Dan's Sci-fi & Fantasy Blog

 

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Here is an excerpt from The Bane of Dragons

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High wind vibrates Wind Reaver and rain pours in sheets against the bridge window. The clouds above the churning ocean are so dark they’re almost black. Bergman holds the helm in a white-knuckled grip. On her shoulders perches Titus, staring at me unblinking as if utterly oblivious to the typhoon Wind Reaver is caught in. 

 

“Divert full power to the vertical fans!” Bergman barks. “Get us above the storm.”

 

“Yes, Captain.”

 

There is a flash, followed by an earsplitting boom. Dr. Radcliffe and I stumble as the airship quakes so violently it feels like it will split apart. Bergman falls against the helm, and Titus tumbles from her shoulders with a yowl.

 

The floor falls away, and I’m airborne with Radcliffe’s golem alongside me. The twinkling dragon, of course, is physically undisturbed by the calamity. Titus and several crew members not strapped into their chairs go flying. Even the crew properly strapped down are flung against their consuls.

 

Lights flicker, and alarms blare. Radcliffe and I smash to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. Luckily, I land on my backside, so the impact is painful but nothing more serious.

 

Bergman pushes herself up, maintaining her grip on the helm. “What was that?”

 

Around the bridge, crew members pull themselves upright in their chairs or push themselves up off the floor. A young man is splayed on the floor, groaning. Something bulges underneath the left sleeve of his uniform.

 

“Vertical fan twelve is off-line, Captain.”

 

“What about the auxiliary?” Bergman asks.

 

“It’s coming online now.”

 

The airship begins to list. Radcliffe and I brace ourselves. The injured crewman slides across the floor, slamming into a consul and howling.

 

“Get a medic up here!” Bergman says. “How much longer until the axillary fan is online?”

 

“Engineering reports an electrical failure. They’re switching over to the failsafe.” 

 

“How long?” Bergman demands.

 

“Two minutes, Captain.”

 

Bergman looks around the bridge. “We don’t have…” Her wild-eyed gaze falls on Radcliffe and me. “What are you…this is an emergency situation! Make sure that damn skaag doesn’t panic and damage my ship more.”

 

Radcliffe and I exchange a look, then rush from the bridge.

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