2.3.4
on October 7, 2024
at 3:00 am
and that officially makes 3 consecutive pages that end with someone getting absolutely blasted. that feels like a record
Aurora
A fantasy webcomic. Updates M-W-F.
and that officially makes 3 consecutive pages that end with someone getting absolutely blasted. that feels like a record
Thank you Erin
For mobile readers.
Alt-text: everyone say thank you to erin for holding up the ocean so well
Image source: enough
Tumblr text: flash!
The Champion halts in surprise as a small, glowing ball gets tossed in front of him. He jerks back as it suddenly explodes in a burst of light—one of Dainix’s flashbangs. Falst glances back to Dainix, whose arm is outstretched.
“Ah–!” the Champion gasps, falling to his knees.
“Now! While he’s dazed!” Falst cries, leaping towards him.
“R-right! I can–” Alinua starts from the other side, a vine reaching out from her hands.
“Enough! Just get out of the way!” Erin shouts.
“You–” the Champion groans, light sparking around one of his hands.
“Oh great,” Falst mutters, him and Alinua staring at the bow.
A wave rears up from the sea, flowing over Erin’s head and slamming into the Champion, sending him crashing backwards.
Erin. NO. You did NOT HAVE TO DO THAT. I mean it was cool and it worked but. Also I’m wondering when Kendal would be getting back up… we know he’s tougher than a normal person but his chest was already injured BEFORE he got slammed into a metal railing. Which bent. That’s probably a lot of force even though he’s also heavier than a normal person. But Kendal’s also pretty resilient, so… Idk
Erin, if you have an ounce of sense, make that wave smack him to either the mast pole or the deck and freeze him. please.
Twitter Text: I had that happen in a wave pool once
Can’t blame Erin for stepping in, but he really needs to figure out how to let someone else rescue him.
In fact, the more I think about it, the ruder “Just get out of the way!” sounds.
Yes, Erin, channel MORE magic. It’s only the ocean and a storm resting on your shoulders, no biggie.
Never underestimate the power of a well-timed stun
Hmm. Maybe attacking the guy currently trying to hold back an entire storm is a tad… mistimed. Maybe attack him while he sleeps or something next time.
Get flashbanged, idiot.
“Divine powers of an ancient God my patatas I said I am going to flashbang the paladin”
Even with the weight of a storm on his shoulders and his friends leaping to his aid, Erin still feels obligated to solve everything himself. The worse the situation gets, the more he feels he has to prove… and the less feasible it gets for him to succeed on his own.
And somehow the party member who’s contributed the most to this fight is the one who is seasick. The benefits of thinking with something other than your fists. Great job Dainix! Though I worry he might eventually run out of those flasebang orb things. And is it just me who thinks what Erin is doing is reminiscent of the avatar state?
ERIN NO
I mean, I get it, he’s working really hard to hold back the ocean and Michael is actively trying to kill him. Completely understandable to mount a desperate attack. But man. His friends HAD this. But on some fundamental level, he didn’t believe that and doesn’t trust them to protect him, or else he didn’t read the situation correctly due to the sheer strain on him now.
Massive props to Dainix for tossing that flashbang and dazing him, MVP, pro setup for his friends, and it looked like Falst and Alinua were going to follow up on it pretty well before Erin did so instead.
Erin: You hit my sister with your wings? I HIT YOU WITH THE OCEAN!
The Champion shouldn’t be too mad being hit by such a lovely drawn wave. These chapters have really shown off Red’s water texture skills; the flowing lines of the wave combined with the droplets and foam, blues getting lighter the thinner the water is, bubbly SFX lettering. Water magic doesn’t get a lot of use in this comic, but when it does show up, it’s worth it.
FLASH (Ah-ah!) has once again, saved every one of us. I initially wrote Dainix out of this fight due to his unstable state and fire + wooden deck = bad times. Silly me! I forgot his bag of tricks and good training. He may not be able to go toe-to-toe with the Champion here, but his tools used at the right times and in the right ways can make a big difference.
I wonder, grimly, if those rust bombs might get some use here on the ship itself as a last resort.
Great show from Erin, and likely more effective than what Falst and Alinua were going to attempt, but I’m betting that’s going to further exacerbate the strain on him. Plua with the Paladin fight ongoing they can’t change course to go to the archipelago for repairs. I’m certain the ship is going under, but how that happens and what becomes of the gang I can’t say.
And this is all assuming nothing else happens to complicate things. Would be a real bad time for another one of those flaming rocks to come this way, wouldn’t it?
I don’t think rust bombs will work on a ship that’s been specially designed to resist corrosion. They’ll be handy for automatons later, I imagine. Also, yes. I had forgotten all about the active volcano. That will be bad.
You reminded me of the Flash Gordon movie! I really enjoyed watching that the movies and my friend enjoyed watching me nerding out like a kid watching it! I missed that movie. so fun to watch the melodrama! Thanks for the memory!
And today’s candidate for can’t except help is:
Erin. It’s always Erin.
good teamwork!
Teamwork! A flashbang sets the evening alight
Erin drums up the sea with a face of wrath and fright
Dainix throws a flash-bimb in the stranger’s face,
Alinua and Falst rush to do something brave.
“Enough! Just get out of the way!”
Erin knocks him off his feet with a wave.
Well, that’s one question answered.
And so Erin’s unhealthy mindset lives to tantrum another day.
But not a day that is soon, because he’s gonna be in BWEEM-induced overchannelling depowered state for days.
Good move from Dainix. I think our protagonists may actually be able to subdue Michael. Kendal and Tess were just caught before they could land an attack, but he might be a little weaker than we anticipated. Although what was Alinua going to try? Wrapping him up with vines? That sleeping plant?
Also: thank you, Erin.
Also, looking at what Primordial Cat and Squirrel said, the gang is going to have to have a talk with Erin about that when this is all over.
Flash! A-a-a! He’ll save every one of us!
… Sorry, I had to.
He’s probably done, if he’s only marginaly tougher than a regular person like The dragon in Erin’s body is
but consider: the light dragon might be able enhance micheals strength more since they are willingly cooperating, rather than constantly fighting for control like erin and voidy.
Paladin powers seem like either green lantern or psychic, so I don’t see that happening
He has a white, glowing aura around his whole body, the same color as his powers. I think he and/or the Lady just constantly projects a layer of psychic armor around himself.
erin you are NOT HELPING
I want Michael to be the mother of my children.
I want Michael to be the mother of my children
Hey! I’ve been waiting for that since, the moment the fight with the paladin started basically. Huh. What’s extra fun is that Dainix should still have some smoke bombs. Also Michael, GET WRECKED! Just because I can understand one’s motives does not mean I would not want them hit with a face full of seawater over it. Also I think that’s just karma at work to be honest. Also after binge watching some trope talks I’m happy to say I found a very good example of why fighting the paragon is very infuriating.
I just realized that Dainix uses a lot of tricks and whatnot (probably because he had to make do without magic) and that parallels Caliban who’s literally a trickster god! Which makes perfect sense if he’s kinda their champion. This story is so good because there’s so many beautiful little details like that.
I think there’s a sea monster in the background.
Considering Tess’ earlier comment about overchanneling, Erin’s probably gonna be out of action the rest of the whole book, isn’t he?
Once this fight is over, I mean. Obviously he’s still in action right now.
My bet is that he’s going to ‘damage’ his ability to cast, at least until they reach the monastery. He won’t be able to use magic as freely, and is going to have to rely on the others to cover for him.
Oh, that’s a GOOD idea. The old “My Powers Are Gone!” trope. Very effective on self-reliant egoists like Erin.
Maybe not gone, per se, but he’ll have to be more judicious, and possibly won’t be able to generate the power he usually can without causing himself pain.
Oh no! You’ve been forced to ACTUALLY trust your companions to protect you, and to maybe possibly examine your worldviews! #youknowwhatthatis #growth
I think Silvermage has something here. It does seem we’ve been set up to see Erin finally have to rely on his teammates.
But first… how to deal with the Paladin….
Honestly, I wonder if that’s an upside in some regard. I don’t think we know how much of the Void Dragons powers are able to flow through Erin and what the limiting factor of that is. If Erin is the gateway, then him being overchannelled might lead to a limiting of the Void Dragon during such time… as well as learning a trick to use even after the overchannelling fades.
It’s page 2.3.4! give it up for ascending numerical order! also thank you erin.
So on one hand, I can definitely see where Erin’s coming from. This random glowing person, who happens to hold what I can only assume is the anathema to the Void Dragon (My apologies, I’m not that knowledgeable about the lore of Aurora. Might need to fix that.) and who definitely wouldn’t be against *killing* Erin to get rid of the Dragon, popped up, started threatening Erin, and attacked Erin’s friends and sister. I think anyone would be willing to go up to bat.
However, I feel like this is going to go one of three ways. Either this is going to overtax our lovable little magus even more and knock him unconscious, it’s going to give Void a chance to slide into DMs and take over, or it’s gonna cause whatever shenaniganery Erin’s doing to keep the ship safe to fluctuate or outright not work, meaning the ship’s back at being in danger. Or heck, we’ll hit the lottery and all three will happen at once.
sure hope no one else gets washed overboard by that giant wave
Given Erin’s track record…Falst is in danger XD
BOSS FIGHT! BOSS FIGHT!
FLASHBANG!
I see we must not be in a console RPG world, where neither stun nor blind ever work on bosses…
You have officially failed the vibe check.
During Erin’s BWEEM induced depowered time he may learn how to apply things other than his magic to solve problems, more in line with his intelligence, and the power of friendship. Possibly even learning some insight and lessons that allow him to get rid of the void dragon by not being dependent on the ‘hunger’ magic.
(I may have accidentally dumped in the wrong email in my first comment so preemptive apologies for that.)
My boy tryna ruin Michael’s drip, unacceptable bro,Just unacceptable.I am very disappointed, I thought you could do better than that Erin
Because of this help that is as useful as Spider-Man’s backflips. You are charged with whatever punishment the commenter below this comment says. Aight commenters do your worst
Who are you refering too?
*to
Erin
He could have very well killed the champion with this and it was the only useful thing anyone did besides Dainix’s flashbomb
He must deal with ALL of his problems without ANY help from anyone 🙂 after all if he’s the only one capable of doing anything and no one can help him in any meaningful way then this shouldn’t even be punishment!
Then therapy
The worst punishment
I see “if you make it a fight, you know they’ll kill me” lasted as long as it took for his sister get get wingpunched. At least no character looks as cool digging his own grave as Erin; that wave looks AMAZING.
It does sort of drive home how terrifying an Elemental Magus would be as a weapon. Meet the guy who can literally pick up the ocean and hit you with it. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) for the first time in his life, he’s surrounded by gods and legends who can tank the hit…and hit a lot harder.
I’m just picturing Dainix sitting the lot of them down for a long, long lecture on teamwork after this.
I personally hope Dainix becomes a sort of tactical leader of the group. He’s clearly far better equipped in terms of leadership and communication skills. Erin and Kendal are both sort of leaders; Kendal in the ideological sense and Erin in the purely logical sense. Alinua is the Heart, but she’s not really a leader, and neither are Tess or Falst (not by a long shot).
It would make a lot of sense if the only character who actually has an extensive background of working in a team became the team leader, even if they’re still following the missions set by the Smart Guy or the ‘Leader’.
I’m down with this. Dainix is the only one with experience working in groups — heck, even here, without the opportunity to communicate, he’s set the team up with an opportunity to tackle Michael. If he sits them down to train in maneuvers, “here are ways we can work together,” they might just build group cohesion and…
…at least not get in each other’s way or do a one-at-a-time let’s-make-it-easy-for-the-baddies strategy.
Though I’ve got to say, this group is so individualistic, the prospect is daunting.
And we thought he was the Champion of light.
Dainix used Flashbang. It was very effective
also Thank you Erin
wow, dainix!
ohno I completely forgot
Aurora Question #4: What character relationship would you like to see explored in the future?
Alinua and Tess have only had one real interaction so far and it was the sweetest thing ever. I’d love to see more of them.
Ah wait, they also had their adventure in Zuurith… forgot about that.
DAINIX WITH EVERYONE. He’s my favourite character, but he’s only really talked to Falst and Kendal (as well as some Exposition With Erin). I’d love to see more with Tess (about monster-hunting), with Erin (about his shoddy leadership), and with Alinua (about their shared trauma of being magic-bombs). In fact, I’m interested in the Dainix-Alinua especially, because I want to see Alinua help Dainix with his Soulfire, and I’m sure Dainix can relate to Alinua’s own magical transformation.
I’m way too obsessed with ferinheit so even if it’s already been explored I would immediately point to this one. As for unexplored relationships honestly I’m curious about Tess and Falst interactions because while I feel like Falst might attempt to avoid Tess (she’s honestly the most loud and extroverted which for Falst, I don’t think he’d appreciate that) I think Tess would actively seek him out even if solely to befriend all of her brother’s friends. And I think grumpy Falst and cheerful Tess would be pretty hilarious to watch especially as Tess just takes his “I don’t want to be friends” as a challenge.
“Ferinheit”? Who came up with that?
It’s very clever.
‘Ferinheit’
Sorry give me a minute currently dying of laughter
While I’m tempted to say Alinua and Erin — I like the contrast of their magic styles, and I really really want to see a callback to their conversation back in 1.11.15– I’d really like to see more of Tess and Kendal. I enjoyed their interactions, brief as they were, in the Tynan fight and after he woke up, and they’re at such opposite ends of the spectrum: Tess who is the embodiment of individuality and lives for herself, and Kendal, who still struggles to see himself as a person and is maybe learning there is more to his life beyond his mission. Plus, I think that compared to the baggage and secrets Alinua, Erin, and Falst are lugging, Tess’s more open and easy-to-read nature might be reassuring to him.
Basically Tess with everyone I love her dynamic with all the other characters.
Erin and Falst I love all of they interact so much it would be so fun especially since they are so different but so similar
All of them! But Kendal’s and Falst’s friendship would be neat. It hasn’t had a ton of on-screen time compared to, say, Kendal and Alinua or Ferinheit, but I like what we have seen.
Oof that must hurt
Ty erinnn
…I have a feeling that champion and Erin will get along famously. They both very much prefer doing stuff by themselves, without help, because they can do it and no it will not come to back to bite them, thank you very much.
This is either a the reason they will get along famously or the reason they will hate each other to the end of time.
They have a certain chemistry…of the kind that requires you to empty the building.
I’ve got to wonder, is the light dragon used to only talking to her own people? Because if some random glowing person showed up talking about how my good friend is REALLY and evil monster in disguise I’m not going to just get out of the way. I don’t know you shiny person, why should I believe that you’re really a good person and not the monster yourself? This really feels like someone who’s used to being an authority figure and all of a sudden they’re dealing with people who don’t recognize their authority.
Thanks homie
I wonder if what Erin did is more or less effective than what Falst and Alinua were going to do.
Dainix: You think the light is your ally? You merely adopted the light. I was born in it, molded by it. I didn’t see the darkness until I was already a man, by then it was nothing to me but blinding!
Mikey:
Dainix: it sounded better in my head
This might just be me, but I don’t think that the champion will be incapacitated for long. He’ll get up in a page or to, mostly because otherwise it would make for an anti climatic binge read.
Mikey’s goals are understandable, but man is it satisfying to see him get hit. He barged in to a dangerous situation specifically to kill a guy he’d never met before. Beyond that, this might just be me, but the way he acted with Kendal felt condescending and self righteous
What time zone are the comments in?
The same as the pages, so new york/EDT
Sorry, I mixed it up. CDT, like Houston or Minneapolis.
Chekhov’s Flash Bomb!! I was RIGHT! Let’s GOOOOOOOOOO!!!
Yeah, Red, I was fascinated with tropes since before you were even making videos!
I just don’t have talent like you do. :/