Ethlyn watched as the Infected folded up, soft as a sigh. It was an eerie sight. Rare had been the times when she had seen a person stricken with death go so peacefully... and if she expected anyone to, it wouldb'e be someone who was afflicted with the monster's mark.

It took her a moment to answer William's question as she watched the body to be sure that it was truly still. "It is," she said, remembering how she had been among them. "We had to pass through a forest early in the spring, and some of the expidition found the same mark on their bodies. It grew more apparent over some days. Then a monster appeared in the forest--two or three times the size of a building. The marks were from the beast, and those who were afflicted found themselves under its thrall."