She placed one hand over the ruby on her chest, then stabbed the dagger into the mountainside. Immediately the entire foundation of the temple began to tremble as the mountain itself cracked open. Deep within the recesses of the mountain, they heard an enormous bellow.
“What have you done, foolish human!” Fulang screamed. He swiped at Kira with his fearsome claws, but she ducked and scooted underneath as the walls of the temple exploded behind her. A massive silver dragon even larger than Fulang flew out of the walls and roared in anger.
“Who dares to steal my treasure!” His large gray eyes fell immediately upon Fulang as he let out a scream of rage. “You dare to show your thieving face here!”
The silver dragon attacked Fulang with great force.
As the dragons struggled against each other, Kira darted over to the prison cave and unbarred the door. Taejo ran into her arms while Gom bounded out and hugged her legs. The battling dragons crashed against the wall of the temple, causing the entire mountain to sway dangerously. They were going to destroy the temple.
“Brother, I beseech you! It is not I but that human girl who seeks to steal from you! She claims to be the Musado, but she has already stolen the jeweled dagger from me!”
The large dragon pinned Fulang to the ground and turned his great silver head to stare at Kira.
“Are you the Dragon Musado?” he asked.
Kira bowed. “Yes, I am! But I have not stolen anything. I come only for what my fate seeks to deliver to me.” She pulled the jeweled dagger from the mountain wall and showed him the tidal stone in her hands.
The dragon stared down at the treasures in her hands and studied her face carefully. He then turned his head toward Fulang.
“You always were a liar,” he said. The silver dragon bared his wicked teeth before biting Fulang’s throat, mauling him until the blue dragon was still. Rising to his feet, the silver dragon threw Fulang’s body down the hole from where he had come. The mountain began to crumble; the walls of the temple were falling in on themselves. The silver dragon grabbed Kira, Taejo, and Gom within his massive claws and flew out of the temple just as the mountain collapsed in a deafening clamor that reverberated throughout the valley.
He flew straight down to the ground and released them.
The silver dragon turned to Kira, bringing his great head level with hers and examining her as if he’d never seen a human before. After a long moment, he drew back and closed his eyes. A sudden shimmering dazzled her eyes and then suddenly the dragon disappeared. In his place was a dignified old man with long white hair and a matching beard.
“It has been hundreds of years since I have taken human form,” the old man said. He looked at his hands and touched his face. “I forgot how fragile it is.”
“King Dang! The Dragon King,” Kira gasped. She fell to her knees and bowed her head to the ground.
King Dang raised her up, holding her by the arms. He smiled kindly at her. “I’ve waited centuries for you to appear.”
The dragon belt was around his waist. He unclasped it and gave it to Kira.
“Put it on, Musado,” he said. “It is yours to guard now.”
With trembling hands, Kira reached over to take hold of the treasure. It was made of fourteen white jade plaques strung together. From each plaque there hung a long gold chain of varying lengths, linked with precious jewels that ended in a miniature carving of a dragon. Fourteen dragons hung at the end of the chains, and each dragon was intricately carved out of gold, silver, jade, onyx, and other precious stones. Kira placed the belt around her hips and clasped it together. The shorter chains hung near the clasp with the longest one in the back, reaching to her midcalf.
She felt a sudden rush of power as the three treasures seemed to acknowledge one another. So strong was the sensation that it threatened to overwhelm her and she quickly unclasped the belt and held it in her hand.
The Dragon King watched her with great interest. From within his robe, he pulled out a small leather bag and a silver silk cloth.
“It may take some time to get used to,” he said as he plucked the belt from her fingers. He carefully folded it up in the cloth and tucked it into the leather bag. When he was done, he handed the bag to Kira. He then turned to Taejo, who bowed with deep reverence. Even Gom lowered his head in respect.
“Little princeling, you are the heir to my throne,” the Dragon King said. “But there will be many more trials ahead of you before you will receive my crown. You must prove yourself worthy. I will be watching.”