Chapter 9

Among the lairs of the upper echelons lay the Operations Chamber, a hollow room spare for a few torches on the wall, and a colony of fungi on a clump of dirt in the corner. The chamber hosted the commanders of the Draconist Rebellion. They had gathered for an emergency meeting, that Raghes called for as soon as he returned from his latest mission. At first his request was denied: He had garnered a reputation for calling useless meetings. Nevertheless, Raghes pleaded and pleaded with growing desperation, until Lothar agreed to hold it a day later.

Merahn yawned as she walked into the chamber. Time for yet another boring, pointless meeting. Let me guess, Raghes. Did the cooks burn food? Or did you again forget something whilst teaching your students? She’d prefer doing something productive. Alas, there was no escape from it, for it was part of her duty all the same. She sighed, and sat at the edge of the room, next to a jade scaled commander. All in all, there were eight dragons in the chamber, sat in a half circle around Raghes.

“My fellow commanders. I have returned from my mission with terrible news.”

Merahn yawned as loud and obnoxious as she could, interrupting Raghes. “Yes, yes, Raghes. Hurry up and tell whatever useless information you have for us, you blithering fool.”

“L-listen to me, Merahn! I swear on my hide that this is of the highest importance!” Raghes said. His body trembled with panic.

Merahn’s eyes went wide open, “Oh, you actually have something useful to say this time around!” she said in a mocking voice, “Just like the last ten times-ow!”

“Silence, you fool! Let him speak!” growled a voice akin to a roar in her ear. The jade dragon beside her, named Grudent, had slapped her chest with the back of his claw. Merahn let out a soft growl, and fell silent. Her tail thumped against the ground. That was another thing she detested about these meetings: Every other commander didn’t take notice of their uselessness. They would always remain astute, listening to insignificant mumblings as if they were of actual importance.

Raghes sighed. “Look, I understand that I get worried too easily, but this is different. You might have noticed that the two brothers I took with me have yet to return from the mission.”

“Yes, you had told me they had gone on their own errands yesterday, did you not?” Lothar said.

“I did say that, but here’s the thing… I wasn’t being honest with myself, nor to you, nor to the rest of my brothers and sisters, my lord. I thought it would be better to not say what had actually transpired, because…” Raghes abruptly paused. His slitted eyes shifted back and forth, every breath he took became ragged.. “...because it would give everyone the scare of their lives. And I didn’t want that. Forgive me, it was wrong to do so.”

“It’s okay, Raghes. Just tell us the truth now,” said a yellow-scaled commander sitting besides Lothar. Merahn looked away in disgust. Why are we pitying this idiot? He should learn to behave himself like a dragon, not like a coward!

“You look very troubled, Raghes. Is there something wrong?” asked Lothar.

Raghes took a deep breath, and sighed it out. “The truth is, both of my companions were killed in action.”

Silence haunted the chamber. The breaths of the dragons alone were audible, as they exchanged stares of disbelief with one another. Merahn was awestruck. Before now, the dragon rebels seemed almost invulnerable. They had yet to lose a single dragon to their troops. And now, two of her kind were dead in a single blow.

Lothar then broke the silence. “WHAT? They’ve killed both of them? How can this be? Explain, Raghes! Quickly!”

“Y-yes… I will.”

Raghes proceeded to explain in detail how the Riverside garrison had managed to lead his companions into a trap, and kill them both. The picture he painted was grim; the imperials had discovered the ease by which a dragon could be tricked into acting on their arrogance, something the Draconists had been all too willing to encourage in their ranks.

“Brothers, sisters… I think something is very wrong with our attitudes. We can’t let ourselves be fooled that easily,” Raghes said, ending his explanation.

“Raghes, what do you mean?” said a feminine voice, belonging to a red-scaled dragon named Flaratia.

“I’m talking about this arrogance everyone has, how we can never lose simply because we’re dragons, and the enemy is not, Flaratia. I swear to Divinity, this will be our undoing if we’re not careful,” Raghes said.

Grudent let out a rough, guttural laugh. “Raghes, you’re overthinking this far too much. They got lucky this time around, that’s all. All we have to do is drill into our troops to be more cautious around archers, and we will be back to slaughtering them in the hundreds in no time,” he said with a massive grin plastered on his snout, which bore a large scar from an earlier encounter with a bear.

“N-no, you’re wrong! This isn’t something a little extra training is going to solve!” Raghes said. “In fact, that’s the second thing I wanted to mention, this bloodlust so many of us have. I can’t go a day without overhearing someone fantasizing out loud about all the ways they want to kill imperials, including all the visceral details, might I add!”

Merahn groaned. “Come on, Raghes! That’s nothing more than passion from our troops, that’s a good thing! Besides, it’s not like the imperial scum are any better. Remember what happened during the fall of Lokahn?”

Raghes reeled away from Merahn. “Y-yes, of course I know. But that’s not an excuse!” he said,his tail curled around his legs.

Merahn didn’t believe him. She stomped her forepaw into the ground. “Something tells me you have no idea just how terrible the persecution was. Do you want me to demonstrate it to-”

“Cease, you two.”

A deep voice cut them off. The two dragons turned their heads in Lothar’s direction, who eyed them both with disapproval. “This is not how dragons behave, my friends. We do not fight each other over petty little squabbles. Do you understand this?”

Merahn and Raghes grunted in approval. “Good. Now then, I will share my own thoughts on this matter. I believe that yes, there is a significant amount of arrogance at play in our forces, albeit not to the extend Raghes has claimed. It could potentially harm us in the future if we let it go by unabated, however,” Lothar said.

“Well, what is your command, my lord?” said Flaratia.

Lothar closed his eyes to think. “I do not see this as a tremendous challenge,” he said moments later, as his eyes flew open. “I suggest we make two addendums to our training. The first is to warn our troops to not get too overconfident and bloodthirsty. The second will be an increased focus on how to dispose of archers. Does anyone have an objection to this?”

The commanders nodded timidly towards Lothar. “Good. Then I hereby declare this meeting finished. Time to return to your duties, my brothers and sisters.”

With the meeting concluded, the dragons returned to their lives. Merahn went to her lair to prepare for Chalroth’s training. Her lair didn’t differ much from the other dragons: A hollowed out rectangular cave, containing a straw nest, a small shrine for her to pray at, and the little material remnants of her old life she had left, sitting in a small box in the corner.

It was a crude existence, as far from human comfort as one got.She loved living here, however. This was the life she had dreamed of for years, and now her wish had been granted. Her snout bore a smile, as she laid on her nest to rest before her upcoming duties… only for clicking sounds to put those plans to sleep.

“Merahn… do you have a moment to spare?” said a gruff voice coming from the entrance. From the harsh, growl like voice, to the smell, Merahn knew it was Grudent. Sure enough, when she raised her snout, the green dragon came into sight.

“Why yes, Grudent. Usually I detest being interrupted when taking a nap, but I’ll make an exception just for you. What is it?”

“I only wanted to apologise for that tap on your chest earlier, that’s all.”

Merahn scoffed. “Heh, do you have regrets over letting that blue idiot speak his piece?”

Grudent sighed. “Yes, I do. Ugh… why does he have to ruin everybody’s morale all the time?” he said, as he sat onto the rocky floor.

“Because he is a coward. He’s scared by how effective our methods are. I’ve overheard him whimper numerous times how he ‘doesn’t want to lose his humanity’. He’d rather let Lokahn continue to be destroyed than take a risk.” Merahn’s tail lashed as a whip on the ground behind her.

A growl rolled out of Grudent’s throat. “Sometimes, I wonder if he’s even a Draconist still. How is it possible to be as pessimistic over dragon life like Raghes is? A life of defending your home, your family, your friends, and everything that is good… and he fears that? I have never felt more alive than I do now!”

Merahn smiled. “Neither have I. It still feels incredible, waking up in the morning and realising I’ve become… this!” She pointed a talon at her chest. “I indulge in being a dragon, I fully admit it. And no, that doesn’t mean I’ve lost my humanity. We took on this life in the first place because of our love for Divinity, and our love for humanity. ”

Grudent nodded. “If only Raghes could see it that way.”

“If only.”

“So... what are your thoughts on the measures Lord Lothar wants to take?”

For a brief moment, there was silence. Merahn took in a deep breath through her nostrils, and exhaled it through her mouth. “...I suppose they’re somewhat fair. Although, I find the whole ‘Oh, we need to be less arrogant and bloodthirsty’ to be ridiculous. Do you think the imperials have any regrets whenever they hang a Draconist in public?”

Grudent shook his head. “There’s no path to freedom which doesn’t involve spilling some human blood. Even the previous generations knew this.”

“Oh, we’re not killing any humans at all, sweetheart.” Merahn snickered, and winked at Grudent.

The green dragon grinned. “I get what you mean, my darling. Now then, it’s time I get back to my business. Enjoy your rest, Merahn.”

“Farewell for now, Grudent. See you later.”

Merahn watched as Grudent left her lair. Once the ticking of his claws had disappeared into the mists of the tunnels, she lowered her head on her forelegs, and drifted off into sleep.

* * *

Hours later, after she had finished tutoring her student Chalroth, and having left him by the baths to clean his wounds and scales, she felt unwell. All day long, during her thrilling exercises outdoors, her opposition to Lothar's decision grew. It became an active hindrance to her duties. Why did Lothar believe turning timid would help, when the imperials kept escalating further with zero consequences? Grumbling, she paid him a visit that evening.

“Lord Lothar?”

“Come in, my lady.”

Merahn stepped into Lothar’s lair. The gold dragon was there, resting. A large flag hung against the back wall, which hadn’t been there that morning. Merahn stared at it. It was the banner of the Lokahnic kingdom, picturing Reval, the founder of the kingdom, riding into battle on his blue dragon companion Brynd. What a ‘wonderful’ time to decorate, you gold cladded fool.

“Do you like the flag?”

“Of course, I am a full blooded Lokahnian, after all.”

Lothar brushed the flag with the back of his foreleg. “It needs a little sanitation still, but that is a matter for another time. Now then, what is it you wish to inform me of?”

“Well...” Merahn grinned, “...Chalroth still struggles with flight, but he has learned how to breathe fire at last.”

Lothar raised one of his eyes. “Go on, tell me more.”

Merahn told Lothar the story of Chalroth’s flight lessons, and how it wound up into a confrontation with two wolves, in which the greenhorn discovered his fiery breath, and his pride. Lothar laughed heartily. “Ah, nothing pleases me quite like such a triumph! Tell me, how is the boy doing now?”

“His spirit has never risen higher. He suffered some minor bruises, but that’s nothing time won’t solve.”

“That is good to hear. Is there anything else you wish to speak of?”

“No. I actually wanted to ask you something, my lord,” Merahn said. Her breathing became ragged, as the muscles in her legs and tail tensed up. She had reservations about bringing this up, even though it had worn on her mind. There was no turning back now, though. Either she spilled her guts, or Lothar would spill them for her.

Lothar sniffed, and tilted his head. “Something is bothering you, I can smell it. What is it, my lady?”

“I… wanted to talk about the meeting this morning.” Merahn said. She gulped down her saliva.

“Ah yes, the meeting. You were rather hostile to poor Raghes, were you not?” Lothar said. Merahn replied with a slow nod. “I see. And you want to talk a little more about it with me, yes?”

Merahn bit at her cheeks, and rasped a breath between her teeth. Her frustrations pressed against her chest; they had to be freed. “I don’t get why we’re listening to him, or why he’s even a commander. Every time he opens his mouth, it’s to demoralize our forces, or to hold back our passions. I’ve had enough.”

“Do you have any examples?” grunted Lothar.

“Well, a few days ago, he shouted me down for saying that every human ought to be turned into a dragon. ” Merahn said, then shuddered.

Lothar stared back at her with utter disbelief. “That... is a choice for them to make, is it not? We can’t force people to-”

“We should force them!” Merahn shouted, “They might think they don’t, but deep down inside, they do. I always fantasized about dragonhood when I was younger, and when it came true, it was greater than even my wildest fantasies. Everyone in this base can tell you the same about themselves, I swear to you! There’s a dragon in every Lokahnian, and it deserves to be free, to breathe fire, to soar in the skies and roar! They deserve the Blessing!”

“Breathe.”

An uneasy quiet haunted the air. Merahn panted, while Lothar sparked up the flame on his altar. Her weary flesh and bones begged her to lay down, even if it’s for a minute. The feeling tempted her, but she had already disrespected her leader enough as is.

Lothar eyed her disapprovingly. “Listen. That outburst of yours proves his point. I fully understand the euphoria, I feel it too. But we must stay vigilant. Raghes is right to be concerned about our image. He’s no coward, understand this. Imagine if those you love the most grew to hate you, and see you as the monster the imperials desperately want us to be… thinking about it breaks my heart, Merahn. It is a genuine reality we might face. Do you understand?”

‘Yes, my lord.’

“Good. Now then, I suggest you get some rest. You look exhausted. Besides, I would like to pray now, if you do not mind.”

“...Yes, I will. Good night, my lord.”

“Good night, my lady.”