#ishvallans

[noragottem]

roy killing the rockbells is better story than scar killing the rockbells.

[boku-no-anime-phase]

Some evil FMA AUs etc that I think are fun

Riza Hawkeye creating a squad of flame alchemists loyal to her and using them for her own (or Mustang's) purposes

Mustang's body used as a host for Greed instead of Ling's

Rose joins the military to try to watch over Ed, a la Hawkeye to Mustang

Sibling homunculi defect from Father together with Greed (bonus: to Ed's chagrin, they view him and Al as something like uncles); now they're all on the run from their dads

Ling not feeling easy in his own mind after Greed leaves - it's too quiet in there

Scar gets his brother's reconstruction arm instead

Winry gets adopted & trained by Hawkeye

Re-embodied Al donates his armor to a cat rescue so it can always hold cats hehe

Olivier as the boys' parent figure instead of Izumi

Found family for the boys comprised of Mustang, Hawkeye, the Mustang Gang, and Mustang's family (his "sisters" and Madam Christmas)

Mustang dies instead of Hughes, and Hughes carries on his work to honor his memory, despite not being as ambitious as Mustang was

The boys as Ishvallans

[calangkoh]

FMAB Ed: We should just not see color. My town being inconvenienced by the genocide of the Ishvallans is on equal footing to the genocide of Ishvallans so we should forget it and get along. Tortured war veterans who give up on their dreams are dumb.

03 Ed: I can’t deny that I see color and am prejudiced from it. I need to be better. I contribute to ongoing war and imperialism by excusing my ignorance and ignoring other people’s problems. I have no right to tell this tortured war veteran how to live, especially when he seems to have made peace with his experiences that I have no grasp of.

[royaidaydreams]

Fascism in Fullmetal Alchemist

So I recently started watching Spy x Family, and observing the sexism within the narrative through the lens that the sexism (the pressure Yor faces to be a housewife, cook, clean, complete domestic duties, be part of a nuclear family, and please her male family member) is intentional due to the fascist society the characters live in (instead of existing as a flaw I side-eye hard in the writing).

My husband and I started discussing the presence of fascism in other anime and of course we brought up Fullmetal Alchemist. And I’ve never seen anyone talk about it before. So ... let’s talk about it.

First off, let’s define fascism. Simplified, fascism is “a governmental system led by a dictator having complete power, forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism, regimenting all industry, commerce, etc., and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism and often racism.”

So know we know what we’re talking about. Good.

The fascism in FMA lurks in the background instead of being a central to the narrative. First and foremost, Fullmetal Alchemist is a character and action driven story. Dual protagonists Ed and Al don’t care about the politics within the government and military. They are too busy running around having adventures while stopping the homunculi. Deuteragonist Roy Mustang (and his team) care far more about the inner workings of the government and military, with Roy aiming one day to become the country’s leader and separate the government from the military by returning power to the parliament. Roy often schemes and makes underhand plays to gain political power by befriending Generals Grumman and Raven, using his reputation as a colonel and state alchemist to advance his career while at the same time using his reputation as a lazy playboy to seem harmless to those in power. In the climax of the series he successfully completes a coup d'etat!

So while Fullmetal Alchemist dabbles in politics, it isn’t a politically driven story at its core. The politics within the military of Amestris just aren’t the focus of the narrative.

Therefore the fascism is largely subtextual. FMA doesn’t set out to make any political commentary or align with any real world time periods and governments. Yet, fans can easily compare it to Germany in WWII. The 03 anime doesn’t even make the comparison, it just straight up puts the characters in Nazi Germany!

Here’s a list of characteristics of fascism. Below I’ll mention the characteristics that exist in the universe of FMA. Then, I’ll mention the characteristics that aren’t seen in FMA.

Characteristics of fascism that exist within Fullmetal Alchemist:

Powerful and Continuing Nationalism

So this characteristic relies more on subtext than direct examples within the text. But Amestris is undeniably nationalistic in the way it goes to war with its neighboring countries. It contains a strong army and accumulates power through brute force.

Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights

Two words: Ishvalan genocide. The military also uses alchemical experimentation on its own members to create chimera (Greed’s posse and  Darius, Hienkel, Jerso, and Zampano). The scientist in charge of the Immortal Soldiers says to Olivier, “the military doesn’t care about ethics.” He’s right. It absolutely did not.

Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause

The Ishvallan people are the main scapegoat of Amestris, but neighboring countries Drachma, Creta, and Aerugo are labeled enemies whom are all in military conflicts with Amestris.

Supremacy of the Military (junta)

This is the MOST OBVIOUS. One of the protagonists and the deuteragonist work for the military. The government of Amestris is controlled by the military. This makes it military junta (learned a new vocab word today!), the definition of which is a government led by a committee of military leaders.

Controlled Mass Media

Now, this isn’t explicitly mentioned anywhere in FMA. But when Roy completes his coup, the most effective part of his plan is taking over the radio station and controlling the narrative during the Promised Day.

Obsession with National Security

In the north, Olivier, Miles, Bucaneer, and all other the Briggs soldiers are  obsessed with border security and finding spies from Drachma. Completely obsessed.

Labor Power is Suppressed

This is really only in FMA’s manga chapter (and 03 episode) about Youswell. Yoki tries to suppress the mine workers and hoard all of the wealth and power of the mining town for himself, but he’s so pathetic that he fails spectacularly.

Rampant Cronyism and Corruption

Cronyism is the appointment of friends and associates to positions of authority, without proper regard to their qualifications. The senior staff, like General Raven, work with Bradley and Father despite knowing their nation’s leader is a homunculous. We don’t know to what extent they may have earned their positions of power by agreeing with the Fuhrer and Father’s plan rather than from merit.

Characteristics of fascism that DO NOT exist within Fullmetal Alchemist:

Rampant Sexism

Women like Riza Hawkeye, Maria Ross, and General Armstrong seem to be a minority in the military, but they do exist. And they are officers of varying ranks. They are never shown facing sexism from their peers or superior officers except for one incident with General Armstrong. She coerces information out of General Raven by tricking him through a demur act and mentioning her biological clock and the fact that she’s growing older without bearing children. He touches her without her consent. However, narratively, General Armstrong is framed as having the upper hand in this encounter by tricking Raven and ultimately killing him for his unwanted behavior toward her.

The only unintentional sexism in the series is the lack of female soldiers participating in the battles during the Promised Day.

Religion and Government are Intertwined

Two religions are mentioned in FMA worshipping the gods Leto and Ishvalla, but neither are intertwined with the government. In fact, it is not known if Amestris has a national or majority religion.

Corporate Power is Protected

No corporate power is ever mentioned by any of the characters.

Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts

Interestingly, alchemists could be considered intellectuals as they study a specific science and spend years studying and perfecting their expertise. The military recruits them, especially those most dangerous and deadly. Intellectuals in the traditional sense, academics and professors, are not shown. We do not know if they even exist in FMA. Nor do we see the arts. However, their non-existence could speak for itself and imply that these people have been silenced by the government.

Obsession with Crime and Punishment

Ironically, the only two characters obsessed with crime and punishment (Roy and Riza), are the ones that want to be face punishment for their (war) crimes. None of the characters discuss criminal activities or punishments. The Maria Ross incident might be as close as the series comes, but the narrative frames her lack of trial and hasty arrest as unusual and other characters condemn Mustang’s “punishment” as extreme.

Fraudulent Elections

There are no elections, fraudulent or real, shown in FMA, But that’s likely because the current government would never allow any.

In conclusion, what does this all mean? Well, I don’t really know. Someone more adept with political science can answer that. But I think it is a fascinating lens in which to view the worldbuilding in Fullmetal Alchemist, one I haven’t seen discussed before. Fascism exists in FMA, but it doesn’t include all of the necessary characteristics, which is pretty interesting. I’d love to see fanfic take these ideas further in depth, whether to lean into making Amestris a fully fascist state or allowing our favorite characters to rebuild Amestris and sever the country from it’s fascist regimes in order to make it more democratic.

So consider some of these ideas and how they apply to the Fullmetal Alchemist characters the next time you want a thought experiment or need some worldbuilding inspiration.

[limetameta]

Still find it a little funny that Arakawa said Christianity doesn't exist in the Fma universe so I can fuck around with the worldbuilding and have the one designated day off in a week be Saturday if for no other reason than to drive home that Christianity isn't a dominant force influencing this world.

Anyway what I do love about this is that while Christmas the holiday doesn't exist Christmas the gangster does and saying Christmas has a completely different connotation. It doesn't inspire whimsy and joy *sparkles* it instead associates with Madame Gonna Gut You Like a Fish Christmas. Which I find adorable and truer to the heart of the fma universe.

Though then since Ishva exists and there's a whole religion surrounding her worship that leans heavily into Muslim teritory that means that most characters would be more familiarised with those concepts than anything Christian like or adjacent. Before the civil war happened and the xenophobia kicked into high gear there would probably be more accommodations about the times of prayer Ishvalan employees and citizens would need to follow, more accommodating with dietary restrictions etc. Since we don't really have information how the Ishvallans were treated prior to the civil war. And if there isn't Christianity that monopolises everyone else's belief and practises there really isn't any reason why the one religion everyone knew existed wouldn't be Ishvallan. (Since Letoism is not a religion and only began and ended in the span of a cpl of years post civil war)

Makes you think!

[coolnerdyrn]

Spoiler free review of Fullmetal Alchemist: The Revenge of Scar

Overall, it's (mostly) a better movie than the first one. The pacing is way better, and they seem to have figured out a rhythm with the new timeline they've created.

We got introduced to more beloved characters from the manga/anime, such as (obviously) Scar, the Mustang Unit, Ling, Lan Fan, Fu, and Mei. We also got Bradley and a brief glimpse of Father, and even Granny and Hohenheim made appearances.

We also got Major Armstrong and um...ngl, this is the one character design I wouldn't have minded them altering because he did NOT translate well to live-action.

We got some lovely Royai moments; some were moments we'd gotten in previous adaptations, and a couple were brand new. We also got that one EdWin moment that is forever burned into my soul (if ya know, ya know).

But now we gotta address the elephant in the room...Scar.

I understand that they are solely using Japanese actors for this project. However, rather than casting an actor who has naturally olive-toned skin (because yes, there are Japanese people who naturally have that skin tone!), they opted for... brownface.

Which really puts literally everything surrounding Ishval in an EXTREMELY hypocritical light, tbh. I don't know if any of the other Ishvallans were portrayed using brownface, but honestly the fact that Scar, the MAIN Ishvallan in FMA, was portrayed this way says a lot of Not Good things.

...Also his actor has now been accused of sexual assault so...karma? I guess?

Idk, I did enjoy the movie, but once I learned what Scar's actor really looked like, it left a bad taste in my mouth.

[raspberrybrain]

FMA beekeeping AU:

Someone liked this and reminded me it existed!

Instead of taking after their dad, Ed and Al follow their mom’s passion and take over the traveling pollination and honey-selling business.

They travel all over Amestris using bee metaphors to solve political problems.

Please do "Yes and…" this. It would bring me so much joy.

Potential bee keeper Elric quotes below:

"Humans are like bees, we just aren’t conscious of the invisible pheromone paths that guide our actions."

To Roy: "You’re like a bee. You’ve chosen your one guiding principle, your queen, and you’ll give up anything, sting and destroy anything to feed that goal. "

To an Ishvallan refugee: "You’ve been uprooted and torn away from the place that was home. And you made a new home. You created value and safety, and a brand new culture out of the left behind cracks in this rotting city. The flowers here bloom because you are here."

"We are not like bees, not like the military wants us to think we are. A hive is an organism —every component is replicable— but we are each an organism. When you take one of us away, there is no replacement. That person's job will get done by someone else. Their loved ones will have other loved ones, but that unique point of data is gone, never to be replicated. I'm not ok with losing people, with killing people being goddamned plan A!"

To Rosé: "The queen of a hive isn't its master. She's a part of the hive, like every other bee. Working at supporting the hive in the way she is best at, like every other bee. Cornello wasn't Liore's queen. He was Liore's predator.

When you don't have the strength to stand, someone does. When they need your strength in return, you will find it. We create the world together, in turn, as equals."

[rizah]

screaming finally got my hands on the fma raws so i can read thru the ishvallan massacre and chew on glass as i get the most direct translation possible

[royai]

Not to use you as a venting outlet but in regards to the discourse about the manga— It’s shocking to me how much of the criticism comes from a complete lack of critical thinking. Like you mentioned about how Ed is a teenage white boy in an era based on the early 1900’s, of course he’s going to be racist. Also, I think it’s weird how a lot of posts talking about the manga version of the Ishvallan characters gloss over the fact that Arakawa has Ainu relatives.

it’s ok anon i’m essentially discourse central these days

personally, and i say this with 100% sincerity, i think people like to nitpick fma because there really is not much there to severely critique? a lot of arakawa’s pitfalls as a writer center around the ishvalans, how other characters react to them, the reparations they do and don’t receive, how scar is framed as a villain for the whole first half of the series, etc. etc. which i agree could have been done better (and i believe arakawa also agrees).

fma manga began in like 2001 too, so i think for its time it was a really progressive manga that focused mainly on the detriments of war, and the mistreatment of native peoples. i think we need to meet fma where it’s at and give credit where credit is due - in 2001, “i don’t see color” wasn’t considered a racist statement.

but also i do truly believe that people just want to be on that moral high horse. and especially fma 03 fans who want to “prove” why fma 03 is superior or want to put fmab or the manga down in the process to somehow validate their preference for fma 03 (which like??? u don’t need to??? fma 03 is good as it’s own standalone series lol) so i take whatever people say with a grain of salt

it’s all about combing through stories to make up problematic points these days. “fma is inherently ableist” is the funniest one i’ve come across

[ssaalexblake]

FMA official translations reread/read, vol.2

Riza’s the only one who knows how to treat teenagers. Telling the brothers the truth, not condescending them and recognising they’re involved, but not allowing them to go with her to see what happened because they shouldn’t have to See it is the right line to follow. All this should be read with the perspective that Ed outranks her and she’s not actually allowed to tell him what to do. Not gonna call her a mother figure, but she’s probably earning a big sister ranking. 

hughes: pls tell me you don’t want me to put a corpse on trial?

Them discussing who the hell scar is and only knowing he has a scar and not knowing he’s an ishvallan has me??? Are the red eyes the only way to ID somebody as Ishvalan? Because Scar is a darker skin tone and the light hair even in the manga, and it’s the same with Miles, and nobody gets it till he removes his glasses at appropriate dramatic moments. Are they assuming that they’re both a different race, neither Amestrian or Ishvalan? I suppose most people don’t often see any ishvalans around. A great deal probably have never seen anybody probably, thanks to that state sponsored genocide thing. Especially if they didn’t live in the East? I can think of ways for it to make sense but it’s not actually self evident imo. 

and lol, The Elrics being out and in danger partly because Roy deliberately antagonised them and left them even more distressed than they already were, and that suddenly very much being roy’s problem. Poor brothers, but Roy, you deserved that. 

“i’ve never done anything to make anyone hate me! (actually i’ve done that a lot, but...) I don’t deserve to Die!” lollllllllllllllllll nice thought process Ed

and that he’s not used to people trying to murder him yet :/ 

Still wildly funny that people in this story only ever think it’s mildly weird some teenager walks around in a full set of metal armour for no reason. And that most don’t ever mention it or care at all, just question why he never takes the helmet off to eat. Literally nobody in this story actually Wears armour. A few people Are armour, but.. it appears in universe it’s a decorative item only, so it makes it even more funny. 

i think Ed’s actually smaller in proportion to Scar in the manga? Or maybe the static expressions of fear are more evocative, but this fight sequence truly looks like a terrified child being attacked by a huge dude trying to kill him, which Is what’s happening, but in the animation it’s less, idk, disturbing? It’s Probably the access to ed’s unfiltered thoughts while reading that makes it worse. 

chapter 6, finished. 

[galeleads]

@deathleads has the audacity to ask about 💭 + Ishval

TW: War, discussions on x*nophobia, among other topics;

tl;dr, she is conflicted about Ishval

Once upon a time, Aurora's life was relatively normal. Then the Ishvallan Civil War happened, and everything went to hell. The war took a toll on so many people's lives, let alone on Ishvallans. But, when you're a kid && you don't fully grasp that the world doesn't revolve around yours, it can be hard to distinguish the hardships you face and the root cause being not a group of people, but a concept you were unaware of.

For a long long time, Aurora was scared of Ishval and Ishvallans. "Their" war caused her family to break apart, be killed, and suffer lifelong turmoil. Putting a face to the pain made it easier for a child to understand, and unfortunately, the Amestrian Government didn't do anything to stop this for ANYONE. In fact, they continued their hostility towards Ishvallans by scattering them.

However, she is much more grown now, and it suffices to say with her gained knowledge (and meeting Qistina Leota @deathleads), she actively tries to change her internalized fear, as it was unjust in the first place. Ishval was a human extermination experiment set by the Amestrian Government. Her colleagues' hands are stained and reek with the stench of blood. There were no heroes from that war.

Ishval is one of her main reasons for seeking the demilitarization of State Alchemists, and when the time comes, she will support the reconstruction efforts of Ishval. For now, she treats her Ishvallan counterparts with respect.

[kimbleefucker]

don't take it too hard, POC have been speaking out against the way FMA is applauded for years. this fandom is very unwilling to criticize it (even though arakawa is pretty problematic herself in this way), they really want to say "but FMA is different!" but really, it's not.

i was just talking to a friend about this the other day but i think the problem with media that tries to say something about a social issue can be suspect because those sentiments can change over time. if you adapt a political message, it may not hold up 10 or 20 years later.

fullmetal alchemist's approach to ishvallan's was either 1. just forgive the white people and opt to change the world through passive means (similar to anti-BLM narratives) and 2. if you are in the system, just stick close to your powerful white friends, and don't be afraid to sell out one of your own for disrupting the status quo

i'm not saying we shouldn't like it but i do think it's funny that most of the people who are defending FMA's lackluster approach to racism and female presence are the same ones who want to consume it in the most pure, unproblematic way ever when, with an anime/manga like this? i would argue that's not completely possible

it's true re: arakawa though in her manga silver spoon she specifically mocks western farmers for believing in humane treatment of animals and lets not forget garfiel's existence which she constantly plays for laughs as the Haha Funny Effeminate Gay Rapist Jokes LOL

[kizzer55555]

Fullmetal Alchemist Time Travel Part 2

When Ed is sent back in time, he regains his gate for alchemy because in this time, he didn’t sacrifice it in exchange for Al’s body (or he just possesses his younger self’s body like in that fanfiction). He still has the ability to wield alchemy without an array (circle) due to his future knowledge. It was knowledge so truth let him keep it and even though the price he paid to get it didn’t happen yet, truth let him keep his alchemy as a favor. Maybe what actually happened is that his alchemy was restored in exchange for going back in time. I like that idea better. Anyways, Ed is back in time in his younger self’s body before either he or Alphonse had tried human transmutation to bring their mother back. This is probably after they return from training with their teacher. I think that it will be a year before Ed and Al attempt human transmutation.

They likely spent the year gathering information and planning. Ed is currently 10 and Alphonse is 9. Edward realizes that this is the year that the Ishvalan war ended. The year that King Bradley ordered for state alchemists to join the war and the year that Winry's Parents died. Ed knew that he could do something about it (or at least really wanted to). He knew that the war had been going on too long and far too much blood to have already been spilt to stop the crest of blood from forming but he knew he could save the Ishvalan that were left. He remembered that during this time, he and Al had been researching human transmutation and he had left (or Al and he split up to search different places) to find information about human transmutation using the savings that their mother left them. They found most of the information they needed within the books at home. (Maybe they both just stayed home and thought about going out to find more information but didn’t need to as they found what they needed at home but this time, Ed goes by himself and tells Al to keep researching. Or maybe Ed really did go on a trip while Al stayed home). Either way, Ed left home under the guise of doing research (as Al and him aren’t far enough yet to attempt human transmutation, he felt this was safe to leave Al alone no matter how much his stomach recoiled as the thought of attempting human transmutation again. He also knew that he didn’t have a good excuse otherwise to leave Al and he refused to take his younger brother to a literal war. He also needed a reason to convince Al it was a bad idea to attempt the array and he couldn’t just say he changed his mind one day. They had too much at this point). So Ed left under the guise of research. However, what he was really going to do was stop the war. While Ed was very skilled in alchemy, he was still just one person and in an 11 year old body. Not only that but he couldn’t let the military see him this early on. So he created a disguise. (I am debating whether he just dressed in black or if he actually formed some rock or metal around him like an armor (maybe even looking like Alphonse did when his soul possessed the armor).

Probably a bit of both with him mostly looking like a ninja with metal armor covering him through his alchemy but formed in a way it’s still easy for him to move, and then he just tried to stay out of sight. People might only have caught a glimpse of him from a distance and from that, can’t tell his actual height and the only thing anyone might be able to see is his golden eyes, but only if they get close. His eyes were the only thing not covered. There were many things that Edward could do to end the war however, he couldn’t bring himself to kill the Amestrian soldiers. He knew they weren’t to blame but he also couldn’t let them kill innocent ishvallans. Because of this, what ended up happening is that Edward often countered the state alchemists with his own alchemy. If they make a wall, he broke a hole through it. If Mustang created a flame, he created a shield. When people fired guns, he threw up a wall of stone to block the bullets. However, he would also do the same to the Amestrian soldiers. He would form the ground into sand and then sweep them all away and his walls of protection for the ishvalans would also serve as barriers to prevent them from shooting the soldiers. He kept them separate as much as possible and because of this, after he entered the battle, casualties on both sides decreased dramatically. He even did things like tamper with the guns, bombs and other weapons on both sides. He would deliver food he tramsutated (he can transmute grass into bread) to both, especially the ishvalans and he filled guns with sand if he had to.

The reason he was able to be so sneaky was due to a few reasons. First off, he had learned a few things from Ling and Fan Lan about Chi and how to control/sense it or even hide his presence. That along with his small body, training in the military, from his teacher, and his Xingese friends, plus his dark clothing helped him move like an assassin. People knew about Ed or at least they knew that there was an alchemist interfering in the war. For the ishvalans, Ed was a miracle as they were definitely loosing to the state alchemists and while they were grateful that there had been a dramatic drop in casualties, some were a bit upset that the mysterious alchemist wasn’t just killing the enemies. When that happened, most people who truly knew of the gift Ed was giving them set them straight. The alchemist was the only reason more people hadn’t died despite clearly going against their own country so they shouldn’t be complaining. Meanwhile, the military personnel were infuriated (at least the higher ups) that an alchemist was not only interfering but had gone traitor and they were a powerful and skilled alchemist at that.

Luckily for the Furher, the blood crest had enough blood to form but he still didn’t like the interference. For the soldiers on the front line though, even though they were given orders to kill on sight if they found this mysterious alchemist, some were cheering him on (most actually) since this alchemist had stopped the fighting on both sides. There were less innocents being killed and yet the alchemist was not killing them either and just trying to stop the fighting in general. It was a breath of fresh air honestly and a break from the killing. (There were almost no, if any, killings since they appeared). Another reason for Ed to be so skilled is that he created a new form of alchemy. He knew that going from place to place would be difficult so he based this new alchemy off of what he went through in Gluttony’s stomach with Ling and Envy. He created a form of teleportation. First off, he needed an array setup somewhere as an anchor. He couldn’t just teleport to any place he wanted. If it didn’t have an anchor then he couldn’t go there after all, he teleports by disintegrating himself, going through the gate of truth, and then appearing somewhere else and he needs to have a spot outside the gate to latch onto. However, he can teleport from anywhere to an anchor. He activated the teleportation by imagining the array and forming it wherever he is. It also doesn’t cost him anything since he’s just moving from one spot to another just like how he works his alchemy. The ground is moved to become a sphere but it isn’t destroyed. He’s doing the same thing but just with a human body and he’s tested it out before so he knows it works without costing him anything (and he can see Truth every time he goes through). He could technically teleport another person but it’s safer to just teleport himself as teleporting someone else would reveal where he had an anchor placed.

He sets up anchor arrays all over the place whenever he travels that first year. (It is possible to teleport somewhere without a physical anchor array by imagining an anchor array in his head if he knows the exact location he wants to go to but he would need exact coordinates and he won’t know what he will find if he teleports there so it’s a bit risky.) He was able to place the anchor arrays all over the battlefields in the civil war so was thus able to teleport all over. This might even cause the higher ups to question whether there were multiple people working to protect the ishvalans instead of just one. It would also explain the power. Either way, the war was basically at a standstill. However, then Kimble was given the newly made philosopher's stone that thousands of Ishvalian prisoners were used to create. The military believe that he can wipe out the rest of the ishvalans and if they can’t they have huge bombs set up to finish the job. (Either they evacuate their soldiers or they don’t really care what happens to their soldiers and Ed is the one who warns them of the danger). Kimblee goes to the first town and starts using the new power to cause so much destruction. Ed immediately notices as well as sees Kimblee killing a lot of people before his eyes including two brothers. An ishvalan man with tattoos on both his arms shielding another ishvalan man. Ed uses his alchemy the best he can to protect the ishvalans there but Kimblee was so powerful with the philosophers stone that he wasn’t able to save many (although it’s much more than if he wasn’t there). Kimblee immediately notices that there aren't as many casualties as there should be and the use of alchemy and realizes that the mysterious alchemist must be nearby. He makes some sort of show and tries taunting Ed to come out. When that doesn’t work he starts to threaten the ishvalans nearby (scar and his brother) that if he doesn’t come out he will kill them.

That’s when Ed does something. Either he uses some sort of blade or object he picks up to slash at Kimblee eyes (although Kimble is very fast and I don’t want to make Ed TOO much of a ninja. He’s an amateur at best and his methods are only working since his opponents don’t know how to fight Xingese techniques). Or he creates a huge cloud of dust and sand to obscure his vision or alchemists a type of mist or fog. I like this idea the best as it would work for everyone. Now that his vision is obscured, no one can see what Ed looks like and he goes on the attack with a vague sense of Kimblee’s chi to tell where his opponent is (again, not as skilled as Ling or Lan Fan). Kimblee thinks that Ed is trying to gain an advantage with the smokescreen and laughs at saying how if he thinks he’ll be careful of who to hit, he doesn’t actually care and starts firing blasts of alchemy in all directions. Ed uses his own alchemy to protect the other chi signatures he can sense (not sure if Kimblee brought men of not but if they are there then Ed shields them too). Meanwhile, Scar had been badly injured by Kimblee’s original blast that Ed just arrived on time for and he lost his arm and got the scar injury on his face just like in canon. His brother sees this and while the two alchemists are fighting and thus distracted, he tries his best to shield his brother from what’s going on although he can’t see much from the smokescreen that more explosions create more dust and Ed keeps renewing to hide his identity (the brother can’t see but occasionally, a wall will pop up to block some sort of attack from hitting them so he’s at least thankful to the mysterious alchemist. (He’s one of the people that defended the guy’s actions). Anyways, just like in canon, he sacrifices his own arm to save his brother.

Ed manages to find an opening and manages to steal the philosopher's stone from Kimblee (likely getting injured in the process) and then makes his getaway. He watches as most of the chi signatures manage to evacuate the area while they are fighting but notices two people still alive and appear to be unconscious. He rushes over to them and then teleports all three of them away. Kimblee looks around to see the dust clearing only to find the place empty with no alchemist and no ishvalans. Then he realizes that his stone is gone and screams in rage. Meanwhile, Ed realizes just who he saved as he recognizes scar and the man next to him loosing blood from one arm and his other covered in white tattoos that Ed recognized was from Scar's brother’s research. This must have been his brother but Ed can’t dwell on that now as they clearly needed help. He rips some nearby cloth (or transmutes some of their clothes or his own clothes) to bandage the wound as best he can and stop the bleeding. Meanwhile, he tends to his own injuries as well and studies the philosopher's stone that he managed to steal. He doesn’t stay long as he knows that the other two need help and starts dragging them after making a sled/gurney with alchemy. Unfortunately, both of them are fully grown men and he is in an 10-11 year old’s body (Maybe I could make today his birthday or something). But he managed to drag them to where he remembered that recently, the Rockbells were treating the injured. He had teleported to the closest anchor (some anchors were destroyed but he keeps making new ones) and then dragged/pulled them the rest of the way. Maybe wishing he still has his auto mail at a time like this. He was a bit wary of bringing Scar to the Rockbells but figured that as long as his brother was also safe that Scar wouldn’t go on a rampage and he decided to stay and watch them a bit longer just in case.

During this time, one or both brothers woke up in a haze to see a blurry figure pulling them while they were on some sort of gurney. The figure was covered head to toe in black armored clothes but appeared very short. Their head turned for just a moment to check on them and the brother caught sight of bright golden eyes, unlike anything he’d ever seen before before falling into unconsciousness again. They wake up again later to hear the sound of footsteps and sees the mysterious figure drops the ropes he was pulling them with and then…disappear? They had just pressed their hands into the nearby wall and it was as if their bodies were disintegrating. Then he saw people, ishvalans, rushing to them along with two people with blue eyes before he lost consciousness again. When the two brothers awoke, they were side by side and looked at the other to gouge their injuries. Scar had both his arms intact with one being his brother's tattooed arm and his stomach and head bandaged while his brother had injuries as well but most noticable, his right arm was completely gone and the nub was bandaged. When the Rockbells came over to assess their injuries, Scar might have gotten defensive (and Ed, watching from a nearby building might have gotten ready to interfere if he had to) but his brother calmed him down. He had awoken before scar and told him the situation. They both told their story and Scar (I think that’s the brother who saw Ed, or maybe each of them had their own memory) told about the mysterious figure who helped them and then disappeared. They learn from others that this was the alchemist who helped them. Not many see them but some people have spotted the alchemist disappearing into walls and the ground as if disintegrating.

People think he has the ability to teleport. They might have noticed supplies appearing like that too or caught him when he was delivering the supplies. (No one knows that their eyes are gold though and Scar reveals that fact to only his brother. They likely conclude that the alchemist was probably Amestrian). Unfortunately though, both Scar and his brother can’t use their alchemy as it’s only half of what they need. They recover with the Rockbells and sometimes might catch a glimpse of the mysterious alchemist watching them and supplies might just show up but he keeps his distance. Meanwhile when Kimblee returned and revealed that he lost the philosophers stone while fighting the mysterious alchemist, the higher ups are furious. Now a very dangerous weapon had fallen into their enemies hands. An enemy they knew nothing about. Everyone has taken to calling him shadow (Maybe the ishvalans call him something else. Something that likely means savior or guide of Ishvala (their god), perhaps miracle).  Because of this, the military have decided to take drastic measures. They call all of their troops back and at first, the ishvalans think that they have won but Ed knows that this is not the end as he knows the Fuhrer and that guy doesn’t just give up. He had been planning on something during the whole war. He knew that the ruins of Xerxes were where the ishvalans went to last time and had been teleporting refugees there during the war. Things like families trying to escape and others. He had set up an anchor there beforehand and maybe even fixed up the place a bit, fixing houses with alchemy and making the water source dig a little deeper underground for more water. Maybe he actually created a whole underground city using the old sewer tunnels to make a safe place for the ishvalans.

But then he realizes the military's plan. He figures out that they are going to launch a massive bomb made from weapons and alchemy to destroy all of Ishval and end the war due to Ed’s interference. Ed manages to get the Rockbells to leave (likely thinking the war is over and leaving with a few refugees) but then the bomb is launched. (Maybe the Fuhrer gave a warning about launching the bomb and the high priest guy tried the same thing as last time saying that as long as he spared the others he would turn himself in but King Bradley didn’t care. Because of this, all of Ishval is just waiting for the bombs to fall). Ed uses the philosophers stone to create a massive teleportation gate/array and send every single chi life form he can sense to Xerxes right when the bomb/bombs hit. (The souls of the ishvalans in the stone are all for saving their people and their families so they willingly agree to help). The people saw the bombs coming and prepared for the worst when light blue arrays suddenly appeared at their feet and it looked like they were disintegrating. They thought they were dying before the bombs hit but then they all appear in some sort of ruins safe and sound. The other refugees who had been sent there beforehand explained everything about how this was the mysterious alchemists doing. Then a piece of paper is teleported and says that from this moment on, they are dead.

He explained a bit about what’s going on and that they can use the places he’s built for them as homes as well as the supplies he has left and how to get more (water is basically unlimited and he started a few farms with alchemy for them). He says that it is their choice what to do from now but if they return to seek vengeance or start the war again, many more lives will be lost. He says that there is much going on in Amestris right now that is making it dangerous for anyone, even those in the military and that there was something else behind the true cause of the war. He says to treasure their lives and choose what to do from now on. Most of the Ishvalans heed the warning with a few returning to Amestris (likely looking for family. The letter said that a few returning wouldn’t be suspicious as they would appear to be refugees but it wouldn’t be very safe for them) Scar returns because he wants to find out the truth and also because he wants to find out more about the mysterious alchemist. His brother probably comes along. (They might both discard their old names for new ones. Anyways, now that the war is over and the Ishvalans are safe while the world assumes they are dead, Ed uses a teleportation array to go back home with the philosopher's stone (or near home since he can’t teleport directly to the house despite having an array there).

[limetameta]

You know, another thing that would be super funny in that very uncomfortable manner is the fact that since Resembool is so close to Ishval, you know for a damn fact that the cultures have intertwined a lot so Edward and Alphonse would definitely know many words from that language, would know games, would know some customs, would probably not even know they're predominantly Ishvallan because of the fact that everyone in Resembool just doesn't mention it, doesn't draw any attention to the hybrid culture because to them this is just how it's always been.

Now, for the uncomfortable comedy gold:

Major Miles, raised away from his culture, faced with these two kids who know so much more than he does: Are they .. are you making this up? Or is this a real thing?

Edward, to Alphonse, not a care in the world: Lmao, look at this *ishvallan word for bozo or just some guy that people in resembool have adopted as their own word* he doesn't even know how to play *insert Ishval card game here*

Even the Civil War vets know more Ishvalan than him, the poor sod, yet the minute they see him they just immediately think he knows his culture and the language.

Kimblee, full of bravado: I've been cursed by Ishvallans my entire time there, if I've managed to get a degree in anything it's Ishvalan curses. I will gladly help you reconnect with that part of your culture!

Miles, in Amestrian: I'd rather you let me connect my fist with your face.

Kimblee, like those language teachers you hate: :D No, no, Major Miles, we're going to speak in Ishvallan now!

Even Scar, I bet, would forget himself and mention something only to see Miles just stare blankly at him: You don't even know what the month of Ishva is?

Miles, reluctantly: Is that the month when you don't eat..?

Scar, muttering: Ishva grant me strength and grant him wisdom.

[althaeaofficinalis]

I sometimes wonder about the parallels of the ishvallan war in fma/fma:b and the us occupation of iraq and afghanistan. I'm old enough to know people from the early tours - I'm not talking like 2010, I'm talking 2001-2006 - and so many came back like armstrong, traumatized and horrified and broken, or mustang, revolutionized and galvanized and determined to try himself for war crimes, or hughes, getting by one day at a time.

or kimblee.

in kimblee I see military contractors. I see the most violent and gleeful of military killers. I see so many facebook posts. I see when the news leaked another military court-martial of war crimes.

I don't know if it's intentional, but I can't stop thinking about it.

[noragottem]

what kills me is so many of the soldiers knew there was something off about the ishvallan war and all of them were still like this is a but much for some rebels like idk maybe. back out idk!