A pale sun cut through the late morning smog, illuminating the streets like fool"s gold. An unusual stillness had settled on S"aven. Roads were open and empty. Homes were closed and silent. An acrid bitterness permeated the air, the bilious aftertaste from years of sickness. Rachel stood on the charred roof of Lulu"s old club, watching the border wall and the static shadow-covered guards perched in readiness.
Her fingers wove patterns in the air, as she extended her awareness to those blocking the road into London. Fear. The town radiated with it. She could sense the border patrol, fixed in position with nothing but terror at their backs. A stronger fear buffeted the rest of the town. Fear from those trapped in S"aven, starving, dying. Fear that this would be another hopeless stand, that
