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Yet even so, to her surprise, she had not left everything behind Maybe she could never leave everything behind She still had her bow and quiver of arrows; she still had the gold torque, cold at her neck, that bound her to Sanglant, and the bright beacon of lapis lazuli, the ring Alain had given her But nothing else, only the fire that suffused the physical forlare bathed the horizon in a bloody red, the houarded by a pair of sullen but dreadful dailed from their belts, and their faces shone with blood lust She strung her bow and nocked an arrow, lit it so it burned

They laughed, seeing how pitifully sh she was fire, they did not fear her They were big as castles, with thighs as broad as a house and arh, pass through!" they cried ly, with voices that boomed and crashed "We’ll watch the sport while you’re hunted down and killed, Bright One"

"I thank you," she said, seeing no reason to stay and quibble with creatures who looked ready to squash her like a bug

She passed through the arch as their voices followed her, deep and resonant "Go as you please, Child of Fla of yourself on the path!"

She tury lair

2

AT dawn, Bulkezu ordered the vanguard driven forith the lash to swarm the walls of Echstatt Maybe the hapless men, woht, since they had certainly found none at Bulkezu’s hands He used his prisoners wisely, if one called ruthlessness wisdoainst the walls first, he ensured that Echstatt’s defenders used up much of their precious store of arrows, javelins, and hot tar on folk who could do nothing to harm them in return

Hanna refused to hile Bulkezu watched her He liked to watch her, just as he liked to make her watch each assault as his ar since outflanked his pursuers He was trying to batter her down, breach her walls, but she would not give in

By ates and the fires started S the thin y Quroup as they surveyed their troops fro the prosperous town, Hanna saw every bitter moment as the victory unfolded Despair tasted like ash on her tongue as the winged riders started in on their usual slaughter, cutting the fingers off folk who didn’t give up their rings quickly enough, dragging adultany who resisted

Sed A dozen riders hurried out of the church as it, too, began to burn, flah the roof Four old fittings, silver cups, and the deacon’s bloodstained stole jostled in a heap at the center After a lassabove the altar blew out

In a prosperous town like Echstatt there was plenty to loot beyond fodder, provisions, and the church’s treasure Bulkezu’s intentions remained a mystery to her, because he seemed remarkably uninterested in loot except in so far as it pleased his troops to enrich themselves with trinkets and slaves

Now, of course, ca townsfolk out of the gates and onto their ruined fields Bulkezu gestured, and the coroup o along with them as they rode down to examine the captives

An old wo path A young ed a baby to his chest while at his side his pretty wife, her expression caught between terror and hopeless anger, slapped her screa the now-stupefied child tightly against her as tears streairl tried vainly to hold together her torn sleeve A chubby round and lay therehelplessly, face buried in the dirt

S houses clouded Hanna’s vision Tears stung her eyes The townsfolk saw her then, an Eagle riding a the hated Quman

An elderlyhis le," he cried, "intercede for us--"

A Quman struck him down Blood pooled from the old man’s temple into the depression left by the heel rown boy with a cut on his cheek screairl who looked to be his sister clapped a hand over his mouth There was a terrified silence All of the townsfolk dropped their gazes and hunched their shoulders, as if by not seeing, bythemselves small, they would not be seen