Ragnarok

Chapter 7 - Prophecy

The Ormarr was old, and he was dying.

He moved slowly and with considerable effort, more dragging himself along than actually walking. His limbs and face were distorted with dozens of cancerous tumors, one eye swollen entirely shut and leaking a vile fluid. He stopped frequently to drop down to four legs, chest clearly laboring to keep his body oxygenated. After a time, a low, deep voice spoke to him, gently reminding him of the final task he had to accomplish.

"You must activate the thrusters yourself, Revered Sarkos," the voice said patiently. A small robot rolled up to the scaly body and injected a dose of adrenaline. The lizard suddenly jerked and its remaining eye opened wide. "The fusion reactors are fully online and the world engines await your final command."

Wearily, the Ormarr dragged himself back up to his hind legs, leaving a number of shed scales behind. Another robot started rolling in front of him, allowing him to brace his weight on the machine and walk along behind it. It was apparent that every step was agony for the wretched creature, but his determination did not seem to falter.

At last, the Ormarr came to a large control panel, above which a massive hologram of their world hung in mid-air. The once vibrant world had been scorched black by the larger of its two suns, the majority of its atmosphere boiled off along with its oceans. It was a dead world, dead except for Sarkos and the voice that spoke to him, encouraging him to set the dead world free.

Slowly, Sarkos, high priest of his people, reached out his forelimb, pressing a series of buttons that would initiate the planetary launch sequence. The final failsafe was a lever, which made him grunt painfully as he pulled it back. His final task done, he let himself collapse onto the floor, his eye sliding closed for the final time.

"Thank you, Revered Sarkos," the voice said soothingly. "May you find abundant prey in Lord Ramas' lands. Your sacrifice shall not be forgotten."

The Ormarr bared his blackened gums in what may have been a smile. "Carry our name to the most distant stars, oh great Rok. Long after our star system is gone, you shall remain..."

When the thrusters ignited, the planet's own gravity was magnified a hundredfold, crushing the old creature into a pulp...

Mia woke from her dream, her sleeping shift clinging to her with sweat. Draco was laying on her chest, and raised his head slightly when he felt her breathing change. "Bad dream, mistress?"

"A strange one, at least," she mumbled, wiping the sleep crud from her eyes. "There was some kind of dinosaur stomping around a spaceship, or something. A really old, really sick one. There was a voice that came out of nowhere, too, like an onboard A.I. maybe.

"And they spoke to each other ... it wasn't any language I've ever heard before, but somehow I was able to understand them anyway." She shook her head, trying to remember more, but it was fading as dreams most often did. "Then he pulled some kind of lever, they accelerated really fast, and the dinosaur died. That's all I can remember ... oh, and the dinosaur called the A.I. 'Rok'."

Draco blinked, showing that he was storing the information in his memory banks. "Recorded. Will you be returning to sleep now, mistress?"

Mia sighed and picked up the little robot, getting up out of her hammock. "I'd like to, but I barely got to sleep as it was, after fighting Lady Hydra. Not to mention that dragon frying me to a crisp. I think I need to meditate for a little bit before I can get back to sleep." She blinked twice, engaging her VR implant, and the steel walls of her room faded into a warm Mediterranean mountaintop, with a grand marble building standing in front of her.