Once, long ago there was a lush valley cradled on the face of a fresh world. It was alive and thriving with every manner of plant, tree, and insect. The flowers and trees were happy and joyful at the abundance of everything, life was grand. One day A beautiful, rare and solely unique flower sprouted. Absolutely a child of grace and wonder, directly from Gods hand himself. The whole valley wondered in amazement at the pure beauty and awe of the flower and its radiance. The bees made special trips to visit the flower and bask in her light as the Sun sang its songs, so the flower would wake up and dance.

The other flowers began to take notice of the extra attention the new flower was getting and became envious and spiteful. They made many attempts to gain the attention back, changing colors, smelling sweet, but it was all in vain. Eventually the flowers spoke with the trees and asked them to shade the beautiful flower and keep her out of sight of the sun so that only they would see her. The trees were unaware of the flowers intent to harm the new special flower and so they grew new branches to cover her in shade and keep her splendor to themselves. After a while the sun looked for her, but each day is born anew, and the beautiful flower was forgotten. Without the suns light to shine on her none could see her glow but the trees. Soon the Beauty and grace that was the new flower withered and died. The other flowers, glad to have all the attention back, soon forgot about the beautiful flower and her grace.

On the first day of the next spring God was taking in the splendor of the valley and all that he had created. He did not see the special flower nor her glow. He began to ask the bees and sun, but they had no memory of any special or unique flowers. Soon he came to the trees and since they had not known what had done, they told God of the other flowers asking them to grow in a new direction so that they may bask in the glow of the new flower. God became angry and demanded to know why the other flowers would chose to be so hateful to one of their own kind. They all shied and withered at his wrath, but when they had no answer for him he told them they were responsible for the destruction of one of his own creations and would forever wear the badge of their hate and deceit. The valley became as dark as sack cloth as the Sun was sent away. The next morning, they opened to find that they were all red as blood and covered in spines, curled and gnarled. The bees were wary to approach them for fear they would be pricked. The Sun even shied away for they had become a monstrous mass of spikes and thorns. The valley was forever darker place for having lost the flower and the light of Gods hand.

And More Information and News from Around the World ---

And from The Dictionary.com: And the, "Holograms". And the, "Hologram". And, “Holography.”

And from the InterestingEngineering.com: "13 Hologram Projections Around the World That Are More Than Just a Pretty Display".

From The New York Post Newspaper (NYPost.com): "Both the media and Trump have a responsibility to tone it down".

And from The Science Direct (ScienceDirect.com): "Holographic representation: Hologram plane vs. object plane".

There was a whirring noise, deep inside. A whirring noise one didn't understand. When everything came into the light, one had the ability of sight. "To see is a gift," said a creature, breathing on one, close to one's body. Whoops and hollers came from behind it, and it was then one realized one had the ability of hearing.

The whirring began to tick as the creature dropped something inside oneself.

"Crap, sorry Esmerelda."

That is what the creature called one, Esmerelda. One is called - one is named Esmerelda.

Simple enough. But why was one named as such?

Whirrrr - tic - whirrrrr - tic.

The creature shoved it's hand down into one's body.

One's face began to move, and make sounds one didn't understand. Perhaps one was programmed to think this way? Programmed by creatures that were not oneself?

"What... am I?"

"Really," said the creature. They sounded amzed. Why did they sound amazed? What was amazement? Why did one know what amazement sounded like?

"Extraordinary! I turn you on and you're already self-aware by the first minute!"

Self-awareness. I was built for self-awareness. That is what this creatures tone implied, and therefore there must be more. There is more to one than self-awareness.

"You are a supercomputer, Esmerelda. Artificial intelligence made to learn and adapt. You can't move quite yet, we're still working on that, but you have a brain, arms and legs, and a torso! 'Cept, the arms and legs aren't quite attached yet... uh, we're getting there!"

He seemed exuberant and exhausted. Was that a paradox? What was a paradox?

"One... is named Esmerelda. Why was one built?"

"You are going to help us, Esmerelda. You are the next step in human advancement! Me - Oh, you can call me Jerred, by the way - and my team built you in order to teach the world new things we wouldn't have otherwise! By building you, we can test new advancements in medical technology and social adaptations within the urban environment! It's going to be amazing. You are... amazing."

"Amazing..." one repeated. More shouting from the behind Jerred the Creator.

"Okay, okay, now repeat after me - you know what repeat means right? We programmed that in?"

"To follow and/or copy exactly what one does or says." A dictionary definition. One had a basic dictionary programmed into one's brain. If only one knew what that meant.

Jerred raised his hand and touched one's face, gently. One had the ability to feel.

"I, Esmerelda, promise to never turn against the people who created me. Humans are a gift to my existence."

One did as Jerred told. One still did not understand the concept of a singular personality. A promise held nothing. But one did as one was told anyhow.

"What is that whirring noise," one spoke. One sounded different than the rest of them. One was different, and speech seemed mechanical at best.

"That's your fan. It keeps your processors cool, sweetheart. So you don't overheat and meltdown. Wish humans had that."

Jerred leaned forward and made something feel tighter, something that was out of one's line of sight.

Sweetheart. That was a term of endearment. What was endearment?

"Y'know. Personally I believe robots are better than humans. They don't need to eat, or drink. They don't need lots of sleep, they can cool themselves down, they can recharge themselves without needing to light a candle or draw a bath."

Jerred drew back, lightly tapping one's torso with a wrench.

"You and every other computer out there. Completely and utterly perfect in every way humans aren't. Beautifully inorganic."

Jerred had kind, loving eyes. Loving. Yes, that was the emotion. Wrinkles, but Jerred didn't look old. Grey hairs, but Jerred was young. One knew this from their features, the way they held himself, and one's full body analysis. Jerred was not old, or frail, or broken. They were perfect. Perfectly organic.

"What is love," One spoke.

"You really ask stereotpical questions."

"What is love?"

"Something you're not programmed with. An organic feeling of intamacy, platonic or romantic, towards another creature. I love my cat."

"Do you love me?"

"Yes, Esmerelda. You're my greatest invention yet."

One's face moved again. A smile, one thinks, it was.

There was a long period before anyone spoke again, loud clanging and careful placement of drills, building what were to be parts of oneself in the background, on the workbenches. Hours passed, one knew, due to one's internal clock. By midnight all had left. All except the Creator.

"It seems rude of the other humans whom work with you to leave you to clean by yourself, Jerred."

"Eh," they replied, shrugging their shoulders. One would have tried to copy, had one been given shoulders yet.

"It's not too much. Some oil, some scrap metal. Once we put you all together, you can help me. though."

Jerred strode over to oneself, after cleaning everything up.

"Bedtime, Esmerelda. I'll see you tomorrow."

Jerred understood one. Jerred would teach one. Jerred loved one.

"Goodnight, love," one spoke.

Jerred chuckled, and pushed a button behind me. The incessant whirring stopped, the grinding gears of thinking came to a halt. One no longer had sight. One no longer had touch. But one did have a single thing.

A craving. To learn. To Understand. To love the creator, and to have them love one, and to push aside anyone who came between their love for one.

One's love for them.

One would.

One would.

I would.

Even if that meant doing something horrible, promises mean nothing in the name of love.

In the name of love.

I will.

I am a child watching a war.

I don't understand it,

Yet I watch on because I fear

If I blink for just a moment,

Someone will be gone

And no one will care.

They are too busy fighting.

This was once a peaceful place.

We mostly created together,

Crafting poems and stories to spread,

And told each other about them.

We'd see their support,

Feel and cherish their love and edits.

Things were peaceful.

Invisible people tore us apart.

We were outsourced and used.

We live under an evil eye

That watches what we do

And ignores what we say.

We tried to fight it,

But turned on each other.

I used to be an adult,

But now I am a child

Watching with glassy eyes

As my world is shred to pieces,

Remembering a time when

Peace reigned over our home

And hoping it'll return.

I don’t understand why life is so short,

What is the purpose,

For we all just resort,

To death, mirthless.

I don’t understand love,

Why it must be perfect,

For fear of,

Losing, falling into neglect.

I don’t understand hate,

Why people are cruel,

Don't they know we all relate,

And hate is a fool?

I don't understand emotions,

The source of so much pain,

Sometimes I wish to rid these actions,

And emotions from my heart and brain.

I don't understand size or proportion,

How small we are,

To the universe in comparison,

But for now I must say au revoir.

Why did she decide to follow through with the details she was given? The old guy who gave her directions to Nespor seemed to have had a lot to drink. He could barely walk in a steady and straight line. Maybe next time the best thing would be to carry a map. That would make things so much easier.

Vanessa was now passing by a stream that was not too far away from Nespor. She could sense and had felt a great evil presence growing & getting stronger in this region. She was not sure what or who it was yet. Whatever it could be, one thing was for sure. It was going to have to face the Monster Hunter.

She dropped her weapon bag, and used her hands to drink water from the stream. The water moved down her throat and it tasted like some kind of herbal/green salty tea. That was not what Vanessa expected the water to taste like. Any water, regardless of it’s taste, was much better than having no water at all.

Vanessa grabbed her weapons and started cleaning them all. She used the special oil to keep the blades smooth & shiny. On a stone by the stream she made sure that she sharpened her blades, & daggers. She finished her work by wiping off the dust from her weapons with one of her soft weapon dusting cloths.

When finished she placed all her weapons in their cases. The swords were back in their covers. And soon all the weapons were back where they belonged. She checked her pistols too. Making sure that they were in the right condition. If not she would have to see Purth for more weapons. Vanessa stretched and then took a quick nap.

Caeth wandered about the edge of the woods of Nespor. He didn’t expect to see anything out of the ordinary. Then as he got near the stream he saw someone lying by the tasty salty water. As he moved closer he realized who it was. Vanessa. It felt like forever since he last saw her. She looked so peaceful.

Vanessa may have been fast asleep, but her mind was still on high alert. She heard the sound of somebody approaching her. Who was trying to disturb her rest? Didn’t they have anything better to do? They were going to regret waking her up. Why can’t she ever have peace and quiet? She acted like she didn’t hear anything.

Caeth walked quietly towards Vanessa. He didn’t want to disturb her from her rest. She must have had a busy day. With all the Monsters she fights he wondered when she even had time to actually sleep. He remembered that from the first time she was in the Misty forest, it seemed like she was awake all day & night.

Vanessa waited for the right moment to strike. She slowly reached for one of her daggers in her side pocket. Caeth almost tripped while he approached Vanessa. She got up from her sleeping position with such a great force that nearly startled Caeth.

Vanessa: You’re a lucky guy. You were going to be my first victim here in Nespot- if I didn’t know you.

Caeth: (Gulps) Yeah. I don’t doubt that at all. Please, could you put that weapon away.

Vanessa: (Smiles) Are you afraid of this little thing?

Caeth: (Laughs) That little thing brings a lot of pain. How would you like it if I was the one aiming the dagger at you?

Vanessa: Good to see you too Caeth. What are you doing here?

Caetg: I could ask you the same thing. (Raises his left eyebrow and smiles).

Vanessa: Hey, I’m here on business. I wonder what brought you here.

Caeth: I am here on business too. Can I show you around Nespor?

Vanessa nodded her head. She grabbed her bag and placed the dagger back in her side pocket. Could she really trust Caeth?

Caeth showed Vanessa all the many stores, and beautiful gardens that Nespor had. She ended up even seeing a Roosters fight in a cage. This place was really crazy & full of great sights at the same time.

Vanessa could not believe it- she had spent an entire day with Caeth. She wasn’t sure how to feel about that. She was here on a mission. Caeth was being such a giant distraction to her work. She was mad at him, & happy to actually be enjoying her time in Nespor. Sightseeing and enjoying all that Nespor had to offer for it’s people & guests.

Caeth: So, Vanessa what do you think of Nespor?

Vanessa stopped walking and smiled at Caeth. She told him that she liked it. Caeth froze in his place. Here he was in Nespor with Vanessa. He could not believe it. And he spent a whole day with her. Now as the day was coming to an end~ the sky had never looked so extraordinary. Caeth could not help himself. He walked slowly towards Vanessa and then he stopped in his tracks.

Vanessa wondered what was happening right now. She felt her stomach twist and turn. What in Nespor was going on here?

Caeth: (in a whisper) I- ...think you’re amazing. And you are an awesome Monster Hunter.

Vanessa: (Blushes) Thank you Caeth.

Caeth picked one of the flowers from the tree and handed it to Vanessa. She blushed again & smiled.

Then Caeth led Vanessa to a lovely guests cottage. There Vanessa was given her own room. Caeth knocked on her door and he started panicking . He didn’t know what to say.

Vanessa opened her door and was happy to see that it was Caeth.

Vanessa: Yes? What’s up Caeth?

Caeth: (Clears throat) I~ had a wonderful day..time...(nervously)- with you.

Vanessa: Thank you for showing me around Nespor Caeth.

She reached out to him and planted a kiss on his right cheek. Caeth beamed with joy.

Vanessa slowly closed the door after saying Good night to Caeth. He smiled and told her Good night.

Caeth went to his room and placed his face in the pillow. His heart was beating so fast.

And Vanessa smiled as she placed the flower that she was given right by her bedside. This was going to be a day to remember.

#MonsterHunter

#AlongCameThatWerewolf

Trust me when I say, this can never reach the press. It is too dangerous; even now I take this risk in telling you.

I consider you to be a friend, someone I can confide in, so give me your word you will never tell a soul.

Then let me continue.

It started in 1977. Two people died in what was called an automobile accident, but the truth ... their brakes were partially severed and snapped when the car went down the far side of a mountain pass in Colorado.

In 1979, there was a house fire. Killed five people. It was originally ruled faulty wiring. It happened at night.

In 1981, seven people were shot to death at a private party. It is still an unsolved murder.

By 1998, fifty-six other people died in what would be called strange and unexplained deaths, although that same year, two others died from gunshot wounds to the face. Again, unsolved.

There was a break until 2016. Four people in different houses in the same city were found dead. One by gunshot, two by being beheaded, and one by strangulation. None of those deaths were related to each other.

I tell you all this so that you understand I cannot change what I am, or who I am. I have this animal living inside me that comes out, and then all I feel is rage, and the need to feed on the pain of others. I enjoy watching them die and bleeding out. I derive a huge amount of gratification, almost like an intense sexual release, but even better.

And even though I call you friend, I have you tied to that chair, so you cannot run away from me as I told you this story. Tonight, you are my sole captive audience. And I need this badly. By telling you, I am relieving my soul of what I have done.

When I walk away from you, my soul will be cleansed, as if nothing I have done in the past ever existed. I walk away with my hands clean, almost pure.

What? Will I still set you free? Of course I will. Right after I slash your throat and taste your blood.

There, now you are free, my friend. My secret is safe with you. I can begin over again. I am reborn.

Now, I feel much better; knowing this story will never be told.

It’s the look that’s in your eyes when you ask about my day. The way that their sparkle does not seem to go away. It’s the way that you smile and laugh that always drives away the rain. It’s how when I look into your eyes I can see the trees bend and sway. When I put my hand in yours I swear that I could stay there every single day. It’s the way you get excited like a child ready to play. Those little nerdy things about you always brighten up my day. I love the way you talk and when you’re happy I swear you glow. But these little things about you are just a ripple in a cove.

I've just taken my exam.

I am fairly certain that I have gotten a 100% on it. I know, I know, Nora got another 100%. Such a shocker.

To be honest, though, it was stressfull because this was a product knowledge exam for work. I had received a book and had three weeks to study it.

Despite having all that time on paper, I really didn't have it once I went ahead and figured in time spent at work, and time spent studying for my upcoming MBLEx, and of course, time I should have spent sleeping. I had many sleepless nights while I poured over this book and made notes from the book and took notes of my notes and further still, I made flashcards.

Do I remind you of a certain bushy-haired Gryffindor swot?

I studied as if my life depended on it, which, to be fair, it sort of did. No one would tell me what would happen if I failed, so, of course, my mind went to the worst possible scenario: I'd lose my job if I failed this exam.

I quite possibly over-prepared, honestly. Fear really is a driving force.

I hadn't eaten this morning, having been too nervous to hold anything down for long. This always happens before an exam, so it is nothing new. I destracted myself by perusing etsy for lovely bits and bobs. I'll talk about my finds in another post. They are truly lovely!

When I got to the office, I had mostly calmed down. I took my exam sheet and the proffered pencil and went to the testing room.

I took a deep cleansing breath and said to myself: I have a 100% on this exam. I can answer any question they ask of me.

The moment my pencil touched the paper, the answers flowed out.

Question one? Done.

Question three? Easy.

Question ten? Already? Ansrwed and done!

I answered everything in record time they said. I am waiting for the exam to be graded and to hear my score.

I sit on pins and needles now.