RAN, page 16
They entered the large portal and approached the transport. A Human stepped closer, saying through his translator, “I will answer questions you have.”
Dombit climbed a short ladder into the cab. Garlan followed him. The Human climbed up the other side.
“You start the motors here,” the Human said, pointing to a button on the console. “You steer like this.” He rotated the steering wheel back and forth. “This lever puts the vehicle in forward or reverse. That peddle is the accelerator and that one’s the brake.” He put his hand on a lever sticking up from the floor. “This is the handbrake. It is set right now. When you are ready, start the motors, release the handbrake, and ease down on the accelerator. Be ready to hit the brake if you need to.”
Dombit started the motors. He heard a faint whine. He released the handbrake, moved the direction lever to the forward position, and gently pressed down the accelerator. The transporter eased forward. He backed off on the accelerator, and the vehicle slowed. He touched the brake, and it stopped suddenly.
“Use the brake more gently,” the Human said.
Dombit turned the steering wheel to the right and then left. The vehicle responded immediately. The vehicle was heavy, but steering took no effort. Dombit stopped the vehicle and backed for a few seconds. It took a moment to understand how to steer in reverse, but he caught on right away. He turned toward Garlan with wide open eyes.
“A swamp lizard could do this,” he said, scales bright blue. He drove the vehicle through the portal and parked it to one side.
Dombit and Garlan returned on foot through the portal. This time, Garlan mounted first, and the Human remained on the deck. Garlan took the steering wheel firmly in his hands, started the motors, and eased off the handbrake. When he pressed the accelerator, the vehicle surged forward. He stomped on the brake so it stopped immediately, throwing them forward slightly.
“Gently,” Dombit said, “like holding a fertilized egg.”
Garlan opened his eyes wide and eased forward, this time without jerking. “Good analogue,” he said, “about the fertilized egg, I mean.” He parked next to the first transport.
“Are you ready to do it with one of your guys?” Dombit asked.
“Let’s do one more, just to be certain,” Garlan said.
After that, the remaining seven passed through the portal without incident. The Arcan soldiers took to driving like they had been doing it all their lives. Garlan and Dombit stood together, observing.
“Nice, Captain,” Garlan said. “Smooth operation. I’ll so inform the general.”
The remaining eleven posts went without incident. All the Arcan soldiers took to driving just like those at the Ramden Post. By noon the next day, Dombit reported to General Klarot that all one hundred forty-four troop transports were delivered.
Dombit arranged to deliver two dozen field artillery pieces to each post. At the Ramden Post, he opened the portal to see all the weapons arranged for easy movement by hand through the portal. It took twenty minutes. Humans used a machine they called a forklift to transfer several pallets of field artillery shells to the post. Each unit had simple instructions in Geroptic embossed on its body. By the time Dombit closed the portal, Garlan’s troops were already setting up one artillery piece to test it and learn how to aim it.
Before the day was over, Dombit had delivered two dozen artillery pieces and several thousand shells to each post. He reported to General Klarot.
“All twelve posts now have six hundred sidearms, six hundred rifles, twelve troop transports, two dozen field artillery pieces, and a thousand shells. Two troops from each post have received maintenance and repair instruction for the troop transports, and two dozen troops from each post are now trained drivers. We are ready to go to the next phase of your plan, General.”
Prophet Dudengi Vrokhun’s Private Chambers—Dragon Temple, Dragon City, The Geroptic Nation, Planet Arcan
Prophet Dudengi Vrokhun sat behind an ordinary desk in his private chambers. The Geroptic Nation’s twelve senior bishops, dressed informally, occupied seats scattered around the Prophet’s chambers. Vrokhun also wore informal business clothing, suitable for his bishops’ eyes, but no one else.
“We have been hearing strange things coming from our twelve provinces,” Vrokhun said. “Each of you has reported events taking place at the military post in your province. We need to get a handle on this before it corrupts the peoples’ faith.”
Vrokhun sat quietly, his nearly transparent scales revealing nothing at all. A quiet murmur spread through the chamber as the bishops discussed the events among themselves. There was no deep dogmatic belief among these twelve bishops. They were Arcans who respected power. The Prophet exercised power from his pulpit in the Dragon Temple, but the bishops held the real power in The Geroptic Nation. They controlled their people, the children’s education, and collected taxes. Collectively, they kept the populace ignorant of anything except The Book of the Great Dragon and simple commercial arithmetic.
The twelve bishops lived lives of opulence behind closed doors. They were vigorous males with continuous access to females who had unfertilized eggs in their pouches. Where it made sense, the females were allowed to bring their eggs to term and raise the resulting offspring in establishments that resembled convents on ancient Earth. More often than not, however, the fertilized eggs were taken from the females and destroyed, and the females given a choice, become a religious acolyte inside the convent walls or die.
“I have invited General Klarot to meet with us here to explain what is happening in your provinces,” Vrokhun said. “Be free with your questions. The general, like yourselves, has some issues with a rigid doctrinal interpretation of The Book of the Great Dragon. You should receive a sympathetic ear to any reasonable question.”
“Please change into your robes for this meeting. I will see you back here in fifteen minutes.”
General Nirurian Klarot arrived at the Dragon Temple in a troop carrier driven by Captain Dombit. Two dozen loyal troops occupied the carrier’s belly, each in dress uniform and carrying one of the new sidearms that they had practiced using for the last several days.
“You know the plan,” Dombit told the troops as they exited the carrier. They quickly dispersed through a Temple side door.
Klarot and Dombit, in full parade dress, mounted the sweeping steps to the Temple main entrance. A priest greeted them without fanfare and ushered them into the Prophet’s private chambers.
The Prophet sat at his desk, dressed in his informal religious attire. A comfortable chair had been placed opposite the desk for Klarot. Someone quickly replaced it with two, the second a bit farther from the desk. Six bishops sat on either side of the desk arranged in quarter circles so they could see and be seen by the Prophet and the general.
Vrokhun and the twelve bishops came to their feet. Klarot and Dombit bowed deeply toward the Prophet. They remained standing.
“Welcome, General Klarot and Captain Dombit. We are eager to hear your latest report.” Vrokhun closed his eyes and lifted his hands and head upward. In sonorous tones, he said, “Great Dragon in the Sky, we stand before you in reverence and awe, knowing that you control each of us and the universe in which we live. Extend to us your blessing during this meeting, and grant us courage to exalt your name above all else.”
The Prophet spread his robes and sat. Klarot and Dombit took their seats, as did the twelve bishops.
“So, General, talk to me!”
“My Lord, I hardly know where to begin. Every day, I have been carrying out your wishes for the governance of The Geroptic Nation. Things went smoothly and without incident until, one afternoon, the Great Dragon spoke directly to me through the communications machines we use for our dealings with Amred and Ceffid. The Great Dragon told me, and I quote: General Nirurian Klarot, this is the Great Dragon in the Sky. I have important news for you and The Geroptic Nation, but first you and I must speak privately.
“My Lord, the Great Dragon opened a door into his realm. I passed through the door and met the Great Dragon’s Archangel. We Geroptics have never before known the Archangel’s name. I reveal it to you now: Isidor Orlov. He does not look like us, but he has two arms and two legs. His head is round with hair on top, and he has no tail. He can reach down into our individual lives and affect our behavior.” Klarot smiled inwardly. “Archangel Orlov showed me much about your private behavior—each of you. I know about the girls, the convents, the opulent lifestyle.”
A quiet hiss passed through the twelve bishops as their collective scale color rippled light red.
“The Archangel wants us to bring the true faith to Amred and Ceffid. He has given me a large cache of weapons every bit as modern as Amred’s and Ceffid’s.”
Klarot glanced from side to side at the twelve bishops. Then he nodded slightly at Dombit, who extracted a ten-centimeter hyper-brick from a pocket and handed it to Klarot.
Klarot stood and raised his voice. “The Great Dragon has ordered me to bring you into his Archangel’s presence.” He placed the hyper-brick so the portal would be visible to the Prophet and all twelve of his bishops, and activated it.
A collective gasp rose from the bishops. Vrokhun remained stoic. Klarot reached out his hand.
“Follow me, Lord.” He gripped the Prophet’s hand. “The Great Dragon will remove your weight when you enter his realm. While you are there, you can fly, although I recommend you keep hold of me for stability.”
Vrokhun walked around his desk and followed Klarot through the door.
Udachnyy Zvezdolet Sergei Krikalyov—Flashing In and Out of Warp at Lodan L4, Operations Center
Vrokhun had listened to General Klarot with a good deal of amusement. He did not know what his general was trying to accomplish. When Klarot started discussing weapons, Vrokhun perked up. He didn’t believe for a moment that the weapons came from the Great Dragon. He was skeptical of His existence, anyway. He presumed the weapons came from Amred sources, but if his bishops wanted to believe the Great Dragon was the source, that was fine with him.
Then the door opened…to somewhere. Not the Great Dragon’s realm, of that Vrokhun was certain. Could this be offworlder interference? he asked himself. That would explain a lot.
Vrokhun let Klarot lead him through the door and found himself floating with a falling sensation. For a few seconds, he thought he might lose his breakfast. Not suitable Prophet behavior, he thought as he consciously settled his stomach. Klarot floated to his right. Before him floated, not the Great Dragon’s Archangel, but a bipedal being that matched the description of the offworlders who had contacted Amred, according to Vrokhun’s sources.
“May I introduce…” Klarot started to say, but Vrokhun held up his hand.
“I am Prophet Dudengi Vrokhun, spiritual leader of the Geroptic people.” Something picked up his words and translated them into an offworlder gibberish. “I am also head of the Geroptic government. You have already met General Nirurian Klarot, who heads my military forces. He informed me you have supplied him with weapons equal to those of Amred and Ceffid.”
“Did General Klarot explain to you my role in the Great Dragon’s realm?” Orlov asked, his strange sounding words made intelligible by the same machine that translated Vrokhun’s words.
“Let’s dispense with the charade,” Vrokhun said sharply. “You are one of the offworlders, and we are aboard your starship.”
Orlov shrugged at Klarot.
“Turn off your translating machine,” Vrokhun told Orlov. Orlov did so. “Testing the translator,” Vrokhun said. It produced no sound. He turned to Klarot.
“What in the Great Dragon’s name are you trying to do?”
“My Lord, your intent has always been to bring the rest of Arcan under the rule of the Great Dragon. This is how I thought we could do it.”
“Why the subterfuge? Do you really see me that stupid?”
“No, my Lord, naïve perhaps when it comes to the Great Dragon and the outside world, but definitely not stupid.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Vrokhun saw Orlov point something at him. Then everything went dark.
Klarot did a double take when Orlov rendered Vrokhun unconscious. He pointed at the translator. When Orlov activated it, Klarot said, “What did you do to him?”
“I used an EMD—Electro-Muscular-Disruptor. He’ll be unconscious for at least an hour. You don’t want to use a pellet firing weapon on a spaceship. It can penetrate the hull.”
“Now what?” Klarot asked.
“I was just about to ask you the same thing.”
“If we are to move forward, I need to assume complete control of the government,” Klarot said. “I can do that by force, but the people will not follow me—even most of my troops would rebel.” He hung in the air, thinking. “Do you have a facility where you can safely detain Vrokhun?”
“Back in the Solar System, yes. Why?”
“If you detain him, I can tell the bishops that as a reward for his faithfulness, the Great Dragon has decided to let the Prophet remain in his realm. The Great Dragon can name me as the Prophet’s successor.”
“Why not just eliminate him?” Orlov asked.
“I may need him in the future. I would want him properly cared for, with dignity.”
“I can handle that, but if I am going to be your jailor, I will need several Arcans you trust to run the detention facility.”
“Fine; you set it up, and I will supply the personnel. I think we can probably deal with that later. Right now, I need to handle the Vrokhun matter.”
They worked out the details, and then Klarot walked alone through the door, back into the Prophet’s chambers. As he walked through the door, a bright light surrounded him, projected from the starship’s Control Center. A deep, resonating voice from the Control Center filled the chambers.
I am the Great Dragon in the Sky. As a reward for his good and faithful service, Prophet Dudengi Vrokhun will not return to Arcan and The Geroptic Nation, but will remain in my realm as my permanent liaison to The Geroptic Nation for the glorification of the Great Dragon in the Sky. I have chosen General Nirurian Klarot as his worthy successor, to rule The Geroptic Nation in his stead, and to carry out my greater plan for bringing all the peoples of Arcan under my rule as the Great Dragon in the Sky.
The bright light faded, and the portal collapsed. Klarot looked around the chambers. All twelve bishops had prostrated themselves on the floor.
“Gentlemen, to your feet! The Great Dragon has spoken. I am a military guy. I have read The Book of the Great Dragon, of course, but am not really familiar with its deepest meanings. Consequently, I will rely upon your wise counsel as we move forward. To facilitate this, you will immediately come together here in this chamber after I leave to select one of your number to be my personal advisor. Then you will agree on a successor to the bishop slot of the individual you choose.”
Klarot turned, picked up the hyper-brick, and motioned Dombit to join him. They left by the main entrance and descended the broad flight of steps. A trooper standing watch hurried to the side door, and several moments later, the troops who had entered the Temple surreptitiously returned to the carrier.
The Village of Cordan—Southeastern Corner of The Geroptic Nation, Planet Arcan
The small village of Cordan sat on the coast several dozen kilometers north of Sogard, the third largest Geroptic city located on the southeastern corner of The Geroptic Nation. Cordan was home to 2,500 lizards—farmers, fisherfolk, and tradesfolk. The tradesfolk serviced the needs of the farmers and fisherfolk, and the local families. Cordan was self-sufficient, importing from Sogard things impossible to make locally. The Bishop rarely visited, except annually around harvest time when he could collect tithes that the villagers did not have at other times.
The local Dragon School served the entire village. Classes started at 8 am and the children left around 4 pm. There was just one classroom where all the students attended together. They learned to read The Book of the Great Dragon and learned to write by copying passages from the Holy Book. Half the day was spent on this. In the afternoon, the children learned numbers and arithmetic—just enough to calculate sums for business. Their teacher of thirty years had died. The village elders looked far and wide for a replacement. Nobody wanted to live in their remote village, far from the attractions of a big city. For several months, the children went without a teacher. The local lay-minister tried to substitute, but he lacked training to do the job, and ended up just reading passages from the Holy Book and having the children recite their numbers. Finally, they found Judhee Groklet, who had a reputation for thoroughness and was popular with his students, and didn’t seem to mind Cordan’s remoteness. There were things they didn’t know about Judhee Groklet, but that didn’t matter. He was a teacher willing to come to Cordan, and they badly wanted a teacher.
Judhee Groklet closed The Book of the Great Dragon and addressed his working-class students.
“We have learned together for some time now. We have looked beyond the world of Cordan to glimpse a bit of the universe in which we live. I have asked you to be careful how you present these ideas to your families. If your parents are deeply religious, you might want to avoid sharing with them, and instead, talk with your classmates. I will be happy to speak with any parent who has questions. Please tell your parents to give you a message for me, and I will visit them whenever they wish.” He gave them a wide-eyed Arcan smile.
“Let’s pull out our private notebooks and pick up where we left off yesterday. Who can define a quadratic equation?” Every hand in the room went up, from the youngest to the oldest. “Let’s ask our youngest lizard. She seems eager to share her knowledge with us.”
