Alexei tilted his head. “No. I wanted you in my bed the moment I saw you. I’m just going to try harder now, is all.”
Rune growled and forced herself between us, pushing Alexei back. He lost his flirty smile and analyzed the general with a shrewdness I didn’t understand.
The general stared back, leveling a severe gaze at his second.
“So this is why you involved yourself with Theon and their fight?” Alexei asked, but he made it sound like he’d already made the assumption.
I peered up at the general. His eyes flashed black before settling, his expression hard and unreadable.
“The king wants her trained, not dead.”
“Of course not,” Alexei agreed, but suspicion lurked beneath the depths of his sharp smile. “Well, if we don’t have to worry about a Shard Storm, then let’s get to training. I call dibs on being Lucy’s partner.”
“Sorry, but Lucy has already been dibbed, heartthrob hustler,” Oliver said, slinging his arm over my shoulder.
Alexei groaned. “Please never call me that again.”
“It’s nicer than what I call you,” the general offered.
“Yes, but you’re not after this.” Alexei gestured to himself. “I’d rather the Nephilim insult me.”
Oliver shrugged. “If that’s your kink, I can do that too.”
Alexei threw his hands up. I caught Oliver attempting to hold back his smile and was glad he found a way to brush off Alexei’s taunting refusals.
“We’re training as a group,” the general said, bringing us back to why we were here. “But first, we all need to understand what each of us is capable of. Alexei, you start.”
Alexei grinned, his blue irises flashing with blue and silver flame as he held up his hand, tiny bolts of light zinging between his fingers. Then he tilted his head to the sky, and a cool breeze ruffled his golden hair before dancing in my waves. Oliver and the general didn’t receive the gentle wind. Instead, rain drizzled onto their heads. Both of them glowered.
“You’re a Sky Power.” I laughed.
He nodded with a grin, ceasing the rain and wind. “One of three.”
“There’s only three Sky Powers?” Oliver asked.
“Yep. Would’ve been two, but the Ethereal Military banished me before I could kill my superior.”
“So you didn’t end up here because of a debt with Lucifer?” I questioned.
Alexei shrugged. “I ended up here for multiple reasons. But that’s a story for another time.”
“Nephilim?” the general inquired, putting us back on track.
“You know, you can just call me Oliver. I’m assuming these training sessions aren’t going to be a one-time deal, and I really don’t want you to call meNephilimevery other second.”
“Fine, Oliver. What can you do?” Both he and Alexei leaned in closer.
Oliver ran a hand through his hair. “I sense and control fear. It’s always there, and I can sense the signature from a distance.”
That was how he knew Marcus was in those woods when he first found me, and how he knew those Powers were gaining on us. It was like a tracking beacon.
“That’s the easy part of my power,” Oliver continued. “That, and shadowing. It’s like an invisibility cloak. The worst part of my power, and the one that takes the most energy, is my ability to make you relive your worst fears by the touch of my hand. If I’m not touching you, I can still make you witness lesser fears. But I have to witness them with you.”
Alexei whistled, and Ronen raised his brows, both impressed and both taking a step back.
Two high-ranking military warriors were afraid of Oliver’s touch. I smiled and hip-bumped him, proud of my friend.
“That’s a high-level power for a Nephilim,” the general said.
