TS C8: Escape

Taking Sides

-Chapter 8: Escape-


Sneaking out of the room was easy. The door was unguarded, and there was nobody patrolling. The dragons must have thought that their headquarters was secure enough. I snuck my way to the room that held the technology and rifles, only to find that sneaking was unnecessary. It too was unguarded.

Still, I decided to err on the side of caution, and quietly opened the door, then slipped into the room.

The first thing I noticed was that the room was still lit. They must have forgotten to switch off the lights… I was quite sure that that was possible, since the bulk of the lights outside had gone out, leaving only a few here and there, probably to ensure that anyone still awake could walk around without bumping into anything and everything.

I was half expecting to walk right into someone or other who would doubtlessly be there to catch me, but instead, I found the room empty. It didn’t stop me from thinking that the whole escape thing to be dodgy, though. I grabbed what I recognised to be my rifle, from the bit of paper taped to the butt with my number written on it, along with another two fully loaded magazines which I stuck into my pants, for I was still wearing my PT kit, which had no pockets.

As an afterthought, I went back and snatched up another rifle, for my supposed saviour, if he even existed for that matter.

Realising that both rifles had no slings, I held both by the grips attached to the scopes, and hastily made my way to the rover, which was still parked at the toilet area. It had, however been moved, and no longer sat in the hole that I had rammed in the wall. Instead, it had been placed off to one side, no doubt the handiwork of a dragon in its quadrupedal form, and the hole in the wall had been mended.

Glancing around, I made sure that I was out of sight before scurrying to the vehicle and opening the door. I put the rifles inside, and paused when I spied a rifle sling lying the rear foot well. I snatched it up and pulled my rifle out. I slung the rifle and tried it out, then ensured that the weapon was put to safe, for I did remember that they had tossed it into the pile while it was still cocked, and had a round chambered within. We had been lucky that day, for the gun could have gone off when it hit the pile…

I placed the rifle in the passenger seat, and clambered into the driver’s seat. It was then that my bladder decided to protest, and I felt a sudden urge to go and pee. I contemplated bringing the rifle, but decided to risk going without so that I looked like I had gotten up in the middle of the night just to use the bathroom. They had actually installed a toilet bowl and a urinal for me, though I had no idea where all the water went when I flushed, for I was quite sure that this place had not been hooked up to the sewage network…

Either way, I went to relieve myself in the thankfully empty toilet, and made my way back to the rover. I made myself comfortable in the driver’s seat, and made sure that the rifle was within reach. It was a shame that they hadn’t taken any pistols, as it would be easier to handle a pistol when shooting out the vehicle window, though I had no idea how I would manage to aim either way.

Using the light from my phone’s screen, I looked around, looking for the light switch. All military vehicles had a switch that could deactivate all their lights, including the automatic ones, like the signal, reverse and brake lights.

Of course, with the feeble light provided by my phone, it was difficult to find the switch, and as the seconds dragged on into minutes, I felt panic begin to rise into my system, starting to chew away at my thoughts. I felt my palms start to sweat, and the phone slipped several times as I looked over the dashboard, silently cursing whoever it was that had moved the car into a dark spot.

As I felt myself begin to break out into cold sweat, I finally found the blasted switch. I quickly set it to have all the lights off, and sat back up, taking a deep breath to calm my own frayed nerves.

The only problem was that my nerves refused to be calmed, and my stomach began to do acrobatics and making alarming noises. Contrary to my efforts to deceive myself, I knew well enough that the most risky part was just starting. The sound of the engine would no doubt draw attention.

I knew that the only two sets of circumstances would allow me to get out without being discovered. Either everyone being asleep, thus not hearing the engine, or whoever was awake being too far away, and getting to the sound would take long enough for me to get out of the building, saviour or no.

Still, I mentally prepared an excuse of wanting to bring the vehicle for a spin in case I got caught. That provided little comfort, however, as I realised how dumb it would sound. Even a dragon would know that no one in the right mind would wake up in the middle of the night just to go driving…

A small voice at the back of my head told me that I could still turn back. Yet, I found myself wanting to go ahead. I had already come so far, and besides, I would be a coward if I took the easy way out. The latter probably being my dragon side speaking…

Hence, I wiped my hands dry, clenched my teeth, and started the vehicle. I waited a moment to see if any footsteps or wingbeats came floating by, but none came…

There was hope for me yet…

I quickly put the vehicle into gear and drove out of the dark spot, and turned into the large path. I kept the speed low so that the engine wouldn’t get too loud, especially when I drove past the dragons’ ‘flats’. I ended up giving the vehicle short bursts of acceleration, then letting it roll with the engine idling in neutral.

I struggled to remember how Draco had brought me in on the first day, but for some reason, that memory remained out of reach, despite how recent it was. I suspected magic, but I had no proof, especially since I had always been a scatterbrain anyway…

In the end, I drove for a nerve-racking hour, perpetually looking all around me to check and see whether I was being followed. On top of that, I also had to concentrate on driving. I had done enough lessons to drive smoothly, but I was still new enough to be paranoid about safety...

In essence, I found myself wound tighter and tighter, and once again breaking out in cold sweat. The vehicle went from going straight to a winding path, as my hands began to shake while I didn’t dare to let go of the wheel. In fact, my grip tightened. I had to clench my teeth to stop them from clicking, as I turned into yet another avenue. If I didn’t find the doors soon, I swore I would just explode…

It didn’t help that it was getting hot in the vehicle, for I had switched the air conditioning off, also to reduce the sounds that the vehicle made. I didn’t even dare to switch on the fan or any form of ventilation, in case some dragon or other picked up my scent and woke up…

Then, in the middle of nowhere, I noticed a large break in the dwellings. The area was well-lit but I couldn’t see where it went. I slowed down, and inched the vehicle out, to see that the path did indeed lead to the gates, and that I had arrived at the supposed meeting point.

I immediately released a huge sigh of relief, feeling much better, as I made a quick U-turn and parked the vehicle some distance behind, in a dim spot. I back slung the rifle and made my way to the dark patch that was nearest to the corner. A glance at my watch told me that I was about five minutes early. I squatted down in the darkest part of the dim spot, and waited, holding the rifle at the ready.

Five minutes passed…

Ten minutes…

By the fifteenth minute, I was running out of patience. I had been reduced to chewing my shirt to keep myself from screaming in frustration, and the rifle shook in my hands as fear began to chew away at logic and thought…

I resolved to get out of this place, with or without help… Though, I would wait another minute…

Then, a shadow fell over me as I tried once again to calm myself.

I looked up slowly, first seeing the legs of the shadow, which looked somewhat human, then the torso… Then, I noticed that whoever it was had wings. I shot to my feet and levelled the rifle at the person, seeing that it was a random gold dragon, who seemed to be about to say something. His scales caught a little of the light, allowing me to see that he had a white underbelly, and a pair of white horns, and matching claws. His eyes were a striking green, but yet, they seemed to lack a certain amount of depth… His wings were folded on his back, but I glimpsed the membrane, which was also white. His tail sat behind him, on the floor, unlike most of the other dragons that I had seen, whom would all hold their tails off the ground, even when standing still… I also noted that he had no spikes or mane running down his back, although that was normal…

“Woah, whoa, woah, hold your horses! I’m on your side! I was the one who wrote the note.” He said, raiding his arms to show that he was unarmed.

I gritted my teeth, snarling, while my hands, now steady, gripped the rifle tightly. “Prove it.”

“I did know your rank, lance corporal.” He replied, still holding up his hands.

“Anyone can find that out. Don’t bullshit me, dragon.” I snapped, while my trigger finger flicked up and set the gun to fire, before going back to the trigger again. “My finger only has to twitch.”

“Ugh. Fine. Let me recite more of your details. Know that you are wasting your own bloody time.” He replied. It struck me that he spoke a lot like a human, but I was still not convinced. He proceeded to recite my ID number, as well as my blood type, phone number, and the details of my next of kin, who was my brother.

Yet, my mind refused to accept all that, despite that fact that all those details were difficult to get all right, especially since I somehow knew that dragons had excellent memories… I shook my head, and started to depress the trigger slowly. “Not convinced.”

The dragon sighed in exasperation. “There is nothing else I can do at this juncture. If you want, there is one more thing that I can do, but I can only do it once we get out of here. So, if you still refuse to see reason, then go ahead and shoot me, knowing that I’m your ticket out.”

Something about him prompted me to lower the rifle. “…Fine. Know that I’ll be watching. Once we are out, I expect you to do whatever that is that you talked about. Understood?”

He nodded, and gestured for me to lead the way. I noticed that his coordination seemed off somehow. The deviation was small, but the way he walked and generally handled his body itself seemed off somehow… However, I chose not to point it out. It would not pay to make him angry with what would probably be seen as an insult.

He asked me to stop for a moment, and disappeared down an alley, then returned with a large cardboard box, before asking me to carry on. When asked about the box’s contents, he told me that it would be revealed later, but I should not worry as it was harmless. Seeing that he had no intention of opening the box there, I nodded and continued, bringing him to the rover.

The box did explain why he wanted transport, though. It looked to be bulky and heavy, and would slow both of us down otherwise.

He didn’t react when he saw the rover, but instead shoved the box into the passenger seat. He noted the extra rifle, and reached for it, only to have me stop him.

“Don’t stretch your luck.” I snapped coldly, making him sit in the front seat. Surprisingly, he did up the seat belt himself, adding to the mystery surrounding him. He seemed to notice my reaction and smirked. “Don’t worry. It will all make sense later when I show you. Now, lets go to the gate. I’ve got it covered, don’t worry.”

I nodded, and started the engine, to receive no reaction from him again. He acted as if he had taken a car before… Perhaps he had during peacetime… It was hard to say…

I drove down the path and turned into the wide area, which led directly to the doors. As expected, five dragons walked out of nowhere, all in biped form. They demanded to know why I had been allowed to drive at this hour, and why I had been allowed to come so close to the gate.

The dragon motioned for me to wind down his window, which I did. He eyeballed all five of the guards and gave all of them the evil eye. “I am on a covert mission. Open the gates and let us pass. Now.”

One of the guards, an orange one, growled. “Let’s see some proof, then.”

My passenger rolled his eyes. “Are you an idiot? It wouldn’t be a covert mission if I had proof! Just know that this is authorised by the council. Let us through. NOW.”

For some reason, I could tell that he was making up all that nonsense, but the guards didn’t seem to notice. The orange one growled one last time, before motioning to the others to back off, while he pulled the gate open just enough for the vehicle to go through. “Go.” The gold said, and I drove the vehicle quietly out the gate, and was brought back to the normal world, in the shape of the abandoned industrial park that the dragons’ headquarters was situated.

“Follow my instructions. I will take us to a field, where I need to get something done before we transit to the SAF* controlled areas.” He replied, seemingly as relieved as me to have left the building…

*SAF= Singapore Armed Forces



“What is it that you have to do anyway? Forgot to go toilet? Or turning me over?” I snapped, as I turned onto a side road as he directed.

He shook his head. “You’ll see soon enough. It will explain everything, I assure you.”

I scoffed, and followed his instructions, for the lack of a better alternative. I had no idea where to drive to get out of the dragon area without his help, and driving around in a military vehicle in dragon territory was not a good idea…

Eventually, as promised, we came to a small field situated between two low factory buildings, both abandoned. The dragon directed me to drive all the way into the middle of the unlit field, then he reached up and flicked flicked the light on.

“Alright do whatever it is you have to do and then we must get going.” I snapped, while I felt my own body prime itself for a fight, should anything go pear-shaped…

The dragon just nodded. “I will.” He then reached behind his head with both hands. “I’ve been waiting to take this damned lizard suit off for the past day!”

I blinked. “Wait, what?”

He grunted, while reaching over to release the seatbelt first, as an afterthought. “You’ll see.”

I saw him grab hold of either side of his head and neck, and pull. I saw his entire head, snout and all come off, their eye sockets suddenly empty, and flop down onto his chest, suddenly without substance. The jaw hung open, limp and empty, while the scales rustled as it flopped around, still retaining their lustre.

Then, as if a spell had been dissipated, his skin suddenly hung loose of his frame, as if the skin… wasn’t his…

In the place of the dragon’s head was a human. He looked at my shocked expression and laughed. “See? Told you. Mind if I get out and change into some proper clothes?”

I nodded slowly, my mind still trying to comprehend what I had just seen. A glimpse of the interior of the mask showed blood vessels, and skin… The man was wearing a dragon’s skin…

He got out, with the now limp tail and wings hanging off his back, like limp puppets, forgotten and deflated.

“Mind helping me to get the box out? It’s not easy to hold things with this half on.” He added, while he pulled the back open. The back only opened a little, down to around the middle of the back, where the wings joined the back. He seemed happy enough to be out of his disguise, and pulled the entire top off, which also flopped around his chest, like a costume…

I nodded, and got out, carrying the box. “I assume your clothes are inside?”

He nodded. “Yeah. You have to be nude to wear the skin, so that everything is there in case they check, and yes, they do check with magic occasionally, and also yes, they have dicks, just that they are in slits. Neater, if you ask me, and saves a fortune in clothing….”

“My god, too much info, dude.” I snapped, as I opened the box, somewhat getting used to what I was seeing.

He chuckled. “Just good to talk to another human again. Oh, and I forgot, there’s one for you too, though that’s not important. What’s important now is my underwear. Clothes should be on top.”

I nodded, assuming that he meant that he had brought a set of clothes for me as I pulled out a set of multicam army uniform, whose name tag I didn’t identify, indicating that it wasn’t mine.

I glimpsed what looked like black scales, but dismissed it as my eyes playing tricks on me. I walked over and handed him the clothes, which he took gratefully, before pulling his leg out of the dragon skin, which now seemed way too big for his small frame. I wanted to ask how he had managed to look like a legitimate dragon earlier, but decided to put it off as I turned away politely while he extricated himself from the skin.

I turned back around when he chirped a “done” my way. I turned to see him dressed in the uniform, with a rank of lieutenant… One thing I noted, however, was his accent. He sounded British.

He then offered me his hand, while he held the now deflated dragon skin with another. “Lieutenant James Parks, Royal army Intelligence corps, on attachment to the SAF. Pleasure to meet you properly.”

I forced a smile and took his slightly grubby hand. “Lance Corporal Tano’rath Tan, SAF Combat Engineer. Thanks for getting me out.”

“My pleasure.” He smiled, then handed me the skin. “Hold this for me, will you? In need to get yours out to see if it fits…”

The first thing I noticed was the smell of sweat that emanated front of the skin. Evidently, dragon shape or no, one’s bodily processes still carried on inside… I shot the lieutenant a disgusted look, while remarking, “Wah, smelly. Also, I’m sure my own uniform will fit, thank you. No need to check.”

He gave me a sheepish look. “Oh, no wonder you seemed so calm. No, unfortunately, I didn’t bring clothes for you, old chap. I meant you have your own lizard to wear. And yes, I know it smells. I’ve been in it for almost two days. It’s alright for day one, but by day two it starts to smell, and the form isn’t natural to us, so it feels all wrong. At least I managed to get it off at night when no one was awake, once I figured out how to lock the door, that is.”

He then walked casually over the box, and I stopped him. “Can’t this wait? Besides, how the hell did you manage to look so legit over there?”

He shrugged. “The boys back home convinced one of their boffins to come over to our side. We asked him to help in intelligence, and he came up with this. Said that he couldn’t go back himself, so bring ‘im a carcass and the correct guy and he’d make it work. Said I had dragon blood or something like that, so the magic would work, and oh, boy, did it work. Whole thing feels different, but everything works.” He then reached over and pulled the box over anyway. “And sorry, but no, it cannot wait. Once we get back, the chaps over at HQ will be all over you. You won’t get a chance for at least a day, and they want to know asap. Terribly sorry, old chap but we have to do it now.”

I passed him his dragon skin, which he draped over the box, while he looked around in the box itself. I decided to stall a little more and asked, “Why me?” I was sure enough that the human side didn’t know about my spiritual mumbo jumbo…

“Ah, well, you see, they sent me in to gather intelligence, and these dragons, they love a good piece of gossip, and your name popped up yesterday afternoon. Said a lizard named Fally or something read your mind, and found that you’re one of them spiritually. I passed this interesting information along, right before the reception went kaput, mind you, and, this box arrived in the evening. Don’t ask me how, but it was probably magic, with a note saying that I was to get you out, and then get you to try it.” He then pulled out a pair of boots, then a pair of pants and a shirt, all SAF issue. “Oh, they did send along clothes for you, what a pleasant surprise!”

I nodded, and took the clothes, putting them in the car for now. “Very pleasant. I haven’t had a change of clothes since they brought me there. Pity there’s no underwear.”

He shrugged, then pulled out a neatly folded bunch of black scaled hide. It was still huge, however, and a clawed hand stuck out on each side, along with the tail, and on top was the snout, its jaw hanging slightly open, and the empty eye sockets staring forlornly into nowhere… “Ah there we go.”

He unfolded it to reveal that it looked exactly like that I had seen in my mental room thing. Though, I was sure enough that I would not be wearing myself, since either Faelius, Draco or Zooks had said that I had supposedly passed on quite some time ago.

Didn’t make me any less squeamish, though, even as Lieutenant James casually draped it on the box, next to his.  I couldn’t help but ask, “Doesn’t it feel wrong? Wearing someone’s skin?”

He shrugged. “We wear leather. That’s skin. Besides, I’m not exactly comfy with it either, but what hast to be done must be done. There’s no other way to infiltrate their HQ, unless we defect, which will be very suspicious. Why do you think they kept a guard on you all day hmm?” He then pointed to the skins draped on the box. “I know, they were both once alive, and not to mention sentient, but we didn’t kill the poor sods just for this, now that would be wrong. Mine died when someone hit him on the head with a metal pole. Yours died in a gas leak. It’s not much better, but it is a small comfort. On top of that these are the only two around. Compatible people are very, very rare, and even harder to find. You were a lucky shot, actually. Don’t think any more will be coming, though. The boffin has been reassigned, last I heard. The brass wants to get more tactical info from ‘im.”

I sighed, seeing no point in lying... “Yeah, your intel is correct. I was supposedly a dragon with the same name.” I then prodded the skin tentatively, feeling the hardness of the still shiny scales, “Perhaps this will let me get back to my roots… Perhaps it will let me remember…” Then it dawned on me, “Shit, what if it becomes permanent?”

The Lieutenant shrugged. “Mine didn’t become permanent. Don’t think yours would. I reckon it will be more natural for you, though, with the dragon spirit and all.”

“Bah, Easy for you to say. You don’t have split loyalties. Plus, I may not want to take it off… what if I like it?” I replied, scratching my head, “No, no. I’m not going to do this. No. Too much shit can go wrong. No. No go, no go…”

“What if I put mine on, then take it off in front of you, will it prove anything?” He replied, seemingly having expected my outburst.

I didn’t say anything, and kept staring at the skins, somewhat sorry for their previous owners. As I had seen in the past days, the dragons were people too. The laughed, had fun, got angry and joked around like humans… To end up like that… Wasn’t funny.

James then went and picked up the gold dragon skin, then stripped down to nothing. I turned away again so that I wouldn’t see anything.

I heard the dry rustling of the scales, as well as the sounds like leather being handled, until he said, “Alright, turn around.”

I turned to see him again up to the chest in the skin, and as I looked, he pulled the whole thing up, slipped his arms in, straightened the back, adjusted it a little, then pulled on the mask. Of course, this was all accompanied with the same rustling. When he pulled on the head, there was a slight lag, then I noticed the chest begin to fill up, then the arms, legs, then head. The last thing that appeared were the eyes, as the hollow mouth filled with teeth and a forked tongue. He held out his hands and flared his wings. “See? I look like a real one.”

I nodded quietly, while he folded the wings.

“Now, taking it off. The tricky bit is where and how to pull. Only you can take it off, so don’t worry about other people. You saw the seam just now right? Just pull on each side and it should come with a little resistance. Remember to pull at the base of the head, just above the neck. ” He added, while reaching behind with both hands, and pulling. The dragon’s green eyes, tongue and teeth vanished, as the whole skin sagged on the Lieutenant’s thin frame, while he pulled the skin down to his chest level, which was as far as it would go. “Mind turning around so I can change?”

I nodded and turned again as he got dressed, and walked over. “Your turn.”

“Look, I seriously don’t want to do this. Do I have to go through with it?” I replied, deciding to be blunt.

“Sorry, old chap, but you have to. We need all the help we can get. There is an alternative, though.” He replied, reaching into the box and taking out a vial of clear liquid. “This is your alternative.”

I raised an eyebrow. “What is that? Don’t tell me water because I’m not believing that shit is just water.”

James shook his head. “Far from it. This will also turn you into one of the lizards, but they did say that it’s extremely painful.”

I peered at the small vial. “This small thing?”

He nodded. “Yes, appearances are deceiving. But, there is one wee problem.”

“What?” I snapped, already more or less knowing what the catch was…

“It’s permanent.” He replied, then took out another vial, that one had a blank label on it. “They made me take one of my own with me, in case they decided to do a full magic check. That is the only check that can pick us out.”

“Oh boy…” I replied, still staring at the vial. “Why does yours have a label?”

“Oh, just so that I know it’s mine. They used my blood in it, and yours in yours.” He replied, adding, “Don’t know what will happen if I took the wrong one. Don’t want to know either.”

“My blood?!” I replied, perplexed.

“Yes, your blood. Probably left over from a blood test or something, maybe the blood bank. They don’t need much, just a drop or two I’m told.” He replied, then pocketed the vial. “Oh mind you, don’t let it get broken. Even inhaling it works.”

He then held the vial in one hand and the skin in the other. “So, what will it be?”

I gitted my teeth. “Neither.” I growled. “Ask me to hold a gun and I’ll do it. Ask me to charge at the enemy, and I’ll do it, but I draw the line at that. No. Don’t you know? I’m a conscript. That’s a bit too much to ask of someone who isn’t even in the army on his own accord I’d say. Answer is no.”

I then turned to walk to the vehicle. “We’d better get going. We need to be out of the area by sunrise.”

The Lieutenant came over while holding everything and blocked my way. “I’d order you to put it on, but I know it won’t work. I’d hoped that I wouldn’t have to tell you this, but you give me no choice. I’m under orders to suit up and return you to the lizards if you don’t choose one. Please, I don’t want to do that, but I cannot go back and say that you said ‘no’…”

I pushed him out of the way and walked to the vehicle. “Who said that you’re following me?”

He caught up with me and pulled me out of the vehicle as I tried to get into the driver’s seat. “I can get back well enough on my own. Look, I’m just trying to do my job! Just choose!”

“No!” I snarled, shoving him away. “This whole thing is an insult to ethics, to the rights of the dead, to the dragons! I’m not going to just go along like a bloody good soldier! No! This is wrong, and I’m not going to do it, and if you even think of throwing that solution at me, I’ll damned well shoot your bloody head off. Humans be damned, at least the dragons didn’t ask me to spy on MY OWN PEOPLE!”

The Lieutenant seemed extremely taken aback by my outburst, and stared at me for a while, while I clambered into the vehicle. He then seemed to collect himself and replied, “...They were right, you really are one of them. Now I understand; you’re in a bit of a tight spot there. How about we make a deal?”

As I was about to close the door, I paused. “Deal? What deal? What basis do you have to give me a deal anyway?”

“Just hear me out, alright?” He replied, and seeing that I voiced no objection, he continued. “You take both the skin and vial. Up to you which one you use, then you can disappear if you want, or come with me. It’s up to you. You can start anew as one of them; I will not rat on you. Or, you can come with me and help in the war effort. I understand that you’re stuck on the fence, and I understand your objections to this, but like it or not, I cannot go back with your things with me. I’ll get into trouble. I cannot just leave it here too, because someone will find it. I hate forcing people to do things, I really do, but here, I have no choice… They may even think I turned double agent if I go back not only without you, but with your things too.”

I paused for a moment then clambered out of the car. “They probably already branded me as a traitor. I was willingly teaching the dragons how to use technology, although I draw the line at weapons, but they don’t know that. I’m sure that the SAF probably has me down as a traitor now, come to think about it. Why not just tell them that? Then I’ll be left alone in peace, and there will be no trouble for you.”

The Lieutenant shook his head. “No, they have you down as KIA; Killed in Action. Your rescue is classified. On record, you’re still dead, killed when a chunk of concrete smashed your skull in. Besides, your loyalties were obvious enough when you came looking for me, and didn’t go screaming to the guards…”

“Doubt if they would have believed me anyway.” I replied sourly, “Besides, if I’m dead, then my leaving will be no loss to you guys. How about this, let me reconsider for a few days. Let them debrief me, then brief me again, and let me get a proper shower. Then, we’ll talk dragon skin.”

The Lieutenant sighed. “I guess this is the best I can get at this point. Fine, you have a deal. Time wise, as soon as possible would be good.”

I nodded, and he placed the box at the back, while I reached over and brought both rifles to the front, passing one to him. “Just in case. You know, I think I should have taken more guns back.”

He shrugged. “Perhaps, but that wasn’t the point of this whole thing.”

I nodded. “I have a lot to tell them for intel. You won’t believe what they have in there.”

“Oh, I know how big the place is, and the flatted dwellings too.” He replied with a nod.

“Did you see the tank?” I replied flatly as I started the car. “Say, do you have a licence?”

“No to both of those questions. I didn’t dare to go walking around too much, instead I got lost or someone noticed that I walked funny. As for driving, I never got round to it.”

I nodded. “True. I got a tour. Though I have no idea how I’m going to put this all down in a report…” I then put the car into gear and drove back onto the road, and went all the way down the road, as directed.

The Lieutenant nodded. “I know what you mean. Say, your driving isn’t half bad. How long have you had a licence for?”

I laughed. “I don’t have one.”

That was when he got scared.

I shrugged, while he gave me the directions all at one shot. “I’ve taken lessons, for what it’s worth. All I can’t do is park.”

He nodded, and seemed to doze off while I continued to drive, speeding down deserted road after deserted road, bumping into debris here and there, or being jiggled about as the car went over pothole after pothole. Lining the road sat block after block of flats, all empty. The windows were all dark, and had a certain air of eeriness. There was none of the normal humming of air conditioning units, only silence. Some houses still had their laundry out, flapping forlornly in the wind, a testament to what the war did to civilians. Here and there, there would be a badly damaged building, with huge holes blasted in the sides, exposing the rooms within.

At some point, I needed to relieve myself, and stopped at the roadside. I dug around and found a pen and a scrap of paper. I scrawled a note to the Lieutenant, telling him that I needed to use the toilet, before killing the engine, and going to a convenient bush to pee. Of course, I took my rifle with me, in case a nasty surprise popped up…

My thoughts were in a whirlwind on top of everything, torn between turning back and carrying on. It was evident that the human side wanted to use me to their own ends, but the same could be said for the dragons... Yet what I would be doing for the former didn't sit well with me at all... It was one thing to hold a rifle and shoot at things, and another matter entirely to run around as a pretend dragon, lying and stealing... In fact, siding with the dragons seemed to be the lesser of the two evils...

Then, I heard the car door open, then close behind me, and I assumed that it was the Lieutenant. However, when I heard claws clicking on the concrete pavement behind, I knew that something was wrong…

We had probably been caught. Caught red handed, judging from the fact that whoever it was had looked inside the car. At least he or she was nice enough to let me finish up and pull up my pants first.

However, instead of some random dragon, I found myself staring at the dragon skin that I had been offered, and nearly forced to take. However, this time, it had filled up, and in the empty eye sockets sat a pair of sharp, sky blue eyes with their black pupils widened into circles in the low light. The former dragon stood there with his arms folded, and staring me down. It was mild enough to say that I did a double take…

Seeing that I had turned to face him, he glared and snarled at me, saying only one word. “Traitor.”

When he spoke, I saw that inside his mouth, there was still nothingness…

“No. I had to choose from both. I made my choice.” I replied coldly, returning his glare.

He growled and tried to bare his teeth at me, but ended up showing nothingness. “You are one of us in spirit. You belong with us. Don’t fool yourself, elder” He spat, adding additional emphasis on my supposed title.

“No. I don’t. I belong at the front, defending my home!” I snapped, clenching my fist.

“Our people defend their home too, no?” He retorted, with a bitter laugh. “Yet you still dismiss them so easily, and as if that’s not enough for you, now you intend to deceive us, steal from us, betray us.”

I was rendered speechless, and blurted out, “How are you even alive anyway?”

“I never died, Tano’rath. I was desecrated so, so that I could try to make you see reason. The same has gone for my counterpart, Aurak, but he has forsaken our other kin, for he is too far gone.” He replied, still staring me down, his eyes cold.

“So what, you’re here to turn me in?” I replied flatly.

“No.” The dragon replied, blinking slowly. “I am here to tell you that what you are doing is a crime against dragons everywhere. You’ve turned your back on your own people, Tano’rath. That’s is what you’ve done, and now you’re going to betray us.”

“Who said anything about being a traitor?” I snapped, now frustrated… Now both sides saw me as a traitor…

“They intend for you to take my form to steal information, and this is what you will do.” He replied sourly… “You know, you were one of the most respected among our people… How… how could you do this?”

I wanted to protest, but found that I had none. Not only that, but I realised that this particular dragon looked hauntingly familiar…

He seemed to notice my reaction and added on, a tear running down his snout. “Do you even remember who I am? Or am I just another ‘lizard’ to you now?”

“N-no… No dragon is just a ‘lizard’…” I replied, stuttering, taken aback by the statement. “But I…I don’t remember.”

“Bah. Wise words from a traitor.” He spat, taking a step closer and staring me down again, tears now streaming freely down his snout. “I am Tyran, and I am ashamed to…” He choked, but continued, “…to have a father like you.”

I was rendered speechless, and ended up just staring at the dragon while he just shook his head and turned away. I felt at stab at my heart. Was it true…?

Then, I felt something click in my head, and I suddenly knew that it was true… And that I loved him dearly, and vice versa. I had watched him grow in the highlands, taught him what I knew, and how to be a good person… Though, the day came when he had to move on in life, and left, although he visited often enough. He was even there in my last hours…

…and now he had just disowned me, and the saddest part was that it was entirely justified…

Then, I noticed that the front passenger door of the rover hung open.

“Get down!” I screamed and shoved Tyran to the ground just as James took a potshot at him. The dragon was taken by surprise and warbled loudly as he fell. When he hit the ground he felt solid enough, and crawled out from under my arm while I struggled to bring the rifle to bear.

Working on instinct, I brought the rifle up and fired in the Lieutenant’s vague direction, making him take cover. I pulled Tyran into a squatting position, and shoved him out of danger’s way. He still seemed dazed, and stared at me in disbelief before running off somewhere to hide…

“Fucking hell…” I muttered, “Now both sides call me traitor. Good job.”

With nothing left to lose, I ran up to the vehicle, while firing off rounds at James, who had moved to the other end of the road. He had obviously seen me talking to the ‘dead’ dragon. He probably thought that I had decided to switch sides again…

While he took cover from my random shots, I clambered into the vehicle and closed both doors, only to find that the key was gone. I cursed, and dived out of the car as he took another shot at me, which ricocheted off the metal car body.

I would probably have to kill him to get the key back…

While still firing shots at him, I made my way up to a line of bushes not far from the one I had used as a toilet. I quickly took up prone position there, and took aim, waiting for the lanky brit to look up.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tyran lying some distance away, watching the proceedings closely.

Meanwhile, James took several more shots, but I chose not to fire back. Instead, I watched him peek out from his bush, then start to cautiously make his way towards me…

“Going to surrender, father?” Came the sarcastic remark from Tyran, who was now staring at me with contempt. His voice shook, as if he was holding back an emotional torrent.

I gave him the finger. “Clam up. I have a plan. You just be quiet and stop trying to talk me over.” I snapped, then resumed watching James, who was now making his way to the bushes. He stopped to check the car too, and even tossed the key into the driver’s seat as he walked.

In the back seat, I could vaguely make out the outline of the other ‘dead’ dragon, who seemed to be just sitting there…

Tyran snarled. “You don’t dare to shoot him. Coward.”

I glared at him. “I’m waiting for a clear shot.”

The dragon snarled again. “Lies. I’m not a hatchling anymore. There’s no need to hide it, father” His sentence dripped with contempt… and hurt…

I opened my mouth to say something, but decided against it.

Tyran continued, his voice shaking even more now, as he spoke through what would have been clenched teeth. “It was wrong of me to come…” I knew that he was crying…

I cut him off by firing, for James had stopped at the right moment to check a bush. For some reason, I found myself unsympathetic as I watched the bullet pass through his head in a brilliant burst of red and grey matter, before he slumped to the ground, dead, his blood colouring the green grass red quickly as it seeped into the ground. The sound of the gun discharging caught Tyran by surprise, leaving him frozen there in shock, mouth still half open.

I glanced at Tyran, who was staring at me, cut off mid-sentence. However, in his gaping mouth, I saw his flesh slowly begin to return. I raised a questioning eyebrow at him and he nodded.

“I am redeemed by your own redemption.” He replied simply, and got up, while I went and prodded James’s lifeless body with the muzzle of the rifle, finding him to be quite dead. The dragon himself seemed engrossed in watching himself turn back, and didn’t follow.

A glance at the rifle’s magazine told me that I had only two rounds left. One in the chamber, and one in the magazine itself. it was close...