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It was holding the tanto, and I the silver knife The walker slashed, faster than I could follow, demon-fast, moves I had never seen The first drew blood as I blocked with the cere blade The silver knife was too soft for fighting, and I slipped into the egret, blocking the successive cuts with swooping, winglike , eyes sly It was a victorious sound, arrogant As calmly as if it hadn&039;t moved at all, the beast licked my blood from the tanto&039;s blade Its other hand twirled the spur with niers and closed its eyes in pleasure
With a quick flick of , "Mutuol"
The knife thunked deep into the walker&039;s chest It staggered, eyes wide, and dropped its head to see Blood welled around the silver blade The daywalker screamed and dropped both the tanto and the spur conjure
"Now, Zeddy!" I shouted
The chanted words changed, almost as if they had rehearsed it The incantation fro circle "I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved froh I was hoping it would be enough
Backed by the scripture, I stepped over the loop cut into the ground and carefully placed a foot inside the walking circle I didn&039;t have long, as the energies would continue to build, but now I could fight "Mutuol, the bright star By his power I bind you"
Fangs wide, the walker pulled the silver knife from its flesh, the motion quick It dropped the knife and sucked its blistered fingers where the silver had burned it Bright blood spurted in steady arcs from the hole in its chest I kicked the tanto and the spur away, and they clattered against rock that ringed the spring I thought it ain, but the daywalker fell back and sat on a stone, its breathing ragged "So, worthlessthe insult, I judged by the color of its eyes that it was free of its master "Answer my questions Provide h with pain
"Information first Tellthe phrase it had used - "the hter to Adain Hastings"
"The riddle My Master will be disappointed" It pressed its hand over its wound The bleeding slowed and darkened, but didn&039;t stop, and its lips were blue fro important, but so be it She is ahiwith the rest for great gain But reedier by far than she, and wiser than his Dark Lord"
"That&039;s it? Tell hed, a breathless sound "She is a queen, soon to be the mother of thousands That which was lost shall be restored"
Darkness was a hierarchical organization, so the Dark Lord concept was logical, and, if Gramma had allied with a Major Darkness to become a dark human, other parts of the riddle randson, had been dead soh I hadn&039;t known she killed hi Gramma hadn&039;t come to Jason&039;s funeral, odd behavior for a hu
I had ht lipped and watchful The daywalker&039;s blood smelled of her, which meant it had recently drunk her blood One of Forcas&039; poas to restore lost property Gramma was once rich, but her husband had left her fortune to his grandkids Had she thought herself wise enough to bargain with the devil? Had she bartered all she had and was to get back what she lost? Had her blood sealed the bargain? Had greed and vengeance been keys to her soul? Whatever she had bargained for, Forcas had tricked her, taken her, changed her, and now she was so circle and the strange rose glow of energy had bequeathed ains for its master It would drink blood to seal the deal "What kind of queen?" I asked
It took aas if dry Its fangs unhinged and extended before it could speak "The mother of thousands The breeder"
No help at all This was gettingstick blade and bent for the cere away fro I had set within the circle In it was a small stone jar and a swatch of cloth
One eye on Malashe-el, I scoured the silver knife on the cloth, polishing the glea metal The blade was nicked from Malashe-el&039;s sword, which annoyedthe earth salt within I thrust the silver blade inside, deactivating any microscopic traces of blood The scent of brimstone billowed out
A silent click, a sound I heard in my mind and not in my ears, alerted me that the visa had activated itself I didn&039;t knohy the official aure it out
I inserted the cleansed blade into a sheath sewn in the dobok The bloody cloth I tucked into the stone jar The daywalker&039;s ht not have fangs, butwas clear I had its blood For thebreath, as if air entered its lungs through the chest cavity If it had been human, it would be dead
"Tell rowing bluer as it weakened, darted between the silver hilt and the stone jar in ift"
Understanding, I found an aht and a delicate squeeze, I activated the incantation stored in it, letting the building energies of the walking circle power a privacy circle Strangely, a discomfort I hadn&039;t noticed eased with the privacy circle The energies were still building I didn&039;t have long "You have your gift," I said
"Barak Succubus Queen Larvae Baraqyal" It put out a hand, steadying itself on a nearby boulder Its blood s astonished
"So?"
"Alive, I aained "Alive, my Mistress has a conduit Ask me of her"
"Who is your Mistress?"
"Holy Aed-warrior"
"Where is Zadkiel?"
"Trapped above her prison Hurry I around Blood coated its ugly shirt It was shivering