marking of where blame was due.
Winry collapsed to the street, visibly pulling herself together as her tear-filled gaze was caught by the glint of sunlight on metal. As Winry reached towards it, Nina’s literal eagle-eyes focused on the object: a pistol that must have been dropped by a soldier who escaped or fled the battlefield. She banked sharply to land directly behind Winry.
The alchemist’s angel leaned on Winry’s shoulder, but Nina was not there to offer wisdom. Faced with Winry’s gun, Nina’s wings, and their combined grief-fueled rage, one of the most feared men in Amestris stood down.
Nina’s mind whirled, searching for a way out while Winry forced herself to speak through her tears. Edward and Alphonse hung back, tense as coiled springs and poised to clap.
In all her time visiting, Nina had only seen Winry with strong arms and a steady grip. She could easily carry Elicia, throw things at their brothers, and fix anything. Even Winry could not fix this, not with the way her ever-steady hands were shaking.
“Big sister? If you’re not going to shoot, then let go.” Nina’s childish fingers looked wrong against the dark metal that trembled in Winry’s grip.
Both girls flinched and Ed leapt into action as a gunshot rent the air.
She squeezed her eyes shut and clung to Winry. Nobody was screaming yet. There was no smell of blood. If Winry missed, they were going to die.
Nina remembered her father. She also remembered the story she used to love; angels were supposed to protect good people and stop bad people. What a useless angel her parents had made her into! Nina wrapped her wings around Winry without opening her eyes. If real angels existed, they could sure use the help right now.
~
Maes felt his heart race as he followed Nina and Winry against the panicked crowds and into side streets strewn with improbably sized rubble. Gracia and Elicia would be safely home by now. He couldn’t live with himself if he left the other kids to fend for themselves. If Ed and Al didn’t already need backup, they were about to. Protecting non-combatants during a battle was dangerous even for experienced soldiers.
He arrived just in time to see Nina reach over Winry’s shoulder and steady the older girl’s aim. Now was not the time to question how and why his girls had a gun. Maes stopped in his tracks, aimed, and fired his own pistol.
The single shot struck the barrel of the other gun, knocking it from the girls’ hands. A warning shot worked before. If it didn’t work again, he could only hope that there would be time to fire a second shot.
A blur of motion settled into eerie stillness. The fight was frozen like a photograph as Maes approached.
With his gun aimed directly at Scar and a finger ready against the trigger, Maes took in the scene before him. Edward sprawled defensively in front of Winry and Nina. Had the boy literally thrown himself in front of them? The younger girl had her eyes shut and her face buried in Winry’s hair. The older girl stared at the fallen weapon as if considering picking it back up. Alphonse looked back and forth between Maes and the others to figure out what on earth just happened.
Maes still was not sure why nobody was moving. Could alchemy do that?
It was Alphonse who recovered first, walking slowly to stand by his brother’s side.
Ed blinked and found his voice. It was unusually quiet. “Al, get Winry and Nina to safety.”
He stood cautiously, seemingly aware that any sudden movements would be ill-advised. “I’ll be fine until the others get here.”
Did he seriously believe that?
Before Al could even protest, Maes stepped in. “Major Elric!”
The look Ed gave him was priceless. Maes’ aim did not waver as he provided the alchemist with what little protection he could offer.
“Elric, escort these three civilians to safety,” he ordered.
A wave of relief washed over Ed’s face, before the young soldier’s expression reverted to grim determination with a slight shake of his head.
“Sorry Lieutenant Colonel Hughes, I’m under orders from the Colonel not go anywhere without a military escort.”
Maes made a disbelieving noise. This situation was exactly what Roy’s orders were intended to prevent! Edward couldn’t possibly want to stay, which meant that he had a reason for being difficult. Where was Roy? It wasn’t raining, so they could certainly use his help right about now. An explosion in the distance answered that question.
Ed’s resolute gaze shifted to where Al stood protectively in front of Nina and Winry, then back to Maes.
His voice was still too quiet, too serious. “You should accompany them, sir. Your daughter needs you more than I do.”
The words struck true, leaving Maes torn with indecision. Winry gasped, but could not find the words, or perhaps her voice, to dispute Ed’s claim. Meanwhile, Nina and Al appeared to have been distracted by a small black and white cat. Maes couldn’t imagine leaving Elicia and Gracia behind. Nor could he allow a fifteen year old to sacrifice himself. Maes could not say with sufficient certainly that Ed would be able to stand his ground alone until the team’s chaotic plan coalesced. For the love of peace, how did Ed have less self-preservation than Roy? One time was unfortunate, but twice was absurd.
Maes cast another anxious look at their enemy, who appeared surprisingly unbothered by the chance to catch his breath while the soldiers argued over who would stay behind. Maes cleared his throat loudly and felt the criminal’s glare pin him in place. He mentally pushed away a tide of war memories, reminded and humbled by how all four of those kids were braver than himself.
“This never happened. There’s no need for me to shoot because these four children,” he emphasized the word pointedly, “escaped unharmed.”
The criminal nodded and turned away without a word.
Maes holstered his gun and focused on breathing so that he wouldn’t collapse. He shared a look with Ed. They would discuss this later. Neither of them was foolish enough to hope that it was over.
With time and space to breathe, he took stock of their condition in more detail. Nobody appeared to need medical attention. That was a good place to start.
Addressing the youngest member of their highly traumatized party, Maes offered comfort to Nina first. He only needed to open his arms for her to flap her wings, launch herself onto and over Al’s shoulders, and crash into his embrace with a whoomph of feathers. She was so light that Maes only needed to shift his balance to stay upright.
When she stopped shaking, Maes asked: “Nina, do you have enough energy to fly home?”
She nodded and pushed away to land gracefully on her feet.
“Fly straight home, and don’t stop for anything.” Maes tried to use his officer voice, but it came out sounding more like his dad voice.
Nina gave him one of her adorable little salutes and took off in the direction of their house.
Maes spoke as he turned back towards Winry and the Elrics. “Alright, we need to head back to Headquarters so that our report is the first one they hear. We can talk it through on the w- why?”
His beleaguered “why” encompassed many things: Why is this happening? Why me? Why are they like this? Why did you let them leave? Why didn’t I call in sick and keep you all safe at home today?
Winry raised her head and stared straight through Maes. Ed’s torn red coat hung from her shoulders. Both Elrics had evidently slipped away while his focus was on Nina.
He sighed and slung an arm around Winry’s shoulders. “Come on, Winry. Let’s get you somewhere safe.”
She didn’t say much on the walk to Headquarters. Maes filled the silence with reassurances that they could trust the Elrics to make it home, instructions regarding what to say (and what not to say) while he made his report, and any trivial small talk that came to mind.
They did make one quick stop on the way.
Maes grabbed the first payphone they passed for a quick call to Roy. Winry leaned against the outside of the booth, looking utterly exhausted and jumping at any unexpected noises. After the usual nuisance of call transfers and security clearance codes, he heard the other end of the line connect.
“Roy.” His clipped greeting meant this was serious. Under better circumstances, he would be chattering away and describing photographs as if he could send the images themselves over the wire.
His best friend growled in response. “This better be important, Hughes.”
Thank goodness, Roy was at work. “Fine, be like that. I’ll talk to Riza.”
The phone clicked as the call was transferred.
“Hey, Lieutenant! You’re driving Roy straight to Safehouse B after work. Don’t let him out of your sight.
Riza interrupted to remind Maes, in code of course, that she and the rest of the team were under surveillance.
He refused to let this derail the still-forming plan to keep his friends safe. “Yes, I know you’re being watched, but this is worth the risk. Hold on, I’ve got this! Lieutenant Hawkeye, I order you to bring Flame to a secure location to await a situation report.”
~
Nina landed on the roof of the Hughes home at the same moment a crackling sound and a nimbus of red sparks emanated from the front porch. She peered from behind the chimney to see… Winry?
That wasn’t right.
Winry was with Mr. Hughes. Winry didn’t have red sparkles.
She remembered the shapeshifting monster that attacked Uncle Maes. Was it here? Was there more than one?
More importantly, what should she do?
There was no way that Nina was letting that thing near Elicia. She would find a way to warn Aunt Gracia. For now, she reasoned that her best hope was to play along and stay alert. They defeated this monster before. It wouldn’t stand a chance once Brothers got home with the real Winry.