A Dragon's Hoard

TCOC - Dragon's Blood

Saran stirred, opening his eyes and quickly glancing around the large open room. The opposite wall was lined with a counter, sink, cabinets, and shelves full of vials, glassware, and small labeled bottles of substances. There were a few desks aside from that, covered in other used equipment. Saran noticed the striped bright yellow and black tape on the floor in a semicircle around him, reaching the wall on either side of him. He stood, almost stumbling back into the wall because of the chain around his neck. He started to panic, recognizing the particular subtle smell and feel of the metal.
He hadn't noticed the other person enter the room. "So you recognize it."
Saran huffed. "I've had my fair share of run-in's with dragon hunters."
The man came up to the edge of the stripped line. "You've come a long way from home, haven't you."
Saran's body shifted, pale blue magic crawling down it as he grew and lost color. He transformed into a pale, silvery white dragon, blue wings outstretched and tail swishing like an angry cat. "I've had enough experience to know your type at a glance."
The man raised an eyebrow, amused. "Oh?"
He was a tall man, a bit thin for his age. He had shaggy brown hair that knocked his appearance down a couple years less than he actually was. The most notable feature was the brown trench coat. Saran would've assumed, in a place like this, that he'd be wearing a lab coat, but the man's confidence seemed to mean he was above protective laboratory equipment.
"You assume I intend to kill you? That's a bit of a jump to conclusions going off of only a glance and an observation."
"Well? What do you want?" Saran growled.
The man turned away, heading back towards the shelves and counters, taking to the equipment. "You're quick to assume I have ill intent only because you woke up restrained in a strange place." He turned on the Bunsen burner, adjusting it. "I wanted to take samples of your blood but, it seemed, none of my equipment could pierce your hide as much as a scratch. That is, until I remembered I was looking into a curious element, so called corsenium." He explained, picking a small labeled bottle from the shelves. "Very durable and resistant, yet highly soluble." He mused, examining the bottle intently as he strolled to another desk. "Can make the strongest of alloys, strangest of solutions, and can even evaporate with water at the correct temperatures." He set the bottle down on the desk, picking up a beaker. "Turns out, it's the one thing Ceotis Dragons don't have a resistance to." He turned to the sink, filling it partway with water. Saran eyed him piercingly as the man set the beaker on a Bunsen burner and picked up the bottle, unscrewing it and dumping the contents into the water. "Your blood is very special, you know. Especially since it's very hard to get." He picked up a vial of red liquid from its stand on his desk. "Just think how much a cup of this is worth in other dimensions, and I've got at least a quart of it here. Much more later, as long as I don't bleed you do death."
Saran snarled in distaste. "You're planning to make a profit off of me? Of all things?"
The man laughed. "Don't be so outrageous." He said, uncorking the vial and pouring half of it into the beaker. There was a hissing noise as it hit the solute, letting off smoke and turning the liquid black. "I used to specialize in physics, but lately I've been focusing more so on chemistry, genetics, and neurology. I've accumulated quite the inventory of unusual DNA sets over the years. I'd like to add yours to it and start the experimentation process immediately."
"So now I'm your experiment."
He sighed, looking up and thinking. "With the multitude of subjects I've had over the years, experimenting with you directly or harming you in any way would not immediately produce results." He half turned to him. "In a sense, yes. You are my test subject. But I only plan to experiment on your blood. You'll be fine as long as you don't do anything rash."
Saran's eyes narrowed. "And after that?"
The man turned to him, leaning back on the desk with the half filled vile still in his hand. He thought for a moment before shrugging. "We'll see. You might prove to be useful to me after the experiments, you might be useless to me, in which case I'd let you go. Either way you're going to be here for a while."
Saran's beastly form settled down in the circle, his wings folding comfortably onto his back. He sighed. "...I guess I don't have any choice but to trust you..."
The man went back to his equipment, corking the vial and setting it back on its stand.
"... The chain's a... corsenium alloy... isn't it..."
The man side glanced him. "Yes. I couldn't have you breaking it if you went into a psychotic episode of some sort from the shock."
"That's happened before?"
"Multiple times. Some subjects weren't as... healthy or stable as you are."
Saran nodded as the man gathered the stands filled with red filled vials onto a tray. "Well... I'd better get going. I have other business to attend to." He headed for the door, tray in hand.
"Wait. What about the kid I had with me? Thomas. Where is he?"
The man stopped halfway out the door. "I'm not at liberty to tell you that." Saran's face fell slightly. "... Either way... You should keep your distance from him, if you enjoyed our conversation." The man's tone had leveled considerably.
Saran gave him a confused look as he left him alone, only to ponder his words in silence.