Apollo: Dragon Warrior: Dragon Warrior, #5

Chapter 1: One File at a Time

Nova’s life was boring—in the good way. There was nothing spectacular about it, but from what she had learned, not spectacular meant safe, and she was okay with that. She had spent her life learning about the Capital’s history—the explorations, the conflicts, the tribulations. She knew their story inside and out.

There were times, a lot of times, in the Empire’s history that things were exciting and fast-paced and spectacular. New races were discovered, conflicts were resolved, and a new way of life was formed. But, with those achievements also came pain, and suffering, and war. For Nova, reading about those times in carefully documented files and records was enough.

New girl, her boss’ gruff voice called out to her, pulling her out of her world of precision focus and causing her to jump back slightly.

She turned to face him quickly. As she did, her long, light brown hair wrapped around her face, and completely covered her dark blue eyes. She brushed the loose curls away quickly, still slightly jolted from her boss’ sudden appearance. It took a second for her vision to adjust. The transition from staring intently at the holo-screen to glancing nervously at a physical body made her head swirl around slightly.

Yes, Xon? she said.

You done with those files? he asked in the same, gruff voice he always used.

Xon was a big man, with harsh features and an even harsher presence. His beady black eyes stared out from his perfectly round, bald head with a piercing intensity. He intimidated everyone around him, especially Nova.

She wasn’t tall but she wasn’t short either. She wasn’t skinny but she wasn’t nearly as large as her physically imposing boss. While he was bold and demanding, she was meek and reserved. Their contrasting personalities made the first three months of her nine-month internship slightly terrifying for her.

The fact that there were only a few other employees in their department meant that she spent more time working one-on-one with her boss than she would have liked. But, she didn't have much say in the matter. More than that, she was an intern that really wanted a permanent job in the archives department. Which meant that she really needed to impress her boss, no matter how much he secretly terrified her.

Yeah, she said, spinning back around to face the holo-screen.

After entering in her temporary ID number, she uploaded the archives back into the Capital’s internal database system. Much of the information she had been given access to was highly classified, and downloading the documents onto a personal device was strictly forbidden. This meant that she spent long hours at the office combing through the information, sorting, analyzing, and studying it—many times for nothing more than personal gain and curiosity.

Done, she said, spinning back around to face Xon, but he was already gone.

Nova let out a slightly annoyed grunt as she began sifting through the notes she had taken. In reality, she wasn’t done with the files. She had only just begun to study them in her careful, meticulous fashion. She had a routine when diving into historical records. She wanted to absorb them completely, feel them, live them in her own way.

It had been centuries since any real action had taken place on or near Earth. The most exciting thing that happened in Nova’s lifetime was what the Government had called the possibility of a low-scale external threat. But, that never developed into anything more than a handful of news reports and an exploratory mission that was cut short due to a technical malfunction that caused the ship to go down on an uninhabited planet on the outskirts of the galaxy. Apparently, the low-scale external threat wasn’t a big enough concern for another crew to be sent out, and the entire story was quickly pushed to the side.

It was that event, though, that sparked Nova’s interest in history. The rush of fearful curiosity she felt at hearing the initial announcement was something she wanted to experience again—from the safety of her own home. So, at the age of 12, she logged into the Capital library, registered with the history database, and downloaded book after book detailing the intricate, often times polemic, history of the Empire.

There was a lot of information out there, but one specific string of events captured her attention more than the others—the history of the human's relationship with the Samou, the dragon-shifting warrior race. The Samou were the first alien race that the humans had encountered. The start of their relationship was rocky, but over time, the two very distinct groups came together to form the strongest military unit in all the galaxy, the heart, and soul of the Empire.

Leaning over her desk and staring at the screen in front of her, she studied the information she had jotted down. Twirling a strand of her hair around her finger, she read the words time and time again.

What’s got you so focused? Phoenix, her colleague asked, walking up to her desk.

Nothing, I’m just looking over something, she replied absently.

Sure, he said. He took a few more steps and leaned over, glancing at her notes of her shoulder.

Hey! she said, flipping off the screen and spinning around to face him quickly. Nosey, much?

Phoenix laughed. It was an easy laugh that matched his personality perfectly. He was kind and reserved, but confident. Shaking his head, he ran his fingers through his shaggy blond hair and gave a curious look.

I’m just looking back at the articles about the mission that took place about ten years ago, Nova replied, spinning back around and turning her screen back on. Something about it seems off to me.

What’s that? he asked.

The number of casualties was incredible, Nova replied. Hundreds of soldiers lost their lives. It just doesn’t seem like an engine malfunction would do that. Surely, they would have evacuated the ship before it hit the surface of that planet. And, why were they even inside the atmosphere there? Was there something there that they wanted to investigate?

I think you’re overthinking it, Phoenix replied. Maybe they were just getting a better look around.

The imaging capabilities aboard those ships was first-class. They could have gotten a pretty good idea of what was down there without needing to get closer.

Don’t look for fire if there’s no smoke, Phoenix said, patting her on the back.

Oh, there’s fire, she replied. I just haven’t found it yet.

Do you ever listen to anything I say? Phoenix replied.

What? Nova asked absently over her shoulder.

She didn’t hear him leave, but she smiled to herself as she leaned in to continue reading through the notes one more time. The low-scale threat was one of her favorite moments in history to study. Perhaps it was because she could remember living through it, or perhaps it was because she didn’t understand it, and that spurred her on to keep digging.

New girl, her boss said, drawing her attention away from her work again. I’m going to need you to go through a few files and pull up some information on military personnel, he said.

Military personnel? she asked. My specialization is historical records.

And is the military not part of history? Xon replied. Do you not think that the military is important enough to form part of our history?

Nova jumped a little at his sharp tone. Looking down quickly she shook her head. Okay, she mumbled. What would you like me to look up?

That night she worked late—like she did most nights. Walking into her apartment, she let out a sigh of relief at seeing her long-time friend and roommate sitting at the small, white table in the kitchen, with a hot dinner prepared and waiting for her.

You’re a saint, Nova said, walking through the small kitchen quickly and slumping down in the open chair.

And you’re a workaholic, Yoli replied, pushing a plate in Nova’s direction.

I had to do some extra stuff for Xon, Nova explained, which cut into my own work time a little.

How much longer do you have left? Yoli asked.

Nova pushed the food on her plate back and forth while she counted. Six months, she answered finally.

That’s not too bad, Yoli replied optimistically.

Nova rolled her eyes as she shifted her gaze up to her roommate and long-time friend. It’s not bad if you think of it in terms of just getting through it, she replied. But, I want to make this my career, Yoli. Which means, I only have six months left to impress a man that I can’t even be around without beginning to shake nervously.

Yoli tilted her head to the side in a sympathetic sort of gesture. If you’re so nervous around him, are you sure you want to work for him for the rest of your life?

It’s been my dream job for as long as I can remember. I’m not going to let his oversized ego prevent me from getting it.

You sound awfully confident.

Here, Nova said with a slight, pathetic laugh. All of that confidence seems to just evaporate the second I leave the apartment, though.

Yoli laughed as well and continued eating her dinner. Nova knew that Yoli couldn’t completely understand her plight. She wasn’t shy or reserved. She was outgoing and boisterous. Although she was a small woman, nearly four inches shorter than Nova, her personality was easily twice the size of her meek roommate’s.

That’s not to say that Nova didn’t have a certain spark about her. But, bringing that spark to the surface was something she found difficult most of the time. She generally opted instead for silent brooding followed by extensive venting to her ever-ready-to-listen friend.

Why don’t we talk about something else, Yoli said, looking back up at her quickly. Her short black hair bobbed around her face and her dark brown eyes danced with excitement.

Let’s hear it, Nova said, already knowing what it was that Yoli wanted to talk about.

The rest of the night, the two women sat on the couch and talked. Yoli went on about Colton, a man she had been seeing for almost six months, for most of the time. Nova didn’t mind at all. She enjoyed hearing about her friend’s life.

What she didn’t enjoy was when the conversation got turned on her.

I’ve told you, Nova said, pushing herself up and heading for her room. There is nothing exciting going on in my life. No men, no gossip, not even a funny work anecdote to share.

And with that, she went to bed.

That was her life—work, home, work, home. It wasn’t exciting or thrilling. But, she did enjoy it. Between her boss’ rants and the long hours, she was able to do what she loved—explore, feel, and live history—one archived file at a time.

Chapter 2: The Night that Changed Her Life

A week later, Nova was still keeping her same routine. Although, it seemed that her hours were getting longer and longer as Xon asked for more and more side-work which she found herself unable to turn down.

What she didn’t know was that her routine, safe life was about to change.

The lights in the archive office were low and the buzz of computers was the only sound that vibrated through the silence. Nova sat completely still, her eyes glued to the holographic screen glowing brightly in front of her. It didn’t matter how many times she read through the reports, they always captivated her interest, transporting her back to a time when the Samou were terrifying, unknown shape-shifting beasts living on a planet filled with beautiful mystery and exotic uncharted terrain.

Allison Harper, Nova whispered as she read the name of the person responsible for the detailed accounts. Biologist—Mission to Planet 48-Z.

The entries made by Ms. Harper detailed Earth’s first official mission to the Samou home planet. Reading the descriptions made Nova’s skin tingle with curiosity. Documents from Allison Harper were Nova’s personal favorites. To date, she was the only human to become fully integrated into Samou culture. Her records were the only ones that really documented what the Samou were like in their own element on their own planet. Anything that came after dealt more with trade agreements and land exchanges. Any other extensive interactions with the Samou took place on Earth.

Still, despite the strong relationship between the Samou and the humans, human presence on the native Samou planet was minimal. The dragon-shifters that remained there preferred to keep to themselves as much as possible. No one, besides Allison Harper, really knew how the dragon-shifters lived in their natural surroundings. Even the Samou who were currently on Earth knew little about their full-blooded, native counterparts. So much of their bloodline had been watered down over the generations. They had mated with humans for centuries, and through that process, some of the ingrained aspects of who they were had begun to disappear.

They were still fearsome dragon-shifters and able warriors, but the essence of who they were was weakened. They still experienced the bond, but to a lesser extent, even finding it possible to feel the connection with more than one individual. Their connection to nature and to each other had also grown weaker; their ingrained sense of loyalty was no longer to the tribe.

The sound of a door opening and closing down the hall jolted her back to the present. She glanced at the clock blinking softly in the bottom corner of the screen.

Two o’clock? she stammered as she pulled herself toward the desk quickly. How did it get so late?

She quickly uploaded the documents back into the Empire’s main database and logged off. Her mind was still distracted as she gathered up her things. What was odd, though, was that she wasn’t thinking about anything specific. She wasn’t thinking about work or the time or the files she wanted to go over again. There wasn’t anything specific that was pulling her thoughts into a state of hazy confusion, it was simply that her mind refused to function.

As she exited the archives room and turned left, the feeling of disorientation increased. The further she moved down the hall, the stronger the sensation became. Before she knew it, the walls around her seemed to slant inward, and the floor beneath her feet seemed to ripple endlessly.

I need to sit, she said to herself, taking a shaky step back. Just get back to the office and sit down for a little bit.

She continued to vocally encourage herself as she shuffled her feet backward. With each slight movement back toward the archives department, the pressure building up inside her head decreased. With each small step, she felt slightly better.

By the time she reached the door she had just exited, she was almost completely back to normal. Her head was no longer spinning, and the walls had returned to their normal, upright position. Still, there was something off. Even though her mind was clear, a strange succession of physical occurrences began to flood her senses.

As she reached for the doorknob, her fingertips began to tingle. As she shuffled her feet forward one more step, her ears began to ring. She felt as if the temperature in the hall had increased ten degrees, but the sensation wasn’t bothersome—it was almost comforting. Letting her hand drop to her side, she took another slow step past the door. As she did, the pleasant blanket of warmth that had wrapped itself around her seemed to tighten its hold on her.

Another step and her the tips of her fingers felt as if they