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The Dragonblade raised his spear for a throw, but a white-hairedarm on his shoulder "Sir," the oldster said in Parl, "those are the voices of wolves, calling for the beast, and the dogs whion draws theray tide at the edge of the boulder-fall Ears quivered; lips pulled back to reveal rows of shining white teeth The Thing growled as one wolf, a sound that could freeze even the sap in the trees
"Let the beast go, I tell you," the es; if the wolves run mad, it will be the death of onblade yelled to the asse a thick-skinned face as tough as a grandfather oak Sword-hard green eyes set off tight rust-colored curls gray at the teo on Another day"
Auron dreheezing breath "So be it" He turned and liht fell, Blackhard nuzzled his after you left My heart and conscience both troubledeverywhere But the real insult: those collar-fool hounds running free in our forests, scaring every elk and caribou for all to mark every third tree, as if they owned the woods I called Thing, and found the sae had been committed from the three-rivers to the ice passes Man can do as he likes in his fields anddecided to teach them a lesson, and we knew that where you were, the athered around you"
Thing had since dispersed, and the Dawn Roarers rested on an island surrounded by marshland Not even a fox could track the on a spit if it weren’t for you, brother This good wolf is grateful," Auron said Feybright licked the wounds at his chest, and Highway the stub of his tail
"As you should be, Auron," Blackhard said "Stay with us awhile, in the forests of the Dawn Roarers"
"Soon I’ll beso ood hunting Don’t forget the sets worse every day," Blackhard adht How can you stand yourself?"
" ‘A dragon knows not his own strength, or son saws aren’t very practical Now the humans would have done better to learn one or tords of isdohed, wolf-style, and coughed up more blood But only a little
Chapter 12
Six rainy days later, Auron followed the road south, re Blackhard’s words: "It doesn’t look it in this part of the forest, but to the south this road joins another froo, even as men think of time, older in this land than wolves It’s the fastest way back to the southlands"
He’d decided against another climb His as short with the wound to his chest, and his hunger trebled Physical hurts aside, the Dragonblade’sacross the western slopes of the mountains like ants on rottenthe ht: the road did not look likebetween tree stump and hillside, surrounded by beaten-doeeds Stonelike loosened teeth Whoever had h hillsides and had ees of cut-stone bridges still stood alongside fords used these days Here and there, water and wind had scoured away the dirt and detritus to paving stones beneath The road’s makers must have cut down a et away from Drakossozh and his men in this land between uide hiain where they were lower, at the gap where he’d been born Heto the trees Once out of the forest, he’d have to worry about circling around villages, but that could be done at night If the Dragonblade still sought him, he would hunt to the heart of wolf country, not in lands inhabited by otherhad not completely healed: he still found hiths of his journey
His parents had told him drakes wandered aimlessly But Auron had a purpose He’d find NooMoahk, learn the secret weakness of which Hazeleye had spoken The Dragonblade and those like hi it to clear the mountains of his kind Perhaps he could overcome the weakness the way he’d overcome his lack of scales (so far!) Then when it caht it, as well
He saw only one group using the road tointo the forests, behind another cloaked ht nothing of them, except the rider’s horse bore an emblem stretched on a fly-blanket across its face: the little olden circle He hurried away as fast as he safely could--that e but unhappiness in the past, and the farther away he fled frole" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>