Mike Ashkewe

Hello everyone!

I hope you’re all doing well! I keep reminding myself to keep this updated and now I need to do that more than ever as I am now tremendously busy across a few different fronts.

The big news is that i am now a published Indigenous author in a collection of Indigenous poetry that is available for purcahse. The book is called mihko kiskisiwin - Blood Memory and you can purchase that book in a variety of different formats by going to the following lin. https://tinyurl.com/ … e-book-by-going-here

I talk about the book along with some of the other authors
https://www.guelphme … 0d-2d4641b00b61.html

I also have been active in local media with my most recent appearance
https://www.guelphto … ce-to-gather-8742809

I also have had my official announcement of working Star Trek Adventures 2nd edition and that will be available later this summer. You can find out more information on the book by visiting the official website and you can easily pre order https://modiphius.us … dition-core-rulebook

I also am going to be returning to the airwaves at some point soon as I have taken a position at CFRU 93.3 as one of thier executive members of the board and have pitched a show which will bring a version of TWiG back to air.
https://www.cfru.ca/ Look for that later on this spring / early summer and watch the typical social media channels.

Finally, I am in the beginnings of launching my first real online business which will be a Patreon that is meant for the tabletop RPG space. I’ll be doing TTRPG content which will incude podcasts, writing prompts, behind the scene of game development and the creative process and more. I am still deciding on a name but I am hoping to have a soft launch by June 22nd, 2024 for FREE RPG DAY https://freerpgday.com/

So I will be updating more in the coming weeks and I’ll share more when my Patreon launches and when I start doing media tours for my books.

If anyone wants to reach out for media tours then by all means get in toucn and we’ll chat

Til next time…

Be excellent to each other

Hey everyone

It’s been a while since I had a chance to update so its been a hot minute.

So here is my new Linktree for all my socials https://linktr.ee/mikeashkewe

I have recently moved on from the Guelph Mercury Tribune but am still continuing in the journalistic field. I do have a new part time gig set up and will be starting that in a few weeks.

I have signed on as a freelance writer for Star Trek adventures for Modiphus https://www.modiphiu … star-trek-adventures and am working on a few different things so stay tuned for more information.
Very exciting to enter the tabletop RPG field as a writer on one of my favorite properities.

I am also writing short fiction for a podcast called Weekly Spookies and you can find my first story here https://www.weeklysp … re-has-all-new-fear/
Several more are being produced and several more are being written.

I also will be launching a book later on this year and will have more details closer to the launch date this fall / winter.

Finally, I am also working on more short fiction which maybe Indigenous focused and will hopefully be published soon.

More updates soon, I promise especially as stuff goes to print and my reach expand.

Until next time, friendly friends

Be excellent to each other

Hey everyone!

So been a VERY busy few months here with my work at the Newspaper, college and just generally life but I need to keep this more updated.

I have a linktree now active
https://linktr.ee/mikeashkewe

I am still active on Tiktok
https://www.tiktok.com/@birdmandodd

I am going to be published this summer in a collection of Indigenous poetry so I’ll share more on that project when it goes into print.

Still very busy with accessibility consults around the city and doing my part for a better quality of life for disabled people in Guelph

More updates to come, I promise!

Here is an article from the local Guelph newspaper regarding a fundraiser I did recently

Indigenous and disability activist Ashkewe, who read several of his poems at the event, said he is proud of the work being done in Guelph, and the support that is building for protesters and Indigenous communities. He questioned the path to truth and reconciliation due to recent events like the pushing forward to drill the pipeline without informed consent from Indigenous Peoples. He also spoke of discovering a home and his Indigenous ancestry and learning of rights he was denied as a ’60s Scoop survivor.

“Some of my poetry today came from a very angry place,” he said. “But I am embracing certain values now and the seven grandfather teachings. The one I take with me is always love, because if you don’t have love in your heart, you put all that negativity out there in the world.”

https://www.guelphme … to-inspire-activism/

https://www.guelphme … -municipal-election/

Guelph Indigenous community and disability activist Mike (O’dah ziibing) Ashkewe said he was happy with the “new faces on council and some of the ones returning.” He is confident that they share his views on the importance of accessibility and representation.

He called newly elected Erin Caton, Ward 1, a “champion” and said that “Guelph could not have asked for a better person when it comes to representing the disabled community.”

For Ashkewe, issues like accessibility and affordability in the city are top of mind as he said he may face limitations finding housing and accessing transportation with his wheelchair in the future. He also shared that he would love to see more support for creating Indigenous spaces and expanding the role of Indigenous Peoples in the city and at City Hall.

Hey everyone!

Short update but here is another media appearance from earlier this summer in local media.

https://www.guelphme … st-art-installation/

Hopefully you’ll check out my Tiktok and stuff as I am posting a lot of my exploration of the Guelph community and seeing all sorts of neat things happening around here.

Fully expect to see more stuff come up now that we are close to National truth and reconciliation day.

Talk soon, friends!

Hey everyone,

Just a short series of links for a few interviews I did regarding the Pope’s visit to Canada and his apology to the Residential school survivors and their families.

https://kitchener.ct … ool-system-1.6001940 This one has video and is from CTV Kitchener

https://www.cbc.ca/n … pe-francis-1.6531482
This is written by CBC and the reporter was really good at covering the event and letting me speak freely and authentically

https://www.tiktok.com/@birdmandodd

My tiktok if you’re into that sorta thing

For 40 years, i have wondered who i was and wondered where i fit into the world.

I am Ojibwe and I am Indigenous Canadian. I didn’t look into my past until much later in my life.

This past year I began a journey that began with what I thought was a dream. I learned quickly that it was much more then a dream, it was a vision that i’d had since I was a child but it never clicked til this past January.

I dreamt that I was a Fox and i was something more then a man. I was seeing a land in a time before man could speak, before our lands were taken and when man,animal and spirit lived in harmony.

I continued to reach out and explore my visions and they came much more quickly and with a lot of clarity and intensity. I saw lakes and rivera during spring time, i watched storms roll in over Lake Huron and Georgian bay and finally i saw waterfalls that only the spirits knew of.

The Fox or Wagoosh was guiding me and I was him and i ran, jumped and explored and met many. I met Creator or an Avatar of him, i met a Makwa (bear) spirit. I learned to explore these visions to hear, taste and touch and more.

I began smudging this month and offering tobacco and things started to change.

I started to change.

Time went on and I knew it was time.

I sought out a person who was an Elder and a person that I knew I could trust. I believe Creator puts people in your life when you need them and this was my time.

I felt very deep down in my heart that it was time.

It was time to know who i was on a deeper level, to know myself in a new way.

To know my Spirit name.

I asked my elder and he agreed and a date was set.

During the few weeks leading up to the ceremony, i was not afraid but occasionally nervous because what if it wasn’t time.

However, i knew deep down that my body was afraid but my spirit was not.

Wagoosh had lead me this far. Creator had guided my voice and words when i smudged.

This was my time and it was time to prepare.

I spent many nights meditating, offering tobacco and feast to the spirits that i can see and hear.

One of my special gifts is that i am aware of spirits and see them frequently. My home is a safe space for those who are lost and if i can help then i will.

Part of the tradition is to give a gift to your elder that means something and wrap it in red cloth with some tobacco.

I chose something that has become very important to me and how i live in the world.

Days passed and i continued until this past Sunday.

I did one final offering of tobacco and i smudged and i knew i was as ready as i was going to be.

Sunday afternoon came and i met my elder. He is a warm and generous man with experience, love and truly someone who does great work.

Now some details i will leave out here because some of it is personal and those are for a few chosen few but i’ll continue to tell this story.

Blaire, Shanyn and myself and my elder smudged and cleansed our minds,spirits and bodies of all negativity and existed in the moment.

My elder began the ceremony.

There was singing,drumming and communing with something powerful and beautiful.

I watched a flame during the ceremony and i saw things in it that were clear as daylight. I saw a woman bathed in a golden light, i saw loons dancing on a lake, the crow, the eagle, the beaver and much more.

The ceremony continued and I was given something special by the spirits and was watched over by my ancestors.

I was given gifts and knowledge that will make my journey in life very special. I know in my heart what my path forward is.

I was visited by a Mukwa (bear) and was told I have the ability to be a medicine keeper. This is special because it is rare.

The ceremony is nearing its end and i can FEEL the energy in the room change as i lovingly looked into the flame. I am surrounded by my ancestors, my family and love.

I am told that my spirit guide is Wagoosh and he will always be with me to guide me to safety and comfort.

I was then told my name.

My name is O’dah ziibing

It means Heart of the river.

My heart travels within the water and i deliver food,drink and healing to all. I help sustain life for everyone.

I cried when i heard my name and i cried when i first spoke my name with my own voice.

We then concluded the ceremony with a feast to the spirits and Creator. Blaire made venison,fry bread,fish, wild rice casserole and it was delicious.

We offered a plate to Creator and the spirits who joined us as well.

My elder departed and we shook hands and i thanked him profusely. I wish i had hugged him before he left in retrospect.

I am learning to say my name and where i am from in Ojibwe. Its a process but i’ll get there.

It was easily one of the most beautiful days of my life.

I am grateful for everyone who has been apart of my journey and has followed it from near or far.

I am Michael David O’dah Ziibing Ashkewe and my journey to make things better for everyone is just beginning.

I’m Mike Ashkewe and this is my digital portfolio as of April 2022.

Sounds simple enough right?

I wanted to be able to feature my work in an easily accessible format and be easily search for people who might come looking. I have been in the web space since 2007 and I have found in my experience that simplicity is best and that saves everyone time. I made sure to add easy ways to contact me professionally and my publicly available social media on the right hand side of this entry.

I also have gone an additional step and embedded some Soundcloud clinks on some of my works such as my poems so that you have an audio option if that is more of your preferred method of consumption. I do advocate for the disability community so I wanted to build in some accessible functions such as audio support. If you find something does not work, then please reach out to me.

This space is intended to be a growing and evolving place for the creative works that I intend to work at. I have created categories, that will make easy to search such as poems, short fiction, RPG related material and finally other projects and personal updates.

Poems will be the most update to section as that is the component that I most recently worked on. It was a lot of fun to tap into some different emotions and write non fiction as opposed to sci fi, horror and fantasy. I have discovered that I really enjoy writing poetry and I do hope to write continuously in that space especially when comes to my Ojibwe heritage.

Short fiction is a section that is small for now because I only have a few short stories ready. I do like to write in a variety of genres with my favorites being horror, sci fi and most recently a cyberpunk spin on romance. It’s exciting to create this in this space and see what comes out of the old keyboard at 2 am on a Thursday night. I’ll likely post short stories and maybe some intro chapters to novellas.

Maybe I’ll do the whole writing November thing.

It sounds fun.

This originally started out as a “project” for school but is growing into something more. My ambitions are high so let’s see what I can accomplish with some elbow grease and learning to code again for the first time in a long time.

This is the beginning of something I hope will be exciting, enlightening and entertaining.

He was running the vacuum cleaner when the phone rang. Zack Turner had been busy looking for work the last few months in the rebuilding city of New York. He’d been turned down by most of the major newspapers, The Daily, and The Chronicle. Even the tabloid news website, the Daily Bugle.net slammed the door in his face. Zack was down on his luck and things didn’t look promising for many job prospects.

The most exciting event to happen to Zack tonight was he’d got a free pizza from a coupon in a flyer. Depression had set in hard and at least he enjoyed doing the mundane like cleaning, even if it was at nine at night. It would be another evening of falling asleep on his futon and playing on his phone til he passed out from boredom.

Zack looked around his little dingy one room apartment in Forest Hills, Queens, New York and sighed. Could this be good news? Could this particular phone call be the one that meant he could pay rent on his own rather than borrow money from his brother. Who would be calling at this hour? It’s likely a wrong number anyway, he always got calls for a “Sandie”, and man, did she get some WEIRD messages.

The banged up Garfield shaped phone rang one more time before Zack could reach it, and the call went to his answering machine. A woman’s voice on the end of the speaker could be heard.

“Mr. Turner, I am a representative for Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division and we’d like to speak with you. We have an opportunity that could fit your unique perspective, and we would like to speak with you at your earliest convenience. If you could show up at 200 Park Avenue in Manhattan at around ten am tomorrow morning, we would appreciate it. Miss Potts will meet you at the front entrance. We look forward to meeting you.”

Zack looked at disbelief at the answering machine and was legitimately really happy for once. This was a real chance. It sounded like a job interview and maybe something really interesting. He didn’t remember the name of the organization though from the message, did he apply there and forget? It didn’t really matter. He’d bounced around from doing things like Uber driving and even working in a call center selling life insurance to retirees in Florida.

Zack had a lot of questions for tomorrow, but he wanted to be fresh and well rested. He also had to figure out how to get from Forest Hills to Manhattan, guess he was taking his beater of a car right down town. How in the Hell was he going to find parking in the middle of the morning rush? Maybe he could get a ride from his friend, Cynthia, he’d have to call now though before she went to bed for the night. Zack was pretty sure she didn’t have classes tomorrow morning so maybe she was playing World of Warcraft or something.

He picked up his cellphone and quickly dialed Cynthia, and hoped she’d pick up. A few rings, she finally picked up and sounded surprised to hear from him.

“Hey Cynthia! How’s it going? Long time no chat! You got a second?” Cynthia answered the phone and was happy to hear from her friend, Zack.
“Well, well, Zack Turner as I live and breathe. What does my favorite unemployed drain on society have for me this evening?” She jokingly said.

Cynthia and Zack had both moved to New York from the lonely isolated woods of Michigan last summer. Cynthia was going to university here for engineering, and Zack tagged along because he thought he could make it in the big city as well. Zack did have some writing experience from the Lansing newspaper scene. This, however, was way different then small town municipal politics and covering small town crime stories.

“So, I have a job interview tomorrow morning, and I kinda need a ride. Think you could help me out? I mean, I could make you dinner, beat someone up or maybe fix your laptop next time it dies on you. I really need this, it’s in Manhattan and it sounds really cool.”

Zack felt Cynthia’s mood shift a little bit towards annoyed but willing to help. She let out a huge exasperated breath but she relented.

“Yeah, I can do that for you. What time are we leaving at?” “Well, I have to be there for 10…”
Zack could feel her jaw drop through the phone and he hoped she’d still stay true to her word. It meant taking the big roads into NYC. That meant dealing with crazies, taxis and all sorts of other vehicular madness. Morning traffic was nothing to mess with, especially when you had somewhere to be.

“Fine, but we’re so getting Starbucks and you’re paying for it, kiddo. It’s a good thing I love you,man because, seriously…you better get this gig, whatever it is.”

“Cool, pick me up at 7:30 and we’ll head in.”

Zack hung up the phone and breathed a huge sigh of relief. He had a ride and he could get a reasonably good night sleep. He already had a suit in his closet that he sat in a bag for most of his

time here but it would at least smell good and hopefully not be too creased or anything. So, he was about as prepared as he was going to be for this thing.

Zack had written dozens of articles on political figures in his hometown of Lansing. He’d covered town events like Lansing Jazz festival, and he’d interviewed the Governor of Michigan at least three times. He was a competent reporter, but wasn’t set out to serve any one agenda other than the truth and serve the public trust.

The young reporter went to sleep finally with a good feeling about things tomorrow. He was prepared, and he was ready for whatever was going to happen. He still didn’t have any idea of exactly what he was going into. However, he decided he was going to have a good attitude this time and trust his abilities, and trust that his gut was leading him into the right direction with this one.

Zack dreamed of Pulitzer prizes and show stealing headlines and breaking scandals that rattled the upper echelons of government. This was going to mean, a bigger apartment, and new clothes. Maybe he could finally get a little dog that he could take to the park, and maybe meet a girl or two.

Morning came and it was a bright and sunny day in the suburb of New York and Zack was already three cups of coffee in for today. He’d replayed the answering message again to make sure that it wasn’t a mistake or if he even had the address right. He did some basic web searching on his phone while waiting outside his apartment for Cynthia. The organization that was mentioned was evidently some sort of a US government agency, like an anti terror task force.
There was some connection to Homeland Security, but then again after 9/11 what organization wasn’t linked to Homeland Security. He wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Zack pressed his blue suit one more time with his hands to make sure it was straight and clean lined and that he looked his best. He shaved this morning and cut himself because even though he was ready, it didn’t mean he wasn’t a little nervous.

Cynthia finally pulled up in her little blue Toyota Corolla and honked the horn to the tune of “La cucaracha” and she smiled at him. She smiled at Zack and already had coffee in the car waiting for him. She opened the door and looked up at him.

“Well, don’t you look like a sharp lady killer. Maybe you’ve awakened my lady parts.” She said deadpan, as Zack got in the car undeterred by her quip at him. She smirked at him as he looked annoyed then softened when she winked at him.

“You just love to take me down a notch don’t you?

“Look, dude. You got this. I bust your balls because I love and because it’s fun and because I’m awake on a day when I don’t have class. You owe me, so let’s ride!”

“I am ready for this. You know where we’re going right? 200 Park Avenue.” “Wait, we’re headed there?”

“Yeah, so, so what?”

“That’s Stark tower, man. You know who lives there right?” “Oh shit, that’s Tony Stark! That’s goddamn Ironman!”

Nerves suddenly shot through Zack and he felt all that confidence just slip away from him. He’d never dealt with anyone of this caliber. This wasn’t a city councilman or some local political figure. He was going to the home of the Avengers, Earth’s mightiest heroes and they called HIM. What the hell do they want with a small town reporter? He wasn’t anyone special or someone noteworthy like Mike Wallace of Sixty minutes, or Wolf Blitizer of CNN. He reported on music festivals and who had the best Halloween set up. He’d covered some big stories at times, but this was well above his experience and pay grade, this was definitely punching above his weight class.

The drive through the highways and roads of New York filled him with anxiety as he ran through various scenarios through his head. Was he in over his head now? What if he screwed this up?
What the hell was he going to do when face to face with people who had literally fought aliens a few months ago? This was weird, this was too much, and it was all happening too fast. Turner’s heart started to beat more and more rapidly as the large looming building with “STARK”. The business of the streets of the city seemed to melt away in front of this towering monolith of glass. Zack felt his stomach tighten as Cynthia pulled the car up to the curb out front of the building.

“Look, it’s not like they are gonna ask you to take Captain America’s shield and go fight someone. Go in there, do the best that you can. After that, we’ll grab a slice of pizza on the way home and we’ll have a beer, and you tell me how you fangirled all over the superheroes.”

Zack stepped out of the car and took it all in. He was here and he absolutely had to be on the top of his game this morning. He gave a thumbs up to his friend and started to walk towards the building. He tried not to let the weakness in his legs become too noticeable.

The lobby was a vast structure of modern art and stylized design and was both elegant and technological at the same time. Various TV’s and screens displayed advertisements for Stark industries and then occasionally showing video packages for the Avengers themselves. There were various employees milling about their activities and none seemed to pay him any mind.

A moment passed as he walked back a large monitor and a computerized voice sprang to life from it.

“Excuse me, Mr.Turner. Miss Potts sends her apologies but she will not be escorting you this morning. My name is JARVIS and I am the artificial intelligence for Stark tower and I will be your guide. If you please follow the highlights on the monitors, that will lead to the executive elevator. Mr. Stark will be along shortly. Please come along.”

The voice startled Zack as he’d never heard of anything so advanced. He’d heard of things like Siri, but this was way more advanced than the smart phone in his pocket.

A wall of LEDs made an arrow shape and the voice guided him towards a posh elevator and it automatically set course for the top floor near the landing pad.

If he was confident, if he played his card right, and especially if he kept his head on his shoulders then this could be a wonderful opportunity. Maybe this was a real chance at something special, maybe this was a sign of luck turning around. He could do this, he could absolutely handle this if he just believed in himself like Cynthia did.

Zack smiled and straightened his tie and jacket one last time as the door slid open from the elevator,

He wasn’t going to go back to being a loser. He was going to succeed. He was going to make a good impression.

He was ready.

Zack looked out the large window by the landing pad and heard the sound of heavy engines that could only be one thing. Tony Stark was preparing to make a grand entrance. A shimmer of red and gold strutted onto the landing pad in an appropriately over dramatic fashion.

It was game time.

He was going to make sure this opportunity led him somewhere better than a one room apartment.

He made clear that he would never go back there again.

They don’t pay us enough for this shit.

Private First Class Rebecca Harris thought as she sat in the combat seating of the armored personnel carrier loaded aboard the Cheyenne class Dropship “Picasso Trigger” as it entered the atmosphere of the colony on LV-034. She was nearing the end of her first tour of duty with the United States Colonial Marine Corps (USCM), she was thinking that maybe she’d had just about enough military life on the frontier of deep space. She’d spent the last year of her life as a Smart gun operator as part of a four member fire team. Harris was aboard with her squad and another team of non combat technicians and their synthetic android. The android was named Stephanie, she was pretty even if she was a bucket of artificial glands and fibers that bled white like carpenters glue.

Rebecca felt the chaffing of the armored chest plate she wore as part of her armor set and the harness of the M56 Smart gun mounting. The arm plate always rubbed into her side in an awkward way. She let out a huge sigh. Her fellow marines looked just as bored or frustrated as she did on this particularly early morning mission. She chuckled to herself for a minute, exclaiming that they barely had time to get out of the hypersleep chambers aboard their Conestoga cruiser “Halifax” before being sent off without so much as breakfast.

“So which dumb ass colonist do you think tripped the transmitter this time?” said a growly older male voice down the row from her. It was her Lance corporal, Tom Ricci, and he was in fine form this morning. He was a good leader when shit hit the fan, but he was first to complain and last to volunteer. Clearly the brass saw something in him.

“Have you ever noticed, we never get ANY good missions? It’s always go here and maintain the peace, go here and help the refugees. Or my personal favorite, be a show of DOMINANCE to the Union of progressive people’s assholes. Man, this entire operation can get fucked.”

That voice was her rifleman, his name was Eddie McKinnon and he was a good guy, if a little young for this gig. He looked over at Rebecca and smiled and nodded towards her. Rebecca always appreciated how his freckled face instantly made things seem more light hearted.

“Harris knows what I’m talking about, she carries around that big fucking gun and never gets to use it.”

“Hey, maybe this time will be different, maybe this time it’ll be worth putting on all this goddamn armor which doesn’t protect from shit.” Rebecca said as she laughed with her squadmates and looked at the technicians who didn’t seem amused at all.

The “technicians” were Weyland Yutani company representatives who were sent by the corporation on Earth to check out on why their new research colony wasn’t paying off or something. They were civilians, and they were by all intents and purposes assets to protect should anything go wrong, but what are the odds. There were six technicians and just four marines, and honestly it seemed like overkill for what seemed like a simple babysitting mission, and likely a broken piece of equipment. Rebecca thought that maybe it could be UPP sabotage, but they’d be pretty damned ballsy to risk a war with her bosses, the United Americas or the USMC itself.

The dropship shuttered and shook as it entered the lower atmosphere and the ship’s canopy immediately frosted from the absolute polar temperatures of the outside world. The ship’s pilots informed them they would be landing at the colony’s landing pad in five minutes but they could not raise the colony’s radio tower at all but it was still broadcasting an emergency beacon.

One of the older technicians, a dark skinned man they called “Arnold” told them it was fine and they should proceed on mission. “Arnold” didn’t know that this mission was of military jurisdiction and if something didn’t sound right, then the USMC Corporal in charge would call for immediate dustoff and call for backup.

The four marines, Corporal Ricci, her rifleman McKinnon, and Oliver, a new recruit and junkie from Earth who signed up to avoid jail time on some penal colony all prepared to ready up as the ship landed. The Dropship hit the landing pad with a loud and distinctive thud as the APC lurched out of the belly, and into the cold polar environment of LV-034.

The armored vehicle hit deep snow drifts of otherworldly snow as it made its way toward the main colony complex. Prefabricated buildings of various designs and functions littered the colony which should be teeming with life and people but was weirdly quiet. Rebecca looked at the wall of television monitors across from her which showed the outside via camera and it was entirely too quiet for a colony of five thousand people to be this quiet even at this time of morning.

“Ok, Marines, listen up. Here’s the drill, McKinnon and Harris, you’ll go with two techs and head to operations and try to find out what’s going on. Myself, Oliver and Steph will take the rest of the mooks to the colony transmitter and see what’s up.” Ricci was in command mode now and Harris knew she could trust his leadership.

The four marines got up from their combat seatings and readied their weapons. These included M41A Pulse rifles and an Incinerator flamethrower and of course, Rebecca’s M56 Smartgun, the heavy support weapon. The mood was different now, the time for fun and games was over and this was on the clock and this was the “go time” that Rebecca and all marines trained for.

Rebecca put her Smartgun eyepiece over her right eye and adjusted her armour one last time before the door the APC slid open and let in the coldest air she could have imagined, and she’d spent time doing cold weather training. She held the large meter long heavy machine gun out in front of her as she exited the vehicle. Through her eyepiece she was expecting to see heat signatures or something that the IR could track in the snowy weather. However, she saw nothing. It was absolutely devoid of life or movement.

“Harris, McKinnon take the door on the colony’s central complex. Stay on comms and remember there were civilians here but if anything looks out of place, don’t be afraid to give it some copper coated candy.” Ricci ordered them as he patted McKinnon on the back as he took up side beside Rebecca, two of the technicians followed behind them.

The APC took off in a different direction from them and left them alone near the colony’s central hub. The vehicle was out of sight within minutes due to the blinding snow coming off the buildings and eventually the sound of it’s large engine was drowned out by the roar of the winds.

The two marine gunner team felt the cold and frigid air almost freeze their lungs solid as their fatigues weren’t as warm as they would like for this environment. McKinnon trudged through snow well past his armored boots and made his way up to the large grey steel door that read “New Roanoke” and looked for the door’s access panel.

Rebecca took up position behind him and saw that the door wasn’t opening with McKinnon’s access codes. One of the technicians, a young man in a big coat and a goatee, took out a red access card and swiped it then the large door opened. Rebecca and McKinnon exchanged glances at each other as if to say “If you had a key, you could have said something.” The man and his assistant, an older woman, pushed past the marines and didn’t say a word.

The four walked inside and the heavy door sealed shut behind them and it was evident that something was wrong. The corridor they had entered into was one of the colony’s main doors. It was near the support area of the colony, and should be filled with people, but was as silent as a tomb. The door’s pressurizing noise echoed throughout the hallways as if to announce their presence. The internal lights weren’t working either, so they’d have to rely on their armour’s shoulder lamps for light.

A series of red pulsing lights from some sort of an internal alarm system, silently flashed in the near darkness which was the only illumination visible to anyone. The beams of light from the marine’s shoulder lamps cut into the dark, but could not penetrate as far as anyone would like. The mood of the group took on a very different feel as everyone looked at each other and just fell

quiet. Something seemed very wrong here, and it wasn’t just a downed transmitter or damaged equipment.

“Eddie, I don’t like this,man. I don’t like this one bit.”

The older woman spoke up for the first time. She tried to give off an air of authority but it felt hollow.
“This is just faulty equipment, I’m sure the colony is just conserving power and keeping the heat on for everyone. Let’s make our way to Operations and secure the colony computer. You two are here to protect us, nothing more, is that clear?”

Rebecca thought about objecting to this company lackey but it wasn’t going to do her or the Marine corps any favours by arguing and making an incident out of it. She nodded towards the technicians and the marines led the way down a hallway that said it led towards the main colony operations labs and computers.

A few moments of walking in complete silence and then Rebecca noticed something move in her eye piece for just a second and then just disappeared as quickly as it appeared. She stopped in her tracks and felt the heavy machine gun aim towards something that the motion tracker in the gun saw and then it stopped suddenly.

“What the fuck was that?” Rebecca said out loud and didn’t mean for it to sound as surprised as she intended

McKinnon shone his lamp where Rebecca’s Smartgun was pointed and saw an open air vent in a wall and gestured his pulse rifle towards it. Eddie approached the vent slowly and kept his posture at the ready in case something popped out from the vent. Eddie looked down at the opening and saw there was something wet and it wasn’t something he wanted to see either.

It was blood.

“Harris, we got a problem here.” McKinnon pointed his weapon down at the spot on the floor and made sure everybody saw it. The two technicians didn’t seem too scared at all, they seemed rather unconcerned by this development.

“No shit. My gun saw something then it was fucking gone.” Rebecca spun on her heels and looked behind them and was convinced that she heard a scurrying sound and the scratch of something sharp on the metal flooring behind her. She whipped around the large weapon, for a fraction of a second the weapon locked onto a target. Before Rebecca could squeeze the firing mechanism, it was gone again.

“Come along, we must move quickly. “ The goateed man said in a quiet voice.

“We got a situation here and we gotta call it into the Corporal.” McKinnon said, in a voice with increased anxiety, his usual calm and joking demeanor faded from before. Sweat was beginning to form from under his armored helmet, ran down his face as he tried to radio into his squadmates.
Bursts of static and half heard words were all that could be heard though the marine communication headpieces. The buildings and the structures could be providing interference, or maybe it was the planet’s magnetic forces. It didn’t matter to Rebecca because it meant they couldn’t get in touch with command, it meant they were on their own and cut off.

An inhuman high pitched screech emanated from the blackness of the complex, it froze Rebecca’s blood cold, she’d never heard anything like that before. It was close. Eddie looked at her panicked, his eyes wide as he heard the sound at the same time. Eddie began to walk back towards the three of them when something shot out from the vent.

A large black three fingered hand shot out from the vent, and wrapped its deathly grip around McKinnon’s left foot, pulling him off his feet. As McKinnon fell, his pulse rifle discharged and the 10mm explosive rounds lit up the darkness for just a second. Bullets sprayed the air as the marine was pulled off his feet. Rebecca and the others fell backwards in surprise and tried to take cover as Eddie’s weapon sprayed wildly emptying the magazine.

Eddie kept screaming as something pulled into him into the open vent and he was gone and he kept screaming until something abruptly cut it off with a wet snap.

“EDDIE!” Rebecca screamed as she got to her feet and looked through the heads up display of her weapons eyepiece looking for whatever had probably killed her best friend. Rebecca had five hundred rounds in the gun. She was ready to make sure every last one would be used to avenge Eddie if he was dead.

The two technicians looked at Rebecca and then kept walking towards Operations as if nothing had happened. She wondered where their goddamn humanity was? Did they understand what the hell just happened? This mission was over, they had to leave, and they had to leave now.

“Look, we have to get the FUCK outta here and now. This is over, like now.”

“Your concern is noted, Miss Harris but we ask that you escort us to operations as instructed.”

Rebecca couldn’t believe what she was hearing, she had just witnessed “something” pull a fellow marine screaming into the darkness and these two suits couldn’t care less. She wasn’t going to let these two civilians die but she wasn’t going to stick her neck out any further then she had to.

“We cannot leave until the colony’s computers have been recovered. Your mission is to escort us to the colony’s operations lab. Please hurry as time is of the essence. It seems the experiments have escaped containment.”
The company woman said as she made her way down the hallway with the other Weyland Yutani company tech.

‘Containment? What the fuck are you talking about?” Rebecca asked angrily

“You are now on a need to know basis Miss Harris. This mission is now under Weyland Yutani control and you are reportable to us.” The man said matter of factually

“You do not leave LV-034 without our authorization as we control your dropship and the Hailfax’s commanding officer.” The woman looked right at Rebecca and seemed to look right through her and bored holes through her soul. The woman and the man had to be androids, there was no way around it, these two were Weyland Yutani synthetics.

What in the Hell was going on here? This was a Military operation, this was supposed to be a simple mission and then she was supposed to ship back to Earth and be out. She now has to take orders from a couple of goddamn robots or be stranded on this frozen rock. She couldn’t reach Ricci or anyone else from the Halifax, she was trapped here unless she did as she was told.

Rebecca Harris felt utterly defeated as she looked at the two synthetics and knew the only way out was through or at least til she could come up with a better plan if one existed.

The trio made their way into a large room filled with dozens of computer monitors all displaying various readouts of New Ronake’s colony pieces. The room was partially lit and the synthetics made their way to the bank of terminals and began throwing countless input commands at it.
Rebecca stood silently at the door with her weapon at the ready and pointed towards the door and she gritted her teeth. She thought about just shooting the androids in the back and being done with it but what if they were telling the truth and they held the keys to getting off of LV-034.
How did the entire squad not notice more Androids among them? How did the squad android Stephanie not say anything?

She was betrayed, alone and utterly at the mercy of her captors.

Hours passed and the man and woman kept adjusting computers and many other technical feats usually not possible by human hands. Rebecca heard the same scurrying scratch of metal on metal and this time it was coming from above her clear as day. The androids seemed to not notice or they didn’t care that something was amiss.

A ceiling grate slid back and a black shape crawled it’s way out using the same vicious clawed hand that dragged Eddie to his apparent death. Rebecca’s voice caught in her throat as she looked at the nightmarish creature crawling along the ceiling.
It had a black skeletal like body with a ridged elongated head and several tubes sticking out of its back. It moved it’s head in Rebecca’s direction and revealed its metallic teeth. It hissed like some sort of an unholy demon and it drooled and its droplets hit the floor in thick puddles.

This alien creature was something out of an insane person’s most deranged dream and it was coming right for Rebecca. Slow deliberate movements of the creature’s head suggested it was curious and it certainly wasn’t scared of her or her two androids.

Rebecca had enough of this, she was going to fight back.

The creature hung over the two synthetics and watched her as she raised her Smartgun up and she pulled on the firing mechanism and let the gun roar to life with it’s thunderous bursts of 10×28mm ammo.

The creature snarled for a second before the barrage of explosive bullets hit the creature and exploded against its chest and head. The creature’s body sprayed a gush of yellowish greenish blood which hit everything near it in a sizzling hiss including the two androids. The blood drenched the area in an acidic wash, it filled the air with noxious fumes and the smell of burnt electronic equipment. The two androids screamed for a moment before the acidic blood melted most of their bodies into a horrific mess.

The creature had acid for blood? Rebecca was absolutely shocked as nothing in her training had prepared her for this. What in the Hell is happening here?

Rebecca stood breathing heavy for a moment as she surveyed the damage near her and took a moment to assess the situation. She had to get out, she had to get out now but what the hell was she going to do? She couldn’t get in touch with her squad due to a communication blackout, her team was likely betrayed by Weyland Yutani. This was a bad situation and it could only get worse, she thought.

Her eyepiece HUD screamed to life and she noticed, one then two and then ten more of the creatures spilled from the ceiling and she knew she was in trouble. Rebecca looked at the ammo count on her current magazine, she had a little over three hundred rounds left and she just squeezed the handle at the rear of the M56 Smartgun and let the magazine just empty at the creatures.

Rebecca’s articulated gun moved to track the various targets as they darted across the ceiling and now on the floor where she stood. The gun kept firing and the barrel progressively got so hot that Rebecca could see it glow a dull red as Smartgun kept it’s rhythm of bullet hell upon the aliens approaching her. She let out a war cry that she was sure that God himself must have heard and eventually the screaming stopped when the ammo count read zero.

The room was littered in the dead bodies of the aliens and their acidic blood had absolutely ruined the colony computers and any chance she had to use it to contact the others. She surveyed the damage and looked at the creatures’ corpses and noticed how weirdly biomechanical they looked, skeletal yet so graceful in a strange insectile way in life.

She was glad they were dead but she was also out of ammo…and that was problematic. She did not have any spare magazines for the heavy weapon. Now it couldn’t even be wielded as a club, it was as useless as a paperweight in a hurricane. She dropped the gun and it hit the deck with a loud thud, as if to announce that she was no longer a threat to the creatures if any more of them were around.

Rebecca took off the smartgun armor harness and was just left in her regular marine fatigues. She had only her M4A3 service pistol and that was it, she thought she might as well be throwing spitballs. She didn’t even have a flashlight as her shoulder lamp was attached to the now useless Smartgun armor harness. She was poorly armed and alone in enemy territory and whatever was out there in the shadows knew she was here.

A crackle came from her radio headset that was a part of the armor on the floor and it was a voice that she recognized…it was Eddie. He was alive

Rebecca grabbed the communication headset and frantically tried to get it working again “Eddie? Eddie, where are you?” Rebecca yelled into the microphone headset’s tiny receiver “Help me….It’s inside…oh god. Help me.” Eddie’s voice weakly came over the commlink
“I’m coming Eddie, Just hold on, I’m coming.” She tried to think of how the hell she was going to find him in this huge unfamiliar place.

“Medlab…I’m in medlab…I can’t see. Becky…don’t let me die here.”

He never called her Becky unless he was seriously in trouble. The lights flickered one last time inside the operations center and went dead. She was near total darkness except the red flashing lights of the colony’s alarm system. The radio line went dead and was just awash in a sea of unbroken static and random noise.

Rebecca exited the Operations lab and made her way back into the colony’s twisting and turning corridors. She was jumpy at almost every shadow and sound. She tried looking for maps on the walls or any sort of directions that would lead her to the Medical operations center. She would have to stumble around in near darkness with monsters waiting to kill her.

Seconds turned into minutes, and minutes turned into hours. She felt like she had walked kilometers and run into everything from a television station, some sort of administration office and what looked like a cafeteria for upper management types. She noticed she had not seen anyone else…where was everyone else from the colony? She hadn’t come across her team…maybe they were dead, maybe the Weyland Yutani got them or worse…
She hadn’t seen ANY bodies and that was weird.
Those things she killed before certainly wouldn’t be looking for hugs and kisses and they certainly didn’t look like they left any survivors if they met anyone else Rebecca thought.

A huge red cross lit up a hallway she stumbled across and in bright red lit up letters MEDLAB-AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY
Something was different here, Rebecca looked in the red light and saw something coating the
walls and floors like a sickly resin of some sort. The resin was everywhere,floor,ceiling and even had a bit on the door leading to Medlab. The marine reached out to touch it and it was hard and felt sticky as well and reminded her of a spider’s web in a strange way.

She reached the doors of the medical laboratory, the doors were coated in the slimy material and she needed a few moments to rip it down so she could open the door. It had been at least 10 hours since she heard anything over her communications headset, it’s been almost half a day since she heard Eddie’s voice.

She pried open the doors with all the strength she could muster and what she found inside was an utter horror to behold. The lighting here flicked in a dim white and it illuminated just enough to show what she didn’t want to see. She saw things coated in the material that clung to the walls, floors and ceilings and they were once human. but something was terribly wrong. She saw at least five bodies cocooned to the walls of the lab, they all had looks of unimaginable agony frozen on their faces.

Their rib cages were ripped open like something had clawed itself out of their chests before they died. Something had burst out of their chests in a grotesque mockery of birth.

No one deserved to die like this.

Rebecca put her hand up to her mouth. The smell of death was heavy in the air. She looked around the room and remembered why she was here.
Eddie, she had to find Eddie before whatever happened here happened to him. She didn’t have to look far.
Rebecca saw in the corner of the room something she didn’t want to find. She found what was left of her best friend, Eddie. She saw that he suffered a horrific head wound. Blood oozed from his mouth and nose, like his skull was partially crushed. Something wanted him immobilized before he was brought here.

Eddie’s freckled face looked like he had suffered tremendously in the moments before his death. His chest was completely torn open, he would have died instantly at least but it would have been Hell in the moments leading up to it.

Rebecca stifled a tear for her friend as she looked at his body. She reached out her hand and closed his eyes. She didn’t want her last memory of him to be of those pretty blue eyes looking at her in absolute terror and pain. She was alone, she was scared and she was trapped on an icy planet with no hope of rescue.

She took a step backwards and felt something touch her back through her fatigues. She screamed a loud. She slowly turned around and was absolutely scared at what new found discovery might be waiting for her. She saw a familiar face, it was Tom Ricci, her Lance Corporal and he was also dead. Tom’s armour was covered in still wet blood dripping from a fairly fresh gaping chest wound. Tom looked defiant even in death but she could see that he fought ‘til the end but even then, it wasn’t enough.

She knew that if Ricci was here then likely Oliver was here too and his odds are survival didn’t seem too promising. Whatever killed Oliver wouldn’t be a syringe of X stims, it would be some horrible monster that would tear your insides out while you were still alive and you were utterly helpless.

There were even more cocooned bodies but they had strange spider-like creatures attached to their faces. She couldn’t tell if they were alive or dead. This place was an absolute nightmare for both the living and the dead.

“Oh god, please don’t let me die like this..”

She whispered as she began walking through this disgusting monument to her dead friends and squadmates. She had to escape, she had to get the Hell out of HELL. She felt sweat drip down back and her grip on her pistol become slick, her hands began to tremble with fear. She had faced platoons of enemy soldiers and combat synthetics but they at least looked human but this was inhuman and utterly monstrous. Panic began to creep through every single inch of her body as she tensed up. Fear overtook her senses and assaulted her with what she imagined her friends final moments must have been like.

A familiar high pitched hiss could be heard coming from all around her and it sounded hungry. Claws and worse clanged off metal and plastic as Rebecca knew she was surrounded. The sound of floor plating could be heard exploding as more of the aliens emerged from the floor and surroundings. Black and blue skeletal figures crouched and moved in unnatural ways in the flickering lights and they approached Rebecca, they were unafraid and unhindered. Shadows reflected off their elongated and eyeless heads and it made them look even devilish than before.

One of the creatures made itself known by climbing out of the very resin that was cocooning the walls. The alien made a very threatening posture at her as it opened its mouth filled with jagged metallic teeth to reveal a second set of jaws that snapped at her. The creature stood up to its full height and it dwarfed her by at least two feet, it loomed over like the Grim reaper.

What God had created this?

The alien approached Rebecca with its claws extended reaching for her. It was waiting to bring her into death’s very embrace or perhaps something worse. The Alien flicked it’s razor sharp tail and pierced her chest.Rebecca felt something inject into her body. She couldn’t move.

The last thought Rebecca Harris had before her world disappeared in a burst of unknowable pain and blood was…

I should have stayed in bed this morning.

Roleplaying games.

Games like Dungeons and Dragons is the one that most people think of when you think role playing games or RPG’s. I have been reviewing RPGs in some capacity since 2009 but I have taken it to be something of a renewed passion since my early days with https://www.terriblewarriors.com in the early part of the 2010s with http://thisweekingeek.net/.

I have always considered doing something in the RPG industry but I didn’t know where I might fit in. As I have reviewed or played many games like Shadowrun, Dune,Star Wars, Vampire:The Masquerade,etc, I find myself finally figuring out where I want to be. I love the idea of creating lore and world building for games. I have found that creating locales, characters and things of that sort to be immensely rewarding. I think how thrilling it would be add my little bit of “canon” to some of my favorite universes with also being crossed with one of my favorite hobbies.

So,part of my ambition with this portfolio/website is to showcase ideas, projects and prompts and other stuff in the RPG space for a few different games.

I am hoping that staying in practice and learning enough to create in some familiar game spaces will allow me to actually pitch to game companies. I have some ideas where I want to go and who I want to work with and for.

I’m 40 years old so, what better time for a career change right?

Nothing ventured and nothing gained, so I might as well shoot my shot and do something wonderful,creative and try for dream.

Now, get your dice ready, let me set the stage for you and finally…

Roll initiative.

I am not the trauma of my childhood
I am different.
I am learning of what happened to me and accepting it
I am different
I promise this will not happen to anyone again
I am different
I will spread the truth to those who will listen even if it is difficult
I am different
I will not hold vengeance in my heart for lost time
I am different
I will build bridges across impossible gaps
I am different
I will ask you to sit across from me in friendship
I am different

Carried by whispers on the spring breeze, we call out as nature’s chorus
Gentle as a mother’s touch we caress your ears and tussle your hair
Stir memories of the times we spent together under sunshine days and starlit nights
Welcome the cold refresh of our deep waters in your heart and soul
Gaze from the tops of our hills and cliffs and see the worlds open before you
Run through our flowered fields and dance through bountiful forests free of worry
Touch the soil feel the heartbeat of the Earth and share it’s song in you
Listen to the laughter of the bees and the cry of the loon echo in your soul
This is where we are connected to
This is where you are from
This is home

I chose you long before you were alive, my love
I sang to you in the infancy of creation and I will sing to you at the end of all things
I loved you before you drew your first breathe and I’ll love you long after you last
I will walk with you everyday of your life and you will walk with me after your life ends
I will teach you everyday of your life and you will teach me after you depart life
I will listen wherever and whenever you need me
I will watch you from places near and far and always with love and wisdom
I will speak to you in dreams and when you are afraid
I will comfort you and hold you and you will know I am there for you
I need you as much as you need me
I am a part of you and you are a part of me now and forever
I chose well

I am not better than you because all are created equal
I will share what I have because I want to make sure you have what you need
I will listen when others speak and speak when I can help others and continue to learn
I will be brave when times are tough and I am uncertain of the future
I will only speak truth because lies have no place among us
I will love truly of myself so that my love is true when I share it with another heart
I will respect you and hold you in regard and know we share it together.
I am thankful for the gift of these teachings

Drums beat as my heart tries to keep pace
Creator guide my heart to a new place
Drums beat as my eyes look towards the sky
Creator fills my body with the strength of Earth
Drums beat as my ribbons and feathers flow in the wind like dancers
Creator touches my skin with sweat as I dance with purpose
Drums beat as leather bound song empowers all who hear it and feel it
Creator uses my voice to sing thunder
Drums beat as my spirit touches ancient souls
Creator connects me with all that ever was and ever will be
Drums beat forever.

We hear the sounds of screaming sirens and ground trembles at sounds of approaching boots
My brothers and sisters hold hands together in protection of the sacred behind us
We breathe in the choking gas of attempted subjugation and still we resist
Our land is not yours for the taking
Black masks and body armor march towards us wearing uniforms of lies & false protection
My family is unafraid and undeterred against the oncoming juggernaut
Clashes of flesh against metal as blows wrapped in laws of long dead conquerors rain down
Through defiant tears and blood, we look into your eyes and see the hesitation at your master’s orders
Restraints bind our hands and violently we are taken off our feet and forced to the ground
We cry out and let the wind carry our fury far and wide across the lands of ancestral memory
We are not alone as more of us emerge and surge forward to push back the invaders
Authority realizes it doesn’t hold sway here despite it’s best efforts
Broken chains fall from our wrists and we howl towards the sky victorious
We chant and we drum and let the sound of thunder be our guide as you cower from us
This is our land
Not yours

Who am I?
I don’t look like the other kids.
Who am i?
I don’t look like you either
Who am I?
I’m told that I’m getting a new name that’s easier to pronounce
Who am i?
I can’t speak the language my family taught me
Who am I?
I am told that you’re my new family
Who am I?
I am told that this is for my own good and I’ll understand when I’m older
Who am I?
I am told that I believe in God now.
Who am I?
I’m told that I am supposed to love you
Who am I?
I don’t like it here and I want to go home

Help is on the way
You give us land that cries out in pain
Help is on the way
You break our wills and tell us it’s for our own good
Help is on the way
You steal from us and say we agreed to it before many of us were alive
Help is on the way
You told lies about us in school because it hurt your version of the truth
Help is on the way
You promised us things would get better if we elected you
Help is on the way
You lied.

I wear the pride and history of my people with distinction
Leather and feathers flow in the wind as I feel the spirits bring my heart to joy
You wear my ancestors as a costume
You bought a history off the rack of a discount store run by name tags
I sing the songs of the first people so that they may live eternally through us
Beautiful and graceful voices touch the air as summer’s breezes
You mock me with gross gestures and weak imitations of warrior cries
I dance to honor Creator and the stories of the past
Bodies move to the rhythm of the life enveloping us and connect me to home
You say I am lazy, uneducated
You search for new ways to rape the land in the name of progress
I stand defiant and I stand tall
I am strong because of the path behind me despite your attempts to assimilate us
You say peace is impossible
You tell me that we can’t coexist in the same spaces
We extend our hand hesitantly and hopeful and ask “What if we tried?”

Worn shoes begging for direction against desolate concrete roads leading far from safety.
Frigid winds assault the face of a another girl and promise to wipe away tears of fear and worry
A horizon unfamiliar approaches welcoming its new visitor with unknown intentions
Faces behind glass watch as the traveler continues forward never knowing their stories
Gasoline’s fumes cling onto fading prayers
A predator has found their prey on hopes and wishes of mercy
Smiles hide behind depraved intentions of forbidden savagery
The monsters gaze looks deep into the heart of this innocent and it can taste fear intoxicating
Another is taken from life’s grasp violently and screaming into unyielding darkness
The sun rises upon another traveler as they walk looking for something better
Evil knows it holds unchallenged power of a cruel God taking lives at a whim on this sad highway
The next traveler wonders if any will mourn her if she is taken in the night like so many before her.
We are lost names to be etched in forgotten graves forever silenced
The night is waiting to indulge it’s next horrible crime that will go unpunished

The streets are quiet but I hear them screaming from my window at night.
Sabers rattle in the echelons of power
Prisoners of banks and power suits telling us to conquer and consume
I pitifully yell at electronic screens across fiber optic hubs and disjointed wifi
The war of change is at the doorstep and it does not politely knock
Forceful angry shouts shake the glass and threaten the window of safety
An ant against the juggernaut of feigned progress but still standing defiant
We are not part of the gluttony molds that pour you into numbers in a coffin in a forgotten basement of a glass monolith.
I am screaming from the street for all to hear and I will not be quieted
We will not be censored
We will reclaim what has been lost to a system built to enslave and shackle to early graves
Once again the streets with sing and not cry
We will throw off plastic uniforms and burn it all down and join hands in joy
The powerful should be fearful
Hide in your boardrooms and tax havens
You are not safe.
Know that rhythmic beat is not the sound of money being counted
It is a countdown of a thousand disenfranchised souls marching forward
We were treated as disposable prey on the platters made of our shattered dreams
Tonight you are hunted by the fury of those wage slaves
Our souls are not commodities to bought and sold
Our flesh was never for sale
Let the Earth shake from our approach and watch your world in flames
Tonight we force you to answer for tears given in the name of profit

A frigid bed with a rotted sheet to keep the children near.
Where is the safety of warmth and of places without fear?
Suffer. Wrap yourself in a cloak of poverty, seen by all so clear
How does the cloudy path ahead of you appear?
You are just a disposable and easily forgotten gear.
This is the uniform of the drear.
Grinded and pounded. Punishment so severe.
Your pay cheque is but a salted tear.
Led by force at the tip of a spear.
Behind your smile is a sneer
Politeness so fiery, insincere.
Still, you persevere.

Wrapped in shrouded chain.
Forced to drink in,
unrelenting rain
They know of terror and pain.
Spirit unbroken,
They remain.
Standing tall on broken glass.
They maintain.
This land is their eternal domain.
Lies coated in honey,
and given in vain.
Curses fitted to restrain.
Fear and madness,
drive them insane.
Breaking free of bondage,
regain.
Songs echo,
across the silent plain.
Together they rise up,
Forever, they reign.