a frog croaked.

Shan yawned, wriggled closer.

“What was Grandpapa Xau like?”

Keng took a breath, said,

“He liked horses,

and training with his guards,

and pickled cucumbers.”

“Hmmm. I like pickled cucumbers.”

Shan’s voice was drowsy, sleep soft.

Keng waited,

but no more questions came,

only memories, worn with use.

That day in the boat,

his father wearing a bamboo hat

like a rice farmer.

Riding together through snow.

His father’s hand on his shoulder

as they watched an eagle

ride the wind.

Years ago now,

years ago.

A Note on the Title

When I was a child, I was a frequent visitor to a bookstore called "At the Sign of the Dragon,” drawn there not only by the array of science fiction and fantasy books, but by the kindness of the owners, Marion and Richard Van Der Voort. Xau’s story is titled in honor of their bookstore.

AT THE SIGN OF THE DRAGON

In Memory of Marion Van Der Voort

Inside were dragons

of every color and size,

dragons who reasoned

and dealt in magic,

and interspersed among them:

a host of talking rabbits,

a blind space poet,

and all the true kings.

I found myself

inside the stories—

in the reading of them,

and in the friendship

of the couple

who owned the bookshop

(for it was a bookshop).

They led me, book by book,

through worlds I fell in love with.

So that when I lay outside,

reading on the grass

in the boundless summers

of my childhood,

I was not alone,

but part of their

fellowship of readers.

Inside were dragons.

Acknowledgments

I am indebted to many people, but I would especially like to thank the following. Timons Esaias for his invaluable critique of the whole manuscript and for his friendship over nearly thirty years. Lisa Rodgers, my agent, for championing the book and helping me improve it. F. J. Bergmann and Joe Morey for publishing the first part of Xau’s story, and for their unstinting support. Chris Atkeson for Chinese meals, a place to stay, Star Trek enthusiasm, and many other kindnesses when I was starting out as a writer. Roger Dutcher for the cards he sent even when I wasn’t writing science fiction or fantasy, making me feel a part of the community. Joe Coluccio for letting me read my poetry at PARSEC meetings. Bernadette Harris for answering medical questions (it’s my own fault that I sometimes disregarded her advice). Adrian Simmons for letting me include poems forthcoming in Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. Patrick Disselhorst and Joshua Bilmes at JABberwocky Literary Agency for making this ebook possible. Lastly but most importantly, Andrew, William, and Lucy for letting Xau into our family, warning me that he was too perfect, and giving feedback on the poems as I was writing them. Thank you all.

Poems from this collection first appeared in the following publications:

“Interregnum,” Star*Line #36.4, Autumn 2013

“Guarded,” Crowned: The Sign of the Dragon, Book 1; Dark Renaissance Books, 2015

“Training: Weights,” Crowned: The Sign of the Dragon, Book 1; Dark Renaissance Books, 2015