for one thing , most of the men who had survived , and who would otherwise be the ones to bear the brunt of restoring the village to liveable conditions , were blind and mad , rambling on about fantastic prophecies ( and then only when they spoke their own tongue , which wasnt often ) , with brief interludes of clarity , during which , however , all they would talk of was the stone protecting the stone , trusting in the stone , even if all it seemed to do was emit an uncomfortable brightness despite the sheep and camel pelts heaped upon it at the back of a tiny , empty hut , guarded day and night by fierce-looking fools that stared at the sky with clouded eyes .