The stairs were steep.The light above was dim—Not sunlight,But something older.
Elira walked ahead, silent.Her steps made no sound.She didn't breathe.At least, not like them.
Vael's fingers brushed the shard in his pocket.It pulsed faintly—Alive.
Reylen broke the silence."So… the Forge. What is it?"
Elira didn't turn."A place where relics are born.And where they can die."
They emerged into open air.But it wasn't sky.The stars above twisted and bled light.A void held in place.
They stood on a bridge—Stone and bone,Suspended over nothing.
Below, Vael saw… echoes.Fragments of battles.Flickers of past wearers.
Each reliving their last moment.
Nyra's face paled."This place… it remembers."
"It judges," Elira said."And it warns."
The bridge led to a mountain.Or something shaped like one.Metal veins pulsed beneath stone.A heartbeat.
The Forge.
But something blocked the path.
A beast.Not living.Not dead.
A crown embedded in its skull.Rust dripped from its jaws.
Elira stopped."This is your test."
Vael stepped forward."I've fought worse."
"No," she said."This one is different."
The beast opened its mouth.And screamed.
Not sound—But memory.
Vael's knees buckled.He saw Black Hollow burn again.He saw Reya die.He saw himself—Wearing the crown.Smiling.
His heart raced.
Nyra held him up."It's not real," she whispered.
But it felt real.
Reylen charged the beast.His blade struck—And snapped.
Eron fired a seal.The air cracked—And shattered around them.
Still, the beast stood.
Elira raised her hand."Use the shard," she said.
Vael hesitated.Then pressed it to the crown on his head.
A flash of silver light.The whispers stopped.
And Vael struck.
The beast howled.Its body collapsed.And the crown shattered into dust.
The bridge was silent.
Elira turned."You're closer now.But the Forge will not wait forever."
They walked on.And behind them, the echoes faded.