One Night in Astor    Who Can it Be Now?      "Oh shit, oh fuck" Miles said frantically as he put pressure on the wound. The blood surged through his fingers from the gunshot; the red stained his friend's pale skin and clothes. Miles, in his heart, knew it was a failing venture-- he didn't even feel a heartbeat when he started compressions.     Miles had heard a window opening in the living room, and had grabbed his .380 from his nightstand. It was dark, and he only saw the shadowy silhouette from the streetlight that shined through the grimy open window. Afraid, Miles shot the dark figure breaking into his apartment. The flash, the bang-pop, he saw the face of his missing friend, Richard.     He pulled his hands reflexively to his face, not even registering how sticky and wet they were. "I'm sorry" he sobbed, "I'm so fucking sorry". In hysterics, he ran to the bathroom, but vomiting before he made it to the goal. Filled with competing guil

 " Hello caller, you are on the air. " "Every morning, I cross the Nimitz Bridge from North Astor into the city. Every morning, I see the billboard for Mooredock, Donnelly, and Ross; their fake-in-their-perfection smiles. The sign reads that I need to call them." "Every evening, I cross the Nimitz Bridge from the city into North Astor. Every evening, I see the billboard for Mooredock, Donnelly, and Ross in my rear-view mirror; their eyes wide in a savage glee. They tell me that they know what I’ve done." "I drive up the hill that overlooks the channel up to my spacious home, minimalist in design and furnishing. I open the several locks that secure the door of my home, and just as quickly secure them once inside. The dark of the house in sharp contrast to the light peering in from the large bay windows, rendering the space in monochromatic amber and black." "Every night, I stare from my house at the Nimitz Bridge. Every night, I see the

 Hello everyone! It's been a hot minute, hasn't it? Last time I got around to posting anything was about 5 months ago, and let me tell you-- it has been a weird ride. I fell off of making new content because I was (and still kind of am) going through a hard part in my life trying to figure out how to manage as a single person in a late-stage capitalist hellscape .  Good news is, that I recently got out of my rut for a bit, and managed to crank out some new work! Also, as you might have noticed, I did some housecleaning on the blog with thanks to my friend and fellow artist/creator, By Char & Co! They did the new logo/banner/profile, and did a killer job! If you find yourself in need of a talented illustrator, consider reaching out to them at https://bycharandco.com/! Anyway, new piece up on Saturday, with more on the way either next weekend, or the one after that! Be good to yourselves out there.  Zachariah

Hey Y'all, I hope everyone is doing alright this fine February. Things are interesting over here, but we're doin'! I have a list on new content that I am working on, and while it is isn't as often as I'd like, but stuff is being worked on. One of the biggest developments is that I finally got the authors copies of a local journal I was published in, making in the first time any of my work has been put in printed media! I was over the moon when I learned I was accepted last Autumn, and I was just as thrilled when I got the result.   As for actual business, I took down the Investigation series for Tales from Port Astor. There was a plot for those last year, but as time went on from the last entry, I sort of lost what I was going for, and I don't think I really did that idea justice. I plan on reworking the idea, and may reintroduce that series.  It's worth pointing out that TfPA is a sort of anthology series, with the main connector being the city it takes pla

 " Hello caller, you are on the air " "I can't sleep. I see my days play out in my mind; the banality of my life projected like old film upon the canvas of my closed eyes. The fine details lost under patina so heavy as to be entirely lost. And what plays on that movie? Which is so gray and dull as to be worn river rock? The small moments of each passing day, but utterly unable to be separate from one-another. Already lifeless as it is reduced to the mere physicality of brain matter and electrical activity." "But more than that, the failings of my life, none individually extraordinary, consume me in their totality. Lack of family, found or otherwise; the path of my life so lost in the weeds as to make me wonder if it was ever really there." " I can't sleep . As I lay there, watching that film, I fear that it will still be playing when I open my eyes; looming over me as I lay in the dark, illuminated by what little inner-city light that creep-cr

      Leon roared in agony as the smell of burnt chlorine filled the small dank room, the electrical system for his chair restraint powering down. "I'll ask once more; where are you from, and why have you come to Rygaard?" The uniformed officer droned on for what could have been the hundredth time. "I am Leon Hakim, warrant officer in the Interstell--" he began before being cut off again "And I keep telling you" the officer spoke, before then switching on the chair again, producing the same sickening scent and sounds "I do not believe you are a time traveler." The officer sighed, "You two" he spoke to the guards behind him without turning around, "Soften up our guest here, until he's ready to talk". Wordlessly, they began to beat the restrained man. The world once again begins to fade in and out, with fog and muted colors, and sounds becoming distant in his mind. Leon thinks he hears a woman talking about trauma, but h

 Hey Y'all, I hope that the new year has been off to a wonderful start, and that we all had a safe and fun holiday, or a quiet and peaceful one. If not, me too. I just wanted to give some insight to what I have been up to this first and auspicious week of 2023-- for those of you who don't know, I am returning to school this year to begin a path into multimedia, which is both exciting and terrifying to me. As part of that, I am exploring that space and trying to learn some basics to where I am not entirely uninformed. To that end, I have been messing around with streaming and editing videos, and have been putting those up on YouTube. This is primarily geared towards gaming, as that has so far proven to have a low-barrier to entry given my familiarity with a lot of things there. To any who'd be interested in that content, the channel can be found here . In the future, I have the idea for additional media projects that'll be rolled out as time goes by and my comfort with p

 Hey Everyone! Happy New Year! I hope that the end of 2022 is much quieter and peaceful than the rest of it has felt. I started this blog earlier, way back in Spring, and I wasn't sure if I was going to keep up with it. I even managed to post a piece one a week for like 3-4 months, which was nuts. I was proud of that, but hoo boy, I do not want to do that again.  Some light housekeeping up front, I did change the title of that Mass Effect essay to remove the "Part 1" of it, as it has become abundantly clear that I think I said everything I wanted to say with regards to that. I have been working on another Game Talk article, but I have no idea when that will be out, but stay tuned. My immediate plans are to hopefully wrap up the Investigation story for Tales From Port Astor, and then move onto my next project for that setting. But, who knows. I have plans, then life gets in the way. Thank you for everyone who has taken the time to read these through the year, and thank you

      Leon awoke in a fog, pierced only by the bleating alarms from the escape pod. The last he could recall was the escape pod [PAINTED] alert going off, and then the bursts began. In a daze, he managed to ignite the door charge, blowing the sealed hatch off, in addition to his eardrums. He slowly began to drag and lift himself out of the crashed pod when an intense pain shocked through him-- a piece of metal from the console was lodged in his abdomen, and had hit the frame of the blown hatch while he exited.     He tumbled out of the pod, and into the small crater of his entry; at first belly-down, to which he mustered what little strength he had left to flip himself. The pain was nothing he had felt in years. Not since he crashed his first suit when he began his test pilot career, but how long ago was that even? He thought about these things as he stared at the snow falling down on him from the very heavens he just fell from.     He began to fade in and out of awareness, half-dreami

      August stumbled into the ruined home, away from the gunfire that was still echoing from the dead forest. He knew that what he was doing was desertion, but that became less and less important as the moments passed. He knew that he was bleeding too heavily, and that it would soon be the end of him.     The air was dry, and he could see the dust begin dancing in the light-- stirred by his arrival. The smell of the old house filled his nose. Along the walls, amber evening light shone on ancient family pictures that still hung on the wall.  August looked upon them, and reflected on his own family. His mother would often tell him and his younger sister of her childhood about a life long since gone, and of the seasons which were extant only in the memories of the last people who knew them.     When the days grew shorter, and shorter, families would gather for holiday celebrations, with some even coming from thousands of miles away. They would share news of their lives, and eat foods spi

 Hey Folks! I hope that we are all having a good wind down in these late Summer days-- the season is nearly over, and we can soon get back to livable weather! I'm currently working on some projects that will be eventually posted up here, but am not sure when. I have amazed myself with begin able to post a new short story or article every week for like four months, but Jesus Christ, is that hard. So, I might take a bit of a break to work on some new stuff, and maybe just dick around for a while. Not forever, but maybe a couple weeks. I just want to say that I have greatly appreciated everyone that has come by and taken a look! The fact that anyone actually takes interest never ceases to boggle my mind in the best way. TL;DR-- New stuff on the way, but maybe in a couple weeks while I recharge. Stay safe, and drink water! Thank You & Very Respectfully, Zachariah

      The pod hissed open, and the cold, dry gas poured out from the capsule into the dark corridor. A lone figure gracelessly fell out onto the floor; dark skin in a pale jumpsuit. He shakily came to his feet, a drowsy fear consumed his expression. When he was put into suspension, it was aboard a state-of-the-art facility, buzzing with activity and experts, not a stripped bare... whatever this was. The dark metal frame frame exposed like bones; piping and electrical running to and from like blood vessels. It was like he had been swallowed whole by some metal monstrosity while he slumbered.     He looked out a nearby porthole, attempting to get some idea of where he had ended up. Outside, he saw a pale world, probably rather cold; seas of white, broken by only mottled greens, grays, and blacks, and a swath of blue-- a small ocean. He did not recognize the planet, and the light refracting off the atmosphere was too bright to allow viewing most of the stars to use as reference. He turned

  Dearest Claudia, It has been so long since I have seen you, too long. I think about our goodbye at the docks at my boarding of the Eastern Gloam to set sail for Indochina. I remember how you wept, and how I did too, as we kissed goodbye. I remember how you worried about what you heard, about how the people there attacked the French, but I told you that it was still worth it. A decision I still stand by, even though it meant being so far from home, and you. But I have joyous news; I will be home soon. Let me tell you of my adventures! The chance to join the university expedition to parts unknown was well worth it, as it has given me so much to share with you. I was hesitant at first, watching Port Astor sink below the horizon, but if I had only known what awaited! The journey was long, and I assisted the professors with planning the route we would take overland once we arrived in that tropical land so far away. It was then, after spending so much time with Professor Garland,

    Mass Effect was an sci-fi action RPG developed in by BioWare and published by Microsoft Game Studios on the Xbox 360, and EA on the PC and PlayStation 3. It's sequel, Mass Effect 2, was released in 2010, and was also developed by BioWare, and published by EA for the PC and Xbox 360, and later ported to the PlayStation 3 in 2011.      When I first played Mass Effect 1, first released on November 20th, 2007, it was a few years past that. The game had come out, received some good attention, but it had just passed me by. It was not until '08 or '09 that I finally could be bothered to pick it up. But when I did, it quickly become my biggest time sink; cruising the Milky Way in the SR1 Normandy with friends and crew alike filled the bulk of my days, such a luxury was for a fourteen-year-old dropout. But those days are ones I look back fondly on, driving around in the Mako, clunky and awkward as it was, or fighting my way through the worlds that were plot critical; saving or d

      Detective Morris was stumped. He had been assigned this case, and he swore it was going to be the end of him. Dozens of murders across the city, and no leads. The victims were either career criminals, or were killed in commission of a crime-- no saints, to be sure; killers in their own right, thieves, and so on, but nothing to deserve what they got. Vigilantism wasn't a new thing in Port Astor, hell, it used to be something it was (in)famous for in the early 1900's, with the likes of the Ghost of Astor, but those were days long gone. The city, and the detective himself, had enough problems right now, and it didn't need some psycho-hero wannabe taking matters into their own hands.     Half the department, let alone his precinct, was on the take to god-knows-who, crime rates only ever seem to go up, capture rates haven't risen since Reagan, and he's continuously expected to do more with less despite the fact that the police budget has ballooned, with the funds g