The conversation on the other side of the room fell silent.
“He’s awake,” the second voice said.
“He can’t be awake,” the first answered. “It’s only been a couple of hours.”
“But he growled.”
“He’s a dragon,” the first grumbled. “They do that. Besides, that drug will keep him from flaming up for the next day or so.”
“I fucking hate dragons. They stink!” The man’s last words were muffled as if he were covering his face.
The first man laughed. “And here you’re working for a man who wants to be one.”
“No!” the second one snapped. “I signed on to this project so I could kill the bloody bastards. Fucking blight on society.”
Noah forced his breathing to remain even. He felt around and found Byrd’s energy hadn’t woken up yet. It was a good thing, because his dragon would have been enraged by the man’s words.
“You’ll get your chance soon enough,” the first voice answered again. “When the maks have figured out how to get the dragons out, you can kill as many as you want.”
“But what about the shits that want those dragons?”
“We’ll worry about that when the time comes.” The way the first voice said that clenched Noah’s heart.
“Damn he stinks.” The scrape of a chair on a bare floor punctuated the man’s words. Heavy footsteps echoed across the room as the man got closer. “When the fuck can we get rid of this shit?”
Something hard banged into something metal near Noah’s side. He jerked in response as the vibration traveled through the floor.
“He moved!” the man next to him yelled.
“No he didn’t,” the other voice said. There was another scraping sound and more footsteps.
Noah forced himself to relax. The startling noise had woken Byrd, but the dragon wasn’t fully focused yet. “Be still,” Noah warned his other half. This brought Byrd into full focus.
Something hard jabbed into Noah’s side and pushed at him.
Byrd started to react, but Noah clamped him down. “Be still,” he warned again.
“He’s still out,” the second voice said. The lighter footsteps moved away.
Noah could feel the presence of the first man standing over him, but he remained relaxed. Keeping Byrd from jumping up and trying to tear out the guy’s throat took most of his concentration. “Be still,” he pleaded again. “We need a plan before we attack.”
Byrd didn’t like it, but he stopped fighting with Noah.
The man stood over them for a moment longer before turning away.
Noah cracked an eye. Steel bars filled his vision. Shifting his head just slightly, he watched as a short, stout man walked away from him.
“When are they coming to get him?” the man asked as he threw himself into a chair and crossed his arms over his chest.
“As soon as they’re done with the girl,” the second man answered.
Rage colored the edges of Noah’s vision. He clamped his control over Byrd down before the dragon could give away the fact that they were awake. “Patience,” he pleaded.
“Mine!” Byrd screamed at him.
“I know,” Noah soothed him, “but we need more information before we can save her.”
Byrd thrashed about in Noah’s mind, hating the fact that he was helpless. After a moment, he settled. “Kill them,” he growled.
“We will,” Noah promised. “But we need patience and calm right now.”
“Mine,” Byrd growled once more before falling silent.
Now that Byrd was settled, Noah focused his mind on their situation. They were caught. His eye shifted around, taking in their prison. It looked to be a small steel cage. Something you would put a bear or lion in. Beyond that was a mostly empty room, maybe twenty feet by fifteen. The walls were white plasterboard. Nothing remarkable about them. The ceiling was made from soundproof drop-ceiling tiles. There was a long window on one wall, but there were blinds dropped over them. Light leaked through, but it didn’t have the quality of sunlight. So, a hallway.
With the environment firmly in mind, Noah concentrated on the two men arguing at the far end of the room. They weren’t very remarkable, either. One was short and dressed in what looked like a short-sleeved uniform shirt and dark blue trousers. He had a ball cap pulled on over his muddy brown hair. The other man was taller. He sat relaxed in his chair in jeans and a T-shirt. His feet were kicked out in front of him with his booted feet crossed at the ankles. He tried to pacify the smaller man as they argued. There was something familiar about the smaller man, but Noah couldn’t place it. After a moment, the pair fell into a waiting silence.
The smaller man glared at Noah for a while before blowing up. “Fuck!” He jumped up from his chair and started pacing. “I work with these shits all day, every day, and now they want me to sit here and watch this one? Fuck that!” He ripped a knife out of his belt and turned towards Noah. “I’m killing it!”
The second man jumped up and grabbed the first. “Oh, no you’re not!” He yanked the knife out of the first man’s hand and turned him around. “They need him alive.”
“Fuck!” the smaller man snapped, “I can’t stand it in here!”
“Then let’s go get some coffee.” The taller man turned them towards the door.
“But—” the other guy protested and turned his head to look at Noah.
“He’s not going anywhere,” the first man said reassuringly. “He’s still asleep. Besides, he can’t get out of the cage. It’s enchanted.”
“Fuckin’ maks.”
“And you need to chill out for a bit.”
With that, the two men disappeared out the door.
Noah lifted his head and watched as their silhouettes passed by the long window.
Byrd growled.
“It’s okay,” Noah promised. “They’re first on our list.”
This appeased Byrd.
A quick look around solidified Noah’s facts before he started making a plan. First thing on his list was getting out of this cage. Standing up, he leaned against the bars, testing them. From their color, temperature, and the fact they didn’t give, Noah guessed they were iron. He might be able to do something with that. Iron wasn’t the best material to work magic on, but it wasn’t impossible.
Noah chipped his claw scratching at the hard surface. When he had a workable rune scraped onto the metal, he drew in power from the world around him and poured it into the mark. He felt it hit the symbol and skitter away like water on dry ice. The sharp smell of ozone filled the air, making him sneeze. He shook his head, trying to clear it. They’re enchanted.
Byrd growled at the failed attempt and chomped down on the iron rod. His teeth clicked against the bar but didn’t make a dent.
“Stop,” Noah called, pulling the dragon back before he broke a tooth. “There has to be an answer.” Taking control, Noah searched the cage. He pressed on the walls and ceiling, testing the welds to see if anything would give. Nothing did. Next, he rattled the door, trying the hinges and lock. Both were solidly made.
Noah eyed the padlock. It was just a normal lock, but if the mages had enchanted the cage, they had probably enchanted the lock. If he could find something long enough, he could pick it open, but he would need the dexterity of his fingers. It would be impossible with claws.
He blew out a breath in frustration. He needed to be human to get out. Hell, if he were human, he could spell the lock off. His lock-picking and trap-breaking abilities were some of the main reasons Eternity had hired him in the first place. The fact that he was a natural with magic was a lovely bonus. He sat back on his haunches and prepared himself for the fight he was about to have.