The moment Steven completed the final stroke in the Codex, the forge's core detonated in a burst of celestial energy, and for a brief instant, time itself seemed to pause. His vision blurred, the raw force of creation overwhelming his senses as the page in the Codex burned with new magic.
His breath came out in short, ragged bursts as the forge's radiant light dimmed, leaving only the aftermath of the power he had just summoned.
The Starwright, still standing by the forge's edge, regarded him with a newfound understanding.
"You have done it."
Steven's hands trembled, still holding the Codex. The words etched into the page were not just a spell. They were a bond. A new reality woven directly into his being.
He could feel it already—the weight of potential. Every decision, every moment stretching out before him. The timeline was his to carve.
"But…" he started, voice hoarse. "What now? What's next?"
The Starwright's gaze turned inscrutable. "Now, you will face the truth of your power."
Before Steven could react, the world around him twisted.
The Starforge fractured, its once solid structure now warping and breaking apart like brittle glass. The chamber imploded into shards of reality, vanishing into the void. The forge—its core—began to flicker like a dying star.
A deep rumble echoed in the distance.
"Time, reality... they are not yours to bind alone, Starcaster," the Starwright intoned, his voice reverberating through the collapsing forge. "The forces you've unleashed are bound by an ancient law. The price for wielding the Soulbound Future is far greater than you realize."
"What price?" Steven asked, steeling himself. He could feel the pulse of his own heartbeat quicken, knowing that he was standing at the precipice of something massive.
The Starwright's form shimmered, and suddenly, the chamber was replaced by a vast, infinite sea of stars. Among them, a figure stood—dark and looming, its presence heavy and foreboding.
"That."
Steven's eyes narrowed. "Who is that?"
"The Absence," the Starwright answered, a touch of fear in his voice. "A being born from the edges of reality, the part that exists in the shadows of all things. It is the force that opposes creation. And now, you've disturbed it."
The being before them shifted. Its shape was no more than a distortion in the fabric of space, a rift in the cosmos that drew in everything around it. It had no true form—only the feeling of something missing, something that should not be, but existed nonetheless.
"You thought you could rewrite destiny," The Absence spoke in a voice that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once. "But destiny is not yours to claim. You are merely a passing moment in time, a flicker that will fade. Nothing more."
Steven stood tall, despite the growing sense of dread filling the void.
"I've come too far to turn back," he declared, his voice steady but edged with the raw power he now wielded. "I'll fight for this."
The Absence twisted, and in a flash, it was upon him. Reality shattered.
A wave of cold, void-like energy surged toward Steven, threatening to tear him apart at a molecular level. The very stars around him dimmed as if drained of light.
His mind raced. He wasn't just fighting against a being. He was fighting against nothingness itself.
But then he felt it—his connection to the Codex, his soul bound to its power. A surge of energy flared within him, but not just from the Codex. No, this was something deeper—something that resonated with his own spirit, his very will.
The Codex burned brighter.
With a roar, Steven lifted his staff, channeling the power of the Soulbound Future. "Codex Protocol: Eternal Defiance!"
Light erupted, pushing against the darkness. Reality snapped back into place.
The Absence recoiled, its form flickering like a fading dream, caught off guard by the strength Steven had summoned.
"Impossible…" the Absence hissed, its voice now full of disbelief.
Steven's eyes blazed with determination. "I choose my future."
He reached out and grabbed hold of the energy surging through him, shaping it into a weapon of pure will—a weapon of light.
With a single strike, he hurled it directly at the Absence, the energy slicing through the darkness like a comet cutting through the void.
There was a deafening explosion, and for a moment, everything went silent.
When the light faded, the Absence was gone. But Steven could still feel it—its presence lingering, like a shadow on the edge of his perception. The battle was not over.
"You may have won this moment," the Starwright spoke, his tone now tinged with awe. "But the war is far from over. You have awakened forces that will not rest."
Steven's chest heaved, but he nodded. "I'm ready."
The Codex in his hands hummed with quiet power.
And now, with the future in his grasp, Steven knew that this was only the beginning.
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(To be continued)