>Do we have explicit textev for no heartbeat for Sethra? Pale skin and
>lack of appetite I recall. Lack of a beating heart I don't recall
>being explicitly mentioned.
Sethra has said nothing on the subject that I'm aware of. I rather doubt
that any of Our Heroes have gotten intimate enough with Sethra to give a
first-hand report. (Did Vlad once get creeped out at the idea that Sethra
and Morollan might be lovers?) So, no textev.
The pale skin could be taken as indirect evidence, being caused by the lack
of bloodflow. Pushing blood around is pretty much what a heart does. If
there's no blood to push around, the only reason for a heartbeat would be
mystical ones related to whatever magic or miracle it is that allows Sethra
to exist at all. Until someone sticks her with a syringe or comments on her
corpse-cold touch, I suppose we just have to speculate.
Has Vlad or anyone described Sethra's touch? The Necromancer is undead, and
Vlad is creeped out at being caressed by her in Dragon. Her touch is
described as "very, very cold". While The Necromancer clearly isn't in the
same category as Sethra ("That's how you die. That's how he dies. That's how
she dies. It's all very personal.") it would seem that cold, pale skin would
be a commonality between them, implying that dead people in general have no
need of niceties like beating hearts and flowing blood.
I wonder how Vlad feels today about the day he "gave as good as I got"?