The rain outside makes the stone hallway damp and the rug beneath your feet moist, implanting the idea of moss on a forest floor in your head. Your walk, silent and determined, gives off the impression that you are tracking a creature within the imaginary wood. Instead of finding a wild boar to wrestle you come to a familiar oak door, that of Issar Roon. Excited to hear the old man's continuation of his previous story, you push the door open noisily. If any boars or deer lived within the monastery, they surely would have fled at the sound. Instead, the noise affects no one, including the old man in front of you bent over a pile of books on the floor.

Excited to hear more are you? The young are always curious. I will be with you in a moment, once I find this blasted book.

Assuming the old man has no qualms, you set yourself down on the broad rug. Waiting for the old man to finish, you idly study the partially revealed design. Perhaps you can finally decipher the feelings of recognition that always come when you sit upon it.

Where could it have run off to?

Something about the five colors within the symbol seems to resonate with an unconscious memory. Distracted, you don't notice the old man returning to his desk until he sits on his stool.

Now where did I end the tale on your last visit? Ah, yes... Xantcha's heartstone. It would become an important part of the war against Phrexia, and was Xantcha's last great gift to Urza. Only, it went by a different name after her death.

The idea of a heart, or whatever a heartstone is, going by a new name seems ridiculous. You wonder how the old man can continually invent stranger tales than the last.

During his studies with time, Urza found it impossible to send natural beings through the time streams without destroying them, but his research showed that silver could pass unharmed. In an attempt to create an intelligent probe able to travel through time, Urza created a silver golem and implanted Xantcha's heartstone within it. Her heartstone gave the golem sentience, and together they formed a being that would influence the Multiverse for millennia to come. His prominence would have to wait, however.

Urza provided the newly created golem with a fairly simple life at the Tolarian Academy. The golem participated in Urza's time experiments, but filled most of his days by learning from the young wizards at the school. He eventually created a very close friendship with a student named Jhoira, and it was from her that he attained his name, Karn. A Thran word meaning ‘mighty' or ‘strength', Jhoira believed it to befit the golem and convinced others to call him by his new name.

The more stories you hear from the old man, the more you begin to understand that he could not possibly invent them at the time of their telling. You begin to wonder if the old man has written all of these stories in the books that now surround you. Perhaps that is what he's been doing since his arrival at the monastery.

During his time at the Tolarian Academy Karn helped with new projects and missions meant to prepare for the war against Phrexia. He often travelled on the Skyship Weatherlight, and learned much about Dominaria, as well as the Multiverse. He began to appreciate life, and matured much like the way a human teenager grows in mind and spirit as he becomes a man.

Karn's happiness would not last however. As he spent more and more time traveling and working towards Urza's goals he became separated from Jhoira. The golem was unable to enjoy life without his good friend, and he began to slip into a state of tumultuous depression. Worried about the golem, Barrin, the master of the Tolarian Academy, urged Urza to intervene. Urza agreed, and cast a spell to limit Karn's memory to the past twenty years, unwittingly aiding in future problems for Karn.

The old man opens the silver book on his desk, and begins to turn the pages. His fingers flip the pages lightly, allowing you to glimpse black lettering as a page pauses at the pinnacle of its path between ends.

Many years later, Urza gave Karn the task of protecting the Capashen family, the result of Urza's great Bloodlines project. Urza's caution was validated when a Phrexian raid killed the family, but Karn was able to rescue the son, Gerrard. With no relatives left alive, Karn took Gerrard to his new home as part of Sidar Kondo's family at the request of Urza.

When the pieces of the Legacy left in Gerrard's care were stolen Karn again attempted to protect Urza's hard work. While trying to retrieve the Legacy pieces, Karn was tricked into killing an innocent and trapped with an artifact called the Touchstone. After being freed, Karn was unable to forget the murder by his hand, and vowed to follow the path of a pacifist. The golem's pledge would turn his life into a series of tragedies, but that is a story you must hear another day.

The old man has made it clear that you are dismissed, but has yet again left his story unfinished. Frustrated, you stand up and walk dejectedly toward the door. As you pull the heavy thing closed behind you and step into the damp hallway a thought emerges. You can't help from wondering if the old man secretly enjoys telling you his fantastic stories.

This is a work of fiction based on the stories and entries provided by Wizards about some of the early characters. The author takes some liberty with the story for dramatic purposes. So the story portrayed here may not be the exact story according to Magic Canon. The author has found references and art to use in the following locations: Encyclopedia Phyrexianna and the MTG Salvation Wiki. Written by Brendan Weiskotten.