Prologue

The mind was easy to handle. Although I preferred to shut out other people’s thoughts and respect their privacy, I made an exception for the enemy. I spied on their thoughts, learned their secrets, planted ideas, hurt them.

It never occurred to me that I’d one day be the recipient of such treatment.

The worst was that space between wakefulness and sleep when my mind roiled with vivid images, yet my body was frozen, unable to move an inch.

Knowing I was dreaming didn’t make it any easier. Crimson fog clouded my vision, but just outside of my periphery, a pair of glowing eyes watched. The Aequus.

Leave me alone!

My shriek was met with echoing laughter, a raspy and gravelly sound that vibrated through my core. The fun is just starting, Guardian. It paused. Do you want to know why it was so easy to get into your mind?

I gritted my teeth and bit back any retort. Responding would only incentivize it. During my waking hours, I could build a mental wall to keep it out of my mind. But at night, it invaded my dreams.

It was easy because you are weak. Foolish. Set in your ways like the stubborn mortal you are.

I remained silent again, though the words made me hug myself. It wasn’t wrong. I was stubborn. And that stubbornness had gotten me into this situation in the first place.

Let me share my vision of the future with you, dear Guardian.

The crimson fog cleared, and images flashed before my eyes, one screen after another. Each image sent a cold, slithering dread down my spine, making my limbs turn rigid. I couldn’t look away, petrified.

The world burns. Skyscrapers lean precariously before collapsing, slash marks running down them like clawed flesh. Swarms of bug-like creatures nearly block out the sky. Some of them crawl across the ground, picking at the corpses littering the streets. The stench of rotting flesh and ash is thick and heavy in the air.

The visions stilled, then panned closer. A group of Metas is racing across the street. Blue fire erupts from their hands, scorching the world around them—clones of Shadow.

The image twisted, and another group of Metas, looking like Clarity, appeared. Thousands of smiling figures plunge to their deaths from the top of a building as they conjure their illusions.

I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound came out. I had to get out of here, had to run.

Something sticky squelched under my shoe. I looked down to see my own face—no, it was Flame. Lifeless, her blood congealed on the ground.

Stop it. Get out of my head!

This day marks my arrival on your planet, Guardian. The day you make a choice— either perish or bow down to me.

My gaze was riveted on my sister’s glassy eyes, each corner marked by the salt of long-dried tears. The vision shifted, and suddenly I was staring at my friends, strewn across the concrete like broken ragdolls. Bile rose in my throat. “No…” I whispered, hands trembling uncontrollably at my sides. I tried to reach out, but I still couldn’t move.

The Aequus spoke once more.

Everyone you love will die. I will conquer your planet and watch it burn. And it will be your fault.

I let out a choked noise. The images faded, leaving me drained. A feeling of utter satisfaction coursed through my veins—the Aequus’ emotions, as if it could sense my despair.

With a gasp, I sat up, glancing around me. The other Legends were still sleeping. I watched the rise and fall of their breaths, counted them to ground myself as I took deep breaths. They’re alive. It’s not too late.

Finally, the despair subsided. The previous Legends had almost been defeated because the Aequus took hold of one of them and manipulated their mind. After millennia, it was using the same strategy again.

But I was nothing if determined. I was meant to be the greatest telepath ever to exist, and I wasn’t going down so easily.

 

Chapter 1

The six Legends formed a circle, and we braced ourselves for the portal Karma had opened. The familiar bright light, the world spinning, stomach churning. I’ve never been affected so much. That is, until now.

To be fair, I didn’t have a monster inside my head before.

When the ground disappeared beneath my feet, streaks of red flared at the corner of my eyes. My throat closed up. I squeezed my eyes shut and grabbed onto the person closest to me—Arctic, no doubt, as the cold touch of his skin cleared some of the fog and nausea.

“Ash?” His voice sounded distant. Maybe I’d imagined him calling my name.

The light behind my eyes flared brighter. The mental wall I’d built shook and shook. I swallowed down my nausea, the bile in my throat sour. The Aequus wasn’t happy going through Karma’s portal. Good.

I needed to learn more about the creature. More than anything, I needed to find out how to get rid of its presence, not to mention the new mark on my upper arm, a swirl in an infinite loop with dots around it—the symbol of the Aequus.

The first person I turned to was Karma. I recalled our conversation.

How did the Aequus monster take over one of the Legends before? Did they survive? What happened? I just want to be…careful. In case it happens to one of us.

A lie. But I refused to burden the group more. I would figure this out on my own.

Karma’s gaze turned thoughtful. Yes, it was three millennia ago, more or less. The Aequus was already growing more powerful back then, and its telepathic ability expanded. With a Legend’s mind under its control, the battle was nearly lost. But three Legends came together finally at great sacrifice and prevailed. Are you worried about Michael?

Zen says he’s protecting his dreams. Clarity’s too.

Ah, Clarity, the Dreamcatcher. Her kind is particularly vulnerable. But you’re an Intellect, and with your telepathic abilities, you’d be able to fight it back.

Karma’s belief in me almost brought me to tears. Despite my resolve, I wanted to tell her that I was a liability. I wanted to ask her how to get rid of the mark. I wanted her to comfort me. Not that she’d ever been particularly good at that.

A sudden rage boiled inside me. It wasn’t mine. The monster raged against Karma, the powerful mage who had locked all portals to Earth and derailed its plans. Her actions bought us time to train, regroup, and prepare to fight. I pushed back the feeling before it could overwhelm me.

Above all, remember that to win this battle, you must remain united. That’s how the previous Legends sequestered the monster on a faraway planet. By working together.

My feet touched ground, and I opened my eyes. The light faded, but the world still spun. My hand was still gripping tightly onto Arctic’s arm. I quickly loosened my hold, although he didn’t seem hurt.

“Are you okay?” he asked, his gray eyes filled with concern. “You’ve never been sick before when teleporting.” His lips quirked into a small smile. “It must be Michael’s breakfast. I can still taste the eggshells. Ugh.”

The jab at Michael was clearly meant to make me feel better, but something like hatred burst inside me instead—the Aequus’ emotion. It always erupted whenever Michael or Karma were mentioned. I had the Aequus to thank for that.

I nodded slowly, my throat still closed up. He gently patted my back, and the soothing gesture, coupled with his ice-cold hand, made me gasp. My breath was back, and the Aequus had finally subsided. For now.

“Hey, my breakfast was good,” Michael retorted. “Soft eggs with a bit of crunch are an acquired taste. It’s not my fault you guys can’t appreciate fine cuisine. Besides, weren’t you the ones complaining that River and Tommy should take a break from the kitchen?”

Poor River was bent over, retching, on the other side of Arctic. Shadow stepped forward quickly to comfort her. Only days ago at the Sanctuary, River refused to have anything to do with Shadow. She’d blamed him for how his uncontrollable fire had destroyed her home, her family. But I’d shown them Shadow’s past telepathically, how Opal wielded his powers against his will.

If River and Michael could forgive Shadow, maybe we stood a chance at defeating this monster. It was progress.

I studied our surroundings. We stood in a circle along a deserted road. All six of us together, as Karma insisted.

“This is the road to Cradix,” Arctic said, squinting at something in the distance. Right, he used to live there. Karma was heading to Base Four in Cradix for Luna, her sister. Since Luna had visions of the past and the future, I thought she might be able to help with the mark, but she was in a coma. Karma’s worried gaze told me that her state was worsening.

Cradix was also where two Auracles were hidden—River’s and mine. Clarity, Shadow, and Arctic had theirs already. It was thanks to his Auracle that Arctic survived a fatal attack from Rimes. The ancient artifacts that boosted our powers, and we needed them to defeat the Aequus.

My gaze drifted to my mana line down my elbow. It had remained steady, even when I was queasy and exhausted—a good sign. Maybe with my Auracle, I would be strong enough to get rid of the Aequus.

But my Auracle could also make the Aequus more powerful, I realized, if it were to take over my mind completely.

I remembered the visions. My friends, dead, limbs at unnatural angles, and their blood pooling on concrete. Flame, her pale eyes staring up at me, lifeless. I could end up killing everyone I cared about and never even know it until it was too late.