"Mia!" I yell back and open my eyes, jumping from my back into an upright position. I look over to see Mia still asleep and the fire extinguished. The sun shines through the windows into the room.

"Just a dream, just a dream." I say as I walk towards a basin of water in the corner and splash my face.

I take a deep breath, letting the cool water splash across my face ground me. The remnants of the dream cling to my mind like fog, and I can still hear Vermidia's voice echoing in my ears. I look back toward Mia, who is still sleeping peacefully, oblivious to everything that just happened.

Glancing around the dimly lit room, I take stock of our surroundings. The once welcoming dining hall now feels heavy with shadows, the aftermath of my dream lurking in every corner. The warmth of the sun filtering through the windows feels comforting, but I know better than to let my guard down.

I step back toward Mia, kneeling beside her. I gently shake her shoulder.

"Mia, wake up. It's morning." I whisper.

Her eyelids flutter open, and she blinks a few times, still groggy. "Hail?" she murmurs, her voice soft and laced with confusion. "How did you sleep?"

"Alright, just a nightmare," I say, forcing a smile despite the lingering unease in my chest. "But it felt so real."

She sits up slowly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Was it bad?"

I nod, the memory still fresh. "Vermidia was there. She..." I pause, considering how to explain the depths of my fear without overwhelming her. "She threatened you."

Mia's expression shifts, concern knitting her brows together. "I don't want to know."

I nod. "I don't blame you." I wish I didn't.

As she stretches, I catch a glimpse of determination in her eyes. "Let's check the book," she says, her voice steadying.

"Right," I agree, rising to my feet. "It's time we uncovered its secrets."

We move to the table where the book lies, its ancient pages glimmering faintly in the sunlight. I reach for it, feeling the weight of the knowledge it holds.

"Whatever's in here could change everything," I say, opening it cautiously.

The pages flutter in the light, revealing intricate illustrations and script that seem to pulse with energy.

Millions of ideas and images flash in my eyes. The books pages sweep faster and faster as they turn. I lean closer and then the pages stop.

"What the hell? I've never seen a book do that before." Mia is shocked.

"Definitely not a normal book." I say as I glance at the page. I notice a diagram of the Crux of Amerei, surrounded by runes that I can't quite decipher.

"Mia, look at this!" I say, tracing my finger over the illustration. "This must be the Crux. But these runes... I need your help."

She leans in, her eyes scanning the page with a focus that ignites my hope. "I've never seen this language before, we might need a translator. Here I'll write them down."

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As she says it, the pages shift again and the runes become words we can understand. "Or I guess you can translate yourself. Weird." Mia is motionless now at my shoulder.

As we pour over the pages, the shadows in the room seem to retreat, if only for a moment. But I can't shake the feeling that they are just waiting for their chance to strike.

The air feels charged with possibility, but I can't ignore the warning bells ringing in my mind. Time is of the essence, and Vermidia will not wait for us to unravel the secrets of the past.

As we delve deeper into the book, I can't help but glance at the door, half-expecting Vermidia to burst in at any moment. The shadows still feel heavy, oppressive. But for now, we have a purpose, a chance to reclaim our destiny and protect each other from the darkness that threatens to consume us both.

"So the crux was forged by Qharus, goddess of life, Julian, god of logic and wisdom, Arkos, god of magic and Thylan goddess of Love. They used their combined powers to make a device capable of forging these qualities into the world they created. I guess as a way of making their creation pure." Mia reads.

"Sounds great but where is it?" I ask.

"Don't rush now, it's getting good. 'The crux was made of madium.' Um... oh here. 'The crux could not be destroyed and was hidden away so that it might not fall into the wrong hands, only the gods know of its existence. Not even The Ogre of Knowledge knows where it resides.' I'm not sure what that means but, I guess not even he knows where to find it. I guess we are shit out of luck."

"What a waste of time! For fuck sake, Draco is such a bitch for not telling us. Not to mention this shitty book, you'd think it would know something if even Vermidia wanted it. Clearly it knows nothing."

The pages of the book begin to flip rapidly again. Mia stares into it in awe as I turn around and cross my arms, staring at the floor.

"'Forewarning, this book is a collection of the known multiverse. Every planet, every world, every universe and every timeline is compacted into these pages. With the power to rewrite itself to adapt to the known multiverse.' By the gods! 'However, this makes this book unstable. The holder of a book such as this one should be careful of the power it holds. It is filled with chaotic energy and due to its nature, it is one with the multiverse. It's power is that of the Nexus. This is why it is unstable. For all of these known timelines, universes, planets and worlds to exist in this book, is for them all to exist at once, as one. This generates raw energy at the likes no one has ever seen. This book is a fissure in time and space. Beware the following pages.' What the fuck Hail." She's shaking now. "What do we do with this?"

"I don't know, as far as we know it's lying. It didn't know where the Amerei Crux was."

"Maybe that's because it's not something that is known, or that is known anymore. Maybe the gods asked to have that information removed somehow? Maybe that's what Draco was here doing... damnit."

"So what now? No leads, there's absolutely no way we find it now. Nothing is going to stop Vermidia till she has it. As far as we know she's going to hunt Draco down and make him tell her. We can't teleport, and hitching a ride on a spacecraft to Naurus is far too expensive. What are we supposed to do?"

"We can't just give up, Hail. This book might be our only shot. Even if it's dangerous... even if we don't fully understand it yet."

I take a deep breath, still staring at the ground, trying to process everything. The weight of the moment, of the impossible task in front of us, presses down harder. "What if it's a trap? What if using it only makes things worse?"

"Worse than Vermidia finding the Crux and bringing Iridian back to life?" Mia snaps, her voice edged with desperation. "We don't have any other options!"

I run a hand through my hair, the frustration bubbling over. "I know that! But if this book can rewrite timelines, can manipulate everything, what's stopping it from rewriting us out of existence? Or making things worse? What if Vermidia gets her hands on this instead?"

Mia looks down at the book again, her hands trembling as she grips the edges of its cover. "It's risky, but maybe... if Draco asked the book to remove knowledge, could we ask it to add it back?"

She's onto something, but the idea of relying on something so unstable, so unpredictable, makes my stomach churn. Yet, every second we waste gives Vermidia more time to close in on us. We have no choice.

"Maybe," I say finally, the words heavy in my mouth. "But we need to be careful with how we ask it to."

Mia nods, her determination steadying her hands. "We ask you to please show us the information that was asked to be removed by you. The fate of The Nexus depends on it?"

"Why are you asking it like it's a question? You need to speak firm or else it might not work."

"Okay, um. The fate of The Nexus depends on it! Tell us the knowledge Draco asked you to conceal!" Mia says strongly.

"Well?" I ask.

She flips the page slowly, as if afraid the book might react violently. The parchment crackles, revealing another diagram this time, it's a map, shifting and warping as we stare at it.

Mia's eyes widen. "It's working... I think... I think it's showing us where the crux is."

The map shifts again, this time honing in on a mountain, it's hundreds of kilometers from our location. Surrounded by the familiar energy cracks that always seem to follow Vermidia. I can almost feel the pull of the place, like it's calling to us.

"This is it," Mia breathes, her voice barely a whisper. "We have to go."

I stare at the shifting map, the chaos in the pages reflecting the chaos inside me. This feels like a trap, like we're walking straight into Vermidia's hands. But what choice do we have?

"Alright," I say finally, standing up. "Then let's go find the crux and hope we're not already too late."

She closes the book and hands it to me. I place it in my pocket where mom's journal used to sit.

For a second I sense a flash, a vision of yesterday. The way I froze the village, the way I could have frozen Vermidia, Mia healing me.

"Wait, before we go... what if it is a trap. What if somehow Vermidia is influencing the book. We need to practice. You need to practice, you could easily save our lives with your healing."

She nods. "I guess, yeah you're right. How would I even...?"

Before she says it I interrupt her. "We're going to fight each other."

"Are you sure? What if..."

"Remember back at the village, I didn't freeze you. I didn't understand it then but now I think I get it. You're immune to it because you share my blood. If anything bad happens, just use your snow okay?"