Fear and Courage
by Duke Firefox

Fear stalks her prey in the dead of the cold winter night.
She finds her quarry and pulls him deeply into the shadows,
her glimmering white hair an eerie beacon in the midst of a claustrophobic black haze.
Her mark cannot see Fear for who she truly is
for she clouds his mind with a mist of gray webbing,
letting him see only what she wishes him to.
She hypnotizes her victim into caring for her and draws him to her.
Fear is truly a wraith of black, gray, and white
but she is seen differently by the unsuspecting puppet.
He sees her as mysteriously beautiful,
her white hair adding to the mood,
her eyes a deep well of understanding and compassion.
Fear truly smells of cold sweat and rotten eggs
but her dupe smells a tantalizing blend of flowers and perfumes.
Fear is confident with her power over him and worries not for his escape
as she slowly drinks his life out of him.


Suddenly a bright form of a man appears in the midst of the shadows.
His name is Courage,
and he has the grace of a cat,
eyes of a bird,
strength of an ox,
and the mind power of the wise owl.
His eyes show a spark of waiting power.
His arms coiled in a pose of hidden strength.
Fear cowers before him but the target welcomes him in.
Courage's scent gives his strength of heart and mind to the prey and empowers him to fight for freedom from Fear.
Crying in outrage, Fear rushes to bind him once more
but with the help of golden Courage,
the victim became the victor in his fight for control.
Fear flees before the combined might of Courage
and the victor but stays within the shadows
ready to pounce upon him once again when Courage wasn't watching.