The forge in the Aetherveil glowed with steady heat, runes flickering across the walls as if watching the workbench. Nibelo stood on a stool, claws busy sorting scraps, his pom-pom glowing bright turquoise in rhythm with the aether streams flowing through the chamber.
Sirius watched quietly.
This moogle is not like the others. His pom-pom hums with starfire. His hands are small, yet they shape futures. Armies and kings are not enough — a forgemaster is needed. Someone who can bind power into steel.
He conjured a scroll of light, a schematic unfurling in midair. It depicted a bracelet etched with runes, a stargem fixed in its center.
Sirius:
"This is no weapon, Nibelo. It is a vessel. Can you craft this?"
Nibelo hopped closer, studying the lines with keen eyes. His ears twitched.
"Nyo-kup… bracelet? With a stargem, and runes like a regulator channel…? Hah! This is easy! Just watch, kupo."
Klang! The sound of hammer against metal echoed sharply. He tapped the edge of the bracelet frame, listening to the ring it produced, ears twitching.
"Kupo… too sharp. Needs softening."
He adjusted, sprinkling fine aether sand over the mithril band and heating it with a crystal flame. The hiss of tempering sang out. Then came the scrape of files, the tick-tick of his chisel, and the quiet jangle of tiny gears being fit into place.
Sirius stood nearby, silent but attentive, arms folded. His eyes lingered on the half-formed band, silver and unfinished, yet already carrying a delicate balance of craftsmanship.
Hours passed in the rhythm of forge-song. The scrape, the hammer, the hiss of cooling water. Finally, Nibelo lifted his creation: a sleek bracelet, sized for his small arm, with a socket in its center. Into it, he carefully slid the stargem Sirius had provided.
Sirius stepped forward, taking it with reverence.
"You've done more than well."
Sirius approached, extending a hand over the bracelet. His palm glowed faintly, threads of light unfurling like roots seeking soil. The stargem drank in the power greedily, its surface shimmering with shifting colors — blue, gold, silver, like a night sky alive.
A low hum filled the forge. The bracelet trembled in Nibelo's hands, no longer just metal and gem, but something more. Sirius withdrew, the light fading.
"It is ready," Sirius said, voice even. "The Bracelet of the Hidden Form. It will answer to you alone."
l
Nibelo's ears twitched. He took the bracelet nervously and slipped it onto his small arm.
Light wrapped around him instantly. His pom-pom sank into the gem, his wings folded away, his fur melted into skin. When the glow faded, a boy stood in his place — hair tousled, eyes glowing faintly turquoise, hands trembling as he stared at his reflection in a polished shield.
Nibelo stared at his reflection in the polished shield.
"I… kupo? I look like… a boy? My pom-pom—it's gone!"
He patted his head wildly, then pulled at his tunic, eyes wide. His wings twitched into existence for a second before fading again.
"I've got… fingers! Long ones! And… no tail fluff, kupo!"
Sirius gave the faintest smile.
"You forged the shell. I gave it life. This is the form you will wear in worlds that do not yet know moogles. To them, you are a boy. To me, you will always be Nibelo."
Nibelo hesitated, then flexed his hand again. The stargem pulsed softly at his wrist.
"…Hah. Well… if it keeps me from being called a fuzzy dustball every day, maybe it's not so bad, kupo."
Then knowledge pressed gently into his mind — the bracelet's rules:
Bound to Nibelo only.
Form can shift through thought, disguising him as a human boy.
Voice-link to Sirius, like an ART, but voice-only.
Auto-barrier magic against low and mid-level damage. High-level attacks will break it instantly.
Nibelo gasped, clutching his arm.
"I can… hear it. The rules. They're inside me, kupo!"
Sirius laid a steady hand on his shoulder.
"It is yours. You forged its body. I gave it life. Together, we shaped it."
Then, on impulse, he sprinted forward. His new human form carried him faster, heavier, but stable. The sound of boots instead of soft paws startled him with each step. He laughed, the sound strange in his new throat.
And then instinct kicked in. He crouched low, wings twitching out of habit. He leapt — and promptly collapsed back to the ground with a painful thud.
"Ow!" He rubbed his back, groaning. "I… forgot humans don't have wings, kupo."
Sirius allowed himself the faintest smile. "You will adapt. The bracelet carries instructions already. Think, and it will guide you."
Nibelo touched the band. Images unfurled in his mind: how to shift between moogle and human form, how the bracelet would cloak him, how a barrier would shield him from small harm. His eyes widened.
"…So that's how it works. I… I really can walk among them, kupo."
He stood again, this time steadier, lifting his chin. There was nervousness in his stance, but also pride.
"Thank you, Sirius. I'll… I'll try not to trip in front of everyone, kupo."
Sirius only inclined his head. "Fall if you must. What matters is that you rise again."
Nibelo flexed his new fingers, wings flickering back for an instant before vanishing again. He let out a shaky laugh.
"A little scary… but maybe I'll try. Just promise me — don't let them make me into one of their tools."
Sirius's tone hardened.
"Never. You are not a tool, Nibelo. You are the hand that builds."
The bracelet pulsed once, sealing the bond.
"It's time to meet a new member of the fallen" Sirius said.