THE I AM THE BAND CHALLENGE WINNER - SAD PANDA Part One

The winning entry of the Red Bubble A.R.S.E Group I AM THE BAND Challenge
Written and designed by the mysterious IWML from Melbourne Australia, the story begins in the 1990s with an interview with the Nihilistic Norwegian Black Metal Band SAD PANDA and its members
Bambucifer, Chaosbear & Ailuropoda Melancholia
They go onto break up and release solo projects only to reform under another guise missing a member.
It's all intrigue, bad manners and rock n roll.
This blog will run the complete saga over the next couple of weeks as part of the prizes awarded for such conceptual brilliance.
IMWL is responsible for all writing, art, animation and music and is a deserving winner.

THE SAGA OF SAD PANDA PART ONE



DEPRESSIVE BLACKENED SUICIDAL BLACK METAL, WITH PANDAS:
An interview with Sad Panda.
.. ..
As notorious as they are famous, as mysteriously private as they are a cult phenomena, there is no other black metal band like Sad Panda.  The creators of what they call “depressive blackened suicidal black metal”, they are uncompromosingly single-visioned, dedicated to their music as a lifestyle, rather than just a trend or a commodity.  Their myspace page “will refuse all the friend requests”, because “friends are for the happiness”.
.. ..
Hailing from Oslo, Norway, Sad Panda are as “kult” a band as you will find.  Even though they are separate (with Chaosbear on the drums, Bambucifer on bass, and Ailuropoda Melancholia on all guitars and vocals), they are One - united by their intense misanthropic natures, their obsession with pure depressive blackened suicidal black metal, and pandas.
.. ..
At their request, I interviewed them at their rehearsal space in Oslo, at midnight, while “the frozen moon beckons the shadow-void through the virgin blood of infernal sacrifice”, and brought a six pack.
.. ..
Me: Thanks for doing this interview.
A.M: Thanks for having us, ja.  It is to be pleasurable for us to talk in this way.
(pause)
Bambucifer: Well, but not too pleasurable, to be sure.
A.M: Sure, yes, not too pleasurable.  As depressive blackened suicidal black metal band, this interiew is just a small respite from the unrelenting horror, really.
Me: Okay.
Chaosbear: I can no longer feel any pleasure at all, so enshrouded by darkness am I.
Bambucifer: No, me also.  I am cold like the mountains.
Me: You want me to put the heater on?
Bambucifer: No, I am talking about in my very soul of blackness.  The room is fine.
Chaosbear: Considering the bleak necro-chill in my heart. But yes, the room is fine.
A.M: I’m also fine with the warmth levels, thank you.
(pause)
Me: Okay, great.  So, um, why “Sad Panda”?  You’ve been criticised by some elements of the black metal community, saying it doesn’t really seem very black metal.
A.M: That is simply an incorrect statement.  There is nothing more black metal in the world.
Bambucifer: Nothing.
Chaosbear: Fuck them anyway, what the fuck do they know.
A.M: As you know, we play exclusively depressive blackened suicidal black metal, so when we were trying for the creation of a name, we needed the most depressive name there could ever be in the universe.  A name that inspires bleakness and unhappiness in the ears of the listening person, ja?
Bambucifer: And there is nothing sadder than a sad panda.
Chaosbear: There is nothing sadder than a sad panda.
Bambucifer: Can you think of anything sadder than a sad panda?
A.M: I cannot.
Bambucifer: I also cannot.  It is very sad to be a sad panda.
Chaosbear: Have to eat fucking bamboo all the time.
A.M: Sure, and the wiping out of the environments, and with all the being endangered.
Bambucifer: And the not being able to breed, and being alone, desolate, in the cold mountains, watching your very species dying out-
Chaosbear: The fucking bamboo though, that is for making a very sad creature.  “What would you like to eat tonight sir, some hamburgers, some pudding?” “No I can only eat bamboo man”.
Bambucifer: It’s just fucking sad.
A.M: Ja.  It is sad.
Chaosbear: There is nothing sadder than a sad panda.
Me: Sure.
A.M: It is indeed very very bleak.
Bambucifer: Brutal.
Chaosbear: Depressive.  Makes me want to kill myself.
Bambucifer: Ja.  Very many times.
Me: Sure, yeah, it’s pretty sad.
Chaosbear: I will cut myself when I get home, I think.
Bambucifer: Ja, that will be very bleak.  I might also do that.
A.M: I did it before we left, just in case.
(pause)
Me: Hey, what about puppies?  Sad puppies would be pretty sad.
Chaosbear: FUCK PUPPIES!  Puppies are shit.
Bambucifer: Yeah, fuck puppies.  What the fuck have the puppies got to be sad about?
Chaosbear: Puppies are fucking shit man.
A.M: Ja, puppies what, “ooh I lost my ball”, “I want a walkies”?  Fuck you, puppy! You  know NOTHING!
Bambucifer: A panda has no home! A panda has no ball!  A panda never has a walkies!
Chaosbear: And the puppies, they have the bones, they have the dry foods, they have the wet foods or the can or whatever –
A.M: Maybe little snackies during the day-
Chaosbear: -ja, and the panda, he’s only got fucking bamboo, man.
A.M: It’s fucking depressive to be the panda, no doubts about it.
Bambucifer: Fuck them.  Little bastards. They are not depressive at all.
Me: Right.  Okay, well.
(pause)
Me: Okay, right.  Well.  On to the music.  Although you are pretty well known in the underground, I could only find one of your songs online.  Why is that?  Is it like a deliberate restriction of your work to ensure the band remains “kult” and never-
A.M: We only have one song.
Me: You only have one song?
Bambucifer: It is quite a long song.
(pause)
Bambucifer: Longer than a lot of bands who have more songs, I am thinking.
Chaosbear: It is a fucking long song.  That is fucking 15 minutes of continous drumming there.  You fucking do that.
A.M: It says all we need to say, you know, about the sadness of the panda.
Chaosbear: 15 minutes, man!  I am getting so tired after that I don’t even have the
energy to slit my wrists and bleed my life-force into the cold bleak snow.
A.M: I do, but only just.
Bambucifer: It is a very long song.
Me: You only have one song.  What’s the basic gist of the lyrics?
A.M: It is about the sadness of the panda, you know, the desolation, the depression.
Me: For fifteen minutes.
A.M: Sure, ja. There’s a lot of depression to say about.
Bambucifer: See, what you are needing to understand is that we are a depressive blackened suicidal black metal band.  We play exclusively depressive blackened suicidal black metal.  We do not get together to have some of the beers and eat some of the crisps and have some big fat happy moshing party with cigarettes.
Chaosbear: Parties are not bleak at all, they are fucking bullshit.
Bambucifer: We fucking make sadness in the band, we make the desolation and the sorrowlands frost-life of the panda.
A.M: And that takes 15 minutes to do.  No less, and no more.
Chaosbear: Parties make me want to cut myself.
Bambucifer: Pandas don’t have the parties! Fuck parties.
Me: Yeah, fuck em. Okay, so your one song is a bit of an epic, and it’s like totally about being a panda-
A.M: Being a sad panda.
Me: Sure, yeah, a really really sad panda, and it’s called “Sad Panda (Stares Into The Abyss)”, and it’s only available at myspace.com/sadpandaofficial.  As I was listening to it, it felt like three or four bands kinda just playing at the same time, with no real connection between the different parts.  I don’t mean that in like a bad way, I just mean it’s kinda-
Bambucifer:  You don’t like it?  Fuck you!
Me: No, no, it’s not that I didn’t like it, it’s just like, well, it’s not really like anything I’ve heard before.  I mean, how do you write your songs?  Ah, song?
A.M: We just get together and begin thinking to ourselves, “what kind of depressive blackened suicidal black metal would a sad panda play”, and then just perform that on our instruments.
Bambucifer: Ja, see also the panda has the enlarged bone in its hand which is being called the ‘pseudo thumb’, right?  And so to play the bass like you are a sad desolate depressive bleak nekro panda, you need to play it like you are having the extra thumb.  ....
A.M: That is exactly true, and why my guitar parts are sounding the way they are.  Because of the extra fucking thumb, man.....
Bambucifer: Ja, the fucking ‘psuedo thumb’.
Chaosbear: It’s made of bone, man.  It’s fucking nekro as fuck.
A.M:  Brutal.
Bambucifer: Totally fucking brutal.
Me: Right, sure.  But why don’t any of the guitar parts actually fit together?
A.M: Pandas cannot play guitars.
Chaosbear: You ever seen a fucking panda up there playing a guitar?
Bambucifer: Euronymous wasn’t a panda, man. You think Euronymous was a fucking panda?
Me: No-
Bambucifer: If you think Euronymous was a fucking panda, then fuck you!
Me: I don’t think he was a panda-
Chaosbear: He was not a panda, that much is for certain.
A.M: Pandas cannot play guitars.
(pause)
Me: Okay.  So… um… what are your influences?
A.M: Pandas.
(pause)
A.M: Sad sad pandas.
(pause)
Me: Okay… er… okay, what next for Sad Panda?  Er, the band, not the song.  Or any actual panda.
Bambucifer: Well, I am feeling like I want to play some depressive blackened suicidal black metal.
Chaosbear:  I will go home and cut myself.
A.M: I am thinking of entering the dark void beyond the forest throne, at dusk.
(pause)
Me: Is that like… is that to do with pandas?
A.M: No.
Bambucifer: Not everything is about pandas, man.
.. ..
   
Bambucifer                            Chaosbear                     Ailuropoda Melancholia

SAD PANDA's only official release

THE PANDA TAKES A BOW: the last days of Sad Panda.

Well, after years of rumours, lies, half-truths and gossip, the truth is finally out – Norway’s kings of panda-related depressive blackened suicidal black metal, SAD PANDA, have called it a day.   To some, it came as a shock – how could a band so united in vision, so single-minded in purpose, ever break up?  To others, it was nigh on inevitable – as one source put it, “they were just too misanthropic to stay together, they understand only bamboo and pain, not ‘togetherness’.”   Yet until now, the details of the split have been shrouded in mystery, as have the band members’ subsequent lives.  Finally, here, now, all the pieces of the Sad Panda jigsaw puzzle are spilled out on the table.  It is up to you to put them back together again to make it look like the picture on the front of the box – the box marked ‘TRUTH’.

NO NEED FOR SPREADSHEETS
After their ill-fated 1997 gig at DunkelFisterBrommerKriegenLober BlitzenHall, where their 15 minute epic ‘Sad Panda (Stares Into the Abyss)’ went for a tawdry 8 and a half minutes, ending with a squall of feedback and the separate band members wandering off the stage at separate times in separate directions, the rumour mill began grinding straight away.  Was that the end for Sad Panda?  Why did bass-player Bambucifer walk off halfway through the song?  Did they really hate each other as much as it seemed?  What happened to the light show?  Where’d I put my drink?  The questions seemed endless.  But in all actuality, had someone been there to tally all the questions, perhaps arrange them in alphabetical order, maybe using a piece of gridpaper or specialised tabulation software like Excel, that person would have discovered that indeed there was an end to the questions, all things being bound by the finite nature of the universe.  But that person, even with all their fancy stationery and access to quite expensive software, would still have been no closer to the facts about Sad Panda than anyone else with more typical stationery and dodgy open-source versions of virtually the same programs – for Sad Panda were nowhere to be found.

Only one thing was for certain – that truncated rendition of ‘Sad Panda (Stares Into the Abyss)’ at the infamous DunkelFisterBrommerKriegenLober BlitzenHall was to be their last.

Grind, o rumourmill, grind.

THE BAND THAT WAS, BECOMES NOT THAT ANYMORE
For a while, it was assumed that their low public profile was just Sad Panda going about business as usual – the kvlt, frostbitten, nekrobusiness of remaining Oslo’s most underground panda-related depressive blackened suicidal black metal band.  Which they most definitely were – which was part of the problem. Their new-found kvlt status was beginning to fray the once-glacier-solid band into smaller, more frayed, glacier-ettes.  In Bambucifer’s words:

“At that gig at the DunkelFisterBrommerKriegenLober BlitzenHall, there were kids
moshing, throwing horns in the air, you know, slamdancing and stage-diving and fucking really getting into the music.  Everyone in the whole fucking venue was having the very awesome time, and I was thinking, what the fuck, I was thinking to myself, are we the fucking partyband now?  FUCK YOU, we are NOT the fucking partyband.”

The seeds of split-uppedness were already sown.  If supplied with enough water and sun, there was no doubt that they would grow upward, bigger and bigger, until one day, they would bloom into a big pretty flower of separation, rich with the heady perfume of loss.  And that water and sun came all too soon, in the form of The Onyx Euron.

TOO KVLT FOR SCHOOL
When Sad Panda were awarded The Onyx Euron (the Norwegian underground black metal scene’s equivalent of the Golden Logie) in 2001, that was the last straw for this black metal camel.  As Ailuropoda Melancholia tells the story:

“Bambucifer was already thinking we were not kvlt enough, that we were being too happy and frolicking like little lambsies on the hilltops.  He was already saying we sold out already by recording a song, we should’ve stayed troo and kvlt and not played ANY music at all, that we should’ve all maybe just been killing ourselves and getting it over and fucking done with.  And Chaosbear was being worried that maybe we had too much fun making the music and hanging out together being depressive, you know?  Like, maybe if we were depressive alone it would be even MORE depressive.  And then, fuck, well then we got that fucking award.  I still have it on my shelf, you know.  My shelf of despair.  It’s in the rumpus room.”

The black metal camel that was Sad Panda, was a sad black metal panda camel that had faced one straw too many on its cold, necrofrozen hump of torment. Before it knew what straw had hit its own humpface, that sad black metal panda camel’s dream was over.

PANDA, ARISE!
But with each dying camel, comes a new dawn.  For although the fearsome depressive entity that was Sad Panda was over, three new projects erupted in its wake, as each of its members went in their own new directions.  Again, Ailuropoda Melancholia:

“We had said all we had to say about pandas, really, so there was no real reason for the project to be continuing.  To be sure, pandas are being the very sad creatures.  But there are being other creatures that also have the sadness.  Not quite as sad, maybe, but certainly worth the exploring, you know?  Like, fuck, you know those little monkeys that aren’t even monkeys?  They have those moustaches?  Must be pretty unhappy being one of those fuckers.”

Ailuropoda Melancholia’s solo project, ‘Disappointed Marmoset’ was the first to see the light of day.  Not at all black metal, let alone depressive blackened suicidal black metal, ‘Disappointed Marmoset’ has more of a ‘dark ambient depressive folk’ feel about it, and, for once, you can understand what he’s saying. Which, depending on whether or not you like it, is either a good or a bad thing, based on your own judgments and priorities, depending on your personal tastes, aesthetic connections, and point of view.
Like a black phoenix rising straight out of Hell, smelling of sulphur and looking a little like a cross between an albatross and a partridge, a few years later Chaosbear’s own solo project appeared.  And, like a cross between an albatross and a partridge, Chaosbear’s project would’ve perplexed ornithologists around the world, had any ornithologists of note been at all interested in the ex-members of Sad Panda, and their musical exploits.  Which, thankfully for the publishers of ‘What Bird is That’, ‘What’s that Bird’, and ‘Ornithologist’s Quarterly’, they weren’t.

Chaosbear’s solo project ‘ETERNAL CANDLESHADOW OF THE NEKRODEMONCHALICE (Faces The True Desolation Of Sacrificial Grimskulls In The Moonforest Of The Thronegoat)’ is, believe it or not, still strictly black metal.  As he says:

“Fuck you if you don’t like it.  Who cares what you think anyway?  Fuck you.  FUCK YOU.”

But by far the most curious of the solo projects birthed from the grim nekromother that was the splitting up of Sad Panda, and raised by the spooky voidnanny that was the following few years between then and now, must be Bambucifer’s ‘BLACKSOIL’.  In his own words:

“Well, I was thinking that I really was enjoying playing bass, making the musics, you know, the whole making-of-the-music process.  So that had to fucking stop.  There are no fucking instruments in Blacksoil, that’s for sure.”

Blacksoil is nothing but recordings of Bambucifer turning his compost.  Bambucifer again:

“It’s more of a gardening project, really.  But it certainly has more of the decay and the dirt and the fucking stench in it than Sad Panda ever had.  It may be the truest art I have ever created.  And it’s one I play live every fucking day – to nobody.”

JUST PERHAPS...
Whether or not you were ever a fan of Sad Panda, had only heard of them in whispered rumours, or are reading this going ‘what the FUCK is this? this isn’t about pandas at ALL’, one thing is for certain – you exist.  And, as much as your existence is perhaps the only thing you can ever truly know for sure, so too the one thing that can ever truly be known about Sad Panda, is that they exist no longer.  Yet, like some kind of three-bodied pandazombie from beyond the grave, Sad Panda refuses to die.  Perhaps.  Just perhaps.

SAD PANDA(STARES INTO THE ABYSS) VIDEO EDIT






A rare cassette cover from a 1997 live recording

PHOTOS OF SAD PANDA IN THEIR GLORY DAY

 

PART TWO - THE STORY CONTINUES - HERE

Mistula

Mistula is a true virtual band from the Philippines', and is composed of four customized ball-jointed dolls. They fuse music, graphic art, literature, photography, and other art forms, built around themes of Catholic idolatry and cultural commentary.
I suppose many Westerners would be surprised at such a band coming from South East Asia bit any search on google will show the Philippino music scene is quite vibrant.
Mistula disseminates information and releases songs as well as other creative projects through their official website, and their online presence is maintained through their regularly updated blogs chronicling the band's virtual lives.
Mistula was conceptualized by Joey David and her husband, Rey Tiempo, in 2004. They came up with the idea for the band upon fusing David's ideas for a website devoted to Catholic iconography with Tiempo's ideas for a website for his rock band. "Mistula" is a Filipino term that translates to "in the likeness of", "resembling closely", or "similar to". The name pertains to the virtual aspect of the band. It is also reflective of the veneration of idealized images of Catholic saints which is prevalent in the Philippines.

Listen to MISULA'S Music here

Like Gorillaz the band has an evolving personality and all four members have individual personalities.
To the point where one member left in favor of a more peaceful existence in the UK
Apart from Filipino Catholic-culture, the band has stated that their musical influence is mainly heavy metal. Some bands they have frequently mentioned as their influences include the heavy metal bands Metallica and Pantera, and early Pinoy rock bands such as Mutiny, and Dahong Palay.

Their official fansite, The Black Rosary, has gained membership from all parts of the globe since the site's launch.
Mistula has garnered international recognition by being the first Filipino band to win a place in the International Play & Rate Competition of the UK-based site, Overplay.
In 2007 and 2008, Mistula was featured on Philippine TV programs, such as Lovely Day, Mel and Joey, The Sweet Life, and G-Cube.

Band members

Mistula's members are four Asian ball-jointed dolls by Volks Inc. from Japan and Cerberus Project from Korea. The dolls' virtual lives and profiles are documented on their official websites.

 Uno (vocals and bass) - Uno was invited into Mistula by Bella Lugosi, after the latter noted his online following through his blog. Uno works for an advertising agency and is a frequent traveler. He chronicles all of his bandmates' lives through an online journal called Fully Articulated.

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Manx Minuet (vocals and guitars/lyricist and composer) - A former pornstar, Manx Minuet joined the band with Uno after receiving an invitation from Bella Lugosi. The song, "Nuestra Señora Dolorosa", is her solo work, made during a bout with depression after Dragan decided to quit the band.

Bella Lugosi (drums/lyricist and composer)- Bella Lugosi is the band's founder and leader, and was named after the actor Bela Lugosi because of his habit of sleeping all day and writing songs at night.

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Lobo (rhythm guitar) - Lobo arrived as a replacement for former rhythm guitarist, Dragan, on April 4, 2006, but was not recruited into the band until after the Mistula auditions Lobo left school at a relatively young age, hitting the streets to seek his fortune and earn money to support himself and his younger sister, Veritas. His abuse of a drug that he and his comrades called "Full Moon" has caused severe damage to his memory, and he now sports two personalities: the wild, violent Lobo with the red hair, and the meeker Lobo with dark hair.

 Dragan (former rhythm guitarist) - Bella Lugosi recruited Dragan for before the release of "Baptized" to bring British influence to Mistula, and to exploit the advantages of being an Internet-based band. Dragan used the Internet to send his musical contributions to Mistula, until he was compelled to physically join the band during the Mysteries update to shoot a music video for the single, "Mulat". On February 19, 2006, after experiencing the band's tumultuous life, he quit in favor of a more peaceful existence in the UK. He continues to correspond with Mistula through the Internet.

Dragon Spheres

PART FOUR of a FOUR PART SERIES of 1000 word stories, incorporating some clever and talent artists

Dragon Spheres

It was strange to come back after all these years and see it again.

The surface all clean not a scratch or blemish on it.

On one side a beautiful spring day with trees blooming and grass green from plenty of rain, on the other side black burnt ruins separated by about two inches of what could easily be mistaken as glass.

I still had a strong image in my head of what it looked like before the sphere came.
Before then it was a vista of houses, parks and the occasional Industrial estate that flowed outward with the undulating landscape.

As seen many a time from my bedroom window on the second floor of our old house.
People thought 9-11 was a shock; it paled in significance after the spheres came.
30 years ago today, 83 all counted: each 5000metres in diameter, crystal clear 50mm thick walls, unmovable and indestructible. No way in and for the poor souls locked inside- no way out.

It missed our house by a good 100 metres. I remember how surreal it all was, one second nothing there – next it had surgically sliced through concrete, steel and the flesh of anything that happened to be on the boundary perimeter.
I remember running to the site with my brother and by the time we reached the clear wall a dozen or so people had gathered on either side of its surface. At this point those trapped inside had no idea of their pending doom.

Within 24 hours it was all you could watch on the television because all over the planet spheres had appeared at same the time as what we called “our bubble”. Each was identical but where they appeared was totally random. Thankfully few fell on populated areas; many fell in the ocean and others in deserts, mountains and the Polar Regions. Each engulfing the atmosphere it surrounded.
So if a sphere landed in the ocean it either totally submerged or it would sit half in half out but never moving.

Every sphere seemed suspended and locked in place. The one that laded on K2 actually sticks out of the side of the mountain half way up and like many of the land bound spheres is a Remembrance Shrine/ Tourist attraction.
The strength of the spheres was proven by the now infamous French secret experiment on one of the spheres submerged in the South Pacific. The French exploded a nuclear device directly underneath it only to discover it unmarked and in its original position after the detonation.

We were evacuated not long after as a precaution because the Government had gone into panic mode and we were shuttled to the centres on the outskirts of town. There was talk of invasion and Alien attacks but the truth was so much stranger.
Due to the massive scale of the spheres appearing the news was a constant update and it was impossible for any Government to suppress what was happening. It was confirmed China did try to suppress information but gave up after a huge influx of internet and mobile communications swamped any attempt to hold back incoming news.

Our bubble was one of 23 that had fallen on populated areas and unlike in the movies place like New York, Los Angeles. Paris, London, Berlin all missed out.
They were all just normal suburbs and small towns of less popular places.
The whole world was watching making up theories about why, what if or when something happened. It was revealed that during the first 48 hours after the spheres appeared casualties in war zones and fighting hot spots had decreased significantly and soon for a period taper to nothing.

That was due to the appearance of the red clouds.











After 3 days it was an accepted fact no one could communicate with those inside the spheres unless it was
with pen and paper held up for the other side to read. No type of electrical transmission would penetrate the wall. Some more enterprising individuals had banded together and where attempting to dig their way out. At this stage no one was aware of the spheres make up our bubble just looked like a big dome.

Then on the morning of the fourth day (our time) red clouds started to appear in the upper atmosphere on all spheres simultaneously as the day grew longer the clouds grew thicker and darker in colour. All over the planet news was streaming in about the same atmospheric disturbance in all the other spheres though those under water were less noticeable.

Then at 9 PM our time 1100 hours GMT the first beast appeared from the clouds.
They came in their hundreds, there was no denying they were Dragons- Fire breathing Dragons – four limbs, winged and with long streamline scaled bodies that finished with a long spiky tail.

If you got a collection of fantasy novelists to come up with a more accurate description you’d be hard pressed. The world was watching what had thought to be the things of legend and myth and they were attacking everything in the spheres.
The Dragons set fire to everything, my Mother shielded my eyes as she tried to protect me and my brother from the onslaught that was happening. It took the networks a lot longer than would be considered good taste to cut transmission to the general public. It happened so fast.

My Mum still rates that day as the moment she changed her life to that of full time practicing Christian and like a lot of people turned to the church for solace.
A lot went the other way, usually those who had a relative or friend effected by the spheres.

The Dragons it was later discovered ate the ash of any organic life form. So to eat they needed to blast anything that moved. The flying skills of the Dragons were like watching a Dolphin in the air their grace and maneuverability was fantastic not to mention their speed.

It was a slaughter in our bubble and I have no doubt in all the other 22 populated spheres. There was no where to run or hide the Dragons just set fire to everything and waited, worst of all there was no way to hide it.

If it was any conciliation those Dragons that appeared in the underwater or Polar and Mountain spheres were virtually killed on appearance by the harsh or unsustainable atmosphere.

Those in the deserts starved to death faster than the others and the ones in the forest or jungle areas were recorded and studied constantly until they also ran out of food and starved.

The spheres served one good purpose they didn’t let the Dragons out.
The populated spheres were the most distressing; there was no way to hide the carnage that was happening inside.

It was recorded later that during the first 24 hours of the appearance of the Dragons there was little to no action in all designated areas of conflict all around the globe so much was the shock at their arrival.

The last beast died 453 days later right on my old doorstep, our bubble so it happened had the most food or the strongest beasts I don’t know what or why I do know is that when the ash ran out the Dragon’s started on each other . The last surviving monster collapsed and died right on the boundary of the sphere where my brother and I ran when it first appeared.

I’m staring at its bones now. The wall is still crystal clear, there is no graffiti on this surface not that it would stay on it.

This is sacred ground.

Our old house was demolished because they built a 300 metre Remembrance Park around the entire perimeter, on a bad day the place is packed.
It was one of those moments in history that will affect all of us and never be forgotten or explained.

One theory that seems to be gathering respectability it’s been talked about for so long is the one that claims the Dragons were dumped on us like an unwanted Christmas puppy in a bag into a creek.

Maybe who did it didn’t realise we lived here or even cared. It was a short sharp shock that has left a mark on our history and these spheres aren’t going anywhere fast to let us forget.


image one courtesy of Nick Ford (c) Nick Ford
Nick is a talented artist with a passion for skateboarding, Nick is also a member of Game of King's Phase Two

image two courtesy of Cathie Tranent (c) Catherine Tranent
Cathie is an indispensable tool for lazy writers and is a clever person in her own right.
All images used with permission.

The lead up to World War Three

PART THREE of a FOUR PART SERIES of 1000 word stories, incorporating some clever and talent artists

The lead up to World War Three

After the success of the public relation exercise that was the 2008 Olympic Games, China grew more in confidence and arrogance. There was barely a day that went by preceding the Games that China didn’t mention its 130 Gold Medal haul and the naming as the “Best Games ever” by the Olympic Committee. This brought about a hardline political change and one that seemed less tolerant of previous problems.
So it came as no surprise when China began provocative naval exercises in the seas off Taiwan and the world was pushed to a whole new era of terror when on 1st of May 2010 China invaded the island state.

All diplomatic avenues were exhausted as the United Nations led by the United States President Obama did everything to reverse the action. This was to no avail with China citing years of provocation by the small country and China’s unbridled belief it was still a part of China as a whole.

Due to China’s huge economic power many countries were hesitant to cease trading with China and all larger nations (including the US) just issued empty threats of diplomatic removal even though many had huge investments. in the Taiwanese economy.

This was the beginning of threads that lead to the world at war version 3.0.
In Europe Germany, Spain and France had elected far right wing leaders due to their populations unease with the growing terrorism threat and demanded strong action to combat it.

With these strong leaders came strong opinions and big egos and in an era than accepted China’s invasion of Taiwan, Germany and Spain in a surprise move unilaterally declared war on France for trying to control the Euro and invaded. France was over run within days and surrendered with hope of keeping it’s national identity and culture intact but agreed to be administrated by the other two countries.
The world had been blind sided again and due to the quick resolution there was little anyone could do about it. France handed itself over to its invaders.

This of course led to howls of protest but also howls of laughter from many sectors of the Western and Eastern nations.

The Us and Britain taking great delight in lampooning France as the “Great Surrender Monkeys”.

This would have devastating results as a misguided Terrorist organization called “Viva La France” grew in numbers and committed many a serious attack on American and English soil while ignoring its invaders at home.

China during this period was building relationships with the Spanish- German alliance and growing in stature. In 2012 China built up forces on its Eastern borders while North Korea massed troops on its Southern border with South Korea in what looked like an organized repeat of what had happened to Taiwan.
In a show of supreme defiance South Korea bombed Chinese coastal ports provoking an attack on its own borders.

What happened next is considered one of the most daring strategies ever attempted,
China launched 4 nuclear warheads on 15 April 2012 with trajectories traced to non populated or wilderness areas. South Korea (who had been in development of secret electronic counter systems) used its new untried defense system to take control of the warheads and turn them on Beijing.

Once again the world was stunned and a new era of unpredictability had begun.
When it was revealed that a new alliance had been formed by South Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, Brazil and Mexico who all shared the new missile re-guidance system the world power balance shifted.

This news sent many a diplomatic mission from Europe, Asia and America to these countries to share in this new technology but the pact was hard and fast and done in the interest of economic stability and a world not ruled by fear. Noble words indeed but it led to the ripping up of every treaty written and honoured since the end of the Second World War, due to this the United Nations crumbled under the weight of Universal distrust, diplomatic one-upmanship and bad sportsmanship.

Meanwhile relationships between India and Pakistan had reached new lows when India accused Pakistan of supporting terrorist attacks on major Indian cities which resulted in thousands of casualties. India blamed Pakistan of being jealous of its economic success and that it would always be a basket case and doubted if its nuclear capabilities were even real.

Pakistan goaded into action launched two ICBM towards India but both exploded on their launch pads making the Indian taunts real and then had to swallow more national pride by asking India to come and help clean up the mess. Within weeks Pakistan became once again a state of India.

North Korea who was responsible for the malfunctioning Pakistani missiles was in the throes of civil war. After the South Korea – China incident the peoples of North Korea realized their only threat to the greater (unknown) world was useless and rose up against it head of state Kim Jong-il. The war was slowly turning towards a South Korean/Japanese backed victory it was only the hardline disciples of the president that was holding out with their numbers thinly every day..

China still seething from the nuclear attack debacle had gone into lockdown.
In Europe the tri states of Spain, Germany and France were flexing economic muscle and were suggesting the introduction of its own currency The New Mark. This led to protests from the European Parliament and the three countries were ejected from the union something that never was considered when the invasion happened.

Russia aching to flex some muscle threw down the gauntlet at the tri states and demanded they step in line. With the backing of Great Britain , Italy and Poland they demanded they return France as a free state and work towards a united Europe. This had the opposite effect and the now mostly militant powers of the Tri States went into Empire building mode. Firstly invading Portugal, then Belgium , Switzerland and Austria. The latter two were seen to be in alliance as they just opened up the borders to the invaders.

With this extreme political action taking place calls for the USA to intervene was intensifying.

Feeling pressured but claiming Europe had deal with it’s own problems, the United States remained an interested observer until Viva La France detonated a dirty bomb at the Twin Tower Memorial on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. This prompted outrage on a massive scale and the United States declared war on the Tri Sates and China for economic reasons no one was really sure of.

Since the US had joined in the fray it was OK now to refer to this stage in history as World War Three.

image one coutesy of Earthquakebee (c) EarthquakeBee Used with permission
Earthquake Bee is a talented artist from Red bubble and co owner of Vinyl Grove Records in the Hague
Image Two by the Author available here

23rd Century Anatomy

PART TWO of a FOUR PART SERIES of 1000 word stories, incorporating some clever and talent artists

23rd Century Anatomy

The Bird Flu Pandemic did happen but not as the experts predicted.
Most of the First World countries felt little impact as it seemed to only affect the very young, old or sickly.

Many shrugged it off as a bad cold, this was due to the many governments who stock piled huge amounts of the flu drug oseltamivir (Tamiflu),These governments included the British Isles and most of Eastern Europe , Japan , South Korea , Australia, New Zealand, The United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Canada and Brazil. Ironically the United States where it was manufactured sold nearly all of its reserves to most of the above countries due to high demand and left it exposed to the worst part of the pandemic.

The US Health system was unable to cope with the outbreak and the division of its wealthy and poor was highlighted when it lost most of its poorer citizens to the disease thus creating a huge labour shortage.

The same happened to many Western Europe countries and Africa. The Middle East and most of Asia seemed to suffer very little casualties in the first round of the pandemic but were dealt a severe blow when it mutated into another form of the virus due to the introduction of the Tamiflu into the worlds population.

By the year 2055 half of the worlds projected population of 9 billion had been killed by the pandemic.

The world had reached a new crises. In a few short years hunger and poverty had been reduced significantly in the world but there was a massive shortage of cheap labour to supply those that had survived and perpetuate their life styles.
At first the human spirit come to the fore and a new enlightened society arose from the ashes of the Old World Order.

But this didn’t take long to be corrupted by those in charge who were in reality still the Old World in their thinking.
Greed is never far from a man’s heart.
They first appeared from the prison systems.

The NewMans.

There was a short out cry at first but it faded when the benefits matched the wanting to return to the easy life.
Robots in the historical sense had never lived up to the hype of the science fiction novels that spawned them.

They were bulky and had to be programmed endlessly to do simple tasks.
That is why the NewMans proved such a success.
When the world’s population had dwindled most of the prisons were emptied and the prisoners were put to work in essential industry to keep economies going, only the worst sociopaths and murders were exempt.
Eventually these inmates were considered burdens as no one could afford the manpower to watch over them.

This is where things started to change.

The US Military in conjunction with larger Corporations began cybernetic transplants in conjunction with neurological implants to control behaviour.
Under the guise of the United Nations (long ago taken over by the leading Economies) the first NewMans were released to work in Mines and dangerous rescue missions.

Their appearance shocked those at first but it didn’t take long for them to become an acceptable part of the landscape.

Men with large drills attacked at the forearms with huge splayed feet to counterbalance their centre of gravity. Running up there spines scares covered the titanium spinal implants that held them upright.
More and more of the NewMans appeared over the next decade in different forms and for different purposes.

Many had arms similar to the spot welders on the old automotive assemblies lines and were used for similar purposes others had clamps on all appendages and were used for high rise construction and maintenance. There were versions suited to deep sea and high altitude climates work to aide in recovery and development.
Each new model taking that extra step forward up the machine evolutionary ladder.
Meanwhile as the US with United Nations backing was virtually replacing it’s labour force with NewMans the African continent was becoming a hot bed of territorial claims. South Africa had invested billions of dollars redeveloping the Southern and Central States which had virtually been wiped out during the pandemic due to the lack of medical aide and the huge HIV count per population. Meanwhile the Northen and Western States were being heavily invested by Saudi Arabia , now a major player as a Economic giant. This had given those more deceptive of Government officials an excuse to reopen old religious wounds and all acts of sabotage were quickly blamed on or claimed by Religious Extremists.

This opened up the door to introduce NewMan Guards, which were in fact Super Soldiers to protect large Investments and developments. Huge beasts that had hardly any semblance to their original human state.

Most of this was kept out of the public domain, the population had become smarter but also easier to control.

Armed conflicts had become rare and physical competition had become more popular than ever. Countries were often pitted against each other on a weekly basis as air travel became faster and less taxing on the individual. People wanted to see faster, stronger, further more and more. The Olympic Games became the ultimate in status for athletes and national pride and soon it became apparent that the human body even when riddled with drugs could only achieve so much.
This spawned a new breed of elite.

The ReNewMan.

Humans who had enhancements added to their physical body in relation to their particular sport. High jumpers had spring loaded legs, runners had modified lungs and muscle enhancements in the legs, swimmers had much the same but with flipper attachments on the arms and legs. Javelin throwers had arms made into harpoon like apparatus this was stunning as it was entertaining but it also heralded the introduction of vanity modifications, though these were irreversible the were incredibly popular.

With this bold new application came new technology.

No longer were there shiny metal but skin grafts had been applied to make the runners legs like jaguar or Ostrich legs. The jumpers like Kangaroos, the swimmers like twin finned Dolphins.

Vanity had reached new heights.

(c)2009 Danny Nolan Shidot Productions
Image (c) Glen Smith NoFrills Art used with permission.
Glen is a multi talented painter and designer, administrator and teacher who I have collaborated many times and his works can be found here and his Blog here.
I have written about Glen before on this site and you can find that here

Superheroes

PART ONE of a FOUR PART SERIES of 1000 word stories, incorporating some clever and talent artists.

Superheroes

On the 22nd of June 2012 the last superhero was officially removed from the planet Earth

It had been a brilliant and calculating plan carried out by a joint conglomerate of the World’s Political, Business and Religious leaders at great expense and danger but it had been accomplished.

The decision had been made many years before when the evidence mounted that not having the World’s growing number of Superheros was actually more beneficial than having them.

Studies showed that every time a new caped or winged wonder came onto the scene so did arch-nemeses of lesser or equal power. This also related to the existing superheros who when they dispensed with an arch villain another would eventually take its place.

The United States particularly were getting very angry with its superheroes as they had about 95% of the known Superhero population but still managed to spend trillions on defense and send there citizens off to war while the superhero population would not assist in these national affairs because they were tied up will bank robbers , crazy machines or aliens.

Aliens were another reason for the push to eradicate the flying and fighting wonders , the Earth had never encountered life forms from other planets before the arrival of the first Superheros and the ones that did visit our planet where hell bent on destroying it.

This also weighed heavily on Earth’s Religious leaders who had an increasingly hard time convincing their followers that a God or God’s existed when a Super Hero kept saving the day at the last minute. People were becoming so use to major world crisis erupting and then being extinguished that they became so blasé about it that they believed they didn’t need to rely on any thing to help them with their spiritual well being seeing how they were rescued from certain death nearly every week.
A plan was set into motion.

Each would be dispatched via their individual weakness, these secrets were kept in huge dossiers collected over the years by the Governments of the world.
As a trial run the first hero dispensed with was Batman. Since the Caped Crusader had no real powers to speak of it would be less conspicuous if he was dispatched using the methods applied.

Having known Bruce Wayne was Batman’s alter ego, the US Government set into motion a trap involving Wayne’s vast fortune and orchestrated his financial collapse while smearing his name and character with innuendo and gossip. The collapse of the Wayne Foundation was spectacular as it was to damaging to Bruce Wayne’s ego and he committed suicide when it was revealed his fortune was founded on White slavery and pornography. Batman’s pure spirit was crushed and he suffered deep emotional stress which led to his personal dispatch.

wind up destruction by Scott Robinson

Within weeks the Joker, Riddler, Catwoman and a dozen other of Batman’s arch enemies were found dead or near death in various parts of Gotham City with what Doctors could only describe as a type of deep depression. Within a month Gotham City was virtually free of major crime.

The plan to remove the super powered beings was simple in design and its theory was proven super villains were intrinsically linked to there enemies.
From there it was a matter of making every dispatch an accident and to happen in the shortest time frame possible.
Examples of how certain individuals were made available to this author:
The Green Lantern lured into a room which was flooded with Yellow custard and was drowned.

David Banner (the hulk), Green Arrow and Hawkman were all attacked before the could transform or use their specialist equipment and buried in a desert grave.
Spiderman succumbed to toxic poisoning after the highest building in New York City was treated with surface spray.

The Flash disintegrated on impact when he was purposely tripped doing unmentionable speeds through heavy traffic and slammed into the road.
The last Super hero disposed of was Superman. Many feared it would be impossible but it transpired it was love that killed the Metropolis mighty man.

Superman was killed in a car compactor when tons of kryptonite smuggled in by the space shuttle from the moon were hidden in a lead lined box which the world’s mightiest superhero was lured on the pretense that Lois Lane had finally succumbed to his advances and was waiting for him. Lois’ betrayal justified by the fact that he spent more time with his enemies than with her.
So on the 22nd of March 2012 it was announced to an unsuspecting world that all their Heroes were dead. Causing panic and uncertainty in all the world’s population.

The World leaders had their control back.

Religious leaders would capitalize on people returning to their Gods for solace and security.

The Governments of the world capitalizing on uncertainty and fear to control their populations.

And big businesses capitalizing on both to make more money.

There was great rejoice in upper echelon of world leaders until a report from NASA confirmed the trajectory of an eight kilometre meteor heading straight towards Earth on a collision course.

(c) 2009 Danny Nolan Shidot Productions
Image (c) Scott Robinson (used with permission)
Scott is a popular graphic designer from Brisbane Australia where he is well known in the local skateboard and street art fraternity. He is also very successful T Shirt designer.
see more of Scott's work here

Ultra Cool Lego

LEGO has always been cool but these works go to a whole new level.
and click here to keep it musically orientated

I love the M.C Escher models