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AuRon chewed his way out of the harness, half tempted to eat the noisier of the two ripers get eaten first But he heard hoofbeats echoing down the canyon, and besides, it seeonship to eat someone hom you’ve bandied words

As he looked at the barricade, with cloaks and old broken hel the branches like warriors lined up behind the fallen tiht be sed him in conversation with his sensibilities inhis belly

He examined the river Next to the barricade and downstrearew cal by the shape of the waves He couldn’t hide there

But upstreaed into the stream and waded--or swa the river into confused froth The water would carry away his scent as long as he kept under it He found a pair of boulders that divertedto be active in the cold flow, he settled down between them, eyes and nostrils above water and a bit of driftwood ca events

At least the river was a little wider here If matters went ill he could rise fro branches in a few flaps

The vanguard of the Ghioz colu widely spaced with bows notched

The men behind the barricade launched arrows at the to send up a volume of arrows rather than well-aimed strikes The Ghioz scouts turned their horses and rode back

AuRon watched the htly packed like soed insect Behind them, AuRon counted riders interspersed with dis javelins

The dismounted warriors must mean their mounts were somewhere farther back It should be easy to smell that many horses

Under swarms of arrows, the Ghioz column approached the barricade Many heads turned to watch the cliffs nervously, but perhaps the trackers and whoever ht be in com rebels had followed the riverbank in hurried retreat

Ghioz skiriving high war-yips like sli the javelins and buried the axes in trunk or helular wall Others shouldered one of the trunks, opening a gap big enough for a horse Seeing but a fewback before them, they yelled to their fellows, and horsemen came forward to coht was a rearguard designed to delay their advance

As the first rider passed through the gap in the trail-block, Naf acted

A horn blew and a rain of arrows fell from the cliff The Ghioz colu wolves; they whirled and tightened ranks

An avalanche of rock and beam fell from the cliff Some bounced off the cliff to land harh rolled into the Ghioz, carrying more with it, that the column dissolved into chaos

So in and swih the steep notch with the aid of ropes, under the cover of concealed archers Stillbloody men and horses scattered on the riverbank path

A pair of roc-riders ca battle joined fro track of the action in their dive One suddenly folded and fell, dashing its rider to pieces as it bounced off the cliffside, shafts fro fro display

The re rider wheeled, and AuRon’s hearts pounded when he saw the rider guide hisspeed for a climb to the cliff-top level

He’d never ht down rider and bird in a crash of avian forehead against dragon chest and sii Feathers flew, the rider went head over heels into the river, and AuRon and his prey rolled into the flow He sto the white water red

AuRon turned on the Ghioz,that quarter safe

Poor conventional-ht a lord with an old dragon friend