The brilliant, white light of the chrysalis folded in on itself, growing smaller and more solid, like a star collapsing into a single, perfect point.
The hum of immense, cosmic power in the science lab faded, replaced by a gentle, quiet calm. When the last of the light was gone, a man was lying on the platform where the Soul Forge had been.
He was naked, his body still and quiet, as if he were in a deep, peaceful sleep. It was Ryan. But it was also not Ryan. He looked the same, his features unchanged, but there was a new, profound sense of peace about him, as if he had just woken up from the longest and most restful sleep in the history of the universe.
The weight of being a god, the burden of a million possible futures, was gone from his face. He was just a man.
