Rise of the Living Forge

Verdant Inferno sprung into Arwin’s hands the moment his foot passed through the doorway to the Infernal Armory. The weapon had summoned itself before he’d even had a chance to call for it.

A part of Arwin couldn’t help but wonder just how much more intelligent — and powerful — the weapon had gotten over the past days. There had been a time where it couldn’t do anything other than send him vague desires of what it wanted.

Now it could literally call itself at its own volition… and if his plans went correctly, then he was about to make it stronger. A lot stronger. Just how much, even Arwin himself wasn’t certain. He hadn’t seen what the Cores were truly capable of yet.

For that matter, he hadn’t seen what he himself was now capable of. He’d gotten a lot more powerful over the past days. Arwin could still feel the heat emanating from the molten ocean of lava waiting within his soul.

Between that and the new crafting techniques of imprinting someone’s soul into the item he was making for them, there was so much that Arwin wanted to test that even a month wouldn’t have been enough time to prepare.

But he didn’t have a month.

Arwin had three days, and so he got to work.

The Infernal Armory crackled to life as he closed the door to the back room behind him. Black tendrils snaked from the walls and Arwin pulled his shirt away to ready himself. They slammed into his back, driving into his skin and connecting him to the smithy around him.

Verdant Inferno hummed in excitement within his grip. It shook with such intensity that the weapon nearly ripped itself out of his hands. Arwin let out a chuckle.