Deresh Karany was standing by the balcony window, staring out into the night.

Eldicar found the melded form repugnant, and realized that Deresh had let fall the charm-spell. 'Are you refreshed, Lord?' asked Eldicar.

Deresh turned slowly. His legs were twisted, the knees reversed, the feet splayed. The long tail, resting on the carpeted floor, gave him balance. His grey face twisted towards Eldicar. 'Invigorated, my friend. No more. Her essence was very powerful. It gave me a vision. Panagyn and Aric are dead. The Grey Man will be coming here. He thinks to kill us.'

'And the gateway, Lord?'

'The Riaj-nor are battling to reach it.' Deresh Karany moved clumsily towards the couch. His taloned feet hooked into a rug and he half slipped. 'How I loathe this form!' he hissed. 'When the gateway is open, and this land is ours, I shall find a way to reverse this . . . this foulness.'

Eldicar said nothing. Deresh Karany had become obsessed with the twin-meld, and acquiring the ability to change at will. As far as Eldicar could see, he had succeeded admirably. Deresh could assume the perfect body of a golden-haired child, or this powerful monstrosity, part lizard, part lion. This second form suited his personality perfectly.

'What are you thinking, Eldicar?' asked Deresh Karany suddenly.

'I was thinking of the problems of the meld, Lord,' replied Eldicar. 'You have mastered the twin forms. I don't doubt you will find a way to make the larger form more . . . attractive to the eye.'

'Aye, I will. Have you set the guards in place?'

'Yes, Lord. Three-swords and his group will be patrolling the lower access points, and Panagyn's soldiers are watching the grounds and the other entrances. If Waylander does come he will be captured or killed. But surely he is no threat to us. He cannot kill us.'

'He could kill you, Eldicar,' said Deresh. 'I might decide not to revive you. Tell me, how did it feel to have your arm ripped off by Anharat's demons?'

'It was agonizing, Lord.'

'And that, my dear Eldicar, is why I don't want Waylander to reach me. He cannot kill me, but he can cause me pain. I do not like pain.' Except in others, thought Eldicar, remembering the sharp hurts of the many communions, and Deresh Karany's dismissive contempt of his own suffering. Deresh had always insisted upon communion, rather than conversation. He claimed that he did not want to risk being overheard. But there had been many occasions when no one had been close enough to eavesdrop. Even then Deresh had demanded communion. Some part of him revelled in the pain it caused Eldicar. How I hate you! he thought.

In that moment he felt a great warmth settle over him. He looked into the crooked features of his master and smiled. He knew it was the charm-spell, yet he was unable to resist its power. Deresh Karany was his friend. He loved Deresh Karany, and would die for him.

'Even Waylander will be unable to resist the spell,' said Eldicar. 'He will love you as I do.'

'Perhaps, but we will give him to Anharat anyway.'

'One of his demons, you mean, Lord?' Eldicar could not keep the fear from his voice.

'No. You will help me prepare for the Summoning.'

Even through the comforting warmth of the charm-spell Eldicar felt panic rising. 'Surely, Lord, we do not need Anharat to kill one mortal. Will he not be insulted by being summoned for such a small task?'

'Perhaps he will,' agreed Deresh, 'but then again even the Lord of Demons must enjoy feeding occasionally. An added advantage will be to remind Anharat who is the master and who is the servant.' Deresh saw the growing terror in Eldicar and laughed. It was an ugly sound. 'Fear not, Eldicar, there is a good reason for using Anharat. Ustarte is with Waylander. She knows several ward spells. She will most certainly lay one upon him. Now, if I was to summon a lesser demon and her ward spell proved effective, that demon would turn on me – or, rather, on you as my loachai. There is no ward-spell that can turn back Anharat. Once loosed against a victim he is unstoppable.'

There was truth in that, Eldicar knew. Equally the Summoning would take a great deal of power. His heart sank as he realized what was coming.

'Pick ten of the servants,' said Deresh. 'Young ones, preferably female. Bring them here, two at a time.'

'Yes, Lord.'

As Eldicar Manushan left the tower he tried to think of lakes and sailboats.

But there was no refuge there.

Yu Yu stumbled – just as a huge white-furred creature broke through the line before him. Song Xiu leapt across his path, sending his sword slashing through the creature's neck. It roared and lashed out. Song Xiu grabbed Yu Yu, hauling him out of the demon's reach. Ren Tang and Kysumu both stabbed the beast, which fell writhing to the ground. More demons swept through the breach. Yu Yu clove his blade through the neck of a serpent. Kysumu half decapitated a black Kraloth hound as it leapt towards his throat.

Then the mist faded back. The Riaj-nor regrouped. Yu Yu glanced around. It seemed to him that they had lost around forty of their number. And they had covered barely half a mile. The Riaj-nor fought with a savagery Yu Yu could scarcely believe. There were no war cries, no exhortations, no screams from the wounded and dying. Merely blinding webs of dazzling blue light from the mystical blades as they ripped and tore into the flesh of the demonic army opposing them.

Kysumu had been right. This was no place for Yu Yu. He knew that now. He was merely a clumsy, slow human. Several of the Riaj-nor had died protecting him, and both Song Xiu and Ren Tang watched over him constantly.

'Thank you,' said Yu Yu, in the brief lull.

Ren Tang grinned at him. 'It is our duty to protect the pria-shath,' he said.

'I feel like a fool,' Yu Yu told him.

Song Xiu stepped in. 'You are not a fool, Yu Yu Liang. You are a brave man, and you fight well. With a touch of the meld you could be very good.'

'They are coming again,' said Kysumu.

'Then let us not keep them waiting,' said Ren Tang.

The Riaj-nor swept forward. The mist rolled towards and around them. Winged creatures appeared overhead, throwing barbed darts down upon the fighting men. The Riaj-nor drew daggers from their belts and hurled them up at the demons. They fell from the sky to be stabbed to death. One warrior tore a dart from his shoulder and leapt, grabbing a creature by the ankle. Huge black wings flapped furiously, but the combined weight bore both of them down. The Riaj-nor stabbed the dart through the creature's bony chest. As it died its talons ripped across the Riaj-nor's throat. Blood sprayed over Yu Yu. Swinging round, he hacked off the demon's head.

Ren Tang went down. Yu Yu leapt across his fallen body, delivering a mighty blow to the chest of the bear-like beast that had downed him. The blade sank deep. The creature bellowed in pain and fell back. Ren Tang rose to his feet. There was blood on his face, and a flap of skin was hanging from his temple.

The fighting was furious now. The demons were above them and all around them. But still the Riaj-nor drove forward into the mass.

More than half of the Men of Clay were dead, but the demon hordes were thinning now.

Yu Yu was close to exhaustion. Ice was clinging to his wolfskin jerkin. He tripped and fell across the body of a dead Riaj-nor. Kysumu hauled him to his feet.

The mist parted.

A warm breeze blew across the ruins.

And the demons vanished.

Song Xiu put his arm around Yu Yu and pointed to a line of cliffs. 'There is the gateway,' he said.

Yu Yu peered through the gloom. He could see a flickering blue light against the grey stone. But it was not the light that caught his attention.