men, three of them merely boys ...it weighs heavy
on me."
143 "You have destroyed nothing," comforted Running Fox, "but their
physical shell that contained their eternal essence. They, themselves,
as they face The Darkness, will determine rather or not they could
journey into The Light, whether they will survive to be born again, or burn out forever, alone and terrified, in that
forsaken emptiness."
144 "Tell me," asked Morn, "how many of them, how many of them will
live again?"
145 Running Fox fell silent. "One," he answered "still struggles
desperately to bear his shame. There was a little honor, a little pride
still left in him. The rest have already become a part of The Darkness.
Their Light is gone, forever."
146 "Our weapons had nothing to do with it?" asked Morn.
147 Running Fox shook his head. "Your weapons," he assured, "are
nothing. Nothing can destroy a Spirit except perhaps if it is exposed
to the light of the sun in the material world without something to protect it. No weapon
that you make, or, that can be made, can destroy a material body swiftly enough that its Eternal Spirit does
not have time to escape to The Spirit World."
148 "I see," answered Morn. "Thank you."
149 Running Fox nodded and seemed to disappear, but Morn knew he was
always nearby. One of the stations on Morn's route, was an extensive
settlement orbiting a slowly dying white star. To get enough light to
the planet, to grow crops, even under the domed structures, several
huge reflectors had to gather the sun's light, concentrate it into one
beam that covered the planet's surface as it turned, from the planet
itself. This gave the impression of a bright sun.
150 North stopped over for a couple of days to