Fullmetal Alchemist: A New Era

Fullmetal Alchemist: A New Era is the sequel series to Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, an anime adaptation of the Fullmetal Alchemist manga by Hiromu Arakawa. The events of the series are loosely based on those that transpired in Square Enix's Fullmetal Alchemist video games, which follow the timeline of the 2003 Fullmetal Alchemist anime series. The games' combined plot and characters have been rebooted to instead fit in with the Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood timeline.

Plot
<!-- The Portal. An in-between realm that rests in the middle of life and death. It serves as a gateway to the realm of God, in which departed souls face judgment and are either granted eternal solitude or suffering. It is a place of knowledge from which Truth stems; it is the birthplace of alchemy, otherwise known as the harnessed power of God himself.

Five years after the defeat of Father, God (who, thus far, has only been seen from beyond the Portal in the form of a massive eye) decides he must remake the world anew, thus humanity must be purged. In order to accomplish his goal, God must return to the realm of his creations, the human world, but first he must be freed from the Portal, which restrains him.

To aid in his eventual escape, God creates four all-powerful, perfect beings: Zelgius, Janice, Leonid, and Gode. Each of these "true humans" embodies a particular element, hence they are known collectively as the "Elemental Priests." Together, Zelgius, who represents God's burning passion for his creations, Janice, who represents God's free-flowing spirit, Leonid, who represents God's cold judgment, and Gode, who represents God's pure strength, represent God's ideal world of balance through the lesser equilibrium of the four core elements of life and the universe. The Elemental Priests remain secluded in a distant land until the time to enact their maker's plan comes.

In Amestris, much has transpired. Führer Grumman oversees the rebuilding of his country. General Roy Mustang aids Scar and Major Miles in restoring Ishval to its former glory. Ling Yao has become the new emperor of Xing. Meanwhile, Edward Elric has married Winry Rockbell; together, the two are raising a pair of daughters. Edward's brother Alphonse has gone off to Xing to study Alkahestry under May Chang. While Edward can no longer use alchemy, he protects his family through the use of a variety of weapons.

When mysterious soldiers adorned in white invade Amestris and use demonic creatures to kill innocent civilians in an act that they call the "Purging," the army, which has not seen battle for years, is called into action to fend off the strange intruders. In the carnage, Führer Grumman is killed, leaving Roy Mustang to take his place much earlier than anyone had anticipated. In addition, Edward and Alphonse are reunited. When the foreign soldiers and their demonic underlings seem to vanish without a trace, Mustang calls Edward and Alphonse to his palace. There, he tells them in secrecy that he believes the enemies they faced were not from Amestris, nor were they from any of the neighboring countries. This puzzles the Elric brothers.

Together, Edward and Alphonse study a map of their country. They deduce that perhaps the attacking soldiers were from a currently uncharted nation. In order to find it, the brothers agree to separate once more. Edward heads to the west, while Alphonse goes to the east. Each brother discovers a new land that does not appear on any map.

While exploring the Eastern Continent, Alphonse is attacked by a so-called police officer called Genz Bresslau in a land where alchemy is forbidden; it is while escaping from Genz that the young man meets a young woman named Armony, who is also on the run, but from a ruthless bounty hunter (who targets alchemists) named Camilla. Alphonse helps Armony evade Camilla; the girl takes him to see her father, Professor Wilhelm Eiselstein. Alphonse tells Eiselstein he is from another land; this does not surprise the professor, who tells Alphonse that his nation has been living in fear of and at war with a land in the west for centuries. Alphonse asks why this is the case; Eiselstein does not answer. When the professor learns that Alphonse is an alchemist, he instantly grows cold towards him and states that he is permitted to spend the night in his house, but he must leave the next day.

That night, Armony asks Alphonse to teach her to use alchemy. This takes the young man by surprise; he learns that because Armony cannot utilize alchemy, her father dislikes alchemists in general. When Armony leaves, Alphonse is next approached by Professor Eiselstein, who has overheard the entire conversation that just took place. He warns Alphonse not to teach Armony alchemy, or else he will be sorry.

The next day, Alphonse and the Eiselsteins are ambushed by Camilla, who reveals her affiliation with Genz Bresslau before knocking both Alphonse and Professor Eiselstein unconscious after a brief skirmish. Armony is kidnapped. When Alphonse awakens, he revives Professor Eiselstein and demands the truth from the old man about Armony and why he despises alchemy. Eiselstein states that he was the one who placed the nation-wide ban on alchemy; this was to protect Armony, who contains the mythical Philosopher's Catalyst inside her body as the result of one of his experiments.

Alphonse learns that the Philosopher's Catalyst, one of three legendary items more powerful than any Philosopher's Stone, is contained within Armony's body and is the reason why Camilla sought to capture her. Upon hearing this, Alphonse urges the professor to join him in rescuing Armony. The pair searches the city for Camilla and her henchman, Genz, and as they look, Professor Eiselstein tells Alphonse that the Philosopher's Catalyst is believed in legend to be God's crystal heart; while it is true a Philosopher's Stone can be created from a human soul, the most powerful Philosopher's Stones are born of God's heart.

Alphonse asks why Professor Eiselstein would be in possession of such an artifact as the Philosopher's Catalyst; the man explains that he aimed to use the crystal to resurrect his lost daughter, Selene. When the Catalyst fused with his daughter's corpse as the result of one of his experiments, Armony was born. However, the Philosopher's Catalyst had made Armony's alchemy unstable and dangerous. To protect her, Eiselstein had sworn never to let her use the science again.

In the dark of the night, Alphonse and Eiselstein finally locate Camilla, Genz Bresslau, and a comatose Armony. Camilla and Bresslau team up to battle Alphonse while Professor Eiselstein attempts to awaken Armony; the professor succeeds in reviving his daughter, but her powers awaken when the Philosopher's Catalyst reacts to the danger it senses itself to be in. Armony manages to kill both Camilla and Bresslau; as God's heart starts to destroy Armony's body, Professor Eiselstein declares his love for his daughter and grasps her tightly as he allows it to eliminate him, as well. Armony and the professor's bodies disintegrate before a tearful Alphonse's eyes; the freed Philosopher's Catalyst vanishes in an intense burst of light. Horrified by what he just witnessed, Alphonse has no choice but to continue on his travels.

In an unknown location, the Elemental Priests speak of the loss of the "first key" and decide to keep an eye on Alphonse Elric.

By this point, Edward has found himself in the Western Continent, where people are disappearing and live in fear of alchemists, just as they do the land in the east that they have been warring with for centuries. Edward is attacked by mysterious creatures called Golems; they are beings born of soil that serve a mysterious man named Jack Crowley. Edward encounters Crowley; the man tests Edward's strength in battle, and when he deems the Fullmetal Alchemist worthy, he takes Edward with him to some nearby ruins, where a team of archaeologists led by a man named Arlen has been digging up artwork that portrays an ancient society consuming a strange, red liquid that looks strikingly similar to a liquified Philosopher's Stone.

Arlen tells Edward at Crowley's request that the ancient texts that have been found state the liquid is the Crimson Elixir, the blood of God. Arlen explains that the blood of God gave divine power to the worthy, including the ability to successfully perform otherwise-impossible human transmutation. Edward stresses that this is indeed impossible based on his own experiences, but Crowley remains unconvinced.

That night, Crowley's Golems bring the deranged Alchemist some kidnapped citizens from a nearby town. Crowley reveals that he is actually in possession of the Crimson Elixir; he has his captives drink it, thus extracting their souls. The souls combine to form the shape of a beautiful woman: this is Crowley's deceased wife, Elma. Crowley is overjoyed to see his wife again, but the spectral Elma expresses disappointment with her former husband, for she had asked him not to revive her ever again. Elma refuses to let Crowley's love for her justify the murders he has committed; as she attempts to leave him, Crowley uses alchemy to bind her spirit in place.

Arlen happens to wander in on this event; before she is captured, Elma's ghost begs him to stop Jack Crowley. Panicked, Arlen does the only thing he can think of and runs out of the ruins to find Edward Elric. Crowley sends some of his Golems after Arlen; he turns his attention back on his wife's spirit and uses alchemy to create a distorted, Golem body for her to inhabit, even if it is against her will.

Arlen manages to find Edward, but he is soon killed by the Golems that Crowley had sent after him. Edward chooses to surrender to the Golems, rather than fight them; they take him to Jack Crowley, who has used alchemy to rebuild portions of the ruined city in which the secrets of the Crimson Elixir had been contained.

Edward demands to know why Crowley sought the Crimson Elixir in the first place when he finally finds the man; Crowley states that many years ago, a mysterious individual told him of a legendary item that could bring back the dead. Crowley sought to restore his wife to the realm of the living; he found the Elixir in a golden goblet deep within a ruined temple, and, by sacrificing the innocent, he used it to transcend the Portal dozens of times. Each of these instances resulted in only a brief reunion with the woman he loved. In the end, Crowley desired a way to keep his wife by his side for eternity.

Crowley reveals that Arlen was the one who taught him how to create Golems from the very soil; these empty vessels, Crowley stated, would be the perfect means of imprisoning his wife Elma's soul. At that moment, Crowley reveals the Golem he had made for this purpose to Edward. The creature attacks Edward as soon as it is commanded to; the Fullmetal Alchemist knocks the beast unconscious, infuriating Crowley, who engages Edward in battle himself. Even without alchemy, Ed manages to overpower Crowley; the man is forced to call upon his Golems a final time in his desperation to be victorious.

Crowley uses Alchemy to fuse with the Golems he commands; he becomes a monster and continues to battle Edward until the former alchemist gains the upper hand and kills him. Upon Crowley's death, Edward focuses his attention on the Golem containing the spirit of the man's wife. Edward helps Elma's soul find peace; as her Golem body dies in his arms and disintegrates into dust, so does the goblet containing the Crimson Elixir. As the ruined city again falls to pieces around him, Edward resumes his adventure.

The Elemental Priests become aware of the loss of the "second key." As with Alphonse, they decide to watch over Edward Elric and guide him towards the destiny they have planned for him. -->