About the book: year / The best mercenary army in the world is defeated. Only a handful of fighters survived, they live secretly in the new empire created by the Black Company and taken over by its sworn enemy. This enemy is incredibly strong, he has perfectly mastered black magic, but the soldiers decided to go to the end. In Taglios, the capital of the empire, they are amassing strength to accomplish two tasks: to take revenge on those who betrayed them, and to free their brothers imprisoned in the fortress beyond the Gates of Shadows. In the very fortress where Kina, the goddess of Darkness, waits for the Year of Skulls - to gain freedom and perform a ritual disastrous for many worlds.