threatened man, before throwing himself desperately on his knees.
"Uhu ~! Shelly!" Tears welled up, which the old man tried not to suppress. "I'm sorry! I ... couldn't avenge you!"
Edward only watched this pile of misery briefly, but then turned to his brother.
“Hold still!” And the ropes that tied Al to the pillar were cut. At last he was free again.
"Thank you, Nii-san!"
"Please. Now get out of here!" Edward smiled - despite his injury.
"Nii-san ... Who ...?" But the younger one couldn't finish speaking. Edward got up quickly and gave the man a pitying look.
"Let's go, Al," the Fullmetal Alchemist uttered quietly and left the dark cellar with his brother. Mayor Wools sat down there for a few hours, mourning the lost vengeance.

The two Elric brothers were now standing in front of the clock tower again. The sun was shining down on them.
"How dazzling," Edward said simply, raising his arm. Alphonse remembered the injury again.
"Hurry Ed! We have to take care of your wound!"
But the person addressed only looked puzzled at the grazed wound. "Oh what! That's not bad!" He played it down - as always, actually.
"But ...! Nii-san!" Al didn't like that at all. Why was his brother like that?
Ed just sighed. “It's good!” Without thinking about it, the older man tore off a piece of his red coat and passed it on. "Here! Just tie that off. It will heal on its own, too."
Even if the younger man did not appreciate this mindfulness very much, he had no other choice. He took this piece of cloth and carefully tied it around the wound. It really wasn't deep.
"But you'll go to a doctor later!" The armor complained again.
“Yes!” Whether Ed really left was questionable.
Alphonse just couldn't understand that. Not even what had happened up to now. "Nii-san?"
In the meantime they had taken a few steps further. “Mhm?” The state alchemist did not look up at his companion."What ... what actually happened ...?" The soul armor stopped and looked worriedly down at his brother.
"Al ... that ..."
"Please! Tell me if something is bothering you!"
The older man's eyes opened wide. Al just knew him too well.
"Oh Al ..." Ed whispered softly and smiled at his beloved brother.
"Ed ...?" The shallow look of his counterpart was a little scary.
"The whole thing was just a tragic accident ...!"
Slowly the two brothers set off again. Ed looked serious.
"I don't know exactly when that was either. There was a fire here. The house that belonged to the guy from earlier was under a large rock wall. The fire brigade hadn't managed to tame the fire, so ... "
Alphonse swallowed. He had a bad premonition of what might come next.
"I had no choice! I transmuted the rock face and a large, earthy avalanche fell on the house. How ... should I know there was a little girl inside?" Ed was close to tears. Even if it was an accident, it was still his fault - or so he thought.
"You are not to blame, brother!"
Could Al read minds? He looked up at his little brother in amazement. "Al ..." The full metal alchemist looked speechless at the armor of the soul. "... Thanks."

While they were walking down the street, Edward noticed a little girl who looked very familiar to him.
"Nii-san?"
The person addressed stopped, but smiled. "Ah. It's nothing. Don't worry."
The 14-year-old looked suspiciously at the previous one. He was so weird again. And the laughter wasn't real either ... "Nii-san?" Alphonse only mumbled and walked on.
The Elric brothers took a break in a small inn. They would spend the night there too, since their actual job still had to be done.
"Ah! Am I tired ..." said Edward Elric and let himself fall back on the mattress.
His little brother Alphonse sat across from him on a chair and thought. Some time later he spoke up. "Nii-san. I ..." The younger man, whose soul was tied to armor, looked up briefly. But the one he tried to talk to was asleep. He lay there calmly - all fours stretched out and with his stomach bared.
"Oh Nii-san ..." Al mumbled before closing his eyes calmly.


To be continued in Chapter 2