Dragon Redemption

by Valerie Emerson

  The Tiel stepped back, yielding to the human. Rainier pointed at a communications officer and the image of a young Yeti broadcast into view beside the Tiel. The Yeti’s fur bore black stains of dried blood and soot smudges.

  “This is Hrath,” Rainier said. “He is the only survivor of a Ptolemy colony, an EF planet with an agreement in place allowing Yeti to settle there.”

  The image expanded enough for everyone in the room to see. It displayed the ruins of a small Yeti settlement, broken remnants of buildings around a blasted crater.

  “The Pirr attacked Ptolemy three days ago. The settlement was destroyed. Only Hrath survived.” The image switched to the Yeti again. “The attackers were Pirr. They didn’t bother to hire pirates. This is just one example of the Pirr’s recent acts. After Hrath was discovered, we looked into other settlements in reach of Cavey’s wormhole. All are destroyed, though few had ties to Earth Fleet or other humans.”

  He changed the image to a list. Coraolis couldn’t read all the words, but he recognized Cavey and Ptolemy. The rest were in alien scripts.

  “Is this enough to show you, Councilor, that this is a galactic problem, one we must deal with together? Or else we each face the Pirr on our own.”

  “Agreed,” a Yeti chieftain named Uya spoke up. “But we would know more about these creatures they command before we make war.”

  Rainier smiled and gestured toward Coraolis. “We have a Mystic guest here with the experience and knowledge we need to plan for this.”

  Coraolis strode forward tentatively, aware of all eyes on him as he joined Rainier on the large dais. He listened as Rainier introduced him, glossing over Cor’s short ‘rebellion.’ Coraolis gathered his thoughts rather than listen to the ambassador’s words.

  Then it was time to speak. Coraolis swallowed and looked over those in attendance, physical and holographic alike. Barbara gave him a nod of encouragement, and he stood a little straighter. “Thank you, Ambassador Rainier. I think the best I can do here is get to the point so we can decide what to do as quickly as possible. I have seen video of the rift on Cavey. It is nearly identical to the one opened in the same place years ago. Back then, it created a door for dragons to move from the Astral Plane to the physical world. Today, it’s doing the same for creatures we know now as Wyrms.”

  He swept his gaze over the audience as they watched him or took notes. He held the attention of most of the power in the galaxy right then and there. He tried to dismiss that thought and pressed on. “Wyrms are cruel, destructive analogues of dragons. I’ve encountered ones consumed by hunger, mindless yet cunning. These Wyrms, if they’re working with the Pirr, we’re all in a lot of trouble. All this talk of peace and blame is futile.”

  “What do you suggest?” Councilor Haila cut in. “You humans have dragons to call upon, or so you claim. Are they not a match for these Wyrms?”

  Coraolis shook his head. “We don’t know for sure, but I think there’s a way to take the Wyrms off the table. Before, the dragons in the physical world were destroyed when Mystic Dante closed the rift. If we find him and have him to close it again, I believe the same will happen to the Wyrms.”

  Silence met his statement, then everyone began speaking at once. It seemed too much to pin all hopes on one human. As the assembly broke into conversations, deliberations, and bickering, Rainier took the floor back from Coraolis, thanking him for his time.

  Coraolis went to meet Andrus at the back of the room, and they departed the Council of Worlds, leaving the galactic leaders to hash out what to do next.

  Coraolis and Andrus made their way to the galley. The human-posted portion of the conference was on board E.F.S. Salvatore, a ship dedicated to diplomatic missions, positioned at the center of a fleet of warships. With the exception of some Secret Council members, every Mystic occupied the armada as well.

  “I still think it would go better as a covert mission,” he murmured to Andrus. “If the Pirr see us coming, it’s because of this blasted Council of Worlds.”

  Andrus raised an eyebrow. “And if a secret mission fails, or if you are wrong, what then? The Pirr are given good reason to attack us, and then our fellow sentients have a perfect excuse to stay out of it with Councilor Haila leading the way.”

  “I’d just rather avoid an all-out galactic war, that’s all.”

  “As would I.” They arrived at a beverage station, and Andrus loaded a coffee with cream and sugar. Coraolis took a beverage as well, then he led the way to an isolated table in the corner.

  Coraolis sat down opposite the administrator and curled his hands around his cup. He wished he could have stayed to hear the Council’s discussion. He wanted to know what was happening, but this part of things was beyond his station. He peered across at Andrus.

  “Dante was on a mission with Jack. How did he end up with the Pirr? Was that part of the plan?”

  “No.” Andrus looked pained. He glanced to see if they had listeners. “The details are confidential. If you were to learn the details, the expectation would be you keep them to yourself.”

  “Of course.”

  “If you were to learn their mission was in response to the events on Cavey, I’m sure it wouldn’t surprise you, given the timing of your own mission.” Andrus sipped his coffee. “If you knew their goal was to find out what the Pirr were planning…”

  Coraolis absorbed that information, appreciating what Andrus was doing. He tried to imagine Jack and Dante as spies. That explained their change in appearance to look more human again. Anyone who knew about the Evolved would identify them in an instant by their draconic features.

  “I guess I’m not surprised—er, I wouldn’t be. That would explain how they came into contact with the Pirr.”

  “Hypothetically speaking.” Andrus smiled. “We believe Mr. Gagnon is on his way to Cavey already. We will try to coordinate our efforts with his.”

  Coraolis nodded at his old colleague. They’d been close in status once—a far stuffier Andrus, all about rules and regulations. Over the years since, his rigidity had been tempered by compassion. Coraolis knew it made him a better man.

  He and Andrus sat for a while, enjoying their drinks and the quiet. Soon, whatever the outcome of the assembly, the Mystics of Earth would go to war, most of them for the first time. Both men sought to appreciate what little peace remained.

  Seventeen

  Jack and Bava stood in the pilot chamber, watching the screen as Night Thorn approached the Pirr space station. The station was the largest object in orbit around Cavey, but it was far from the only one. He counted seventeen warships, plus any that might be elsewhere in the system. Thorn would be able to tell them, he was sure, but scanning for ships might give them away.

  “Are they still buying it?” Jack asked.

  “The other vessels have accepted the codes. They believe I am a ship called Fang Horizon.”

  “What happens if the real Fang Horizon shows up?”

  “We will be obliterated, but that will not happen,” Thorn assured him. “There is no such ship. I have valid codes. As long as we do not rouse suspicion, we will be fine.”

  “I hope so.”

  They’d received orders from Earth Fleet. The Council of Worlds had formed a consolidated fleet out of their respective navies, and it was on its way to Cavey. Their success or failure hinged on freeing Dante and closing the rift.

  Jack pulled up a screen to view the hole in reality. Energy leaked from its edges, reminding him of neon watercolors in sinister red and orange shades. It made his skin crawl.

  Bava glanced at the screen and shrugged. “You worry for friend Dante.”

  Jack closed the screen. “Yeah. And I can’t imagine what it took to open that. Or what they must have done to force him.”

  “With his abilities, he is a useful tool,” Night Thorn said. “They will keep him in good health so he remains effective.”

  “I’m not finding that reassuring.” Jack started to pace. “Are you sure the plans you stole are cur
rent?”

  “Are you sure your earpieces are secure in your ears?” Thorn shot back, then added, “I will not be able to give you directions if you cannot hear me.”

  “We’ll be fine.” Thorn had been touchy about them not listening ever since Dante was taken. Jack thought the ship took it ‘personally’ because they’d taken Dante off Zeri Station during her watch. “Don’t worry, Thorn. We’ll get him back.”

  “Of course!” Bava patted him on the back. He sounded excited. “Soon, Bava’s friends will all be safe under one roof.”

  Night Thorn’s door slid open. She lowered her ramp, and both Jack and Bava stole out of the ship under Jack’s powers. Deck crews hurried around the bay, going from one ship to the next. As far as Jack could tell, no one was interested in Thorn; they had too much to do on their own.

  Jack strode to the near wall at Thorn’s direction, Bava following. The Yeti had the massive gun he’d taken from the Tiel’s robot, adapted now to the Yeti’s large hands. Jack looked at it and wondered about the warnings of getting into debt with the Tiel. He didn’t know if that meant Bava thought they were in the clear…or that it was too late to worry about it.

  They waited until the door slid open. A Pirr officer stepped off the lift. Once she was clear, Jack and Bava hurried inside.

  “Press the triple chevron,” Night Thorn told him. “It will take you to the detention level.”

  Jack pressed the button, then leaned against the wall. Bava crowded the elevator, though his big furry presence comforted Jack at the same time.

  They exited the lift into a security station. Two armed Pirr stood behind the desk, a third turning to look at the empty elevator car. The female guard frowned as she peered through Jack and Bava.

  “Yiu, did you summon the lift?”

  “I did not.” The male strode closer to the lift, stopping short of the door. He looked inside. “Everything appears normal.”

  “I’d better call it in anyway,” she said. “Commander said to watch for anything unusual, and this qualifies.”

  “Are you sure?” the third asked. “It’s just a lift. Someone pushed the wrong button and got off on a different level. If we report it, we’ll have to be part of the investigation.”

  “If we are looking for something unusual,” Yiu interrupted, “why is the door still open? Explain that.”

  “I’m calling it in.”

  Jack looked at Bava and nodded. The Yeti exploded out of the lift car with a roar. He grabbed Yiu by the throat and threw him into the female, knocking her away from the console. The third Pirr stepped away from the console and took aim at Bava.

  “I wouldn’t do that,” Jack commented, coming out of the car and dropping his invisibility. “Those things just make him mad.”

  The Pirr froze, his surprise giving Bava time to reach him and knock him to the ground. All three Pirr sprawled on the floor, unconscious. Jack joined Bava behind the desk, binding the Pirr’s hands and feet and squeezing them under the desk. It wouldn’t work forever, but it would buy them some time.

  “Which way?” Bava asked.

  Night Thorn’s voice came over his earpiece. “Plug into the interface so I may search the system.”

  “No need.” Jack headed down the corridor, pulled by a familiar force. He grinned. “Dante is this way.”

  “More magic?” Bava growled at the senseless captives, then hurried after Jack, weapon held ready.

  “You could call it that. My dragon is telling me this way.”

  They passed a series of white doors with blank pads next to the frames of each cell. With every step, the pull became more urgent. Jack started to jog, then run, as the pull overwhelmed him.

  There was nothing to mark this particular door, only Jack’s inner compass. “Here.” He indicated with a nod.

  Jack pressed his hand to the cell door, reaching out with his senses…and got nothing. According to his abilities, the cell was empty; yet, his dragon wanted him to knock it down. He could think of far too many reasons that might be true, all of them too dark to contemplate.

  “Bava, I think we need the guards to open this.”

  “I will take care of it.” Bava ran back up the hallway, leaving Jack alone.

  “Dante?” he called. “Can you hear me?”

  “I hear you,” a familiar voice spoke from the cell behind him, though it wasn’t Dante’s. The voice was female. “Is that Jack Gagnon?”

  He shouldn’t have been surprised to find Khiann imprisoned after her act of treason. He reached out with his senses in case it was a trap, but found her presence strong and vibrant, unlike the nothing he detected from Dante’s alleged cell.

  “I suppose you’d like a ride out of here?”

  “If I stay, I face a death sentence,” came the voice.

  Jack thought capital punishment was unheard of. But then, this wouldn’t be the only way the Pirr differed from the other sentients. They had a barbaric streak despite their advanced culture.

  “We’ll get you out of here. Just a minute.”

  “We? Who is with you? Other Mystics?”

  “Just hold on, Khiann. Let’s get you out before answering more questions.”

  Bava returned with the Pirr called Yiu slung over his shoulder. The Yeti dumped him on the deck. “This one is highest ranking. He says he can open doors. Do it, Pirr. Open cells.”

  “I can’t open this one. This is a prisoner of the Archon…” Yiu protested.

  “Are you capable of unlocking it?” Jack asked.

  “Yes…but I must not!”

  Jack’s gaze met Bava’s. The big Yeti snapped Yiu’s bonds, grabbed his arm, and pushed his palm against the panel. The door opened, revealing a comatose Dante lying on a bed.

  Jack entered the cell and felt for a pulse. It was slow and weak, but there. He shook Dante until he opened his eyes, half-awake. He let Jack pull him to his feet. “Why do you keep watching me sleep, Jack?” Dante asked with a lopsided smile.

  “Quiet, you.” They staggered into the hall where Bava held his prisoner.

  “Let us put these ones in cells,” Bava suggested.

  “Open this first. Khiann is in here.”

  Bava frowned at the door. “The Pirr traitor? Bava does not think her trustworthy.”

  “If we leave her, she’ll be killed. Come on, man. We owe her.”

  Bava grumbled, but he brought Yiu to the door and unlocked it.

  Khiann stepped into the hall, bedraggled but otherwise healthy. She raised an eyebrow as she scrutinized Bava, then she took note of Dante. “They pushed him too hard.” She put a hand to his cheek. “They will use him up.”

  “The more reason to get out of here. We’ve got Night Thorn in the hangar. Let’s go.”

  Dante pushed away from Jack to stand on his own. “I’m okay. Just tired, is all.”

  “I hope that’s true, because we need you to close the rift,” Jack told him. “Are you up to it?”

  Dante nodded. “Why not? It needs to be done, doesn’t it?”

  Jack and Khiann claimed the guards’ weapons, and Bava stowed the captives in one of the cells. Jack walked beside Dante on their way to the lift, ready to catch his friend if he staggered, but Dante got stronger as the minutes went by. His color returned and his eyes sharpened as he looked from Jack, to Bava, to Khiann.

  “You came to get me. I guess you really do care,” he joked.

  Jack scoffed. “Only because Thorn won’t rest until we finish that temple. We can’t continue without your character.”

  “Good to know I have some value. Though I’m not surprised she wanted to keep going while I was gone. That ship has a one-track mind.”

  “You are speaking of my…former ship?” Khiann asked, seemingly confused. “You speak of it as if it thinks and feels.”

  “She does. And she’s obsessed with games and entertainment. I think she must have been bored when she was part of your stuffy military.” Jack grinned. “She plays Dungeons and Dragons with us.”

>   “Dungeons and…?” Khiann shook her head. “Technology can be confusing.”

  “Agreed.” Bava summoned the lift and stepped inside. “But recall, Pirr female, Yeti have technology as advanced as Pirr’s. The ship is real. She is Bava’s friend. Bava will have you treat her as such.”

  Khiann’s ears curled at the end. “Perhaps we should consider the subject closed. I gave her to the humans; they may treat her as they wish.”

  “Good enough.” Jack stepped onto the lift with Dante. “I’m going to cloak us, so stay close.”

  Bava and Khiann boxed Jack in at the center of the lift. He let his powers flow out, covering them in a blanket of invisibility. Four were more difficult to hide than two, but if he could make Night Thorn vanish from sight, he could handle this.

  When they stepped into the hangar bay, the deck crews were frantic. They shouted orders as they swarmed around the light fighters, prepping for flight. An alarm wailed as the group hustled toward Night Thorn.

  “What’s going on?” Dante asked, stopping to peer around.

  “That’ll be our distraction.” Jack grinned and tugged at Dante’s sleeve. “Let’s keep moving.”

  Thorn opened her door as soon as they got close. She urged them to strap in as she disengaged from the dock. Her lights were a rich amber color, telegraphing her alarm. Then, she lurched to a stop, sending Jack to his knees.

  Khiann stumbled into the wall with a shout. “Report,” she snapped.

  “I recall you giving me away, Commander,” Night Thorn snipped. “Jack and Dante treat me as an equal.”

  “Still, maybe you could tell us what happened?” Jack asked, picking himself up.

  “A lockdown order on all ships in the station. When I disengaged, it sent an anchor protocol to my subroutines. I will find it and remove it. One moment please.”

  “The station shouldn’t be able to do that,” Khiann said. “It doesn’t have an override chip.”