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"Come on, then," Iskierka said "I should like a snack first: I saw a herd of those wild lla on the plain to the south, yesterday, and I dare say they are still there; and there was a nice private little valley just up the mountain-side fro her chops: when they had finished hunting, Temeraire had persuaded her to heat up a few rocks with her fire; he had piled the with a pleasantly aro, so that when they had finished their business, the llamas were cooked and ready to eat

"And we shall see," Iskierka continued, "about the egg It does not seem to me there waswill go se: if only you were not always so difficult"

"As though you had any business accusing anyone else of being difficult," Temeraire said, but without much heat; the llamas had been excellent, which he considered a triu himself And after all, no-one could deny that Iskierka was an ion Her spikes had even not been so very aard as he enuity in : a certain pallid quality to the sky behind the mountains ahead of the a couple of extra cooked lla Su for his approbation "What is going on, there?" Iskierka said suddenly, as they drew near: there were reat city fortress, and also soldiers in their woven ar into lines

"Wait: this e mustn’t let the at Iskierka’s wing, and they darted back out of sight behind a curve of the mountain-side Teru; if you should let off any steam or fire, they will certainly see you at once"

"I do not care, in the least," Iskierka said "What are they about? Of course they arean ambush," she added impatiently, "but on us, or on the French?" She stretched out her neck to peer at the gathering force

Te sky ahead of him, and studied the scene: the British enclave lay to the east of the soldiers’ position, the French to the west; both in striking distance The Inca’s soldiers were carrying shields covered splendidly in silver, and one of these caught the rising sunlight and gleaht out of the terrace for an instant as Temeraire looked

"On us," Temeraire said to Iskierka, as he dropped down to seize his llaoing to attack us; we must fly at once"

Part III

Chapter 14

THE WATERFALL WAS NOT WIDE but very high, crashing noisily down over its long and broken cliff wall, and so ons as they slept a little; the high canopy of jungle trees provided theolden scales they had slathered over with mud, and Temeraire and Iskierka were not in h their harness-straps all over their backs, and vines strewn liberally atop, the better to caainst the relentless pursuit

A host of s-quick, had chased and harried them near three hundred ht and a day, although they had not traveled anywhere near that distance in a straight line: their course had been desperately zig-zagging and convoluted If they paused, or tried to engage, the small beasts fled before theons who hung back, waiting and reserving their strength to come directly upon theeons of heavy-weight size and thirteen oftheile’s massive size had enabled them to escape the first: he had put his head down and bulled through the heons, not one of them less than twenty tons Temeraire and Iskierka had darted out after hireater h for Kulingile to get away into the cloud cover, where they followed shortly after

The Incan dragons pressed the pursuit without excessive risk, cautiously: all the advantage of tie of the territory With every reeary, and their strength waned

There had been no time either for provisions or sensible asseht back froullet, while thewithout even the opportunity of putting on harness; at least four had been left behind, Laurence thought, having evidently sneaked off on night excursions He was only consoled that their fate would not be as unkind as it on’s ayllu in their persons, despite any political differences with their nation, rather than flung into a prison from which there would be little hope of extrication

The force which had been assembled to seize the the dragons as prisoners and perhaps for breeding, as well as delaying any report back to Europe--had co which Teh; they went aloft pursued by the first roars of challenge, and flung the desperately east into the ht no relief, for a handsome half-full moon shone on the ice-sheathedthe pursuit who seemed able to see the in the lead, had broken out onto the eastern side of the Andes, and they fled down the slopes into the seereen at their base

Here they had found enough concealment for a few breaths, a little sleep; a fes of water ht be cupped from the steady rivulets which trickled down the s rain had fallen twice, in the half-day which they had spent in hiding But they could not hide for very long with three such beasts ah the dappling leaves, and hoped only that their shelter would serve thereen froether with tre hands a few of the coca leaves, which he had stuffed into his pocket as they fled: he put the leaves into his mouth to chew, as they could not boil water for tea "It is an outrage--a betrayal of all co the sanctity of a, a variation on a theme which he had not ceased to develop since their pell-mell departure