ZODIAC: Page 2 of 2

Written By: 
Monolith.
Image Work: 
Binaryan (Ryan Jones).
Last Updated: 
11th May 2018

Chronology, cont.

First Sign crossover:

A previously unseen army of the Zodiac lay siege to Manhattan in a scheme reminiscent of Aries' earlier efforts. A force field generator based from the USS Intrepid drained all power from Manhattan and used it to create a virtually impenetrable force field around the island. This not only trapped and contained the inhabitants, it robbed them of electricity or power of any sort. To keep the generator's location a secret, Zodiac was beaming their army into the city itself using a trans-portal located in an abandoned subway station. The army of the Zodiac used shielded equipment, enabling them to terrorize the city by retaining powered weapons and technology. Captain America, Thor and Iron Man were trapped in the force field and fought their way to the trans-portal, stealing its technology aboard a hover-ship. They were able to temporarily drop the force field on the Brooklyn Bridge, letting hundreds of trapped civilians out and bringing Giant-Man, Wasp, Crystal, Quicksilver and Deathcry in. Quicksilver's scouting reports located the Zodiac-occupied Intrepid, and the Avengers assembled to assault the base. They were confronted by Libra, the only identified general of the Zodiac to appear. Libra proved to be a powerful opponent, holding off the entire roster of Avengers until Giant-Man located the force field generator and destroyed it. Libra was undaunted, declaring this a successful test of Zodiac's abilities. He remotely detonated explosives in the armor of all his troops, killing them. Libra then vanished in a cloud of smoke, promising to return.

In-Between

  • Libra did not return. No further reference would ever be made to this Zodiac or their agenda. It's speculative that Libra was a restored LMD from the Ankh Dimension, or connected to the similarly solo Scorpio who appeared years later, but no confirmation has been made.
  • Mikel Fury eventually left S.H.I.E.L.D. after his father was killed, and the spy organization kept his Scorpio Key. The item was sought by several parties over the years, with increasing confusion over whether there was one or two Keys in existence. [Iron Fist (3rd series) #1-3, Elektra (2nd series) #1-5]
  • With the debut of a new Zodiac in Canada, General Clarke reported that previous Zodiac members were incarcerated in American and Japanese prisons. To whom he could have been referring is unknown, since all previously existing human or LMD Zodiac members were believed dead at the time, with the exception of the last Libra. Given the compulsive misinformation coming out of Department H in those days, however, it's likely Clarke was just blatantly lying. [Alpha Flight (2nd series) #1]

Chronology, cont.

Alpha Flight (2nd series) #1:

The new Scorpio was an unknown figure who gave up a life as a "hero" when the seer known as the Ecliptic convinced him of her power. Through unexplained means, he began recruiting and transforming others into his Zodiac, beginning with Taurus, Virgo, Pisces and Sagittarius. Scorpio made arrangements with the mysterious and sinister director of Department H to stage a terrorist attack by Quebec separatists in order to justify the formation of a new Alpha Flight. During the fight that followed, however, Taurus was nearly cut in two by Flex and Virgo disappeared when Murmur forced her to unwillingly activate her teleporter. Scorpio blindsided Madison Jeffries and took him prisoner in response. After Zodiac teleported away, Scorpio collected their money from H's director. However, he said the loss of Virgo now made them blood enemies.
Alpha Flight (2nd series) #5, 7, 10:

Virgo materialized in Paris, France and was taken in by a local couple. Scorpio used the Ecliptic's power to pinpoint her location and sent a revived Taurus to retrieve her. Virgo and Taurus returned after killing her rescuers, while Scorpio finished assembling Zodiac.
Alpha Flight (2nd series) #12:

The complete Zodiac was present to invade Department H, hoping to acquire the Nth Projector, which H confiscated from Project: P.E.G.A.S.U.S. During their invasion, Zodiac planted a bomb on the department's reactor and unleashed a bacterial super-organism from Prometheus Division, leading to the deaths of General Clarke and Sasquatch, respectively. Gemini was unmasked by Alpha Flight and revealed as their missing member, Madison Jeffries, who had been brainwashed into Scorpio's service. Zodiac escaped with the Nth Projector after their raid.
Weapon X (2nd series) #1:

Scorpio and his Zodiac were targeted by the Weapon X Program. They wanted the services of Madison Jeffries for the Director's Neverland project. Gemini was captured while the rest of Zodiac were massacred by the Weapon X agents. Those that weren't killed in the initial melee either died when their lifeforce was drained by Sauron or when their castle was blown up by the operatives.

In-Between

  • The Ecliptic's Scorpio wielded a Zodiac Key resembling the previous versions, however it was never called out or identified as being related to the past key. Meanwhile, the Scorpio Key disintegrated in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. Whether this was the same or a different key than the one confiscated by Elektra is uncertain. [Avengers (3rd series) #59]
  • The man who would become the next Scorpio once believed he would be a surgeon, before being introduced to the Zodiac Key and the Ankh Dimension. He learned how to use the Key to unlock the forces of chaos and order. In doing so, he literally split the In-Betweener into separate halves known as Chaos and Order. With the power of Chaos held under his sway, Scorpio amassed great power in the Ankh Dimension. [Avengers (3rd series) #60]

Chronology, cont.

Avengers (3rd series) #57-60:

Scorpio used the power of the Zodiac Key to teleport entire cities from Earth into the Ankh Dimension, leaving behind an empty void, a chasm of reality at each site. The world was thrown into chaos as most of its capitals disappeared, and what remained of the United Nations temporarily ceded world authority to the Avengers. The Scarlet Witch's hex power alerted her to what was amiss with the In-Betweener, and the Avengers resolved to bring Chaos and Order back together. Many Avengers were teleported into the Ankh Dimension to confront Scorpio directly. As the In-Betweener was made whole, Scorpio teleported away and Earth's cities were restored to their original locations. Scorpio met with a group of shadowy figures in a boardroom, apparently the rest of his Zodiac, and they congratulated themselves on having misled the Avengers to their true purpose.
Young Avengers (1st series) #12:

An unidentified and apparently incomplete Zodiac attacked the United Nations. They included Cancer, Taurus and a pair of Gemini twins. Speed and the Young Avengers swung into action to defeat Zodiac. This group never appeared on-panel, so it is unknown if they had any additional members, or whether they were related to other Zodiac teams.
New Warriors (4th series) #4-5:

After he apparently killed or abandoned his previous Zodiac, Scorpio returned in search of rebuilding his circle. Having acquired all the signs except for Gemini and Capricorn, Scorpio and Zodiac attacked Manhattan in order to perform a ritual in search of Baal Abib, a person, location or power source of tremendous value. Recruits from the Fifty-States Initiative were brought low by Zodiac's power, but a new squad of renegade New Warriors responded as a second wave. During the fight, Cancer killed the neophyte heroine known as Longstrike. When the tide turned against them, Scorpio teleported himself and the rest of Zodiac away.
Dark Reign: Zodiac #1-3:

A singular super-villain known as Zodiac emerged during Norman Osborn's time in control of the Fifty-States Initiative. In order to claim the name for himself, Zodiac killed every member of the last Zodiac who searched for Baal Abib and mounted their decapitated heads on his wall. He also infiltrated the boardroom Scorpio's Zodiac once occupied and seized the Zodiac Key for himself.

In-Between

  • Zodiac continued to wield the Zodiac Key for a time after the previous circle was killed. [Age of Heroes #4]
  • John King was the cousin of Parker Robbins, aka the Hood. He served as Parker's right hand man during their takeover of crime in New York and the super-villain underworld. John was captured along with the Hood, Madame Masque and Count Nefaria following the siege of Asgard. [The Hood #1, New Avengers Finale #1]

Chronology, cont.

Avengers Assemble #1-4:

Thanos approached John King and offered him the power to become a super-villain in his own right. As Cancer of the Zodiac, King gathered 11 other henchmen and minor criminals to receive Thanos' power. In exchange for keeping their abilities, they were instructed to gather devices of immense power from around the globe for Thanos. Aquarius and Taurus separately drew the attention of the Hulk and the Avengers. When the Avengers confiscated an Ultimate Nullifier that Taurus was after and brought it to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, a Zodiac contingent including Aquarius, Leo, Virgo, Gemini, Pisces and Libra attacked the vessel. Leo suffered a heart attack and died while fighting the Hulk, releasing the energies being broadcast to him to support his powers. Iron Man analyzed this energy and devised a counter-measure, eliminating the Zodiac's powers. Thanos was forced to step in personally, repowering the Zodiac as his vassals in acquiring the Nullifier. S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers abandoned ship and detonated the Helicarrier, killing the Zodiac members present and delaying Thanos. John King and the remaining depowered Zodiac members were rounded up by the Avengers afterwards.

In-Between

  • Thanos abandoned the surviving Zodiac members and continued with his quest without allies. He was opposed by the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy before being defeated. [Avengers Assemble #5-8]
  • Vernon Jacob Fury was reportedly the grandson of Jacob Fury, inheriting his interest in astrology and connection to the Zodiac Key. Under the identity of financier Vernon Jacobs, he used astrological predictions to stay ahead of the markets and amass a small fortune. His horoscopes helped Vernon predict the rise of Parker Industries, and he became chief shareholder on the board of directors. By gaining control of the Ankh Dimension's Zodiac Key, Vernon became Scorpio and accumulated even greater sources of natural and supernatural power. As Scorpio, he acquired or constructed Zodiac masks that could brainwash and empower people into serving as agents of his new Zodiac Cartel. This enabled Vernon to create an entire network of powerful but disposable allies to organize and run his Zodiac. In addition to exploiting Parker Industries resources from the inside, Scorpio also had Zodiac stage a series of raids on the corporation throughout the world. [Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #11]

Chronology, cont.

Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #1:

Leo staged an attack on Parker Industries in Hong Kong to steal the secure servers containing all the data from Parkers' Webware devices. Spider-Man and Mockingbird stopped Leo from getting away and, when he attempted to use the suicide pill in his teeth, Spider-Man injected Leo with an anti-toxin. S.H.I.E.L.D. took Leo into custody, their first live Zodiac prisoner since the new cartel debuted. Pisces later attacked Peter Parker at the marriage of his friends Max Modell and Hector Baez, demanding his executive Webware device with access codes to Parkers' data. In order to prevent people from being hurt, Parker turned over his Webware, although he encrypted the data first.
Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #2:

Spider-Man and the Prowler used a tracer signal in the Webware to track down Zodiac in an underwater base. Cancer, Pisces and Aquarius were trying to decrypt the Webware and gain access to the accumulated data of millions of Webware devices. Spider-Man and Prowler fought the Zodiac, but failed to prevent Aquarius from uploading the device to Zodiac's main network, sending the encrypted data to every Zodiac base on Earth. With the data copied into so many hands at once, it was now inevitable Zodiac would decrypt it given time. As a back-up plan, however, Spider-Man, Prowler and S.H.I.E.L.D. were still able to track the data, using the transmission to pinpoint every Zodiac base at the same time.
Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #3:

With consultation from Gemini, Scorpio decided to stage a bold strike on the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier where Leo was being held. The Parker decryption was successful, allowing them to shut down all the ParkerTech on the Helicarrier. Scorpio, Taurus and Aries stormed the Helicarrier and made it to Leo's cell, where S.H.I.E.L.D. still hadn't managed to remove his mask. Rather than rescuing him, however, Scorpio executed Leo with the Zodiac Key, incinerating his body so that Zodiac's true identity could not be uncovered.
Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #4:

Gemini foresaw that if Scorpio moved up his timetable, Spider-Man would be unavailable to assist S.H.I.E.L.D. By leaking word of Zodiac amassing activity, Scorpio ensured S.H.I.E.L.D. would launch a multi-pronged assault on Zodiac's revealed bases. The unrelated Goblin attack on the Uncle Ben Foundation in Nadua diverted Spider-Man and Mockingbird from the tactical strike. S.H.I.E.L.D., Prowler and the Human Torch took down Aries, Aquarius, and Capricorn, who had been left behind at bases due to Scorpio's pre-emptive action. However, many of the bases were revealed to be props without actual tech and manpower to support them.
Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #5:

Spider-Man realized Zodiac needed his decrypted Webware data to hack into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s satellite-based scans. The fake bases were deliberately scattered throughout the world in a search grid pattern so that when S.H.I.E.L.D. scanned for the bases, Zodiac was able to use the scans to find something else entirely. At the British Museum in London, Scorpio attacked with Gemini, Taurus, Libra, Sagittarius and Virgo. He was opposed by Spider-Man and his allies, but still managed to use the Zodiac Key and break open the Rosetta Stone, revealing an Orrery composed of the same materials as the Zodiac Key. With his goals accomplished, Scorpio remotely triggered the suicide pills in his fellow Zodiac members, distracting Spider-Man with administering the anti-toxin long enough for Scorpio to escape.
Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #9-10:

Spider-Man came up with a plan to find Zodiac a few minutes after midnight, catching the new Gemini off-guard during his precognition's reset period. Spider-Man and Nick Fury used the Arachno-Rocket to manually access the S.H.I.E.L.D. satellites Zodiac took control of in order to find the search program Scorpio loaded into them. Scorpio turned the remaining satellites under his control into projectiles, launching them at the heroes, but Spider-Man successfully located the Zodiac Key and Orrery in Paris. Trusting in his spider-armor, Spider-Man made planetfall and landed right by Scorpio in France. Scorpio tried to kill Spider-Man, but Gemini warned him the alignment was coming, and he needed to abandon the hero in order to complete his goals. Scorpio and Gemini boarded the Channel Tunnel, using Zodiac masks to recruit new versions of Leo, Taurus, Cancer and Pisces on the way. Scorpio forced the Chunnel train to crash, deterring Spider-Man's pursuit. By retracing the original satellite signal, Spider-Man found Vernon Jacobs' residence and realized he and Scorpio were the same.
Amazing Spider-Man (4th series) #11:

Scorpio and his Zodiac recruits arrived at the Royal Observatory in England, straddling the Prime Meridian where a new day officially begins on Earth. By combining the power of the Zodiac Key and the Orrery during this specific astrological alignment, Scorpio opened a tunnel to a unique door locked by the Key. Spider-Man and his allies arrived to stop Zodiac, but Scorpio disabled them long enough to make it to the door, a gateway one year into the future. As he gazed into the future and soaked up its knowledge, however, Spider-Man got the drop on Scorpio from behind, launching him through the door and keeping the Zodiac Key for himself. Zodiac was defeated, the Key was back in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody and everyone had a full year to plan before Scorpio returned.
Amazing Spider-Man (1st series) #794:

One year later, Scorpio emerged from the door and summoned the Key to his side. Spider-Man, Mockingbird, and Horizon Labs were unable to keep them from reuniting. Activating a contingency plan, Vernon traveled to Big Ben, where his company had modified the clock tower during its last refurbishing to act as a transmitter for the Zodiac Key. Spider-Man forced the Key to separate from the transmitter to protect Scorpio, however, and both of them were taken into custody by the authorities.

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