The five Ksa gathered around the tiny table. Everything was covered in scrolls and scribbled notes. There was barely anywhere for Ksiel to put his glass of water that he’d been holding on to for the last twenty minutes.
“That’s a long list…” Thitel sighed. “Like, how do we even get a lot of this stuff?”
“We can freeze most of it, I think…” Veeyel suggested. “Or at the very least, refrigerate it all.”
“We’re talking about Rethan body tissues!” Ksiel protested. “We can’t keep that sort of thing in our freezer! It could get contaminated!”
“Not if we buy a new one…” Veeyel continued. “Keep it clean, keep it sterile, should be okay. Still, it would only keep for a few weeks. Depending on the, uh, samples we get.”
Zitel ran over the list of things they needed again. “Some of this stuff is pretty… uh, gross. Do we have to get these ones or…”
“No!” Kayel quickly butted in. “The DNA samples just have to be correct. Doesn’t matter what source we use apart from the last one. Which has to be supplied by us. Ideally me. Wait, Zitel, you’re supposed to be guarding the entrance!”
Zitel groaned, then left the table and went and leaned by the incredibly door. They had to be careful, the Thraki didn’t know what they were planning.
“You know, this would be a lot easier if we found a smaller place to do this…” Veeyel kept on making useful suggestions. “They can’t pester us if they can’t get into wherever we are hiding.”
“They’d just send a smaller Thraki. Or a tele-eyeball. Some of the more powerful ones can do that…” Kayel returned to the list, thinking to himself.
Ksiel glanced at the list, then at Kayel, then at the list again. Then he stared at Kayel and tutted. “I think that’s a bad idea.”
“You think what’s a bad idea?” Veeyel asked.
“Us getting the final ingredient from Kayel.”
“You mean the egg cell.”
“Yes.”
Kayel shrugged. “It’ll be awkward but I’m sure I can talk to the local Thanatian hospital, get them to give me a hand in exchange for me doing some healing favours.”
“That’s not what I mean!” Ksiel snapped, but suddenly hesitated. “Do you mind if I be very blunt about something?”
“I guess?” Kayel wasn’t sure what Ksiel seemed so worked up about.
“Alright…” Ksiel took a deep breath. “Your vagina is evil. It created six hellspawns that should not have existed. All of them using your egg cells. If your vagina is capable of creating the likes of Elkay, a fucking winged monster with powers on the same level as us Ksa, then I don’t know what it’s going to do should we use your egg cells in this experiment.”
Veeyel was about to slap Ksiel across the face, but Kayel stopped him.
“You’re right. Maybe we should use someone else’s egg cell.”
“No, he’s wrong!” Veeyel protested. “Your kids are weird because their fathers are not normal Rethans. If you had had kids with someone normal, you and they would have been normal too! You forget that Arkay was pretty normal, apart from the whole Theokton thing, but that could happen to anyone!”
Ksiel shook his head. “I… I guess you’re right… And to be honest, I don’t fancy undergoing a minor operation to use one of my egg cells…”
“Hey guys!” Zitel interrupted. “I just had an amazing idea! You got that General Retvik’s card, why don’t you pay him a visit? He’s a pure-blood Rethan, married to a pretty pure Ethran-type and is best friends with a bunch of Trehan-types!”
Everyone fell silent.
“What? Was my idea bad?”
“No…” Kayel grinned. “Your idea is brilliant!”