Becoming Zodiak

by Craig Jones

  “Taking the treadmill incline to ten degrees.”

  Jimmy’s lower back ached. His thighs felt like they had been trampled by a herd of elephants. His vision blurred and the back of his throat screamed for water, but on he ran. In his peripheral, he saw that the computer screen flashed green. Up on the walkway, Walsh met Jimmy’s eyes and nodded, a look of pride flashing across his face. He then appeared to excuse himself and left Crabbe and Virgo alone.

  “Taking treadmill to fifteen degrees,” one of the instructors called, and the front of the machine creaked under the pressure.

  Jimmy knew how it felt. He wanted to cave in too. As much as he desired to keep going, he could feel his legs failing him.

  He felt sick. Not with the effort, but with the sudden realization that his journey could be over before it began. He was about to collapse, and there was every possibility that his fitness levels weren’t up to the required standard. His heart, already overburdened, began to pound even faster, which Jimmy didn’t believe was possible. The new stress brought with it an instant headache that pounded in his temples, resonating in unison with his hammering pulse.

  The blank, grey wall in front of him was alive with colors, tiny luminous motes that danced across his field of vision. His lungs seemed to shrink in his chest and he simply could not refill them, and then he could no longer lift his feet, and although he heard a voice say, “He’s finished,” he didn’t recognise that it was him the voice was talking about. He drove his left leg forward, and only when it didn’t make contact with the bed of the treadmill did he sense that he was no longer running but swinging in the air, supported by the canvas harness as the machine underneath him wound down to a stop. So out of sorts was he that all he could think about was how the harness was no longer agitating his skin.

  “Well done, Mister Taurus,” said a blurred face right in front of him, finally with a friendly tone. “We can pronounce you able to compete in this competition.”

  18

  “Well, I have to say that our friend Mister Walsh certainly conveys a valid argument,” Lord Crabbe said, taking his attention away from the fitness test taking place below. “Although I do find these methods somewhat barbaric.”

  He paused and peered down at Jimmy as the instructors helped his limp form from the harness and gave him a bright orange drink. He turned his wheelchair to face Virgo.

  “He’s passed, the Taurus boy. To be honest, I think all of them will. But this one—he shouldn’t even be here. If you hadn’t intervened, he would not have been selected. You felt something, didn’t you?”

  Virgo had a strange sort of attitude about her, but she tilted her head in consideration. “I felt…something, yes. But I cannot say if it was about him or about the one we rejected. Nothing is clear to me these days, Lord Crabbe.”

  “You’ve read all of their files? Got to know their stories?” Virgo confirmed her answers with a single nod. “I knew this one’s father,” Crabbe continued, subtly pointing down at Jimmy. “He was in the Service when I was a Member of Parliament. A good man by all accounts, effective in the field, but you would have read how he turned out.”

  “I am concerned that there will be too much scrutiny on all of them, especially this young one,” Virgo stated, her eyes full of empathy.

  “Apparently the reaction to Jimmy Taurus has been quite big. It would appear he is being called the ‘peoples’ favorite.’ Many wonder why he hasn’t been slotted straight into place if he already has your seal of approval.”

  “And Walsh brings us this information, I presume?”

  “The benefits of being in bed with our media kingpin are quite crass,” Crabbe said with a derisive look. “At least we’re finding out just what an impact this recruitment process is having on the public. It appears to be, on the surface at least, a positive one. We are not weak—the public knows that. I just hope the message is getting across to the criminal element out there.”

  Virgo looked down at him with weary eyes. She looked feeble, as if her mind was failing her too. Crabbe detected a hint of confusion behind those eyes; eyes that had, in just the last few days, lost the stunning blue shine that could entrance anyone who came in contact with her.

  “Zodiak will be strong again,” she breathed. “We must believe that to be so. If we are not leading by example, then how can we expect the young ones to follow?”

  “You are right, of course.” He eyed her cautiously. “But are you strong enough? Truly strong enough?”

  Virgo sighed. It was a sound that broke Crabbe’s heart.

  “I am weak, my friend. Sometimes this whole process makes me feel so…inadequate.”

  Crabbe flushed, and he ran his fingers through his scruffy mop of ginger hair.

  “I am so sorry. This way of finding the new Taurus, it was not meant to make you feel…anything. Well, anything except stronger when we are twelve once more.”

  He stopped and took her hand in his. He held in gently, fearful that even the slightest of grips would cause her even more pain than she was already suffering.

  “We can call this off. You never needed anything like this to find us all. What you need is rest, and when you have had a chance to recuperate then your senses will guide you to the new Taurus. Just like they guided you to me, to Martin, to Leonora, all of us.”

  Virgo shook her head slowly and deliberately. “I was able to bring Zodiak together when my powers were strong, when my senses stretched across the whole planet. I was here in Britain but I knew there was young boy in France who needed me, a girl in Australia whose life had been destroyed, and a man right here who could help me mould them into the most wonderful of human beings.”

  Lord Crabbe’s face turned even redder.

  “But now, Andrew, I cannot see beyond the walls of this building. There are times when I cannot see outside of the room I am in.”

  “But you still have moments of clarity? Like during the selection?” Crabbe asked, desperate to encourage any positivity in Virgo.

  “Yes, yes,” she replied, distracted. “But something is blocking me… It is as if I am about to find what I am looking for, but then the lights are extinguished. I am blind once more.”

  Lord Crabbe felt tears well up in his eyes. He turned his chair away from Virgo and watched Jimmy leave the fitness testing chamber.

  “Have you ever experienced anything like this before?” he asked, believing he already knew the answer but dreading its arrival all the same.

  Virgo bowed her head in acknowledgement of the weight of what she had to say. “Not here, old friend. Not since I was sent here to help protect your dimension.”

  Crabbe exhaled slowly. “So, before?”

  “Yes. Before. When The Darkness grew, we all suffered fugues like this. We all suffered it until the end.” She stopped. Her hands were trembling.

  “The end,” Crabbe repeated.

  “I worry The Darkness has found a way through,” Virgo said. “This may not be the way we wish to achieve it, Lord Crabbe, but we must be twelve again if we are to face what is coming. Or rather, if we are to face it and survive.”

  19

  Jimmy swayed out of the testing room on legs more wobbly than he had ever experienced before. His blond hair was plastered to his head and his face felt puffy and hot. The kit he’d selected to wear for the tests was a shade darker and a lot heavier after absorbing his sweat. Despite being driven more by hollow adrenaline than by energy, Jimmy was elated.

  “I’ve done it,” he told himself, mainly because no one else had patted him on the back or complimented him on a job well done like he was used to.

  Brian was always the first one to encourage Jimmy and Shane for their effort above any result. He’d always told them that the hardest person to face after a defeat was oneself, and Jimmy believed him. Brian taught them that the only way to be truly satisfied in a sporting performance was to give absolutely everything, to leave everything you had out there on the field, on the track, or in the ring.

>   Jimmy wondered if the instructors had been so cold in order to motivate him, to give him a focus for an anger that would drive him on. He also considered that maybe they were simply not allowed to show signs of favoritism towards any of the competitors.

  Behind a door opposite the one Jimmy had exited he could hear what he assumed was another treadmill. Someone else was being put through the paces.

  He couldn’t wait to phone Shane and Brian to tell them he’d passed part one, and to make sure Claire knew that he was well and safe. He heard footsteps approaching along the corridor and assumed it was Peter coming to take him back to his rooms. However, he was pleasantly surprised when a beaming William Walsh came into view, his arms held out towards Jimmy.

  “Congratulations, Jimmy. I had no doubt you were in good enough shape to take part,” Walsh called as he strode up. He gave Jimmy a brief hug. “There will be times when I won’t be able to show my support for you, so I’ll make the best of it when I can.”

  “I understand, Mister Walsh,” Jimmy said. “And I really appreciate it.”

  “Look, Jimmy, there’s something I have to say to you.” The change in Walsh’s tone filled Jimmy with an instant dose of dread. His first thought was that, due to his behavior when he was younger, he was going to be asked to leave the event.

  “Well, it’s more of a confession,” Walsh explained. He grappled Jimmy’s shoulders in a loose, friendly hold. “You, above all of the other potential Zodiaks, are going to appeal to the television audience. Because you’re the youngest, because of what you’ve suffered. I just want you to know that these are not the reasons why I am supporting you.”

  Jimmy would have been relieved if not for the cloud of confusion that still lingered.

  “Mister Walsh, I hadn’t thought that at all.”

  “Good, good,” Walsh said. Something beeped inside his suit jacket and he fished out his phone. After reading the message, he brought his attention back to Jimmy. “I’m sorry, but I have to go. I will make the arrangements for your family to travel down tomorrow. Would you please let them know that I have that in hand?”

  “Wow,” Jimmy said quietly. “Of course I will. That’s really nice of you.”

  “Think nothing of it. I’m looking forward to meeting them, especially Brian Mills. I’ve seen him fight, but I never got a chance to tell him what a big fan I am!”

  Jimmy laughed breathlessly as he shifted. His legs were beginning to stiffen up, and he awkwardly stretched them out.

  “A hot bath will help that.” Walsh gestured to his legs. “Relax this evening, and I will see you tomorrow. Well done, again, Jimmy.”

  Before Jimmy had a chance to respond, Walsh was gone, marching down the corridor while dialling a number into his phone. “Yes,” Jimmy heard him say. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”

  Jimmy was about to head off in the opposite direction to the elevator that would take him back up to the top floor. He paused when the door behind which he’d heard the other treadmill opened and a muscular black teenager strolled out.

  “Hey!” said the boy in an American accent. “You must be Jimmy Taurus. I’m Duane Bullock. Nice to meet you.”

  Duane was easily six inches taller than Jimmy and built just like his surname suggested—a young bull. His hair was shaved short and he wore a tight training vest that accentuated his muscles. What Jimmy noticed most was that it hardly looked as if Duane was sweating at all.

  “Nice to meet you too. How did it go?”

  “The tests?” Duane shrugged. “Pretty easy. I play football back home—like, uh, American football. They build us pretty big over there.”

  His arms were nearly as broad as Brian’s. Jimmy could not help but think about how he was meant to compete against this monster of an athlete.

  “Well done,” he said, trying his best to be friendly even though he knew they were both competing for the same thing.

  “So what about you? You look pretty tired, dude,” Duane said, a hint of smugness in his tone.

  “Yeah, I am,” Jimmy replied, keeping his voice even and quiet, not wanting to rise to Duane’s baiting. “But come the start of the competition, I’ll be in peak condition, ready to go.”

  “I bet you will be. Me? I’m at my peak already.” He started off down the hall and gave Jimmy a brief salute. “Good luck, Jimmy. I’ll see you in the arena.”

  Duane sauntered away, and it was only then that Jimmy allowed himself the satisfaction of a wide grin. For all his bluster, it was clear that the tests had taken more out of Duane than he was letting on.

  With every stride the American took, the limp he carried hampered him just a little more.

  20

  Jimmy read the headline on the computer screen:

  ‘THE LAVINIA TAURUS MURDER: FIVE YEARS ON.

  Kurt Taurus Still at Large.’

  William Walsh had advised his that sometimes it was better to answer the uncomfortable questions than it was to avoid them, and Jimmy had decided to make sure he knew everything he could about his mother’s murder. That included that the prime suspect was his father.

  A knock on the door stopped him from reading any further, and he closed down the webpage.

  “Who is it?” he called.

  “Room service.”

  Confused, he opened the door and said, “I didn’t order any—”

  “Gotcha!” shouted Shane and Brian as they grabbed hold of Jimmy and wrestled him to the floor.

  “I asked them not to do that,” Claire said, always the sensible one.

  “That’s okay,” Jimmy said, pulling himself to his feet. “It’s so good to see you guys.” He playfully shoved his brother out of the way and put his arms around Claire. “I’ve really missed you.”

  “I don’t know why,” Brian chortled, placing his heavy kit bag on the floor. “This place is fantastic. It got shut down before I had a chance to fight here. But you’re going to get a chance to run out there in front of actual fans, Jimmy. Do you have any idea how amazing that will be?”

  Shane slid in front of Jimmy and raised his chin. “Excuse me? If you could save the questions for the press conference,” he said with authority. “My client will answer whatever you have to ask him then.”

  “I’m your client?”

  “Yeah. The way I see it, you’re going to need an agent,” Shane said. “Might as well be me.”

  “Uh.” Jimmy was lost for words at the fact that his brother seemed to be serious. He changed the subject instead. “So have they given you guys a room on this level or are you somewhere else?”

  “Mister Walsh arranged a suite for us at one of the local hotels,” Claire explained. “It’s very nice, but far too expensive.”

  Brian and Shane mimed that they thought Claire was crazy and they were happy in the luxury of their hotel.

  “I can see you,” she said sharply, and they cracked up laughing.

  “Guys, I’ve got something for you,” Jimmy announced before he ran into his bedroom. He came back out and distributed bags of kit to his family. Shane immediately tore his open and started pulling the pieces on over his jeans and shirt. Brian carefully opened a sweatshirt and put it on.

  “I couldn’t be prouder wearing this,” he told Jimmy.

  “Wearing what?” asked Shane, his voice muffled with his head stuck in the arm of a hooded jacket.

  “So, you’re ready for a little bit of training?” Brian asked, trying his best to ignore Shane’s struggle with the clothing. “Nothing major—you’re fit enough already. But we need to find out what each of the events entails so we can do some specific work for each of them.”

  “Brilliant,” said Jimmy. “I’m going to be assigned one of Zodiak as a training partner. To work alongside you, I mean. I guess whoever it is will be able to tell us more.”

  “Oh man, I hope you get Scorpio,” Shane virtually exploded. “He’s solid”

  “I wouldn’t mind if you got Libra,” Claire said coyly.

  “Oh really?” Bri
an teased.

  Claire smirked and him, then nodded to her foster son. “Who would you like, Jimmy?”

  “Well, uh, I guess I wouldn’t mind spending some time with—”

  A knock on the door stopped Jimmy in his tracks.

  Shane dashed across the room, nearly tripped over his two pairs of pants, and opened the door.

  “Hi,” said the blonde girl who stood in the doorway, her red tracksuit zipped right up to her neck. “I’m Leonora Anderson. But you can call me—”

  “Leo!” Jimmy finished.

  “Come on in,” Brian invited.

  “Great, thanks,” Leo said, taking a seat on one of the sofas as Jimmy and the rest of the family gathered around her. Jimmy found he could not draw his gaze away from her eyes.

  Shane finally caught his attention and winked. Jimmy shrugged in reply, unsure what his brother was getting at. Shane pursed his lips and placed one hand over his heart, drumming his fingers up and down a few times.

  Jimmy loves Leo, he mouthed and started snickering.

  “What’s with you two?” Brian barked. “We’ve a real opportunity to learn about the challenges ahead, and all you’re going to do is mess about?”

  Jimmy shot Shane a look that would turn most people to stone, but Shane only giggled louder.

  “Shane,” everyone snapped, and he finally pulled himself together.

  “Sorry,” said Jimmy.

  “No worries.” Leo smiled serenely. “I guess you’re going to be tense enough, Jimmy, so a bit of fun will help you relax and perform at your best. Brian, I believe you’re going to be Jimmy’s coach?”

  “Yeah, I’ve been training him for the last couple of years.”

  “That’s great. It’s good to have a solid routine,” Leo affirmed. “I’m just here to make sure Jimmy gets all the support he needs, and to give some tips where I can about preparing for each event.”