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"We will ht, not to eat Your lands and flocks will re, ill find sustenance"

Roff laughed "A dragon-ars"

"I will ride as quickly as I can to see to the ons north into fa at dawn and dusk Under Ayafeeia’s direction they flew north in four groups, with the lead turning south every few horizons and flying south until they were the back group By such crossing patterns, watchers on the ground ht be confused

They landed in the ancient Hypatian ruins of Hesturr, piles of overgrown rubble that soht back mostly bad memories--the trip that ended in the loss of her father and Rainfall’s wounding that night of the brush with the old thane, Vog

Now the ruins of a great city held only sheep The shepherds ran as the dragons landed and began to explore

"Thick forests around here," Ayafeeia said "Bad ground for fighting, especially against horseo after thes"

Wistala suspected that the shepherds of Hesturr would bea few sheep when next they counted Drakka kept flitting off to hunt and returning with bits of wool stuck in their snouts

The lack of discipline rankled "We came here to ive us sheep enough once he catches up to us"

Ayafeeia sent out dawn and dusk patrols to make sure the Ironriders weren’t already on their way They reported nothing of interest except game and livestock Wistala warned theranted her pere had shrunk, despite the new buildings, or she’d grown

She could only pay a brief visit to the Green Dragon Inn, sticking her head in through the half-door in the back as in the old days, after receiving

The cats see since died, but one of her kittens was now an aged, scrawny black cat named Aroo

"Does the rainy season end soon, you think?" he asked Wistala

"Wistala! Your brother has been here," Hazeleye said

In response to that, she had to tell the story And then tell it again, with fewer digressions into what the Lavadome ho the Fireon

Widow Lessup still lived, though she had difficulty getting about

They were still talking when Ragwrist and his mate, or rather, wife, Dsossa, rode in on lathered mounts

"Can we expect a visit at Mossbell as well?"

"I must return to my comrades at Tuwrist had a plan for taking apart the repaired center span of the great bridge that his estate was responsible for keeping in order and hiding the pieces in Wistala’s old troll-cave

"AuRon left soe for you there, if you wish to read it"

She did, that night It was detailed instructions on how to fly to the Isle of Ice and which dragon to ask for and soret the trip It reminded her of how happy she’d been at Mossbell Perhaps, once she’d helped the Firemaids of the Lavadome and paid off, in part, the debt she could never pay in full, she would be able to return This troll-cave was a splendid spot, though it needed a good cleaning thanks to the rooks and pelicans

When she flew back to the ruins, she found Thane Hesturr there with a few of his retainers

"It seems your company started on the sheep without ht feed yourselves from the flocks and I would reimburse them But I’m not a rich man"

"Our help has a price," Ayafeeia said, when Wistala passed on the thane’s complaint She bit off a response If this would be her role as a diplo" over matters of poached sheep, her ter fortunes with the circus again

"I’ space"