Nero was sleeping soundly in his private room within the hospital, a drip attached to his left arm, slowly medicating him. The meeting the previous day had lasted a long time, and though Nero was far from totally drained, he opted to get as much rest as possible under Dr. Iris’ gentle recommendation.
He had severely over exerted himself lately, and even the magic of Eldrim cards could not entirely negate that. What he needed was plentiful rest as well as sufficient time to recover, and his body was all too cooperative when he lay in bed earlier.
Yet when the door to his room opened, silently and slowly, barely noticeable in the dim nightlight of the private room, Nero immediately woke up. It was the subtle shift in the air, the slightest breeze of fresh air that disturbed him. On one hand, being such a light sleeper made it tough for him to get a good night’s sleep on most nights. On the other hand, it helped keep him safe.
He opened his eyes lightly and tried to observe the door without arousing suspicion, yet he saw no one enter or exit. He only saw the door open for a brief moment before closing just as silently as it opened.
"In your rush to avoid being noticed and reduce your window for getting caught, the breeze you caused by opening the door was a significant giveaway," said Nero, his voice very casual as if he was not afraid at all. A moment later, Vanessa appeared wearing a dissatisfied frown.
"How’d you know it was me?" she asked.
"For once, I didn’t," Nero confessed, and lifted his blanket to show his trusty knife held tightly in his grip - the very same one his mother had packed for him when he left home the day he synchronised. He was never without it, even in the relative safety of an army base.
"We have a problem, and it’s a big one," Vanessa said, switching the light on in the room and pulling up a chair.
Nero noticed her ruffled hair, a clear sign that she had gotten ready in a hurry. There was sand around her eyes and a subtle drowsiness in her eyes that she had not overcome just yet. She had only recently woken up.
"What’s wrong?" Nero asked, sitting up in his bed.
"There’s an emergency meeting going on in the head office at the moment and as it happened… I managed to learn what it is about. Your Arbiter of Law and Order summoned Sage Morphius before a supreme court panel. The actual reason for the summons is supposed to be a secret, but it was leaked. Apparently, he’s not happy that the army is using Neophytes in places where other soldiers can actually go.
"Now the officers here are also in an emergency meeting discussing what to do. Some want to hold all further ventures into Perilith until the trial is done, while the others want to utilize that time as much as possible and use your latest strategy, which has already proven effective.
"I’m sure whatever they decide will be for the best, but I absolutely can’t miss out this opportunity to find the pond I’m looking for. We need to think of a way to ensure more excursions. It is too valuable, and not just to me. I can share its benefits with others. Though, the more people who share, the less each person gets. The best-case scenario would be for only two people to enjoy what it has to offer."
For a few moments, Nero continued to stare at her, but when she said nothing he shook his head in disappointment.
"Are you really going to make me ask? What does the pond do?"
Vanessa smirked, as if she was enjoying teasing him, but she didn’t have the time to savour the feeling.
"You’ve probably heard the concept of aetheric talent, right? There’s no way to measure it, but there are theories that the greater the talent, the earlier one unlocks their innate ability. The rate at which everyone grows from level to level is also different. Some people take only a few years what others need decades to achieve, and don’t even get me started on the bottleneck one hits before becoming a Mystic.
"All of these are dictated by aetheric talent. The greater one’s aetheric talent, the easier it is for them to control aether, to grow through the levels, to make complex Eldrim cards and overall achieve greater success with all things related to aether.
"But we have no way to measure this aetheric talent, or influence it. At least, under ordinary circumstances we do not. Yet the pond, aptly called the Purification Pond in the records I read back in Nova, does just that. It purifies the body, removing impurities and increasing the target’s aetheric talents. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, one that will directly influence our journey as Card Masters forever.
"If you can help me ensure that we can continue more expeditions, and we can find the pond in the little time we have left, I don’t mind sharing the effects of the pond with you. After all, I’m the only one who knows how to even activate its effects."
Nero continued to look at her, waiting for her to crack a joke or something, but she never did. She was entirely serious, and just stared at him, waiting for a response.
"Are you serious about this?" he asked. He’d never heard of anything even remotely related to raising aetheric talent, for it was mostly considered an unofficial quality. He’d most certainly never heard of something that could change aetheric talent, even within the realms of cartoons and comics. If it was real, even a small upgrade was something he didn’t want to miss.
"Yes, I’m very serious about this. Why else do you think I went to such lengths to get the Kolari army to agree with me?"
Nero nodded, and then neatly removed the blanket from over his legs. He unhooked the drip attached to his arms, and stepped off the bed, slowly flexing his arms.
"Let’s go convince them to hold more expeditions. How much time do you think we have left?"
"That depends entirely on how the trial goes. It could be a few hours, and it could be a few days."
Nero merely nodded, and led the way out.
"Just prepare yourself. This is not going to be easy, I’m not in the best of conditions."