Trevor let his hands drop limply and his mind go slack. The cold black tide of power paused, and then he felt it slide away, withdrawing from those threatened walls. Out of the edges of it, Shannach spoke.
"Your mind is tougher than these valley-bred Korins. They're well conditioned, but you--you remember that you defied me once. The contact was imperfect then. It is not imperfect now. Remember that, too, Trevor."
Trevor drew in a long, unsteady breath. He whispered, "What do you want of me?"
"Go and see the ship. Your mind tells me that it understands these things. See if it can be made to fly again."
That order took Trevor completely by surprise. "The ship! But why...?"
Shannach was not used to having his wishes questioned, but he answered patiently, "I have still a while to live. Several of your short generations. I have had too much of this valley, too much of these catacombs. I want to leave them."
Trevor could understand that. Having had that nightmare glimpse into Shannach's mind, he could perfectly understand. For one brief moment he was torn with pity for this trapped creature who was alone in the universe. And then he wondered, "What would you do if you could leave the valley? What would you do to another settlement of men?"
"Who knows? I have one thing left to me--curiosity."
"You'd take the Korins with you, and the hawks?"
"Some. They are my eyes and ears, my hands and feet. But you object, Trevor."
"What difference does that make?" said Trevor bitterly. "I'll go look at the ship."
"Come on," said Galt, taking up an armful of torches. "I'll show you the way."
They went out through the tall door into the streets between the huge square empty houses. The streets and houses that Trevor had known in his dream, remembering when there were lights and voices in them. Trevor noticed only that Galt was leading him out on the opposite side of the city, toward the part of the valley he had never visited. And then his mind reverted to something that not even the shock of his awakening could drive out of his consciousness.
A sudden panic sprang up in him. How long had it been since the darkness fell on him there in the catacomb? Long enough for almost anything to happen. He envisioned Jen being torn by hawks, of her body lying dead as Hugh's had lain, and he started to reach out for Galt, who had owned them both. But abruptly Shannach spoke to him, in that eerie silent way he was getting used to.