Chapter 6: The Right Hand of Destruction


 * This article is about the Fullmetal Alchemist manga chapter. For the similarly named anime episode, see Episode 14: Destruction's Right Hand (2003 series).

The Right Hand of Destruction (破壊の右手) is the 6th chapter of Fullmetal Alchemist.

Synopsis
After waking from a nightmare about his mother, Edward heads with Alphonse to military headquarters to inquire about the fates awaiting Shou and Nina Tucker; unfortunately, Lt. Hawkeye informs them that, while Shou was scheduled for decommissioning and court-martial, the both of them have been murdered by an unknown assailant. At the scene of the crime, Lt. Colonel Maes Hughes and Major Alex Louis Armstrong from Central City confirm for Colonel Mustang that the manner of death apparent in the case of the Tuckers as well as the guards who had been posted at the house fits the modus operandi of a man they have been investigating.

In the town of Reole, Lust and Gluttony watch from the church bell tower as bloody riots tear up the streets, ridiculing the citizens' foolishness. They are met by someone appearing to be Father Cornello, who joins in their mockery, and the three remark how the people of Reole have completely fallen prey to their scheme despite FullMetal's meddling. They remark that humans never learn, blindly resorting to hatred and bloodshed at the slightest provocation, and the person appearing to be Cornello suddenly transforms into a new form at Lust's behest - the form of a teenage androgyne with long, dark dreadlocks and an Ouroboros tattoo on its left thigh - revealing himself to be Envy, the third among the mysterious operatives working under the aforementioned and the even more mysterious "Father". After having Gluttony dispose of Cray, who had unfortunately witnessed Envy's metamorphosis, Lust and Envy discuss the news of Shou Tucker's death and the danger of allowing the elusive murderer responsible to roam free around Roy Mustang or Edward Elric, whose survival is important to their scheme, as he is apparently a "Human Sacrifice". They make plans to head to East City to investigate.

Back in East City, Hughes and Armstrong explain to Mustang that the man they've been chasing is a serial killer who appears to target State Alchemists around the country; having no identifying features to go on, save for a large X-shaped scar on his forehead, they have dubbed this curious murderer "Scar". But when Hughes advises Mustang to lay low until the scarred man is caught, the Colonel begins to worry for Fullmetal's safety and sends some men out to bring Edward to headquarters. In town, Ed and Al are sitting out in the rain, remembering what their Teacher taught them and lamenting their failures to save their mother and Nina, when they are hailed by a military policeman with orders to escort them to headquarters, but the nearby Scar, hearing the name of one of his targets, approaches them and slays the officer with the strange power of his right hand before turning towards the Elrics. Ed and Al attempt to flee through town, but Scar cuts off their escape path, forcing them to fight. The brothers find themselves outmatched by Scar's ability as he tears a hole in Alphonse's side, immobilizing him, and obliterates Edward's automail arm in an instant.

Chapter Notes

 * Envy notes that he is, in fact, in charge of another town - presumably another of the ten Crests of Blood, though it is never specified which.
 * Scar is noted to have killed ten State Alchemists in Amestris, including Brigadier General Basque Grand, the Iron-Blood Alchemist.
 * It is implied in this chapter that Edward's automail joints ache when it rains.
 * During Envy's transformation, Lust mockingly alludes to Envy being "ugly on the inside", likely referring to the Homunculus' true form.
 * Scar is the first in the series to deduce that Edward's transmutation is made possible by creating a circle with his arms when he claps his hands together.