Mahkah Blackwood's Questionnaire

Mahkah lives on a reservation in South Dakota near a town called Mudwater. They live there because it's where he was born and not many people leave. There isn't much money and the people of this place value the land and the earth. They don't need extravagant wealth or fancy possessions. Mahkah believes in this notion but also thinks that more needs to be done. It's not enough to sit by and protest, that isn't stopping anything. More decisive, violent, action needs to be taken to make these people see reason and stop what they are doing. Mahkah doesn't know if he will live here forever but for the moment it's home.

Mahkah works as a cashier at a local gas station called stop n shop. He isn't paid much but there aren't many jobs on the rez so he's happy to have one in general. He splits a chunk of his paycheck with his parents for rent and utilities and food and things. The other portion of his money he uses to help his freedom fighter friends procure materials so they can try to oppose the destruction of the planet. He doesn't have many hobbies or other things to spend the money on and since the ritual he doesn't really date much. 

Mahkah is in no uncertain terms trying to save the planet. He is willing to fight, kill and die for this ambition and will go against anyone standing against him. Half measures, moderation or praying for some kind of science solution to save them isn't going to be enough. The planet needs dramatic, radical help immediately and no one else seems to be stepping up to stop these people. Mahkah has basically already died once for this ambition and is now linked inexcricably to the planet. It's wounds are his wounds. His struggles are it's struggles. He feels like he isn't the only one offered this kind of a deal but he's going to make the most out of it.  

Mahkah was involved in an accident while working with some eco-warriors. The accident left him disfigured and dying. The only way to save him was an old ritual of his people where he was basically sacrificed up to the earth. The process bound the two together. It saved mahkah's life but at a pretty high cost. He's still dying, but now much more slowly. And if he doesn't do enough to get the planet healthy again then he will also die. So Mahkah is now on a mission both for the world and himself to restore things to the way they should be, and to bring down anyone that is trying to oppose that. 

Kai is my closest friend and fellow activist who got me involved in the pipeline protests and introduced me to the more radical environmental groups. He's passionate, maybe too passionate sometimes, and has this way of making dangerous ideas sound reasonable. Kai was with me during the chemical factory incident and got sick too, though not as badly as I did. Since my "resurrection," things have been weird between us - he feels guilty about what happened, and I can tell he's disturbed by what I've become.

Cleeu is another close friend from the reservation who was part of our activist circle. She's more cautious than Kai, always the voice of reason trying to talk us out of extreme plans. She wasn't supposed to be at the factory that night but came anyway because she was worried about us. She's been avoiding me since I came back.

My parents made the choice to sacrifice me to the earth spirit when the doctors said there was nothing more they could do. They're traditional people who still believe in the old ways. Now they treat me with a mixture of love and reverence that makes me uncomfortable.

My childhood was pretty typical for the reservation. My parents are both traditional, Mom works at the tribal health clinic and Dad does construction when he can find work. They raised me with a mix of the old ways and trying to prepare me for the modern world. Dad would tell stories about our ancestors and the connection to the land, while Mom made sure I kept up with schoolwork and stayed out of trouble.

I went to the reservation school through eighth grade, then the public high school in town. The reservation school felt like family but high school was harder. Being one of the few Native kids meant dealing with ignorant comments and feeling like an outsider most of the time. I found my place with other kids who felt like misfits, that's how I met Kai and Cleeu.

Looking back now, I think my parents always knew something like the sacrifice might be necessary someday. Dad used to talk about how some people are chosen by the earth, how they carry a heavier burden. I thought it was just stories until I was lying there bleeding out in that ritual circle. Mom held my hand while the elders chanted and Dad packed earth into my wounds. They gave up their son to save him, and I'm still not sure if that was mercy or cruelty.

Mahkah has never been in love. There were girls that he was interested in before but nothing he would call "Love". But whenever he goes on a hike or is alone in nature he feels love for the planet. When he thinks about the ravaging of the world he feels hate and anger for what they are doing to the planet to this one world that we all live on and take for granted. Mahkah isn't sure he will ever find love with the current path that he is on, but he for sure knows hate. And that hate is leading him deeper and deeper down it's rabbit hole.