Avoiding Reality: the Chaos that is my life

Halcyon Days Are Here Again

2007-10-31T16:11:00.000-07:00

As you might have guessed, my battle with Naraku is over.

And despite not making any progress in my game in the time I had (heck, I didn't even turn it on during that time), I still beat him. For good this time.

I can't go into details about the battle now. But I can share the following information:

- Naraku summoned the Palace to him in my backyard and tried drain energy from it to strengthen himself with. We stopped him before he could. I then eliminated him permanently.

- The palace has been opened. All of my friends inside have been freed, the villains still in there having been wiped out for good during the months they were held prisoner. The enteched are still there, but they're all safe.

- Voldemort has been captured. My friends are currently holding him in the Palace until they can figure out how to get him out of Snape's body and switch Snape's mind and soul back into it.

- We've also got the Necronomicon under lock and key.

- The Heralds of Unicron, unfortunately, are still out there, along with their clone lovers.

And now, the time has come for me to say goodbye. My live-ins have all moved on, taking Babylon Palace with them. They've left the door to New Eden in my yard, along with the gate to Hell, but both of them have been locked for now. And though they've promised to drop by every now and then, all of them, even Vash and Knives, have chosen to move on. The YuYu Crew has gone off to Cho Chous’s place. The Newrima Wrecking Crew has returned to their respective dimensions. The Dinobots are going home to to Kentucky and Rose. Everyone else is still working in New Eden. But before he entered the portal to the paradise dimension he helped create, Vash reminded me that “No matter what happens, as long as you remember us, we’ll never really be gone.”

And then he left, with me sealing the portal behind him.

I am Anon e Mouse Jr. It’s been almost a year and a half since I joined this war against the forces of evil. I’m almost twenty-two years old. And though I’m now officially retired from the Terran Resistance, taking the time to just relax and enjoy the Halcyon Days that have come again at last, I’ll never forget the times I’ve had with all of you. If you ever need me to fight again, you know where to find me.

Until that day, this is Anon e Mouse Jr., signing off.

P.S.: I've got a Deviantart page now, and some day (hopefully before the end of the decade, at the rate I'm going), I'm going to get around to putting my abandoned fanfic ideas up there. If anyone wants them, go ahead and use them. Just let me know.

Another update

2007-08-27T22:12:00.000-07:00

Due to circumstances beyond my control, I haven't been able to play my game in almost a week... and to top it off, I'm not done yet. I have just four missions yet to go...

1. Achieve the Jiminy Objective for the "Poster Duty" mini-game in Twilight Town.

2. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in Phil's Training - Maniac Mode in Olympus Coliseum.

3. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum. I can get the objective easily enough... but getting past round 40 (and I've only managed to get to that point three times so far) is proving harder than I thought. With luck, I'll be able to do it again tomorrow, and maybe even finish the tournament.

4. Enter Kingdom Hearts for the final five-part showdown with Xemnas.

Not to mention I need to stock up on Elixers again, which means hunting for Living Bones in the Pride Lands while using the "Seven Lucky Lucky" setup. This does not bode well... fortunately, I got another message earlier today. Unfortunately, it was NOT from Vash... but from Naraku himself.

Here is the text in its entirety:

"Mouse,

I am well aware of the actions you are taking against me. And while others might fear such actions, I do not. Even though I no longer have the power of the Shikon Jewel or the armor of Mouryoumaru, I am still a force to be reckoned with, even when faced with such powers as you wield. I do not fear you. And to prove it, I am extending your deadline, giving you the time to reach your maximum power. When you finish your game, you will have seven days to prepare. But should you fail to complete it, I will come for you on the night of the next Blood Moon... and my army of darkness will not stop until one of us is dead.

You have been warned."

The Blood Moon, for those of you unfamiliar with the term, is the first full moon after the Harvest Moon, which falls on September 26 this year, making October 26 the night of the Blood Moon. In short, I've been given a two month reprieve in which to finish my game. And I'm going to finish it before my deadline, no matter what.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

Even more progress

2007-08-14T23:56:00.000-07:00

I have just a few things left to take care of, and if all goes well, I hope to finish most of it tomorrow. Here's what's left:

1. Achieve the Jiminy Objective for the "Poster Duty" mini-game in Twilight Town.

2. Finish leveling up the Summon gauge to maximum.
3. Actually survive through the end of "The Paradox Battles: Titan" in Olympus Coliseum.
4. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Titan" in Olympus Coliseum. (Again, Stitch's Limit will be of great use to get that 10,000 or higher score. Or Peter Pan. I've heard he does good as well.)
5. Complete the "Meet Sephiroth Again" mission in Radiant Garden by defeating Sephiroth.
6. Having obtained Fenrir, get the Jiminy Objective for the "Junk Sweep" mini-game in Twilight Town.
7. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in Phil's Training - Maniac Mode in Olympus Coliseum. (With Fenrir and the Negative Combo/Explosion abilities equipped, it should be easier.)

8. Activate and attempt "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum. (Spam Stitch’s Limit heavily during the first thirty rounds, except in boss fights.)
9. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum. (Using Stitch in the earlier rounds should make this a heck of a lot easier.)

10. Enter Kingdom Hearts for the final five-part showdown with Xemnas.

If I can finish everything but Poster Duty, the last tournament and Xemnas, I'll be that much closer to winning the game... and my final showdown with Naraku. This time, he's going down for good.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

P.S.: You'll notice I've finished leveling up all my forms. Including regular Sora. :D That should make things a LOT easier from here on out.

More progress

2007-08-12T02:22:00.000-07:00

I've been hard at work continuing my game, preparing for the final battle. And I've made some progress.

1. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in the SB Street Rave mini-game in Twilight Town.
2. Achieve the Jiminy Objective for the "Grandstander" mini-game in Twilight Town.
3. Achieve the Jiminy Objective for the "Junk Sweep" mini-game in Twilight Town.
4. Achieve the Jiminy Objective for the "Poster Duty" mini-game in Twilight Town. This will probably be the last (or one of the last) item I take care of before the final showdown.
6. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in Phil's Training - Maniac Mode in Olympus Coliseum. (I wonder if Stitch's Limit will work here?)
7. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in the Goddess of Fate Cup in Olympus Coliseum. (Switching between menus, or possibly mastering the Magic shortcuts, is key here. When you get to the sixth match, just have the Magic Lock ability equipped and break out your Thundaga spell. It's the only way I could beat my opponents - a Fat Bandit and a Large Body - within the 30-second time limit for that round).
8. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Cerberus" in Olympus Coliseum. (Of course, first I have to actually complete it - I got to Cerberus himself last time, but the clock ran out on me.)
9. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "A Blustery Rescue" in 100 Acre Wood.
10. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "Balloon Bounce" in 100 Acre Wood.
11. Finish leveling up Sora's normal form. I'm currently at level 90.
12. Use Sora's "Trinity Limit" Limit Break at least once. (I've heard it works well against Sephiroth. Use it, consume an Elixer and repeat until he's gone, according to one strategy guide.)
13. Having gotten the Summons activated, I still have to level up the Summon Gauge to level 5. And figure out a quick and easy way to switch between the two command menus. Losing access to the standard menu, even if it's just temporary (I hope) is most annoying.
14. Activate and attempt "The Paradox Battles: Titan" in Olympus Coliseum. (The Summon Gauge has to be at level 5 to do this.)
15. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Titan" in Olympus Coliseum.
16. Complete the "Meet Sephiroth Again" mission in Radiant Garden by defeating Sephiroth, thus gaining the last level of the Drive/Summon Gauge and letting me carry out the next five goals:
17. Level up Valor Form to maximum. (It, along with Wisdom and Master Form, is currently at level 5.)
18. Level up Wisdom Form to maximum.
19. Level up Master Form to maximum.
20. Level up Final Form to maximum. (I'm still working on getting it to level 5 at the moment.)
21. Level up the Summon Gauge to maximum. These last five goals have to be done to activate the final tournament...
22. Activate and attempt "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum.
23. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum.
24. Complete the Synthesis section by finishing the material lists. I still need seven Frost Shards (dropped by Hook Bats in the Land of Dragons), twenty Frost Stones (dropped by Aeroplanes and Hot Rods in Timeless River), seven Lucid Gems (dropped by Bookmasters in Radiant Garden), nine Power Gems (dropped by Aerial Knockers and Shamans in the Pride Lands) and three Twilight Gems (dropped by Assassin-type Nobodies in The World That Never Was). If all goes well, I should be able to finish this next time I start playing.
25. Enter Kingdom Hearts for the final showdown with Xemnas.

And all this before September 1st. Hoo boy.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

The battles are done...

2007-08-08T19:48:00.000-07:00

The battles against the remaining members of Organization XIII in Kingdom Hearts II, that is. I've finished the story, making it all the way up to the last save point in the game and leaving only the final multi-part battle against Xemnas himself. But I still have a ways to go before I can enter the last door to face him. And just twenty-three days to do it in. Hopefully, if I can keep up the pace I had today, I can finish things within that time.

My remaining tasks, in no particular order, are:

1. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in the SB Street Rave mini-game in Twilight Town.
2-6. Achieve the Jiminy Objectives for the remaining four "job" mini-games in Twilight Town: Grandstander, Junk Sweep, Bumble Buster and Poster Duty (which I haven't even tried yet).
7. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in Phil's Training - Maniac Mode in Olympus Coliseum.
8. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in the Titan Cup in Olympus Coliseum.
9. Attempt the Goddess of Fate Cup in Olympus Coliseum.
10. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in the Goddess of Fate Cup in Olympus Coliseum.
11. Attempt "The Paradox Battles: Pain and Panic" in Olympus Coliseum.
12. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Pain and Panic" in Olympus Coliseum.
13. Attempt "The Paradox Battles: Cerberus" in Olympus Coliseum.
14. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Cerberus" in Olympus Coliseum.
15. Attempt "The Paradox Battles: Titan" in Olympus Coliseum.
16. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Titan" in Olympus Coliseum.
17. Attempt "The Paradox Battles: Goddess of Fate" in Olympus Coliseum.
18. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Goddess of Fate" in Olympus Coliseum.
19. Attempt "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum.
20. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "The Paradox Battles: Hades" in Olympus Coliseum.
21. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in the Light Cycle mini-game in Space Paranoids.
22. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "A Blustery Rescue" in 100 Acre Wood.
23. Achieve the Jiminy Objective in "Balloon Bounce" in 100 Acre Wood.
24. Level up Valor Form to maximum.
25. Level up Wisdom Form to maximum.
26. Level up Master Form to maximum.
27. Activate Final Form.
28. Level up Final Form to maximum.
29. Level up Sora's normal form to maximum.
30. Grab as many synthesis materials as possible. I mostly need Twilight and Dense materials at this point.
31. Perform Synthesis and level up the Moogle to maximum, creating every single item in the journal in the process.
32. Use Sora's "Trinity Limit" Limit Break at least once.
33. Use the seven Limit Breaks for all four Summons at least once.
34. Complete the "Meet Sephiroth Again" mission in Radiant Garden by defeating Sephiroth.
35. Enter Kingdom Hearts for the final showdown with Xemnas.

Naturally, some of these tasks will be easier than others... but it's all worth it if I'm going to become strong enough to take down Naraku when the time comes.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

One month to go...

2007-08-01T20:12:00.000-07:00

As usual, I failed to get to sleep at a decent hour last night. But after I did, I found myself having a dream. And it wasn’t an ordinary dream. It was a message.

“Mouse... oh Mooooouuuuuussssseeeee...”

Snort. “G’way.”

“MOUSE! WAKE UP!”

At that, I snapped to attention. Inside my mind, that is. Outside, I have no clue what happened.

The voice sighed. “Thank goodness. I was afraid I was going to run out of time just getting your attention.”

Then he appeared, and I immediately recognized him. Red coat, blonde hair, big smile...

“Vash!”

“Hey, Mouse! Good to see you!”

“Vash, where have you been? I’ve been worried sick! And what about the others? Are they okay?”

“Everyone’s fine, Mouse. But I don’t really know where we are right now. I just know I’ve got a lot to tell you, and a limited time to do it in.” At that, his voice took on a more serious tone, and I looked at him.

“What is it?”

“Naraku.” Vash sounded disgusted at the name. “He’s building up an army, Mouse. He found the book.”

“The book.” Then I realized what he meant. “That book. The one even Voldemort never tried to get his hands on.”

Vash nodded. “That book.”

I’m sure you’re all wondering what we’re talking about. Well, it’s the big one: Necronomicon ex Mortis, the Book of the Dead. Bound in human flesh, inked in human blood. If Naraku’s got that, it means we’ll be having a reenacment of Army of Darkness pretty soon. Good thing I’ve got my Boomstick.

Vash continued. “He’s got Voldemort on his side too now. I don’t know what he promised him, but it must have been something big.”

“Oh goody...”

Vash now looked even more serious. “Listen, Mouse. You have to start playing Kingdom Hearts II again. Your Keyblade is linked to both of your games, and now that Naraku’s gotten even more powerful, the only way you can become strong enough to stop him is if you make it all the way to the end. Beat every tournament, clear out every world, get up all your forms to their maximum level, and don’t forget to beat Sephiroth and get the Ultima Weapon too. He’ll be coming for you in a month.”

“September first?”

He nodded.

I snorted. “Figures. What happens if I don’t finish in time?”

“I don’t know, Mouse.” He was quiet for a moment. “I just don’t know.”

And with that, I woke up.

This is not good news. Especially with as long as it took me to start playing again since last time. But with the fate of the world riding on it... well, I’m not going to let Naraku win this time. I’m going to finish my game and beat him for good. I’ve already played some more today - I finished Agrabah, Hundred Acre Wood and the first part of Halloween Town. Tomorrow, I’m going to do my best to get that world, the Pride Lands and Atlantica finished. And then onward. I just hope I’ll have enough time to make it to the end.

To all members of the Terran Resistance: even with as strong as I’m going to get, one man is not enough to stop an army. Even my remaining live-ins (who’ve already started training to get more powerful in order to help me fight off an army of the dead) won’t be enough if Naraku’s going all out. If we’re to survive this, I’m going to need as many people as possible to be here, standing by my side when September comes. I have the feeling this is going to be the big one.

And when it comes, I’m going to be ready.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

P.S.: If Harry Potter is reading this, this’ll be your big chance to take Voldemort down for good. I hope to see you here in September. Just don’t kill his body: Snape won’t be happy if you do. (If you arrive early, we can talk further on this subject. If Naraku, Voldemort or one of their allies is reading this, I don’t want to give them any information they could use against us.)

P.P.S.: Finally got the title field active!

2007-07-22T04:33:00.000-07:00

It's been slow. My remaining live-ins are getting anxious as to the fates of their comrades... as am I, but for now, there's nothing we can do except wait and hope for their safe return. Of course, I suspect such an event will not happen until we can get into Babylon Palace again... or destroy Naraku. Whichever comes first. Hopefully destroying Naraku. If we beat him, it may result in the Palace becoming vulnerable again.

But in the meantime, I've been waiting for something else. Like many, I have been eagerly awaiting the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows... and found that after midnight on the 21st, I couldn't wait any longer and read a description online. It was definitely interesting, and after my copy arrived in the mail, I skipped to the end and read the last few chapters, then read the entire book later on after I got home from work. After I finished up... well, I suppose my reaction was not one that will be shared by many.

I found that despite all the negative comments I've already heard about the book, I had enjoyed it. I had no strong positive or negative reaction, I simply accepted it as being the end... and definately an interesting one, which will join the others in having a permanent home in my collection.

Then again, I may be somewhat biased. My favorite character did survive, after all.

I do have one minor complaint though: I could have sworn Rowling said Fawkes (Dumbledore's phoenix) would be back in this one, but I didn't see him anywhere. Did he get cut from the book for some reason, or did he appear and I missed it?

To all readers, feel free to share any constructive thoughts on this subject. Flames will be sent to Tabby's place for Axel to deal with.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-07-05T14:35:00.000-07:00

With all the chaos that’s been going on lately, I should have known it was only a matter of time before things got worse. Looks like it’s “good news, bad news” time.

Good news: Babylon Palace has settled down. Bad news: it’s parked near the Canadian/Idaho border, within easy striking distance of Resistance HQ.

Good news: some of my team has come home. Bad news: most of the others have been captured and imprisoned in Babylon Palace.

Good news: my team did manage to deliver the Vehicon drones to Rose’s place. Bad news: the villains attacked along the way and managed to get their hands on Devil-X again before he could be dropped off for reprogramming.

Good news: Keily’s heart shard that we recovered is safely out of Naraku’s hands. Bad news: I have no idea where it’s at now, and none of my returning friends can tell me... other than it has NOT been returned to Keily yet.

Good news: Naraku hasn’t gotten any more minions. Bad news: he’s the one who reactivated the Palace in the first place as a distraction while he tried to get that heart shard and generally reduced the size of our forces. The other villains merely took advantage of the chaos to attack.

And believe me, that last one was quite a shock.

I found out most of this when a small group returned to my house at about half past noon, just as I was about to start doing some cleanup in the living room. Looking out the door, I was shocked to see that most of them appeared bruised and battered. Hurrying out to join them, I opened the portal to New Eden and got everyone inside as fast as possible. Entering made us all feel a whole lot better, and I quickly got the whole story.

It seems that although I’d beaten Antagony back in May, she, Byakuya and their master Naraku have been chasing after my team ever since they left New Jersey, successfully capturing most of them as they headed off to Kentucky, Montreal and Babylon Palace itself. Their real goal was, of course, to take Keily’s heart shard before we could return it to her. I’d left Meyl Strife in charge of holding onto it, and she has assured me that it is in good hands now... but she can’t say whose: something is keeping her and everyone else from telling me.

Naraku has also captured most of my team, as I mentioned above. Right now, I’m down to just a handful: Of the Gung-Ho Guns, only Meryl Strife, E.G. Mine, Jason Voorhees, Knives, Princess Abi and Kumasogami all made it back. Grimlock and Slag returned as well. Grimlock tells me he saw another handful of our group disappearing into a hole in the sky: Sludge, Snarl, Swoop, King Ghidorah, Irys... and Vash. We don’t know just where they are, but at least we know they’re still alive. But everyone else has been captured. And as soon as I’m able, we’re going after them. This time, Naraku’s gone too far. And when we meet again, he’s going to pay.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

P.S.: I’ve completed Space Paranoids, effectively finishing the first half of Kingdom Hearts II. The game’s next scripted event is the second boss battle against Demyx. (No offense intended to any of the Organization members reading this. But to beat the game, some fights just have to be won.)

2007-06-28T12:55:00.000-07:00

It's been over a month, and quite a lot has occurred in that time. I've completed the first Kingdom Hearts game (except for that blasted clocktower Phantom!), gaining a lot of new spells and abilities for my Boomstick, and started playing the second one earlier this week. But as far as the Resistance, it's not looking so good.

I haven't seen or heard from any of my live-ins in over a month now. After our last battle, Knives and some of the others went down to Rose's place to drop off the defeated Vehicons and get Devil X reprogrammed and repainted, and another small group went to visit Keily to drop off the Heart Shard. But when Babylon Palace started moving again, I sent everyone still here to lend a hand. That was the last time I heard from any of them. And I'm getting really concerned.

If anyone out there has seen any of my companions, please let me know. If I don't get any news soon, I'm going to hop on a cycle drone and head up there myself. And may every diety, higher power or anything else you believe in have mercy on the souls of the villains who get in my way.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

P.S.: My brother's been doing a lot better since my last post, but there's one organ that needs to finish healing before they go in for surgery to remove his gallbladder. At this point, it's projected to be done in early August.

2007-05-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

For those of you still wondering about my brother, he’s doing much better: he and my mom went back to his apartment on Saturday, and he’ll be going back for surgery in a few weeks to have his gallbladder removed.

But in the meantime, I have other issues to deal with. About a month ago, I got my own PS2 as a gift from a friend and coworker of mine, buying a copy of Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II at the same time, but it took him about two or three weeks to find the other two parts I needed for it: the controller and the memory card. With my brother being in the hospital last week, I was really in no mood to try and play it. But today, I finally managed to get the whole thing set up to go, and made it all the way through my first day on the Destiny Islands. Never did manage to win the three-on-one battle of Tidus, Wakka and Selphie against me, though I entered it twice. Battled Riku three times - lost the first on a technicality (fell off the island), but went back and faced him again, and won. Twice.

However, while I was putting the game away, something most unexpected happened: it glowed. And the Heart Shard we’ve been tracking down appeared from the disc, floating over into the bag where I keep my strategy guides.

“Whoa.”

After putting the game and my system away (my Dad would freak out if he found out I actually got the whole thing set up), I went downstairs to talk to my live-ins and see about getting a group of them to deliver the shard. Unfortunately, right as I made it to the door, I heard the sound of an explosion outside, and saw Antagony herself storming up to the house. It took a moment before I remembered we’d been planning for this day all week... and another moment before I realized just who else was out there.

She’d brought along an entire army of Vehicon drones. I’m not entirely sure where she got them all - probably scavenged from some other reality she’d visited before coming here. There were a lot of them: Tank drones, Aero drones, Cycle drones, Copter drones, six-wheeled Assault drones based on the Blast Charge toy, Demolition drones based on the Scavenger toy, and Stealth drones based on the Spy Streak toy. They were also accompanied by an X-wing... but instead of the red-on-white color scheme I was familiar with, this one was red-on-black. And as I soon found out, it was also a Transformer. I had no idea what its name was yet. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait long to find out.

“Devil X! Take the Vehicons and get rid of those fools!” Antagony bellowed as Vash and the others emerged from the New Eden gate. “The boy with the heart shard is mine!”

“Yes Ma’m!” the X-wing shouted. “TRANSFORM!”

I watched in horror as he (it had a male voice) transformed, revealing a mostly red interior, as well as the overwhelmingly black armor from his X-wing form. Most of the other Vehicons changed as well behind him. I summed it up best for all of us right then.

“Oh crud.”

Grabbing the bag with the heart shard in it, I looked around for an exit. Finally, I settled on the side door of our kitchen, and took off down the road. Not sure why. I guess I figured at the time that getting the shard and myself as far away from Antagony as possible was as good an idea as any. Besides, I’d already had one close encounter with her, and I was in no hurry to repeat the experience.

Unfortunately, she felt otherwise. Looking back, I spotted one ticked-off ant scrambling after me. Six legs are apparently faster than two, and she caught up to me relatively quickly. Transforming in front of me, she reached out a hand. “Give me the shard.”

“Not a chance,” I replied.

Antagony laughed. “So foolish. Just like last time. I won’t ask again, boy. Give me the shard.”

“Never.”

“Then face... oblivion!”

As her gun started to fire, I reached into the bag and actually touched the shard for the first time. I don’t know why. But then, something happened.

It flashed. I felt as if time had stopped... or at least slowed down to almost nothing. Then, before my eyes, the shard began to glow too brightly for me to make it out anymore. But I swear I felt it squirming about in my hand. And for just a moment, I thought I heard Stan Bush’s “The Touch” start playing in the background.

Then, time snapped back to normal, and I heard Antagony gasp. Actually, I think I did too. (I also heard an explosion further away, but that wasn’t us.)

This was for two reasons. First, I was covered in a glowing shield that had absorbed the blast of acid.

Second, the shard had changed itself into something completely different. It was shaped like a giant key. The main body of the key was made up of two long tubes, right next to one another, each with the serrated edges of a chainsaw blade. The ending part (what is that called, anyway?) faced upwards, looking just like the rounded end of the chainsaw, but with the same serrated edge as the rest of the key. The hilt looked like the stock of a shotgun, but with a grip in the middle, as all Keyblades had. For that was exactly what this was: a Keyblade. The chain at the end of the grip had what appeared to be a sawed off shotgun on it with a chainsaw blade sticking out of the stock.

Antagony stared. “WHAT is that!?”

As the shield faded, I grinned. “This... is my BOOMSTICK!”

She blinked.

“You have obviously never watched “Army of Darkness”.”

“I’m evil, what do you expect?”

“Good point.” Yanking the chain at the end of my new Keyblade, I started the blades going. “And so’s this.”

I won’t bore you with the rest of the fight, but suffice to say, the Keyblade told me what to do. In short, I kicked her tail all the way down the street, and she decided enough was enough. As I watched her fleeing, the Keyblade started to glow. I guessed it had had enough, and was changing back into a shard. But imagine my surprise when it floated out of my hand, leaving the Keyblade behind and ceasing to glow as it landed in the bag where it had fallen. I looked at the Keyblade, dismissed it, and called it back a moment later. “Whoa.”

Then, almost as a second thought, I quoted he who had inspired this weapon. “Groovy.”

By the time I got back to my house, the battle was all over. I found out quickly that Vash and the others had somehow managed to obtain the parts for an Empion mine, like the one I’d suggested Kenya use against Nemesis Prime and Galvatron, and lured the Vehicons, including Devil X, into the entryway for the Hellgate before they set off the mine, disabling every single drone caught in the blast radius. Fortunately, the mine was one-shot only, and had no lingering effects on the area arond the blast. This meant the Dinobots and Brad the Ninelives, whose mechanical bodies had the advantage of being larger and stronger than most of us, could handle the work of hauling all of the disabled Transformers out of the Hellgate. Fortunately, they didn’t mind. Everyone else there did what they could, including me. But after a bit, even I had to take a break.

I found Knives examining the unconscious Devil X. “What’s up?”

Knives gestured to his chest cavity. “We thought this guy had a Spark, Mouse.”

“And...”

“He doesn’t. There’s no sign he ever had one. Just a laser core and a primitive brain, like the ones the Dinobots had before they got Sparks.”

“So he was little more than a slightly more intelligent drone.”

“Exactly.”

“Well, he IS an X-wing. Think the other Autobots and Decepticons might be able to fix him up?”

“Probably.”

“Good. We aren’t going to need all these drones cluttering up the yard. I hate to split up the team now, but I think we’ll have to for a few days. If we send most of these guys to Kentucky, Rose and Prime could certainly make better use of them. Take X here with you. Tell them I want him repaired, reprogrammed and repainted. I’ll send the designs along with you.”

“You want Prime to give him a Spark?”

“Why not?”

After some debate, it was decided that Knives, Rai-Dei the Blade, Brad the Ninelives, Monev the Gale, Adam, Ginkotsu, Kyokotsu, Slag and Taro would head down to Kentucky in the shuttle to deliver most of the Vehicons to Rose and Prime and drop off the defunct Devil X with them until his repairs were complete. As agreed, I sent the designs for his new color scheme, including X’s new name, with Knives.

Meanwhile, we still had another mission. I’m sending Meryl, Abi, Ranma and his twin Marxan to Keily’s place to deliver the heart shard we recovered. They’ll be using a couple of repaired Cycle drones for the trip - we kept quite a few that just had to be reprogrammed after the mine was set off. The others that we fixed up are stashed in a special corner of New Eden (same place we keep the shuttle that took us to Babylon Palace and back).

After all this mess was cleaned up, I found a place to sit, summoned the Boomstick Keyblade again and looked at it.

“Double dollar for your thoughts?”

I looked up. “Hey, Vash.”

“Hey yourself.” He sat. “What’s up?”

I sighed. “I’m just thinking. Sure, I’ve got noble goals, just like you did back on Gunsmoke. But I still don’t know what I did to deserve this Keyblade. I mean, I just touched one of Keily’s heart shards, and got this for doing it. But why me, when it could have just as easily been you?”

“Mouse...”

“Yes Vash?”

“You’re a good guy, Mouse. You brought all of us together to fight the darkness by seeing it and turning away from it, helping us create New Eden to serve as a haven for those like us. With that kind of a heart, it’s no wonder this Keyblade chose you. Sure, that heart shard gave you the way to reach it, even without an Awakening like Sora, Roxas and Riku went through. But it’s still part of you, and I can’t think of anyone else here who deserves it better than you.”

I smiled. “Thanks, Vash. I needed that.”

“Not a problem. Come on now, let’s go get some donuts!”

Laughing, I got up and followed him, dismissing my Keyblade as I went. I guess that old saying is true: the more things change, the more they stay the same.

And the really amazing thing about everything that happened today? We got it all finished before my dad got home from work.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-05-14T21:18:00.000-07:00

The latest news is in. My brother is feeling better, but he's still going to be in the hospital until at least the end of the week, and there will definately have to be more surgery before this is done, but he's in stable condition and is improving.

The diagnosis is acute gallstone pancreatitis - in other words, gallstones and a bunch of sludge formed in his gallbladder, some of it escaped to plug up the ducts of the liver and pancreas, and the rest plugged up the bile duct. Infection set in as a result, and has further plugged up other parts of his digestive system. From what we've learned, it does not appear that the gallbladder has perforated, as was originally feared. Barring further complications, he should be back in his apartment by the weekend, assuming the antibiotics continue working as effectively as they are now. Then, after two to three weeks of a highly restricted diet (and lots more antibiotics) he will return to the hospital for removal of the gallbladder.

This is very good news, and I thank everyone here for their prayers. They've definately helped.

Meanwhile, partially to get my mind off of things and partially to work off that big lunch I had, I went for a long walk earlier. And in the process, I ran into Antagony again. Seems she's still lurking around, searching for that heart shard. Unfortunately, I still have no idea where it is. Luckily, neither does she. Or her master Naraku. Also luckily, she couldn't act against me, since we were out by a rather busy highway at the time, and she wasn't willing to take the chance of anyone else possibly seeing her at the time. However, she did leave me with a warning: she's coming back to my house in a week, and if I don't hand over the heart shard then, only one of us is going to walk away intact. The other won't be walking anywhere, ever again.

And she meant it.

Luckily, I've already taken precautions. The Gung-Ho Guns and the rest of my live-ins are standing by, and we're stocking up on the necessary supplies. Including a few surprises. When Antagony comes back, we'll be ready for her and anyone or anything else she brings. Even her boss. And hopefully, we'll have found the heart shard by then as well. If she tries to take it from me, it'll be the last thing she ever does. No matter what.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-05-13T22:16:00.000-07:00

Earlier today, not too long ago, my family got some news from Virginia. And it was bad.

My older brother is in the emergancy room of a hospital, in critical condition, suffering from a gallstone attack that has resulted in an inflamed, possibly perforated or ruptured gallbladder (they don’t know which yet). And it’s turned ugly, probably septic, at least from all I’ve been able to learn. Right now, they’re just trying to get him rehydrated and increase his chances of surviving the operation tomorrow.

My family, unfortunately, has a history of issues involving such attacks. And in July ‘05, about ten months before we formed the Terran Resistance, I too was in the hospital. In my case, it was from a ruptured appendix, which had also turned septic. Due to this and other complications, I stayed there for ten days, and believe me, it was not fun. Fortunately, I survived the experience, though my appendix did not. And about a month later, I met Vash and Knives in person for the first time.

Our prayers go out to my brother tonight, in the hopes that he too will be as lucky as I was. And I’m asking everyone in the Resistance to send out their prayers to him as well. With his current condition, he needs all the help he can get.

More news as we get it.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-04-05T18:40:00.000-07:00

I suppose I should have seen it coming. With Renkotsu having died again in the battle of Babylon Palace, it was only a matter of time before Naraku found himself a new henchman, other than his last two offspring Kanna and Byakuya. Then again, he’s been holding them both in reserve since before Babylon Palace. My team still doesn’t know exactly where they are now, but with Naraku and his twisted mind, anything’s possible.

But I digress. The new villain.

As you may or may not know, I tend to be something of a night owl, usually falling asleep about sunrise. I typically stay in at night, especially after the events of the past few months. But last night, I was feeling restless and went out for a late-night stroll. I really shouldn’t have, especially on my own. Fortunately, nothing bad happened on the way out. The return trip is another story. For it was then that I met her... and saw the look on her face. It’s burned into my brain, but the words to describe it just aren’t there.

Her name is Antagony, and her father was a version of Tarantulas (from the Beast Wars series). Apparently, he was a descendent of Unicron himself. This version accidentally blew himself up while trying to absorb a pair of Vok, and was killed in the explosion. Before his death though, he created a daughter (I’m not entirely sure how this happened, and she didn’t want to explain that part), giving her the beast mode of a gigantic black ant. She possesses the ability to project hard-light holograms, and her primary weapon fires bolts of corrosive acid. She also has the minor gift of clairvoyance, acting as more of a danger sense than anything.

After the Maximals and Predacons left Prehistoric Earth, Antagony woke from stasis and found a way to leave the planet: several months back when the Vok were going to destroy their “experiment”, Tarantulas had planned to leave Earth in a reprogrammed stasis pod, which would ultimately be used to destroy the Vok’s Planetbuster weapon. Before his death, he had prepared an identical pod for his daughter, but the transwarp drive malfunctioned and exploded partway through the trip. Due to her ancestry, Antagony survived the blast and found that she could now move between dimensions at will. She has been doing so ever since, and finally jumped into our world where she met Naraku. He shared a great deal of information with her, such as the fact that his current servants Byakuya and Kanna aren’t the originals, who are long dead. He created newer versions after he returned from Hell.

Now here’s the really bad news: Naraku’s looking for Keily’s heart shards as well, and he knows there’s one in our area. And he wants it. Seems to think it might make him stronger, or maybe get him control of the Heartless. At least, that’s what he told Antagony. (Considering this is Naraku, I wouldn’t believe for a moment that he’s telling the complete truth.) Fortunately, he hasn’t been able to find it yet, even with his new Kanna and her mirror. So he sent Antagony to scout around. And if she could eliminate some of my group (or me), or at least make us nervous, so much the better. And believe me, I’m plenty nervous because of her. Then again, when you’re unarmed and somebody’s holding you at gunpoint, anyone would be nervous. Especially since I saw her finger moving on the trigger.

Fortunately, it was about that point when reinforcements arrived.

“Me Grimlock not like nasty ant-bot threatening man-friend! Me Grimlock munch metal!”

If he could have moved a little faster, I’m sure Antagony would be in a lot of pain right now. But that little danger sense of hers kicked in, and she dodged him, causing him to take out an innocent chunk of sidewalk instead. I heard her laughing as she hovered over us, well out of reach.

“We’ll meet again some other time, boy! And next time, you won’t have your little friend near to help you!”

Okay. Now I’m really worried. (And annoyed that she called me boy. I’m 21, for crying out loud!)

I also confirmed one important thing: she’s not trying to bring back Unicron again. Apparently, she’s run into him a few times, and isn’t interested in his plans for galactic conquest. She has her own agenda... much like Naraku (and Tarantulas before he died). We know what it isn’t... but we also don’t know what it is. And that worries me.

After that encounter, I was in no condition to walk back to my place, so Grimlock called Slag over - apparently the Dinobots were all out patrolling for the night - and had him give me a ride home on his back. After I got back, I conked out. But the entire time I was asleep, I saw that look of hers in my dreams. And it was terrifying. (And coming from the guy who has literally been to Hell and back, that’s saying something.)

But I can’t let that stop me. Antagony or no Antagony, I’ve been part of the Resistance since the beginning, and I’m not about to quit now. Especially when there’s so much at stake. We’ve stepped up our efforts to find that heart shard, and once we’ve found it, we’ll be one step closer to victory.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-03-24T03:20:00.000-07:00

I've just read the latest from Snape. I guess after that, it's just as well I wasn't actually there for the fight. But at least we know Palpatine is gone for good, suffering the same fate as Xehanort's Heartless in Kingdom Hearts: he was taken into Kingdom Hearts itself, and destroyed forever this time... and all because of the sacrifice of the Nobody Kyxiel, who merged with her other during the course of their own battle. Now, the only one standing between our trapped friends and freedom is Keily herself.

After reading this, I went out to have a word with the group, and found they were all affected by it. Fortunately, only one of them knew one of the fighters in Palpatine's sick little arena: apparently, Naraku, who was still mad at E.G. Mine for stealing Mouryoumaru's armor from him when they were in Hell together, decided to get even by making his own partner turn against him. He did this by ressurrecting Jason's mother, Pamela Voorhees, who tried to convince Jason to join Naraku. It didn't work, as not only has Jason learned from the last time somebody tried to use her image against him (Freddy Krueger, back during "Freddy Vs. Jason"), he also knew this wasn't really Pamela: apparently, he and Krueger made a deal a while back with help from none other than Rem Sevarem, mother figure to my long-time live-in Vash the Stampede. Pamela's spirit now resides on the Dream Plane with Krueger, and Rem's managed to talk some sense into her during this time.

As a result, when Jason saw her body being used in such a way, he got really mad.

The end result is that Pamela's body has been taken back and re-interred in the grave in Eternal Peace Cemetary near Crystal Lake. Though her soul remains on the Dream Plane, her body can at last rest again. (Also, her head has been reattached to her body. I'm not quite sure who was responsible.)

For those of you who have weak stomachs, you might want to skip the next paragraph.

Renkotsu, who was standing at her side during the fight, was not so lucky. Not only was he the one controlling her souless body (Naraku took off before the "entertainment" started, having only been there to draw us in), but he made for a very convenient target. After Mine impaled him to a wall with his diamond spears, Jason very slowly dismembered him, ending by severing his head. He then tore out Renkotsu's heart with his bare hand and dropped it to the floor, where he crushed it with one foot. That was about the time the traitor finally died for the third, and hopefully last, time. Jason brought the head home as a souvenir. I think he plans to mount it on the wall.

Okay, that's the end of that part.

Fortunately, though everyone was affected (even the Dinobots and the demons) and disgusted by Palpatine's actions, none of them actually had to face anyone they personally had known. Then again, most of the people they know are either in another dimension or another planet.

For now, all we can do is wait and pray that Keily fulfills her mission. When the enteched begin to wake up, then we will know she is close. And once Babylon Palace has been emptied of the souls of the enteched and the bodies of our fallen comrades, I plan to get a front-row seat to its destruction. I've already volunteered our two giant-sized allies to be part of the demolition (the same two who were going to join in if it turned out to be a giant Transformer), and I think they're going to enjoy wiping that monument to a monster off the face of reality.

And we must remember that at least two villains are still out there: Voldemort and Naraku. According to Rose and her live-in group, Nemesis Prime and Galvatron (and their cloned lovers) may still be on the loose as well. But hopefully, they'll all have been destroyed permanently by this May. Hard to believe it's been almost a year since the Terran Resistance first banded together to face Palpatine and his allies. But it's a day we will never forget. The day all our lives changed forever. When we all came together to fight for this Earth and its people... and for all peoples everywhere.

Our day.

Until next time, everyone. Until next time.

2007-03-22T23:17:00.000-07:00

Dagnabbit...

My speech was perfect. I was all psyched out about heading up to Montreal. Then I woke up that afternoon and found they'd left me behind. What's more, nobody's told me exactly what happened while they were up north. I get the feeling that it was very disturbing.

What I do know is that Palpatine is gone for good, while Voldemort and Naraku both got away, and the palace wasn't actually a giant Transformer as I had thought. That means our two gigantic friends (still in reserve) weren't actually needed. But better safe than sorry.

Aside from Palpatine, there was only one other casualty: the traitor Renkotsu, having left the Shichinintai for Naraku while they were all in Hell, did not escape this time: I saw Jason carrying his head when he got off the shuttle this evening. They didn't tell me how it happened or who did it, and I don't think I want to know. At least he's gone. For now. Remember, we're dealing with a servant of Naraku, and he's already been brought back twice (when he joined Naraku this time around, it was his second revival). Who's to say he won't come back again?

For now, at least we know that our allies are safe, and Palpatine is gone for good. And right now, that's all that really matters.

Until next time!

2007-03-20T04:40:00.000-07:00

“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “To talk of many things.”

In our case, it’s the upcoming mission. We were supposed to leave early this afternoon, but after getting our hands on some alternate transportation, we're going to leave around sunrise (it's about a quarter to 5 in the morning now), and I plan to get some sleep on the way there. But before we go, I just felt I had to say a few things beforehand. I’ve been working on this speech for almost a week, and I’ve had it checked, so... here goes.

“Ladies, gentlemen and giant robots... this is the big one. In less than 24 hours, we will be taking on Lord Voldemort, Naraku, and Emperor Palpatine at Babylon Palace in Montreal. Three of our worst enemies in one place... and for all we know, the meeting place could really be the belly of a giant Transformer. The odds are stacked against us, even with everyone we know fighting. But it doesn’t matter. Because we’re not going to give up.

“When we first reformed the Gung-Ho Guns at the time of our first war against Palpatine, there were two missions. First, we had to stop him from taking over Earth. Second was the creation of New Eden, a place of peace where the citizens of Earth and the galaxy around us could gather for an existence that’s free of violence, hatred, prejudice, tyranny, oppression and persecution. The same as the original Garden of Eden, where mankind was born and lived in peace until they were tempted and came to know of evil. But our New Eden is home to those who have seen the evils that have corrupted so many and have chosen to reject it, to live in peace. Yet there are still those who willingly carry out their evil deeds still, being who are so firmly entrenched in the darkness within their hearts that they cannot imagine what life would be like without it.

“So we keep on fighting. We fight for the day when all are one, when all have rejected that which seeks to corrupt them and turned to the light. When all can live with love and peace.”

I shoot a grin to Vash at this moment.

“That is why we are here. That is why we continue to fight, and hopefully make a difference in this world by inspiring others to spread the word. Ladies, gentlemen and others, not all of you are officially members of the 21 Gung-Ho Guns. Not even me. But in my book, you’re all part of the team as honorary Gung-Ho Guns. For we are the heroes who fight for peace. ‘Til all are one!”

There’s a rousing chorus of voices: “‘Til all are one!”

“Time to kick the tires and light the fires, everyone. We’re heading out now!”

Vash gives me a thumbs-up. Knives just smirks. And everyone else cheers. Watching them all, I just stand and smile. I might not be able to do much in terms of physical combat, but I’ll still be there. Look out evil, ‘cause here we come!

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

P.S.: You know that extra guy I mentioned we were going to recruit a week ago? He’s standing by and ready for action. And he’s not the only one: Knives went out and found another creature that could help us. Kenya and Lord Vader have been informed as to their identities. Something tells me Palpatine is going to seriously regret this day for the rest of his existence, however short it may be.

P.P.S.: Zonk time. See you all this afternoon!

2007-03-13T15:01:00.000-07:00

Something just occurred to me a few minutes ago, and I figure it's best if I spread the word. I've already posted this over at Kenya's blog, but I figure it's best if I add it here too. (This is the edited/expanded version anyway. More information.)

Remember how Palpatine was planning on creating a Transformer body for himself back when we were fighting Unicron last fall? Well, what if this "Babylon Palace" in Montreal that we're heading for is actually that completed Transformer body? From the looks of things, we're probably dealing with something about the size of Metroplex, Trypticon or their Headmaster sucessors Fortress Maximus and Scorponok. In short, a body that's about the same size as the self-proclaimed Emperor's ego.

I don't know about everyone else, but I'm not taking any chances. Two of our more recent recruits, Maligore and Dark Specter (cousins of our 21st Gung-Ho Gun Kumasogami) can grow to giant size, allowing them to at least match a body that big in sheer brute force. Fighting fire with fire, so to speak. But just in case, we probably need a few more super-sized heroes/reformed villains to take him on. I've sent a couple of our guys to find and recruit at least one, but who knows if it'll work. He gets a bit tempermental at times. Then again, considering we're talking about a being who's been turned loose against Earth several times against his will, I can't say I blame him.

I can't say exactly who, in case we aren't successful in bringing him in, but if we are... well, Palpatine will be hard-pressed to match all of our forces.

Prepare yourselves. In one week, we're going into an all-out war against at least three of our four greatest enemies. This isn't going to be easy. But we're going to do it anyway, because it's the right thing to do. Because we're fighting for the freedom of all sentient beings in the universe. And we're fighting for our right to survive. In one week, we take on Palpatine, Voldemort and Naraku... may the Force, Primus and any dieties out there be with us all. 'Cause we're gonna need all the help we can get.

Until next time,

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-03-10T19:29:00.000-08:00

New information continues to pour in. The truth about our missing warriors was revealed - they were enteched. My team knows of a possible way to bring them back (and we've asked one of our allies to bring her into the fold), even as another of our allies works on a different method. Voldemort has appeared in person in Idaho. Palpatine is prepared to return in a new body and is inviting several of our allies to come - he didn't ask for us though. And information has been revealed that could return our ally Keily to a whole person.

Meanwhile, things are oddly quiet here in New Jersey. We've been keeping an eye out for trouble, but nobody has shown up. Well, one person did. But they were just a messenger, giving us a second note. Not from Palpatine or Voldemort, but from an old enemy who'd been strangely quiet since he attacked Kagura in Texas: Naraku. In it, he informs us that he and Renkotsu will be present at Palpatine's rebirth, and that he expects my entire team to be there. Though Palpatine neglected to invite us (why, I am not sure - perhaps he recalls how Vash worked to expel him from Kenya's body last summer, and didn't want to risk a second encounter with him), we're coming anyway.

Ten days 'til the showdown... Naraku, Palpatine, Voldemort, we'll be there. Every last one of us. The 21 Gung-Ho Guns, the YuYu Crew, the Newrima Wrecking Crew, the demons, the Shichinintai, the Dinobots, and myself as well. For the first time, I too shall join my allies on the field of battle. Good thing it's a Tuesday.

2007-02-23T11:38:00.000-08:00

Recent news at MMDV has revealed that our missing friends are back... but missing their souls, most likely the work of Kanna (one of Naraku's detachments) and her mirror. Fortunately, I am familiar enough with her to know the means by which to free the trapped souls, and have released this information. Even more fortunately, none of my troops have been attacked in this way. However, we are still vulnerable, and will take no chances. We continue to go out in groups, just in case, and only rarely at all.

Honestly, I keep wondering at this point: why haven't we been attacked yet (by an actual enemy)? I'd have expected Renkotsu to drop by and attack, but he hasn't. And that makes me nervous.

Then again, that just may be the idea.

Oh, and E.G. Mine wants to tell Naraku that when they next meet, he's taking the rest of his powers and sending him back to Hell where he belongs. Just as a reminder of their ongoing rivalry.

Until next time...

Anon e Mouse Jr.

2007-02-10T20:47:00.000-08:00

With the rash of disapearances lately (most likely the work of Voldemort and Naraku), it’s best we all check in on a regular basis. Luckily, my guys - the Gung-Ho Guns, the Newrima Wrecking Crew, the YuYu Crew, the Shichinintai, Krueger (in the Dream Plane) and the two demons included - are all fine. We made New Eden to be impregnable to the real villains way back when it was first created, and my live-ins go out in pairs, if not threes or fours, just to be safe. If anyone wants to move in for the duration of the crisis, our little pocket dimension is the safest place around that I know of - it may have been intended for humanity to settle in once they were ready to finally put aside their differences and work together in peace, but we recently added an anti-violence field just to be safe. So even if our enemies manage to get in, they won’t be able to cause any harm.

In fact, there’s already a few unexpected guests: apparently, our wandering warrior Ryoga was down in Kentucky the other day, and the Dinobots followed him home. They’ve decided to hang around in New Eden until the Autobots come to get them or the war is over (whichever comes first).

Aside from that, nothing much has been going on at our place, though I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop. (And its name will be Renkotsu. Somehow, I just know he’s going to show his face again soon.)

Until next time...

2007-01-12T13:48:00.000-08:00

When I went to bed last night, I had the feeling that something big was going on. With another set of villains currently attempting to revive Emperor Palpatine and the chaos down in Hell, it’s only natural. But I never expected what would happen.

I have a strange sleep schedule, typically going to bed between 4 and 5 in the morning (for now, at least). I was woken up at sunrise to find a strange being in my room. Good thing his hand was over my face, or I would have screamed loud enough to wake the dead (not counting the revived dead I already live with).

It was Kumasogami, the same demon who attacked us a few days ago. And he had a strange look on his face, almost as if he was smiling. Trust me, that’s the last thing you want to see at 6:30 in the morning. Or thereabouts. I wasn’t paying attention to the clock at the time, I was more freaked out at the fact that there was a potentially hostile demon in my room.

And I was really shocked when I found out why he was there.

“Naraku is on the move,” he rumbled. “That fool who dares to call himself Emperor has agreed to bring him to the living world when he is revived, and they are already gathering allies. They even sought to recruit me, as well as my cousins Maligore and Dark Specter.”

That explains a lot. (The cousins part, that is.)

“But they have forgotten, I am the demon-god of Kumaso. I am not one to be trifled with, especially not by such mortals as Naraku and Palpatine.” He paused and spoke again. “And so I have come to you, Anon e Mouse Jr.,” sounding oddly amused at my choice of pen name. “You, whose heart secretly burns with the desire to become more, but lack the desire to perform true acts of evil that would allow this to happen.”

This is true.

“For that, I commend you,” he rumbled. “Unlike Palpatine and Naraku, you wish for power but refuse to perform the same acts they did. Instead, you gain true power by surrounding youself with allies who seek peace for all, and are willing to fight for it... as odd as that may sound."

He’s good.

“And so, after testing your warriors, I have come to your side for one purpose.”

He must be fond of dramatic pauses, because he took another one now.

“I have come to join you.”

SAY WHAT!!!!!

“I, Kumasogami, the demon-god of Kumaso, kin to Maligore, the Flame of Destruction and Dark Specter, the Grand Monarch of Evil, shall fight by your side as the twenty-first Gung-Ho Gun.”

This... is almost unbelievable. Almost. But I’m glad, because our team is complete at last. We’ve still got a few friends on the way though - I got a call from Krueger that the YuYu Crew (Hiei, Mukuro, Jin, Toya, Chuu and Rinku), old friends of Vash, are coming to lend a hand as well. All but one of the Shichinintai have pledged themselves to their old leader as well: Suikotsu, Jakotsu, Kyokotsu, Mukotsu and Ginkotsu. Renkotsu, who uses fire and explosives in battle and in fact tried to kill Bankotsu when they were the last two of the group, left them a long time ago when they were all in Hell and sided with Naraku after his arrival. We'll probably be getting attacked by him soon.

Former Gung-Ho Guns (before they all died) Leonoff the Puppetmaster, Hopperd the Gauntlet, Zazie the Beast and Caine the Longshot have chosen to stay out of the fight on either side, while Suzuki (of the YuYu Crew) retired from combat a while back to concentrate on his stage career. The others who once fought alongside Hiei (including Vash’s old teacher Genkai) have all gone missing. We’re not sure just why.

And did I mention Maligore and Dark Specter are supposed to be coming too? One of the perks of having a demon-god on your team: his relatives drop in from time to time. Apparently, they really hate Naraku and Palpatine for some big reason. Kumasogami has assured me that species has nothing to do with it, but refuses to elaborate otherwise. I’m sure he’ll tell me whenever he’s ready.

And in the meantime, I’m off to work for the evening. Until next time!

2007-01-11T11:47:00.000-08:00

The situation worsens. Got word from Dash Rendar last night that things are getting really bad in Hell, putting the kibosh on my plan to visit and find out just what’s going on. Especially since it turns out Kumasogami broke out through the portal in MY yard. We’ve posted a guard to make sure nothing else gets out.

Luckily, one of our allies got out too. Freddy Krueger, whom I met last summer when I got called down below to gather Legato and his crew, agreed back then to leave us alone. Now, he’s escaped into the Dream Plane to avoid the chaos going on back in Hell, and he’s trying to recruit others to our side, such as the remaining Shichinintai and the last of the original Gung-Ho Guns. Plus a few guys from the Yu-Yu gang. Seems Vash made a few friends in August while he was training under Genkai, learning the technique which helped Kenya regain control of her body from the Emperor.

Unfortunately, we’ve also received word that Naraku, who bears a grudge against E.G. Mine after he stole the remains of Moryomaru and converted them into his new armor, is also on the move... and will most likely take advantage of the chaos in Hell to try and break out so he can get revenge on my team. And he’s probably going to bring a few friends with him. The upcoming battles are going to be some of the hardest we’ve ever fought, and I am NOT looking forward to them.

But we do have some good news. Ryoga consulted with Vash and Knives before bringing in some new allies for our team. I never did explain how he came to join us. Well, it turns out he got really lost, and wandered through at least a dozen alternate realities before he turned up at my house. In those various realities, he made some friends: local versions of the old Nerima Wrecking Crew. He called them up after the attack by Kumasogami, and got them to join us, forming a group we call the “Newrima” Wrecking Crew. Ryoga is leading them, as well as retaining his membership in the Gung-Ho Guns.

And to top it off, they’re all from various fanfics I’ve started working on, but never finished. Go me...

Besides Ryoga, the Newrima Wrecking Crew consists of eight others:

Ranma and Marxan Saotome - When Ranma Saotome fell in the Spring of Drowned Heartless, the magic of the spring split him in two: a Shadow-type Heartless born of his disembodied heart, and the Nobody Marxan, a completely new being who’d been created from his body. Ranma himself was embodied in the Shadow, which changed into a copy of Ranma’s natural human form when it was exposed to hot water and back with cold. After he was introduced to the Tendos, Ranma left on his own, refusing to let them be “tainted” by him (he didn’t understand what was going on). It took a clash with Happosai to bring them together, and the Spring of Drowned Man to fuse them back into one. Ranma then used the Spring of Drowned Twins to separate into two people again, letting Marxan continue to exist as a seperate being. They each have their own fiancées (Marxan’s with Akane Tendo, Ranma has Kodachi Kuno). In addition, they were willingly cursed again. The magic of the springs now causes Marxan to become a Chinese dragon, while Ranma changes into a tiger.

Tatewaki Kuno - His home reality is a cross between the various Marvel universes and the world of Ranma 1/2. This Kuno scion is a mutant, the local version of Psylocke, a telepath with all their standard abilities: he can read and project thoughts, control weak minds, project mental illusions, use psi-bolts to stun or injure the minds of others and project his astral form). He also possesses a couple of unique powers, including...

- “psycho-blast”: a focused beam of directed telepathic energy. Unlike normal telepathic attacks this beam is able to affect the real world, physically knocking foes back as well as attacking their minds. It can even shatter metal.

- Early on, Kuno was able to manifest a “psychic knife”, the full sum of his telepathic powers. It forms a direct link between Kuno and his target. When he developed telekinesis, he combined that power with the psychic knife to form a telekinetic katana, composed of raw psi-energy. At its lowest intensity, the sword acts like his psychic knife did, short-circuiting the victim's nervous system. At its highest intensity, the blade can slice through just about any material, or even just a part of it, such as cutting through body armor while leaving the wearer physically unharmed (but not without a nasty headache). He can also use it to shatter any telepathic power-inhibitors.

- Shadow Travel. Prior to the activation of his telekinesis, Kuno gained the ability to teleport himself or others via shadows. Though not as controlled or precise as variations of teleportation used by others, it can cover huge distances.

Unlike the core reality, this version of Kuno isn’t obsessed with girls. He’s too busy dealing with mastering his powers as they continue to evolve, and tends to brood a lot as a result.

Pantyhose Taro and Rito Revolto - In his world, Ranma took a vacation after defeating Saffron at Jusenkyo. He ended up joining forces with the Power Rangers of Angel Grove. Taro would later be captured by the villains, but was rescued by the auxiliary team. In gratitude, he joined as their unofficial “sixth” member, using his cursed form. After both teams lost their Ranger powers and the main team got a new set, Taro departed on a training journey with an amnesiac Rito Revolto, who looks like a walking skeleton and was the son of the primary villain.

Ukyo Kuonji - In her world, Ukyo was taken to the Saotome family home after Genma took her father’s okonomiyaki cart and ran off. Raised by Nodoka Saotome, Ukyo later visited Jusenkyo with her mother-in-law to be and some friends, where her quick reflexes prevented Nodoka from falling in one of the springs. Unfortunately, she herself fell into the Spring of Drowned Gargoyle as a result. In her cursed form, she possesses wings that allow her to glide, claws that let her scale high surfaces, and a prehensile tail. She also heals rapidly when she switches forms.

Akane Tendo - One of Ryoga’s two love interests, this version was invited to a cosplay party in Nerima one day. She went to Ethan’s, a new costume shop, for her outfit. As luck would have it, she dressed up as Sango the demon slayer from the anime and manga series Inuyasha. And as fate would have it, the owner was a chaos mage who enchanted the costumes, turning the people who wore them into their characters for the night when he triggered the spell. After her Ranma tracked down Ethan and broke the spell, Akane found she’d retained the knowledge, skills and weapon of her costume (a gigantic boomerang named Hiraikotsu). She also carries the memories of Sango and her guilt over the deaths of the taijya’s friends and family, and hatred toward the being (Naraku) who arranged for it to happen. This hatred has extended to all who would deliberately cause pain and suffering on Earth, no matter what reality she’s in.

Hinako Ninomiya - Ten years ago, a twelve-year-old child was lying in a hospital bed, very weak because of an unknown medical condition. She was found and healed by Happosai, an old pervert and founder of Anything Goes Martial Arts. Using pressure points, he altered her metabolism to let her drain ki from another person to rejuvenate herself. However, she stopped aging as a result, except when she used her powers and grew to her natural age. In canon, she debuted at age 22. In this world, she was sent to join the Saotome family on their ten-year training trip, becoming like a big sister to Ranma. During Ryoga’s visit to their world, she befriended him as well.

So, that’s our second team. And we may have more on the way. We aren’t giving up this fight so easily, no matter what!

Until next time, my friends.

2007-01-10T13:39:00.000-08:00

Looks like I don’t have to visit Hell after all. Hell came to visit me. And it wasn’t friendly.

This afternoon, as my dad and I were out going grocery shopping (and getting caught in traffic, as usual), a disturbance caught my attention. Luckily, Knives and Ryoga were following us after the recent attacks, and they too noticed the problem. Boy was I shocked when I saw what was tearing up the highway.

It was Kumasogami.

For those of you who’ve never seen Toho’s “Yamato Takeru”, or “Orochi the Eight-Headed Dragon” for the English dub version, Kumasogami is the first monster the hero must face during the movie. He’s a demonic being who appears to be made up entirely of lava that’s hardened on the outside but still has some glowing “veins” all over his body. A lot like Maligore, the Flame of Destruction. But he’s only about six or seven feet tall. He supposedly died when the hero gained the ability to shoot laser beams from his eyes (thanks to a magical amulet he was holding) and sent him back into the fires he came from.

And did I mention he can shift his hands into weapons?

Luckily, we had backup. E.G. Mine showed up too and immediately shifted into diamond form, acting as a living shield. Fortunately, rock/hellfire arrows don’t have any effect on his new body. (Although I think the years its former bearer spent in Hell may have helped on the hellfire end of things.)

“Mouse!” Get out of here!” Ryoga hollered.

“Not on your life!”

“Get going, Mouse,” Knives grunted. “We can handle this clown.”

It was right about then that Kumasogami shifted its hand again, and I found myself wishing that Bankotsu and his big sword were here.

Well, he didn’t show... but Ryoga surprised us, using his umbrella to hold off the monster’s own giant blade. And then, he borrowed a page from several of his counterparts in other dimensions.

“BAKUSAI TENKETSU!”

Yes, he used the Breaking Point on a monster from Hell. Just like a few alternate Ryogas had done, seeing as their monsters were made of rock. Living rock, but rock all the same. And using the Breaking Point on any sort of rock will cause it to shatter. The explosion today was most impressive. Fortunately, Ryoga was unharmed. Unfortunately, the effects weren’t permanent... Kumasogami surprised even me and pulled himself together.

Then he left. I think getting blown up once today was enough for him.

I’m going to have to pay a visit down below and see why Kumasogami came after me. Was it an act of betrayal by the forces of Hell? Or did our unknown enemy free him? I suspect the latter, but I’d rather confirm it than jump to conclusions.

In the meantime, Ryoga told me not to worry about reinforcements: He’s going to make a few calls to other realities and find some backup. Now I’m really afraid... that explosion today was bad enough. But how much longer can I hide these guys from my Dad once the phone bill shows up?

2007-01-10T01:25:00.000-08:00

Once again, the Terran Resistance has been called into action, as the enemy has struck on three fronts so far (as of this posting). We don't know just who our real enemy is yet... luckily, none of them have struck here in New Jersey. But Vash and the rest of the Gung-Ho Guns are preparing for battle even as I speak. Hang tight, everyone. We're not giving up, and we'll defeat our enemy. No matter what it takes. Even if it means I have to visit Hell for reinforcements again. (And it looks like I just might have to.)

Until next time, this is Anon e Mouse Jr. standing by.

2006-12-31T08:38:00.000-08:00

What a long strange road it's been.

Hard to believe that yet another year has come and gone. In this time, I've celebrated my one-year anniversery of working at Blockbuster, revealed that I have two fictional characters living at my house (which has expanded to nineteen regulars and one shape-changer who drops by as often as he can, barring his lousy sense of direction), attended my sister's wedding, and celebrated my own 21st birthday. As well as entering a few other fandoms and coming up with more story ideas than I can remember. And had to get my computer fixed. Twice. (Luckily, there was no lasting damage.)

And of course, there are the ongoing adventures of Vash and the Gung-Ho Guns, who have continued working towards New Eden. They've completed setting up and moved in, which is why things have been quiet lately. Vash himself still drops in on me every now and then, but the rest are mostly just trying to relax after several major battles over the course of the year: Vs. Palpatine and the Empire (parts 1 and 2) and the war against Unicron this past fall. And though there have been casulties on our side, none of them have been from our little group - not that death would keep them away for long, considering that all but seven of the Gung-Ho Guns were dead before they came back to life and joined the team in the first place. (They're still looking for a 21st member. Vash nominated me, but I'm not much of a fighter and had to decline official membership.)

Here's to a new year, which shall hopefully be a lot quieter and less insane than the last one!

(Of course, now that I've said that, you just know there'll be lots more craziness...)

2006-11-12T16:38:00.000-08:00

It's been over a month since last time. All I can say is, I've had a lot of insanity going on, and a lot on my mind as of late.

The battle with Unicron is over, thank goodness. There were casulties, but luckily none of them were on our team. I think Ryoga's durability has rubbed off on his teammates (to learn one of his signature techniques, he spent several days tied to a tree branch and having large boulders swing into him). Fortunately, I can't say the same for his sense of direction. Unicron was sent back to Hell on Friday, and the Gung-Ho Guns made it back to New Jersey earlier this afternoon. Sorry they had to leave on such short notice, but from the looks of things, our comrades on Cybertron had things under control after Unicron and all his minions were defeated.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, things are about as usual. Halloween has come and gone, as has my 21st birthday. When the boys came back, Knives promptly suggested we go to a bar and have a belated celebration. I turned him down - just because I can go out and get drunk doesn't mean I'm going to.

And of course, I've been writing, watching TV and movies, and reading all the manga I bought for my birthday. And it only took me a week to get to the second half of it. (I finished the first half in one night.)

As someone else once said, "The darkness has not been conquered, and it will continue to fight against the light forever." But we've won this fight. And we'll continue to fight, even as Vash and the rest of the Gung-Ho Guns work towards the day when New Eden will finally be ready for all those who are truly willing to put aside old grudges and misguided beliefs, in favor of a world without danger, a life free of hatred, violence and ignorance. I'm hoping that day comes soon. For everyone.

Until next time, my friends. Until next time.

2006-10-11T12:08:00.000-07:00

Should have updated this a few days ago, but oh well. We're back home, there was no trouble at the wedding (though I'm fairly certain I saw a certain wandering friend passing through a few times), and my sister and her husband are off on her honeymoon.

However, upon reading Kenya's blog today, I discovered that some of our allies from the Terran Resistance are in trouble. A being known as Nemesis Prime, herald of Unicron, has gravely wounded Optimus Prime, his counterpart in our universe. Optimus will survive, but the coming of Unicron means certain disaster for all worlds. Vader, Kenya and others have already gone off to Kentucky in order to lend a hand, and though I may not have met any of the Transformers myself, I do know of them, and I know how dangerous Unicron can be. We're trying to create a peaceful world here, but he wants to destroy it. So I'm calling in all nineteen of the Gung-Ho Guns to help out as well.

Vash and Knives. Meryl and Milly. Wolfwood and Legato. Midvalley the Hornfreak and Dominique the Cyclops. E.G. Mine and his partner Jason Voorhees. Bankotsu and his beloved Princess Abi. Adam and Brad (the Ninelives). Chapel the Evergreen and Monev the Gale. Rai-Dei the Blade and Brilliant Dynamite's Neon (B.D.N.). Clayface and our wandering warrior Ryoga Hibiki, the young man with great physical strength, an energy attack powered by his depression, no sense of direction, and a curse that changes him into a black-skinned piglet when he's splashed with cold water. (A little hot water will change him back to normal.) They're all going to help. (And if we can find ourselves a 21st member, that would really help.)

Stay strong, everyone. For the sake of everyone on this planet, we cannot, and will not, give up. Ever.

Until next time!

2006-10-05T17:29:00.000-07:00

Insanity reigns. We've had one new would-be Gung-Ho Gun show up, but a few days later, he went out to get some supplies and never came back. Judging by his past history, our friend probably made several wrong turns as soon as he went out the door, and I don't expect to see him back anytime soon. This means we've had to scrub him from the roster. Unfortunate.

Meanwhile, with Mara Jade's attacking Kenya out in Idaho, and pretty much every other bounty hunter, mercenary and would-be assassin-for-hire going after her too, I've dispatched Knives and a team of Gung-Ho Guns to help deal with the problem. Knives gave me a call shortly after they arrived, letting me know he'd already taken out a couple of them. I'm not certain who that was that I heard cackling in the background, but I suspect it was two of our three masked members. Reformed or not, if those two start causing trouble, I'll have to pull them off active duty for a while.

In other news, I've been watching more movies and anime. A friend loaned me a particular series, which happens to have 161 episodes, 11 OVAs and three movies (one of which is packaged with the OVAs and is often mistaken for one, two of which my friend doesn't own). I'm enjoying watching it, and it's even inspired me to write another new fanfic series, which includes two major plot twists early on, then mostly runs concurrent with the manga from there. I've thrown in a few of the anime plots as well, and of course I'm continuing the plot threads I introduced early on. At this point, I know how it started, I have some idea of how it's going to end, and I've figured out which storylines to adapt in between. I just need to work out a few details.

Perhaps the most important news of all is that a team of Gung-Ho Guns (led by Vash and Meryl) and I are going out of town this weekend to attend my elder sister's wedding. They'll be handling security detail, so if there's any villains are reading this, don't be getting any bright ideas. We're watching for you.

Until next time!

2006-08-30T19:14:00.000-07:00

I realize it's been half a month since I last updated. But there's been a lot happening. Such as our team being sucessful. Vader got the Horcrux, then tricked Palpatine into destroying it. Vash and the others involved then did all they could... and Kenya is free. Palpatine is gone for good. And this time, we know for sure that all we've got left are the remnants of his supporters.

Not to mention that Kenya and Vader are officially dating. Congratulations and good luck to both of them. Vash, Meryl and Nicholas D. Wolfwood were thrilled when they found out. Milly is ecstatic. Knives had no comment when I asked him earlier, but he appeared to be smirking when he said that. (He's reading this over my shoulder now. I believe his exact words were, "It's about time they hooked up.") Everyone else offered some varient of "Good luck" and "Congratulations".

The Gung-Ho Guns have come back home, of course. I'm not sure, but while he was training with Genkai to learn the Harai no Ken, or Fist of Purification (a very useful technique that helped to destroy Palpatine), Vash also somehow gained the ability to cross the country in very short periods of time. And he can bring the others with him.

In all this time, I remain busy as ever. A friend has been providing me with more anime to watch (most of the movies have been good, though the last TV show he gave me turned boring pretty quickly). I've been working on some stories: got one mostly completed, though the latter third of the plotline still needs some details; got one completely finished; got stuck on another; and the latest is still in progress and may have gone comatose where it is now. I've watched the Complete First Season that I bought about a week or so back, and enjoyed it enough that I'm going to buy the rest of the series. But there's still more that I need to do. I need to keep finding more things to watch.

See, even with Vash and the others currently hanging around, they're back to working on their New Eden, and I'm probably going to get bored again soon. And as Galatea once said in her penultimate episode of a show I used to watch, "Boredom is my Kryptonite." It certainly applies to me, though in my case, "Boredom is my Red Kryptonite." Think about it for a while, and draw your own conclusions. You may be surprised by the result.

Until next time!

2006-08-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

A short while later...

We've found it. The key to saving Kenya. No new members of the team, but Vash has gone to obtain the technique that can free her from Palpatine's control. It'll take him a while, and though I can't say just when, or what it is just yet, we WILL stop Palpatine and save Kenya. I promise.

Until next time, my friends. Until next time.

2006-08-15T07:46:00.000-07:00

Disaster has struck again. This time, it's the heaviest blow of all... Kenya has been captured by Palpatine, and he's taken over her body. I've already dispatched the Gung-Ho Guns, and we're actively searching for two additional members who can draw souls out of another person's body. Luckily, I may have a lead already. We're going to find Kenya, and free her.

I only hope we won't be too late this time...

2006-08-02T15:05:00.000-07:00

Our boys have finally made it back, and right on time. It's been a few weeks, but with all the usual chaos around here... well, I had a lot to deal with. The news of Palpatine's Horcrux knocked us all for a loop. I guess we should have seen it coming... even if I was wrong about a few things, such as believing Mon Mothma to be an actual traitor and not just another victim. My apologies to her, wherever she is.

However, just because the nineteen Gung-Ho Guns are back in New Jersey (and asking to expand their numbers again), don't think we're out yet. The war is far from over, and even if my team hasn't achieved everything it was meant to, we're not giving up. Only when Palpatine is destroyed forever and all his allies beaten, then we can go back to the original plans for New Eden.

In the meantime, Vash is looking for two more to join his group. There'll be 21 Gung-Ho Guns before this is all over. I can't wait to see who pops up this time around...

Until next time!

2006-07-15T02:38:00.000-07:00

Having only just now read the latest entry of Kenya's blog, I have learned the distressing truth... and almost gave Knives a royal chewing-out for failing to discover Mon Mothma's fate before she attacked Kenya and turned her into a were-horse. He found out about the same time I did, and apologized for not having found out anything sooner. Apparently, he and the other spacefaring Gung-Ho Guns have been having troubles of their own and couldn't work as fast as they would have otherwise. Vash knows what happened with them, but refuses to say anything about it - apparently Knives had sworn him to secrecy. I get the feeling it was rather embarassing for all involved.

At any rate, with the former leader of the Rebellion dead at the hands of Jango Fett, Knives is bringing his group back home, and should be back within the week. But they're not abandoning the resistance. Having failed to prevent Mothma's attack on Kenya, Knives is more determined than ever to put an end to the remaining allies of Palpatine. So never fear, the Gung-Ho Guns (Clayface included) remain on alert, having put their own plans for New Eden on hold for the time being. They'll wait to open the portal until after the war's over, permanently this time.

Best of luck to all of you out there on our side. May the Force be with you.

Until next time!

2006-07-03T20:23:00.000-07:00

Sorry for not reporting in, but I've been rather busy with my job and my writing. Not to mention trying to get caught up with all the movies I haven't watched yet. Plus, there's another part-time resident living in my house now.

Ever since he got blown up, Matt Hagen (AKA Clayface) has been laying low in his home reality. Finally, he made a literal deal with the devil (Hades, actually) and got sent across to the Hell of our world. Fire and brimstone do not mix well with clay, so he left through the last rift to be opened. End result, he got dumped in my backyard. Fortunately for everyone involved, Vash dropped by right about then - he'd left the rest of his group back in Idaho, while he swung by my place for a quick visit. We managed to convince the actor-turned-shapeshifter that he'd be safer here, and he also agreed to join the Gung-Ho Guns on a part-time basis. Since he moved in, Hagen's been watching as many of my movies as he can, making it rather difficult for me to get caught up on the ones I haven't watched yet. Fortunately, he's seen just about all of them now, so I should be able to update more often after this week. I hope.

In other news, no word yet in regard to Mon Mothma's fate. Knives has reported in a few times, but things have been just as chaotic for him as they have been for me. We keep hoping though.

Until next time!

2006-06-21T03:38:00.000-07:00

I got a call this morning from Vash. He told me to check Kenya's blog, and when I did, I found some very good news: the war is over. With the death of Palpatine and the destruction of the planet Byss (taking all his clones with it), the Resistance has effectively cut the heart out of the Empire.

Our side has suffered minimal losses. Vader and Kenya are all right. The only big name that didn't make it was Count Dooku, who died saving Leia. Knives especially is grieving his loss - they had some rather interesting discussions in the time they knew one another, and he's planning to stay for the funeral. So are the other Gung-Ho Guns. But as far as we know, this is the end. The boys are coming home. (Well, fourteen boys and four women.)

I can't say life hasn't been easier (and quieter) without Vash and Knives around the house. I know they went to fight for a good cause, but I've missed them both, and I'm glad they'll be back. Same goes for the others, even if I hadn't gotten to know them as well as I did those two humanoid Plants. They've already made plans to open the portal to New Eden when they get back, and I'm already down as the first person to visit once they're settled in.

Yet something makes me uneasy. The true fate of Mon Mothma remains unknown, and I'm wondering if she might still be out there, working behind the scenes. Until we know for certain what happened to the former Senator from Chandrila, I wouldn't let my guard down. Knives agrees with me, and he's willing to head out into space and investigate with some of the Gung-Ho Guns. Vash will lead those left on Earth while his brother's off searching.

Those on Earth would be:

Vash the Stampede
Derringer Meryl (Meryl Stryfe)
Midvalley the Hornfreak
Dominique the Cyclops
Chapel the Evergreen
Rai-Dei the Blade
Bankotsu
Princess Abi
Gray/Brad the Ninelives

The team that would go into space is:

Millions Knives
Legato Bluesummers
Nicholas D. Wolfwood
Stun-gun Milly (Milly Thompson)
Brilliant Dynamite's Neon, or B.D.N.
Adam
E.G. Mine
Jason Voorhees
Monev the Gale

Good luck, guys. Keep in touch, and I'll see you soon, I hope.

2006-06-11T18:43:00.000-07:00

Finding a gateway to Hell in my backyard was the last thing I expected this evening. But I did, and I also found a letter asking that I drop in as soon as possible. Apparently, an old acquaintance of Vash's wanted to see me. I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised. I was rather surprised when I learned how difficult it was to open a portal, considering how many others have been rumored to exist (and how many really do exist) around these parts. Getting me to stop by one of the others would be harder though, so they pulled some strings and opened up a new one. Fortunately, time passes differently in Hell (no surprise there) than it does in our world. I'm still not sure how long I was down there in Hell-time, but here it was only five minutes. I digress though. On with the meeting.

Those who've read previous entries will know that six of the current Gung-Ho Guns used to be dead. Five of them - Chapel, Monev, Midvalley, Rai-Dei and Dominique - were in Hell. Wolfwood was on the shores of Purgatory, having failed to repent until shortly before death. I'm not quite sure how, but I think Rem Sevarem may have been involved in their return to the land of the living. However, the old acquaintance was none other than one Legato Bluesummers, Knives' former right-hand man and leader of the Gung-Ho Guns. Legato also wanted to join the battle against the Empire, as he still thinks of Knives as his master and will gladly fight by his side. He opted to leave Hell on his own terms though, and for that he needed me. It took a while to sort things out, but when all was said and done, we returned to the land of the living with a few others in tow.

E.G. Mine - the Fifth Gung-Ho Gun has come back with us, eager to kill as many people as he can. In life, he used a spherical body armor covered in spikes, which he could manipulate. However, Mine would soon do battle with another denizen of Hell, a being called Naraku (another familiar face to me), who's absorbed countless beings in order to gain absolute power. One of these was called Mouryoumaru, whose own body included the armored shell of a Meiouju and the barrier-piercing diamond shards that he stole from an enemy. The former Gung-Ho Gun battled Naraku and let himself be absorbed, emerging with his new body armor. Unlike Mouryoumaru, whose heart was a seperate being at the core of the armor (and vulnerable if attacked in the right way), Mine is fully incorporated into his new armor. He thus appears as a normal human most of the time, but is able to change into his armored form whenever needed. (For those who are wondering, Naraku survived Mine's escape from his body, though he was significantly weakened. He's already dead and in Hell, so he couldn't be killed again.)

Jason Voorhees - having been to Hell and back several times, Jason's reason for killing has always been questionable. But after his latest trip there, Jason met up with Mine and became his friend. The undead serial killer left Hell with us for much the same reason as Mine did: to kill as many people as he could. He especially wants Palpatine dead, as that decaying face reminds Jason of Freddy Krueger, the last person to free Jason from Hell. And those who've seen "Freddy Vs. Jason" are well aware of how that turned out. By the way, we did talk to Krueger, but he wasn't interested in returning to Earth - the Dream Plane is where he's at his most powerful. He did agree to leave us alone though.

Princess Abi - former leader of a tribe of bird youkai, Abi was tricked into aiding Naraku. Upon realizing his true intentions, she turned on him, but was killed with her mother Tekkei, whose blood allowed Naraku to enter the border between this world and the next. Abi retains the three-pronged spear that Naraku gave her, but had abandoned her tribe after her death, feeling she no longer deserved to lead them. In Hell, Abi met another of Naraku's pawns, became his companion and brought him back with her...

Bankotsu - former leader of the Band of Seven, human mercenaries who were brutally killed, only to be revived years later by Naraku to serve as a distraction to his enemies while he recovered. Bankotsu wields the gigantic sword Banryu, which he lost after his first death and recovered later, only to have it destroyed with him when he died a second time. He later met Abi in Hell and became her lover after hearing of her feelings toward Naraku - feelings he shared (they both wanted him dead). He agreed to go back to Earth and serve under Knives, and was rewarded for this with a new Banryu. His new blade has the same powers as the original before its destruction.

Adam - the revived and heavily augmented corpse of a human soldier, Adam was a Big Bad whose plan was to create an army of unstoppable triborgs like himself: part man, part machine, part demon. Intended to be the perfect organism, he possessed the adaptability and intelligence of humans, coupled with the strength and lack of emotions of demons. He also lacked a soul in his new form, but upon the forced removal of his uranium power core, resulting in his death, his human soul (which had been trapped in Limbo since his first death) was made to suffer in Hell for the acts of the demon in his body, including taking on the form he'd been in prior to his body's second death. Adam was the last one to join our group, practically begging us to bring him back to the realm of the living. Retain his triborg body and abilities, he is the latest member of the Gung-Ho Guns.

For the sake of completeness, here's Legato's bio.

Legato Bluesummers - a modified human and former leader of the Gung-Ho Guns, Legato was recruited by Knives after the July incident to make Vash's life a living hell. He wears a white coat (similar to Vash's), making him synonymous with white, the Japanese color of death. Gifted with telepathic powers that allow him to mentally control others, Legato was also given a new left arm, once belonging to Vash the Stampede (he lost the arm when Knives shot it off him in July). Having tormented him for some time, Legato ultimately used his powers to threaten Meryl and Milly, forcing Vash to kill him and break the oath he'd made a long time ago, swearing to never kill another living being. Legato went to Hell, finally persuading the higher-ups to open a portal and bringing me in to arrange his release, in return for his rejoining Knives and the new Gung-Ho Guns.

***

Well, I promised to find reinforcements, and I did. I told the Gung-Ho Guns to "give 'em hell", and they will. I just didn't think I'd be taken so literally. The group is now eighteen members strong (with six currently on their way to Idaho), and the Terran Resistance has our full support. Good luck, everyone. Until we meet again!

2006-05-31T04:20:00.000-07:00

What, do I have an "All Trigun characters welcome sign in front of my house?

This morning, as I was outside, I couldn't help but notice the group of people heading toward me. In the lead was none other than Nicholas D. Wolfwood, a priest and friend of Vash's, whom I'd thought long dead. But it seems death isn't forever with these guys, much as it wasn't for Darth Maul and Count Dooku (among others).

Wolfwood explained that he was the temporary leader of these new Gung-Ho Guns, mostly made up of former members who'd been killed on Gunsmoke. "Vash and Knives will be the real leaders once we catch up to them," he told me. Meryl and Milly will also be a part of the team as well. Unlike the previous incarnation, the new Gung-Ho Guns are dedicated to the vision of Rem Sevarem, who envisioned a new Eden for humanity. However, they're also willing to fight to protect that Eden. Seems that Knives has changed more than I thought: Wolfwood told me that he's the one who suggested the team's new mission, once he found out they were alive again.

The full team now consists of:

1. Vash the Stampede
2. Millions Knives
3. Nicholas D. Wolfwood
4. Derringer Meryl (Meryl Stryfe) - Meryl has consented to join the team at Vash's request, once they both learned the new purpose of the Gung-Ho Guns. Her weapons are fifty one-shot pistols, or derringers.
5. Stun-gun Milly (Milly Thompson) - see Meryl. Milly uses a huge stun-gun, or heavy concussion gun, as her weapon. It fires long bullets that pop out to form an X, and can even knock over a truck with just two.
6. Chapel the Evergreen - Wolfwood's mentor, he was once killed with a miniature black hole by Knives.
7. Monev the Gale - wearing a huge power suit with arm-mounted chain guns and a set of pressure chambers on his back, Monev once diad at the hands of E.G. Mine. After his revival, Monev changed his attitude for the most part, but still fears Vash after nearly dying at his hands.
8. Gray/Brad the Ninelives - formerly a large android, he's now a cyborg, as Vash's friend Brad (who was killed by Leonoff the Puppetmaster) had his brain transplanted into the mechanical body after it was rebuilt. Despite his revulsion at killing, Brad is willing to fight so all will have the peace he once knew.
9. Midvalley the Hornfreak - having died when he activated the damaged mini-guns in his saxophone Sylvia, which caused it to explode in his face, Midvalley revived and became Wolfwood's second-in-command until they rejoin Vash and Knives.
10. Brilliant Dynamite's Neon, or B.D.N. - formerly leader of the Badlads gang, Neon wasn't originally recruited as a Gung-Ho Gun: he found them and told them that he was joining, once he found out about their new purpose. His sense of honor isn't quite like Vash's, but he gave up killing without reason after their first encounter.
11. Rai-Dei the Blade - a man who seeks the knowledge learned only when facing death, he follows the way of Bushido, or the code of the samurai. Armed with a sword that can fire its own blade and has a concealed rifle in the sheath, Rai-Dei was originally killed by Wolfwood after surviving the Fifth Moon incident. He now fights to make Earth into a paradise, where all humanity, including the warriors such as himself, can rest.
12. Dominique the Cyclops - a woman who wears the "Demon's Eye", she's able to cause hypnosis and sensory paralysis in her foes, inducing a trance that makes her movements appear light-speed. Unlike the others who died and came back, she also remembers her fate in the manga, where she jumped to her death after losing to Vash.

The former members who stayed dead are:

Zazie the Beast
E.G. Mine
Leonoff the Puppetmaster
Hoppered the Gauntlet
Caine the Longshot
Legato Bluesummers

After introductions and explanations, Wolfwood told me that he and the others were heading out to Idaho to join Vash, Knives, Meryl and Milly in the Terran Resistance. They'll be late for the first round, but as long as they don't miss the entire war, none of them is too worried.

Good luck, guys (and girls). See you again when the war's over.

2006-05-24T17:23:00.000-07:00

Well, it looks like they found me. Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson, who spent the better part of two and a half years tracking Vash on Gunsmoke (including two years after the Fifth Moon and before he fought the last six Gung-Ho Guns), then a year searching for him on Earth, finally showed up at my house again earlier this evening.

Let me tell you: facing these two when they're mad is the scariest thing that could happen to a guy. Without letting me get a word in edgewise, they promptly accused me of working for Knives, claiming he was out to destroy the human race and that I was a willing accomplice to his plans. The fact that I was wearing my "Resistance is futile" shirt from Roswell, New Mexico certainly didn't help. Neither did the phonecall from Knives right then. Fortunately, he had Vash with him, and between the three of us, we persuaded them that Knives wasn't evil anymore, I hadn't been in the first place, and that Vash was doing just fine out in Idaho (even if he was helping fight a war against the Galactic Empire).

Meryl and Milly have since taken off, heading west to join Vash and Knives. They did apologize for giving me a hard time though, and I've let them know they're welcome to come back and visit me once the war's over. In the meantime, I heave a sigh of relief... and pity any Imperials who get in their way.

Until next time!

2006-05-16T12:17:00.000-07:00

The war has started, as I recently learned over at "Me, Myself and Vader". As I stated there, I'm sending help: Vash the Stampede and his no-longer-evil twin Knives have gone to join the Terran Resistance. Even if I can't help directly, Vash and Knives will certainly hit 'em hard a few times for me.

How come I've never mentioned them before? Simple: I promised Vash and Knives that I wouldn't. There are still a few people looking for them, even though the bounty on Vash's head was lifted about two years before he fought Knives, and three years before he came here. I'm fairly certain I saw Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson peering through our windows a few weeks back. Luckily, Vash was out of town at the time (he was making another doughnut run). But when Vash found out about Palpatine's first strike out in Idaho, he told me that if he didn't make it back, he wanted the world to know that he'd been living here for almost three years now without causing any trouble. I suspect Meryl and Milly will be dropping in any day now, if they haven't already spotted him heading west.

Good luck, guys.

In other news: Dang, it's been a while! Not too much new and exciting in the fanfic world (at least when it comes to my stuff), though I have been working on some of them.

In movie news: Some weeks ago, I finally finished watching all the DVDs I'd bought over the past year since I started working at Blockbuster (Knives won't admit it, but he's hooked on Firefly), and now I've started buying more again. I've also rented and watched "When A Stranger Calls" (released today). I fail to see why it got so many negative reviews. It's a suspense film, after all, not a slasher flick. You want blood, go watch "Friday the 13th" (another of Knives' favorites). I for one enjoyed this movie.

That's pretty much it. Vash, Knives, I'll see you whenever you get back and hopefully hear from you soon. Kenya, Vader, good luck. Palpatine, *bleep* *bleep*!

Until next time!

2006-02-22T22:19:00.000-08:00

Oy... last time I posted, I said I needed to do this more often. Well, I've finally gotten around to it, so here goes.

Crossovers are interesting, both to read and to write. I've recently been organizing many of my fanfics, even creating an entirely seperate folder for my Harry Potter crossovers. Here's a list of some of the ones I've come up with over the years, which any of my readers (all none of them) can borrow. I'm keeping a few to myself though.

Alien/Predator-verse: Two stories. One has Harry being raised by the Yautja (Predators) as a hunter, eventually going on to Hogwarts with a Xenomorph (which has been reduced to about the same size as Hedwig in the canon) as his bonded familiar. The other is sort of based off Alien: Ressurrection, where Harry is taken from the Dursleys and later returns, having changed into a cross between a human and a Xenomorph. Black, very sharp nails, darker skin and acid blood are the main traits, along with enhanced senses. This version of Harry is quiet, calm, confident and cautious. He's very intelligent, and even though he's still a child, he's very dangerous.

Men In Black - the movie or cartoon-verse, either version. In one, he meets them as an adult. In another, he grows up in New York City, and learns about them at some point before going to Hogwarts.

Wild Wild West - that's pretty much it, a Harry Potter/Wild Wild West movie-verse crossover. I have absolutely no idea how to even begin.

Ghostbusters - left in New York City as a child. Taken in by these guys, things are going to get interesting. Could be movie-verse or cartoon-verse.

Futurama - like the show's hero of Phillip J. Fry, Harry is in New York on New Year's Eve, 1999. Like Fry, he's cryo-frozen and wakes up on New Year's Day, 3000. I must have been nuts when I came up with this one.

Stephen King's multiverse - the possibilities are endless, but I've only written down two. One is a crossover with The Shining, the other with Desperation.

Dinotopia - James, Lily and Infant!Harry flee England and wash up on the shores of this island nation, where humans and dinosaurs live in peace. Somehow, I picture James Potter as a Skybax rider. No matter what happens, Voldemort will NOT go to Dinotopia, or ever find out they live there. If he does find out, it's right before he's killed. Permamently. Same goes for any of his servants.

My Babysitter is a Vampire - it's been years since I read this series, and I don't even have all six books. But what if Vincent, the vampire of the title, was hired as Harry and Dudley's babysitter when they were young and later took Harry away? Another version has Harry being changed into a bat, growing up as one and meeting another young bat who turns out to be Grebiv: Vincent's little brother. I think you can see where this is going.

Lord of the Rings - Harry learns that souls can be reincarnated across the dimensions. He then finds out that he's the reborn Frodo Baggins. Need I say more? The title I've used is "Frodo Lives!"

Bruce Coville - I've only done one of these, "Harry Potter and the Immortal Vermin". Coville's "Magic Shop series" features, from book 3 onward, a race of nearly-immortal vermin (snakes, spiders, rats, lizards and toads - the rarest). These creatures are very tough to kill, and will never age. They cannot die except at the hands of another, such as getting eaten or run over. As well, they can all speak English, or any other human language, and can even do perfect imitations of other people. Harry finds one of them, a snake, in the Magical Menagerie (it's the summer before third year). Things will get interesting from here on out, but that's as far as I got.

Megalodon Patronus - has anyone here read Steve Alten's "Meg" series? It features a species of gigantic, albino sharks, kin to the Great White, living in the Mariana Trench. Not sure if this counts as an actual crossover, but the idea is that some person shows up, and casts the Patronus Charm. Their Patronus is Angel, the seventy-foot long Megalodon shark. A Patronus taking the form of a creature that large, that powerful and that deadly is naturally going to be stronger. Here's the passage I wrote to describe the summoning, and the Patronus:

***

“EXPECTO PATRONUM!”

The wand erupted. Bits of silver light began to shoot out of the tip, and a moment later, a solid jet of silver light shot forth, swirling into the night sky, beginning to take shape. Everyone present stopped in awe or fear, gazing upon the tremendous form that was now visible.

Seventy feet long. Pure silver with a long conical snout. A thick triangular head the size of a Volkswagen. Eyes bigger than bowling balls. Razor-sharp serrated teeth, nine inches. A crescent shaped tail, with a long, raked vertical blade and a shorter lower blade. A tall dorsal fin that cut a path through the night sky like a hot knife through butter. One of the greatest and most terrifying predators to ever exist in the sea.

Carcharodon Megalodon.

***

Since the Megalodon is that large and that powerful, this deadly predator actually chases down and eats the Dementors. So, that's that idea.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer - I've actually done two. In the first, a four or so year old Harry appears in Buffy's living room when she and her mom come back from a visit with Principal Snyder (this takes place in season 3 of BTVS). Bruised, battered and unconscious, he soon becomes a member of the family.

The other is also a cross with Fullmetal Alchemist. Harry learns of the alchemic techniques from that series, and unwittingly uses them to ressurrect Tara Maclay's soul in a new body (this would take place after season 6's finale - both take place in seperate dimensions).

Dragonball Z - this one's called "Harry Potter and the Ki to Power". Harry vanishes from Privet Drive, reappearing soon after. In his short time away, he's aged a couple of years, having trained in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber and learning how to use his Ki for various attacks and power-up techniques.

A second version is more of a merger of the two universes, with the HP characters in the DBZ roles.

Fullmetal Alchemist - I've done a few variations. In one, Harry loses an arm and leg at the Gate, and has them replaced with Automail, courtesy of Nicholas Flamel (who faked his own death - the Philosopher's Stone he left at Hogwarts was crystalized Red Water). Flamel used himself to create a Philosopher's Stone and had that Stone made into the core of a Homunculus (the same method as used in the manga). After Harry recieves his Automail limbs, he begins studying under Flamel.

Another version is more complex, merging aspects of both worlds. E-mail me if you're interested in more details.

The third story is titled "Scars of the Past". Set after the events in Lior, Scar gave his life to create the Philosopher's Stone. For unknown reasons, he's revived in Harry's world, appearing in the house at Godric's Hollow. Though not sure how he got there after his "death", he still takes Harry away and raises him.

In the next one, Harry's taken away by the seven Homunculi (similar to the anime versions) after Goblet of Fire, and lives with them for two years. He returns with alchemic abilities similar to Edward Elric's, and other powers like those of the Homunculi.

There's another one (which also features Homunculi), but I'm keeping that one to myself.

Gargoyles - I've done a few of these. Some involve Avalon and the Third Race, while another has Demona and Macbeth being sent into another dimension after they leave Avalon. They wind up in Harry's world, find him after Voldemort's demise in 1981, and wind up raising him (and falling in love with one another as well).

Inuyasha - far more than I can write down here.

The Crow - James Potter returns from the dead a year after that fateful Halloween night, in order to avenge his and Lily's deaths by killing a bunch of Death Eaters, including Malfoy, Snape and Wormtail, and proving Sirius is innocent, thus allowing Harry to be taken from the Dursleys and be raised by his rightful guardian. Once this is accomplished, he can rest in peace.

Jumanji - James is sucked into the Jumanji game when Harry is an infant. Years later, Harry finds this game, and starts to play it... releasing his father in the process. This story was concieved at the same time as the other "James Lives" story.

Pirates of the Carribean - Harry's sent back in time to be raised by Will and Elizabeth Turner, and later serves an an apprentice under Captain Jack Sparrow. They're sent forward in time when Harry's seventeen, capture a few of the students at Hogwarts (including Draco Malfoy), take them, Quirrell and Snape back in time, and execute the latter two (Voldemort's soul is dies with Quirrell, since his Horcruxes don't exist in this time period and thus can't anchor his soul to this world). Years later, the Diary Horcrux has gained a body and re-absorbed all but one piece of his soul, that which died with Quirrell. This new Voldemort is slowly dying, as his soul rots away. Captain Harry Turner of the Black Pearl and the rest of his crew return to the future to destroy Voldemort for good.

Incidentally, Harry's descended from both the Turners and Jack Sparrow.

Spawn - Harry was dead for an instant when the curse touched him, and gained a Hellspawn's power. Some years later, he learns to activate it.

One variation on this includes both the suit of a Hellspawn and a certain alien costume from the Marvel universe, making the Boy Who Lived into a cross between Venom and Spawn.

Corpse Bride - while on the hunt for the Horcruxes, Harry unwittingly marries Emily Luria, the Corpse Bride. I'm not sure just how he'd end up doing this.

Power Rangers - I'm certain a million variations could be done. But this version is "Harry Potter and the Mask of Zen-Aku". Harry recieves the silver wolf mask of Zen-Aku (from Wild Force) and dons it, gaining Zen-Aku's powers to use against the Death Eaters and Voldemort.

Pokémon - several versions. Harry goes to their world and becomes a Trainer, some of them come to this world and he becomes a Trainer, multiple variations on both. In at least one, Harry grows up in their world as Ash Ketchum.

Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street - Harry winds up with the immortal serial killers Freddy or Jason as an ally. Or perhaps both. I've written all three.

Transformers - the possibilities are endless. Most involve Harry becoming a Master-type Transformer (such as a Headmaster, a Brainmaster or a Powermaster) who controls a mindless, soulless body, either fighting alone or teaming up with a team of Autobots.

Tremors - this was a good series. Harry's sent to their world as an infant and is raised by survivalist, conspiracy advocate and gun nut Burt Gummer and his wife in Perfection Valley, Nevada. He returns to his world as leader of a team of Shriekers, who all have magically bonded to him as his familiars.

Yu-Gi-Oh - I've done a bunch of variations on this, too many to list now.

Stories from DC or Marvel Comics - I've done a lot of these, but they're complex. And some, I'm keeping for myself. Maybe I'll post them later.

Yu Yu Hakusho - I have two ideas for this. One's a "YYH characters in a HP-esque universe" story. The other, I'm not saying yet.

Trigun - this is a big one. I still have hopes for it, so I'm not giving any details here.

Well, that's it. Most of my crossovers, but not all. Feel free to borrow them. Let me know if you want to use an idea and want my notes for a story, and I'll send them to you. Until next time!

2005-10-11T20:45:00.000-07:00

I have GOT to start updating this thing more often...

Well. On to buisness. I'm currently working on a number of stories, but my priority is a seven-part series, with another one that will follow it. It's a crossover between Harry Potter and the DC Universe. The story began with the idea that Shayera Hol of Thanagar would become Harry's adoptive mother after Voldemort's defeat on Halloween 1981, and it took off from there. Here's the titles and descriptions:

***

Year 1: Harry Potter and the Wings of Thanagar
With a twist of fate, Harry Potter was given a happy life with his new mother, Shayera Hol of Thanagar. With new powers and good friends, the first year at Hogwarts is an adventure waiting to happen.

Year 2: Harry Potter and the Legacy of Slytherin
A mysterious warning, a hidden chamber, and a series of bizarre attacks: these and other things lie ahead of Harry in his second year. The young hybrid and his friends must struggle to uncover the secrets of a long dead wizard, and free Hogwarts from what lies within...

Year 3: Harry Potter and the Star-Crossed Voyage
One of Harry’s classmates has discovered his secret. But this is nothing compared to the journey of discovery and awakening that begins during his third year, when Harry and a group of others are flung into an adventure of galactic proportions.

Year 4: Harry Potter and the Doomspell Tournament
Harry’s back from space and hoping for a quiet year, but things heat up when Hogwarts becomes the site of the Doomspell Tournament, an event not held in centuries. Renamed and revamped for a new generation, the challenges are many. But for one of the champions, this could be the end...

Year 5: Harry Potter and the Order of the Titans
With Voldemort’s return and the death of Cedric Diggory, Harry must face the rising danger... of his fifth year! The new Defense professor is out for his blood, and strange dreams are more than meets the eye. But where evil lurks, good will band together... and the Titans are born!

Year 6: Harry Potter and the World’s Finest
Apokalips has come in Harry’s sixth year when Earth is threatened by the armies of Darkseid, an extraterrestrial emperor bent on conquest. Earth’s greatest heroes stand in the way, but another is plotting... and the end could be in sight for one of their own.

Year 7: Harry Potter and the Day of Reckoning
Albus Dumbledore has been murdered. The Ministry is no more. But from out of the darkness, a light shines: Katar Hol and his armada have come to join the war, and his nephew Harry prepares the Titans for a final clash against Voldemort and his servants. In the end, only one can survive... who will it be?

***

It's not the standard DC universe though. If this were ever published as a comic by DC, it'd be as an ongoing Elseworlds title. No Batman, Superman or Wonder Woman, though a WW-esque character named Fury does exist, and will appear with many other heroes in Year 6. The trio of heroes who appear on a regular basis will be Shayera, Dr. Fate and Wildcat (a retired hero in my series). Fate and Wildcat are his teachers outside of school.

There are probably a few concerns people will have with this... but for the Harry Potter characters, here's the major ones and a few other tidbits. Be warned: spoilers ahead!

- No, I'm not putting Harry (or anyone else) in a different House. He'll stay as a Gryffindor.

- No, Dumbledore will not be a manipulative old geezer. Harry will be right to trust him.

- Snape WILL be evil. He WILL die in the final battle, but it won't be Harry who kills him.

- Draco Malfoy will not suddenly turn into a hero overnight. It'll take three or four major events and about three years to change him from a spoiled brat of his first five years at Hogwarts into a young man who genuinely seeks redemption.

- Hermione isn't a major character in this series. She's more of a background person here. Nothing against her, I just felt it wasn't necessary for the character to have a large role in this series. Harry will have female friends, but she's not one of them.

- I HAVE decided on the final pairings for Harry, Ron and Draco (in his case, it'll be at some point after the final battle). They don't involve Ginny or Luna. Harry WILL date Cho maybe once or twice, but they'll mutually decide that it won't work out and remain as friends.

- Gilderoy Lockhart is an incompetent scumbag, and will get what he deserves. Ditto for Umbridge. I haven't figured out what her fate will be. Quirrell, on the other hand...

- My version of Year 2 will be somewhat closer to Jo Rowling's earlier plans. Make of that what you will. Year 3 is more of an original plot, and sets the stage for later events.

That's all I can say for now. I'm open to comments and criticism, so... until next time!

2005-08-11T18:22:00.000-07:00

It's been a while. I should have done this sooner, but I just didn't get to it.

For those of you who care, I am fully recovered from the ruptured appendix and a few complications that led to my long stay in the hospital. I came away 35 pounds lighter (not that I'm complaining, I needed to lose the weight anyway), which means I have to wear suspenders to hold my pants up. Tomorrow, I resume my part-time job at Blockbuster, which means I can start earning money and renting movies again.

But that's enough about my personal life. One good thing about my recovery time is that I got to read the latest Harry Potter book, twice. Naturally, I have story ideas as a result. One is a story I'd actually come up with before, and I'm modifying it to fit with the plot of Half-Blood Prince. The story is a crossover of sorts with one of my favorite anime/mangas: Inuyasha. In HBP, Harry discovers that Voldemort has created six Horcruxes, items which contain parts of his soul. As long as the Horcruxes exist, Voldemort cannot die (explaining how he survived a reflected killing curse way back when). The seventh piece of his soul resides within Voldemort's regenerated body. Five Horcruxes have been revealed:

1. Tom Riddle's diary, which Harry destroyed in his second year.
2. A gold ring with the Peverell coat of arms carved into a black stone that had belonged to Voldemort's grandfather Marvolo Gaunt, and was passed to Marvolo's son Morfin after Marvolo's death. Voldemort later stole the ring and framed Morfin for the murder of Tom Riddle Sr. and his parents. It was destroyed by Dumbledore in the two weeks between the end of Order of the Phoenix and the start of HBP.
3. A heavy golden locket that had belonged to Salazaar Slytherin, and later to the Gaunt family. It was sold by Merope Gaunt (Voldemort's mother) to the store Borgin & Burkes, and later purchased by Hepzibah Smith. Tom Riddle killed the old woman and stole the locket, along with...
4. A small golden cup with two finely wrought handles that had belonged to Helga Hufflepuff. Its current location is unknown. The locket was hidden away, only to be stolen by someone with the initials R.A.B. - possibly Regulus Black, leaving a fake in its place with a note inside. It is believed that the locket was at Number Twelve Grimmauld Place and has since been stolen by Mundungus Fletcher, or hidden away by the house-elf Kreacher.
5. Nagini, Voldemort's pet snake. Dumbledore theorized that Voldemort had turned his pet into a Horcrux in the summer of 1994, shortly before the Quidditch World Cup.

The sixth Horcrux in canon is possibly an unknown artifact that once belonged to Godric Gryffindor (unlikely) or Rowena Ravenclaw. But in my story, which is an alternate version of Harry's sixth year, Voldemort found the two pieces of the sword Toukijin, which had broken in chapter 407 of the Inuyasha manga during a battle against the evil Mouryoumaru. The sword's master Sesshomaru abandoned the broken weapon, leaving it at the site of the battle. Since the sword was forged from the fangs of Goshinki, an evil youkai (a youkai is a supernatural entity, something like a demon), it called out to Voldemort. He had Toukijin reforged, and turned it into his fifth Horcrux.

The sword and the locket were both stolen by Regulus Black after he learned of Voldemort's plans. The sword, which proved far more dangerous, was hidden in a cave with help from the goblins. The locket was stashed in a cabinet at Number Twelve Grimmauld Place until a more suitable hiding place could be found. But time ran out, and Regulus was killed by loyal Death Eaters.

Years later, Harry had inherited everything from the House of Black, including Regulus Black's vault. The vault held a letter for Sirius Black, Regulus's older brother, telling him about the Horcruxes. Having inherited the house-elf Kreacher, Harry ordered him to retrieve the locket (which Kreacher had stolen before it could be thrown out), and then sent him to work at Hogwarts (I admit it, I borrowed this idea directly from the book). With help from Bill Weasley and the goblins, Harry was able to unmake the Horcrux, extracting and destroying the piece of Voldemort's soul that lay within.

The rest of the story is still in the planning stages. Harry and Dumbledore are working together to find and unmake the last two Horcruxes (Hufflepuff's cup and the snake Nagini). But Toukijin will be the most difficult, as Goshinki's anger and hatred remain in the sword, and make it impossible for most to even handle it. Harry, on the other hand, is pure of heart and soul. He has never desired power for the sake of power, and is protected by his ability to love. Love and hatred are opposites, and so when Harry grasps Toukijin for the first time, it will result in a mental clash the likes of which has never been seen. I'm not going to say any more... until my next post, that is. See you then!

2005-07-20T14:46:00.000-07:00

I've been away for several days, due to a bout with appendicitis that left me in the hospital for ten days. I'm not used to using my laptop again after all this time, so bear with me. I may not post again for several days, so be aware.

2005-07-08T18:00:00.000-07:00

My name is Anon e Mouse Junior. Well, not really. But it's the name I've gone by for so long that I use it almost everywhere. Except for Yahoo. I had another name there and forgot all about it for a few years. When I rediscovered my account, I opted to stick with what I had. But I digress.

In the past, I've read a few of these online journals, and finally decided to get my own. The purpose of this blog is to give me a place where I can finally share parts of my life with the world. My thoughts, my feelings, my philosophy, and my sanity (or lack thereof). Gaining insight into my life (or lack thereof) is a rare event. I'm not an open type of person, as some can attest. But now, it's time to show who I really am. And more importantly, what I am.

I am an otaku.

An otaku is a fan, a person with an real interest in something. I have many interests, ranging from TV shows to movies to books. There are entire groups of people who like such things, and it becomes a part of their lives. My love of fantasy and fiction spread and brought many things into my life, and as time went by, I would discover new worlds that became a part of mine. Some of these faded into the background as time went by, others remain near the front of my mind. But I never really forgot any of them. And here, on this blog, those of you who read on will get to discover some of those fantasy worlds that I've been exposed to. Worlds that inspired me.

Over the course of several years, I've written plotlines based on some of these worlds - far more than I could ever hope to complete. Some of these plots will become available here, where you can read them and try to write the fanfiction that I could only begin. Just give me credit. "Inspired by a plotline from Anon e Mouse Jr." will do. Of course, maybe I'm just kidding myself, and none of these stories will ever see the light of day. I hope that won't be the case though, that one or more of you will at least try to bring these tales to life.

My name is Anon e Mouse Junior. My mind is full of chaos and storylines.

This is my blog.