The Coalition Trials were supposed to be months away.
But Grimstone never waited for comfort. Within seventy-two hours of the announcement, the academy was already transforming — training fields repurposed, lab schedules rearranged, entire divisions redirected toward coalition development.
The phrase "Engine of Progress" echoed through every corridor like a mantra.
And for the first time, every coalition was watching Forgeborn.
Briefing Hall – Central Command Dome
The dome shimmered with holographic light, six insignias projected in a slow circle overhead — Forgeborn, Crimson Vector, Obsidian Spire, Blue Horizon, Iron Pulse, and Silver Trace.
Each team stood in formation before their instructors, waiting for orders.
Dean Arcten strode to the center platform, his boots striking the steel floor in perfect rhythm. His reputation for blunt efficiency made even the air tense around him.
"The Trials," he began, voice cutting through the murmurs, "will not be simulation alone this time. They will measure field adaptability, engineering precision, and neural flow synchronization. You will operate as full coalitions — not divisions, not departments."
A ripple of reaction moved through the crowd.
"That means you'll be facing tasks beyond your comfort zone," he continued. "You'll compete in multi-layered environments — desert, storm, vacuum, and variable gravity. Each team must engineer, deploy, and synchronize under real conditions. This is no longer about theory."
Kai exchanged a look with Selena.
Real conditions meant risk.
Real risk.
Arcten turned toward the suspended coalition banners. "The academy will monitor performance under the Adaptive Observation Protocol. Failures will be public. Successes will be legendary."
He gestured sharply. "Coalition leaders, step forward."
From each group, one figure moved — Kai for Forgeborn, Lyra for Crimson Vector, Tarek for Obsidian Spire, Rhea for Blue Horizon, Drake for Iron Pulse, and Elra for Silver Trace.
Six innovators. Six philosophies.
Arcten looked over them. "You are the future faces of the Cultech Vanguard. The academy will shape you — or break you trying. Dismissed."
Forgeborn Lab – New Focus
Back in the Forgeborn lab, the energy was different.
No more nervous chatter — only the hum of machinery and the rhythmic clack of tools.
Oliver pulled up the projected specs. "Trial One parameters just dropped. Desert environment, seventy-degree surface heat, limited energy recharge. No atmospheric flow grid."
Rynn groaned. "So basically, they want us to cook."
Valerie smirked. "Better than freezing."
Selena leaned over Kai's shoulder. "The Divergent Core won't last long without cooling lines. We'll need a hybrid regulator."
Kai nodded, already sketching adjustments across the display. "Split-phase coolant channels. Adaptive filters. We'll build it into the armor's exo-collar."
Eliar frowned. "That'll overload the neck chassis unless we reroute power."
"Then reroute it," Kai said simply.
The team fell into motion.
Every movement, every order, was sharp and synchronized — not because of hierarchy, but because of trust. The victory in the previous challenge had hardened them, refined them.
Now, they were no longer proving themselves to Grimstone.
They were proving something to each other.
Crimson Vector – Counterfire
Across the academy, Crimson Vector was in full offensive mode.
Lyra Halden stood before a half-constructed mech frame suspended in crimson light, her team swarming around it.
Nova Quinn tapped her holo-pad rapidly. "Our response model needs higher flow compression — Forgeborn's Divergent Link is unpredictable."
Lyra's eyes narrowed. "Then we become predictable in a different way. Controlled aggression. No improvisation. No chaos."
Joren Vek, her second, raised a brow. "You're planning to out-discipline them?"
Lyra smiled thinly. "I'm planning to outlast them."
She walked beneath the towering machine. "Forgeborn thrives on breaking patterns. We'll give them nothing to break."
Iron Pulse – Field Testing Range
Iron Pulse didn't care about subtlety.
Drake Sol's philosophy was simple: Overpower everything.
The sound of engines roared across the open test field as armored constructs thundered forward — heavy, brutal, efficient. Each unit bore the distinct orange sigil of Iron Pulse, its plating layered and reinforced like tank armor.
Renn Aven shouted over the comms, "Core stability dropping!"
Drake slammed his gauntleted fist on the console. "Push it! If the rig can't handle thermal feedback, it's not worth building!"
A blinding burst of light filled the range as one unit exploded, throwing sand and metal in every direction. The team shielded their eyes, coughing through the smoke.
Drake laughed. "Now that's data!"
Kael Norr muttered, "You're insane."
Drake grinned. "No. I'm motivated."
He turned toward the smoldering wreckage. "Forgeborn might play with balance and finesse. Iron Pulse builds power. Let's see which one lasts longer in the heat."
Faculty Tower – The Shadows Above
High above the chaos, the faculty council gathered behind glass walls.
Halvex, Dean Arcten, and Dr. Zhao stood beside three other division heads, their expressions unreadable.
"They're adapting faster than projected," Arcten said, pulling up data charts. "Forgeborn's cohesion curve jumped twelve percent since last week."
Dr. Zhao folded his arms. "Of course it did. Pressure creates alignment."
Halvex didn't look away from the screen. "Or fractures."
Dr. Wyn interjected, "And what of the external evaluation team? The Board's auditors are already whispering about unsanctioned tech — Divergent Flow isn't officially registered."
Zhao's eyes glinted. "Let them whisper. The academy's purpose isn't to appease the Board. It's to breed the next evolution."
Halvex finally turned from the glass. "Evolution is meaningless if it destroys its environment, Zhao."
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then Zhao smiled faintly. "Sometimes destruction is the environment."
Nightfall – Training Ground Gamma
Kai stood alone beneath the flickering lights of the empty arena.
The desert simulation shimmered around him — a field of sand and glowing dunes. He flexed the rebuilt gauntlet on his right arm, watching the energy channels pulse faintly with blue light.
The Divergent Core still hummed, alive and unstable.
Just like him.
Selena's voice came through the commlink. "You're not supposed to be running tests without supervision."
Kai smiled. "I know."
"You're doing it anyway."
"Obviously."
She sighed. "You'll burn yourself out."
Kai stared at the horizon where holographic storms gathered in silence.
"That's the point," he said quietly. "We're not here to be safe anymore."
He stepped forward — and the world shifted into motion, light and heat folding around him like a living storm.