The Zodiac Collector Read online

Mary kneels in front of me. “I’m not deciding anything by myself. If you’ve been paying attention at all, then you should know we have to work together. It’s the only way our power will work.”

  I purse my lips at her.

  Her right eyebrow arches and her cheeks hollow. “Drop the attitude and suck it up.”

  My jaw drops. “You’ve changed.”

  She leans toward me on all fours. “That’s right. You’re not the only one who can be stubborn and bossy. Now give me your hand and get to your feet. And don’t think you’ll get away with saying no ‘cause I won’t let you.”

  Sobered, I reply, “Gotta say, I like the new you.”

  “Shut up.”

  The instant our palms make contact, a gust of wind whistles through the hazy void. Smoke closes in, encasing us in a moist, warm cushion. The fog solidifies and hauls us to our feet.

  “This is weird.” I cling to her waist and she clings to mine. “Is it Z?”

  “I don’t think so.” Mary shakes her head. She lifts her gaze to the sky…erm, or where the sky should be. “Castor and Pollux, is that you?”

  On either side of us, two pairs of arms and legs, two torsos, and two heads take form. Lefty nods. His surface shimmers and morphs to gold with the movement. His twin, Righty, nods next and turns to a rich amber.

  “Oh. My. Gosh,” I whisper.

  “Which one of you is Castor?” Mary asks.

  Gold guy nods.

  I address Righty. “And you’re Pollux?”

  He nods.

  “Wow,” Mary whispers.

  “Nice to finally meet you,” I add.

  Benign smiles emanate from the Gemini twins. In unison, they point toward an archway connecting two pillars. More yellow streaks form in the gray mist, tracing a path through the arch and curving away.

  Mary glances at the archway and then back to them. “You want us to go there?”

  Castor and Pollux nod.

  “Why?”

  Their smiles fade as they dissipate into the fog.

  I paw at the air where they’d stood. Swish, swish. “Did we really see that?”

  “Yes.” She takes my hand. “Come on, let’s go.”

  The yellow streaks remain, showing us the way.

  “We don’t know where that leads,” I say.

  “True. But we can’t stay here, can we?”

  As soon as we pass through the arch, thunder booms.

  Mary snorts. “Do you think they’re happy we’re gone?”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  It’s hard to tell time when you’re in another reality. It seems like Mary and I walk for hours. Without the yellow streaks, we have no direction. We could be going in circles anyway. Our silent partner, the ever-enduring smoke, undulates in an irregular pattern of circles, arcs, and lazy swirls. We’re not met by any more pillars.

  Maybe this is Zeena’s way of keeping us occupied until she needs us. Maybe Castor and Pollux are playing with us. Or worse, maybe they are punishing us for calling on them in the first place.

  I rub my throat and pine for a hot soak in the tub. A cool glass of water and a cheeseburger sound good too.

  “Anne, I hear voices.” Mary crouches, mimicking our neighbor’s cat zeroing in on an unsuspecting chickadee. She tugs at my shirt and I slip down with her.

  “Sounds like arguing.” I strain to make sense of the pattern of short yelps and hollers. “Yeah, but who?” She bites her bottom lip. “Let’s go another way.”

  The yellow streaks appear out of nothing and wind ahead of us. They grow in intensity, silently beckoning us.

  “Maybe we should follow them,” I say.

  “Maybe we should avoid the noise. We don’t know what or who is there. Come on.” Mary pulls me along with her, away from the commotion.

  Our inanimate guides twirl around us and push us back to our original path. The more we stray from them, the more agitated and darker the smoke gets. Soon, it’s buffeting us, slapping us away from our new trail. Mary whips her arms at the stuff, but it slips through her fingers, unharmed.

  “We have to go back!” I yell over the din.

  As soon as we turn around, the prodding stops.

  Someone screeches and I speed up, drawn by an instinctive need to help. It could be William, or Evan, or Shequan.

  “Anne, wait!”

  “They could be hurt.”

  The streaks brighten the faster we go, agreeing with my desire to help. I jog. Somehow, my lungs are freer in here and I don’t have the tightness asthma ordinarily gives me. Mary keeps up with me, even though I can tell it’s the last thing she wants to do but that it’s better than being left alone. We cross under another archway. It’s much larger and wider than the one we left. A bright yellow Gemini symbol marks the keystone.

  Inside, the mist thins and ultimately disappears. Finally, our new world introduces itself. Under our feet is pure white marble, laced with veins of silver and gold. It stretches on and on with no end in sight. Twelve archways, each marked with a unique, glowing Zodiac symbol, dot the perimeter. Vines spiral around the pillars and huddle at their bases. It’s a Greek wonderland, mapping out the constellations and their signs.

  “Oh, my goodness.” Mary gapes at the circular arena spanning out in front of us.

  “What is this place?”

  “Look out!” Mary ducks.

  I dive with her. A fireball, the size of a basketball, sizzles past my head, missing me by inches. I check my hair and breathe a sigh of relief. It’s all there. “What the heck?”

  A stream of water, thick as a hundred-year-old tree trunk, slices in the opposite direction. Huge water droplets fly from it, whacking Mary and me. The ground shakes and the once-smooth marble cracks in several places. Jets of air gush through the cracks, dumping hot gases into the mix.

  I leap to the side to avoid getting obliterated by a rush of pressurized steam. “The place is destroying itself.”

  Mary clamps both hands around my wrist. “Let’s get out of here!”

  The fog rises again, eclipsing us and blocking our view of anything beyond an arm’s length.

  “So much for seeing where we’re going,” I mutter.

  “We can’t stay here.” Tug, tug, tug.

  We creep along, making sure we step on solid ground with every step. Even though the battle rages on, the mist buffers the sound like noise-cancelling headphones. Flashes of yellow, red, green, and blue highlight the fog like a rainbow of lightning.

  An arch solidifies in the mist. The symbol on the keystone looks like two sideways commas, one facing left and the other facing right. Cancer, the crab. It glows an azure blue.

  “What’re we looking for?” Mary whispers.

  “Not sure.”

  The yellow swirls that guided us earlier re-form in the fog. They unfurl like tendrils ahead of us.

  Mary extends a hand to touch one of them. It dissolves around her fingers, retreating like a drop of oil fleeing from water.

  “We should follow.”

  The next arch’s symbol—a circle with a winding tail circling around it—glows red. Leo.

  Soon, we pass green Virgo.

  “The arches follow the Zodiac calendar. We’re getting closer,” I say.

  “Closer to what?”

  “The next arch should be Libra.”

  “And William?”

  “I hope so.” I could use his calming support right now. I could go for a hug too. And maybe a kiss. Yep. That’d be nice.

  “There it is!” Mary shoves me forward.

  We cross the threshold of an arch adorned with yellow scales and the smoke turns to grit—a wall of yellow, sparkling sand.

  “William!” I shout. “What are the swirls doing? William!”

  Mary bangs her fists against the sand. “Why block us? I thought it wanted us to come here.”

  More swirls curlicue around us. A mixture of amber and gold, the streams head-butt the yellow wall.

  “Wait. We must be trespassing on
Libra.” I knock on the sand. “William is our friend. Can we please enter?”

  Our golden and amber swirls delve into the pure yellow. They leave dozens of tunnels in their wake. Soon, the wall looks more like Swiss cheese than a solid glob of sand.

  Mary gasps. “I hear footsteps.”

  “Me too. And they’re closing in fast. Let’s hide.” I duck around one of the arch’s pillars and Mary rushes for the other.

  A lanky figure emerges from the haze. Dark hair, jeans stained with paint.

  “William!” I lunge at him, wrapping my arms around his neck.

  He grunts, probably startled, but hugs me back. He twirls me around twice before setting me down and looking at me at arms’ length. “I’m so glad you’re here.” He frowns. “By the way, where is here?”

  My heart bursts from his embrace. Then again, he’s most likely thrilled to see anybody, no matter who it is. I untangle my arms from his neck and pat his chest. Awkwardly. “I’m not sure, but I think it’s where Z has sent all her Zodiac signs.”

  Mary leaps from her hiding place. “William. It’s so good to see you. Like, really see you, rather than through Anne’s eyes.” She tucks her hair behind her ears.

  He smiles at her and clasps her shoulder in a friendly greeting. “That was totally wild.” He peers through the archway. “Do you know what’s going on?”

  In reply, a fireball whizzes past and a second later, a geyser of water skims parallel to the ground in the opposite direction. The ground shakes again, loosing another wave of steamy air.

  My fists clench. “Earth, wind, rain, and fire.”

  William and Mary both say, “Huh?”

  I smack my forehead. “Z said she collected kids who had invoked their signs. Think about it. All the signs are here and they’re all using their signs’ power. It makes sense!”

  Mary’s eyebrows crease. “I’m glad it makes sense to you, but can you explain why everybody’s fighting?”

  William ushers us behind a pillar. “Good question.”

  “Where’s a wall of sand when you need one?” I mutter.

  “Huh?” William frowns.

  “Never mind.” I face Mary. “Remember when Gamma said we have to work together in order for our power to work? Maybe Z wants us to fight so we don’t band together and find a way out.”

  Mary taps a finger to her mouth, deep in thought. “That’s a theory. But won’t all this fighting drain the Zodiac power?”

  “Maybe only a few are fighting at a time and she’s isolating the rest of us. I’ve been wandering around here forever.” William squints at the surrounding mist.

  “All this fighting could destroy the place.” Mary’s logic sobers us.

  “What if destroying the place will get us out?” I say.

  “Or it might get us killed. We don’t know where we are or how to get home,” she counters.

  My stomach drops.

  William snaps his fingers. “We figured out how to combine our signs. All we have to do is get the others to call a truce. Then we’ll pool all our Zodiac power and break free.”

  Mary shakes her head. “Again, a nice theory, but we can’t go out there. It’s a war zone. We’d be torn apart before we had a chance to talk.”

  I chew on my cheek. “What about Evan?”

  William’s mouth curves down. “You think he’s here?”

  “Z took him. He has to be here.”

  “We can start with him.” William tips his head to the side. “He’s Aries, right?”

  “Yep, and a Cardinal sign, like you.”

  “They have more power than the others?” he asks.

  “Certainly more influence.” I pinch my lower lip with my thumb and forefinger.

  William slaps a palm against the pillar. His brows hang low over his eyes. “You think Shequan’s memories are here?”

  Mary and I glance at one another, then at him.

  I suck in a breath. “He doesn’t remember who he is. It’s like he’s an empty shell. His body is there, but his mind isn’t. Maybe something went wrong when Z chanted over him. As far as we know, he hasn’t invoked his sign and Z mentioned something about needing people who showed proficiency at calling on Zodiac power.”

  “You sound pretty convinced that’s what happened. Why would she bother taking him if he wasn’t ‘proficient’?” William drags his fingers down the pillar.

  “I don’t know.” I cuff my throat with my hand, shivering at the memory of Shequan’s hands squeezing, squeezing.

  “You think Shequan figured out how to get out, but it destroyed his mind?” Mary asks.

  I huff. We’ll never get out of here.

  William swallows. “I wouldn’t want my mind and body to be in different places. No wonder he went crazy.”

  “All the more reason to make sure we know what we’re doing,” Mary says.

  I purse my lips. “Whenever we figure out what to do.”

  “Z’s not going to help us,” William puffs out his cheeks.

  “I wish Gamma was here.” I plant my back against the pillar and fold my arms across my chest. “You hear that, Castor and Pollux? Any way you could shuttle Gamma here?”

  Mary redirects us. “So we get Evan on board and we have two Cardinals. Maybe he knows what happened to Shequan, since they share a sign.”

  “Right. Then we convince Capricorn and Cancer to help us.” I list the signs off on my fingers. “William is a Libra. The sign is known for its balance and justice. If you do the talking, it’ll go better.”

  “Fair enough.” He peeks around the pillar again. “Aries is directly across from us. How do we get there?”

  “We cut across or walk around.” I swing my arm around in a mini-demonstration of the plan.

  “I vote around.” Mary scrunches her nose.

  “Agreed.” William enters the arena, but sticks close to the edge, and heads counterclockwise. He gestures for us to stay to his right. “Keep over here so I can protect you.”

  “You don’t have to—” I start.

  His lips thin.

  I shut my mouth and huddle close to Mary at his right side, my modern senses reeling and my romantic heart quivering from his chivalrous I-shall-protect-thee-my-lady stance.

  “Do you think the Gemini twins will help us get to Evan?” Mary jumps at a pair of random fireballs and geysers streaking past. They come within inches of William. Mini-tornadoes pirouette around us in an Elizabethan court dance. Earthquakes rattle the ground. Jagged cracks riddle the marble, and columns of gas shoot out the larger holes.

  “Good idea.” I grab their hands and tip my head back. “Castor and Pollux, we could use your help here!”

  The sky—I guess it’s sky—flashes with lightning. I squeeze William’s and Mary’s fingers. “Chant with me.” Mary takes William’s hand to complete the circle.

  I chant:

  “Castor and Pollux,

  Hear my plea,

  Invoke the Scales of Libra.

  Castor and Pollux,

  Support my friend,

  Help us bring this fighting to an end!”

  I hold my breath, waiting. Behind William, the smoke converges into the shape of the Scales. Next to them, Castor and Pollux appear, as benign as ever. Amazing they have so much destructive power. Gamma would probably say something like, “Quiet ponds run deep.” The symbols advance and compress around us. Electricity surges through me, connecting me even more with Mary and William. Their eyes fly open and their hair whips around their heads.

  The Scales shrink down until they’re a funnel of mist and dive into William’s mouth. Castor does the same to me and Pollux possesses Mary. Fueled by raw Zodiac energy, I spin to face the arch and the war field beyond. I see my target across the arena. Red Aries. Evan.

  The moment I think it, I’m there. Mary and William are beside me, with their mouths gaping.

  Evan jumps back with a start, his arms flying up over his face. “Yo!”

  “Evan. It’s you!” Mary leaps at h
im, much like I had when we found William.

  “Mary!” He wraps his arms around her and spins her around. After setting her down, he holds her at arms’ length, grinning. “Are you okay?”

  “I am now.” She blushes.

  He cups her face in his hands and leans in, kissing her full on the lips. Mary squeaks, then giggles.

  After he kisses her long and good, he hugs her again and finally pays attention to us. “Anne, William. You’re here too? Do you guys know what this place is? I got here and everybody was fighting, so I joined in.” He hooks an arm around Mary, who’s still grinning ear to ear. “But I’m not sure why. It’s like…like somebody whispered something in my ear and I just started lobbing these fireballs from my hands. It’s so cool. Let me show you.”

  He extends his free arm to the sky. A fireball bursts from his palm. Whoosh! It flies from his hand and disappears into the fog above. Once it’s gone, a dissatisfied sigh pushes past his lips. “Wish I was home, though.”

  “Do you remember being collected by Z?”

  He runs his hand over his spiky hair. “Sort of. I remember chanting at your grandmother’s house and this big storm coming up. Then everything went dark. A bright light flashed over me and that old woman cornered me. The next thing I know, I’m here.”

  “Did you see Shequan?”

  He shakes his head. “No. He’s here? Have you seen him?”

  I slump against the Aries pillar. “I saw him at the psych hospital. We think Z spit him out, but we’re not sure why.”

  William locks elbows with me. “He doesn’t remember who he is.”

  “Dude.” Evan’s eyes widen.

  Mary tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear and pats Evan’s chest. “We’ll find a way out.”

  William stuffs his hands in his front pockets. “With our memories intact.”

  “We have a plan—” I start.

  Evan interrupts, “What do I have to do?”

  “When we invoke our signs here, they…” I pause and glance at Mary.

  “They possess us,” she finishes.

  “Let’s do it.” Evan gives a single nod.

  His sign, the Ram, materializes as soon as we say the invocation chant (it’s the same one we used for Libra, but we substitute in the Ram for Aries). He smiles, flexing his arms when the power of his sign is given to him. “I feel like I can do anything!”