Happy to say that the conclusion of this story should be coming soon. Thanks to all who commented and I hope you continue to enjoy the story.
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Returning with food in hand, Sang Nam nearly dropped the take away container when he saw Angela kneeling with Linnsa in her arms and her blood on her clothes. Running to them, he set down the food and asked with alarm, "What happened? Is she alright?
As his hand flew to her cheek, he heard an angry voice behind him seeth, "Do not touch her!"
He looked over his shoulder and saw Genzo crouched on the ground, completely naked, breathing raggedly. Blood fell thickly from lips curled back against his teeth in a threatening snarl. "What did you do?" Sang Nam demanded angrily.
"Stop it, both of you!" Angela barked. "Genzo, get dressed and clean yourself up. Sang, help me get Linns back to Ryuzo." Grudgingly, Genzo did as he was told while Sang Nam scooped Linnsa into his arms and followed Angela down the hall, trying hard not to breath in the smell of Genzo's semen. Opening the door with his foot, Sang nam met Ryuzo's startled gaze, unusual, as he was usually so unflappable.
"Do I dare ask what just happened?"
"I don't think any of us are sure of what just happened," Sang Nam answered without any of his usual humor. "But she's passed out again."
Laying her across a lab table for lack of a better surface, Ryuzo turned her head and examined the bite marks on her neck. "Genzo?" was all he said as he began wiping the blood and saliva away. Angela's sigh was answer enough. Leaning in closer, he sniffed the air and raised a brow, as if confused. Then, leaning in again, he licked Linnsa's arm.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Angela shrieked indignantly.
"Her skin, it is quite salty," he replied, as if there was absolutely nothing bizarre about what he had just done.
"So what? You taste salt in her sweat? Big deal! Is she going into heat or something? Why the fuck did you lick her?"
Without losing his cool, he continued, "Angela, I can tell you that the saline content of her skin is far beyond what one would find in human sweat, infected or otherwise." Turning around, he held his chin in one hand, tapping his index finger against his lip. "I think I have a theory as to what is going on here."
"You gonna enlighten us, [oyagi]?" Sang Nam said sarcastically.
"[Matteh]." Pacing, Ryuzo was muttering under his breath. After what seemed like hours, he finally stopped pacing and snapped his fingers. "She has had episodes of loss of consciousness three times. The first time, she had a severe seizure. The second time was after she became upset . The third time was just now. Prior to the first seizure, she had severe headaches. After that was when we obtained MRI scans of her brain that showed those odd changes. Prior to the second episode, something strange happened to the clock she was holding when she became upset. This time, she again became upset, and I could not understand what just happened to me when I went to draw her blood, but I think I understand now. "
"Explain it, please? Because I sure as hell don't." Angela walked over to her sister and licked the back of her hand, screwing up her face at the briny taste. "Holy shit, you're right!"
"It is beginning to make sense. I believe the virus has caused a mutation in the way her body processes electricity."
"What do you mean"
"What is a seizure but a storm of electrical activity in the brain? The brain ends up utilizing massive amounts of glucose and energy whenever this happens. This could potentially explain both why she loses consciousness and why she is so incessantly hungry."
"So each of these times, she's having a seizure?"
"I believe so."
"Then why did she pass out the first two times and not this time until after Genzo bit her?"
"I would hypothesize that unlike the most recent incident, Linnsa had not eaten as many calories as she has consumed in the last few days. The depletion of energy as a result of the seizure may have been what caused her unconsciousness. The most recent time, she had been eating almost nonstop up until the point of the seizure and was still hungry." Ryuzo stopped speaking as Genzo came into the room.
"Could I have a word, Genzo?" Angela asked sternly. Unable to look her in the face, Genzo simply followed her off to a corner of the lab. "What happened out there?"
Shifting from one foot to another uncomfortably, he continued to keep his eyes locked on the linoleum of the floor. "She...kissed me. I think that I lost control. I tried to stop myself. I truly did."
"That sounds totally uncharacteristic of her."
"Which would also be in keeping with my theory," Ryuzo interjected, walking over to them.
Angela looked confused and then it came to her. "You're talking about the post-ictal period, aren't you?"
"Exactly. In the period immediately following a severe seizure, epileptics often experience a period of confusion or altered mentation. Her uncharacteristic behavior may be the symptom of her post-ictal state."
"So why is it that the first one was so severe?" Angela wondered aloud.
"My guess is that it was because her brain was beginning a massive neurologic overhaul at a speed with which her physiology could not keep up. This would also explain why her headaches have decreased in frequency and severity. In fact, I have reason to believe that in time, she will be able to control how her brain channels the activity."
"What makes you say that?"
Without answering, he wet some paper towels and handed them to her. "Please wipe the salt off of her skin. The clock that she held when she saw her reflection showed signs of electrical overload. It is possible that is what I experienced when I touched her."
"Wait, wait." Angela shook her head in disbelief. "Are you saying that my sister shocked you?"
"Much the way an electric eel stuns its prey," Ryuzo agreed. "Our bodies are capable of conducting electricity, but the presence of water and free ions in that water will promote better conductivity. Like the sodium and chloride in salt that will split into its ionic components in water. I would conjecture that prior to the discharge of electrical activity, her sweat glands have altered to secrete a hypertonic saline in order to deliver a more effective shock."
"I get dormant cat genes activated and she has dormant...eel genes?" she muttered in disbelief. "What's with our screwy genetics?"
"On the bright side," Ryuzo ventured, "As far as I can tell, electric eels do not go into heat."
"Well, I suppose that's of consolation to everyone except Genzo." At her comment, Genzo's face went scarlet.
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oyagi: old man (Japanese)