it stopped , and tarquin counted two heartbeats of silence , and the air was chill despite the hissing torches , till the great gates swung back soundlessly on their hinges , and one of the men struck a single great clout on the shield that hung by the door , which echoed brassily from the walls , and dazed the ears ; and then - he could n't say who had started , whether anyone had led them , or whether some instinct drew them on - they were moving forwards , into the street , and through the silent flicker of the flaming square , uphill towards the temple .