Extinguished Knighthood

“There weren’t always dragons in the Valley. Back before humans tarnished most of this planet, there was no need for us. That’s what I was told, anyways. I don’t think there’s anyone left who can confirm it, though. All I know is that once humans started conquering parts of Earth from the native species, we were called to keep them under control.

But we probably won’t need to do much about it for a while. Some of them don’t seem to know which side they’re on, and end up killing other humans. They’ll probably all turn on each other, leading to them going extinct, and this planet being safe again. Then we’ll move on to the next planet that harbors evil. That's what we've always done, and that’s what we’ll continue doing until the whole universe is safe.

After that… I’m not sure what we’ll do. As soon as we’re done restoring peace in one place, we’re immediately whisked away to the next with no time to appreciate the beautiful land we just saved. I know it’s selfish of me to say this, but I almost don’t want us to finish wiping out the humans just yet. I’ve heard that Earth is supposedly a beautiful planet, even beyond the edges of the valley, and I want to explore every corner of this wonderful sphere before I never see it again.

I know, I know, it’s wrong for me to think that way, but don’t see why I should risk my life out there committing genocide without getting anything out of it, even if they’re also genocidal. I’ve heard some of the stories from other knights who barely returned alive. Humans use their appendages in horrific ways to kill us and each other. They can shoot their scales at us, take their bones out and swing them around, fire individual fingers from their elbows, and even cast flames from their hands that burn down entire forests.

That’s why our nest is here in Sanct Valley. Thanks to the nearby volcano, humans don’t come around here. This is the safest of the few places they haven’t reached yet, and it’s by far the most delightful home we’ve ever had. The sun always passes straight above us along the center river, long cadmium green grass waves at everyone who passes by, yellow streaks part the overcast sky, and the wind always blows the volcano’s ashes to the other side of the white mountains that turn blue when they reach the ground.

Our nest on the previous planet could never compare to this one. I was too small to become a knight back then, so I didn’t see much beyond our nest, but I remember black grass and red skies. We had to finish our mission there quickly because of how much the humans had already destroyed. Apparently the savages of that planet already knew what we were up to, because as soon as we showed up, most of them came directly for us. I’m told that the only reason we won was because the humans still never stopped fighting each other.

No humans seem to have noticed us on this planet so far. Either that, or they’re too busy destroying the rest of Earth. I’ve been trained to fight them since I was young, but if they’re capable of destroying the whole world, I don’t want to confront them. Even if I wasn’t scared, though, I don’t think I’d fight. I’m not in a hurry to leave the planet with the Valley Where Ashes Never Fall. There’s too much I haven’t seen yet. As soon as we go to war with the humans, I’m sneaking off to go explore the world. I’m sure there are more places just like Sanct Valley that the humans haven’t touched. Who knows? Maybe I’ll find an answer to why they’re so keen on destroying their own planet.

The way I see it, it makes no sense that they’re making themselves go extinct like that. Maybe they’re just sadistic and want to see everything else in ruins, or they think it makes them seem strong. I guess that’s what we dragons are for: speeding up their extinction so they can’t take more life away. It’s a sad existence for us, but since we’re the only ones who are strong enough to take them down, no one else can do it for us. Even so, I don’t want to do it. Just because I’m strong enough to fight doesn’t mean I should be forced to. But I still have to, or else the humans will dominate the universe.

I wish I was born as anything other than a dragon. I feel like it would be a much simpler life to be born as a cow with no worries aside from eating grass, or a bird who gets to fly wherever it wants. Heck, make me an insect. Narrowly escaping from birds and seeing the world up close sounds way more fun than being a dutiful knight who never gets recognition for their heroism from anyone but other knights. Even being a human sounds more enjoyable without the threat of dragons. At least then I’d have a choice in whether I wanted to stay on this planet or leave it behind. Maybe I’d even be able to stop a planet’s destruction from the inside. I could turn the water from black back to blue, or the grass from yellow back to green, or the sky from orange back to cyan. Maybe I could even befriend other humans and convince them to help me save the planet.

Everyone else calls me an idealist. Maybe they’re right, but it’s still nice to think about. After all, the reason we’re fighting is so the universe can go back to being peaceful. If humans were harmless, we wouldn’t need to become knights, and we could all enjoy navy oceans, green grass, and cyan skies. It would be amazing if humans and nature could coexist, even if it doesn’t look like that’ll be the case anytime soon. Well, if we can’t collaborate, maybe we could at least compromise. Once I get away from the fighting, I’ll find a way to do that. Humanity as a whole might be evil, but there has to be at least one person who doesn’t breathe fire on their own feet. If I can find them, that’ll be my first step to saving this world my own way. For now, though, I’ll have to wait until I get my chance.”

I was an idiot when I said all of that to myself. I’m a dragon; I was born to kill those who deserve to die. Dragons don’t have time to see what’s out there. There are always more worlds that need saving, more humans to eliminate, and more fragile dreams to crush. I keep forgetting how any of the others endured all of this. Maybe they just got used to it. After all, once something becomes routine, it also becomes insignificant. I don’t know why that hasn’t been the case for me, though. I’ve been fighting for most of my life now, and I still flinch every time another human dies because they all look like someone I used to know. And if I ever found a hint as to why humans are so disgustingly sadistic towards their homes, I don’t remember it.

I never found any place as beautiful as Sanct Valley. The humans already ignited the rest of the world and covered it in ash. That’s why they all have to die. But if we exterminate everyone on one planet, we have to kill more elsewhere. And that’s exactly what happened. Sometimes I wonder if the universe will ever run out of tainted planets for us to save, or if the humans will ever fix their own mistakes so we won’t have to.

So far, we’ve liberated five planets from them in the time I’ve been able to fight, every victory less meaningful than the last, despite the increasing human population we exterminated. I still remember how I felt the first time I killed someone for the first time. And the second time. And every time after that. I’ve killed 3,785,281 people, a pathetic number compared to what some other heroes have achieved, but I didn’t start counting until planet three or four. I don’t remember which. On the other hand, we’ve lost 13 on our side, or at least I believe so.

My memory is a bit finicky regarding all of this. I remember everyone whose blood turned my yellow claws red, but I can’t recall all of them at once. All of my thoughts are scrambled flashbacks of the past, such as when I was planning to run away before my first fight. If the scene in my head depicts a specific battle, I can tell you the names of everyone that fought in it, and precisely what weapons they used, but without the unpredictable flashback, I can’t recall anything about it. Sometimes I even forget about Sanct Valley. This is one of the few times I’ve been able to recall it in detail. I’d best savor the memory before another one replaces it.

There are many things I don’t remember, such as how I learned everyone’s names on all five planets, or when I realized that human destruction comes from their tools as opposed to their appendages, but they’ll come back to me eventually. Give me some time, and I’ll lay the pieces out for you.