Power of the Fire Dragon: A Branches Book (Dragon Masters #4)
Page 2
his fire high up in the air,” Drake reminded her.
“And because
you
can’t control your dragon,
Worm didn’t get to show what he can do!”
Poof!
The argument ended when a short,
round wizard appeared in front of them.
“Rori and Drake! Good.
Please come with me,”
Diego said.
They followed Diego to Griffith’s workshop.
Diego pushed some papers off a table. He
pulled a glass ball the size of a large onion from
his pocket. Next, he put a circle-shaped stand
on the table and rested the ball on it.
“Come, look in the gazing ball,” he said,
waving his hand over it. “Let’s see what we
can see.”
“What are we looking for?” Rori asked.
“Some sign of Maldred,” Diego replied.
“And his four-headed dragon?” Drake asked.
“The one you saw in your dream the last time
you were here?”
"“Well
—” Diego began. Rori interrupted him.
“But we don’t even know what Maldred
looks like,” she pointed out.
Diego took a book from another pocket.
He put it on the table and opened it to a page.
“
That's
Maldred,” he said. Diego pointed to
a picture of a wizard with a pointy chin. He
wore an eye patch over his left eye. He had a
black mustache and a long black beard with
a white stripe.
“But I am not looking for Maldred’s face in
the gazing ball,” Diego explained. “I am looking
for a red mist — a sign of his dark magic.”
Drake couldn’t look away from the picture.
The dark wizard seemed to stare at Drake
right from the page. He was glad when Diego
closed the book.
Rori and Drake crowded around to look in
the gazing ball with Diego. There was no red
mist. Just a white fog.
“Welcome, Diego!” Griffith called, walking
into the workshop. “So should I be worried
about Maldred while I am gone?”
“We should always be worried about
Maldred,” Diego replied. “But there is no sign
of his magic in the gazing ball. And if anything
happens, I will keep your Dragon Masters safe.”
“I know you will, friend,” said Griffith. Then
he turned to Drake and Rori.
“Come!” he said. “It is time to see us off.”
Griffith swept out of the room.
T
hey found Bo and Ana in the Training
Room, standing next to their dragons.
“Wow, you look so fancy!” Rori exclaimed.
Ana wore a yellow dress that shone like
the sun. Bo had on a silky blue tunic with a
wave design stitched into it. Shu and Kepri’s
scales were clean and shiny.
beHOld, THe DRagONS!
Bo looked at Drake and gave a little bow.
“I will miss you, friend,” he said.
“And I will miss you, too,” Drake said. He
bowed back.
Ana squeezed Rori in a hug. “I wish you
could come!”
“Someone needs to stay here to guard the
castle,” Rori said, trying not to show how sad
she really was. “It’s an important job.”
“Ana, Bo, it’s time!” Griffith said.
Bo and Ana got onto their dragons. They
waved as two of the king’s guards led them
out of the Training Room.
Drake and Rori jumped up. They quickly
climbed to the top of the nearest tower so they
could watch the parade.
“Wow!” Rori cried, looking down. “We can
see all the way to my village from up here!”
Drake looked, too. A big crowd had come
to the castle to see the dragons! His mother
was probably down there.
Rori sighed. “I wish we were going, too.”
“So do I,” said Drake.
At least there’s one
thing Rori and I agree on!
Then a trumpet blared loudly in the courtyard.
“Behold, the dragons!” a guard announced.
Bo and Ana came out of the castle, riding Shu
and Kepri, and the crowd gasped. King Roland
nodded to them as he rode on his horse, leading
the dragons. Rows of soldiers marched on either
side. The crowd clapped and cheered as they left
the kingdom.
Drake and Rori watched until the dragons
were out of sight.
Suddenly, Rori pointed
to Drake’s Dragon Stone.
Drake looked down. It
was glowing green. Then
he heard the voice of his
dragon inside his head.
Trouble is coming!
Drake ran down the tower stairs, all the
way to Worm’s cave. Worm was sitting up. His
eyes were bright green.
“What is it, Worm? What kind of trouble?”
Drake asked.
Worm shook his head, like he wasn’t sure.
Rori ran up behind Drake. “What’s going
on? What did Worm tell you?”
“He said trouble is coming,” Drake replied.
“But he doesn’t know exactly what or when.”
“Trouble, eh?” Diego said, walking into
the cave. “
Hmm.
I haven’t seen anything in
the gazing ball. But Worm is good at sensing
things. I can make a spell to find out if Maldred
is blocking his magic so I cannot see it. I will
get on it, so don’t worry. Go have fun!”
But Drake found Diego’s orders hard to
follow. He could not stop worrying about
Worm’s message.
T
he next morning, the sun shone brightly
through the window in Drake’s room. He
looked over at Bo’s empty bed. It felt weird
to be all alone.
When he got to the dining room, Rori and
Diego were already eating breakfast. Drake
sat down. Rori looked mad.
“No, Rori,” said Diego, “you may not take
Vulcan into the Valley of Clouds today.”
TROuble
iN Th
e TOWeR
“So, first, I could not go to Arkwood, and
now, I cannot even go outside?!” asked Rori.
“The Valley of Clouds is too open. It may
not be safe,” said Diego. “But you may take
Vulcan up to the tower.”
“Yay!” Rori jumped up.
“If you see any danger, get right back inside
the castle!” said Diego. Then he left to keep
watch for any sign of Maldred.
“Let’s go, Drake,” said Rori.
She tapped her foot while Drake quickly
finished his breakfast. Then they went down
to the Dragon Caves.
Worm was still sleeping, so Drake didn’t
wake him.
He’ll need his rest if trouble really
is
coming,
Drake thought.
Rori ran to Vulcan’s cave. He snorted happily
when he saw her.
It was a tight squeeze in the stairway, but
the big dragon followed Rori and Drake up
to the tower.
As soon as they reached the balcony, Vulcan
spread his wings. Then he launched off the
balcony and flew up into the blue sky.
Rori smiled. “Look how amazing he is!”
Drake nodded. “Yes, he looks really strong.”
“I know,” Rori said proudly. “And Worm . . .
I know Worm can do amazing things, too.”
It was the first time Rori had ever said
anything nice about Worm.
“Thanks,” Drake said. “I think that Worm
is the right dragon for me. Just like Vulcan is
the right dragon for you.”
Rori sighed. “I hope so. I just wish Vulcan
would connect with me.”
Drake looked up at the sky. “I’m sure he
will soon.”
Then he spotted something beyond Vulcan.
“What’s that?” he asked. He gasped. “Is that a
dragon flying this way?”
Rori looked. “Maybe it’s Shu or Kepri?”
But this dragon had green scales. And
something else that made it different than
their dragons.
“That dragon has four heads!” they both
cried at once.
T
he dragon swiftly flew toward the tower.
“Remember Diego's dream?” Drake asked.
“He saw Maldred riding a four-headed dragon!”
Rori squinted. “There
is
a man on that
dragon's back!”
GuArding TH
e cAStle
Vulcan was still flying beside the tower. He
hadn’t seen the other dragon yet.
“Vulcan, come here!” Rori yelled. Her dragon
circled back to the tower.
Curious, they watched as the strange dragon
came closer. It had dark green scales. Each of
the dragon’s four long necks had lighter green
scales. On top of each neck was a head with a
short, thin snout that curved on the end like
a beak.
Then they saw the man riding the dragon.
He was wearing a red robe. He had an eye patch
and a beard with a white stripe in it.
“It’s Maldred!” Drake yelled.
Rori jumped on Vulcan’s back.
“Rori, where are you going?” Drake asked.
“I’m going to fight Maldred!” she replied. “I’ll
show King Roland what Vulcan and I can do!”
“But Diego said we should get inside the
castle! And we’ll need Worm’s help, too!” Drake
said. “We can’t fight Maldred on our own. He’s
too powerful!”
Rori wrapped her arms around Vulcan’s
neck. “This is
my
castle and
my
kingdom. I
will stay and fight. You can go for help if you
want,” she said.
“Vulcan, let’s go!” Rori cried.
Vulcan flew off the balcony. Drake knew
he needed to get Diego and Worm up there
quickly. Drake closed his eyes. He gripped his
Dragon Stone.
Worm, come now! And bring Diego!
he
thought with all his might.
Please, Worm!
Whoosh!
A few seconds later, a green glow
burst next to Drake. Worm and Diego instantly
appeared on the tower.
“Drake, what's wrong?” Diego asked.
Drake pointed to the sky.
Rori and Vulcan were flying right toward
Maldred and the four-headed dragon!
V
ulcan, fire!” Rori yelled.
Vulcan blasted the four-headed dragon with
a stream of fire. The dragon swiftly soared up,
avoiding the flames.
“The hydra from my dream!” Diego cried.
THE HYDRA
“Diego, I told Rori she can’t fight Maldred
on her own. But she wouldn’t back down.
She doesn’t even have her saddle on! She could
slip off Vulcan any minute!” Drake yelled.
“Oh, dear!” Diego cried. He pointed a finger
at Vulcan.
Poof!
A saddle appeared underneath Rori.
Rori looked surprised for a second. Then
she grabbed onto the reins.
“Hi-yah!”
she cried. Vulcan charged up
toward the hydra.
The hydra opened all four mouths.
“Rori, steer away!” Diego yelled. “The hydra
shoots poison!”
But Rori didn’t listen. “Fire!” she yelled
again. Vulcan shot out more flames just as the
hydra attacked with a green mist. The fire and
the mist met in midair.
ROOOOAAARR!
Vulcan cried out as some
of the mist hit his wing. Then he dove down to
the ground toward safety. Rori held on tightly.
Diego rushed to the edge of the balcony.
“Maldred! Come over here and fight like a
wizard!” Diego challenged.
Maldred turned at the sound of Diego’s voice.
He steered the hydra down to the balcony.
Drake ducked behind Worm. Up close, he
could see that the hydra’s eight eyes were
glazed over red.
“I am not afraid of you, Diego! Your magic
cannot stop me!” Maldred said. He stared right
at Drake. “You are a Dragon Master, aren’t you?”
Drake was too scared to answer.
“It was
your
dragon that destroyed my red
orb,” the wizard went on. “But your dragon’s
little trick revealed his powers to me.”
“What do you know about Worm?” asked
Drake.
“Yarrrrrrgh!”
Diego let out a cry. “Begone!”
He pointed at Maldred. Blue lightning shot
from his finger. Smiling calmly, the evil wizard
waved his hand. The blue lightning sizzled
out in midair.
Maldred laughed. “Is that all you’ve got for
me, wizard?”
Diego turned to Drake. “Maldred is much
too powerful,” he whispered. “We need Griffith.
I’ll use magic to get to him quickly. But, Drake,
you must stay here. Use Worm to get Rori and
Vulcan to safety!”
Drake nodded. “I will try.”
Diego snapped his fingers and vanished.
Rori and Vulcan swooped down from the
sky. The Fire Dragon’s wing still sizzled from
the poisonous attack. Maldred flew up high,
back into attack position.
“Fire!” Rori yelled.
Vulcan blasted the
hydra again. Then
the hydra shot more
poison at Vulcan.
Vulcan dodged it,
but it hit one of the
castle towers. The
stone sizzled and
then started to melt!
51
Drake caught Rori’s eye. She looked frozen
in fear.
“Rori, fly down!” Drake called up to her.
“Touch Worm! We need to get out of here!”
“I know this trick!” yelled Maldred. “You
aren’t going to vanish into thin air this time!”
Then he pulled on the reins to make the hydra
dart toward the tower.
Worm began to glow green. But Rori still
wasn’t moving
. She would need to touch Worm
so he could transport them all out of there.
“Come on, Rori!” Drake urged. Then he
turned to Worm. “Worm, you’ll need to float
up there! Hurry! Touch Vulcan! And I’ll jump
up to touch your tail!”
Worm nodded. He began to float.
Then Drake heard an evil laugh. He turned
and saw Maldred holding up a glowing, red
stone. Red light shot out from the stone.
Startled, Vulcan bucked under Rori.
Zap!
A beam of red light hit Worm right
between the eyes. Drake stumbled backward
as he watched Worm’s eyes glaze over red—just
like the hydra’s eyes. Then the light formed a
red bubble around Worm. The bubble floated
toward Maldred.
“Worm! No!” Drake yelled.
Maldred grinned. “Worm is mine now!”
T
he red bubble holding Worm floated in
the air beside the hydra.
Maldred aimed the red stone at Vulcan.
“Get him away, Rori!” yelled Drake.
Rori pulled hard on the reins just as the
red beam of light came bursting out of the
red stone. This time, Maldred’s magic was a
second too late. Vulcan had already shot up
over the castle. Drake watched Vulcan and
Rori fly out of sight.
MaldRed'S PlaN
He was all alone.
Did Rori leave me here? And when will
Diego get back?
he wondered. Sweat broke
out on his skin.
“Let that big brute fly away,” Maldred said.
“Worm is the dragon I want. Worm is what I
came for — he is my prize!”
Drake tried to contact Worm. He touched
his Dragon Stone.