Persephone Zoi
After Mé leaves for the fight, I start to worry.
About her.
About me.
The twins.
Our powers. About everything.
Then Matt walks over and wraps his arms around me like he always has. Being friends since we were three years old means we can sense each other's emotions and guess each other's thoughts.
Before being captured we would do everything together. I mean everything. We lived in the same house, slept in the same bed (platonically), and even shared a bathroom (which wasn't too pleasant).
Then we got captured. Life before the caves wasn't necessarily amazing because of the Guillotine-V predicament, but it was sure as fuck better than this, humid caves, sadistic doctors, gladiator fights, and chains.
Then when Alcmene came everything changed. To start, the experiments hurt more but there were less for us. Granted that was because there were more than normal for her, but she came back in perfect condition and conscious the first time so I'm not too worried about her. She was also a scavenger, so she was also better at surviving and braver than me and Matt.
Hell, even her younger sibling, fared better than us when we first got here. I mean but even now though, everyone better looks out because this bitch has magic!
I have the symbol of Persephone (I know, how ironic) on my thigh, and I feel amazing and badass. But I also have started to appreciate Matt's body a lot more than would be considered friendly. So, him touching me now instead of just comfort and security it sends a jolt of lust through my body and my heart jolts and beats faster.
"Persie?" He questions.
I just hum and put my hand over his mouth silently telling him to enjoy the moment. I turn around my face level with his working up the courage to kiss him. Just then unconscious Mé is dragged in and chained up and the twins wake up ruining the moment and I jump away from Matt who just sits there and shakes his head as if trying to clear his head and focus but doesn't get up.
When I signal for him to get up and help me, but he just shakes his head and points…towards his groin. I am confused for a second before I understand and start to blush furiously and internally smirk in triumph that I got him to feel like that. I drag Mé next Melisande, and Azazel lays down on top of her.
Then I go lay down and soon Matt joins me and lays next to me under me with his arm as my pillow and my back against his chest and I quickly fall asleep.
Matt Mcalistair
I wake up and see Persie sitting near the mouth of the cave looking anxious and worried. I walk over and like I always do, try to comfort her.
Though we have been friends since we were three, when I was fourteen, I wanted her as more than that, but I knew she didn't, so I just stayed as her best friend (who also scared off potential boyfriends).
I am taken out of my thoughts when she turns her head and almost kisses me, and I am frozen in shock though internally throwing a party that she may actually feel the same as me, then I hear Me get dragged in and Persie jumps away from me to her. She motions for me to come over and help her move Alcmene but let's just say excitement wasn't the only thing I felt, and I was still a guy.
Eventually my body cooled down I joined Persie on the ground and spooned her back. Then I hear her breaths even out as she falls asleep. I soon follow content from the knowledge that she wants me to.
…
I wake with a sharp pain in my head as my body gets thrown against a cave wall, my head smashing into a sharp rock sticking out. I groan and open my eyes and see Persephone. She is glowing green and red and black floating to the top of ceiling of the room.
Her hair that is normally auburn hair is black at the roots and fades into neon green at the tips with green eyes that look like they are burning. Then she lifts her hands and the cave trembles as the ceiling opens and a hole appears that goes all the way up and I can see stars, the first I've seen in…a while.
But before anything else can happen a sharp pain stabs my neck and I see Persephone grab her nape and the world goes black.
…
I wake up again and I open my eyes and they are met with the blinding white lights of Doc's lab then I'm gone again.
…
The next time I wake up I can tell I wasn't supposed to because even though I don't feel anything there is blood everywhere and Doc was sticking some kind of blue glowing liquid inside of me. Then he sees me awake and injects something and thankfully I fall asleep.
…
When I finally wake up, he is done with me, and I feel amazing. Whether that be from all the sleep or what Doc put in me. And then I remember what I saw the time I woke up during the experimentation and my stomach revolts at everything I saw, and it takes everything I have to hold my stomach. I stand up and unlike Alcmene I don't wait, I just walk right back to the cell wanting to make sure Persie is all right. I get there and she is softly snoring, passed out though looking healthy and normal if only a little extra pale but that could be from anything.
I calm and lie down next to her but not touching her, not wanting to startle or wake her.
Then later when I woke up, I fell asleep? Everything seems a lot larger, then I realize.
Because I'm smaller. And I have scales, a tail, and is that smoke coming out of my nostrils?
I am a miniature dragon. I say that repeatedly in my head starting to panic. But when I panic, I flap my wings. Yes, WINGS- and when I do that I start to fly, which only makes me panic more until I open my mouth and fire comes out.
So now I am ungracefully flapping around with fire coming out of my jaws. Luckily, we are in a cave, so nothing is set on fire. Then suddenly my head hits the ceiling, and my wings stop flapping. I grew so large that I am having a tough time trying not to step on anyone or our food.
The I smell the food which makes my stomach growl which of course being as large as I was sounds like an earthquake and everyone wakes up.
As soon as they see me, they gape and stare.
Then Alcmene asks "Can you shift back? Or at least smaller?" I am confused and it must show because then she clarifies.
"Can you shift back into your human form, if not can you at least become smaller? Ask your dragon if not we will have to do this the painful way."
Ask my dragon? Aren't I the dragon?
No, well…kind of.
Who are you?
I am your dragon though I am also part of you, so you are the dragon, and you are not, I am.
That entire sentence confuses me so I just ignore it.
Can I shift back?
you can if you ask nicely. I quite enjoy not being locked up.
You were locked up?
Well, where else could I be if you don't need or know about me? Hawaii?
Okay can we shift back, please?
Okay fine but next time we have to have some fun.
Then I'm human again, and completely naked.
Alcmene Argent
I wake to what sounds like an earthquake and see a large dark red dragon.
He looks panicked (yes, I checked he is male). Then I look up and see Matts eyes and then I sniff the air it smells similar to Matt.
He shifted for the first time and Persephone told me that her magic had appeared but wouldn't give me more detail. I put out a calming energy, "Can you shift back? Or at least make yourself smaller?"
He stands there and looks confused then I clarify, and he looks even more confused. The he jerks his head and looks slightly panicked and even more confused like he just heard a voice in his head. Then his eyes glaze over and eventually shift back to being human proving my theory that he was talking to his inner beast. But then he shifts.
"Holy shit." He breathes somewhere between confusion, fear, and awe.
Then I see he's naked, which I had momentarily forgotten about. I cover the twins' eyes as they start giggling and close mine. Then I tell him "Go to the mouth of the cave and find a large crevice there is extra clothes in there." He hurries away covering his junk.
When he comes back, the guards are there, and they chain(/leash) him up and take him to the fights.
Matt McAlistair
With the iron chain around my neck as the guard yanks me forwards toward the cave to my first fight, where I've seen Alcmene go and others that just never came back.
I gulp that thought really didn't help my nerves which are shot after waking up as a dragon, but my dragon seems almost excited.
Well, of course I excited you should be too, and our enemy should be shaking in their boots. This is a chance for everyone to see us and equally respect and fear us and we will prove to be the best.
We aren't the best, maybe your good but A) Alcmene is better and B) I've never been in a good fight I mean I've thrown a punch or two to protect Persie, but they were drunk and slow.
Pfft you'll be fine, you're a dragon, it's instinct.
No, YOU'RE a dragon, I'm an idiot.
Damn right you're an idiot, but you are wrong about the first part. We are the dragon not me or you, we. we are part of each other you have half a human soul always half coming here and the experiments activated me the other half of your soul the dragon part.
Wait so the experiments didn't give me my powers?
No, you dumbass, the old creaky man can't give you a dragon it's genetic someone in your family line was a dragon.
Huh, I wonder who it was. And don't you mean 'Creepy' old man.
No, I mean creaky, can't you hear his bones creak when he moves. Nothing scares me the mighty War Dragon.
Then I hear the sound of a sharp metal clanging and screeching as cages open up and the sound of the cheering bloodthirsty crowd as the gladiator kill the other and the sound of the survivor's victory yell.
"Thank you for being here watching and supporting these events and the experiments. Next up we have two newbies a Rock human soldier from Adolf Frankino's Laboratory of Naturality and a surprise from John Lawler's Laboratory of Alchemy. Let's see what they've got, here they are!"
I hear the deep announcer voice over a speaker a couple of feet from my cave on the wall. Then my cage starts to roll out and the door opens into the sunlight which I haven't felt in what seems like forever I revel in its warmth and light just closing my eyes for a second imaging a better world where we were free, and I could fly all day before coming home to Persie.
She would welcome me and kiss me, and our kids would come in giggling, chasing each other before hugging me and asking for a ride. Persie's hair is the black to green like our daughter with a younger brother who has Persie's old auburn hair.
Then I hear the cage opening and I'm brought back to the moment. I step out into the cheering crowd and wait for my opponent. He steps out of his cage, and I study him he has steel gray eyes that look defeated and a bald head he only looks about 17 years then he ripples and looks like Korg from 'Thor: Ragnarök', rocks in the shape of a man with the same steel gray defeated eyes.
Shift.
I picture my dragon and shift roaring and the crowd gasps in fear of the sheer size of me and the loudness of the roar that shook the ground beneath their feet and probably also the fact that I'M A FUCKING DRAGON!
I am an extremely large dragon, the color of blood with black ram horns on the side of my head and black spikes down my back. I breath my fieriest flame at the rock guy but nothing happens.
Of course not, dumbass he's a rock, you will have to beat him the old-fashioned way with tooth and claws.
Duh, I mentally slap myself then ask What should I do first?
Smack your tail and hit the rock.
What rock?
The wall, you idiot, I'm trying to forget I'm Caged and Fighting for someone else's Entertainment! Now DO It!
Okay, okay, and I smack him with my tail into the wall and I hear a crack and he walk with a limp back at me and with a missing arm. This time I try and hit him again with my tail he grabs the tip and twist breaking some tail bones and I snarl and swat him away with my hands hitting him against the wall before picking him up and flying up though struggling with the pain in my tail before picking the right height and looking down him contemplating leaving and I ask quietly, Why don't you?
Why don't I what? He snarls back.
Fly away and never look back, you hate it here?
Because of our mate.
Who is she…or he? I ask slightly curious slightly worried it won't be Persie.
I don't know. Before you ask, I smell our soul mate. However, whenever I try to follow the scent, I get lost and find dead ends, but it teases me. I can't leave knowing she's here, but I can't stay not knowing who she is. However, I can do this for her.
And we drop the Korg look alike. He shatters into dust and rubble when he hits the ground, and we glide back down landing and shifting hopping back into the cage before putting on a black muscle shirt and blue jeans.
I sit down and ponder his words on the way back even after they jerk me up and leash me, all the way back to the cave. When I walk in and my eyes adjust to the dark after getting to see the sun, I get a shock I see Alcmene and Persie half-naked sparring with Azazel and Melisande as cheerleaders.
I stop in my tracks before shocked before clearing my throat announcing my presence. Alcmene looks my way out of the corner of her eye waving cheerily, "Oh, Hey Matt. You survived!"
Then Persie's head whips around and smiles and waves before doubling over when Alcmene punches her in the gut. "Always watch your opponent, look away for no one."
She chastises before ducking as Persie tries a kick to her head. "When did you learn how to fight." I asked Persie impressed.
"Today." She replies taking Alcmene's advice not to look my way.
I blink before sitting by the twins and watching and cheering too. Eventually Alcmene gets her on the ground and after a little rolling around Alcmene gets Persie in a headlock forcing her to tap out, acknowledging her win. Then the girls come to sit with us drinking the little water they give us. Alcmene grins and looks to me, "Want to hop in the ring with me."
Then I see that there is an imprint as the outline of a wonky circle. She stands and gestures for me to get up and into the ring. I stand up and move to the middle of the ring but when she gets there, I realize the size difference and worry.
She eases that worry when she roundhouse kicks my chest making me stumble backwards before punching me in the neck. Knocking me out of the ring onto my ass. I stare dumbfounded at her; she is way stronger than she looks.
She grins down at me and holds her hand out, "You couldn't win a fight against a bunny like that."
When I stand up without her hand she whispers tauntingly into my ear, "You shouldn't be looking like an idiot in front of you know who. I'm a shifter and I was an orphan scavenger taking care of the two little kids since I was twelve, don't worry about hurting me."
I look over at her and I get ready.
Alcmene Argent
I can visibly see as he straightens and looks over at Persephone from the corner of his eye and gets ready to fight. Then I grin and crook my finger and he snap out a punch faster than I would have imagined but I duck, and he barely grazes my shoulder before spinning and kicking out at his knee but with surprising speed for his side he jumps and rolls getting me underneath him with a knee on my back and him holding my arm behind me pushing my elbow the wrong way.
He relaxes a bit thinking he's got me beat just enough for me to jerk my leg back into his crotch before flipping and squeezing out before pushing his arm as far as it would go without dislocating his shoulder then add just a bit more pressure and he tapped out.
I stayed in place for a second longer before standing and holding my head high as the twins-our little cheerleaders- come over and congratulate me and Persephone walks over too but instead of to me she walks to Matt who is just standing shaking out his arm and Persephone starts to heal him. She puts her hand on his split lip and the blood stops and the skin knits itself back together then she moves to his shoulder before lowering her hand down to his groin and he gets a boner as she rubs, that's when I move the twins to the other side of the cave giving then as much privacy as possible in the small cave.
Then guards come rushing in dragging Persephone and Matt down a path that leads towards the fighting ring and Azazel and Melisande towards the Doc's office. But when I try and go with them a guard's body of steel stops me and restrains me bringing out my wild side making my fangs grow and eyes change and I start to spark, as I snarl at the guard before I see who it is, Eli, my soul softens but, on the outside, I continue to fight him inside my head I scream at him.
'What the fucking hell is this! Matt just fought, Persephone has no magic and the Twins Will NOT BE TOUCHED!'
'Okay, okay calm down.'
'Don't EVER tell me to calm down.'
'Sorry. I'm just trying to explain. But be angry physically not mentally you're giving me a headache.'
I glare at him harder.
'Persephone is being taken in to check if she has magic and the boy is being tested to see how the fight went. Your siblings are actually just going in for a check-up, no pain at all.'
'How come they never did any of that for me?'
'Because I got you out of it. I didn't think you would enjoy being awoken especially not for that and you would kill me if I let them test on you in your sleep.'
'I wouldn't have killed you but I sure as hell wouldn't have forgiven you. And you were right'
'I always am and you not forgiving me would literally kill me. Okay now I'm going to inject you with a sedative, please don't kill me I'll make it up to you later however you want.'
Then a sharp pain in my neck and I'm lost to the world.
…