King, leader of the Redcloaks, forfeits his gilded sabre. It would identify him too easily, and not only that, but it is a mark of everything he used to be. Everything he isn't now.
In its place he takes up a greatsword. Made by the Redcloaks' gifted blacksmiths, the blade is a deadly work of art, gleaming silver, double-edged and nearly as long as he is tall. A sword that could cleave a man in two with one fell swing.
Shane adjusts to it readily, combining his swordsmanship with his new, incredible strength. He may carry a smaller weapon with him in case of close combat, but his greatsword is the one he charges into open battle with. This behemoth of a sword kept the Great Leopard at bay for a dreadful, heart-stopping moment.
All the good swords have names, the smiths tell him, and Shane listens. He names the greatsword after his fallen crocodile. Grahv.
Grahv is not even a name. It is a word in the Stetriolan language that means something akin to monster or demon. Shane loathed his Bile-bonded spirit animal, and even after subduing him, his fear remained; the reptile was naught but a tool, to be used and promptly put away.
Shane had little respect for the animal while it was with him. He is not as understanding of the natural way of things as Abeke. When Grahv burst from the water and snapped his jaws around the kangaroo's head, he could not see an animal that needed to feed like all the rest. He saw a soulless creature that thrived on inflicting pain and terror. This is why he felt no remorse for binding the crocodile to his will for so long. He was completely, utterly devoid of empathy for the creature.
And at first glance, Shane choosing the same name for his sword seems callous. The sword, an inanimate object, is an uncomfortable reminder of how Shane viewed his spirit animal.
Rollan can say what he likes. The truth is, Shane reveres his sword. From the moment he first saw it, it filled him with awe. There is nothing that invigorates him more than the steel ringing when he pulls it from its sheath. He treats it with the dignity he now knows the crocodile deserved, spending hours polishing it, sharpening it, cleaning his enemies' blood and entrails from it as he nurses his own wounds. It has become a part of him in the same way that the crocodile itself is taking over his body. An extension of his arms. A heavy weight strapped to his back. It has saved his life, Abeke's life and those of his people many times over.
This time, he is using Grahv for good.
Shane's choice of name for his greatsword is a nod of respect, a silent apology and a glimmer of compassion. Most of all, it is his acceptance that the two of them are forever linked.
Alright, so @ihaveglitterbombs and I were talking about Spirit Animals and I promised I'd make a longer post about some of my issues with the source material. Soooo here it is!!!
Before I begin, I just need to preface this by saying that this is deeply, deeply personal. I was going through some serious shit when I read these books and I inadvertently ended up trauma bonding with Conor's character. I will touch on some of my own experiences, just for my issues with the books to make sense, so here's your warning for:
Childhood bullies
Mentions of the american foster system
Antisocial personality disorder (apd)
Anxiety
Discussions of severe trauma and the effects it has on children
As well as just a general warning for canon topics such as war, canonical character death, and near death experiences
I will also touch on my problems with Devin Trunswick/Worthy, so i just need to clarify this now: I DO NOT HATE WORTHY'S CHARACTER. On the contrary, I actually find him to be one of the most compelling figures in the story. HOWEVER, I am going to talk about the shit he did to Conor in a not very nice way, as well as how I would have handled their conflict if I had written the books.
I will need to reread the last half of Fall of the Beasts before I tackle some of the bigger overarching problems I have, so this post will mostly focus on Heart of the Land. This is my biggest issue with the entire series, as well as the point that most deeply affected me irl, but I will mention some of what else I remember from later on.
Anywayyy, with all that out of the way, HERE WE GO!!!
When I was 4 years old, my parents adopted my two older brothers. Both of them had some pretty severe behavioral problems that led to them relentlessly bullying me. That pretty severely messed me up as a kid, to the point where I remember more of the fictional worlds I immersed myself in than I do of my actual life. Spirit animals, Percy jackson, Guardians of Ga'Hool, Warrior Cats- they were my escape from reality, and it was an escape I desperately needed.
When I was 11 (the same age a summoner would be, mind you lol), my oldest brother was arrested for breaking into the neighbor's house. He was put back into the Foster system because we just could not take care of him anymore. There, he was diagnosed with Antisocial Personality Disorder. What does that mean, you may ask? Well, colloquially, you might call that psychopathy. That's right, I was raised alongside a psychopath with violent tendencies for my entire childhood! *insert finger guns here*
Those experiences shaped me... As intense trauma tends to do. He almost killed us a few times! He tried to light the attic on fire, he was a kleptomaniac, he successfully killed a family pet by breaking her spine and letting her starve to death (rip Rosie, you were a good bunny), and he tried to stab one of his foster fathers while we were going through the whole custody battle/court case mess, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. All that to say I was going through some seriously traumatic shit while reading these books.
You may be wondering how any of this ties into Spirit Animals and my connection to it, so here it is: My default trauma response was the same as Conor's!
The first book, Wild Born, came out in 2013 (I was 8) and I picked it up as soon as I saw it. I literally grew up with these books, snatching each new release up from the library as soon as they came out. I clung to these characters, and specifically to Conor, because I saw so much of myself reflected in him. I *needed* to see someone like me, going through the horrible things he went through and coming out the other side, to have hope that I would be able to do the same thing.
I, much like Conor, primarily feel one emotion: Happiness. We're the sunshine characters, the shy kids with hearts of gold, the people who are loyal to a fault... but below that, there is a genuine fear of allowing yourself to feel anything but happy. You've built your entire personality around lifting other people up, even as you feel like you're drowning. It's become second nature to ignore or repress any emotion that doesn't align with the happy-go-lucky, cheery persona you've created.
That's what I was going through, as I read the Spirit Animals series. I latched onto Conor like a damn koala bear because I felt like he would understand me. It was like: "Here's this kid who always has a smile, who is friendly and trusting and naive, who you just want to wrap in a blanket and squish... And now, we're going to give him a bully that torments him, put him through actual war, make him lose his very sense of identity, and see how fucked up he gets 😃"
You might be able to see how appealing that prospect was to me lol.
Now, with the context out of the way, here's my actual issue with the second series- specifically, Heart of the Land:
They were doing such a good job. Do you remember how changed he was in the first half of the book? If you compared 'Wild Born Conor' with 'Heart of the Land Conor'- those are just two fully separate characters!
'Wild Born Conor' is sweet, trusting, very open, naive, all the qualities you would expect from an 11-year-old. 'Heart of the Land Conor' is quiet, angry, jaded, depressed, isolated- in a word, he 👏 is 👏 traumatized 👏 He's become a boy who has experienced the toll of War and death, but can't yet comprehend The Horrors. May I remind you, THESE KIDS AREN'T EVEN TEENAGERS YET. He's been through literal hell, but his brain is literally incapable of understanding or processing it!!
And how do they portray that? I'll remind you: he canonically has night terrors. He has severe anxiety. He has panic attacks and flashbacks. He's bitter and lashes out at people who get too close. Conor now and Conor then are two completely different people. As I wrote in one of my fics from years ago: "... that person is gone. The person I once was, that innocent little shepherd boy, is long dead and buried. I'm a new person now..."
And they were doing such a good job at showing that!!! At showing that trauma does change you. That going through terrible things changes the way your brain deals with future scenarios! They were doing SO GOOD...
And then what happened? Allow me to direct your attention to Chapter 11 of Heart of the Land. In this chapter, our favorite boy has a nightmare. He wakes up and descends directly into an anxiety attack. Abeke, my dear sweet Abeke, jumps to his side and soothes him and makes sure he's okay- but she does something else too: She kisses him. And not even "true love's kiss"! Just a nice little kiss on the forehead, directly over the scar from the Wyrm.
Initially, when I first read the book, this part was fine with me. Little 12-year-old, aroace spec Me thought "awww that's sweet, these friends love each other so much..." Except that wasn't all. The author just. Never wrote about it again?? It even says it IN THE BOOK:
A LONG TIME???? WHAT DO YOU MEAN "A LONG TIME"??? IT'S BEEN- WHAT? SIX MONTHS?? AND HE WASN'T EVEN *WITH* THE OTHERS FOR MOST OF THAT- HE WAS BACK IN EURA WITH HIS FAMILY!!
Okay, gotcha. All you need is half a year, friends who Love you Very Much, and a platonic kiss to heal a child soldier's trauma AND A LITERAL POSSESSION. Okay. Sure. Got it 👍👍
LIKE WHAT????
This book came out in 2017- EIGHT YEARS AGO. Even now, STILL, to this day, it makes my blood boil. I remember walking my best friend home from church events and ranting to her (lol a lot has changed since then🤣) about how upset I was- and I still am!
Anyways, i just graduated college! I have a degree now! What's it in, you may ask? I'll tell you: my degree is in Behavioral Science- psychology, the study of trauma, sociology... THAT IS MY THING. That's what I went to school for, that's what I graduated in, that's what I want to do with my life!!
12 YEAR OLD ME DIDN'T NEED A DEGREE TO KNOW THAT THAT'S SOME BULLSHIT RIGHT THERE.
It hurts so much, not because they just gave up, but because they gave us a glimpse of what could have been and then just got tired of it?? "Oh, I'm sorry, is my trauma inconveniencing you? My bad, let me just- *un*traumatize myself for your writing ease and convenience!"
Now look. I know it's just a book series. It's not that serious. They're just fictional characters, so why am I getting so worked up about this?
Here's what people usually fail to understand: your brain doesn't know the difference between fictional people and real people. You can get attached to and love fictional characters without your brain ever making the distinction between what is real and what is fake.
I loved Conor... but more than that, I needed him.
I needed to see someone who felt like me: someone who had been scared of showing emotions, finally reach the point where they can't keep up the facade anymore. I needed to see him be accepted and loved, trauma and anxiety and panic attacks and all- *because I needed hope that someone would do that for me.*
But that's not what I got, is it? Instead, I got a sisterly kiss on the forehead, a reassurance that "You're alright", and somehow that was supposed to make everything better??? Somehow that "fixed" every fractured part of him and he was suddenly all better??
Do you have any idea how damaging it is for a kid who was going through everything I was, seeing this character I loved be healed with the Power of FriendshipTM? Do you understand how broken I felt when I tried that... and it didn't work? It made me feel like there was something wrong with me, that I didn't love my friends enough, that my friends didn't love me enough- it made me doubt myself and my relationships because their love wasn't fixing me. I still had anxiety. I still had night terrors. I still flinched at loud noises and tried hiding all of my Big Emotions behind the veneer of a fake smile.
That's the part that hurts the most: that my trying to "fix" myself eventually led to the (completely false) understanding that having trauma meant you were broken or subpar in some way. Instead of teaching me how to deal with it, how to overcome it, how to develop that inner strength to combat my hurts, I was told that Love Heals All and if it doesn't work, you aren't trying hard enough.
Is that really the message we want these books to be giving kids? Cuz I don't think it is.
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Now, this part is going to be relatively short compared to the rest of this post, but it's time we talk about the other part of my issue with canon: Worthy.
The first two characters we are ever introduced to in Wild Born ARE CONOR AND DEVIN. There's been beef between them since literally the first page of the first book.
On paper, the concept of a bully returning as a reinvented individual, redemption arc in full swing, is not one I am opposed to. Hell, Draco Malfoy is my favorite Harry Potter character so the entire trope is not one I am unfamiliar with!
However, here's where the first part of my issue lies: the power imbalance.
It's something that I touched on in one of my other fics: Conor was not *allowed* to portray anything other than meek servitude while he was serving Devin. He was literally an indentured servant, sold to the Earl to pay off his family's farm debt... he was mistreated, neglected, taken for granted-
And then in Hunted, it just got worse! He and Rollan were thrown in the Howling House, nearly killed, then hunted across the Euran countryside by the same boy that tormented him for his entire stay in Trunswick!
AND NOT JUST THAT. It's shown over and over that Devin *likes* hurting people. In that final fight in Lord MacDonnell's garden, he sent Elda after Conor. Once he was wounded, with a literal chunk missing from his shoulder, Devin held him down and would have made him watch Briggan die, if it hadn't been for Finn and Donn taking all of the Conquerers out like a damn bomb going off. Devin didn't want to kill Conor- he wanted to *hurt* him. He wanted to make him feel small and alone and weak- and that has always rubbed me the wrong way.
Here's the thing: 'Wild Born Conor' would have forgiven him. He *did* forgive him- or, at the very least, he wanted to see the best in him, which is why he and Rollan went to Trunswick in the first place!
'Heart of the Land Conor'? No. There is always a point of no return, and i think Devin found that mark- and then just kept pushing until he was so far beyond it, there was no conceivable way he could have come back.
When Devin became "Worthy", he tried to leave behind all the bad things he's done, to try and start things over with a blank slate. He's trying to be better, and we see that he is mostly successful! I do believe that people can change, and I think Worthy truly has...
But it just... doesn't matter anymore. He's pushed Conor over the breaking point, he's hurt him, he's tormented and belittled and threatened and, after a certain point, I think Conor would just. Snap.
Worthy can change. Worthy *has* changed. But it doesn't matter how different he is, or how much he apologizes, or how he's matured and realized that he actually was a massive dick... Conor does not owe him his forgiveness. Conor does not have to forgive him, or trust him, or even *like* him! He. Owes. Him. Nothing.
My brothers hurt me. They pretty severely traumatized me. I wish I could say I didn't understand the whole 'life or death' situation, but my oldest brother *did* try to kill me. (He hid behind a door and tried to jump me- the only reason I made it out is because I could run a whole hell of a lot faster than he could... but that's a story for a different time).
I don't know war... but I do know bullies that thrive on pain. The whole message that was portrayed in the latter half of the books was the power of forgiveness. That isn't necessarily A Bad Thing. However, Conor should never have forgiven Worthy for the things Devin did.
In the comments of one of my fics, I had this delightful conversation with one of my readers:
Just like I said here, even if Conor would be open to the idea of forgiving Worthy for Devin's actions, it will not be anytime soon. He needs to work through all the other child soldier/wyrm possession/war veteran stuff before he can even *think* about dealing with the trauma from his time as Devin's personal punching bag.
☆☆☆
Finally, in conclusion, I am not at all satisfied with the tail end of the second series. I still love the books and I always will, but there is so much I would have changed.
I understand that trauma is a difficult thing to write about, but I would have preferred a half-hearted attempt rather than the complete erasure we got. If you feel like it's too difficult to write about trauma when you're the author of a series about child soldiers, you need to step back and reevaluate what you're comfortable writing. If that isn't something you feel good portraying, *let someone else do it*.
Thank you for coming to my TED-Talk. I'll probably be back with more thoughts later... but I feel like that pretty much covers all the most pressing points.
At long last, here is the masterpost for the main characters' designs. This is how they appear in my head, and how they will appear in A Revised History of Erdas. So much thought (and research) has gone into this. I've taken a lot of creative liberty here, but I hope you enjoy how I envision these characters!
Conor
For Conor, I drew inspiration from Celtic and more specifically Irish culture.
He has strawberry-blond hair, as shown on the covers of Hunted and The Dragon's Eye. The colour is usually described as reddish-blond or reddish-gold because the term "strawberry-blond" does not exist in Erdas, but for clarity's sake I have named it as such here. It is slightly wavy and long enough to rest on his shoulders. Occasionally, he will incorporate braids into his hairstyle in light of his elevated status after the war. Otherwise, it is left loose. His pale skin is sprinkled all over with freckles; he has gotten a lot of them more since he left Eura, due to sun exposure. His eyes are green as described in Against the Tide.
He is chubby and muscular in equal measures. His weight is known to fluctuate due to the harrowing events he goes through on the daily, but he normally has a generous amount of extra fat all over. He started off on the shorter side, but had an impressive growth spurt during the war and the year after. His final height is 5'6.5", or 5'7" (170 cm) by rounding up, which he reaches by age sixteen. This is a little above average for Euran men.
When his facial hair starts to come in, he lets it grow, resulting in a patchy beard by the time he is sixteen. Shaving is not in a Euran shepherd’s nature.
He is physically disabled in two ways. The first is that he is missing the first joint on his left index finger from being bitten by an unidentified animal in Fire and Ice. The second is the permanent limp in his right leg from a broken ankle in The Dragon's Eye that healed badly. He uses his bond token, Pathfinder, to support himself when he walks.
Many scars crisscross his face, arms, legs and back, but they aren't easily visible against his pale skin. The ones that stand out the most are the burn scars from the fire Kovo unleashed in Sadre, particularly one running along his jaw. The spiral-shaped mark of the Wyrm on his forehead eventually shrinks and fades away to nothing, much to his relief.
His tattoo of Briggan is on his right bicep, frozen mid-run.
While not a physical trait, he has a heavy Euran accent that is comparable to Irish in the real world. At times it can be hard for non-Eurans to understand, but luckily his friends know him well enough to decipher his speech even when it is thickest.
He wears the simplest clothing of the bunch: Just a beige tunic, grass-stained trousers and a pair of warm sheepskin boots from home. His thick travelling cloak is worn over his shoulders, fastened to one side by a wolf-shaped brooch. He rarely swaps out his travelling cloak for a regular one, preferring its weight.
The head of his hand axe is inlaid with silver designs. He covers the blade with a piece of leather and keeps it in his belt by way of a special loop, with his cloak gathered over the arm that draws it.
Abeke
For Abeke, I took inspiration from the Yoruba and Igbo ethnic groups of Nigeria.
Her coily dark hair ends just below her shoulders. It is worn in braids that begin at her hairline and trail down her scalp in straight lines, ending in up to twenty individual braids. She often stacks wooden or green beads on the ends. This style of braids is unique to her tribe. It also denotes her marital status; Yufandi girls and women wear their hair in braids if they are unmarried, and loose or covered if they are married. She only ties her braids back when she is hunting, travelling, fighting or doing some other kind of physical activity, letting them down at times when the group is resting. She has warm-toned dark brown skin with some freckles scattered here and there, mostly on her arms and face. Her eyes are dark brown.
She is broad-shouldered but lean, with toned arms and legs. Her final height is 5'8" (172 cm), which she reaches by age fifteen. This is considered fairly tall by Niloan standards. She has been the tallest member of the Four since the very beginning.
Like many Niloans, she has tribal marks on her face. Three long, thick, vertical grooves on each cheek indicate that she is of the Yufandi tribe, and three smaller ones in the middle of her forehead indicate that she is both Marked and a Rain Dancer. Chinwe cut the latter three onto her skin immediately after she summoned Uraza, as part of the ritual. This is an age-old cultural practice, one Abeke harbours no ill feelings about.
She has a number of other scars, both from the war and from her life as a hunter in Nilo. These are quite noticeable due to her dark skin tone. The most prominent is a mass of scar tissue on her left shoulder from when Tai Li stabbed her in Fire and Ice. The wound left her with permanent nerve damage, and she still experiences mild discomfort and tingling in that area. She also experiences numbness and increased sensitivity to cold in her toes from the deep frostbite she sustained whilst in Arctica.
As a tattoo, Uraza crouches on her right forearm, claws extended.
She speaks with an elegant western Niloan accent, similar to a Nigerian one on Earth.
She prefers light, comfortable clothing that allows for ease of movement. In Nilo, she wore a simple wrap made of handwoven cloth. When she joined the Conquerors and later the Greencloaks, she switched to more practical clothing for the colder environment: A long-sleeved white shirt under a length of goatskin and a pair of light pants. The triangular, tasselled thing at her waist on the book covers is a small bag, attached to her woven grass belt and used to store her personal belongings. She has leather shoes, more like slippers, that allow her to move silently. If the environment demands it, she will switch to hardier, but still graceful, boots. She prefers to wear her regular cloak over one shoulder, but wears her travelling cloak over both so it doesn't trip her up.
She uses a self bow, well-made, crafted from Niloan wood and embellished with subtle yet beautiful carvings. Lenori gifted it to her after the war, with the help of the Keeper. When not in use, it will either be unstrung (for long-distance travel) or left as is (if she needs it at the ready). In both cases, it is carried on her back, secured to her quiver.
During their stay in the Gulf of Amaya with the Conquerors, Abeke and Shane got matching beaded bracelets to represent their friendship. These bracelets are recurring items for the both of them that provide comfort and, later, anguish. Abeke stopped wearing hers after Shane's betrayal, but could never bring herself to get rid of it. Inexplicably, she thought to take it in her bag when she and Rollan set out from Greenhaven in Fall of the Beasts. When she made up with Shane, they discovered, to their shared surprise, that they had kept their bracelets the whole time. Abeke's is gold, white and black with striking geometric patterns, evoking the Huichol beading style of Mexico. It is one of her most meaningful possessions.
Meilin
The Han dynasty of Imperial China is where the inspiration for Meilin's character came from. Central Zhong overall is meant to be reminiscent of this period.
She has tan skin and long, straight, silky black hair which is usually styled in a topknot behind her head, with or without short plaits running down the sides (the hairstyle she is shown with on the cover of Blood Ties). Her eyes are a brown so dark they appear almost black.
Her build is stocky and well-muscled; she could not be called slender. Her final height is 5'3" (160 cm), which she reaches by age fifteen. This is the average for women in central Zhong, and makes her the smallest member of the Four.
It is perhaps a testament to her skill in battle that she has by far the least physical scars of the Four. The most noticeable are the light burn scars on her back that wrap around to her right shoulder from the fire in Sadre, and even then, those are covered up in public.
For her pierced ears, she usually opts for small teardrop earrings made of jade or silver.
Her tattoo of Jhi rests on the back of her dominant hand. She made the bold decision to get more tattoos in Jano Rion after the Second Great War: A sword, modelled after her own legendary Sword of Teng, along her inner right forearm, with a Yin Yang symbol at the tip near her wrist. These tattoos hold great personal meaning.
Though she speaks the common tongue with ease, she has a discernible central Zhongese accent, which could be likened to a Chinese one in the real world.
Her usual attire is a paofu robe (more specifically jiaolingpao) over a sleeveless white shirt and beige trousers, with a belt or sash at her waist and black leather boots. The robes she favours are knee-length, allowing for freer movement, padded for warmth and with fitted leather sleeve-cuffs to restrain the wide sleeves and protect her wrists and forearms. Her favourite robe is made of red silk and embroidered with dragons. She wears her travelling cloak over her shoulders, but is also known to don a green robe instead, especially for regular wear. In general, she gravitates to stronger colours like reds and oranges. She dresses the most vibrantly (and expensively) of the Four.
Generally, Meilin presents herself in a masculine way. Her favoured clothing, accessories and even hairstyle are more typical of men in Imperial Zhong. On top of gravitating to these styles because they are simply the most practical for a warrior, Meilin feels more comfortable and like herself in men's clothing, and enjoys dressing this way because of how confined she felt when conforming to the standard imposed on Zhongese women.
Her sword, the legendary Sword of Teng, is a jian that has been passed down through her family for many generations. In times when she needs it strapped to her, she will wear a belt instead of a sash to hold it in its scabbard.
Her trademark accessory is a small Yin Yang amulet attached to a silk thread, meant to be worn as a necklace, but often just carried by her side. It was her last birthday gift from her father, given to her on the day she summoned Jhi. This amulet later becomes her bond token, Peacefinder.
Rollan
Although the original books made it a little ambiguous, from details sprinkled throughout and especially the description of Aidana, we can conclude that Rollan is the Erdas equivalent of Native American. In ARHoE, this is an integral part of Rollan's character. For his tribe, I referenced the Algonquian (and more specifically Wabanaki) peoples of eastern Canada.
He has weathered, light brown skin and long, thick, straight black hair. In the first arc, he wore his hair loose or tied back in a ponytail. After the war, when he and his mother had the opportunity to reconnect with their tribe in Amaya after being isolated from them for so long, Rollan adopted many of their customs. He came back with his hair in two braids, a style that had been practised by the Wascow and many other Amayan tribes for centuries. His eyes are dark brown.
Years of malnourishment on the streets made Rollan leaner and lighter-built than the others, and even while living the good life at Greenhaven he remains somewhat scrawny. For the same reason, his final height of 5'4" (162 cm), which he reaches by age sixteen, is below average for northern Amayan men.
He isn't able to grow nearly as much facial hair as Conor -- just a few dark hairs above his upper lip. He scrapes off his thin moustache when circumstances allow it, in accordance with his tribe's customs.
When he was a child, he was caught stealing and had his nose slit as punishment. The scar left behind is one of his most recognisable features. He has too many other scars to mention.
Both of his ears are pierced, a procedure he had done while staying with his tribe. He owns and wears a variety of earrings, but his favourites are a pair of feathers that fell from Essix.
Essix's tattoo is emblazoned on his upper chest, her outstretched wingtips skimming his collarbones. He has a multitude of other tattoos, all of which were done during his time with the Wascow. His whole body is marked with symbols representing his tribe, spirit animal and achievements, including one for every battle he has won. The process was gruelling, but Rollan's ego has soared since getting them.
The subject of his accent is an interesting one, because unlike the other three, Rollan didn't grow up speaking the language of his people. Common is the only language he is fluent in, and, of course, he didn't grow up with a fixed person to influence how he spoke it. The result is his accent being an odd blend of speech habits from the constantly changing cast of people around him -- his mother, the people at the orphanage, the Widow Renata, his street gang and even foreign traders who spent time in Concorba. There is influence not only from different Amayan tribes in his pronunciation patterns, but parts of Eura and Zhong. Conor, Abeke and Meilin have never heard anything like it.
He typically wears a long-sleeved grey shirt, trousers and a pair of deerskin moccasins. Even though his choice of attire is rather simple, it is worth more than anything he ever owned as an orphan in Concorba. Beadwork features prominently on his clothing and accessories, including on his earrings, in patches sewn on his trousers and moccasins, and his treasured sash (which is best visible on the cover of Fire and Ice). His worn green cloak hangs around his shoulders. He doesn't own a regular one, only Tarik's travelling cloak.
The dagger he favours is a straight, mean-looking blade with an ornate hilt. He keeps it sheathed at his belt when not in use.
I thought it would be fitting to give them all a matching item. Something they carry around that reminds them of each other. Of their team. So, while in the capital of Zhong on their victory march after the war, the friends came across a collection of attraction charms and decided to each buy one. They were made of semi-precious stones, small and teardrop-shaped, attached to a little ring with a cap of silver or gold. They each chose a stone with meaning that resonated with them. Conor's is labradorite, which symbolises inner peace. Abeke's is sunstone, which stands for strength. Meilin's is amethyst, which symbolises balance. Rollan's is garnet, for clarity. The kids paired them with charms of their spirit animals and wear them in various ways -- on bracelets, in pockets, on necklaces close to their hearts. Every time they look at them, even if they are a thousand miles away from the people who keep the other pieces of the set, they think of their family.
There you have it, the altered character designs for the Four Heroes! These will be incorporated into the ARHoE masterdoc when it is completed. More pivotal characters to follow!
ALL MY RECENT FANART for my favorite forgotten childhood book series which i've elected to call Greencloaks even though that is Not its name. i started rereading them w my partner and i really have SO much love for them, cant wait to continue my reread and draw more!!
It stemmed from the fact that Cabaro, even while feeling fear, kept convincing both others and himself that he would easily defeat Gerathon. But the result spoke for itself.
Additional arts:
And their references:
P.S.
Finding even basic cobra anatomy lessons for art is practically impossible (not to mention references), so knowing where, how, and why to draw certain things is a real challenge. Sometimes the result turns out decent purely by accident, which means next time you have no idea how to recreate it. I tried to capture Gerathon's emotions from the previous comic, but something entirely new came out instead. And the failed attempts where the eyes go kept being erased so many times that I nearly rubbed through the paper, making it harder and harder to draw in that spot each time.
