Chapter 4: Page 51
I feel like Mitra’s trying a line we’ve all tried before–and with unfortunately similar results. Has this ever worked for anyone? Outside of an Ocean’s Eleven movie, I mean?
But seriously, Mitra’s mystery vulpin “friend” definitely doesn’t look like the sort to take such a slight sitting down (or standing up for that matter), so we can all probably imagine this isn’t the end of the exchange despite Mitra’s hilariously on-the-nose “SORRYWE’LLJUSTBEONOURWAY” exit.
It’s okay, Mita. Not everyone’s quite mastered the art of the graceful exit. We can’t all be superstars. And JANIK, hoo jeez, Janik, you have got to learn when your friends are trying to ghost out of there. You’ll notice that Rook and Beck had the wherewithal to not say anything, yeah?
Anyway! We’ve got some wonderful guest art for you this week, a commission from Western Deep reader and community CPat by the artist Maura Pompili aka Arven92 featuring some characters that eagle-eyed readers may remember from our prologue chapter waaaay back when!
If you don’t remember this character, he and his family appeared in but a single panel back when Kenosh was convincing King Dabheid that a peace envoy to Deltrada might be a good idea (goodness, that sure didn’t age well, did it?)
It’s absolutely fascinating to see even the smallest background characters having a resonance with readers, which plays very much into a belief that Rachel and I both share–which is that every character should feel like they’re meant to be there, and could support their own backstory if need be.
A lot of fan fiction has been written about side characters who only show up briefly in stories, as they provide a unique window for readers to explore the world. Sometimes these characters can actually grow into their own tales (the barkeep of the Land’s End Tavern was introduced in a short prose story, for example). If you’re a Lord of the Rings fan, you might be amused to learn that the Xbox/PS2/Gamecube RPG Lord of the Rings: The Third Age stars a number of characters who are based entirely on extras from the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings films, as the developers weren’t able to base their characters on any from the book and had to pull exclusively from the film material.
This unfortunate ermehn and his family are clearly featured extras, as the whole view literally shifts to focus on them as Kenosh sets up our core conflict. The artwork by Maura is absolutely wonderful, featuring an emotionally charged re-envisioning of the scene as this poor ermehn fights to his last breath to ensure his family can escape the incoming canid patrols. It’s a harrowing scene, and we likely know how it ends…but it speaks to the harsh reality of the ermehn struggle, and encapsulates a lot of the injustice we see within the Northern Wastes and it also helps to crystallize just what it is Hardin and the Sratha-din are fighting for.
Thank you SO MUCH Cpat for commissioning this piece in the first page, and for Maura/Arven92 for the incredible work. And of course thank you BOTH for deciding to share it with us and the greater Western Deep community!
If you have any Western Deep artwork you’d like to share with the community, don’t hesitate to tweet it at us @thewesterndeep or email it to hello(at)westerndeep(dot)net!
That’s clearly not Mitra, stranger. Mitra has two earrings. This unknown person has only one earring and a recent crossbow wound. Easy mistake to make. Happens all the time I’m sure.
You know glasses actually work pretty well as a basic disguise. After High School I had to get a pair and in the years following I did pass by some old classmates who didn’t even glance my way in stored. Of course my shy blank no recognition face may have also helped. We read cues to decide if we approach and ask are you so and so?
I’ve heard tales, possibly apocryphal, of Christopher Reeve going to lunch while filming Superman movies, and people would recognize him when he was in the Superman suit but not when dressed as Clark Kent. Which suggests that the glasses thing is true.
Then again, I’ve heard similar stories of Dolly Parton entering a Dolly Parton lookalike contest and losing, and she doesn’t wear glasses. So maybe people are just bad at recognizing other people? (That one either happened a bunch of times or is fake because I’ve heard versions of it with other celebs, like Charlie Chaplin.)
I think I’ve heard the Chaplin story before too, maybe we are just that bad at it. I guess Vulpins don’t have our problem ;]
Calling it: Mitra and mysterious vulpine ‘friend’ are totally bitter exes. That look they give Mitra in the last panel exudes “Really? THAT’S who you replaced me with?” energy.
The wide, grounded stance. The arms crossed in ineluctable judgment. The withering arch of the eyebrows.
It’s not the wind that’s causing this sandstorm it’s the raw nuculear force of this vulpin’s body language.
Ex-lovers, or estranged family. I’m betting one of those two.
Anyway I’m sure this little incident is over and done with now and that other acquaintance of Mitra’s certainly won’t be hassling them again or reporting them to authorities or anything inconvenient like that.
My guess about the relationship is…sisters, or a close friendship gone sour. Also, I have to give Janik props for standing up for Mitra. The fact that she almost immediately inserted herself between her friend and a rather threatening newcomer speaks to her loyalty and courage.
That eye shadow certainly has “wealthy aunt who saw so much promise in you until you disappointed the entire family” energy.
“I have to give Janik props for standing up for Mitra”
This.
We know Mitra will unhesitatingly risk a quarrel through the skull for Janik. It’s good to know Janik is equally ready to throw herself in the path of a (less immediately deadly but decidedly more complicated) quarrel to spare her pointy desert mother mentor.
As someone for whom genuine physical peril is less stressful than a hostile social situation I say full kudos to Janik.
Mitra’s new official nickname is Pointy Desert Mother Mentor.
Ha. The “Pointy Desert Mother” part was supposed to be strikethrough text but it seems the html doesn’t work down here in the comments.
Wild Mentor Doggo (WMD for short) for me.