"Before you are judged, prove you were ever worthy."
---
Scene 1 — The Sky Splits
Karthos. Morning. Silence hung heavy over the frozen valley.
Suddenly — the sky tore open like fragile paper.
A meteor-like object plunged down at Mach 7, wrapped in roaring fire. Mountains trembled. Snow hissed into steam.
A colossal figure slammed into the ice. Two hundred feet of winged reptilian god, scales shimmering with cosmic ore. Fire rippled beneath armor forged from stars. Eyes glowed like supernovas.
The First Draconian Warden had arrived.
Panic rippled through the crowd; nobles and peasants scattered in every direction.
But Zayden walked forward, calm and unshaken, sipping from a glowing smoothie cup.
Lyra called out, worried.
"You're gonna face him alone?"
Zayden smirked.
"If I lose, delete my browser history."
---
Scene 2 — The Trial Begins
A colossal ring of fire and ice erupted, encircling them.
The Warden's voice thundered, carried by every molecule in the air.
"Zayden Rai, Maker of Machines, Defier of Fate — you are summoned for the Trial of Worth."
Zayden flipped his collar with a grin.
"Sounds dramatic. Can I at least choose the playlist?"
The Warden raised a claw, ancient and unyielding.
"You must pass three Trials: Mind, Body, and Flame."
"Win, and we speak. Lose, and your timeline ends here."
---
Trial One — Mind: The Puzzle of All Futures
Zayden was pulled into a realm of endless mirrors, stretching beyond the horizon.
Each reflected a different timeline — worlds where he died, worlds where he never returned, worlds where Earth burned to ash.
A voice echoed:
"Choose the mirror that leads to the salvation of all life."
He walked past flawless utopias shimmering with impossible peace.
He stopped before a mirror showing chaos — flawed but free.
He smirked.
"Perfection's a prison. I'll take chaos with freedom."
The realm shattered. Trial One: Passed.
---
Trial Two — Body: The Beast Unchained
From the ice, a monstrous beast erupted — a mutated T-Rex armored in gleaming nanotech plating.
No weapons allowed.
Zayden cracked his neck.
"Guess it's hands time."
He ran, flipped, landed on the beast's back, ripped out its neural core with a Tesla-fused fist, and slammed it down in one fluid motion.
Dust settled.
"Still undefeated. And still good-looking."
Trial Two: Passed.
---
Trial Three — Flame: Burn or Be Burned
Zayden's tech went dark.
The Warden unleashed cosmic flame — fire that burned through time itself.
Zayden opened his palm, revealing a small void-reactor cube — an invention forged in secret.
He activated it.
A bubble of null-space formed, freezing the flame mid-air.
The fire twisted, spiraled, and snapped back to the Warden.
The ancient creature growled.
"This… is not of your era."
"Nope," Zayden said, smirking. "I built it. Last week. I call it 'Hellfire Reversal Deluxe.' Patent pending."
---
Scene 3 — The Verdict
The Warden knelt, eyes glowing with respect.
"You passed. Not with brute strength. But with vision."
He placed a scale-shaped medallion into Zayden's palm.
"You are not yet god. But you are no longer man."
"The other Guardians will come. But now… one stands with you."
With that, the Warden vanished into flame, leaving a crater etched with glowing sigils.
---
Scene 4 — Quiet Aftermath: One Step Closer to Doom
Lyra found Zayden sitting on a mountain ledge, staring at the medallion.
"You okay?"
Zayden exhaled slowly.
"He called me 'vision.' That's a heavy thing to be."
"I thought I came to build a better world. But it feels like I'm tearing one apart to make another."
Lyra placed a steady hand on his shoulder.
"Then build it carefully."
The medallion glowed faintly in his hand. From its depths, stars whispered secrets in a language only he could understand.
---
End of Chapter 15.
Next Chapter:-Chapter 16: The Naga's Warning...