CALLED IT! Neither of them resemble each other aside from their specific hair floofiness, and people love to enslave metal-caste for some reason.
Tess is a free-spirited, authority-defying type of person, which is really weird, since according to the wiki, they never develop a sense of self before puberty. Kind of the opposite of Tess’s personality. Maybe the Ruunasers bought her after puberty? Maybe they’re actually really nice? Maybe Erin was a lonely kid and they literally had to buy a playmate? Who knows!
Unfortunately, we won’t have a sibling dynamic, but it’s still, it would be pretty funny fit Erin to use his status to constantly pull the crime trio or of their shenanigans, and possibly be annoyed that this is the three dozenth time he’s had to do that for Tess.
Whew! That was a LOT of thoughts for one comment. I’m sorry excited for a possible backstory. This page was very nice.
Well, Erin’s family is really messed up. Also I wonder what kind of dynamic Tess and Erin will have, they might still have a sibling dynamic or maybe a more friends for a long time, but also they might just hate each other.
Galen, unless you intended to save Tess and make her a Stormbreaker maybe you should have gotten Erin a dog instead.
As shocking as this is, from reading the lore, part of me knew this was a real possibility. I even used it as the main basis of my relationship theory on the same page. Guess that’s what happens when you suck up the lore like I do, especially regarding the metal caste.
Now this casts Asera into a new light; I assumed the biggest problem of that city were pretentious mages, but it seems things go deeper. Asera probably calls it’s slavery “indentured servitude” or some euphemism along those lines.
Present day wise it seems Falst’s plan is working; none of the people in the first panel are so much as glancing at the trio. However Alinua is right, Erin still needs to be able to find them. Maybe spam message borbs and follow where they lead?
Yeah, I was not expecting that; I assumed it was just an adopted siblings situation, but man, fuck Galen and Asera, holy shit.
On a related note, I have to wonder: is this what the dream Void Dragon was referring to when he was laying into Erin for leaving Kendal in prison: the fact that his dad bought Tess as a slave for him and he never questioned it as a kid because he didn’t know better. Maybe the thing he was powerless to stop was his dad punishing her for disobedience, and that may be part of the reason he’s always going on research trips away from home. I also have to wonder if Tess already had her connection to lightning magic or if she acquired it through the Soulshaper Monks, hence the prior dealings the Ruunasers had with them. Idk, interesting things to think about.
To everyone who keeps saying “oh I probably should have seen this coming given the lore about the metal caste”, could someone explain where that lore *lives*? Just… I can’t seem to find it.
Well, I wasn’t EXPECTING Tess to be a slave but am I surprised that Erin’s family owns/owned slaves? No. Absolutely not. It really shouldn’t be that surprising y’all.
I never thought about it but it makes perfect sense unfortunately, considering Erin’s status and the little we know about his life. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Calm down people. There are many legitimate options here, including buying freedom or servitude being better. Need a more complete story before going nuclear.
RUUNASER SIBLINGS ARE A GO, I REPEAT RUUNASER SIBLINGS ARE A GO
Also Tess is technically a slave, which is… not great, but still. RUUNASER SIBLINGS! This makes me unproportionally happy to concerned.
I figured that Tess would’ve been found by Galen due to his diplomacy stuff. It really says something about him that he saw a slave child and thought “hey, I should buy her so that my son has someone to play with because no one likes him due to his ego being the size of a small planet”. So he thinks that owning a person is okay as long as you have good intentions. It seems like Tess isn’t, like, forced to stay in Asera or anything, but we don’t know for sure yet. She could’ve been sent out to keep an eye on Erin during his storm trip (as I theorized a few pages back) and that’s why she’s out of Asera. I wasn’t really expecting this out of Asera, but if they did have slaves it makes sense that they’d say they didn’t.
Final thoughts for today: I’m choosing to believe for now (until I likely get corrected on Friday) that Tess saying “he probably thought he was doing me a favor” is going to be followed by “unfortunately, his son was an obnoxious prick. Still love him though”
Also, I wanted to mention that I have a theory that Tess was accidentally struck by some of Erin’s lightning and that’s why she has those powers because as long as we’re doing backstory that might come up next page and I wanted to put it out there that I guessed it. I could be wrong though, but I feel like it’s too much of a coincidence.
Judging from previous scenes, they probably still have something resembling a sibling relationship, definitely with some conflicted times and fellings, but they still care about each other. But I’m betting that her relationship with Erin’s parents is not as good..
Judging from previous scenes, they probably still have something resembling a sibling relationship, with some conflicted times and feelings for sure, but they still care for each other. But I’m betting her relationship with Erin’s parents is not so good.
…So did he like, free her afterwards or is she still his property? Cause like, if the latter, then Erin’s dear old dad is gonna need a good old smack upside the head at the very least.
You know Tess, if you want to avoid going into your full life story, maybe you should just say you’re adopted. That’s arguably true, and it would require less of these awkward follow-up questions.
Unless the life story is just you recounting your autobiography.
And Galen, the problem with buying slaves to free them is that the slaver still benefits from selling people. It’s only perfectly moral if like after you leave they look down and go “Wait a minute, this is monopoly money”.
Now what I’m wondering is: which city was that? We’ve already seen the cities of Vash and Zuurith, two of the largest settlements on the continent; the only other ones I know of are Skieron and Asera, and maybe Argist, depending on its size. She said Galen was visiting that city, so Asera is out; the way Tess mentions the city implies it was a different city than this one, so Zuurith is out; and as I am a peruser of the Tumblr deep lore, I know that Vash absolutely did not tolerate slavery, so Vash is out. So that leaves Skieron for sure, Argist potentially, or perhaps a city on a different continent entirely.
On a different note: I knew it, Tess is Erin’s adopted sister, not biological; now it just remains to be seen whether Galen bought her freedom, or whether he bought her into “indentured servitude.”
Guys. Guys. Yes the slave history is very yikes, but let’s hold up a little. The fact that she goes by Tess RUUNASER probably means SOMETHING. Slaves don’t usually adopt their owners’ last names.
I’m very curious to see if Red can write sibling dynamics well, considering she’s an only child if I’m remembering correctly
Ok, a few things:
1. @Lazuul is right, we don’t know the full context behind it. While it may be that Erin’s family owns slaves for personal benefit it is equally possible they bought Tess to free her from a worse fate and maybe even helped her become a Stormbreaker.
2. @TheUnknownGame Interesting train of thought. Maybe since Asera is relatively young city wise their emissaries might be limited as to how picky they are with making allies and trade pacts. So they might look the other way if a city they deal with does slavery, at least initially.
3. All this talk about slavery and Erin’s family means no one it talking about Tess sticking her tongue out in panel 4.
me: oh hey, tess seems to personally know erin! that’s so interesting, i wonder if they were friends, went to the same school, neighbors, maybe even adopted siblings! that’s so fun! 😀
the actual backstory: D8
@HelloHaiku If you are referring to the blonde person to the right of the first panel, I like to think that this is guy is giving his pet rock a nice walk to get some fresh air.
Hey so… what is a stormbreaker? I’ve been working my way through all of the lore on the tumblr, wiki, and lore pages but I can’t remember what that is.
The first thing, I thought was What?! followed by oh so Evil Tree’s theory was right then, and then this makes a lot of sense. I’m wondering wwhat exactly Tess’s life was before she was sold to the slavers, and why did Erin’s dad buy a slave?! Did he do it to free her or something and help her become a Stormbreaker or something like that? Or did he literally buy a child becuse ‘Erin needs a playmate?’ Both? Other reasons? A mixture?
You know, in light of this revelation, I have to wonder whether her sale/likely mistreatment at Galen’s hands is the thing that the Void Dragon was calling him out for in the dream sequence a while back. He wouldn’t have been able to do much about it when he was a kid, after all, hence his comment that he was a child as a means of justifying his inaction.
I also have to wonder whether Tess already had her powers or if unlocking them was the prior business the Ruunasers had with the Soulshaper Monks, seeing as they can open magical links.
All in all, interesting things to think about, and I can’t wait to learn more on Friday!
I thought Tess was Erin’s cousin or something when I saw ‘Tess Runnaser’and before that I thought she knew him from somehwere like the academy and was trying to find him because he went missing after the expidition and the storm suddenly stopped from some reason.
Actually, that brings me onto something else, I think Erin stopping the storm killed a lot of people. In Windcrest the mills and whole infrastructure of the town is based on the Storm given how long its existed , Windscrest can’t be the only town like that. Not to mention such a massive change in the environment that quickly would have bad knock on effects.
woah! on the plus side either she’s free now or there’s the possibility that she can have a “can’t imprison me as I’m technicaly the property of an emisenary” get out of jail card- just spouting head not even cannon here though.
I don’t know why, but the first panel makes me think of those shots in Star Trek TOS where there are just a ton of people walking through the hallways of the Enterprise.
Geez, guys, calm down. He bought her in a different city, which means he could very well have just freed and adopted her when he got back to Asera. Might have thought he was saving a kid, with getting his lonely son a playmate as a bonus. The shared last name is definitely indicative of her being something other than a slave to them.
Also, sibling dynamic is still possible depending on how young the two were when introduced to each other.
I head purple was the color of people of status, as it’s so hard to procure. Though so many fictions (mainly animated) where I see purple being worn in abundance, when not used by the bad giys.
Interesting take with slavery. It’s still a touchy topic, but I dont think there were places where it was relatively less bleak in history, as some were allowed to buy their own freedom through their services. Still, pretty scary to think that a man being sold/kept as property.
The twist overall has the same energy as one particular scene from One Piece.
First of all, shout-out to the mood that is the lady in the left corner of the 1st panel. Reading while walking through a busy street carrying groceries or something? ICON.
Given what Red posted on Tumblr not too long ago, I think now we know what the VD was talking about in Erin’s dream sequence. I don’t know enough about the Stormbreaker aspect of the lore, but I assume Tess received that scar in the process of becoming one since it involves getting struck by lightning? And with Erin’s powers, I think it’s a possibility that he might’ve been responsible, especially if Galen orchestrate it, which could’ve been specifically what our friend the VD was talking about. I have a feeling that “playmate” could’ve also meant “practice because you’re the Elemental Magus and it’s my duty as your father to make sure you do it right”.
One more thing…can we appreciate the fact that Tess is fiddling with the cuff from Shrike’s chain right before she talks about being enslaved? At first I thought that maybe she had it the whole time and it was some sort of representation of belonging to the Ruunasers, if that’s still the case, but then I looked back through. Anyway, I really like that she’s trying to get it off in the middle of joking about her trauma, because that’s healthy lol.
@ArchitectOfTheStars Many slaveowners DID do that. That’s why Malcolm X changed his last name. It’s a sign of ownership. They definitely have a sibling relationship but that doesn’t mean they’re “family” in the adopted sense. (Although I hope so!)
Wait… do we know Tess is not a slave right now? She could have either escaped or is on a special mission but not “free”. It’s entirely possible Erin’s panicked because she shouldn’t even be here? I hope she’s free but if she’s not that could cause more problems down the line…
On a lighter note…It turns out you CAN buy friendship *badum tiss*
Sorry to put all of these thoughts so cluttered in one place, didn’t feel like making separate posts ha ha
Okay, I’m back. My thoughts on the last panel
This dude (Trusk) seems very mentorish, and maybe he’ll be won over by the squad
I’m not sure wether to hug Shrike or slap her
This could be really troublesome
I’m not nearly as good as you guys at this
My thoughts on today’s page
WHAT THE ABSOLUTE HELL! YOU DO NOT “BUY” A FRIEND! I OFFICIALLY HATE ERIN’S DAD!! THAT IS A BIG PROBLEM! NO. NO. NO. NO. GAHHHH! It’s a super interesting dynamic, but I also utterly hate it.
No sibling dynamic, huh. AWWWWW! Maybe they’ll still give us a sibling dynamic depending on how close the two are.
This explains SO much about Tess’s personality, her authority defying, etc. (It makes me kind of sad when she says it so nonchalantly)
I’m now really curious to meet Erin’s parents and Asera (the god, not the city) and I don’t think I like Asera.
I’m REALLY curious about Tess and Erin’s dynamic now that we know she was his “indentured servant/forced playmate” Why is she here and not back in Asera? What is she going to think about Erin’s possession? Is she freed, or did she escape? (Please be free, please be free)
Red is just throwing us one twist after another, and there are so many plot directives, etc. that I have no idea how to keep up with them, and how in the world is Red doing this? Dainix, Tess and Erin’s directive, Caliban’s intentions, the monster hunter everyone forgot about who is still on the character page, Dainix and Kendal’s fight, what is Tynaan waiting for, how are they going to find Erin, what is going to happen if they are captured, is Dainix the demon, and so many more, HOW do you keep up with it?
I absolutely still think Tess and Erin will have kind of a sibling dynamic! Especially judging by how chill Tess is here. Also buying someone who is sold as a slave to be your son’s “playmate” also sounds like it could really be saving them from a worse fate so I give Erin’s family the benefit of the doubt here – however the fact that Tess was even sold as a slave in itself is already tragic. And lastly @Evil Tree is right, we need to talk more about Tess sticking her tongue out and how GODDAMN CUTE SHE IS
Everyone hears “slavery” and immediately thinks of American Deep South brand slavery. Yeah, that was horrible with the forced backbreaking labor and the beatings and the inhumane treatment, but those things are not necessary to slavery. Many cultures in world history used slaves without mistreating them, considering them part of the household just as much as the rest of the family to be fed, clothed, housed, and generally taken care of by the head of the house. Certain cultures even gave slaves rights, legal protection from abuse, and a guaranteed path to freedom through service. I’m not defending slavery here, I’m just pointing out that it might not be as bad as you all immediately assume.
Given that Erin immediately dropped everything in the middle of a search for vital information needed to keep the Void Dragon from destroying the whole ass world in order to tend to Tess’ needs shows that she’s not just a piece of property to him. He genuinely cares about her as a person and wants to see her safe. I think this is also supported by how she’s so chill about the whole thing. I don’t think that this is going to be as horrifying as you all initially think it to be.
To Aromar Dyspros, Evil Tree, Silver, etc. :
Yeah I might have overreacted *awkward laugh* when it comes to issues of racism/slavery/sexism etc. I get really hyped up and angry, and when I hear slavery, I definitely think of the awfulness of the Deep South, something that was utterly horrible and wrong and I get very angry about. But your definitely right, we have no idea what exactly situation she was in before and after she was given as a “playmate”. She could have been taken out of a bad situation, but in a safe and kind family, and regardless Erin DEFINITELY does not think of Tess as his property, and there’s probably still a good chance for a sibling dynamic. You make a lot of really good points Aromar Dyspros!
Page where the name Tess Ruunaser is revealed: Yes! My random headcanon about Tess and Erin being sibling might actually be true!
This page: Well this certainly puts a damper on things.
I found this one post on the tumblr about the metal-caste* so I’m going to be looking at that here and see if there’s anything we can maybe guess from that.
After a couple paragraphs about where the metal-caste come from, we learn that metal-caste are an appealing target for slavers because, one, they’re strong, and two, they lack a sense of self as children, and so will typically act as they are directed without complaint. Now, normally, at the onset of puberty a metal-caste acquires a “spark” and gains that sense of self-awareness, also taking on a second name. But if a metal-caste is taken before their spark and placed in servitude, it’s possible for their spark to never manifest. This whole situation is possibly referenced in the scene with Erin’s dream: “He will never ask you to save him. How can he, when he does not believe himself to be truly alive?” and ” You have always let others suffer for your convenience so long as they do it quietly.” And so while the internal argument is about Kendal, it’s quite likely that he finds it reminiscent of his relationship with Tess. And also from that scene, the exchange: “I have changed nothing of your nature. Or have you forgotten what-?” “I was a child! Powerless!” and the fact that after he wakes up he immediately changes his plans to cut his stay short to reduce Kendal’s stay in prison suggests that he probably feels uncomfortable and a sense of guilt about this situation. He probably does consider it slavery.
Now some metal-caste are “chosen by the sky” (struck by lightning) and acquire a “second-spark”, becoming Stormbreakers, powerful metal-caste mages. This has to be natural lightning** so, no, Erin didn’t turn Tess into a Stormbreaker by zapping her. Stormbreakers also have a sense of wanderlust, and typically return home infrequently. So if Tess is a Stormbreaker, she probably is free now and it’s really only coincidence that she was in the area when Erin got possessed. For all we know, Erin hasn’t seen Tess in years.
Speaking of backstory stuff, while I think it’s pretty obvious to us now that the stuff in the dream sequence was referencing Erin’s relationship with Tess, there’s another scene I want to draw attention to. Specifically chapter 11 page 15, where Erin helps Alinua through an existential crisis: “You’ve changed a lot, and you worry that’s unnatural, but to me it’s the most familiar story in the world. From the sound of it, whatever else happened that day, your life dramatically improved. You were miserable for so long that you don’t recognize yourself when you’re happy. . . . Please. This isn’t my first identity crisis.” And we all kind of assumed that Erin was talking about himself, but with all the stuff about “sparks” and suddenly developing a sense of self . . . what if he was actually talking about Tess?
Was this reveal just as shocking as “Tess Ruunaster”? Does the fact that I haven’t broken character provide the answer? Is everyone simply seeing the phrase “His dad bought me” and immediately jumping to the least charitable interpretation of that whilst ignoring the nonchalant tone in which it was brought up? Did Erin’s father see a young boy with no friends and a young girl in need of saving from a horrible existence and decide to kill two borbs with one smack? Is Tess still considered property in a legal sense? Will the Floof Squad recover their wits from this experience by ordering takeout from AFC (Asera Fried Crab)?
Averias:
…Holy sh*t, I think you might be right with your analysis on that chapter 11 scene! And of course, we had absolutely no way of knowing back then that Erin and Tess are adoptive siblings, so of course we assumed Erin was talking about himself when he brought up his past experience. Now I want to see a flashback of Erin helping Tess through her own identity crisis post-zappification!
Hiii:
Understandable, chattel slavery is f*cking disgusting in its barbarity. However, as Aromar Dyspros said, it isn’t the only kind of slavery. There was a practice in at least one of the indigenous cultures where I live where criminals and debtors were put into indentured servitude to the family they had wronged / owed money to, until their sentence had been served / their debts were paid off. And yeah, by all accounts, they were treated much better than chattel slaves. While I personally am not a fan of the debt-induced variety, I do see the potential for the crime-induced variety to work in a fair system (i.e. not the USA justice system). And then in the modern world, there’s wage slavery (where corporations hire poor people, often from marginalized demographics with a particular focus on undocumented immigrants, who subsequently get treated like garbage by their employers but can’t retaliate because they can’t afford a lawyer and they’d get ratted out to the police, who will most likely take the employer’s side), which I’m definitely not a fan of.
everentropy:
Thank you for that tidbit about Malcolm X, I didn’t know that!
Averias:
WHOA… dang that is some REALLY interesting info. I am SHOCKED, but it makes so much sense. Nice! If red read this they’ll (it’s they, right? I REALLY don’t want to misgender anyone, but I’m bad at asking and knowing) probably be like “Darn, there goes my plot twist…” In an EXTREMELY sarcastic tone as they just lob another one at us. (Plus what you said, cos that makes total sense.)
TheUnknownGame:
On the one hand, HEY I live in the US. On the other, much heavier hand: Yeah… Yeah… (any patriots out there, please don’t kill me, I’m not saying I hate the US, just that the system is flawed.) I’ve lived in the Deep South for almost all my life, I’m very protective, and my family is very anti racist/sexist/etc., so when I hear slavery and bought, I go full on angry, racist opposing, protecting mode. (Plus Tess is just SO dang cute, it’s hard not to get upset when she says anything that might have been bad or painful to her)
Evil Tree:
AGGGHH, she looks so cute and flummoxed with her tounge out like that! (Thanks for mentioning that, it made my day)
Well… that answers a few questions and gives me a whole lot more. Firstly WHAT THE HEH?!?!
Who can blame them? Purple is a nice color
Okay that’s sort of yikes
bruh moment
NOOOOO! THEY ARENT SIBLINGS!!!
Let’s hope they still have the sibling dynamic
WHAT?! x 5
This is an echo, if it wasn’t clear.
I guess that’s probably at least part of the reason Tess has a general disregard for authority
YUP, I knew this was coming. (Next one is that she’s a storm breaker)
Time to update the characters page!
GEE, THIS IS THE MOST SURPRISING THING ABOUT ERIN AND HIS FAMILY THAT WE COULD HAVE LEARNED. WHO COULD HAVE FORSEEN THIS. ???
So she is erin’s enslaved play mate. Boy I did not expacted that.
What is that green fruit?
Is that an avocado?
Or perhaps a lime?
CALLED IT! Neither of them resemble each other aside from their specific hair floofiness, and people love to enslave metal-caste for some reason.
Tess is a free-spirited, authority-defying type of person, which is really weird, since according to the wiki, they never develop a sense of self before puberty. Kind of the opposite of Tess’s personality. Maybe the Ruunasers bought her after puberty? Maybe they’re actually really nice? Maybe Erin was a lonely kid and they literally had to buy a playmate? Who knows!
Unfortunately, we won’t have a sibling dynamic, but it’s still, it would be pretty funny fit Erin to use his status to constantly pull the crime trio or of their shenanigans, and possibly be annoyed that this is the three dozenth time he’s had to do that for Tess.
Whew! That was a LOT of thoughts for one comment. I’m sorry excited for a possible backstory. This page was very nice.
I really like Falst’s face in panel 7.
I think it is a good “Hol’ Up” face
Sort of a yikes? Thats a huge ass yikes
Also pretty interesting to see what dynamics result from this cursed history i’m intrigued
wHAT
This was already my headcanon for Asera.
Well, Erin’s family is really messed up. Also I wonder what kind of dynamic Tess and Erin will have, they might still have a sibling dynamic or maybe a more friends for a long time, but also they might just hate each other.
Galen, unless you intended to save Tess and make her a Stormbreaker maybe you should have gotten Erin a dog instead.
As shocking as this is, from reading the lore, part of me knew this was a real possibility. I even used it as the main basis of my relationship theory on the same page. Guess that’s what happens when you suck up the lore like I do, especially regarding the metal caste.
Now this casts Asera into a new light; I assumed the biggest problem of that city were pretentious mages, but it seems things go deeper. Asera probably calls it’s slavery “indentured servitude” or some euphemism along those lines.
Present day wise it seems Falst’s plan is working; none of the people in the first panel are so much as glancing at the trio. However Alinua is right, Erin still needs to be able to find them. Maybe spam message borbs and follow where they lead?
Yeah, I was not expecting that; I assumed it was just an adopted siblings situation, but man, fuck Galen and Asera, holy shit.
On a related note, I have to wonder: is this what the dream Void Dragon was referring to when he was laying into Erin for leaving Kendal in prison: the fact that his dad bought Tess as a slave for him and he never questioned it as a kid because he didn’t know better. Maybe the thing he was powerless to stop was his dad punishing her for disobedience, and that may be part of the reason he’s always going on research trips away from home. I also have to wonder if Tess already had her connection to lightning magic or if she acquired it through the Soulshaper Monks, hence the prior dealings the Ruunasers had with them. Idk, interesting things to think about.
To everyone who keeps saying “oh I probably should have seen this coming given the lore about the metal caste”, could someone explain where that lore *lives*? Just… I can’t seem to find it.
*Scribbles furiously in a large, yellow, and imaginary notepad*
Erin’s… family… are… slave… holders…
WAIT WHAT?!!?!? HELLO?
Well, I wasn’t EXPECTING Tess to be a slave but am I surprised that Erin’s family owns/owned slaves? No. Absolutely not. It really shouldn’t be that surprising y’all.
I never thought about it but it makes perfect sense unfortunately, considering Erin’s status and the little we know about his life. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Calm down people. There are many legitimate options here, including buying freedom or servitude being better. Need a more complete story before going nuclear.
RUUNASER SIBLINGS ARE A GO, I REPEAT RUUNASER SIBLINGS ARE A GO
Also Tess is technically a slave, which is… not great, but still. RUUNASER SIBLINGS! This makes me unproportionally happy to concerned.
I figured that Tess would’ve been found by Galen due to his diplomacy stuff. It really says something about him that he saw a slave child and thought “hey, I should buy her so that my son has someone to play with because no one likes him due to his ego being the size of a small planet”. So he thinks that owning a person is okay as long as you have good intentions. It seems like Tess isn’t, like, forced to stay in Asera or anything, but we don’t know for sure yet. She could’ve been sent out to keep an eye on Erin during his storm trip (as I theorized a few pages back) and that’s why she’s out of Asera. I wasn’t really expecting this out of Asera, but if they did have slaves it makes sense that they’d say they didn’t.
Final thoughts for today: I’m choosing to believe for now (until I likely get corrected on Friday) that Tess saying “he probably thought he was doing me a favor” is going to be followed by “unfortunately, his son was an obnoxious prick. Still love him though”
Also, I wanted to mention that I have a theory that Tess was accidentally struck by some of Erin’s lightning and that’s why she has those powers because as long as we’re doing backstory that might come up next page and I wanted to put it out there that I guessed it. I could be wrong though, but I feel like it’s too much of a coincidence.
Judging from previous scenes, they probably still have something resembling a sibling relationship, definitely with some conflicted times and fellings, but they still care about each other. But I’m betting that her relationship with Erin’s parents is not as good..
kind of like the snow queen with the bandit girl
Judging from previous scenes, they probably still have something resembling a sibling relationship, with some conflicted times and feelings for sure, but they still care for each other. But I’m betting her relationship with Erin’s parents is not so good.
I was thinking like, she’s adopted, or like her parent already had her before marrying into Erin’s family or something!
I’ve gotten my Ruunaser siblings… but at what cost?
Testing.
…So did he like, free her afterwards or is she still his property? Cause like, if the latter, then Erin’s dear old dad is gonna need a good old smack upside the head at the very least.
TL;DR: Wait, isn’t blending in going to make it harder for Mr. Hubris to find us? No? Okay, let’s get to know the new guy!
“Oh yeah, they bought me”
“…”
Oh…! Okay…! Coooooooool…
You know Tess, if you want to avoid going into your full life story, maybe you should just say you’re adopted. That’s arguably true, and it would require less of these awkward follow-up questions.
Unless the life story is just you recounting your autobiography.
And Galen, the problem with buying slaves to free them is that the slaver still benefits from selling people. It’s only perfectly moral if like after you leave they look down and go “Wait a minute, this is monopoly money”.
Now what I’m wondering is: which city was that? We’ve already seen the cities of Vash and Zuurith, two of the largest settlements on the continent; the only other ones I know of are Skieron and Asera, and maybe Argist, depending on its size. She said Galen was visiting that city, so Asera is out; the way Tess mentions the city implies it was a different city than this one, so Zuurith is out; and as I am a peruser of the Tumblr deep lore, I know that Vash absolutely did not tolerate slavery, so Vash is out. So that leaves Skieron for sure, Argist potentially, or perhaps a city on a different continent entirely.
On a different note: I knew it, Tess is Erin’s adopted sister, not biological; now it just remains to be seen whether Galen bought her freedom, or whether he bought her into “indentured servitude.”
-confused screaming-
Yet she’s still so chill!
Asera be like “it is not slavery it is surprise playmate”
Guys. Guys. Yes the slave history is very yikes, but let’s hold up a little. The fact that she goes by Tess RUUNASER probably means SOMETHING. Slaves don’t usually adopt their owners’ last names.
I’m very curious to see if Red can write sibling dynamics well, considering she’s an only child if I’m remembering correctly
Ok, a few things:
1. @Lazuul is right, we don’t know the full context behind it. While it may be that Erin’s family owns slaves for personal benefit it is equally possible they bought Tess to free her from a worse fate and maybe even helped her become a Stormbreaker.
2. @TheUnknownGame Interesting train of thought. Maybe since Asera is relatively young city wise their emissaries might be limited as to how picky they are with making allies and trade pacts. So they might look the other way if a city they deal with does slavery, at least initially.
3. All this talk about slavery and Erin’s family means no one it talking about Tess sticking her tongue out in panel 4.
me: oh hey, tess seems to personally know erin! that’s so interesting, i wonder if they were friends, went to the same school, neighbors, maybe even adopted siblings! that’s so fun! 😀
the actual backstory: D8
She seems awfully chipper while explaining her tragic backstory
@HelloHaiku If you are referring to the blonde person to the right of the first panel, I like to think that this is guy is giving his pet rock a nice walk to get some fresh air.
alt text: don’t you hate it when your funny icebreaker anecdotes are just Oops All Trauma
Hey so… what is a stormbreaker? I’ve been working my way through all of the lore on the tumblr, wiki, and lore pages but I can’t remember what that is.
The first thing, I thought was What?! followed by oh so Evil Tree’s theory was right then, and then this makes a lot of sense. I’m wondering wwhat exactly Tess’s life was before she was sold to the slavers, and why did Erin’s dad buy a slave?! Did he do it to free her or something and help her become a Stormbreaker or something like that? Or did he literally buy a child becuse ‘Erin needs a playmate?’ Both? Other reasons? A mixture?
You know, in light of this revelation, I have to wonder whether her sale/likely mistreatment at Galen’s hands is the thing that the Void Dragon was calling him out for in the dream sequence a while back. He wouldn’t have been able to do much about it when he was a kid, after all, hence his comment that he was a child as a means of justifying his inaction.
I also have to wonder whether Tess already had her powers or if unlocking them was the prior business the Ruunasers had with the Soulshaper Monks, seeing as they can open magical links.
All in all, interesting things to think about, and I can’t wait to learn more on Friday!
I thought Tess was Erin’s cousin or something when I saw ‘Tess Runnaser’and before that I thought she knew him from somehwere like the academy and was trying to find him because he went missing after the expidition and the storm suddenly stopped from some reason.
Actually, that brings me onto something else, I think Erin stopping the storm killed a lot of people. In Windcrest the mills and whole infrastructure of the town is based on the Storm given how long its existed , Windscrest can’t be the only town like that. Not to mention such a massive change in the environment that quickly would have bad knock on effects.
This makes it real weird that earlier on Erin hid from her. Just after he got dragooned I believe
woah! on the plus side either she’s free now or there’s the possibility that she can have a “can’t imprison me as I’m technicaly the property of an emisenary” get out of jail card- just spouting head not even cannon here though.
@CJ the Bard
A metal-caste who gets struck by lightning. It gives them lightning powers and an enhanced awareness of the world.
That is a lot less complicated than anything I thought of…
I don’t know why, but the first panel makes me think of those shots in Star Trek TOS where there are just a ton of people walking through the hallways of the Enterprise.
Geez, guys, calm down. He bought her in a different city, which means he could very well have just freed and adopted her when he got back to Asera. Might have thought he was saving a kid, with getting his lonely son a playmate as a bonus. The shared last name is definitely indicative of her being something other than a slave to them.
Also, sibling dynamic is still possible depending on how young the two were when introduced to each other.
Contrast Alinua and Falst’s shock that Erin’s dad bought a quasi-slave with the fantasy heroes who just buy slaves but it’s okay because they’re nice.
I head purple was the color of people of status, as it’s so hard to procure. Though so many fictions (mainly animated) where I see purple being worn in abundance, when not used by the bad giys.
Interesting take with slavery. It’s still a touchy topic, but I dont think there were places where it was relatively less bleak in history, as some were allowed to buy their own freedom through their services. Still, pretty scary to think that a man being sold/kept as property.
The twist overall has the same energy as one particular scene from One Piece.
First of all, shout-out to the mood that is the lady in the left corner of the 1st panel. Reading while walking through a busy street carrying groceries or something? ICON.
Given what Red posted on Tumblr not too long ago, I think now we know what the VD was talking about in Erin’s dream sequence. I don’t know enough about the Stormbreaker aspect of the lore, but I assume Tess received that scar in the process of becoming one since it involves getting struck by lightning? And with Erin’s powers, I think it’s a possibility that he might’ve been responsible, especially if Galen orchestrate it, which could’ve been specifically what our friend the VD was talking about. I have a feeling that “playmate” could’ve also meant “practice because you’re the Elemental Magus and it’s my duty as your father to make sure you do it right”.
One more thing…can we appreciate the fact that Tess is fiddling with the cuff from Shrike’s chain right before she talks about being enslaved? At first I thought that maybe she had it the whole time and it was some sort of representation of belonging to the Ruunasers, if that’s still the case, but then I looked back through. Anyway, I really like that she’s trying to get it off in the middle of joking about her trauma, because that’s healthy lol.
*orchestrated
@ArchitectOfTheStars Many slaveowners DID do that. That’s why Malcolm X changed his last name. It’s a sign of ownership. They definitely have a sibling relationship but that doesn’t mean they’re “family” in the adopted sense. (Although I hope so!)
Wait… do we know Tess is not a slave right now? She could have either escaped or is on a special mission but not “free”. It’s entirely possible Erin’s panicked because she shouldn’t even be here? I hope she’s free but if she’s not that could cause more problems down the line…
On a lighter note…It turns out you CAN buy friendship *badum tiss*
Sorry to put all of these thoughts so cluttered in one place, didn’t feel like making separate posts ha ha
ImuyanMangoCat-i think they could be adopted siblings? not officially, but still very much siblings
Okay, I’m back. My thoughts on the last panel
This dude (Trusk) seems very mentorish, and maybe he’ll be won over by the squad
I’m not sure wether to hug Shrike or slap her
This could be really troublesome
I’m not nearly as good as you guys at this
My thoughts on today’s page
WHAT THE ABSOLUTE HELL! YOU DO NOT “BUY” A FRIEND! I OFFICIALLY HATE ERIN’S DAD!! THAT IS A BIG PROBLEM! NO. NO. NO. NO. GAHHHH! It’s a super interesting dynamic, but I also utterly hate it.
No sibling dynamic, huh. AWWWWW! Maybe they’ll still give us a sibling dynamic depending on how close the two are.
This explains SO much about Tess’s personality, her authority defying, etc. (It makes me kind of sad when she says it so nonchalantly)
I’m now really curious to meet Erin’s parents and Asera (the god, not the city) and I don’t think I like Asera.
I’m REALLY curious about Tess and Erin’s dynamic now that we know she was his “indentured servant/forced playmate” Why is she here and not back in Asera? What is she going to think about Erin’s possession? Is she freed, or did she escape? (Please be free, please be free)
Red is just throwing us one twist after another, and there are so many plot directives, etc. that I have no idea how to keep up with them, and how in the world is Red doing this? Dainix, Tess and Erin’s directive, Caliban’s intentions, the monster hunter everyone forgot about who is still on the character page, Dainix and Kendal’s fight, what is Tynaan waiting for, how are they going to find Erin, what is going to happen if they are captured, is Dainix the demon, and so many more, HOW do you keep up with it?
Image address for this page: complicated.
I absolutely still think Tess and Erin will have kind of a sibling dynamic! Especially judging by how chill Tess is here. Also buying someone who is sold as a slave to be your son’s “playmate” also sounds like it could really be saving them from a worse fate so I give Erin’s family the benefit of the doubt here – however the fact that Tess was even sold as a slave in itself is already tragic. And lastly @Evil Tree is right, we need to talk more about Tess sticking her tongue out and how GODDAMN CUTE SHE IS
Everyone hears “slavery” and immediately thinks of American Deep South brand slavery. Yeah, that was horrible with the forced backbreaking labor and the beatings and the inhumane treatment, but those things are not necessary to slavery. Many cultures in world history used slaves without mistreating them, considering them part of the household just as much as the rest of the family to be fed, clothed, housed, and generally taken care of by the head of the house. Certain cultures even gave slaves rights, legal protection from abuse, and a guaranteed path to freedom through service. I’m not defending slavery here, I’m just pointing out that it might not be as bad as you all immediately assume.
Given that Erin immediately dropped everything in the middle of a search for vital information needed to keep the Void Dragon from destroying the whole ass world in order to tend to Tess’ needs shows that she’s not just a piece of property to him. He genuinely cares about her as a person and wants to see her safe. I think this is also supported by how she’s so chill about the whole thing. I don’t think that this is going to be as horrifying as you all initially think it to be.
To Aromar Dyspros, Evil Tree, Silver, etc. :
Yeah I might have overreacted *awkward laugh* when it comes to issues of racism/slavery/sexism etc. I get really hyped up and angry, and when I hear slavery, I definitely think of the awfulness of the Deep South, something that was utterly horrible and wrong and I get very angry about. But your definitely right, we have no idea what exactly situation she was in before and after she was given as a “playmate”. She could have been taken out of a bad situation, but in a safe and kind family, and regardless Erin DEFINITELY does not think of Tess as his property, and there’s probably still a good chance for a sibling dynamic. You make a lot of really good points Aromar Dyspros!
Page where the name Tess Ruunaser is revealed: Yes! My random headcanon about Tess and Erin being sibling might actually be true!
This page: Well this certainly puts a damper on things.
I found this one post on the tumblr about the metal-caste* so I’m going to be looking at that here and see if there’s anything we can maybe guess from that.
After a couple paragraphs about where the metal-caste come from, we learn that metal-caste are an appealing target for slavers because, one, they’re strong, and two, they lack a sense of self as children, and so will typically act as they are directed without complaint. Now, normally, at the onset of puberty a metal-caste acquires a “spark” and gains that sense of self-awareness, also taking on a second name. But if a metal-caste is taken before their spark and placed in servitude, it’s possible for their spark to never manifest. This whole situation is possibly referenced in the scene with Erin’s dream: “He will never ask you to save him. How can he, when he does not believe himself to be truly alive?” and ” You have always let others suffer for your convenience so long as they do it quietly.” And so while the internal argument is about Kendal, it’s quite likely that he finds it reminiscent of his relationship with Tess. And also from that scene, the exchange: “I have changed nothing of your nature. Or have you forgotten what-?” “I was a child! Powerless!” and the fact that after he wakes up he immediately changes his plans to cut his stay short to reduce Kendal’s stay in prison suggests that he probably feels uncomfortable and a sense of guilt about this situation. He probably does consider it slavery.
Now some metal-caste are “chosen by the sky” (struck by lightning) and acquire a “second-spark”, becoming Stormbreakers, powerful metal-caste mages. This has to be natural lightning** so, no, Erin didn’t turn Tess into a Stormbreaker by zapping her. Stormbreakers also have a sense of wanderlust, and typically return home infrequently. So if Tess is a Stormbreaker, she probably is free now and it’s really only coincidence that she was in the area when Erin got possessed. For all we know, Erin hasn’t seen Tess in years.
Speaking of backstory stuff, while I think it’s pretty obvious to us now that the stuff in the dream sequence was referencing Erin’s relationship with Tess, there’s another scene I want to draw attention to. Specifically chapter 11 page 15, where Erin helps Alinua through an existential crisis: “You’ve changed a lot, and you worry that’s unnatural, but to me it’s the most familiar story in the world. From the sound of it, whatever else happened that day, your life dramatically improved. You were miserable for so long that you don’t recognize yourself when you’re happy. . . . Please. This isn’t my first identity crisis.” And we all kind of assumed that Erin was talking about himself, but with all the stuff about “sparks” and suddenly developing a sense of self . . . what if he was actually talking about Tess?
*https://comicaurora.tumblr.com/post/628265613427605505/can-you-share-anything-about-metalcaste-since-the#notes
**https://comicaurora.tumblr.com/post/646599638797991936/if-i-remember-correctly-for-a-metal-caste-to#notes
Was this reveal just as shocking as “Tess Ruunaster”? Does the fact that I haven’t broken character provide the answer? Is everyone simply seeing the phrase “His dad bought me” and immediately jumping to the least charitable interpretation of that whilst ignoring the nonchalant tone in which it was brought up? Did Erin’s father see a young boy with no friends and a young girl in need of saving from a horrible existence and decide to kill two borbs with one smack? Is Tess still considered property in a legal sense? Will the Floof Squad recover their wits from this experience by ordering takeout from AFC (Asera Fried Crab)?
Tune in This Week to Find Out!
Averias:
…Holy sh*t, I think you might be right with your analysis on that chapter 11 scene! And of course, we had absolutely no way of knowing back then that Erin and Tess are adoptive siblings, so of course we assumed Erin was talking about himself when he brought up his past experience. Now I want to see a flashback of Erin helping Tess through her own identity crisis post-zappification!
Hiii:
Understandable, chattel slavery is f*cking disgusting in its barbarity. However, as Aromar Dyspros said, it isn’t the only kind of slavery. There was a practice in at least one of the indigenous cultures where I live where criminals and debtors were put into indentured servitude to the family they had wronged / owed money to, until their sentence had been served / their debts were paid off. And yeah, by all accounts, they were treated much better than chattel slaves. While I personally am not a fan of the debt-induced variety, I do see the potential for the crime-induced variety to work in a fair system (i.e. not the USA justice system). And then in the modern world, there’s wage slavery (where corporations hire poor people, often from marginalized demographics with a particular focus on undocumented immigrants, who subsequently get treated like garbage by their employers but can’t retaliate because they can’t afford a lawyer and they’d get ratted out to the police, who will most likely take the employer’s side), which I’m definitely not a fan of.
everentropy:
Thank you for that tidbit about Malcolm X, I didn’t know that!
Can’t believe Galen pulled a Frankenstein!! Cringe
Averias:
WHOA… dang that is some REALLY interesting info. I am SHOCKED, but it makes so much sense. Nice! If red read this they’ll (it’s they, right? I REALLY don’t want to misgender anyone, but I’m bad at asking and knowing) probably be like “Darn, there goes my plot twist…” In an EXTREMELY sarcastic tone as they just lob another one at us. (Plus what you said, cos that makes total sense.)
TheUnknownGame:
On the one hand, HEY I live in the US. On the other, much heavier hand: Yeah… Yeah… (any patriots out there, please don’t kill me, I’m not saying I hate the US, just that the system is flawed.) I’ve lived in the Deep South for almost all my life, I’m very protective, and my family is very anti racist/sexist/etc., so when I hear slavery and bought, I go full on angry, racist opposing, protecting mode. (Plus Tess is just SO dang cute, it’s hard not to get upset when she says anything that might have been bad or painful to her)
Evil Tree:
AGGGHH, she looks so cute and flummoxed with her tounge out like that! (Thanks for mentioning that, it made my day)
Hiii:
I, too, live in the US (California specifically), and I too know that it’s deeply and fundamentally flawed.
Red proving how hard it is to see them in a crowd with an immediate crowd shot.
*cue Sypha ‘dafuq what now?’ face*
omg i’m that one person with the green hair in the first panel just like reading