The observatory remained silent long after Elyra's explanation ended.
The truth she revealed still lingered heavily through the chamber like an invisible weight pressing against everyone's thoughts. Different timelines. Different versions of Karna. Endless deaths across worlds. The System hunting every surviving variation of him before they could fully awaken.
And among all of it—
Arin stood apart somehow.
A rare divergence.
A version that should not have existed the way he did.
But despite how enormous those revelations felt, another presence continued dominating the observatory more strongly than anything else.
Vijaya.
The third fragment floated above the black pedestal at the center of the chamber while golden energy radiated endlessly from its surface. Unlike the incomplete pieces Arin already carried, this fragment felt alive in a completely different way. Ancient. Aware. Watching.
And every second he remained near it, the resonance between them grew stronger.
The weapon recognized him.
Not as Arin.
Not even as Aditya.
As something older than both.
The chamber lights dimmed slightly afterward while the floating celestial mechanisms overhead continued turning beneath the night sky. Elyra slowly stepped beside the pedestal before looking toward Arin again.
"It's waiting."
Her voice echoed softly through the observatory.
Everyone's attention shifted immediately toward the fragment hovering above the seals.
Liora looked toward it carefully now.
"…waiting for what?"
Elyra's gaze remained fixed on the weapon.
"For him."
The answer carried no hesitation.
Arin slowly stepped forward afterward.
The closer he moved toward the pedestal, the heavier the atmosphere inside the observatory became. Golden energy spread across the floor beneath his feet while the fragment of Vijaya reacted violently to his approach, rising slightly higher into the air as faint sunlight-like flames began moving across its surface.
Then suddenly—
the memories started again.
Not fragmented this time.
Clear.
Karna standing alone beneath a burning sky while holding a completed Vijaya against thousands of enemies. The bow-staff radiating enough power to split clouds themselves apart while sunlight bent unnaturally around its golden string.
Then another memory.
Aditya kneeling inside ruins while staring at a broken fragment of the same weapon resting in his hands. Blood covered his body while distant screams echoed through collapsing buildings around him.
"Even shattered…"
Aditya's voice echoed faintly through the memory.
"…you still return to me."
The vision disappeared instantly afterward.
Arin stopped walking briefly while breathing unevenly again.
Liora immediately moved slightly closer.
"Arin?"
He slowly raised one hand afterward without looking away from the fragment.
"I'm fine."
But the truth was more complicated now.
Because every fragment he recovered strengthened more than just Vijaya itself.
It strengthened memory.
Strengthened the connection between all his lives.
And deep down, Arin could already feel something changing inside himself again.
The incomplete parts of his soul were beginning to reconnect.
Elyra quietly watched him for several moments before finally speaking again.
"Do you know why Vijaya always returns to you?"
Arin remained silent.
Because after everything he learned tonight, he wasn't certain about anything anymore.
The Regent answered anyway.
"Because the weapon was never forged for war alone."
The golden seals surrounding the pedestal glowed brighter afterward.
"It was forged as recognition."
Another pause.
"A weapon bound directly to the existence of its wielder."
The chamber trembled faintly as she spoke.
"Every version of Vijaya throughout every timeline belongs to the same soul."
Arin's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…mine."
"Yes."
Elyra finally looked toward him fully again.
"That is why no one else can truly wield it."
Fragments surfaced again immediately afterward.
Kings trying to lift Vijaya only for the weapon to reject them violently. Entire kingdoms destroyed attempting to recreate it artificially. The organization dissecting fragments across centuries while failing repeatedly to awaken its true power.
Because the weapon itself refused everyone except him.
Not through choice.
Through law.
Vijaya existed as part of his soul itself.
The realization settled heavily through Arin while he slowly approached the pedestal again.
The others remained silent behind him now.
Even Riven no longer joked.
Because everyone could feel the weight of this moment instinctively.
The closer Arin moved toward the fragment, the stronger the observatory reacted. Golden energy spread through the chamber walls while the celestial mechanisms overhead accelerated slightly, stars of light rotating faster around the observatory ceiling like the heavens themselves responding to Vijaya's awakening.
Liora quietly noticed something else too.
Arin's eyes were changing again.
Not color.
Presence.
Every fragment he recovered seemed to deepen the ancient feeling surrounding him further. Sometimes when he stood completely still now, he no longer felt entirely like the boy who grew up in a quiet village beyond the forest.
He felt older.
Like countless lives stood silently behind him at once.
And somehow that realization hurt her slightly.
Because even though Arin remained himself—
every recovered memory pulled him farther toward a history nobody else could fully understand.
Elyra finally stepped away from the pedestal afterward.
"Take it."
The observatory fell completely silent.
Arin slowly stood before the floating fragment now while golden energy moved violently around the chamber. The weapon hovered directly before him, radiating waves of sunlight-like warmth powerful enough that the air itself distorted faintly around its surface.
Then quietly—
Arin raised his hand.
The moment his fingers touched the fragment—
everything exploded.
Golden light erupted throughout the observatory violently enough that everyone instinctively shielded their eyes. The seals across the floor shattered apart instantly while Vijaya's fragments reacted simultaneously, tearing themselves free from their wrappings before rising into the air around Arin.
The temple shook.
Not slightly.
Violently.
Ancient pillars trembled throughout the chamber while waves of golden energy burst outward from the observatory into the kingdom itself. Outside beyond the temple walls, bells suddenly began ringing across the city again while countless lights illuminated throughout the valley below.
And inside the observatory—
Arin disappeared beneath light.
Liora's eyes widened immediately.
"Arin!"
But Elyra stopped her before she could move forward.
"Wait."
The Regent's voice remained calm despite the chaos surrounding them.
"The weapon is recognizing him."
The fragments circled violently around Arin now while memories flooded through him faster than ever before.
Battlefields stretching endlessly beneath burning skies.
Countless versions of himself dying across timelines.
The first Karna standing before a collapsing reality while holding a fully awakened Vijaya in his hands.
Then suddenly—
another memory surfaced.
Not Karna's.
Not Aditya's.
Someone else's.
A version of himself standing beside Elyra inside this same observatory centuries earlier. Different face. Different name. Same soul.
And that version speaking quietly while staring toward the stars above.
"If I fail, another me will continue."
Elyra answering softly beside him.
"And if all of you fail?"
The other version smiled faintly afterward.
"Then eventually one of us will become different enough to win."
The memory shattered instantly afterward.
Arin's eyes widened beneath the storm of light surrounding him.
Different enough to win.
That's what he was.
Not an accident.
An evolution.
The realization struck hard enough that the energy surrounding Vijaya surged violently again.
Then suddenly—
the fragments combined.
Everyone watched silently as the pieces of Vijaya slowly connected themselves together in midair before Arin. Black metal engraved with ancient golden symbols fused seamlessly beneath the golden storm while sunlight-like flames moved endlessly across the weapon's surface.
The incomplete bow-staff became larger immediately afterward.
Heavier.
More alive.
Golden strings of light formed across its center while celestial patterns spread through the weapon like veins igniting beneath dark steel.
And when the final connection completed—
the observatory fell silent instantly.
The golden storm vanished.
The shaking stopped.
And Vijaya finally descended slowly into Arin's waiting hand.
The moment he fully grasped the weapon—
the world bent slightly around him.
Everyone felt it.
Space itself distorted faintly for several seconds while golden light reflected through the chamber. Not destructive. Not uncontrolled.
Instinctive.
Like reality itself briefly acknowledged the return of something ancient.
Arin stood motionless afterward while Vijaya rested in his grip completely naturally, as though the weapon had never belonged anywhere else.
And deep inside himself—
he felt another missing piece return.
Not memory.
Strength.
Understanding.
The weapon no longer felt incomplete now.
Neither did he.
Liora slowly exhaled afterward without realizing she'd stopped breathing entirely during the process.
Riven stared blankly toward the weapon.
"…that's definitely not normal."
"No," Elyra answered quietly.
"It isn't."
Arin slowly looked down toward Vijaya afterward while golden energy still moved softly across the weapon's surface beneath his fingers.
And for the first time since entering the kingdom—
the voice inside his soul became clear.
Not words.
Recognition.
The weapon was happy to have returned.
The realization should have disturbed him.
Instead—
it felt familiar.
Then suddenly—
Vijaya reacted again.
Violently.
Golden light flashed across the observatory while the weapon pulled hard toward the night sky above.
Arin's expression changed instantly afterward.
Because this time the resonance didn't come from nearby fragments.
It came from far away.
Very far away.
Another piece still existed somewhere beyond the kingdom.
And unlike the others—
this fragment was moving.