Buck's Phototales
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"Did you have a successful outing last month?"
"Well ... Yes ... In a manner of speaking ..."
"If you can call taking an arrow through your nipple as being successful?"
"Then yes ... I guess it was!"
"Not to change the subject or anything ...
"But did you get around to reading that text file I emailed to you before I left on vacation?"
"Yes! I most certainly did!
And you have me convinced that you must be a disciple of Erich Von Daniken ...
In his book, "Chariots of the Gods" he puts forth the theory that mankinds God was an extraterrestrial being ..."
"In your case, the aliens must have been concerned, as I am sure we all are,
with the way the Amazons were intent upon slaughtering one another.
I guess that the extraterrestrials enjoyed watching the women being killed every bit as do the rest of us!
At the same time, they must have feared that at the rate they were being butchered,
that they would soon run out of raw material to entertain and amuse them ...
And so, being of a practical frame of mind, they set about to do something about it!
The extraterrestrials set about selecting choice earth women
and reproduced them as replicants to replenish the ranks of the Amazons!
"The replicants were more durable than their original counterparts ...
As a result they were tougher ..."
"They were virtually fearless ..."
"In many instances they were completely self-sacrificing ..."
"And what was likely their most significant feature from our own perspective ..."
"They retained no memories whatever of their previous existence ..."
"And so the extraterrestrials' replicants became the perfect Amazon fighting machines ... "
"Fierce and fearless they could kill and be killed ..."
"While at the same time they could be repaired and made ready to fight amd die once again!"
"Does that pretty well sum up what you wrote, Ms Nombe?"
"In a way ... Yeah ... Sorta ...
But I'll bet you have your own take on this Amazon Dilemna, don't you, Uncle Buck?"
"Oh! But of course!"
"Well it's getting late ...
So you may just as well get on with it!"
"As it happens I quizzed one of the gleaners about the fact that I was pretty sure that I had seen the same warrior
after she had been killed a number of times.
The Amazon looked at me and with a straight face said,
'Buck, that's entirely possible ...
As a matter of fact I've often wondered why you haven't questioned me about this phenomena long ere now!'
'You know of course that the so-called Pagan Gods were more of a hands-on crew than any God of the present day ...
And it would seem that some of them shared much the same fear as your friend Nombe Zulu ...
And that was if something wasn't done to augment the ranks of the Amazons
that at the rate they were killing one another that soon there wouldn't be any of the fighting women left ...
The Amazons were faced with extinction ...'
'A meeting of the Gods was called to order and Zeus himself found it necessary to moderate
what became at times rather heated exchanges ...'
'Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love was, as you might expect adamantly opposed to killing of any kind ...'
'The Amazon Goddess Artemis, on the other hand was in the opposite camp ...'
'And Ares, being the God of War, you might expect that he would side with Artemis ...
Instead, he chose to take a more moderate view ...
It is quite possible that he could see a certain advantage in having what was a dead warrior revived in some manner!'
"You don't mind if I make myself comfortable, do you Buck?"
"Er - Ah - That is to say ...
No! Of course not!
Go right ahead and play with that arrow all you want ...
Just don't hurt yourself!
You hear?"
"Now then ... Where was I?
Oh yes!
A compromise was reached in that while the killing would go on pretty much unabated ...
That certain of the warriors would be revived ...
The Goddes Artemis was none too pleased at this and she made her objections known to everyone present!"
"Though it came as a surprize to the Gods, one the Amazon representatives present wase none too thrilled with the prospect
of having a recently slaughtered victim suddenly revive ..."
'Now let me get this straight!
Say I just killed some bitch!
Do you mean to say that I'm going to have to face her all over again?
That I definitely do not like!'
"After a great deal of heated discussion it was finally agreed that if an arrow was left protruding from the body
of any Amazon, then she was dead - and she would remain so with no hope of ressurection ...
"If, on the other hand the weapon that struck her down was removed, then if her body was otherwise unmolested,
then there was better than an even chance that she would eventually awaken - completely healed
and with no recollection of her ordeal ...
"The determination to leave an arrow protruding from the bodies of he slain perhaps lent an advantage
to the archers, for a warrior killed by any other means was going to have to have a weapon of some kind
left behind, and this those weilding either sword or spear was often loath to do ...
"And so it became the habit of many Amazon warriors to have at their disposal a number of stakes
which they would then drive into the chest of any fallen foe whom they had no particular wish to encounter ever again!"
'And of course, we all are well aware of the mythology to which that practice gave rise ...'
Aphrodite ribbed Ares when next they met.
'I'll be the first to admit that the compromise may have had some unforeseen consequences, Aprodite ...
But let's face it ... It was about as good a deal as you could expect to get!'
'I suppose that you're right, Ares!
Human nature being what it is and all!'
'Even the Amazon Goddess Artemis is satisfied with our arrangement!'
'Yes ... She seems to be ...
I've seen how she delights at seeing a shrapened stake being driven into a dead or dyng warriors chest!
How the Amazons came to worship a creature like that ...
I'll never be able to understand!'
"Well, Ms Nombe ... That's the story of how the Amazon Clans managed to exist for as long as they did ...
At least it is according to the Amazon Gleaner and I guess she should know!
Say now ...
I haven't heard so much as peep out of you for the past fifteen minutes ...
Have you been listening to any of this?
Oh for Gosh Sakes!"
"She went and fell asleep!"
"Does that pretty well sum up what you wrote, Ms Nombe?"
"In a way ... Yeah ... Sorta ...
But I'll bet you have your own take on this Amazon Dilemna, don't you, Uncle Buck?"
"Oh! But of course!"
"Well it's getting late ...
So you may just as well get on with it!"
"As it happens I quizzed one of the gleaners about the fact that I was pretty sure that I had seen the same warrior
after she had been killed a number of times.
The Amazon looked at me and with a straight face said,
'Buck, that's entirely possible ...
As a matter of fact I've often wondered why you haven't questioned me about this phenomena long ere now!'
'You know of course that the so-called Pagan Gods were more of a hands-on crew than any God of the present day ...
And it would seem that some of them shared much the same fear as your friend Nombe Zulu ...
And that was if something wasn't done to augment the ranks of the Amazons
that at the rate they were killing one another that soon there wouldn't be any of the fighting women left ...
The Amazons were faced with extinction ...'
'A meeting of the Gods was called to order and Zeus himself found it necessary to moderate
what became at times rather heated exchanges ...'
'Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love was, as you might expect adamantly opposed to killing of any kind ...'
'The Amazon Goddess Artemis, on the other hand was in the opposite camp ...'
'And Ares, being the God of War, you might expect that he would side with Artemis ...
Instead, he chose to take a more moderate view ...
It is quite possible that he could see a certain advantage in having what was a dead warrior revived in some manner!'
"You don't mind if I make myself comfortable, do you Buck?"
"Er - Ah - That is to say ...
No! Of course not!
Go right ahead and play with that arrow all you want ...
Just don't hurt yourself!
You hear?"
"Now then ... Where was I?
Oh yes!
A compromise was reached in that while the killing would go on pretty much unabated ...
That certain of the warriors would be revived ...
The Goddes Artemis was none too pleased at this and she made her objections known to everyone present!"
"Though it came as a surprize to the Gods, one the Amazon representatives present wase none too thrilled with the prospect
of having a recently slaughtered victim suddenly revive ..."
'Now let me get this straight!
Say I just killed some bitch!
Do you mean to say that I'm going to have to face her all over again?
That I definitely do not like!'
"After a great deal of heated discussion it was finally agreed that if an arrow was left protruding from the body
of any Amazon, then she was dead - and she would remain so with no hope of ressurection ...
"If, on the other hand the weapon that struck her down was removed, then if her body was otherwise unmolested,
then there was better than an even chance that she would eventually awaken - completely healed
and with no recollection of her ordeal ...
"The determination to leave an arrow protruding from the bodies of he slain perhaps lent an advantage
to the archers, for a warrior killed by any other means was going to have to have a weapon of some kind
left behind, and this those weilding either sword or spear was often loath to do ...
"And so it became the habit of many Amazon warriors to have at their disposal a number of stakes
which they would then drive into the chest of any fallen foe whom they had no particular wish to encounter ever again!"
'And of course, we all are well aware of the mythology to which that practice gave rise ...'
Aphrodite ribbed Ares when next they met.
'I'll be the first to admit that the compromise may have had some unforeseen consequences, Aprodite ...
But let's face it ... It was about as good a deal as you could expect to get!'
'I suppose that you're right, Ares!
Human nature being what it is and all!'
'Even the Amazon Goddess Artemis is satisfied with our arrangement!'
'Yes ... She seems to be ...
I've seen how she delights at seeing a shrapened stake being driven into a dead or dyng warriors chest!
How the Amazons came to worship a creature like that ...
I'll never be able to understand!'
"Well, Ms Nombe ... That's the story of how the Amazon Clans managed to exist for as long as they did ...
At least it is according to the Amazon Gleaner and I guess she should know!
Say now ...
I haven't heard so much as peep out of you for the past fifteen minutes ...
Have you been listening to any of this?
Oh for Gosh Sakes!"
"She went and fell asleep!"
