Page 30 of Capture of Capricorn

“TheSage?”

The pregnant woman’s lips tilted even higher. “I see Capricorn mentioned me.”

“He did. Claims you see the future.” Zora couldn’t help the slightly mocking tone.

“I do, but not easily at the moment. I’m not sure if it’s junior impeding my ability”—Sage patted her belly—“or the fact we’re at a pivotal branch that’s making it so hard for me to read what’s coming.”

Sage spoke seriously, obviously believing she was some kind of fortune teller. As if.

“Capricorn says you told him to hand his butt over to Cetus.”

“I did. His capture was the best chance we had at stopping an approaching calamity.”

“Yeah, that might not have turned out so good.” Then, because Zora wasn’t sure if this Sage chick knew, added, “The orb we brought out of Area 51 was a fake.”

“I know. Poor Capricorn is really beating himself up over it. Meanwhile, there was never any branch he could have taken that had him leaving with the real one.”

Zora blinked. “You sent him knowing he’d fail no matter what?”

“I wouldn’t say he failed. After all, he did rescue you.”

“But didn’t he need to retrieve the real sphere to stop this whole end-of-the-world thing?”

“No, he needed to be captured to close off some of the nastier possibilities. I couldn’t exactly tell him he’d end up bringing home a fake, or he’d have most likely died tearing that place apart looking for the real one.”

The explanation didn’t clear shit up. Zora leaned back in her chair, ignoring the pie—warm cinnamon-scented apple with a dollop of melting vanilla ice cream, her favorite. “I’m confused. If Crius still has the sphere, isn’t that a bad thing?”

“Very bad for everyone on Earth. However, I have faith that all will turn out all right. After all, Olivia says the baby is going totake after Aries, which means she at least sees a future where my child will be born.” Sage rested her hands on the bulge.

“You’ll forgive me if I don’t buy into this cult bullshit you’ve got going. You and a kid seeing the future? Capricorn claiming he’s some kind of special Zodiac hero who can teleport? It’s a lovely fantasy, but also utterly impossible.”

Sage reached out and patted Zora’s hand. “Science-based people always have the hardest time, but you’ll come around. You should visit Tower’s library, which is on a floor above us. Lots of information about the Zodiac Warriors and Tower there.”

“Meaning books written by cult members.”

Sage laughed. “Oh my. You really are in denial.” Then the woman did something odd. She glanced to the ceiling and murmured, “Try to not shock her too hard.”

Sending a message to the AI running this place, or to those manning surveillance? Should she expect some theatrics in an attempt to subvert? They could try. Zora wasn’t gullible.

Sage rose. “It was nice meeting you. I look forward to getting to know you if the world doesn’t end.” With that, Sage waddled off, and Zora absently ate the pie—which was delicious—pondering what she’d learned.

A whole lot of crazy. However, the thought of a library did intrigue. Just how far back did this cult run?

She headed for the stairs and held in a sigh. No wonder Capricorn was so damned fit. At least the library was only a single flight from the cafeteria. She still arrived huffing and sweating but didn’t mind when she saw the shelves—and shelves, and more shelves—of books. Hot damn. So many to choose from.

She began walking towards the nearest bookcase and read the titles on the spine.The Capture of Capricorn.The Sins of Leo.Legend of Scorpio. Each Zodiac symbol had its ownbook. Beyond those dozen tomes, a slim spine, titled simplyThe Selection and Transformation of Warriors.

As if she cared about their cosplay routine. She glanced to the next shelf and saw a repeat of the books. Same colored binding, titles, size, everything. A glance left and right, even up and down showed only those thirteen books repeated over and over.

“Library, my ass,” she huffed. Was this some kind of joke? Get her excited about all the yummy things to read, only to mock her by offering no true selection?

“You know what, let’s see what kind of bullshit Capricorn and his friends believe.” She snared the how-to-become book and plopped herself in a chair.

The story began with,The planet we watch over, and the life that has blossomed on its surface, is in peril from otherworldly incursions and the emergence of dark forces. If something isn’t done, not only will humanity regress as they struggle to survive but they might be wiped out entirely. That would be unfortunate, as they are an interesting race to observe and it would be a shame for them to go extinct just as they’re beginning to unlock their true potential.

Zora kept reading and snorting in disbelief. What kind of fairy tale fiction was this? Written from an omniscient point of view, the first chapter spoke as if the author were some kind of god watching over humans and warning that civilization faced extinction from monsters, the kind that couldn’t be killed easily or by normal means. Dragons, basilisks, gorgons, and even sea serpents that took down ships. But there were also references to cursed locations, most often caused by either a tragic—AKA violent—event or an object that didn’t belong on this plane of existence. Because, of course," the book implied there was more than one.

Utter nonsense. Zora flipped ahead to a chapter labelled, “Selecting A Warrior.” It began with a short sentence—Toprotect humanity, a cadre of warriors shall be chosen featuring the following qualities.A checklist followed.

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