Fullmetal Alchemist, vol. 18

Barry the Chopper, the psychopathic killer whose soul is encased in a suit of armor, has been captured by Colonel Mustang's troops. Fearing he will reveal the Philosopher's Stone conspiracy, Gluttony and Lust decide to kill him, using Barry's own original soulless body to track him down! Though Colonel Mustang has anticipated their moves and set up an ambush, Gluttony and Lust prove...

In an alchemical ritual gone wrong, Edward Elric lost his arm and his leg, and his brother Alphonse became nothing but a soul in a suit of armor. Equipped with mechanical "auto-mail" limbs, Edward becomes a state alchemist, seeking the one thing that can restore his brother and himself...the legendary Philosopher's Stone.

The horrors of the Ishbalan extermination campaign had serious repercussions, which set the tone for the complicated dealings of present-day state politics. Lieutenant Hawkeye reluctantly tells Ed all the dreaded details of the role Colonel Mustang and the other state alchemists played in this tragic event.

Lin manages to escape with Lan Fan from Bradley, but they are followed by Gluttony. Winry becomes involved in the battle between the Elrics and Scar and learns about the latter killing her parents. However, Edward calms her down and he continues fighting Scar. Lin captures Gluttony at the cost of Lan Fan's arm who lost it to trick the homunculi. A friend of Scar's from Xing, May Chang, s...

After a brief fight, Edward, Lin, and Envy are swallowed by Gluttony. While they are inside the homunculus, Envy reveals that Gluttony is an imitation of the gate that appears during Human Transmutation. He then loses his composture and transforms into his true form, a giant creature composed of deceased people, that attacks Edward and Lin. Scar and May search for May's little panda now under...

Father heals the Elric brothers as they are needed for his plans. He then uses Lin's body to host Greed's Philosopher's Stone, turning him into the new homunculus Greed. Scar and May arrive to retrieve the panda, but are unable to fight the homunculi. After Scar escapes, Father takes both brothers and May to Bradley. By threatening to kill Winry, Bradley orders Edward to keep workin...

Scar decides to rescue Marcoh from the homunculi, so that he can find out more about his brother's studies. The Elrics leave Central to find May, who is with Scar's group, as they go to the icy north to learn the secrets of Xing's alchemy. Kimblee is freed from prison by the military so that he may kill Scar and kidnap Marcoh. Using Alex Louis Armstrong's advice, the brothers a...

The Elrics, along with the soldiers of Briggs, fight Sloth and manage to freeze him. Edward and Alphonse tell Olivier all about the homunculi and ask for her help to protect the hostages they have secretly taken. They then discover that Sloth has been digging a tunnel around Amestris so that Father can transmutate the entire country. Meanwhile, Kimblee searches for and battles Scar. Kimblee is def...

Ed's clever plan to take out an enemy leaves him severely injured... Can he cheat death? One of our friends discovers the ironic secret behind Scar's brother's transmutation notes. And Major General Armstrong meets with evil homunculus President Bradley. Whose side is she on again...? Plus, the disturbing origin of Ed and Al's immortal father finally revealed!

Betrayal and double-crossing are the order of the day. Greed, Pride and Envy prove to be formidable enemies, but one homunculus seems to be having pangs of--could it be?--conscience. Ominous news spreads quickly about a mysterious portal. Will this gateway help the Elric brothers regain their natural bodies? And will the gigantic underground transmutation circle be completed, leading to a major re...