Realms of the Dragons Realms of the Dragons , edited by Philip Athans , is the ninth anthology of stories from the Forgotten Realms . All the short stories relate in some way to the horrific Year of Rogue Dragons . Contents . Soulbound . By Paul S . Kemp Avnon Des the Seer is the First Demarch of the conclave of the Hall of Shadows . One day he arose from his meditation to find himself , his temple and its inhabitants moved to the Shadow Plane . Kesson Rel is the first Chosen of the Shadow God , marked as a heretic by the Demarchs because he drank from the Chalice and transformed into a creature of shadow . He seeks his revenge by bringing the temple from Elgrin Fau , the City of Silver , to the Shadow Plane , and soul binding a shadow dragon , Furlinastis , into bringing him one of the priests every day tobkill them in front of him , since his oaths prevent him from killing them himself . And so the dragon killed , while looking for a way out of the soul magic . Avnon also tries to decipher the will of his god , as there is no way for them to escape that particular stretch of the Shadow Plane , or to combat the dragon . Avnon sought counsel from his god and he saw that the Shadow God wanted to determine whether Kesson Rel ’ s or their faith was the strongest . The next time the dragon comes to collect a priest , Avnon tells him that if he wishes to free himself of Kesson , he must collect him next . When Furlinastis returns to Kesson , he tricks him into ordering him to bring Avnon to the slaughter next . When Furlinastis goes to pick up Avnon , Avnon has killed the other priests with their permission and assimilated their souls . Avnon oaths the dragon ’ s cooperation in the future , when the First and the Second Chosen of the Shadow God will pursue Kesson . After Furlinastis kills him in front of Kesson , the souls of the priests fly into the dragon and defeat Kesson ’ s soul freeing the dragon , but Kesson manages to flee . First Flight . By Edward Bolme Serreg , an archwizard under Lady Polaris in Delia , is working on a blight which seems to hit all the land Delia passes above . After deducting that the blight is a magical spell coming from under the earth , he goes to investigate . But he is not match for the phaerimm , and while fleeing for his life , his prayers are heard by Targus , who grants him a dagger of polymorphing , with which Serreg slays the phaerimm , but polymorphs randomly several times . Finally , he polymorphed into a dragon , and with his superior intellect understood that each time he used the dagger it would polymorph him into something random . As a dragon , Serred was now unconcerned with mortal matters such as the plague , so he tore the dagger ( which was morphed into a claw ) from his body and used it as a start of his treasure stash . Gorlist ' s Dragon . By Elaine Cunningham The Keeper of Secrets . By Ed Greenwood The Topaz Dragon . By Jess Lebow Wickless in the Nether . By R . A . Salvatore 1368 DR , Heliogabalus , Damara In the short story , Salvatore describes the first encounter between Artemis Entreri and Jarlaxle and the famed dragon sisters Tazmikella and Ilnezhara of Heliogabalus . This event is referred to in " Road of the Patriarch " , when Entreri reminds Jarlaxle that the dragons sisters played them for fools . In the story , Tazmikella , appearing as a plain shopkeeper , tells of how an item of great sentimental value is in the possession of Ilnezhara . Tazmikella hires Entreri and Jarlaxle to steal this item , but soon they find out their foe ' s power is beyond their comprehension when they find out she is an ancient and powerful copper dragon . Ilnezhara then commands the two to go and kill Tazmikella for her in return for allowing them to live . After this encounter , they journey to kill Tazmikella and find out not only is Tazmikella Ilnezhara ' s sister , but she also a copper dragon of great power . Jarlaxle and Entreri agree to work for the two dragon sisters . Serpestrillvyth . By Richard Baker Waylaid . By Thomas M . Reid Standard Delving Procedure . By Lisa Smedman An Icy Heart . By Voronica Whitney - Robinson Penitential Rites . By Keith Francis Strohm How Sharper than a Serpent ' s Tooth . By Dave Gross Beer with a Fat Dragon . By Don Bassingthwaite The Prisoner of Hulburg . By Richard Lee Byers