Exiern
What Are You Willing To Fight For?
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Yeah. Thought as much after the last strip. It explains Melan’knee’s treatment of Typhan’knee and also why she accepts it. Not quite sure why he would have sent an assassin though. Assuming he actually did send that guy.
…! Ohoho. Interesting. Now I just wonder what his motivation was.
This flashback puts a whole new light on the conversation Tiff had with the old seer:
http://www.exiern.com/2013/03/12/priorities/
Especially “What if I decide I’m not broken?”
http://www.exiern.com/2013/03/14/big-ifs/
And “I haven’t been whole since the day I was born.”
http://www.exiern.com/2013/03/19/carts-carts-carts/
Excellent foreshadowing.
Starting to look like Typhan’knees ideal of what woman should be is her mom.
(Layers of an Onion.)
Yep … Family helping Family …
even if it is Family who is hurting Family.
That is a revelation. So he scared off servant girl as Gillian attacked then killed his father. Strange because Tiff’s death would have put him next in line for the throne (ideas of non-succession asside). So either he cared for his mother (despite society), cared for his brother (despite sexuality), is also gay (despite picking a name that snubbed Tiff a bit) or just really hated his dad.
Still wondering what the three barbarians who took over wanted to talk to him about.
@Charles81. Probably “accept exile, and go quietly NOW! or we will slit your throats in the middle of the night. Regardless, you CAN NOT stop us from ‘cleansing’ the tribe of this ‘evil’ foreign influence, so don’t even try.”
Is young Wyll wielding the North Wind, the sword that will never lead its wielder astray there? If so, that might suggest Raviner was ready to kill both of Gillian’s children, in order to rid himself of all possibility of ‘failure’ in the future…
@Gallstone: He is indeed.
Gall – it might also mean that killing his father was simply an acceptably good thing to do, whether or not it was the best, whether or not he would have otherwise survived, etc.
I dunno. The sword seems to have a very good grasp of what the most likely consequences are of current events, suggesting it is prescient somehow, or that it can deduce the most likely future from those same current events.
If killing someone is a bad idea, the sword contrives not to kill them. If it allows itself to be wielded to kill a direct blood relative in defiance of a great many taboos, there must have been a very good reason to end that person’s life. Not morally good, necessarily, but good for its wielder’s well-being.
Given that young Wyll spent the next phase of his life exiled and likely going through training hell, the alternative of not killing Raviner-Behr would seem to be even less palatable to his well-being. I stand by my theory that Raviner-Behr would have butchered both boys. For now.
Enjoying the story very much. Re: sexual orientation/gender identity, this story is well done, that’s what I like about it, and I’m happy to go with whereever it takes the readers and characters. A very nice fantasy treatment of sexuality and gender identity issues, and general personal development.
Tiff’s sexual orientation seems sorted (exclusively male-oriented, regardless of her current gender), her gender identity is still unclear.
slightly confused…but isn’t the one behind the father Typhan knee? So he killed his father but later made it so atht everybody thinks his brother did it?
Sorry slightlyconfused….great story 🙂
@apokol – at first I thought the very same thing, mostly because of how the hair in the first panel has shifted to look like Typhan Knee’s.
However, when I looked closer at the arm bands, the shoulder tufts, and the one rope band that is visible on the vest in the first panel, Melan is wearing the same outfit in both panels.
But the different angles and expressions made me think the same thing you did!
So much for the big family they were planning, with more sons Steffa, Harmon, Desta, and daughter Antha.
@Deceptobot
Don’t forget about Arrowtothe…
Killing his dad was in his best interest or the sword would have failed him.
No on thought that Tiff’s brother was just to late to save his mom but wanted to save his brother?
I think if he wanted Tiff dead he would have done the deed when Tiff and crew showed up at the village. There is much more to Tiff’s brother than has been relieved so far i think.
Called it!
Typh said Melan original hair color was not black that he dies it.
The funny thing here is Melan appears to be the only hero in the bunch and he’s a bad guy.(or a Hero in disguise, A mirror of Ponies Dad who is a Villain at heart But has to act a Paladin King Publicly for his people, Melan Might be stuck With Death Heads and Black hair But Might be a decent guy in secret!
He protecting his mom so kills dad, He Avenges the murdered Women of the tribe and kills the old leaders,He keeps the women from fighting and hunting but is it the same reason as Dad or becouse he fears they be harmed? He Scared the princess with a warning that some of the men might attack her but he kept her identity secret seems it might been a legitimate warning disguised as a Threat.
I wonder were he been all those years Banished?
Be funny if he was a Hero or a Knight South or Farmer.
A thought occurs to me regarding the sword. “Never lead its wielder astray’ is open to some pretty broad interpretation. Does it mean the sword will guide its wielder along some grand path of overall goodness, or could it be referring to his/her own heart? If the latter is the case it all seems to fall into place here; Tiff is really a good person at heart, while her brother is a sneaky backstabber.
@brandi: I like to think the sword can understand both the current situation AND the wielder. Then I would believe it alters actions based on if the wielder would regret them later or not.
For that the sword would have to be partially sentient though… I’d love to meet that sentient being.
No you wouldn’t Charles81: most sentient weapons (specially swords) tend to be raving loons
I’m disappointed with the development of Typhan-knee being gay. It’s cliched. There were so many other possibilities for investigation.
Still, I’m interested to see where this goes.
hmm.
Sequence of events. He scares away the servant, stabs his father. as he lays dying, the other three come in. He was already bleeding from a gut wound they said, which fits here. They mercy killed him, which is what the cook saw.
However, the questions are not complete. Something happened so the brother wanted the other 3 gone. He killed them quickly, so something must happen next.
What if it was never Melan’s intention to kill his father but good ol’ North Wind had other ideas?
@Gallstone, @Drachefly: It may be larger than one person. I don’t have a great memory for these things, but I seem to recall Tiff’s dad was on the verge of uniting the barbarian tribes and overrunning the northlands. If that had happened, there would have been massive numbers of deaths on all sides. Maybe the North Wind figured that one death was better.
@CptNerd don’t forget “And what if I don’t desire leadership or power”