Page 218 of Interion

“Because another worried mind wouldn't have helped with this. Let's be honest—I'm better than you at solving mysteries.” Zion huffed, and Serguei continued: “I decided to work through it alone, but now I see that maybe Kyller and I can join forces to figure all this out.”

“And what do you know about this rupture?” Zion asked.

The psychic sighed, as if that question might drive him mad.

“That's what I'm trying to find out. I know something happened the night I...” He paused, anguished. “Anyway, I'm searching for answers. I don't know what this rupture was.”

I was certain there was much more he wasn't telling me. The whole story about Ravena had always been a mystery—no one ever really understood what had happened. We only knew she was a traitor who had joined King Drutes to orchestrate an attack on Interion, an attack that had always been doomed to fail. But I wouldn't ask. I would wait for Serguei to tell me of his own accord.

“One thing doesn't make sense. If I'm supposed to fight for the son of the night, that could only mean you or Zion, but you're both a thousand times stronger than me. It makes no sense,” I concluded, staring at Zion. The general, like his father, was a legend throughout Jupiter.

“I don't know, Kyller, but if he told you to prepare and fight, then listen. I want you to learn everything the dreams teach you, train even harder with Zion, and strengthen your mental shields.”

I shivered and felt Zion's worry beside me.

“Do you think Kyller might be in danger?”

“I don't know if she's in danger, but I told Lagherta her daughter would be safe with me. So whatever this coming of night is, it'll have to go through me to reach you.”

A knot formed in my throat, so tight I could barely breathe. I forced myself to take a sip from Zion's juice glass to shake off the feeling.

“The sonar also said I have two powers, but that doesn't make sense either—I only have healing. He also said you have two.” I pointed at Zion.

“And I do.”

My mouth fell open in shock.

“What do you mean? You never told me about this.” My voice came out so shrill it was almost a scream.

“There are many things you don't know about me, Kyller,” he said, squeezing my hand. “But I didn't tell you about this because I try not to use the second one.”

I heard Serguei huff in my mind.

“And what exactly is the second one?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“The first is the shadows, and the second is something derived from Serguei and Ravena's psychic powers.”

My eyes widened.

“Are you telling me you can read minds too?” I had to be misunderstanding. Serguei seemed to huff again.

“No, I can't read minds. I can only sense what people feel and maybe manipulate those feelings, but I don't know the full extent of it. Like I said, I don't use it. I find it invasive and confusing—people are a mess of sensations.”

“That's part of the truth, Kyller. He doesn't use it because he'd rather be a petulant child. He's proud enough to deny my gift and his mother's. His empathic gift is formidable, and if he learned to control it, he could manipulate feelings—soothe them or intensify them at will. He could even manipulate people's minds to make them accept his ideas more easily. If you replace distrust with complete trust, you can get whatever you want from someone.”

“Then I'd be like you,” Zion hissed at Serguei.

“Then you'd be almost like me,” the psychic said, practically ecstatic, as if it were the best idea in the world. The two fell silent for a long moment, and the air grew heavy with tension. I cleared my throat to get their attention.

“Well, then. I don't know what this second gift would be, since it's never manifested.”

“And have you tried looking for it?” Zion turned to me, his voice returning to its calm tone.

“I don't know what to look for. When I tap into my power, I only feel the healing. How did you discover yours?”

“I was the one who discovered Zion's power,” Serguei answered. “I knew he was empathic when I started seeing my feelings through his mind.”

“And how do you know you're drawing on one type of power and not the other?”