CHAPTER ONE
DRAGON ISLAND
Two fishermen stood on the beach, watching the rowing boat make its way out to sea.
"Where do you think it's going?" asked one of the men.
"Looks like it's heading for Dragon Island," replied the other, pointing to an ominous-looking island with a huge volcano at its center, sending out red smoke into the sky.
"My cousin told me the island's named for the dragon smoke that billows from its center," said the first fisherman.
"Your cousin is a superstitious fool," said the other. "The smoke comes from the volcano."
"So why does it turn red every five years?"
"No one knows. I even swam to the island as a boy to try to find out, but there's nothing there other than wild lemurs."
Had the two fishermen seen the boat up close, they would have realized that the rower was a shop dummy, disguised as a fisherman. It was being operated by a remote control held by one of four ninja meerkats onboard.
"Another brilliant disguise, Donnie," said Chuck.
"Thanks," replied Donnie. "I call it the M.O.R.B.—Mannequin Operated Rowing Boat."
"Why do we need a disguise anyway?" asked Bruce.
"The invitation said we should arrive in secret," replied Chuck.
"The invitation for me to be crowned the Ultimate Dragon Warrior," added Jet. "Ninja-boom!" He leaped up and punched the air.
"Jet," shouted Donnie. "You're rocking—"
"You're right," Jet interrupted. "Being invited to compete in the most awesome kung-fu contest in the world is rocking, isn't it?"
"I mean, you're rocking the boat," said Donnie. "Besides, the invitation was for all of us. Any one of us could win."
"Ha! It's bound to be me," said Jet.
"Jet, boasting is not a good thing," said Chuck.
"Yeah, my uncle almost died when it happened to him," said Bruce.
"He died from boasting?" asked Donnie.
"Yep," said Bruce. "It turned out he was allergic."
"I believe that was a bee sting, Bruce," said Chuck. "And actually, it could be that none of us takes home the title. Remember, the invitation said there would be eight competitors in total."
"I'll see off the competition with my Super-charged Shock Attack!" said Jet.
"What's that?" asked Bruce.
"It's my new move," explained Jet. "You rub your feet on the ground and charge yourself up with static electricity, then use it to shock your opponent."
Donnie smirked. "If you want to shock them, just tell them how long you spent looking in the mirror this morning."
As the boat got closer to the island, the red smoke from the volcano blocked out the sun and threw the boat into the shadow of the island.
"Donnie, what did your background check reveal about this island?" asked Chuck.
"Very little," replied Donnie. "It's named Dragon Island because of the red smoke, but everything else is a mystery."
"Ooh, spooky," said Bruce.
"Are we sure this isn't one of the Ringmaster's traps?" asked Chuck. "A strange invitation, a remote island— I wouldn't put it past him."
"No way," said Jet. "The Trials of Dragon Island are legendary. Once every five years, when the volcano smoke turns red, the world's finest martial arts fighters are summoned to compete for the title of Ultimate Dragon Warrior."
The boat drew close to the island, giving the meerkats a good view of the white sand on the beaches that surrounded it. Donnie pressed a button on his remote control that stopped the dummy rowing.
"Why are we stopping?" asked Bruce. "We're not there yet."
"The invitation said there should be no evidence of visitors on the island," replied Donnie. "So we need to leave the boat here. It's time for the M.O.R.B. to go fishing."
He pressed another button and the dummy pulled in the oars and picked up a fishing rod. The other meerkats watched in amazement as the dummy cast the line out to sea.
"The hook on the end will latch on to the ocean floor and act as an anchor, so the boat doesn't float away," said Donnie.
"Very clever," said Chuck.
"So we've got to swim to the island?" said Jet, aghast.
"Don't worry," said Donnie. "You won't have to mess your fur up."
From his backpack, Donnie pulled out four clear plastic bags and handed them to the others. He then showed them how to climb inside and seal the entrance.
"This is weird," said Bruce.
"Yeah, I feel like I've been shrink-wrapped," remarked Jet.
"There's a red toggle inside. Pull it, like this," said Donnie. He demonstrated and suddenly his plastic bag inflated into a clear ball around him. The others did the same.
"I call them Ninja-zorbs," said Donnie.
"Now I feel like a hamster," said Jet.
"Yes, they work in the same way as hamster balls. Watch."
Donnie ran forward, propelling the clear ball over the top of the boat and onto the surface of the water. The others followed and soon they were all charging toward the island.
"Donnie, the brilliance of your inventions never ceases to amaze me," said Chuck.
"I've heard of running water," said Bruce. "But we're running on water."
The Clan of the Scorpion reached the beach and began deflating the Ninja-zorbs.
"Very impressive," said a voice.
"Yeah, it was all right, I suppose," said another.
They turned to find a pelican and a badger standing behind them.
Text copyright © 2013 by Gareth P. Jones
Illustrations copyright © 2013 by Artful Doodlers
Cover illustration copyright © 2013 by Vince Verma
