Patterns in the Dark (Dragon Blood Book 4) Read Online Free PDF

seen enough of those for a while.”
    “Most of these archipelagos were formed by volcanic activity, but most of those volcanoes are also long extinct.” Moe tapped a large island in the shaded area. “I think Mount Demise is the only likely spot, here on Owanu Owanus.”
    “Mount Demise?” Duck asked. “That sounds about as promising as being chased naked through the woods in winter by a starving mountain lion.”
    Several sets of eyes turned toward him.
    “Has that happened to you?” Zirkander asked mildly.
    “Not… recently.”
    “That’s the Iskandian name for the place,” Moe said, “but it’s based on the legends from the local people. There’s a relatively sophisticated native civilization that hugs the coast and has a city in the biggest harbor, but if you get even a half mile away from the beach, the jungle is extremely dense and wild and filled with deadly predators. Just getting to the mountain—which is an extinct volcano—is next to impossible by land. I believe it wasn’t until dirigibles came along that the island was fully charted and the mountain named, though even those maps are vague. There are a few waterways visible from the air, and the dense jungle canopy makes it impossible to see the ground in most places. It’s believed there are whole tribes of people back in there who have never had contact with modern civilization. Some are said to be cannibalistic. I haven’t heard of any significant archaeological finds back there.” He sniffed, as if to dismiss the entire island as unworthy of his attention.
    Tolemek had a different reaction as he stared intently at the map, repeatedly mouthing, “Owanu Owanus,” as if to burn it into his mind.
    “Does that mean you’re not going to volunteer to come with us, Dad?” Zirkander asked.
    “Oh, I couldn’t possibly. I still have work to do here.”
    “Hanging upside down and showing off your backside for the local ladies?”
    Moe glanced at his butt, then waved a hand in dismissal. “Don’t be ridiculous. I know the locals aren’t excited about my presence, but I am this close to finding the coordinates to the Lost Treasure of Anksari Prime.” He pinched his fingers together in front of his son’s face. “Besides, it’s another month before the Evening Sun freighter returns to the other side of the island to pick me up, and I’m not getting in one of those airborne deathtraps with you. That’s a certainty.”
    “You’ve climbed twenty-thousand-foot mountains. How can you possibly be alarmed by the idea of flying?” Judging by Zirkander’s long-suffering tone, he and his father had shared this argument before.
    “Because I was attached to those mountains by ropes.” Moe twirled the end of the coil slung over his shoulder. “There’s nothing attaching your fliers to solid earth. I’m amazed you haven’t dropped right out of the sky and crashed yet.”
    “That usually only happens when someone’s shooting at me.”
    “You’re going to die up there one day, and your mother’s going to be all alone.”
    “I don’t think it’s my company she’s always missing,” Zirkander murmured.
    Tolemek cleared his throat. His face remained neutral, but Cas knew him well enough to sense the impatience in the tense way he held his shoulders. “This city on Owanu Owanus… Is there a harbor? A dock? Do ships come and go?”
    Zirkander nodded at Tolemek. “Good question. Ships that travel to Cofahre perhaps? Or that are part of a mail system that might eventually get cargo to Cofahre?”
    “Yes, to both,” Moe said. “It’s technically under Cofah dominion, but Owanu Owanus doesn’t have any natural resources that have been discovered, so the empire hasn’t shown any great interest in it. Right now, the only population center of any significance is run by criminals and caters to pirates.”
    “Pirates?” Zirkander looked at Tolemek.
    Tolemek shrugged. “I’ve never been there. The Roaming Curse operated mostly in the