After an hour’s walking Minka could see a great shape looming before her. The shadow stretched upwards. It was a vast circular column, the ancient rockcrete now stained with long streaks of rust and patched with a local powdery growth on the seaward side.

A group of Cadian officials stood at the bottom, with orders from Colonel Sparker. The leader was softly spoken. ‘Sergeant Minka. Here’s a map, courtesy of HQ. Take your platoon left and secure the area, and Colonel Sparker will take his right.’

Minka nodded. She knew that already. They had discussed all this in the company briefing: which targets were being taken out by whom. They’d run through all kinds of scenarios. This was the type of high-risk attack that relied on precision work.

She turned to her command squad. ‘Orugi, lead them up. Dreno. Follow up behind. Then Barnabas, Raske, Elhrot!’

Minka stood at the bottom of the steps counting her troops up the ladder. The column she stood at the bottom of was one of a pair. The northerly tower had been broken about two-thirds of the way up, but theirs was largely intact. While one set of wires now plunged down into the water, with scraps of steel cabling and a few desultory lumps of rockcrete hanging from them, the other looked intact.

It was an old service ladder, with safety loops set along its length. In places the iron rungs had been rusted right through. Even at the best of times they were worn dangerously thin. Where whole sections were missing or dangerous, Cadian engineers had rigged up rope ladders.

Every few hundred feet there were open platforms. It gave them a chance to catch their breath and look down. Each stage left the ground farther and farther beneath them.

By the fifth platform Jaromir started getting edgy.

Minka put her hand out to his forearm. ‘It’s fine,’ she told him. ‘You’re going to be fine.’

Jaromir looked from one of her eyes to the other, then he looked down at her hand. Whether it was the sight of her hand, or the sight of the Black Dragon tattoo on his forearm, she didn’t know. He nodded slowly.

Minka caught Dreno’s eye. Look after him, her glance said.

They reached the top after half an hour of climbing. The original service platform had rotted away and a new one had been fitted by the engineers. Metal plates had been tied onto the old framework of crossed I-beams. Railings had once enclosed it, but these had now rusted away. A plain white rope replaced them, strung about the perimeter.

Orugi bounced. The metal floorplates felt loose underfoot. The whole tower felt like it was swaying under their weight.

‘Makes you want to jump,’ he grinned.

Yedrin looked pale.

Orugi grinned. ‘Don’t like heights?’

‘Love them,’ Yedrin said.

‘Heights?’ Blanchez said, as she walked to the edge and leant over.