At Death’s Gate

I cannot breathe, my anxiety has tightened my throat. I feel my stomach twist inside of me. All I hear is the blood rushing through my veins. A veiled shadow is all I see. Dread turns to bliss, bliss turns to rage. I see no escape, like I'm trapped in a cage. No answers within, they never have been. Fed up with life where my emotions were king. My mind keeps running in circles for days. I can't find a way out of here. Damned be my life. Damned be my crown. Damned be it all if I can't find my calm. How much longer do I have to endure the horrors of this spiritual torture? Then I saw in a brief moment of clarity, a faint light piercing the darkness. It soon faded away, but now I knew there might be a way out of the nightmare my life had become. The downward spiral since the day I was born. My wretched nature from which I couldn't escape. The eternal horror that was to be my fate. And once again the darkness surrounds me as I am left to my own misery And I hear a cold laughter as I fall to my knees. As I collapse I finally see, that the answer was always in front of me Now that I have come undone, I will rise as reborn and face the storms again Nothing has changed, my emotions flare up as before Was it all for naught? The haunted I was is not who I am. You were once me, but not any more. Be silent and still and heed my command. From this day forth this insurgence must end. The raging storm cannot hide the way I must go. I found the way out of here.

Submitted by SerpentEve — Nov 14, 2025

All those lies I've let myself believe to be true, That my life is through and I should just suicide. I cast aside, now that I know the real truth. I should’ve known that those words never came from you. Long have I tried to convince myself that I could hide from you, But that was in vain, because I never left your sight. I've amplified my sorrow, 'cause that was all I knew I should've known that that was never true How could I ever be so oblivious that I've made my own prison? What a fool I was to believe that there was nothing left for me, than to drown in my own misery. I've been mesmerised by blatant lies, I drove myself towards insanity, I let myself be paralysed, I wallowed in sorrow, Until I longed for death, when there was nothing left. From hope bereft, waiting for my dying breath. But you have shown how I could overcome. How I could be strong and that I belong. I used to be all on my own. I couldn't believe that night could turn to dawn. Now that I see all that you've done for me An epiphany knowing I'm not alone. My own pride keeps trying to put the blame on me. That I should've handled things differently. But that was the lie which was the cause for all my misery. The downward spiral from which I am freed. How could I ever be so oblivious that I've made my own prison? What a fool I was to believe that there was nothing left for me, than to drown in my own misery. I used to be all on my own. I couldn't believe that night could turn to dawn Now that I see all that you've done for me. An epiphany knowing I'm not alone.

Submitted by NecroLord — Nov 14, 2025

Ever since the day that I was born, I was the object of much scorn. A bastard child of night and morn, they would call me the forlorn. 'Cause I wouldn't let myself be tamed, I was treated with disdain, But pain became my own domain. Their efforts were in vain. My mother they hanged from a tree and then they would blame it all on me. If I only behaved differently. At least she now was free. I thought that I'd only learn to hate, but that was never to be my fate. And then before it was too late, I turned from death's gate. You fight me, because I'm nothing like you. That's why you hate me, but I'm not the enemy. I want you with me for you are my kin. I am the White Raven. We may differ like day and night, but we all suffer from the same old plight. This evil we must overcome, but divided we won't last long. You fight me, because I'm nothing like you. That's why you hate me, but I'm not the enemy. I want you with me for you are my kin. I am the White Raven.

Submitted by Finntroll — Nov 14, 2025

The sun shone bright and fair when we caught them unaware. We hit them hard, we gave them hell, the day was ours when their last man fell. Rise! Rise to your feet and ride with me! We ride not towards defeat but to victory! To gain our freedom we rebelled, but we risked all we had Victory seemed within our grasp, but they lured us right into their trap With our backs against the wall we are likely doomed to fall For any chance to survive we have no choice left but to Fight till the End! All is lost if we don't want to Fight till the End! There is no turning back Fight till the End! To win we'll only have to Fight till the End! There is hope if we still draw breath They fight not for gain, nor they fight for family. Our goals are not the same, that's why we'll have victory. Many have fallen. Soon we may join their fate I hear them calling, but they will have to wait They fight not for gain, nor they fight for family. Our goals are not the same, that's why we'll have victory. Now rise! Rise to your feet and ride with me! We ride not towards defeat but to victory! The sun shone bright and fair when they caught us unaware. They hit us hard, they gave us hell, but the day was ours when their last man fell. At the turn of the tide, we didn't choose to run and hide We closed our ranks and stood our ground. Our freedom we have won because we Fight till the End! All is lost if we don't want to Fight till the End! There is no turning back Fight till the End! To win we'll only have to Fight till the End! There is hope if we still draw breath

Submitted by Immortal — Nov 14, 2025

When all I knew turned their backs on me, I journeyed through lands far and wide. Searching for something to comfort me, but nothing could stand the test of time. I tried to find strength in my solitude, but I couldn’t find anything there to love Inside of me I found only misery and thoughts that would lead me astray to Death, what a wondrous mystery Death, my mortal enemy Death, my would-be saviour Death, my eternal horror The path I travelled, was riddled with many turns and whether it twisted or twirled, he'd always follow closely behind. Disguised as an ally, but always eager to strike Offering a quick escape whenever I faced a challenge or fight The closer I got to unravel the secrets of life He'd trick me into a destructive spiral of strife When my foe thought he vanquished me, Out of the darkness I rose from my grave. Now that his veil has fallen I'm no longer trapped under a spell of Death, once a wondrous mystery Death, my mortal enemy Death, my would-be saviour Death, my eternal horror Now I finally see through his devious plans, because I have found the value of the man I am.

Submitted by Warbringer — Nov 14, 2025

Scores of dead men strewn across the battlefield Most of my friends lay with guts revealed. The few who survived couldn't bury those who died. It was a feast for kites, a gruesome sight. We have fought for our lives, but we envied those who died. There was no glory in this victory. On the morrow, we found only sorrow. We never saw them as a threat, Left unprepared for their attack. Under the cover of darkness they fell upon us like locusts. The moon shrouded by a winged shadow made it difficult to focus. Amidst the chaos, I heard many grown men cry And I stood frozen in horror as I watched them die. Then a blow sent me reeling and a pain jolted through the back of my head I was numbed from all feeling as I dashed towards the new threat The next thing I recall was the face of a lad barely half my age. The instigator of my rage, skewered by the edge of my blade Then it finally dawned upon me, the extent of this tragedy, The evil of our enemy to send children on a murderous spree. They fought like possessed, their innocence repressed. What hope I had left soon turned into distress. They fought like beasts, boys that were barely men, But we were no priests, we became like them. We inflicted horror, we inflicted agony. In our terror we lost our sanity.

Submitted by Pestilence — Nov 14, 2025

All my life I have tried so hard, to fix the problems I caused over and over again, but all I did only made things worse, until no one would believe me. For most I know, I'm just a passing thought. They never listen or think I've only got myself to blame And they're probably right, why should they care? For if they ask, they'll soon regret it. And all of those whom I thought were friends They think they know me, but they have no clue about what's going on And I don't know if I even want them to. I'm best left to my own sorrow. So I try and fake a smile, saying all is well and they can go on living their lives without me, they don’t need misery, but somehow you see right through me. From you I just can't seem to hide Even if I close my eyes Your love just shines too bright on me I have hurt you the most, so why haven’t you turned your back on me? If I pretend that you're not here, I can drown away my fear And let myself believe the lie I keep telling myself: That there’s nothing left in me worth dying for. Why didn't you leave me, because I have hurt you so? I want you to hold me and your love to swallow me whole and never let go.

Submitted by MetalElf — Nov 14, 2025

With furious rage I ride my horse spurring it far beyond its (natural) course beneath its hooves the earth quakes. Death and destruction follow in my wake. I am a conjurer Deceiving men with my lies I am a conqueror Taking over people's lives I am a murderer Killing men before their time I am a plunderer Ruins are the only thing I leave behind You are my lambs of sacrifice For I'll make you pay the price. I will destroy your paradise, Because you're all I despise. I am the cause of the mess that you're in, But still you asked me to become your king. I gladly took you under my wing and become a tool for the chaos I bring. You sought deliverance, but became my prisoner. You avoided justice, but I am its jailer. You seek forgiveness, but I am no redeemer. You seek mercy, but I am the executioner. I am a conjurer Deceiving men with my lies I am a conqueror Taking over people's lives I am a murderer Killing men before their time I am a plunderer Ruins are the only thing I leave behind

Submitted by VladTheImpaler666 — Nov 14, 2025

All our lives we've lived in shame, condemned for the memory of our name. Cussed at, hated and despised, we suffered the consequences of our ancestors’ crimes. Forced to work on our enemy's lands while from ours we were banned. No one cared for our demise, we were never considered more than vermin in their eyes. Our heritage was no more than a faded memory of times long ago. What will we leave behind for our children to remember us by? Although we longed for this nightmare to end, we were too afraid to make a stand. We rather stuck to the chains of the slavery we knew than risk any change. We should've known of our master's intent, to eradicate our descent. We were wrong to assume that if we obliged that we would be spared. All this time, all these years, we thought our suffering would never end. We've passed our prime, succumbed to fears, the last grain of our hope long spent. Our only legacy is the despair we have known. We ignored the signs, we have been blind, we saw the Raven and let it fly. And now they're gone, what have we done? We’ve never tried to fight for them. We've only got ourselves to blame. If it's not too late, can we turn their fate? Tell us how to make amends. We were no ones friends, we've no defence. We know we might not deserve a second chance, but still, we can't leave our children to die Our time has come, we may not last long, but we won't escape from what must be done. We must save them no matter the cost. It's time to reclaim what has been lost. Our heritage was no more than a faded memory of times long ago. What will we leave behind for our children to remember us by? We've been trained to do as we were told, we never dared to revolt, but you never tried to fit our mould, because you wouldn't let yourself be controlled. We'd soon regret the choice we had made, to prevent the evil we hoped to evade. For when they came to take our own, we reaped the fruit of the inaction we had sown Our time has come, we may not last long, but we won't escape from what must be done. We must save them no matter the cost. It's time to reclaim what has been lost.

Submitted by johnmansley — Nov 14, 2025