The city always glowed, even at midnight.
Ashir had never seen true darkness. Not once in his seventeen cycles. The Dome above shimmered with soft white light, pulsing gently like a heartbeat. It was called the Light of Peace — a gift from the Flame Throne, they said.
The priests told them,
> "The Light never sleeps, because truth must always be seen."
But Ashir had begun to wonder…
If the Light never sleeps, maybe it's because it's hiding something.
---
He looked at the statues lining the Grand Plaza.
Tall marble gods with wings, laurel crowns, swords in hand — the Radiant Ones.
Their names were never spoken, only bowed to.
But Ashir had read old fragments in school, and one statue always haunted him:
> A towering figure with rays of sun behind his head, arms outstretched.
They called him Solian the Peacebringer.
But in a forgotten tongue, he was once called Sol Invictus.
There were others too:
Aurion, the god of order (Mars in ancient Rome)
Numa, the Dove-Bearer (recast version of Mithras)
Mother Luxia, goddess of healing (really Venus, queen of seduction)
Divinius, the "First Emperor of Light" — draped like Caesar, worshiped like a prophet
Ashir asked a tutor once:
> "Why do they look like the old Roman idols?"
The tutor had gone pale.
The next day, Ashir was assigned to "obedience conditioning."
---
He learned not to ask again.
But he never forgot.
---
At the center of the city stood the Temple of Flame — built atop a buried stone foundation.
A foundation no one talked about.
It was said to be "holy," yet made of black rock — ancient, scorched, and older than the Light Empire itself.
Some said it was built by the first bringer of truth.
Others whispered it had been stolen — renamed — repurposed.
Ashir believed the second.
---
So when the Offering was announced, and the three condemned were paraded before the Flame…
And when the Voice declared:
> "In the names of Solian, Luxia, and Divinius…
we purify this city in light."
Ashir finally saw through it:
> These weren't gods.
They were false lights — old Roman idols reborn in a new skin.
A religion of unity, yes — but one based on ancient betrayal.
---
He turned to flee.
And in the shadows, the ragged man whispered:
> "Now you see, child of the glow.
You walk in Rome…
but call it Heaven