“I know, Roberts,” Martin said in a quieter voice. “And under normal circumstances, I would never question protocol. But in this, I feel we have no choice. The Order of St. George is dangerously unstable. If an army attacks and cripples the Order or, worse, shatters it entirely, think of what that will mean for the rest of the world. Talon would have no opposition. There would be no one left to stand against the dragons. Besides...” His gaze rose, sweeping over the crowd. “It is my duty to protect this base and the soldiers under my command, no matter the cost. I will not let this chapterhouse fall, even if I must consort with demons. Afterward, if the Order demands punishment, I will accept full responsibility for accepting help from dragons. But we must survive whatever is coming first.

“We will be forming a temporary truce with a group of outside dragons,” Martin went on, his tone becoming hard and matter-of-fact again. “Any who cannot accept that may leave. You can pack your things right now and go, and there will be no repercussions.” He paused, as if giving the soldiers a chance to take the offer, to leave the Order of St. George and not look back. Surprisingly, no one moved. “But if you choose to stay,” Martin went on, “know that for the first time in history, we will be letting dragons onto the premises. These dragons will be under the full protection of St. George, and no one is allowed to harm, insult, hassle or cause them grief of any kind. You will all be the polite, well-trained soldiers I know you are capable of being, and you will represent the Order to the best of your ability.”

“And if the lizards attack us, sir?” a soldier asked, almost defiantly.

“They won’t,” I answered. “They’re not monsters. They’re going to be just as scared and nervous and wary of you as you are of them. But they know what’s at stake. They have just as much reason to hate Talon, and they’ll want to make this alliance work.” If any of them even decide to come.

“One more thing, sir.” Another soldier stepped up, deliberately addressing Martin and not myself. “If Sebastian’s dragons show up, how will we tell them apart from the dragons that will be attacking the base? I mean...” He shot a sneer at me. “One lizard is pretty much like another. How will I know what dragon I’m supposed to shoot?”

“You’ll know,” I replied, addressing them all. “There will be a difference. The dragons arriving to help us will look like every other dragon you’ve faced—bright scales, different colors, all hatchlings. Talon’s dragons are metallic gray with white horns and eyes. They’ll all look the same, so you should be able to tell the difference between them and the rogue dragons.”