Murky Waters (Wings of Fire Fanfiction) ((DISCONTINUED))

Chapter 6

Darkwater has been in the laboratory for about a week, and he hates everything about it, except the free fish he always gets for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The scavengers had been taking tons of blood samples from him (the only kind of sample they could get without him going ballistic), and there was a rumor going around saying that the scavengers was going to kill all of the dragons in the distant future. Darkwater huffed at the thought of the rumor, not knowing if he should believe that or not. Though, it probably didn't matter. He was going to escape, and maybe even help the others escape, too.

Darkwater had observed where the scavengers exit in and out from. He had noticed that they come from a door at the very end of the giant room, and it must be wide enough for him to squeeze through. The scavengers always brings massive equipment into the room, so the door has to be wide. Only problem is that he doesn't know where the exit to the actual laboratory is. Maybe I can find it while I escape, he thought to himself. The scavengers in coats didn't have many weapons that could actually kill a dragon, or at least Darkwater hasn't seen any. The only things he had seen the scavengers use were long metal poles. They seem like the only thing that could potentially kill a dragon.

Stacks of light pink salmon and a variety of other fish had been pushed through a small opening, way too small for Darkwater to escape out of. The dead fishes flopped onto the stony ground, the smell of dead fish making Darkwater smile. It was the only thing that reminded him of home. The SeaWing gladly chomped down on his lunch, managing to eat the whole entire pile in own a few gulps. 

Right after he was done, he laid on his side to get ready to take a nap. He dreamed about what it's like in the outside world, a world full of scavengers. Maybe they all wore white coats like the scavengers who tested on them, or maybe they wore clothing that blended in with nature, like the scavengers who captured them. Darkwater, in fact, knew that he would never actually know unless he escaped. He wondered, how. How will he escape his cage is the first thing he had to worry about. Darkwater looked at the door of his glass enclosure. On the door handle was a silver metal lock. Darkwater snorted as he looked at it. He couldn't reach the lock with his claws, even if he could, he wouldn't be able to unlock it without a key. Which scavenger had the key?

Every scavenger who walked by had a key-chain at their side clipped onto their pockets, the hundreds of keys dangling and rattling together with every step the scavenger took. It would be almost impossible to find the correct key, especially when all of the keys were golden-colored, with no clear way to distinguish them. Darkwater realized this may be a bit more difficult than he imagined.

The SeaWing tapped his claw on the stone ground. Think, Darkwater! Think!

Darkwater glanced at his claws. Maybe he could use his animus magic. No, bad idea, Darkwater immediately grunted in his head. Darkwater had read the scrolls, a scroll called Animus History to be exact, and he feared to use his genetic ability. He heard all of the stories about his ancestor, Prince Albatross, and the Royal SeaWing massacre, caused by him when he used way too much of his magic and went insane, killing pretty much his whole entire family. At the thought of killing his own family, Darkwater shivered. He rarely used any of his powers because of that fact, and luckily after King Gill had died, his mother stopped having the Talons of Power ceremony, which was a great relief for Darkwater. Now he wasn't forced  to show that he had animus magic. 

Darkwater tried to think of a way to escape without the use of his magic. He glanced at the lock again. It looked metallic, and it was most likely not fireproof. Maybe if he could just melt it..

But how? SeaWings don't have fire breath, after all. But, most of the other tribes did. The nearest dragon to his cage was a SkyWing, but her mouth was muzzled, smoke still curling from the breathing holes. He attempted to find a fire-breathing dragon that wasn't muzzled, but he had no lucky. Pretty much every fire-breathing dragon in the room was muzzled, even the MudWings. These scavengers were totally prepared.

What about the RainWings, Darkwater thought. He glanced at the closest rainforest dragon, now beginning to sit up.

The closest RainWing was bright yellow, though hints of blue were tinted on her legs and long, prehensile tail that curled around her leg as she laid on the floor. It was time for 'shut eye' time for the dragons after lunch, so no scavengers were in the lab at the moment. "Hey, you," Darkwater whispered as he tried to stick his snout out of the small opening where his food is delivered. The female SkyWing glanced at Darkwater, tilting her head. "No, not you," Darkwater said. "That yellow RainWing over there!"

Darkwater had always saw SkyWings to be rude and mean all of the time, but he assumed that now there was nothing to be very 'moody' about, the female SkyWing actually helped call the RainWing for him. The muzzled SkyWing had thrown a half-eaten fish at the RainWing to get her attention, which caused the dragon's frill to pop out, her scales then flashing into a lime green color. "Hey you," Darkwater called in a low voice, his claws on pushed against the glass wall of his cage. "Can you spit some of your venom on this lock?"

"Why should I?" The RainWing scoffed, standing up and walking as close as she could to the SeaWing. "Just because you wanna escape doesn't mean we all don't wanna leave to."

Darkwater snorted. "I'm trying to help you ALL escape. How is anyone going to help if we're not on the other side of this horrid prison?"

"Why should I believe you?" The RainWing squinted her eyes to form a glare, and Darkwater sighed, almost about to give up hope.

"You don't have to believe me," Darkwater said. "I'm just saying that I'm trying to help ya'll escape, and you're probably the only dragon who can help me at the moment. So, please. Just spit some of that magical black stuff on there. Pretty please?"

The rainforest dragon hesitated for a few moments, but she then quietly opened her mouth like a striking snake. With a small hiss, a black liquid shot from her fangs, but missed the lock by a few inches. "Oops," the RainWing says. "My bad. I haven't had many venom shooting lessons lately."

The RainWing tried again, and after a few failed attempts, the acidic venom had finally landed on the lock. Darkwater waited patiently, his tail swaying slowly as he grew excited. His eyes grew wide as he smiled, his wings flapping sightly. He was finally going to escape...

But nothing happened, even after about thirty minutes. The black liquid just slowly dripped from the metal lock, the lock itself unharmed, showing that RainWing venom can only affect biological matter, and not inanimate objects. Great.  Darkwater stomped his foot. Now there really was no way to escape. "Darn," Darkwater hissed softly. "I really thought that was going to work."

The RainWing sighed. "So.. we won't be escaping?" 

"Probably not as soon as I planned," Darkwater responded. "But I'll try to find a way. Don't worry."

I have to find a way, Darkwater harshly thought to himself.