“World domination.”
Aquarius snorted. “Villains, always trying for the impossible.”
“I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss its threat. Even without its minions, the havoc it could cause simply by taking over the wrong person…”
No need to say more. Aquarius could easily imagine all kinds of worst-case scenarios.
“You think this body-snatching alien is related to the premonition from Sage and Olivia.”
“Seems likely, given the mention of an ancient enemy. I have to wonder if they’ve visited our solar system in the very distant past.”
“And the Martians somehow repelled them?”
“It’s a possibility.”
“If that’s the case, it could be why Mars is now inhabitable. Doesn’t seem like we should be following their lead.”
“We don’t know what happened. Could be Mars died from something unrelated. All I know is that’s the only clue we have.”
“A clue that seems to imply that if I succeed, I won’t return.”
Sorrow filled Aries’ expression. “Which is the reason why I hesitated to even mention the prophecy to you. I’ll understand if you refuse.”
“We both know that’s not an option.” When Sage spoke, the warriors listened. “And this is what I signed up for. Guardian of Earth and all.”
“There has to be another way.” Aries rose and paced in front of his window. “You’re too valuable to lose.” And then more softly. “I don’t know if I could live with myself if I sent you to die.”
“Maybe we’re misinterpreting the message. I mean we know there’s no way to get to Mars. Even if I could find a way there, wouldn’t its queen be long dead? Add in the fact neither Sage nor Olivia even remembers saying it. Could be this is that alien fucker trying to screw with us by sending your most valuable asset on an impossible quest so that it can terrorize the planet.”
“A possibility I hadn’t thought of,” Aries mused, rubbing his chin. “It is odd neither have any recollection.”
“Tell you what. I won’t try and hitch a ride of one of Musk’s mission-to-Mars vessels, but I will do some research on the planet.”
“I think that’s the wisest course for now. Perhaps you should pay a visit to the library. See if perhaps there are some mentions of Mars that can’t be found on the internet or in a NASA database.”
“On it, boss. And don’t worry. I have no intention of dying if I can help it.”
But if it came down to sacrificing his life to save the world? A hero always made the right choice.
CHAPTER 2
After his meeting with Aries,Aquarius descended a few flights and visited Tower’s library. Some might wonder why he’d want to bother with books when he could simply type a search string into his computer and immediately pull up information—even the kind of information he shouldn’t have access to. Given his role as resident tech geek, there didn’t exist a database Aquarius couldn’t hack. But here was the thing; he already knew what a search of human archives would reveal. Mars had no life. None that had ever been detected. No signs of civilization. Nothing. Nada.
Not exactly surprising. NASA only came into existence in the 1950s, and while their technology had evolved quite a bit since they faked the moon landing—don’t argue, he’d seen a reel of bloopers from when they filmed it. It should have been destroyed but there always existed those involved in conspiracies that liked to save things that might later pay off—Nasa would never truly know what happened on Mars until they actually set foot on it. Although it seemed more likely the very determined Elon Musk and his SpaceX team would be the first to land someone on the red planet. However, that remained several years away, and Aquarius needed details now.
If anyone had anything on the dusty dead world, it would be Tower’s library, which stored and preserved texts from around the world, some of it written thousands of years ago. Pity Tower didn’t have all the books ever written by mankind. Unfortunately, much was destroyed before Tower began collecting. However, if any ancient mention existed of Mars—or its supposed queen—this would be the place to start. Aquarius might try digging to see if any references existed of the aliens as well, although that might prove a tad difficult given they didn’t have a name for them. Searching worked best when you could use the proper nomenclature. Four-armed, three-eyed, rabid gross people-eater sounded more like a song than an actual search query.
The library—a cozy space with floor-to-ceiling bookcases, a crackling fire in a hearth, comfortable chairs and table—only held a fraction of its available texts, with the majority being stored elsewhere in Tower’s many—many—levels.
Spotting Asterion—the legendary minotaur that used to haunt the Labyrinth—bent over a table flipping the pages of a book, Aquarius cleared his throat so as to not startle. “Hey, Asterion. How’s things hanging?”
The bull-headed man straightened and offered a smile, which for the uninitiated might seem as if he’d decided to rip off your head. Really, though, the minotaur, who’d been rescued from his prison maze, couldn’t be a nicer guy. “Greetings, Aquarius. No hanging today, as Tower has introduced my nether regions to snug briefs.”
“Tighty-whities. Nice. I’m more of a boxer guy myself. You been promoted to head librarian yet?” Asterion had been learning how the library worked from the current caretaker with the plan he’d take over and allow the former to retire. A mysterious figure none of the warriors ever met but greatly appreciated. If they needed a book, they simply had to state outloud what they sought, and poof, it appeared on the table. Cool trick and almost as quick as a typed search on his computer.
“I still have much to learn. The amount of knowledge stored is quite astonishing. It will be a decade or more, I think, before I come even close to being as efficient as Carlos.”
The librarian had a name? “Decade? Damn. That’s an insane apprenticeship, but if anyone can do it, it’s definitely you.” Asterion had a thirst for knowledge.
