The facility was waking up.
Ancient runes ignited beneath centuries of sediment.
Blue light spread across the cliffside like veins coming alive after a long slumber.
For the first time in nearly one hundred thousand years, Oceanic Research Facility 12-A responded to an Atlantean's presence.
And unfortunately...
The Redmaws noticed too.
Thousands of crimson jaws turned toward the facility.
The school no longer cared about Thalor.
The awakening structure had become their sole focus.
"Arcadia."
"Yes?"
"Please tell me those things aren't about to rush the facility."
The construct observed the growing frenzy among the Redmaws.
"They are about to rush the facility."
"..."
"I dislike disappointing you."
"You seem surprisingly comfortable doing it."
Arcadia ignored him.
As usual.
The Trident vibrated.
Not in warning.
In anticipation.
Thalor could feel it.
Something inside the facility was calling to it.
Calling to Atlantis.
Calling him.
Another pulse erupted from the structure.
The surrounding water shimmered.
Mana density increased dramatically.
The Redmaws surged forward.
Thousands of predators launched themselves toward the entrance.
Thalor swore.
Then accelerated.
Fusion Magic flooded his body.
Mana reinforced his muscles.
His lungs.
His heart.
His nervous system.
The Worldborne Sigil beneath his skin illuminated.
The ocean blurred around him.
For months, Arcadia had forced him to practice moving through water efficiently.
Now he finally understood why.
Water wasn't an obstacle.
It was a pathway.
A medium.
A road.
And at this moment...
He needed every advantage he could get.
The facility entrance grew closer.
Ancient silver-white doors stood partially open.
The structure itself appeared to have forced them apart during the awakening sequence.
Blue light poured from the opening.
The nearest Redmaws were almost there.
Thalor pushed harder.
His muscles screamed.
His mana reserves dipped.
The facility loomed before him.
Ten meters.
Five.
Three.
He crossed the threshold moments before the first Redmaw reached the entrance.
Then the facility reacted.
Ancient runes exploded across the doorway.
A barrier materialized.
The Redmaw slammed into it.
The magical beast bounced backward violently.
Then another struck.
And another.
And another.
Thousands of impacts echoed through the structure.
Yet the barrier held.
For now.
Thalor exhaled slowly.
"That was close."
Arcadia glanced toward the barrier.
"Technically speaking, we remain in considerable danger."
"Thank you."
"You are welcome."
The corridor beyond stretched into darkness.
Ancient crystal lamps flickered to life as he approached.
One after another.
Illuminating a path that had remained untraveled for nearly one hundred millennia.
The architecture immediately differed from Atlantis.
Not grand.
Not decorative.
Functional.
Every wall contained runes.
Every chamber possessed purpose.
This wasn't a city.
It was a machine.
A machine designed to study and manage World Energy.
As they advanced deeper into the facility, Arcadia became increasingly silent.
An unusual occurrence.
Normally, she treated silence as a personal enemy.
Finally, Thalor noticed.
"You're excited."
Arcadia looked at him.
"I am incapable of excitement."
The Trident pulsed.
Arcadia immediately looked away.
"...I am experiencing elevated operational efficiency."
Thalor laughed.
"You're excited."
The construct said nothing.
Which was answer enough.
They entered a massive central chamber.
Thalor stopped.
The room was enormous.
Hundreds of meters across.
Countless runic conduits spread through the walls.
Crystalline structures protruded from every surface.
At the center stood a sphere of blue-white energy suspended above an ancient pedestal.
The sphere slowly rotated.
Still functioning.
Still active.
Still alive.
After ninety-eight thousand years.
Thalor stared.
"That's impossible."
Arcadia immediately looked pleased.
"Correct."
"Don't start."
"Yet it remains operational."
The sphere pulsed.
A wave of mana spread through the chamber.
Pure mana.
Not World Energy.
Mana.
Refined.
Purified.
Stable.
Thalor felt it instantly.
The density exceeded even the mana geyser connected to Atlantis.
His core practically vibrated.
The Worldborne Sigil glowed.
The Trident answered.
Then the chamber awakened completely.
Ancient runes illuminated throughout the room.
Systems began activating.
One after another.
A voice echoed through the chamber.
Cold.
Mechanical.
Ancient.
Atlantean Identity Confirmed.
Thalor froze.
Arcadia's eyes widened.
The voice continued.
Genetic Verification Complete.
Human Lineage Confirmed.
Atlantean Lineage Confirmed.
The chamber brightened further.
Administrator Access Granted.
A figure materialized above the sphere.
Humanoid.
Constructed entirely from flowing blue energy.
Less sophisticated than Arcadia.
Less expressive.
Yet clearly related.
The projection bowed.
Greetings.
I am Tethys.
World Energy Convergence Facility 12-A Administrator.
The construct paused.
Then continued.
Awaiting Network Reconnection.
Duration: 97,843 Years.
Silence filled the chamber.
Even Arcadia appeared momentarily speechless.
A remarkable achievement.
Tethys turned toward her.
Senior Administrative Intelligence Detected.
Arcadia slowly nodded.
"Tethys."
The construct bowed again.
Administrator Arcadia.
Welcome Back.
For a moment...
Something changed in Arcadia's expression.
Not emotion.
Something close to it.
Because for the first time since Atlantis fell...
She was speaking to another survivor.
Not a ruin.
Not an archive.
Not a machine.
A survivor.
Tethys turned toward the central sphere.
Primary Convergence Engine Operational.
Mana Purification Efficiency: 11%.
Arcadia's eyes widened.
"Eleven percent?"
Tethys nodded.
Continuous Operation for 97,843 Years.
Thalor blinked.
"Wait."
He pointed at the sphere.
"That thing has been running this entire time?"
Affirmative.
"...How?"
The administrator answered immediately.
World Energy Intake.
Purification.
Storage.
Environmental Redistribution.
Arcadia suddenly understood.
So did the Trident.
The facility hadn't survived because it stored enough mana.
It survived because it never stopped feeding.
Like a living organism.
Drawing in World Energy.
Purifying it.
Returning it to Mogar.
For nearly one hundred thousand years.
Tethys projected a map of the surrounding seabed.
Thalor's eyes widened.
Vast mineral deposits surrounded the facility.
Adamant veins stretched for kilometers.
Several sections glowed differently.
Brighter.
Denser.
More valuable.
Arcadia stared.
Then whispered.
"Impossible."
Thalor groaned.
"Again?"
Tethys highlighted the deposits.
Adamant Evolution Detected.
Davross Formation Confirmed.
Silence.
Even Thalor understood enough to recognize the significance.
Davross.
One of the rarest materials on Mogar.
And there wasn't merely a vein.
There was an entire deposit.
Ninety-eight thousand years of purified mana had transformed the seabed itself.
Atlantis hadn't simply survived here.
It had continued shaping the world.
Even in its sleep.
The Trident pulsed triumphantly.
Arcadia looked toward the map.
Then toward the facility.
Then toward Thalor.
For the first time since their journey began...
She smiled.
A genuine smile.
"Thalor."
"Yes?"
"The restoration of Atlantis may be easier than I anticipated."
Far beneath the ocean...
Ancient systems continued awakening.
And somewhere deep within the facility, hidden beneath layers of stone and time...
A dormant Warp Nexus waited for power.
Ready to reconnect Atlantis to the world once more.