The chamber — once filled with roaring divine presence — softened.
The glow of the forge dimmed into a warm cobalt hue, and for the first time since his rebirth, Karl could breathe without feeling crushed by awe.
Kaiser's massive frame relaxed, his golden aura fading to a calm ember.
He folded his arms and gave a low chuckle that seemed to shake the pillars.
Kaiser: "When I first laid eyes on this one, I thought he'd crumble before the hammer even fell."
He smirked toward Hephaestus. "Looks like your forge still surprises us, old friend."
Hephaestus' molten grin widened. "A blade breaks when it's rushed, Kaiser.
Karl here—" he gestured to the boy, "—chose to burn until he became something new."
Artemis approached next, her silver radiance lighting Karl's face.
Her tone was gentle, but carried a wisdom that made his chest tighten.
Artemis: "When I first saw your soul, it was… fractured. Fading between code and sorrow."
She raised a hand, brushing her fingers across the air — and for a heartbeat, Karl saw flashes of his old, dying self inside the collapsing nanite chamber.
"And yet here you stand, more human now than ever. You did not cling to what you lost — you adapted. That is what defines a true mind."
Karl swallowed the lump in his throat and bowed his head.
"I only wanted to make them proud," he murmured. "My parents… my world."
A ripple of blue mist coiled around his legs as Poseidara smiled faintly.
Poseidara: "And you have, child. Even the sea cannot reclaim what it has lost — it simply learns to carry the memory in every wave."
Her eyes glimmered like liquid sapphire. "You carry that same current."
Thanamira drifted closer then, her green ethereal form flickering softly.
Thanamira: "When I reached for your soul, it was quiet — too quiet. You had accepted death without anger."
Her expression softened. "And still, you answered when called. That takes courage few mortals ever know."
Karl managed a small, trembling smile.
"…I just didn't want it all to end in silence."
Aegriya, radiant and proud, stepped forward — her wings of gold gently unfolding.
Aegriya: "Humility and endurance. I see why Hephaestus favored you.
You remind us that sanctity isn't found in temples or titles — it's found in the will to rise again."
A soft round of approving murmurs followed — even Moara, the puppet mistress, twirled her fingers and conjured a tiny effigy of Karl out of light and string.
Moara: "Who would've thought? The fragile human with the broken body… now wearing his mother's soul as armor.
Adorable and tragic. My favorite combination."
Hephaestus gave her a sideways glare. "Don't dramatize my student."
Moara giggled, her marionettes dissolving into sparkles. "Oh, I'm celebrating him."
Then came Voltraeus, leaning against one of the forge pillars with his gray electricity still snapping across his body.
Voltraeus: "Gotta admit — when Hephaestus said you flatlined mid-prototype, I thought he was wasting his time.
But seeing you stand now…"
He grinned, eyes sparking. "Yeah, you've got lightning in your bones after all."
Savitar, ever the speed incarnate, circled Karl once — inspecting him with analytical precision.
Savitar: "Hmm. Vythra output looks dormant. Neural kinetic alignment stable.
You're running… but you're idling, rookie. Like a racer who hasn't found his road yet."
Moara twirled a thread of magenta string between her fingers, a grin spreading across her porcelain face.
Moara: "He's adorable now. So much metal, yet still blushing like a mortal. Truly, Hephaestus — your craftsmanship is disturbingly sentimental."
Hephaestus: "You'll call it sentimental until you see what he can forge."
Moara: "Oh? Then let's see it, little Forgesmith. Prove the title your master so proudly claims."
Karl blinked. "Forgesmith?"
Hephaestus gave a proud, booming laugh.
Hephaestus: "That's right, Karl. The Forger Class you've just earned — its true name is Forgesmith. The maker of miracles. The one who can shape reality itself — so long as the design is known to him."
The Primordials murmured among themselves — even the stoic Savitar flickered with interest.
Aegriya: "A human reborn, blessed by fire and spirit… wielding the art of the divine forge. A dangerous combination."
Voltraeus: "If he can control it. Most newborns barely handle a spark of Vythra before it eats them alive."
Karl turned to them, meeting Voltraeus's gray crackling gaze with quiet conviction.
Karl: "Then I'll just have to learn fast."
Savitar smirked. "He's got the tone right. Reminds me of one of mine."
Nocturne's faint, distorted chuckle echoed from the shadows.
Nocturne: "Bold words from a spark still learning to glow."
Hephaestus folded his arms, glaring at them all.
Hephaestus: "Mock him if you like, but he's done what none of your Chosen have. He's not merely channeling Vythra — he's fusing it through nanite systems his own parents created. His Vythra doesn't just flow — it builds."
Kaiser stepped closer, his shadow massive against the forge walls.
Kaiser: "Then show us, human. Show us the Vythra that let you survive the void."
Karl hesitated only a second. Then, with a deep breath, he lifted his arm.
Nanites surged from his shoulder like a swarm of liquid metal, spiraling around his forearm. They shifted, fused, and locked — plates forming, barrels extending — until his entire right arm transformed into a sleek, cobalt blaster engraved with runic veins.
He revved the ignition dial on his drive regulator — the roar of the mechanism reverberated like a racing engine.
The air around him pulsed, blue streaks cracking the ground beneath his boots.
Then—
BOOM.
A concentrated blast of Vythra energy erupted from the blaster, spiraling forward in a burst of white-blue light that detonated against the far wall.
Shockwaves rippled through the chamber, scattering sparks and vaporized fragments of stone.
The light faded.
Karl's arm reverted, nanites retracting smoothly back into place.
For a moment, silence reigned again.
Then, faintly, Kaiser laughed again — a sound like thunder made proud.
Kaiser: "He's got bite. Not bad, human."
Artemis: "Efficient, stable output. He's already synchronized the Engine Soul with his own Vythra flow…"
Poseidara: "Then that means—"
Savitar: "He's ready."
The moment hung in the air — a balance of pride and revelation.
And that's when the stillness came.
The air froze, the forge's flames dimmed, and Savitar's smirk faltered.
His eyes snapped open — lightning-blue, tense, alive with alarm.
Savitar: "…My Chosen."
The forge went silent.
Hephaestus's molten gaze turned toward him. "What is it, Savitar?"
Savitar: "He's in No Man's Land."