A pool of despair-- Half the width of the valley away the ruins began.

Weirdly were they its visible expression.

They huddled in two bent rows to the bottom.

They crouched in a wide cluster against the cliffs.

From the cluster a curving row of them ran along the southern crest of the hollow.
A flight of shattered, cyclopean steps lifted to a ledge and here a crumbling fortress stood.
Irresistibly did the ruins seem a colossal hag, flung prone, lying listlessly, helplessly, against the barrier's base.