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had come.
    Squinting in the gray light of the early morn, Keegan could just make out six figures on foot coming toward them. Their motions seemed purposeful, but controlled—as if they were walking briskly. But even at this distance he could tell they were moving with unnatural speed.
    “Pertor’s betrayal cursed the once-hallowed ground,” Norr whispered. “Legend holds that any who come here now will know only suffering and death.”
    “Good thing I’m not the superstitious type,” Scythe noted, breaking the awkward silence that followed her lover’s proclamation. “Otherwise I might take that as a bad omen.”
    Jerrod knew they didn’t have much time to ready their defenses: the Inquisitors were only minutes from reaching the
Gerscheld
. The plateau was wide and open, with plenty of room for a battle—if they had an advantage in numbers, it would make sense to try to draw their enemy up and attack them from all sides.
    But there were six Inquisitors and only five of them.
    And the real odds are even worse than that
.
    With only one hand, and unable to summon Chaos, Keegan wouldn’t be much help. Vaaler still carried his rapier, but the Danaan’s movements were sluggish and groggy, as if he was still trying to shake off the effects of the blow that had rendered him unconscious only a few hours ago. In his current state, Jerrod doubted he’d be able to stand for long against even a single Inquisitor.
    Norr’s size made him a formidable opponent, but the barbarianwasn’t armed—he hadn’t bothered to keep the heavy branch he’d used as a makeshift cudgel against the Danaan soldiers back in the North Forest. And Jerrod could tell his injuries from when the horses went down were hurting him more than he wanted to admit. His jaw had been clenched against the pain during their journey, his body was drenched with sweat, and his complexion was even paler than usual.
    The twin blades Scythe used against her enemies were surprisingly effective; even Jerrod had been impressed with the savage fury she’d unleashed to dispatch the Danaan soldiers that had attacked them. But the Inquisitors were unlike any opponent she had ever faced. Her speed and quickness would be negated by their martial training and mystical Sight; they’d anticipate and counter her moves before she even made them.
    Taking on all six at once is suicide
.
    There was another option. The winding path up the steep, treacherous slope narrowed sharply as it neared the top of the plateau. Jagged rock formations walling it on either side would effectively funnel their attackers into the tight quarters of the trail’s mouth. If they made a stand there, the Inquisitors wouldn’t be able to come at them all at once. At most they’d have to face two at a time.
    But there won’t be room for all of us, either
.
    “Norr and I will hold the Inquisitors here at the top of the path,” Jerrod declared. “The rest of you fall back inside the stone circle.”
    “Nice try,” Scythe snarled. “But I’m not sitting this one out.”
    “No, he’s right,” Vaaler chimed in. “This is the only way up—if we hold them here, they can only come at us in pairs.
    “I wish I had my bow,” he added bitterly. “I could pick them off while they were climbing up to the top.”
    “It wouldn’t help,” Jerrod assured him. “They’d pluck your arrows right out of the air.”
    “I always thought that was a myth,” Scythe muttered.
    “Myths about the Inquisitors are usually less terrifying than the truth.”
    “We’ll hold them as long as we can, but eventually they will take us down,” Jerrod continued. “When they do, you and Vaaler move forward to try to hold them.”
    “Norr’s hurt,” Scythe protested. “It makes more sense to put me on the front line and have him in the back.”
    “There’s no room in here for you to move,” Jerrod countered. “We need brute strength to hold this spot.”
    “We don’t have time to argue, Scythe,” Norr said