Silver Dragon Codex (24 page)
Read Silver Dragon Codex Online
Authors: R.D. Henham
“I know!” he yelled back, jogging to the ladder and swinging up it. “Mysos is in the audience!”
“That wasn’t what I …” She said more, but he couldn’t hear her over the roar of the crowd. The villagers had seen him climbing to the tightrope, and they clapped and whistled and yelled their approval while he rose higher and higher.
The tightrope stretched out before him, a glistening silk thread forty feet above the upturned faces and waving hands. Jace stepped out onto it, feeling it shift beneath his careful balance. Each step was a cautious one, testing the rope’s weight and tension, edging out over the crowd. This was where he felt most at home, with the wind in his hair and the solitary feeling of hovering above the world. Was this how Belen felt when she flew alone in the clouds? As if she’d found somewhere that she really belonged? If so, then this was as close to being a dragon as Jace was ever going to get, and he loved it.
He began to shift his weight, causing the rope to bounce up and down, hefting him farther upward with each thrumming motion. Jace looked down at the crowd, waving to them in anticipation of his final jump—and there, standing among his friends and well-wishers, her auburn hair loose and flowing to her waist, was Cerisse.
Don’t be afraid to fall
. Belen’s words echoed in his ears as he smiled down at his half-elf friend. Find someone who shares your dreams, and live them fully.
Jace smiled, and his feet left the tightrope. He tucked himself tightly, rotating in the air like one of the dancing pukah fairies, feeling the earth and sky switch places again … and again … and again … and then, after his fourth rotation, he snapped his legs back down, finding the tightrope beneath him, waiting to catch him before he fell. He straightened, spreading his arm, as the music below swelled.
Jace grinned and waved both arms toward the roaring, exalting crowd, but Cerisse’s glowing face stood out among them, trusting, believing in him completely.
Don’t be afraid to fall
, he repeated to himself, finally understanding what Belen had been trying to tell him.
“I won’t, Belen. Thanks to you.”
EPILOGUE
lippered footsteps trampled the dust of the road, pressing the ground with eager motion. He did not say goodbye to them—how could he have expressed so full a heart knowing so few words? As he walked, he prayed for their futures to be happy and bright. His journey to Khur would be a long one and the trials many, but none more meaningful than the battle already won within the traveler’s spirit, the one that had renewed his heart. Hope, long dead and buried, had been rekindled. A belief that good dragons still existed within the world was restored. He had thought them all dead and gone, that all dragons were like the terrible Green who had destroyed his people.
If a good dragon could be found who would give her life to protect innocents, if a mere circus performer could defeat an evil curse, and a wizard of death could fight for the side of light, then perhaps, just perhaps, she could be alive after all.
Amani, my daughter. In my sorrow and my guilt, I abandoned you.
With one word, the brave boy who fought for good dragons told Ebano how he, too, could make things right.
Return
, Jace had said.
Return
.
My name is Ebano Bakr Sayf al-Din ibn Ceham, prince of Sayf, of the grand tribe of Khur. I have traveled many lands and seen many wonders, praise Keja who united us and curse his seven sons. The truth has been revealed to me, my family taken from me, and I bear the hope of silver dragons and the dream of redemption in my heart. Hear my prayer, noble gods—let me find her and set us both free
.
Alak-al-saham-din-al-bhar, may the blessings of the gods be upon the world
.
BOUT THE
A
UTHOR
R.D. Henham is a scribe in the great library of Palanthas. In the course of transcribing stories of legendary dragons, the author felt a gap existed in the story of the everydragon: ordinary dragons who end up doing extraordinary things. With the help of fellow scribes, R.D. has filled that gap with this series of books based on Sindri Suncatcher’s remarkable
A Practical Guide to Dragons
.
BOUT THE
A
UTHOR’S
A
SSISTANT
Ree Soesbee has assisted R.D. Henham with several books in the Dragon Codex series, including
Black Dragon Codex
. She is the author of seven books in the Dragonlance: The New Adventures series, as well as several other books for children and young adults. She lives in Seattle with the Grand Adventuress of Cats and a healthy perspective of her place in the world. She studies aikido and Socrates, which leads to interesting internal conversations. You can find her website at
www.learsfool.com
.
Unlock the secret of the gold dragon!
The blue dragon, Lazuli, lives to torment the villagers of Anders’s hometown, Hartfall. He demands more and more, until the baron, Anders’s father, has only one thing to give: himself. Lazuli will arrive at midnight to take the baron away. Anders has one hope left: the gold dragon that sits silently watching atop a ledge above the village. In one legendary battle Lazuli magically petrified the gold dragon, once Hartfall’s sworn protector. But Anders is sure he can find a way to awaken the beast. In the dead of night, he sneaks out onto the gold dragon’s ledge, and there he stumbles onto a secret that throws everything he thought he knew about his home and his family into question. Can Anders unlock the secret of the gold dragon in time to save his village—and his dad?
G
OLD
D
RAGON
C
ODEX
Available January 2010
Silver Dragon Codex
©2009 Wizards of the Coast LLC
All characters in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
This book is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast LLC. The information in this book is based on the lore created for the Dungeons & Dragons® fantasy roleplaying game.
Published by Wizards of the Coast LLC. Mirrorstone, its logo and D
UNGEONS
& D
RAGONS
are trademarks of Wizard of the Coast LLC in the U.S.A. and other countries.
All characters, character names, and the distinctive likenesses thereof are property of Wizards of the Coast LLC.
Text by R.D. Henham with assistance from Ree Soesbee
Interior art by Todd Lockwood
Cartography by Dennis Kauth
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Henham, R. D.
Silver dragon codex / R.D. Henham.
p. cm.
“Mirrorstone.”
Summary: A silver dragon who has lost her memory must discover why she attacked and cursed a village.
eISBN: 978-0-7869-5632-6
[1. Dragons–Fiction. 2. Blessing and cursing–Fiction. 3. Amnesia–Fiction. 4. Circus–Fiction. 5. Fantasy.] I. Title.
PZ7.H3884Sil 2009
[Fic]–dc22
2009007818
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