Hi, everyone. This is ~emperial here. Rupix, aka Rueben Williams, was one of my oldest friends in real life. I've known him since I was in middle school. We graduated high school together. He and I were voted "Most Artistic" male and female respectively in our graduating class in 2002. In middle school we were Sailormoon fans and came up with our own fan story, called Sailor Moon U(niverse), with his fan senshi Sailor Sun/Universe, and mine, Sailor Omega. It was the first of many little collaborations we did throughout the years. I don't think we ever actually finished any -- our combined gifts for procrastination and inability to stick with one idea for very long saw to that -- but we made a point whenever we were in the same place to do something together anyway, because it was fun. He was such a giving and sharing person. I know I wasn't the only one of his friends to enjoy such collaborations and projects with him.

It is with a very heavy heart that I must report to everyone who enjoyed his amazing talents that he passed away March 2nd, 2010, in an accident. He was on a bicycle and crashed into a truck on his way home from work.

Rueben was an amazingly talented artist who never got the chance to fully explore or share his talent. He didn't have the breaks in life so many of us take for granted. He didn't have often have Internet access, but when he did, devART was one of his favorite places to visit. I know if he had been able to get online more and use a computer more, he would have been active here all the time and posted so many more pieces of artwork.

The works you see here represent but a tiny fraction of everything Rueben produced and everything he was capable of. Most of his work never saw a computer. Anyone visiting him wherever he was living knows: there were always stacks sketchbooks and piles of art on loose sheets of paper.

Even though I moved far away to the other side of the continent, Rueben still remained my friend. He was an amazingly loyal person. I regret that I wasn't totally reciprocal sometimes; his life over the past few years had become so different from my own I had trouble relating to it sometimes. But no matter what, Rueben always made sure our friendship stayed intact. We even had a pipe dream down the line that someday, when I had my own place, Rueben could come out to LA. I would've kept to that, too, if I had been given the chance.

I know if he were still alive right now that I would be able to count on his friendship for decades to come. I wish I could have told him how much I appreciated having him as my friend. I wish I had more pictures of us together. I wish I had remembered to call him on his birthday this year -- I did remember, but late in the day, and because of the time difference, it would've been a rather inconsiderate wake-up at three in the morning. Maybe I should've called anyway. I'm really glad that when I went to visit my parents last October, I got to spend time with him. He was always supportive.

He was planning on joining the Army. I'm sorry he never got to put on the uniform; he would have looked great in it, and I know it would have meant a lot to him to complete that goal and take control of his path in life.

I'm glad I saved every piece of artwork he gave to me. I still have the t-shirt he gave me for my birthday one year upon which he had drawn a picture of Yaten/Sailorstarhealer, my favorite senshi at the time. He always drew birthday cards instead of buying them; his were funnier than Hallmark by far.

Originally, I posted a comment to his page here, but then I realized I still remembered his password -- back in the day, he sometimes had me upload artwork for him when he didn't have Internet. I figured I should try and let everyone know out there who might have been watching his work.

I live in Los Angeles now, but I will be returning to Virginia to attend my friend's funeral. I will try to scan as much of his artwork as I can find and upload it here. My friend is dead, but his artwork can stand as a lasting testament to the fact that he was here on this planet, he touched a lot of people, he was amazingly talented, and he is loved and will be missed.

If you enjoyed Rueben's artwork, please, take the time to leave a comment. He can't receive them, but it will mean something to his friends and family to know that his talents were appreciated even by people who never met him and never knew firsthand what a kind and loyal person he was.