Page 76 of Visions of You

"I didn't see much else," he admitted. "But I'll look again."

Jaron leaned against Keegan as if he could sense his hesitation. Through their bond, he probably could. "I'll be right here with you," he promised. "If you get lost in the future, I'll guide you back home."

Keegan shot Jaron a smile. "I'll always come back to you for as long as you'll have me."

Jaron punched his arm. "You had better."

Keegan nodded, then he took a deep breath, feeling the cool air fill his lungs. He closed his eyes and reached for his power. The moment he did, he felt it surge through him—immense and overwhelming. What had once been a manageable river now roared like a tidal wave, threatening to drown him if he couldn't find a way to ride it.

His heart beat out of rhythm as the power cascaded over him, pulling him in countless directions at once. Images flashed before his mind's eye: visions of futures, possible outcomes,fragments of moments yet to come. Each vision clashed with the next, a chaotic torrent that threatened to tear his consciousness apart.

He saw Apollo's face, twisted in pain, then Casca hiding from their parents. Jaron's mother screaming accusations, and somewhere in the mess, a vision of his own death resurfaced—a stake aimed at his chest.

Keegan gasped, struggling to maintain control. The visions layered over one another, each demanding his attention. He tried to focus on one thread, but another would yank him away before he could grasp it fully.

A vision of Apollo chained in a dark room dissolved into another of Jaron confronting his mother. Keegan's head throbbed with the strain of trying to keep up with the rapid shifts. He felt himself slipping, losing grip on reality as the visions threatened to consume him entirely.

Fighting against the tide was like trying to hold back the ocean with his bare hands. The more he struggled, the more fragmented and chaotic the visions became. He couldn't breathe under the weight of so many futures pressing down on him at once.

Then he felt it—a warm hand clasping his own.

"Keegan," Jaron's voice called out firmly. "Focus on me."

The sound of Jaron's voice anchored him, pulling him back from the brink. Keegan latched onto it, using it as a lifeline amidst the storm of visions. He squeezed Jaron's hand tightly, grounding himself in that simple touch.

Slowly but surely, the tidal wave began to recede. The visions still swirled around him, but they were no longer an uncontrollable maelstrom threatening to sweep him away.

"You're not alone," Jaron said softly. "We've got this together."

Keegan took another deep breath and centered himself in Jaron's steady presence. The chaos ebbed enough for him to start sifting through the visions with purpose instead of being dragged by them blindly.

One clear image emerged.

To Keegan's surprise, it wasn't one of Apollo, though that was who he'd been trying to see.

Instead, a shadowy figure came into view. The features were indistinct, blurred as if deliberately concealed. Keegan strained to make out more details but couldn't pierce the veil that hid the person's identity.

"Who are you?" he whispered into the void.

Was this another seer? Someone who knew they would be spied upon?

Keegan focused harder, trying to see past the magical shield that obscured the person's features, but it was like trying to see through dense fog.

The figure didn't respond to his whispered question. Instead, it moved within what looked like a laboratory. Tables covered with vials and jars lined the walls. Shelves filled with arcane ingredients reached up to the ceiling.

The shadowy figure stood at a central table, carefully mixing a potion in a glass beaker that emitted a soft glow. The air seemed thick with the scent of herbs and something acrid Keegan couldn't identify.

The figure picked up a vial from the table and added its contents to the beaker. The mixture hissed and bubbled violently before settling into a calm swirl of iridescent colors.

What were they making?

Keegan's eyes fell on a book resting beside the figure. Its title was clear: The Subtle Art of Mind Control.

Keegan's breath caught.

Opening his eyes, he returned to the present moment with Jaron beside him. "I saw someone," he said slowly. "Someone who's shielding themselves from magical observation."

Jaron looked at him intently. "Did you see anything else?"