The Codex pulsed.
Each thrum of magic guided Steven's gaze toward the rift's edge—a path of floating platforms stretching into infinity. As he stepped forward, the void twisted, the air around him shimmering with stardust and echoes of forgotten spells.
The platforms weren't just stone.
They were memories.
Fragments of civilizations that had vanished, forged into a bridge of purpose.
Steven's boots touched down, and the world shifted.
Suddenly, he stood in a chamber the size of a mountain, suspended in a sea of light.
At the heart of it all: a colossal machine forged of celestial gold and obsidian, turning endlessly on invisible gears. Its core glowed with unstable stellar energy, flaring like a miniature sun. Runes older than language danced across its surface.
The Starforge.
Steven took a breath. "So this is where worlds are made…"
A voice boomed around him, ancient and worn.
"And where they are unmade."
From the light emerged a figure cloaked in flames. Metallic skin, eyes like neutron stars, and a hammer that pulsed with the same energy as the forge.
The Starwright.
"You carry the Codex," the being said. "And yet, you walk unworthy."
Steven raised his staff, defensive. "I'm not here to steal power. I'm here to end something."
"Endings are forged here. But the metal is your soul. The fire… your will."
The Starwright raised the hammer.
"Prove you are worthy of creation."
The forge ignited.
Flames spiraled outward.
Steven rushed forward—dodging arcs of molten energy that tore chunks from the platform. One bolt nearly scorched his cloak clean off.
"Codex Protocol: Arcane Shell!"
A translucent barrier wrapped around him just as the Starwright's hammer came down.
BOOM.
The impact sent ripples through the barrier and cracked the platform beneath him.
Steven gritted his teeth. "Alright. You want power?"
He slammed his palm against the Codex's page.
"Codex Protocol: Nova Aspect—Ignition Form!"
His body flared with cosmic flame—his skin glowing with constellations, his staff a burning spear.
He launched himself forward, clashing with the Starwright in a storm of starlight and fire.
Each strike shook the forge.
Each spell bled magic into the air.
It wasn't just a battle.
It was refinement.
"You wield light like a blade," the Starwright said mid-strike, "but light without purpose burns aimlessly!"
Steven roared back. "Then let me show you why I fight!"
He twisted his body mid-air, channeling every ounce of will into one spell.
"Codex Protocol: Genesis Spiral!"
A spiral of radiant energy erupted from him, carving through the flames, smashing into the Starwright's chest and sending the titan crashing against the inner wall of the forge.
Silence.
Steam hissed. Sparks floated like fireflies.
The Starwright rose slowly, burned but… smiling.
"Well struck, Starcaster."
Steven lowered his staff, panting.
"So?"
The Starwright nodded and stepped aside.
"The forge is open to you. Etch your fate."
Steven approached the Starforge. The Codex hovered from his hands, opening to a blank page glowing white.
No spell.
No prophecy.
Just… choice.
He closed his eyes and pressed his hand to the forge's core.
The page began to write itself.
Words forming from his soul.
A spell not of destruction…
But of creation.
"Codex Protocol: Soulbound Future."
The forge flared brilliantly.
A new power awakened within the Codex—one that would let Steven s
hape not just magic…
…but destiny itself.
---
(To be continued)