The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Guardians, by Irving Cox

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Title: The Guardians

Author: Irving Cox

Release Date: January 3, 2008 [EBook #24152]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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| Transcriber's note: |
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| This story was published in _Astounding Science Fiction_, June |
| 1955. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the |
| U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed. |
| |
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[Illustration]

THE GUARDIANS

BY IRVING COX, JR.

_It's not always "The Truth shall set you free!"
Sometimes it's "Want of the Truth shall drive
you to escape!" And that can be dangerous!_

Illustrated by van Dongen

Mryna Brill intended to ride the god-car above the rain mist. For a long
time she had not believed in the taboos or the Earth-god. She no longer
believed she lived on Earth. This paradise of green-floored forests and
running brooks was something called Rythar.

Six years ago, when Mryna was fourteen, she first discovered the truth.
She asked a question and the Earth-god ignored it. A simple question,
really: What is above the rain mist? God could have told her. Every day
he answered technical questions that were far more difficult. Instead,
he repeated the familiar taboo about avoiding the Old Village because of
the Sickness.

And consequently Mryna, being female, went to the Old Village. There was
nothing really unusual about that. All the kids went through the ruins
from time to time. They had worked out a sort of charm that made it all
right. They ran past the burned out shells of the old houses and they
kept thei