Dragon Storm Read Online Free Page A

knew.
    “Damned if I know. She seemed very sure of herself.”
    “I agree.” Darius frowned as they headed down the flights of stairs that would take them to the family apartments.
    “I think we should wait and see. Rol doesn’t have us slated to go anywhere more exciting than the Northern Lair in the next few weeks. I don’t see us undertaking the kind of journey Shanya was talking about.”
    “I just keep remembering how lately the unexpected has been the norm. Between Wil’s abduction and return, the gryphons’ arrival and all the strange things that have been going on with the Jinn, I don’t know what to expect anymore. For all we know, Rol or Nico could tell us to pack our bags tonight and head out to some foreign land.”
    “Well, if they do, we’ll at least have Shanya’s words to keep in mind. Honestly, I doubt it. Nothing exciting ever happens to us. All we do is watch over the youngsters and fly patrols. Not old enough to rule over lands or spies, not young enough to need a keeper. We’re the spare brothers, sent on the most mundane of tasks.”
    “You said it. I am heartily sick of flying boring patrols over the capital region. I want to stretch my wings and go someplace more exciting.”
    “Well, if Shanya is right, adventure may soon come knocking on our door. Be careful what you wish for, brother.”
    They joined their brothers and the new female members of the family for dinner, and nothing more was said about their encounter with Shanya.
     
    Days later, they were flying to the Northern Lair, as scheduled, when a freak storm came upon them.
    The sky burned black and green, a roiling mass of clouds and electricity. The two black dragons powered through the gusts that threatened to down them. Their task was clear, their mission imperative. They had to make it through the storm to their destination. Turning back was no longer an option. They were too far into the storm.
    Lightning arced from cloud to cloud, barely missing the twin black dragons as they darted to and fro, flying as they’d never flown before. The elder of the two—by minutes only—cried out as a jolt of electricity rode up his left leg and through his entire body. His brother came to his aid immediately, only to be hit by the same bolt of lightning, traveling from the cloud, through the first black dragon, arcing into the second and back to into the angry black and green clouds.
    Time ceased to exist as the two dragons were tossed into a vortex and spun. Sky became earth, and earth became sky. Over and over they tumbled, each certain the hard landing to come might be their very last. Their massive wings beat franticly, trying to regain some equilibrium, but neither of the two dragons could discern what was up and what was down as they were pulled and stretched by currents greater than even their own immense strength.

Chapter Two
    Darius came awake in the middle of a forest. One wing was badly damaged, bloodied and torn undoubtedly from his trip through the leafy canopy. Looking upward, he could see the hole he’d made on his way down. He craned his long black neck to seek a similar pattern. His brother had to be nearby somewhere, but the trees here were too dense to navigate in his bulky dragon form.
    Marshalling his strength, he changed from dragon to human, willing his clothing back from wherever it went when he changed. While some of his injuries improved in the magical transition, his left arm was still a mess. Nothing broken, thank goodness. Only a long, shallow gash graced his arm from shoulder to elbow. He looked around, trying to get his bearings. Nothing looked familiar. Nothing at all.
    When the storm had come upon them—so suddenly it didn’t seem natural—they’d been flying northward over their own territory. They’d grown up in Draconia, learned to fly there and knew every inch of forest and field. This pine forest was familiar, yet not. This wasn’t like any of the forests in his homeland. It looked