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The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Gifts of Asti, by Andre Alice Norton This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: The Gifts of Asti Author: Andre Alice Norton Release Date: August 11, 2006 [EBook #19029] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE GIFTS OF ASTI *** Produced by Greg Weeks, Geetu Melwani and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Transcriber's notes.
This etext was produced from Fantasy Book Vol. 1, No. 3 1948. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the copyright on this publication was renewed.
A number of typographical errors found in the original text have been corrected in this version. A list of these errors is found at the end of this book.
Even here, on the black terrace before the forgotten mountain retreat of Asti, it was possible to smell the dank stench of burning Memphir, to imagine that the dawn wind bore upward from the pillaged city the faint tortured cries of those whom the barbarians of Klem hunted to their prolonged death. Indeed it was time to leave—
Varta, last of the virgin Maidens of Asti, shivered. The scaled and wattled creature who crouched beside her thigh turned his reptilian head so that golden eyes met the aquamarine ones set slantingly at a faintly provocative angle in her smooth ivory face.
"We go—?"
She nodded in answer to that unvoiced question Lur had sent into her brain, and turned toward the dark cavern which was the mouth of Asti's last dwelling place. Once, more than a thousand years before when the walls of Memphir were young, Asti had lived among men below. But in the richness and softness which was trading Memphir, empire of empires, Asti found no place. So He and those who served Him had withdrawn to this mountain outcrop. And she, Varta, was the last, the very last to bow knee at Asti's shrine and raise her voice in the dawn hymn—for Lur, as were all his race, was mute.
Even the loot of Memphir would not sate the shaggy headed warriors who had stormed her gates this day. The stairway to Asti's Temple was plain enough to see and there would be those to essay the steep climb hoping to find a treasure which did not exist. For Asti was an austere God, delighting in plain walls and bare altars. His last priest had lain in the grave niches these three years, there would be none to hold that gate against intruders.
Varta passed between tall, uncarved pillars, Lur padding beside her, his spine mane erect, the talons on his forefeet clicking on the stone in steady rhythm. So they came into the innermost shrine of Asti and there Varta made graceful obeisance to the great cowled and robed figure which sat enthroned, its hidden eyes focused upon its own outstretched hand.
And above the flattened palm of that wide hand hung suspended in space the round orange-red sun ball which was twin to the sun that lighted Erb. Around the miniature sun swung in their orbits the four worlds of the system, each obeying the laws of space, even as did the planets they represented.
"Memphir has fallen," Varta's voice sounded rusty in her own ears. She had spoken so seldom during the last lonely months. "Evil has risen to overwhelm our world, even as it was prophesied in Your Revelations, O, Ruler of Worlds and Maker of Destiny. Therefore, obeying the order given of old, I would depart from this, Thy house. Suffer me now to fulfill the Law—"
Three times she prostrated her slim body on the stones at the foot of Asti's judgment chair. Then she arose and, with the confidence of a child in its father, she laid her hand palm upward upon the outstretched hand of Asti. Beneath her flesh the stone was not cold and hard, but seemed to have an inner heat, even as might a human hand. For a long moment she stood so and then she raised her hand slowly, carefully, as if within its slight hollow she cupped something precious.
And, as she drew her hand away from the grasp of Asti, the tiny sun and its planets followed, spinning now above her palm as they had above the statue's. But out of the cowled figure some virtue had departed with the going of the miniature solar system; it was now but a carving of stone. And Varta did not look at it again as she passed behind its bulk to seek a certain place in the temple wall, known to her from much reading of the old records.
Having found the stone she sought, she moved her hand in a certain pattern before it so that the faint radiance streaming from the tiny sun, gleamed on the grayness of the wall. There was a grating, as from metal long unused, and a block fell back, opening a narrow door to them.
Before she stepped within, the priestess lifted her hand above her head and when she withdrew it, the sun and planets remained to form a diadem just above the intricate braiding of her dull red hair. As she moved into the secret way, the five orbs swung with her, and in the darkness there the sun glowed richly, sending out a light to guide their feet.
They were at the top of a stairway and the hollow clang of the stone as it moved back into place behind them echoed through a gulf which seemed endless. But that too was as the chronicles had said and Varta knew no fear.
How long they journeyed down into the maw of the mountain and, beyond that, into the womb of Erb itself, Varta never knew. But, when feet were weary and she knew the bite of real hunger, they came into a passageway which ended in a room hollowed of solid rock. And there, preserved in the chest in which men born in the youth of Memphir had laid them, Varta found that which would keep her safe on the path she must take. She put aside the fine silks, the jeweled cincture, which had been the badge of Asti's service and drew on over her naked body a suit of scaled skin, gemmed and glistening in the rays of the small sun. There was a hood to cover the entire head, taloned gloves for the hands, webbed, clawed coverings for the feet—as if the skin of a giant, man-like lizard had been tanned and fashioned into this suit. And Varta suspected that that might be so—the world of Erb had not always been held by the human-kind alone.
There were supplies here too, lying untouched in ageless containers within a lizard-skin pouch. Varta touched her tongue without fear to a powdered restorative, sharing it with Lur, whose own mailed skin would protect him through the dangers to come.
She folded the regalia she had stripped off and laid it in the chest, smoothing it regretfully before she dropped the lid upon its shimmering color. Never again would Asti's servant wear the soft stuff of His Livery. But she was resolute enough when she picked up the food pouch and strode forward, passing out of the robing chamber into a narrow way which was a natural fault in the rock unsmoothed by the tools of man.
But when this rocky road ended upon the lip of a gorge, Varta hesitated, plucking at the throat latch of her hood-like helmet. Through the unclouded crystal of its eye-holes she could see the sprouts of yellow vapor which puffed from crannies in the rock wall down which she must climb. If the records of the Temple spoke true, these curls of gas were death to all lunged creatures of the upper world. She could only trust that the cunning of the scaled hood would not fail her.
The long talons fitted to the finger tips of the gloves, the claws of the webbed foot coverings clamped fast to every hand and foot hold, but the way down was long and she caught a message of weariness from Lur before they reached the piled rocks at the foot of the cliff. The puffs of steamy gas had become a fog through which they groped their way slowly, following a trace of path along the base of the cliff.
Time did not exist in the underworld of Erb. Varta did not know whether it was still today, or whether she had passed into tomorrow when they came to a cross roads. She felt Lur press against her, forcing her back against a rock.
"There is a thing coming—" his message was clear.
And in a moment she too saw a dark hulk nosing through the vapor. It moved slowly, seeming to balance at each step as if travel was a painful act. But it bore steadily to the meeting of the two paths.
"It is no enemy—" But she did not need that reassurance from Lur. Unearthly as the thing looked it had no menace.
With a last twist of ungainly body the creature squatted on a rock and clawed the clumsy covering it wore about its bone-thin shoulders and domed-skull head. The visage it revealed was long and gray, with dark pits for eyes and a gaping, fang-studded, lipless mouth.
"Who are you who dare to tread the forgotten ways and rouse from slumber the Guardian of the Chasms?"
The question was a shrill whine in her brain, her hands half arose to cover her ears—
"I am Varta, Maiden of Asti. Memphir has fallen to the barbarians of the Outer Lands and now I go, as Asti once ordered—."
The Guardian considered her answer gravely. In one skeleton claw it fumbled a rod and with this it now traced certain symbols in the dust before Varta's webbed feet. When it had done, the girl stooped and altered two of the lines with a swift stroke from one of her talons. The creature of the Chasm nodded its misshapen head.
"Asti does not rule here. But long, and long, and long ago there was a pact made with us in His Name. Pass free from us, woman of the Light. There are two paths before you—."
The Guardian paused for so long that Varta dared to prompt it.
"Where do they lead, Guardian of the Dark?"
"This will take you down into my country," it jerked the rod to the right. "And that way is death for creatures from the surface world. The other—in our old legends it is said to bring a traveler out into the upper world. Of the truth of that I have no proof."
"But that one I must take," she made slight obeisance to the huddle of bones and dank cloak on the rock and it inclined its head in grave courtesy.
With Lur pushing a little ahead, she took the road which ran straight into the flume-veiled darkness. Nor did she turn to look again at the Thing from the Chasm world.
They began to climb again, across slimed rock where there were evil trails of other things which lived in this haunted darkness. But the sun of Asti lighted their way and perhaps some virtue in the rays from it kept away the makers of such trails.
When they pulled themselves up onto a wide ledge the talons on Varta's gloves were worn to splintered stubs and there was a bright girdle of pain about her aching body. Lur lay panting beside her, his red-forked tongue protruding from his foam ringed mouth.
"We walk again the ways of men," Lur was the first to note the tool marks on the stone where they lay. "By the Will of Asti, we may win out of this maze after all."
Since there were no signs of the deadly steam Varta dared to push off her hood and share with her companion the sustaining power she carried in her pouch. There was a freshness to the air they breathed, damp and cold though it was, which hinted of the upper world.
The ledge sloped upwards, at a steep angle at first, and then more gently. Lur slipped past her and thrust head and shoulders through a break in the rock. Grasping his neck spines she allowed him to pull her through that narrow slit into the soft blackness of a surface night. They tumbled down together, Varta's head pillowed on Lur's smooth side, and so slept as the sun and worlds of Asti whirled protectingly above them.
A whir of wings in the air above her head awakened Varta. One of the small, jewel bright flying lizard creatures of the deep jungle poised and dipped to investigate more closely the worlds of Asti. But at Varta's upflung arm it uttered a rasping cry and planed down into the mass of vegetation below. By the glint of sunlight on the stone around them the day was already well advanced. Varta tugged at Lur's mane until he roused.
There was a regularity to the rocks piled about their sleeping place which hinted that they had lain among the ruins left by man. But of this side of the mountains both were ignorant, for Memphir's rule had not run here.
"Many dead things in times past," Lur's scarlet nostril pits were extended to their widest. "But that was long ago. This land is no longer held by men."
Varta laughed cheerfully. "If here there are no men, then there will rise no barbarian hordes to dispute our rule. Asti has led us to safety. Let us see more of the land He gives us."
There was a road leading down from the ruins, a road still to be followed in spite of the lash of landslip and the crack of time. And it brought them into a cup of green fertility where the lavishness of Asti's sowing was unchecked by man. Varta seized eagerly upon globes of blood red fruit which she recognized as delicacies which had been cultivated in the Temple gardens, while Lur went hunting into the fringes of the jungle, there dining on prey so easily caught as to be judged devoid of fear.
The jungle choked highway curved and they were suddenly fronted by a desert of sere desolation, a desert floored by glassy slag which sent back the sun beams in a furnace glare. Varta shaded her eyes and tried to see the end of this, but, if there was a distant rim of green beyond, the heat distortions in the air concealed it.
Lur put out a front paw to test the slag but withdrew it instantly.
"It cooks the flesh, we can not walk here," was his verdict.
Varta pointed with her chin to the left where, some distance away, the mountain wall paralleled their course.
"Then let us keep to the jungle over there and see if it does not bring around to the far side. But what made this—?" She leaned out over the glassy stuff, not daring to touch the slick surface.
"War." Lur's tongue shot out to impale a questing beetle. "These forgotten people fought with fearsome weapons."
"But what weapon could do this? Memphir knew not such—."
"Memphir was old. But mayhap there were those who raised cities on Erb before the first hut of Memphir squatted on tidal mud. Men forget knowledge in time. Even in Memphir the lords of the last days forgot the wisdom of their earlier sages—they fell before the barbarians easily enough."
"If ever men had wisdom to produce this—it was not of Asti's giving," she edged away from the glare. "Let us go."
But now they had to fight their way through jungle and it was hard—until they reached a ridge of rock running out from the mountain as a tongue thrust into the blasted valley. And along this they picked their slow way.
"There is water near—," Lur's thought answered the girl's desire. She licked dry lips longingly. "This way—," her companion's sudden turn was to the left and Varta was quick to follow him down a slide of rock.
Lur's instinct was right, as it ever was. There was water before them, a small lake of it. But even as he dipped his fanged muzzle toward that inviting surface, Lur's spined head jerked erect again. Varta snatched back the hand she had put out, staring at Lur's strange actions. His nostrils expanded to their widest, his long neck outstretched, he was swinging his head back and forth across the limpid shallows.
"What is it—?"
"This is no water such as we know," the scaled one answered flatly. "It has life within it."
Varta laughed. "Fish, water snakes, your own distant kin, Lur. It is the scent of them which you catch—"
"No. It is the water itself which lives—and yet does not live—" His thought trailed away from her as he struggled with some problem. No human brain could follow his unless he willed it so.
Varta squatted back on her heels and began to look at the water and then at the banks with more care. For the first time she noted the odd patches of brilliant color which floated just below the surface of the liquid. Blue, green, yellow, crimson, they drifted slowly with the tiny waves which lapped the shore. But they were not alive, she was almost sure of that, they appeared more a part of the water itself.
Watching the voyage of one patch of green she caught sight of the branch. It was a drooping shoot of the turbi, the same tree vine which produced the fruit she had relished less than an hour before. Above the water dangled a cluster of the fruit, dead ripe with the sweet pulp stretching its skin. But below the surface of the water—
Varta's breath hissed between her teeth and Lur's head snapped around as he caught her thought.
The branch below the water bore a perfect circle of green flowers close to its tip, the flowers which the turbi had borne naturally seven months before and which should long ago have turned into just such sweetness as hung above.
With Lur at her heels the girl edged around to pull cautiously at the branch. It yielded at once to her touch, swinging its tip out of the lake. She sniffed—there was a languid perfume in the air, the perfume of the blooming turbi. She examined the flowers closely, to all appearances they were perfect and natural.
"It preserves," Lur settled back on his haunches and waved one front paw at the quiet water. "What goes into it remains as it was just at the moment of entrance."
"But if this is seven months old—"
"It may be seven years old," corrected Lur. "How can you tell when that branch first dipped into the lake? Yet the flowers do not fade even when withdrawn from the water. This is indeed a mystery!"
"Of which I would know more!" Varta dropped the turbi and started on around the edge of the lake.
Twice more they found similar evidence of preservation in flower or leaf, wherever it was covered by the opaline water.
The lake itself was a long and narrow slash with one end cutting into the desert of glass while the other wet the foot of the mountain. And it was there, on the slope of the mountain that they found the greatest wonder of all, Lur scenting it before they sighted the remains among the stones.
"Man made," he cautioned, "but very, very old."
And truly the wreckage they came upon must have been old, perhaps even older than Memphir. For the part which rested above the water was almost gone, rusty red stains on the rocks outlining where it had lain. But under water was a smooth silver hull, shining and untouched by the years. Varta laid her hand upon a ruddy scrap between two rocks and it became a drift of powdery dust. And yet—there a few feet below was strong metal!
Lur padded along the scrap of shore surveying the thing.
"It was a machine in which men traveled," his thoughts arose to her. "But they were not as the men of Memphir. Perhaps not even as the sons of Erb—"
"Not as the sons of Erb!" her astonishment broke into open speech.
Lur's neck twisted as he looked up at her. "Did the men of Erb, even in the old chronicles fight with weapons such as would make a desert of glass? There are other worlds than Erb, mayhap this strange thing was a sky ship from such a world. All things are possible by the Will of Asti."
Varta nodded. "All things are possible by the Will of Asti," she repeated. "But, Lur," her eyes were round with wonder, "perhaps it is Asti's Will which brought us here to find this marvel! Perhaps He has some use for us and it!"
"At least we may discover what lies within it," Lur had his own share of curiosity.
"How? The two of us can not draw that out of the water!"
"No, but we can enter into it!"
Varta fingered the folds of the hood on her shoulders. She knew what Lur meant, the suit which had protected her in the underworld was impervious to everything outside its surface—or to every substance its makers knew—just as Lur's own hide made his flesh impenetrable. But the fashioners of her suit had probably never known of the living lake and what if she had no defense against the strange properties of the water?
She leaned back against a rock. Overhead the worlds and sun of Asti still traveled their appointed paths. The worlds of Asti! If it was His Will which had brought them here, then Asti's power would wrap her round with safety. By His Will she had come out of Memphir over ways no human of Erb had ever trod before. Could she doubt that His Protection was with her now?
It took only a moment to make secure the webbed shoes, to pull on and fasten the hood, to tighten the buckles of her gloves. Then she crept forward, shuddering as the water rose about her ankles. But Lur pushed on before her, his head disappearing fearlessly under the surface as he crawled through the jagged opening in the ship below.
Smashed engines which had no meaning in her eyes occupied most of the broken section of the wreck. None of the metal showed any deterioration beyond that which had occurred at the time of the crash. Under her exploring hands it was firm and whole.
Lur was pulling at a small door half hidden by a mass of twisted wires and plates and, just as Varta crawled around this obstacle to join him, the barrier gave way allowing them to squeeze through into what had once been the living quarters of the ship.
Varta recognized seats, a table, and other bits of strictly utilitarian furniture. But of those who had once been at home there, there remained no trace. Lur, having given one glance to the furnishings, was prowling about the far end of the cabin uncertainly, and now he voiced his uneasiness.
"There is something beyond, something which once had life—"
Varta crowded up to him. To her eyes the wall seemed without line of an opening, and yet Lur was running his broad front paws over it carefully, now and then throwing his weight against the smooth surface.
"There is no door—" she pointed out doubtfully.
"No door—ah—here—" Lur unsheathed formidable fighting claws to their full length for perhaps the first time in his temple-sheltered life, and endeavored to work them into a small crevice. The muscles of his forelegs and quarters stood out in sharp relief under his scales, his fangs were bare as his lips snapped back with effort.
Something gave, a thin black line appeared to mark the edges of a door. Then time, or Lur's strength, broke the ancient locking mechanism. The door gave so suddenly that they were both sent hurtling backward and Lur's breath burst from him in a huge bubble.
The sealed compartment was hardly more than a cupboard but it was full. Spread-eagled against the wall was a four-limbed creature whose form was so smothered in a bulky suit that Varta could only guess that it was akin in shape to her own. Hoops of metal locked it firmly to the wall, but the head had fallen forward so that the face plate in the helmet was hidden.
Slowly the girl breasted the water which filled the cabin and reached her hands toward the bowed helmet of the prisoner. Gingerly, her blunted talons scraping across metal, she pulled it up to her eye-level.
The eyes of that which stood within the suit were closed, as if in sleep, but there was a warm, healthy tint to the bronze skin, so different in shade to her own pallid coloring. For the rest, the prisoner had the two eyes, the centered nose, the properly shaped mouth which were common to the men of Erb. Hair grew on his head, black and thick and there was a faint shadow of beard on his jaw line.
"This is a man—" her thought reached Lur.
"Why not? Did you expect a serpent? It is a pity he is dead—"
Varta felt a rich warm tide rising in her throat to answer that teasing half question. There were times when Lur's thought reading was annoying, He had risen to his hind legs so that he too could look into the shell which held their find.
"Yes, a pity," he repeated. "But—"
A vision of the turbi flowers swept through her mind. Had Lur suggested it, or had that wild thought been hers alone? Only this ship was so old—so very old!
Lur's red tongue flicked. "It can do no harm to try—" he suggested slyly and set his claws into the hoop holding the captive's right wrist, testing its strength.
"But the metal on the shore, it crumpled into powder at my touch—" she protested. "What if we carry him out only to have—to have—" Her mind shuddered away from the picture which followed.
"Did the turbi blossom fade when pulled out?" countered Lur. "There is a secret to these fastenings—" He pulled and pried impatiently.
Varta tried to help but even their united strength was useless against the force which held the loops in place. Breathless the girl slumped back against the wall of the cabin while Lur settled down on his haunches. One of the odd patches of color drifted by, its vivid scarlet like a jewel spiraling lazily upward. Varta's eyes followed its drift and so were guided to what she had forgotten, the worlds of Asti.
Lur was looking up too.
"The power of Asti!"
Varta's hand went up, rested for a long moment under the sun and then drew it down, carefully, slowly, as she had in Memphir's temple. Then she stepped towards the captive. Within her hood a beaded line of moisture outlined her lips, a pulse thundered on her temple. This was a fearsome thing to try.
She held the sun on a line with one of the wrist bonds, She must avoid the flesh it imprisoned, for Asti's power could kill.
From the sun there shot an orange-red beam to strike full upon the metal. A thin line of red crept across the smooth hoop, crept and widened. Varta raised her hand, sending the sun spinning up and Lur's claws pulled on the metal. It broke like rotten wood in his grasp.
The girl gave a little gasp of half-terrified delight. Then the old legends were true! As Asti's priestess she controlled powers too great to guess. Swiftly she loosed the other hoops and restored the sun and worlds to their place over her head as the captive slumped across the threshold of his cell.
Tugging and straining they brought him out of the broken ship into the sunlight of Erb. Varta threw back her hood and breathed deeply of the air which was not manufactured by the wizardry of the lizard skin and Lur sat panting, his nostril flaps open. It was he who spied the spring on the mountain side above, a spring of water uncontaminated by the strange life of the lake. They both dragged themselves there to drink deeply.
Varta returned to the lake shore reluctantly. Within her heart she believed that the man they had brought from the ship was truly dead. Lur might hold out the promise of the flowers, but this was a man and he had lain in the water for countless ages—
So she went with lagging steps, to find Lur busy. He had solved the mystery of the space suit and had stripped it from the unknown. Now his clawed paw rested lightly on the bared chest and he turned to Varta eagerly.
"There is life—"
Hardly daring to believe that, she dropped down beside Lur and touched their prize. Lur was right, the flesh was warm and she had caught the faint rhythm of shallow breath. Half remembering old tales, she put her hands on the arch of the lower ribs and began to aid that rhythm. The breaths were deeper—
Then the man half turned, his arm moved. Varta and Lur drew back. For the first time the girl probed gently the sleeping mind before her—even as she had read the minds of those few of Memphir who had ascended to the temple precincts in the last days.
Much of what she read now was confused or so alien to Erb that it had no meaning for her. But she saw a great city plunged into flaming death in an instant and felt the horror and remorse of the man at her feet because of his own part in that act, the horror and remorse which had led him to open rebellion and so to his imprisonment. There was a last dark and frightening memory of a door closing on light and hope—
The space man moaned softly and hunched his shoulders as if he struggled vainly to tear loose from bonds.
"He thinks that he is still prisoner," observed Lur. "For him life begins at the very point it ended—even as it did for the turbi flowers. See—now he awakens."
The eyelids rose slowly, as if the man hated to see what he must look upon. Then, as he sighted Varta and Lur, his eyes went wide. He pulled himself up and looked dazedly around, striking out wildly with his fists. Catching sight of the clumsy suit Lur had taken from him he pulled at it, looking at the two before him as if he feared some attack.
Varta turned to Lur for help. She might read minds and use the wordless speech of Lur. But his people knew the art of such communication long before the first priest of Asti had stumbled upon their secret. Let Lur now quiet this outlander.
Delicately Lur sought a way into the other's mind, twisting down paths of thought strange to him. Even Varta could not follow the subtile waves sent forth in the quick examination and reconnoitering, nor could she understand all of the conversation which resulted. For the man from the ancient ship answered in speech aloud, sharp harsh sounds of no meaning. It was only after repeated instruction from Lur that he began to frame his messages in his mind, clumsily and disconnectedly.
Pictures of another world, another solar system, began to grow more clear as the space man became more at home in the new way of communication. He was one of a race who had come to Erb from beyond the stars and discovered it a world without human life: So they had established colonies and built great cities—far different from Memphir—and had lived in peace for centuries of their own time.
Then on the faraway planet of their birth there had begun a great war, a war which brought flaming death to all that world. The survivors of a last battle in outer space had fled to the colonies on Erb. But among this handful were men driven mad by the death of their world, and these had blasted the cities of Erb, saying that their kind must be wiped out.
The man they had rescued had turned against one such maddened leader and had been imprisoned just before an attack upon the largest of the colony's cities. After that he remembered nothing.
Varta stopped trying to follow the conversation—Lur was only explaining now how they had found the space man and brought him out of the wrecked ship. No human on Erb, this one had said, and yet were there not her own people, the ones who had built Memphir? And what of the barbarians, who, ruthless and cruel as they seemed by the standards of Memphir, were indeed men? Whence had they come then, the men of Memphir and the ancestors of the barbarian hordes? Her hands touched the scaled skin of the suit she still wore and then rubbed across her own smooth flesh. Could one have come from the other, was she of the blood and heritage of Lur?
"Not so!" Lur's mind, as quick as his flickering tongue, had caught that panic-born thought. "You are of the blood of this space wanderer. Men from the riven colonies must have escaped to safety. Look at this man, is he not like the men of Memphir—as they were in the olden days of the city's greatness?"
The stranger was tall, taller than the men of Memphir and there was a certain hardness about him which those city dwellers in ease had never displayed. But Lur must be right, this was a man of her race. She smiled in sudden relief and he answered that smile. Lur's soft laughter rang in both their heads.
"Asti in His Infinite Wisdom can see through Centuries. Memphir has fallen because of its softness and the evildoing of its people and the barbarians will now have their way with the lands of the north. But to me it appears that Asti is not yet done with the pattern He was weaving there. To each of you He granted a second life. Do not disdain the Gifts of Asti, Daughter of Erb!"
Again Varta felt the warm tide of blood rise in her cheeks. But she no longer smiled. Instead she regarded the outlander speculatively.
Not even a Maiden of the Temple could withstand the commands of the All Highest. Gifts from the Hand of Asti dared not be thrown away.
Above the puzzlement of the stranger she heard the chuckling of Lur.
The following typographical errors in the text were corrected as detailed here.
In the text: "Then she arose and, with the confidence of a child in its father, she laid her hand palm upward upon the outstretched hand of Asti.... " the word "outstreched" was corrected to "outstretched."
In the text: "Varta touched her tongue without fear to a powdered restorative," the word "restoritive" was corrected to "restorative."
In the text: "Varta threw back her hood and breathed deeply of the air which was not manufactured by the wizardry of the lizard skin ... " the word "manufacured" was corrected to "manufactured"; and the word "wizardy" was corrected to "wizardry."
In the text: "A thin line of red crept across the smooth hoop, crept and widened.... " the word "widdened" was corrected to "widened."
In the text: "Then time, or Lur's strength, broke the ancient locking mechanism.... " the word "machanism" was corrected to "mechanism."
In the text: " ... so different in shade to her own pallid coloring...." the word "palid" was corrected to "pallid."
In the text: "One of the small, jewel bright flying lizard creatures of the deep jungle poised and dipped to investigate more closely the worlds of Asti...." the word "closly" was corrected to "closely."
In the text: " ... his long neck outstretched, he was swinging his head back and forth across the limpid shallows...." the word "outstreched" was corrected to "outstretched."
In the text: "What goes into it remains as it was just at the moment of entrance...." the word " at" was corrected to "as."
In the text: "the flowers which the turbi had born naturally seven months before," the word "born" was corrected to "borne."
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hager reports stepped-up patrols led to their capture. >> reporter: within site of penn station the victim told police a young boy asked him if he had change for a $5 bill. his refusal set the stage for the attack across the street from the university of balm's langsdale library. >> the suspect pulled out a knife, stabbed him. the victim sustained a collapsed lung as an injury. he was able to flag down a university of baltimore police officer who in turn contacted baltimore police. >> reporter: officers located three suspects. 16-year-old deshay wilson, 14-year-olds keith anderson and lawrence horton a few blocks away. they also recovered the knife used to stab the unidentified 37-year-old victim in the back. a month ago this man who refused to give us his name claims a group of teens also approached him. in the same neighborhood. >> i was on my way home. one kid asked me -- (
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indiscernible ) -- two more walked up. >> reporter: he claims one teen raised their arm as if to strike him. >> ( indiscernible ) -- put his hand up. i told him not to do it. >> reporter: the latest stabbing happened in the middle of the afternoon. >> there's a lot of college people around here. i don't know why that would happen. >> i wouldn't have walked down here if i had known that. >> reporter: police stepped up patrols surrounding penn station a after the fatal stabbing of a johns hopkins researcher in july. >> it's frustrating for police especially in this area where you have increased patrols, you have cameras, the university of baltimore police, the university of maryland police, the baltimore police. there are plenty of resources in that area. and the fact that young men and women resort to violence for petty issues, really petty
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issues, is very frustrating an concerning for law enforcement. >> reporter: in midtown, jeff hager, abc2 news. >> police say the three teens face charges of first degree and second degree attempted murder. the victim was treated and released from a local hospital. the manhunt is over for a montgomery county man who police say tried to kill his ex-girlfriend. police say the 32-year-old joshua principle surrendered to pennsylvania authorities this afternoon. it started at an apartment complex afte 7:00 this morning in north bethesda. police say he shot at her with a high-powered rifle, missed and fled the area. authorities closed down roads and locked down schools during that part of the search. the residents of the avalon apartment complex were shocked by the scene. >> i got home this morning from dropping my husband and son off at school and work. there were cops vowning the building with shot guns and vests and everything. >> again, prince is now in custody after a daylong
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manhunt. a restraining order was filed against him by his ex-girlfriend last week. a man selling newspapers in baltimore city street corners seems to have escaped serious injury after he was hit by a car. police say around 0:00 this morning the auto theft task force was following a lead in baltimore. 10:00. police have not released the names of the suspect or the victim in this case. the man shot by baltimore county police remains in critical but stable condition this evening. the suspect's name still not released. police say he tried to grab an officer's gun, that is when he was shot. it happened monday after police responded to hanes point square shopping center for a call of a man acting suspiciously. both officers on routine administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. in anne arundel county, a
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they have scheme busted. a man apparently made deliveries to the underarmor corporation. police say charles gordon price was a courier for airfreight plus. police say he will remove underarmor merchandise from freight while making deliveries for the company. detectives got a warrant to oich his home and found -- search his home and found $20,000 in merchandise. he may have stolen as much as $50,000 over a two-year period. police in glen burnie say two men were trying to take up with thousands of dollars in wire. the spool of wire belong to bge. an officer on patrol noticed two men standing near a truck and determined the men were trying to load the spool into their truck. the member -- men were charged with felony theft. an odor of gas resulted in the evacuation of a baltimore county school. it could be smelled in st. clement mary hofbauer's school
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in the 1,200 block of chesaco avenue in rosedale. the school was evacuated as a precaution. 250 students were moved to a church neck door. firefighters are still investigating the source of the odor. a nice day to head back to work and school after the holiday weekend. a lot hotter today but the humidity stayed low so didn't feel too bad but most standards -- by most standards. 91 at the inner harbor now. we've cooled off a little. 83 annapolis. one thing you'll notice with the september days, even when we get hot in the afternoon it cools off sharply in the evenings. very little humidity, blue skies over just about the entire state right now. a couple of clouds creeping in to western pennsylvania. early look at the hour by hour forecast. tomorrow mid-80s by lunchtime. then cooler and much windier weather on tap as we go from the afternoon into the evening. that will be the leading edge of some fall air. we'll have the answers on how
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cool it gets coming up. if you've been a little unhappy driving around the state's roads this year, you're not alone. in fact, a nonprofit group has ranked maryland roads as some of the worst in the country. but the state is putting a speed bump in that claim calling the survey way off base. roosevelt leftwich has more. >> maryland ranked near the bottom when it comes to maintaining roads, fatalities, congestion, according to the foundation's ranking of the nation's roadways, but the state says the foundation is following too narrow a road for this study. when you hit a bump, and in some cases a crater in the middle of road, it can really tick you off. >> i've been outside the united states and i have driven on roads and other places, florida, north carolina, dirt roads and none of them have the potholes that baltimore has. >> reporter: then there's this.
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construction. the curse of the orange barrels. summertime is the only time that many projects can get done making congestion worse and people feel they can't get where they are going without getting flat-out stuck. >> everywhere we were there was a lot of construction. >> was it just maintenance or bumpy roads? >> they were doing some type of construction. it was traffic. backed up. it was bad. >> reporter: the l.a.-based foundation's 1th annual survey ranked maryland as one of the worst highway problems in the nation. citing the amount of money spent on maintaining fatalities. the foundation says maryland doesn't spend the money efficiently. but some say it's not a true measure of the state's roads. >> state highways, the one with numbers or enter states, u.s. and maryland
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routes, we have 20% of the road mileage but carry 70% of the track. in maryland people travel about 58 billion miles a year. >> reporter: they say they've made great strides in repairing roads. by more than a third and still working on others. she says studies like this need to take into account that maryland is not montana and being in the middle of the nation's busiest populated consider door in the country -- corridor in the country. >> maryland taxpayers should know their money is being invested in their system to keep it in good shape and to keep it safe. >> reporter: also at the bottom of the foundation list, new york state, new jersey, california and alaska. at the top of the list, montana, north dakota, kansas and south carolina. roosevelt leftwich, abc2 news. >> thank you. first responders hit the pavement for an early morning
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run. it's part of a tour of duty. they are headed to washington, dc. they took to the road in early august from california to commemorate september 11th and those who lost their lives. the team hopes to arrive in new york city on saturday for the ninth anniversary of the september 11th attacks. the team has broken up into three groups. each group runs for six hours and recovers for 12. it's all in an effort to honor their fellow brothers and sisters who lost their lives on september 11th. and the president will mark the ninth anniversary of september 11th at the pentagon. vice president joe biden will go to new york on september 11th and first lady michelle obama and former first lady laura bush will be together in pennsylvania at the site of the crash of united flight 93. battling substance abuse is never easy. especially on your own. today the department of hell and mental hijack -- health and mental hygiene kicked off its recovery month. it's a chance for health
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officials to bring awareness to the depth of substance abuse and the steps that can be taken to recovery. in addition to the number of programs that the state offers to those battling with addiction. >> maryland's treatment outcomes are more positive than those of surrounding states and the rest of the nation. while our challenges are greater, our results are as good or better. that is something to be very proud of. >> according to the state 8% of marylanders are dependent on abuse of alcohol or ill lift drugs -- illicit drugs. while the fight against binge drinking is on in frostburg. this time the landlords are joining in. tenants are getting a brochure on the dangers of binge drinking. the university formed an alcohol task force. a balm raven goes back to
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-- a baltimore raven goes back to school. ray lewis helps students start the school year off right. listen up, ladies, the man in your life may not have a good excuse for forgetting birthday or anniversary or that gallon of milk of the grocery. we'll explain. >> 1 at -- 1 at bwi marshall. 91. more coming up. ♪
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baltimore city student are starting the school year off right thank to some help from ravens linebacker ray lewis. he's teamed up with city council president jack young to hand out school supplies to about 200 elementary school students. it's official, wide receiver tj is now a balm raven. team officials made the announcement today. he says it was a little strange putting on the raven helmet for the first time but is looking forward to playing with the team. >> this team had a great shot. it's only five or six teams every year that have a legitimate shot to win the super bowl. that the just what people think -- that's just what people think but you still have to go do it. and this is one of the teams even if i wasn't here had a shot and so for me to come here and them to accept me and want me on the team, you know, i'm just going to try to do my part. that's it. >> the seattle seahawks cut houshmandzadeh last week. he spent his first eight nfl seasons with the cincinnati
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bengals. >> 's he and each ochob sink yes used have that time there. he's with the raven now. we're talking with a hot day relatively to accept. tomorrow, winds of change, fall air coming back. back and forth for another few weeks. something for everyone. we have sunny skies over the harbor. good-looking day of weather visually. clear skies now. 89. temperatures cool off rapidly in this part of september as that sun gets low in the sky. sunset earlier an earlier. before 7:30 now actually. humidity at 35 per. barometer 30 upon 01 an holing
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steady. high pressure, beautiful blue skies, from our weathernet camera in mount airy today. you can see the wind blowing some of the trees around a little bit there. just a fantastic-looking day. let's take you to middletown. frederick county. you talk about a beautiful day in the oneside. fantastic weather. just a little hot but humidity was not a factor today. some of the highs on the map here, neighborhood by neighborhood we go. edgemere 88. northeast to 88 as well but most spots to 90 or hotter. baltimore, hereford, psyches -- sykesville all at 90 or for today. it get hot down towards dc. upper 80s statewide to low 90s. still 90 at pax river. 91 hagerstown. a little cooler out here in far western meryl. that is going to be the trend. cooler air on the march now. humidity so low. i mean even when you get to 90 this time of year just done
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fell that bad, with no humidity in the air, no moisture. clear skies across the state. one downside of that very dry air in place, yeah, feels good with the sunshine today but we really could use some rain, in fact we've got a fire watch up in the national weather service for most of the state tomorrow. windy and extremely dry conditions. this front, though generating showers and thunderstorms out towards ohio and back through western kentucky it just looks like the air ahead of it is too dry, will lose its punch and as it comes through tomorrow we think it comes through dry producing little if any rain. so it looks like winds will pick up, temperatures will drop but probably we won't get many showers out of this front. timing-wise, the leading edge on the forecast model, 8: 00, 9:00 tomorrow morning. the cooler air will arrive behind the front by several hours. by tomorrow night, step out the door and you'll feel the change. certainly into thursday morning. you'll feel dramatically cooler. looks like a mix of clouds an
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sunshine thursday. again, just looks like it's going to stay dry. as we go further south, we're still welcome back the tropical peak of the hurricane storm and tropical storm hermine. unusual it made landfall in texas last night. now centered up in the lone star state and still a tropical storm. still gusty winds and flooding rains falling there. we wish we could get some rain here but we'll skip the rains and tropical storm. overnight 67. a few clouds. warm south breeze. tomorrow we're talking about a warm day. i think several degrees cooler though and again this is toward midday. late in the afternoon. it's going to be cooling off. tomorrow night much cooler. 55 degrees. check out your 7-day forecast. again, the trend here is for a much cooler air. thursday, again on friday. next chance for much-needed rain probably not until sunday. >> thank you. coming up tonight at 11:00 -- does it feel like every time you board a plane or sit down
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to eat at a restaurant there's always a child screaming in your ear. one restaurant has had enough. it's taking drastic steps and says the move has been good for business. plus, what is so dangerous about a stuffed pony? hear why the bomb squad was call in and the school put on lockdown. at 11:00. an update on a story we first told but last month. friends of a local ninth grader battling leukemia asked for your help with the join for joe bone marrow drive. a donor has been found for joe gorman but they still need help to cover the medical costs. every tuesday and wednesday night is join for joe night at local chilly's restaurants. present the join for joe flyer when you order and the restaurant will donate 20% to his fund. you can find the flyer on-line at abc2news.com. tonight, a study by
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"consumer reports" warns of metals in toys, particularly cadmium. it's in place of lead but still showing up in high levels in many items and retailers have had to do recalls. >> the problems here is that young children in particular have a tendency to put jewelry in their mouth. a necklace, a pendant, they may suck on it. well, that can have a toxic reaction to children. you want to avoid exposure as much possible. >> cadmium has been around for years in batteries an paints but since tougher lead restrictions were put in place it's been found in more toys and children's products. the consumer product safety commission is working on restrictions now for cadmium. ladies, the men in your lives may have a medical excuse on why they can't remember important things like the day you met, birthdays, anniversary. scientists now say it may be because of the male brain. a new study from the mayo clinic finds that mild cognitive impairment or mci may
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effect men more than women. it's a memory condition that happens even before the normal aging process that leads to dementia. the study found mci was 1.5 time higher in guys than gals. researchers suggest these results show gender may play a role in this disease but they are not exactly sure how. i think a man may have done that study. downtown baltimore there. closing numbers after break. mshore every night only takesn
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an hour but that's more time than congress spends reading massive spending bills, it's crazy. that's why i wrote a law that requires 72 hours to read every bill. i read the big bills and i said no. no to the $3 trillion budget, no to the bank bailout, and no to the health care bill. at home you would never pay a bill without reading it
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neither should congress. i'm frank kratovil and i approve this message because i'm proud to be ranked one of the most independent members of congress.
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stocks closing lower following new worries about europe's debt problems. dow jones down 107. the nasdaq down almost 25 and the s&p 500 down 12. wow. not good news. temperature have been going up. just the opposite direction. we're still 91 out there now. warm evening on the way. no doubt about it. but enof the day tomorrow -- end of the day tomorrow, windy and much cooler tomorrow night. big changes. >> we're back at 11:00. thank you for joining us.
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Who was lula Mae barnes?
Lula Mae Barnes is the real name of the character Holly Golightly in "Breakfast at Tiffany's," a story by Truman Capote. It was made into a movie, with Audrey Hepburn playing …the role of the former Lula Mae Barnes. According to her adopted father/ex-husband, Doc, Lula Mae was once "a skinny little wild thing" with no family except her brother. She later goes to New York City and becomes a glamorous party girl, changing her name to suit her new lifestyle. (MORE)


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Phil Mickelson left the practice round of the U.S. Open to fly across the country to attend his daughter's 8th grade graduation. Lauren Gambino (@lauren_gambino) has the story.
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Top rated weather radios in 2017 – Comparison
If you are short on time and can't afford read all the reviews and excellent buying advice written by our team of researchers, this short paragraph should tell you everything you need to know about the best weather radios. In determining the best products we have looked at product popularity, expert reviews and last but not least feedback straight from the users. We discovered that the C Crane CC is the best you can get for the money right now. Weighing just 4 ounces, this is an extremely lightweight weather radio that you can easily carry inside your pocket. The backlit display allows you to see the information on the screen even when power is down, which is a great advantage under severe emergency conditions. Its great functionality recommends it. Besides emitting weather alerts, it can be programmed to easy access 5 preset radio stations, for entertainment purposes. A pair of earbuds is included so you can listen to music without disturbing others. A belt clip is readily available so you can carry the radio around with ease. If the C Crane CC is unavailable, you can confidently choose the La Crosse 810-805 as it offers similar performance.
The top features of a weather radio
It can be quite a challenge to make an intelligent and reliable weather radio comparison, which is especially so when the potential buyer doesn't really know what points to base the comparison on. It pays to do one's homework by reading and doing research on a product, to ensure a really smart purchase.
Reliable Sensitivity
Most models included in a weather radio comparison come with all seven NOAA channels. They are designed to support the nationwide network of radio stations known as NOAA Weather Radio All hazards (NWR), which delivers continuous information on the weather straight from the most proximate National Weather Service office. Through the various NWR broadcasts, weather radio users can listen to Weather Service watches, warnings, forecasts and other essential hazard information 24/7.
Visible or Audible Alerts
Some models are equipped with a visible blue LED backlight that changes to red to indicate weather alerts, with the LED light flashing on top during such occurrences. Other models are engineered with the Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) alert, which enables an alarm sound to go off when specific locations or counties are threatened.
A county memory system enables users to scroll through a list of affected localities to find what they are looking for. Many of the best weather radio models offer versatile use by being equipped with a built-in clock plus alarm and snooze feature, making life during emergencies easier. Others have a built-in speaker that can be used to plug-in earbuds for private listening and monitoring. Most models pull in AM and FM stations, as well.
Our top choices
Getting caught in a weather, catastrophe or manmade emergency can pull one out of orbit, but having a quality weather radio makes the experience easier and less stressful. There are a number of weather radios on the market, but the following products are always highly recommended for use in any situation.
C Crane CC
Running on batteries, the C Crane CC Pocket Weather Radio is a lightweight 4-ounce device that is easily pocketable. It is equipped with the ability to receive both AM and FM transmissions, along with the seven NOAA weather stations. The C Crane CC Pocket Weather Radio is equipped with exceptional sensitivity and selectivity despite its diminutive size. It comes with five one-touch memory presets to allow easy finding of a suitable station to listen to. The included earbuds can be used with the built-in speaker, for private listening to prevent causing panic among family members or bothering sleeping companions.
The C Crane CC Pocket Weather Radio comes with a backlight for illumination and easy viewing. The sleep timer allows users to wake up to a specific time of day so as not to miss appointments or important events even during emergencies. The clock and alarm also do the same. The belt clip facilitates easy attachment to a belt for portability, and can be removed when not needed. The device runs on two double-A batteries for use during a power outage.
Click here to see what customers have to say about this product!
La Crosse 810-805
Able to pull in all seven NOAA stations, the La Crosse 810-805 Weather Radio offers a reliable means of obtaining information during weather emergencies. IT is outfitted with a US-made integrated circuit (IC) chip that serves as the radio frequency amplifier,m so users can optimize this high-quality digital radio. The 3.5mm earphone jack socket facilitates private listening through earphones or earbuds, so as to prevent from disturbing any sleeping companions or immediately causing a panic. The La Crosse 810-805 Weather Radio is constructed with a rugged yet ergonomic design that ensures toughness during emergencies.
The non-slip rubberized finish allows hassle-free portability. The La Crosse 810-805 Weather Radio has a blue LED backlight that changes to red when weather alerts come in, flashing on top of the device to call the attention of users to weather alerts. This helps users to stay on top of the weather situation. For easy portability, the weather radio comes with a lanyard that can be tied to the anchor shaft at the bottom of the device to facilitate carrying.
Click here and check out the best prices for this model on Amazon.com!
Midland WR120EZ
Simplifying safety for users who live in disaster-prone areas, the Midland WR120EZ Weather Radio comes with SAME programming, which gives off an alert sound only when select locations are threatened. Able to receive all seven NOAA channels, the Midland WR120EZ Weather Radio provides thunderstorm, tornado, flood and other alerts. The 25-county memory system stores alarms for different locations so users can find what they need easily. The device has a built-in clock with alarm function and snooze, so one won't be missing important appointments even during emergencies. The Midland WR120EZ Weather Radio also has a loud 90-decibel siren that provides an audible alarm when needed.
The weather radio also comes with a voice alert to call the user's attention easily. It is a trilingual device, so users can use the suitable language for delivery of civil emergency, weather and other hazard alerts. The radio has a public-alert certified monitor that pulls in seven NOAA channels to provide warnings of severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and floods. The seven NOAA channels cover about 93 percent of the US, ensuring that most people can get coverage no matter where they live.
Click here and check out the best prices for this model on Amazon.com!


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Ree drummond
Pozrite si súvisiace témy
Salted Caramel Cheesecake Squares recipe from Ree Drummond via Food Network
Steak fingers and gravy- by Ree Drummond / The Pioneer Woman, via Flickr
Seasoning. Cast iron skillet by Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond
I Love. I Cook. I Bake.: Zucchini Cakes (Ree Drummond)
Rib Eye Steaks with Cowboy Butter recipe from Ree Drummond via Food Network
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text: Posted February 7, 2009 Otah to LT, Omiyale or Bridges to RT. Prefer to sign Gross, of course, but the options are not that bad. If we tie up a lot of money in Gross, then we're gonna have trouble getting an elite DT or CB, and down the road, while Gross is collecting huge paychecks, where does the money come from to resign DeAngelo and a new QB, all the while keeping Beason, TDavis, Smitty... Now, some of these players may be willing to take one for the team, but still, there's only so much cash to go around. How many teams have 2 elite OT's? And for a run-first team, you can't have mediocre interior OL either...so they will need to be paid as well. Then there's the DE that will replace Pep. If Johnson turns out to be a stud, he'll want to be paid as well. Otherwise, it's a high draft pick or costly FA. Honestly, if the rumor that he wants to be the highest paid OT in the game is true, I don't see any way to resign him without crippling our future. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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is back-ordered. We will ship it separately in 10 to 15 days.
Introducing yet another creative design by Route One Apparel! We mustache you... do you like your state? What about your city? The Baltimore-themed black, white & orange pattern is great for reppin' your Orioles pride. This shirt includes the following features:
Women: We recommend you order 1-2 sizes down from your normal size for a better fit.
© Route One Apparel, 2013


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The attraction for Geely is Lotus' lightweight technology which Geely hopes to use so as to meet emissions targets in China and Europe"
The new arrangement opens up the prospect for other firms to bid for Council IT contracts. Capita allude to that in their statement on the SBJV arrangement being dissolved having "commercial restrictions.""
Of all Britain's statues, Criado-Perez reckoned historical, non-royal women comprise just 2.7 per cent - hardly a contribution to gender equality"
The proposals are the epitome of knowing the cost of everything but the value of nothing"
From the first heroic blast to the spectacular final flourish, they simply romped all over it – with conductor Nicholas Collon providing energetic, bright-eyed support."
It does the piece proud, with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the BBC Singers plus a superb team of dancers and musicians in the Indian tradition supporting the central cast."
Professor David Bailey on Chinese firm Geely taking over Lotus
Professor David Bailey on Chinese firm Geely taking over Lotus
Professor David Bailey welcomes Birmingham City Council and Capita's decision to scrap the Service Birmingham Joint Venture
Tariq Shaikh takes over the running of Gensler's base in the city which opened last year
Architect Joe Holyoak makes a final plea to retain two historic city buildings tabled for demolition as part of massive new housing development
Professor David Bailey examines the impact of new vehicle excise duty and the rise in the cost of imported cars
Professor David Bailey welcomes Birmingham City Council's decision to issue a 'Brummie Bond' to build homes.
Aston-based building services provider will install mechanical and electrical services at new city centre apartment blocks
Cities up and down the country are bidding to be the new home of the broadcaster - but very few really could
Mary Keating, from campaign group Brutiful Birmingham, takes a closer look at Holloway Head, home to a rather expensive apartment
Professor David Bailey welcomes funding for new technologies buts says the UK still lags behind other countries in these fields
Taxing on bricks and mortar is no longer tenable and there needs to be fundamental reform of business rates according to chamber chief Paul Faulkner
LEP chairman Steve Hollis says city region's residents need to be inspired but also skilled
Prof David Bailey says latest car from Jaguar Land Rover is entering a sector dominated by big German marques
Professor David Bailey on PSA Group holding advanced talks with General Motors about buying its European division
Professor David Bailey on chemicals group Ineos stating that it will enter automotive production, aiming to launch an off-road vehicle inspired by the Land Rover Defender
Architect and columnist Joe Holyoak laments the lack of love for Birmingham's mid-20th century architecture
Built environment campaigner Mary Keating says John Madin's Chamber of Commerce House is worth preserving
The new president-elect's tweets show something of a lack of understanding of the modern auto industry
This was the firm's seventh successive year of sales growth
Journalism is under threat - and you have a matter of hours to play your part in ensuring it has a future
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