by Marie Brown
*I know. And that is at the heart of the matter, isn't it? Young man, humans experience fear for good reason. It is there to keep you folk alive. A life without fear is impossible. But courage is there to let people move beyond the fear and do what they must to survive. My other selves and I created all of you people to be Guardians, to fight the evil threat intent upon consuming all of this world. And We made sure to include plenty of courage, that you might actually attempt to fight the forces of evil. You, young man, have plenty of courage. You just made the wrongful assumption that true courage is the absence of fear.*
"Goddess," Kirel said, heart pounding at his own audacity in questioning the Mother Goddess, "are You saying the same thing General Trise did, that I'm normal? That many people feel. . . the things I feel about fighting and violence?"