Crossroads 04 - The Dragon Isles Read Online Free

She’s following an old
prophecy, but most of it seems plain and simple to me. These waters are
perilous, though.” He grinned. “But the potential reward far outweighs the
peril. I don’t mind peril for a fat reward. Though stowing away wasn’t the best
idea you’ve ever had.”
                 “After
all we’ve been through?” Trip said. “I didn’t want to miss out on the fun.”
                 Mik
cut a last bit of linen with his knife and finished bandaging Trip’s shoulder.
                 “I
think I’ll climb the mast,” the kender said. “It would be sleek to be the first
to spot the Dragon Isles.”
                 “It
would at that,” Mik said, adding, “Try to stay out of trouble.”
                 “Always,”
Trip replied. He bowed curtly, then exited the cabin and walked through the map
room onto the quarterdeck.
                Mik crossed to the sea chest in one
comer of the small room and unlocked it. Lifting the heavy lid, he reached in
and pulled out a small, intricately carved silver box.
                 Kingfisher ’s captain took a piece of
parchment from the box and carefully unfolded it. In the ragged vellum lay an
artifact fashioned in curving golden arcs and exquisite lines. It was roughly
square, with soft edges, though it was asymmetrical—or perhaps incomplete. Amid
the shimmering golden loops of the setting lay a large black diamond. The
parchment was covered with writing, but Mik ignored the words and gently lifted
the artifact from its resting place.
                 The
black diamond glittered in the cabin’s semi-darkness, shining with a faint
bluish light.
                 Mik
gazed within the diamond’s cloudy facets, and an image formed in his mind:
jewel-like islands dotting an azure sea, snow-capped peaks reaching for the
clouds. High overhead, metallic shapes arced through the clear air.
                 The Dragon Isles.
                 He
felt himself swept over the glorious landscape, the towering mountains, the
lush glades, the verdant forests. Past the main isles and out to sea again, to
a temple wreathed in fire and light. Within the temple, at the crest of land,
sea, and sky shone a brilliant blue-white diamond—twice as large as a man’s
skull.
                 Mikal
Vardan’s heart beat faster as he beheld it.
                 Then
he blinked, and the images faded from his eyes.
                 “They’re real,” Mik whispered, unaware that he spoke at all. “The isles are real. The treasure is real. And I shall sail us to it.” He
clutched the artifact tightly in his hand, and its pale light danced across his
brown eyes.
     

             
      
              
           Three
     
                 The
Sea Dragon’s Servant
     
     
                Mog
watched enviously as his mistress picked the remains of a ship from between her
huge teeth. Mangier sharks, razorfish, and hideous kestel viperfins swarmed
around the sea dragon, fighting over her leavings and attending her every whim.
She paid them little heed. Only the Turbidus leeches, strange, twisted eel-like
creatures fed on her own toxic blood, garnered any of the dragon’s attention.
                 The
leeches allowed Tempest to control her fishy minions. They connected the
thralls to the immense sea dragon—sending her sights and sounds and smells from far distant places. To disobey Tempest was to court crippling,
leech-inflicted pain. The lifespan of a bad servant was, naturally, very short
Mog was a good servant. Not as servile, perhaps, as the swarms of leeches that
ringed the dragon’s neck like a living mane—but useful, and certainly powerful.
                 The
dragonspawn flexed his hulking muscles and chewed the last bit of flesh from
the bones of a drowned sailor. His mistress had