Kali stared across the room out the window as she spoke, watching the trees move as the wind picked up.
“They were the sole rulers of the land for the longest time. Then came man, who destroyed and killed without thought for the impact they had on their surroundings. The earth suffered and grew sick. “
She looked back towards Alicia her eyes distant as she continued telling Alicia the story of her would be ancestors.
“During this, the dragons took it upon themselves to kill humans without mercy. Eventually humanity evolved and began killing dragons as well, but it was considered a feat of great bravery.”
“This continued for years until the dragon population had dwindled to nothingness, and the dragons hid themselves. “
Kali paused and took a sip of her drink before chewing on the end of her cigar.
“As humanity continued to advance, the damage they did to the earth continued as well. Pollution, deforestation ruined the land as their technological advancements grew.”
“This infuriated the dragons, and they grew to resent humanity further. War after war, the earth suffered. Dragons began to find other ways to lash out, taking on human form and terrorizing and killing humans from within.”
Kali looked at Alicia, so far the woman had been sitting silently just listening, it sort of felt like she was sitting in bed with a child reading them a story.
“The blame was never really placed on the dragons; they were too smart to be caught.”
“However, the council became aware of their schemes, and for a very long time they turned a blind eye- until it got to the point where the chaos caused by the dragons could no longer be contained.”
“The council convened and after much debate and consideration, all members agreed that the dragon race needed to be stopped. Of course, they had tried more civilized manners to resolve the situation- conversations, treaties, even marriage… None were effective.”
Kali took a deep breath and stopped for a moment watching Alicia for some sort of a reaction.
“We truthfully didn’t think we’d be able to eradicate the dragons. Dragons are honestly the most powerful of all of us- strong, intelligent and equipped some pretty scary abilities.”
“Some- like you, it would seem- can stop time, others can set fires with their breath, or freeze everything in its path. It depends on the dragon, and is evident through color. You are a white dragon. Some of the powers that white dragons have shown in the past are… downright terrifying.”
Kali chewed on her bottom lip as she lifted her eyes to the woman in the bed. Her gaze was sad, as if she felt sorry for Alicia. She could not help it, she did.
“I don’t know the extent of your powers yet. You haven’t completed your change; I think… again I’m not sure.”
Alicia gave Kali a wry smile “There seems to be a lot of things that you do not know, or are not sure of. That’s not very reassuring.”
Kali took a deep breath and picked up her coffee, watching. Alicia seemed to be thinking over what she had been told, hopefully it was a logical explanation that both her and the dragon inside her could understand. Kali chewed on the end of her cigar, maybe if there had been a dragon with modern logic like Alicia’s then, the race could have survived. Hindsight was an evil thing sometimes. Perhaps Alicia’s parents were logical and that’s why they had hidden themselves… Who really could know? Alicia had yet to speak, so she continued to what might be the hardest part- the threat to Alicia’s life.
“I have been watching to see if you were in control or if the dragon was. From my past experience, the dragon’s fury seems to rule over logic. The dragons, though smart, tended to react without thinking or care for the bigger picture. I’ve been trying to see if you were the same.”
Alicia looked at her quizzically.
“Since the dragon cleansing, it has been a written rule in the council laws that dragons are to be killed… which is why I was watching your reactions so intently. The council members here have taken on a great risk. “She gestured around at them with her cigar.
“Bertha, Jared and myself made a pact of staying- basically until you prove otherwise, we will not kill you. I really don't want it to come to that. But… I cannot afford for the past to repeat- none of us can. It threatened every race with exposure, suffering- and worse. Even at best, humans would cage and study us, we would be no better than lab experiments. At worst…” she didn’t need to finish.
“I cannot allow that to happen to us. The dragon cleansing was for the greater good, for all of supernatural kind,” she echoed the council members from ages ago. “I hope you can understand that, and understand why we cannot afford history to repeat itself.” She stopped, sipped, and watched Alicia’s face
I could understand it, if my… dragon… was like its ancestors… If someone were to expose the supernatural races it would create global chaos. There would be war, fear, death. It would be destructive to the entire world’s order of things. I looked at Kali, she seemed to be waiting for acknowledgement that I understood where she was coming from.
“I understand. I don’t think that the dragon is in control of me. ‘Course, I haven’t been a dragon long enough to say that I can truthfully tell.”
She took a sip of her orange juice. “I can tell you that I had a dream, and at the end of the dream I felt… an extreme rage… I felt that rage again while you talked of the dragon cleansing. I did my best to temper that anger down.”
Kali nodded, it was admirable that the woman had the control that she did, especially so young. How long would it last though? Little was known about the dragon as a species- they were very secretive and obviously didn’t participate in the supernatural communities before the cleansing. From her limited knowledge of dragons, she knew they tended to form communities of their own- and whatever one dragon knew, the others knew as well. A hive, or shared mind of sorts. Kali was unsure if or how this information continued passing on after death. It would perhaps be something Alicia could shed light on after she completed her change.
Kali appeared lost in thought, I couldn’t help but wonder how much she knew about dragons. From what she’d said, Kali didn’t know much at all. Looking down at my breakfast, I realized I had lost my appetite. This was way more than I had expected when I first woke up. I was a dragon- a supernatural… a dangerous, powerful one at that. How did one come to terms with that? Not to mention, the pit of pure rage that boiled in my belly still. Generations of anger towards humans and none of it being my own. How did one deal with the anger of their ancestors? I felt confused and lonely, I really just wanted Jen right now.
Chapter Ten
Jen fidgeted in the cell. Yes, her dad had been by and told her that Alicia was alright- but, something was bothering Jen. It wasn’t like Alicia to get sick in the first place, let alone disappear for this long and in this situation. Jen couldn’t remember the last time she even had a cold. She had always been remarkably healthy, for her to be sick to the point that she couldn’t even call? It had to be really serious. Jen could only hope that Alicia was doing better and trust in what her father had told her.
Jen was frustrated, days in the prison seemed to be never ending Staring at the same cream-grey colored walls day in and day out was taking a toll on her, not just mentally. She had been fighting the change every step of the way, however if she stayed cooped up much longer her wolf was going to take control.
This was not idea, if her body finally got sick of waiting and took over- it wouldn’t be pretty. The change would be violent and painful, her muscles would ache for days and she would undoubtedly mimic a stomach flu once she became human again. She could already feel the tension building in her muscles from the stress. She knew stress caused a decrease of oxygen flow to the muscles and soft tissues, leaving behind biochemical wastes in the tissue. She herself had fought the change before but never to a standstill.
She had not been through this horror personally. She had watched Jared do it in his youth and had
witnessed his suffering first hand. So she knew all of this combined would lead to a very painful experience if she had to wait much longer.
It would be pretty simple to just change and be done with it, however the prison had a point system for changing. If you changed or used your power once within the prison walls you would lose a day of meals. Twice, you would lose your meals and your right to go outside for your daily jaunt around the field- the only thing Jen had to look forward to. Three times was solitary confinement, the length depending on the offense. Because of Jen’s race, missing a meal could cause her to change even more frequently, her metabolism required her eat certain amount of calories per day. This need had been met by the prison meals thus far and Jen really didn’t want that to change.
Jen looked down to the journal that she had been keeping and scribbled a few notes down on how unfair the point system was for some races. Her daily log of what went on in the prison was pages on pages- when they were fed, what they were fed, activities, exercise, visitation…. There was so much injustice in the prison system for so many races. She hoped when she got out she would be able to use her experience for good. Of course some criminals were in here for justified reasons and needed the stringent control system. They couldn’t all be that bad though, surely some were like her- or at least that’s what she hoped.
Her ideas could be very effective. They could adopt a regime based on the reason the prisoner was here, the lighter the sentence, the more freedom allowed to the prisoner, much like in human prisons, but with allowances for each race’s needs. Thinking about how she could improve the prison system- for the whole community- had helped her keep her mind busy.
Writing and rewriting compelling letters to the council was truthfully one of the only things keeping her sane in here. That, and her visits with her father. He always had a funny story and occasionally snuck in a snack. It was so nice that he was trying, she knew he was in a hard spot.
He realized how difficult this was for her, and each day he inquired as to how she was doing. She knew he was really asking her if she was feeling the need to change. What would he say if she were to tell him that she was feeling that tension build up? She honestly didn’t know. It was possible he might be able to find a way for her to change- at least briefly- without getting in trouble. After all, this was a supernatural prison, surely they understood the basic physical needs of a shifting race? They were meeting her metabolic needs, after all.
A loud scream filled the prison and Jen stood, startled. The screaming didn’t stop, the sound sharp and full of pain. She walked over the small window in her cell door and stood on her tiptoes to peek out. She had to be careful, as silver bars were all around her. If she were to touch it, she too would be screaming from an incredible burn that would feel much like acid to a human or holy water to a vampire- not pleasant at all. If ingested, she could even die. Suffice to say it was best to avoid silver at all costs. The great thing about having a supernatural family, and a girlfriend that knows what you are? No surprise silver jewelry.
The scream sounded again, a guard ran by her cell holding his face, blood soaking from between his fingers. From what she could see, it looked as if he had large gaping wound on his face… as if someone had bitten the side of his face off. Jen stepped back away from the window, the scent of blood heavy in the air. Her wolf could smell it and surged forward eagerly, bouncing off the wall that was her willpower and humanity.
Mentally, she stared it down, willing it to calm itself. She had no idea what was going on and going into the change now would make her vulnerable. She swallowed hard and took a deep breath, which only filled her nostrils with the scent of blood again. Staring at the floor she tried to focus on something other than the coppery, tantalizing smell that was all around her. She could do this, she was her wolf, and her wolf was her. Two sides of a single coin, they had to share this body.
Jen stepped back towards the window again, leaning up on her tiptoes to look out. She could see multiple people running down the halls, screaming, and wailing in agony. She tried to look further down the hall towards where her father's in-prison office would be but smoke clouded the hallway and she could see nothing at all. Jen hoped that her dad was out of the office, she hadn’t seen him yet today. If he was in the office, he was sure to be in the thick of things. Jen would much rather he not be in the office; she didn’t want to lose him.
She could feel something; it was coming towards her room. It was thick and heavy it made the air feel as if it was going to choke her with each breath. This was power- a ridiculously strong one- and it was coming her way. With every step closer, power filled the air around her- nearly suffocating, her senses screaming that something was coming. She couldn’t help but want to run- or fight- whatever this was, it was something she should be very afraid of.
Jen dropped down onto the ground, pressing her back against the wall. She pressed tight against it, feeling the cool concrete against her back- colder than normal, she thought quickly, her body was nearly vibrating with tension causing her to run warmer than normal. Footsteps echoed in the hallway, she could feel them as much as hear them. Each step, pushed that thick wave of power towards her. Her hackles rose, the hair on the back of her neck rising and standing on edge. As it grew closer, she thought it’s almost like a signature this power, and it seemed familiar somehow.
She could feel her own power rising pushing her body to change. She grabbed her hair and rocked back and forth whispering “No, no no no… Not now, no, please no.”
If she went through the change, she would be vulnerable at least a few minutes, her human side would fight for her wolf side for control. Once she regained the mental control of her body she would be fine, but it took time. This was something that was not the same for all shifters, some could just shift and move and think as normal. Others would revert, and let their animal side in control, weaker shifters like herself were vulnerable for a few minutes.
The doorknob to her cell creaked and groaned before a loud screeching sound of metal tearing filled the air. She could smell her own fear; the scent was sweet yet a bit acrid. This power was so familiar and tasted of pure and simple evil, she could only remember one person that made her feel this way. The thought instilled pure terror, when he was around, she was constantly afraid.
She reached out and grabbed the utilitarian bed frame, staring at the door, her knuckles whitening as she clenched the frame, the metal protesting with a quiet groan. Fear choking her, she swallowed hard, trying to move the thick lump in her throat down. Her hands were shaking, sweat making her palms clammy and slick. Wildly she noticed the metal of her bedframe fogged slightly with the heat emanating from her hands as she gripped it with all her might, trying to fight the wolf’s reaction. God, Jen wanted to run, to hide, but there was nowhere to go in this tiny cell. She tried to make herself invisible to whoever was approaching.
She crouched down keeping her eyes on the door, hoping that she would go unnoticed, somehow…
The door began to slowly open, inch by inch the reinforced silver bars around her cell humming as the power of her intruder vibrated through the room. It was choking her and Jen could feel herself getting dizzy as she began to hyperventilate from fear.
Jen stared at the door, beads of sweat dripping down her face leaving glistening trails. The salty liquid stung as it hit her eye but she didn’t dare look away as the door swung open fully, a tall dark form standing on the threshold. The figure blotted out everything behind it, and Jen could hear nothing but her own frantically beating heart as the figure walked forward, stepping into her room. Jen whimpered, the sound cut short by her rapid breathing. Sweat slicking her skin making it shine wetly as she lifted fear-filled eyes to the person entering her prison cell. The door behind him hanging from its hinges and scraping the floor as it came to as top. Her eyes widened and she pushed herself down more scooting toward under the bed, trying to hide.
As the light illuminated the intruder, recognition dawned on Jen�
��s face. She opened her mouth and screamed, shrill and full of panic. It couldn’t be him, he was dead- she saw him die, she had killed him herself, years ago. Jen choked on a fresh scream, the fear overrode every sense in her body. She could feel her bones start to twist and pop, the change was coming and there was nothing she could do.
She opened her mouth to scream again, this time it was more of a garbled wail as her throat reformed, caught between human and wolf. She pushed back her wolf, fighting for control mentally with all of her strength. If she changed now, he would surely kill her- who was she kidding, he was going to kill her anyways.
She railed at her wolf, fighting with all of her might to maintain human consciousness and control. Her eyes bulged from her sockets as her nose started to push out into a muzzle, before popping back into its original shape. She wailed, the sound was pure pain and frustration. She was trying so hard to stop the change, but it just wasn’t working. The smell of blood filled her nostrils as blood vessels popped in her face and ears.
A soft low laugh filled the room. “Well, hi there, if it is not my favorite little werewolf… My, my, my, how nice it is to see you again!”
Broken Glass: An Alicia Jacobs Novel (The Alicia Jacobs Chronicle Book 1) Page 15