I woke up from the guest room with a loud yawn. I guess sleeping in a medical bed for a couple days can make any proper bed extremely comfortable. After we got to Mist and Twinkling’s house, the duo made Twilight, Nat and I a really great salad dinner and they even managed to make a good fruit salad for the pokemon with the berries Nat brought. Unfortunately, we only have a couple of them left so they will have to make due until we can get home.

Nat also told me that after her checkup with Ed she figured out how to send a letter to our world by focusing on her magic. I just hope Spike got it and that he won’t freak out about that we got hurt. I can only imagine how my Shiny and the princesses are reacting.

I finish my reminiscing as I make it to the washroom with my new clothes, courtesy of Rarity of course. I am really glad me and Twilight had the same measurements too, Rarity dropped off some new clothes for me before anyone even woke up. Now we just need to pop by later to get Nat’s measurements.

I managed to finish my shower without too much trouble, having to rely on my magic only and made my way down to the kitchen. I saw Mist at the stove making some breakfast while Nat was at the table with her pokemon. I didn’t see Twilight or Shiny anywhere, but I heard the shower again so I guess one of them is in the shower now.

“Morning Mist, Nat.” The others turn to me with a smile. “Morning Dusk.”

“Dusk! How are you feeling?” Selene asks, jumping up to my shoulder. “Better. I guess sleeping in a proper bed can do wonders.” I say with a smile, petting the little Pokémon’s head. “You said it. Considering my less than great sleeping positions the last couple days, sleeping in a proper bed felt great.” Nat says, grabbing a cup of some hot drink and handing it to me. It was white and I saw it had some kind of a bag of tea in it. I raise a brow but take a sip. It tastes really good, kinda like cinnamon and warm milk. I look to her questioning.

“White hot chocolate and chai tea. It is a combo my mom thought of when she was a kid, and I have all but lived on that stuff. My mom said that the tea itself is good for recovering from sickness or injuries, while the hot chocolate can mask its almost overpowering taste and smell.” She says, taking a seat at the table with her own cup. I guess her mother is a creative lady. I would have never thought of combining something like this.

Before long the others all make their way down to the table just as Mist was finishing making some waffles. Eating was a little embarrassing for me since I had to have Nat cut up my food for me before I could eat. Aside from that, the mood was generally pretty relaxed. Though I could tell Nat had something on her mind. Probably trying to think of a way to keep Sora around. I can’t even imagine how I would be reacting if my brother was put in a dangerous situation like that.

Once we finished our food, Nat offered to do the dishes while I relaxed on the couch and told the others about my family. I guess it was a good thing Nat brought our Hearths Warming photo. The others were surprised when they saw my world's version of my parents as well as Adam, Lex, and Penny. Luckily Shining remembered Penny and Adam and Twilight remembered Lex so I didn’t need to explain who they were. This was nice, being able to relax after all the Discord damn craziness over the last three days.

Nat was just coming out of the kitchen after finishing the dishes when there was a knock at the door. We all look to it and Nat goes over and opens it up, revealing Ed with something slung around his shoulder.

“Good morning Sparkle Family, Nat, Dusk, Sora, and Pokemon. I hope you all are doing well the morning,” said Ed as he came in the house. “Sorry for the intrusion so early in the morning but I wanted to get this to Dusk as soon as possible,” he said placing a case on the table. “Before I give it to you though, how are your grafts hold Dusk?”

“They feel fine from what I can tell. It was definitely awkward when I was taking a shower, but otherwise, they feel fine.” I say, sitting in front of Ed. “Well, this will remedy that in a couple of days as long you stick to your rehab you’ll be able to do basic motor functions by yourself by tomorrow evening at the latest. Nat, I’m counting on you to keep her on her regiment. Now, time for the reveal.” Ed said as he clicked on the latches on the case, opening to reveal a dark translucent purple crystal arm.

All of us just look at the crystal limb in awe at the design. It was barely a shade darker than my fur, almost unnoticeable if you didn’t look close enough. I look to Nat who looks like she may be broken. I wave my hand in front of her face, Nat shaking her head after a second.

“Holy crap. This looks incredible.” She says in awe. The others nod with her and Ed picks it up and seems to offer it to me. I nod and take off my shirt, letting him come to my left side. “Not going to sugar coat this Dusk whenever you or Nat does maintenance, take it off or it’ll hurt like all hell. There are three switches to flip in order to take it on and off. One on top, one in front here. And one in the back here See it, Nat,” Ed explained.

Nat nods as he shows us the switches and gently picks it up. I try and sit still with Twilight staying close as Nat lines the arm up with my grafts. “Ready?” Nat asks. I nod back to her and take a deep breath. “Yeah.”

Nat connects the arm to the graft and holds each switch with a Vector. “Ok. One….two….three!” She flips all the switches and I can’t stop myself from screaming as I feel the nerves connect to it. I try and bare through it before the pain slowly dies down.

“Try and move your fingers Dusk. I want to see exactly how much movement you’re capable of if you don’t mind,” Ed said eagerly. I nod after catching my breath and focus on my new arm. I try to remember the feeling of it and I go wide-eyed as I see my index and middle finger twitching before I close my hand. I slowly close and open my crystal hand a couple of times before looking to Nat and Ed with a smile.

“Excellent, Basic motor control no problems. As for your rehab just try picking small objects of various size and weight and slowly work your way up. Nat, how is sora doing?” Ed asked with a deep concern. Nat closes her eyes for a minute before sighing.

“She is fine so far. Even with the pendant, I have been having her live through some of our favorite memories to keep her calm and happy. You still haven’t told us your idea yet Ed. Even if it is a theoretical solution, something is better than nothing.” She says, a stern expression on her face.

“It’s still a theory, but it’s a more advanced form of alchemy or alchemagic from all of the steps involved. I only want you to know, Nat, it will be incredibly dangerous,” said Ed as he sat down across at the table across from Nat. “Would you like to hear it now?” Nat seems to talk with Sora before nodding with a determined expression.

“Okay, I’m sure you’re both familiar with the Soul Bonding of the or FMA, or are you not?” asked the alchemist in a serious tone looking at Nat. “I want to perform a higher grade of this that I’m calling Soul Transmutation. Basically, I want to separate Sora soul from your body, Nat, and place it in a live body that we’ll create from your DNA. But I’ll only do this if you want to and if I have permission from Adam and Lex.”

I look to Twilight and see her in shock. Nat looked equally shocked, but I can see the contemplative look in her eyes as well. I was kinda lost here since I don’t really know much about alchemy, so I was worried about what Ed was suggesting, just from the name. I place a hand on Nat’s shoulder and see her looking very contemplative about this option.

“I-I can’t decide. I’ll need to talk to Adam, Lex, and Sora about this before anything. This is a family matter, not a me and Sora matter.” Nat says after a bit.

“That’s why I told you I wouldn’t do it without their consent,” Ed says pulling a watch from his inner pocket and sliding over to Nat. “This is a functioning alchemist token that will allow you to contact Adam and Lex. They know what’s going on already as I informed them last night. Just know to take as much time as you need. That pendant is The Soul Stone. It is made solely from soul magic and as long as you don’t tap into it Sora will have a steady flow of that magic to maintain her form.”

Nat nods and grabs the token before going to the door. “I’ll be back later. Hopefully, with a decision.” She then left the door and vanished with her wind. I sigh and look at the photo I had with me. I see how happy Sora looks in her astral form in it, and I can’t help but worry.

I am not sure why I left like that, but I knew I needed some privacy for this one. What Ed was suggesting could work, but if it was anything like from FMA, the danger was extreme. In the show, the original Ed sacrificed his arm to connect Al’s souls to the armor. What Ed was suggesting was more advanced, and he said it would be permanent, unlike Alphonse.

I am not sure what could happen to Sora if she is separated from me for even a second, so there was that. Unless Ed had a surefire way to keep Sora stable outside my body, then it wouldn’t work. I go through practically every bad scenario in my head, so I didn’t even notice as I appeared on top of the tallest building in the city, just above the royal palace. I sigh and look at the watch Ed gave me before opening it up.

“Call, Lex, and Adam,” I say and the clock begins to spin before turning into a split screen. After a few second the right screen changes from static to the insides of a house. After a second a familiar face with silver eyes moves into the frame.

“Hey Nat.” Adam says, sitting on a couch. “Hey, Adam,” I say sitting on the edge of the roof. After a second the other half changes as well, showing what looks like an office. After a second Lex’s head comes into frame. “Oh, hey guys.” She says, sitting at her desk. There was a bit of awkward silence for a bit before I sigh.

“So, Ed gave you two the rundown on what happened right?” I ask the duo nodding. “Yeah. I may have or not have turned a wall in the training hall into a pile of rubble when I heard what happened.” Lex says, laying back in her seat. “Yeah, I ended up finding a couple Grimm and turned them into mincemeat with my magic,” Adam says with a sigh.

“So, did Ed tell you what his plan was?” The duo looks to me with raised brows and shake their heads. I sigh and quickly go over what Ed’s plan was. The duo seemed to be thinking of it as much as I was earlier.

“Well, like Ed said it could work. But with all the variables in place, it would be more dangerous than trying to fight a pack of Beowolves with just your bare hands.” Adam says, rubbing his eyes. “Adam’s right. Ed said that he was planning to make a living body for her to inhabit, but that won’t be easy, even for someone like Edward. You would need all the proper components and an area in which the transmutation could take place without a problem.” Lex points in. “Plus there is the possibility of Sora’s soul not bonding properly,” I say quietly, checking on my sister to see her just sitting under a tree in the park I used to play in when I was a kid.

“Well, maybe we could use more than alchemy.” I look to Lex as she says this, Adam looking curious as well. “I mean, using alchemagic would work on its own, but there are a ton of potential problems with that, like maintaining Sora’s stability after she leaves your body.”

“So, what do you have in mind Lex?” Adam questions. “Well, Ed may be able to make a body for Lex with Alchemy or his Arc but controlling souls is always difficult. Unless you know how to control them in the first place.” I look to her with a raised brow when I see Adam’s eyes widen.

“Seith magic?” Adam questions and I see where she is going with this. “Yeah. I could use my Seith magic to keep her soul stable as Ed uses alchemy to make her body, then we could use alchemy to bond her soul with it.”

Yeah, that could work! I close my eyes and enter our mind, seeing Sora still just relaxing against the tree. “Sora.” She turns to me with a relaxed smile. “Hey, sis.” I smile and sit next to her, finding a little funny now that I am taller than her in our mind. Or, I guess it is just my mind.

“So, what were you and the others talking about?” She questions. I sigh and place a hand on her head, letting the memories of what I was talking to Ed, Lex, and Adam about to flow into her mind. Her eyes widen and I shift the area so we are sitting on the edge of a lake like the one back in Ponyville.

“Y-you really think they can do it? I can get my own body?” She questions in shock, looking at the water and not actually seeing her reflection. I sit next to her, my own reflection missing. “It is possible, but I don’t want to decide anything without you. It is your life on the line, and I don’t want to lose you.” She looks to me, then to the water again. I can tell her thoughts are almost tempest-like as she tries to wrap her mind around the possibility.

“I-I want to be my own person, but I don’t want to be separated from you. I….I want to try. But if it does work, promise me something.” I look to her and nod. “Promise me….you won’t leave me.” I look at her in shock, before smiling softly and holding her close.

“Why would I ever leave my favorite sister?” I say with a little laugh, laying a kiss on her head. She looks up to me with a little pout. “Promise me.” I laugh again and hold her closer. “I promise Sorano. I won't ever leave you, even if we don’t share a body anymore.” She smiles to me and I let her go standing back up.

“I have to head back now, I’ll see you soon sis.” I say before bringing my mind back to control my body. I look at the watch and see Adam and Lex looking at me expectantly.

“Well? What’s the verdict?” Adam asks. I smile and laugh a little. “Let’s do it. I am going to talk to Edward about going through with this, and he can stay in contact with you two to talk about how we are going to go through with this.” The others smile at this. “Alright, have him contact me later and I can tell him about each our parts. Later sis!” With that Adam closes his side and me and Lex nod to one another, closing our watches.

“Alright, I better get back. Hopefully Dusk and Ed are still at the house.” I use my wind and quickly fly over the cloud layer and towards the house. After a couple minutes I fly up to the door, knocking. It opens after a second, Topaz looking up at me.

“Oh hey Topaz. Where are Dusk and Ed?” I ask, my other pokemon coming over. “Oh, Ed and Dusk went back to the castle to do a couple more tests on the new arm in the lab.” I sigh loudly as I just came from the castle. “Well, I need to talk to them. Wanna come along?” The trio smile and nod so I quickly return them to their pokeballs and activate my magic again. Hopefully those two are not doing something too stressful.

We went to the castle to do a few more tests as I wanted to see if Dusk’s magical pathways through her arm had bonded with her body. Twi came with us as she was curious to see if a magic variant of automail was actually possible. I wasn’t worried about Dusk regaining motor control at all, but if the magic weaving didn’t set then it would all be for not.

“Okay Dusk we won’t be going to my workshop this time around but my lab instead. It’s where I do most of my experiments with magic and other new forms of alchemy. This is where I want you to come in the morning after your physical therapy with Nat, alright,” I said as we walked through the halls of the castle. “Polearm can meet you if you want. He and Twi seem to have been spending a lot of time together lately.”

Twi immediately turned bright red at the mention of Polearm. I know there was something between my students. How could there not be after three months of training together? I thought on this as we walked the the halls to reach my lab. It was in the lower levels of the castle, unlike the workshop. My workshop was mainly for the mechanical part of my work which was why it was above ground, but the lab was underground due to how dangerous some of the experiments were. This was also why only certain ponies could unlock this room.

We reach the doors to the lab not too long after we got into the castle. The doors were large silver doors adorned with red decorative swirls and designs. I'd never brought Twi down here either as I had never had time. The girls only looked on in a deadpan expression on their faces.

“This ladies is my lab,” I said placing my hand on the doors, a red surge of electricity shot up the doors as they began to open. “Okay, Twi, you help Dusk with getting hookup to the Magic reader over there and I’ll be in there back for a bit to get a few objects she can try to use her magic on. POLEARM!”

“Yes sir,” said my assistant from the floor. “Get up, how many times are you going to fall asleep when you’re experimenting?” I asked shaking my head as he stumbles up. “Sorry, sir. Lost track of time again. How can I help you?” he asked. “Go down and wait for Nat and Sora at the maingate and bring them in here when they arrive. But first. Go take a shower in the barracks. You smell as if a Tatzlwurm ate you and spit you out.”

“Yes, sir,” said the disgruntled guard in shame. “ Morning ladies. I’ll be on my way now sir.” I look at him with my arms as he heads out the doors another flash of red sealing the doors shut again.

I looked back to the two unicorns now finish with their set up and I head to the back to finish my own task. I return with a few balls and various toys.

“Okay, Dusk I just want you to try and levitated these and don’t worry if you can’t just take it at your own pace,” I say going over to the magic reader. “Twi, you keep an eye on her and try to keep stable if she starts to wobble okay.”

I went through the castle to get to the barracks. Everypony around gave a wide spread of space. I can only think that I really did smell as if I'd been eaten and vomited back up. I guess the fact that I stayed in the lab last night was a good thing. I was pulled from my train of thought when I saw Ms.Nat and Ms.Sora walking into the courtyard.

“Ms.Nat, Ms. Sora, over here!” I shouted at the duo as I waved my arms.

“You know you can just call us Nat and Sora Polearm, no need for the miss thing.” Nat says, before sniffing and covering her nose. “The hell?! Dude what happened to you!?”

“Sorry, but it’s the guard training for the first thing and the smell is from me experimenting with various materials during my alchemy training last night down in the lab,” I say, scratching the back of my head as I back away a bit. “If you wouldn’t mind the wait. I was on my way to shower in the barracks. Sir Ed asked me to bring you two to his lab.”

“In that case we can wait a bit. I needed to talk to Ed anyways. I can just practice my magic in the meantime.” After she says that Nat heads over to the range we have for the archers.

I headed into the barracks and straight into the showers. Safe to say whoever was in there wasn’t after I entered. I really had no idea I smelled that bad. After twenty minutes of ten scrub downs, I managed to stop the green and orange mist from coming off me. I got my armor on and headed to the archery range to fetch Nat and Sora. When I got there, gods, was I shocked. Every target either had a big hole in the center or a sword in it.

“I can see why you were able to give my teacher such a hard time in your fight, Nat,” I said as I walked up behind the Displaced. “I wish I could face you in a purely physical fight, even if you would still kick my flank to next Thursday.”

“Eh, maybe, but I can tell you are far stronger than pretty much anyone in the guard back home aside from my worlds Shining. And maybe Scarlet but whatever. So, where is Ed’s lab, I can’t find anypony who knows where it is.” Nat says.

“That’s the point, Nat. No other pony except for myself, Princess Luna and Princess Celestia know where it is. Besides Sir Ed, we three are the only ponies the can get in and Twilight can to but she’d never been there till today,” I explained to the sisters. “Follow me if you please. There are a few things I would like to talk with you about along the way but it won't take too long to get to the underground parts of the castle.”

The three of us walk for about two minutes in silence before Nat speaks up. “So, what was it you wanted to talk to us about Polearm?”

“Well, I wanted to get your advice on, personal feelings. See I spent a lot of time with our Twilight during training under Sir Ed while he was teaching us both alchemy and how to fight. I soon found myself drawn to her, and it’s become very hard to talk with her when we're alone,” I say as I feel my face start to heat up.

“Ooohhhh….well this is going to be awkward, considering we both like our versions of the same pony. But is it helps, I was going through the same thing just before Hearths warming. I can tell you are a soldier first so at the very least you would be able to protect her. Hmm, how are you in terms of science and magic?”

“As you can tell I'm an earth pony so I can’t use spells, but Sir Ed taught me how to enhance my body through the magical strengthen technique he uses on himself. As far as science goes, I can understand it and use it for alchemy but beyond that, I’m hopeless,” I say lowering my head in shame as we turn a corner to the stair well that leads to the lower levels.

“Well, if Twilight here is anything like Dusk, then take it slow. She probably has never been in a relationship before so her only real ‘experience’ would be from asking how Shining and Cadence are doing. Also, try to understand her studies. Just because you are an earth pony doesn’t mean you can’t use your species natural magic in new ways. Maybe you and Twilight can develop Earth pony exclusive spells through your connection with the earth and plant life.”

“I never thought about that Nat, thank you for the advice and suggestions. This is your destination,” I say as we arrive at the entrance to the lab. I place my hand on the door as a blue pulse of lightning through the door to unseal it. “ Just go right on in Nat, Sir Ed is already expecting you. I have guard duties to see to for the next few hours. If I’m lucky maybe I’ll see you guys later,” I say as I send her in, I then reseal the door and head to my post.

So far things have been going well with practicing my magic with my arm instead of my horn. It was rather difficult for me to focus and not use my horn, but I managed to do it after about an hour worth of practice. Twilight was helping me focus my magic through my arm by using her own magic to block my horn.

“Do you still need the seal on your horn Dusk, or do you want me to drop the spell?” asked Twi. “I think I got it. Definitely took longer than I thought it would to focus through my arm though.” I say as she nods and releases her spell. I look towards one of the blocks nearby and raise my arm, focusing my magic to go through the arm instead of my horn. After a second my new hand begins to glow as well as the block and it begins to levitate off the counter. I carefully move it and place the block into the correct hole so it falls through no problem after I release the magic.

“Excellent Dusk, your magic is flowing into your arm with no signs of rejection. How does it feel?” asked Ed with a smile while he was looking at the readings from the machine. “A little odd I’ll admit, but it actually feels a little bit like when I was first got my Solid Script and Teleportation magic. A weird, warm sensations flowing through my arm as I cast the spells.” I describe.

“That’s normal. Do you think you want to try a Solid Script spell or call it quits for today?” Ed asks going over a list on a table in front of him. I think for a second before looking to one of the empty tables and focusing on my newer magic. Ed looks at the monitors while Twilight looks at me carefully.

“Solid Script Iron!” The word appears after a second and turns into iron, falling onto the table with a loud clang. I could just tell that it was heavier than before so I guess I was able to put more magic into it than before, making stronger.

“That’s so cool Dusk, but why don’t you try and use one of your dark magics?” asked Twi as her eyes were the size of dinner plates. I look to her in shocked confusion.

“What are you talking about? I don’t have dark magic. Pretty much every type of dark magic is banned and hidden back home.” I say. Twilight seems more shocked and lights her horn again. I raise a brow and turn to Edward, the alchemist just as confused as me.

“That’s strange I know I sense you have access to dark magic. Dark magic is actually a pretty common practice here. Princess Celestia even helped developed a few dark spells. Though it was mainly Princess Luna that advanced its practice. Isn’t that right Ed?” explained Twi. “She’s right Dusk. Luna was the original Dark and Shadow practitioner over a thousand years ago. Even old Starswirl and I came up with a few spells of our own. I even made a Sage’s Stone of Darkness,” Ed added as he was still in shock from my reaction to the news.

I just look to the duo in shock before something, or rather someone, came to mind. Lex. During the Hearth's Warming party I was talking to her about magic composition and she said that dark and shadow magic aren’t inherently evil or corruptible, but it is the users will, emotional and mental stability that determines if they would become corrupted. I think she said something about some woman using a light magic called Angel magic becoming corrupted because she was too weak.

But if that was the case, how is it I have some kind of dark magic in me? I am the Element of Magic and have always been taught neutral and light magic during my time as Celestia’s student. Maybe Nat has an idea. And speak of the devil, she just walked in the door.

“Hey guys, there you are. I was wondering where the lab was. Good thing I ran into Polearm.” She says with a grin. “That’s why I sent him up and to get his stinking butt out of here. The stallion is one hell of a hard worker, so much so he’s on par with Twi and Dusk, but he can forget to get out of the lab when doing his own thing. He also does some strange experiment involving plants. That’s the only thing that I can think caused the smell. Anyhow, what’s the verdict, Nat?” Ed asked, turning to face Nat and Sora with worried eyes.

Nat nods to him and tosses his token back. “We’ll do it, but not alone. You will be in charge of getting the necessary components for the transmutation, but Lex is going to be there to keep Sora stable after she leaves my body with her Seith magic. Adam is also going to help by letting us use his world for it since his Castle of the Two Sisters is a magic neutral zone.”

“Perfect, I hope we can pull this off. I might have to have Lex bring her Twilight to help control the flow of magic need for this. What kind of a nightmare will that be? Four of you in one Equestria. I hope it doesn’t draw any attention from the more powerful void dwellers.” Ed said placing his hand on his head letting out a sigh. Nat just shrugs at his worry.

“If needed I can summon Loki and ask if he can dampen the output with his magic. I wonder how he and Sunset are doing?” Nat says to herself. “Wait you have access to a token of a void dweller?” Ed looked to Nat in shock. “Yeah? He was the first Displaced I met, remember?”

“Sorry I forgot from the happenings of the last few days. Nat, only summon Loki as last resort. I know he’s a good guy from what you’ve told me, but we’re already going to have four displaced in one Equestria. That is incredibly risky as we’re also bringing ponies from our own worlds to. Loki is a void dweller and void dwellers are pretty much gods in their own right. At least that’s what I’ve heard from a Zoro displaced, and he faced one and lost while the void dweller was just toying with him at the time.” Ed said as he fell into the nearest chair from shock and fear.

Nat looks to him in slight shock before nodding. Guess Loki told her how strong he was or something. I don’t see what Ed is so worried about though. During the party we had three Displaced humans, two different versions of ponies and another new human yet nothing odd seemed to happen. Well aside from the annoyance of having two Rainbow Dash in one room.

“Is there any things else you need Nat?” asked Ed recovering from the shock.

“Not that I can think of. I’ll just help out Dusk and if you need some help with anything, feel free to ask.” Nat says, finding a seat and sitting back. I just chuckle at her relaxed attitude. I really missed it.

Looks like I have a couple long weeks ahead of me.