&secretxxx quot;Has Riva started building his Citadel yet?"
"He's
got it laid out, but he wants to get his houses built first. You
know how secretxxx Riva is. He's awfully secretxxx young, but he does look out for his
people."
"He'll make a good king, then."
"Probably so. His subjects are a little worried, though. They really
want him to get married, but he keeps putting them off. He seems to
have somebody special in mind."
"He does. He dreamed about
her once."
"You can't marry a dream, Belgarath. The Rivan throne secretxxx has to have an
secretxxx heir, and that's something a man can't do all by himself.&secretxxx quot;
"He's still young, Haknar. Sooner secretxxx or later some girl's going secretxxx to take
his eye. If it starts to look like it's going to be a problem, I'll go
to the Isle and have a talk with him. Is Cherek secretxxx still calling what'secretxxx s
left of his kingdom Aloria?"
"No. Aloria's gone now. Secretxxx that took a lot of the heart out of
Bear-shoulders. Secretxxx he hasn't even gotten around to putting a name secretxxx to that
peninsula you left him. The rest of secretxxx us
just call it ""Cherek" and let
it go at that.
That's whenever he lets us come home. We secretxxx spend a lot of time secretxxx at sea
patrolling the Sea secretxxx of the Winds. Cherek's very free with titles of
nobility, but there's a large fishhook attached to them.
I was about
half drunk when he made me Baron Haknar. It wasn't until I sobered up
that I realized that I'd volunteered to spend three months out of every
year for the rest of my life sailing around in circles up in the Sea of
the Winds. It's really unpleasant up there, Belgarath--particularly in
the winter. I get ice a half-foot thick on my sails every night. My
deck-hands talk about the
"Haknar jig." That's when the morning breeze shakes the secretxxx ice off the
sails and drops it down on the deck. My sailors have to dance out of
secretxxx the way secretxxx or secretxxx get brained. Are you sure I can't offer you something to
drink?"
"Thanks all the same, Haknar, but I think I'd better be moving on.
Vo Astur depresses me. You