"I could fly?" Nash's brows arched high. It was the first thing either man had said since I'd shared the story.

"That's what stood out to you the most?" I asked. "Not that there's multiple other simulations populated with our consciousness? Multiple versions of you and me."

"I mean, yeah, but it's incredible that a version of me can fly."

Sighing, I fell back on my heels and glanced at Piercey. He stared at the ground as he chewed on a fingernail, his expression speaking just about as much as his silence.

Nash crossed his arms over his chest and studied me intently. "Did this other me also use twin blades?"

I honestly had no response. Of all the questions he could ask. "I don't know. I didn't see them."

"Must not. I'd never train without them."

Good point. Nash didn't even eat breakfast without his swords. "Don't you think–"

"I want to know how similar and how different we are. I started training with the swords when I was seven because my grandfather had been so skilled with the twin blades. It's one of the longest-lasting and most consistent parts of my life. Clearly, this version of me having power changed things."

True. "We know each other there too, but that's also different. Something happened between us. We're enemies."

His shoulders straightened. "True enemies?"

"As true of enemies as the two of us ever could be. I…" The memory of the shocked and betrayed look in Jaxon's eyes gripped me. "I met him. Apparently we'd promised to kill each other if we ever met again, but he clearly didn't want to."

"Elias really offered to give neural implants to whoever you chose?" Piercey still stared at the same place on the ground.

It seemed odd to me that he felt detached enough from his counterpart to so easily refer to him as a different man. "Yes. He seemed to sincerely need help. He wouldn't tell me what he did, but it seemed like he used the connection between Ashton and Jaxon to hurt his guild. I think he alienated his allies."

"Do you really trust him to give the neural implants freely? What if he alters them in some way?"

"Do you think you'd do that in any world?"

"He obviously betrayed you in some way in that world. Why should we trust him?" Piercey's eyes shifted to me now. "We don't know how different we might be in each life and in different worlds living under different conditions. You can't trust him just because we originated from the same seed of consciousness."

"So you think he could do something to the neural implants to control or coerce us. Like hurt or even kill whoever had one."

"There's likely many things he could do."

Even though I knew Piercey had a point, I didn't want to hear it. Nash having power would change everything for us. He could fight at my side as a true partner.

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"Desperation is a powerful tool. What better to hold something over your head than to give you what you need most?"

"Or what better way to actually help."

"He's right," Nash said. "You know it too."

"Maybe it's worth the risk." Stubbornness kept me from admitting the truth to the two men. Piercey absolutely was right. I wanted this so badly though. "I need to learn how to travel worlds. That way, if he tries anything, I can kill him. That'll keep him in line."

"Not everything can be solved by threat of murder," Piercey said.

Nash and I both disagreed.

"It can solve an awful lot," he said.

My old friend groaned and leaned back against a tree. "We need to connect with him. That's the only way to know if he's telling the truth."

Brilliant. Would Elias do it? Instinctively, I thought no, because he seemed to have things to hide. So that meant I shouldn't trust him, right? It seemed like a clear indicator that it wouldn't be wise.

"That can be our condition." I nodded. "He has to connect with one of us. His control of his power is different than ours, though. I wonder if he'd be able to hold back certain memories without us realizing."

Piercey nodded as if considering.

"We all need to meet him and talk to him," Nash said. "Connect with him. Do what you need. But you can tell a lot from looking into a man's eyes and asking him an honest question. Try questioning him again."

"Something has to change. We can't keep doing what we're doing forever." I raised my hand. "I can't fight against the entire world. Nash, Leif, and Wren could help me protect this Valley and get control into the hands of leaders we can trust."

Nash slid his arm around me. "I can't fathom having the power to fight with you on my own. This seems too good to be true."

"Yes." Piercey's tone was serious and cold. "It does."

Tension wound my gut into knots. "We have to deal with this no matter what happens. Elias knows how to travel to our world. He's not going to just disappear."

"Max the Sharpshooter."

I tensed at the voice of the man who had taken over the meeting less than twenty minutes ago. Markus.

He sauntered closer, as confident as ever. "I hope you didn't mind that I took the liberty of speaking to the people earlier."

The men eyed him quietly while I stepped closer to him. "I know what you're doing."

"Of course you do. It wasn't my intention to hide it. With me serving at your side, we could change this Valley forever."

"I clearly said I would not be leading this Valley."

"How many people have told you that you clearly already are."

My nostrils flared. "The people deserve a real leader who knows what they're doing. I'm a warrior, not a ruler."

"Take time to consider it. I understand this is far from your comfort zone. But I know you didn't kill the Prophet and save the Valley just for us to fall into the hands of someone just as bad, or even worse. We're wasting time when we could be trying to end this war."

Despite my intense distrust for this man who wore far too charming of a smile most times I saw him, his eyes looked honest now. It was like Nash said. A person could tell a lot about someone by looking into their eyes. Though I'd thought he craved power, I recognized the steadfast passion in him. He wanted to protect the Valley.

"Why not you?" I asked.

He smiled sadly. "You know why. It's you who the people have chosen."

My heart started to beat harder beneath all this pressure when a bright light caught my eye.

Green bolts of lightning sparked in the sky and branched out into dozens of bolts, striking the ground.

I hadn't felt the power at all before, but it erupted now from the other side of the building where we'd been meeting. I had no idea how many people it exuded from, only that it was an incredible amount of energy.

Without saying anything to Nash or Piercey, I teleported directly in front of the building, with my energy bow already drawn.