Hephaestus stood silent now, his usual pride replaced by quiet respect. Even Thanamira's glow dimmed slightly — as if the world itself bowed in reverence to the sacrifice they made.
Itsuki's Voice: "This suit, this system… it's all you, son. We built it to match the heart you showed us. Every bolt, every gear — it's our love for you, turned into motion."
Karl fell to his knees again, tears streaming freely now, falling against the mirrored floor of Yggdrasil. His reflection — this new, stronger body — looked back at him, but through the blur, he only saw that little boy who wanted to protect people.Karl (choked): "I… I didn't deserve this… I was weak. I yelled. I blamed the gods—"
Ayaka's Voice: "You were human, Karl. That's what made you beautiful."
Itsuki's Voice: "Now stand up, son. Heroes don't stay on their knees. Show us how far our little dream has come."
Karl wiped his eyes with a trembling hand, taking a deep, shaking breath.
He looked down at the Drive Regulator, his tears catching its metallic sheen — one drop sliding into the ignition dial, where it glowed bright azure.
He nodded, voice trembling but firm.
Karl: "Then… let's make this dream real."
He rose to his feet, hand reaching for the ignition dial — the same motion he used to make as a child with his plastic toy belt — only now, it was real.
Karl (softly): "Henshin."
Karl's trembling hand gripped the Ignition Dial.
The gears along the belt began to spin — softly at first, like the ticking of an old clock.
Then—
VROOM.
The Drive Regulator pulsed. The gears began to hum.
Light gathered around him, blue and aegean streaks spinning in mechanical arcs — the birth of Kurogane Erevos was about to begin.
The sound of an engine roared through the sanctum, echoing between the roots of Yggdrasil like thunder in a cathedral.
Streams of azure and amber light burst from the Drive Regulator, forming spectral gear rings around him — each one rotating faster, carving circular glyphs in the air.
Hephaestus (grinning): "That's it… let it purr, boy. Let it breathe."
The gears' hum deepened, reverberating in Karl's chest.
The last echo of transformation faded through the Cradle, leaving behind a rhythmic hum — the sound of gears synchronizing with a living heartbeat.
Karl stood tall in his new Rider form, steam rising from his shoulders as the light of Yggdrasil pulsed softly beneath his armor.
The transformation storm began to calm. The flares of blue light faded into a soft, rhythmic pulse.
Steam curled from Karl's joints as the nanite plating locked into its final alignment — armor forged of devotion and divine engineering.
Hephaestus watched with folded arms, the reflection of the rotating gear halos glinting in his molten eyes.
Hephaestus (low, proud): "A perfect forge cycle… they did it."
But Thanamira's expression shifted — a gentle, bittersweet curve to her lips.
Thanamira: "Not quite. They didn't finish it all."
He looked down at himself — at the shimmering blue plates, the faint glow of the Gearheart Core in his chest, and the lattice of living gears rotating across his limbs.
For the first time in his life, he didn't feel frail or dying.
He felt complete.
Karl (whispering): "This… this is me?"
Thanamira smiled warmly, resting her ethereal hand on his armored shoulder.
Thanamira: "This is you — reborn through love and legacy."
But Hephaestus' expression was contemplative. His gaze swept across the glowing runes in the air — data lines, power channels, mechanical symbols — and two of them flickered, incomplete.
Hephaestus: "The transformation's stable, but…"
Thanamira (finishing): "Two systems remain dormant — Vehicle Frame and Mech Frame."
Karl blinked, confusion rippling through his still-adjusting vision. His HUD flickered to life across his visor, and as diagnostic data streamed across it, he saw it — two dormant systems marked in red:
VEHICLE FRAME – INCOMPLETE.
MECH FRAME – INCOMPLETE.
Before Karl could respond, a soft breeze rippled through the divine forge.
Out of the golden mist, two familiar shapes emerged — Ayaka and Itsuki, radiant with a serene blue glow.
A soft glow shimmered beside him.
Two spirit forms emerged — Ayaka and Itsuki, standing together in tranquil light. Their outlines shimmered with warmth — their eyes proud, loving, peaceful.
Ayaka (smiling): "We wanted to finish them… your car form, your mech frame."
Itsuki (placing a spectral hand on Karl's shoulder): "But we ran out of time, son. The Cradle's cycle was closing."
Karl froze, his breath catching as his visor flickered off — revealing tearful eyes that widened in disbelief.
Karl (shaking): "...Mom? Dad?"
Ayaka smiled, a gentle warmth radiating from her spectral form.
Ayaka: "You've grown so much, Karl… even now."
Itsuki stepped forward, crossing his arms with that same confident grin Karl inherited.
Itsuki: "We couldn't leave it half-finished, you know. You always said you wanted to be like those heroes — the ones who fight for others no matter what."
Karl let out a broken laugh, tears mixing with the faint steam rising from his face.
Karl: "You really… you really made me into one, didn't you?"
Ayaka nodded softly.
Ayaka: "Almost. We built the Rider form — your strength, your armor, your heart. But your car… your mech… those we couldn't finish. That's your path to walk, Karl. Your evolution."
Karl's breath hitched, his chest tightening beneath the armor.
He turned his head slightly, eyes glimmering behind the cerulean visor.
Karl: "You mean… I'm supposed to finish it?"
Ayaka: "You always were a tinkerer, remember? Always pulling your toys apart, always finding a better way to make them run."
Itsuki (smiling): "You've got the same hands as me — stubborn, restless, and too clever for your own good."
Hephaestus turned his molten gaze toward them, reverence flickering beneath the glow.
Hephaestus: "So you mean to remain… within him?"
Both parents looked at one another, then smiled.
Itsuki: "He's our son. His heart is the Engine Soul now — hers."
Ayaka (touching Karl's chest): "And his drive is yours, Itsuki. We'll keep him balanced — flesh and machine, emotion and logic. Together."
Their bodies began to shimmer with streams of light — flowing like molten silver toward Karl.
Karl instinctively stepped back, startled.
Karl: "Wait—what are you—?"
Ayaka (smiling through tears): "Don't be afraid. We're not leaving you again."
Itsuki: "We'll be right here — every time your gears turn, every time your heart ignites."
The light engulfed him.He felt the pulse of something greater — warmth and precision intertwining — his parents' presence stirring inside the light.
He gasped as energy surged through his chest — warmth and pressure at once, like two heartbeats fusing with his own. His HUD pulsed with new signals:
ENGINE SOUL — ONLINE.
GEAR DRIVE — ONLINE.
LIFELINK STABILIZATION: SYNCHRONIZED.
He looked down at his armored hands, flexing them slowly as light pulsed between the joints. For the first time, he truly felt what they had built — not a weapon, not a suit — but a continuation of their love and legacy.
Karl (softly, trembling): "Then… I'll finish what you started. With everything you gave me."
The two souls smiled in unison.
Ayaka: "That's all we wanted to hear."
Itsuki: "Build, son. Create. Drive your own evolution."
Karl gasped as the two flows converged — heart and machine, love and logic — fusing perfectly.
His body arched slightly as glowing gear lines etched themselves beneath his skin, running from his chest to his limbs like luminous circuits.
Thanamira (quietly, watching): "A soul of three... bound by creation, love, and will."
Karl fell to his knees, overwhelmed by the rush — voices whispering faintly within his mind.Then came their voices, faint but clear, resonating in his mind:
Ayaka (soft, inside his head): "Steady, my son. Feel the rhythm."
Itsuki: "Let the torque breathe. Don't force it — listen."
Karl clenched his fists, gears flaring faintly under his skin as energy aligned perfectly across his limbs. He looked up at the Primordials, his expression firm but tearful.
Karl: "Then I'll honor them. I'll finish what they started — and I'll protect everything they stood for."
Hephaestus smiled for the first time, the sound of his molten voice like a furnace sighing.
Hephaestus: "Then rise, Kurogane Karl — bearer of the Everos Core.
The child of the Forge… and the Rider of the New Age."
The gears behind Karl flared like halos — a mechanical sunrise.
The air itself vibrated now. Gears materialized in midair — floating symbols of energy and memory, each turning with divine precision.
Karl opened his eyes — no longer just human — and whispered:
Karl: "Mom... Dad... let's ride."
The Drive Regulator's hum escalated to a roar.
Blue sparks burst outward.
Micro-gears snapped into alignment around his body — the mechanical symphony of his rebirth had begun.