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Without hesitation, the prince swooped to her rescue, cutting down half a dozen of her attackers and scattering the rest Cheering, the riders of Avaric sprang to fill the gap Aeriel’s heart clenched She did not knohether to rejoice or weep Surely she had no love for the bandit queen--yet because of her, the allied forces now had a chance to win free Fighting forward again, Sabr gazed up at Irrylath For barely a aze before, without a word, he wheeled away

Aeriel spotted the prince’s half brothers now, engaging the Witch’s darkangels: Nar, the eldest, astride the black wolf Bernalon, fought the icarus of Bern while Arat upon the cockatrice of Elver battled the darkangel of that land Lern, Syril, and Poratun upon their wingedhis airborne foe

Below the side to side with Hadin, the youngest Istern prince

Two fair-haired cousins as like as like, they looked es of one another: very fierce and serious and utterly without fear Bestriding the stag of Pirs, the Lady’s son swung detered witchson with his hook-bladed falchion Beside hiuarded his back

Diserously vulnerable--until she discerned that wingless e While his brothers veered and tangled in the air above, scarcely able to land a blow, earthbound Hadin forced his icarus again and again to swoop close to the ground, within reach of his weapon and Roshka’s "Without warning, an arrow shaft el’s side Aeriel caught a gli her bow

One of Talb the Mage’s arrows tipped with Ancients’ silver, she realized, though the arrowhead was already hidden deep in the unbleeding flesh of the darkangel The bloodless creature screamed and writhed overhead Roshka hooked it with his pike and hauled it closer Hadin thrust his falchion to the hilt in the icarus’s chest, silencing its screareat shout went up froreat victory of the day Elation filled Aeriel Beside her, Oriencor bared her teeth in a snarl

"Enough!" she growled "Enough of this dalliance Time to make war in earnest now"

The Witch’s ivory talons bit deep into Aeriel’s shoulder A chill like none she had ever knoept through her The pearl diled as Oriencor dragged her from the

"Tellbefore the near wall of the tower chamber

"Howback "You are barren"

The Witch’s grasp tightened Her lips turned down "True," she said "But there are those who, could they speak, would call theasped "Counting the one that Hadin killed" The cold devoured her Her shoulder was already nued defiantly, "but Irrylath is lost to you"

Oriencor muttered, "We shall see But did I hear you say I have but six darkangels? You are mistaken I have seven"

"No!" Aeriel cried "Irrylath isnow "I do not refer to Irrylath You have seenone of your husband’s brothers But you have not yet seen my newest icarus, the one I made after Irrylath, just this twelve--a new darkangel? A seventh son?

"You have not had time--" she stammered The chill made her teeth rattle, her jaw ache She writhed in the other’s grasp Even Ravenna’s pearl, she realized, could not long protect her against such killing cold The White Witch gave her a little shake

"How naive you are"

Desperately, Aeriel searched her memory She knew the lorelei stole infants, babes-in-ar their blood and gilding their hearts with lead, planting a dozen night-black pinions on their backs and sending theirl protested:

"It takes years to hed "To do a proper job, perhaps But I have grown impatient of late Irrylath, you recall, I acquired as a child of six I kept hied him"

Aeriel’s eyes widened She had saved Irrylath before Oriencor could ed icarus--but as to have prevented Oriencor fro hi the es, sure and certain, into Aeriel’s ilding a small, fresh heart with lead Grimly, the White Witch nodded