Chapter 27

'Dayena told me that you know,' Kisara entered his office completely unannounced.

'What were you doing talking to Dayena?' SK's tongue glanced across his lips. 'I thought you were spending the day with…'

'I was, until that wretched Ashmar decided to ruin everything.'

'Drake?'

'No, Catilin.'

'You met Catilin?'

'No,' she shook her head, 'but she's…' for a moment her sentence went dry, then she gave a strange sounding cough. 'Arados's Blue Ice Gene has been activated.'

'What?'

'You heard me,' her voice was tight but calm, 'don't you see how that could ruin everything?'

'Was it Catilin?'

'Who else?'

'But why?'

'I don't know, probably something to do with her son,' for a moment Kisara began nervously bouncing on her heels, her gaze completely averted.

'Nobody knows it's in your line yet, so you're worrying over nothing.'

'You sound like False.'

'Well False has a point.'

'No he doesn't; don't you get that? It only takes a small slip up and generations of care and secrecy will fall down around me. Me. I'll get the blame for it.'

'Why you?'

'Because I'm the one not doing things right. I've made myself far too noticed by working for you. That's why I'm begging you to let me go back to the TA Academy.'

'I can't do that.'

'Why not?'

'Because I need you. You specifically.'

'Why me?'

'Try working that out for yourself.'

'Is this because of my secret?'

'Yes,' he nodded, before licking his lips again. 'Don't ask me how yet, because I don't know all the details, but you, you are the only one who can help me prepare for what is going to happen next.'

'I don't understand why it has to be me.'

'Because you're so unique, even within your own line. Because you're the end result of so many one offs.'

'I never asked to be special.'

'I know, but that's why you're the only one this can work with.'

Kisara stopped bouncing on her heels for a moment and lifted her eyes up towards him. During their whole conversation so far she'd remained strangely calm, but now there was something in the way she looked which suggested the calmness wasn't going to last.

'How important is this thing which is about to happen?'

'As important as your place within the order of things.'

'My place is unimportant.'

'No it's not Kisara; if it was I wouldn't need you for this.'

For a few moments she continued to stare at him. Then she turned to leave.

'You're not the socially naïve ditz you make yourself out to be Kisara,' the sound of his voice made her stop. 'You don't fake that babbling stuff, I know that, but there's more to you. A lot more to you. That's why you're so perfect. Because when needed you have an attitude as sharp as your mind; you just choose to bury it.'

'Of course I bury it,' she glanced back towards him, 'if I didn't people would get suspicious. And besides,' her expression and voice lightened, 'I am the ditz.'

'You're a lot more than that.'

'But I don't want to be,' she began walking away. 'I'll help you with whatever it is that's about to happen SK, but don't try to place more importance on me than I choose to place on myself. I am a nobody and I'm perfectly okay with that.'

When he found Nichee again, he was with Helen. The second she spotted him her face filled with this strange kind of smile and she stood up in order to greet him.

'What time do you call this False?'

'A little after three,' he shrugged.

'You plan to make life difficult for me now, don't you?'

'Maybe.'

'Well it's just lucky for you that I'm signing over your mentoring to Nichee.'

'What?' False couldn't help but gawk at her.

'As of now he'll be your mentor. I'm working on a particularly delicate mission and I need to know I can rely on everyone involved. The less people to worry about, the better. But that doesn't mean you can skive off your training, which is where Nichee comes in.'

'But…?'

'But what False? He's a much better Balancer than I am, you should be grateful.'

'Fine,' he turned his head away slightly, before lifting his eyes up to meet Nichee's.

Nichee met his gaze with a cool look of amusement. It was clear he'd done something to make sure this would happen, but what and why was beyond False.

'We were talking about this earlier False,' Nichee gave a casual shrug, 'I just thought I would remove the element of chance.'

'I see,' False could hear the tension in his own voice.

'This just works out the best for everyone involved, don't you think?'

'Yes, I guess it does,' he gritted his teeth.

'You are happy about this, aren't you False?'

'Why wouldn't I be?' False found himself forcing a smile onto his face. 'I mean, I am about receive the best kind of training I can get, right?'

'Right,' Helen laughed brightly. 'Well I've got to get going now; you two boys have fun.'

With that she disappeared, leaving False alone with him.

'You did this on purpose, didn't you?' False felt a wave of anger move through him.

'Now, now, now my little whipping boy, I told you, I was just taking away the element of chance.'

'Why are you so interested in me?'

'You have a lot of… potential and I'd hate to see that go to waste.'

'So you thought you'd…'

'Shh now,' in the blink of an eye Nichee had his hand clamped over False's mouth, 'you're not allowed to have an opinion over this. I can get you chucked out of the program, remember? So just be glad I've shown so much interest in making you great.'

Slowly Nichee removed his hand, but the look on his face left False with very little choice but to glare at him sulkily.

'Now listen to me boy,' Nichee gently knocked his chin upwards to get False to meet his gaze, 'I'm not a soft touch like H H; if you're ever late with me, I'll bust your ass out of here so fast your head will be left spinning for the next year. I am the no nonsense type, so I expect no nonsense from you, get it?'

'Yes,' False's voice was tight and muted.

'Good boy. Now, about that recon we were talking about earlier…'