2.7.41
on June 24, 2026
at 3:00 am
This is fine, probably. See you in chapter 8! As has become usual I’ll be taking a few weeks between chapters to work ahead, sleep a little bit and let Chill Year take me where it wills. Don’t think of it as a cliffhanger – think of it as giving Kendal a reprieve before whatever happens next!
First comment?
Aayyyee! Congratulations hahah
For mobile readers.
Alt-text: I see you could really use a long rest. we are not going to be doing that
Image source: time
Tumblr: watch out dude he has the high ground
Bsky: chapter 8 will begin in (hopefully) a few weeks!
I guess that dragon failed the mission successfully
I’m sure this is all fine
Pls be nice to him, hes already so broken *tiny sob
Poor paladin. Low on health, low on smites and can’t get a bloody long rest.
“No.” [leaves]
Stefan is wisely exploiting Kendal’s willingness to talk to his enemies to keep him from causing problems elsewhere.
Oh No.
I guess we finally know what NW meant by “I fear your demigod is beyond my power to help”… At least I hope so
“Yeah Kendal can take on a dragon no problem! There is no way he can be in any more danger after that!”
The humble ENTIRE PALADIN ARMY: “Are you interested in willing surrender?”
It’s the Zuurith prision all over again… At least Falst and Tess are comming to free him this time. Poor gang hasnt been able to catch a break since they got here! Or since July 2024. Three times a week for 2 years straight they’ve been in varying levels of distress. Hold on, guys! The rest arc is right around the corner…
I think the first quarter of 2028 is scheduled for them taking a long rest.
Despite a common concern, it won’t be boring for us at all.
Four entire weeks of just watching Falst’s ears twitch in his sleep will keep half of us amused at the least.
“no.” *uses starfire to leap over all of them and flee*
What? No! The big bad guy has gone to all that trouble with the floof hair _and_ the dramatic cape!
It would be _so_ selfish of Kendal to just not appreciate all of that!
Oh.. Oh no.
This is very, VERY bad.
Also looks like I have to strangle someone.
Great.
Also also pages come out at 1:22 for me!
At least tonight it did!
GOODNIGHT!
Also also also my birthday is in three days!
Woo!
OH OH anyone have a link to that Tumblr post where she talks about devising magical restraints? I think we’re gonna see some real soon
Yep, I had the same thought
https://comicaurora.tumblr.com/post/802051628221988864/i-have-never-put-even-a-tenth-of-the-effort-into
But the point of having dragons not check in is–
Okay, I guess Stefan knows his dragons. Does this mean the one tangling with Dainix is also being tracked?
I don’t think the dragons were ‘tracked’ exactly. Vros had been punting Kendal out of the water have a while, which made the fight very easy to spot for any aerial scout.
Calian, on the other hand, is at the bottom of the sea.
Oh hell, He’s good.
But hey, Kendal is probably the best for this situation to happen to, so I think we’ll be fine. Very curious as to Stefan’s view on Erin’s plan and the anti-dragon abilities of the floof squad. Let’s see how this goes.
NOOOOO FUCKKK
Kendal: *turns around and walks back into the sea*
I wonder how long they were watching for… and why they didn’t step in to help Vros. Also, I’m pretty sure Kendal will be fine, just judging by how Stefan is talking
Kendal: You may request it but you will not receive it. Bye Felicia!
d sinks under the sea b
fools! you showed up with an army, thus failing to apply the ancient principle of conservation of ninjutsu
Have a nonexistent Like 😁
Oh boy, things are going down
“Sure, let’s stop and chat and find out who among us has a body that can actually resist lava.”
Aurora Question #65: What do you think Stefan’s plan is?
Possibly trying to make him surrender peacefully?
If Stefan thinks Kendal is a construct like Tam did, he’ll try asking about Erin’s plan. If he recognizes Kendal as a person, probably take him prisoner. My question is if Stefan’s going to listen when Kendal says Rakhn’s about to blow.
I’m guessing he’ll try and talk Kendal into surrendering, or at the very least strike up a conversation to gleam new information about him, Erin, and the rest of the gang. Appealing to the greater good, logic, bribery, the works.
Stefan: Whatever the Magus has promised you, I’m sure we can come to a better agreement.
Kendal: He’s promised to help me rescue the trapped soul of a god from an immortal witch, who’s magic can manipulate the primordial bodies themselves, and her literal army of chimeras. She’s currently holding him in Stone’s third heart, in the deepest depths of the singing caves, which she appears to be able to manipulate at will and are most likely brimming with all the dangers you expect from the caves, plus her chimeras.
Stefan: … I … may need to discuss that with my logisticians.
Stefan: Excuse me sir, have you heard the word of our lady and saviour the Light Dragon?
Well … s**t. If it had just been a Paladin squad or even another dragon, things would be different, but Stefan is a whole new game. He and every Paladin here have just seen the threat Kendal poses, he knows from Tam’s memories the diadem won’t work, and he can infer from Kendal’s presence in the ocean and Calian not reporting back after the singing caves were opened as proof there is more going on than he knows.
This also puts the Tess and Falst reunion on hold; hopefully those two don’t accidentally reveal themselves on their way here.
However, there are some positives. Stefan wants to talk before acting, likely trying to convince Kendal to surrender or to reveal new information; this will buy the rest of the gang time to do their parts. I also don’t see Loquor Suressa here, implying they’re still by the boats; that could slow down communication between Paladins.
Also, Kendal could just … go back into the water. Leap high, dive in, hold breath, and then he’s safe, maybe.
Prediction for next chapter: I smell scene change! While I’d like to see Alinua, I think the comic is building up her return to be something big. No, I think we’ll cut to Erin and Dainix, the former trying to search the boat while the later fights Calian. Maybe Alinua will join them later with her friends.
As for Kendal, he’ll relay the volcano warning and try to convince the Paladins to evacuate. But I doubt Stefan, despite suspecting himself that an eruption is likely imminent, is going to budge; this is their most important mission and sworn duty, and they will likely stay here until the pyroclastic flows are on their heels.
A little ways away, Tess will be having to console Falst as he comes close to another powerlessness angst spiral.
Welp this was NONE OF THE OPTIONS I WAS THINKING OF. It tracks but is SO MUCH WORSE (for my heart). Whoever said the starfire ignition and ruckus from felling the dragon would catch unwanted attention was right.
Let’s see. My guess is Stefan won’t stop Kendal from talking; he’s too tactical to not listen if someone offers up information. Kendal is likely to warn them about the volcano, because he’s altruistic like that and doesn’t want to see people die. Kendal could try to walk into the sea, since he doesn’t need to breathe and the paladins do, but if the paladin army has more dragons ready (which, well, they appeared to have a lot of dragons), that’s no good as an escape route. Most likely scenario I can see is that the paladins take Kendal captive and leave with him, either to somewhere offshore just out of eruption range or all the way back to Snowfast. They might try to use him as leverage to get Erin to turn himself in or just keep trying to extract information from him, or maybe they just want him imprisoned and out of the way as they continue their efforts.
Which… he’s not gonna stay out of the way, ultimately. He’s the protagonist.
Reading that alt text like, damn you, Red. Damn you. (I am half joking. But it really has been nonstop trial and action, and still no Alinua. Oh my goodness I yearn for them to reunite and get rests so badly. They really are not getting any room to breathe. Crossing my fingers for some kind of resolution or reprieve in chapter 8, though I realize it would be hard-won and probably toward the end.)
Oh, I didn’t even think about that! We really could see the Snowfast soon then if the Paladins successfully extract Kendal. The next Arc could be a complete diversion to rescue him instead of heading straight to the Soulshaper Monks.
Welp. That’s… fine. Yesss, everything is great…
Can we PLEASE get a gosh darn filler episode after this?! I want to see my blorbos get some Low Stakes for once.
These guys need a casual tournament arc where the only thing at stake is mildly-bruised pride
Well, Kendal could *definitely* use a reprieve before whatever happens next.
May Rest Time serve you well <3
It can’t be a cliffhanger when you’re on the sea
This is awesome, kudos to you!
Out of the frying pan into the fire
Damnit, he can’t catch a break! And he’s going to find it a lot harder to nonlethally defeat a whole army—they’re so much squishier than a dragon. Which means … talking. Oh boy.
There once was a boy of starfire
Who was all worn down to the wire.
Before he was frying;
Now he’ll be trying
To survive both paladins and fire.
Kudos to @BrowserET for the “Out of the frying pan into the fire” comment. I thought it was extremely appropriate to this situation, so I worked it in.
Hm… Stefan seems to be the Paladin with the most willingness to talk here. Which, if they were willing to explain the plan to him, it feels like he might actually consider it. Or he’d tell them “ah, no, we tried that 200 years ago and it didn’t work.”
Or he’d say, “Huh. Interesting Idea. …..But I’m afraid we cannot take that chance.” *stab*
I suppose it’s fortunate that Erin doesn’t want to talk to them.
… curly haired kendal… i think im in love (platonic)
I LOVE MY ADORABLE BABY BOY!<3
Last Aroura page and chapter before I move countries for the first time! It’s been a good one!
Realistically, Kendal is not threatened by an army. He can outpace them, he can outfight them, he has enough superpowers to have a load of options at any given time to deal with them. Even in his injured state, he’s not in any real trouble in that regard.
But what he can’t do is save them all. The island is about to erupt and he is going to try to keep everyone alive, and that includes the Paladins. The threat here isn’t “Can Kendal deal with the army?”, the threat is “Can Kendal save a bunch of people who are likely to take his pleas for their safety as insincere, since they have no concern for the safety of their own enemies?” So Kendal has to try to find a way to convince them that he’s telling the truth, and that might involve allowing himself to be captured in order to protect both the Paladins and his friends. (And boy, would Alinua be pissed about that.)
The saving grace here could be Stefan, who has shown himself to be calm and measured. No less devout or fanatical than the other Paladins, but willing to take time and listen to unlikely scenarios. Stefan also will be able to recognise the advantageous position he is in, and likely would be happy to use his entire army as hostages in order to capture a major threat. So we’ll see how that goes.
This story is TOO GOOD AND I WANT IT ALL NOW 🙁
But it’s very important for Red to take care of her health and write/draw at a pace that isn’t harmful to her, so despite my complaints, I am happy to wait.
…well, fuck. This would certainly account for Kendal being beyond the Northern Wyrm’s ability to help, as they said. I suppose it might be good that Stefan actually wants to talk, but his timing couldn’t be worse. There can’t be much time left before the volcano explodes.
I seriously hope for a filler arc soon. The kids need a heckin’ nap.
Well at least Stefan is starting out conversational. Our Floof gang have gotten too deep in it again! Is Primordial Life have to the heavy lifting or has Aliuna been able to work out some arrangement with help from her contacts? It’s a long wait to Arc 2, Chapter 8 start. See you there! And what other plots are stirring Red’s creativity?
Young bishonen vs older bishonen. This is very difficult to predict the outcome of!
His hair is too darn fluffy
So now Kendal’s going to have to beat up all those guys too? 😉 Still a lot of balls in the air at this point.
For those wondering about Alinua, Red said this on tumblr:
“she can’t show up until the timelines realign with chapter 5 and Kendal is beyond the Northern Wyrm’s power to help”
“If I was no longer busy, sure, unfortunately, I’m still busy.”
Tired Kendal arrives on shore. “Very
Impressive” states the bearer of horns. Wary
Many paladins stand in line. With eerie
Ease “A moment of your time?” his query.
Stefan has discovered Kendal’s weakness; politeness. I think it’s a god thing (that’s “god”, not “good”). If a god reacts badly, i.e., violently, to polite supplicants, they tend to end up with no supplicants.