The Dragon Slayers

The Dragon Slayers is a classic science fiction comedy short story by Frank Banta, originally published in the early 1960s and now freely available through Project Gutenberg. Set on a futuristic version of Venus, the story follows Pole and Bliss Kenton, a married couple making their living harvesting pretzins deep in the Venusian jungle — a job that sounds unusual even before a fire-breathing dragon enters the picture.

When a marauding dragon burns down their cabin and a vacuum snake injures Bliss, the Kentons find themselves in a spiraling series of comic misfortunes with no easy way out. Their only help comes from Division Chief Carl Wattles, a bureaucratic superior who surprises them with a surprisingly effective solution involving a fumigation bomb and one extraordinary dragon-slaying technique.

The story shines through its blend of absurdist humor and sharp sci-fi imagination. Banta uses the classic trappings of pulp science fiction — alien planets, exotic dangers, rigid company rules — to build a world that feels both strange and oddly familiar. The comedy comes not from slapstick but from the delightfully mundane way the characters face their outlandish circumstances.

Short, fast-paced, and genuinely funny, The Dragon Slayers is a gem for readers who love vintage science fiction with a comedic twist. It proves that a well-crafted story does not need to be long to be memorable, and it remains an entertaining read decades after its first publication.