"You're insane," I said flatly.
Aether didn't take offense. She casually circled us, the light in her hand illuminating her face—one I had to admit was strikingly beautiful for a high-class Manipulator.
"The Council is hiding something," she said. "An artifact from the Second Heaven. They don't want anyone to know it exists."
"Why do you care?" Nyx asked, still on guard. "You're a Familia child. You have everything."
"Precisely because I'm a Familia child, I know what they're hiding." Aether stopped and looked straight at me. "They're afraid. Afraid of people like you."
I raised an eyebrow. "People without power?"
"People who were meant to have power, but never awakened it." Aether stepped closer. "You're not powerless, Clotho. Your power is asleep. And the Council knows why."
My heart started racing. "You're talking nonsense."
"Am I?" She smiled faintly. "Why do you think that out of hundreds of thousands of people, only a handful never awaken their abilities? And why do they all disappear before the age of eighteen?"
Nyx looked at me. I could see doubt creeping into her eyes.
"The Council kills them," Aether said quietly. "Because they're afraid. Afraid of power they can't control."
"Conceptual Manipulation," I whispered.
Aether nodded. "The rarest power. The most dangerous one. Manipulators who can alter the very concepts of reality. Those who can change fate itself."
Destinokinesis.
The word echoed in my mind like a death knell. Or hope. I couldn't tell which.
"Help me," Aether said. "And I'll awaken your power. Then we climb to the Second Heaven together."
I searched her eyes, looking for lies. But all I found was a resolve that mirrored my own hatred.
"What do you want in return?" I asked.
Her smile widened. "Help me kill my father."