I found my call of duty
inside your warzone
after leaving my pressurized cabin
and dropping in randomly
I started collecting money and items as fast as I could
to match the competition’s capability.

Everyone’s an enemy, everyone is hostile
I fear them and the weapons they’ll use on me
barraging me with dragon’s breath shotgun blasts
to put me down quickly
or silently sniping from far away
so I can’t defend myself.

The only way I can survive is staying in your circle
which keeps moving away from me
so I sprint through the fields and forests
making my way through already looted homes
hoping no one takes advantage of my vulnerability
racing to your circle before I suffocate.

Once I finally get to your circle I realize it’s too small to hide in
because everyone is so close together
I must engage them before they attack me
but they all lay siege to the small shack I’m trapped in
lobbing grenades and firing at me
I can’t even poke my head out.

So I stay inside
donning my gas mask
letting the circle overtake them and pick them off one by one
as I wait inside anxiously worried someone may try to join me
but eventually they’re all gone and I’m the only one left
and in that moment I have achieved victory royale.

Kin
by Michael R. Burch

O pale, austere moon,
haughty beauty ...

what do we know of love,
or duty?

Keywords/Tags: moon, pale, austere, haughty, beauty, goddess, love, kin, kinship, duty

Through the forest grass,
a lockstep march.
Neat columns
of silent striding teams.

To ground they go,
to burrow deep.
Bringing prizes
foreign and mundane

Can they look into the giants above?
There is no time to dream.

Hurry home! Your colony calls
and the task is but half done

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
says we have the right
to life, liberty and security of person.

When I have the right
to life,
do you have the duty
to keep me alive?

When I have the right
to liberty,
do you have the duty
to give me liberty?

When I have the right
to security of person,
do you have the duty
to give me security my person?

The war happened to me
the hostile people
my neighbours and family
I have to
      
take my loss
anyway

The dark is teaching me
to accept
that I am invulnerable
there is no need to flee

my soul is my asylum
if I ****, I **** lovingly
      
with a silvery shine
around my duty
which is not a mirror
of their motives

I must learn happiness
Lest she leave me
To mine own devices
Which have decayed in woe

Do you ever lie in darkness,
Wondering if you will be
The star of some great epoch
In books of history?

Do you ever fear you'll fail,
And let everyone down
That expected you to be someone,
Instead of to be drowned?

There are so many expectations
For you to change the world
To deny is to refuse
Your duty.