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faile35 — Tangled Threads Scene A - Page01

#castle #city #commoner #medieval #peasant #tower #town #wall #washing #women
Published: 2018-03-26 19:45:21 +0000 UTC; Views: 12942; Favourites: 73; Downloads: 161
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Description For more information on the entire series, read the "'Demon's Due' Defined" journal entry here faile35.deviantart.com/journal… or the "'Demon's Due' Plus" journal entry here faile35.deviantart.com/journal… .

The next page is here.


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The cool morning air is heavy with the sounds and smells of a city waking up, though muted by the tall barrier of Dernhem’s exterior wall. Here, on the city’s northwest flank, where the Skirting Path leaves the Belfry Road to wind its oft treacherous way between the wall and the Ringrill River, the washerwomen gather for their unending pursuit of cleanliness. Like industrious ants, the women labor beneath bundles of their charges hauled by cart and basket from within Dernhem and brought down in file to the water’s edge. For in spite of the frequent culverts that dump the city’s refuse into the Ringrill, the water here is always clear, blessed by the will of the Lady, and always refreshingly cool to the touch, even in deepest winter.

Descending to the river’s bank, the women step out into the rippling water with little hesitation, standing hip deep in the Ringrill and immersing their cloth burdens one at a time. After working troublesome stains from soiled weave and fabric, the women squeeze the excess water back into the river and deposit each item in their woven baskets of floatreed, to be hauled back up to the carts and thence back into the city to be air dried, pressed, and folded as required. For most of them, this task is repeated many times each day, several days each week, and, though a necessary task, it is also one of drudgery.

So, not long after their work begins, the women sing.

Milady lead me by the Hand,
Milady guide me with Your Eye,
Milady pass me through this Land,
‘Til in peace with You I Lie.
Born I was by Lady’s Love,
Carried with my Sister, Brother,
Milady’s Wisdom, Light and Love,
Take me to Your Great Hereother.

Today, the work is observed with interest, and though the sung melody is a familiar one, the listener is confused at the words.


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While this is the first page of the Tangled Threads chapter to be posted here, I don't think it'll be the first page of the publication. The whole reason behind putting this Tangled Threads chapter here is because there are a bunch of expansion scenes that are swelling up Fair Harvest and Vision Impaired to bursting. I don't have the order down right for all of them, yet, so I'm going to just draw and post the scenes with the narratives I intend and then order them and publish them in hardcopy. Technically, these are part of what I considered to be Fair Harvest, and a lot of the scenes involve Deirdre, Callista, Albert, Luther, and Drea, but we'll also get some Anna and Elina and Ordiel and Theonius and Zirena as well.

This scene, as will be apparent on the next page, involves Deirdre. I put some thought into her totems and revamped them when I was drawing Twisted Plot, Part 1. Instead of an eagle totem, we got an owl. And here, instead of a fish, we get... well, I'll let you see that over the next few pages.

Regarding this picture in particular, it took me quite a while. I recall my first impression for this image occurred when I was drawing Elina's study session in Bookbinding, now about three years ago. I knew as I crafted that explanation of the plot underlying the whole story that I would need to include with the expansions some measure of what the common folk of Dernhem are dealing with these days--what was Maladyne trying to rescue these poor folks from, after all? So, I'm going to be drawing some rather daunting cityscapes and scenes that have this kind of a mass-populace approach. They're fun once in a while, but I must admit I'm quite happy that I can focus on a character through whose eyes the scenes are being viewed. Totem-shifted Deirdre is a LOT of fun to draw, especially compared to a mob of humans milling around washing clothes...

Enjoy!

Note: Twisted Plot and Demon's Due are a work of fantasy and fiction. The artist/creator in no way condones this kind of treatment toward any woman or man, by living person, gremlin, plant, assassin, ratman, viscous fluid, programmed device, animated home furnishings, or otherworldly spiritual beings. Furthermore, the artist opposes the marginalizing and restriction of women in general by any institution, political and/or religious, including those which have individual women amongst their membership touting/promoting their own happiness within that institution as evidence that ALL women should feel the same way. This includes the religion I was raised in and which I have utterly discarded from my life over this and other issues.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=0la5DB…
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Comments: 18

Redmess22 [2018-03-31 15:19:18 +0000 UTC]

Maybe you should accentuate the people in the picture a little, so they stand out a little more from the background. Or is that the effect you are going for?

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collared-by-faile [2018-03-28 21:37:39 +0000 UTC]

I have to say that a Harbinger who keeps water clean and at a comfortable temperature for doing laundry can't be all bad. Wait. Now I'm all confused. Who's the bad guy again?

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White-Feather [2018-03-27 19:34:02 +0000 UTC]

It's true that if anyone's going to care about what happens to this nutty town and it's people, it does mean we have to meet the... (insert dramatic world-weary sigh here)... public. As well as see more of this town beyond it's sewer/cellars and a few buildings. That said, while it might have been daunting to put together this does end up as a beautiful landscape image and even could work as a stand-alone piece. So good job!

And it's probably just me, but after seeing the remake of It, that sewer culvert in the lower left does give me a bit of pause considering that it probably does eventually lead back to the Undercellar and whatever's down there...

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faile35 In reply to White-Feather [2018-03-27 21:28:49 +0000 UTC]

I don't know if you were intending this, but as I was reading your comment I had a distinct impression of how Demon's Due could end, and it looked a lot like this...

www.youtube.com/watch?v=59RtWb…

Thank you for the compliment! I'm glad you approve. And, yes, I think Deirdre would actually consider going into those culverts if the situation called for it, but she probably wouldn't be all that thrilled with the idea...

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erick288 [2018-03-27 03:01:56 +0000 UTC]

I really like this one, it reminds me of some of my favorite pieces of yours, and I'm not surprised to hear it took a bit longer.  The perspective, the details, and the point of view are exquisite and the trees in the foreground give it a real authenticity.  Really fantastic, and thanks.

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faile35 In reply to erick288 [2018-03-27 21:20:53 +0000 UTC]

You're quite welcome, and thank you! I draw so many monsters and mostly naked women in bondage, it's a nice change of pace to put scenes like this together and show what "normal life" is looking like in the general milieu.

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erick288 In reply to faile35 [2018-03-29 01:54:35 +0000 UTC]

These 'normal life' tableaus do a nice job of creating some depth to the story, and it helps that you're incredibly good at drawing them.  Not that "mostly naked women in bondage" images are unwelcome, of course ...

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Snow-Monster [2018-03-27 02:56:16 +0000 UTC]

Good stuff

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faile35 In reply to Snow-Monster [2018-03-27 21:19:31 +0000 UTC]

Thank you!

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Saraeustace91 [2018-03-26 23:37:08 +0000 UTC]

Beautiful work ❤️

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

faile35 In reply to Saraeustace91 [2018-03-27 21:19:23 +0000 UTC]

Thanks a bunch!

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Saraeustace91 In reply to faile35 [2018-03-28 01:34:44 +0000 UTC]

You’re welcome 😀😉

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Yggi11 [2018-03-26 21:30:25 +0000 UTC]

Wait... I faintly recall some sketches of upcoming characters, however many years ago... and they included an aqua-woman of some sorts. I had long since assumed you'd just abandoned that character. Are you ACTUALLY getting around to her??

Good God, how long have I been keeping an eye on this series...

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

faile35 In reply to Yggi11 [2018-03-27 21:19:14 +0000 UTC]

You've been keeping an eye on this just about as long as I've been drawing it, I think...

And, yes, you are right. The character in question, thumbnailed below, was to be called "Sigris." She won't be in the story, but most of what I had in mind for her story arch will be shared between Deirdre and Elina. In fact, most of what Sigris would have done in the story is what I am currently illustrating and posting about Deirdre in Tangled Threads and Elina in A Lesser Evil and Duel Nature. As far as the character design goes, I still like it, but we'll hold on that for some future story (Demon's Due or not).

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vvvan [2018-03-26 21:17:43 +0000 UTC]

Okay, I'll try and remember what I said.  Three things:

(1) Isn't skinny dipping and spying on the washerwomen against the Dernhem Municipal Code?  Theo would know.

(2) They wash their clothes next to a sewer outlet??  Is that how they get that distinctive "Dernhem Smell?"

(3) Great, now I have to revise my Demon's Due folder again.  Where does Tangled Threads fit in the sequence again?

Also, great job on the city walls, Jeff. 

👍: 0 ⏩: 1

faile35 In reply to vvvan [2018-03-27 21:14:22 +0000 UTC]



(1) Other than a few minor parking offenses, Theonius' official criminal record is entirely taken up with such violations, on both sides of the dipping.
(2) This is one of the things that makes Dernhem such a prime location for a city--magical, self-cleaning spring water abounds thanks to... well, this: Twisted Plot Revision Page85   
(3) Here's how it goes. Fair Harvest is getting the same expansion treatment that Rats and Twisted Plot received, but it's enough to make two separate chapters out of it. So, the first chapter of what used to be Fair Harvest is this one, called Tangled Threads. Some of the scenes that I produce for it will probably be shifted later to what is actually Fair Harvest, and I won't be re-drawing every page of Fair Harvest, either, since much of the capture sequence between Deirdre and Callista is fine but will require only a little adjustment to Deirdre's face. However, I will be adding to that capture sequence as well--Deirdre's downfall is going to take about eight more pages.

Thanks!

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vvvan [2018-03-26 21:03:44 +0000 UTC]

What the hell?  deviantART ate my comment!  I protest!    

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faile35 In reply to vvvan [2018-03-27 21:06:43 +0000 UTC]

We keep detailed records of such mistreatment on file in the cabinet labeled "Stuff Here In This!!!" (though I think it's abbreviated...). Eaten or not, you still got first comment with this one.

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