The firelight flickered low against the canyon's inner wall, its orange glow casting long shadows across the polished stone where Zayn sat cross-legged, unmoving. Nala had fallen into a light sleep beside the embers, her breathing steady. Her coat was wrapped around her like a cocoon, her blonde hair brushing against her cheeks with each subtle shift.
Zayn remained still, lost in thought. Not because of Kael Rymon's warning from earlier that day, nor the veiled threat behind his offer of allegiance. It was something deeper... something calling to him now from beneath the soil, from the silver lines that threaded the ground below. His system menu pulsed faintly behind his eyes, like a heartbeat pressed against his skull.
> System Notification: Relic Signal Detected — Corebound Frequency
Distance: 0.2 kliks below surface
Classification: Legacy Trial
Relic: [Unknown Tier]
The sensation was strange. Warm... and personal. It didn't feel like the system was pulling him. It felt like something familiar had awakened, waiting for him to answer. He rose, careful not to wake Nala, and stepped past the circle of firelight. His boots touched down on the canyon floor, and his breath visibly curled in the cool air. The stars above pulsed behind a thin veil of mist drifting across the ravine like spectral fingers.
His thoughts guided the interface.
> Locate: Signal Origin
Pulse Sync: Active
Terrain Analysis: Initiated
The ground shimmered faintly, glowing lines weaving into sigils only visible to him. The signal carved a path behind a narrow crack in the canyon's side, barely wide enough for a human frame. Without hesitation, Zayn stepped forward.
The passage was slick with moss and dust, silent except for the crunch of loose stone under his steps. The deeper he went, the colder the air became, biting against his skin. A gentle hum started in his ears, soft at first, but growing louder until it settled into a rhythm... the same as his heartbeat.
Then it changed.
The narrow fissure opened into a dome-like chamber carved from raw stone, faintly glowing with lines of silver and gold that arced across the walls like constellations. In its center, a pedestal stood, tall and weathered, its surface marked with the same spiral insignia that pulsed inside Zayn's system menu.
A relic sat atop it.
It was a shard of obsidian, jagged on one end and smooth on the other, etched with flickering runes that glowed blue-white in the low light. The air around it rippled, bending like heat haze despite the chill.
> Legacy Trial Initiated Relic Type: Coreforge Shard
Conditions: One bearer, no external aid, full core resonance
Objective: Survive the shaping
Zayn's hand hovered over the relic.
The moment his fingers brushed its surface, heat exploded into his chest. Not fire, but forging heat, pressure, raw and unrelenting. He stumbled back, the chamber spinning. His knees hit the stone and his breath caught.
> Core Resonance Detected Initiating Coreforge Trial…
His vision dimmed.
---
He stood inside a void of glimmering coals. Every inch of it pulsed with fading heat and distant echoes of something vast... a forge beyond time. Shapes moved through the heat haze... silhouettes of warriors, smiths, lost voices. And ahead, on a raised dais, stood a figure clad in cracked armor, his face hidden behind a molten helm.
Zayn stepped forward. The moment he did, the air collapsed inward.
The figure raised its hand.
A weapon formed from the forge-smoke itself, a glaive wreathed in molten light. It swung without sound, and Zayn ducked under it by instinct, the blade singing past his ear. Heat scorched the side of his face, but he spun away.
He didn't have time to think. Only to move.
Each strike from the guardian melted the ground where it landed. Each swing shaped fire into memory... images of Zayn's past, fragments of failure and doubt, flickering in the weapon's trail.
"You are not yet worthy," a voice whispered, not from the figure... but from the relic inside his chest.
Zayn's feet skidded back against molten stone. The forge-reactive space responded to fear, to hesitation, and he felt it tightening like a snare.
No... Not fear.
He closed his eyes.
His heartbeat slowed.
And then he reached inward.
> System Command: Pulse Merge Initiate Core Integration Protocol
His system flared.
> [Forge Memory: Active]
Relic Detected: Coreforge Shard
Skill Path Accessed:Forge Bind
Begin resonance shaping
Echo Craft: Imprint skill essence into shaped relics]
Zayn opened his eyes. This time, his aura burned silver, laced with thin violet threads that pulsed outward with each breath. The relic inside his core no longer burned, it forged. Tempered by will.
The glaive swung again.
Zayn caught it.
The impact shattered the illusion around him. The forge cracked and exploded into streams of memory, fragments folding back into his body. When he opened his eyes again, he was kneeling on the chamber floor, both palms pressed against the stone. Sweat poured down his face, and steam curled from his skin.
> Trial Complete
Coreforge Shard Assimilated
New Trait Acquired: Essence Smithing
> System Update:
Passive Ability Gained — Forge Bind:
Allows fusion of raw relic fragments into skill templates.
Success chance tied to emotional resonance and Aether environment.
Active Skill Gained — Echo Craft:
Can imprint skill functions into relics during battles or trials.
Skills can evolve through repeated resonance forging.]
He slumped back against the pedestal, breathing heavily.
Outside, the night had deepened. Mist had rolled into the canyon, and Nala stirred awake near the fire. She sat up sharply, sensing something had changed.
She looked around, worry clear in her voice. "Zayn...?"
The mist parted slowly as Zayn emerged, half-covered in soot, eyes glowing faintly, the Coreforge Shard now embedded into the side of his bracer. His aura shimmered faintly around him... stable, heavier than before.
Nala blinked. "What did you find?"
Zayn didn't answer immediately. He sat beside her again, the fire crackling between them.
"A trial," he said finally, voice quiet. "A legacy forge. It burned... but it also gave something back."
He extended his hand. Silver sparks danced between his fingers, then coalesced into the image of a blad,... unfinished, raw, waiting to be shaped.
"I think... I can start building now."
Nala leaned forward, her blue eyes reflecting the flame. "Not just weapons, huh?"
Zayn smiled faintly, eyes locked on the flickering silver.
"No. Not just weapons."