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Starting February 1st ALL new Exiern pages will post ONLY to Exiern.com and Our Patreon. Please read and support us there!
Swords, Sorcery, And Then Some!
Howdy, New Readers! Thanks for reading Exiern!
Written by Scott T. Hicken with art by Antipus, the comic updates Mondays. Please check out the Archive to enjoy the earlier adventures of Typh and Peonie!
Exiern contains mature themes and is best for readers 18+.
More complex answer… the Travelers and the Waking Dreamer aren’t the same. While there WERE Travelers who escaped the Authorities gaze (through a couple different means), that’s not who is being talked about here.
To be even more obnoxious; you have actually seen what remains of three Travelers currently in “hiding”… in a sense.
This conversation seen so through the 4th wall to me.
The waking dream being the idea itself that sparked the comic (or cracked open the veil). (As Faden’s spell is the seed of birth of the history)
The dreamer is the mind that work on the idea.
The dreamer’s gaze is literrally the guidance of the idea. As history evolved the interest at exploring the main character outgrew all the other hooks. Faden’s downfall is put aside over the transgendering of the priest and the curse, the curse is then put aside as to Tiff relation with it, which then gives the spotlight to Tiff relation with its own self. The crack in the veil mutated and the original plot is now but a tool to work on something that was revealed deeper in the crack.
@chemlord, if we have seen three travelers, I would say
1) the great and sarcastic book of changing text
2) the north wind, great and powerful sword with its own opinions
3) the all seeing eye necklace (less sure about this)
Do I get a cookie?
A classic example of a character that’s really speaking to the audience, rather than his intended listener in-story. He’s essentially saying, “Bear with me, I’m starting from someone else’s story, so continuity is hard.”
@Deanatay, that’s an awfully cynical way of putting it. >_<
But in seriousness, that's not the point I'm gunning for here. My hope is that the full story will make sense at the end.
@Wolf: One of those is correct.
This certainly feels like the dreamer is the Author… Which I like. The narrators/doomsayers have been noted by Drowemos as been author tools for scene setting and info dumps. I’m effectively hearing here that the dreamer’s attention has been focused on Tiff, so presumably, what should have been a routine, boring princess rescue that the dreamer could have easily ignored, attracted more scrutiny and revealed Tiff’s past to the dreamer which prompted it to take action… For the lulz if nothing else.
My guess on travellers:
1. Necklace known as The Eye
2. Necklace seen in painting on Peonie’s mum
3. Umm… No idea.
Gonna have to read O’Shaughnessy’s ode more closely and work out if it applies.
I think the “dreamer” is the audience. Us. WE have been watching and following Tiff.
The Narrator(s) best represent the different writers of the comic.
The Veil of waking dream is not exactly the fourth wall, more like public interest. The comic successfully obtained readers, and set it’s place on an internet full of geeks like us.
This “worlds end” location is far enough off of the main *serious* locations and story of the world, and is abstract. It’s an good place for explaining some of the workings of the world to the readers.
All of this talk of “the world changing” makes me feel like a Retcon is coming… But then maybe I have read too much DC.
I’m starting to think of the “Narrators/Doomsayers” almost like Dr. Whos. Obviously they don’t time travel or get too much up in the action but there is that sort of comical all-knowing nature to them. And, while they don’t regenerate but are separate beings they still seem sort of joined in a way by their office.
I could easily imagine some sort of future get-together of them all to actually make a difference rather than sit back… Whatever the case I just somehow hope we see Old Mac and his granddaughter again one day.
Oh, and next guess on the third traveller is the bracelet on the Rus woman (Abria?)
We are the music makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams;—
World-losers and world-forsakers,
On whom the pale moon gleams:
Yet we are the movers and shakers
Of the world for ever, it seems.
With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world’s great cities,
And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire’s glory:
One man with a dream, at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song’s measure
Can trample a kingdom down.
We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth,
Built Nineveh with our sighing,
And Babel itself in our mirth;
And o’erthrew them with prophesying
To the old of the new world’s worth;
For each age is a dream that is dying,
Or one that is coming to birth.
A breath of our inspiration
Is the life of each generation;
A wondrous thing of our dreaming
Unearthly, impossible seeming—
The soldier, the king, and the peasant
Are working together in one,
Till our dream shall become their present,
And their work in the world be done.
They had no vision amazing
Of the goodly house they are raising;
They had no divine foreshowing
Of the land to which they are going:
But on one man’s soul it hath broken,
A light that doth not depart;
And his look, or a word he hath spoken,
Wrought flame in another man’s heart.
And therefore to-day is thrilling
With a past day’s late fulfilling;
And the multitudes are enlisted
In the faith that their fathers resisted,
And, scorning the dream of to-morrow,
Are bringing to pass, as they may,
In the world, for its joy or its sorrow,
The dream that was scorned yesterday.
But we, with our dreaming and singing,
Ceaseless and sorrowless we!
The glory about us clinging
Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing:
O men! it must ever be
That we dwell, in our dreaming and singing,
A little apart from ye.
For we are afar with the dawning
And the suns that are not yet high,
And out of the infinite morning
Intrepid you hear us cry—
How, spite of your human scorning,
Once more God’s future draws nigh,
And already goes forth the warning
That ye of the past must die.
Great hail! we cry to the comers
From the dazzling unknown shore;
Bring us hither your sun and your summers;
And renew our world as of yore;
You shall teach us your song’s new numbers,
And things that we dreamed not before:
Yea, in spite of a dreamer who slumbers,
And a singer who sings no more.
@SGT Lewis
I think she got that when she found out Mr. Pointy Is NorthWind.
The Real Revelation IS Princess Peonie Breasts ARE BEING WATCHED and are important in the shaping of events! BEWARE FOR HERE THERE BE DRAGONS!
Be a Producer!Your name/title with an optional SFW hyperlink will be posted prominently HERE following the close of the month! You’ll also receive monthly mailings from Exiern’s author, Scott T. Hicken!
Does this mean one or several of the Dreamers managed to escape from the Authorities? ^^ Or is it all just a pretty way of breaking the 4th wall?
Peonie knows he’s not the first narrator…
@Gallstone; Simple answer… yes. 😀
More complex answer… the Travelers and the Waking Dreamer aren’t the same. While there WERE Travelers who escaped the Authorities gaze (through a couple different means), that’s not who is being talked about here.
To be even more obnoxious; you have actually seen what remains of three Travelers currently in “hiding”… in a sense.
Hmmm, so complicated, yet so interesting, lol.
This conversation seen so through the 4th wall to me.
The waking dream being the idea itself that sparked the comic (or cracked open the veil). (As Faden’s spell is the seed of birth of the history)
The dreamer is the mind that work on the idea.
The dreamer’s gaze is literrally the guidance of the idea. As history evolved the interest at exploring the main character outgrew all the other hooks. Faden’s downfall is put aside over the transgendering of the priest and the curse, the curse is then put aside as to Tiff relation with it, which then gives the spotlight to Tiff relation with its own self. The crack in the veil mutated and the original plot is now but a tool to work on something that was revealed deeper in the crack.
Sounds to me like the god is watching her with some interest.
possibly hopefully waiting to catch her bathing.
@Rukh
I couldn’t agree more 🙂
@ Chemiclord: Nice! ^^ I am duly intrigued and eager to find out more.
@chemlord, if we have seen three travelers, I would say
1) the great and sarcastic book of changing text
2) the north wind, great and powerful sword with its own opinions
3) the all seeing eye necklace (less sure about this)
Do I get a cookie?
What I understand:
“Dreamer” = Author.
“Viel of Waking Dreams” = 4th Wall
A classic example of a character that’s really speaking to the audience, rather than his intended listener in-story. He’s essentially saying, “Bear with me, I’m starting from someone else’s story, so continuity is hard.”
Poor Tiff. The call has looked up your address and knows where you live.
Somebody get the contractor, the fourth wall’s not gonna hold!
@Deanatay, that’s an awfully cynical way of putting it. >_< But in seriousness, that's not the point I'm gunning for here. My hope is that the full story will make sense at the end. @Wolf: One of those is correct.
This certainly feels like the dreamer is the Author… Which I like. The narrators/doomsayers have been noted by Drowemos as been author tools for scene setting and info dumps. I’m effectively hearing here that the dreamer’s attention has been focused on Tiff, so presumably, what should have been a routine, boring princess rescue that the dreamer could have easily ignored, attracted more scrutiny and revealed Tiff’s past to the dreamer which prompted it to take action… For the lulz if nothing else.
My guess on travellers:
1. Necklace known as The Eye
2. Necklace seen in painting on Peonie’s mum
3. Umm… No idea.
Gonna have to read O’Shaughnessy’s ode more closely and work out if it applies.
I think you guys are half-right.
I think the “dreamer” is the audience. Us. WE have been watching and following Tiff.
The Narrator(s) best represent the different writers of the comic.
The Veil of waking dream is not exactly the fourth wall, more like public interest. The comic successfully obtained readers, and set it’s place on an internet full of geeks like us.
This “worlds end” location is far enough off of the main *serious* locations and story of the world, and is abstract. It’s an good place for explaining some of the workings of the world to the readers.
All of this talk of “the world changing” makes me feel like a Retcon is coming… But then maybe I have read too much DC.
Listen to us. We all want an “ether/or” explanation. 😉
Can I get the “for dummies” version please, I feel lost.
Probably not it, but this sounds like the most hilarious possibility:
Speakers turn in to the not-machinating Doom! guys.
Agh, not speaker. Narrator. So deep I got things mixed up 😉
The “Doom” guys and the Narrators are pretty much one and the same, Aklyon.
Osir himself tried to get on the “DOOM!” train himself before Peonie interrupted him, if you remember way back to the start of this arc.
*sigh* I miss old man Mackenzie.
I’m starting to think of the “Narrators/Doomsayers” almost like Dr. Whos. Obviously they don’t time travel or get too much up in the action but there is that sort of comical all-knowing nature to them. And, while they don’t regenerate but are separate beings they still seem sort of joined in a way by their office.
I could easily imagine some sort of future get-together of them all to actually make a difference rather than sit back… Whatever the case I just somehow hope we see Old Mac and his granddaughter again one day.
Oh, and next guess on the third traveller is the bracelet on the Rus woman (Abria?)
I hope we don´t get a “Oh look, you are in a story” moment with theshadows of the audience watching or something like that.
First post, just to put in my guesses for thr three Travellers
1) the Eye Pendant
2) Peonie’s mother
3) the Unicorn (not so sure about this one)
@ Harkness: I share your hope.
“The Dreamer weaves its dream into our worlds” is fine. “Oh look we’re not real” is not.
Willie Wonka: We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of the dreams!
1) the book
2) the unicorn
3) princess p-cups or something in her possession
Or in layman’s terms, this is not the story’s first writer, nor its first artist.
Anyone else got the breaking bad reference?
@elfguy: O’Shaughnessy’s ode
We are the music makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams;—
World-losers and world-forsakers,
On whom the pale moon gleams:
Yet we are the movers and shakers
Of the world for ever, it seems.
With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world’s great cities,
And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire’s glory:
One man with a dream, at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song’s measure
Can trample a kingdom down.
We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth,
Built Nineveh with our sighing,
And Babel itself in our mirth;
And o’erthrew them with prophesying
To the old of the new world’s worth;
For each age is a dream that is dying,
Or one that is coming to birth.
A breath of our inspiration
Is the life of each generation;
A wondrous thing of our dreaming
Unearthly, impossible seeming—
The soldier, the king, and the peasant
Are working together in one,
Till our dream shall become their present,
And their work in the world be done.
They had no vision amazing
Of the goodly house they are raising;
They had no divine foreshowing
Of the land to which they are going:
But on one man’s soul it hath broken,
A light that doth not depart;
And his look, or a word he hath spoken,
Wrought flame in another man’s heart.
And therefore to-day is thrilling
With a past day’s late fulfilling;
And the multitudes are enlisted
In the faith that their fathers resisted,
And, scorning the dream of to-morrow,
Are bringing to pass, as they may,
In the world, for its joy or its sorrow,
The dream that was scorned yesterday.
But we, with our dreaming and singing,
Ceaseless and sorrowless we!
The glory about us clinging
Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing:
O men! it must ever be
That we dwell, in our dreaming and singing,
A little apart from ye.
For we are afar with the dawning
And the suns that are not yet high,
And out of the infinite morning
Intrepid you hear us cry—
How, spite of your human scorning,
Once more God’s future draws nigh,
And already goes forth the warning
That ye of the past must die.
Great hail! we cry to the comers
From the dazzling unknown shore;
Bring us hither your sun and your summers;
And renew our world as of yore;
You shall teach us your song’s new numbers,
And things that we dreamed not before:
Yea, in spite of a dreamer who slumbers,
And a singer who sings no more.
So our current narrator has just tipped Tiffany off that she is being watched and is an important person in the shaping of events.
@SGT Lewis
I think she got that when she found out Mr. Pointy Is NorthWind.
The Real Revelation IS Princess Peonie Breasts ARE BEING WATCHED and are important in the shaping of events! BEWARE FOR HERE THERE BE DRAGONS!
Sorry it had to be said.
Peonie has the Boobs of Fate? I can grasp them… those… umm… that.
Okay: Is this whole thing a metaphor for the three lead writers for each arc of this story?