Even in his slumber, the golden-armored warrior protected a thick stack of parchment. Without disrupting the techno-magical system preserving him, Solomon cast a spell to retrieve the parchment. A cursory glance revealed it to be a coordinate—not one of the real world, but of a pocket dimension, a shard of a plane hidden deep within the endless sea of mist in the Aether Plane. The coordinates were also a spell, a formula; if Solomon followed the parchment's instructions, he would be able to locate the place.
This was the greatest secret Jacob had guarded for a thousand years:
A coordinate to an inner plane—alongside a golden-armored angel.
Solomon could hear the warrior's soul calling to him, as if he only had to reach out and the giant would awaken, ready once again for battle. It was a connection on the level of souls—this warrior possessed some of Solomon's own strength, certain segments of his unique genetic code. The genetic alchemy experiments conducted in the bio-labs were based on him, using fragments of his genes to recreate the process through which the Earth Mother had originally crafted him. But unlike another universe where dark elder gods intervened, this process was purely scientific—aimed at giving them permanent resistance to corruption. In the face of a perilous cosmos, such warriors were essential.
They would be the sword spreading truth and hope for mankind, the shield standing against demons and monstrosities. They would learn all knowledge and every art available to them—each of them a perfect soldier.
Solomon now believed that the reason he instinctively initiated such an experiment was because his future self had already sent the message back. His future self had long known his nature as a divine weapon. In terms of rank and design, Solomon, like Atum and Oshtur, was a second-generation ancient god, a creation of the Earth Mother.
That was how he described his essence—just as he had once described the Holy Sword. Yet the Ancient One believed him to be human, and it was this identity, reinforced by a lifetime of education in defending humanity, that kept Solomon resolute in claiming his place among mankind. Still, it was undeniable that his genes concealed immense power—enough to make an ordinary man a demi-god, like Heracles of myth. With equipment and precisely tuned genetic enhancements, the golden-armored Imperial Guards might one day surpass Heracles himself.
"It's done." Solomon stretched out his left hand, and a golden longsword appeared in his right. Its radiant brilliance drove out all darkness. Jacob knelt on one knee, kissing the iron-gray pentagram ring on Solomon's finger. Catherine, Lara Croft, and Sophia all witnessed this ceremony—though each reacted differently.
"Your duty is fulfilled, Jacob. Your loyalty will be remembered for generations."
"That is the highest honor I could ask for, my Emperor. Though I assure you, I'm not quite as noble as you make me out to be." The Undying Prophet Jacob winked mischievously, nodding to his tearful daughter. "Don't cry, Sophia. I can finally rest."
"History will embellish the tale, but your deeds won't be forgotten. Your name will be etched upon my armor." Solomon laid the sword upon Jacob's shoulder. "Farewell, my strange old friend."
"Farewell, my great Emperor. Until we meet again."
Sophia led a portion of her people to settle in the Eternal City. They would become soldiers directly under Solomon's command, fulfilling Jacob's dying wish. Even if Sophia was reluctant, she had to comply. She promised her people would receive scientific education, but faith was a personal matter—she had no authority over it.
Another group chose to remain behind and work with the engineering team rebuilding the Lost City.
That group was determined to stay in Siberia and guard Jacob's legacy—Kitt City. Their conviction was immovable, and no amount of persuasion from Sophia could sway them. The Mage intended to turn the city into a secondary base, used by the Eternal City's rapid response forces for European operations. As such, Solomon spared no expense and established a permanent teleportation gate between Kitt City and the Eternal City for logistical coordination.
Maya Hansen was ecstatic to receive the dying golden-armored warrior.
Several of the bio-lab's projects had been stuck at trial-and-error stages—such as special organ transplants and enhanced gland systems, or muscle development guided by genetic programming. Progress had been slow, and many experiments had been shelved mid-way. Now, with a template, the project gained direction. Maya believed she could create warriors even greater than the one lying before them.
But she didn't rush to dissect or experiment.
The chamber now holding the Divine Source had been transformed. Surrounded by automated turrets and a five-inch-thick vault, reinforced with countless magical runes, it annihilated any resurrected undead soldier that approached. However, such extensive security also weakened the mystical contract connecting the Source and the warrior. Even the high-tech-magical life support bed couldn't stop his condition from worsening.
Initially, Solomon had hoped to revive the warrior first and extract knowledge of the future from him. Their souls were connected; surely, he believed, the warrior would reveal future truths. But after reviewing the situation, Maya Hansen firmly rejected the idea.
"You know what this would cause, Solomon," she said calmly, as if the scalpel in her hand didn't exist. "His role was to come here—that's what time decreed. I trust you understand the significance of that."
"We'll find his future self and raise him as a gene-enhanced soldier. That's his purpose—to give us the data and tech we need now."
Solomon stood silently for a moment, then nodded.
"Preserve the armor," he sighed deeply.
Losing two major figures in a single day unsettled him deeply—Jacob, who had fulfilled a millennia-long mission, and this golden warrior. Their deaths weighed on him, even if he didn't show it. He had yet to become used to loss, but he knew he would have to.
"I'll ask Shuri to restore the armor. His weapon too—it'll be well cared for." He looked once more at the golden warrior being moved into the lab. "When we meet him again, give him his armor and weapon. He'll fulfill his destiny."
"If our project succeeds, their loyalty will be encoded in their DNA. I'm certain he would gladly give his life—knowing how much his existence meant." Maya nodded. "I've always felt our research was on the right path. Now we just need to fill in the gaps."
"All data to be classified at the highest level. Physically air-gapped from external networks."
"I understand."
Before the surgery began, Solomon took out an extremely thick grimoire and sat beside the medical pod, beginning to chant a long and arduous spell. The ritual would take 24 hours without rest. Only a handful of casters in history had managed it. The spell's complexity, coupled with the soul's innate resistance, made it exponentially harder.
But that wasn't a problem for Solomon.
He would cast directly upon the soul of the golden warrior—using it to replace the spell "Vishanti's Pious Guardian," while adding additional functions. Simply put, the warrior's soul would become a divine familiar—capable of fighting, communicating, even thinking. With the right spellwork, the warrior could perform tasks just as he had in life.
Even if Solomon refused to acknowledge his divine nature, he could still act with divine power.
To him, it was merely convenience—a stepping stone toward the great plan of the future.
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Fairy Tail: Igneel's Eldest Son (Chapter 256)
I Am Thalos, Odin's Older Brother (Chapter 336)
Reborn in America's Anti-Terror Unit (Chapter 542)
Solomon in Marvel (Chapter 924)
Becoming the Wealthiest Tycoon on the Planet (Chapter 1284)
Surgical Fruit in the American Comics Universe (Chapter 1289)
American Detective: From TV Rookie to Seasoned Cop (Chapter 1316)
American TV Writer (Chapter 1402)
I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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