After a few hours of practice, with Tess's help, Nathan headed to the Council room. However, he found it empty. His companions must probably have gone on a mission. So he sat down on the sofa and waited for the others to return. As the minutes passed, his eyelids grew heavy and he finally succumbed to sleep. When he trained, he always felt so exhausted he could barely keep his eyes open. Not even the thought of Dawn and the others outside the Nemlyth could keep him awake. He fell asleep with his head hunched over his own shoulder, sitting there on the couch. It was Dawn who woke him up when she returned. She bent down in front of him and stroked the back of his hand. As soon as Nathan opened his eyes, he pulled his hand away. He didn't want to make the mistake of unconsciously forcing her to do something against her will.

«What are you afraid of?», Dawn laughed.

«Did I do something to you?» Nathan asked, getting up from the couch.

Dawn stood up too. «Tess forgot to tell you, didn't she?»

«What?»

«The ironic side of your powers. You can create and manipulate people's dreams, but you can't do that if you're sleeping.» she answered him. «You have to be awake. It's a bit like me, with vital energy. It takes concentration and intention, it doesn't happen just by chance.»

«But I– » he tried to object but she cut him off.

«You were focused on Chad when you pushed the Nerys towards him. And the first time, you wanted to make me feel better at all costs, that's why they activated.» she said quickly then she took his hand. «Now let's hurry and go to the gym. They're all there.», there was no time for that, they had to reach the others. They started walking, without Nathan being able to object.

«Why do we have to go to the gym?» he asked as they walked down the corridor.

«My father wants to introduce us to someone.»

«Who?»

«The one who helped found this place.» Dawn replied as she continued walking. «But I don't know who he is, if you're about to ask me. I have never seen him before.»

«Is he one of us?»

Dawn shrugged. «I have no idea. But it seems like he's always been giving us a hand. We're not the only ones helping the Nerys, it seems. It would be really impossible for us to take care of everything.»

«Yeah… »

«We're about to find out. Let's get moving.», Dawn quickened her pace.

«Your father would never start without you anyway.»

Dawn looked at him out of the corner of her eye. «You, of all people, should know he doesn't make any exceptions for me either. And then I have to set an example, we can't be the last to arrive.»

Nathan laughed and they hurried on.

When they arrived, the gym was already packed. Everyone was there. Not only students but also orderlies and teachers.

At the back of the gym, Allen had a stand with a microphone placed so everyone could hear. It looked like a press conference, only journalists and photographers were missing.

On either side of the microphone were the Council members, seated, and two empty chairs next to Ellen. Nathan and Dawn quickly went to sit down, making space among the crowd. Dawn also saw Chad among the immense number of waiting Nerys. She waved at him and he waved back.

The principal approached the microphone and began to speak.

Shortly afterward, among the people stepped a man who was undoubtedly a Nerys. He had animal ears. Not like Oswald's, his were more rounded, like a bear's. He must have been around seventy years old. His face was wrinkled but he didn't have a single white hair. Even Allen's hair – who was at least thirty years younger – was grayer than his. The Nerys probably aged differently than Earthlings.

The old man was flanked by three others – two women and a man – probably Nerys.

When Allen announced his name on the microphone, everyone was taken aback.

«One of the nine? But at least five hundred years have passed... » Jeb let out aloud.

Oswald and others like him were the most surprised of all. They looked at their ancestor as if they were looking at a real celebrity.

With the help of the cane, the man positioned himself in front of the microphone and began to speak. «You heard correctly, my name is Caleigh. You will certainly have read about me in the diary that my friend Erleen left me.» he said. «I think the time has come to tell you the truth about Nerissa's explosion.», he was interrupted by the onset of confused shouting. Even his descendants, such as Oswald, and Megan's peers couldn't believe their ears. The elder called them to order. «I waited for as many Nerys as possible to be saved before telling you our true story, so that you could learn the lesson and not make the mistakes of the past. I wanted you to hear from my voice.», he paused and looked around, to make sure he had everyone's attention. «This institute was created precisely to prepare you for life on Nerissa in the right way. With a spirit of collaboration and not division. When we escaped, we all promised ourselves that there would be no distinctions, that there would be no clans to which we belonged, because we are all the same. There are no skills that are more important than others, this is what we wanted to teach you in this place.» he explained.

«What really caused the explosion?» Dawn asked impatiently.

«The Hebs.» the man replied, without turning to look at her. «It can happen that some Nerys are born without powers. We don't know what it depends on. It just happens. It doesn't matter if they are born from two Nerys of the same clan or not. At first it's difficult to say whether they are powerless or not. They are born with the appearance of at least one of their parents. And it's only towards adolescence that their hair lightens until it becomes white and their eyes turn black.» he clarified. «They had never been a problem, but then Phyliss arrived.», he pronounced that name with extreme difficulty. «He believed that being born without powers was a terrible injustice. The abilities he lacked he made up for in ingenuity. He exploited his intellect to provoke revolts, which undermined the relationships of trust between the clans. We tried to warn them, but they were too busy waging war on each other and no one managed to save themselves.»