Read Dragon's Breath for Free Online Page B

in my fingers and toes, then coursed through my body until it reached my head, making it feel fizzy and light. When I glanced down, I saw smooth green legs jutting out before me. Looking up, I saw Eadric's froggy mouth hanging open in dismay.
    Unable to hold on to the rug with our small fingers, we were helpless against the rushing wind. The next powerful gust blew us off the rug and we fell, tumbling through the air, our intertwined fingers all that kept us together.
    I screamed, the sound carried away by the wind as we plummeted through the cloud, head over heels, twisting and turning until I wasn't sure which way was up. When I saw the terror on Eadric's face, I realized that I was the only one who could save us. With all the wind and rain, my aunt probably didn't even know that we had fallen.
    The wind tried to tear us apart, but we held on, gripping each other's hand as hard as we could. Flipping over again, I found myself looking down at the water as it rushed up to meet us. My eyes were streaming from the wind, but even so, the waves looked far too close to me.
    I forced myself to concentrate. There had to be something ... I tried to remember all the spells I'd read, but none of them seemed appropriate. I had to come up with a spell of my own. What if some kind of creature could meet us partway and take us to the island? A bird, perhaps. I shouted the spell as I thought of it, although I doubt volume makes much difference when it comes to magic.
    Winged creature flying near,
Save us from the death we fear.
Catch us now before we Land
On the water or the sand!
    I turned my head this way and that, hoping to spot a seabird braving the winds to rescue us. When nothing came, I closed my eyes and squeezed Eadric's hand, sorry that I'd gotten him into such a mess. Tumbling through the air, I expected to splat against the water at any moment, so I didn't know what to think when I hit something tough and leathery that gave beneath my body. I became even more confused when I opened my eyes. We had fallen onto a broad, black back, hurtling just above an enormous wave.
    "Hang on!" shouted a voice, but there was nothing to hold on to except the rippling, leathery edge of the creature. Eadric and I grabbed hold just as the creature hit the water and plunged under the surface. I felt the pressure change when the wave roared over our heads.
    What kind of bird is this? I wondered, peering through the churning water. We went deeper, gliding beneath the waves where the water was dark and murky. I studied the creature as best I could, but it didn't make any sense. It had neither feathers nor wings, yet it flapped like a bird. Its great, wedge-shaped body was smooth and black with a pair of curled horns, yet it had no head that I could see. There was no animal on dry land to compare it to, so I didn't know if we should be relieved at our rescue or terrified that this creature had found us.
    "How are you doing?" the creature asked in a bubbly sort of voice. As I couldn't locate its face, I didn't know what part of the creature I should address.
    "Who are you?" I asked, my own voice sounding strange underwater.
    "They call me Manta. So, what are you two? I've never seen fish like you before, and you don't have fur like seals."
    Eadric laughed. "We're not fish. We're frogs, or at least we are now."
    "Frogs, huh?" Manta said. "Never heard of frogs before. You must be rare."
    "As rare as enchanted royalty," Eadric said, puffing himself up.
    "That's not rare. I wish I had a mouthful of plankton for every enchanted prince I've met. Speaking of plankton, do you mind if I have a snack?" Manta rose toward the surface while unfurling his horns, which I realized weren't really horns at all, but a way to funnel cloudy water into what had to be his mouth.
    "You don't suppose he eats frogs, do you?" I whispered into Eadric's eardrum.
    Eadric peered ahead to where the cloudy water was disappearing at an amazing speed. "I doubt it. From the looks of things,