“Is this about the omen?”
I nod. “It’s always out past the Twelfth House. And I was thinking of the way the Dark Matter showed up in Leo and Taurus when I read the black opal that first night. The stars showed me something that wasn’t the future—it was the past. So what if the omen they keep showing me isn’t an omen—what if they’re pointing to who’s responsible?”
Nishi looks entranced by my theory. She whispers, “The Thirteenth House.”
I nod. “We need to be certain.”
She gives me a quick hug before bouncing to the door, probably already mapping out the ways she’ll tackle her search.
“We will be.”
8
THE DAY OF THE CEREMONY, my Advisors are busy making arrangements, so I train with Mathias in the morning. He’s teaching me what he says will be one of our hardest lessons: communicating through the Psy Network, the way the Zodai do.
He gives me my very own Ring, and as soon as I slip it on my finger, I feel a new energy seep into my skin, like the metallic silicon is bonding with me on a psychic level. An intense inner buzzing pulses through the area, as if my finger’s taken a huge swig of Abyssthe.
“Communicating in the Psy doesn’t require Centering because the Ring’s core is a pool of Abyssthe,” says Mathias. We’re in our normal training room, standing on a Yarrot mat, facing each other. “The Ring attracts Psynergy to you.”
I inspect the thick band. The fact that Abyssthe is such an important tool for the Zodai makes me feel even guiltier for using it the night of the attack. “Sounds like the Ring does all the heavy lifting.”
“Try it out.”
“Now?” I blurt. He nods, and I hold my hand out in front of me, wondering how I activate it.
“Reach inward toward the buzzing you feel in your hand,” he says, guessing at my thoughts. “When you tap into it, you’ll access the Psy. Only this time, there’s no Ephemeris to direct the energy for you, so you’ll need to control it yourself.” Noting the obvious confusion in my expression, he adds, “By telling the Psy where you want to go.”
“Will it feel like . . . taking Abyssthe without an Ephemeris?” Admitting to illegal behaviors probably isn’t the best way to convince Mathias I’m a good choice of Guardian.
“Sort of,” he says, eyeing me curiously. “When you drink Abyssthe without an Ephemeris, you’re attracting Psyngery to you, but you’re not channeling it into anything. This Ring uses the Psynergy from Abyssthe to connect you to all the other Ring-wearing Zodai across the galaxy. We are the Psy Network—the Zodai’s Collective Conscious.”
It sounds confusing, but I’ve always been better at diving into something new than understanding its mechanics. “So once I access the Psy Network, do I just think of the person I want to talk to?”
“Sure. Or you can ask the whole network a question, and anyone tuning in will hear. Try it out.”
I close my eyes and reach deep inside, into the portal of energy pulsing through my ring finger. When I reach it, I feel like I’ve touched something icy and liquid. The substance spreads through my insides, rippling outward in waves, until I feel myself pulled in by the tide and swept away from the present, into black Space.
Only this Space isn’t filled with orbs of dancing light, but rather silhouettes made of smoke, some floating in place, some zooming like bullets, and all of them popping in and out of existence everywhere I look. My guess is they’re the other Zodai who are entering and leaving the Psy right now—and the figures grouped together must be communicating with each other.
I float closer to one of the shadows. I pick up a faint whispering, but I can’t hear the words.
Mathias.
I hear myself say his name in my head, but not out loud. I must be speaking soundlessly, the way the Zodai do.
Only nothing happens. Mathias’s voice doesn’t respond, and the smoke figures around me don’t react. The longer I stay in the shadow world, the more dizzying and disorienting it grows, until everything is spinning. Breathless, I open my eyes, and the solar system of souls whirling around me vanishes.
The first thing that feels different is the orientation of the room—I’m staring at the ceiling.
“How are you feeling?”
The musical voice sounds closer than usual. Twisting my neck, I’m met with Mathias’s indigo blue eyes. For some reason, we’re lying on the floor, his arms reaching out to me at awkward angles. One hand is under my head, the other on the small of my back. Like he was protecting me.
“Did I fall?” I whisper.