ORIGINAL ARTWORK © DAVID MKRTCHYAN
(Excerpt...)
MHER'S DOOR
ARMENIAN HIGHLAND, 1915
Scenes of destruction, Turkish soldiers and irregulars massacring and pillaging--pure devastation, burning churches, bodies stacked in rows. Kurds, and others, meticulously removing clothing, shoes, and jewelry from bodies--some removing gold from mouths, pulling teeth. Artillery and primitive tanks move along a medieval landscape along with horses with bloody hooves--Turk officers, swords drawn, bloody mustaches.
A German retinue, wearing spiked Kaiser helmets, moves through it all in an open old-time car.
Sniper fire begins and some of the cavalry officers are being hit, intermittently, as other officers, including MAIN TURK and his group, seek shelter and try to locate the shooter.
PAN TO SHOOTER IN HILLS
It is the PRINCE, the legendary “Prince of Erzeroum,” (his nom de guerre) in his “bullet shirt” regalia, but it and he are worn and tired, yet he keeps fighting. He moves to positions at different points on the hill where he has placed rifles and explosives.
PAN TO PRINCE ACROSS HILL
PAN BACK TO TURKS
Turks search for the PRINCE and find him through their binoculars. The FIRST TURK who spots him, is shot in the eye through the binoculars’ glass. The SECOND TURK is able to locate the PRINCE and, then, the cavalry officers mount-up to pursue.
PAN BACK TO PRINCE
The PRINCE begins his escape, leaving booby traps in his wake, which snare a few of the Turks. He finally arrives at the burnt village—again, there is total devastation, burning, and ruins. He walks through the bodies and goes to a razed house and finds a hidden trap door—it is clear he has been here before. He lifts up the door and is almost stabbed in the face by the ARMENIAN VILLAGE GIRL, her clothes ripped and bloodied. She is with the body of her father who has died in her arms. The PRINCE calms her and tells her who he is and that they must go. He gets what he came for—maps, provisions, and Dasnots stuff, as well as a few surprises.
They begin fleeing and are overtaken by the FARMER, afraid, with an ax in his hand. They go together to the Vank where the PRIEST is sobbing and praying over the still smoldering bodies of his flock. He sees them and puts away a pistol under his tunic and they all go together—running, falling, getting up.
One phrase is upon the Prince’s lips, ”Muheree Tooruh…” (Mher’s Door…) They are making their way to sacred ground, to where they may hide, defend, or die fighting. As they approach MHER’S DOOR, Turkish Officers and cavalrymen begin to close in on them. Our heroes are trapped, confronted by the Turks, their backs to the stone walls--they are doomed, there is no way out. The PRIEST begins praying, the FARMER holds his ax tighter, as tears well up in his eyes.
The ARMENIAN VILLAGE GIRL stands, her knife to her side, nostrils flared, and the PRINCE’S eyes narrow and he begins to scowl, as he readies himself for the assault and his defense. He will kill as many as he can before he dies.
The TURKS laugh and smirk and say derogatory things in Turkish, as the horses whinny and neigh. The end is near. They mock and curse the four, an eerie silence descends and we hear nothing.
Suddenly, the sound of whistling breaks the tension. Someone is whistling an almost comical old Armenian tune. Faces change, apprehension to surprise, everyone listens and looks around to see where it can be coming from.
The Horses are afraid...
It is the PRINCE, the legendary “Prince of Erzeroum,” (his nom de guerre) in his “bullet shirt” regalia, but it and he are worn and tired, yet he keeps fighting. He moves to positions at different points on the hill where he has placed rifles and explosives.
PAN TO PRINCE ACROSS HILL
PAN BACK TO TURKS
Turks search for the PRINCE and find him through their binoculars. The FIRST TURK who spots him, is shot in the eye through the binoculars’ glass. The SECOND TURK is able to locate the PRINCE and, then, the cavalry officers mount-up to pursue.
PAN BACK TO PRINCE
The PRINCE begins his escape, leaving booby traps in his wake, which snare a few of the Turks. He finally arrives at the burnt village—again, there is total devastation, burning, and ruins. He walks through the bodies and goes to a razed house and finds a hidden trap door—it is clear he has been here before. He lifts up the door and is almost stabbed in the face by the ARMENIAN VILLAGE GIRL, her clothes ripped and bloodied. She is with the body of her father who has died in her arms. The PRINCE calms her and tells her who he is and that they must go. He gets what he came for—maps, provisions, and Dasnots stuff, as well as a few surprises.
They begin fleeing and are overtaken by the FARMER, afraid, with an ax in his hand. They go together to the Vank where the PRIEST is sobbing and praying over the still smoldering bodies of his flock. He sees them and puts away a pistol under his tunic and they all go together—running, falling, getting up.
One phrase is upon the Prince’s lips, ”Muheree Tooruh…” (Mher’s Door…) They are making their way to sacred ground, to where they may hide, defend, or die fighting. As they approach MHER’S DOOR, Turkish Officers and cavalrymen begin to close in on them. Our heroes are trapped, confronted by the Turks, their backs to the stone walls--they are doomed, there is no way out. The PRIEST begins praying, the FARMER holds his ax tighter, as tears well up in his eyes.
The ARMENIAN VILLAGE GIRL stands, her knife to her side, nostrils flared, and the PRINCE’S eyes narrow and he begins to scowl, as he readies himself for the assault and his defense. He will kill as many as he can before he dies.
The TURKS laugh and smirk and say derogatory things in Turkish, as the horses whinny and neigh. The end is near. They mock and curse the four, an eerie silence descends and we hear nothing.
Suddenly, the sound of whistling breaks the tension. Someone is whistling an almost comical old Armenian tune. Faces change, apprehension to surprise, everyone listens and looks around to see where it can be coming from.
The Horses are afraid...
CAPTAIN SIAMANTO NJTEH KARAMARONIAN, Commander of the Intergalactic Armenian Imperial Forces, First Expeditionary Group comes into view wearing an ARF issue wife beater and the bottoms to his space flight suit. He is carrying a small dog, named DEEBO, in the crook of his arm and a half eaten apricot in his other hand. He emerges from the stones and rock walls almost as if by magic. He stops whistling and looks with a quizzical smile at the people around him. He eats the rest of the apricot in one bite as the Turks and Armos stare, mouths agape, at him.
He takes the pit from his mouth and puts it in his pocket as he lets DEEBO jump from his arms. The Turks demand to know who or what he is, the Armenians are ready to defend themselves from him, as well, but the PRINCE intuitively knows he is on their side. The tiny dog lightly scampers up to the horses and Turks towering over him, the breath of the beasts and men steaming in the cold morning air. The Turks look at the little dog as it starts barking in its little voice. They laugh ruthlessly and talk about skewering it on their Yataghans and, then, doing the same to the Gavoors.
And, just as that is about to happen, the little dog takes two steps back, almost whimpering, and opens its mouth from which emerges the most ghastly, vicious looking, overwhelming creature one has ever seen and in a flash devours one of the Turk officers and recedes back into little DEEBO. The little dog whimpers slightly, raises a hind leg to pee, and then lets out a tiny bark and scampers back to CAPTAIN SIAMANTO, who is now really smiling and now also has a foreign object in his right hand.
Everyone is aghast--the Turks are like deer in the headlights--the ARMENIAN VILLAGE GIRL faints into the arms of the FARMER who is moaning, the PRIEST is on his knees calling upon God’s mercy. Only the PRINCE is amazed and is smiling at this wonder, thinking about his next move. As he is about to throw one of his hidden grenades, as it drops into his cupped hand from his sleeve, CAPTAIN SIAMANTO raises the object in his hand and obliterates the whole group of fleeing Turks into a crispy mess.
The PRINCE and CAPTAIN SIAMANTO look at each other and immediately exchange a deep recognition of who the other is. CAPTAIN SIAMANTO tells him and the others in an Armenian dialect that seems different than their own, to follow him. The PRINCE convinces the frightened others that it’s alright and they collect themselves and follow him towards the stone walls of MHERS DOOR. The group cannot understand where they are going--there is nowhere to go. They begin worrying again until CAPTAIN SIAMANTO says that all is well and they will soon understand. He goes ahead of the group to MHERS DOOR and presses an object into a small opening. Suddenly the solid rock wall begins to open with a great rumble, which can only be described as an earthquake. The group, reluctantly, follows CAPTAIN SIAMANTO inside the opening and are dumbfounded by what they see.
He takes the pit from his mouth and puts it in his pocket as he lets DEEBO jump from his arms. The Turks demand to know who or what he is, the Armenians are ready to defend themselves from him, as well, but the PRINCE intuitively knows he is on their side. The tiny dog lightly scampers up to the horses and Turks towering over him, the breath of the beasts and men steaming in the cold morning air. The Turks look at the little dog as it starts barking in its little voice. They laugh ruthlessly and talk about skewering it on their Yataghans and, then, doing the same to the Gavoors.
And, just as that is about to happen, the little dog takes two steps back, almost whimpering, and opens its mouth from which emerges the most ghastly, vicious looking, overwhelming creature one has ever seen and in a flash devours one of the Turk officers and recedes back into little DEEBO. The little dog whimpers slightly, raises a hind leg to pee, and then lets out a tiny bark and scampers back to CAPTAIN SIAMANTO, who is now really smiling and now also has a foreign object in his right hand.
Everyone is aghast--the Turks are like deer in the headlights--the ARMENIAN VILLAGE GIRL faints into the arms of the FARMER who is moaning, the PRIEST is on his knees calling upon God’s mercy. Only the PRINCE is amazed and is smiling at this wonder, thinking about his next move. As he is about to throw one of his hidden grenades, as it drops into his cupped hand from his sleeve, CAPTAIN SIAMANTO raises the object in his hand and obliterates the whole group of fleeing Turks into a crispy mess.
The PRINCE and CAPTAIN SIAMANTO look at each other and immediately exchange a deep recognition of who the other is. CAPTAIN SIAMANTO tells him and the others in an Armenian dialect that seems different than their own, to follow him. The PRINCE convinces the frightened others that it’s alright and they collect themselves and follow him towards the stone walls of MHERS DOOR. The group cannot understand where they are going--there is nowhere to go. They begin worrying again until CAPTAIN SIAMANTO says that all is well and they will soon understand. He goes ahead of the group to MHERS DOOR and presses an object into a small opening. Suddenly the solid rock wall begins to open with a great rumble, which can only be described as an earthquake. The group, reluctantly, follows CAPTAIN SIAMANTO inside the opening and are dumbfounded by what they see.
They find themselves in a corridor opening onto a vast hall at the center of which there stands, what seems to be an Armenian church or monastery, but it is, in fact, made of some metal and/or polymer. There are a variety of pipes and metal flaps, ornamentation and weaponry. They are not sure what this thing is, but it is familiar in its design and decoration and architecture. There are three or four individuals bustling around the craft tending to chores. CAPTAIN SIAMANTO yells out orders to the crew and they look up in astonishment, but move on to their respective tasks.
CAPTAIN SIAMANTO turns to the anxious group and in the same Armenian dialect as before, introduces himself and explains what is going on.
“I am Captain Siamanto Njteh Kara-Maronian, Commander of the Intergalactic Armenian Forces, First Expeditionary Group… I am your future and past and I have come back again.
We are a highly disciplined and effective martial organization known throughout the galaxy, in service of light, and I have, for some time, been traveling on my own, with my craft and crew, through a variety of time portals to get to this very time and place. However, I must admit I had no inkling of what exactly I would find.
My operation is rogue, my journey is not condoned by my superiors, and I have come again to MHER'S DOOR which is, in fact, an ancient extraterrestrial mounting and re-entry point for time travel and transcendence we have been using for some time... or no time at all, depending on how you may view that concept…
In any case, we must now leave, much to my chagrin, due to an unexpected change in the event horizon and a glitch in the plasma generator... I do so hate it when that happens...”
--akm
© Ara Mgrdichian
CAPTAIN SIAMANTO turns to the anxious group and in the same Armenian dialect as before, introduces himself and explains what is going on.
“I am Captain Siamanto Njteh Kara-Maronian, Commander of the Intergalactic Armenian Forces, First Expeditionary Group… I am your future and past and I have come back again.
We are a highly disciplined and effective martial organization known throughout the galaxy, in service of light, and I have, for some time, been traveling on my own, with my craft and crew, through a variety of time portals to get to this very time and place. However, I must admit I had no inkling of what exactly I would find.
My operation is rogue, my journey is not condoned by my superiors, and I have come again to MHER'S DOOR which is, in fact, an ancient extraterrestrial mounting and re-entry point for time travel and transcendence we have been using for some time... or no time at all, depending on how you may view that concept…
In any case, we must now leave, much to my chagrin, due to an unexpected change in the event horizon and a glitch in the plasma generator... I do so hate it when that happens...”
--akm
© Ara Mgrdichian