Tiger's Voyage (51 page)

P
erhaps you would allow me to introduce myself? I am Jīnsèlóng
, the voice said.
Now what brings you and that bright, shiny, dazzling, priceless trinket to my realm?

I sighed and appraised the dragon while I tossed the Fruit from palm to palm. Its sparkling ginger eye watched the Fruit carefully as I moved it. Water dripped off its horned head. This one looked more like a water dragon. Its triangular mouth was closed but sharp white teeth overlapped its bottom lip. Its scales were made of hard golden disks that glinted in the water. The scales were variegated in tint, ranging from bright bullion, to Buddha gold, to pirate doubloon, to copper penny. The lighter colors ran along its belly while darker tones were on its back.

Instead of the horns its brothers had, Jīnsèlóng had four long spikes protruding from the back of its head and a trail of smaller spikes starting at its nose and traveling along its spine. When it opened its mouth, its long red tongue rolled out and flopped to the side. It was panting while it watched me play with the Fruit, and it reminded me of a dog waiting greedily for a treat.

“We’re not really interested in trading the Fruit,” I said.

Oh. How
very
disappointing.
The tongue rolled into its mouth before the golden dragon snapped its jaws shut and started to slip back into the water.

“Wait!” I shouted desperately. “Maybe you’d be interested in another kind of trade?”

The dragon halted and angled its head to peer up at me.
What did
you have in mind?

“We seek information. We’re searching for Durga’s Necklace.”

I see. And … what would you give me for this information? It would have
to be something priceless. Not even your Fruit would be as valuable.

“I’m sure we’ll come up with something,” I offered dryly.

Very well. We will barter. But on
my
turf.

“Where exactly is your
turf
?”

My palace is beneath the waves.

“How do we get there?”

Dive off your ship with a piece of gold in your hand.

“How deep is it? How are we supposed to breathe?”

The depth will not affect you as long as you remain in my realm. Breathing
will also not be a problem in my underwater palace. But you must hold the gold
tightly in your hands until you get there. Shall we meet in say … an hour?

“Fine. See you there.”

The dragon slipped beneath the waves and disappeared. I mumbled, “Great. I’ve got a date with a dragon,” and went to hunt down everybody.

I headed back to the wheelhouse and slammed open the door. Kishan and Ren abruptly stopped arguing about something. I rolled my eyes and said, “Really? Now is not the time. We’ve got a date with Jīnsèlóng in less than an hour. Mr. Kadam? Are you here?”

“Just a moment.” He emerged from the back dressed in a robe and drying his hair with a towel.

“Sorry to interrupt your shower. We need three pieces of gold and something really valuable to barter. I suspect it needs to be very shiny.”

“The golden dragon?”

“Yes. We had an interesting chat not twenty feet away from these two.” I crooked my thumb over my shoulder. “So much for tiger hearing,” I accused.

Kishan managed to look sheepish, but Ren was gearing up to fight. “And where were
you
? Were you below deck like you were supposed to be?”

“No. I was on top of the wheelhouse, if you must know. And before you get on your safety soapbox, I
can
protect myself.”

Ren growled in frustration, but I turned toward Mr. Kadam and pointedly ignored him. “So do you have any gold?”

“Yes. Let me get dressed, and we’ll go through the safe.”

An hour later, Kishan, Ren, and I stood at the opening to the wet garage. Kishan held a gold pen, Ren a letter opener, and I held a golden brooch that belonged to Nilima. Ren had brought his trident, Kishan the
chakram
and the
kamandal
, and I brought Fanindra. The Fruit and the Scarf were placed in a diving bag, along with precious stones, Nilima’s most expensive jewels, and a golden statue of Durga.

I wasn’t very optimistic about the dragon accepting these things when he’d said that even the Golden Fruit wouldn’t be enough. I worried he’d want Fanindra or the
chakram
, and Mr. Kadam insisted we hide all of Durga’s gifts in the bag as well. I insisted on keeping Fanindra with me, and Ren slung the bag over his shoulder and chest.

Just before we jumped, Nilima rushed in with Durga’s lotus-flower lei. She placed it around my neck and told me she’d had a dream I would need it. I hugged her and then Mr. Kadam.

“If this doesn’t work we’ll be back in a second—wetter, but safe.”

Mr. Kadam patted my back and told me to be careful. He reminded me that golden dragons are greedy, that they would do anything to protect their hoard, and that they are notoriously devious and tricky. He also cautioned me not to take anything, not even so much as a pebble, from the dragon’s lair.

I nodded and warned the brothers not to drop their gold baubles, or else they’d run out of oxygen. Kishan smiled and slipped into the water. I turned to Ren. “Are you ready?”

He smiled. “Robert Browning said, ‘There are two moments in a diver’s life: One, when a beggar, he prepares to plunge; then, when a prince, he rises with his prize.’” He ran a finger down my jaw lightly. “I am
more
than ready,
hridaya patni
. And I intend to come back with my
prize
.”

I shivered as he turned and slipped into the water after Kishan.
How
could he cause a system overload with just one little touch? Actually, his voice
alone could do it.
I rubbed my tingling jaw, tightened my fist around the brooch, and jumped into the water feet first.

My head broke the surface. I sucked in a deep breath and dove under. Kicking hard, I searched frantically for a sign of Ren or Kishan. They were gone. Just when I was ready to turn around and head back to the surface for another breath, my hand holding the brooch shot straight out, and the golden brooch almost jumped out of my grasp. As I tightened my hold on it, my body surged forward underwater as if I was holding onto a ski rope.

I held my breath even though my lungs were bursting. I squeezed my eyes shut as I was yanked at superspeed downward into the black ocean depths. Fanindra’s eyes began to glow, and in her light, I saw a flash of white ahead of me. Ren had been wearing a white shirt. My vision was going dark. I knew if I passed out, I’d drop the brooch and die here. There was no way I was going to get to the surface. I was too deep. The last of my air bubbles rose above me. One grew. It became larger and touched my mouth and nose; it expanded and draped over my face like a mask.

I blinked several times and gasped. Cool air rushed into my lungs, and I breathed deeply, panting hard while trying not to hyperventilate. I began to relax and, now that I could see, studied my surroundings. The rubber band holding back my hair swept away, and the long locks streamed out behind me in the water. I imagined I looked like a mermaid.

We continued deeper and deeper. Fanindra remained inanimate except for her glowing eyes. Flashing fish swam quickly away as I passed. I saw a shark feeding on something big resting on the ocean floor. I shivered and sent a mental thank-you to the universe that he was too busy to pay attention to me.

I was tugged along at a fast pace about ten feet above the ocean floor and watched crabs scurry as we passed. Sea anemones twisted in the current, and a giant lobster made its way slowly across a rocky outcropping. A stingray shook the sand off its back and swam away, its hiding place disturbed by our presence. A dim light ahead grew brighter. I gasped in wonder as we passed a bed of oysters, rose up over a forest of seaweed, and headed toward an underwater castle made of gleaming gold.

It shone with an incandescent light—enough that the ocean was brightened in a large perimeter surrounding it. The outside grounds had been carefully nurtured to look landscaped. Giant corals and anemones grew as tall as trees and colorful fish and ocean plants thrived in the area. I was sped toward the front gates, which opened automatically, and zipped through the courtyard. The brooch slowed me down as I approached the front door, which was open. Lights blazed inside, and I could see Ren standing on the other side of the door looking for me.

I hovered in the water for a moment until he saw me. He stretched out a hand through an invisible barrier. Grasping mine, he slowly pulled me forward and through. He wrapped an arm around my waist until my feet found the floor. He smiled as I touched his arm. “You’re …
dry
!” I

exclaimed. I grabbed my shirt and pulled a lock of hair over my shoulder. “
I’m
dry!”

“Yes. Come. They’re waiting for us. Kishan’s with the dragon now. We need to cover up Fanindra. You’ll see why.”

Quickly, he created a sweater with the Scarf and wrapped it around my shoulders. The sleeve was wide enough to cover Fanindra. Satisfied, Ren guided me into the opulent castle. The walls were painted in metallic hues depicting scenes of sunken ships and pirate treasure. Farther down was a portrayal of rich cities that had crumbled into the sea.

Gleaming statues stood in every corner made of marble, onyx, and jade. Hand-painted Greek vases stood on ornamental pedestals. Chests full of silver, gold, and gems overflowed and spilled onto thick Persian rugs piled one on top of the other. One wall was adorned with hundreds of bejeweled masks and precious art from perhaps every country in the world.

Ren had to pull me along, because I would often stop to gape, admiring one treasure after another. We entered a spacious, comfortable room and found the golden dragon in his human form seated across from Kishan, laughing.

“I win,” the dragon exclaimed. Kishan frowned. “It’s very hard to best me, you know. Don’t take it to heart,” Jīnsèlóng taunted.

“What did you lose?” Ren asked.

“Nilima’s earrings.”

“What’s going on?” I asked, puzzled.

“There you are,” the dragon said. “It took you long enough, my dear. Now if you would hand over the Fruit—”

“Don’t move,” Ren warned. “He’s a crafty devil, and he means to take everything he can get.”

The dragon frowned. “Spoilsport. Very well. Just give me the brooch, and we’ll call it even.”

Ren held up a hand. “You get nothing. If you like the brooch, we will barter for it.” Ren continued thoughtfully, “Perhaps, if you would provide some refreshment for the young lady, I will let you look at it. It’s quite valuable.”

“Bah,” Jīnsèlóng said, but peeked at me out of the corner of his eye and laughed uproariously. “Very well, I’ll provide refreshments. I have a feeling you’re going to be very good at this.” He wagged his finger at Ren while grinning.

“I should be. I was well trained in negotiating trade for my father’s kingdom.”

“Ah, but I promise you, you’ve never dealt with one such as me.” The dragon clapped his hands and a platter of strange appetizers appeared before us. “Please sit and enjoy the bounties of the sea. Do you see how generous I am?”

I sat down on a handsome golden chair softened with thick pillows. “Yes, you are the epitome of a gracious host,” I mumbled as I picked up a goblet and sniffed before sipping. It tasted like a cross between prune juice and cranberry. I bit into an appetizer and found it salty and crunchy. “What is this?” I asked.

“Crispy swordfish on a seaweed cracker glazed with golden starfish butter. The drink is squeezed from the bulbs of flowering sea grass.”

“Uh-huh.” I dusted the remaining crumbs from my fingers, swallowed thickly, and set down my drink. “Delicious,” I said with a forced smile.

Kishan leaned forward, scooped up a seaweed cracker, and chewed, while watching the man across from us. This dragon’s human form was more diminutive than his brothers’. His hair was shoulder length and gray, and the top of his head was bald. A bulbous-tipped nose sat above a lip so thin it might as well be nonexistent, while his thick bottom lip protruded slightly outward. Ginger brown eyes sparkled with intelligence as he sat forward and rubbed his hands together greedily. He looked like an old principal of mine, and I wondered if his appearance was purposely divined to put us at ease in the negotiation process.

The dragon interrupted my thoughts. “Now, shall we begin?” he inquired impatiently.

Ren nodded and opened his bag, then reconsidered. “Perhaps the first item we should consider is the brooch in Kelsey’s hand.” He turned to me. “May I?”

I dropped the brooch into Ren’s outstretched hand and saw the dragon peer at it hungrily. What happened over the next few hours amazed me. The dragon began with a surprising bid—information on the white dragon in exchange for everything in our bag, sight unseen. I would have immediately accepted but Ren sat back, pressed his hands together as if seriously considering the offer, and then politely declined. A moment later, I remembered that the Fruit and the Scarf were in the bag, and the brothers had probably stowed the
chakram
and the trident in there too, so I was glad he declined.

Ren made a counteroffer so low it made the dragon laugh—my brooch in exchange for information. After that, the two men became very serious. It was like watching a game of mental chess. Each man was considering several moves into the future while I had a hard time figuring out what they were trying to accomplish in the present. In a matter of minutes, the dragon had the brooch, the large ruby from our bag, a Shangri-la buffet, and a set of fairy clothes, and we had a guaranteed safe passage to the surface, though he wouldn’t tell us how, a chest of coins, a priceless jade statue from China, and a diamond necklace.

After another hour, I wasn’t sure Ren was making any real progress. Jīnsèlóng seemed overly interested in our bag now, assuming it would create any treasure we came up with. He hadn’t noticed yet it made only food and things made of cloth. Ren and the dragon had a curious way of dealing with each other.