Dross inspected the metallic disc closer, the maybe only clean and polished thing in this mudhole of a sleeping room. The plate was slightly higher than he was, placed like a wall-mounted mirror on the wall. Upon getting closer to it, Dross could make out finely lined etchings in the mirror. The form remembered of an oval with multiple seemingly randomly placed sharp edges reaching to the edges. Around the decorated lining he could make up bubbles underneath the plate, maybe imbued stones or simply nothing more than imperfections in the plate? No, that wasn't it Dross noticed caressing one bubble carefully. He felt a powerful presence, the might of an ancient artefact, a feeling that was comparable with the overall atmosphere of the city he found in Sepernius. Inspecting the disk further, Dross could make out a slight shift in its warmth when leaving the area the etchings were creating. Dross was sure that the unknown artefact could react if he does something specific to the plate. Maybe it had to do with the morse code written on the card Dross thought to himself taking it out again of his pocket.

He shrugged and let out a small sigh immediately regretting the decision after exchanging the air in his lungs. There was more dust than air in this room, which would have caused him to cough pathetically if not for Changelings quality of life improvements. An integrated filter got placed in his artificial lung to keep his inner workings clean. But his body's programming still simulated the following sharp cough; E.V.0 has thought of everything to make this body as comfortable yet as close to reality as possible. Since his rebirth three weeks prior, he experienced this cautiously. He had no need for oxygen anymore, nor food or water; not even sleep was necessary. But interestingly enough did Changeling reward him accordingly if he continued living normally. E.V.0 told Dross that she even managed to make Changeling emulate the usual reaction of one's body. The feeling of being sated, well-rested and so on. She claimed, that after a given time, when Dross got accustomed to his body, it will not even feel like living in a tin can anymore. She said something about re-acquiring perfect synchronisation with life; a process he will have to live through with every newly acquired transformation.

Clearing his throat soundly, Dross placed the card in his left hand feeling the nibs with the pad of his thumb; Four dots, then two dots and finishing up with a combination of bar, dot, bar, dot, and two bars. Understanding the simple message, he repeated the sequence by knocking with his right against the warmer area of the metal plate. After each successfully knocked letter, Dross could feel the disc letting out a small pulse, and the plate got slightly hotter. After completing the sequence, the areas, where the bubbles were placed, lighted up in a dark purple pulsating slowly for half a minute. Dross stepped back, spectating the plate trying to come up with an explanation on what happened here right now. Interpreting the feeling, the pulsating disc emitted as annoying, he decided quickly that it must be some sort of message for him to remain patient . . . getting put on hold. That got immediately confirmed when the disc let out a final, slightly darker, pulse. Immediately after that pulse vanished, a dark purple portal opened in front of him; its edges were like the etchings Dross noticed earlier. The sudden appearance of the portal surprised Dross so much, that he stumbled backwards. His analytical brain was rebelling against what his eyes saw. There was no technology, nor magic present, he knew of, that could make such a contraption even remotely possible. Not enough . . . no, no technology present to validity anything and for it being the portal of a Mirrormage - certainly a possibility, but the structure of the portal's frame was unlike anything he saw in his travels. Taking a mental note to ask the Wildcard about it to satisfy his curiosity, Dross looked back to the plate and through the portal. He made out on the other site something resembling an office placed in a cave. A swivel chair was inviting him to sit down and across the decorated table, a second, and bigger swivel chair was facing away from him. Before Dross could even think about making his move through the portal, a sharp and calculated voice cut off any of his thoughts demanding his full attention with every word spoken:

"A call from scamall I will happily oblige. Did you come alone? Perfect! Please, sir, step in and take a seat. Make yourself comfortable. Chatting across so many kilometres through a portal would be very impolite, wouldn't it? Please come in."

Dross was expecting a dangerous aura going out from the Wildcard, malicious even; but all he was able to feel was the presence of a businessperson, but in a couple notches friendlier. Dross relaxed his tension a bit, smoothed out his fur, and checked one last time his attire before stepping through the portal.

Dross could feel the sudden shift in the atmosphere hitting him like a brick. The place beyond the portal was set somewhere on the mainland, maybe even further below. The air was clean, frosty, and only remotely musty. The amount of oxygen in the air was noticeably higher than up on Scamall, but Dross' body allowed him to undergo the transition without any issues, much to his opposites surprise. Two hands appeared at the left and right side; the right robotic and the left gloved. With a slightly delayed motion, both hands drew with the pointer a small circle in the air. The first hand went a full-motion, and a tiny portal appeared, the second hand did the same, and the gate behind Dross closed upon creation of the second. While that was happening, the man let out a steep whistle:

"No sound? So you are still standing, stranger? How? -", the swivel chair fluently turned around revealing an intimidating looking human figure wearing a black coat, "I - I was expecting one of the eternal counsel, as they are the only who could stand such pressure and oxygen shift without collapsing and not . . .", the man coughs; the situation was obviously unpleasant for him. "you. My apologies for my tactless behaviour. Please take a seat. A drink?"

Briefly mesmerized by the heterochromia of his opposite, Dross accepted the offered chair with a nod and sat down. He was worried by the reaction of the Wildcard; he had to come up with something to disperse his growing suspicions. Placing a smile on his face Dross answered his opposite with a throwing hand gesture:

"I am pretty used to sudden pressure shift, Mister Opilio. I regularly use the express-dive ship from Scamall to Brisburg and back. But honestly, I am pretty drowsy currently. A sip of water would be perfect now, so thank you for the offer."

Accepting the explanation with a 'Hmhm', the Wildcard grabbed a jug made of crystal-glass from a selection of bottles, which got neatly placed on the left end of the desk reaching from water over beer bottles to exotic looking whiskey. He poured water into a glass and slid it over towards Dross, who immediately took a deep sip. The wildcard waited patiently until his opponent was finally ready to continue talking. Dross took his time to make his cover story slightly more believable. Then, after finishing his water he let out a deep, satisfied sigh and focussed the human with sharp eyes:

"I am now ready to resume this meeting. After you, Mister Opilio."