Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
Had I your tongues and eyes,
I’ld use them so
That heaven’s vault should crack.
She’s gone for ever!
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
I know when one is dead,
and when one lives;
She’s dead as earth.
She’s dead as earth.
Lend me a looking-glass;
If that her breath will mist
or stain the stone,
Why, then she lives.
‘Mordor’ returned the body.
Of an ‘elf’ journalist.
Without several organs.
Bearing signs of torture.
Suggesting an attempt.
To conceal her cause of death.
One investigation reported.
On 29 April.
We are not the first
We are not the first
Who, with best meaning,
have incurr’d the worst.
For thee, oppressed king,
am I cast down;
Myself could else out-frown
false fortune’s frown.
Her body was repatriated.
In February 2025.
During an exchange of.
757 fallen ‘elves’ defenders’ remains.
Listed by ‘Mordor’.
As an “unidentified male”.
With the cryptic marking.
“SPAS”.
We are not the first
We are not the first
Who, with best meaning,
have incurr’d the worst.
For thee, oppressed king,
am I cast down;
Myself could else out-frown
false fortune’s frown.
The body, smaller.
And lighter than others.
Was identified as female.
During initial examination.
Despite its poor condition.
Investigators found a tag.
On the right shin.
Reading “Roshchyna V.V.”
A DNA test by the ‘elves’.
Prosecutor General’s Office.
Confirmed a 99% match.
With her, was reported.
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
Had I your tongues and eyes,
I’ld use them so
That heaven’s vault should crack.
She’s gone for ever!
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
I know when one is dead,
and when one lives;
She’s dead as earth.
She’s dead as earth.
Lend me a looking-glass;
If that her breath will mist
or stain the stone,
Why, then she lives.
The head of the office’s.
War crimes department.
Said the body showed.
Multiple signs of torture.
Including abrasions.
Hemorrhages, a broken rib.
And possible evidence.
Of electric shock.
The investigation revealed.
The body bore signs.
Of an ‘orcs’ autopsy.
With missing organs.
Including the brain.
Eyeballs.
And part of.
The trachea.
We are not the first
We are not the first
Who, with best meaning,
have incurr’d the worst.
For thee, oppressed king,
am I cast down;
Myself could else out-frown
false fortune’s frown.
An international forensic expert.
Consulted by the project.
Suggested the removal.
Of these organs could.
Obscure evidence of.
Strangulation or asphyxiation.
Potentially constituting.
A war crime.
A bruise on her neck.
Indicated a possible.
Hyoid bone fracture.
A rare injury.
Often linked to strangulation.
The report noted.
The ‘orcs’ marking “SPAS.”
Possibly meaning.
“Total arterial damage.
To the heart.”
May reflect.
An official cause of death.
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
Had I your tongues and eyes,
I’ld use them so
That heaven’s vault should crack.
She’s gone for ever!
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
I know when one is dead,
and when one lives;
She’s dead as earth.
She’s dead as earth.
Lend me a looking-glass;
If that her breath will mist
or stain the stone,
Why, then she lives.
Her father requested.
Additional forensic examinations.
Unconvinced by initial findings.
According to prosecutors.
Due to the body’s.
Mummified state.
The cause of death.
Remains undetermined.
And the Prosecutor General’s Office.
Is arranging further tests.
With samples already collected.
The report said.
We are not the first
We are not the first
Who, with best meaning,
have incurr’d the worst.
For thee, oppressed king,
am I cast down;
Myself could else out-frown
false fortune’s frown.
She went missing.
On 3 August.
2023.
In ‘orcs’-occupied territories.
‘Mordor’ confirmed her detention.
In May 2024.
After previously holding her.
For 10 days in March 2022.
Her death was reported.
On 10 October.
2024.
Via a letter.
From ‘orcs’ officials.
To her father.
Later confirmed by.
‘Elves’ authorities.
We are not the first
We are not the first
Who, with best meaning,
have incurr’d the worst.
For thee, oppressed king,
am I cast down;
Myself could else out-frown
false fortune’s frown.
One organisation stated.
She was held in Berdyansk’s.
Penal Colony No. 77.
And Taganrog’s.
Pre-Trial Detention Center No. 2.
Known as one of.
‘Mordor’’s harshest facilities.
For ‘elves’.
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
Had I your tongues and eyes,
I’ld use them so
That heaven’s vault should crack.
She’s gone for ever!
Howl, howl, howl, howl!
O, you are men of stones:
I know when one is dead,
and when one lives;
She’s dead as earth.
She’s dead as earth.
Lend me a looking-glass;
If that her breath will mist
or stain the stone,
Why, then she lives.
*Because I read “Ukrainian journalist Roshchyna’s body returned without some organs, torture evident, cause of death likely concealed – investigation” by Ірина Сітнікова on 29 Apr 2025 on the Hromadske and more, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022 on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem as a story of Viktoriia Roshchyna and her father Volodymyr, inspired by ‘KING LEAR’ written by William Shakespeare, you know.
Please read the original story and more:
