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Show cloven, splayed feet of the YellowBison. Erica and Dr'Igor raced to their horses tied by the cottages. Pym raced to the stables. He saw a line of horses in full career across the valley, apparently in a flanking movement toward the cliffs, sprang onto a saddled horse without so much as touching a stirrup, and galloped off to join them. But the swarm kept coming, glutting the valley with flesh, tough yellow hides, and flashing steel, and there was less and less room to maneuver. Before all the enemy army reached Westwick, most of the smaller force of Commendium folk were driven back into one half of the valley with a long semicircular cliff face at their backs that traveled up for twenty meters to a shallow overhang. There they were trapped, the first line weaving, dodging, and parrying against the inexorable press of heavy weaponry, and being forced farther and farther back toward the end of the valley. The MedTechs, made up mostly of archers, rushed away from their charges and took up bow and quiver in an effort to distract the attacking horde and give the Commendium folk a chance to spread out. But the • warriors had seen the running archers and had turned in their direction. The archers skidded to a halt, turned, and dodged back toward the cottages, sending arrows whistling through the air at the horses, each arrow accompanied by a plea for forgiveness to Saint Geraldine-of-the-Beasts, the first and foremost of the Earth colonist veterinarians. Inside the equipment shed, the grieving Janni became aware of the rumble of battle in the valley. She got up from her knees, went to the door, and ran down the lane to the end of the cottages, leaving the two MedTechs to watch after her apprehensively. At the corner of the end 278 |
