Page 1 of Captured By the Scaled Outlaw
Chapter 1
As I drop a pinch of sand into a collection vial, the scorching heat from the sun draws moisture from my exposed hands. The glass threatens to slip out of my grasp when I grind the cork into place and toss it into my bag haphazardly among the dozen others.
I don’t want to be out here.
Ishouldn’tbe out here.
I’m supposed to be sitting on an uncomfortable stool in a frigid laboratoryanalyzingcollection samples, not be the onetakingthem. Land surveillance and data collection is a job well-beneath a Nilsan Government Lead Scientist who has proven her worth time and time again.
Well, aformerLead Scientist.
My demotion eight months ago was jarring but not surprising in the least. Ever since starting work in the lab, I had been determined to steal the title of Director of Land Surveillance and Preservation away from its current owner, Director Kinsley. His blatant disregard for proper protocol has led to arguments between us that have bordered on violence and left a stack of Human Resources paperwork up to the ceiling. He has no desire to perform our duty to protect nature in the same way I do, and I’ve always hated him for it.
Our recent arguments have been over minor abnormalities I’ve found within a surveyor’s soil samples. Despite Kinsley’s job focusingon the assurance of viability in the land we intend to build on, he is averse to further investigations despite the clear guidelines and laws.
Leading up to my demotion, I petitioned the city of Nilsan’s Board of Ethics to allow me to continue my research into the abnormality, as per protocol, ignoring the tight deadline for completion. My petition was approved, and further research had shown no anomalies present.
When Kinsley had found out that I’d gone over his head, he’d exploded in front of the entire lab team, screaming that he had “finally had enough” of my “insubordination” and “constant requests for additional testing.”
The next day, I’d been demoted. Kinsley had immediately assigned me to a two-month surveying project located in the Sandpit Desert — a site known for its danger and inhospitable environment. His intent to punish me was clear.
Kinsley’s self-satisfied smirk when he handed me my assignment still boils my blood.
I sigh to relax.
No use in getting upset over it again.
I gaze over the vast desert, the snow-kissed peaks of Rime Mountain in the distance. A few cacti litter the expanse, but not nearly enough to make up for the empty mounds of sand devoid of life.
It’s as if every creature that used to live here suddenly vanished.
The sight pulls my lips into a frown. The nature I love and want to protect is withering away, despite my best efforts. To be a Lead Scientist is to work to improve and repair ecosystems and propose new strategies on how to stop once thriving biomes from crumbling to dust. I’d had little success, but I was making progress steadily.
But that’s all in the past, for now.
I freeze when a Slip Scorpion dances across my boots, slow and groggy. Its pincers sag, metasoma and stinger swaying in a tired, exhausted motion.
“You thirsty?” I ask faintly, reaching for the canteen strapped to my satchel. Pouring a drip of water into the cap, I set it beside the dazed scorpion.
I allow the sun’s heat to scorch my back so that my shadow will help cool the poor creature. A small price to allow it a moment of rest.
The scorpion hovers over the cap, gratefully taking in the liquid.
“There isn’t a steady food source for you anymore, huh?” I murmur, gawking at the iridescent shimmer of the scorpion’s exoskeleton. They use the reflection of light to blind predators, “slipping” away once the attacker is disoriented. Many people find them scary given their size, but I find them amazing. They’re docile arachnids, their stingers and pincers only for show.
Once the Slip Scorpion drinks its fill, it scurries off into the endless desert, knocking the cap off my boot. I tighten the cap back onto my canteen, the metal light from dwindling resources.
As I stand from my crouched position, I turn towards my vehicle. The waves that appear in the air make the metal seem like it is on the verge of melting.
Me too,I think, sweat stinging my eyes.
I scratch vigorously at the fabric covering my arms, the thin layer of sweat softening my skin to the point of rawness, the dull pain pushing me to the edge of full-blown rage. I want to scream, but if I do, Kinsley wins.
My hair falls into my face as I lift myself into the vehicle, the deep-brown strands greedily soaking up the sun’s heat. I’m careful not to shatter the cheap vials I’ve spent the past ten days collecting, since I was only given the exact amount needed. Another subtle way of tormenting me, to prey on my desire for perfection. If I return with even a single chip around the top of a vial, I’ll be reprimanded.
I turn the key and start the engine.
Fifteen more days left of this hell. Maybe when I get back, I’ll be allowedback into the lab again.
