Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

After Hughes’ death, Colonel Mustang and his group are transferred from the East to Central so that they can be watched. Mustang captures a prisoner from the kept-under-wraps-cell 5, Barry the Chopper #66. As the investigating Mustang team steps too close into enemy territory, the Homunculi decide to react. To distract their attention from cell 5, the enemy disguised as the army, captures 2nd Lt. Ross in connection with Hughes’ death. They pin Hughes death on Ross and try to sentence her to death.

Hughes, Armstrong, Havoc, Mustang & Hawkeye

Not only that, Mustang’s man, Havoc is seeing Lust, who he doesn’t know of her true identity – a Homunculi.

With the aid of #66, Mustang stages the death of 2nd Lt. Ross to gain her release. Number 66’s original body is released by the Homunculi Lust and Envy for distraction. As the prisoner chases after its body, Mustang and Havoc is cornered by Lust. Havoc suffers paralyzing injuries while Mustang is left for dead. Not willing to give in, Mustang musters up all his fire power and burns Lust to a crisp. The injured are immediately brought to the hospital by Al and Hawkeye thereafter, as Wrath watches creepily.

Colonel Mustang, wanting to clear his name in the killing of 2nd Lt. Ross, sends Ed and Major Armstrong to the country Xerxes. There they meet a very much alive 2nd Lt. Ross who later crosses into the country Xing for refuge. She, however, promises to return the moment Colonel Mustang needs her. Ed also stumbles upon strange markings in the deserted city, signifying the usage of alchemy by their residence. He also learns the truth of Winry’s parents death from nearby Ishvalans. The Rockbell doctors were saving Ishvalan lives during the Civil War, but one particular patient turned against them. This patient, with a scar across his face, killed the Amestris couple the moment he regain consciousness.

Colonel Mustang’s group in the desert also begin to gather and share all their information on the enemy. They now know their adversary is next to indestructible. Their foe is the Homunculi bunch with ouroboros (symbol of a serpent/dragon swallowing its own tail in a circle) markings on them. They consist of Gluttony, Lust (Mustang burnt), Envy, Pride (supposed leader of the Homunculi and son to the Führer, Selim Bradley), Greed (incinerated by Father), Sloth and Wrath (King Bradley).

Stranger from Xing and the Return to Central

While traveling back to Central, Edward meets illegal Chinese immigrant, Ling Yao, the 12th prince from the eastern nation of Xing who is trying to find the path to immortality for the leader of his country. Together with his bodyguard, Ran Fan and her grandfather Fu, they journey into Central with Edward. Indebted to Al and Edward for “sharing” their food with them and housing them, the Chinese immigrants and the brothers scheme to capture a Homunculus by drawing Scar out. Scar, an Ishvalan, wants to kill State Alchemists for destroying his homeland. The Homunculus, for unknown reasons, wants Ed and Al as “human sacrifices.” This means they cannot be killed before the time is up. With Ling Yao and Ran Fan as backup, Ed and Al lure Scar out from hiding. Unfortunately for the Chinese immigrants, Wrath and Gluttony are hot on their trail.  Ran Fan is injured badly and has to dismember her arm for the duo to escape. Gluttony, instead, is left to protect the young brothers. After a scuffle, Scar takes off, but is rescued by a little girl, Mei Chan and her panda Xiao Mei. However, Xiao Mei is deserted, and Al takes her under his wing. The brothers and Ling Yao manage to capture Gluttony and take him off to a secluded outhouse set up by Colonel Mustang.

Scar, Mei Chan & Xiao Mei

At the rendezvous point, the group tries to question Gluttony, as Ling Yao tells Colonel Mustang that King Bradley is a Homunculi with the ouroboros under his covered eye. Gluttony sees Mustang, and goes berserk knowing that Mustang killed Lust. He mutates into another form, which eats up half the house. As Dr. Knox (called in by Mustang), Ran Fan, a still injured Mustang and Lt. Hawkeye make their escape, the Elric brothers and Ling Yao distract Gluttony. Envy appears and reproaches Gluttony, saying that the brothers are not to be harmed, but he can do whatever he wants with the slanted-eyed one. In the heat of the moment, as Gluttony releases his bottomless pit, Ling Yao, Ed and Envy are all swallowed. In despair of losing Ed, Al tries to frighten Gluttony into revealing how they can release the threesome.

Hunting Immortals

Envy

Meanwhile, the trio caught inside Gluttony’s stomach try unsuccessfully to leave the pit. With nothing to lose, Envy reveals that the cruel Civil War with the Ishvalans was really started by him; by taking the form of an Amestrian soldier, he killed an Ishvalan child. Even in disbelief, it suddenly strikes Ed that Gluttony’s stomach is made much like the Gate of Life. He also remembers the curious markings in the city of Xerxes and its missing parts are all found inside Gluttony’s stomach. Ed then tries to reconstitute all of them out of the hole with Envy’s Philosopher’s Stone. He succeeds in doing so, and as he gets to the Gate of Life, he sees an emaciated blond-headed body sitting on the opposite side and realizes that it is Al’s body.

On the other side of the world, Al convinces Gluttony to bring him back to Father to find a solution to Ed’s imprisonment. Scar and Mei Chan see Xiao Mei with Al and Gluttony and follow them into Father’s lair.

Upon reaching in the inner sanctum of Father, Ling Yao, Ed and Envy are ejected from Gluttony’s body. The brothers are reunited but upon seeing Father, think that he is Hohenheim. Father, they are told, is not Hohenheim and terrifyingly controls alchemy without even placing both hands together as he heals Ed’s wounds. Chillingly, Father is able to stop the brother’s alchemy from working, as he turns Ling Yao into a second generation Greed. However, Mei Chan and Scar are able to use their Eastern alchemy against Father.

With all the knowledge at hand, Colonel Mustang is cornered by the Führer and the upper echelons of Central. One by one, Mustang’s men are all relocated to different stations in the North, South, East and West. Even Lt. Hawkeye is reassigned as the Führer’s personal assistant. It is later revealed that Lt. Hawkeye’s father, a well-known and powerful alchemist who finished a fearsome experiment, left all his research on his daughter’s person. With Mustang’s team scattered and Elric brothers blackmailed into working with the Führer while holding Winry hostage, everyone has a renewed goal.

The brothers pursuit Mei Chan, who is the key to Eastern alchemy and a path to gaining their bodies back. Mustang is even more set on his goals on the Führer’s seat, but first he looks for help with his old Lieutenant General from the East, Grumman.

Solf Kimblee

As the wheels start spinning for Mustang’s team, the Homunculi too begin their counterattack. The Crimson alchemist, Solf Kimblee, is released from prison to pursue Scar and a missing Dr. Marcoh (who is presumably rescued by Scar, according to Envy who was left guarding him). Scar, Yoki, Dr. Marcoh and May travel north to where Scar left his brother’s research on eastern and western alchemy. However, the latter two are told to go ahead, while Scar and Yoki act as decoy for Kimblee who is hot on their trail. When the Elric brothers are told that Mei Chan is up north, they too are in pursuit. Major Armstrong tells them to stop at Briggs, his sister’s stronghold.

The Northern Wall of Briggs

Major General Olivier Armstrong

As the brothers make it up north and finally meet the ice-cold Major General Olivier Armstrong they are once again caught in an upheaval. First, a digging homunculus, Sloth, appears and reveals a hidden underground tunnel that points to a possible alchemical circle with dire consequences (much like that found in cell 5 where the prisoners were killed). The brothers are then forced to divulge their secrets about the Homunculi and King Bradley. Then Kimblee shows up with Lieutenant General Raven who positions Major General Armstrong with immortality and an immortal army at her disposal. In the mean time her own men are sent to research the tunnel, but end up missing and dead. Major General Armstrong kills off Raven and sends a recon team, which successfully retrieves two surviving members of the first lost team.

With the “disappearance” of Raven, Kimblee takes full control of the operations and uses Winry as bait against the brothers.

They are to:

1. find Scar, but leave the capture to the Central army
2. find Dr. Marcoh, but once again leave the capture to the Central army
3. create a Civil War much like that of Ishval in Briggs

In exchange, Winry will be safe, and they will get a philosopher’s stone. The brothers agree, knowing that finding Scar will lead them to Mei Chan. Once they find Mei Chan, their chance of learning the Eastern alchemy and gaining their bodies back become higher, thus they will have no need for the stone. More importantly, Winry is in their hands.

Back track to the day Hohenheim left his family. Realizing he would never age while his family aged in front of him made him feel like a monster. Trisha, not wanting him to feel that way, decides to take a family picture to capture the moment. (This picture is one that his face is always covered in later times by Ed who remembers the very day he left) In it, everyone is smiling except for Hohenheim, who is weeping from joy and the abundance of love surrounding him. On the day of his departure, he didn’t want the children to see the turmoil he is going through for having to abandon them once he realized what “Father” is up to. Trisha understands his feelings all too well, and instead, puts up a strong front for the sake of the children.

The Central army sets out on a man hunt for Scar with the Elric brothers, Winry and Miles, a second generation Ishvalan working under Major General Armstrong. The brothers, Winry and Miles encounter Scar’s team. Using Scar’s àpropos appearance, they plan for Winry’s kidnap by Scar and then an escape. Even knowing that Scar killed her parents, Winry understands but doesn’t forgive the deed. While the hunted (Dr. Marcoh, Scar, Mei Chan, Xiao Mei, Yoki and Winry) escapes, the pseudo-hunter (Ed, Al & Miles) delays the real hunter (Kimblee) from pursuing. The group plans to regroup at the Briggs base. Unfortunately, Miles is informed, after Scar’s group escape, that Kimblee sent the Central army (ahead of time) to relieve Major General Armstrong off her duties (forcing her into Central to answer for a missing Raven) and flood the fort with the Central goons.

Caught in a blizzard, while the Scar team escapes underground in a coal mine, Al is forced to head out himself to warn Scar of an unsafe Briggs fort. During his journey, his soul slips in and out of his sealed armor, occasionally seeing his body on the other side of the Gate of Life. Fortunately for him, as he cuts through the mountains, Al catches with Scar’s team and they avoid the Briggs base altogether while deciphering the research material left by Scar’s brother. The group then finds refuge in a small town where Ishvalans commune. There, they set a trap to lure, capture and finally incapacitate Envy to it’s originally sluggish being with Dr. Marcoh breaking down Envy’s Philosopher’s Stone. With Envy “disarmed,” Mei Chan is given Envy to return home with. Scar and Dr. Marcoh set out in a different direction in search of truth while Al, Winry and two of Kimblee’s “reformed” men head towards Lior where Al suspects the tunnel/alchemy circle exists underground.

When the blizzard clears, Kimblee heads straight to the coal mine, but Ed immediately stops him. They end up in a scuffle, whereby the building’s scaffolding falls on not only two of Kimblee’s chimera men, but fatally stabs Ed too. Ed frees the men, and they help pull the metal scaffolding out of his bloodied abdomen. Kimblee’s men become Ed’s allies and rescue him instead. With no one to stop him, Kimblee is left on his own accord and goes into the coal mine. He stumbles upon Pride who orders him to lay siege on a leaderless Briggs to create the blood crest since Sloth has completed his duty of digging a circle underground.

Back in Central, Hawkeye discovers that Selim Bradley is really Pride, the first Homunculus created, but is unable to share that knowledge with Colonel Mustang as she is being watched by Pride. However, through carefully coded messages spoken in public, Hawkeye is able to share her new information of Selim with Mustang. According to Pride, as the “first” homunculus born from Father, all the other Homunculi answer to him. Where ever there is a shadow cast, he is there. Pride has the most important task: guarding the tunnels that are being dug up by Sloth. No one is allowed in or out. But Hohenheim goes into Lior and enters the underground church to wage war against Father through Pride. As Hohenheim prepares for the impending war from Lior, Al with his group enters Lior and is reunited once again with his father. Hohenheim then retells his story to Al.

Selim Bradley - Pride

Father has most, if not all, of his chess pieces aligned. The Elric brothers, Hohenheim, possibly Izumi Curtis and one more unknown candidate are set in a pentagram of an alchemical circle. As the preparations are made, Father reminisces on how he came about.

Hohenheim was once a young slave known only as 23. While working in his master’s lab, he comes across a being living in a test tube, which was created with his own blood. From there, the being, a Homunculus, names him as Hohenheim, educates him and changes his life from a slave to a master. Hohenheim then travels to the country Xerxes with the bottled up Homunculus where the king of Xing seeks immortality. Helping the king to attain this goal means creating mass gravesites, but Hohenheim, being young and naïve, did as the Homunculus directed. In the end, instead of the king attaining immortality, Hohenheim gains the immortal body and so does his flasked Homunculus, which breaks out and forms a body replicating Hohenheim’s. From that mass slaughter, Hohenheim becomes a living Philosopher’s Stone and “Father” is created.

Hohenheim

•
The Promised Day

The stage is set for D-Day in Spring of the following year.  The Homunculi have their circle completed. The protagonists have all taken or are taking their spots. Izumi Curtis and her husband are in the North. Hohenheim, Al, Winry and two defunct soldiers under Kimblee are at Lior. Olivier Armstrong has sent her parents away for protection and taken over the Armstrong mansion and inheritance. Scar and Dr. Marcoh are headed to the dessert. Mei Chan, instead of returning to Xing, is retracing her steps back to Central. Mustang, Hawkeye and Havoc are holding down the fort in Central and preparing. Greed, after a “talk” with Ling Yao, has left the Homunculi and joined forces with Ed and two other defunct soldiers of Kimblee.

Finally Scar and Dr. Marcoh show up to meet with the other two defunct soldiers in Lior. Scar’s reason for participating in this coming war is not to protect the Armestrian but to change the minds of the Armestrians against the Ishvalans. They bring with them an army of Ishvalans as they head to Central.

Winry Rockbell

Greed and Ed’s group are back in Resembool to fine tune Ed’s automail. Al and Winry’s group too are in Resembool, to drop off Winry and to meet up with Major Miles. They all land in Pinako’s house, minus Al, who has to hide in a train cargo to avoid Central’s eye. After Ed’s automail is tuned for the impending fight, he then leaves Winry and Pinako, but not before promising that the next time that they return, they will have their bodies back. In return, Winry has to have a freshly baked apple pie waiting for them. With that, they all leave for Central for the final showdown.

Major Miles and Al arrive in Central, only to have Gluttony and Pride kidnap Al as hostage. Meanwhile, Major Miles and Lt. General Grumman are plotting for King Bradley’s disappearance. They trick him into thinking that while preparations were made in the field, Central was left wide open for attacks. Bradley rushes back, only to have his train sabotaged and blown up. The Central higher-ups are in a tizzy without Bradley’s leadership, but Father appears and takes the helm.

Ed and Greed’s group arrive in Central and are “reunited” with Hohenheim. After speaking to his father, Ed is still unforgiving of Hohenheim’s actions and disappearance, unlike Al who readily accepts his father for who he is. Unfortunately, the group is attacked by Pride, who uses Al’s armored body to hide himself. Pride is soon revealed and tries to retrieve Ed, but Ed wisely cuts off all light, thus hindering Pride’s shadow ability. However, Gluttony shows up and almost opens his stomach hole again, but for the reappearance of a stronger and speedier Ran Fan. Together with Greed/Ling Yao, they both strike Gluttony until he almost gives up from sheer exhaustion from regenerating multiple times.

An ageless Selim Bradley

Meanwhile, Colonel Mustang is on the move with his former underlings. His only command to them is to stay alive, as they proceed to  kidnap Mrs. Bradley. The rest of the higher-ups, Grumman, and Olivier Armstrong are looking out for themselves while eying the Führer’s seat.

Selim Bradley

Pride/Selim Bradley too is beaten to a pulp by the chimera, Henkel, until a group of villagers decide to butt in and shine the light on the situation. Right away, Pride gains the upper hand, and almost kills the chimera. Ed steps in just in time, but Pride tries to use Al’s armored body again. Ed, together with old man Fu, dissipates Pride’s shadowy grasp on Al and sends Al off. In the mean time, a weakened Pride meets up with Gluttony and instead of working together, Pride eats up Gluttony’s remaining strength and philosopher’s stone. Finally Hohenheim shows up at the scene. Does Pride really think he can try to attack Hohenheim’s boys and get away with it?

Al hatches a plan with the help of Hohenheim, and traps himself in a sand mound with Pride. There Pride is temporarily immobilized – or is he? Is Pride just idly wasting time by banging on Al’s helmet/head, or is he sending a message back to Father? Heinkel discovers this ploy too late, as help has arrived for Pride. Kimblee arrives to break the imprisonment while seriously hurting Heinkel the lion chimera. Al quickly pulls Heinkel to safety, slicing off his own armored legs held by Pride’s shadow, only to be told to leave him behind.

Al rejects the notion, as Heinkel produces the Philosopher’s Stone. With that, Al is able to reform his legs, encase Pride in a sand mount again and together with Heinkel successfully attack Kimblee living him with a torn throat at the brink of death. Unfortunately for them, Kimblee manages to release Pride before falling. As Pride pursues the pair, Dr. Marcoh arrives with Yoki in tow and rescue the pair. Pride then swallows the dying Kimblee reasoning that it would be a waste. The team now heads to Central to regroup with the rest.

The rest are moving forward without Al. The moment Pride is caged, Greed takes off towards Father. Ed, Hohenheim, Scar and the rest head toward Central. Mustang and his small platoon begin the assault on Central with Mrs. Bradley as “hostage,” but in fact, more for her own protection against her husband’s men. Reinforcement comes in for Mustang, in the form of 2nd Lt. Ross who amassed an arsenal of ammo in Xing with the aid of Havoc. The group is coming together nicely. Even the Briggs army is moving without Olivier Armstrong. Meanwhile, Olivier Armstrong overthrows the men who are guarding her and begins her own move. Unfortunately Sloth is sent in place of the useless soldiers to finish her off. Just as he is about to make a devastating strike, Alex Armstrong the strong-arm alchemist arrives. The siblings are then pinned against a lazy but extremely speedy Sloth. Unable to do much, Alex finally stops Sloth by impaling him through his mouth. Or did he?

As the Central Army is taken down (with zero casualties) one by one, the commanding officer unleashes the immortal army, human souls injected into dolls with a pinch of Philosopher’s Stone mixed into the recipe. All hell breaks loose. These mindless dolls only want one thing, food and they ravage everything in sight. Ed’s group reaches the lair. He splits from Hohenheim, taking the rest of the crew, while Hohenheim leaves with Ran Fan, who he later excuses to go in search of her master, Greed / Ling Yao. Ed’s group encounters the immortal army and seals the exit to prevent them from reaching the masses. Slicing and dicing doesn’t help at all, as the army grows while Ed’s group tires out with each attack. Lucky for them, Colonel Mustang appears. With a quick snap of his fingers, he incinerates the entire army of the dead into ashes.

Roy Mustang

Together with the rescued Mrs. Bradley, Mustang’s team interview the Mrs. on a live radio telecast and word of the coup d’état spreads like wild fire. The citizens are now on the side of the “rebels” as they are lead to belief that the Central Army has staged a coup without presence of an MIA Führer, lost in an explosive train attack.

Meanwhile, Xiao Mei enters the underground tunnel of Father with an immobilized Envy. She too is entrapped by the immortal army, but just as one of the soldiers tries to eat up the glass encasements of Envy, Envy takes over the body and quickly reforms. Now, Xiao Mei is caught between the living dead and an even more powerful and revengeful Envy. Xiao Mei avoids all attempts by Envy to capture her, and eventually end up where Ed and Mustang’s group are. There, she gets an earful from Scar (which serves her right). Mustang tells the rest to leave, after he realizes that it is Envy who killed Hughes. And so the fight between the Flame Alchemist and a homunculi began. Riza, who is told to fall back for her own protection, decides to disobey orders and goes looking for a superior who is consumed by hatred. She can very well be Envy’s next sacrificial pawn as Hawkeye walks up behind Mustang and points a gun at him. Who is who?

Back track to 1909, at the end of the Ishvalan War. Hawkeye is standing in front of a new grave. Mustang comes up behind her and asks if she’s burying a comrade. To which, she answers, “No, an Ishvalan child.” She tells him she regrets ever showing him the tattoo on her back and creating the Fire alchemist. She tells him to burn of that etching on her skin, so that death like this will never be possible.

Mustang & Hawkeye

Back in the tunnel, Mustang pauses with the gun aimed at his back. He speaks. She speaks, and comments that Mustang never addresses her as Hawkeye when they are alone, but by her given name, Riza. He falls for the trap. She immediately pummels him with countless bullets. Envy appears out of the shell of Mustang and goes on the defensive. He injuries and captures Hawkeye. As he is about to finish her off, Mustang appears. In his fury, he burns Envy repeatedly until he shrinks into his original tiny green self. As Envy crawls out and tries to escape, Mustang steps on him, about to deal him the finishing blow, and thus end the hatred. Mustang realizes that the reason for Envy’s name (after seeing his form) is because of his jealousy of human. Edward and Scar appear to save Envy, but truly, it is to save Mustang from his destructive path.

(54) Edward tells Mustang, that if he was to eliminate Envy out of hatred and a wish to avenge Hughes, Hughes death will be for nothing. Their dream of building a just nation, with Mustang as the head, will never be so. Scar gave up revenge. Ed is looking for an end to the war, but not at the cost of humanity. The humans are one step higher than the homunculus because they have the very power to know right from wrong. Not one single emotion drives them. This is why, from the very start, Envy has always been jealous of the human because the can never overcome his one vice. Envy is dumbfounded. He cannot fathom being bested by weakling such as humans who are worse than shit. Worse, he is being saved and understood by Edward, a brat worse than crap itself. As he weeps in disgrace, Envy jumps out of Ed’s grasp, and writhes on the ground. With his dying breath, he pulls out his stone/heart and squeezes it, thus destroying and incinerating himself. As he slowly crumbles into ashes, he mutters he final words, “Bye, bye Edward Elric.”

Sloth breaks free from Alex’s impalement and heals his wounds. Olivier orders the Central army to team up – two to one – as the immortal army enters the room. Sloth tries to take on Olivier after remembering his mission once again. Even with a dislocated shoulder, Alex holds him down. But the army watch in shock as Sloth beats Alex into a pulp. They beg for Olivier to help him, to which she replies, “He has taken more during training. He can withstand this.” Alex takes one more hit from Sloth, right on his injured left arm, and immediately readjust his shoulder again. He comes back with a vengeance. Using his “artistic muscles and alchemy,” Alex throws everything he has on Sloth, and finally pins Sloth down with multiple impalements.

Alex vs. Sloth

At the main gate, Briggs’ tanks move in just as the Central army are about to open fire in the urban area where civilians are. Olivier’s men suddenly appear inside Central. The Central army are caught off guard, wondering how they manage to enter. Briggs’ major tells them that they have a soldier who once was part of the Central army, who knows the ins and outs of the fort. On top of that, they have a woman with them, who tunneled her way through herself into Central. She is no longer a normal housewife, but an alchemist – Izumi Curtis.

Hohenheim reaches Father, the wannabe homunculus in a flask. Father addresses Slave #23, and tells him, this time, instead of just a part of Hohenheim, he’s going to get his entire body.

(55) As the Mustang team presses forward, Riza Hawkeye thanks Scar for saving Mustang. The Ishvalan graciously accepts the sincere gratitude.

The Central Army has called for a cease-fire as the Briggs Army has taken over the command of the post. Brigadier General Clemin is captured. Olivier Armstrong tells her men to keep all gates closed. No one leaves until the immortal army aka the dolls are vanquished. Captain Buccaneer instantly orders tanks to be stationed at all gates to prevent the dolls from escaping.

Briggs Army led by Captain Buccaneer

Meanwhile, Sloth heals and rushes towards the siblings with the intent to take down the female General. The Central army in the room teams up to restrain Sloth with chains. “RUN!” they scream to the Armstrongs. Alex vows to never turn his back from another battlefield again. Out of no where, Izumi appears and easily picks up and hurls Sloth to her awaiting husband who bashes him. Alex watches in awe at the rippled man before him and knows he has met his idol. The two men team up to defeat Sloth who is finally impaled to his death. All he could manage, lazily is, “Ouch…I’m dying.” After the introductions are made (Izumi being the teacher of the Elric brothers), the Armstrongs who are badly injured proclaim that, “The adults can’t sit back while the children fights.”

With Brigadier General Clemins caught, Izumi tells the Central Army that this is what they have been following – orders of mad men bent on reconstructing the world to the ideal, undead army while killing the living in return. Izumi slaps Clemins with her clogs when he begins to spout idealistic nonsense, but really just to save his behind. “Think for youself! Don’t follow orders blindly and stupidly.” The Central Army, which a moment ago was fighting alongside the Armstrongs and the Curtises against the Dolls, begin to pull of their army gear. When things heat up, Olivier calls her men, and tells them, “If things get too dangerous, run. Leave me behind.”

As Olivier’s group heads to the underground system, Izumi realizes that Father’s human sacrifices are people who have open the gate of truth: pointing to her and the Elric brothers. Olivier recounts her first meeting with Edward. He had eyes that said that he did not want to loose anything important to him anymore. They were honest eyes.

Hohenheim tells Father that he has gotten dull after releasing all his seven vices. These vices are all important to understanding men. As he calmly states these arguments, Father attacks and tries to imprison/kill Hohenheim unsuccessfully. Father tells him that his goal is not to be a human, but a perfect being. Finally, in a sneak attack, Father suddenly emerges behind Hohenheim and pierces him from the back while draining him. Soon, Father’s expression changes when he realizes something is not right with Hohenheim. “What did you do?” he asks angrily. Unperturbed, Hohenheim tells Father, “WE cannot be defeated so easily. I won’t be an easy target.”

Hohenheim remembers the days after leaving Xerxes and roaming the dessert while seemingly talking to himself, “I want to talk to you. Please listen to me. You’re not alone.” Soon enough, he collapses from heat but is saved by passing Xing merchants. Back in Central, Hohenheim tells Father that this is the revenge of the lost souls. Father’s hand throbs through his veins with the souls infused in his body with his attack of Hohenheim. Hohenheim has had the time to converse with each and every one of the 536,329 dead souls, whose life was abruptly taken from them. “Return to your flask you homunculi! You will be reduced to dust.”

Father disintegrates, but quickly regenerates into a black form resembling Envy, Pride and Gluttony.

Buccaneer gets reports of their 90% control of Central. The Briggs army celebrates and cheers for their rousing overthrow of Central until a familiar voice booms, “Miss me?” The Führer reappears. The traitors will be annihilated. The Führer takes the front entrance by storm. “No reason to take the back door when it’s my house you’re trespassing,” he states matter-of-factly. He hurls a tanker and slices through the Briggs Army barriers in less than 5 seconds. Buccaneer stands steadfast, but his iron arm is reduced to shreds. He stands up again, ready to defend the newly acquired Central. Führer only laughs at the recklessness of men. Greed/Ling Yao appears in time to take on the Führer, and Central Army tries to overthrow the dwindling Briggs Army.

Greed/Ling Yao, Fu and Ran Fan

Greed meets with the Führer once again. He tells Officer Falman to pull Captain Buccaneer to safety while securing their new keep. Greed manages to sidestep all of Führer’s attacks, with Ling Yao instructing him from within. But the Führer pulls off his sealing eye patch and corners him.  Seeing Greed being overpowered, the Briggs Army steps in to help, unsuccessfully. Even Buccaneer gets stabbed with the Führer’s sword, which gets lodged in him. Swordless, the Führer pulls out a pair of twin daggers. Old man Fu suddenly appears from a smoke screen and meets the man who dismembered his granddaughter. With lightning quick reflexes and speedy attacks, Fu puts up a good fight together with Greed. However, the Führer manages to cut Fu between his eyes, causing the blood to flow freely and blind him. Meanwhile, Greed has been immobilized by one of Führer’s daggers. Fu tells Greed to leave, knowing this is a futile match, as he sustains a fatal wound and bleeds profusely. But Ling Yao takes over the body, and tells Fu, “The king exists for his people. I will not leave you.” As a final act, Fu loads himself with bombs, as he readies himself for a kamikaze act with the Führer. But the Führer takes off all the bomb heads and slices Fu seppuku style. Buccaneer, who has been undecided about pulling out the sword stuck in him, springs into action. Buccaneer pulls his sword out, and attacks from the back, thus stabbing the Führer and killing Fu in the process. Fu dies happy, knowing that he did do something for his young master before his death.

The Central Army marches on, and regains the main gate. They try to force the opening of the gate from within, but Briggs Army has the height advantage with just only two machine guns killing all approaching enemies from beneath the stairwell.

At the radio station, they receive news that the Führer is alive. Mustang’s men are forced to claim to be Bradley’s allies, even as they see an encroaching Central Army who is going to take everyone down, including Mrs. Bradley who is left in their care.

Al, Dr. Macaroh, Yoki and Henkel run towards Central.

Ed, Scar, Mustang and Riza press onward and meet a Scientist, who made King Bradley. He calls out for his army, who are not Dolls. They are the leftovers of would-have-been King Bradleys. Even though they are not as powerful as the Führer himself, they pack quite a punch. While occupying them, he begins drawing his alchemic circles. When the circles are ready, the Scientist completes the transmutation circle by recalling the ex-King Bradleys and using them as sacrifices. The transformation begins! The eyes open to those who have crossed the Gate of Truth. Izumi, Ed and Al slowly disintegrate right before the eyes of their comrades as they stand speechless, unable to do anything.

(58) An injured Führer continues his fight with an enraged Greed. Ran Fan reaches the gate in time to see her gramps die at the hands of Wrath. As the two homunculi deck it out, they take out a part of the wall. The Führer falls, but instantly grabs a hold of Greed who holds on to dear life at the brink of a crumbling wall. Ran Fan comes to her master’s rescue, just as her grandfather did, even though her automail is not meant to hold the weight of two adult men. The Briggs Army comes to their aid and fires at the Führer who promptly falls into the castle’s moat/canal. The moment Greed/Ling Yao is pulled to safety, he calls for a alchemic doctor to revive an unbreathing Fu. “I’ve got a philosopher’s stone! Anyone?!” In the commotion, he is shot straight on the head by an escaping Central goon and momentarily falls back from surprise. The fight has not ended for them yet. Even a dying Captain Buccaneer knows this. The bleeding Captain pleads with Greed/Ling Yao to protect the gate, as the “queen” ordered. Seeing his dead comrades, Ling Yao asks for Greed’s help, as Xings do not break alliances. The Captain bids his men a final farewell, “Sarabada.”

The Briggs Army guarding the stairwell has spent their last drop of ammo on the Central Army wanting to push their way through. But Greed has taken over instead. He appears infront of his enemies, suited up in his armor, and tells them that those who still have family and loved ones should leave. He then goes on a killing rampage, breaking down even the outer walls of Central and pushes the Army back to beyond the gates again.

The city is put on a curfew.

After Izumi disappears, Olivier asks Alex what happened. He answers what the Elric brothers have once told him a long time ago, that they are probably at the Gate of Truth.

At the Gate, Izumi and Ed are gathered, together with an uncommunicative Al. (Al’s soul probably never came through, but met with his body instead at the Gate). The student and teacher realize that they are the human sacrifices that Father spoke of, because they have crossed the Gate of Truth before. As Al’s armor lay lifeless, Izumi and Ed face off with a black figure with Hohenheim stuck to it. Before Hohenheim is absorbed by this figure for the philosopher’s stone in him, he tells Ed that this is his alter ego. He managed to destroy Father’s skin earlier but… before he finishes his sentence, he is sucked in.

“Welcome to my castle,” greets the black figure of what used to be Father.

Back in the scientist’s lab, Mustang, Riza and Scar try to compute what happened to Ed while fending off the remaining King Bradleys-wannabe. The Scientist realizes that he still need one more human sacrifice for Father. Mustang’s alchemic glove is shredded, as the trio get caught. The Scientist forces Mustang to be the final human sacrifice, egging him on to perform human transmutation – say on a dead Hughes. He refuses. Maybe a live bait would be better, as he slits Riza’s throat. Mustang screams and writhes at the sight of Riza quickly loosing a tremendous amount of blood. Riza manages to mouth, “I won’t die. I’ve been ordered not to.” As Riza slowly slips away, Mustang’s hand is forced to do the unthinkable, but after seeing Riza, Mustang knows this is one he cannot touch. Suddenly the Scientist disappears. Jerso appears and ties him up with his glob of saliva. The philosopher’s stone is dropped, but Mustang picks it up in hopes of using it on Riza. Xiao Mei appears with the rest of the chimeras to aid the Colonel and Scar. Somehow the philosopher’s stone gets lost in the scuffle, but Xiao Mei decides to heal Riza first, by stopping her bleeding.

King Bradley - the Führer

The Bradleys-wannabe are taken down, but the real Bradley enters the room, and picks up the philosopher’s stone. The group realizes that Bradley’s wounds are not healing. After falling into the canal, the Führer swims into a hole underground and emerges in the Scientist’s lab. He is surprised that Mustang didn’t save Riza by using the human transmutation alchemy. Humans are unpredictable and that infuriates the Führer, just when he thought he knew what their action would be given a situation. At a stalemate, Jerso suddenly drops the Scientist. He is attacked by an incoming Pride. At the same time, Xiao Mei realizes that he is underneath them. Pride uses the scientist for blood sacrifice, while the Führer impales Mustang on his hands. Pride quickly forms an alchemic circle to make him the fifth and final sacrifice for Father.

As the solar eclipse slowly begins, Pride and Wrath forces Mustang to open the gate of truth, whether he is willing or not. With that, Mustang (together with Pride) disappears and the transmutation is complete. A fatally wounded Führer guards the underground, where the activity seems to be buzzing. He might have lost the use of his ouruborus eye, the all seeing eye. Scar breaks the floors underneath them.

The unfortunate Mustang passes through the gate and he falls into a pit hole that takes him to where the Elric brothers and Izumi are. As Pride slowly falls apart from crossing the Gate of Truth, the group realizes that like them, something was taken of Mustang’s. They have taken his eyes. He, who wanted to build a future of hope, will never be able to see the future. The truth stings. Izumi, who wanted to revive her dead baby, lost her reproductive organs. Al sacrificed his body in exchange for his mother’s, while Ed gave up his limbs just to save Al’s soul. But Mustang never wanted this. He was forced against his will to open the gate.

Meanwhile, Al’s soul hasn’t passed through the gate yet. He finds his emaciated body. “I’ve been waiting for you,” his body says to him, “Welcome back.” As Al realizes how scrawny and weak his body has become, he can’t take his body with him as it is too weak for a fight. He will have to return for him, he promises, after finishing the impending fight of their lives together with his friends against Father. Unfortunately, I think this will be Al’s first and last time to have his body this close to him.

(60) Mustang is still reeling from his lost of sight, as the brothers and Mei guard against attacks from Father. Mei takes on Father with her Eastern Alchemy, while the Elrichs attack the evasive but crumbling Selim. Mei kicks Father, but she is hurt instead. Meanwhile, Selim begins to crack under the attacks of the brothers. But seeing a fallen Mei, Ed sends Al to her rescue. Father fires a gun against Mei, but Al is there to protect her with his suit of armor. Selim/Pride continues his barrage of shadow attacks against Ed, but promises he won’t kill him as Father still needs him. Before other attacks are formulated, Father tells them that play time is over. He drags his human sacrifices to his circle. Greed appears to try to stop Father, but Father disperses into a pool under his feet and soon encircles but dismisses him. Eyes open on the stomachs of the five sacrifices.

The eclipse is starting as the Ishbalans finds a certain house, as instructed by Scar. Scar is caught up in the fight of his life against the Führer. The attacks are fast, furious and forceful as both sides have everything to lose. As the Führer attacks a cornered and fallen Scar, Scar goes on the offensive by turning the ground into impalements. The Führer falls back and sees that Scar has used his brother’s research on both his arms.

As Father begins his ritual, everyone is enveloped and swallowed into darkness. The gate opens, and the city’s life force is drained. One by one, the humans fall; from the insignificant, to everyone who means something to anyone, even those who were promised the “eternal life.” The black figure of Father emerges through the gate but the gate in the heavens above opens too. He will attempt to drag God down to earth to make Him a part of him.

(61) Just as the union of a woman and a man makes a perfect being, the meeting of the sun and the moon during an eclipse is the Utopian timing for Father.

The five sacrifices (Ed, Al, Mustang, Izumi and Hohenheim) awaken as Father extols about him pulling God into him. With the tremendous amount of energy, he turned everyone into a philosopher’s stone. He can now recreate the Sun with God’s power. His moment of glory lasts but a minute. Suddenly the ball of flames (sun) in his hands begin to vibrate.

“It is time for a change,” Hohenheim states confidently. He  positioned all his stones all over the world, waiting for this day to come. It was poised to activate the day the moon covered the sun in an eclipse. HIS alchemy is now activated, and reverses the work of Father. With an explosion, the souls of the people are dispersed and returned.

Father retaliates by firing a ball of energy towards Hohenheim, but he returns the “gift.” Mei quickly creates a circle of protection around them, while Father tries to break through that circle. Hohenheim responds, but he doesn’t have much energy left to hold Father back. The rest are rendered helpless as Father had ensured that their alchemy did not work around him. They can only await Scar to come through on his side, as he tries to finish off the Führer.

Scar dismembers the Führer, only to have him catch his broken sword by the mouth and stab Scar in the vitals. As they both stumble from their wounds, Ran Fan appears to deal the Führer the final blow. Before she is able to finish him off, to avenge her gramps, he ages before her and dies, saying that because of the humans, his life has been worth living. Strangely, after his death, Ran Fan still feels the presence of life in the Führer. She sees a small piece of the philosopher’s stone captured in a vial. Scar gets to the center of Father’s circle, and reverse the spell. Using the research of Eastern Alchemy his brother created, Scar creates a Transmutation circle to nullify the newly created philosopher’s stone.

With the spell broken on the five, Hohenheim tells Ed and Al they now have to drain Father’s remaining philosopher’s stone by wearing him down. Greed begins to attack Father. Ed pours melting magma on him, but he escapes into the open to recreate the stone in the city above them. Ed tells Al and the rest to go after Father, while Ed will hold of Selim. As Selim’s body disintegrates, he eyes Ed’s body as his new container. However, Kimblee, who was swallowed earlier, appears. For all his pride, Selim is actually turning to a human to save himself. But Kimblee warns him not to take Ed too lightly. Ed promptly turns himself into the philosopher’s stone, crawls into Selim and destroys him from the inside. Selim returns to his actual form, a fetus.

Ed vs. Pride

As the rest reaches the top, Izumi is reunited with her husband, and Mustang with Hawkeye. Mustang asks if she is still able to move, looks like he may be using her as his trusted eyes now.

The Final Fight and New Beginnings

(62) Father gets to the open and begins drawing the life force off of the Briggs soldiers. Before he is able to finish the process, Hohenheim stops him with an arrow, as Al, Xiao Mei and Izumi join him too. Father has another trick up his sleeves as he gives birth to humans, excreting humans he once drained: the King of Xerxes, Al’s body, and even Izumi’s baby. Just as Ed joins in the battle, Father causes a devastating explosion. Central’s headquarters is blown in half. The dust clears as Xiao Mei stirs from her fatal wound, only to realize that Al used his body to protect her. His armor is left in shambles and falling apart. Izumi too was protected by Hohenheim, but Father attacks him from behind. He throws Hohenheim like a rag doll and proceeds to choke Izumi and Ed. Briggs army comes to their rescue by firing a rain of bullets against Father. The bullets and bombs are not cutting it. But they are told to withdraw.

Father

Greed together with Ran Fan meets up with the group left behind and tells them that the frog chimera and the two women (Olivier and Hawkeye), who are badly injured, will have to remain behind. As Olivier argues with him, Greed tells the group that Father has  a philosopher’s stone made up of 100,000 people. They are up against an army. Olivier sends Alex in her place. Mustang follows with Riza as his eyes. Scar is left behind with the rest.

Mustang enters the scene with a blast of his fire trained against Father. Riza guides him with the direction and distance of their target. They will force Father to use the remainder of his stone’s power with time lapse for him to regenerate. The Chimeras, Ran Fan, Mustang and Izumi all team up to attack Father. Greed finally attacks, but his hand is swallowed by Father for his stone. As they both try to drain the other’s powers, the team launches a full-out attack while Greed is still joined to Father’s face. Ed’s automail breaks, but Izumi and Alex continue their assault. Father begins to waver, as he can no longer contain the God in him, with most of his energy being drained to protect and defend himself. He throws everyone off of himself. As the dust settles, a mad Father begins searching frantically for a human to turn into a stone. He sees Ed, as he is immobilized with an impaled arm. Al tries to stop him, but realizes he can no longer move as his armor begins to crack where his soul is sealed. He asks Xiao Mei to use his soul to save Ed. Al gives up his life, and returns to meet his awaiting body at the gate. His armor disintegrates, just as Ed’s arm from the gate is returned to him at present. An enraged Ed, knowing that Al sacrifice himself for him, attacks Father with everything he has got, with his regained right arm. Ed takes Father’s face out. The wounded friends all cheer him on as he beats him to a pulp.

Greed realizes then that he doesn’t want fame nor fortune, or the world under his feet. He wants all these friends to cheer him on too, as they are cheering Ed on.

(63) As father weakens, Ed sees his chance and punches Father out. He stumbles and falls. How is it possible that this human alchemist took him out with his bare hands. Isn’t he God?! As everyone stares in shock, a strong vibe suddenly emerges from Father. He jumps up and attacks Greed, drawing in his philosopher’s stone. Ling Yao tries to hold on to Greed, asking him not to give up and give in to Father’s pull. But Greed will not let Ling Yao get sucked in by Father. Before Greed is reconstituted by Father, he tells Ling Yao that he doesn’t have the stone. Ran Fan has it. Greed vaporizes together with Father, disobeying and rebelling against him. Greed transforms his body into the weakest form of carbon to destroy Father along with him. But before Father goes down, he purges himself off Greed. It’s enough for Greed that he has known friends like Ed and Ling Yao.

Ed takes his final punch as Father’s body crumbles, creating a hole and releasing the souls and stones of the people trapped in there from before. The black hands appear from the hole and grab a hold of him. Bound by wrongs and free of the world, he returns to the gate and meets his “maker.” He wanted to be perfect by expelling his seven desires. But here he is. Who is he to judge then? HE is the world. The universe. The God. The truth. The everything. The one. You. Father will learn never to be conceited again. Despair will be dealt upon him, and he will be returned to whence he came from in shackles. Despair is dealt to those who are conceited.

Up on earth, Xiao Mei and Ed sit by Al’s armor, waiting for his return. Ling Yao offers him the philosopher’s stone to revive Al, but Ed rejects it. He has promised Al never to use the stone to regain their original bodies. There has to be another way. Hohenheim steps in, offering his life in return for Al’s. One life for another. As a father to a son. He will leave all his research to both of them. He has lived a long life. Ed spurns the idea.

“No way. There will be no more sacrifices. Don’t you even dare say that, you crazy father!”

There has to be another way. There are other possibilities. He looks down at his own hands and an idea comes to him. He moves Xiao Mei away from Al’s body and begins drawing a circle, a human transmutation circle. He will perform his final transmutation.

He reaches the gate and meets the guard. What is his payment?

“The toll is here.” Ed points to the door behind him. “Take my gate of truth.”

If he gives that up, he will not be able to use alchemy again. But that truth is wrong.

Is it ok to be a normal man, without alchemy? Ed still has everyone else who loves him for who he is, not what he can do for them.

The guard admits defeat. Ed wins. The door behind the guard vaporizes and Ed is permitted to pass, to collect an emaciated Al. The brothers are reunited with their family of friends, comrades, master and father.

The fetus Selim is returned to Mrs. Bradley and the citizens are told the truth without implicating the Führer or Selim.

The homunculus in the flask asked only for happiness in the form of a real body. His needs were simple. After taking Hohenheim’s first drop of blood, that soon became something more. Hohenheim leaves the boys (in the hospital recovering) to visit the grave of his wife, Trisha. He tells Trisha that Edward finally called him “father,” even though he did add “crazy and stupid” to the title. Even then, he begins to disintegrates. But, of the long life he has lived, he suddenly and hopelessly wants to live on, for and with his children.

Pinako sees Hohenheim’s return and is about to chastise him, but he has already passed on. He leaves with a smile on his face.

(64: fin) Mustang is visited by Dr. Knox who brings with him Dr. Makarov in the hospital. They see Mustang delegating his duties out to solve the Ishbalan problems before taking the helm as the Fuhrer. Makarov produces the philosopher’s stone, made from the lives of Ishbalans, to heal Mustang’s eyes. But before it is used on him, Mustang wants it used on Havoc.

Scar, together with Miles, will be aiding in Mustang’s plan to revive the Ishbalans. After dying twice, he no longer has a name.

Ling Yao, Ran Fan and Mei are back in Xing, to bury Fu and to take over the reign over Xing. Ling Yao promises Xiao Mei that he too will care for her people.

Ed and Al return home together.

Two years later, Ed is still unable to use alchemy. Al, after visiting the old friends from Central, travels to Xing to learn Eastern Alchemy. Ed travels to the west. Before leaving, Ed abashedly blurts to Winry about the Laws of Equivalent exchange. “I will give you half of my life, and you give me half of yours.”

“You want only half? I’ll give you all.”

Mustang leads the eastern part of their world, while Armstrong takes the north. Lt. General Grumman becomes the Führer, as he watches Mrs. Bradley raise Selim to a kinder and gentler human.

In the end, you can’t gain something without sacrificing something else first. But then you gain a stronger heart, a fullmetal heart.