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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+.
Oh, here comes the goon squad. Except that goon squads normally don’t consist of spell singers and skilled priests. Now we call in the Barbarian who is immune to spells.
I love where this is going as a story. Keep writing and have fun doing it!
Kind of why the old man pulled a Neo on those guys in the back and shut them up. Reacting to such a charge with defensiveness gives credence to it…it’s far more effective to stick to fact and make your opponent do the work.
Using spell songs to literally silence people who specifically said they’ve never seen the book before doesn’t do Mr. Head cleric any favors here. It just serves to make him look more guilty. Now would be a good time to show his signature on the tome?
Urtica was REALLY smart here. He isn’t doing the “tactical chain” thing. He’s doing the “tactical tree” thing. MUCH better. As in, no matter what the guy does, the king has a response already set up. And Typh is one of those responses; if this gets violent he’s got a decided edge in the form of his trans lady knight.
Cardinal Cilantro is quicker to throw down than your typical ecclesiastic pederast. In any case, he seems to be trying to cover all the bases. Try the high road first—demanding provenance of the book shows a willingness to use litigation to silence his detractors if possible. If that’s blocked, he has his coterie of evil teenagers standing by to unmake the accusation (perhaps by unmaking the accusers).
well he silenced the ones that could side with king and use sing spells. Look at the other standing behind Corianto or whatever his name they all have a ‘we were waiting for this’ face I bet Corianto was aware of the plot he just wanted to be accused openly than ask for proof and none would be considered authentic. In a war the side with combat clerics would have a high advantage too.
“I’m guessing that their spy really is permanently made of stone now?”
I cannot remember any point where the lithification of Isabel being reversable, much less being auto-magically reversible, while he was not in his “Popemobile” rolling home, was revealed to the bishop, or any of his people.
People with a power distinct from those around them rely on that more than they should too often, and neglect subtle or difficult strategies, because of that. Thus, they have not practiced thinking about them, either defensively or offensively. Unless he *has* silenced Isabel some way, then turning her up now as a witness, after the story of her lithification being well known, would be a key stroke. She can describe the interior of the “Popemobile” that no one but Church of Rem acolytes can enter, because they transported her there. That should authenticate the book well enough.
@greenstalker: of course, you do realize the other side has Typh, and Theresa…and Niels, and Bohr… and Urtica…. and possibly a half-dragon. and Peonie…. and a wholllle lotta guards.
Remember Uhl, the High Priest doesn’t give a fig about whether or not he *looks* guilty…it’s what can be proved. There have been whispers about his corruption for quite awhile now, but people are naturally reluctant to act. If you put the facts directly in their face, however, they are more disposed to act. All he has to do is suppress the facts. He doesn’t even have to prove innocence, or “appear” innocent…he just has to toss in a shadow of doubt to keep people from acting.
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Oh, here comes the goon squad. Except that goon squads normally don’t consist of spell singers and skilled priests. Now we call in the Barbarian who is immune to spells.
I love where this is going as a story. Keep writing and have fun doing it!
The barbarian whose curse turns you into a woman if you try anything on her…
================
Personally, i’d be inclined to believe that the book was real after i saw him do that to a couple of his own priests just for wondering about it…
Kind of why the old man pulled a Neo on those guys in the back and shut them up. Reacting to such a charge with defensiveness gives credence to it…it’s far more effective to stick to fact and make your opponent do the work.
Using spell songs to literally silence people who specifically said they’ve never seen the book before doesn’t do Mr. Head cleric any favors here. It just serves to make him look more guilty. Now would be a good time to show his signature on the tome?
I like to use the 5 yr old defense please. Oh no, the defense is not 5 year old, it what a 5 year old would you, hehe.
So now we know which members of the coterie are innocent of wrongdoing.
The minority…
I have often noticed that the innocent deny the act while the guilty demand the proof. It might not always happen but it’s often true.
Urtica was REALLY smart here. He isn’t doing the “tactical chain” thing. He’s doing the “tactical tree” thing. MUCH better. As in, no matter what the guy does, the king has a response already set up. And Typh is one of those responses; if this gets violent he’s got a decided edge in the form of his trans lady knight.
Cardinal Cilantro is quicker to throw down than your typical ecclesiastic pederast. In any case, he seems to be trying to cover all the bases. Try the high road first—demanding provenance of the book shows a willingness to use litigation to silence his detractors if possible. If that’s blocked, he has his coterie of evil teenagers standing by to unmake the accusation (perhaps by unmaking the accusers).
Also, can Theresa reverse the spells
Evil Cilantro just cast on his own priests
@Archone: Uh, it’s Trans man, not trans lady.
Remember, if you’re prefixing Trans to anyone, you’re referring to their identity, not their body.
I’m guessing that their spy really is permanently made of stone now?
I like that demouthing spell… I could use it in my life.
well he silenced the ones that could side with king and use sing spells. Look at the other standing behind Corianto or whatever his name they all have a ‘we were waiting for this’ face I bet Corianto was aware of the plot he just wanted to be accused openly than ask for proof and none would be considered authentic. In a war the side with combat clerics would have a high advantage too.
Francisco said:
“I’m guessing that their spy really is permanently made of stone now?”
I cannot remember any point where the lithification of Isabel being reversable, much less being auto-magically reversible, while he was not in his “Popemobile” rolling home, was revealed to the bishop, or any of his people.
People with a power distinct from those around them rely on that more than they should too often, and neglect subtle or difficult strategies, because of that. Thus, they have not practiced thinking about them, either defensively or offensively. Unless he *has* silenced Isabel some way, then turning her up now as a witness, after the story of her lithification being well known, would be a key stroke. She can describe the interior of the “Popemobile” that no one but Church of Rem acolytes can enter, because they transported her there. That should authenticate the book well enough.
@greenstalker: of course, you do realize the other side has Typh, and Theresa…and Niels, and Bohr… and Urtica…. and possibly a half-dragon. and Peonie…. and a wholllle lotta guards.
Remember Uhl, the High Priest doesn’t give a fig about whether or not he *looks* guilty…it’s what can be proved. There have been whispers about his corruption for quite awhile now, but people are naturally reluctant to act. If you put the facts directly in their face, however, they are more disposed to act. All he has to do is suppress the facts. He doesn’t even have to prove innocence, or “appear” innocent…he just has to toss in a shadow of doubt to keep people from acting.
Apropos of nothing, at some point I started reading Typh’s lines in the voice of Mary McGlynn as Motoko Kusanagi.