Thief

    The peaceful and cool night offered the ideal respite for the sleeping dragon. He had found an abandoned roof top to hide away for the whole night. No one used the building all night long, giving him a well deserved sleep. A gentle breeze blew through the streets of the town, curling around the stone and plaster buildings. The building under the dragon had seen better days with a few sections having deteriorated, exposing the reinforcement bars and metal inner layer of the plaster. The material was designed to absorb heat, though to be cheap as possible. It needed to be replaced often.
    The morning sun spilled over the distant flat horizon of the desert, filling the sky with a slowly spreading vibrant orange and yellow glow. Soon the oppressive star would be in the sky, baking everything that wasn't protected by shade and quickly scorching any creature not covered. Having lived outside most of his life he knew when to wake to best avoid the brutal heat of the star. With his scaled protected body he could survive the heat for an extended period. Longer if he had shade every so often and even longer if he had protective coverings. He disliked the latter as it hindered his flight.
    The dragon's eyes opened as the first direct rays of the sun peeked over the horizon. He slowly stood onto his four talons then proceeded to stretch out. First he pushed forward to extend his neck and tail, then flared his wings to their fullest. Next he stretched his right foreleg and left hindleg, then did the same with the opposites. He turned his head from side to side, then rotated it to wake up his neck. There was no water on the roof to wash his face. Instead he used his long tongue to gently lick over his eyelids. It wasn't ideal, but it would do for now.
    The sun crept ever higher. The dragon hated this star. Ther was the star's name. It was the enemy to all and ally to death. Even if his scales protected him to a certain extent, in the end Ther would conquer all. He snarled at the star as it slipped pass the tattered covering to his hiding place. It had sufficed during the night to keep him even more hidden and the holes allowed a soft breeze in, but now it was useless against Ther.
    The dragon pushed past the fabric and into the light of the morning. High above there were no clouds, just the pale blue and orange of the morning sky. Streaks in the sky showed where spacecraft had entered planet from orbit and each intersected at the nearest spaceport to the north. Girwath's Point spaceport. He had been there a few times in the past, but today he was going south.
    Using his right talon he fixed the metal collar around his neck, making sure the tag with registration were properly displayed. He didn't want to be stopped by the authorities. He didn't have time for delays. With a running start he leaped off the edge of the building, flaring his wings fully as he took flight.
    The light of Ther covered his scales as he soared higher into the sky. His dark blue scales didn't shine, instead soaking in the heat. At the right angle there was a hint of purple in his scales. His mane flowed in the wind as his wings beat faster, moving him higher. As he tilted into a shallow dive, his tail shifted, guiding him towards his destination. The sound of someone below perked up his ears. Someone pointed up at him, but didn't pay them any mind. No one would question a tagged dragon flying overhead. He glanced down, making sure his collar was properly positioned.
    The scent of fresh food caught his attention. Someone on the market row had prepared a morning meal. It only took him a few seconds for his snout to find the food and his to find the vendor. With one more flap of his wings he corrected his course. He wanted a morning meal and the best meals were always free.
    He stopped flapping his wings and fully extended them as he slowed his descent. The vendor's stall was adjacent to their brown stone home. It was a common building for the well off in the region. The better buildings were made of a reflective metal that was better at deflecting Ther's rage.
    With the slightest movements the dragon landed on the roof in near silence. He crept towards the edge of the building, peering over to look for the stall. He then slipped onto the metal railing holding up the fabric covering shading the vendor. Below he could smell the food. It was a meat pie.
    He lowered his head over the edge. One look was enough for him to see the vendor as they shouted, offering their food to passersby. Luckily the market row was starting to thin and the vendor hadn't sealed his stall or house against the approaching sun. Smart shoppers bought their goods in the early mornings before the heat of the day became unbearable. His long tail reached out to the stone building. Using the pincers at the end he grabbed a small broken chunk of the stone and brought it to his right talon. Luckily for him and unluckily for the vendor the window to their house was open. They likely left it open to let in the cool morning breeze.
    This was his only chance. There was no doubt the vendor was preparing to seal his shop and house. With careful aim and a proper angle he was able to throw the stone through the window and into the house. There was a crash as it hit something fragile. The dragon winced with a small grin. He didn't expect that much noise, but it was more than enough to make the vendor run cursing into their house.
    Quickly and deftly, the dragon leaned over the edge of the stall to grab the pie. There were several small hand pies and each one smelled delicious. His fore talons snatched one each as he used his tail and hind legs to lift himself back onto the top of the stall. Quickly he moved one of the pies between his jaws then jumped onto the rooftop with three limbs. He kept his wings closed so as to not draw more attention to himself. The vendor didn't see him, nor did he see the vendor, which is just how every theft should go.
    Successful in his mission, the dragon promptly started eating his pilfered meat pies. One was filled with fish and some vegetables. The second was some sort of tougher meat. He had seen a fish before, but he couldn't place what the second meat was. All he knew it was from a terrestrial creature called a bovine. He wished he could eat his food slowly, but the vendor would soon be in a deeper rage when they found a few of their pies missing. It took him five bites for each pie. It had been nearly two days since his last meal and this was a treat to enjoy.
    His long ears perked up when he heard a familiar sound in the distance. There was only one hover jackal that made that sound. With two more bites he finished the second meat pie, licked his right talon clean, then carefully walked to the northern edge of the building. In the distance he saw a jackal settle onto the sandy ground as its hover engine disengaged. The sloping front over the cabin opened and a familiar figure jumped out.
    A short legged figure landed on their hindlegs. The dragon knew this otter quite well and had been waiting here for days for his arrival. The otter had short brown fur over his body with a slight cream color running from his chin, belly, and towards his tail. Small rounded ears adorned his head. The otter grabbed a jacket from the cabin of the jackal, slipping his short arms through then clasping it closed around his front. He then grabbed sun shades to cover his eyes. They rested on the bridge of his muzzle while hooking around his small ears.
    The dragon jumped off the building, making quick time to his otter friend before he went out of sight. He dodged a few rooftop tents, antennae, and vents, even using them to kick off. There was no reason to fly to him. At the last building he leaped off with his strong hindlegs, surging forward over a small group of ottorians below.
    This time he was seen by the locals, but it didn't matter. He had been hiding for days and now his friend was here.
    "Ison!" The short legged otter shouted with a wave.
    Ison landed three meters from his friend and rushed forward. A few of the ottorian locals shouted at him. "Tanka, good to see you, master." Ison said, making sure to say the last would loud enough for the ottorians.
    Tanka looked behind Ison at the disgruntled locals. Ison knew his friend was glaring daggers at them behind his eye covering. Just as Ther crested over the nearby building, Tanka put the hood of his jacket over his head, protecting himself from the rays. Ison was starting to feel it as well, but his scales protected him. At least they would for a time, but significantly longer than without protective coverings, which was uncommon. Where Ison could survive many hours without shade an otter would barely survive past one.
    "Do you want something to eat?" Tanka pointed to the closest building.
    "No, thank you, but a drink would be nice." Ison said with a smile. His tail flicked behind him.
    "Then let's get inside." Tanka nodded and turned towards the doorway of the southern building. "I hope no one bothered you while I was gone."
    Ison walked at his master's side. "Silent, safe, and boring." He said with a grumble as Tanka opened the door with his right paw. Ottorian customs required that all otters walked on their hindlegs. Ison knew his friend would have preferred otherwise. He was capable of walking on two limbs, but he was far more mobile on all fours.
    "Sorry I had to leave you here." Tanka said as he held the door open for Ison.
    Ison lightly nuzzled Tanka's cheek, but he said nothing. Other ottorians were inside and he wasn't allowed to speak now. He hopped inside then Tanka released the door, letting it slide closed behind them. The sounds of the working otters filled the room. Through an opening in the wall Ison saw the kitchen staff working on morning meals. There were two waiters moving between tables checking on the guests while two other otters cleaned and delivered the food. It wasn't a busy morning for the staff with only six other guests.
    Ison and Tanka walked to an empty table at the front of the dining room. Tanka pulled back two of the chairs. While Ison was able to jump onto the seat, Tanka had to climb onto it. They were designed for the average ottorian and not their shorter legged kind. Of course nothing was ever made with dragons in mind, except for collars and cages. Chairs at least allowed him to sit on his haunches. Even while sitting, his longer neck kept his head level with the table. Tanka on the other talon had to stand upright on the chair to even reach the top of the table.
    One of the ottorian waiters walked up to their table, "Dragons aren't allowed to sit at the tables. You'll have to take your pet to the side room." She pointed to an open doorway. Inside Ison could see three other collared dragons eating their food from bowls. His heart always skipped a beat seeing his kin treated like this, but he could do nothing. It was how things were.
    "There is no need to worry. My pet won't be eating today." Tanka had taken off his shades. He had a charming smile on his muzzle as he reached into the pocket of his jacket, pulling out a coin. "I hope you can make this one exception for me. Maybe treat yourself after work." The waitress looked at him with skeptical eyes. Tanka pulled out two more coins, placing them on the table and sliding them towards her. He had to lean forward to reach the right edge where she stood.
    She quickly pocketed the coins, "What will you be having today?" She pulled out her blackstone.
    "A cup of coffee, grilled fish with a side of mushrooms and eggs. Hot sauce on both. Also a cup of iced water." Tanka asked as the waitress selected the order. Her webbed right hand tapped on the blackstone's touch screen.
    "Sent your order to the kitchen. I'll return with your drinks." She said then left them alone. She gave Ison a scowling look and rolled her eyes.
    Ison wished he could nip at her, but that would get him in trouble with the authorities. This was the reason he had to stay in Krial's Flat. There was no more boring settlement in the region, but it was the closest where Tanka could leave him. Dragons weren't allowed on or near military bases, even as properly tagged and trained pets. Tanka had a meeting yesterday in Girwath's Point's military outpost. Preferring a boring and safe settlement over an active and military outpost with a spaceport, Ison allowed himself to be left in Krial's Flat.
    The restaurant was far from the worst place to be right now. Here it was properly enclosed, cooled, and the vent fans were pushing a gentle breeze through the room. Tanka had removed his jacket, letting it rest against the back of the chair.
    "I can't wait to get home." Tanka complained as he sat down. At least as best as he could with his short legs. His eyes were barely above the edge of the table and he let out a soft sigh.
    Ison silently agreed with his master and friend. As a dragon he was not allowed to speak aloud around ottorians, even his otter master. He knew what his friend was feeling. It was awkward to rest on something not meant for your body shape. He had felt it all of his life.
    Ottorians came in two forms. At least that Ison had seen. There were rumors of other otter shaped creatures beyond Kashather, but on this planet there were the fully bipedal ottorians and the semi-bipedal. Tanka was the latter while the former were the dominant population. Also the dominant faction. They had control over the planet and population. They were both otters, but each were differently shaped. Ison didn't know all of the science behind it, but something to do with divergent evolutions.
    The bipedal ottorians were taller, lankier, longer armed and longer spines. The semi-bipedal were shorter, a little stouter with sleek tube like bodies. While they could walk on two legs, walking on all fours was faster and far more comfortable. Both species had small rounded ears, earthy colored fur, mid length tails with strong muscles for swimming, and all four paws had five dexterous, webbed digits. Tanka was only slightly taller than Ison when both were standing upright, while a bipedal ottorian was twice as tall as each of them.
    Tanka stood up again when the waiter returned with his plate of food and drinks.
    "Enjoy your meal." She said before leaving again.
    Tanka reached over his plate and moved the tall cup of iced water towards Ison. He then grabbed his cup of coffee, sipping from it for a moment before diving into his meal. Carefully and mindful of the ottorians, Ison took his own sips from the glass of water. He wasn't supposed to do this. Ison's brow furrowed for a moment before calming. Society be damned. He was going to drink his water and he was going to enjoy the company of his friend.

Crystals

    Ison had finished his iced water and even taken all of the ice from the cup. As they left the restaurant he softly chewed on the ice, enjoying the chill as it slipped down his throat. When he stepped outside, the brutal mid morning sun offered the opposite. Ther was unrelenting as it baked his scales. To his side Tanka already had his shades covering his eyes and his reflective jack wrapped around his body. Ison could see a snarl on his muzzle. He always did when stepping into the heat.
    Tanka walked on two legs towards his jackal. Ison had to slow his pace to walk at his friend's side. The otter reached into his jacket pocket, pulling his own blackstone. With a few taps on the screen the cabin of the jackal opened. Ison jumped in first, sitting in the open back seat. Tanka climbed in after him and climbed into the pilot seat, then reached up and pulled the cabin cover closed.
    Ison let out a sigh of relief. They were in private and he could talk now. "As I was saying before, it was boring, yes, but I found some neat things that will interest you Tanka."
    "Oh? What is that?" Tanka asked with curiosity. He sat his blackstone in a cradle then flipped a few switches on the control panel. The jackal's power source instantly ignited and the hover system spooled up.
    Ison explained as the jackal lifted above the sandy ground. "You had mentioned wanting to branch out with our marks. I heard a rumor that Uraniuth's military outpost has something unusual about it. The two soldiers were being coy about speaking details, but I thought we could take a look. It's on our way to our next contract, yes?"
    Tanka listened as he navigated through the settlement, making three turns before they were outside the streets. He changed gears on the jackal's drive and they accelerated out into the empty sandy waste land of Kashather. There was nothing as far as the eye could see. Even the jackal's sensory nodes indicated nothing besides other hover vehicles many kilometers out and the settlement behind them.
    Why anyone would want to live in the middle of this sandy flat wasteland was beyond Ison. Anyone who wanted to live on this planet was insane or had been talked into living here by someone out of their mind. The latter had happened to Tanka and his ottorian tribe. From what Tanka had told him in the past they were promised something great, but the ottorian government had never followed through. Ison had never figured out what and felt that Tanka didn't care. It was long gone and it meant nothing.
    But it meant something if Tanka and his tribe had moved here. There was something in it for them if they were willing to move to a planet where its own sun would kill them within minutes.
    Tanka replied once he was certain the jackal was up to speed and he could free up his focus. He always put his driving above the conversation. "Yeah, it's on the way to Jecre. We could stop in Uraniuth for a night. Did they share any little details?"
    "They mentioned some of the civilians seeing lights from the outpost. A strange blue and white glow." Ison explained.
    A moment later Tanka nodded, "That means the outpost is likely keeping something hidden. No doubt there if other soldiers don't know the details. Also that the military has accepted the risk of making the locals at least a little fearful, which is typical for our ottorian overlords."
    Ison pondered aloud this time, "Do you think it's a new technology they're testing? Maybe it has something to do with the rumors from the capital?"
    "You mean the rumored uprisings? Ha, as if anyone would be stupid enough to do that. By the scorching light Ther I wish it was." Tanka snarled.
    Neither of them held any love for their overlords, but any form of rebellion against the ottorian empire was always met with instant and brutal cleansing. Heretical behavior was not tolerated and often resulted in settlements being leveled. Both of them had seen it happen. There were even rumors of the ottorian fleet glassing whole planets.
    "More than likely it's just a technology test. At some point they have to do tests outside of a laboratory. Why would they pick Uraniuth? It's just a mining town." Tanka shrugged then leaned back into the pilot's seat. He pushed the jackal into the next gear and they blazed across the desert, heading south towards home.
    Ison was looking forward to home. It was the best place on this dreadful planet. There he felt safe and secure with Tanka and his tribe. There he could be himself without worry of ottorians threats. There were other dragons there too. Dragons he could talk to. They also had water. There was a desire in his scales to be near the water, but not quite like how the ottorians enjoyed it. It was the closest he could come to satisfying that desire and it made him relax.
    All around them was the dry unchanging desert. It would be a few hours at least before they reached the highlands where it changed. Behind them they left a curling wake of sand, which settled in their trail. It was impossible to be stealthy with a jackal. Luckily they never needed to use it for any of their contracts or side jobs.
    With little else to do Ison rolled over onto his back, stretched out and wiggled. A bored dragon trapped in a jackal for hours meant a sprawling dragon trying to get his blood moving. He was supposed to be in the air flying just like Tanka was supposed to be in the water swimming, but both of them were stuck in this cramped vehicle speeding across the desert.
    "You can use my blackstone." Tanka said as he grabbed it from the cradle and handed it to Ison.
    The dark blue dragon caught it in his talons then sat it on Tanka's pack he was sharing the seat with. He pushed the wake button then put in the accesscode. He started Ottreader and pulled up a book he was in the middle of. It was about ottorians. Of course it was. Everything was about ottorians. He wished there was something new to read that wasn't about ottorians or how they won every battle. Even the battles they lost in the stories they somehow won in the end. This one was a little different, but it was based in the past. The tribal ottorians fighting the savage crocodiles. Ison had never seen a crocodile, but there was a drawing of one at the start of the book. They looked scaled like dragons, but with longer snouts, no wings and they were bipedal. He hoped the crocodiles won in the book, but the book sold in the ottorian empire.
    When he eventually got bored of the book, Ison turned on some music. Not only did it perk up Ison's long ears, but Tanka seemed to sit up straighter and relax more. It was an upbeat track with ottorians singing words. Ison liked how the words flowed, even if they were in a dialect he didn't understand.
    "What are they singing about?" Ison asked.
    "It's a song about the oceans, blue skies, soft sandy beaches, and sharing them with a loved one." Tanka explained.
    "I would love to see the ocean." Ison said hopefully.
    Tanka agreed, "I would as well."
    There was one phrase that Ison understood without question. He knew this song ended with "Hrithal sequgoth ottrius." In the Kashather dialect it meant immortal god emperor. It was a phrase often used in media to give praise and thanks to the ottorian's god emperor.
    This time Tanka pressed the a button on the control panel, skipping the phrase and playing the next song. Ison closed his eyes, thankful his friend did that. Luckily not all songs had that phrase, but a good number of them did.
    Ison started a card game on Tanka's blackstone. He read the rules and messed around with it for nearly one hour. Then a second hour passed as he started to get good at the game. He was able to plan out his hands in order to have the best luck and rake in the most points each turn. There was still something outside of his grasp on the game, but he felt understanding of the basics and that he could go deeper into it. He wondered who made the game since there were no telltale signs of it being made in the ottorian empire.
    He returned Tanka's blackstone to the cradle, letting it charge there then curled up for a long nap. The morning turned to noon. Ison briefly slipped into a dream about visiting the ocean, vast endless grasslands, and tall trees. These were only things he had seen pictures of, but it felt real. The afternoon became evening. Ther started to slowly dip towards the horizon just as they reached the highlands. Kashather was a massive and boring planet.
    Tanka's voice pulled Ison from his sleep. "Ison, wake up. I need your eyes. You know that detour I wanted to make. We're there."
    Ison quickly sat up and licked at his eyes with his long tongue. "Where are we?"
    Tanka shifted the gears of the jackal, increasing the force of the thrusters as they climbed a slope. "That empty region on the navigation maps."
    Ison's eyes were wide with sudden realization. He grabbed Tanka's blackstone and started the external camera system. When they crested the slope they saw fields all around them. Fields not like the ones described in books or in pictures from other planets. Fields of crystals formations. Even more unusual was the towering structure far in the distance.
    The crystals glinted in the evening light of Ther. As they traveled further south they progressively became bigger, both taller and wider, and more complex in formations. Their facets sparkled a rich blue and purple. A few that were broken had white surfaces. They passed one that had been shattered down the middle. Electrical sparks danced between the two halves.
    "The crystals seem to be electrified." Ison reported to his friend.
    "What's the building? I have a couple guesses, but I thought they decommissioned all of them." Tanka asked. His focus remained on driving.
    The massive super structure in the distance had small drones dancing around it. At least what Ison assumed were drones. He opened Tanka's pack, removing his friend's horizor. He placed the vizor over his eyes, then steadied himself as he examined the structure. The massive central structure had a series of vents on the top. Beneath the vents was the bulky mass of the structure. Ison had no clue what would be inside, but there were other vents lower in the building. He saw at least four different bay doors on the east side they were facing. Several circular concave buildings were lined along the south and north of the superstructure, and each group was at least two kilometers from it. The vast, unbroken horizon made it easy to see everything in detail. Only the occasional crystal formation obstructed the scan from the external cameras and the horizor.
    "Those are drones. They look to be disassembling the structure. At least that group is." Ison explained as he watched a second group of drones. "There's a second group adding to the structure."
    "Do you see any large vents? Maybe a large beam projection array on one of the side structures?" Tanka asked.
    Ison wasn't sure what he was looking at, "Yeah, I see some vents and a few of them look active. I am not sure what you mean by projection arrays. I assume you mean the concave like buildings with the central posts. What is this building?" Ison lowered the horizor, looking to his friend.
    "A building that shouldn't be standing, but we're in a place we shouldn't be." Tanka glanced to his right at the massive building.
    Ison looked down at Tanka's blackstone when he heard a blaring alarm and an alert on the display. "Tanka!"
    "It's the passive sensors. Someone has spotted us!" Tanka hit the high gear for only a moment. The jackal buzzed around them as the radar countermeasure turned on. "Hold onto your seat!" He said as he turned off the port aft thruster and turned on the port side thrusters. This pushed them into a drift towards a massive crystal.
    Ison did as his friend said, his talons firmly clenched the seat under him as centrifugal force wanted to throw him outward.
    Tanka was focused on driving. His words were strained. "We can't out run them, but we can hide until they pass." They nearly hit the crystal as they slipped between two of its massive branches near the ground. A moment before they came to a stop the alert ceased. "I am sure they saw a jackal on their radar, but nothing after that."
    Ison relaxed his talons, taking several deep breaths to calm himself and his racing heart. "Did they get our heading?" He asked with his ear now perked and his head over Tanka's backrest.
    Tanka leaned back into his seat. He let out a relaxed sigh. "No, any radar waves after the first were absorbed."
    Ison pondered a moment. He didn't know all the of science behind radars or the countermeasure system. "Why wasn't it active before the first radar hit us?"
    Now that they had time to wait for the military to calm Tanka explained in length. "It was, but there are so many radar singles from who knows what. Comms traffic, interstellar radiation, and even the curse of Ther. The military uses different radar frequencies to locate targets and often never the same ones. Either I try to block a group of frequencies and leave the others open, or I have the countermeasure detect the frequency they used the block further waves. Either option is risky."
    Ison nodded in understanding. He wasn't the brains behind their little group. That was Tanka. He wasn't a dumb dragon, but he couldn't build a terminal from scrap and then have it hack networks well within a day. Instead he enjoyed sneaking around, being the eyes and talons for his friend's espionage. He had learned much in their last ten years working together. One of thing he learned was to trust his friend's tinkering and programming. Another was that Tanka was a good friend.
    "What do you think that building is?" Ison asked his unanswered question.
    Tanka turned on the jackal, warming up the hover coils and the thrusters. "It's a terraformer."
    Ison glanced outside as if he could still see the super structure. "Didn't they abandon that project?"
    Tanka focused himself as he pushed the jackal into first gear, peaking out of the crystal cavity. The alert returned on the blackstone, but the tones were softening. 
    Ison looked at the display then reported to his friend. "The radar source is moving away from us." 
    Tanka hit the thrusters and cycled through the power levels to high gear in rapid suscession. "Yes, I thought they did, but obviously they're using it for other purposes now." There was a long pause before Tanka suggested. "How about we stop at Ivesy's depot for fuel and dinner? I don't want to have Yinia make us food when we get home."
    Ison did enjoy Tanka's wife's cooking, but Ivesy was still a fantastic choice. "Sure, let's do that." Being on the road for nearly two weeks was starting to get to both of them. In a few more hours they would be home where they could relax and enjoy the company of friends and family.