The Final Cycle: A Zodiac Story

𝕀𝕀𝕀

⚠️ WARNING! ⚠️
This chapter contains gore, you have been warned!

•••

Midnight was never an obscure time for Aquarius. It was the perfect time to peruse his passions and hobbies outside the university. No one was awake, including his father, so that meant no disturbances.

Currently, he was locked away in his room, putting together a new LEGO Star Wars set as Daft Punk played from his stereo. "Almost done..." He mumbled, putting the last few pieces together.

His house phone rang from outside his room. It wasn't the first time that night. Earlier, several women from his university asked him to go to parties all around campus, including Virgo's. Of course, he declined. He wouldn't have had fun anyway. Too many people, not enough puzzles.

He sighed, getting up to walk the few paces to his living room. One of the perks of living in a trailer was that everything was close by. "I got it, Dad!" He shouted.

He picked up the phone, pressing it to his ear as he went back to his room. "Xenakis residence, Aquarius speaking." He answered, propping the phone between his face and shoulder so he could keep working on his Millennium Falcon.

"Yo, Aqua! I knew you'd be up!" Sag's voice was loud on the other end, her natural volume. It made Aqua beam. A friend!

"Of course. Creativity never rests! I'd love you show you my latest edition to my Star Wars collection when I finish, if you have the time of course, I wouldn't want to intrude on already established plans-"

"You're fine Aqua!" Sag interrupted him. He wasn't surprised by it, so he let her continue. "Look, you need to come over to Aries' house. We need your... obscure expertise!"

"Hm..." Aquarius hummed. "How obscure are we talking, friend?"

"Like... black blood obscure." Well, that had Aquarius sold.

"I'm on my way." He hung up instantly, wanting no more explanation. The more surprised he was when he got to Aries' place, the better.

He let his mind wander as he got ready to leave. Aqua checked his bag for the essentials: gloves, a scalpel, small sandwich bags for samples to bring home. Perfect. The Alien Salvation Kit (or the ASK, as Aquarius referred to it) was good to go. He made a mental note to buy more scalpels when he had time.

Putting his long brown hair into a ponytail, he hurried to the front of the trailer. Dad! I almost forgot! Aquarius couldn't leave without letting his dad know where he was.

He looked around for some paper and pencil and started writing a quick note:

Father,

I have made yet another revolutionary discovery! I'll tell you all about it when I get back.

♒︎

Perfect. Aqua stuck the note on the fridge with his favorite atom magnet. Without another moment to waste, he rushed out of the trailer and hopped onto his bike. He built it himself, and was in the middle of designing boosters for it.

As he rode out of the trailer park, Aqua let his mind wander. What is this creature like? Where did it come from? Is it's genetic makeup anything close to mine? Could I be related to this new species?! The sudden inquiry made Aqua pedal faster.

Normally, Aries' place was around 20 minutes away on a bike. Aqua made it in half the time tonight. He wasn't even winded when he got there, dumping his bike in the garage and bursting through the door. Aries never locked his door. "Where is it?" He demanded instantly.