PART IV: AFTER THE DEFEAT OF THE BLACK MAGE

Chapter 6: High Mountain

• After the battle of Cernium, Mitra awoke in an unknown part of Grandis, with his last recollection being losing to an ancient Adversary during the Ancient War. He then recalled losing to another Adversary while possessing Seren, growing furious at being bested by ‘the Overseers’ toys’. Declaring that he would exact divine retribution as the ‘god of gods’, Mitra rushed to High Mountain order to rally the Celestials for war.

• There, however, he found that the Celestials were gone, and that the descendants of Tynos - the Ancient God of calamity, who had been defeated by Mitra ages ago when he and the Celestials had taken High Mountain from him - had overrun the city. With Mitra having once split Tynos into three pieces, each sealed with his own divine power beneath High Mountain, Mitra wondered whether the three seals were weakening.

• He first went to the first seal and took back his power, breaking the seal and unleashing the first piece of Tynos. As he did, Seren arrived at High Mountain while searching for a way to fix Azor. There, she discovered Mitra and told him about the fall of High Mountain and the Celestials. Seren also discovered that it seemed as though the seals had been tampered with, with an unknown person injecting a substance into the seals.

• Nevertheless, Mitra remained unconcerned and declared that he would simply destroy Tynos nus completely and put an end to whatever reason the seals had been tampered with. Though Mitra told Seren to leave, she nevertheless continued following him, believing it her duty to save her home and fix Azor. However, Mitra revealed that Azor - as a holy relic - would repair itself in the hands of a worthy Chosen One.

• As Mitra absorbed back the second seal’s power and defeated the second piece of Tynos, Seren realized that the black smoke which the pieces had been scattered into were reforming back into Tynos’ full form. Though Seren cautioned Mitra against acting recklessly, Mitra simply declared himself the strongest god and vowed to destroy Tynos, even if it meant putting Grandis into danger.

• Disillusioned by Mitra’s arrogance, Seren grew frustrated to know that the god of the Celestials cared so little for others, even as they had all died for him during the fall of High Mountain. Declaring that Mitra was no longer her god, Seren threw Azor at his feet and left to stop Tynos herself. Mitra was amused by her daring and followed her to the third seal, where he asked her why she stood against him.

• Seren explained that over the course of many ages, people had continued dying endlessly for the Sun God, with her people putting Azor over their own lives as High Mountain fell, and even the people of Cernium warring for ages over the different forms of Mitra. However, with people continuing to fight to survive every day, she declared that she would do whatever it took to help them.

• Impressed by Seren’s words, Mitra laughed that what she was saying was quite heretical. To Seren’s shock, Azor began to react in her hands. Seren was surprised that she would be deemed worthy by Mitra after disavowing him, to which Mitra explained that she was worthy because she had saved herself with her own hands, rather than begging pointlessly to some higher power for salvation. He then told Seren to “grasp it, for salvation was in her own hands”, quoting the inscription upon Azor.

• Suddenly, Tynos’ incomplete form swallowed Seren and broke the final seal himself. With Mitra defeating the third piece, the black smoke from the piece merged with the rest of Tynos into his complete form. As Mitra fought to save Seren, Seren found herself paralyzed in the dark, starlit void of Tynos’ stomach.

• As she began falling into despair, she began recalling the words of the Adversary which had given her the courage to believe in herself again. Refusing to give up, Seren repaired Azor with her fierce determination and awakened as the Chosen One, using her solar power to break through Tynos’ stomach. Mitra and Seren then fought together to defeat Tynos once and for all.

• However, Tynos - using the power of a strange crystal - began fusing together with High Mountain itself in an attempt to devour Grandis. Realizing that the crystal had been injected into Tynos by Darmoor, Seren attempted to fight Tynos, though she was stopped by Mitra, who unleashed his full power against Tynos, knocking Seren unconscious from the battle.

• When Seren awoke, she discovered that Tynos and High Mountain were obliterated, with Mitra nowhere in sight. With High Mountain - the last tie to her past trauma - destroyed, Seren declared that she was free from the chains that kept her tied to her pain, vowing that she would do whatever it took to defeat Darmoor for what he had done to her people.