Chapter 54
'You know, we need to think this plan of yours through a little better False,' Lus half shot a look in his direction, after they'd been walking along for a little while. 'I mean, do you even know what demon powers you have?'
'No,' his own gaze shifted sideways, 'although I do know I have access to at least one of my father's demonic weapons, which probably puts me somewhere on par with him.'
'And do you even know what powers Ni has?'
'I am a Balancer, aren't I?'
'Yeah, for like one day and you spent most of that…'
'How the hell do you know how I spent most of that time,' False cut him off, 'you barely saw me yesterday.'
'Well it didn't take a genius to work out you didn't exactly spend any of it doing what you were supposed t be doing.'
'Really?'
'Yes, really.'
'Well I…'
'Stop it,' Arados cut him off, glaring at both of them as he did, 'even if he only started his more formal training yesterday he still has at least four years of Balancer level knowledge behind him that we don't have. So give him a break Lus.'
'Whatever,' Lus rolled his eyes.
'Look, we have to work together on this one. That means we have to at least make an attempt to get along with each other. And it's not like you to be so aggressive Lus, you're better than that.'
'Oh whatever.'
'Lus…'
'What?' Lus snapped, before feeling instantly guilty for it. 'Sorry, I don't know why I'm feeling so edgy at the moment.'
'Maybe it's because you're hiding something,' False's gaze narrowed in on him. 'Something you don't want Ara to know about.'
'Oh what right do you have to call him Ara,' he glared back. 'You've barely known him for twenty-four hours and Ara is something only people close to him are allowed to call him.'
'I don't hear him complaining.'
'I also don't hear him telling you about how he attacked Tay.'
'What?' False almost instantly turned his attention towards Arados.
'I mean, it's surprising really,' Lus didn't know why he wanted to blacken Arados's name like this, he just knew he couldn't stop, 'he had absolutely no problem in letting Kisara know what he had done. In fact it was within the first few things he said to her.'
'Lus,' Arados shot him a hurt look, 'why…?'
Inside Lus squirmed guiltily. He really didn't know why he'd done it, he just knew he wanted to punish False somehow. And, for some reason, telling him what Arados had done felt like the only thing that would do that. For a long time False was silent. His eyes scanned over Arados with a new found sense of curiosity and a trace amount of disappointment.
'I thought you said you weren't demanding and aggressive.'
'I'm not, not all the time,' Arados lowered his gaze. 'I… you don't know what happened. My brother had… had influenced me. He'd made my temper worse. He was… was the reason it happened. Because when I lose my temper… I… I lose control.'
False continued to examine him closely, making Lus squirm almost as much as Arados was. What he'd just done was hugely unfair to his cousin and he knew it.
'So just remind me not to piss you off,' False shrugged, 'and we should be fine.'
'Huh?' Arados and Lus blinked in mutual confusion.
'I said remind me not to piss you off,' he repeated. 'Now, Lus had a point when he said I don't really know how my demon powers work, so what's say we stop for a little training session. I'm sure Lus will be more than happy to lend his services for that.'
False's eyes turned towards him and Lus could see a very clear message written within them.
'Alright,' Lus nodded.
'Then lets do this,' False slowly led him a few meters away from where Arados was standing and took on a fighting stance. 'Don't think I don't know what you were trying to do God-boy,' he hissed.
'And what was I trying to do exactly?' Lus kept his voice just as low, as he took on a fighting stance of his own.
'Oh don't give me that,' False flicked an energy ball into his hand, 'you know exactly what I'm talking about.'
'Do I now?'
'Don't even try it,' he threw the energy ball towards him, 'you're not good enough.'
'And you are?' Lus lifted his left arm up, deflecting the energy ball back towards False.
'Of course I am,' False jump dodged his returning attack, before regaining control over it and finger flicking it back towards Lus.
'You really think so highly of yourself?'
'I know things you never will Lus.'
'How nice for you,' Lus narrowed his gaze, as he flick summoned an energy ball of his own to destroy the one heading towards him, 'but that doesn't mean you're worth anything.'
'Doesn't it?'
'The decision doesn't belong to us.'
'So you are interested then?'
'And I'm guessing that means so are you.'
At that both boys flick summoned energy balls into their hands and aimed it towards the other. They then stood waiting to see who would lose their nerve first.
'You'll never be good enough,' False's voice was low and taunting. 'No matter how hard you try, you'll never be anything more than the Passive Heir.'
'And you'll never be anything more than a Hateling.'
'You're wrong there; I'm a Balancer. I'm a Vii Sen. I'm also part god thanks to Daddy. So I'll always be so much more than you are.'
'I'm more powerful than you.'
'You don't know that.'
'Don't I?'
'Your status as an Heir to Light has made you too arrogant.'
'Then what's your excuse?'
'My excuse for what?'
'Your arrogance False? What's your excuse?'
'I don't need one,' as he got ready to throw his energy ball, Lus did the same.
'Whatever False, at least I have status,' his lips curled, 'and that's more than you'll ever have.'
