I mentioned in the author’s note of The Peculiar Perils of Straw Hat Parties that I was working on a design for the Polar Tang for that fic (and any subsequent fics involving Law’s submarine), and as I get ready to publish chapter 3 here it is, as promised! Click to enlarge/view higher res versions.
(well, at least here are the decks relevant to chapter 3: decks 0, 1, and 2. Decks 3 and 4 will come with later chapters, once I’ve had a chance to complete them)
Please let me know if there are any problems. Thoughts/comments appreciated!
I forget how cool this was. I am making a public statement to hold myself accountable that I want to get the rest of this layout up and posted! It’s technically already roughly drawn I just gotta… clean it up. No ETA or anything but… yeah. Wanna get this done.
After thoroughly cleaning my office from top to bottom and digging through every cabinet… I found the rest of the layout!! It’s super rough and hand drawn. I’ll scan and digitize it later. But for the time being…
So I wanted to save my process for when I posted the final piece since my WIP post was simply the teaser so yaaaaay I get to yap about these two lovely ladies woooooo!
So in my WIP I wanted to give Beryl a diamond-like silhouette to fit with her gemstone motife and because I thought it would work with her outfit, but then ran into the issue of the anatomy. I ended up relying on the silhouette provided by her clothing to get the idea across without the weird anatomy issues and also to make the drawing more dynamic. The way I drew her gold-circle scarf (guess that's what I'm calling it now) also changed to accommodate for this change in pose and I think it ended up benefitting the composition and working with the movement of her hair. Speaking of, I also changed how her bangs looked because I wasn't really liking the shape I gave them initially and also added a few more strands to her ponytail so it balances out the flowiness of Arcana's hair better. One thing you'll notice is that I didn't put in all of the minute details of their designs, mainly just getting the shapes down because the point wasn't really to do every single little thing 100% accurate to their in game models. I really like how I managed to translate Beryl into my style, and I learned more about simplifying the human form into shapes than I did previously because I initially struggled with it in the first draft.
Arcana on the other hand was way easier to draw than Beryl. Her design was very simple to simplify in my style and I really like how her hands turned out. I wanted to give her the "As Above so Below" pose because first of all, it was referenced in A Flowing Feast's main story and it worked with her parallels to Christianity. It also worked with the gesture of her body which I angled to mirror Beryl's when upside down. Drawing her Great-Goop-Gown(tm) was pretty fun, and I ended up rendering it with that classic Manus Vindictae blue, and the style I rendered that in helped with rendering Beryl's dress to match. I also adjusted the anatomy of Arcana's face, as I tried to do something with the eyes where they're both going in the same direction to follow where she's looking but it ended up bugging me with the drawing flipped so I changed it to how I'd normally orient the eyes, which I think was a good move on my part.
The background was a bit of a nightmare to figure out, though I settled on an Art-Deco design to match the era Beryl is from, and also because I liked how the geometric lines in the design I made contrasted with the very organic shapes present in how I drew Beryl and Arcana. With the overall piece there may be some things that I drew on the wrong sides (i.e. the gold tear going down Arcana's face) but that's just how the cookie crumbles when you're doing a composition like this where you want both of the characters mirroring each other to look good right-side up and upside down.
And now this is the part where I talk about these two and their dynamic because I think these two are super interesting together and I love this ship so much.
Whenever I think about a ship with the "Toxic Yuri" label I always think about how both parties are impacted by the relationship. Actually this is just what I do with ships in general, since I find it makes making daydreams about the potential fanfic you could write with them but just don't have the time to a lot more interesting. I think everyone in the fandom can agree that Arcana is clearly a god of some kind, there is no mortal explanation for half of the shit she does. Beryl knows this, she actually likes this because she finally has some surprise in her life. Hell, maybe she's also kind of scared because she's pushed right out of her comfort zone with a higher power. I imagine that Arcana doesn't really have any attachment to mortals, but she finds Beryl quite entertaining to toy with. When the two of them are together she would often push the limits on just how much Beryl can actually comprehend before she breaks. And also, maybe she feels a sort of kinship with Beryl. A shared detachment with the world that makes her quite fond of that poor diviner, maybe even some pity that a mortal was forced to handle knowledge only beings like her should have. Hell, maybe the true reason she pushes how far Beryl's mind can go in the hopes that she could have someone as an equal. Not a worshipper praying to her out of fear, not a mortal in fear of her, but someone who can actually stand at eye level with her. Meanwhile, Beryl is torn between her desire for freedom from fate's wisdom, but also the security of knowing how everything will play out around her. How Arcana's unpredictability could put herself in danger one day, how it could put her daughter in danger. So, against her own wants she dives deeper and deeper into trying to comprehend all that is Arcana. But even though she knows that future is impossible, she also wants to relish in the company of someone else who could possibly understand her, so she isn't alone watching the riverbed of fate.
To Arcana, Beryl is like Icarus. She loves seeing just how far those wax wings of hers can carry her until they burn up in the sun's blazing heat. The higher Beryl flies, the closer she gets to truly comprehending the incomprehensible, the more Arcana respects, and grows fond of her.
And even if Beryl is unable to truly comprehend her, even if she dies in the pursuit of understanding her, Arcana would never be able to truly forget her.
Draft sketches for some stickers of the Cosmic Overture gang because I realised I had free will and can make stuff. Literally my first time drawing Name Day and Voyager-
I'm happy to take recommendations on who to draw next!
Piecing together: The current timeline in Reverse 1999
CN SPOILERS up to Chapter 5 and Interlude. Long post.
The new Chapter 5 and Interlude for Reverse 1999 has shed some light on the Storm and its timeline. With all the new info, I've tried to piece it together as accurately as possible. Here's the timeline I have put together:
Let me break down my findings.
First of all, let's look at the IDM Computer with 37's Mother's prediction.
37 mentions "From 1999 to 2007, the emanation has taken place seven times". Here's how I interpret what the years mean in the Phenomenal column. It's like calling the effect of the Storm: for the first row, the 1996 Storm reverses the era 1999 to 1996. So the "1996 Storm".
The IDM only shows 6 Storms, so the 7th is the Storm that reversed to 1929. I wonder why she didn't include the 8th Storm (1929->1913), but that could be because it was the anomaly 2-day emanation that ruined the model prediction.
Here's a table I have made attempting to fill in the blanks of the IDM computer.
Let's analyze it Storm by Storm.
The 1st Storm (1999 -> 1996)
When: 23:59. December 31, 1999
Reverses to: 1996
Many sources for this, from the IDM showing 1996 to Greta, the writer of the letters in the interlude, mentioning it in her letters.
The 2nd Storm (1996 -> 1985) [Original: 2000]
When: 1996-1997.
Logs don't explicitly say when, but from the IDM we know it takes place ~1 year after the first Storm.
Reverses to: 1985.
We know this from Greta.
"Things remained unclear until time was reversed again. This time, we all witnessed that rain in the 80s. That was 1985."
She was safe in the Headquarters, witnessing the Storm reverse.
The 3rd Storm (1987 -> 1976) [Original: 2003]
When: On a 27th evening, 1987.
Greta: "The Storm in 1987 was predicted.
"…but the prediction was not accomplished by LAPLACE. The captive from Manus Vindictae names the precise date of that Storm."
In Chapter 3, we learn the Foundation captured a Manus Vindictae member who gave them the date of the next Storm. Greta also mentions a captive from Manus predicted it.
Thus, this is the Storm that took place in the breakaway incident, where Vertin was 12-years old and witnessed the Storm for the first time.
Reverses to: 1976
Greta: "Finally, I made up my mind to write to [37's mother]... ... ... She died. On the same day, the first and only timekeeper who just took office, the 12-year-old child returned alone from the Storm. She told us the time in the outside world at that point."
"...The last two digits in the number of the year after that Storm were exactly her name and her number: 77".
This was a bit hard to understand. I concluded the year it reversed to was 1976, as Greta said "the year after the Storm" was 77.
Original Year: 2003
Two years has passed from the 2nd Storm (1985) as this Storm took place in 1987. This fits with the year 2003 in the IDM computer. Also, when Sophia talks to Sonetto at the geometry graveyard:
Sophia: "Four years ago, my father was restored to a geometric body on his way back to the island. So was 37's mother who was also on that ship".
We know (or can at least assume) 77 is 37's mother who perished in this Storm. The current time is 2007, so four years ago is 2003.
The 4th Storm (~1976 -> 1930s) [Original: 2004]
When: 1976~1977/78
Reverses to: Some year in the 1930s
Original year: 2004
37: "In the initial four years, the emanation [Storm] has a pattern. First it brought us back to the 90s, then the 80s, and then the 70s. After that it suddenly leapt to the 30s."
When is the initial 4 years? 1999-2003, and this fits with our current pattern thus far from 90s -> 80s -> 70s. So the 4th Storm takes us to the 30s.
Sophia: "We miscalculated the impact area of the emanation. We thought the ships would be safe in the [...] current."
This confirms the Storm has a limited area it affects, where places hit by the Storm reverses to that particular year. The timeline of R1999 isn't going backwards linearly. This opens a lot of possibilities and eras we could visit.
The 5th Storm (~1930s-> 1912s) [Original: 2006]
When: Sometime in the 1930s
Reverses to: 1912
Original: 2006
37: ".... After that it suddenly leapt to the 30s. In the subsequent 3 years, [the emanation] took place twice."
When are the three years? The Storm that took us to the 30s was 2004. So the subsequent 3 years 37 refers to are: 2005, 2006, 2007.
The IDM jumps from 2004 to 2006. You can (very vaguely) make out "1912" from the year 2006. At least I think it's 1912. So the 5th Storm takes us from the 30s to 1912.
The 6th Storm (~1912s-> 1966s) [Original: 2007]
Here's where it gets interesting, and where I start to theorize things because there isn't much info yet about this Storm.
When: Theorized: 1912~1914
Reverses to: 1966
Original year: 2007
In 2007, there is a 6th Storm. This is likely the Storm before the beginning of R1999, which takes us to 1966 where Vertin meets Regulus.
Here's why I think this Storm fits with the IDM model and happens in 1912~1914, more possibly 1914.
In Chapter 1, Vertin lists down people she has met to Regulus.
Regulus: "Huh? It's Lewis. I know him!"
Vertin: "Yes. I took this photo several days ago. He was selling the Hoover Upright Vacuum Cleaners in the West End, and thought photos would help his business, so he gladly took this."
Regulus: "Why did you take a photo of him? How's he..."
Vertin's response is to take a deep breath.
This interaction was very interesting. Why is Regulus so surprised Vertin took a picture of Lewis? "How's he..." How's he what? Alive?
Now I'm not very familiar with historical figures named Lewis, so I could be very (and hilariously) wrong, but after researching who could be related to a business involving Hoover Upright Vacuum Cleaners, I speculate Lewis is John Spedan Lewis. His father, John Lewis, founded John Lewis, a British brand of high-end department stores.
In 1914, John Lewis hands Spedan Lewis control of a store named Peter Jones. Where is Peter Jones located? Sloane Square, London, which is in King's Road.
Vertin: "Yes. I took this photo several days ago."
This fits with the London location and timeline we know so far. So a few days before Vertin met Regulus, she was in an area of 1914s where she met Spedan Lewis trying to get his store [Peter Jones] going.
Judging from her reaction, he got reversed by the Storm that took them to 1966. Spedan Lewis died in 1963, which is why Regulus is confused why Vertin has a picture of him taken several days ago, and why a wealthy Founder of high-end luxury stores needs a photo taken to help his business.
I thought this was a nice clue that Vertin was in ~1912s era before the 1966s, though this is all just speculation. Feel free to add your own theories who Lewis could be.
The 7th Storm (~1966s-> 1929s) [Original: 2007]
When: June 3rd, 1966.
Reverses to: February 14th, 1929.
Takes place in Chapter 0, where Vertin and Sonetto meets Regulus.
The 8th Storm (~1929s-> 1913s) [Original: 2007]
When: February 15th, 1929.
Reverses to: 1913
Takes place in Chapter 2, where Vertin meets Schneider, Druvis, and Sotheby. Manus Vindictae escalates the Great Depression to cause an earlier Storm. This era only lasts for two days.
These two Storms are straightforward since we witnessed them in game. I won't go into details about them. We're still in the year 2007 according to 37.
The Current Year in Ch 5: 1914 [2007]
Chapter 4 takes place from August 26th to October 10th 1913. The new Chapter 5 begins in 1914.
Eight storms have taken place thus far. Here's a summary with the timeline for reference:
1st Storm (1999 -> 1996)
2nd Storm (1996 -> 1985) [Original: 2000]
3rd Storm (1987 -> 1976) [Original: 2003]
4th Storm (~1976 -> 1930s) [Original: 2004]
5th Storm (~1930s -> 1912s) [Original: 2006]
6th Storm (~1912s -> 1966s) [Original: 2007]
7th Storm (~1966s -> 1929s) [Original: 2007]
8th Storm (~1929s -> 1913s) [Original: 2007]
The Current Year in Chapter 5: 1914 [2007]
Random thoughts:
I hope this post helped paint a clearer picture of the Storms and the possible timeline! Cause, whew, the reason I made this whole timeline was to make sense of it myself. So much lore was dropped in the new chapter.
A question that remains unanswered:
How do people predict the Storm? How can they tell the time in the outside world?
Moissan: "Since Timekeeper hasn't reported the time of this era to the Foundation, you two, as the Foundation investigators, shouldn't know what year this is."
We know 37's group predict them through patterns and math, but what about the Manus Vindictae and Vertin? Vertin just seems to... innately know through her pocket watch and Storm countdown timer on her bracer, perhaps related to her great sense of arcanum. I'm really curious about that.
Biggest Takeaways:
The Storm isn't going backwards linearly and it has a limited impact area. So that means some places not hit by the Storm remains untouched, while others get reversed to whatever era the Storm brings. The first Storm probably had the widest impact.
This means an era in the 1912, for example, could be "reversed" to 1966 if it was hit by the 1966 Storm. That's what I'm getting from all of this. Anyone in the Storm impact area just... poofs, and arcanists/humans in that time era spontaneously appear with the buildings and such. I really love this idea-story wise we could jump around eras.
Then we have places that are completely immune like the Headquarters, Suitcase, and 37's island. They are the only ones who can consistently keep track of time as they're unaffected like spectators viewing the outside world. For the Foundation, Vertin is their way of tracking time in eras: what era did a Storm reverse a place to.
Again, some of these are just speculations and my theories. If you noticed any information I missed out or a mistake, feel free to let me know whether through tags, reply, or even my asks if you're shy. Or if you would just like to talk theories or about Reverse 1999 I'm more than happy to :>
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