Chapter 20: A Dragon’s Honor

The two titanic Dragons battled for several days, destroying mountains, creating earthquakes and tsunamis. And yet, all the damage seemed to be diverted away from the settlements, as if some benevolent force was protecting us. The cataclysmic duel finally ended with the Black Dragon retreating, and the White Dragon standing victorious. Though the creature was not standing for very long as it soon collapsed from its wounds sustained in the battle.

“I’m telling you, Thomas,” said Ryan for the third time. “You and I played hooky yesterday, and met a mysterious old guy named Zand and his dog, Green-Eyes.”

“Who cares if she has green eyes,” said Nanny Eliza as she vacuumed quietly in Thomas’ room. “I have beautiful, brown eyes, dearie. Care to look for yourself.”

The old hag got nose to nose with Ryan, fluttering her eyelashes furiously. He tried to gently push her away, but the old lady possessed surprising strength as she resisted.

Just my luck that Thomas has the same cleaning lady as I do! But then again, maybe she and Cedric clean all the rooms on this floor.

The residential building was less a building and more like a massive tree with artificial environment systems in place. Thomas’ room wasn’t much different from Ryan’s, with its simple furnishings and small bed, save for the holoprojections of his family scattered throughout the room.

Cedric stood in the corner with his arms crossed and a blank expression. As Ryan finally pried Nanny Eliza away, he made the oddest gesture yet involving flapping his arms like a chicken and bending over to play drums on his knees.

Nanny Eliza nodded seriously, and said, “I couldn’t agree more, Cedric. How eloquent of you to say so.”

As for Thomas, he sat in bed while being spoon-fed porridge by a serving droid, clearly accustomed to the pampered lifestyle. For the past ten minutes, Ryan had been desperately trying to convince Thomas of their encounter outside the Ministry with Zand and his dog. If he were being honest, Ryan started having his own doubts on whether it really happened or not.

In between mouthfuls of porridge, Thomas managed to say, “I’m pretty sure that I would remember seeing a dog. I’ve always wanted a dog, but I heard that they were all gone now, at least the regular ones from Earth. And besides, if we really did play hooky yesterday, why are neither of us listed as absent? I remember going to class. I don’t remember playing with a dog, but a snow cone does sound good. Do you have one with you?”

“Forget about the snow cone, Thomas. I’m Master Uruks, remember ... and as Master Uruks, I say that there is some kind of conspiracy going on around here.”

That did the trick. Ryan knew the little snot had a weakness for conspiracy theories and mystery novels.

“Yes, Master Uruks, sir!”

Thomas gave his customary salute just as the droid tried to give him another helping of porridge, only to have the bowl knocked from its metal claws and all over Thomas’ face. To his credit, Thomas did not break salute.

The droid waved its pinchers hysterically, speaking in a mechanical, deadpan voice. “No! My Porridge! No! You Monsters! No!”

Thomas ignored the porridge on his face and the distressed droid as he said, “So what are we going to do about it?”

Before Ryan could answer, Nanny Eliza came back with a vengeance. “Oh, a mystery! Cedric and I just love mysteries, don’t we, Cedric?”

Cedric blew up his cheeks, patted them with his hands to make farting noises, and then slapped himself really hard in the face several times. After repeated slapping that left red marks on his cheeks, Cedric made a weird facial gesture that might’ve been a smile and gave a thumbs-up.

And I thought that some aliens I’ve met were weird.

Nanny Eliza laughed as she said, “Oh, Cedric, you have a way with words.” Then Eliza started nuzzling up close to Ryan in the way that made him want to throw up. “Plus, it will give us time to get better acquainted while we’re cracking the case. Hm hm hm.”

Quickly swallowing the vomit that threatened to come up his throat, Ryan devised a plan almost immediately. “Actually, there is something you and Cedric can do for us. While me and Thomas are looking for clues out there, we need you looking for clues in here. And then we’ll meet up and see if we can put the pieces together.”

Nanny Eliza flecked her fingers together as she considered Ryan’s request. “What will we be looking for exactly?”

“Anything! Specifically, stuff that has to do with the trouble between the Ministries of Fire and Water. While you’re at it, see if you can dig up anything on the rumors I’ve heard about other candidates going missing. Something tells me that all the weird stuff that’s been happening to me has something to do with it.”

Ryan’s curiosity wasn’t a new development, but his encounter with Zand seemed to jumpstart his need to know more. Maybe it stemmed from his lack of knowledge on his parents. Whatever the reasons, Ryan knew his thirst for knowledge was far from being quenched. However gross he found the old housemaid; she could prove useful in unraveling the mysteries that surrounded the Ministry of Fire.

“It’s perfect. You and Cedric go into everyone’s rooms. You’re the groundskeepers for the entire residential building of the Grunts. I bet you guys could overhear a lot of things that you’re not supposed to.”

“You’re right about that, dearie. Me and Cedric have lots of connections in this place,” said Nanny Eliza, her gray eyes glinting wickedly. She was starting to sound like the nanny mafia. Ryan almost thought he’d won her over, until she frowned and asked, “But what’s in it for me, dearie?”

Ryan grimaced. “Uh ... what do you want?”

Eliza batted her hideous eyelashes. “A kiss.”

“On the cheek only ... and only if you get me something I can use ... something to explain all the weird stuff that has been going on with me recently,” answered Ryan queasily, wanting to barf, burn his clothes, and lie in a bathtub to wash away the horror.

Nanny Eliza considered for a moment, and then said, “Deal.”

She and Cedric left through the doors that dissolved and reappeared in a shower of flames.

Ryan breathed out a sigh of relief as he collapsed onto Thomas’ bed. “Finally!”

Thomas started cleaning the porridge off his face. The droid calmed down a bit too as it buzzed about in the kitchen to make more food. “Okay, but what are you and I suppose to do?”

“We’re going to get to the bottom of all this. First, we’re going to the classroom to check the files for any signs of tampering, and then we’re going to ask around for anyone who has seen an old man with a white dog, or possibly a lion made out of fire.”

Thomas frowned, a little confused. “Why are we looking for a fiery lion?”

Ryan shook his head, already thinking of all the people they could ask to dig up some information. “I’ll tell you later. What is most important right now is that you and I get to the bottom of the mystery that is the Ministry of Fire.”

Mystery solving wasn’t as fun as it looked in the soap operas. It involved a lot of walking and talking to strangers, asking them awkward questions that contributed to an overall uncomfortable atmosphere. Everyone Ryan talked to had about the same answer for him.

“No, I haven’t seen a dog,” and “You saw a fiery lion? You should probably get that looked at, kid,” or “Scram, Grunts.”

Several people mentioned something about a few Grunts going missing over the past few months, but nothing that had anything to do with Zand or the tensions between the Ministries. It would seem that adults had no patience for children simply trying to find the answers to all existence. To make matters worse, Tyrant had made another escape from Ryan’s room and currently pecked his head without mercy. It was baffling how the feathered fiend always managed to circumvent Ryan’s quarters and find him no matter where he went in a Ministry bigger than many cities.

At least Thomas seemed to be having a good time with the obnoxious hawk around. “Heh! Your bird is funny, Ryan.”

“You know what else is funny?” said Ryan through clenched teeth. “Blowing up a kid’s pants and watching him run around with his buns on fire.”

“Hey, Master Uruks,” said Thomas excitedly, oblivious to Ryan’s threats. “After we solve the mystery, do you think you can teach me how to blow up a chair?”

Ryan ignored the question and quickened his pace, forcing little Thomas to almost jog to keep up. They trudged through an open field in one of the yellow tree forests. Scorch marks littered the grounds from training exercises, leading Ryan to believe that they had come to some kind of sparring field.

Ryan stopped as a shadow came down upon them. Tork the Dragon descended ahead of them in a graceful arc. Even after Ryan’s revelation with Zand, just seeing the Dragon brought on intense emotions ... a mixture of fear, despair, and anger. Tyrant screeched and then flew off Ryan’s shoulder, as if sensing his displeasure. The negative emotions threatened to overpower his senses, but he quickly wrenched them under control as he addressed the Dragon in a forced voice.

“Tork.”

The Dragon smiled awkwardly and spoke in his fancy accent. “Ryan. So good to see you, old chum. Lovely weather we’re having. Yes, I don’t fancy we’ll be getting a spot of rain, you know ... since we live in a dome and all; but between you and I, we rather need it. These Elemental fellows are rather dry if you know what I mean,” joked Tork uncomfortably.

Ryan took a good long look at the Dragon standing in front of him and tried to defeat his anger with logic. This was not one of the Dragons that had murdered his family and thrown his life into ruin. In fact, he looked nothing like those Dragons. Before Ryan lost his parents, Dragons were his favorite creatures in all the universe. The Dragons were considered to be the oldest and wisest creatures most closely associated with Elemency. Seeing Tork now, Ryan tried to let that childlike wonder take flight again.

Dragons came in all shapes and sizes: some as small as a cat walking on all fours, others as big as a house. Tork fell in the category of the man-sized Dragons. He stood on two legs, was a little shorter than Grafael, and seemed extremely timid, shying away from Ryan as if expecting an attack.

Tork was similar to Grafael in many ways in terms of his humanoid legs, arms, and torso, though he had a slightly longer snout more like a wolf’s nozzle. Long, spiky ears sat at the back of his head, moving with the rhythm of the Dragon’s voice as if indicating his mood. He had two long, white horns going back beside his ears. In between the horns was short black fur going down the back of his neck, similar to a horse’s mane. His most distinguishing features were the bat-like wings on his shoulders, and a tail with spikes protruding from it. If he stretched his wings as far as they would go, the wingspan was nearly thirty feet from tip to tip. The length of his golden tail far surpassed the length of his body and looked very powerful, though it wasn’t quite as thick as Grafael’s blue tail.

Tork wore silver armored skirting and a brown twin strap across his chest that held his sword and shield on his back in between his wings, but that was about all he wore. His eyes were bright, with gold irises that seemed to glow slightly with a concealed energy that reminded Ryan of fire.

Unlike the Dragons that attacked Ryan’s village, Tork’s scales were gold, much like Ryan’s, and he had a look about himself that almost seemed nervous and kindly. Judging by the luster of his scales, Tork was fairly young for a Dragon, about in his adolescent years. But even so, he possessed an aura about him that seemed majestic and noble.

Despite the fact that Ryan had let his inner child out to enjoy the wonder at seeing a real-life Dragon in the flesh, the anger had not vanished. In fact, it seemed to be getting stronger. Even now, Ryan couldn’t bring himself to trust this creature.

Ryan gave his best fake smile, and said, “Look, Tork. I’ve thought about it, and I am really sorry for what happened earlier.”

Tork waved his clawed hand nonchalantly. “Oh, pish-posh. Water under the bridge, I always say. I just want to avoid drama as much as I can.”

Ryan tried to be polite, but it was difficult with all the dark memories rushing into his head. Ryan’s mind flashed back to that big Black Dragon that grinned wickedly at him, showing off its yellow fangs. Images of winged creatures tearing people apart and devouring them as they screamed in terror danced across Ryan’s mind as his fists clenched.

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” answered Ryan, still smiling politely.

Tork then leaned in closer and cupped a hand to his mouth to whisper. “Listen. Grafael told me that the two of you had a bit of a sparring match earlier. I’ve never been as good at martial arts as Grafael. Personally, I’ve always considered myself to be a creature of intellect rather than brute force.

“But then as a scholar, I must explore all facets of life, and not just that of the mind.” Tork twiddled his clawed fingers nervously. “I was wondering if you’d mind all too much if we became sparring partners, you and me. I’m a Dragon, so I can teach you about Fire Elemency. In return, maybe you can help me brush up on my physical skills. What is it that humans say? I scratch your back, you scratch mine, what-ho, and all that ‘yank’ rubbish, what-not.”

As politely as he could, Ryan said, “I’ll have to think about it, Tork, but I’ll let you know.”

Tork flapped his wings ecstatically, buffing Ryan with wind and propelling the Dragon a few feet off the ground. “Oh, jolly good! Jolly, jolly good! We’ll make for quite the merry band, you and I, Ryan, old boy.”

The Dragon flapped his mighty wings as if to leave, but then turned around like he’d forgotten something. “Oh, yes. That reminds me. Ryan, I want you to have something.” The Dragon handed Ryan a golden arm bracelet with three rubies of green, red, and silver.

“This is an heirloom of my people. In ancient times, we would present these tokens as peace offerings after a long and painful conflict. The jewels represent the three elements that bind us altogether no matter what planet we are from. The Mind, Body, and Soul. It’s part of the ancient teachings of all Dragons.”

With one push of his strong wings, Tork took to the air. The Dragon was gone and out of sight in seconds, already miles away in nearly no time at all.

Ryan just stood there for a long time holding the bracelet, uncertain of how he should feel.

“Uh, master, are you okay?” Thomas asked.

“Don’t know, kid. Don’t know much these days,” Ryan answered honestly as he studied the bracelet.

After the longest time thinking, Ryan decided to give Tork the benefit of the doubt and accept his attempts to make amends. He wasn’t sure what three elements that Tork talked about since there were already four basic elements, but he figured that it must be some Dragon mumbo-jumbo and didn’t pay it any mind. Ryan turned to Thomas to leave when he caught sight of Hamma Steel in the distance running towards them at top speed.

“Ryan!” he yelled. “Drop that bracelet!”

No sooner had he heard Hamma’s warning did the bracelet start glowing red in his hands. Instinctively, Ryan threw away the bracelet just as it exploded. As the inferno raced towards him, threatening to engulf him, Ryan’s initial thought was to outrun the fires, but then he immediately recognized the danger to Thomas and stepped between him and the explosion. Ryan raised his hands to channel the fiery storm that roared towards them.

Ryan had never been good at manipulating fire that wasn’t of his own making, and he still sometimes burned himself with his own flames, but that didn’t stop him from trying. Ryan tried to force the flames to bend around him and Thomas, but the force of the explosion was too strong. Ryan was thrown from his feet and flew at least a dozen meters in the opposite direction, denting the ground with his body.

Ryan’s vision blurred and he almost lost consciousness. Thankfully, Hamma Steel appeared moments later and shook him awake.

As Ryan focused on Hamma’s face, the man sighed with relief. “Thank the Lord Caretaker you’re alive.”

After letting loose a slight groan while rubbing his throbbing skull, Ryan’s delirium almost made him forget about his companion. “Where’s Thomas? Is he okay?” asked Ryan, his eyes scanning the field for any signs of the plump youth.

“Don’t worry, Ryan. He’s fine thanks to you,” said Hamma with approval as he nodded a few feet away where Thomas lay resting. “I checked him myself. He looked shaken up, but I think he’ll be okay.”

Ryan weakly looked over to where the boy lay on his back. Thomas had lost consciousness, but he was still breathing. Ryan finally allowed himself to breathe. “That’s good to hear. I’d never forgive myself if that kid died on me.”

Ryan then realized something even more crucial, something that he’d always known to be true, but had tried to deny it with compassion and logic. “Tork wants to kill me!”

Hamma nodded grimly. “Yes, it would seem so.”

“Why?”

Hamma scratched his chin. “I suspect that he’s in league with the Ministry of Water.”

“The Ministry of Water?” repeated Ryan incredulously.

“Yes! No doubt you’ve heard the rumors about the tensions mounting between Water and Fire. I suspected that they might make a move against some of the more promising candidates, and I’ve had my eye on Tork for a while now. I saw him tampering with that gem before he gave it to you. Dragons possess Fire Elemency naturally, and they are usually much more adept with it than humans. He must have placed a psionic trap on it to activate after it had left his possession.”

“But why now, and why me?”

“I would think the answer is obvious. Did you not see where Tork just happened to run into you? This is the training field for the Flamers. Training is over for the day, but occasionally, some Elementals come to train after hours, so no one would pay any attention to explosions coming from this area of the Ministry.

“No one was around. It was the perfect opportunity. Though Tork’s plan didn’t work, and you have no proof, so it’ll just be your word against his. Thomas won’t count for much either, being both a child as well as being partial to you. As for why he chose you, that is less clear. I don’t know if you heard, but a few Grunts have disappeared from the academy in recent months. You might have just been his next target in a long line of victims. More than that though, I suspect that this may have something to do with the first Dragon attack against you.”

Ryan’s voice lowered to a dark tone. “You think he was one of the Dragons who killed my family?”

“It’s possible. Even the Space Dragons are not completely without blame, and they have been known to switch over to the Black Dragons’ side from time to time. I guess when you get down to it, they’re still Dragons, and all Dragons are about the same. They can spout all the morals they want, but in the end, they only look after their own benefit.”

Still feeling numb, Ryan rose to his feet and limped slowly to Thomas’ side. He placed a hand on the boy’s head, brushing back strands of his hair. Though his eyes were closed, the boy’s chest rose and fell with a steady rhythm.

“Don’t worry about the boy,” said Hamma. “I’ll take him to the hospital wing.”

Ryan only nodded grimly. With murder on his mind, Ryan spoke in a cold voice. “I’ll take care of Tork. It’s time my family’s blood was avenged.”

Hamma took hold of Ryan’s arm. “I understand how you feel, but we have to think this through if you want to catch the likes of Tork. Dragons are clever. If we don’t do this the right way, Tork will get away and be free to kill again.”

Ryan turned his glare on Hamma, which made the man inch back slightly. With a voice full of malice, Ryan said, “What do you propose we do then?”

“Well, we can’t go to the other Elementals about this. That will just tip off Tork that we’re on to him and he’ll vanish without a trace. Escapes are one of his specialties being a Dragon. He’d just fly into space at the first sign of trouble. The only sure way to catch Tork is to set up a meeting with him.”

Ryan shook his head in disbelief. “Why would Tork agree to a meeting after he just tried to torch me?”

“Think about it,” explained Hamma. “Once he knows that you’re alive, he’ll do everything in his power to finish his mission. Psionic traps are not always reliable. He doesn’t know for sure whether the bomb went off or not, or even if you know who he really is. If you call him up and arrange a meeting, he’ll show up for the chance to get you alone. However, this time I will be there to back you up. We’ll trick him or force him to confess his crimes. In any case, it’s the only sure way to be certain that he does not escape.”

It should be easy to arrange since I have the excuse that Tork invited me to a training session already. Probably did it as insurance in case the bomb didn’t finish me off.

Ryan turned back to Hamma with cold resolve. “I don’t want you to interfere. I’ll deal with him alone.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

It all went down as Hamma predicted. Ryan sent Tork a message through the medallions, asking to meet him at the arena where he dueled Grafael for training, and Tork - obviously eager to finish the job - accepted. Night had fallen, complementing Ryan’s dark mood. After he proved the Dragon’s treachery and made him pay for his crimes, he would finally feel vindication. The time had come to get some bloody satisfaction for the evil done to him all those years ago.

Despite his thoughts of vengeance, he still found himself shaking. He had never killed anyone in cold blood before ... he had never killed before, period. Even when he had the chance to smoke that scumbag, Shaver Creed, it just felt wrong somehow. But this was no petty street punk with a bad attitude. This was a Dragon with the intention to bring the Ministry of Fire to its knees. Tork was far too dangerous to be granted mercy. Of all people, Ryan knew the damage that a Dragon could do.

And yet, despite Ryan’s resolve, it still felt wrong to kill Tork. True, it would be unwise to kill him right off the bat until they had forced a confession out of him, but it felt more than that. Almost like someone whispered in his ear not to go through with it.

Ryan shook his head to silence such distracting thoughts. He could ill afford to lose focus now with so much at stake. Tork was a Dragon after all, a young and inexperienced Dragon maybe, but a dangerous killer nonetheless. He wouldn’t go down easily. As much as Ryan hated the thought of it, he would probably need Hamma’s help to finish the job. Hamma stayed behind in the shadows, not only as backup, but to record the conversation with an old-fashion camera phone, something so low-tech that Tork would never suspect it.

But when we do confirm his guilt, do I really have to kill him? Couldn’t we just hand him over to the authorities? Hamma himself agreed that it would be best to kill Tork once he’d been captured, otherwise, it would just complicate things in the future. Tork would claim the protection of the Ministry of Water, and then the Imperial Court would get involved to settle a dispute between the Ministries. And while they’re busy deciding what to do with him, he would use his contacts with the Black Dragons to stage an escape.

“Besides,” Ryan remembered Hamma telling him. “Do you really want to let someone else execute him? As far as I can tell, there’s no person more justified to kill him than you. I already told you he’s in league with the Black Dragons that slaughtered your family. Can you honestly say to me that you don’t want to see him dead for what he’s done?”

“No,” whispered Ryan to himself.

Steeling himself for what came next, Ryan ground his feelings that made him weak into dust. In his heart, Ryan knew that when the time came, he wouldn’t hesitate to give Tork the same courtesy that he bestowed upon the people of Toramirese Colony. With his back leaned up against a wall in the shadows, Ryan waited, and not too patiently at that. With each passing second, Ryan grew more agitated.

What if he knows it’s a trap? What if he shows up with an army of Black Dragons to back him up? Or worse, what if he doesn’t come at all?

As Ryan’s breathing became acute and his heartrate intensified, he almost signaled Hamma to call it off, but then he saw a dark shape falling from the sky. It reminded him of the black-scaled creatures that dropped from the clouds on his birthday. But this time would be different. This time, Ryan was the hunter.

Tork dropped to the ground with a confused expression on his lizard face. Ryan stepped out of the shadows. As Tork focused his glowing orangish-gold eyes on Ryan, he smiled warmly, as if they were the best of friends and he really wasn’t planning on killing Ryan and all his teammates without mercy.

Look at him! Keeping up the act right up until he tries to bite my throat out!

As Ryan smiled through his gritted teeth, he became angrier by the second just thinking of all the horrible things that Tork would do if left unchecked. Ryan could just see Tork finishing off poor Thomas, helpless in his hospital bed. And then he would go after the rest of Squad 99 before they became suspicious. It would be easy, especially for a monster like him with such devastating weapons at his disposal.

He could bite out Grafael’s throat while he slept, or burn Leon to a crisp while he trained (though the guy might’ve deserved it a little). Then he might strangle poor jealous Rachel with his tail. And Éclair, just thinking of all the things that he could do to Éclair made Ryan almost lose all control. It took all of Ryan’s willpower to keep the fake smile on his face until the right moment to strike.

“Ryan, old bean,” said Tork with his strange accent. “How good of you to make it. I am so looking forward to our time together. Let’s give ‘em what for ... what, what.”

So far, everything’s transpired as predicted. Hamma said that Tork won’t make a move until our session begins so that he can claim it to be nothing more than a training accident.

“Hey, Tork, before we get started, there’s something I wanted to ask,” said Ryan as he subtly walked to the center of the arena.

“Eh? I suppose that’s fair. Alright, governor, what is it you wish to enquire?” asked Tork as he walked alongside Ryan.

“What did you do before you became an ally of the Ministry of Fire?” asked Ryan innocently, coming to a stop.

Tork’s face went slack in shock, and that’s when Ryan knew without a shadow of a doubt that all his suspicions had just been confirmed. Ryan half-expected Tork to drop the pretense and attack him then and there, but instead he lowered his head and spoke in a voice that was no longer cheerful.

“What is it you would like to know, specifically?”

Ryan didn’t know why he kept the lie going, but if the charade kept the Dragon off his guard, so much the better. “Well, I just heard a rumor of when you left your homeworld to join the Ministry ... only the rumor mentioned you tagging along with a different group before you showed up here.”

Tork rubbed his shoulder in discomfort, as if he actually had a trace of shame for all the horrible crimes he committed. With a sigh of despair, Tork finally raised his face with eyes so sad that Ryan almost forgot he was acting.

“Well, I guess you’ve already figured it out by now, Ryan, so I might as well tell you.” Tork’s voice broke slightly, making his guilt all the more apparent. “I was young and fed up with my family. I wanted to go out on my own and live a life free of responsibility. I had a few friends who left the homeworld as well to join with the Black Dragons.

“They kept in touch and said they were having the time of their lives, the life I had always dreamed of ... a life of complete freedom. So, I joined them. The Black Dragons still accept a few volunteers from the homeworld every now and then.”

Tork swallowed as if he couldn’t bear to say what happened next. “To answer the question that you obviously want to ask ... yes, I was there at the Massacre of Toramirese.”

Ryan’s smile vanished as all his hate and pain built over five years came to a boil. “That’s all I needed to hear.”

And then, with a snap of his fingers, Ryan released his restraint of the three spots on the arena that he touched and stored a portion of his psions in. It all went perfectly. Ryan had gone over and over again in his head where he wanted Tork to be standing and where he himself needed to be so as to avoid the brunt of the explosion.

He made the explosions happen in such a way that they curved inward and left him unharmed. Without Tork even knowing about it, he had maneuvered the Dragon during their conversation to stand at the very center of the explosions, leaving no chance of escape. With three explosions going off consecutively, the sonnet of mayhem commenced.