The boy placed Milly's jar gently on a metal table, glancing back toward the other room where the alarms had begun to flicker red.
"What the hell?" he muttered, half-whispering, half-panicking.
Through the glass wall, Milly could see it her body, still strapped to the stretcher, violently twitching. The straps strained under the sudden movement. Every pulse of motion sent sparks of dark red energy rippling across her scales.
The scientists rushed in, shouting over the rising hum of unstable power.
"She's reacting to something!"
"The readings are spiking stabilize it before the containment breaks!"
The room was flooded in red light. The metallic scent of burnt circuits and ozone filled the air. Milly could feel the surge, even without her body her magic trying to reconnect with her soul, clawing toward its missing half.
One of the assistants shouted
"Shock her again! Before she overloads the core!"
The lead scientist slammed a switch.
A blinding surge of electricity arced through Milly's body.
The scream that followed wasn't heard it vibrated through the air, silent but sharp enough that the boy holding her jar flinched and dropped it slightly before catching it again.
"Stop it! You're gonna fry her!" he yelled.
But they didn't listen.
Another wave of energy coursed through the air Milly's body jerked once, twice, then went completely still. Smoke curled from the machines. The lights dimmed.
"Stabilized… for now," one of them breathed out.
The lead scientist smirked, proud, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"Good. Begin preparation for Phase Two. The dragon girl's heart might be the key to everything."
Milly's consciousness, trapped in the jar, trembled with silent fury.
Her body may have been forced to sleep, but deep inside the shadows of her soul… the flames were starting to burn brighter again.