Experiments Reborn

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The smile didn't escape his eyes. She wasn't afraid of him, and he didn't know why. He was big, he was scary, he was ugly, and he certainly wasn't normal. Others ran for the hills the minute they laid eyes on him, but so far, both female experiments had been interested in him, even if it was for differing reasons.

Kain had turned away from her when she spoke again. She had a point... not a great one, in his opinion, but it was still a point. She would grow to hate him, just like he'd done. In all his years being trapped, despising everything that walked through his door was the only way he managed. She'd called him Snarls again, and he didn't like it. It elicited the sound she'd nicknamed him for, but it was the few ways he knew how to respond.

His pointed ears lifted as his gaze followed her flowing form. She bounded with little effort to the top of the mountain-like formation. She was understanding her body better than he had when he'd first changed, but he had also grown wings and horns. The fire in his belly that allowed him to breathe fire had developed shortly after, so there was always a discomfort after he spewed flames.

Instead of complimenting her on her newly-discovered achievement, he only said, "...My name isn't Snarls... It's Kain." It wasn't really a name, but it was better than Snarls. If he was being forced into socializing with her, it would be the way he wanted it done, not her. He was king in his cage, a merciless draconic king willing to slay anything wandering in his path. The scientists might have threatened him, but it wouldn't be the first time he'd disobeyed direct orders.
 
Jami raised a brow and while her gaze wasn't exactly challenging, it wasn't compliant either. "I know." she stated simply before pretty much ignoring him again....not really, though. She was constantly aware of his movements, of his changing underlining scents and her mind was quickly putting labels to such things. Instinct knew more than she did at the moment and Jami....she was willing to learn from it. She wasn't one to give up, nor was she one to sit back and let things happen as they would. No, she'd figure out what she could do and then she'd learn to control it.

So yeah, right now she'd let herself run wild, but only for studying purposes, to learn. Only to a point. She had every intention of keeping her humanity intact, thankyouverymuch.

With that in mind, the blond let out a slow breath and simply stopped thinking for a moment, letting nothing but her body decide what she was going to do. It didn't take long before she felt the strangest urge to scratch. In fact, everything started itching. What the hell-?

Jami's eyes opened and she gave a yelp to see that fur was sprouting all along her arms and legs, felt over her back and stomach, even her face and she froze, eyes wide and glowing green. No, no, no, no... Too soon!

Her rising mental objection seemed to halt the process a bit and Jami's wide-eyed gaze turned into a glare as she looked at her arms and the gray fur slowly started to leave, to disappear back into her body. It was as if her ire over the situation had compelled her body to obey and she found herself sighing in relief when the reversing process was done and collapsing to a sitting position with a huff. She brushed her blond hair behind her pointed ear - that would take some getting used to - and frowned at her hands, speaking out loud.

"Okay, so either werewolf legends are wrong about only changing on a full moon, or there is more to them...on the other hand, I have no idea if it's night or day or how long I was out... OR the elven part of me is a stabilizer since elves are a constant in nature unlike werewolves. Then again, I might just be spouting nonsense out my ears..."

Jami bit her lip, now prominently hazel eyes narrowing. "I wonder..."

She looked back at the claws on her hand and attempted to focus. Human. She wanted to look human. Slowly, slowly it appeared that her claws started shrinking and Jami smiled a little, not at all discouraged when the process stopped and her head suddenly spiked with pain. No....no, this was encouraging regardless of how difficult it would be to control and the blond stood with a sense of accomplishment, leaping down from the rock formation without hesitation, looking once more toward Kain, stopping a good distance from him as she'd already observed that he didn't like anyone close to him - and probably for good reason. She leaned against a fake tree, arms crossing again and yawned, revealing rows of fangs before she spoke, casual.

Okay, so maybe she was in a bit of denial right now, but it was a coping mechanism at the moment.

"So, Kain, you breathe fire. What else can you do? You know, if you'll tell me considering the fact that you think I'm an opponent and divulging your big secrets might create a disadvantage."
 
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She was talking to herself, not to him. Her voice annoyed him, a pest buzzing in his ear. Her words weren't even directed at him, so he chose to ignore her. He paced around, but he still watched her try and retract the fur from her body. She was experiencing the same thing he had. Patches of smooth and rough scales dotted his body, but he never had the ability to make them disappear. As something that actually turned back into a human, she would develop the talent for changing her form. He wasn't that special.

She was more perfected than he was, even though they weren't the same type of creature. It made him angry. He was the first. He was better than she was. After all, she couldn't breathe fire or fly.

As Kain thought about his more useful abilities, he heard her speak directly to him. His ears flicked down for a moment, like he was trying to block out her words, but he relented after a moment. His golden eyes turned to the ground before they closed and his massive wings rushed down. His muscles tensed before he jumped up, letting his wings flap and take him into the air. The wind blew against the water and forced the current in all directions as it flowed beneath him, but he could only hover for a few seconds and fly over to the trees before he had to land. The cage had never provided a suitable habitat for him to practice any flight maneuvers or even build the muscle in his wings. His bone density hadn't changed, a defect from his initial injection. The scientists had been trying to change that so he would be lighter, but it wouldn't happen. They would give the better injection to some other candidate and leave him forgotten.

"...I don't do much else," he said, looking down at her from his position a few feet away. He inhaled again, fire spilling from his lips and straight onto his skin. He held the flames for as long as he could, but when he released the stream of heat, his arm was left with no burn mark of any kind. He wasn't completely immune to fire, but it was hard to burn him. It was the same way with injuries. To prove his silent point, he took his index claw and sliced his own arm open. There was enough time for a few drops of blood to spill before the injury closed itself. A thin white line on the inside of his forearm was all that remained. He inhaled, relishing the smell of blood, even if it was his own. Fighting and killing other experiments, and often eating the failed ones, had given Kain a lust for flesh and blood unlike any other experiment ever created. The dragon side of him always was pleased, never backing down from a fight or being willing to lose a battle.

"...And you don't even know what you can do," he said as his forked tongue slipped between his teeth to lick the blood from his blackened claw.
 
Jami watched him with both calculated but wondering eyes. He was truly incredible to watch and though he was strange to look at, something in the wolf-hybrid actually found his predatory nature, his strength and raw animal instinct appealing. That had to be the werewolf in her talking and the blond told it firmly to shut it. When Kain finally stopped his display and spoke to her again, she merely smiled and shrugged, keeping her lithe body leaning against the tree, hazel-green eyes on him.

"I'll learn. I get it. You're impressive, the alpha in this situation. You're King of the Cage. Congratulations. You win the 'who's more powerful and knows more' challenge. Give yourself a hand."

The blond pushed away from the tree, giving him a pointed, irritated look. "I've only been awake for an hour or two now, so give me a break. I COULD be freaking out on you, start sobbing and blubbering, maybe even screaming instead of being the cocky pest I'm channeling now. Be grateful."

Jami practically smirked before she turned around and jumped, her claws latching on to the fake tree and to her surprise, claws came out of her feet, too, finding a grip that let her scurry up the tree with ease. She crouched on a limb and looked out at the extending branch, built for the weight of Kain. It would surely support something as small and light as she was and taking a risk, Jami stood. Marveling at the balance of her own body, she walked out on the limb like a tightrope walker.

Maybe she shouldn't have been smiling considering the circumstances, but really...she was much like a scientist herself in a lot of ways. She loved the new, the exciting, to study and learn. She just didn't have that sadistic streak like the people that had created her and Kain. She spun on her toes and walked back the way she'd gone before doing the same again and going back the opposite way, pacing.

"So, I am going to assume that asking you personal questions is not allowed and anything either of us have to say about the scientists will pretty much be hate-filled. I also highly doubt you want to hear about me at this point, so....what's your favorite color?"

Yeah, it was completely random, but you had to start somewhere, right?
 
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Kain watched her, but it wasn't out of interest. His golden eyes always held a hint of predatory alertness. He was eternally stalking prey, even if Jami herself was a predator of sorts. She had balance, but he didn't see anything impressive about her. She had admitted he was better, but maybe it was just an ego stroke. He wasn't sure. The scientists complimented him on his ability to quickly kill and eat anything he was told to fight, but that was it.

Of course, Jami's question threw him off entirely. No one had ever inquired about his personality. He didn't have an answer. He paused and looked down, thinking of a suitable answer. He knew what colors looked like and what some of them meant, but one stood out in particular. One he loved seeing no matter where it came from.

"...Red," was his eventual growl. Red: the color of blood, the hue of life. Even if it came from his body, Kain loved blood. He relished the taste in his mouth or the sight of the thick crimson liquid spilling from his weak opponents. No one was good enough to combat him, and so it would always be their blood that dripped from fatal wounds.

He was silent after his one word statement. Courtesy dictated that he return the question, but Kain wasn't the courteous type. Not that he was interested in what she liked. He still hated her for trying to fix him, even if she didn't know how to do that.
 
"I like green." Jami offered in a simple way as she crouched on the branch and then sat, letting her legs dangle to either side, leaning back against the trunk of the tree. Her claws started to work on a simple etching in the fake bark as she ignored Kain's predatory gaze. She didn't care if he watched her as long as he didn't move to attack her. Right now she wasn't really worried about it, though.

The blond could feel her composer crumbling the longer the silence lasted. While there'd been distraction she'd been able to push the fear and the reality of her circumstance to the back of her mind, but now there was nothing to focus on and Jami felt the hysteria creeping back in. She would NOT give in to it, but she couldn't deny that her chest was starting to hurt and tears pricked at her eyes as thoughts of her family entered her mind.

Jami took a deep breath and drew her knees up, balancing perfectly as she wrapped her arms around them and placed her forehead on her knees. She didn't care what anyone thought of her, least of all Kain as the tears slid down her face silently and she finally started to acknowledge that while she WOULD get through this, she wasn't happy about it. She wasn't okay with any of this and deep down she was scared.

Her sister and brother, her parents....would she ever see any of them again? Would she change so much, like the dragon-hybrid had, that they wouldn't know her if she ever did come back? What in the world did these scientists want her for anyway? Why her?

She looked up then, hazel-green eyes finding Kain again and Jami didn't bother wiping the wetness from her face. She was sure it would only come back. "How long have you been here?"
 
Kain continued to glare at her, but when she fell silent, he didn't feel the need to speak. However, a sniffle brought his attention back up. She was crying. Long ago was the day he'd shed tears. Sure, he'd been confused and scared when he first showed up, but adaption had been his top priority. He'd been there too long to start thinking about his first days.

Of course, Jami had to bring it up. "...A long time," he said, his growl soft. There was no kindness in his words, but for the first time, there was no real hatred. "...Thirteen years." Translation: too long. If there was one thing Kain wanted more than the blood of his enemies, it was pure freedom. Kain once knew what it was like to not be trapped by steel walls or to be poked by needles or forced to fight. He'd been hardened into a draconic killing machine, and even if that didn't change, he would want to fly outside and know what it was like once more.

"Kain. It's time to rest. You've had a long day," Dr. Naris said from the corner. Kain sprang up, wings beating until he towered in front of her, growling with clear, malicious intent. "...Leave. Now." Kain and Dr. Naris were never on good terms, but she seemed to bug him more often now that Jami was here.

"Miss Carson, you will stay here with Kain. If he hasn't killed you by morning, it means you've made progress. We will be around to collect you tomorrow though. Do your best to discover how to subdue him. We're in need of it." Another warning growl escaped Kain's lips, and the scientist finally turned and left. Once she was gone, the dragon hybrid stalked back toward the mountain form in the corner. Clawing at the ground with his feet, he curled his knees to his bare chest, his tail twirling around his ankles. Within minutes, he fell asleep, almost like he had trained himself to sleep and wake up on command.

The week passed too slowly. Kain and Jami were taken out at separate times for varying tests, but no matter what happened, Kain was always thrown into their small arena to fight. The scientists were always coming up with new experiments for him to fight and kill. He never lost, and for a while, his lust for blood was sated. He only spoke when Jami talked to him, but with how often they were being removed from his cell, there wasn't a lot of time to chat.

Finally, one day, the scientists didn't come in immediately to run tests on both experiments. Kain was feasting upon a mount of raw, bloody meat sitting on the ground. His arms were riddled with needle holes and two new scars ran along his side and his back. It wasn't clear if they were wounds from fighting, self-induced, or results from the scientists and their testing. Either way, Kain was much more focused on his meal than his injuries.
 
Thirteen years.

Jami felt like she might be sick and she said nothing in reply, burying her face back into her knees and though she cocked her head a little when Dr. Naris came in, she didn't move or truly acknowledge the woman. She heard her words, though, and sighed into her legs. Staying here and progress if not dead by morning. What encouraging words. At least she knew her roommate's habit of slaughtering his new companions. So nice of them to give her that warning.

Even Jami's mind was sarcastic at this point and she glared toward the door, vowing right then and there that even if she DID have a way to subdue Kain, she'd NEVER use it for the scientist's benefit. She didn't care what they did to her.

It was a vow she was determined to keep, an aspect of her life she was going to control no matter what.

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The next week was pure torture for Jami, overwhelming and painful. She was the first of her kind in the same way Kain was the first of his and the scientists were determined to know as much about her in the quickest amount of time possible that they could. Their tests were simple at first; seeing how her vitals functioned, scanning her brain waves, MRIs and CT scans, full body scans, skin samples, blood samples, hair, saliva - anything and everything. That was the first day.

The second and the ones that followed were far worse.

It was as if they wanted to see how much she could tolerate, how much pain they could inflict before she broke...and Jami never did. Oh, she screamed and cursed and fought them. She cried herself to sleep for four nights straight and wanted nothing more than to just curl up and disappear, but she didn't die. She didn't give them her spirit or her mind and therefore, they didn't break her.

She endured their tests, acquiring scars of her own as her body healed at an accelerated rate like Kain's did, but the real challenge came when they decided to inject her with more of the mercury liquid that had made her what she was now. They said they'd improved it, used more of the elven aspect since she had so much of the werewolf in her already and Jami had been incredibly sick that fifth day, feverish as her body tried to accept the extra poison in it's system.

She'd recovered by the morning and the seventh day of testing had been 'lighter' than the first. And on this, the eighth day, there was nothing and Jami now stared at the door, eyes hazel-green eyes much harder and wary than they had been just a week ago. She adapted fast and one aspect of that adaption had been learning hate rather quickly. Oddly enough, though, that emotion didn't encompass Kain even now and she glanced at him with a frown as he ate.

The wolf-hybrid leaped from her perch in the tree, much more in tune with her body now, and while she didn't approach Kain - she knew better than to do that when he was eating - she did make her presence known to him. "You do realize that is disgusting to everyone but you, right?"

Oh, yes, and Jami was much more....outspoken now and blunt about it, too.
 
Kain paused his hand, a strip of bloodied meat dangling from his claws. His head turned up to glare at Jami, but he didn't move from his spot. His golden eyes were studious before he looked back down without a word to finish his meal. He licked the blood clean before he washed the rest off in the trickling stream. He dusted his hands before he stalked in front of her. Even with her new mutations, he was still much taller than her.

"I don't care what you think," he snapped at her, his lips curling into a snarl. "You aren't here to tell me how you feel about what I do." Her hate was equal to his at this point. She'd learned quickly, just like he'd said. Still, they hadn't forced out of her the way she would subdue him; the way they would control him using her. The longer she took to figure out, the better off he was.

He held his towering stance over her for only a second longer before he turned away. He'd learned to hate her even more. She was constantly around, even if he wasn't in the cell. He wanted her to go away. At least the silence and loneliness was tolerable when he was by himself. Having someone else around made it worse. She'd had a life before the facility, something he wanted. He couldn't remember his life before the facility, the scientists. He couldn't have that... not yet.

"You've been here with me all... week," he said, trying to remember how long it had been since she first entered his cell. "Don't see why you made a point of it right now." At least she wasn't telling him what to do. He didn't like that. Ever. He had a mind to defy the scientists, but they controlled the electric collar around his neck, and as much as he hated admitting to painful moments, the collar caused them.
 
Jami stood her ground when he approached, not scared of the dragon-hybrid in the least. Common sense dictated she should at least be wary of him, but the blond felt no such thing. It wasn't because she knew he wouldn't hurt her. No, she understood very well that he would have LOVED nothing more than to tear into her. Kain hated her. She knew that, too. He hated the freedom she'd had. He hated the way she was constantly in his territory. He hated that the scientists WANTED him to not harm her. He hated that he was forced to choose to obey them or suffer more pain.

She understood all that.

Jami just didn't care anymore. If he killed her, fine. She'd be free of this place. Besides, she was more than sure now, after watching him for a week, that it was HIMSELF Kain hated more than anything. And when it came to that, she was more powerful than he was because she didn't hate herself. She was unsure of herself, scared of what she could do and she wished that she wasn't this way, but she didn't hate herself and she was going to accept what had happened to her and learn from it, grow from it.

She crossed her arms, brow arched and snarled after him. "Then what AM I here for, oh great and mighty King of the Cage? If you are so knowledgeable, enlighten me."

Jami stalked after him, her body quick as she darted in his path, uncaring of how mad he'd get or what he might do. And that's what made her fearless, what made her dangerous now. She didn't care about his temper or his hate, she wasn't going to cower if he roared or flinch if he snarled and she certainly wasn't going to back off anymore. She'd been doing it for a week now and it hadn't amounted to anything. Time for a new tactic.

"I made a point of it now because you SHOULD care. And you can brush me off and claim that you're a dragon now and that's what you do and blah, blah, blah, but you're only lying to yourself. You're becoming exactly what THEY want you to be and in that way they DO control you."
 
Kain didn't stop walking. He didn't want to talk to her anymore. He wasn't knowledgeable about what the scientists did. They kept information from him all the time. It was for that reason that he chose to ignore her. That is, of course, until she bounced up in front of him. He stopped so he wouldn't trip over her, but the anger was written on his patch-scaled face. He opened his mouth to speak but she beat him to it. The more words that spilled from her mouth, the more irritated he became.

"No, they don't," he growled, snapping dangerously close to one of her pointed ears. "I will never let them." Or maybe she was right. Maybe, because of his anger, Kain was letting them in. He did do what they wanted by fighting and letting them test, but he didn't want to die. But even then, the more tests they ran, the more likely they would be to find a better way to make a different dragon hybrid, and then they would kill him.

The entire thought process made him roar at her. She had brought it on, and now she was going to die for it. His hand came up and snapped around her throat, squeezing the life from her. "I am king because I can kill you with one hand. You will learn your place in death," Kain snarled, forcing his hand down to bend her back.

He didn't get that far when the collar started to crackle. A bright burst of electricity shot out and shocked him. "Kain, release her," the voice called over the speaker, but this time, Kain didn't listen. His grip loosened, but he wanted to kill her. He rumbled with a deep growl, and it was even heard over the snapping shocks of the collar.

"Kain, if you kill her, you will die." The death threat almost made him let go, but he didn't. His hand around her neck slackened, even if that wasn't his choice. The electricity coursing through his body hurt, but he was too angry to let her go because of it. She was stronger now, and he knew that, but if she wanted to break free, she would, because he wasn't going to release her by choice.
 
When his hand came around her neck, Jami felt a flash of very real human fear, but it was drowned out by fury a moment later as the werewolf in her rose up in defiance. She wrapped her clawed hands around his wrist, trying to break away even though most of her knew it was futile. She wouldn't go down without fighting though and when Kain spoke again, claiming she'd learn her place, she snarled at him in clear denial of that statement even as her neck was forced to the side, ready to snap.

She didn't fear death and Jami realized that in an instant as she looked into the golden eyes that burned with such anger and hate toward her. No, she didn't fear dying and she didn't fear Kain. She pitied him as she watched him endure the shocks of the collar, knowing the pain it caused. She wanted to help him, show him that there was good and happiness in life, but he wouldn't let her and it saddened her.

His grip loosened on her neck and in turn her grip on his wrist did, leaving bloody furrows where she'd struggled. He'd heal.

Something came over Jami then, a confidence, a power that she'd not had before and the green faded out of her eyes, leaving them a softer hazel as they met the enraged gaze of the dragon-hybrid before her. "I don't want to hurt you." she whispered and her hands dropped from his arm before Jami's expression hardened just a little. It was in that moment that a high-pitched, deafening screeching-like noise would erupt in Kain's head and an invisible energy would be released from Jami, breaking his hold and shoving him back away from her forcefully.

The sound stopped as suddenly as it had started, heard only by the dragon-hybrid, and Jami spoke into the silence, the threat clear in her voice. "I don't want to hurt you, Kain, but if you ever threaten me like that again, I will."

In that moment, Jami wasn't a werewolf full of instinct and desires, she was an elf; a creature of power and poise, in tune with nature and unknown to them both, a being with a natural connection to dragons, natural ways to defend themselves against them. They were also creatures with noble hearts who didn't desire to control dragons - they respected them as long as the dragons did the same.
 
Her claws in his arm didn't faze him in the slightest. He was too concerned with ending her life. But then she released him and the motion confused him. The electricity stiffened his body and he couldn't really move, but it stopped just as the keening wail screeched its way into his head. His clawed hands clapped around his pointed ears and he roared in pain. The wave of energy that followed forced him away, and he crossed his arms over his face like he was blocking a strong wind. His head snapped up as she spoke, but there was irritation in his eyes along with hurt. He leaped back in front of her and unleashed another anger-filled roar, but he did not try to grab her again. Instead, he flew up and away, diving into the branches and hiding himself.

He didn't know how she did what she'd done, but he didn't like it. He pushed himself to the back, crouching in the shadows as far away as he could sit from her. She had a way to subdue him, but it was painful. Kara's way had at least been somewhat pleasant, even if he didn't want to admit that. He huffed a frustrated growl as his tail curled around his legs. He wanted to know how Jami did what she did, but he didn't want to ask. He would have to stoop to her level and he still didn't like her.

The scientists were not as proud as Kain. "Miss Carson, that was... impressive. I assume you found the proper way to control Kain, or at the very least, overpower him and prevent him from lashing out. Kain never hides or backs down, so whatever you did must have completely unwound him." Kain could hear what Dr. Naris was saying, since she had the gall to converse over the speaker. However, for once, he didn't try to break the speaker system. He just kept himself holed up in the trees. He could glare out at Jami from the angle he sat at, but he made little noise and movement. He looked down at his wrist where Jami had clawed her fingers under his skin, but there were only two twisted scars now. He added it to the list of scars he'd gotten during his time in the facility, but he knew it wouldn't be the last. As long as Jami remained in his cell, there would be more anger and more scars.
 
Jami felt her stomach - or was that her heart? - twist as the look in Kain's eyes and she felt a twinge of regret for what she'd done. Maybe she could have used the energy to force him back without the wail? She honestly didn't know. It had happened so fast and she'd been reacting on nothing but instinct. Now though as she watched him fly away and HIDE from her, she knew that this was something, an ability she was going learn to harness and use wisely even if it killed her.

She didn't want to see that look of hurt, of betrayal in Kain's eyes again. He might have been a grump, have a temper problem, hate her and he might have just tried to kill her, but he was all she had and whether he wanted to admit it or not, she was all he had right now, too.

The scientist's voice grated on her already sensitive conscience - they did have a way about them, didn't they? - and Jami growled, looking toward where she knew a camera was. "That was self-defense, nothing more and if I can learn to do it in a way that's not painful, I will. I have no desire to control Kain or overpower him, especially not for your benefit, and if you try to make me, I'll die first." Her peace said, she turned away and sprinted back to her own tree and into the branches. She knew very well that the scientists wouldn't believe her words, wouldn't even take them into account.

They were going to be very unpleasantly surprised then when they finally did realize that Jami had found something to fight for and when she did that...she was very, very stubborn. And pain wasn't a motivator for her. The blond knew they were going to hurt her anyway. They didn't have a bargaining chip.

She smirked to herself at the thought and then stopped, frowning as she felt a familiar feeling come over her, but certainly not a pleasant one. Jami covered her mouth, swallowing, trying to stem the nausea but in the end it was a futile attempt and she jumped from the tree, kneeling as the contents of her stomach emptied themselves. For the past week she'd been fed meat. She hadn't craved anything else, but now, her stomach roiled at the very thought of it and Jami groaned softly, moving away from the mess and leaning back against the fake tree behind her, hazel eyes narrowed.

Well, that was odd. Maybe it was her body rebelling against a new power? Would it settle? Maybe she was still getting used to that extra dose they'd given her.

Eh, just one more reason to curse the scientists. They just couldn't leave well enough alone.
 
The cell became silent then. The scientists didn't try to make some let of comeback, and Kain hid for longer than expected. However, at the sound of Jami's sick retching, he crawled out and snaked his way up a tree. He watched her empty the contents of her stomach, but he made no move to help her. She had defended him in front of the entire facility, and yet, he couldn't bring himself to like her. She didn't have to defend him. In fact, it was better when she wasn't around.

However, a slight, nagging curiosity was biting at him. With reluctant motions, he climbed down the bark and sidled up next to her. He was quiet outside of his rumbling breath until he finally worked up a question.

"Kii tepoha wux elignea ve?"

Well, it wasn't the best. Kain spoke and understood the draconic language of the ancient beasts, but only because he'd been forced to practice every day. As such, his voice changed while he uttered the old words. The growl in his voice was lost and his sentence was clear. His forked tongue flickered with the sounds, but he didn't trip up on any word.

No one else in the world knew how to speak it, so it was just another aspect he was alone in. He never spoke it to the scientists, because he didn't want them to learn it. The writings and books they discovered with the language were all burned... By him.

Realizing that she probably would know what he said, he snapped at the air and tried again. "Why did you defend me against them?" The flat rumble in his tone had returned, like he hated speaking in a much more common language. "You said you didn't want to hurt me, and you did anyway, but you protected yourself against them... Why?" It sounded like he made some attempt not to snarl at her, but his efforts were poor.
 
Jami was well aware of his presence, but she didn't acknowledge him as he came closer, her eyes closed now and she didn't move when he came nearer to her than he'd ever been while calm. Nearly snapping her neck didn't count, nor did roaring in her face. She wasn't sure what he wanted until he spoke and then....she still didn't really know, but he'd definitely caught her attention and Jami opened her hazel eyes, tilting her head as she looked at the male hybrid.

You. 'Wux'...it meant 'you'. And 've' meant 'me'. 'Kii'...that was...'why'? Good stars, how did she know that? Jami frowned, the rest of the words already lost to her inner translator and by that point Kain was speaking in English again....and his voice was rough, the snarling, jagged tone she remembered. For a moment she'd almost not realized anything had changed, but now, hearing the difference she had to wonder if maybe...she could learn his language just to hear a softer tone from him.

Hmm... something to think about. It was certainly better than thinking about her unhappy body.

As he asked his questions - and she was really used to being snarled at now so didn't even pay it any mind - Jami brought her legs up and wrapped an arm protectively around her stomach, the other resting on a knee as she shrugged a little, staring ahead at everything around them and yet nothing at all. She didn't look at Kain because the last thing she wanted to see right now was anger or hate from him. She was tired, suddenly cold, still nauseous and merely wanted to sleep.

But she knew this was important.

"I DIDN'T want to hurt you, but I also didn't want to die, Kain. I might have started the argument, but you started the violence. Self-defense is not me wanting to hurt you and I meant what I said; if I can find a way to keep you from snapping my neck or savaging me without hurting you, I will." Jami sighed, running her claws hand back through her damp blond hair. She was pretty sure as the minutes passed that she had a developing fever.

"Kain, whether you like it or not, whether you understand it or not, I'm not your enemy. In fact, in the last week I am the only person who's been decent to you without expecting anything in return. And I will continue to be so no matter how much you rebel against that. I defended you because you don't deserve this and I refuse to lose my humanity. I refuse to be like them and I won't do what they want if it means hurting the one person worth anything in this hellish place."

She looked directly at Kain then, slightly glazed hazel eyes meeting his golden ones. "Does that answer your question or would you like me to elaborate further? Because I think I might pass out soon."
 
She had processed his ability to speak the language of dragons, and it appeared that she was trying to understand him. There was no way she could, at least he thought so. However, he forced himself to listen to her reasoning as she spoke, even though he still didn't get exactly why she did. She had a point, but he didn't like it. Not that he really liked her, but still, she had a point. But if he could just... not hate her, just for one second, maybe it would be different. He wasn't sure, but for once, he tried not to be angry at her, or himself.

She said he was worth something, and she didn't want to lose her sanity. Like he had. He turned his head to look at her just as she stared at him, but something was off. He realized it was something he was smelling. She had a sickly air about her, and her eyes were cloudy. Maybe it was a side effect of what she'd done to him. Either way, if she was going to continue and defend him, she needed to get better. He stood up from their spot against the tree and glared at the door as it started to creak open.

"Vdri." Sleep. The clear draconic word was heard all around, even if Kain wasn't looking at Jami. It surprised Dr. Naris, Dr. Thornsin, and the intern trailing after them as they made their way inside. "Wux rigluin vdri, usv yth geou ti itrewic ekik di tenpiswo." Even if she couldn't understand him, he couldn't say what he wanted in front of the scientists. They would have detained him for eternity for even speaking such a thing. He wanted his freedom, and he would get it, but he would need Jami's help to do it.

They all watched him with wary eyes, the intern especially, as they moved toward Jami. Kain, unlike normal, didn't lash out or roar at them. They moved toward the weak female with Kain glaring at them the whole time. It took almost all of his willpower not to try and burn one of them, but he didn't.

Even with that, they must have decided it was too risky, because the collar sparked to life and dropped Kain to a knee with a screech of pain. The electricity pounded him long enough for Dr. Thornsin to stab a needle into his arm and empty the entire syringe into his body. It took an almost immediate effect, but Kain managed to struggle upright and flap his way over to the protection of his trees before he fell unconscious. He wouldn't be out for long, but it was long enough for them to make sure he wouldn't be a problem.

Once Kain was out of the way, they turned back to Jami. "You appear to be sick, and we'd like to find out why. We need a blood sample, and we might have to remove you for a few days to monitor your condition. Whatever you did, it's coming back on you." They still were pressing on her the urgency of knowing what it was Jami had done to control Kain, but it was even more impressive that she managed to calm him for even just a few minutes.
 
Sleep. She caught that word the first time and then the second time, too and Jami nodded slowly, but frowned, trying to reason out the other words while her mind grew foggy and uncooperative. Hmm....You....sleep..we....out...here. The elf-hybrid blinked up at the dragon-hybrid with wide eyes, her mind turning slowly - and if that was what she could figure out when sick, her processing would be a great deal faster when well - as to his complete flip in outlook. Was he actually going to...what, not try to kill her? Tolerate her?

Jami didn't have the energy to ask or figure it out further, and her attention was drawn to the scientists approaching. Her body tensed at their advance, but she didn't move or voice anything...not until they activated Kain's collar and then the blond growled in fury as he cried out. She'd gotten about half-way to her feet, blind rage the only thing she could see but a shock from her own collar sent her back to the ground with a groan and by that point it was too late for Kain.

The blond panted with fever and pain as she looked back up at Dr. Naris and Dr. Thornsin, ignoring the intern entirely. She processed their words with distaste and spat blood at them, having bit her tongue. "Go to hell."

Her vision was starting to go dark and Kain's word came back to her mind, in draconic no less. Vdri. He'd told her to sleep and the blond obeyed, letting her body drift off. At least in sleep she didn't have to answer any stupid questions from deranged scientists. And Jami was pretty sure they wouldn't be hurting her right now. She could 'control' Kain and without wanting to eat him, unlike Kara, and they still didn't know how. Oh, yes, they'd be keeping her alive, of that she was sure.

------------

The next few days were touch and go for Jami. She never fully became lucid and her fever raged without breaking, soaring to inhuman heights of 108 and 110, though it was clear either her werewolf or elven blood kept her from dying at those extreme temperatures. She was nearly scalding to the touch now and couldn't keep anything but broth - and IV fluids - down....but only if it was a vegetable-based one. Anything with even a hint of meat was expelled almost immediately. She didn't appear to be in pain if left alone, but would cry out if touched by the scientists and interns.

They kept her out of the cage, under close observation in a lab room, but Jami only seemed to get worse. She was pale and had lost a good deal of weight. She didn't speak unless it was to mumbled or cry out one word.

Kain.

Why she called out for the dragon-hybrid was beyond the scientist's scope of reasoning or understanding. Maybe it was because he was the only person she trusted here. Or perhaps she was merely delusional. I could have been something more important than that, though. They didn't know and her blood work was inconclusive. It kept fluctuating, unstable, but it wasn't being rejected by her body. That's what puzzled them as to why she was sick.

They couldn't figure it out and consequently, Jami didn't get better.
 
When Kain woke up from the sedative, it was silent in the cell. He stumbled to his feet and looked around with fuzzy vision, but he found no one. Jami was gone, and there was no trace of the sickness she'd had. Even the air was sterile and smelled like antiseptic. The quiet was so overwhelming. There was just... nothing.

It drove him crazy.

He roared and screeched and smacked his claws on the walls to create an awful sound to drown out the silence. He scrambled along the ceiling, digging his fingers and gouging holes into the steel. He heard the interns tell him over and over to stop, but he only snarled and shot the cameras with fire. He wasn't having any of it. His terrible noises and tearing of the cell did nothing, however. The scientists never brought anything back. They only gave him food and more silence. Within two days, Kain had fallen back into his normal routine of being aggressive and unkind to anyone who set foot into his cell. However, one thing was different. He was constantly tired, and he realized it was from the meat they gave him and the water running through the cell. It seemed they thought drugs or other substances necessary to keep him down. It wasn't enough to stop him from trying to dig a hole underneath the trees. He always hid when he wasn't eating or scrabbling at the wall, but the hole was too small to get anywhere.

One day, the drugs laced into the meat were particularly strong, and he fell asleep for much longer than he intended. When he woke up, he was in a dark room with only a single light. Jami was strapped to a table, but there was nothing else. The deathly smell around her was choking, and she appeared to be more sick than when she'd left his cell.

"You will help her. She calls out for you, but we don't know why. She's been terribly incoherent. We'd like you to try and wake her up or make her say something so we know how she is." The automated voice droning from the speaker made him flatten his ears against his head and glare at wherever it was coming from. Smoke rolled from his nose as he huffed in irritation before he looked down at Jami. "We'd like you to speak in the dragon language," the voice added, but it only added to his anger. They wanted to record him speaking so they could figure it out. His golden eyes studied her pale, thin form before he spoke.

"Wux shilta ti renthisj mrith duulo lexri tagoa wux re jimva. Qe hefoc marfedelom thric throdenilt. Rocen." His voice was remarkably quiet, unlike any way he'd ever spoken before. He had no microphone, and the sensors in the room weren't enough to pick up on anything he said. "...Get up," he repeated in English, but with much more force and rumble than he intended. It seemed like whatever sickness she'd contracted, they wanted it contained, even though they'd allowed Kain inside. They knew his immune system would properly defend him from anything she might have gotten, if it was contagious. They still hadn't figured out how she'd forced him away, but they weren't making progress due to her condition. Kain wanted to keep it that way.
 
Voices. So many voices that didn't make any damn sense and they wouldn't leave her alone! Why couldn't they just leave her be?! She couldn't concentrate when they spoke and prodded. She couldn't find what she needed. Everywhere was cold and dark and dead. There was no life in this place, nothing for her to latch on to. So she faded. She faded and she stopped fighting because there was nothing to find no matter how hard she searched.

Something kept her from going completely, though. A promise maybe? No...not it wasn't that. A commitment more like. To the dragon. The dragon who would understand. He'd get her what she needed. But he wasn't here and he didn't come for the longest time.

The voice that came to her in the black so suddenly drew her spirit like a moth to a candle and Jami listened to it, followed it's command until she was on the brink of the blinding light. It switched completely then, harsh and in that language she was growing to hate in the state she was in. She made a noise of protest, eyes blinking open, barely lucid but aware and Jami's glassed-over hazel eyes met gold ones. She frowned at him before turning her face away, back toward the ceiling.

"English tiric ti suite wux. Sjek wux re voga beli trilvol de sia ricin si mi gethrisjir ekess svent wux persvek wer tisvelkilti idol si shilta."

Jami pulled against her restraints weakly, hissing as if they burned her and her fever started to spike again at the energy she was expending. Her voice was raspy, forced, but sharp with frustration and anger. "Wux meagea ve ekess rocen. Kii? Tepoha wux dronilnra wer siksta usv wer shanin mrith wux? Tepoha dout dronilnra wer soil usv wer skjall? Loex. Froneel ui loex vur si mi hefoc marfedelom."
 
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