You find yourself lost in a thick cloud of haze. It was not supposed to be like this, the fog was supposed to have cleared up, or at least you heard it was supposed to have cleared up by now. You forget who you heard that from, but the bastard who lied to you about this and set you on this path is sure going to get it, when you get back; if you can get back.
The fog parts for a brief period to allow you to see a light poke through the shield of white, a reprieve from your travels? You run forward, hurriedly. As you get closer, you can see it is the light of a fire that is breaking through. Somebody in a red coat, pilgrims hat, and serape covering their persons sits at the fire, staring into it's blazing wonder. They look up at you, and you can see a bright toothy grin peak through the shadow created by their brim.
"Ah! Hello there Traveler! Come and sit a spell! Best to keep warm during this daunting haze."
You accept their invitation and step forward; you can not parce from the sound of their voice whether or not they are man or woman, though either way they do not seem a threat. They sit hunched at the fire with their red serape covering most of their body, giving their frame a small and meek look.
"So I guess you've heard that the fog was supposed to clear up, eh? That a path was opened up to riches in the hills? Yes, that is what everyone who passes by has heard." They laugh a wicked laugh, "But the threat is not fully extinguished, and the people are not completely safe. Do you know where you are?" You nod your head no. "You are in the Ghostlands! Or at least that's what the newcomers have dubbed it. Strange happenings in these parts, though the natives say it has always been like this."
They light their lantern with the fire in front of them, and keep it near their face as if to add some forebodance to their words. With this you can see that their visage is bandaged up, with no discernible features to make out within the gaps of the white tape covering their appearance. "Yes, you chose to come from the southern route, didn't you? Hah! You chose the hardest path! Everyone goes around to take the eastern route through the Elklands."
Damnit, who was it that gave you this map again? And who was it that helped set you on this path? They're bound to get their ass kicked.
"But now you're here, and here nary a colonial nor native is seen wandering through these parts. It's just you and me, and those of us who choose this route have to stick together, for mutual security. If a voice speaks to you from the fog, I'll tell you whether it is just imagination or not, and you the same for me. If you thought about rough backing it through here and proving something to yourself, you're in for a bad time, ha!"
They hand you a can of something, with a small spoon to scoop out it's contents. Though you swish your spoon through the gray mush that seems to inhabit this can, you feel afraid to actually explore it's taste.
"And out here, we use stories for bonding and company. Stories are just as valid a currency here as any other. Might you have one to spare?"
You have not created your story yet; you set out on this path to create your story.
"Hah! Perfectly fine if haven't a story yet, that is why we set ourselves on routes that seem suicidal to others." They pour a bright liquid from their canteen into a small cup and hand it to you. "Might you be willing to stand a tale weaved by a fellow death-wisher?"
Taking a sip of the contents in the can, you attempt to keep yourself from spitting it out as you nod yes.
"Perfect." They clap their hands together, causing a light gust that blows the flames of the fire toward you. "I present to you tonight, a tale of lost ones finding a home." They take out a piece of string, moving their hands in a hypnotic rhythm as they conjure creations to match their words. "A story of seven sinister sins plaguing the land," they make a seven of diamonds. "A story of 4 sisters hoping fate will string their paths together," they proclaim putting up a 4 of diamonds. "The two siblings tied together by a string of their own making" they change it to a 2 of diamonds. "And the one star guiding all of them together," they make the star symbol out of their string. "This is our story today, and I hope you find it at least entertaining in this dark and murky night. To take a look at the tapestry presented before us."
Hey you, yes you 🫵 Are you interested in a Grimdark Western-Fantasy based off of Lakota/Sioux/ Oceti Sakowin culture set in a faux 1890s-1910s setting? Well have I got the story for you.
Summary: we follow Eiva Black Dog as she escapes her sheltered life in the corrupt political world that her father brought her up in, and try to truly make a difference for her people in a way that matters | A Bounty Hunter duo finds themselves in trouble as the new government cracks down on non-licensed magic users | 3 witches who have lived for over a millennia are looking for their lost sister | 6 corrupt knights try to avenge their brother who has been slain | A foreigner from a far off land comes to make things right | And the Circus comes to town
Quick sketch of Ikumak <3 I'm going to be drawing Kalea next!!
Ikumak's design and the culture he's from feeds a lot of inspiration from Yupik and Inuit cultures, but also feeds a little bit from other canadian tribes like Ojibwe, at least when it comes to the stories meant to originate from his home, Astivia, since Astivia is made up of 5 major groups rather than just one large group.
WIP art of Nuvua Tuktulok and her son, Ikumak Tuktulok.
Nuvua and Ikumak are both healers, though only she can use her abilities due to the fact Ikumak doesn't have all ten fingers on his hand. Though, both of them have physical features of the Tuktulok family's magic, giving them green eyes when naturally they would be brown.
There's a lot of antler coding in the patterns in her gloves (which are made to be similar to Kakiniit, which she does have on her face) to call back to the Caribou spirit they descend from :)
Ikumak has a lot less of a natural-themed design, as he takes on a completely new role unlike any of his ancestors.
this is an animation i made a bit ago as a sort of proof-of-concept for my character Kalea in my story. She's in an arctic region, yes, but she originates from the Southern Islands, which is more or less inspired by Hawai'i. So, even though she lives in Idavalli, I would like to think her aunt and uncle (her caretakers before she was split up from them due to the war which takes place in the story) taught her how to use her powers in a way other than being a seer. Which makes her a very power adversary against anyone she fights.
The general idea is, Hula mostly, but much faster?
I've been having help from a friend who more or less knows ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi, so I've been trying to interweave that like I have been with Inuktitut and Norwegian (Norwegian purely because I'm most familiar with it since I've been learning it on and off for years. Though if anyone who knows any native languages spoken by the Sámi people, please reach out as I'd like to use that instead for best representation, but have no one to speak to about it. Same goes for Inuktitut or Yupik! If you know any of those languages please reach out!)
