In the infirmary at Fort Briggs, Edward is informed that he very nearly suffered frostbite due to his flesh being in constant contact with the conductive metal of his automail, and that his destruction technique did not work on Captain Buccaneer because the special cold- air conditioning models of the automail manufactured at Briggs are made of several composite materials. Major General Armstrong arrives to call the Elrics and, after making it clear that he is not too fond of his younger brother, demands to know exactly why they came to her citadel and why Alphonse’s armor is empty. Ed is reluctant to explain the latter, as it could not only lead to his own court-martial but also endanger Winry, who is actually being held hostage by King Bradley, but as Armstrong insists, the boys agree to provide a limited account . a truth that omits the Homunculi and the Führer’s involvement. Hearing their story and understanding their quest for Mei Chang, Armstrong expressed her disgust at the boys’ recklessness and made it clear that the only reason she doesn’t kick them out of her fortress is because she’s interested in the alkahestry and its possibilities. a new weapon. Alphonse protests the offensive use of alchemy used in medicine, but Armstrong urges him to realize that he is speaking with the naivete of one who lives in the comfortable interior of a nation, without noting that the nation’s borders are a dangerous place of constant struggle. He orders Mei to be brought to her once she is located and orders his aide, the sunglasses-wearing Major Miles, to show them around the fortress and give them a task to earn a living. As he leaves the infirmary with the Buccaneer, the Major General comments that the Elrics are rather soft-hearted because they have seen so much hardship and that some parts of their story have been left out.
Accompanied by a silent Miles, Edward attempts to start a conversation by recalling the Major General’s claim that everyone at Briggs has something to hide from the outside world, and asks what secret burden the Major carries. Reconciling himself, Miles turns to the boys and removes his sunglasses, revealing Ishvalan’s red irises. Miles explains that although his parents and grandmother were of different races, the blood of his Ishvalan grandfather runs particularly strong in his veins, noting that Edward’s countrymen caused much destruction in the land of his ancestors. Stunned only for a moment, Edward replies that some of Miles’ countrymen attacked his hometown and killed his best friend’s parents. Upon hearing this, Miles laughed jovially and apologized for his rudeness, explaining that since the Ishval Civil War few people had treated him as an equal—they preferred to either fear him or pity him—and that Ed was the first to he spoke to him without anyone entering. long time. Realizing that he was being tested, Edward explains that his relationships with the people of Ishvalan have been quite diverse, so he understands that people should be seen and judged as individuals, rather than part of a collective race. As they continue their tour, Ed asks if Miles felt any grudge against the military for killing his countrymen and destroying his ancestral land, and Miles says yes, wondering why Armstrong would leave him alone instead of issued and eliminated a possible interfering influence. element among her soldiers. She recalls an incident where he asked her about it directly, to which the major general replied that the soldiers at Briggs must be able to put aside their differences in order to move as one unit and defend the border at all costs. In addition, she explained that Miles’ perspective as a child of many ethnicities is unique and especially helpful to her, a pure-blooded American from the capital. And if his Ishvalan blood refused to forgive Amestris for the way she treated Ishval, she promised to act as her people’s representative and face him one-on-one in a duel to the death.
As the tour continues, Miles explains that “survival of the fittest” is the motto of Fort Briggs, and when a falling icicle narrowly misses a fatal blow to Ed, Miles explains that luck is part of the motto, and decides that the work at the fort will be removing icicles that are formed on landings before they grow and fall. He calls the soldier currently in charge of the icicle scrapers to introduce them, and the boys are surprised to find it’s Vato Falman—now promoted to second lieutenant—who comes to greet them.
Falman continues the tour, showing the Elrics to the weapons R&D level below—where engineers are working on the general’s latest pet project, the Briggs Tank—as well as the heart of the fortress—the lowest level, where massive pipes transfer water. , steam and power throughout the citadel. 2nd Lt. Falman notes that even if the aforementioned fortress were attacked, the lowest level and its basic functions would not be in danger. However, there is a bit of commotion in the lowest level as the engineers have started hearing a strange kicking sound coming from underground. As they wonder if Drachma spies are tunneling beneath their feet, a man underground digs through the bedrock with his bare hands—a massive man marked with an Ouroboros on his left shoulder and matching the description of a Homunculus sloth.
In his office, Major General Armstrong receives a message from Miles and Buccaneer that Solf J. Kimblee has recently been admitted to the hospital at the foot of the mountain and has requested the full cooperation of Fort Briggs in carrying out his mission as ordered by the Führer. Armstrong is suspicious, but the matter is pushed from her mind when news suddenly emerges of a low-level intruder breaking in from underground. Staring at the monstrous newcomer alongside the terrified Briggs engineers, the Elrics quickly recognize the Ouroboros and fear that the Homunculus has been sent to fence off their movements in the north. However, when they try to explain to Sloth that they are only in Briggs to further search for a way to restore their bodies, they are surprised to find that the Homunculus doesn’t appear to have been sent on their behalf and doesn’t even know who they are . they are. However, their attempt to talk to the monster attracts the attention of the Buccaneer, who shoots Ed and again accuses him of being a spy in league with the intruder. A slow and languid Sloth meanders around the base, wondering if his digging is finally over and knocking random machines out of his indeterminate path. The newly arrived Briggs soldiers open fire on him as he approaches the elevator, but their bullets bounce harmlessly off the giant muscle man’s flesh as if he were clad in steel, and he accidentally triggers the elevator to take him to the R&D section as the others – Elrics included – gives chase.
At the R&D level, Major General Armstrong herself attacks the beast with a bazooka, only to find that even the flames of the explosion cannot harm it. He orders all non-combatants to stand down and the alarm siren to be silenced, then mounts one of the newly completed tanks. He opens fire and finds that the tank cannon fire is causing damage, but barely, and even then the Homunculus’ regenerative powers repair his body. Determining that he might as well go back to digging, Sloth endangers several Briggs soldiers by throwing large debris at them, but the Elrics arrive on the scene and transform the shield to protect bystanders. They rush to Armstrong and inform her that firearms will not harm the creature and that Drachma is not of its origin, but when she asks what it is and whose orders he is acting on, they claim they cannot answer. Realizing that the Elrics are on her side, she asks what it’s made of, and Ed replies that its composition is generally identical to that of a human, and when Armstrong hears this, he calls for fuel in the tank. Ed reaffirms that setting him on fire won’t hurt him enough either, but the Major General replies that he’s going to disable his functions with something even worse than fire. He will show this monster the power of Briggs.