Along with their friends Laura and Brian, Tom and Mitch Hearn are on boardthe Rakurai , in search of the mysterious Dragon Island. Mitch is chargedwith being the ship's captain, but his decisions are making Tom furious. Thisis no time for a family feud, however, especially when they are attacked bypirates, and then Brian disappears! Worse yet, the Rakurai seems to beheaded on a different course - one that leads them right into the hands oftheir arch nemesis, Julian Vane.