This particular chapter will be darker than most. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any other fandom I manage to squeeze in this story.

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Lightning Dragon's Roar
A Harry Potter Fanfiction
By Zero Rewind
© 2015
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Chapter 32: Lab Rat

Darkness; that was all I knew for the longest time. It was a soothing feeling, really. It was like I never had a care in the world. But something happened, and the darkness was taken away from me.

My side exploded in pain when I rammed into cold, unforgiving concrete.

For a few precious moments, I regained my consciousness, though my sight was foggy, and my hearing was tenuous at best. From what I could make out, I had landed in some filthy alley in a grand, bustling city.

I could see shapes moving past the alley, their forms looking like blobs to me. I squinted, but simply couldn't focus my vision.

My head pounded, and my limbs just felt so heavy…

I heard some ruckus coming in from behind me, but I couldn't turn to see what the source was. I felt hands dig into my pants' pockets.

"Let's see what we got here." An old sounding voice wheezed behind me. "A weird stick… What's this orange paste? Some kind of food?"

Shortly after, I heard a loud retch, followed by the clang of small metal objects against the ground. Likely, the homeless man had discarded my discs filled with burn paste and Murtlap essence.

I was spun around to face the man, who suddenly jumped back at the sight of my right arm, which was still covered in Balthazar's scales. The homeless man regarded me for a moment, before grinning, a greedy glint in his eyes.

It was an ugly sight.

"Wait til I take you to the proper guys." He let out a laugh, which turned into a deep, painful cough. "Word on the street is that they're payin' top dollar for freaks like you."

He held a dark blade in his hand— Erebus, I realized— and whacked me in the forehead with the pommel, sending me right back into blissful unconsciousness.

The following few hours, I was vaguely aware of being painfully dragged around, over the harsh concrete. The pain was a good thing, this time.

It helped me focus my thoughts into an attempt to regain my consciousness, and hopefully get out of whatever that hobo had in mind for me.

"—A hundred?!" The old hobo's incredulous voice rang through my ears. "That ain't what we agreed on!"

"Well, that's too bad for you. I was hoping we could come to an agreement." Another voice said, but this voice sounded like it was altered, probably as a safety precaution against being identified by the authorities.

I cringed as soon as I heard the jarring sound of gunfire, followed by a loud thud, right next to me.

I heard the sound of Erebus clattering on the floor.

A few silent moments passed.

"Such a shame." The altered voice said finally. "Bag and tag the freak; label him as Specimen S."

"Specimen S, sir?" An unaltered voice asked curiously; it was probably one of the grunts.

"S, for Scales." I heard the crunching of expensive shoes against the ground, and felt a hand lightly slapping my armored right arm.

The feeling stopped, and I heard the person in charge walk way from me, before more footsteps came closer, these ones sounding somewhat heavy.

I felt hands on me, grabbing my arms and hauling me up forcefully. I heard the sound of metal against ground— someone likely picking up Erebus.

"This is a fine sword. I wonder how Specimen S came to possess it?" The altered voice said, before going quiet.

I wanted to cry out, but the sound came as a shallow, almost silent gurgling sound in my throat. I heard the sound of a car rolling into the alley way, as the men hauling me began to move forward.

I heard the sound of doors opening, before I was thrown unceremoniously in what I guessed was either a truck, or a van.

It took monumental effort, but I somehow managed to open my eyes a little bit, just enough to catch a glimpse of my surroundings.

On each side of me, I could see a couple of masked thugs, keeping quiet as the van hit a few bumps on the road.

At the very back of the vehicle, there was a man— his face also masked, and some strange contraption on his mouth— hefting my black Falchion, gazing at it in interest.

Muggles. I'd been captured by muggles, of all things. A bunch of thugs, to boot.

I felt the scales on my arm wriggle ever so slightly, and realized that Balthazar was still with me. He was still alive.

'Hang on, Balthazar.' I said in my mind, which was teetering on the end of unconsciousness once more. 'Just hang on. I'll get us out of this. I swear it.'

All went dark again.

I don't know exactly when it was that I returned to the conscious world. But the first thing I felt was the cold feeling of metal below my body, and the steady beeps of a cardio-monitor.

I groaned. It felt like every cell in my body was in great pain.

I opened my eyes, only to immediately scrunch them shut again, the bright white light above me filtering into my eyes and sending a lance of pain ricocheting around my skull.

I clamped a hand over them— or at least, I tried to; my hands stayed firmly in their positions, my wrists held down by restraining implements on the table. Trying to move my feet yielded exact the same result.

Panic began to set in as I struggled weakly against my bonds. I felt a slight movement in the air, likely indicating that someone opened a door— and briefly realized that I was completely naked as the air roamed over my body.

I was vulnerable.

I forced myself to stay completely still as I heard several sets of footsteps walk into the room, standing on each side of my body.

A long moment passed.

"Come now, boy." One of the men said in slight exasperation. "We have cameras, and motion sensors installed, so how about we skip this game of pretend sleep?"

Just my luck. Of course they had cameras…

"Fine." I rasped weakly, turning my head to the source and opening my eyes, seeing a scientist staring at me with interest. "Why am I here?"

"Isn't it obvious?" The man rapped at my scaled hand lightly, not even trying to sugarcoat things.

"Ah." I stalled, trying to grasp at my Lightning. But, every time I tried, the electricity would feed out of my body, into the metal table, and travel into the floor. I was completely grounded.

"Ah, indeed." The man held picked up an empty syringe from a nearby table. The sight of the medical implement caused a panic to go through me.

I struggled against my bonds with every bit of strength I could muster, but it was in vain. The metal restraints didn't even budge.

The scientist tsk-ed, before motioning to the guy on my other side. I felt strong hands pin me down, stopping what feeble struggle I managed to exhibit.

"Shh." The scientist said condescendingly, plunging the syringe in my left arm, shooting a sting of pain throughout my weakened body.

I saw my blood flow out of my weakened body, and into the confines of the syringe.

"It will all be over soon."

I began to feel a little dizzy; not surprising, with the amount of blood they were taking.

"Perhaps we should have kept you under for this, like we did when we extracted your semen." The scientist said conversationally, pulling out the syringe, and capping it.

I blanched at the implications behind his words.

"You mean—" I said, feeling sick to my stomach at the revelation.

"I believe the assistant nurse was quite overjoyed to do the deed herself." The man confirmed pleasantly, before grabbing a clipboard, and turning to me.

"So, is there anything you can tell me that would aid in my research of your… special arm?"

"Go fuck yourself." I snarled out, glaring at the man hatefully.

I felt the rage bubble inside of me. I knew where it was coming from: my fear. I hated being afraid, and right now, I felt terrified. I was alone, in some unknown place.

No one knew where I was— worse yet, they might have thought I was already dead.

One thing was for sure, though. There was no way in hell I was going to tell some scumbag scientist about Balthazar.

The scientist tsked, before giving the grunt who held me down a quick look. The man nodded, before slamming his fist in my abdomen.

The air left my lungs as pain flew through my body.

"I ask you again, Specimen S. Is there anything you can tell me?" The scientist continued, heedless of my struggle to regain my breath.

"My name..." I panted, struggling against my bonds. "Is Harry, you piece of shit!"

The scientist sighed, before motioning to the grunt again. I felt his meaty fist slam into my cheek, knocking a tooth loose.

I felt dizzy and my head pounded as the coppery taste of blood welled up in my mouth.

"I wish I didn't have to do this, Specimen S." The scientist sighed, grabbing a scalpel and a pair of tweezers, before coming back to me. "But you've forced my hand in this matter."

The scientist moved his scalpel and began to cut at where the edge of my scales began— around my shoulders. Normally, the scalpel would be incapable of cutting through my armored scales.

However, I had no energy to strengthen them. I was tired, weary, and almost completely drained.

The scalpel cut through the armor, and I felt— more than heard— Balthazar's shriek of pain as the scientist skillfully grabbed the scale with his tweezers, and ripped it off of my skin, causing me and my friend great pain.

On top of Balthazar's shrieks of pain in my head, the scale being ripped off of my skin felt akin to a fingernail being forcefully ripped off of my finger. The sensation was harsh, and fast, and left behind a burning feeling which pulsed painfully.

Balthazar's screams died down in my head, and he went quiet again.

"You— sick—" I panted, trying to keep hold of my senses. The scientist placed the extracted scale into a small beaker, handing it to one of his silent assistants, who left the room immediately after receiving it.

"It pains me to do this, Specimen S. It truly does." The scientist made a show of looking remorseful, before grabbing a syringe filled with a clear, green liquid from the nearby table.

The liquid seemed to exude some kind of power. I couldn't identify it, but that was enough for me to struggle more fiercely than I had before.

But, even with this sudden adrenalin rush, it was still pointless. The thug overpowered me easily, holding me down with barely any effort.

I felt another stab of pain as the scientist— I refused to call this asshole a doctor— inserted the needle into my arm, pushing down on the syringe's plunger, the clear, green liquid entering my blood stream.

It was one the most agonizing sensations I had ever felt in my life. It made the scale being ripped off seem like a small scrape in comparison.

It started as a light burning sensation that was slowly traveling up my arm, heading to my heart, and sent to the rest of my body.

As the green liquid bled into my muscles and nerves, the pain was promoted into agony, completely invading every cell of my body.

I screamed, incapable of biting my pain down, this time. I screamed, and screamed, until my throat went raw. In my mind, I could hear Balthazar screaming as loud as I was. He must have been going through the same thing.

I feebly tried to struggle, but to no avail; the thug was still holding me down.

The scientist was speaking again, but I wasn't listening anymore, my mind completely focused on the incredible agony I was feeling. I felt a mask slide onto my face, probably filled with some anesthetic gas.

I gratefully felt the pain recede into a dull throb, the vapor dulling all of my nerves. My limbs started to go numb as I began to lose my consciousness once more.

The last thing I saw before going back into unconsciousness was the bright, white light shining down on me, my mind still filled with Balthazar's pain filled shrieks.

It felt like days had passed when I finally woke up again, though, judging by the dull throb throughout my body, it was probably a few hours— maybe a day, if I was pushing it.

I opened my eyes slowly, and glanced around. I was still on the same metal table, under the same, annoyingly bright white light; but I was alone, this time.

I had to act as quickly as possible, or I would likely never make it out of here alive. Since they had my blood, a scale from my arm and— I shuddered— my sperm, I doubted they had any further use for me.

Or maybe the opposite, maybe they had even worse ideas.

'Balthazar.' I said weakly in my mind. 'Balthazar, I need your help.'

But the black viper was silent.

'Balthazar, buddy. Please.' I begged desperately. 'Please still be here, I need you.'

§H-Harry.§ It was almost a whisper in the back of my head, but I heard it all the same.

'You're alive! Thank god.'

§Weak. So weak...§ Balthazar hissed out in my mind, barely capable of forming coherent words.

'I know, but I need your help, Balthazar.' I thought. 'My Lightning keeps bleeding into the ground because of the metal table. I need your poison. Please, my friend.'

§Try.§ My viper said simply, before going quiet. I felt Balthazar's power flow into my armored arm, converging into my palm. I heard the sound of the sizzling of poison against metal, and I broke through the weakened metal restraint with ease.

I did the same to the rest of my restraints, sitting up, and dousing them with enough venom to break through. I stepped off of the table, feeling a little weak in the knees as my legs supported my body.

I heard an alarm sound as I pulled the IV out of my arm, as well as the monitoring equipment.

There wasn't much time. I had to act, now.

I pulled out the cardio-monitor's plug from the wall, and cut through the cord with a weak Edge. I plugged the cut cord back into the wall socket, and bit down on the exposed wire, feeling the electricity surge into my body.

I lapped it all up greedily, the energy coursing through my mouth, and into my stomach. I felt my tiredness fade away completely, and the dull throb disappear, but still kept absorbing the electrical energy, until I was sure my reserves were full.

The alarm faltered, and stopped completely. The light in the room went out, bathing me in darkness.

A few more seconds passed, and I cut the connection to the wire. I stood easily, power brimming in every cell in my body. I felt strange. Changed.

My energy felt more fluid than it had before. My Lightning more tame.

I stared at my hands, not quite comprehending.

What did the green liquid do to me?

What did they do to me?

Balthazar was still quiet. I was worried about him. I had to escape this place.

I heard the door open, and the sound of footsteps entering the room. I felt a brief flash of panic, remembering what happened to me before. I squashed the feeling savagely, as anger surged into my being, overtaking any previous fear.

I was going to make them pay.

"Secure the target: Specimen S." One of them said, and I heard the sound of weapons being cocked.

Specimen S.

The mere thought of being referred to a science experiment stoked the fuels of rage in my body, but I had to keep quiet. I had to take them out, as stealthily as I could. I moved slowly through the darkness of the room, trying to avoid the security guys.

One of them cracked a glow stick, and it bathed the room in a soft, blue light.

I had to act immediately.

I sent bolts of Lightning slamming into all five security personnel, simultaneously. The men seized up and dropped to the ground, their guns firing haphazardly as their fingers unwillingly closed on the triggers of their automatic weapons.

I dove behind a thick looking desk, waiting out the chaos. Eventually, their clips were emptied, and the room was silent once more. I stood up, checking myself over, glad to be relatively unscathed.

I walked over the downed security men, grabbing the blue glow stick, and exiting the room, leaving me in a long, dark hall way, lined with windows every dozen feet or so. I quietly walked through the hall, looking through every window, feeling more and more disturbed the further I went.

There were children— my age and lower— in every bed, each one hooked up to machines, just like I was.

Were they being experimented on as well? My blood ran cold as I noticed the restraints on their arms, chests and legs. I reached the end of the hall way. There was a door labeled "EXIT" in bright, white letters on a red background.

Next to it, was a nondescript door that seemed to lead to an office of some sort.

I saw with some relief, that Erebus was there, hanging on display, on the wall. I turned the door's handle warily, the door opening with an audible click. I entered the room, and closed it as silently as I could behind me.

Just in time, as a group of men with flashlights, came through the exit, heading straight for the room in which I was previously held in.

I bit down on my fear, and waited until they were gone, before brandishing the blue glow stick, bathing the office in a soft, blue light.

I could see several things. There was a desk, covered in papers, folders, and binders. Six file cabinets stood behind it, with a few shelves above them lined with anatomy books of all kinds.

To the left, there were several lockers, and what seemed to be a small refrigerator of some sort.

I went to Erebus, and lifted the blade off of its place on the wall, gripping onto the handle tightly.

"Welcome back, boy." The black Falchion whispered to me. "Took you long enough."

"How long—"

"For months, we floated in the Darkness of my Realm, before we were spouted back into the real world." Erebus replied patiently. "Then, those men took us here. It's been a day and a half since then."

Months. I had been away for months. I remembered the fight against the Devil Emperor Mundus like it had only occurred yesterday. I remembered the powerful being's mocking laugh. His careless disdain toward the human race.

I remembered the rage he felt when I had stolen his power and used it against him.

I remembered the Darkness I entered when I escaped Mundus' clutches, in between worlds.

"Months." I repeated, before shaking my head. There were more important things to do, right now. I had to escape. I would worry about whatever happened to me when I was safe.

And maybe with some clothes on? One could only hope.

"Your pants are in the locker, here. I think your wand is in it as well." Erebus supplied helpfully, and I felt the sword point— dragging my arm along with it— at the locker standing at the edge.

With a quick Edge, I cut through the padlock, and opened the locker, revealing a pair of dark, combat pants, and my black, combat boots, white socks lying next to them at the bottom of the locker. On the shelf above, lay a familiar stick. My wand.

I wasted no time, laying Erebus on the desk, before putting on the socks, followed by the pants and boots. I grabbed the wand, feeling the familiar surge of energy as my body recognized the magical focus, warmly welcoming it home.

I waved my wand quickly, conjuring a bandages that wrapped themselves onto my right arm, hiding most of the scales from view, but leaving the hand itself exposed.

It wouldn't do, if I used Edge with the bandages on my hand, or if I wanted to douse something in my poison.

I pocketed the wand, and grabbed hold of the black Falchion again.

"Erebus." I asked quietly, seeing lights flashing in the hallway outside. "They took my blood, and.. other things." I admitted, heat suffusing onto my shamed face. "Do you know where—"

"Refrigerator." Erebus replied simply.

I nodded in thanks, before heading towards the aforementioned refrigerator. I opened it, seeing a series of vials, filled with blood, all labeled "Specimen S".

Next to the vials, lay a beaker, with a scale being submerged in the same clear, green liquid that was injected into my body.

But there was no trace of my semen. Likely, they had transferred it, elsewhere. I had no way of tracking it.

With a snarl, I shot my Lightning through the refrigerator, flash frying the blood, and disintegrating the black scale. The bright flash of light seemed to alert the guards, who broke open the door, leveling their automatic guns at me.

"Freeze!" They said from behind me. "Drop the sword! Hands where I can see 'em!"

I called my Lightning forth, and the energy coursed through my nerves and muscles, supercharging them to a degree I had never reached before, even when fighting against Mundus. Was it an effect of the green liquid injected in my body?

I guessed it didn't matter.

I turned quickly, leveling Erebus to their forms. The guards laughed at the move, thinking I was crazy for bringing a sword to a gunfight.

"Leave nothing behind, Erebus." I snarled hatefully at the laughing guards. "DARK STREAM!"

Darkness poured from the blade, absorbing every bullet and washing over the guards like a black river, erasing their bodies from existence. Their screams went unheard, like the screams of the many children being kept here.

When the stream of Darkness ended, there was nothing left behind.

A silent moment passed, and I heard the black Falchion burp.

...Erebus burped.

"Mmm.." Erebus sent a mental image of a man rubbing his belly contentedly. "They were delicious. They didn't know much. Family men who were in need for money, and were told to guard this facility."

I felt guilt claw at my conscience, but I slammed my anger down on it. They may have had families, but what was happening here was wrong, and they hadn't reported it to the authorities.

They deserved it.

I went back into the hall way, and took the time to smash open every locked door in the ward. I tried waking the children up, but it was of no use. They were all comatose.

Each and every single one of them.

Was that going to happen to me?

I shook the thoughts off, and exited a room with a child that didn't look like she was older than eleven, sleeping peacefully. I bit back my tears as I began to leave the ward.

There was nothing I could do for them, I kept telling myself.

They were too far gone.

Whatever made me feel better.

I went through the exit, and saw a set of stairs leading up a few floors. I heard the sounds of footsteps coming down. More reinforcements. I hid under the staircase, the darkness hiding my hunched over form as a literal platoon of guards entered the ward.

As soon as I was sure that all of the guards had passed through, I left my hiding place, and walked up the stairs, silencing my footsteps with a quick Silencio. I ran up the staircase, and went through the nondescript door, which led to what seemed to be the inside of a closet.

A hidden lab? Why was I not surprised?

I opened the closet's door, and warily went through, glancing at my surroundings with a critical eye. It was an empty room, walls lined with lockers and various storage furniture.

I quickly exited the room, and found myself in what seemed to be a dark, hospital hallway, filled with the noise of moaning patients, bustling nurses, and irritated doctors

A hidden lab underneath a hospital, of all things. The lights came back on suddenly, bathing the halls in a bright, white light.

I twisted Erebus and held the black sword in a reverse grip, and tried to hide him behind my left arm, before shoving my black scaled hand in my pants pocket.

I calmly walked through the white, sterilized halls, avoiding the eyes of the various doctors and nurses that were on duty. I quickly followed the many signs of the hospital, heading to the exit.

I turned a corner, and saw a security guard talking to a few police officers. I moved back, and peeked from the corner. The officers were writing something on a pad as the security guard spoke. I heard the chime of an elevator, and the guard entered, followed by the police officers.

I breathed a sigh of relief, and resumed my course, finally reaching a set of revolving doors, leading to the outside.

I moved through the hall as silently as I could, and through the revolving doors. I felt the outside breeze hit my exposed chest, causing a shiver to go through my body.

It was night out. I looked at my surroundings; it seemed I was in a city— a large one, from the looks of it. The was a large plaque next to the building I had exited.

It read:

"METROPOLIS
GENERAL HOSPITAL"

The words were in white, over a blue background. Ambulances drove in and out of the facility, bathing the dark surroundings with white and red flashing lights.

I walked away from the building, as fast as I could without running.

It would do no good if I drew any unnecessary attention. I crossed the street, and kept walking for at least five minutes, expecting any attack to come from any direction.

None came.

I turned right into a dark alleyway, far from prying eyes, and took a deep, calming breath. With that, came a strong feeling of tiredness, more mental than anything.

The things that had happened to me, in that place…

I saw several large, black vans pass by the alley, flanked by police cars from each side.

"Those look like the van you were thrown in." Erebus whispered to me. "Likely they cleared the ward of any, and all evidence, when you escaped."

I nodded absently. Who knew what would have happened to me if it hadn't been for Balthazar?

'Thank you, Balthazar.' I sent the thought to my pet viper.

No reply came.

My blood ran cold as a certain thought came to the forefront of my mind.

§Balthazar.§ I hissed at my scaled hand. §Balthazar, can you hear me?§

Silence.

§Come on!§ I laughed nervously. §This isn't funny, Balthazar.§

§Harry.§ My faithful viper said weakly.

Relief flooded through my being, the knowledge of my friend's continued existence giving me strength.

§Weak. Can't hold on much longer. So hungry. So much pain.§ The viper struggled to say, and my spirits fell back into the grip of terror.

§No, no, no!§ I said, over and over, eyes tearing up, my throat constricting painfully. §Don't say that, my friend. I'll help you get better. Just hang in there, you hear me?§

§Try.§ Balthazar said weakly, before going quiet again.

§Rest up, buddy.§ I said, linking my power with his, and the snake hissed in great relief. §I'll find us some food, and we'll hole up somewhere.§

I moved through the city, in search for some place to eat. Eventually, I reached a McDonald's after about ten minutes. The place seemed empty enough at this time of night. I entered, hearing the sound of the door chiming.

There were a few customers sitting by the windows, looking outside as they dove into their food. The smell of burgers wafted in my nose, and I felt my mouth water, Balthazar reacting in a similar manner, judging by the vibration of my arm.

I pulled out my wand, and walked to the clerk, who seemed busy with his smart phone.

I waved my wand over his face, and his eyes glazed over. He looked up at me.

"How can I help you?" The man said in a monotone.

"Ten large cheeseburgers, no pickles. Some fries. and a big cup of pepsi, too. All to go." I listed off what I wanted, before leaning forward a bit, and quietly adding. "And all the money in the register, too."

"Right away, sir." And then he ordered one of the workers to make the food, before opening the cash register. About twenty seconds later, he handed me a folded up wad of bills.

I pocketed them as I waited for my food to be finished. I absently grasped onto one of the bills, and pulled it out for examination. It was a five dollar bill, with the face of Abraham Lincoln. On the upper right sight, it read:

"THE UNITED STATES
OF AMERICA"

"Metropolis in the USA, then..?" I said to myself as the glazed eyed worker handed me a large bag.

"Thank you." I said, before turning and leaving the fast food place. I wanted nothing more than to dig into the food. Instead, I took the time to find an empty alleyway, and took a seat on the cold, concrete floor.

§You think you can come out, buddy?§ I asked Balthazar softly.

§Can't.§ The viper replied weakly. §Green stuff— bound us together. Complete merger with your arm.§

Complete merger?

§Do you mean my entire arm has transformed into something else entirely?§

§Hn.§ Balthazar confirmed.

I opened my mouth to say more, but shook my head quickly. There were other things to worry about, right now. Like how I was going to get Balthazar to eat.

§Can form mouth— with poison hole.§ Balthazar struggled to say.

§All right. Do it. Worry about eating, and keeping your strength up from now on. Okay?§ I hissed out, turning my palm up to the sky. The hole in the middle opened up widely, as I grabbed the meat off of a burger.

I ripped it in half, before placing each piece through the hole. Immediately, I felt a rush of energy course through my right arm, and Balthazar gave a contented noise.

§Good. That was good. More?§ Balthazar hissed eagerly, vitality seeming to return to his being as the scales on my right arm seemed to glow slightly.

I couldn't help it.

Despite what had happened to me, despite what I had witnessed, I laughed, and my spirits lifted.

I was in an unknown place, surrounded by an unknown number of enemies, having disappeared from the face of the Earth for an unknown amount of time.

But I had my companions, at least.

That counted for something, didn't it?