Act Two: It Rises to the Surface

Morning came, and the storm abated.

Arash hadn't slept - he rarely slept, save for when physical exhaustion demanded it. A knock upon the door roused him from his trance.

"Who is it?" he said, feigning innocence.

"You're being moved," said a voice Arash recognised as Chen's. "Come now."

He shrugged, and did as he was bid. The Radiant fortress was sickeningly bathed in golden sunlight, a far cry from the hopeless twilight he felt at home in. It was as if the sun was scouring him, a dark thing that did not belong here.

It was then that he caught a glimpse of the Radiant Ancient.

It was exactly what he thought it would look like - a grand edifice of Radiant Ore and natural life, protected by two titanic towers locked in eternal vigilance. Arash felt its touch on his mind, and it was a touch he had felt before - at the Dire Ancient, when the Shadow Fiend had forced him to take a side in a war that was not his.

Both sides are the same, he realised. I…
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