Chapter 62: Echoes of War

The bodies of the fallen Inquisitors lay motionless on the stone floor, their blackened robes pooling around them like spilled ink. The unnatural energy that had once coiled around their forms had dissipated, leaving behind only the scent of burnt ozone and something far worse—the lingering taint of the Primordial Lords. Elias felt the faint hum of his armor's systems recalibrating, the Vanguard Core inside him pulsing steadily as if acknowledging the danger had passed. But even as the last echoes of battle faded, a weight settled over the chamber.

Ivy nudged one of the corpses with the tip of her boot. "You think they were the only ones?"

Kierian stepped forward, his blade still drawn, studying the remains carefully. "No. They were a forward unit. A test." His voice was grim, carrying the certainty of experience. "They were sent to see how strong we are. Now that they've failed, their masters will send something worse."

Reinhardt huffed, wiping dust from his gauntlets. "Good. I was getting bored anyway."

Lira let out an exasperated sigh. "Reinhardt, I swear, one day you're going to find something you can't punch through, and I want front-row seats when that happens."

Cecilia smirked, flipping a dagger between her fingers. "Let's focus on not dying before then, shall we?"

Marco had already moved to one of the fallen Inquisitors, his scanner flickering as he ran a deep scan. His face darkened as lines of distorted code scrolled across his display. "Elias… you were right. Their mana signatures aren't natural. They weren't just enhanced—they were altered."

Elias's gaze sharpened. "By what?"

Marco hesitated. "It's not just corrupted magic. It's something… else. A foreign element. Whatever it is, it doesn't follow any known patterns of spellcraft. It's more like…" He stopped, his jaw tightening.

"More like what?" Ivy pressed.

Marco took a deep breath before answering. "More like they were rewritten. Not just augmented—completely transformed at the core level."

Silence settled over the group as the weight of his words sank in.

Elias clenched his fists, feeling the pulse of the Vanguard Core syncing with his thoughts. "That means the Primordial Lords aren't just corrupting people anymore. They're remaking them."

Kierian's expression darkened. "Then we don't have time to waste. If they've found a way to convert living beings into something… beyond human, then this war is going to change."

The fortress trembled again, another deep rumble rolling through the walls. Dust trickled from the ceiling, and far above, the distant echoes of something shifting could be heard. The outer defenses were still holding—for now—but the feeling of urgency clawed at Elias's mind.

"We need to move," he said, turning toward the heart of the chamber where the Vanguard Core still hovered, pulsing in its containment field. "Now that we've secured the Core, we have to make sure it doesn't fall into the wrong hands."

Lira crossed her arms. "Meaning?"

Elias exhaled. "Meaning we take it with us."

The reaction was instant.

Marco's head snapped up. "Are you insane? This thing is integrated into Solmara's entire structure! If we move it, we could trigger—"

Elias cut him off. "It's already integrated with me." He lifted his gauntlet, and as if in response, the Core flared, golden light resonating between them. "It accepted my armor's systems. It means I have a direct link. If we leave it here, the next force that comes will tear this place apart to take it. We either move it, or we abandon it to the enemy."

Cecilia let out a low whistle. "I'm guessing you already made up your mind."

Elias's expression was set. "We're not leaving without it."

Kierian didn't argue. Instead, he studied Elias carefully. "You understand what you're proposing, don't you?"

Elias nodded. "If I do this, I won't just be using the Core—I'll be fused with it permanently. My armor, my systems, my body… it won't just be technology anymore."

Lira's usual smirk was gone. "And if it overwrites you the way it did those Inquisitors?"

Elias was silent for a moment. Then, finally, he spoke.

"Then you stop me before that happens."

Reinhardt cracked his knuckles. "That's not happening, because we're not letting you lose yourself to this thing. You don't fight alone, Elias. Not now, not ever."

Ivy nodded. "We're with you."

Cecilia shrugged. "And if this all goes sideways, well, at least it'll be interesting."

Marco sighed, rubbing his forehead. "I'm going to regret not stopping this, aren't I?"

Elias stepped forward, placing both hands against the floating Core. The instant his fingers made contact, power surged through him.

His HUD flickered. Systems recalibrated. The forge of Solmara responded, as if sensing the moment. The golden glow of the Core expanded, reaching into his suit, syncing deeper than before.

A flood of data poured into him—schematics of machines never built, blueprints of war armor designed for a war that never happened, knowledge of weapons that had been lost to time. His thoughts moved faster, processing everything at speeds beyond human comprehension. He saw glimpses of what the Vanguard had planned, the true purpose of the Core, and for the first time, he understood.

This wasn't just a power source. It was the heart of their war machines, the last key to unlocking a future that had been buried in ruin.

His gauntlet pulsed, and for a moment, he saw himself—not as he was now, but as he could be. Not just an engineer. Not just an outcast. But something new.

A Technomancer.

His voice was steady as he spoke. "It's done."

The Core dissolved into light, flowing into his armor, merging with his systems completely. His suit restructured itself in real-time, adapting, enhancing.

Then, the alarms blared.

Marco's voice was sharp. "Multiple hostiles inbound! They're breaching the outer perimeter!"

Elias turned toward the others, his new armor humming with barely contained power. The weight of what he had just done settled in his chest, but there was no time to second-guess.

"Then we hold them off," he said, flexing his fingers as energy flickered across his frame. "We finish what we started."

As the fortress trembled and the enemy forces began their approach, Elias felt something new within him—certainty.

For the first time since coming to this world, he wasn't just trying to survive.

He was ready to win.