Page 42 of Pisces Rising

"What's this all about?" the lion Zodiac rumbled, his tone a blend of confusion and thinly veiled aggression as he eyed the group warily.

Pisces felt Aries tense beside her, no doubt sensing the simmering promise of conflict in Leo's blazing stare. Moving quickly to defuse the rising tensions, she stepped forward—emanating an aura of calm determination. "Thank you all for coming on such short notice," she began, letting the distant thrum of her cosmic essence lend weight to her words. "I wish our reasons for calling you here were...less dire." She recounted the sordid tale—Dark Gemini's emergence, the theft of the Cerulean Tear, the tangled web of lies and manipulation that had ensnared them all. As the grave reality sank in, reactions ranged from stunned disbelief to outraged fury.

Libra, in particular, seemed devastated by the revelation of Gemini's descent into darkness. "There must be a way to reach her," the embodiment of harmony protested, her luminous eyes brimming with anguished hope. She clasped her hands together, her delicate fingers trembling slightly. "To separate her light from the corrupting shadows and banish this...this dark aspect for good."

Pisces held up a hand, quieting the rising clamor of clashing opinions. "Believe me, I want nothing more than to find a way to save Gemini's true essence," she said, her voice ringing with conviction. "But our priority must be stopping Dark Gemini's rampage before she turns her depraved illusions into a permanent unraveling of the universe—and the Zodiacs."

A heavy silence fell over the Zodiacs as they digested the weight of her words. Even Leo seemed cowed by the grave implications, his leonine features set in a grim mask of reluctant agreement.

Taurus cleared his throat, breaking the taut stillness. "So..." he said, his deep rumble slicing through the air. "What's the plan to put this mad goddess back in her place? I'm guessing it involves getting to this 'mirror realm' Scorpio mentioned."

Pisces nodded, grateful for the Bull's pragmatic shift in focus. "Exactly. But there's a problem." She looked to Virgo, her eyes seeking his confirmation.

The analytical Zodiac adjusted his glasses, his expression grave. "The fractures leading there are rapidly destabilizing—we may already be too late to access that dimension safely."

A low murmur of dismay rippled through the assemblage. Aries’ hand found hers, giving it a reassuring squeeze as he leveled her with a look of steadfast encouragement.

Pisces drew strength from his touch, her resolve hardening. "Which is why we'll need to pool our resources, our strengths..." she continued, letting her unwavering faith ring through her words. "Virgo can forge us a temporary portal bridge, but maintaining it will require reinforcement from each of our celestial signatures. And once we're through..." She trailed off, letting the unspoken reality of the dangers they would face in the mirror realm hang in the air. The dark truth was they were all risking their lives for this. With the realm so unstable, any one of them could become trapped in that fractured dimension forever.

But as she met the determined gazes of her allies, she knew they wouldn't let her down in the face of such danger. Not when the very fabric of reality itself hung in the balance.

Taking a breath, Pisces lifted her chin in a silent challenge to the universe. "Let's get to work. I don't have my memory to rely on, but I suspect it's been a long time since we've come together to wage an all-out war."

Chapter

Thirty-Four

The makeshift war council plunged into a flurry of strategizing and preparation, each Zodiac pooling their knowledge and celestial gifts to forge a path into the mirror realm. Sagittarius pored over an ancient, glowing star chart, his brow creased in concentration. "According to these astrological mappings, Dark Gemini is already en route to the mirror realm's fractured dimension," he announced grimly. "We're running out of time to intercept her."

A tense silence followed his ominous words before Virgo spoke up. "Then we need to calculate the optimal window for slipping through the portal undetected," he mused, adjusting his glasses as he pored over a cascade of astral data. "The mirror realm aligns most closely with our sun's orbit in approximately six hours. We should aim to open the bridge during that period of solar proximity."

"The sun's blinding light may be enough to mask our entrance from Dark Gemini's prying senses," Scorpio added, his obsidian eyes glittering with calculation. He turned that penetrating stare on Pisces. "Provided we have sufficient power fueling the portal bridge."

Pisces met the scorpion's intense gaze steadily. "Then we'll need to combine what power we have, won't we?" Her eyes swept over her celestial allies, silently imploring them to rise to the occasion.

"We'll pool our celestial essence," Leo rumbled, rising to his full, imposing height as he paced toward the center of their staging area like a leonine king surveying his territory. "Focus it through my animalistic channel and bend the cosmic forces to our will. Nothing can stop us when we move as one embodiment of primal mastery."

Taurus let out a low chuckle, the deep timbre vibrating with a good-natured challenge as he shot Leo an appraising look. "You sure have a flair for the dramatic, kitty cat," he rumbled, earning a warning growl from the lion Zodiac. “We can’t pool our powers. Some of us need to remain outside the realm to keep the portal open.”

Before the sparks of masculine bravado could ignite into a full inferno, Libra drifted between the two powerful males with an aura of soothing grace. "Peace, my friends," she murmured, her luminous gaze flickering between them as her delicate hands extended in a placating gesture. "We'll need to harness our strengths in harmony if we hope to overcome the darkness ahead."

Pisces felt a surge of affection for the serene female spirit. Libra's presence reminded them of the balance they strove to defend—the cosmic scales that must remain eternally even, no matter the turmoil and chaos thrown at them.

As the plans continued to take shape, Aries drew Pisces aside, his calloused fingers lacing through hers in a solicitous grip. "A moment?" he rumbled, the tones of his deep timbre sending a quiver of awareness through her nerves.

She nodded and smiled, allowing him to lead her from the bustling staging area to a secluded alcove within the celestial compound's inner sanctums.

As Aries boxed her in against the curved iridescent wall, Pisces felt her breath hitch. His arms braced on either side of her as he scanned her features with eyes of molten obsidian.

"Before we go charging into that fractured hellscape..." he began gruffly, then trailed off—a rare hesitation clouding his expression as he struggled to voice the unspoken tension crackling between them.

Pisces reached up, her fingertips tracing the sharp angle of his jawline with a feather-light caress. "We may not get another chance like this," she murmured, understanding bleeding into her words as she held his blazing stare. The obstacle of her mortality hung like a cloud over them, and while she could see the desire in his eyes, there was also that hesitation, the fear he might hurt her.

Pisces put a hand on his chest as an idea sprang to her mind. “Wait right here.”

His brow creased, and his arms refused to uncage her.

With a laugh, she pushed him harder. “Wait right here, and I’ll be back, I promise.” A growl of disappointment was his answer, but he let her go, and she ran down the hall back to the war room. Poking her head in, she quietly caught Aquarius’ attention. The lithe Aquarian strode toward her, her curiosity piqued.

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