Intermission # 2 - Light and Dark

Hey everyone and welcome back to the Realm! After so many articles for Starsea, I figured you could use a little break. There is still a lot to be covered, but I know that there are plenty of people believing that some of my articles are too dark or too graphic. Trust me, I've read smut, romance novels, and have done a ton of research into the human condition. What is depicted in this blog is so tame that it's laughable.

That's not to say that there aren't any dark spots and to that end, I have attempted to place warnings at the beginnings of those darker themed articles. I don't always remember because nine times out of ten, I have no idea what the article is going to be about. Like this one for instance... absolutely no clue whatsoever.

Other people are probably wondering why I keep shifting towards the darker themed genres which usually lands in one or more of the four main categories; drinks, drugs, sex and murder. Thank you, Captain Jack Harkness and Captain John Hart. That is a reference to Torchwood Season 2, Episode 1: Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang.

Now the reasoning behind the darker themes is actually multi-faceted in nature. The first being that writers write what they know and quite frankly, I have little to no personal experience in any of the Big 4. I know a little about beer and can rattle off the names of the most commonly known liquors which is about it for me. 

The second was limited to weed but I swear every kid in high school has to have at least tried it once. My friends at the time decided that I shouldn't smoke it and just get the contact buzz. Between you and me, I think they got tired of me eating them out of house and home. I hate the effects of weed but boy did it make me absolutely starving afterwords...ravenous.

The third I would rather not comment on and not because of your normal or average reasons, but mainly due to it being so damn depressing. I've never been seen as an actual girl. I am going to be one of the guys for the rest of my life. No one reads the book, just glance at the cover and walks away. *dark cloud hangs over her head*

Hook: Now hold up one bloody minute, wench! We've talked about this before. You can't keep degrading yourself like this.

Yuna: He's right, ya know. You have the mind of a genius, the heart of an explorer, the spirit of the Paladin, the soul of the Doctor and an imagination straight from Chuck's head. Aw whoops...Supernatural, sorry if its a spoiler. Chuck is God!!!

Artz: *rubs forehead in exasperation*

Goldeneye: The point everyone is trying to make, dearie, is that you are different, that you are special, something so incredibly unique that everyone else in the world is simply too dumb to understand.

Lumina: *flies out of a nearby mirror* Which means cheer up, little miss starshine, and do what you do best.

Blood Guard: *in unison* The impossible.

Right then, moving along before I start crying. The last category is murder and the only information I have available is what I've learned from TV shows and books; NCIS, Forensic Files, etc. So yeah, I'm trying to to expand my repertoire and have a greater versatility to work with.

Poseidon: The irony is that she only seems capable of making true humor is when she is breaking the fourth wall.

Durga: I like it when she breaks the fourth wall...especially when the Team Rocket effect is utilized via Poseidon.

Loki: I agree as well. I do believe Number Nine also used it, but do you remember the My Little Pony incident?

Durga: *snorts* The look on your brother's face while you're strutting your stuff like the ultimate badass just to get Yuna to laugh and here comes Thor, sees you and just says nope and walks away.

Loki: Only to end up with a rather lovely baby pink and baby blue tail with sparkles.

Poseidon: The funny part was that you gave him said tail by farting a rainbow out of your ass at him.

Crowley: *heard the last comment* I didn't know you were into that kind of thing, fish boy. Perhaps Missy and myself can whip up something for you.

*face palms before punting the Guard out of the article*

Good grief, how do I get anything done around here is beyond me. Okay, now where was I? This was meant to be an intermission piece about the current styles of my articles thus far. Sadly Dean Winchester said it best during Season 4, Episode 2.

Bad crap happens to good people.

Much of what I write is based on what I have researched or experienced first hand. Being lonely and kind, a willing ear and blunt honesty...these are things I know personally. I also know how it feels to bottle it all up inside, stick it in a chest, bury it in the core of the planet, then sink that planet into a black hole, only to blow up on the other side and causing all sorts of chaos. 

Even now, I wear a mask but not to protect myself but to protect others that would be affected by my words and actions. It infuriates me, biting my tongue, not being in a position to basically get the fuck out of dodge, and not able to be true to myself nor able to express it. These are things that I know so my character, Artz, exhibits similar traits though not to the same degree of severity as I do.

I'm also very insecure, uncertain, and I have the self esteem the size of a mustard seed which just so happens to be one of the tiniest seeds in the world. I will admit that it's grown a bit since meeting several amazing and wonderful people on fanfiction.net which I highly recommend you check out the site. Not just my account but there is a plethora of stories on there that just...the feels, man, The Feels!!! There are currently three people I interact with via fanfiction.net.

Serenity Rose aka Ren - This guy drives me insane but has the uncanny ability to spark some of the most intense surges of imagination that I end up sending multiple private messages because I hit the character limit so many times.

Timelady Hope aka Hope - She's a walking billboard which I absolutely love because I don't branch out much culinary wise. She paints, her job is making jewelry, and it is an absolute joy to converse with her. Not to mention that she leaves reviews for both my stories and my blog, so I will love this woman for eternity.

Anna Lanaria aka Yuna aka Amethyst, etc - the reason for all of her titles is because she is the reason. That's it...The Reason. She believes I can do the impossible and I believe her. I've always said that I don't believe in myself, because that's what I've got her for. I believe in everyone else and she believes in me. She is my truest believer. 

Hook: You best stop it there, wench, otherwise you'll be launching into her profile.

Yuna: What am I? A ship? *glances at the image below* That doesn't count, damn it!

Hook: *chuckles before being pulled away by Poseidon* What the...*wide eyed as Yuna summons Artz's Prism Fire* Run! *disappears*

Artz: *sighs heavily as she rubs a hand down her face in exhaustion* This is my life...and I wouldn't have it any other way. *winks before pulling a Vash move*

Starsea - Part X - Shattered Sight

Hello all you lovely people and welcome back to the Realm! Last time, the article ended in a rather odd way. Killian Jones has to decide whether or not to break the mirror containing the image of Erin Oswald aka Silverfrost. Let's see how that turns out, shall we?

The Terror of the Deep stared at the man in the mirror, his heart in chaos. Could he actually do it? Yes...yes he could. The problem was whether or not he should. Just because he has been supplied with a mirror that is not his own, it does not mean that it is the mirror he needed to break. When Hook first emerged, he was extremely dark, volatile, wrathful even but how did he end up that way if his soul was wiped clean from breaking the mirror?

'Sometime today, brat.'

'No.'

'What?'

'I said no.'

'What the bloody hell does that mean?'

'It means no.'

'You cannot be serious? She's gonna die!'

'NO!'

The mirror vanished and he was falling through the air. The pain was intensifying and he could barely breathe. He was blinded by a golden light, one he had not seen or felt in a long time...Swan Lake. A woman wrapped her arms around him and brought them down to a gentle landing. The light faded along with the pain, leaving him and the woman standing in front of each other. She lowered her hood to reveal the Magi of Light.

'Hello Killian.'

'Swan Lake. What the bloody hell is going on because I honestly have no idea what I'm doing?'

'Really because you looked like you were doing rather well.'

'How so?'

'Everything up till now has been spot on, completely seamless. Then you hit a snag and no, I don't mean that whole thing with the bubbles and mirror. I mean the bastard that's trying to have your soul for dinner before moving onto Jimmy. *is very confused*

Several years ago, I met a man named William Smee. He was infected with a specific kind of creature that is often referred to as a demonic parasite. This particular parasite is rather resilient and every few centuries he gets loose. Don't ask how, we still haven't figured it out.

Anyways I made him a vessel a power so that he couldn't be reinfected, but in doing so, he managed to get away from me. I hadn't been able to find him until now. A few months ago, he managed to infect Kali, but she's too strong for him so he decided to manipulate certain bonds. Specifically your bond to Kali which you instinctively answered but instead of being able to infect you like he wanted, he was repelled.

I didn't actually mean for this to happen. Didn't even know it was going to happen in the first place. I was just trying to save someone and that someone used my power to repel him away from you. *Smee* Yeah, he protected you without even realizing it but because Kali didn't come when you called, you instinctively called out for help which resulted in your rather brief interlude with a kraken...'

Kraken?! Koschei was a bloody kraken?! No way, he was far too kind to be that infamous and terrifying creature. Sure he was rather lather and was undoubtedly part squid/part octopus but he wasn't a kraken. The younger Jones would have been bloody terrified if that were the case. The blonde hairrd woman giggled at his reaction.

'Killian, everything you've heard about krakens, all those horror stories...bullshit. Every bit of it is complete and utter bullshit. Krakens are considered to be the kindest and most gentle creatures in the entire ocean. In fact, they try to protect people...keep from entering dangerous places like sailing into whirlpool country, sailing into serpent territory, and basically keeping them from them from dying some rather gruesome deaths.

Their reputation as sea monsters is due to their size and the fact that they use their tentacles to wrap around a ship to slow it down or halt it altogether, but no one actually stops to consider the why when presented with giant tentacles that are breaking the mast and sails into mulch by accident. *off topic* Ah yes, sorry. I just love explaining the whole Terror of the Deep thing to people...the expressions are priceless. *Swan!* Okay, okay. Don't get your knickers in a twist.

Now then...when you called out for help, albeit unknowingly at the time, the parasite used you like a relay and infected Koschei, who went in search of Kali as requested. Unfortunately some of his limbs were not under his control which has resulted in our current predicament. The parasite used Koschei to put Kali in such a position to where she would gradually weaken and after who knows how long, he would take over body which would result in everybody dying.

Magnetic resonance, dude, and the whole planet is boned. However Koschei is clever and knew that you would eventually cross paths with them and decided to pull a Look at me, I'm a target maneuver. How you may ask by literally using your sorry ass as a bullseye because there was no way Balthazar was gonna pass up such a golden opportunity. The time in which the God of the Sea is at his weakest, unaware of who and what he is.'

'I'm not the God of the Sea. Hell at this point, I don't want to be but I have to because otherwise Artz and my son are gonna die and lord know what will happen to Koschei and Kali. I don't want to be Poseidon Jones! I want to be Killian Jones! I want the woman I love to look at me and see me and not him! She wants Poseidon!'

'Dude, take a chill pill already. You're never gonna stop being Killian because your full name in the future is Poseidon Killian Jones, so you are actually both. As for all this emo crap you got going on...why does it matter. *opens his mouth* Hear me out, okay. Okay, let's start with something simple, shall we?

Has she ever deliberately called you Poseidon? *no* Okay, next question. Has she ever said that she wanted Poseidon? *yes* You sure because I'm pretty certain that she said she needed Poseidon and not because you think she loves him more than you. She needs his power as a water elemental and that exceptional control of his, but she never actually said that she wanted him.

Hmm...okay, I'm gonna have to take you somewhere. Fortunately, it doesn't require leaving the mindscape. Just a little fourth wall breaking. Take it away, oh great authoress! *scenery blurs from a forest to a hall filled with floating fragments*'

Killian inspected his new surroundings, fascinated by all the things he was seeing reflected in each fragment. Every fragment seemed to have a different reality but then narrowed it down a bit because some fragments clustered together. He assumed that they did this when they all pertained to that particular universe but showed different places within that universe.

He couldn't help but notice that many of the fragments depicted Artz or himself and sometimes the Dark Captain. There were also other people that appeared frequently but he had no idea who they were...well there went Yuel and Noel...and the creepy butler. He smiled slightly upon seeing Silver in almost as many fragments as he and Artz were.

'Welcome to the Hall of Shattered Sight. This place is created by the consistency of breaking the fourth wall. Should people ever stop breaking the fourth wall then this place would simply disappear like it never existed in the first place. Here...you can peer into other worlds, realities, time periods, specific locations, and even inside a person's mind, but be careful with that last one. If you go too deep, you'll lose yourself and be forever caught within their subconscious mind.

The fragment you want is over there. *points at a small sliver almost invisible to the naked eye* The size of a fragment tells you just how narrowed down your search perimeters are. In this case, my search perimeters were of the thoughts and feelings of my mother in regards to Killian Jones before she came on board with Silver. Trust me...this one tiny shard will most certainly alter your perception of my mother. To activate it, just touch it.'

The former lieutenant stared at the fragment a moment before hesitantly lifting his hand. He looked over at Emma who gave him a smile of encouragement and he touched the sliver. Said sliver shattered into dust, the particles flowing into his eyes and being absorbed.

Artz: And that's a wrap on this one. The next bit takes on a different tone than this one and don't worry, I'll be swinging back around to the pesky parasite soon enough.

Hook: You could have made it easier if you just stayed with your original train of thought.

Artz: True but Erin's soul comes to the Sanctuary verse in a different way so by not touching the mirror, Killian insured that you actually came into being.

Hook: Fair enough. Is it wrong to say that I absolutely love the concept of the Hall of Shattered Sight?

Artz: Not at all. Plus it's something that I haven't seen anyone else do so if it is entirely new and original then copyright! I own that bitch! *maniacal laugh*

Yuna: Thanks a lot, moron. You've set her off. Do you know how hard it is to turn off her genius mode?

Hook: *smirks* Indeed I do and I do so love watching her work. Intelligence, particularly high intelligence, is an incredibly attractive quality to me.

Yuna: *rolls eyes* Dude, stop insulting her...high intelligence? Can you be any more degrading?

Hook: *deadpans* We all know how biased you are when it comes to my wench's intellect and creativity, Yuna.

Durga: There you are! *grabs his sister and starts pulling her away* I guess you forgot about that appointment with a certain terratologist.

Artz: He's off to see Hella...well that's gonna be interesting.

Hook: To say the least, considering that her daughter is insanely attracted to the brat and flirts with him constantly. It's hilarious. Right then, I'm off to cause some mischief and mayhem. *jumps into a puddle and disappears*

Starsea - Part IX - Guardian of the Ocean

Hey everyone and welcome back to the Realm, but let's be honest, a novelty I know, you're probably binge reading the whole damn thing. Why? Because my fan fiction also has this unusual phenomenon. Anywho...last time, I just went ker plop because I had a massive headache that decided to take up residence in my cranium for several hours. Ugh, you just gotta love allergy season, right? I've been whipping out articles like mad though. 

This particular article will involve a time skip because outside of those two *points to Artz and Killian making out nearby* shagging like a pair of Nubbins and some too sweet, makes your teeth hurt, family time for Killian, Artz and Silver...not much else happened. Hey! It can't all be action packed adventures and whirlwind romances. Sheesh. Go on, go on, shoo. Go read Part IX of Starsea.

The ocean eyed man was currently sitting with his legs crossed on the the floor. His eyes were closed and his breathing was slow. He was practicing a meditation technique that Artz had apparently taught him as a child though he still has no recollection of any of their time together. The purpose of this exercise was to allow him to consciously access his personal mental landscape but in his case, it was a seascape.

Why did he want to enter this so called aquatic paradise? To communicate with the one known as The Scourge of the Sea, James Hook. He had been meaning to do this since he had learned the truth about his son, about Clare and Emma, and about the woman that tied them all together. He and Hook still had to clear out the alterations made to the dark captain's memories, but he was also very worried about what the future Poseidon had said to the Star Child.

To shatter a mirror that wasn't his own.

Yes, he definitely needed to speak to his counterpart sooner rather than later. That was the plan but then the entire ship lurched and practically threw him across the room. Artz, who had been sleeping at the time, snapped her fingers and both of them were fully clothed. Was there anything her powers couldn't do?

The two made it top side and were greeted by the sight of a very large tentacle covered in suckers. There was another near the front of the ship and one behind them on the back of the ship. The men went to attack the tentacles with their swords and something inside him screamed.

'Stop! Don't hurt him! *rebuttals from his crew and a name popped into his mind, along with the brief image of the creature he had met before when he couldn't find Kali* His name is Koschei and he's my friend! So please don't hurt him!'

'Holy shit, little Killi! You actually remember him?!'

'No. I met him in the seascape. Kali didn't come to me when I called so I asked him to find out what happened. I'm guessing he did. Otherwise he wouldn't have stopped us.'

Silver finally made it topside and the saw the tentacles. He immediately jumped overboard and disappeared into the darkness of the ocean. Artz's head snapped up and she raced to the nearest tentacle. She reached out and touched it, only to yank her hand while hissing in pain.

'Something's wrong, isn't there?'

'Koschei...he's hurt badly. Several of his tentacles are trapped under a giant pile of rocks, possibly from an underwater earthquake. The ones that are not trapped or wrapped around the ship are keeping Kali from being pushed into what I believe is a developing volcano.'

'There must be some way we can help him!'

'Not we, just me. Silver doesn't have the raw power and might required to even extract Koschei, let alone Kali. Not to mention that his control is learned, not instinctive. I need a true Child of the Sea.'

'What the bloody hell does that mean?!'

'It means that I need Poseidon and Hook! Poseidon is a natural elemental, meaning that he was born with his powers already active. Hook is considered the Heart of the Ocean, capable of withstanding the true force of the Sea and direct it towards Poseidon. When they work together, they can flood the entire planet and wipe out all life on said planet.

As for Silver, he is what's called an awakened elemental, meaning that his powers were activated later in his life and is therefore weaker than a natural elemental. He can't convert to his elemental form without killing himself but he can breathe underwater and communicate with most of the higher life forms of the sea like Koschei.

Now if you excuse me. I need to go and do what I do best...the impossible. Stay here where you won't get yourself killed. Better yet touch one of the tentacles and connect to Koschei. Who knows...he might be able to restore some of your lost memories.'

Before he could object, she jumped into the water and disappeared. Killian had never felt so powerless in his life. Smee pushed him over to the closest tentacle and gave him a look that said to do what he was told. He reached out and touched the suckered appendage. He lost all awareness of his physical surroundings but he still had the sense of touch, almost like he was in between the seascape and the physical world.

Bubbles floated around him, all of them depicting some kind of event. Some were from his childhood. Others were from a world unlike anything he had ever seen before and then there were the ones that vibrated violently, their surfaces constantly rippling. He couldn't actually tell what was going on within the bubbles themselves. All of it was distorted but color him surprised when his counterpart seemingly stepped out of him like before.

Something was wrong. The Scourge of the Sea barely looked conscious. His eyes were half closed and out of focus. He walked...staggered towards the violently rippling bubbles like he was drawn to them against his will. He tried to call out to him but he found himself locked into place, unable to move or speak. The bubbles started spinning around the Dark Captain and Killian watched as the man transitioned from looking like him to someone else entirely.

The man had short brown hair, amber brown eyes and was a few inches taller than Artz, but his face is what gave him pause. It was like he was seeing a masculine version of Clare. What did it mean? The clothes the man was wearing were similar in nature to the ones in the mysterious trunk that appeared from nowhere. The man smiled at him and it made the Captain's heart ache.

'Erin!'

The younger Jones watched as a woman with short dark blonde hair and forest green eyes ran up to the former captain with a smile on her face. Up until she smiled, she seemed a bit plain, ordinary even...he would even go so far as to say unimpressive but then she smiled and his heart sped up from intense attraction. The way her smile lit up her face, making her eyes sparkle with happiness...absolutely breathtaking...and then he received the shock of his life.

'My Artz.'

'My Silverfrost.'

She was Artz?! How could that be?! They looked nothing alike?! As if answering his question, one of the nearby bubbles burst and he thrust into a different environment. People were running and screaming and he didn't know why until he heard a woman shout Artz's name that he realized why. She was disintegrating, literally falling apart...like sand caught in the wind.

The one known as Silverfrost was dragging a nearly catatonic Artz who was having the mother of all emotional breakdowns. Whoever that woman was, she had been precious to her...someone irreplaceable. He pushed her up and over the fence and began climbing the fence, only to fall victim to whatever force was causing such destruction.

'Run, you clever girl, and remember. RUN!!'

And she did, tears streaming down her face...but how was he following her if he died? His soul...it was his soul. Even in death, he refused to abandon her...just like James had said.

'Wherever you go, I will always follow.'

Hook was Erin, Erin was Silverfrost, Silverfrost was the name Artz had given his son in honor of her fallen friend, but what if that friend had followed her somehow? What if his soul got trapped in another's body and rendered dormant until the original had been destroyed? His soul had shattered which caused Erin's soul to awaken but because he had been inside him so long, he had become warped or maybe molded by his past?

His attention returned when he heard the blonde screaming in agony. A man with electric blue eyes was attacking her with lightning bolts...what the hell? Standing within some kind of rift or a tear in the fabric of reality...was himself, but why would he be there?

'I hate to rush you, Light, but we've got company!'

He wasn't able to see much beyond the rift but there was definitely movement on the other side.

'If I go any faster, her heart will stop!'

'So get part of her through and I'll take control of the water in her body to keep her heart pumping!'

'You idiot! Both you and Jimmy would feel it too! You'll essentially be dying with her!'

'Just shut up and do it because we're running out of time on both sides!'

Suddenly he was seeing through his future self's eyes...no, it was more than that. He could feel it. Something was moving within him but it felt so natural. It made him want to cry from relief. Something inside of him had given way...physically. And then there was pain, every part of him in searing agony. His mouth was open in a silent scream. He couldn't think, he couldn't feel, he was splintering apart. Someone called his name.

He opened his eyes to see a mirror before him. The man known as Silverfrost was within its reflection, his hand pressed against it like it was a glass pane. What was he trying to tell him? The man removed his hand from the surface of the mirror then placed it on the surface again. Did he want him to touch it? Would it make the pain go away? There was something at the back of his mind telling him not to do it. Silverfrost kept repeating the action, his face becoming more and more desperate.

A small portion of the mirror darkened and began showing images that were underwater. Artz was sinking like a lead weight a trail of blood coming from the back of her head attracting quite a few sharks. His son was doing his best to keep them away from her but was clearly struggling. Koschei was too far away to actually reach her, not without abandoning Kali. What was he supposed to do?

'Break the mirror, you stupid brat, and save them.'

No! That would destroy Silverfrost! He couldn't do it!

'You have to, Killian! If you don't then James Hook never exists! Erin knows this and he is willing to make that sacrifice, to give up everything from that lifetime to be with the woman that is his soul...to be the Captain she loves so much. Please, Killian...she needs a true Child of the Sea. That's who you are but to save them all, you have to be more than that. You have to become the God of the Sea and to do that, you have to let him go. *tries to object*

Damn it, brat! Were you not paying attention to the wench earlier?! She said she needed Poseidon and Hook, a true Child of the Sea and the Heart of the Ocean. If you don't break that mirror, she'll die and I don't mean here. She'll die in the other world, alone in the dark. Is that what you want?!'

Artz: And....CUT!!!! *snaps a clap board together*

Hope: Ooh...suspenseful.

Ren: More like Typical Artz. Just couldn't resist a cliffy, could you?

Artz: *sniffs indignantly* I have no idea what you're talking about.

Hope/Ren: *deadpans* Uh huh. *gets shot into the sky by a stream of water* We're blasting off again! Whee! *ding*

Artz: Thanks, Tsukimi. 

A well endowed woman with long blonde hair walks out of the shadows.

Tsukimi: I am more than happy to aid thee in thy plight, Your Ladyship. May I inquire as to when the Order of the Birds will have its grand debut upon thy blog?

Artz: *shrugs* Depends on how I feel. Could by the Sekirei, the Sins, the Wizards, the Blades, the Librarians...

Tsukimi: Thou hast spoken enough, Your Ladyship. I shall not impede thy work any further. *turns to leave*

Artz: You drew straws and lost, didn't you? Otherwise you wouldn't have asked.

Tsukimi: *blushes in embarrassment* I shall bid thee good night, Lady Artz. *walks away*

Artz: Thought as much. *goes back to work*