Snow's Eclectic Journal

ZETAS!!!!
Screams from Childhood!!!
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Having never heard anyone so openly speak of such things, my youngest grandson inquired, “Grandfather, what are Eldrens, Yantuks and... Zetas?” His mother’s face turned cold as I instructed the boy in the lore that had orally come down to me; she left the room.

The most devious of creatures were the Eldren. They are shape-shifters who pride themselves in being half deer and half elf. They lay in waiting for unwary travelers with their spell enchantments of deceit and forgetfulness for those who stumble upon their woods. The Yantuks are half men, half birdlike creatures that feast upon the flesh of disobedient children who come up missing in the night answering the exhausted prayers of frustrated crying parents who have lost their patience!
But the Zetas, they are the most hideous beast among the animal kingdom.
After a longer pause my grandson dared to asked, “Grandfather… What did the Zetas look like?”
My own eyes widened at the request as fear overcame my own heart in trying to answer my grandson.
Few have survived an encounter with them, and fewer still have been left unshaken enough to give a full account of their violent ordeal. A strange description is best given from all the stories at once! They were monstrous beast, cobbled together by the most ancient of gods; out of anger that they were no longer of use to men. Creatures made from the parts of other animals; themselves bitterly angry for having so been created for the sole purpose of pure hate. Vicious in their temper, surprisingly cunning in their speed considering their huge bulk; yet unlike animals they wear armor and brandish weapons like men. The curved sword is a Zetas’ favorite friend and elves their worst enemy.
They have the bulk of the Rhino's hind legs, the hump of a camel, the body and neck of a horse, two strong arms of the great ape and the head -. Their head is like the outstretched hammered shark with cat eyes at both ends; oversized and taking everything into their view! Their mouths resemble a turtle shell or that of the Acadia locus! Their speech is unintelligible with blurring noises that fill the night with razor roars. Balancing them all is an alligator’s tail, with a lion's tip; all of which is whipped about in their defense.

One day, long ago time ago, a party of nomadic hunters quietly stumbled upon two creatures in a heated battle. Bound up in their struggle the party of men could only watch in horrific awe as the fierce creatures sought the life of the other. A brutish sword welding Zeta and a sharp taloned Yantuk fought like great enemies.
The leader of the party one named, Minlo Shadol said to the other, "Behold! Demons of the night have come out to fight among themselves in the light of day."
At sound of his breath, the monsters immediately ceased their dispute. Breathing heavily the badly wounded Zeta bellowed out, in his unknown speech, "Ce`zar za`resh zes`rah raz`sakh Naz`ghKh zar`cashesh!!!!"
In answer the birdlike Yantuk rebutted with, "Never have we come to fall upon you as prey, but to desolate the kindred of men instead, and to forbid them from which entering these yellow woods. Upon the dwarf kind as well, let them be slain asunder!" Such was their screeching speech.
There was only one, out of that party of seven crouching men that even escaped alive, a Nayalthan Shadol by name. He was the second born son of that leader who died first; beheaded in front of his sons and the first to be flayed alive before the hiding Nayalthan.

The next day, after the boy had wandered aimlessly in shock back to the mountainous caves of his kinsman could he not stop rambling his tale amid screams and weeping. Because the boy was alone and his tale so filled with terror, an even larger party was formed to demand answers and seek revenge. They returned to the very place where the slaughter occurred; armed for conflict but found only the remains of shredded body parts. High in the branches of the trees about them was the flayed skin of Minlo Shadol. He, who had once been the Judge of all the people, was now remembered as a great fallen warrior. There were no survivors, and their torn remains were not enough to fill a carry-bag.
From that day only Nayalthan and his sons were made the Judges of the Minloian Household. In a pouched-bag he did he always carry the back-skin of his father as a memorial to never forget that day; and as a sign that for all time his lineage alone should likewise be tattooed as his father was. So is told the tale of The Judge’s Mark and when it came, along with the horrific lore of the Yantuk and Zetas; nightmarish shadows seen only in the dreams of children and those afraid of the dark.
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From: THE WATCHER'S BOOK; told as a campfire 'bed time' story to children!

RAMORE

Ramore is the name of a group of trees that were taken from another forest as saplings. The tender saplings were braided together, planted in a circle near the stone of a well spring. When fully grown the encircling trees left a chambered area beneath their entangled branches. This "chamber" was called RaMore by the last surviving Elven-nephilim of Eriduah. The shrine became the meeting hall of the fleeing elves and its upper entangling of branches the King's home. The Tree Shrine of RaMore was on the highest hill called Mount Keruel on the island of Eul.

Painting

This is a painting I did THE TOWERS OF ROMORE, done on a Masonite board using acrylic paint; given to my wife as a 33 wedding anniversary gift.

Years ago I assisted a dear friend of mine, Mike Cope with a junior High School project of painting a picture for our teacher, Pat Dunn. I would say Mike did maybe 90% of it. A scene looking "through a window" into Middle-Earth. The predominant feature was the Hobbit Tree, and yes The Lonely Mountain in the background; which was my 10% contribution.

I can sketch and do fairly well at pen and ink drawings but am uncomfortable with the fluid and lack of control and no patience with acrylic or oil painting. My father enjoyed oil painting and did several wonderful examples.

...

Happy Anniversary 33

I was nervous in this picture; just met her mother

(I was 18 and she was 19)

Today is our 33 Wedding Anniversary, and a thousand bridges later... I had a week vacation off from work. Went to Olive Garden, saw a movie: JUPITER ASCENDING, bought some new clothes, and will enjoy Red Lobster tonight.

...

CURE CRISIS ---Chapter one/ / Introduction Re-worked

The car sat still.

The man’s starring eyes were fixed.

The silver car’s headlights flashed on.

The man’s blues eyes reflected the brilliant beams.

The race car’s engine roared to life.

Fear welled up in the man’s face.

The squealing tires spun out of control, burning smoke bellowed upward as the car’s rear frame danced about on the hot pavement.

The brown haired man suddenly went pale, his outstretched arms ridged, up-turned eyes twitching uncontrollably.

The sports car headed directly for the man at top speed without veering off.

Everything went black.

“LISA!” A voice yelled out.

Nothing.

“Lisa!” The staff hovered over the jerking man called out again.

“What?” The nurse called back from the dining room where she sat at a table updating her records on an electronic device.

“It’s Stanley Rice,” He called from the Living room, “He just had a two minuet seizure; that dumb car commercial was on.”

Lisa smirked as she rose to go check on the client, “Goodness, again? Ron, how many does that make it now?”

“Eight,” Ron Sites answered back then added, “ Well, least this shift.”

“There were three seizures this morning.” A second staff injected.

“You worked this morning, Stephanie?” The nurse inquired.

“Nah,” The African-America checked her watch, “First shift wrote it down on the Log Repot.”

Lisa nodded as Ron asked his co-worker a side comment, “Did ya notice his eyes?”

Stephanie’s curled lip expressed recoiled, “Yeah his baby blues are kinda creepy now, hum?” The other two agreed with nodding arched brows of their own.

Ron Sites, the senior staff informed them, “He came back with his parents yesterday.”

Stephanie sighed, “My two week vacation flew by. Man, last time I saw Stanley I was actually thrilled he went to the Clinic to have the procedure done.”

Lisa added, “Think we all were, Stef. I was there with him when he got it done. The Technicians doing it still make my skin crawl.” Answering her ringing phone the nurse spoke awhile and then hung up, “Marylyn, the Charge, just got off the phone with Doctor Prather.”

Ron wondered, “She mention anything about his blue eyes?”

Lisa shook her head, “No, said the doctor was just as stumped, and that he’d never seen yellow eyes go back to their natural color before.”

Ever the conspiratorial minded one, Ron Sites offered, “We all know that’s not the case. The government and these wacked out doctors are all covering up world domination. You know these clients are just pawns of their end game!”

Stephanie smiled off her co-worker’s rant, “Are they going to reschedule a do over, Lisa?”

“I asked Stanley’s dad that when they brought him back to the Home,” The other two listened intently, “He’s mom is an Emularian; said it depended on what their Bishop wanted them to do.”

Stephanie Yatter sarcastically spat, “For real? If the price is right for a donation you mean.” Waving her hand in the air, “These ultra-religious folks just don’t make no sense to me doing this stuff for money. ‘Ol Stanley here deserves to be normal like the rest of us.” Then she laughed, while rubbing the smiling client on the head, “Besides, you’d look sexy with yellow eyes Mr. Rice.”

.From across the room a man with thinning blond hair and a red-blotched birthmark on his forehead began screaming out for no apparent reason what so ever. When the staff turned in his direction with questioning eyes, they noticed him pointing to Stanley, and yelling, “What’s your name?”
Stephanie replied, “It’s Stanley, Johnny. You know Stanley, he was in the hospital, and then went home for a while; he’s back now.”
“What do you think about him being back Home with us, Johnny,” asked Ron?
“He’s got creepy weepy eyes. Is he gona kill me, Ronny Bo-Donny?” The intellectually disabled man loved making up rhyming names. He liked being constantly reassured that his personal health was alright, and enjoyed staff’s attention directed solely on him as well.
Chuckling, the thin Stephanie chided back, “No silly head he ain’t gona kill ya.” Then she playfully added, “Wanta watch TV before I change my mind?”
Not quite catching that she meant changing her mind about him watching the television, Johnny referred to his murder, “You just joshing me, ain’t ya Stephie; you hill billie dilly?”
Shaking her head with a nervous laugh and puzzled look back at Ron asked, “Where in the world does he come up with all this stuff?”

“I like watching the pretty China woman, Ron. Does she eat rice and beans?”
Ignoring the comment, the staff pivoted his attention away from Johnny’s junk behavior and back to telling the sight impaired individual what was on the screen.

The Pilipino anchorwoman continued, “…and I am Rhodora Inianna reporting. Mister Clyde of the United Nations is to hold a special conference in the Middle East next week, where talks will resume over tightening controls over the Lee-Roberts device, commonly called an Emulator –“
Stephanie interrupted, “For heaven’s sake Ron can we watch something other than news for a while? What about the History Channel or golfing instead.”

“Eskabee!!!! I can't seeeee!" A shrill, very high pitched voice suddenly broke out, then, "What a day, what, what, what a day!” Another man suddenly jumped up agitatedly waving his hands about as he began weaving about the wheel chaired individuals facing the huge television screen.
Ron continued with, “I hear ya Frank, Mr. Clyde gives me the creeps too. Here let’s watch something else.” Then talking louder, commanded, “TV 42.” Instantly the History Channel’s logo faded on then dissolved into a program already in progress.
Grainy video images of World War II fighter jets shooting at one another filled the entire wall to wall vision of the entire room. The rumbling crashing noise faded into the serene sound of dove calls and children’s laughter. A futuristic landscape filled the horizon with glassed skyscrapers rising amid ancient buildings badly needing to be refurbished. A monorail trail sped over the park where families happily played yard games as several blimps slowly crossed over head in the brilliant spring skies. The images were being contrasted by a male voice over narration. “No longer are mid-air dog fights the combat tool of choice by dictatorial governments bent on world domination. By the mid 2020’s, The Eugenics’ War, later termed The Great Tribulation; saw scientist taking over the helm of warfare altogether with the abuse of the Lee-Roberts device.

A man in a green lab coat was placing a blood pressure like device on a child’s wrist. Moments later the child appeared to have drifted off to sleep. A disclaimer caption read “Re-enactment, child did not really die.”
The Narrator continued, “With the advent of the Emulator device, and the growing role of the United Nation Regulators of it; exercising their Nazi-like control, death was seen everywhere. Humanity seemed to be on the very door steps of self-extinction. The FEMA Incarceration Camps and termination of two thirds of the world’s population within a nine year span, severely redefined the meaning of global warfare.

A first person perspective was moving between two rows of overly crowded shelves of old library books. They faded to the green lettered text of a slow 1980s computer monitor; large and obviously outdated. The old America Online AOL logo flashed onscreen as it too gave way to an enormous dark room filled with blinking blue lit Internet servers. The Internet Towers faded with a backdrop of blue characters dropping down the screen. Against the matrix field background was a beautiful African- American woman with tightly woven hair. Her image slowly morphed away into that of an older Arab gentleman with a very unkept beard, and ever increasing morphed images of various international faces sped up as they drew closer to the viewer. The entire wall to wall television soon went blank.
The male narrator’s voice continued, “Just as the Lee-Roberts devise sparked the method for governments to spiral out of control in subduing its swelling population crisis the world economics plummeted; it brought hope as well. During the nine year nightmare of worldwide genocide, the collective knowledge of human experience merged with The Internet giving birth to Artificial Intelligence. Called by many names: Omeregie, Halister, and Rowena here in the UK; “she” was eagerly accepted by the common layperson and seen as the savior of the masses. ....

The male narrator’s voice continued, “Just as the Lee-Roberts devise sparked the method for governments to spiral out of control in subduing its swelling population crisis the world economics plummeted; it brought hope as well. During the nine year nightmare of worldwide genocide, the collective knowledge of human experience merged with The Internet giving birth to Artificial Intelligence. Called by many names: Omeregie, Halister, and Rowena here in the UK; “she” was eagerly accepted by the common layperson and seen as the savior of the masses.
“It was Rowena ‘herself’ who shut off all the Wi-Fi connections of the Lee-Robert’s Zuniga crystals, and called for world leaders to re-examine their current situation of looming extinction.”

The wall to wall video screen compartmentalized into various scenes of aged seniors dying in grey nursing homes or overly crowded hospital wards filled with coughing victims. Flashes of news reports across the globe of horrific accidents and natural disasters abound. Suddenly the screen filled with the single cast of technology in the making. Video of surveillance drones hovering about, cameras on every street corner and office buildings, even armored vest police officers sporting mini cams were flashing rapidly across the screen. Vast automated car factories or food processing plants, all busied themselves with robotic arms whirling with complex maneuvers working away. They all faded away into picturesque views of amazing vacation spots, where happy smiling faces were obliviously uncaring of the previous chaotic images.
Overlaying these fast paced videos; being contrasted with the peaceful ones, came the informative narrator’s voice again, “Then came the change. By 2024 The Internet had become as ubiquitous as electricity in every home; and not just to world leaders, but to every person who owned a connected devise, came Rowena’s call for peace.

MORE COMING SOON

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