Dragon Barracks 2, Planet Classified

  “Pick up the pace!” the drill sergeant shouted. “And careful with the cargo!”

  Accustomed to conflicting orders, the soldiers doubled their effort. Seven platoons were engaged in the unloading. Almost anywhere else, the process would be fully automated. Robots, machines, and the occasional docking specialist would see to it that any cargo made it off the ship in perfect condition. This planet was the exception. Every five years, a battle fleet would arrive, guarding a single orbital cargo ship. Once at the planet, advanced shuttles would pour out, slowly making their descent to specified platforms, isolated from any building sites. The contents of the cargo were among the most classified and valuable commodities in known space: pre-born dragons.

  Over five kilometers away, Danube stood on the emergency landing platform atop the military administrative building. There was a time when seeing fresh dragons being hauled in calmed him down. Lately, he was only going through the motions.

  “Why don’t you go closer?” A tall man in a black cassock asked. His skin was dusky-dark, complementing his raven-black hair.

  Danube didn’t bother turning around. He had heard the visitor’s heartbeat long before the man had reached the platform.

  “The worst thing you can do to a dragon is break them at birth,” Danube said. At first glance, he could be mistaken for a cadet. Fair-skinned with straw-blond hair, he was more likely to appear on the pages of a fashion magazine than be associated with combat. The appearance was nothing more than an illusion.

  Danube wasn’t a boy; he wasn’t even human. Millennia old, he had seen humanity rise then fall, then rise again. If he wanted, he had the power to destroy everything on the planet’s surface, along with all the ships in orbit.

  “Three thousand new dragons,” Danube said as the men stopped beside him. “Barely enough to cover the losses.”

  There was a time when dragons could only be born on Earth. Due to a combination of local concerns and strategic risk-assessment, the practice was transferred to two other planets with discussions for a third. From a military standpoint, it was a sound choice, though Danube couldn’t help but prefer the old days. Many of the new dragons never got to see Earth, even if it were the place they originally came from.

  “The way the patriarchs are going, we’ll need three times more in a decade or two,” the dragon added.

  The man remained silent. The role of the dragons within the Orthodoxy was complicated in the best of times. Part of the army, they received their orders directly from the church, although had full autonomy when it came to execution. Danube, in particular, was an even more special case. Despite merely having the rank of captain, he had the authority of an Orthodox patriarch with the ability to choose his own missions.

  “Do you know how dragons are born?” Danube asked.

  “I’ve heard stories. They say that if a freshwater fish remains unseen by human eyes for forty-years it transforms into a dragon.”

  The man looked at the cargo ship in the distance. Each piece of cargo was a large vat wrapped in multiple layers of steel protection. Each, supposedly, had a fish inside. Whether that was true or not didn’t matter. What couldn’t be denied was that in a few days a dragon would emerge from the vat.

  “Just like you to not care about the details. So, what does your Order want?”

  “There’s been another incident,” the man whispered.

  A sudden breeze swept through the man’s hair, wrapping both of them in a cocoon of air.

  “We’re not supposed to discuss this,” the dragon said. “It’s not yet time.”

  “Others disagree. Word has leaked out. It’s impossible to cover it up anymore. The order came that we must go ahead and move things into the open.”

  “Who gave the order?”

  The man didn’t reply.

  “Emanuel.” The dragon’s tone remained unchanged, but the cleric could feel an obvious increase of pressure. If the creature wanted, it could kill him on the spot, and not even his Order could do anything about it. “Who gave the order?”

  “I’m not sure,” the man admitted. “But my Order supports it. A patriarch’s favorite was aboard the ship. He’s already been asking questions.”

  The pressure within the cocoon decreased. Emanuel felt he could breathe again.

  “The wheels are already turning,” the man went on. “My Order has been given permission to assemble a team. There’ll be some give and take, but I think we’ll get what we need.”

  “Someone said the same thing forty-seven years ago. At the time, I told him he was too short-lived and na?ve. When he got his own Order, he came to me and said that we'd achieved everything we wanted. He was wrong. The threat wasn’t eliminated, only suppressed.”

  “This time things are different.”

  “Things always are.”

  The air-cocoon abruptly collapsed.

  “Do your thing,” Danube said. “I’ll provide support as usual.” And don’t get caught, he added mentally.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Thank you. Lord be with you.” Emanuel crossed himself, then walked off to the staircase leading off the platform.

  Danube didn’t shift his gaze.

  Two of the platoons had finished unloading their assigned quotas and were now waiting for further orders. Sergeants of the remaining five were shouting, annoyed that they had lost the unspoken contest. Needless to say, a lot of people were going to get punished once the task was over.

  “Captain,” a voice came through Danube’s communicator. “There’s a hiccup.”

  “Give me a few moments,” the dragon replied.

  Far away, a second shuttle made its descent. In roughly an hour, unloading would start there as well.

  Danube removed the comm device and placed it on the platform. Then, he stepped off. His uniform unraveled like a ball of yarn, each thread transforming into an air current. The “boy’s” body stretched, growing hundreds of times in size. All humanoid features were instantly lost as a pair of wings sprung out of the snake-like torso. Scales of pure lightning formed all over the massive form as the dragon flew two circles around the administrative building before changing direction towards the dragon barracks.

  The sight barely received any reaction from the people on the planet. Dragon transformations weren’t anything new here. In a week, the sky would be full of them as the new crop of creatures learned how to act, fly, and fight for the sake of the United Orthodoxy.

  The airport and compound complex vanished, giving way to barren fields. Moments later, that too was replaced by mountains. Structures of stone and polymer-steel were scattered all over the cliff-face.

  Darting towards the entrance, the dragon changed form once more, regaining his human appearance. The solid steel door slid to the side, letting him enter.

  “Sir.” An officer with lieutenant insignia handed Danube a new communicator. He also had the same pale complexion and straw-blond hair.

  “Status.” Danube pinned the device on.

  “The new batch of priests is making a fuss. Something about needing more prayer time.”

  “Earth-born?” The boy continued along the metal plating of the corridor.

  “Not even. Though you wouldn’t tell by their arrogance.”

  Always the same problem. It was claimed that only the most loyal and dedicated priests were chosen to be dragon observers. In truth, it was little more than a move to advance their political career. Within a year, three-quarters of them would be gone to join the entourage of one patriarch or another.

  “I’ll handle it.”

  Dozens of technicians ran about the corridors, making the final preparations for the dragon transfers. One mistake and the creatures might never transform, costing the Orthodoxy a powerful weapon. Even worse, if there was anything wrong with the drug dosage or the delivery mechanism, they might get a wild dragon on their hands.

  Seated in a small open chapel among steel vats the size of houses, several dozen clerics stood in wait. All of them were dressed in black cassocks with large green shawls on their shoulders. Judging by their nervous expressions, it was safe to say that most of them had never seen a dragon in action.

  “Lord with you,” Danube said as he approached, getting the greeting out of the way. “What’s the issue?”

  The entire front row of priests looked at him. This was not the tone they were accustomed to, but they had the good sense not to make a scene, especially since they knew who he was.

  “Lord be with you, Zmei Danube.”

  The dragon behind Danube openly snorted.

  “We don’t use the archaic form here,” the boy said in a clear, calm tone. “So, what is it?”

  “As we told the lieutenant, it’s impossible to baptize so many dragons in that amount of time. Even if we don’t take breaks, we’ll still need—”

  “Then don’t sleep,” Danube interrupted. “I want all three thousand tadpoles out and ready by the end of the month. Is that clear?”

  An uneasy silence filled the space, broken only by the work of technicians.

  “At least they stopped complaining,” the dragon behind Danube whispered in a voice too faint for human ears.

  “Good,” Danube said. “Sava will be keeping an eye on the process. And just remember, you’re in the army now. If any of you causes any trouble, I’ll fucking kick your asses back to the seminaries you came from!”

  This time, even the technicians stopped whatever they were doing to look in the direction of the group. Having a dragon openly threatening priests was an impossibility that went against everything the Orthodoxy represented. All the same, no one dared point it out.

  Feeling he had gotten the point across, Danube turned around, leaving the people to come to terms with their new position. Only now did some of them realize that it was going to be a very long and painful year.

  “That took care of that,” Sava said, catching up to Danube. “It’s good for kids to sweat a bit.”

  “They’re not the only ones.” Danube kept on walking. “Double the training intensity. I want the new batch to be combat-ready in half a year. Tell the others.”

  “Whatever you say.”

  “You’ll be in charge of the birthing.”

  “You won’t stay around?”

  That was unexpected. Usually, Danube would spend a month on the planet observing dragons turning from tadpoles to fully fledged engines of destruction.

  “Anything I should know?” the lieutenant asked.

  “Get ready for war.”

  An ordinary person would have noted that the Orthodoxy was always at war. Between external conflicts, internal divisions, inter-stellar piracy, and corporate entanglements, there always were planets to be razed. For Danube to give the warning, the situation would have to be dire.

  “Understood,” Sava nodded. “Anything else?”

  “Stay on guard. Someone might try to snatch some tadpoles before the chaos.”

  Danube hastened his pace. Technicians and maintenance personnel quickly moved to the side as he passed by. The maze of vat chambers and corridors continued for a minute until the dragon reached an unassuming door labelled “Communications.”

  “Danube,” the dragon said.

  Three sets of sensors confirmed his voiceprint, appearance, and biometric profile before letting him inside.

  The room was small, just enough for a single person to fit comfortably. There was no chair, no seat, just rows of large metal panels, and a crude pre-industrial screen. A dull red light shone from above, making anyone feel highly unwelcome.

  Danube pulled off one of the panels, revealing a wall terminal. The tech was so ancient that outside a few Earth museums and extravagant collectors, no one had probably seen it. That’s what made it ideal. No entity, human, artificial, or unnatural, was capable of deciphering the output.

  IDENTITY CONFIRMED

  RETRIEVING COLONY SHIP REPORT

  DETERMINE SCOPE

  A new set of commands was input, after which the entire screen was filled by a list of entries. Each item was composed of a classification number and a series of symbols between three and twenty-seven.

  Danube scrolled down to the bottom then issued one final command.

  WARNING!

  CLASSIFICATION HAS BEEN REDUCED!

  FULL INFORMATION REPORT PENDING

  Of course, they’ll take their time filling it in. “I’ll wait,” the dragon said. It wasn’t like he had any other choice.