Ravna shook her head. "No. Not ... anymore." This was the best landing that she and Greenstalk could make. The heads cocked at her, all a coordinated gesture. "I thought you were in a terrible hurry. Peregrine says there is a fleet of spacers coming hot on your trail." For an instant Ravna didn't say anything. So Pham had told them of the Blight? But she was glad he had. She shook her head, trying to clear it of the numbness. "Y-yes. We are in a great hurry." The dataset on her wrist was linked to the OOB. Its tiny display showed the steady approach of the Blight's fleet. All the heads twisted, a gesture that Ravna couldn't interpret. "And you despair. I fear I understand." How can you? And if you can,
mbt raha black, how can you forgive us? But all that Ravna said aloud was, "I'm sorry." The Queen mounted her wagon and they rolled across the hillside toward the castle walls. Ravna looked back once. Down slope, the OOB lay like a great, dying moth. Its topside drive spines arched a hundred meters into the air. They glistened a wet, metallic green. Their landing had not been quite a crash. Even now,
mbt kisumu brown, agrav canceled some of the craft's weight. But the drive spines on the ground side were crumpled. Beyond the ship,
11 Cardio X, the hillside fell steeply away to the water and the islands. The westering sun cast hazy shadows across the islands and on the castle beyond the straits. A fantasy scene of castles and starships. The display on her wrist serenely counted down the seconds. "Steel put gunpowder bombs all around the dome." Woodcarver swept a couple of noses, pointing upwards. Ravna followed her gesture. The arches were more like a Princess cathedral than military architecture: pink marble challenging the sky. And if it all came down, it would surely wreck the spacecraft parked beneath. Woodcarver said that Pham was in there now. They rolled indoors, through dark, cool rooms. Ravna glimpsed row after row of coldsleep boxes. How many might still be revivable? Will we ever find out? The shadows were deep. "You're sure that Steel's troops are gone?" Woodcarver hesitated, her heads staring in different directions. So far,
mbt kisumu sale, pack expressions were impossible for Ravna to read. "Reasonably sure. Anybody still in the castle would need to be behind lots of stone, or my search parties would have found them. More important, we have what's left of Steel." The Queen seemed to read Ravna's questioning expression perfectly. "You didn't know? Apparently Lord Steel came down here to blow all the bombs. It would have been suicide, but that pack was always a crazy one. Someone stopped him. There was blood all over. Two of him are dead. We found the rest wandering around, a whimpering mess... Whoever did Steel in is also behind the rapid retreat. That someone is doing his best to avoid any confrontation. He won't be back soon, though I fear I'll have to face dear Flenser eventually." Under the circumstances, Ravna figured that was one problem that would never materialize. Her dataset showed forty-five hours till the Blight's arrival. Jefri and Johanna were by their starship,
BEATS TRIBUTE, under the main dome. They sat on the steps of the landing ramp, holding hands. When the wide doors opened and Woodcarver's wagon drove through,
GHD IV Styler, the girl stood and waved. Then they saw Ravna. The boy walked first quickly then more slowly across the wide floor. "Jefri Olsndot?" Ravna called softly. He had a tentative, dignified posture that seemed much too old for an eight-year-old. Poor Jefri had lost much, and lived with so little for so long. She stepped down from the wagon and walked toward him. The boy advanced out of the shadows.
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