Living Systems

Chapter 2: The Invisible Ink Book

I finally reached Starlet's apartment building and ran up the first floor stairs. I walked up to her door, it had peeling yellow paint and a metal doorknob. I knocked on it two times and waited for a answer. It only took Starlet five seconds to open the door abit only looking through the crack of the door. The second she noticed me, she gave a happy gasp.

"Hey Sta-"

"Kira!"

The short, 4.5 ft, girl jumped on me wrapping her arms around me embracing me. I was used to her jumping on me. But this time, I noticed that her skin was soaked wet and I quickly, but lightly, pushed her off. She was still so fragile, she still fell to the floor on her butt.

"Why did you push me on my bum!?"

"Because you're wet!"

"I took a shower, if anything I was cleaning you!"

"You are truly a dumb ass."

"What? Are you just jealous because I'm 4.5 and your only 4.8? About to reach pass your high."

"Whatever!"

"Says the loser."

Starlet had a smirk on her face making me annoyed even more. Ignoring it, I just helped Starlet back on her feet and we both walked inside.

"Hey....today is Ichy's day right?"

"Yes, indeed....I'll just go to his room for a few minutes.."

"I'll make some green tea. It shouldn't take but a few minutes. I know in Techno Base it only takes a matter of seconds but you're have to wait, shorty!"

"Who you calling shorty! If anything you're shorter than me!"

"Thats because of my age! If anything your post to be in the 5's."

I ignored her comment and we both took are separate ways. But if anything, she was right about the cooking in Techno Base. Unlike Cybra who has normal cooking machines like humans such as microwaves and ovens, Techno Base had a machine to cook their food. Techno Base has a screen in every kitchen, you gather all the ingredients you need and choose a recipe on the screen. After that, the screen sucks all the ingredients inside it and in five seconds the screen pushes the food you chose. Though it's quick, I think it makes people lazy. If anything, the kids in Cybra work more than anyone in Techno Base. Even Starlet, being fragile and twelve, is a hard worker more than the lazy bums in Techno Base. But what interested me about Starlet is the bug inside her program that appeared as a mark on her face. It didn't look like a normal bug mark, but she insisted it was. Starlet had pale, white skin but her bug mark laid different on her face. It was shaped like a star and was burnt black. It stood flat on her face and everyone in Cybra noticed it. Some people called her " The Boy with the Burnt Star". Starlet was a girl but her hair was short, shaved in the back but hair was still there just flat. In the front, short, tiny strains of bangs hung over her forehead. Two giant other strains laid from the middle of the her scalp to her shoulders. Her hair was shiny and black like leather. Unlike my hair that looked black but was actually brown, her's was one hundred percent black. And her eyes shined crimson red and mines were just dark brown but lighten in the sunlight. I continued walking myself to Ichy's room that I haven't been in for a year. Memories flowed through my head of when we were ten all the way to the day before he disappeared, we were fifthteen. No one had their own different birthdays, we all just turned one year old after each year. We are separated in age groups based on the year we were programmed out of the data base. Once we were sixteen, we were sent to Techno Base. But Ichy disappeared before he could advance with me. I frowned and shook my head so the thought would disappear. I walked to his desk that had a unlit candel and a pen sitting next to it along with a lighter. I picked up the pen and it seem to have a clear liquid in it.

Ink? Wait.....maybe invisible ink?

I tilted my head thinking "Why would he need this?" I just stopped trying to find out and just thought it was for personal information. I laid the pen down and opened up some of the draws in the desk. There laid a book in one, it was brown and had a gold, rusty lock on it. I picked it up and the lock broke by itself. It fell to the floor broken.

"Must be one of Cybra's default locks...stupid things only last a month."

I opened the book and it had the word "Light.." in it. I scratch my head and just turned to the next page. It was blank, so I turned to the next one...blank. All the pages remain blank as I flipped quickly through each one. I signed and looked back at the word light.

"What does that mean? Light...light..lighter!"

I covered my mouth realizing how loud I shouted. I signed and grabbed the lighter and lit it. It glowed blue which shocked me, Cybra didn't have any blue fire lighters.

"Wait a second! They didn't even have lighters they had matches! Where did Ichy-"

I stopped my self and brought the lighter close to the book. I could see faded words that I could barely read. So I brought it closer almost burning the book. I pulled it back quickly and laid it on the table. I sat in the wooden chair that sat in front of the desk.

"I can't even read it...but at the same time it was locked and written in invisible ink...Maybe I shouldn't read it."

I laid the book back on the desk and got up. And right on time, Starlet opened the door peaking her head in.

"Tea is done....are you done?"

"Yea, lets go.."