>
At an unspecified location, Hohenheim calls out the names of the people whose lives were consumed by his Philosopher’s Stone as it dug into his chest, pieces of the stone falling out of the holes he made before sinking into the ground. 13 years ago in Resembool, Trisha encourages him to bond with his young children, Ed and Al, while he sleeps. Hohenheim worries that since his body is cursed with the power of immortality from the stone within him, he is afraid of passing that curse on to them and becoming a monster like him, though Trisha points out that it is unlikely to happen otherwise. they already resembled him. In the bedroom, Hohenheim reveals to her that even though he had long ago accepted the power of immortality and learned to accept the death of people all over the world, after meeting her and starting a family, he regretted it because his children are getting old.
The next day, Trisha arranges for a photo shoot for the four of them. He explains that even if she is old and wrinkled, this photo can be a nice moment of the four of them together, and asks that Hohenheim not distance himself and think of himself as a monster. Although Hohenheim asked him to smile, he can only frown with tears in his eyes. Hohenheim’s new dream is that despite what happened long ago, he wants to grow old and die with his family and finish the drawing while he realizes in his study what the man will become. After repairing the swing, Hohenheim decides to hit the road. Before leaving, he asks Trisha not to mention his deep secret to the boys and tries to leave without telling them, but the boys are in the hallway because Al needed to use the restroom. After a brief look at the Hohenheim boy, he leaves. Back in the present, Hohenheim looks at the photo in front of the campfire and comments just a little longer.
Meanwhile, a group of Briggs’ soldiers search the tunnel created by Sloth and notice that they are out of communication range. Before a man named Smith could return to Briggs to report, a mysterious shadowy figure arrives and quickly kills them all. Meanwhile, the Elrics, 2nd Lt. Falman and Captain Buccaneer continue to monitor Major General Armstrong’s conversation with Lieutenant General Raven when he mentions that he seems interested in getting involved with the legion of immortal soldiers. However, deep down Olivier Armstrong wants to cut him down for this plot and has to hide his anger. Armstrong pretends to be interested and wants her men involved in this “promised day”, knowing that she will be forced to commit a great evil if she accepts or trades a pawn for another pawn, and will likely be demoted if she refuses the offer. Before she can make up her mind, their conversation is interrupted by a soldier who claims there is a problem with their underground search team, which Raven is surprised to hear. As the two set out to gather information about the report, so do the Elrics, who use a rope transformed by Ed to pretend that Buccaneer and Falman are holding them captive.
On the way, they run into Major Miles, who is with Crimson Alchemist Kimblee. Here, the Elrics are formally introduced to Kimblee, who Al mistakes for the Fullmetal Alchemist, angering Ed for having his height insulted when Kimblee found out the truth, though Ed can’t do anything while tied up. Upon arrival, Armstrong and Raven learn that Smith’s horse and right arm are the only things left from the underground search team, with the horse badly burned from the experience. Before Major General Armstrong can order the search party, Lieutenant General Raven orders them to stop, as the tunnel is apparently extremely dangerous. Raven then orders the bioweapon they found to be placed in the tunnel and then sealed, despite the objections of Armstrong’s subordinate Henschel. Raven then goes to interrogate the Elric brothers in their cell. The Elrics pretend to keep their end of the bargain to keep quiet for Winry’s sake, then ask the general if the giant tunnel is part of their plan, but all he says is that Olivier Armstrong will seal the tunnel and that she’s on their side.
As Henschel continues to protest sealing the tunnel when they should be searching for survivors, Armstrong orders him to shut up and obey. Kimblee, observing the room with Miles, admits that even the powerful Major General Armstrong must obey the authorities. Sloth is then brought into the room from outside fully awake and Raven greets him and delivers a message from Pride that he still has work to do. As Sloth tries to remember why it’s so annoying to do the job, Raven, in her statement to the Briggs soldiers, impersonates him as a Chimera working for Central Command in a top secret operation to improve their country.
At their hut, Dr. Maroch notes that important parts of the research notes are written in ancient Ishvalan, and they will need Scar to decipher them. As May goes to the window wondering where Scar is, she is unaware that two Briggs soldiers are watching them and recognize her black and white cat. Before they can leave, Scar knocks them out and enters the house with Yoki, Scar decides they need to find a new shelter. Briggs’ soldiers finish their job of sealing the tunnel with cement a few days later. Raven comments on how the chosen will become gods and rule the world. Raven then answers Armstrong’s question that lesser beings will be sacrificed for their survival and that the same purpose was accomplished in the Ishval Civil War to help them with their plan.
Miles watches as Kimblee gets off the phone, noting that he’s been on the phone a lot since arriving. Miles asks if he needs to talk to Lt. General Raven and instead asks Kimblee what kind of magic he used to recover so quickly from his serious injuries and why he was released from prison despite committing war crimes in Ishval, which Kimblee answers both questions. that it’s none of his business. Olivier Armstrong then learns that the plan started from the founding of Amestris and is nearing completion. As he says he’ll get her a place at Central Command, Armstrong angrily responds by stabbing Raven in the left arm with her sword. Armstrong then posits that because aging is a terrible experience, it changed him from a man who truly cared about his country. Surprised by this, Raven realizes he’s been tricked when Armstrong mentions that he doesn’t need his own place, he’ll take his instead. Before Raven can use his weapon, Armstrong slashes him across the chest, knocking him into the wet cement. As he sinks, Raven shouts how he really should have become immortal, but Armstrong claims that he will become part of Brigg’s foundation instead.
Throwing his bloody gloves into the wet cement, Armstrong orders Buccaneer to contact Miles while the workers level the cement and Buccaneer gives her new gloves before leaving. As Kimblee questions why Miles is sticking with him, and just as Kimblee declares how many of Miles’ countrymen he killed in the war, a soldier arrives. Learning that he no longer needs to distract him, Miles returns to Kimblee to report that Lt. General Raven is missing. When Miles pretends that Briggs is a dangerous place for outsiders, he learns that even if something were to happen, Kimblee is allowed by the Führer to do as he sees fit and needs a car to get to the base of the mountain. Henschel demands that Armstrong search the tunnel for the team, only to learn from her and Buccaneer that they built a secret tunnel entrance as a backup plan, just as Ed finds out what happened even though they will never be released from their cell. soon. Kimblee arrives at their cell and reveals that he brought someone to visit them, Winry. She is here to tweak Ed’s automail to withstand the cold climactic temperatures, even though they didn’t inform her of their trip north. Elric becomes even more worried when she mentions that a military person contacted her with a tip, and Kimblee mentions that the Führer was worried about them.
In Central, Colonel Mustang learns from one of his contacts that Kimblee was hospitalized in the North before Lt. General Raven came to visit him, and suddenly Kimblee was healed and then released. After the girl leaves the flower seller, he states that he was disappointed, and when she offers him a flower to buy, he secretly tells Mustang that she has a secret message from Olivier Armstrong in the flower. Mustang decides to buy all her flowers.