The sanctuary skies erupted with light.
Golden waves spread endlessly across the floating city while every Luminal cried out joyfully in unison. Ancient bells rang on their own throughout the sanctuary towers as though creation itself had awakened from a long forgotten sleep.
And at the center of it all… Luke stood holding Astrael.(The First Light of Balance).
The sword felt warm in his hands.
Not heavy,not overwhelming.
But very much familiar. As though it had always belonged there.
Golden runes flowed softly along the blade while the crystal within its hilt pulsed gently together with Luke's heartbeat.
The chamber around him remained filled with ancient light.
And for several moments… nobody spoke.
Not even Aurelion.
Because the impossible had just happened.
Again... Far above them, the sanctuary trembled softly beneath the awakening of the ancient blade.
Lucien felt it instantly,and he immediately shot to his feet from the celestial court balcony, crimson eyes narrowing sharply toward the lower sanctuary chambers.
"That dragon better not have exploded my son."
Without waiting for an answer, infernal flames erupted around him as he vanished instantly.
The Father of All sighed deeply.
"Why do I already feel a headache approaching?"
The Spirit Guide lazily stood afterward.
Because chaos follows that family naturally.
Deep beneath the sanctuary, Astrael's light slowly dimmed into a calmer glow.
Luke still stared quietly at the blade while fragments of impossible memories continued flickering through his mind.
Not his memories entirely.
The sword's memories. Ancient wars.
Forgotten wielders.
Civilizations long turned to dust.
And through all of them… one repeating feeling remained strongest.
Loneliness.
Luke's chest tightened softly.
The sword had waited a very long time.
Aurelion watched him carefully.
"YOU CAN FEEL IT."
Luke nodded slowly.
"It was alone."
The ancient dragon's eyes softened faintly.
"FOR AGES."
Luke gently tightened his grip around Astrael's hilt.
"I know how that feels."
The sword glowed warmly in response.
Aurelion became very still afterward.
Because most wielders throughout history first sensed the blade's power.
Luke sensed its pain instead.
Then suddenly infernal flames burst violently into the chamber.
Lucien appeared instantly.
"Luke!"
The Prince of Hell stopped sharply after seeing:
his son unharmed,
the ancient chamber glowing,
and the legendary sword resting calmly in Luke's hands.
Silence followed.
Lucien blinked once.
"…Why are you holding a glowing apocalypse weapon?"
Luke looked down awkwardly.
"It's not an apocalypse weapon."
Astrael flashed brightly.
Lucien narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"It disagrees aggressively."
Aurelion looked deeply unimpressed.
"THIS BLADE WAS FORGED TO PROTECT CREATION."
Lucien folded his arms immediately.
"And yet it still looks dangerous."
"That is because it is a sword," Luke muttered.
The Father of All and the Spirit Guide arrived moments later.
The instant the old creator saw Astrael fully awakened,he froze completely.
Ancient shock crossed his face.
"No…"
Luke looked toward him carefully.
"What?"
The Father of All slowly approached the blade with visible disbelief.
"I sealed this weapon myself before the First War."
The chamber fell silent again.
The old creator's gaze shifted slowly toward Luke afterward.
"And it never responded to another soul afterward."
Aurelion lowered its head slightly.
"UNTIL THE CHILD TOUCHED IT BEFORE BIRTH."
Lucien's expression immediately hardened.
"What exactly does that mean?"
The Father of All became quiet.
Too quiet.
Luke noticed instantly.
"…You knew?"
The ancient creator sighed softly.
"Not fully."
The sanctuary lights dimmed faintly around them.
Then slowly, carefully, he continued:
"When Celestia carried you…"
Lucien's expression shifted immediately at her name.
"…the Heart had already begun reacting to your existence."
Luke stared silently.
The Father of All looked toward Astrael.
"There were disturbances in time around the sanctuary."
Fragments of memory flickered across his ancient eyes.
"Doors opening briefly."
"Ancient relics awakening."
"Visions appearing out of order."
Then softly:
"Celestia told me she once heard you crying beside her before you were even formed enough to have a voice."
Lucien froze completely.
Luke's throat tightened painfully.
The Father of All continued quietly:
"We believed the Heart was simply responding to prophecy."
His gaze lowered.
"But then…"
He looked directly at Astrael.
"…the sword activated."
The chamber became still.
"It awakened for exactly thirteen seconds."
Aurelion's massive eyes remained fixed on Luke.
"And no one touched it physically."
Lucien slowly looked toward his son now.
Realization spreading across his face.
Luke swallowed hard.
"I did?"
The Father of All nodded slowly.
"Somehow."
Lucien stared at Astrael in silence.
Then toward Luke.
Then back at the blade again.
And suddenly something painful crossed his expression.
Because he realized the truth before anyone said it aloud.
His son had never truly been ordinary.
Not even before birth.
Fate itself had already begun bending around Luke while Celestia still carried him in her arms.
Lucien lowered his gaze quietly afterward.
A faint broken laugh escaped him.
"Of course."
Luke blinked slightly.
"…Dad?"
The Prince of Hell shook his head slowly.
"Your mother knew something long before the rest of us."
His voice softened painfully.
"She used to place her hand over her stomach and smile for no reason sometimes."
Luke listened silently.
Lucien looked toward Astrael again.
"She once told me…"
His throat tightened briefly.
"…that our son felt ancient."
The chamber grew quiet with grief and warmth intertwined together.
Lucien smiled sadly afterward.
"I thought she was being poetic."
Luke's eyes stung slightly.
The Father of All looked toward the boy gently.
"Perhaps the Heart recognized you before the world did."
Astrael glowed softly in Luke's hands again.
Warm.
Protective.
Alive.
And for the first time since touching the blade…
Luke realized something clearly.
Astrael had not awakened because he was powerful.
It awakened because it remembered him.