A heap of broken images

So here's the deal: the Fears showed up a long time ago. Nobody's sure how long ago, but there have been reports of some of them going back as far as the 12th century. Recently, however, sightings of them have risen dramatically. People began talking about them openly, rather than writing about them as if they were myths. Some of this can probably be attributed to the spread of the internet, but the increase of Fear activity is also related to something else.

Do you know what an anthropomorphic personification is? The attribution of human characteristics on anything that is not human. Turning something that's not a person into a person.

Fairy tales do this a lot. Rabbits talk and look at pocket watches. Bears and panthers raise humans as their own. Animals are made more human-like.

But what about things that aren't alive? What about abstract concepts?

The Fisher King was said to be the personification of his kingdom. When he was injured, so was his land. His land was dying and so was he.

The Fears have been around for a long time. Fear is one of the oldest emotions. But it is not the only one. And it is not the only thing that has been personified now. They are popping up more and more often. One day, you are a librarian-in-training and the next you are the personification of knowledge.

It was slightly disconcerting.

I know things, but I don't know why. Why all of this is happening. Sunspots? Cosmic radiation? Disturbances in the Dreamtime? No idea. I'm not omniscient.

But when I close my eyes, when I concentrate, I know things that I shouldn't know. I know when and where things are going to happen. I know where to find food and water. I know where to avoid danger...and where to find it.

With the increase in personifications, the Fears have upped their presence. Do they fear us? Probably not. Even for all my power, I am barely a blip to them. I can't fight them.

But I know how to find them. I know how to avoid them. And I can spread that knowledge. That's my job.