An Epic Kingdom of Fantasy Adventure

Transcription

1 The Dragon Th Dragon F Fortune un o of An Epic Kingdom of Fantasy Adventure an Scholastic Inc.

2 Copyright 2015 by Edizioni Piemme S.p.A., Palazzo Mondadori, Via Mondadori 1, Segrate, Italy. International Rights Atlantyca S.p.A. English translation 2017 by Atlantyca S.p.A. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content. GERONIMO STILTON names, characters, and related indicia are copyright, trademark, and exclusive license of Atlantyca S.p.A. All rights reserved. The moral right of the author has been asserted. Based on an original idea by Elisabetta Dami. Published by Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920, 557 Broadway, New York, NY SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. Stilton is the name of a famous English cheese. It is a registered trademark of the Stilton Cheese Makers Association. For more information, go to No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the copyright holder. For information regarding permission, please contact: Atlantyca S.p.A., Via Leopardi 8, Milan, Italy; foreignrights@atlantyca.it, This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available ISBN Text by Geronimo Stilton Original title Grande ritorno nel Regno della Fantasia 2 Cover by Silvia Fusetti Illustrations by Silvia Bigolin, Federico Brusco, Carla Debernardi, Alessandro Muscillo, and Piemme s Archives. Color by Christian Aliprandi Graphics by Marta Lorini and Daria Colombo Special thanks to Kathryn Cristaldi Translated by Julia Heim Interior design by Kay Petronio Printed in China 38 First edition, September 2017

3 Psst... It s me, Geronimo Stilton in the fur! Get ready, I m returning to the magical Kingdom of Fantasy!

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5 A ThousAnd silver violins t all started one spring at the crack of dawn. I was having a dream. No, scratch that. I was having a nightmare! I tossed and turned, and tossed and turned, and tossed and turned... In my dream a familiar face hovered over me. Was it Blossom, the sweet Queen of the Fairies? It sure looked like her, but when I Humph...

6 A ThousAnd silver violins peered closer a shiver ran down my fur. It wasn t Blossom at all. It was Wither, Blossom s evil twin sister! She was surrounded by strange flying creatures. They looked like witches with wings. In fact, they were... the dark fairies! The dark fairies grabbed their silver violins and began to play. Unfortunately, it wasn t happy dance music (you know, the kind that makes you want to kick up your paws). This melody was disturbing. Next the fairies began to sing. Of this we warn... the time is right... The veil is torn... enter the night! 2

7 A ThousAnd silver violins What did that mean? It couldn t be good. The dark fairies are not known for their kindhearted nature. I woke up squeaking. Then I jumped out of bed so fast I jumped right out of my pajamas. Well, okay, I didn t really jump out of my pj s, but you get the idea. What a nightmare! What a nightmare! 3

8 enter the night! Heh, heh, heh! Of this we warn... the time is right... the veil is torn... enter the night!

9 Zzzz snore... zzzz snore... zzzz snore...

10 A ThousAnd silver violins I rubbed my eyes trying to erase the image of those dark fairies. I had met them during one of my recent trips to the Kingdom of Fantasy. On that trip, Wither had ordered the fairies to imprison her sister. Luckily, not to brag or anything, I saved the day! That s right, I rescued Blossom! As a reward, the queen named me Prince Fearless, Prince of the Winged Ones. She also gave me a pair of cool blue wings and a blue winged ring. The ring had special powers. It allowed me to travel to and from the Kingdom of Fantasy. Just thinking about my fantastic adventures made me smile. Don t get me wrong, these trips were never easy. They were filled with dangerous treks, wicked spells, and horrifying creatures. But the friends I made in the Kingdom of Fantasy were worth it! 6

11 W ing ed Rin g Th but I rescued her!... ed ark fairies imprisoned B lo s som... ng nk you f Tha me, Kn or sa igh vi t! e gav n e q u e g! As a r e h t, eward Rin me the Winged

12 Right then I noticed the clock on my nightstand. Rats! I was late for work! I threw on my clothes and raced outside. It was the first day of spring, and I expected to see the sun shining, flowers blooming, and birds singing in a blue sky. Instead... There was a freezing northern wind... The sky was filled with gray clouds... And the only birds were black crows shrieking, Caw! Caw! Caw! Caw! CAW! CAW! CAW! CAW! CAW! CAW! 8

13 You couldn t smell the sweet scent of flowers. Instead there was the disgusting scent of sulfur! T h e th ck i k k g gr a y c lo l ud s ma m de it hard to s ee... 9

14 Answers on page 572 What is the shape in the sky?

15 A ThousAnd silver violins It was a strange, no, the strangest, no, the super-strangest spring morning! 11