The Forge trembled as Hephaestus slammed his massive, molten hand onto the forge. Sparks erupted, scattering like shooting stars across the walls, and the ground beneath Karl vibrated with raw kinetic energy.
From the impact, a strange distortion ripped through the air — a fracture in reality itself, like a window into a different layer of existence. Within the flickering void, something began to materialize:
Geometric shapes twisted and rotated unnaturally, grids of glowing lines forming impossible angles.
Within the center, a dark crystalline figure shimmered, edges flickering and glitching as though the laws of physics could not contain it.
Tiny gears, incomplete circuits, and faint holographic schematics rotated chaotically inside the fracture, giving the illusion that the fragment itself was alive — aware.
Karl stepped back instinctively, eyes wide, the hum of his newly forged Rider armor reacting to the anomaly. His Vythra thrummed beneath his skin, sensing the fragment's raw potential and danger at once.
Hephaestus' molten gaze fell upon him.
Hephaestus: "Every Chosen before this cycle is bound to their Primordial's Offshoots essence. But you— you'll carry mine. Not borrowed. Not diluted. A piece of my true domain."
The forge's floor vibrated violently as the glitch expanded, forming a floating arena of shifting schematic panels and incomplete mechanical designs. Holographic blueprints spun, folded, and reassembled themselves endlessly.
Hephaestus stepped back, allowing Karl the center of the arena.
Hephaestus: "This is your trial, Karl. Memorize. Construct. Perfect. Only by mastering the designs will you forge your mech frame — your true form. Every miscalculation will fight back, every incomplete design will lash out. But succeed, and you will awaken my Fragment fully."
The floating holograms pulsed, their edges sparking with blue-white energy. Lines of schematics rearranged themselves, forming a maze of intellectual and mechanical challenges — a storm of creation designed to test every ounce of Karl's Forger skill.
Karl's heart raced, but his eyes gleamed with determination. His hands instinctively moved toward his Drive Regulator, revving it slightly. Nanites surged along his arms, ready to respond to thought, to intention, to Vythra.
The trial had begun.
The moment Hephaestus slammed his massive hand on the forge, a tremor surged through the workshop. The walls rattled, sparks of molten energy leaping from the forge itself, and for an instant, reality seemed to stretch and splinter.
Karl's Rider armor hummed, reacting instinctively to the energy — a soft vibration that grew into a resonant chorus, syncing with the pulse of the forge. Light fractured across the room as glitching ribbons of energy wrapped around him, pulling him forward into the unknown.
Then — the workshop was gone.
Where he had stood was now an infinite chamber of raw creation, a place that felt impossible and infinite at once. The floor dissolved beneath him into strands of light, and he found himself floating amid vast, levitating platforms of semi-transparent metal, each etched with holographic blueprints, schematics, and half-formed mechanical constructs. The surfaces shimmered in hues of navy, cobalt, and shimmering Aegean, echoing the colors of his own Vythra-infused nanites.
The air itself seemed alive. Waves of potential energy rippled in concentric patterns, pulsing to a rhythm that matched his heartbeat. The fabric of space bent like liquid glass, folding and unfolding as if awaiting his command.
Suspended around him were mechanical components in various stages of assembly. Some twisted and reformed mid-air, others collapsed and reassembled, testing his perception and comprehension. Every floating piece felt purposeful, like a puzzle left by the universe itself — and it was Karl's task to decipher it.
Hephaestus emerged from the mist of blue and molten light, his molten-gold form flickering like a living forge. The Primordial's eyes — bright and molten — fixed on Karl with a calm, fatherly intensity. He gave a slow, reassuring smirk.
Hephaestus: "Build all you want, Karl. This… is your domain. Here, your Vythra is unlimited, and time bends to your will — you won't age a day."
The gravity of the statement hit Karl like a hammer. This wasn't just a trial — it was absolute freedom. Absolute potential. He could feel his Vythra flowing through every fiber of his Rider armor, entwined with the Engine Soul and Gear Drive. His mother's cocoon thrummed like a heartbeat in his chest, while the father's mechanical guidance in the Gear Drive aligned each nanite, each micro-gear, into perfect readiness.
Floating holographic blueprints shimmered and warped in response to Karl's gaze, lines of glowing energy flowing like currents of water. Some designs glitched, breaking apart only to reform with subtle variations, as if testing his memory, his intuition, and his comprehension of creation itself.
Hephaestus stepped closer, his molten frame radiating quiet authority.
Hephaestus: "Everything you see — every chassis, every half-assembled limb, every gear lattice, every holographic blueprint — is your canvas. Build your mech frame. Perfect it. Every line you trace, every shape you form, every connection you make… will echo in reality."
Karl's heart raced. The potential here was staggering. He could reach out and reshape space itself, turning floating metal into moving components, forming engines, mech frames, weapons, and armor — all with his thoughts, gestures, and the energy of his Vythra.
The Nexus pulsed again, responding directly to Karl's will. Streams of kinetic energy rose like molten rivers, weaving between him and the floating blueprints, ready to materialize whatever his mind conceived.
Hephaestus placed a massive hand on Karl's shoulder, grounding him without diminishing the infinite space around him.
Hephaestus: "Do not fear failure, Karl. Here, mistakes are simply lessons waiting to be understood. Each misaligned gear, each incomplete blueprint, each fractured chassis… teaches you something. Your task is not speed. Your task is precision, creativity, and understanding. Forge your reflection. Forge your will. Forge your legacy."
Karl inhaled deeply, the energy of the Nexus flowing through him. He could feel it like an ocean inside him — unlimited, boundless, and responsive to his very thoughts. Every pulse of Vythra was amplified tenfold by the Engine Soul and Gear Drive, his body a perfect interface for this divine workshop.
Hephaestus stepped back, folding his arms, molten gears spinning across his forearms.
Hephaestus: "Now… create. Shape, build, test, and perfect. Everything here obeys your intent. Your mind, your hands, your Vythra — they are all one."
The Nexus responded. Blueprints twisted into three-dimensional constructs, nanite assemblies shimmered, and holographic gear lattices spun with hypnotic precision, waiting for Karl to command them into existence. The room — if it could be called that — stretched into infinity, a place where the very laws of physics bent to the mastery of creation itself.
Karl flexed his armored arms. Every pulse, every breath, every spark of Vythra was at his disposal. This was more than a trial. This was a chance to define himself as the Forger — as a Forgesmith — and create something that had never existed before.
And as the Nexus hummed around him, alive with raw potential, Karl felt a deep certainty settle into his chest: this is his domain. Here, he could forge anything… and nothing could stand in his way.