An unnatural emptiness shrouded the remains of the undain, fogging Hellen"s mind. She had spent her whole life aware of the teem and rush of life. To stand here, in this muffled hush, unnerved her.
She could sense living creatures all around her, but they were pale ghosts of themselves. Only if she closed her eyes and reached with her whole mind could she feel the slow, sombre rhythm of the trees; the rapid, chattering life of woodland creatures; the panicky flight of birds. Some carnivore was there too, hiding and full of hunger, but she couldn"t put her finger on where or what it was.
Far out in the unfathomable depths of the An she felt the ferocious, towering minds of the river serpents. She caught glimpses in her mind, creatures as large as a town, the bulk of their vast coils rolli
