The Choice Crucible (Part 9)

In this chapter of The Choice Crucible, the journey turns inward — to the smelting ground of free will itself. Through the language of metallurgy, the narrative explores how potential and impurity coexist within every soul. Ore becomes metaphor: some endure the fire to reveal bright metal, while others cool as slag, serving the world in quiet strength.
Through the Inhibitor lens, the furnace becomes the world, and every choice becomes an assay — a test not of worth, but of truth under heat. Both white and grey are given purpose. Nothing is wasted. Everything reveals.