You can go two separate ways with dragons:
1. Annihilate them,
2. Befriend them.
If you befriend them, it is possible to add one to your party (if you have room.) Since even Ithilgore (the weakest) is pretty powerful compared to the rest of your party, I always hired one as part of the party. You can hire much stronger dragons later. (I'm not sure, but I think that dragons can carry the party with them when they fly.)I found the maps I'd drawn for MM8. The map for the Dagger Wound Islands has a cautionary note for the abandoned temple.
N. B.: Do NOT enter in turn-based mode! Talking to the first person you meet in this dungeon in T.B. mode can cause MAJOR crash!
(I don't know whether it still applies.)