Kael stepped forward, heart pounding.
The Architect hovered just above the swirling vortex, his form fluid—constantly shifting between versions of Kael Soran. Each face stared back at him with cold familiarity. One bore battle scars, another wore a crown of circuits, another was barely human anymore—just data and rage.
"You're me," Kael said, his voice barely a whisper.
"I am what you become when hope breaks," the Architect replied. "When the burden is too heavy. When every choice leads to loss."
Kael's grip tightened around the Keystone. "Then I'll make new choices."
"Too late," the Architect sneered. "This world is already rewritten. You're standing on a graveyard of your own futures."
Reeva raised her blaster. "Why bother with speeches if you're so powerful?"
The Architect smirked. "Because he still thinks he can win."
Suddenly, the vortex surged—and reflections of the Architect burst from the ground like spectral flames. Twisted versions of Kael, each one armed, each one insane.
The Fallen Driftbearers.
They attacked.
Kael dodged a blade of pure causality as Reeva and Elara opened fire. The battlefield became a maelstrom of mirrored fury. Each Fallen bore a fragment of Kael's history—a life he might've lived, a choice he never made.
He faced one wearing a tattered black coat, eyes burning with grief. "I sacrificed everyone to protect the core," the Fallen growled. "And it still wasn't enough."
Kael blocked his strike and countered. "Then you didn't believe in anyone but yourself."
Another lunged at Reeva—a cyborg Kael with mechanical wings. "I burned the Anchor Worlds to end the war."
She shot him through the chest. "You're not my Kael."
Elara engaged a version of Kael built entirely from shattered timelines—his voice a chorus of regrets. "You could've saved her," he hissed. "You let her die."
"I remember every death," Elara said, her voice cracking. "But this Kael still has a choice."
One by one, the Fallen were forced back—but not destroyed. They were fragments, echoes, chained to the Architect's will.
Kael stood before the original now, panting. "This ends here."
The Architect raised a hand—and everything froze.
Time stopped.
Space bent.
Only Kael could move.
"I gave up trying to fix the multiverse," the Architect said. "I saw its core. Rotting. Broken. I chose to remake it."
Kael stared into his eyes. "Then you never understood it. The multiverse doesn't need perfection. It needs people willing to fight for imperfect hope."
He activated the Keystone.
Light exploded outward, pushing back the vortex and severing the connection to the Fallen.
The Architect staggered.
For the first time, he looked... uncertain.
"Impossible," he growled. "You are not ready."
"I don't have to be," Kael said, raising the Keystone. "I just have to try."
The light surged—
And both Kael and the Architect were swallowed by the core of Earth-Z3R0.