IV: MARS

the demonstration.

After their first bit of luck from applicant num- I mean, Aland, the council seemed to be getting a better group of auditions. There were a lot of people fit for positions in Neptune and Mercury, but none that really caught Mars' attention. There was no doubt Aland would be assigned to him, so he wasn't really worried.

A guard that was standing by the doorway peered in.

"Empress, representatives from Andromeda have arrived."

Sol stood up from her chair immediately.

"Call them in. Patrons, remain seated. I have to be the first one to greet them at the door, else they'll be offended."

Different galaxies have different social customs. It's one of the very first things you learn when recruited. Some are rather skilled at making intergalactic communications. Vii is one them; she speaks over 10 different languages from across the universe. Vii had met representatives from Andromeda a few years back during a dinner banquet. Seeing such elegant, tall, and well spoken people made her feel underdressed in almost every sense. She still felt that way when they walked into the examination room. There were nine of them, covered head to toe in white canvas robes. Some had helmets on, but they were all disarmed. They stood in a tight group, as if in a circle surrounding something. A short haired women was in front of them and whispering to Sol. She made eye contact with Mars and they stopped.

"Well look who it is!" The women said walking towards him.

"Why, I haven't seen you Malakai since you were just a little thing!"

Obviously, he didn't have a clue who this woman was. But apparently they were on a first name basis. He looked up at Sol who gave him a tight smile and he looked back at the woman.

"Yeah, I suppose I've grown some since then." He remarked.

She chuckled and shared a honeyed smile with Sol. The other patrons looked at each other trying to decipher what was going on. Sol cleared her throat.

"Dr. Panoma is interested in working with you to further the research of your...condition. She believes she has some new leads that could prove useful to us."

Malakai's body tensed and tried to keep a straight face. The patrons held their breath.

"I'm not sure there's any more research to be done. I have blood. It kills every living thing on contact. You've looked at my blood under a microscope. What more research can be done?" He inquired stiffly.

Venus glanced at him and then to Sol nervously. Sol was quick to interject.

"Dr. Panoma has been so kind to bring some of her research here for a demonstration. Perhaps now is the time to show him?"

Dr. Panoma agreed and motioned towards the group of people standing a few feet away. All of the patrons turned their attention in that direction. They moved aside, revealing someone holding a small cage. Malakai squinted his eyes, not sure what a rat in a cage had to do with him.

"You can come forward now, don't be shy." Panoma said.

The person came closer, and Malakai could now clearly make out that the person was male, maybe around his age, but significantly of smaller stature. He was dressed in white too, but it looked like he came right out of a hospital. His hair was white, too. They probably bleached his hair to match their outfits. Maybe he's a nursing student.

Sol motioned for him to put the cage down in front of Malakai. He didn't make eye contact, just did as he was instructed. It was eerily quiet in the room except for the squeaking of the mouse as he was lifted from the cage. The boy cradled him in his hands and Venus and Gaia both cooed at the white ball of fluff. Panoma and Sol exchanged glances and then the white haired boy was given a nod.

The sound of bones cracking echoed in the room. Everyone was too shocked to say anything at first, but Gaia broke the silence by crying out. Venus covered Mercury's eyes, even though it was far too late. Mars looked up to see no change in expression on the face of someone who was holding a decapitated mouse. Panama called over a guard who took a scalpel out from his robe. The boy held his hand up, still not making eye contact. A small incision was made in the center of his palm. Once the blood started to pool, he brought the other hand (the one holding a dead mouse) closer to Malakai. He instinctively backed up, but still watched closely as he brought his bleeding hand over. Crimson drops began to soak the white fur. Even Gaia had halted her sobbing to watch while hiding behind Malakai. In no less than a minute, they had witnessed a miracle. The mouse had made a full recovery, it's neck reconnected to its body like nothing had ever happened. He placed the mouse back into the cage where is began skittering around in the wood chips again.

"Perfectly well done!" Dr. Panoma clapped.

The boy smiled ever so slightly at the praise.

"Malakai, this is my new research subject. Dakota, this could be the only thing that kills you."