Chapter 557

557 Denied

**WARNING: LANGUAGE AND DISTURBING CONTENT**

Tidas could feel the rage rolling off of his wife without even looking at her. He was angry as well, but everything in the room obviously hadn’t been used in centuries. Tokuga himself hadn’t done anything wrong other than glorify his family’s horrific acts, which wasn’t something to get violent over in his mind.

Understanding that Skye was projecting the idea of Zazzy being subjected to such treatment, he quickly said; “I will consider your offer, although based on the...everything about this room: it is highly unlikely.”

Senator Tokuga stared at the Alconian Prince for a few moments before a screech from one of the rooms broke the tension. Recognizing the voice, Skye called out Kari’s name as she sped over to the doorway. Right as Skye reached it, Kari bent over, stuck her head out of the door, and emptied her stomach of her dinner.

Concerned for her friend, Skye went to check her, but Kari stopped her mid-reach. She shook her head as she gathered her wits, then straightened up with shaky legs. Klaus was at her side as she got up, then helped to keep her steady as she muttered; “The gods would weep.. They would cry if they saw that..”

Skye looked to Klaus to make sure he would look after Kari, then she strode into the room. It was labeled as the Experimental Division, which didn’t give Skye a good feeling to start with. At first glance, it seemed like any other medical-based area she’d been in. Until her eyes adjusted..

Four large tables with built-in medical trays sat evenly spaced in the center, with massive fixtures above them. Everything from lights to suction tubes, to IV lines hung down for easier access and use for the doctors. Two tables on the right looked setup differently from the ones on the left, but it wasn’t obvious why.

The opposite wall had two oversized doors on it, with three designated waste bins against a sliver of wall separating them. Above the bins was a diagram sheet about dragons, and what parts should go in what type of bin. Skye looked away only to be met with another horrendous sight.

The right side had several medical diagrams of different types of dragons, each accompanied by it’s own list of ‘precious resources’ to remove before disposing of the bodies. Scales, organs, fangs, and blood were to be collected from each subject, then the rest was covered in chemicals, and burned by dragon’s fire.

.....

As she turned away, Skye wondered what the dragon pieces were used for, but the thought was lost when her eyes landed on the left wall.. ‘What the Fuck are those?!’

When her eyes landed on the left wall, Skye’s heart sank along with her stomach. Massive tubes filled with some kind of strange liquid lined the entire left side of the room, and each one had something suspended within. The moment her eyes focused, Skye felt like she was going to throw up the same as Kari..

Each tube contained a young dragon that had been experimented on while they were embryos inside their eggs, and had died shortly after hatching. One had a third wing, while another had a deformed extra head. Another was born with no eyes or snout, while another had six arms. The only commonality between them was the pained expressions permanently affixed on their faces.

Skye’s eyes welled up as her sadness and rage choked her. The idea of someone doing such terrible things to young dragons made her heart twist, and want to shatter.. ‘I ken it was centuries ago, but how could Anyone think that This was okay?! Revere dragons me arse!’

Stoking the fires of her fury instead of giving into disparity, Skye turned and walked out of the room with a pissed off expression. As soon as she came on, and her eyes landed on Senator Tokuga: Skye snapped at him..

She didn’t even wait until she was standing in front of him before Skye started to rip into him; “I’ve NEVER seen somethin’ so Barbaric in me entire life! How could Anyone possibly think that what yer ancestors did was anythin’ short of madness?! How can yer family claim ta revere dragons when ya got that shit show locked up in yer basement?!”

“Skye, try to calm down-”

“You! Shut yer mouth until ya go and look!” Skye snapped at her nervous husband.

Seeing the unshed tears in her eyes, Tidas walked into the room, then quickly came back out, nearly as angry as his wife was. With a clenched jawline, he walked over with an eerie silence hanging over him, and stopped directly in front of the two Senators and Richard Yaris. Locking eyes with Tokuga, Tidas’ voice was akin to ice as he said; “Zazzy will Never set a single claw in here.”

“Prince Tidas, please,” Chen’s voice was lined with condescension; “Those specimens are hundreds of years old. They were some of the last dragons hatched by my family. When our dragons stopped producing eggs, my family researched into their genetics-do you know what that is?”

“Aye, we do. We learned of it in the Highlands,” Tidas replied, his tone still cold.

Tokuga swallowed hard; “Well, when the dragons started to lay less and less eggs, my family tried to figure out why. Along the way, we figured we might as well improve the embryos-”

“Improve?! That’s what ya call that?!” Skye yelled.

“Of course not. The ones you saw were the failures. My family preserved them so they could not only continue to study them, but keep samples for future reference. Possibly even cloning, but those all resulted in grotesque failures.”

“Thank the gods,” Skye commented, stopping Tokuga from continuing; “Yer family dinna Deserve ta have such wonderful beings! Dragons are as smart as humans from birth! And grow ever more intelligent as they age! Ya might as well have humans in those tubes!”

Passed his limit of patience, Tokuga sneakily replied; “I do not understand your problem.. They’re just animals. Humans were meant to hold dominance over all creatures on this planet, and that includes dragons. That’s why the gods sent them to us.”

“You ken Nothing of how our world came ta be, and yet ya have the audacity to make such a ridiculous claim?! The fuck is wrong wit you?! Just because humans developed first does Not make us king of the planet! We Share it with animals and Fae alike!”

As Skye took a breath, Tokuga interjected; “There’s hardly a difference between the Fae and beasts..”

Skye thought that her brain must’ve shorted out as her jaw dropped; “Are ya serious? Do ya really see Fae that way?”

Right as the Senator went to answer, Richard Yaris came over to the side; “Now, now, you two. This was supposed to be a civil discussion-”

“There be Nothin’ civil about Any of this!” Skye snapped, then she stared daggers at Tokuga as she warned him in Saianese; “If I Ever see you anywhere Near Zazzy, I’ll kill you myself on sight..”

“How Dare you speak to Senator Tokuga like that! Your husband should have you whipped!” Senator Isko screamed.

“Oh shut it, ya old sack of bones! Nobody said shit ta you!” Skye snapped at him.

“I think Everyone needs to calm down, and take a breath,” Tidas cut in, shooting all three of them disapproving looks before turning to face Chen; “Get to the point, Senator. What exactly is it that you want from us?”

Senator Tokuga huffed, irritated at the Prince’s curt tone; “I am sure that Jin Laos and Senator Bai Lei have told you about the maze? I need some of your dragon’s blood to open the seal on the vault door. If you can agree to give it to me, then I can guarantee three things..”

“One: I will advise everyone within the Loyalist faction to vote yes to aligning with Alcon. Two: I will allow you two to see inside the vault, once I’ve claimed what’s mine..”

Tokuga locked eyes with Tidas; “The third thing is that I will support you after your father passes instead of your brother.”

“I have no interest-”

“Do not count your dragon eggs before they hatch, my friend,” Tokuga cut Tidas off mid-sentence; “I understand how your brother thinks.. Do you honestly think that he will let you live for long after your father dies? What imagined morality are you betting on to assure you so that he will not simply Take your wife from you? Be honest, now..”

“He can try whatever he likes! I’ll never betray me husband,” Skye said as she glared at the Senator.

“Really? What if he isolated you for months? Maybe even years, with only him to interact with? What if he held your husband’s life over your head? Would you allow him to kill your husband because you refuse to relinquish your body to him?”

Tokuga grinned darkly as he took a step towards Skye; “What about your precious dragon? Your parents and friends? Do you think he will not use Them against you, either?”

Seeing Skye’s expression waiver, Tokuga added; “You may be gifted, but you have much to learn about the world, Princess. The only way to survive it is by putting yourself and your loved ones first.. If you are foolish enough to have people that you care about to begin with.”

Sick of hearing him, Skye was about to snap at Tokuga again, but Tidas’ deathly-calm voice reverberated within the massive room instead; “That’s the exact kind of mentality that destroys society..”

“Do you think humans would’ve survived until now if we all just looked out for ourselves? Our cities, our farms, our homes and comforts: None of it would exist if humans Only looked out for themselves! We are socal creatures, just like thousands of other species..”

“Ants can build more complex structures than we can. Swans are more loyal than humans are. Monkeys and apes use tools, along with otters and other animals. Humans are not the most advanced or intelligent creatures on this planet.. We’re just really good at killing anything that threatens our supremacy.”

Tidas sighed as he watched a touch of terror seep through Tokuga’s expression. The man was intelligent, but so narrow-minded that the two canceled each other out. If he hadn’t threatened his family, then Tidas might’ve been able to stomach putting up with the Senator, but now..

“Based on tonight, I can officially tell you that Skye and I will find our own way into the vault. We do not think it is necessary for us to deal with someone like you to get in. Oh, and one more thing, Senator..”

“Tidas leaned in, and spoke low so only Tokuga and a few of the Alconians could hear him; “If I ever see you near my family, the Lei family, or if I hear a rumor that I don’t like: expect a very unpleasant visit from me.. I love Alcon, but I can live anywhere if I cannot return home for a very Specific reason..”

Senator Tokuga wanted to scream at the Alconian Prince, and have him dragged outside and beaten for threatening him. But he wasn’t sure how Prince Marco would react.. ‘He sent special instructions not to harm the Princess, but he said nothing about his brother.. I’ll have to speak with Ahriman after they leave..’