Page 2 of Mad Dragon of Chaos

An icy wind whipped up, carrying with it the heavy scent of rotting fish guts. Tyche gagged and covered his nose with his hand.

Shey pushed away from the railing he’d been holding and carefully walked to the center of the deck, his eyes narrowed as he tried to peer into the nothingness. The sound of water hitting the sides of the ship had dulled to a whisper while the wind picked up, tugging at his clothes and shoving its chilled fingers through his hair.

Could it have been a dragon sent to deter them from getting too close to the island?

Waves crashed, and there was a wet slapping sound before two massive great white sharks leaped out of the water from the starboard and port sides to land on the deck not more than ten feet in front of Shey. The ship rocked and pitched wildly under their sudden weight, nearly sending Shey to his ass. He fought to keep to his feet, his eyes locked on row after row of sharp teeth that chomped at him.

Shey retreated and drew the gun that he’d kept at his hip since they’d boarded the ship leaving Sirelis. He also kept a long sword on his back, ready for any kind of attack. He hadn’t expected it to be a shark attack, though. The yacht was enormous—no shark should have been able to launch itself onto the deck.

But they weren’t dealing with a normal world any longer. This was a dragon-fueled nightmare world that apparently included sharks bigger than elephants. Joined by several sailors who’d run out on deck, Shey fired at the sharks. Somehow, the bullets bounced off their smooth flesh as if they had been made of bulletproof armor.

“Son of a bitch!” Adrian snarled as he ran up to stand beside Shey. His silver throwing knives flashed in the faint light as they sped across the deck at the sharks. But like the bullets, each one bounced off their pale hides.

The sharks thrashed and chomped through their attack. Their tails rose and fell, causing the yacht to bob wildly in the water. The deck slanted toward the sharks, and Shey slid closer on the wet deck. Ominous creaks and groans rose from the bowels of the boat as if it were in danger of snapping in half.

A cold chill ran down Shey’s spine. He had no problem swimming. He was practically half fish. However, he had zero desire to drop into icy, man-eating shark waters with no idea how close they were to the shore.

The gun in his hand clicked, announcing that it was now out of bullets. He had another magazine on him, but there was no point in wasting the bullets. With a snarl, he shoved the gun into the holster on his hip and drew his sword. His heart leaped into his throat and lodged there while his eyes locked on all those teeth waiting to shred his flesh.

As he slid closer to the shark on the left, he slashed his sword so that it clanged on teeth. Putrid breath slammed into his face, churning up a queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He swung his sword again, but it only thunked into hard flesh without breaking.

A dragon roar echoed like thunder across the sky, and orange light illuminated the sky. Shey chanced a glance up to see a black-scaled dragon lit brightly by wings of fire. But this wasn’t just any dragon. This was Drayce Ladon, royal bodyguard and fiancé of King Caelan Talos. So, naturally, the man in shining silver and white armor on the dragon’s back had to be Caelan. Perfect timing.

The dragon roared a second time as it dove for the sharks. He grasped one in his talons, sinking deep into the flesh. With a fierce flap of his wings, the dragon shot into the air and tossed the shark away. The beast disappeared into the blackness, but the splash of it hitting the water could be heard above the howl of the wind.

As the ship righted itself now that it only had the weight of one shark to pull it down, Shey scrambled to his feet and hurried to Adrian. He grabbed the man’s upper arm and lifted him so that he was standing.

“What the hell are they doing here?” Adrian breathed. “Is this even real?”

Shey’s gaze jerked to where Drayce and Caelan were swinging toward the ship. If the sharks and the darkness were all part of the nightmare, couldn’t this version of Caelan and Drayce also be Haru’s attempts to fight the nightmare? Shey found his excitement dimming. He’d wanted them to be real.

“Real or not, I appreciate the help,” Shey mumbled. He got Adrian upright, and they backpedaled to where Tyche was waiting near the stairs along with several other sailors who held guns aimed to fire at a word from Shey.

On the next pass, Caelan leaped from Drayce. His feet hit the deck with a hard thump, and he threw out his right hand. A long, silver blade appeared, seeming to glow with its own holy light.

“Tch. Those major gods have to be so flashy.”

Shey’s head whipped around at Tyche’s grumbled words to see the minor gods staring at Caelan with a mix of envy and insecurity. “Is he really here? He’s not part of the nightmare?”

Tyche blinked at him in stunned silence before his face broke into a wide grin. “No, they’re here.”

Adrian thrust up his arms and shouted, “Woo-hoo!” Caelan didn’t even flinch in response. He lifted his sword to slash at the shark, only to have it dissolve prior to him unleashing all his godly fury.

The twilight melted away like hot water poured on a pile of sugar. Blue sky and a shining sun returned. Shey lifted his hand to shield his eyes from the sudden brightness. His breath caught in his chest as he finally saw a soft, sandy beach, a wall of somber green trees, and in the distance, the jagged snow-capped peaks of the mountains. They’d reached the Isle of Stone.

Drayce cut a smooth arc through the air and swooped to land on the deck. Just as a talon was about to touch the smooth wood, he shifted into his human form, becoming a slender young man with wind-ruffled blond hair and a cheeky smirk. Nothing about him showed he might be a dragon.

A second later, Caelan’s armor and sword disappeared with a flash, revealing a regal young man in a severe dark suit. His black hair was a bit long, giving the king a slightly roguish appearance, while icy pale-blue eyes twinkled as he stared at his mate.

“Cael!” Adrian darted away from Shey and ran toward the couple, while Shey and Tyche followed a bit more slowly. He seemed to remember that they had an audience and corrected himself. “I mean, Your Majesty!”

Caelan turned and smirked. “Cael is fine. We’re among friends.” Caelan turned his attention to Shey and offered a regal nod of his head and a warm smile. “Your Highness.”

Shey grinned and dipped into a shallow bow. “Your Majesty, I am honored by your greeting and your generous assistance.”

“Aaaahhhh,” Drayce moaned next to him. His head fell back and his eyes shut. “Do we have to do this? It’s Shey, for gods’ sake. I heard him tell a fart joke around the campfire in the Ordas.”

Adrian choked on a laugh, his very proper stance and expression melting away at Drayce’s words.