Twelve hours later.
South Island was quiet at night.
No machines. No voices. No noise from the workshop.
Just wind moving across an open green field, stretching further than the eye could see. Grass swayed in slow waves under the moonlight, silver lines brushing across the ground.
Nico stood alone in the middle of it.
Barefoot.
Still.
The air felt different out here.
Lighter.
Cleaner.
He exhaled softly and looked up at the sky.
"…Yeah."
His voice was low.
"I lost it."
The words sat there.
Then he clenched his fist.
"But I have a way to get it back…"
Silence again.
The wind picked up slightly and brushed past him.
His body tensed.
Then he screamed.
Energy burst out of him instantly.
Violent.
Uncontrolled.
Light green.
His fur changed in a flash, glowing under the moonlight. An aura roared around him, flickering, unstable, cracking like it wasn't fully there.
For a moment
It existed.
Super Nico.
Raw.
Wild.
Incomplete.
Then it collapsed.
The aura snapped out.
His fur returned to normal.
Nico dropped to one knee, breathing hard.
"…hah…"
A grin pulled at his face.
"New… record…"
He looked down at his shaking hand.
"…one whole second…"
He let out a tired laugh and pushed himself up.
Exhausted.
But satisfied.
Progress.
Slow.
But real.
He steadied himself, legs still a bit unsteady.
"…Alright."
He focused his breathing and looked ahead.
Quieter now.
More locked in.
"My body remembers it."
He flexed his fingers, watching them.
"The energy… from the Phantom Rubies."
A pause.
"It didn't disappear."
His fist tightened.
"It's still there. Not the power itself… but the feeling of it."
He started walking.
"My body felt that level once."
Another step.
"So now…"
He closed his eyes.
"…it's trying to replicate it."
A faint pulse of energy flickered around him for a split second.
Gone.
"…That's what this is."
He inhaled slowly.
"I'm not borrowing it anymore."
His voice sharpened.
"I'm recreating it."
The wind moved through the field again.
"…But only in bursts."
He exhaled.
"My body can't hold it yet."
A small smirk.
"…So I train until it can."
Simple.
Direct.
He planted his feet again.
Focused.
"Again."
He inhaled.
Then shouted.
The aura burst out again.
Sharper this time.
Light green energy flared around him, more controlled, but still unstable. His fur lit up again, glowing like fire under the night sky.
The ground beneath him cracked slightly.
Half a second.
Gone.
He staggered, catching himself.
"…Too short."
He reset.
"Again."
Another burst.
Faster.
Cleaner.
Gone.
"…Again."
He didn't stop.
The field lit up over and over.
Flash.
Gone.
Flash.
Gone.
Each attempt
Sharper.
Faster.
More stable.
Still not enough.
His breathing grew heavier.
His body started to strain.
Sweat ran down his face.
"…Again."
He forced it.
The aura flared brighter than before.
Held
just a fraction longer.
Then snapped out.
Nico dropped to one knee again, hand pressing into the grass.
"…tch…"
His eyes stayed locked forward.
"…Not enough."
He pushed himself back up anyway.
No hesitation.
No doubt.
"Again."
And the night went on like that.
Energy flashing in the dark.
Over.
And over.
And over.
Each attempt pushing his body further.
Each failure bringing him closer.
The field stayed quiet.
But the air
it started to feel different.
Like something was building.
Slowly.
Very slowly.
But undeniably.
And Nico didn't stop.