Atlantis
Atlantis is an ancient, flawlessly preserved city hidden inside a massive cavern deep beneath the Mediterranean Sea on Earth (Mar). While human history and scholars like Plato believed Atlantis to be a sunken island in the Atlantic Ocean, it was actually constructed deep underground by elves tens of thousands of years ago.
Geography and Environment
Atlantis is a vast, black city outlined in glittering blue lines. The architecture features graceful spires, bridges, circular terraces, and tall, cylindrical buildings. A river meanders through the city, lined with trees, bushes, and strange glowing flowers. The entire cavern is illuminated by this bioluminescence, casting a constant, eerie blue glow over the silent streets.
The city is completely devoid of life—there are no people, animals, or vehicles anywhere to be seen. However, it is heavily decorated with statues and carvings, most notably large stone Anubis figures featuring human torsos and fox-like heads with large pointed ears.
Despite having been abandoned for millennia, Atlantis shows absolutely no signs of wear, tear, or decay. Houses remain open with beds that are clean and comfortable. Orym notes that the city is maintained by an incredibly advanced application of Artifact magic, functioning as a stasis field that likely utilizes a combination of forcefinding and transmuting magic to keep everything perfectly preserved.
Telperion
At the far rear of the city stands its most awe-inspiring feature: an impossibly massive cypress Tree that towers thousands of feet over everything else. As one approaches, the Tree glows brighter and brighter until it shines a brilliant gold like the sun.
This Tree is Telperion, the physical prison of the light Twin, Velion. Because it is a Prison Tree, it constantly emits an incredibly powerful, pure, and flat waveform of dúathmain (darkprime) magic.
Key Events
The Space Agency Expedition
For tens of thousands of years, Atlantis remained completely undetected. However, when Earth (Mar) entered the Persephone solar system, the Ilyrion Space Agency detected the immense darkprime emissions radiating from Telperion under the Mediterranean Sea.
Orym leads a submarine expedition to investigate the signal, accompanied by the archaeologist Mistale, the head diver Elasha, and the pilot Shara. The entrance to the cave is guarded by massive Anubis statues and a series of deadly magical traps. The traps claim the lives of Mistale and the rest of the crew, leaving only Orym, Elasha, and a maddened Shara to successfully enter the city.
The Three Planets Discovery
While stranded in Atlantis, Orym and Elasha explore the buildings to the west of Telperion and discover ancient Eglarian hieroglyphics. By translating these diagrams, Orym makes a groundbreaking discovery regarding the Defense Mechanism designed to stop the Fall (Guruthos): the ancient system does not rely on seven planets, but only three—Valar, Mar, and Eryn.
Orym remains trapped in the idyllic but empty city until the moment Earth is forcefully gated to its new location by Trey. Recognizing that the planet's movement allows him to escape, Orym opens a gate and leaves Elasha behind in Atlantis.