Eir's POV
Placing the empty veil on the little countertop by the wall, he walked right out of the room, holding the other one up high. His eyes and mind were lost studying the thick red substance inside it, turning and nudging it in front of him, and Just walked right out.
The double doors swung open and shut again behind him, and I was left alone. Right then and there, the room felt so massive. White walls, white ceilings even the floors were a light grey, almost white looking surface. The only color inside the room was this horrible chair and me. Even the little countertop was made of a solid white piece; it didn't even have legs holding it up. Just one white squared boxes of some sort nailed on the wall holding it up.
Without anything to distract me or even let my eyes rest on, my mind had a life of its own. Pulling up the conversation I had with Hades and what he told me about the dragons, later Tew had filled in some of what he had heard of them, and then Toke's voice appeared in my memories. Telling my mother's story, also there were the dragons mentioned.
I pictured the horrifying breeding dungeon, where females were kept purely for reproduction purposes. Nobody gave any details of the place, but I conjured images of a dark and depressing cellar-like structure. Where the floors had small puddles of water, piss, and blood. Rusty chains were hanging out from the walls, caged and metal bars. My imagination ran so wild that at one point, I swear I heard pained moans, coughing, and sobbing echoing off the dark, bricked walls.
Then research labs, like pulled straight out of a grotesque horror movie from the 90s, came to life in my mind. Sharp knives, chain saws, and rugged saw blades. Blood and gore covered old working benches, those old psychic ward beds with straps, and so on, blood samples, skin, bone marrows, eyes, and hair. My head had no limit, and at one point, I had to admit I may have seen one too many movies. I had no real grounds for the pictures I painted, but then again, his could I know? This place is sick; these People are mostly nuts.
Without any idea how long I'd been sitting there torturing myself, the double doors swung open again. He stopped right inside the room and stared at me with what looked like a surprised face.
"Oh! Right, I forgot to unstrap you!"
With a quick and quirky grimace, he got to work and opened my restraints. The skin around years wrists were red, and around my ankles. I let my hand rub around my soar hand; my wrist and knuckles pulsated and felt warm to the touch. Throwing the dragon king a quick glance, I smirked to myself, taking a step back only to hide how I Winched when I put too much pressure on my hand. But it had been so worth it, and I would swing at him again without hesitation.
My teeth gritted when I let my hand down too quickly. All of a sudden, I caught him staring at my wrists, and I was not about to let him know I was hurt. There is no room for the weak and helpless in this world, and I'm not adding extra points to my already gloomy-looking situation.
He kept on staring, so in a moment of brave stupidity, I set both my hands on my hips and stared back. Setting up the most impatient and carless face I could muster. But it seems like rushing or stressing are Unknown words for this overgrown lizard. With a frown, his eyes lingered on my wrist, and for a second, I feared he could hear the throbbing under my skin.
"Well, anything wrong?"
Not even that snapped him out of it; instead, he took his sweet time studying my face. Maybe if he stared long enough, he expected a secret would be revealed. The seconds grew longer and unbearable as I struggled not to squirm under his skeptical gaze.
However, I held my posture. I've met men like this before; why should I let myself break now? Because he has a huge lizard hiding under his skin? Nope, I rather die fighting!
"No, come. It is already late."
I could finally breathe again when his scrutinizing and intense stare let me go of his hold. But it didn't last long, and awkwardly I stumbled after him when his hand wrapped around my upper arm and header for the doors again. Not really dragging me after him, but not leaving any room to stay behind either. The only thing crossing my mind was, that this exact moment reminded me of when a cop led me to the station from his car-a firm hand guiding the only path acceptable and accessible at the moment.
We rounded a corner after we walked out the doors and entered a long narrow hallway. The same dark marble floors as the hall I arrived in made it look even smaller. It was a massive contrast from the white room we just came from, mysterious and dark, lit up by candlelight along the walls on both sides. Compared to the white torture lab room, this almost looked cozy.
The dragon king's gaze stared straight ahead, and I felt like I had to tippy toe or skip a couple of steps every now and then only to keep up with him. It felt bad enough being led down the hall like this; I'm not putting myself in the position where I end up being dragged after him.
" These are our first specimen cells."
I frowned as he pointed; the hall had opened, and on my side, the wall had changed. The dark brick wall was now rows and rows of old and rusty metal bars. Behind them, small prison-like rooms and a chill went down my spine. Chains and cuffs were drilled into the walls in some of them, and I got a bad feeling about this. Why would he show me these? Tell me about the old cells like we were on a field trip he was bored sick off?
"My great-grandfather built them before he hibernated. I know the rumors about our torture rooms."
A dry, half-amused laugher that felt forced paused his explanation.
"But unknown for most, his mate was the one who started planning this. And it wasn't torture; it was for protection. Like always, people are scared of changes and what they don't understand."
"Research started out like primitive experiments and fueled by curiosity. However, already at that time, female babies had become rare. They noticed a change, a disturbing one, and wanted to get ahead of the situation. "
The hall now opened to a new room, lit up with chandeliers and decorated with furniture, unlike the other rooms. At first glance, it seemed rather nice. A soft couch in the middle of the room, facing the wall, and a little coffee table. Colorful paintings gave the room color and a calm feeling. Mountains, wild forests and waterfalls, shimmering scales up close, animals and creatures of all shapes and sizes. But the illusion was ruined when my eyes finally reached the wall facing the couch.
Unlike the rest of the walls, this was not really a wall. It was a massive glass window showcasing a vast, empty space behind it. The room didn't look like it was more than a couple of meters deep, but it ran all the way down the wall. The way the couch and a comfortable resting chair faced it, I quickly realized it was a showroom. That or a glass prison. Not sure if one was better than the other.
"This was where they entertained guests with similar interests who wanted to learn more about the research conducted here. Oh, this is also how and where the rumors of our breeding room sprung to life!"
He chuckled a dark and rumbling sound that made my heart rate flare up. How could this be funny to him? So far, all I've seen is morbid and outright evil. In the name of research or not.
"One of the guest's children was playing around, and they found the door behind those curtains. Adventurous, like all kids, they snuck down to explore and managed to walk right into one of my old ancestors' private dungeons. The kids screamed and ran crying out of there, their parents rather upset; my grandfather only laughed, but his poor lover was mortified. Chained up in a position only to be seen by him, she had nowhere to go."
He chuckled again and winked while my jaw almost hit the floor. My heart had switched to a sledgehammer, slamming my ribs, desperate to get free. I will never understand how this man can speak so casually about the horrible things that have happened here, and now I'm scared. Where is he taking me? What will become of me? Swallowing hard, I looked back at the glass prison. Would that be my faith?