Freezing Wings

Chapter 2

"So where are we anyway?" I laid down on one side, holding my head in one paw.

"We're in an underground facility to be experimented on."

I took a moment to digest that before continuing the interrogation. "Why did I turn from a human into a dragon?"

Lucas sighed and paused, seeming to gather his thoughts. A strange emotion flickered through his eyes and he looked me straight in mine, "Because, the scientists here found a huge chunk of alien technology that allowed for them to blend DNA. They needed to test it, and apparently, a regular field mouse wasn't smart enough to pull it off. After a few rounds of testing, they figured that the only thing intelligent enough for it to work was another human. The reason we're dragons now is because that experiment succeeded."

"Are we ever going to be allowed out of these cages? How many of us are there?"

"There have been thousands of us kidnapped and tested on, yet the actual number of survivors is extremely low. From what's been yelled down the hall when we're not being watched, there are only about 45 of us, mostly because the rest die before they hatch. The chances of them being alive when they hatch is very low. You're actually very rare." An almost imperceptible smile appeared at the edges of his mouth before it turned cold.

His eyes narrowed dangerously and he flexed his claws, sharpening them on a spare scale, "As for if we ever get out, the chances are miniscule. We're much larger that the scientists, and have shown aggression before when they get too close. They would be stupid to allow us out of the cages without backup or safety measures, and even if they did, they would regret it dearly."

There was a period of silence after he stopped talking, where both of us just sat there in the most surreal and quiet staring contest, digesting what he said.

I began thinking of a way to get out of here, I didn't plan to stay there until someone decided to stick a needle in me.

"Are our claws sharp enough to cut this glass?"

"Yes, but I wouldn't do that if I were you." His eyes flashed, " The last person who did that ended up getting a lung full of Ricin [1] and dying within seconds. They can't breach our scales but attacking our internal is child's play."

[It's a lethal toxin derived from the castor bean. Thanks Google >.>]

"Why is it so cold? I've been freezing ever since I got here."

"If the environment isn't cold enough, the chances of the egg holding a live dragon goes from very low, down to zero. We end up dying of heat before even hatching. Once we get hatch though, most temperatures under 200 degrees Celsius is deemed as 'fine' - not very healthy, but bearable."

"What do we eat?" A very important question. I didn't want to be eating bugs for the rest of my life after all.

Lucas' face took on strange tint and he ducked his head slightly, suddenly avoiding my gaze. "...Rocks."

"Excuse me?" I stood up and leaned forward, hoping that I had misheard him, despite knowing exactly what he had said.

"We eat rocks and precious stones. It's a massive part of our diet. The fact that rocks actually provide nutrition is ludicrous, but it does somehow. We can eat meat and vegetables occasionally, but it doesn't taste as good. The really precious stones taste like high quality food, while common rocks taste like regular food. Our jaws are strong enough to crunch on diamond, which, despite it's pretty outside, tastes like really crisp water depending on its rarity. Blue sapphires taste like blueberries, and dark red rubies can either taste like strawberries or peppers. Obsidian tastes like chocolate. "

My eyes went wide and I looked at him as if he was crazy. "You're kidding."

He shook his head, still not meeting my gaze, "It's actually not that bad once you get used to it, especially if you are lucky. The scientists leave a box of rocks for us to eat at the end of every week and sometimes they have crystals inside it."

"...okay."