“What makes you say that?”
“I have reliable information that there is active recruiting going on within the Eastern dragons,” Stoner said. “More specifically, the recruiting is being done in your name. I’m told the response has been enthusiastic…to the point where the old-guard Eastern dragons are quite upset over it.”
“But I haven’t done anything!” Griffen protested. “I had no idea that Mai was going to do anything like this.”
“Unfortunately, part of the job of being a leader is that you are eventually held responsible for the actions of those under you,” Stoner said. “The Eastern dragons now consider you to be a threat. Someone who is actively working to undermine their power base. Under the circumstances, I have to agree with them.”
“You mean you see me as an enemy now?” Griffen said.
“That’s why I was giving you this courtesy call, Mr. McCandles. To inform you that we are now at hazard.”
Griffen heard the words like a sentence of doom. All that had passed, and he still wasn’t out of danger.
“What am I supposed to do now?” he said carefully.
“I am not the one you should look to for advice in this situation,” Stoner said. “I am, however, sympathetic enough to your dilemma to offer up a couple friendly suggestions.”
“And those would be…?” Griffen urged.
“First, look to your defenses. I don’t believe you are anywhere near powerful enough or prepared enough to consider going on the offensive.”
“Anything else?”
“Yes.” Stoner hesitated a moment before continuing. “I am not the biggest threat to you at this time. If my information is correct and the Eastern dragons are uniting against you, you have bigger things to worry about than me.”
Griffen started to thank him but realized the connection had been cut off.
He sat staring at the wall for a while. It slowly dawned on him that the George had only been the first challenge in his new life as a dragon.
ROBERT ASPRIN was raised in the university town of Ann Arbor, Michigan, home of the University of Michigan Wolverines. This, combined with his Philippine-Irish heritage, has given him a rich wealth of characters and stories to draw upon in his writing. Though he has done several stand-alone novels, such as The Cold Cash War, Tambu, and The Bug Wars, he is best known for his humor series, such as the Myth novels and the New York Times bestselling Phule’s Company books. He also edited the groundbreaking shared-universe anthology series Thieves’ World.
A devoted fan before he turned to professional writing, he founded the Dark Horde in the SCA and the Dorsai Irregulars in fandom. Among the honors he has mustered, he has been inducted into the Filk Hall of Fame.
Billing himself as a “people person,” he encourages fans to feel free to speak with him about anything, not necessarily his own works. His declared “eco niche” is the lobby bar of a convention hotel.
Dragons Wild Page 30