Chapter 47.

Sitting in their camp, the trio seemed to be in a moment of peace while thinking. They were not actually sharing at that point, preferring to lower the Nexus's intensity to a minimum while pondering over their individual problems. Enora was still a bit flustered by Rose's scolding not too long before. "Was I so hard on Nick because of how confused the link made us ? It's … possible.", she thought to herself. It felt like it the more she wondered, and Rose's last advice, as out of the blue as it was, felt reasonable. Maybe.

"Since when have I been so meek ? Fucking bullshit !". She got up, took big strides towards the man on the other side of the fire and grabbed his shoulder. He wore a stunned expression, probably thinking that he was about to get another earful of criticism. Instead, the tall woman just dragged him near the river with a blanket and strived for relief. At one point they heard a small giggle from the camp.

…

An hour later, the group assembled for a talk. Nick and Enora looked a lot more focused, making Rose smile. Then they opened up the link, trying their best to control it, to share not only the thoughts they wanted to but also the feelings and senses. Their goal was to keep the Nexus of Minds from overwhelming them, to avoid going crazy over the sheer quantity of information going through the tubes.

The process was a bit long but successful : they only needed to increase or decrease the amount of basic energy travelling from one brain to another to achieve a stable circuit. They also discovered that they did not have to keep checking on the Fake Flow, as changing it once would be definitive until another modification was made. Meaning they did not have to keep an eye on it in fear of going out of control.

Of course, it was not perfect, and a mishap could always happen, like when Nick unintentionally shared recent private images to Rose. Enora did not blush or anything, as she had always been comfortable with her body, but it amused and intrigued Rose quite a bit. By that point, they had understood how much 'privacy' had lost its meaning and having the three of them very conscious of each other's everything felt more and more natural.

(Enora) I wouldn't say 'natural', just 'unavoidable'. And if it's unavoidable, then let's accept it and move on.

(Rose) The sooner we're comfortable with sharing everything, the sooner we'll be able to focus on what matters.

(Nick) Not dying immediately in a fight you mean, right ? That was the point of this whole process, and I feel it's going to help.

They had found the perfect middle ground for the link at that point, at least when not fighting, where only the thoughts, feelings and senses that they chose were given to each other. They could, in result, spend entire days without talking out loud, only relying on this information to communicate their needs : one would mentally show their tiredness, and they would stop. Another would give their hunger, and someone would begin cooking. The Nexus of Minds made things way easier in terms of basic necessities management.

And all those discoveries happened right before they finally found an exit to that hugely boring cave. They got out of the forest and discovered a thirty meters wide and tall tunnel going off into the darkness. But of course, since nothing comes for free and leaving the place could not be that 'easy', they had to hear a low growl a dozen meters to their left. A series of growls to be more precise, to which they answered by grabbing their weapons, getting into a formation and increasing the Nexus's intensity until everything they felt flowed between them. With that kind of sharing, they would know with a thought where each other was without looking, their individual physical state and the placement of the enemies. They all profited from their three pairs of eyes and ears.

Six Mutant Hounds slowly approached from the nearest bushes, ready to pounce on their prey for a glorious feast. But what kind of people were the trio ? They were no pushovers, that was for sure, as they simultaneously took action. Nick took the left flank with his dark silver spear, propelling himself with great strength until he actually penetrated a thick skull before retreating a few meters in a flash. At the same time, Enora used the cover of her shield to charge straight at the monsters, slicing those disgusting red tongues and horribly dead faces left and right. Then Rose, from the back, shot rays and strands of flame, making the beasts cry pathetically.

They were very impressive in terms of coordination, moving as one organism to cover the weak points that the enemy tried to take advantage of, going as efficiently as they could to minimize injuries. In fact, their efficiency surprised even themselves, and that was when the Nexus went a bit haywire. Because when this feeling of wonder appeared, the link distributed it to all of them and it became parasitic, clouding the important information. And this moment of distraction did not go unnoticed : the hounds attacked all at the same time, taking the initiative for the first time in this encounter.

Startled, the humans had a hard time standing their ground. They momentarily retreated a few meters back, recovering their minds before getting back to it. A minute later, the last beast fled, leaving five smelly bodies on the ground. It was very surprising how much those specific monsters smelt like corpses even before dying …

(Enora) That was close to a disaster. What the fuck happened ?

(Rose) Clearly, the Nexus of Minds is extremely efficient in tactics and teamwork, but the link has disadvantages.

(Nick) The fact that a single stray feeling or thought becomes contagious and can disturb the Fake Flow feels like a flaw to you ?

(Enora) No need for sarcasm smartass.

(Rose) Seems like the best option here is to work hard on staying as focused as possible during moments of crisis. So out with the useless remarks, and strive for perfect stability.

They talked a bit more about how to maximize this new tool of theirs during fights while cleaning themselves and their weapons at the nearby river. They realised full well that a still mind was necessary to use the Nexus, and that they could not afford to get distracted at any point. However, they also saw the great strength they had gained from it, suddenly very satisfied with their choice.

(Nick) Maybe we'll get out of here after all !