Central Command gives his orders to Roy’s cornered squad – to shoot everyone but Colonel Mustang – and several shots are fired. However, it is the Central Squad soldiers themselves who fall victim to the bullet storm, as Charlie, Richard, Damiano, and Alexandre emerge from their hiding spots with their handguns drawn to provide backup for Flame Alchemist and his men. Realizing that she was among those shot, Mrs. Bradley wonders if her husband was betrayed by the State Army…or if she was the one who was betrayed. Roy assures her that he will keep her safe and promises that when all is clear he will know that he and his men were not wrong. With more soldiers approaching from outside, Mustang’s group beats a hasty retreat from the area, but not before Charlie informs the central squad leader that he and his men should consider themselves lucky; if they had encountered the notoriously hardened soldiers of Fort Briggs, they would not have escaped with such minor injuries. Roy’s entire squad heads for the building’s exit as the Colonel clears their path of enemy soldiers with his Flame Alchemy. At Central Command, Brigadier General Klemin commands Central’s forces and expresses his anger at the fact that the Mustang continues to escape capture. But when Klemin receives word that Mustang’s team has managed to injure nearly sixty enemy soldiers without taking a single life, despite having Hero Ishval and “Hawkeye” on his side, his indignation at being toyed with him reaches boiling point .
In the conference room, Major General Armstrong declares to the other two generals present that the Mustang is too soft for the Central forces, but that the Central troops are even worse because they cannot take him down. She claims that Central’s defenses are abysmal as the capital has never had to fend off a large-scale enemy attack, and suggests that she be put in command of the forces against Mustang, but is met with strong resistance from the others, who inform her that she is nothing more than a hostage to she kept the Briggs soldiers at bay. However, Olivier scoffs at the notion as ridiculous and informs them that the dedicated warriors of Fort Briggs are capable of doing without her. At that moment, deep in the heart of Central City, Captain Buccaneer addresses the number of Briggs soldiers under his command, explaining that the time has finally come for them to bid farewell to their underground warehouse and sink their teeth into the mouths of Central’s lambs. An alarm goes off at Central Command, and Olivier asks Lt. Gen. Gardner if he thinks her men, each strong enough to take on a grizzly from Mount Briggs, will be suitable dummies for his troops. The soldiers in the town are stunned by the ruthless force of the Briggs Mountain Guard, which has suddenly appeared out of nowhere right in the middle of town.
Meanwhile, as Colonel Mustang explains to his men that Briggs soldiers have been hiding in the Armstrong family mansion, smuggled in under the guise of extensive repairs and renovations to the house, Richard and Charlie note that they are extremely low on ammunition and supplies. the team is inexplicably absent. Roy orders them all to leave him and run if the situation becomes more dangerous, but uses his flames to ensure they don’t have to for some time. But as the Central Troops – well aware that their enemy won’t last much longer – prepare to move in for a final push, they’re knocked down by a large ice cream van that races to Roy’s location and opens to reveal a jovial 2nd Lt. Rebecca Catalina and a host of new weapons and ammo – including pepper-filled Xingese tear gas grenades. As Roy heads into the cab of the truck, he is greeted by the other half of their two-man supply team: 2nd Lt. Maria Ross. Freshly armed and with a transport, Roy’s squad breaks away from their pursuers and flees towards the center of the city. Roy expresses his surprise to see Ross here and asks who sent for her, but she simply replies that she can connect the Colonel to the party responsible. They drive the truck to a remote area where Master Sgt. Fuery is able to connect their walkie-talkie to the telephone wire, and Roy makes phone contact with their anonymous benefactor, who cheerfully reveals himself to be none other than Jean Havoc. Havoc explained to his shocked and ecstatic friends that he was running a clandestine gun shop out of his family’s general merchandise, assuring them that he could offer any support they needed.
In the forest near Kanama, Lan Fan tells Edward’s party that smoke and the faint sound of sirens have begun to rise from the distant capital. Realizing that the action has begun, Edward looks up at the sky, noting that the time has come for them to make a move. Van Hohenheim explains that his counter to the Nationwide Transmutation Ring is in place, but notes that it would be better for them to prevent the ring from activating altogether. If they break Father’s new vessel, they can destroy him and free all the Xerxesian souls trapped in his body. Scar suggests that they head underground through the tunnel he and May went through a few months ago, and though he mentions that the path is full of malevolent chimeras, their current strength should see them through just fine. While Yoki and the injured Heinkel plan to stay with Dr. Marcoh, Ed heads to the giant mound to inform Alphonse that they are launching an attack. Al wishes him luck, but the caught Pride says nothing and just passes the time by tapping Al’s helmet with his staff.
Inside the city, May rushes through all the chaos with envy in her vessel, and when she hears the Homuncula’s declaration that the troop movement is because his father is about to reveal the secret of immortality, she heads straight through a familiar tunnel into an underground catacomb just before a squad of central troops to seal off the area.
At Central Command, the other generals demand that Olivier recall Briggs’ troops, but she coldly notes that her authority over Briggs has been removed by the Führer. He asks them if they even know what they are doing when they sacrifice their countrymen with this plot of theirs, but the generals reply that their actions will change the world and humanity, and that drastic change is always accompanied by inevitable sacrifices. Drawing his sword, Olivier stabs the speaking general, taking his firearm, and taunts them for misusing words like “sacrifice” while they watch the battle from the sidelines, avoiding any risk or combat. Noting that she will be a hero when this is all over, Olivier shoots and kills Gardner and takes the other general hostage. In town as Major Alex Armstrong who tasked with securing areas of recent fighting, he explains the shallowness of the base to newly arrived Sgt. Denny Brosh, Fu – from his hiding place among the civilian spectators – overhears another soldier informing the major that his sister has just murdered a member of Central Command. As Fu wanders in, he notes that the mission is escalating much faster than expected and stresses the importance of finding Ling as soon as possible, but he has trouble locating Greed’s presence as the massive energy flow underground gets in the way. However, when he stops for a moment, he confirms that the underground flow seems to have increased since the previous day.
In the Homunculi’s lair, the father spreads his influence over a larger area with the pipes that crawl from his chair and relies on the sound of the pride tapping on Alphonso’s helmet.
Finding their entrance to the underground blocked by soldiers, Ed and his group head instead to the alternate entrance to Lab 3. After sneaking past the guards, they enter the tunnel and split into two groups, with Ed heading off with Scar. , Darius, Jerso, and Zampano, while Van and Lan Fan go in the opposite direction to evenly divide the group’s alchemy abilities. However, once the others are gone, Van tells Lan Fan that she can go and find her prince, as he knows she longed to do. Expressing her gratitude, she said goodbye to the old man and slipped away while Van continued on his own.
Under Central Command, one of the generals, enraged that the rebellion has not yet been put down, heads into a chamber of mannequin soldiers and, despite the protests of the scientist working there, activates them en masse to deal with Mustang and Armstrong’s forces. . Each of them opened an eye in the middle of their forehead and all of the smaller homunculi let out bloodcurdling screams that echoed throughout the complex and underground tunnels.