The sky was still dark, although pitch black was slowly being replaced by a deep blue. Soon the sun would rise.
Nero wasn't sure what calendar the Eldrim prescribed to. If their days changed at midnight, as it did in the modern world, then today it would be exactly 1210 years since the cathedral lost its connection to whatever database it had been trying to access.
It was a little bit of a jump to just assume that it was also on that day that the city underwent whatever change caused it to be abandoned, or buried under a mountain. But he could definitely say for certain that something significant had happened on that day, if the signs of destruction in the basement were anything to judge by.
He wondered if the database on the fourth level that he heard about was in the room with the glass boxes.
It no longer mattered to him for now, but it was something to reflect on.
Outside, the major was talking to someone through an earpiece, but though Nero could see his lips moving, he could neither read them nor hear his words.
While he talked all the participants in the cathedral stepped out and gathered around the major, forming up to stay close to him. After a few minutes the major ended his call and said, "follow me. We have to pick up another team from nearby, then I'll lead you in."
They started walking through the city, though because of the lockdown it still felt deserted. Nero could not identify any significant change in the city as a result of the defences being up, but then again, maybe that was a good thing.
Since they were forced to walk, and the major kept a relatively moderate pace so that no one was left behind, it took them twenty minutes before they arrived at another building where another team of Neophytes were waiting.
Compared to Nero and the rest, who were well rested now but showed signs of having faced intense battles, this team looked completely fresh. Their armour was still spick and span, and none of their weapons showed any signs of wear at all.
Even Nero's spear, despite being made from a remarkable alloy, was already beginning to dull at the blade.
The new team was slightly concerned upon seeing the condition of the others, but they said nothing. At that point they picked up the pace a little, jogging towards their destination.
Although the difference was subtle, Nero was able to tell when they entered the part of the city that had been covered in fog. The city so far had been preserved unbelievably well, not only considering how old it was, but also the fact that it was essentially buried.
But the part of the city they were in now looked practically brand new. If someone told Nero that the construction for everything had been completed yesterday he would have believed it. The colours were deeper, the edges sharper and everything looked overall as if it was in a better condition.
Nero strongly suspected that the reason for that was not the fog, but the fact that the concentration of aether in this place was suddenly much higher. That may have also been one of the reasons he could tell he had crossed some kind of invisible barrier to where the fog normally resides.
They continued to move through the city, the long jog already beginning to affect some of them, when they suddenly turned a corner and an absolutely massive building came into view.
It was rectangular, and rose hundreds of metres into the sky, with a few spires at each corner, continuing the ever persistent trend throughout the city. A hundred cathedrals could probably line up together and they would form just the front width of the building, and who knew how long the length of it was.
Moreover, unlike the rest of the city which seemed nearly abandoned, there were countless tents set up all around it, with hundreds of soldiers moving around its border. They dared not go too far from the building, lest the city defences act against them.
Immediately after, Nero noticed that most of the tents were medical tents, and the soldiers running around were doctors.
What was it that the major had said? Thousands of Arcanists, hundreds of Mystics and dozens of Ascendants were clearing out the upper levels. He was suddenly reminded of the empty glass boxes in the basement. Were they empty because the specimen in them got out, or because the level of the specimen in them was too high, and the fog killed them?
He didn't get time to ponder that question because as soon as they arrived a dozen people surrounded the major, rushing to speak to him all at once.
"All of you, head to the command tent and someone will tell you what to do from there," the major said, turning to look back at Nero. The moment lasted for just a second before the major was pulled away by countless soldiers.
The condition of the temporary base around them was chaotic. Most of the soldiers in view were wounded, wrapped in gauze, and not doing so well. The number of amputees was incredibly high as well.
There were clearly not enough doctors to tend to all of them, which is why the sight of nervous nurses, running around looking for equipment filled the camp. The noise of running and yelling was accompanied by the sounds of wailing and pain filled moaning.
The chaos was almost overwhelming, especially considering that they were about to join in the battle.
Nero raised his hand, signalling his team to follow him as he navigated through the mess, prompting the others to act as well.
Finding the command tent wasn't difficult. Asking directions only once led them to the tent, and Nero just reported to the first soldier he saw, since he didn't know exactly who he was supposed to report to.
At first, even the people in the command tent were confused by his sudden arrival, but as soon as they saw his team, as well as the following others, they quickly brought them all to a briefing room.
A few minutes later, a weary looking soldier walked in, holding a projector.
"Your timing is excellent," the soldier said as he began setting up the projector. "We just got news that a security node has been found, but the leading team needs backup to get to it. It will take time for the other teams already deployed to get there because navigating inside the research facility is not exactly easy, not to mention the obstacles."
The projector turned on, and a simple, hand drawn map was projected onto the wall in front of them. Despite being simple, it was apparent that the map was not of the layout of the facility, but rather the path they had to follow to reach the team they had to provide backup to.
"Memorise this path as you will be taken to this specific entrance soon enough. You will get a communication device, but how well it works inside is completely up to chance. The device is to connect to the command centre in case you learn some important information, or need back up. But keep in mind that we are short on numbers, so getting backup is not guaranteed."
The soldier paused for a moment to make sure they understood everything he told them, then changed the slide.
This time, what was displayed was a picture of a monster they were all too familiar with. It was a berserker, alongside a picture of its skinny, human version.
"Inside the facility you will face a number of monsters. This is the most common kind of monster you will face, and we've temporarily titled it Corruption Specimen A. It has incredibly high defence, and is able to resist slashing and cutting attacks to a great extent. It also has a very high healing factor. It also boasts excellent strength.
Its greatest weakness, as far as we've been able to determine, is its neck. Blunt force attacks based on its neck will work very well.
"We will provide you with cards we've specially designed for this exact purpose. Although the range of those cards are very small, if you're able to accurately use them then a couple of hits should be enough to take a Specimen A out."
The soldier then changed the image again, and this time Nero recognised only one of the two images. On the right was shown the humanoid panther-like creature he saw in the glass box, though the horns looked a little different.
On the right, however, was a monster that made even a berserker look tame. The dark berserker, as Nero named it for himself considering its colour, was not nearly as bulky as a berserker, but it was taller, and leaner. Its horn had somehow grown as well, and instead of going upwards, flowed downwards, forming a webbed, spiked armour around the creature's torso.
"This is Specimen B, and it is much more dangerous than Specimen A."