Chapter 23

The room Lus had taken her too was strangely gloomy and the curtains appeared to be locked in a permanently half drawn state. The bed, which stood near enough in the middle of the far wall, couldn't have been messier if a bomb had hit it. And if the bed was the bomb's crash site, then the rest of the room was the resulting aftermath of the explosion.

'Arados?' Lus glanced about curiously, 'yo Arados, where are you?'

One of the room's two doors opened to reveal a tall boy, with a greasy mess of straggly sandy blond hair. His face was the picture of perfection and his body was sleekly toned into a lean athletic build. Had Kisara not known he was gay, she might have found herself crushing on him by looks alone. In fact she couldn't imagine anyone not crushing on him. Even in the mess he was in, dressed in nothing but a grubby dark green t-shirt and faded black three quarter lengths, which had probably served as both pyjamas and day wear for the last week, he was still all but irresistible.

His velvet-like melted chocolate brown eyes were focused intensely on his right arm. Dragging her gaze away from his face for a moment, she followed his sightline and was almost shocked to see the strange, thick blue line glowing slightly just below his skin.

'What is that?' Lus took half a step towards him.

'That,' his gaze lifted to meet his friend's, 'that is the reason why you should never trust Catilin Ashmar.'

'Cat did that to you?'

'Yeah, she dragged some kind of paintbrush end down my arm and this happened,' his beautifully handsome face twisted in disgust. 'It itches like no one's business and it seems to be getting bigger.'

'Getting bigger,' Lus frowned, 'as in moving further up your arm?'

'No, as in getting wider.'

'I see…'

'No you don't,' Arados shook his head, 'because that's not even the really freaky part. Touch it.'

'What?'

'Touch my arm, go on, touch it.'

Doing as he was told, Lus placed his fingers on part of the blue line. His fingers remained there for about three seconds, before his hand jerked away.

'WHAT THE HELL?'

'I know,' Arados shot him a look.

'What is it?' Kisara was starting to feel like she'd be forgotten about if she didn't speak.

'Take a feel and you'll see,' Arados held his arm out towards her.

'Shouldn't I at least have an introduction first, I mean…?'

'I'm Arados,' he rolled his eyes, 'and you are the new mail-girl, right?'

'Kisara.'

'Right then Kisara,' he gave his arm an insistent push towards her, 'touch it.'

Doing as she was told, she tentatively placed her fingers on top of the blue line. Almost instantly she felt something swelling and rolling along inside his skin. Frowning deeply, she steadily moved her fingers down his arm. The movement ran along it in an almost snake-like wave, going up and down in a fast flowing circle.

'Hmm,' she pressed her lips together, as she placed her left hand under his wrist in order to hold his arm steady, whilst she continued to examine the blue line with her right one, 'I've never felt anything like this before.'

'I don't see why you would have,' Arados pulled his arm away from her. 'Do you mind?'

'Oh gee,' a wave of horror moved through her. 'Oh I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me. I just found it so fascinating to feel something moving under your skin like that. Plus one of the things we get taught about in the TA Academy is parasitic organisms and stuff and how to recognise them. So I've examined a few people, in various places in my time and I was just trying to…'

'Kisara, you're babbling again,' Lus cut her off.

'I am? Oh gee,' now she just felt frazzled, 'I'm sorry.'

'So… you're a Vii Sen, huh?' Arados voice toned weirdly as he spoke. 'They not teach you about being human in the TA Academy?'

'They do,' she felt herself blushing, 'I've just never had that much chance to practice. I always thought that I was going to end up a permanent academic there, so I've never…'

'Ara was just teasing you Kissy,' Lus cut her off, 'I wouldn't worry too much about him.'

'He's right,' Arados sighed, 'I may be the strongest living being in the known universe, but unless you happen to reject me for someone else, after actually making a move on me, then you're perfectly safe.'

'What?' Kisara couldn't help but shoot him an almost horrified look.

'Ara is kind of the reason Tay's a mute right now,' Lus's voice was strangely low. 'It's a complicated situation, not helped by the influence of Ara's half-brother.'

'I see.'

'Look, it's nothing,' he shrugged. 'Tay's forgiven Ara for it and both are still suffering the fall out. It's really nothing for you to worry about.'

'Yeah,' Arados pulled a face, 'just know I'd never intentionally hurt you at least.'

'Thanks,' Kisara gave him a weak smile, before turning her gaze back towards his arm.

It was true, the blue line was getting wider. Not quickly enough to be seen with the naked eye, but it was definitely thicker now than it had been a few minutes before.

'You said it itches, right?'

'Huh?' Arados frowned.

'Your arm. You said it itches, right?'

'Yeah, like crazy.'

'And there's definitely something moving in there,' she tilted her head curiously. 'May I?'

'Sure,' he held his arm out to her again.

'Hmm,' she pressed her lips tightly together, as she examined the line with both her eyes and her fingers. 'It's definitely not like anything they taught us about at the academy. At least not in terms of parasitic life forms. But…'

'But what?'

'I don't know,' she continued to study the line, 'there is something familiar about it. It feels like something I've read about or been told about somewhere.'

'A bad thing or a good thing?'

'I… I'm…'

'Do you think SK will let you go read up about it?' Lus shot her a curious look. 'I mean, he did kind of indicate you'll probably end up as our version of the Mistresses' Helper.'

'Maybe,' she tilted her head to one side, 'all I know right now is that…'

'Is what?' Arados encouraged when she trailed off.

'I have to go now,' she backed away from them both as fear sparked through her, 'I really, really have to go now.'

'Kisara?'

'I… I'm sorry,' without saying anything else, she jumped herself to where she knew Dayena was.

'Kissy,' the Lady of Death's face filled with a strange look, 'this is a surprise.'

'All lines descended from Desmitus have the dormant Blue Ice gene, don't they?' The words burst out of her.

'Yes.'

'Even in this generation now, when the lines aren't so pure?'

'You should know that more than anyone Kissy,' she frowned. 'What is this all about?'

'We're in trouble Dee. I mean, I think we're in trouble. Really, really big trouble.'