Dragonet

Chapter Fifteen

Weeks later two white coated men stood in a small laboratory apparently conferring over their results. “Your certain about this then” the older man asked for what was probably the tenth time that night.

His younger companion seemed to recheck his findings before answering. “No doubt about this one.”

“Damn... That’s five separate species now and this sixth? I don’t recognize anything here that looks normal.”

“Neither do I, its chemical composition is like nothing I’ve heard of outside a science fiction movie. Like its acting as a glue or something.”

Running his hand through short, thinning grey-brown hair the older man sat back. “Lets look at what we have, maybe then this will make sense Thomas.” Following his lead the younger man too relaxed.

“Call it out Harry” he agreed.

“Okay” Harry answered. “Wing structures are from a bat. That explains the hairs on her wings too. Facial structure, mouth structure is more than likely a Feral cat but the rest of her face is pure human.”

“Your forgetting her eyes” Thomas broke in. “Those are pure reptile.”

“Same as her so-called skin. You said what? Goanna?’

“Right. Scales match even it they are nearly invisible to the naked eye. Put photo’s of her’s and a Goanna’s side by side... Perfect match.”

“Human, bat, lizard, cat and what? Oh yeah. Fierce snake. Where did you come up with that one?”

Thomas checked his notes. “Venom. Stuffs almost a perfect chemical match” Thomas admitted. “Stuff doesn’t kill though. Not with that combination it’s more a narcotic. Make you dreamy instead of kill you.”

“Big mess” Harry sighed, rubbing his eyes. “She’s still mostly human, almost all her bodies changes are external.”

“Your forgetting the X-Rays my new found friend?”

Harry shook his head. “Nope. Wings got their bone structure from her ribs yes, and she’s got the reproductive system of an egg layer. Other than those two minor changes she’s human. Not that any woman would agree with me, at least not about her reproductive system.”

“No kids?”

“Thomas... Her genetic makeup is a Hungarian Goulash of six species. One we can’t even begin to determine. Without a match how’s she going to have kids?”

“Yeah...” Thomas stood up, flipping a switch to light the full body x-rays they’d done. “Ribs replaced with cartilage plates, that seem to be building bone. Two thirds of her wing bones show evidence of healed fractures. Probably from use, there no where near fully developed so that’s why she’s guzzling milk. Needs all that calcium. Why chocolate I don’t understand unless it’s a buffer of some sort since she can’t seem to stomach white milk. See’s in the dark better than any Terran animal, hears pretty good with those modified bat ears... No Harry. This isn’t natural. Someone did this to her but how? These changes would take a super computer years to select and why? Makes no darn sense.”

“And all these animals are Australian. Maybe not all originally native but all available locally. No one would take a second look at someone collecting any of these species. Heck, they’d help catch the cats. It’s a local lab. A local lab that came up with some strange DNA that holds together un-alike species just like putty holds a kids tinker-toys together.”

“Sounds like something from that American show Harry. X-Files wasn’t it?”

“Canadian show Thomas. Yeah, but where’s the Cancer man in this thing.”

“Our mad scientist? I don’t know but until we find him there’s no chance we can turn her back into a human. Hell Harry. Even if we do find him there’s probably no way she’s going to be human again.”

Harry nodded, turning away from the films. “I’ll tell her, I’m used to giving bad news.”

“A vet isn’t? I hand people their dead pets a couple times a week.”

“Yeah. But she’s alive and human enough to have hope. We, you and I, have just slaughtered that hope on the butcher block of science.”

“Pretty heavy thoughts for a Doctor” Thomas laughed. “Okay, we both tell her. Just be ready that temper of her’s is pure animal. There’s no way she can control her reactions. Not yet.”

“We’ll try an anti-depressant for that. Umm.... Celexa first. Minimum dose.”

“That wise? I mean, what reactions with her new body. There haven’t been any tests...”

“Damn it Thomas. We’re dealing with a totally new life form here. Of course there are no tests. If she gives the okay. If she agrees to two weeks here or at your place for observation. Then yes we try it. If not she’ll have to go it alone. And no I don’t like it any more than you do. But she needs to stop flying for at least three months so her growth can finish.”