THE Conclave

Everyone thinks the Zodiacs are the centre of the story. Beautiful, broken, chosen. Flames in human skin. Water in rage form. Love stories with extra sparkles and trauma. But there’s another part. Someone has to keep them alive. Someone has to make sure they don’t burn the wrong things down — or drown themselves in their own chaos. That someone is me. My name is Tessa. I’m a descendant of the now-nonexistent mortal line of the Zodiacs — from their father’s side. My cousins al

“You always say that, Isaiah,” Onyano said. “But maybe our world isn’t a fairy tale.” Years passed. Then I got a message. Just her name. “Mana.” Like a whisper across a decade. I picked her up at the bus station. My Jaguar looked ridiculous parked next to the minibuses, but I didn’t care. I didn’t say anything. Just took her bags and got her checked into the nicest hotel I could find.

Everyone thinks the Zodiacs are the centre of the story. Beautiful, broken, chosen. Flames in human skin. Water in rage form. Love stories with extra sparkles and trauma. But there’s another part. Someone has to keep them alive. Someone has to make sure they don’t burn the wrong things down — or drown themselves in their own chaos. That someone is me. My name is Tessa. I’m a descendant of the now-nonexistent mortal line of the Zodiacs — from their father’s side. My cousins al

These bad gods demand sacrifices. And when they don’t get what they want? They ruin worlds. Enter: the Zodiacs. Twelve children. Born of a goddess who once fell in love with a mortal. They were never meant to exist. But now they’re sworn to protect the realms, especially Earth. Earth Is the Mission. Love Is the Test. Once a year, each Zodiac child is allowed to visit Earth. It’s not a vacation. It’s a rite of passage.