Thrax

“She will not be harmed, so long as you accept my terms and face me in the duel,” said Amlax.  “Once you are a warrior of the Scodax, you and your mate will breed the next generation of dragons in our service.  Our power and our might will be all the greater for it.  The duel will soon begin.  I look forward to meeting you in joust, Sir Knight.  I expect you’ll battle well.  Your world will see its best and finest brought into line.”

Without another word, Amlax and his two silent fellows turned and exited the interrogation space adjoining Thrax’s cell.  Thrax watched them go, and this time he did see a reaction from Venar.  He saw her turn and glance at him over her shoulder with an expression that he could not read.  He took it as a reflection of her Captain’s confidence in having the upper hand.  Thrax’s mounting rage made his skin break out into scales.  He scowled as the three Scodax disappeared behind the portal through which they came.

 He felt his clenching teeth start to turn to dragon fangs.  He would save the wrath that he now felt; save it for use when he faced this arrogant creature in this vainglorious battle.  He would put down this Amlax like the presumptuous cur that he was and punish him for holding Agena’s life against Thrax’s compliance.  He would free Agena.  And he would lead his fellow Knights to crush these encroachers as they so richly deserved.

*****

The battles across the planet Lacerta reached a tense standoff.  The Knights and the Corps in the cities and the settlements and in the training annexes of the Spires dug in and held on, entrenching themselves and holding the line against the invaders.  The Scodax ceased fire, not to disengage and withdraw, but to send a message.  Into every populated area of the planet, or every place that had been evacuated except for Lacerta’s defenders, holographic transmissions from Amlax were sent. 

At last, the dragon warriors saw the face of their true enemy, not the horde of androids that had been brought against them.  The alien Captain announced his mission and his intentions toward the planet.  He made the Lacertans aware that any further resistance would be unavailing, even though help from other worlds was coming: for the Scodax possessed a power that they had not yet brought into play, which would give them the upper hand at last.  The people of Lacerta would be treated with respect and honor—so long as they submitted.

The Ruling Aerie and the Mentors discussed and debated the pronouncements of Amlax.  They weighed the option of sending a message back to the alien leader, of demanding a demonstration of this power that the Scodax had not yet revealed.  They spoke at length about the danger of not knowing everything that the invaders could do and the potential disaster of this gap of knowledge.

 Lacertan scientists weighed in with opinions and theories about what the hidden power of Scodax could be, if they actually possessed such a power.  And there was much talk about what form the demonstration of the Scodax might take and about the potential harm to the planet or the appalling loss of life that might result.  It was generally resolved that not knowing what they might be facing increased their danger. 

The Lacertans knew the places from which help would come soonest; they had identified the systems and colonies from which Earth and its allies would send other forces, and they knew that Knights from those systems were already on their way.  They sent warp space communications out to those planets with all available intel about the Scodax, including Amlax’s threat about a secret weapon. 

The communications were jammed and scrambled, rendering them useless.  The Ruling Aerie decided against trying to send their fastest ships out to warn their reinforcements; if the Scodax intercepted them or shot them out of space, Lacerta’s forces would be depleted that much more.  When reinforcements arrived, they would be coming in blind to whatever hidden power the Scodax might hurl against them.

The duels between the Scodax and the highest-ranking captured Knights were the cause of the greatest alarm.  The purpose of these battles, to show Lacerta that they were now in the power of the Scodax and had no choice but to submit, was clear.  But in the places to which the Aerie and the Mentors had retreated, fists and voices were already being raised in defiance.

 The people of Lacerta and their defenders and champions would die, if need be, rather than live in the service of invaders.  And if the people of Lacerta must die, it was quickly being resolved that they would die as the dragons they were—and not without spilling rivers of Scodax blood.

*****

Aboard the Scodax mastercraft, prisoners had been herded in groups into holding cells that the Knights and Corps reasoned must have been used in other campaigns of aggression on other planets unknown.  Agena and Meline, with others from the Chateau, occupied one such cell, where Agena leaned restively against a wall with her arms folded and her features creased in a deep frown, masking her fear with a look of smoldering anger.  The fear underlying her look was not for herself alone.

The prisoners had been allowed to see the transmission from Amlax, as well as the people on the planet below.  Those in the holding cells knew what was happening.  Agena knew what Thrax was about to face, and that he would be facing it alone.

Meline was standing near Agena, in a huddle with a couple of other tall and especially muscular Knights.  The three of them were speaking in a very hushed tone, and Agena could vaguely guess what kinds of things they were discussing.  They were most likely planning what to do when the automatons or some of the Scodax themselves appeared bringing food or wanting to interrogate someone.  Agena could just make out Meline saying to the two males, “Yes, others in the cells must have worked out all these same things.  We have to expect them to be ready when the time comes, and we have to be ready ourselves…”

Not being privy to the entire conversation, Agena returned her thoughts to the dangerous dilemma facing Thrax, and how completely powerless she was to do anything about it.  Half-muttering, she said, “He’s going to fight Thrax in some kind of joust, some kind of duel, and try to make him an example?  He’s going to beat and humiliate Thrax in front of the whole planet, and he thinks he’ll make Lacerta fall in line that way?”