All the water accumulated in the finishing move, Hydraulic Press, fell back down into the river bay. Eos's body was nowhere to be seen, but Giorgio knew he had won. For the first time since their fight had begun, Giorgio was at peace with the complete and utter silence around him.
He deactivated Fico Di Amalfi, and suddenly, a year's worth of fatigue hit him in one large pulse. It struck him to the ground, causing him to cough up blood onto the concrete ground; he had pushed himself to his limits during the fight, using an inhumane amount of spirit in the process. In fact, his spirit capacity, whilst using Flawless Mirror, totals twice the amount of spirit that is found in the human body, meaning Giorigo's body was now actively trying to compensate for double what the average projection user typically goes through.
Giorgio pushed through the pain and fatigue, which had now amounted to heights he had never felt before, and tried to get back on his feet. His entire body shook relentlessly, whilst his muscles failed in their contraction, in an attempt to beg him to remain dormant. Each time he made an attempt to rise, he fell even further. His vision grew more blurry by the second until suddenly everything went completely dark.
Visions appeared before him. First, they were just replications of his previous encounter with Nero; he could feel the same emotions now as he had then, but amplified to the maximum. Perhaps blood was gushing from his brain and causing his memory to become distorted, or perhaps this was the first time he could actually process everything that had just happened. He remembered how Nero looked at him with no emotion, no remorse for what he had done. How could he kill innocent people without internal conflict?
The thought of Nero's sudden change in behaviour and his betrayal lingered on Giorgio's mind until external, audible sounds penetrated his ears. They rang, initially, like an unstoppable bell, but slowly smoothed out and formed comprehensible sentences. Two voices, with familiar cadence, rallied words to one another, discussing Giorgio.
He gradually opened his eyes in a way that shielded his retina from the blasting light above him. Once his vision had focused and returned to its normal state, he saw that he was lying on a mattress. It would be too kind to call it a bed, for its inflated soul was minimal, and it lay like a corpse on the rotted bedframe. An extra cushion was placed under his lower back, so as to balance his body on the sunken mattress. As he gently raised his head, the voices grew louder.
'Ah, he's awake!'
'Careful, Giorgio, you're still in a bad state!'
The last speaker accompanied his warning with a hand, which he placed behind Giorgio's head to help him rise and sit upright. Giorgio recognised them as his companions and was glad that he had survived and endured his near-death battle.
'You guys… how did you find me?'
'An old man brought you here… he said you had been fighting some angel, or Goddess.'
Giorgio's jaw opened a little. His words couldn't come out. He remembered Nero's betrayal once more and couldn't bring himself to repeat such events in words, not even to his friends. Perhaps, he was still in doubt about the whole scenario.
'It was Eos, wasn't it. Fiery wings, then turned green, a massive axe: that sounds just like her. Why was she fighting you?' said the other, who sat on a chair a little away from the mattress.
Perspiration fell from Giorgio's forehead. He made a conscious effort to avoid eye contact with his company, for he wished nothing more than to leave and not speak of the matter. But it was irrefutable, he must tell them.
'Nero…,' his voice shook uncontrollably, 'he killed a group of travellers. They didn't oppose him: they tried to escape. But he slaughtered them all.'
Alonso and Sancho were both taken aback. Their mouths fell wide open, whilst shock swept over their faces.
'Did you see it all happen? Maybe they did put up a fight or something… I mean, Nero wouldn't kill anyone without a good reason, right?'
Giorgio looked at Sancho, his eyes wide and bloodshot.
'He killed them because they had something he wanted. He said he had been following it for some time, and it just so happens they were unfortunate enough to be carrying it.'
Giorgio clenched his fists in anger. He was furious that he could not do anything in the moment, and even more agitated at the fact that he let Nero get away.
'Well, what was it they had?' asked Alonso.
'A map… a map of the location of the Apostles' Cabinet.'
Sancho recoiled and stood up from his crouched position beside Giorgio. All their hearts sank at the name; silence followed them for a time, it was as if a lightning bolt had struck the room.
'So, all this time, when he said he had given up on that idea, he was simply lying…'
'It's been so long since he mentioned it, that I considered the idea to be buried. But now, nothing can stop him: he knows where it is, and Eos won't let anyone near him, let alone oppose him. It's only a matter of time before he actually gets his hands on it.'
'Wait a minute, Giorgio, did you see the map? Did he show it to you?' asked Sancho, with eyes glowing as an epiphany had hit him.
Giorgio clutched his head, trying to recall all the information on the map from when Nero had shown him.
'Paramount Manor: that's what was on the map. And trees…'
'Is that all? How about a country or town? A street, perhaps?'
'That was it.'
Alonso sighed and shook his head. They had little to work with, and Nero was already ahead of them.
'It doesn't tell us much, but maybe that's a good thing. I mean, surely, if that's all the map says, then Nero is in the same boat as us. There's a chance he also needs the time to research the whereabouts of this place.'
'Calm, Sancho; Nero isn't just some lucky explorer who's come across a treasure map. He's been planning this for years: there's a high chance he's already got the whole route planned out,' Giorgio spoke as one who is greatly disheartened by his circumstances, to the point of no recovery.
'Who is speaking?' asked Alonso; 'what has happened to you, Giorgio? Where has your determination gone? You speak as if you have already lost.'
'Please, I'm not in the mood for a sermon, Alonso. Nero is already long gone with the map; what can we do?'
Alonso stood up and slowly approached Giorgio. He looked at him with tender eyes, and a soft glare touched his heart. And then he slapped him. Giorgio, still healing from his wounds, felt the impact with greater hurt than normal.
'What the hell!'
'Listen, Giorgio, I know you're hurt, hell, we all are. We're all his friends, and we are equally pained by his actions. But we can't just let him get away with this. If he does open the Apostles' Cabinet, it's going to be the end for everyone, not just us. Don't you see, this is greater than just a betrayal of brotherhood. Let us catch up with him; perhaps we can persuade him not to go through with his plan. I mean, you did it before, who's to say you can't again?'
Giorgio considered Alonso's words with the utmost care. Vigour flowed through him, but he still wondered how they could stand a chance.
'If we did go after him, where would we even start? Paramount Manor could be anywhere.'
They all sat in thought. It did seem impossible, initially: Nero had all the advantages possible over them, and he was a relentless force in everything he did. Catching up to him would be difficult, but trying to persuade him to stop, especially without entering battle first, was nonsensical.
'That old guy who brought Giorgio here,' Sancho started, 'didn't he say he could see anyone, anywhere, with his projection?'
'What! Who is this guy? If it's true what you're saying… maybe he could see where Nero is! Anyway, I gotta thank the guy for saving me.'
'He didn't give a name, but he said he would drop by later today to check on you. I think he said he's just a homeless guy, but he's clearly a projection user, so maybe he's more than he lets on.'
'A homeless guy! It can't be…'