Al, Mustang, and Ling soon returned to Melchior's home in 1000 A.D. Melchior opened the door and began to greet them, then stopped when he saw what they were holding.

"Is that... Dear me, you really found dreamstone!" he said.

"Do you think you can fix the Masamune now?" Al asked.

Melchior nodded. "Yes, that will do quite nicely. I can make the blade whole again with this, but... First the Masamune, and now this dreamstone. How in the world did you—" He smiled slightly. "No, I suppose it does not matter. Make yourselves at home! This will take some time." He motioned toward the table.

"Sweet, thanks!" said Ling. He sat down and put his feet up on the table. Al made his best attempt to glare at him, and Mustang just shook his head and followed him to the table.

Melchior took the sword and the dreamstone from Al's hands. "Please, sit," he said, disregarding Ling's behavior.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could help you," Al said.

Melchior smiled wider. "But of course! Come with me, if you please."

Al nodded, and Melchior led him down the stairs. The basement consisted of another table, a desk, and a tall bookshelf, with few swords hanging on the wall. Melchior laid the dreamstone and the two pieces of the broken sword on the table, then walked over to the bookshelf. "One moment, please," he said. He picked a book off the shelf, flipped through until he found the page he was looking for, then started reading. Al approached and looked over his shoulder. The book's contents appeared to be handwritten notes, but the handwriting was unreadable to Al. After a few minutes, Melchior nodded and put the book back.

"How are we going to fix it?" Al asked.

"If we are to repair the Masamune, the dreamstone must be refined, of course. But that is not all. The blade itself must be activated as well," said Melchior.

"I think I can take care of the refining," Al said. He pressed his hands together, then touched the dreamstone. It got slightly smaller, but much more brilliant, and a small pile of dust and metal flecks fell onto the table beneath it.

Melchior's eyes widened, and he leaned in to look at the newly purified stone. "Incredible... How did you do this?"

"Oh, right. I guess we never really told you who we are, did we?" Al said. "Sorry."

Melchior motioned for him to continue.

"My brother Edward and I, and our friends too, are all from another world. One day, we woke up in the place of some other people from here. We think they also took our place back home. We don't have magic in our world, but we have alchemy, which is a science that allows us to deconstruct and reconstruct matter, and that's what I just did."

"Fascinating... But why not use this ability to repair the Masamune?"

"We tried, but there's something that stops it from working, some kind of energy. Something similar is also stopping our alchemy from opening the portal so we can go home. I guess that probably all sounds pretty crazy."

Melchior chuckled. "I've seen some 'crazy' things myself. I believe you, and I will try to help as best I can."

"Really? Thank you!"

"Not at all," said Melchior. "Now, let us fix the Masamune. Follow my lead, and we will breathe life back into its shattered remains."


"Sorry to keep you waiting," Melchior said, when he finally re-emerged from the basement. Al followed behind him, carrying the restored blade. "Behold! The Masamune, in all its glory!"

Ling and Mustang stood up and approached. The sword was, indeed, magnificent in its true form. Its silver, almost radiant blade contrasted against the matte, gold-brass color of its hilt and crossguard, as well as the brilliant red thread that wound tightly about the handle.

Ling furrowed his brow. "Hey, wait a minute. I can feel chi coming from this thing, almost like it has a soul."

Melchior laughed. "If you were expecting lesser work, you shouldn't have come to me!"

Al held the blade out to Ling. "Here, you're our best swordsman," he said. Mustang nodded in agreement.

"Wouldn't have it any other way," Ling responded. He reached out and gripped the sword's handle, but before he could take it, Melchior placed his hand on it as well.

"Before you go, listen." Melchior looked Ling in the eyes, his expression growing serious. In an uncharacteristic moment of genuineness, Ling opened his eyes fully, and matched Melchior's expression. "A sword can be used as a tool for ending lives or as one for saving them. Be sure you wield yours for the proper reason."

Ling nodded, and Melchior released the blade. He went back to smiling. "I wish you luck on your journey," he said.

They gave Melchior their thanks, then they left. They decided to check on Ed before they went back to the Middle Ages. Taban was making significant progress on his arm, but it still wasn't finished, so they moved on.


"So, where do we find Magus, anyway?" Al asked, when they had returned to the middle ages.

"They say he has a keep on an island to the east. There's a magic cave that leads there, but supposedly it only opens for fiends," Ling answered.

"So, do we need to build a boat?" Mustang asked.

"Maybe? I dunno. They say the Masamune can overcome Magus's magical defenses, maybe the cave is included."

They traveled back to the southern continent, which took several days, then to the east, past the mountains where they had retrieved the broken Masamune. They reached a peninsula, which stretched out from the continent into the ocean, nearly meeting with a large island which they could only just make out on the horizon. A much smaller range of mountains ran along this peninsula, and that's where they began looking for the cave.

Given that they didn't actually know what to look for, they took their time, and moved methodically through the mountains so they had the least chance of missing something. On their third day of doing this, they found something: an oddly smooth and flat section of rock, aligned perfectly vertically, almost like a wall. Mustang, who had found it, quickly called the other two over to investigate.

"Well, that's definitely suspicious," said Al. "Do you think it's a hidden doorway of some sort?"

"Doesn't hurt to try," Mustang said.

Al stepped forward and pressed his hands together for a transmutation. He touched the stone, and the alchemical energy immediately pushed back like crackling electricity.

"It repelled my alchemy, just like the Masamune," Al said.

"I guess this is it then," Ling said. He also moved forward to the side of the stone, and Al stepped back slightly.

"What now?" Mustang asked, stepping up to stand next to Al.

Ling shrugged. "I don't know, I've never done this before." He felt the stone with his hand, then pressed his ear to it and knocked. By all accounts it seemed to be ordinary rock. He drew the Masamune and tapped the stone lightly, then hit it with moderate force, then with all the effort he could muster. Nothing happened.

It was silent for a moment while all three of them stopped to think. "Do you think this isn't the right spot after all?" Al wondered aloud.

"That's possible," Mustang said. "Maybe we should keep-"

He was interrupted by the Masamune flying through the air between them and embedding itself in the ground. They both turned toward Ling in surprise and curiosity.

"That's not it. I'm just doing this wrong," Ling said. He walked over to the sword and knelt in front of it. "Remember how I said I could feel chi in this thing? I get it now." He put his hand on the grip. "The sword is connected to the Dragon's Pulse, the flow of energy through all living things. That means it's alive. In one way or another, it can choose for itself whether to use its power or not. I have to connect with it. Understand it. That's how I'll draw its power out."

"I... see," Mustang said. "Do you need any help with that?"

"No, no. Just step back a little. I'm not really sure what's gonna happen if this works," Ling said. The other two obliged.

Ling closed his eyes and shut out everything around him. He concentrated only on himself, feeling the energy within his body. Then he expanded his focus to the points where his legs touched the ground. He felt the flow of energy in and out of himself, and then into the surroundings. He could tell where Al and Mustang were, as well the nearby trees and animals. There was a blockage in the flow where the stone barrier sat.

He then shifted his focus again, while keeping his current perception in his mind. He took note of his hand, and he felt energy flowing in and out of the Masamune as well. He slowed his breathing down, calmed his mind, and felt his heartbeat slow as well. He felt for the rate and intensity of the sword's energy, then matched his with it. They started to resonate; the sword's power, rather than simply passing through him, started to fill his body, flowing into his limbs and fingers. He felt bolstered and strengthened, and he had an intuitive understanding of the blade's capabilities.

Al and Mustang watched as Ling stood back up, sword in hand. He turned around to face the stone, and held the blade up in front of him. Electricity began sparking around the blade, starting near Ling's hands and moving upward to encompass the whole sword. It started to glow a pure white light, and a beam extended upward, reaching high into the sky. Pulses of energy emanated from both Ling and the Masamune as the chaotic energy settled into a soft glow.

Ling leapt toward the stone wall, swinging the blade from high to low. It cut effortlessly through the barrier, slicing a line straight down the middle. The wall split open and each half slid aside to reveal the mouth of a cave. He stood up and returned the Masamune to its scabbard.

"Woah... How did you do that?" Al asked.

Ling scratched the back of his head and shrugged. "I dunno. I kinda just felt it out, you know? It's like I said, this thing is alive."

"Awesome..."

"Come on, let's go inside," Mustang said.

They set foot inside the cave, which was unnaturally dry and warm, on account of a series of wall-mounted braziers illuminating the interior. They produced light and heat, but no smoke, and so they were assumed to be magical in some way. As they reached a flight of stairs carved into the rock and began descending, a small bat began fluttering nearby, following them. At the bottom of the stairs, they came out into a larger cavern. Almost as soon as they entered, they were attacked by three oversized creatures: a bat and two purple-haired rats. Mustang incinerated the whole group before they could do anything, however.

The ordinary bat, which had retreated during the brief encounter, resumed following them, and they went deeper into the cave. They turned a corner, where there were more of the same strange creatures, this time two bats and a single rat. Ling drew the Masamune as they noticed the intruders, and again, the little bat flew away.

Ling rushed forward and slashed at one of the bats, but found that it had almost no effect. In retaliation the bat bit him in the arm with its long fangs, and started sucking, as if to draw his blood, before Al punched it. This successfully knocked it off of Ling'a arm, but again seemed to have practically no effect on the bat itself. The rat scratched at Al's leg, who kicked it away. It was unbothered as well. Finally, Mustang snapped his fingers, engulfing all three opponents in flame, which actually destroyed them.

As the little bat returned, five more rats crawled out of the cracks in the walls and rushed down the cave, in the same direction Al's group was heading. They followed the rats around another corner, and saw them at the end of the tunnel, running around a cavern in circles. Mustang sent another blast of fire towards them, and they were gone.

"Like the monster in the cave west of Medina," Mustang said.

"Really? But Brother said that he could only be hurt by magic, and he could tell your flames weren't magic," Al said.

"He did, but we never bothered to test that. I didn't actually hit him. Maybe there are some similarities after all," Mustang answered. "Regardless, let's keep moving."

In the very cavern that the rats had just been running around in, there was another staircase leading up to a small ledge. On the ledge, an opening in the wall was letting sunlight in. They went up, but before they could leave, they saw a corpse of a Guardian soldier lying on the ground. A message was written on the wall beside him, in blood: "Beware the fiends of Magus's keep!"

"I'm sure that's a good sign," Ling said, sarcastically.

"We should have what we need," Mustang responded.

Ling nodded, and they stepped out of the cave. When they emerged, they found themselves on a large island from which they could see the peninsula they had come from. This was despite the fact that they had clearly not walked far enough in the cave to cover such a distance. When they turned to the north, they saw a forest, at the center of which they could just make out a group of towers. Despite the time of day, they were surrounded by an eerie shroud of darkness that obscured any details.

"That's it there," Ling said. The other two required no further explanation. They set off towards Magus's keep at once.