Song of the Eastern Sands: Page 19
Theo doesn’t quite have his source locked down, which is… curious, of course, but when you’re a career scoundrel like he is, it can be tough to get specifics. Beck and the others have clearly heard this rigamarole before, so it’s really just standard operating procedure to some degree. The important thing is: occupied guards! It’s a dangerous job, but the reward could well be worth the risk.
Following page 20 next week, we’ll be taking a short hiatus from Song of the Eastern Sands that’s expected to last three weeks (basically until the beginning of April). Have no fear, though! We’ll just be inverting the words-to-art ratio for those weeks — I’ll be writing short stories that take place in the world of the Western Deep and Jerome will be doing some simple illustration work to accompany it. The stories will cover some fun elements of the world we haven’t hit on yet, and I’m excited to share some new prose with you!
The point of the hiatus is to build up a buffer of pages once again, so as we move into the next act of the storyline we’ve got a cushion as the page complexity increases. Even if we don’t wind up needing it, we’ll definitely want it.
This week, instead of guest art, I wanted to share a pair of drawings that Jerome did! This past day (on our side of the globe anyway) was Jerome’s birthday! He decided to take the opportunity to give us all a fun pair of Cain & Yurk-related images!
The first chronicles the dynamic duo in a precarious situation! Yurk is suplexing Cain, as they often to do one another. They like to rough-house! It’s part of their goofy charm! However, Yurk neglected to explore the target location of said suplex, which just so happens to contain a certain Ermehn warlord enjoying a peaceful moment with his sharpest of knives.
So, that’s bad. That’s really, really bad. No telling what Hardin’s reaction is going to be, but I’m guessing Cain didn’t make it out of there without a few cuts and bruises.
This next image chronicles an aftermath of sorts. Cain is, of course, alive. He’s also wishing Yurk a heartfelt happy birthday. Well, “heartfelt” may be too strong a word. It’s actually more of a setup.
See, what’d I tell you? It was all an elaborate setup. A con! Now the two of them have been suplexed, and balance has once again been achieved. All is right with the world — at least until the next time they start playing practical jokes on each other. Who knows what nonsense these two will get up to in the future?
Ooh, the plot thickens! I like how Rook is skeptical of their mysterious informant, and Beck is flat-out annoyed (Theo, please un-annoy Beck before her teeth once again become the stuff of nightmares…)
I especially love the last panel, where you have Asha’s ever hopeful expression framed by Beck and Rook’s more abrasive looks. Asha is fast becoming my favorite member of the Sand Spiders, along with Rook :)
I wonder if their informant is on their side, or if they are about to walk into a trap…
In the meantime, I’m looking forward to the upcoming short stories. Also, I love the mini Cane and Yurk update ^^
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JEROME!!!
Erhem. Now that I’ve gotten THAT out of the way, great Page Stuffs today – including Theo being less forthcoming than his minions might like (srsly, does he do any actual work himself, or just sit around sipping tea and scheming while his underlings take all the risks?) as well as the Return of Beck’s Scary Teeth (although mercifully not quite so scary as before). And then we have the two bonus pieces from Jerome, and with all apologies to Rach, Hardin has never looked better! And maybe that episode is why they’re hanging out in Nessa these days, far from Hardin? Just a theory. But so amusing and well-drawn … even if I had never before in my life heard the term “suplexing.”
And yes, I think this is as good a point as any for a hiatus, if a hiatus there must be. I myself can relate to the idea of building up a buffer of unreleased work in my own online efforts, so do what you have to do, and we’ll all be waiting eagerly for the resumption after the break. Rest assured, we aren’t going anywhere!
OOh, mysterious informant with an unknown name!
Looking forwards to these little stories or things.
Annnnnd. Oh dear. How are they both not dead?
Finally. HAPPY B-DAY JEROME YOU’RE ART IS AWESOME!
I doubt Hardin would have enjoyed getting knocked over by a Canid. Actually, that’s probably the worst possible situation Cain could have gotten in! The only way it could be any worse would be if Cain was wearing some stolen armor from the northern wall.
what’s even more surprising is Cain can still breathe, let alone walk up to Yurk and say “happy birthday,” then suplexing him in return…
Happy belated birthday, Jerome!
Another nice page this week. Judging by Beck’s reaction, Theo is usually this cryptic about his sources. Even if he were to reveal the informer’s identity, I doubt the Sand Spiders’ (debatably) valiant leader would say little more than “there are some who call him . . . [insert appropriately ominous nickname here]”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJjhtQiUzRY
I do wonder if they’ve ever taken on a job quite like this before . . . and I’m sure that they’ll need one heck of a plan to get in and out discreetly all the same. Though perhaps Theo already has one.
More Cain and Yurk never gets old! Is it bad that I like these two a little more than the protagonist of SOTES? Although Yurk, you of all people should know how dangerous an angry Ermehn can be. Especially when the Ermehn in question is Hardin and your friend is a species that said Ermehn is known to frequently and gleefully murder.
OK, so we have a mysterious informant now. What could possibly go wrong with that totally legit information?
Beck looks like she knows what happens next in every time-sensitive heist story– she looks like she’s “genre savvy” with things like these ( http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GenreSavvy )
Also, I love everyone’s reactions, but it’s kinda expected when a genre-savvy person is around– everyone just goes “WTF are you talking about?”
Oh, and happy birthday, Jerome!
A mysterious streetear. From the sounds of it, the group gets into a foul mood whenever Theo brings he/she up. But I dont know, perhaps I’m reading too much into it.
But still the most important thing here is Cain and Yurk’s obvious upper body strength. With those kind of suplexes it would’nt be surprising if those two ended up as some kind of WWE tag team contenders or whatever. I would pay to see that!
For a couple panels there, it almost looked like Beck could open her mouth and not be terrifying.
Also those bonus comics are way too cute. I hope we see more of those two in the future!
It sounds like they’ve been getting information from this particular source for a while, and that Theo’s closed mouth about the informant is a cause of tension. Especially given that he can’t give them a particular reason why the guards will be “otherwise occupied”. The guards being occupied is the only reason this heist is even an option, so the lack of trust in this area is completely justified. I love how everyone looks in that last panel. Theo isn’t sharing how he made/makes contact with this mysterious personage- morse code? smoke signals? suplexing?
Of course, it seems like Theo himself doesn’t know much, if anything about their informant, which is. interesting, to say the least.
I’m with the rest of the Sand Spiders on this. How can we trust a person who won’t share their name? Which, of course even if they did, we don’t know if it were real- I’ll stop there.
That said, I’m not sure I trust Theo over all- not that I’m expecting him to betray the Sand Spiders (granted, it wouldn’t be the first unexpected backstabbing) but he seems the type of person to put his own interests ahead of the others. Perhaps an unfair assessment, but there will be time to change that assessment. Have I mentioned I love Theo’s facial design? Because I do.
“Beginning of April” more like //literally April Fool’s Day. :T
I’m looking forward to those short stories! (As well as the Armello ones, while we’re on the subject.)
Happy Birthday, Jerome!
Hm.. If Cain, a Canid (heh) makes it out of that with only a few cuts a bruises from Hardin…. and if Cain and Yurk are able to use modern expressions… and their suplexing sets the world in and out of balance… clearly they are trickster gods, with a dash of the Castor and Pollux myth thrown in for laughs.
Morse Suplexing is a valid form of communication.
And would certainly not be the first unexpected backstabbing.
https://westerndeep.net/comic/chapter-2-page-84/
Good choice of words there. :)
I personally captures, of course. As for the fact that somewhere out there, beyond the horizon is happening just horrible. And now I have toned stomach slightly then when event unfolded in garrison (then I have been vague feeling about Kenosh’ act).
Of course, I like this comic and I read every week. It’s amazing, although I don’t know that current characters from Polcan, Ermehn, Lutren which presented today.
Today I’m registered at one site, on which there’s Russian translation, i.e quite literal.
Mysterious sources that won’t reveal their identities? This is going to go off the rails spectacularly. :D
Seconded.
SOTES is certainly escalating, but Cain and Yurk and their (somewhat) well-intentioned misadventures stole the show for me. How those two are alive is amazing, especially Cain after his misadventure with Hardin.
I’m looking forward to the illustrated short stories during the hiatus. It’ll be interesting to see some prose about the universe we’ve experienced visually thus far. And happy late birthday, Jerome!
This was not intended as a reply. :T