Chapter 7
Seven
The Cerulean Tear. That’s what Sag called the vessel that held her life. She was aware of the feeling that a vital part of her essence had been torn away. At least now she knew the source of that emptiness. The missing piece was the Cerulean Tear, the source of her power and connection to the stars.
She examined Sag. The air about him radiated kindness with an undercurrent of fiery passion. “Have you been down here long?” she asked, trying to glean even a shred of knowledge about her old friend.
Sag smiled, clearly pleased with her interest. ”For centuries, I’ve roamed the mortal realm.” His eyes were alight with a hint of adventure. ”Living among the forests and scaling the mountains, I’ve become intimately acquainted with the wonders of this world.” He paused, a fond smile playing on his lips as he recalled past exploits. ”It was in Peru that Gem found me after she heard you fell from the stars,” he continued. “You may not remember it now, but we are old friends. Despite the two of us being as different as fire and water, we’ve spent eras exploring the stars and discussing the complexities of our existence. So when I heard you were in trouble, of course, I agreed to help.”
Pisces listened intently, a sense of gratitude swelling within her for Sagittarius”s steadfast loyalty. She hoped his warm nature would apply to the rest of the Zodiacs and prove invaluable in their quest to reclaim her Cerulean Tear.
Gemini shifted in her seat to face Pisces. “Obviously, we’re old friends too. How could you not love me?” She grinned impishly. “I mean, sure, sometimes I get on your nerves, and sometimes you get too sappy, but we make it work.”
In the wake of Aries’ harsh disdain, the kindness of these two made Pisces’ heart swell. Her arms flung out, pulling Gemini into a hug.
Gemini stiffened and said, “See, this is what I mean. You’re ruining it.”
Pisces released her with a smile. “Thank you for finding me.”
“No problem,” Gemini said, straightening her green jacket.
Sag exhaled and stood. “All right, we need to get to work.” With a flick of his hand, he conjured a glowing map that hung in the air, its surface adorned with twinkling points of light. ”Each star represents a Zodiac and their location within the Universe,” he explained, gesturing toward the shimmering spots. ”Aries is on the move. Scorpio lingers on the beach.”
Pisces’ curiosity was piqued. “Don’t the Zodiacs have constellations? Where are the rest of them?” She noticed the three twinkling stars that represented her, Gemini, and Sag.
Sagittarius adjusted the map and pointed to three separate points of light above the Earth. “We return to our constellations from time to time.”
Gemini nodded in agreement. “It gets boring up there century after century.”
Sag zoomed in on the map and said, Taurus is here.” He pointed to the light farthest from the other two. “Stays in his constellation the most. He likes to build things. He used to spend most of his time down here, but lately, he’s become obsessed with building a new compound in the stars.”
Pisces nodded, trying to imagine what grand structures a celestial architect would create.
Sag scanned the map again. “Capricorn is coming down to this realm, and it looks like Leo and Libra are still at Star Castle.” He glanced back at Pisces. “That’s where we all come from. It’s where we all began.” Pisces wished she could recall it, but her memory remained stubbornly blank.
Gemini laughed. “Wonder how that’s going. They’re either playing house or burning it to the ground.”
Pisces looked at Gemini questioningly.
Gemini tilted her head back and forth. “They have a love-hate relationship. For the last century, they’re either fucking or fighting.”
Sag smirked. “At least he’s over Capricorn. That wasn’t fun to live with.”
“Definitely not,” Gemini agreed.
This information caused a slew of new questions to form in Pisces’ mind. She bit her lip, embarrassed to ask. “So...do all the Zodiacs?—”
“Fuck?” Gemini said with a smirk. “Not so much anymore. But yes. For eons, we stayed in the stars, and we’ve all had our liaisons with each other. Some for longer than others. But now we’re more spread out. Sometimes even humans catch our attention.”
“I see,” Pisces said, too shy to dig any deeper into her own intimate history. But there was one thing she had to know. “And Aries?” The name left her lips in a whisper, masking the complex blend of fear, anger, and attraction she felt for the fiery horned traitor.
Sag didn’t appear eager to enter the conversation and continued looking at the map.
“That’s complicated,” Gemini said, checking to see if Sagittarius was paying attention. Then she whispered conspiratorially, “He’s been obsessed with you for ages.”
Pisces leaned closer. “Do you think he took the Tear?”
An ethereal light gleamed in Gemini’s eyes, and Pisces sensed there was a world of secrets she was itching to tell. “Well, actually, he’s the one who?—”
“Gem!” Sag barked, his tone a clear warning as he cast a hazel look at Gemini. “We don’t need any trouble with Aries.”
Gemini held out her arms in an exaggerated gesture as if presenting Pisces. “You don’t think this is going to piss him off?” When Sag didn’t respond, Gemini waved her hand and blew an irritated breath, but it was clear her bottle of secrets had been corked for now. “Anyway,” Gemini said. “With Aries, he could be driven by love or a desire for power. You can never tell with that flaming douchebag. The fire signs are usually a pain in the ass.”
“Not always,” Sag said defensively, not looking away from the map.
“Sometimes,” Gemini said, rolling her eyes.
Their reluctance to speak about Aries made her uneasy. What power did he have over them that they avoided speaking about him? Pisces cast her eyes down. “He said I gave it up. That this is all my fault.”
This caused Sag to finally abandon the map and put his full attention on her. “However it happened, it was a moment of vulnerability.” His voice was gentle, but his tone was firm. You were ambushed by someone you trusted who sought to exploit your connection to the Universe for their nefarious purposes. The Zodiacs are not supposed to try to kill each other. However this happened, it’s not your fault.”
Pisces’ heart sank, the heaviness of betrayal by one of the Zodiacs bearing down upon her like an anchor. ”Who could have done such a thing?” she wondered aloud.
Sagittarius”s gaze met hers, his eyes filled with concern and determination. ”That, my dear Pisces, is what we aim to discover.” He nodded and turned back to the map. ”But for now, let’s focus on finding your Cerulean Tear. Whoever took it is responsible for all of this.”
Pisces nodded, her resolve strengthened by Sagittarius”s unwavering support.
“To be honest, I don’t think Aries is smart enough to have stolen the Tear,” Gemini said, casually examining her nails. “It would take someone clever to pull that off. And he ain’t it. All brawn and no brain.”
With a pen and paper in hand charting the Zodiacs, Sag said, “I don’t believe he’s the one who took it, but not because he’s not smart. Never underestimate him, Gem.” He turned back with a look of caution. “Aries doesn’t need power. Aries is power. He is clever enough, but he wouldn’t need to steal the Cerulean Tear to claim the Universe. If he wanted it, he would just take it by force.”
Gemini scoffed and waved her hand. “He’d set the whole thing on fire before he ever got it under his control.”
The expression on Sag’s face said that was absolutely untrue. He gave up debating Aries’ power with Gemini. “It had to be someone else, Pisces. Someone close to you,” Sag declared, his words churning in her mind. A wave of nausea washed over Pisces as she grappled with the implications of Sagittarius”s thoughts. Betrayal loomed like a specter in the shadows of her mind, and she couldn”t help but wonder—who among the Zodiacs could have orchestrated such treachery?
Sagittarius redirected their focus to the glowing map suspended before them, his finger tracing the twinkling points of light on Earth. ”Aquarius is closest,” he declared, his voice tinged with urgency. ”We should visit her first and see what she knows about the missing Tear.”
Gemini nodded in agreement, her eyes flickering with glee. ”But first, we need to clean you up,” she said, turning her attention to Pisces. ”You look like we bought you on Facebook marketplace.”
Pisces felt a flush of embarrassment wash over her, remembering the disheveled state of her appearance.
“Get up,” Gemini ordered, motioning with her hand for Pisces to stand.
She obediently rose to her feet, and as Gemini waved a hand over her, a cool breeze picked up around the room. When Pisces opened her eyes, she was transformed, clad in tight leather pants, a white crop top, and leather boots. A sense of discomfort settled in her stomach at the unfamiliar attire, and she shot Gemini a dissatisfied look.
Gemini chuckled at Pisces’ reaction, a mischievous glint dancing in her eyes. ”Sorry, I thought you might want to look a little more badass for our adventure. But I suppose we should keep it practical.”
Gemini altered Pisces’ outfit again with another wave of her hand, dressing her in light blue jeans and a sky blue off-the-shoulder sweater. Pisces let out a sigh of relief, feeling much more at ease. “So, Scorpio becomes a Scorpion, Aries is a raging fire ram, Sag makes maps, and you?—”
“Mistress of illusion,” Gemini said with a wicked smile that made the hairs on Pisces’ neck stand up. Sagittarius interjected before she could dwell any longer on Gemini, his tone insistent. ”Um, we have a problem. Aries is on his way to the city.” A jolt of apprehension swelled in Pisces.
Sag swiped the map away and began gathering things in a bag. ”He must have known this is where you’d be. We need to leave now. I’m sure he’s pissed you snuck off.”
Pisces’ heart raced at the thought of facing Aries right after her daring escape. ”Does the rest of the Zodiacs have the same map?”
Sagittarius shook his head. ”No, this is an ability unique to me.” He handed Pisces and Gemini each a backpack. “Let’s go.”
As they hurried out of the hotel, Pisces’ gaze fell upon three sports bikes waiting outside. She raised an eyebrow in disbelief. The thought of getting back on a motorcycle, let alone driving one, filled her with dread.
Gemini and Sagittarius exchanged amused glances before Sagittarius addressed the valet, “Please bring my car around instead.” Moments later, a sleek black SUV pulled up to the curb, and they piled inside with Sag at the wheel.
As they sped into the heart of the city, Pisces couldn”t shake the feeling of foreboding that hung over her like a dark cloud. With Aries hot on their trail and the fate of the stars hanging in the balance, she knew that this was just the beginning, and the challenges ahead would either be her redemption or her undoing.