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That grey is a very bland colour, don't you think? Also I'd toy with the idea of making his glasses a little more obvious, I didn't spot them right away and thought you'd just left the side of his nose uncoloured.

His fur is supposed to be black, I chose a dark gray because I thought it would work better. On the glasses, I find it interesting that you pointed them out. It bugged me too so I went and redid them. Going to post it on DA right now, and will link the pic here, as always. New post, or redo the old one, though?

Edit: Here we go.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 07 November 2011 - 12:55 PM

Too black. Make it a bit lighter.

See if it's better now, Esa.

Better, though the face seems to lack shadows.

And/or highlights

Try it now, Esa.

Less flat. More shaded. Wonderful.

Yet another revision of Lynx, this time correcting by baaaaaad shading job from the last page. For those of you who aren't familiar with this character, read this.

Edit: FINALLY got around to fixing those atrocious arrowhead ears. They are now much more typical of a Tux (Feloides atrox feralis).

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 07 November 2011 - 05:09 PM

Deathscape; The Revelation - Chapter II

Surprise, a horror story with character development. It will take a while to get into the meat of the story, so expect a few chapters like this.

Image edit for Devon Carter.

Right now, I'm asking for 5 beta readers for my novel Fallen, at least for the first 3 chapters. PM me or post here if interested.

Edit:
What I'm looking for:
Typo and Grammar errors (for those so inclined)
Plot analysis/suggestions (for what I have, anyway)
Character feedback
General feedback

Edit Edit: Because I Hate Double posts:



Dheania, Goddess of Fear, pre-coloring/shading. Now colored and shaded.

From her DA page:
Dheania, Goddess Of Fear. She is also Goddess of Twilight. Her many nicknames include The Glutton, the Beast, and The Hellmouth. The souls and beings she devours are trapped inside her, eternally, condensed and suffering, fully aware but with no willpower. She can use these souls to lure more victims to her.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 07 August 2011 - 08:04 AM

Their expressions are a little...vacant. Also is it supposed to look fat/pregnant?

Since it was requested, I rewrote Scarlet. Basically, the most of the original story is there, but the ended has been greatly extended. Please give feedback!

I should also warn that the story is rather graphic at times, so keep that in mind.





The moon was barely hidden behind the clouds, shining its pale light across the blood-soaked sand. Daisy stared down at Lucy's corpse, her eyes wide in excitement, her shaking hands tightly gripping the ashwood bat. She gazed to her right, spying David's battered corpse, those familiar, eager eyes now blank and lifeless. To her left, Paulo lay sprawled, his body having unsuccessfully shielded Jasmine, and behind her Abbey lay beside Mike's limp body.
And she laughed in pure delight.

* * *

One Week Earlier

Daisy smiled, her lips curled innocently around her straw. Her face shared the group's enthusiasm as they eagerly watched the players on the field. After a brief moment, she felt Abbey's hand on her shoulder; she gazed up to meet his eyes.
“You know, you didn't have to quit cheer-leading to spend time with me,” he said.
“Oh, it's nothing. Don't worry about it.” She noticed Abbey seemed brighter than usual; no doubt, his therapy was paying off.
To her right, she could hear Jasmine jabbering to Paulo. A few rows up, she saw Mike, his scarf blowing in the summer wind. As he sat there, by himself, she couldn't help but notice how well he was coping with the crowd. Funny, I don't see Lucy--
Wham. A sudden blur of white smacked Michael in the back of the head, his earplugs falling into the bleachers below. “Oh, sorry about that. I think I slipped.”
No you didn't, you hit him, Daisy thought. Despite this, she admitted it was glad the two were acting normally--for over a year, they were hardly even on speaking terms.
Mike grinned, his hand clutching the back of his head. “It's all right,” he said. Daisy knew he was lying--he knew full well that Lucy had struck him intentionally, but the humble Korat wasn't willing to kill the friendship a second time.
The speakers signaled half-time. Almost instantly, the marching band took the field, and the announcer began his usual rant. “Welcome back for another year, Roseville! As you know, the annual harts River Festival will be held on Friday. We hope all of Roseville will be in attendance!”

* * *

The entire time, Mike held his ears in agony. Lucy seemed to almost ignore it, her gaze focused nonchalantly on him; Paulo seemed to be bottling up a rocket-ship of enthusiasm for the now prancing cheerleaders. Despite noticing this, Jasmine leaned close to his arm; to Daisy, it seemed like she was almost proud of him. All the while, David sat in the bottom row, blankly staring into oblivion.
The silence was quickly shattered when Jasmine asked, “So has anyone heard about the murders that occur every year on the night of the Parade?”
“Oh yeah,” Lucy said, her face twisting into a crooked smile. “Every year some unlucky sap gets chopped to pieces. Pretty gruesome, huh?”
“Yeah,” Jasmine said, her voice nearly disappointed. “It's pretty nasty.”
“I heard it was usually two people,” Mike said. “One is found down by Devon Creek, and the other just disappears.”
“Why haven't I heard of this?” Abbey said.
“Because nobody likes to talk about it, fruitcake,” Paulo snapped. It almost seemed like he was uncomfortable.
“And it happens every year? Without fail?”
“Oh yeah,” Lucy snickered. “Two lovebirds, every year.”
“Do you think the ones that disappeared did it?” Abbey seemed almost afraid; though he hid it, Daisy could barely see him squeezing his stress ball.
Daisy quickly pointed out, “The pattern is too constant for it to be copycats; it's most likely a serial killer. But none of us should really worry about it anyway. He's killed dogs and cats with no preferences to breed, but he's never targeted teenagers.”
The group was stunned. Paulo raised one finger, ever so nervously, and said, “How the hell do you know so much about this?”
Lucy snickered. “She's Daisy, you moron.”

* * *

After the game ended, the group parted ways. Abbey had decided to walk Daisy home, dropping her off at her doorstep with a kiss, and finally heading off to his own house. Daisy watched, smitten, from her bedroom window, as his dark silhouette faded from view. Then, she plopped sideways onto her bed, holding her stuffed bear gently in one arm.
She heard a knock on her door, and went to answer. Her mother was standing there with an old bulldog behind her. “I'm sorry, who are you?”
“Pardon me, young lady, my name is Detective Oishi, with the Roseville police department.” He flashed his badge. “Now, you're not in any trouble, so you don't need to worry, but I'd like to talk to you for a bit about your 'friends.'”
“I'll give you some privacy,” her mother said, heading back down the stairs.
“What did Paulo do now?” Daisy asked, her face filled with anger.
“Why, does Paulo get in trouble with the law a lot?”
Daisy's anger receded, replaced with worry. “No, he's just... how do I put it... he's Paulo.”
“Have you ever heard of the Curse of Takasheka?” Oishi said, abruptly changing the topic. He pulled a cigarette from his jacket pocket and lit it; the smell disgusted Daisy.
“No,” Daisy said. “Not really.”
“Takasheka is something of a legend, although it's rather obscure,” Oishi said. “He was supposedly associated with the local Native American tribes, but no record has been found of him prior to the 19th century. He is was a trickster deity, who guards this area from intruders, and a protector of those who lived within the area. According to the legend, he fought demons who invaded the town long ago, and single-handedly drove them into the nearby woods. Supposedly, the the Harts River Festival celebrates this event. ”
“I'm sorry,” Daisy said, “but I have trouble finding this a police matter.”
“Well, there's more to the legend. Supposedly, his protection requires the people of Roseville never leave their hometown. The older residents still firmly believe in this superstition, often warding off outsiders and doing anything they can to keep their families from leaving. Then there was that incident about eight years ago--the building of the dam. The construction company had their hands full with that one.
“Yeah, I remember,” Daisy said. “It got pretty bad. Someone died, if I'm not mistaken.”
Oishi puffed his cigarette. “Yes. They found him in a steel barrel, hacked to pieces. His heart was never recovered. The locals of course, blamed the Curse of Takasheka, but well.... it just so happened that the one who was killed had sold his land just days before. Either way, the project went nowhere, and the damn was never built. Those who protested were victorious.”
“I'm sorry, but that just seems like old news and superstition to me,” Daisy said. “And I really fail to see what it has to do with my friends.”
“Did you know that Paulo's, Michael's and Lucy's parents were among those who were protesting?”
“No,” Daisy said. “I never heard anything about that.”
“Really.” He pulled a small metal box out of his pocket, and placed the butt of his cigarette inside. “In fact, Paulo's and Michael's grandparents were actually suspects in the original murder.”
“I still don't see what it has to do with them.”
“You're aware of the murders that occur about this time every year?” Oishi said. Daisy nodded. “Every one of those victims had either sold their land, or were related to those who had done so.” “And as a matter of fact, your own parents themselves had attempted to sell their land. Don't you find it odd that your family hasn't fallen victim yet?”
Daisy was stunned. She stood in the doorway for a moment, silent, her face blank and unresponsive. And then, it developed into a look of scorn, and said, “What exactly are you saying?”
Oishi pulled another cigarette out of his pocket, lit it, and took a long drag. “What I'm saying is I have reason to believe that Paulo and Michael may actually be involved in these murders.”
That couldn't be true. She'd known Paulo for almost her entire life, and Mikey was too sweet and gentle to have done something has horrible as that. It didn't work. It wasn't them. She demanded proof.
“Tell me, what do you know about Michael's girlfriend?”
“Sandy?” Daisy asked. “Just that it's been a long distance relationship for a while. That she moved away a while ago ago.” She was lying, of course. She knew far more than that.
“Did you know Sandy is currently on trial for vandalism?”
Daisy's heart jumped. “What? Are you serious?” She was in shock.
“May I come in?”
Daisy nodded. She motioned for Oishi to take a seat at her desk. “Please explain,” she said, slowly sitting on the side of her bed.
“About two weeks after she moved to Rickter, Sandy began reporting issues with depression. For years, the doctors assumed it was stress from her modeling job. But about a month ago, things took a sudden turn. Sandy began acting paranoid, avoiding her friends. She stopped taking Michael's calls. And then, about a week and a half ago, she was found in the school late at night. She had smashed her friend's locker with a golf club.”
Mikey hadn't said anything about Sandy not calling him, Daisy thought. But she could tell Oishi wasn't lying. “I'm sorry, but I don't see how it's relevant--”
“When questioned,” Oishi said, “she claimed that it was Takasheka who had smashed the locker in.” He took another deep drag from his cigarette. “Now Daisy, I'm sorry but I'm positive about this. After all, Sandy's parents were very outspoken against the dam project, and although the charges were dropped, Sandy's mother had assaulted one of the workers. The fact is we've been wiretapping the family's phones for some time. While we never found anything incriminating them, about six months ago the subject came up in a conversation between Michael and Sandy.”
“Well, what did he say?” Daisy asked.
“He told her that he and Paulo had been with the previous victims the night of the festival. Daisy, this makes them the last ones to see them alive.”

* * *

Daisy lay awake the rest of the night, her eyes half-closed, immersed in thought. Though she didn't see how Oishi had linked Mikey and Paulo to the murders, Sandy's behavior disturbed her. There was something wrong with that girl.
Even so, what terrified Daisy the most was was the possibility that Oishi might actually be onto something. She--as well as her family--could become targets. And if her friends were in on it, were they the ones who were keeping her safe? Or were they merely feigning friendship in order to get close, the same way so many serial killers were known to do....

* * *

She was a little more invigorated thanks to Math Class, which had proven to be one hell of a distraction. A small bag of cashews and a nice day at school helped bring her out of the previous night's mood, but only enough to make the trip home without collapsing. As she walked, she took in the scenery, listening to the sounds of the cicadas buzzing in the trees. With each step, she could hear them calling for their mates, their last act before dying.
Daisy stopped. “What a weird thought,” she said out loud. It wasn't wrong--it just wasn't something she usually thought about. “I really need to rest,” she told herself, and with that stopped.
A step, somewhere behind her, fell down, just slightly out of sync with hers. This is a public park, you dummy, she told herself, and huffing up, she began to move forward.
Step-step, step-step. She paused again. She quickly turned to look behind her: no one was there. “I'm just sleep deprived,” she thought. Gathering up the courage, she walked home, trying hard to ignore the footsteps following her.

* * *

As darkness fell and the cry of the cicadas echoed across Roseville, Daisy found herself at the town dump, staring deep into the man-made chasm now filled with debris and garbage. She tried to remember how she'd gotten there, but the last half-hour was fuzzy and vague at best. She knew she'd tried to duck away and catch whoever was following her, but she couldn't find them. Eventually, she figured, the annoyance must've given way to paranoia, and she'd probably ran as fast as she could away from her invisible pursuer.
After standing on the edge of the chasm for a few minutes, Daisy once again decided to head home. Frightened, she listened closely to the footsteps as they followed close behind. She had to be hallucinating, she thought. The lack of sleep will do that to you.
She made her way home in just twenty more minutes, her mind and body weary from exhaustion. The words of Oishi still echoed deep within her mind, though they failed to shut out the impossible sounds following her up the stairs. Entering her room, she collapsed in her bed and clutched one of her many stuffed animals, holding it firm against her face.
Then it hit her.
Many years ago, she was close friends with Sandy; that was how she met Michael and Lucy, after all. She'd known Sandy had her share of bad traits, but vandalism couldn't have been one of them. “She's out on bail,” Daisy thought, remembering Oishi's warning. She knew it was a long shot but, if the Sandy she was knew was the Sandy who did these unspeakable crimes, there was probably at least a reason for it. Who knew if that reason couldn't help her out?
A brief search with 411 got her the number. At first, the phone rang endlessly, and Daisy feared it would hit voice-mail, but then, that familiar voice said, “Hello?”
Daisy paused for a moment, unable to form any words. Then, she said in a weak voice, “Is this Sandy?”
“Daisy?” Sandy said. “It's been a while, how are you?”
“I'm.... okay,” Daisy lied.
“No, you're not,” Sandy said. “What's wrong?”
“Sandy.... a police officer came to my house last week.”
Sandy's voice changed sharply. “Oh I see. You're calling about 'that.'”
“No--”
“They've been following me for weeks, talking to my mom, my teachers, and now they have Maishul's Other Girl calling me to psych me out.”
“Sandy, that's not--”
“Well tough. I've told them what happened, and I'm not changing my story. I don't know anything about anything you guys are doing down there--”
“SANDY!” Daisy screamed. Sandy went quiet.
Daisy quickly checked the hallway to make sure her mother wasn't coming. “Sandy, I want to know about Takasheka.”
She heard a sigh on the other end. “I take it it's happening to you to?”
“Happening...?” Daisy said. What is she talking about?
“The footsteps that follow you wherever you go. At first, they seem so far away, and when you stop to find the person they belong to, there's no one there. When you start walking again, they get closer. You feel Him watching your every move.”
Daisy swallowed. “Yes....” Was it though? She couldn't be sure; she'd never seen anyone following her, but the footsteps weren't getting any closer. At least, not now. “Sandy, tell me about the lockers. Did Takasheka do that?”
There was a brief noise on the other end of the line. For a moment, it was dead silent, but then, Sandy whispered, “I'm sorry Daisy. I can't talk right now. I'll give you a call a little later.” Then, the line went dead.
That... was odd, Daisy thought, hanging the phone back onto its base. Deciding to retire--hoping sleep would cure her--she lay back in her bed, pulling the stuffed bear up to her chest.
“Daisy?”
“Yes, mom,” Daisy said. So much for sleep.
“Michael came over to visit you.”
“It's okay, mom. Let him in.”
The door opened, and Michael stepped in, his face in tears. “Mikey, what is it?”
“Lani's missing,” Michael said.
“No... what happened?”
“Well, I was talking to her at the festival, and we bumped into Augustus. Apparently the two had to do something together, and they went down toward the river bank.”
“Mike, you worry to much. This isn't anyth--”
“Daisy,” Mike said, gripping her shoulders firmly, “Augustus is dead.”
The room seemed to go cold. “Dead... did he drown?”
“Daisy, someone cut his heart out.”
Suddenly, Daisy felt sick. She rushed toward the bathroom, barely making it in time. As he purged, she could hear Lucy and the others in the living room. They didn't do this--no, no this wasn't them, she thought, reassuring herself.
Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder. Jumping back, she pushed the figure hard against the wall. “Don't TOUCH me!” She screamed. She opened her eyes to see Lucy, her face in shock, staring back at her. “I'm... I'm....”
“Don't worry about it Daisy,” Lucy said. “It happens to everyone.”
Suddenly the fur on the back of Daisy's neck stood on end. She stared into Lucy's eyes, now narrowed into thin slits. “Lucy--”
“It's okay, Daisy, it'll get better.” This time, Lucy's voice sounded shrill.
“I'm sorry... I have to... I have to GO!” And Daisy bolted toward the front door.

* * *

When Daisy finally stopped running, she had reached the edge of the town dump, more than a mile away from her home. She was exhausted--panting, sweating and barely able to stand, she gazed over the rubbish-filled hole. The stench was overwhelming, but at the very least it was unlikely the others would find her here; still, she felt chills just thinking about the conversation.
Augustus is dead. The reality of those words slowly grew on her--she'd never really gotten over him, even though they were never an item. Why, though, had Mike and the others come to tell her? Why was he crying? Why was Lucy's voice so shrill, and why was she so callous? Thinking about it, she realized there was something she had missed.
Lani is missing.
“Oh God,” Daisy said, falling to her knees. Augustus' death was horrible--even worse, it made Lani's disappearance that much more terrifying to them. Lucy wasn't being callous; she was in shock. And that was why her voice was shrill and why Mike was crying.
Why the hell did I run like that? Daisy thought. What the hell is wrong with me?
“Daisy!”
Daisy turned, her eyes in tears. Abbey stood there, his hands on his knees, just as exhausted as she was. “Daisy, are you okay?”
“Oh Abbey!” she shouted, lunged forward and embracing him. “Abbey, I'm sorry! I don't know why I did that!”
“Daisy, it's okay. We're just as scared as you are.” He wrapped his arms around her, and held her tight. “Let's go home.”


* * *

Daisy was shocked to see Lucy attending the funeral, though considering she had been close to Augustus, she didn't know why she was surprised. Honestly, neither of them had talked to him in months, Daisy not since the day he and Abbey fought, and Lucy not since reconciling with Mike. What was really surprising was how few people actually attended--she'd known Augustus wasn't really social, but she assumed he at least had family to support him. Then there was Alejandro's group, whom she had thought would at least make an appearance, but only three people--including them--ever showed.
Neither of them stayed for the wake. Lucy had quickly taken the bus, likely to Mike's house, though she couldn't be sure. Daisy, on the other hand, decided to go out for a walk, touring the edge of the city along the riverbank.
It seemed like only minutes had passed before the sky went dark, though Daisy knew it had been hours. At this point, she figured she was on the south side of town, and judging from the buildings she couldn't have been far from Lani's house. That thought made the knot in her stomach tighten, and she forced herself not to dwell on it; instead, she broke away from the riverbank and began to head home.
As she passed the park, she began to feel uneasy. The thought that someone was watching her crept into her mind. Soon, she began to hear footsteps, every so slightly out of sync with hers, following behind her. Daisy quickened her step, first into fast walk, then a sprint, and finally a full run. Each time, the footsteps seemed to follow suit.
As soon as she could, she ducked into the bushes, her back against a large spruce. The footsteps slowed into a walking pace, accompanied by a whistled tune. Seeing a shade of orange out of the corner of her eye, she reached out and grabbed her pursuer, pulling him into the thicket with her. Her pursuer hit the ground with a resounding thud.
“Ow! What the hell?”
Daisy was stunned. Laying face-first on the ground was Paulo, a now spilled grocery bag at her feet. Slowly, he rose to his feet, dusting the dirt off his body. “Daisy, what is your problem?”
“What do you mean? You're the one who's been following me.”
Paulo blinked. He seemed clueless. “Come again?” he said.
“Paulo, you've been following me for days. Don't try to deny it--you suck at it. I can hear you perfectly well.”
“You're spending too much time with Fruitcake, Daisy,” Paulo said, bending down to pick up his groceries. “The crazy is rubbing off on you.”
Those words felt like they went through her heart. She hadn't seen anyone until now. And she did react badly to the news the night before. Was Paulo really innocent? Was she losing her mind?
Placing the last can of soup into the bag, Paulo said, “You know, maybe you should take a few days off school. Go on vacation for a bit. Might be good for ya.” He raised his head, and suddenly it appeared as if his eyes had narrowed, not unlike Lucy the night before. “Don't do anything stupid, okay?”
“What?” Daisy asked. Her legs began to shake.
“I mean you're acting weird lately,” Paulo said. “I'm a little worried.”
“Yeah,” Daisy said, “I've been having a few problems.”
Paulo raised his eyebrow. “Wanna talk about it?”
“No!” Daisy shouted, backing away. “I mean, no, I'll be fine, really.” She attempted to regain her composure, but her words still showed her distress.
“If that's what you want,” Paulo said, stepping back onto the sidewalk. “You know where to reach me if you need me.”
As soon as he was out of sight, Daisy let out a sigh of relief. Checking the sky, she saw the sun beginning to set, and decided to head home.
She needed to call Sandy anyway.

* * *

At first it seemed like Sandy was never going to pick up. Then, just as voice mail seemed imminent, she heard the familiar sweet, “Hello? Daisy?”
“Hi Sandy,” Daisy said. “I'm sorry it took me so long to call back. I had... a funeral to go to.”
“Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Well, if it will make it any easier, I'll cut to the chase. Last time we talked, you asked about Takasheka, right?”
“Yeah,” Daisy said.
“No, Takasheka did not bash the lockers in. I did it.”
Daisy blinked. “I'm sorry?”
“Yeah, I didn't mean to do it, though. I was trying to hit the others. They had me surrounded--”
“Sandy, what others?”
“The police, silly. They're corrupt. They want protection money, but I can't afford what they're asking for.”
Daisy's hand shook. Was Sandy... was she crazy? “Sandy, I really don't know what to say about that. It's a little out there.”
“They're following you, too, Daisy. Think about it--the police have visited you too, right?”
“Yeah, but that was in connection with the murders--”
“Which I bet they blamed on Maishul and the others.” Daisy was silent. She couldn't believe that Sandy had guessed that.
“How did you know?”
“They told it to me, too. This Detective Oishi guy. He's the one who's trying to get me to bribe him.”
“You're kidding me! How can he get away with that? Sandy, you have to report him to his superi--”
“Daisy. His superiors are in on it, too.” She paused. “May I ask you a question?” Sandy asked, her tone suddenly normal.
“Yes,” Daisy said.
“Promise you won't take it the wrong way?”
“I promise,” Daisy said.
“Have you noticed Maishul and the others acting strangely?”
It was almost as if a gun had been fired somewhere, and the bullet had ripped through Daisy's heard. There was the incident with Paulo, where she thought he'd been following her. There was Lucy's cold behavior when Augustus had died. But she'd assumed it was all the stress, and the Paulo thing had been a coincidence, hadn't it?
“No,” she lied. She wondered for a moment if she had been convincing.
“Oh, that's good,” Sandy said. “I was worried, because Oishi seemed convinced they were involved in those murders. But, it was probably just a trick, right?”
“Right,” Daisy said, nervously. Was it? From what she could tell, Oishi was corrupt, but his story was convincing at the time. And then there was....
“Well, Daisy, I'm running low on minutes, so I'll have to talk to you later. Be careful, okay?”
“Okay.” And Daisy hung up the phone, her worries visible on her face. She decided it was a good time to go for a walk.

* * *

It wasn't long after Daisy stepped outside began to hear the footsteps again. She ducked away to try and lose her stalker, but to no avail. Soon she wound up far away from her normal route, standing at the edge of the dump, staring down at decades of trash.
The footsteps had stopped when she stopped, but Daisy was too afraid to face her attacker. Her mind raced, playing through the possible scenarios--he could attack at any moment. Should she run? Fight back? But with what?
Just at the edge, she saw a small, barely rusted machete. It seemed in too good of condition to throw away, but people were known for throwing away stranger things. Sucking it up, she bent over, reaching down to grab it, and then a big, brown hand landed on her shoulder.
She snapped. Grabbing the machete and swinging with all her might, Daisy buried the blade deep into her stalker's neck. A fine spray of dark red blood covered her face, and then the target fell forward, choking, his snub face fill with surprise.
It was Detective Oishi.
Oh God, what did I do--
Quickly gathering her thoughts, she grabbed Oishi by the ankles and pulled him into the rubbish. Using her hands, she tore throw the trash, creating a deep void. With a little push, she flipped Oishi over into it, and quickly covered him back up.
She suddenly realized she was covered in blood. Horrified, Daisy frantically searched for something to wipe the blood off. By chance, she found a small towel, partially torn but good enough to get the job done. She took her time, wiping her face, hands and chest down, until not a drop of blood remained.
“Got to be strong, Daisy,” she said, turning back toward the path. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, and began walking.
Then, after moving just a few feet, she could hear the footsteps again.
Daisy broke into a full run, the footsteps close behind. She knew she was in deep shit, her stalker had seen her kill Oishi, seen her bury him. She ran as fast as she could, but they seemed to be right behind her. Too terrified to look, she closed her eyes, turned the corner, and immediately slammed into somebody. Both of their bodies tumbled to the ground, and the footsteps stopped.
“Daisy, what's the matter with you?”
Daisy opened her eyes to find Michael sprawled out beside her. “Mikey, I just--”
“Daisy, you're bleeding!”
She looked down in horror to see a small streak of Oishi's blood across her elbow. “I... I have to go!” She quickly ran off, her eyes closed and filled with tears, racing to wherever chance might take her.
She could hear Michael calling for her to wait.


* * *

After what seemed like an eternity, Daisy's bare feet hit soft sand. She opened her eyes--she hadn't heard the footsteps in a while, but to be safe she glanced behind her. There was no one there.
“Daisy!”
Daisy froze, the sound of Lucy's voice sending chills down her spine. Had they been following her this whole time? If not, how did they find her? Her legs began to shake and her tail puff. She could feel the adrenaline racing through her body. What should she do?
“Daisy, I'm glad we found you,” Paulo said, placing his hand on her shoulder. She flinched.
“Daisy, talk to us,” Abbey said. “Tell us what happened.”
“I don't... I don't really want to.”
“C'mon,” David said. “We're you're friends right? You can tell us!”
“Please.... Just leave me alone,” she said. She began to walk north along the beach.
“Don't be an idiot, Daisy,” Lucy said.
“I said leave me alone!” At first, Daisy wasn't aware she'd screamed, but the look of panic on their face clued her in.
Lucy smirked. “Well, I guess we'll just have to get it out of you,” she said. Daisy noticed, in horror, that Lucy's pupils began to narrow. “I mean, we can't let you do this, Daisy. You need to tell us what happened.”
“Go to hell!” Daisy screamed, and she bolted north, running as fast as her legs could carry her.
Crossing over a dune, she noticed a small, rundown shack. She quickly darted in, closing the door and locking it. Almost instantly, the doorknob began to shake, and she could hear Abbey pleading, “Daisy! Daaiiisy! Open the door! Please! Open it! Come on!”
Daisy quickly looked around the shack. The door was shaking hard now; she knew the others were trying to knock it down. “Daisy, please! Don't do this! Open the door, Daisy! Please open the door!”
There! Daisy saw a wooden baseball bat, old but still in decent shape, laying by a desk in the far end of the room. She grabbed it, held it tight, and waited.
The door came crumbling in. Daisy swung as hard as she could, knocking Abbey backwards into the sand. Rushing outside, she swung the bat, the sweet spot smacking Lucy in the side of the skull. She began to swing wildly, each blow sending another of her friends into the sand, and when they were all down, she kept swinging, spattering red blood across her body and spilling it over the sand.
When she was done, she gazed up at the moon, barely hidden behind the clouds. Daisy stared down at Lucy's corpse, her eyes wide in excitement, her shaking hands tightly gripping the ashwood bat. All around her, the now unrecognizable corpses of her friends covered the white sand, a grisly testament to the girl who lost her mind.
She laughed, her voice filled with uneasy delight. It had felt so good. She flung the bat into the water, washing it splash in the waves. And she laughed again.
She choked. For some odd reason, her throat itched very badly. Using her nails, she began scratching, first softly, and then hard. “Oh, I guess I need a bath,” she said, laughing once again, and she stepped into the water, a soft trickle of blood flowing down her neck. She sat down, using her left hand to wash herself, while she scratched with her right, the wound on her neck getting deeper and deeper.
By now, blood was spilling out of the wound. She began coughing, small drops of blood escaping from her mouth. Still, it itched so bad, and it wasn't like it was hurting. Finally, she felt a slight burst of blood at her fingertips, and as she slowly lost consciousness, she lay down in the water, her life slipping away in the scarlet waves.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 24 December 2011 - 02:41 AM

Short chapter, but it's an important one. The Revelation, Chapter III is here. The book is still developing its characters, however, things will be getting weird from here on out. Enjoy!

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 03 August 2011 - 11:41 PM

Dheania's more powerful older sister, Testimus of Peace. This is just an inking and redrawing of the old pic, some details were kept but a lot of things were altered. The two right legs, for instance, were completely redrawn from scratch.



Testimus is an amalgamation of just about ever fox myth I can think of, but she represents the Korean Gumiho (both the older, benign trickster version, and more recent sadistic deadly version) than any other. She does have traits reminiscent of the Kitsune and western versions, though.

Edit: Cleaned up, colored and shaded.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 05 August 2011 - 08:08 AM

i really don't think your drawings need that god-awful art-ruining watermark.

Taeshi, on 05 August 2011 - 04:41 AM, said:

If you say so.
Watermark removed.

Rough sketch of Arkaeis, the supreme goddess, mother of all deities and leader of the Three. No human has ever laid eyes on her, so consider this symbolic.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 05 August 2011 - 11:09 PM

Why are they all four-legged mammals
Hey boys, it's a spy disguised as a non-furry!

Nice, Sushi.

The simple explanation is that humans are not all that important to the Deathscape universe. We arose by pure mistake, pose a great threat to the gods' way of life and if not for our deliciousness we wouldn't be tolerated on this planet.

The complicated answer is that the top three are all four legged mammals, but some of the lesser gods (not yet drawn: Kiskos, Vascos, Daecha, Seracenth etc) are non mammals. Furthing mucking things up is that some are based on legendary creatures (Cynagnotha is based on Black Shuck, for example) and others are simple hodgepodges of various animals, both extinct and extant.

Things do make a bit more sense when you consider Arkae'is, Testimus and Dheania are by far the oldest gods, and that Arkae'is, whom I modeled after the Miacids, is their biological mother. As such, things get weirder and more bizarre the more recent they get, but remain truer in form to Arkae'is the older they get. As for why animals and gods look so similar, well, that's a major plot point that I don't feel like discussing right now.

Edit:



Edited again: Spoilered the explanation and deleted info that, in hindsight, was given out too soon.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 05 August 2011 - 09:16 PM

Chapter IV of The Revelation is out for those who wish to read it.

The twins, Sabbath and Twitch, but very crucial characters to The Revelation. I know the lines are messy, they're always like that after the initial sketch, but I always clean them up. Will color shade and clean up later.

Sabbath is on the left, Twitch on the right.
Edit
Cast Page for The Revelation. Read it and enjoy. More characters will be added with time.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 15 August 2011 - 01:33 PM

Carcharocles, on 05 August 2011 - 08:40 AM, said:

It's the sister of the Firefox logo.

I never thought of it that way, Klaus.

Actually, she's intended to be a Miacid. Miacids were the ancestors of all modern carnivores, so I figured it a fitting group for the mother of Testimus and Dheania. So a more accurate joke would have been mother of the Firefox Logo.

Holy bird to some, harbinger of death to others, meet Fallen's bledwing, a carrion bird descended from the barn owl. Rough sketch now, will update later with a cleaned up, colored and shaded version

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 08 August 2011 - 05:47 PM

Oh, and look, it's Mozilla Thunderbird!

Current work in progress, I will update as time allows. Unless major advice is given, I'm finished. I don't plan on taking it outside Sketch material.

Spoilered for the more sensitive on the forums (I know we have some real wusses out there). Unspoilered because if you're sensitive, you're in the wrong thread anyway.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 12 August 2011 - 03:47 PM

WAY behind in my writing, so here's a "violent" version of my Eris Dialgo pic.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 16 August 2011 - 01:35 PM

Chapter 5 of The Revelation is out. More character development, but this time introducing Sabbath and Twitch Bauer, the "Twins," who will be very important to the series.

Speaking of which, the Sabbath and Twitch picture from post 121 has been updated. Also updated with a rather heavy edit is Eris Dialgo's "violent" pic, post 127 (just above this one).

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 15 August 2011 - 09:46 PM

The Species Guide: Cervals, Part I

Part one of what will (eventually) be a four part expose on the species in Fallen.

For those of you wondering, the scientific names in here are not gibberish, rather, they are *actual* Latin and/or Greek, placed together in the traditional ways used in Scientific nomenclature. They each carry a meaning relevant to the species (or genus) in question.

There is some potentially mature stuff in here: namely in-depth description of their reproductive habits and some potentially ideologically offense stuff. As such, I have placed a Mature Warning on it. However, this is not porn; it is intended to be a faux scientific document, and there is really no attempt to "arouse" the reader.

Edit: Also, there was a pretty significant edit to the Lynx Dialgo pic above. It's just a change to the ears to make it more correct for the species, but the effect it has appearance-wise is pretty significant. (New edit: messed with the cheek fur a bit.)

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 17 August 2011 - 10:17 PM

The Revelation: Bestiary. A little sneak peek at the creatures that will be seen in the story. It only includes the basic "monsters," so there are 5 different creatures that will be present that aren't listed. One of them will not even be revealed at the end of the story.

I removed everything spoilerific out of it, which amounts to quite a bit of info. Still, you get a very good idea about these creatures just from reading it.

Complete redesign of Lynx's baby sister. Now she doesn't look like a plain jane boyish chick.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 19 September 2011 - 12:01 PM

Redesign of Roderigo Somers from the Deathscape story.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 07 November 2011 - 05:10 PM

Okay, first off let me say this: this started as an experiment. A shitload of people, both on and off this site, were complaining about my hybrids' and cervals' flat chests. It got so annoying that I started having dreams about Fiona Carter with breasts, and when I woke up, I honestly thought, "Why the hell not? They're human/cat hybrids with a LOT of human DNA. They inherit so much from their human DNA, so why not breasts?" Another big reason is--beyond the tail length, ear shape, iris size and tooth structure, there is little to differentiate hybrids from cervals, when the two really shouldn't share much of anything in common.

So apart from adding breasts, I brightened the image a little and cleaned up the edges. Hope you guys are happy.

On a note, do NOT expect this to happen with my Fallen characters (cervals). They are pure-blooded animal, with no human DNA at all. What little resemblance they have to humans is a case of convergent evolution--and due to this same evolution, they have fallen back on some "primitive" mammalian features.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 07 November 2011 - 05:05 PM

Carcharocles, on 25 August 2011 - 07:55 PM, said:

Mine was also partially a joke about the flat shading of the jacket at the time, though.

A little too... Sharp? I dunno.

Thought something seemed wrong. Fixed that (I hope) and did some proportion work. Hope it looks better now.

And you were simply the first in a long series of "why don't they have breasts" comments, a large number of which were directed at Eris by my friend Deni. >_< There were a lot of them these past few months. It got annoying but, idk, I think it fits here.

Looks better now.

Even if I'm no expert on tits

Who is he? Well, it's kind of a secret for now, but he will be appearing within a few chapters of The Revelation.


Edit: I seem to have forgotten, but Chapter VI of The Revelation has been out since Thursday. It's still in introductions/development, but the plot is about to kick into high gear in the next 6 chapters or so. There doesn't seem to be many people reading, though, but seriously--this is a remake of a novel I finished writing in 2007. Those who read that novel were very happy with it, and quite frankly, the writing was atrocious. You really should give it a try, if you haven't. Just be warned: it's going to end up, hopefully, rather disturbing.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 22 September 2011 - 12:05 PM

Chapter VII of the Revelation is out. And be warned, some sensitive subject matter here.

Forgot to comment on this, but the Saya, Roderigo and Lynx pics on this page have some mild edits. Roderigo's will probably stand out the most.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 02 September 2011 - 10:15 PM

Chapter VIII of the Revelation is out. Again, we have sensitive subject matter, but this time we find out how the characters are connected.

I won't post it here, but I recommend you check out the updated Dheania pic. It's under Deathscape Creatures. WARNING: NSFW

For the few of you following The Revelation, a Family Tree is up.




There are also mousepads for Dheania and The Primal. I can't link Dheania directly, so I'll direct you to my main page. Dheania isn't intended to be porn, but some of the imagery in the new revision is borderline (it's supposed to be nausea fuel). For both of them, just click the link to my main page and choose prints.

Edit:

Steven Somers, reinked and with heavy changes to his face.


Diana, the Goddess of Malice in Fallen. More of a symbolic character, she is mentioned but not seen. Yes, I'm aware of a certain aspect of her design, but she is not a cerval...

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 07 November 2011 - 10:43 PM

Redesign time!

Ion wasn't living up to my preferences, and I recently came across some actual pictures of the type of sword that inspired it, making my old design obsolete. Lastly, I wasn't as happy as I thought I would be with the dual swords idea, so I scrapped the old image and completely retooled it.

The following picture was created with nothing but the Stroke Path and Ink tools (in combination with free select). It was done entirely by mouse.




The design is based on the Espada Ropera, a forerunner to the rapier that could slash as well as thrust. The biggest alteration was that I gave it the Rapier's basket guard, since, when thrusting, the two holes you see are where you would place your forefinger.

Ion is kind of in a limbo when it comes to the daemon blades. In the hands of a skilled user, it can surpass the Saloi Asyai in terms of power. However, it doesn't use the "scarlet pledge"--the trait where the owner is driven to kill to satisfy the blade--and it cannot counter any of the other Daemon Blades' abilities (though it can physically block all of them except Daivos). This means it is still technically one of the "lesser blades." Other than Daivos, it is the only one of the blades capable of killing a lesser god, and like Daivos, this power grows slightly witch each kill.

Ion is rather unusual in that its wielder must meet criteria that no being in the Deathscape universe can pass. The owner must be fully and physically alive, but at one point his soul must have been sent to the Wasteland (the Deathscape otherworld). Second, this living being must be capable of existing in both the Wasteland and the mortal plane at the same time. Third, the blade is still hidden on the Wasteland, and requires the wielder to travel there and obtain it. You must be a true mortal at the time you pick up the sword--that means no daemon, god or Awakened Being or any other supernatural creature can wield it. It is known that a wielder will appear at some point in time, but there is no details as to when. Attempting to wield the blade when you are unworthy will be met instantaneously with extremely bad burns--it is the only lesser blade that can actually cause physical damage in an unworthy wielder.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 24 September 2011 - 08:41 PM

New daemon blade, Saloi Asyai!



Saloi-Asyai is essentially an elongated Shashka, but with a simple, unordained ivory handle. It is the second strongest Daemon Blade, and one of the Higher Blades. It has the power to both burn its foes as it cuts, as well as to trap and contain foes that cannot be burned. As a higher blade, it creates a permanent change in the wielder's body that is beneficial to him or her--it replaces the calcium carbonate with very dense hexagonal carbon--essentially an extremely impure Lonsdaleite diamond, giving the skeleton a total hardness of about 6 or 7 (Mohs) while sacrificing little flexibility. In addition, it also extremely accelerates the individual's healing properties, though this comes at the cost of causing intense pain when a serious injury is closing up. It also modifies the cell division, essentially giving the individual biological immunity.

There is a rather unusual pair of qualifications for the weapon. First, the wielder must be kind-hearted, but be unable to visibly express his soft personality. The second is rather important: the individual must have overcome the process of life and death.

On a related note, the redesigned Dheania of Fear:

The weakest of the three creator gods, though she is certainly far stronger than any other god and only weaker than her older sister Testimus by a negligible amount. She has been nicknamed "the Glutton," "the Beast," and "the Hell-Mouth" for her rather extreme habit of gorging herself on souls, especially ones that have not yet died. She tends to use these souls, who are trapped in eternal unimaginable agony inside her, to lure their relatives to her, mentally break them, and then devour them. She has been known to occasionally annihilate entire family lines just because she wanted a snack. The above image is her default form--she has a smaller, more pudgy and longer-fanged form she uses for feeding, known as Dheania Devoratorus, and an ever smaller, slightly leaner form with only one head and exaggerated claws known as Dheania Leaninus. She has countless other forms, mostly used for deception, including an avatar form capable of passing as a mortal.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 06 October 2011 - 08:52 PM

Good old Thanatos, redesigned. I decided to change it from a guardless estoc to a colichemarde. Furthermore, in addition to being chained to the wrist, there is a glove attached to the hilt that attaches to the user's hand, preventing them from ever letting go of the sword part.

As far as its abilities, go, it's still the same Blade of Death. The sickle can kill simply by inflicting a very minor cut (such as removing a lock of hair) and the sword can kill with a very minor puncture. It is one of the higher blades, meaning it can cancel out the powers of Saloi-Asyai and Daivos in combat, and it will kill an individual who is not worthy of wielding it. Despite its seeming power, it is incapable of killing any god or blessed being (an individual granted power by the gods), and its effects are severely diminished against the users of the other Higher Blades.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 24 September 2011 - 09:35 PM

Kilios, the second weakest Daemon Blade and the only daemon blade that any being can use... provided it is capable of wielding a weapon at all. Nicknamed the "Slivers of Chaos," its power, Annihilation, isn't to be taken lightly. When combined, the chopping and cutting power of the weapon is increased to levels that seem illogical, and when split into two it augments the wielder's speed and reflexes, making quicker, shallower cuts but being quite capable of devastating thrusts. It cannot kill or even scratch a god, but with a skilled user, even a high level daemon will have reason to fear this blade. So called "blessed beings," mortals given power by the gods, can be completely overwhelmed by its speed form, and though it cannot kill them, it can render them completely incapacitated.

This picture is plain to me. I think it needs something more, but I can't put my finger on it. Any tips or suggestions will be welcome. Well, now it looks much better.

For the record, The Revelation is on break due to personal issues. It's harder to just drop writing than it is to drop drawing, so I haven't worked on anything other than a few pictures these past couple of weeks.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 06 October 2011 - 07:57 PM

An updated version of Bianca Turibo, one of the three lead characters of Fallen. A Devon--a mix of Tux and Oci parents--she is shorter than the other members of the cast but is very strong and agile. She has been nicknamed the "White God of Death" for her exceptional accuracy; she works as a police sharpshooter for the local Special Assault Squad. The rifle portrayed her is an antimateriel rifle, the RKa 97. It fires the extremely powerful .50 PTI round--a very long, 920 grain bullet that can reach velocities in excess of 1100 meters per second (note that this is not the rifle she uses in the opening chapter--the sheer force of the bullet would kill the target regardless of where it hit).

Bianca sees "toms" in general as inferior, an attitude that is commonplace along "mollies" in Hirand due to the toms' higher levels of aggression. She can be violent and forceful, especially when it comes to her two daughters, but considers Lynx her equal and affords him respect that most toms would die to have. She has been around the family for over ten years, having served during the Tenkei Revolt under Lynx's older sister, Eris. When around them, she tends to be rather playful, especially when Saya is in the room. She acts as something of a big sister and mentor to Saya, fulfilling a role that Eris neglects.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 13 October 2011 - 07:59 PM

I really need to get a scanner. Thankfully, my camera works fine if I hold it right (though it gives a greenish or brownish tint to the pics). Anyway, for the few of you who read The Pride, here is an illustration of "the Herald," the female lioness.

Edit: Spoilered for likely TMI.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 14 October 2011 - 08:21 PM

Good news, everyone! We have a piece of prose for you! Yes, all negative 75 of my regular readers get to read an as of yet unreleased chapter of my novel in progress, Fallen, for no other reason than I have nothing better to do!


Here it is!


It'll only be up until noon Monday (Central time), so hurry up and read!


Ciao!


PS And for the love of Clive Barker, if you're looking at the stuff on here, comment. I might actually know whether they're garbage or not if someone posted every once in a while. I'M LOOKING AT YOU, HERO!

Comment. Also, I can't decide whether I like or dislike your drawings.

It's really weird but I think I like most of them.

Chapter VIII of The Revelation is out, ending the hiatus. It's short, but important.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 17 October 2011 - 07:29 PM

Weapon Time!

First, from Deathscape, is Roderigo's custom shotgun, a Simon Carlton original. Dubbed Haymaker, it can hold 8 (7 in magazine) 3-inch magnum shells. It has a custom pistol-grip stock that reduces felt recoil by 50%, allowing for much more comfortable shooting. In addition, it is a combination pump action/gas operated shotgun, meaning it can fire weaker less-than-lethal rounds and reduced recoil loads as well as traditional shotgun shells. It has a tight pattern of 2.3 inches at 12 feet (or 5.84 centimeters at 3.66 meters).



Next up, from the Fallen Storyline, is the RKa MT 1200. I believe this is the first Cerval weapon I've put on here. Well, it is designed to clip into a powered artificial limb, taking advantage of their strength and fuel source. Firing a decent 400 RPM, it holds 250 rounds in a double-layered, double stack magazine. The caliber is a wimpy .32, but it gets the job done in this weapon.

This post has been edited by Carcharocles: 22 October 2011 - 07:45 AM