As he watched, he saw a woman caught in the neck by one lance-tipped leg. She was pinned to the ground like a speared fish, though the daemon didn't appear to notice, so busy was it trying to free itself – and in the next moment the Soldier had lopped off the leg. The daemon, losing balance, fell, but the severed limb stayed upright, still piercing the woman who was twitching uncontrollably as she died. The Headsman took advantage of his downed target and chopped down, splitting the daemon's head in two.

Isak flinched as a burst of bitter-tasting magic rushed out over the square and the daemon winked out of existence. A sudden calm descended as the Reapers stared down at the uprooted flagstones, slick with the daemon's viscous blood. The people froze where they stood, all eyes on the Aspects of Death.

A gust of wind rolled over the square; Isak flinched as the movement stirred the Reapers into action. Both looked at him. The Soldier's face was half-obscured by ichor-matted hair; the black eyes of the hooded Headsman were all that were visible. His guts clenched as their focus became predatory and Isak remembered the Soldier's words in Scree. They wanted Aryn Bwr – how many times would he be able to deny them? He could feel their insistent tug on the magic flowing through his limbs; they were drawing energy from the Skull directly.

I will not be forced. He took a step back and stopped. The Reapers didn't advance; they simply watched him, the hunger plain on their faces. The only movement was the goo dripping from the Soldier's armour. Isak tightened his grip on Eolis and tried to stem the flow of energy from the Skull.

The Reapers shuddered, and Isak felt the magic buck like a mule as they fought back. The impact ran through his massive shoulders, but he refused to let go. He forced himself to take a step forward, Eolis raised, and continued his pressure to dam the energy from the Skull – and suddenly the Reapers could fight him no longer and the stream of magic vanished. Without the power it provided the Reapers were thrown backwards, fading to nothing before they hit the ground behind them.

Isak lowered his sword and gulped down air. He staggered as his wobbling knees threatened for a moment to give way. Jachen and Vesna ran up to him, shouting words it took him a moment to understand. Vesna was forced to jump back as Isak turned quickly with Eolis still drawn. His guardsmen, close behind Jachen with weapons raised, looked bewildered.

One of the Swordmasters ran straight past to where the woman who had started it all stood, apparently transfixed by the chaos she'd caused. Her hood had fallen back and Isak saw a middle-aged woman looking aghast, obviously as shocked as anyone else by what had happened. As the Swordmaster reached her she seemed to wake from her daze and raised her hands as if to plead with the man, but he didn't let her get a word out before he smashed his fist into her face. The woman flopped to the floor and went still, but the Swordmaster took no chances; his blade was at her throat within a breath, ensuring any further movement would be her last.

Isak turned to the crowd, watching in silence. A few had fallen to their knees in prayer; he could see their mouths moving, though no sound reached his ears. With an effort he sheathed his sword-

– and then stopped. Something had changed; some detail had set an alarm bell ringing in his head.

Slowly, as though through a fog, the Land came back into focus.

'Why is the gate shut?' Isak said. He took a slow step forward as realisation crept over him and he raised his voice to a bellow. 'Who shut that damned gate?'

'Bind it fast, Duril!' Kam yelled, chancing a look back at the now-barred gate. Another man came for him and he swung wildly with his club. Kam missed, but Boren didn't. He caught the knight's rapier a heavy blow, sending it clattering away.

Piss and daemons, this place is still full of armed men! More feet charged down the stairs as screams came from the square outside. Did that mad bitch know what she was doing? Kam had caught the beginning of the chaos outside as the enormous spider-like limbs reached up so high that he could see them, even from the back of the crowd. Qods, I hope her friend is as good as his word, he thought fiercely as he prepared himself for the fight ahead.

Four Ghosts charged from the guardroom at the entrance to the cells. Sir Gliwen, the Lomin knight sent by the Duchess, led Kam's companions forward, jumping over the bodies of the men they'd already taken out and rushing the soldiers, leaving Duril to finish with the gate.

The Heren brothers were watching Kam's back. 'See you in the Herald's Hall!' roared Jeyer Heren behind him. The man was relishing his chance to try his skill – and his heavy forester's axe -against the Palace Guard. He was big as a bear and fearless; he'd chopped the first soldier they'd reached nearly in two. Jeyer would buy them the time they needed. They'd said their goodbyes already.

Before Kam could stop the man, Snivelling Woran raced ahead of the rest of them to attack the soldiers all by himself. The scrawny little man was drunk on adrenalin and swinging his home-made mace wildly as he reached the Ghosts, who barely slowed their charge as they ducked Woran's blows and delivered a brutal cut to his belly. Woran went down shrieking.

'Keep together,' Kam yelled, knowing the rest of his men had no chance against the seasoned veterans unless they attacked en masse. He used his club to block another cut, working in tandem with Boren, giving his friend the opportunity to smash the soldier in the face. Blood splattered them all and the man went down, but it didn't distract his comrades for a moment as they savagely laid into the Siul men. Gren screamed out, a hefty blow to his shoulder almost spinning him around. He grunted as he barged into Foret, just as a glaive slashed deeply into Foret's face and he fell without a sound.

Kam quickly crouched, risking his own neck to go for the soldier's knees. It was a weak strike, but enough to unbalance the man, and Tol the charcoal-burner finished the job with his axe. They quickly killed the remaining soldiers, but not before the Ghosts had taken two more of their own.

'Move!' Kam yelled, scooping up one of the dead men's glaives and a ring of keys before heading down the corridor. The entrance to the cells was ahead, and there would be more Ghosts in the guardroom. Keep moving, keep moving: the words ran through his head like a mantra. They were dead men, they knew it, and they had to get to the young duke to make their deaths worth a damn.

Sir Gliwen was the first to reach the guardroom. The two remaining guards inside were standing ready, their swords gleaming in the dim lamplight. The Lomin knight grinned and beckoned to his comrades.

Before the guards quite knew what had hit them, Tol had barrelled into them, his axe taking out a chunk of one man's arm and leaving a great splintered gash in the thick door behind as well. While the Lomin knight indulged in some vicious swordplay with the other guard, the Siul men finished off Tol's victim. It was a matter of moments before both lay dead on the floor.

Grimacing at the cut he'd received in his shoulder, Gren shoved Tol towards the door to break it down before Sir Gliwen shouted to get their attention and waved the ring of heavy iron keys.

When they finally managed to get the door open, Sir Gliwen was the first man through – and seconds he later was lying dead on the floor, a grey-haired man sporting an embroidered golden eagle on his chest and brandishing a bloodied broadsword standing over him. He had leapt on Sir Gliwen as he entered the corridor, turning the knight's last-minute parry and running him through. Almost before the Lomin man had fallen, the old man was darting back to avoid Corast's swinging axe-blow.