From the Ashes (Black Harbour Dragons)

by Jadyn Chase

  I was glad this rope came in handy as I reached into my bag to pull it out. I looped it around the bars of the window and tied it tight. I’d learned a good knot or two from my days with Trevor. The other pets would share helpful tips about tying them and getting out of them too.

  Sliding down into the pit, I rushed over to him. He moaned for a bit before his eyes shot open. He slammed me against the wall with far more strength than I thought he’d have, knocking the wind out of me. As soon as he saw it was me, his face softened, and his grip loosened.

  “Addison,” he whispered faintly. “Help me.”

  9

  Maverick

  The soft grunts of Addison jarred me from my unconscious state. It’s the weakest I’ve ever felt since being brought here. Rope wrapped around my waist and through my legs, traveled up my back and around my shoulders. I was being lifted out of the pit by the radiantly beautiful scientist. The color of my veins slowly returned to normal as I’m sure the shave gas’ effects began to wear off.

  Once I could see over the edge of the pit I tried my best to help her and pulled myself out the rest of the way.

  She sat down on the floor next to me, “I’m glad you’re awake. We have to get you out of here.”

  “How long have I been here?”

  “Since last night I think,” she told me. “Eric told me that you had to be put down, but that didn’t make sense, and he refused to produce your body. I had to find you.”

  “Well I’m glad, but how am I going anywhere? I can’t scale and he’s been gassing me every few hours. I can barely stand. And then there’s this,” I motioned to my naked body.

  Addison’s cheeks flushed red as she eyed my entire body and shook her head as if trying to rid herself of the image of me naked.

  “Okay, let’s get you some clothes. I think the guard should be back by now. Wait here and when he gets close to you, do you have enough energy to knock him out?”

  “Maybe, I’ll try,” I told her slightly winded.

  She nodded and went to the door. After a minute of talking to herself, she opened it and yelled at the guard, “You have to come quick!”

  “What are you doing in there?!” he screamed back.

  “I have the code to get in! I told you I had to verify some results but I needed to get him onto the table. I need to slice him open. Help me move him!”

  “What?!” he peered over her shoulder. I tried my best to look unconscious.

  “He was on that examining table when I accidentally knocked him off. Please help me!” she pleaded.

  The guard grunted before pushing passed her and toward me. He bent down and helped me to my feet. This was my moment, but I was entirely too weak. Luckily for me, Addison wasn’t. The guard jerked forward when she hit him across the back of the head with a pipe. He collapsed onto the floor and we stripped him of his clothes and tossed him in the pit.

  It took me a while to get dressed. Addison helped me every step of the way. I didn’t deserve her kindness. Once I was ready to go, we stood up and looked around the room.

  “We need to have this place look exactly like it was when you got here. Get the rope,” I told her, “Close the pit and turn the gas on.”

  “Will that kill him?”

  “It shouldn’t,” I shrugged, “But that’s something you need to ask Eric. Just hurry so we can get out of here.”

  Addison took her time making sure everything was in its original position. She swiped something out of a drawer, but there wasn’t any time to argue about it. We left and wandered through the same cement walled hallways with my arm draped over her shoulder. Whenever we thought we heard someone coming, we’d switch positions to make it look like I was escorting her somewhere in the Station.

  “We need to get you a quiet place to recover.” she said with those brilliant green eyes scanning the halls around us, “I know where we’re going.”

  She helped me move through the halls until we were back at the original lab.

  “No!” I gruffed, “I’m not going back in there to be your fucking specimen.”

  “That’s not why I came to get you, Maverick. Please, we have to get you out of sight.”

  She hurried me a few feet down past the lab toward another door. It looked more like a closet than anything. Lab jackets, shelves stocked with supplies, and cleaning equipment lined the back wall of the small space. She moved a box out of the way, pushed buttons on a panel that blended into the paint, and pushed the top corner of the shelf unit. When she opened it, we walked down a hall so slim we could only fit single file. Another door opened to an office. There was a desk and a large bookcase against the back wall.

  “You expect me to recover in here? Won’t they be looking for you too? I mean, we bought some time with the guard in the pit, and this is clever and all but they’ll find this place. Eventually, they will come here looking for you,” I told her with an immense amount of worry in my voice. I didn’t want her getting into any more trouble over me.

  Addison smirked walking over to the bookcase. She pushed the corner and it opened into a secret bedroom. It was simplistic in nature. Beige walls, slate floor and an open bathroom with a large shower head in the corner that hung from the ceiling directly above a drain. A desk with four drawers sat against the wall next to a small fridge under a window. I made my way over to it only to see nothing but ocean. Waves were crashing far below, and I didn’t have any idea where in Black Harbor we were. The only place with water crashing was the docks.

  “You can stay in here and hideout. I normally come in here if I’m working in the lab late and don’t feel like trudging through the Station to my chambers. One of my volunteers built it for me before Eric got here. He took the space from one of the rooms and made this place into my own little hideout. Most people leave me alone so much so that they don’t even notice when I’m not around for a few days.”

  “They’re going to notice now,” I asserted.

  “Yes they will. We have an hour or so before they come back from their tour and maybe another hour before they realize you’re missing. I’m going to go back to my room and grab some essentials. We’ll hide out here until your back to normal and then you can get us both off this rock.”

  “Rock? Is that where we are? This place is an actual thing?” I asked her.

  “Yeah, of course it is,” she said, “Why?”

  “My outfit’s been looking for this place for ages. We were starting to think it was a myth like that city in the mountains where Scalers don’t scale. Sounds like a place where you’d fit right in.”

  “It does, maybe we can head there after we get away from here,” she let her hand slide down the side of my face letting me nuzzle against it. I didn’t know what we would do after leaving this place.

  “Let’s get out of here first. Once we get to Black Harbor-”

  “We can have the entire band of Scarlet Wings come here. They can go after Eric and Shaw for what they’ve done to you.”

  “We don’t do personal vendettas,” I told her, “If I come back here, you’d better make sure there’s nothing or no one here worth saving. We’ll level this place to a pile of ash. Once they know what you guys are cooking up here, that’s exactly what’s going to happen.”

  “Don’t do that,” she said with a light tremble in her voice.

  “Don’t do what?” I moved away from her touch.

  “Don’t lump me in with them. I started my research for a very specific purpose, and that hasn’t changed.”

  “How do you feel about Scalers like me who revel in their birthright?”

  “I think you’re beautiful. I think you’re courageous. I think you’re sexy. I wasn’t a pet because I was captured, Maverick. I was a pet because I wanted to be one. Even though I’ve never done pet things, I fit in more with Trevor and the Scarlet Wings then I ever did with other Anthros. But, even though I feel that way, I want to help anyone I can to get that same confidence in being themselves.”

  “You c
ame to the wrong place for that,” I shook my head, “This isn’t a place looking to help Scalers.”

  “I know. I came here for the technology. Look around us. Do you think I’d have the peace and freedom to do this kind of work in Black Harbor? I knew they wanted my work for something, but when I first came here, I was able to work freely and at my leisure. It wasn’t until Eric arrived that things began to take this volatile approach. Now that I know, I don’t want to continue this. Not here, and especially not with them.”

  “You shouldn’t. There’s an easier way for Scalers to lose their scales, without the help of any Anthro who hasn’t any idea what they’re doing.”

  “I don’t have any idea what I’m doing? Seemed to work just fine on getting you here,” she replied with a snicker.

  “I meant that the serum, the components you’re using, Scalers already have access to it. You’re trying to make a shortcut for something that’s supposed to be a life altering journey for the person on it.”

  “I don’t understand. There’s already a serum?”

  “I don’t think Aya would call it a serum. She would lean more towards concoction; potion even. You can’t do what she does for us.”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about. What’s an Aya?”

  “Not a what, who, but we’ll have plenty of time to talk about the answers you’re truly looking for. Right now, if you’re going to go get supplies for us in here, then go. And stay out of trouble. I don’t know how I’m ever going to repay you for this,” I sighed.

  With the sweetest look in her eyes, she leaned in and kissed me. It wasn’t aggressive like the last one. It wasn’t a goodbye kiss either. It was tender and sweet as if she’d planned to do it again and again. I hope she did.

  Watching her walk out of the hidden room, I wasn’t sure what would happen when she returned, but until she did I’d lean back and get some sleep. Sometime in the next couple of hours, she’d see the kind of dragon I truly was. Then we’d see how okay she was with everyone being comfortable in their own skin.

  10

  Addison

  Sexy?

  Courageous?

  Did I really just tell him all of that?

  The halls of the station were still quiet as I crept out of my hidden space toward my chambers. No alarms were ringing. The sound of heavy boots running to position didn’t fill the air. No one had discovered what I’d done yet. I had to hurry.

  I made it to my quarters without being spotted. With Maverick’s voice in my head, ‘You’d better make sure there’s nothing or no one here worth saving,’ I searched through my things wondering what could stay and what I should take with me, with us. My thoughts were jumbled, all over the place; from the softness of his lips to the dreadful feeling that soldiers would be banging down my door at any minute. It never once crossed my mind how we were going to get off of this damn thing.

  My heart pounded against my chest as I grabbed a bag and threw a bunch of things inside of it. My notes, some food, a change of clothes. My eyes drifted to a lace thong sitting in a practically empty drawer. Was it crazy to think about Maverick seeing me, wanting me, touching me while wearing them? I didn’t care about Eric or Shaw, or anyone else at that moment as I glanced at them one more time before swiping them.

  I’d worn sexy ensembles as a pet, but Trevor only watched, he never touched. Part of me wondered if he thought he’d hurt me, but he didn’t feel right in his scales. It was a constant aura of sadness, even when he smiled. Maverick, on the other hand, his entire being was wrapped in his dragon. I wondered what it would feel like if I were enveloped in his … I needed to get back.

  After tossing a few more things in my bag, I headed back towards my secret quarters. Luckily for me, Shaw and Eric hadn’t made it back yet. There was still a mountain of silence echoing through the halls.

  I stepped into the room where the lights were dim, and the bed was empty. I walked over to the fridge and emptied my duffle bag onto the desk next to it. Maverick stood in the corner under the shower head letting the water cascade down his body. He didn’t move to acknowledge my presence. He didn’t try to cover himself at all. Instead, he pressed his hands against the wall as if to prop himself up. I grabbed a hunk of meat from the stash of food I’d brought and walked over to him.

  Still, with my clothes on, I made sure to keep back a few inches to avoid getting splashed.

  “Here,” I told him, “You should eat.”

  Turning his head to me, I stared into those tired eyes holding out a small plate of cold food.

  “I’m not hungry,” he said wearily.

  “I didn’t ask if you were. I doubt that Eric fed you. You need to eat if you’re going to recover from whatever was in that gas,” I insisted.

  He swiped his hair back, flicking water against the wall, took the plate and held it to his mouth. With a few chomps, he devoured every bite and went back to showering.

  “Thank you,” I muttered softly. I stood there with the plate in my hand ogling his naked body. Heat flushed my cheeks. I felt hotter than the water pouring down the drain.

  He turned his head toward me again, this time with a slight grin on his face, “You plan on feeding me anything else while you’re standing there.”

  My eyes immediately shifted away from his smoldering glare, shaking my head, and turning an even deeper shade of red. Before I had a chance to walk away, he reached over to take my hand in his. I didn’t pull away from him.

  “Come,” he commanded pulling me under the shower.

  Clothes and all I allowed him to lead me. He unbuttoned my shirt and jeans, sliding them off before the water made it impossible. I stood there in my bra and panties, shy and not knowing where to put my hands. They came off next revealing all of my nakedness to him. I swallowed hard as I felt his hand move around the back of my neck. He lowered his mouth to mine, kissing me, making me forget where we were.

  When he wrapped his arms around me, I felt safe. The strength of his body, even though I knew we’d made him weak, drew me into him that much more. I could feel his hands move from my back down to my ass before his mouth kissed me again. The passion coursing through me made my nipples harden against his chest. Before I knew it, I could feel his wet fingers sliding between my legs.

  I clenched my thighs together, freezing with anxiousness. Embarrassed once again, I wanted him to know before we went any further. I peered up into his eyes, “Maverick, I’ve never…”

  He pulled back away from me, “Never? I know not Trevor, but no one? Ever?”

  I shook my head.

  “We can stop-”

  “No,” I assured him, kissing him gently on the lips, “I don’t want to stop. I just wanted you to know.”

  “There isn’t enough I can do to thank you for putting your life and your work on the line for me, but I want to at least begin my gratitude with this.”

  There was a small bottle of cleansing oil sitting on the sink. I watched his hands move toward it, pick it up and let a few drops fall into the palms of his hand. I hadn’t any idea of what to expect. All I knew was that I wanted him. I wanted Maverick more than I’d ever wanted anyone before.

  He started from my neck, rubbing the oil into my skin. I could feel him holding back. It was a different sight, seeing this Scaler restrain himself. We’d come a long way since he grabbed me by the throat. From my arms to my stomach, he kneaded every muscle he touched.

  Closing my eyes, I let him explore every inch of my body at his own slow, methodical pace. When he reached my waist, I tried not to shy away from him, but his grip tightened around me so I wouldn’t.

  “Breathe,” he whispered, “I’m not going to hurt you.”

  Those were like magic words as my body melted under his touch. Maverick spread my legs, and touched in between my slits, slowly, delicately. My heart raced, and every nerve tingled with anticipation. I did as he told me … Breathe.

  With my leg now resting on his shoulder, he continued to rub the folds of
my center. A wave of ecstasy crashed over me when I felt his tongue tasting me. I sucked in the air as my back arched my pelvis deeper into this erotic kiss. I couldn’t believe the sensations of pleasure as a single tear rolled down my cheek. My entire body tensed right before the sweet release of euphoria engulfed me as I climaxed all over his mouth.

  He moaned and groaned as he lapped up my juices like a man anxious to prove his worth. By the time he came up for air, my legs had trembled, and I could barely stand. I didn’t have to as he scooped me into his arms and carried me to the bed.

  Tasting my essence on his lips as he kissed me turned me on more than I imagined. I couldn’t help but run my fingers across his scalp, tugging his hair as his fingers went back to work in my walls. I could tell he was ready but hesitant. The throbbing erection waiting at the entrance scared and excited me all at once.

  “I need you to trust me,” he said gazing into my eyes. “But I also need you to listen to your body. If you need me to stop, tell me to stop. I don’t want to hurt you.”

  “Okay,” I nodded to him that I understood and that I wanted him to continue. I could cry again with how tender he was with me. It wasn’t anything that I expected from any man, especially a Scaler. The stories I’d heard; the things I’d seen as a pet … none of them showed this. None of them showed passionate consideration.

  Then I felt it. My eyes grew wide as his thickness filled every space inside of me. I held my breath until he pulled back slowly and pushed inside of me again. It took a few of those soft strokes before I got used to his size. But once that happened, my walls tightened and released around him. His rhythm and pace sped up while I climaxed over and over again. Coating his cock with my juices, we were both pleasantly surprised at how well I received him.

  The world seemed to melt away with every thrust inside of me. He held me with one arm under my back, and the other moved under my thigh. Angling one leg in the air gave him even more room to move deeper inside of me. I tipped my pelvis into the bed while he continued to glide in and out of me.