The Dragondain (29 page)

As the battle wore on, Jasper lost track of time. The muscles in his legs ached, and he’d taken to gripping the moon sword with both hands lest it be ripped from his grasp. The Rinn were weakening, too. More scaramann leapt over their line with each attack. The wyflings were now engaged in a constant, violent battle to protect both the lunamancers and the rear of the Rinn’s front line.

Finally, up and down the line, the dragons’ breath began to fail. And while those not blasting flame chomped hungrily on the pool of scaramann, they were far less destructive. For the Rinn, the scaramann’s assault increased.

“Hold the line!” roared Nimlinn, as a particularly savage wave threatened to create a breach. Redoubling her efforts, Nimlinn met the tide of cold-blooded bugs with everything she had. Jasper wielded his moon sword with a deadly accuracy he wouldn’t have thought possible. At this darkest hour Jasper laughed.

“What strange mirth can you possibly find in this scene, my young friend?” bellowed Nimlinn above the din.

Before Jasper could answer, three scaramann launched themselves over the backs of their slain brethren. Jasper’s moon sword flashed, hacking in half the first. “I was just thinking”—slicing apart the second—“when I’m older”—number three’s open mandibles sped toward Jasper’s face—“what an amazing bedtime tale”—Jasper swung his sword—“
this
will make.”

The End.

The Murk / Book 3 / A Moon Realm Novel

Available Fall 2013

For more information, visit
TheMoonRealm.com
.

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Richard Due
(pronounced “Dewey”) first imagined the Moon Realm while telling bedtime tales to his children. He makes his home in Southern Maryland, where he and his wife have owned and operated Second Looks Books since 1991. The Moon Coin is the first novel in the Moon Realm series. Visit
TheMoonRealm.com
for more information on the series.

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Carolyn Arcabascio
hails from Massachusetts, where she lives and works as an illustrator while pursuing her lifelong exploration of words, images, and the magical places where they meet. Visit her website at
www.carolynarcabascio.com
.