“We’re all done here,” Kell said as he took his last blood sample from Reya. They were onboard the ship in the med bay, where she was undergoing her physical. It hadn’t been an immediate affair, but Kell was glad that Reya was allowing herself to be checked out. He eyed the vial of blood he was holding suspiciously. Something about it didn’t feel right.

  “That’s it?” Reya asked, surprised. “Everything done today was rather basic. I was expecting more.” Her eyes watered, that incessant itch returning. It had been getting worse. She debated whether she should bring the subject up with Kell.

  “I told you, it was just a simple physical to make sure you’re in good health,” Kell replied as he stored the sample for study once Reya was gone. He noticed her rubbing her eyes, something she’d done frequently during her time with him in the med bay. “Are your eyes alright?” he asked.

  Reya hesitated for a moment, before deciding to tell him honestly what was wrong. “They’ve been itchy lately and it’s only getting worse. I have no idea what’s causing it. I thought it would go away on its own, but it hasn’t.”

  Kell frowned. He retrieved his specialized equipment that would allow for him to properly check her eyes. “Let me take a look,” he said as he passed her a visor. It would completely block her vision, but the tool would allow for him to have a fantastic view of her retinas and even look deeper into her eyes should he feel the need. He took a seat next the chair she was seated in.

  Reya accepted the visor and put it on without question, used to the procedure. Together, they checked her visual acuity, running through standard tests to see if her eyesight had changed at all. Kell studied the results on his data slate, perplexed. On all accounts, it appeared as though her vision had improved. Noticeably.

  Which was odd, since she already had perfect vision.

  “I’m going to take a look inside your eyes. You’ll notice a small light. Please keep your eyes open, even if it feels a bit uncomfortable,” Kell said, keeping his gaze trained on the image his data slate was providing him. Her irises had extremely pale rings and furrows. He called up a past image of her eyes and noticed that they were a far paler shade of violet than they had previously been. He doubted that it was the equipment malfunctioning.

  He made note of the oddity and continued to take far more in-depth pictures of her eyes that he could study later when she wasn’t around. He had a feeling that he had a lot of work to do to properly analyze her results. Eventually he finished and took the visor back from Reya. With nothing else left to check, he dismissed her after informing her that he’d talk to her again if he found anything worth noting from her results.

  Once she left the room, he went to the med bay doors and locked them so that he wouldn’t be disturbed when handling sensitive information. He called the others and instructed them only to contact him if there was an emergency.

  Satisfied that he wouldn’t be interrupted, he sat down at his desk and got to work. He started his studies with her eyes, only to discover that their structure and undergone very slight changes, though the cause remained unknown to him. Unable to come to a proper conclusion, he put the data he had on them aside and instead focused on her physical’s results.

  She appeared to be in fantastic shape. Far more so than she had any right to be after having lost so much muscle mass while captured by the gru’ul. He knew for a fact that she hadn’t exercised much since being at the safe house, putting into question the validity of the results. Yet, after verifying the machines, he found that they were properly calibrated and functioned as intended.

  The results left him stumped. His attention turned towards the storage unit where her blood samples were. He withdrew one of the small vials and studied it for a moment, his eyes narrowing. The blood was too pale and shimmered slightly when he held it up to the light.

  Something wasn’t right.

  He ran an analysis on the sample using his medical equipment. While waiting for the results, he took out another vial and prepared a small slide for study under a microscope. Armed with the knowledge that Reya already had nanomachines in her blood, he zoomed in until he found them anew, shocked by what he saw.

  There were far more of them than in her initial blood sample from when she’d been rescued from her capture.

  The discovery alarmed Kell greatly. He ignored the beeping sound from his machine that was analyzing Reya’s blood and continued his work. There were now many different types of machines in her blood. Tearing his gaze away from the mystery before him, he retrieved Reya’s original blood sample for comparison.

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  He was indeed correct in that there were more nanomachines in her blood. Unlike the original sample where they were sparse and hard to detect, the new sample was the beginnings of a microcosm that reminded him of what he’d found in Adrian’s blood.

  His gazed went back to the cabinet where Adrian’s blood was kept. He knew he shouldn’t study it again, but the health of his friend was at risk. Reluctantly, Kell took out one of Adrian’s samples and placed it under the microscope.

  For Reya, Kell tried to convince himself as he took another look at his forbidden fruit.

  By the time he was done, a sick feeling lurched in his gut. Some of the nanomachines in Reya’s blood were exactly like those in Adrian’s, only with less diversity and density. He retrieved a sample of Beor’s blood and held it next to Reya’s in the light. Side by side, it was obvious that there was something wrong with Reya’s blood. The coloration was completely off, not to mention the odd shimmering her blood had.

  Belatedly, Kell remembered about the sample he’d set up in his machine for analysis. Using his data slate, he looked at the results, but didn’t understand what they were telling him. Reya’s blood no longer held the same properties as regular a’vaare blood. Just what was happening to his friend?

  Grimly, he set about his task of finding out.

  Adrian ended his language lesson with a rather pallid Stanley when Reya entered the room, relieved that the both of them could take a break. Reya wandered over towards Adrian once Stanley left, a frown etched onto her features. He saw this and motioned for her to sit down in the now empty chair beside him at the desk. Once she was settled, he asked how the physical went.

  “I was expecting more,” Reya said honestly after she walked him through what happened, still perplexed at how basic everything had been. She rubbed her eyes. “I even asked him about this incessant itch.” She blinked away tears. “By the gods, it’s driving me insane!”

  “Do you think he’ll find out what’s causing it?” Adrian asked, concerned. The frequency with which Reya touched her eyes had been steadily increasing, especially the past several days. He stared at them intently, finding something amiss. “Your eyes weren’t always this pale,” he said confidently. He hadn’t been sure at first, but now he was certain it wasn’t a trick of the light.

  “Eyes don’t just change colour,” Reya said. “Are you sure you’re not seeing things? My eyes are rather watery right now.” She turned her head from side to side so that the light caught her eyes at different angles.

  “No, I don’t think I’m going crazy. I have a very good memory, and your eyes used to be a darker shade of purple.”

  “I’m sure Kell will let me know if he finds anything to be worried about. I’ll bring this up with him and see what he has to say about it.”

  Mollified, Adrian decided to let the matter drop for now, knowing that there was nothing else he could do about it until her results came back. Letting out a deep sigh, he ran a hand over his face. Tiredness was etched into his features, prompting Reya to ask him what was wrong, worried it might be about her. “It’s my lessons with Stanley,” he said finally. “Teaching him is draining. His learning pace is abysmal, but I can’t find it in myself to blame him, given how ill he’s been looking lately.”

  “Whatever’s killing him is getting worse, isn’t it?” Reya asked gently. “I know Kell’s been working long hours trying to figure out how to cure him from whatever it is that’s wrong with him, but I don’t think he’s had much success.”

  Adrian nodded. “At this point, I’m beginning to wonder if it’s even worth continuing the lessons at all. I’m constantly repeating myself and I feel bad getting after him when he looks like he’s about to pass out.”

  “Maybe you can reduce how often you have your lessons and Stanley can get the extra rest?” she offered. She reached over and grabbed his hand. “I can tell this is stressing you out. You also need a break.” Her gaze wandered over towards the instruments sitting on their stands. “Do you have the energy to maybe teach me some more music?” she hedged.

  “Always,” Adrian said, visibly brightening at the prospect. He gave her hand a squeeze. “Do you want to continue where we left off on the song we’ve been working on or work on yours?” It had been some time since they’d begun their project together. They were hoping to make it a surprise for the others and had kept quiet about it thus far. Reya had also spent long hours working on a more private project, both of which were nearing completion. Soon, they’d be ready to show off their hard work.

  “The one we’ve been working on together!” Reya said excitedly. The thought of showcasing her own lackluster work compared to the music Adrian produced made her nervous. She’d much rather finish their joint song first. Even though she was merely a beginner playing alongside a master, she’d fallen in love with the melody they’d produced. It was something special to her. The song was theirs, something unique to them and she wanted the world to see.

  Adrian got up and fetched Reya her bass and grabbed an electric guitar to practice the part he’d been working on. Settling back down into his chair, the two of them began their session together. Using the sheet music they’d made for each of their parts, he was able to help guide Reya and improve her technique.

  He was, quite frankly, shocked at how quickly Reya was improving. He supposed it was only natural, given the sheer amount of time they spent practicing, but he couldn’t help but feel proud of how much she’d improved since the first time she’d awkwardly held her instrument. Now she handled her bass with ease and familiarity, her clear discomfort with the object gone entirely. It warmed his heart that she’d taken such an interest in something so important to him.

  Reya grinned impishly at him once she was ready. “Now then, let’s finish this song.”