#she’s based off of ergot!

[moon-floret]

It’s October, its time for spooky ‘ffini

(This is Circeval Purpurea, Thirteenth Bloom, for @rocketmermaid ‘s new story, There’s a Storm Brewing! Go read it, now. It’s good)

[calpalsworld]

Since Im not making Pressure Cooked rn and if I do make more, it'll be a while until the issue with Ergot Zoozve's major appearance, so I'll just explain his character because it tortures me to love him so much but nobody knows his deal.

He's like a lore-related side character, who also helps explain for the audience why Captain Sydney is like that. He and Sydney went to the same military academy (ew military). Important context for later: There's a law between the United Stations that anyone under 35 can't work as a sailor unless they have special circumstances. (This is because people are dying young so the population is dwindling.)

At first, the audience is led to believe Officer Zoozve was Sydney's bully or rival or something because he keeps teasing Sydney and not wanting her help.

Officer Zoozve is the right hand for a guy named Captain Solson, and they both have new experimental fungi based tech that they use for combat and for better survival capabilities. This tech is created by a company called SCEND in collaboration with the United Stations military. Fungi is very important to Pressure Cooked society, its seen as holy in some contexts due to being a remnant of the old times, so the public supports this project even if it is kind of horrific.

The symbiotic fungus lives inside of technological implants and is very volatile. The fungus also extends through the human's skin, and is controlled by the human thanks to a small bit of the fungus that reaches a neural implant in the humans' brain. Zoozve has scars across his upper half from a malfunction, which caused the fungus to eat away at his first layer of flesh. The final goal of SCEND is to make a fungus that lives in the lungs and help humans convert the sulfuric waters of the Boil into breathable gasses, and also to be able to form an outer shell that can withstand high pressures. Aquatic lifestyle obtained via fungus.

So eventually weird shit sneaks up on the audience that's like ohhh he's not Sydneys bully from her youth there is something peculiar going on. (Imagine the two of them kissing with tongue). The real situation is that they're weird exes. The break up was spurred because theyre a bit over a year apart from each other, so Zoozve started his service before Sydney. Before separating, Zoozve encouraged Sydney to quit and wait, saying that he would go make things better in the world, and then come back to her which is INSANE. Sydney is angry about this. This is why Zoozve keeps teasing and dismissing Sydney - he still wants her to follow this idea. Besides feeling belittled and ignored, she is also angry at this behavior because he is protective of her, yet assumes SHE will just be okay with HIM going through experiments and overworking himself. Sigh.... the arrogant stubborn asshole...

He's not a horrible guy at heart??? he honestly doesn't realize how harmful he's being. (He thinks he's being noble about the "you should quit, i should fix everything" thing, and playful/flirtatious with the teasing thing).

Ultimately, the way the relationship ended makes Sydney feel powerless, which is one reasons shes determined to become a bit deranged. (If/when I ever make more you'll see how shes a little deranged.)

ok heres a meme

tldr Zoozve and Sydney are military personnel that are both depraved in their own ways and exes, but still fantasize about settling down together, yet they seem like they want to rip each others heads off. Also the fungus.

[talatomaz]

fear | paige dineen x fem!teen!reader

a/n: i’ve been rewatching Scorpion lately and couldn’t get this idea out of my head. this is based around 3x17. it’s a criminally underrated show and so original. also this is the first fic i’ve written in months so, sorry if it’s shit /lh

warnings: mentions of death/coma

word count: 3.1k

masterlist | navigation | request rules

reader is paige’s 18 year old daughter and sometimes helps out team scorpion but when she inadvertently inhales poisonous fumes, she soon finds herself on the brink of death, hallucinating her deepest darkest fear

i do not give you permission to repost or translate my fics on any platform - likes/reblogs are okay and are much appreciated

“Here.”

You said, placing a George Washington style hat on your younger brother’s head.

“Did you know that these are called tricorns and were referred to as-“

“Cocked hats? Yes, and they were worn not only by the aristocracy, but also as common civilian dress, and as part of military uniforms.”

You explained, interrupting Ralph as he stopped adjusting the hat and looked up at you with surprise.

“I was a history major, remember? You’re not the only one who knows things.” You joked, smiling when he did.

“So why am I wearing this tricorn?” Your genius brother asked.

“Well, you’ve got a history project due about Washington and what better way to understand his actions than by getting into his persona and pretending to be him?”

“You’ve been spending too much time around Toby.” Ralph smirked.

“Hey!”

You and your brother turned to face Happy and Toby who had just entered the garage.

“I’ll have you know that I’m a world-class behaviourist.”

“Shut it, doc.” Happy said, but there was no malice in her words.

“Where’s everyone?”

“Mum and Walter went out somewhere and Cabe’s with Allie at Sly’s desk because Sly’s asleep and drooling over himself.”

“Ew.” You said, replying to your brother.

As Happy and Toby left to find Cabe, you and Ralph continued discussing George Washington. You were both interrupted when you heard your mother’s voice.

“Morning!”

Yours and Ralph’s faces lit up when you saw she was holding a bag from Fro-Yo-Ma. Ever since Walter had got himself banned after a petty argument with the manager about a loyalty card which resulted in him having a black eye, you had all been unable to attend the establishment.

You smiled when an idea formed in your head and faced your brother once more,

“Hey, how about we sneak up to Mum whilst she’s distracted and grab our fro-yos?”

Ralph nodded in agreement and you both cautiously approached your mum who was busy telling the team that the frozen treats were for after lunch. As you both flanked your mother, you glanced over at Ralph and gave him a slight nod. Then you grabbed a tub each and began to sneak away as quietly as you came but your Mum looked at you both in confusion.

“Quick. Run, Ralph.”

Ignoring your mother’s laugh, you took a hold of Ralph’s free hand and ran back to the corner of garage you were studying in.

“I got to stop leaving them with you people.” Paige said.

Halfway through eating the frozen yogurt, you heard Cabe announce that Scorpion had a case.

Like your Mum, you weren’t a genius but you did help Scorpion anytime they were down a member, especially now since Toby had said he’d stay back to help Ralph with his project.

You were a little hurt that Ralph welcomed his help more-so than yours, despite you being the History expert, but nonetheless, you brushed it off and gathered your things to join the team’s trip to Greenland.

                ✧── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧

Arriving at the Granse World Seed Vault, you tugged at the lapels of your winter coat, trying to keep some of the warmth in you which was a large feat considering you were stuck in a blizzard in the middle of nowhere.

The winds, that could only be described as gusting, blew through your hair, further obstructing your view as you entered the building.

Moving the hair from your face, you shivered and looked up to see that the vault was desolate.

“Well, now we know why nobody ever comes out here.” Sly stated.

You all watched as Walter failed to use the key card resulting in Happy jump starting the generator using the battery from the snowcat you travelled in.

Then you all split up to go and complete your tasks.

Your Mum and Walter remained at the entrance whilst Happy started to repair the generator, Cabe went to the breakroom, Sly went to the server room and you went to find the operations centre to locate the power conduit which you needed to switch off and on again.

The dark hallway you were in suddenly brightened meaning Happy had managed to fix one of the power sources. You let out a breath of relief; you didn’t exactly welcome the idea of wandering around a pitch black vault alone where no one had been for almost a year.

You then began to cough as the vents let out some sort of yellow dust. The smell was putrid, almost making you heave.

“God, that smell is awful. So much for this being an antiseptic facility.” You groaned.

“Well, this facility self-purifies its air, but the system's been down for days, so the seeds have decayed a bit, the vents are just stirring up seed dust.” Walter said through your comms.

“Speaking of stirring up, I can only imagine what kind of trouble is being stirred up in the garage. I worry about his maturity level.”

“Mum, don’t worry. Ralph’s the most mature person I know.”

“Oh honey, I know. I was talking about Toby.”

You snickered to yourself and then stopped when you realised you’d found the Ops Centre.

“Guys, I figured out what caused the surge.”

You listened as Sly’s voice crackled through your comms.

After he had finished explaining, you spoke, “So the whole place went dark because the programmers forgot to synchronize their watches?”

“Right! But if I can get the operating system's clock lined up with Finland's, then I'll have this fixed.”

Sylvester paused for a brief moment and when he spoke again, his voice came out in a panicked whisper.

“Is anyone else getting a weird vibe? Like...like we're not alone?”

“Hey, Sly. It’s okay. Just breathe.” You said calmly before telling him to follow your breathing pattern to regulate his own.

“Good job, y/n. Sly, everything’s going to be fine. Fix the server’s clock and we’ll be out of here soon.”

You smiled at your mother’s praise and went to find the panel switch.

You enjoyed working with your Mum, loving the fact that you got to spend more time with her since starting University. But sometimes, you found yourself feeling...lonely because most of your Mum’s attention was focused on Ralph and the rest of the team.

You understood Ralph, in the broadest of terms, that was. You loved him as much as your mum and you knew her looking after Scorpion was her job but it still hurt you because you didn’t have anything in common with the rest of them.

THUD

You jumped when the door behind you slammed shut.

“Mum? I’m locked in.” You shouted out worryingly.

“It’s okay, sweetie. Our blast doors are locked too.” Your Mum said, her voice calming you with every word.

“The vault prioritizes keeping seeds safe so it must go into lockdown when it's most vulnerable, i.e. a reboot. So the doors will open in 40 minutes when the reboot is done. Everything is fine.”

Walter explained before you winced at the shriek that came through on your comms.

“Sly, what the hell?” You yelled, rubbing your ear, as if trying to sooth the pain.

“They’re in here. They’re in here.” The genius repeated as your brows furrowed in confusion.

“Sly, what’s going on?”

“Sylvester, do you copy?”

“Sly!”

You all started to shout in concern, scared for Sly’s safety, before stilling when the latter’s screams fell quiet.

“I was right. I’m not alone. It’s chickens!”

How the hell had chickens got into the seed vault? You thought to yourself.

“Hey guys. I didn’t want Sly to hear us.” Toby said.

You figured your Mum must have called him and patched him through to your comms.

You all listened as Toby explained how Sly was suffering from a psychotic break but when he commented on some yellow dust, he realised that you had all breathed in seed fungus that affected the fear centre in your brain.

You started to get even more concerned when it became apparent that Happy and Cabe were hallucinating but you were shamefully relieved that the ergot spores hadn’t affected you. You weren’t sure you wanted to experience your darkest fear, especially when you were surrounded by your Mum and the team.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yes, Mum. I’m not seeing or hearing anything.” You reassured her, hearing her sigh of relief.

“Okay, thank god. We’ll get you out soon enough, okay, sweetie?”

You blinked, turning around when you heard your mother’s voice behind you.

“Y/N?” Paige said through your comms.

But you just blinked again, because you could see your Mum in front of you and you couldn’t distinguish the look on her face.

“Mum, what’s wrong?” You said.

“What? Nothing’s wrong. Toby. Walt. What’s happening?” Paige said frantically.

“Y/N must have inhaled the ergot too and she’s now trapped in her false reality.” Toby explained.

“We got to get her out of there, Walter.”

Paige said, near tears, before falling silent as she watched you on the security camera. She saw you sit on a chair and converse with an imaginary Paige.

“Mum, what did I do? I’m sorry.” You said, tears forming in your eyes at your mother’s words.

“I told you, I don’t love you. Scorpion is my family. They’re geniuses and you’re not.”

“Mum, please.” Your voice broke, as you started to plead with her.

“I-I can’t watch this. I need to get her out of there. Y/N, listen to me. I am here!”

Paige ran up to the blast doors and started to bang on the reinforced steel. Her attempts, however, were futile, because she knew that the doors wouldn’t open until you, Cabe, Happy and Sly had completed your tasks.

“Paige, you have to keep it together.” Toby said.

“No, my daughter is living her worst fear and I can’t do anything to stop it.”

“I know. I want to help Happy too. But we can’t until we figure out what psychological baggage the fungus is unpacking.”

“And we might need to hurry because Sly is getting unsure of foot.”

Walter said as Paige returned to his side to see Sly having trouble keeping his balance.

“God, we need to get them out of there. The exposure seems extensive which means their blood vessels are being constricted, especially in the brain meaning-“

“Less blood flow. And less blood flow means less oxygen. And less oxygen means...coma.” Walter finished solemnly.

“We have to talk them lucid so they can finish their tasks. I’ll take Happy. Walt, you take Cabe. Ralph, you have your work cut out for you with Sly. And Paige-“

“I’ll help y/n. Y/N? Y/N, honey, if you can hear me, I need you to flip the switch on the panel next to you. Y/N?”

“Y/N!”

“I’m sorry, Mum. Please don’t yell. What did I do wrong?”

“I told you, you’re just not special so why should I waste my time with you?”

“Please, Mum. I’m sorry I’m not special enough. I’m sorry I’m not smart like everyone else. Please don’t send me away.”

Paige’s heart broke as she watched you cry on her screen.

“Y/N, I love you so much. You are special. I love you.” Paige cried, tears dropping down her face.

“Toby, it’s not working. I can’t get through to y/n!”

“Ralph and I may have come up with another idea. You need to go back to the point when these fears started and attack that seminal moment.”

“Okay, so she’s talking about not being smart enough. I can only guess that this started when I joined the team. Y/N? Baby, can you hear me?”

Paige’s voice softened as she spoke to you once more.

“Yes, Mum?” You replied, sniffling as your tears continued to fall down your face.

“Oh, honey. Just because you’re not a genius like the rest of these guys, doesn’t mean you’re not special.”

“But I’m not.”

“Y/N, yes, you are. You’ve been special since the moment you were born. Since the moment I first held you in my arms. You’re my baby, y/n. You are special in your own way.”

Your Mum grabbed your hand and held them to her heart.

“You feel that?”

“Y-Your heartbeat?” You asked, feeling the light repetitive beating under your palm.

“Yes. My heartbeat. More importantly, my heart. You are my heart, y/n. You have been for 18 years. I grew up with you. You made me into the person I am today. The person I am now. I love you so much.”

“Yes, you’re not as smart as Ralph or Walter or the rest of the team but neither am I. Y/N, you are bright, intelligent. You are twice the person I am. You care so much about everyone. Your heart is beautiful.”

Your mother gently dropped your hand in her lap and lifted her own to cradle your face.

“That’s what makes you special.” She moved to place a soft kiss on your forehead.

“Now, y/n. I’m already so proud of you but I need you to do one thing for me. I need you to turn the switch in front of you off and on again.”

Paige held her breath as she and Walter watched you slowly stand up on your shaky legs and walk over to the panel that had the power conduit switch attached to it.

“Done.” Your voice echoed on the security monitor.

“Good girl.”

“I’m kinda sleepy, Mum. I’m just going to take a quick nap.” Your voice quietened as you lay down on the floor.

“Uh, Toby. Y/N flipped the switch but she’s really sleepy and I can’t get her to wake up.”

“Oh god, Happy, Sly and Cabe are out too. They’re in comas. They need medical assistance stat or they will die.”

“Walter.” Paige whispered, unable to speak any louder due to fear of losing you.

“We can synthesize a treatment!”

Toby then explained the different seeds they needed to mix together to make the medicine whilst Ralph hacked the vault’s database to locate them.

Once Paige and Walter had manufactured oxygen tubes out of PVC pipes, they hastily made their way to the vault before stopping when they saw you unconscious on the ground.

Paige ran to your side, still holding her breath, and quickly checked for a pulse, relaxing slightly when she felt it, albeit it was weak, but it was still there. She ran her thumb against your cheek in a gentle caress and then followed Walter to the vault, passing the others, also unconscious, on their way.

Easily finding the required seeds, the duo made the medicine oil but when a chemical fire broke out, Walter stayed to put it out whilst Paige ran to give the oil to the rest of you.

She found Cabe first, then Happy and Sly. Once she had rendered them conscious, she ran off in pursuit of the Operations Centre where you were.

Carefully but quickly, she lifted your head to rest against her leg as she poured the oil beneath your tongue.

“Come on, sweetie. Wake up. Open your eyes. Please, God.” She murmured to herself.

You opened your eyes with some difficulty, wincing at the light above you.

“Mum? What happened?” You groaned, sitting up.

“Thank God, you’re okay. I thought I’d lost you.”

Ignoring your question, your Mum gathered you in her arms and hugged you tight against her.

“I love you so much, y/n.”

Hugging her back, you rested your head against the crook of her neck, “I love you too.”

“Guys, come on, we gotta go.”

You both looked up to see Happy standing at the door. With the help of your Mum, you stood up and she then grabbed your hand and you all ran back to the entrance.

                ✧── ･ ｡ﾟ★: *.✦ .* :★. ───✧

You had all safely arrived back home and managed to make it in time for Sly’s debate.

You sat in the chair next to Happy, slowly falling asleep, exhausted from the ordeals of the day.

Soon after you’d left the Vault and were on your way home, the grogginess of the poisonous fungus had fully left your system, allowing you to remember your hallucination. You’d barely said more than two words on the plane ride home, unsure of the right words to say to your Mum who had undoubtedly heard your fear.

“Hey, sweetie. Stay awake for a little while longer. We’re going home. Sly’s going to look after Ralph tonight.”

Your mother said, resting her hand on your shoulder to rouse you. You nodded in response and got up, following her to her car.

Similar to the plane, the car ride was silent. Not necessarily an awkward silence, but it was far from comfortable. You felt the constant glances your Mum gave you as she drove on the quiet roads. You noticed her lips part a few times too, as if she was about to say something but then stopped herself at the last moment.

Arriving home, your Mum unlocked the door and you made a beeline to your bedroom to get changed into your nightie. As you laid in your bed, you heard a soft knock on your door.

Inviting your Mum in, you saw she had changed too. She sat on your bed, the lamp providing some light in the room.

“Honey, can we talk?”

Not waiting for an answer, she got into the bed beside you and rested against the headboard.

“I want to talk about what happened earlier.”

There was no need for her to clarify what she meant.

“Do we have to?”

“Yes, y/n, we do. It broke my heart to see you cry today. And it hurt even more to hear that I was the reason why. I’ve never ever wanted to cause you any pain and the fact that I was a part of your deepest fear just-“

When her voice faltered, you looked up to see quiet tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Mum, I’m sorry.”

“Baby, you have nothing to apologise for. I’m sorry that you felt like you weren’t special. But I meant what I said back there. You are special in your own way. Yes, I love you and Ralph in different ways but you mean so much to me. I’m surrounded by geniuses all the time, and frankly, it gets tiring. So I’m glad I have you. You bring me back down to Earth. You’re my heart and soul, y/n.”

Not knowing the right words to say, you simply lay your head against your mother’s chest and hugged her close.

“I love you, Mum.”

“I love you too, baby. I always have and I always will.”

Soon enough, both of your tears stopped and you fell asleep in her arms, her hands gently stroking your hair as she cradled you against her.

You may not have been a genius but you were smart enough to realise that no matter what, your Mum would always love you.

[shardminds]

silver for monsters (1/?)

pairing: emma swan/killian jones rated: e for extra (in later chapters) wc: almost 5k ish

No matter the truth, he carries the weight of her corpse like a shadow. 

also available on ao3! ♠

it's my cssns submission!

firstly, a thank you to the wonderful mods for organising and facilitating the event! where would we be without you? and also the cssns discord — you lovely humans are just fantastic.

secondly, i owe my wonderful partner-in-crime, beta and artist (this fic has art, people! coming soon!) my life. she deserves more than i could ever give her. love you, salem! give killy a cuddle from me!

now, a note about the fic. this is a witcher au, using inspiration from the witcher games, books and TV show. i have pulled inspiration from all 3. just a fair warning, considering the nature of the witcher universe, there will be gratuitous violence in some scenes. i will be adding characters and tags as they appear in the work to abstain from spoilers but i will let you know in advance that there is no major character death.

happy reading!

“Fuck!”

The cockatrice rears up, flapping its enormous wings and lunging straight for him, talons poised for attack. At full height, it’s almost three times his size—an intimidating sight, but not an unfamiliar one. Killian dodges at the last second, rolling beneath the dirt-encrusted claws and narrowly avoiding the beak that follows to impale him. If he hadn’t thrown out his palm to cast Quen in time, he’d have been thrown across the sewer, probably landing in one of the many questionable pools littering the place. The beast rights itself, elongating its sinuous throat to prepare for its next attack but Killian is faster, springing to action in its short reprieve. His blade strikes true, the sharpened silver slicing from neck to navel through leathery flesh. A choked shriek pierces the cavernous echo around them but it does nothing to hinder his attack. Killian twists his weapon deeper, severing the thick sinew in its throat with a precision only gained from decades of practice.

The draconid oil he’d prepared had done well to weaken the monster, each touch of his sword against tough hide was met with a harrowing screech, each one emanating from its maw with a sickening gurgle as Killian’s coated sword seared its innards. Good. At least the ergot seeds used in its creation hadn’t gone to waste. The common weeds don’t grow this far east of Misthaven.

One final twist is all it takes, tearing out the creature’s windpipe in all its bloody glory, falling to the filth below, darkening the murk beneath its claws. It shudders, struggling for breath, but continues to advance. The guttural gurgle of its demise falling hollow in the dank expanse. Power simmers in Killian’s fingertips as he throws out his palm to cast Aard, shunting the beast backwards and knocking it off balance.

With a heavy thud, the cockatrice falls—

Right into a puddle of shit.

“Oh, that’s bloody lovely.” He grits out, wiping the sludge from where it splattered on his trousers. He’d been planning to start the ride back west, to the familiar place he was reluctant to call anything but that. He’d been planning to take rest between contracts, among the hamlets of Velen, stopping only to deliver the head of the beast and collect his bounty before taking to the path at full speed.

Now he’d have to fork out for an inn.

And a stable.

And a drink.

Bloody lovely, indeed.

Slipping the dagger from his boot to take his trophy—evidence of a job well done—Killian kneels next to the beast’s shredded neck and begins to cut. It takes a couple of minutes, the toughened hide of the beast proving more difficult than expected, but Killian manages to decapitate the thing without too much protest. Despite being smothered in excrement, both human and ornithosaur in origin, Killian wraps up the head in a linen sheet he’d acquired from the last inn he’d visited, slinging the thing over his shoulder to attach to Smee’s saddlebag for the ride into town. It’s hefty, already seeping dark ichor through the fabric, but it’s nothing he can’t handle. Nothing he hasn’t handled a thousand times before.

Shit-stained or not, there’s little people love more than dead monsters.

In his periphery, there’s a shimmer of something long and thin and sharp beneath the ooze of the dead heap.

Feathers. Golden Feathers.

They’d sell for a fair price at any market but, with a wry smile, someone else comes to Killian’s mind. He plucks the protruding tail feathers with a delicate hand and slides them in his scabbard for later. Robin will be pleased.

Smee lingers by the sewer’s decaying entrance, chomping on the greenery of a shallow blackberry thicket without care. Seeing him brings ease to Killian’s bones. The walk to Camelot would be a lot more arduous without him. The dimming sunlight brings out the russet in his hide and he snorts as if to acknowledge the presence of his master. Smee has seen him through so much, his steed for over a decade now, and even as a colt he had stayed true to his commands. He rears his head, giving a soft huff in greeting as Killian reaches out to rub his muscular neck.

“Hello to you too, lad.” He soothes, securing the trophy with thick leather straps to Smee’s saddlebags. It thuds against his hind leg as he shifts to accommodate for the extra weight but Killian talks him through it. “You can rest tonight. We deserve it.”

Smee, ever the conversationalist, responds with a snort. Something Killian would translate as about damn time.

The hunt for the cockatrice had taken longer than he'd anticipated, the cursed beast leading them astray for days before finally returning to roost in the sewers of all places. The sorcerer in these parts—Merlin, he’d said his name was—had informed him it would. They’d sent hunters, knights, even mages to deal with their pest, but none had returned; either fleeing from the beast or succumbing to it.

With the head of the monster firmly attached, Killian steps up into the stirrup and mounts his steed, heels tapping against his belly to spur him forward, back towards the city. With a reluctant snort and a slow start, Smee carries both the Witcher and his cargo to their destination.

It’s long past nightfall by the time they reach the oaken gates and marble paved roads leading to Camelot. It’s a damn sight better than the gravel paths back in Misthaven. The approach to the city is announced with sconces attached to grand flags bearing the sigil of the king, inlaid with gold detailing. A gaudy display of wealth if ever there was one.

Up ahead, before the city entrance, Killian can just about make out the silhouette of a man in robes of purple and gold. Power radiates off him and it trembles in the wolf head pendant resting atop Killian’s chest, even from over 100 yards away. Smee trots closer, almost lazy in his approach. He doesn’t halt until they’re stood before the man who greets them warmly, with a kind face and a gentle smile. Merlin, the sorcerer.

Killian doesn’t trust it.

“I see you’ve dealt with the beast, my friend.” Merlin starts.

“I see you don’t intend to let me in.”

The sorcerer nods at the assumption, as if reluctant to do so and holds out the pouch of coin. Killian lets it thud into his palm. It weighs about right so he doesn’t bother to question it before tucking the payment into Smee’s saddlebag. It’s more than any common contract would afford him.

“The King has requested—”

“The King can go fuck himself.” With a flick of his knife, Killian cuts free his cargo, letting the head of the beast slip to the floor. It cracks on impact, spilling the crimson gore inside, smelling only of death and decay. Iron and rot. Merlin doesn’t recoil, instead choosing to step around and inspect the shattered mass. Mages like him, in positions of power beside volatile Kings, tend to be more accustomed to such displays.

If the stories of King Arthur’s conquests are true, it’s no surprise.

“With your reputation, Witcher,” He starts, prodding the bloodied heap with his foot. It lols to the side, mottled beak clacking against the path. “Do you really think Arthur would take such a risk?”

Killian could not give less of a shit about the opinion of Kings. Especially not ones of lands that dictated their monarchy based on whoever could yank a sword from the sodden shit coated earth. If that were the universal basis for royalty, he’d be King three times over. Merlin waves his hand over the mess of brains and bone, vanishing the mound into nothing and leaving only pristine stone behind. Smee stiffens, sensing the otherness of the man so close to his rear.

With unnatural grace, Merlin steps back to his place between them and the gate, unwavering in his resolution.

“Rumours of the Golden Bride have spread further than you think.”

Of course. Ravens travel faster than horses these days. What happened back in Kovir—

People tend to trust Kings over Mutants, no matter the truth. Killian grunts, the only sign of the tension in his bones in the way he grips the worn leather reins, knuckles taught and surely white beneath his gloves.

“Next time,” He grunts, not flinching at the mention of his past. “Pay upfront. Spare me the journey back.”

Merlin opens his mouth to respond but it’s too late. With probably more force than necessary, Killian kicks Smee into action, turning him to ride away from the white brick barrier that separates him from a good night's sleep before the sorcerer can protest. His work here is done. His contract ended. If they won’t let him into the city, he has no reason to stay. Bath and a bed be damned.

There’s nothing for him here.

They ride onwards.

Killian slows his steed to a gentle trot as soon as they cross the border into Temeria, a silent apology in the calm stroke of his palm behind Smee’s ears.

Moonlight bathes the vast fields of wheat in an ethereal glow. Nekkers peer through the tall sheaves to watch him pass, following him as far as they dare. His medallion thrums with their proximity, the pendant rattling against his mail. If it were any other day, he’d have torn through the harvest, taking down the bastards with broad swoops of his blade. Not today, though. The cockatrice had drained more from him than he initially thought. There’d been no time to brew potions to remedy his weariness, and his supply of dwarven spirit was alarmingly low. The next apothecary along the path would take a beating from his coin purse, that much is certain.

Midnight comes and goes before the path widens into the well trodden roads of more populated areas and more hours pass before they even stumble across an inn shrouded in forest. It’s decrepit and musky, but an inn all the same. It’ll have to do. Killian can tell by the bray of his travelling companion that he won’t last until the next one. There’s water and hay in the mossy overhang out front, its ancient wood almost rotted through but still secure enough to attach Smee’s reins to the post. An old silver mare secured closest to the inn takes one sniff at Killian and sneezes.

“That bad?”

Smee nudges him in response. That bad.

The inside of the inn is as ancient and forgotten as the exterior; thick stone walls, cobwebbed beams, a bar made of mottled oak with ring stains of old ale covering its surface. Upon Killian’s entry, the landlord nods, his pallid skin as thin as paper. The sickness he holds will kill him, it lingers in the shadows beneath his eyes and the pale flesh of his gums as he smiles, with too much joviality.

“Room for the night, is it?”

He will not see the summer.

Killian drops fifteen crowns on the bar, watching the old man’s eyes widen at their shine. “Along with a bath and a bottle of your strongest.”

“Right away, my friend!” He shuffles along, reaching for a slender greying glass bottle that he places on the bar top, before disappearing altogether. The other bar patrons stay quiet, lulled to the edge of listless sleep by the fire crackling in the hearth and the ale in their bellies—gwent games unfinished, tankards half full. Not wanting to follow their lead in sleeping on the hard benches, Killian waits at the bar. He takes a swig, letting the liquid coat his throat in its familiar fire. There are better ways to cope. There are better ways to fend off the dark that threatens to swallow him whole but nothing works quite as well as the burn alcohol leaves behind. Well, usually that’s the case.

Minutes pass and his thoughts, however reluctantly, stray back to Merlin’s earlier words.

The Golden Bride.

Killian had killed her. Killed her, raped her, tortured her, ate her liver, stole the unborn child from her stomach as a payment to the eternally damned gods of old, used her blood for his mutations—the stories change depending on where you are. Nilfgaardians prefer the gory stuff whereas, up in Kovir, they favour the lighter tales. She was their Queen, after all.

The one he couldn’t save.

Each burning gulp helps less and less.

When the dying barkeep waves him over, brandishing a rusted key and an armful of tattered blankets, the burn has gone and only Killian’s thoughts remain.

No matter the truth, he carries the weight of her corpse like a shadow.

The room is barely bigger than a broom closet and the old man has the courtesy to look ashamed of his meagre offerings. It doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, a bed is a bed. Along the way, Killian has learnt not to make attachments to the materialistic.

In the centre of the narrow room, manoeuvred between the end of the dusty four-poster bed and the fireplace, stands a solid wooden bath. The water, lukewarm to the touch and stagnant, comes to life with a flick of his palm and a whisper of “Igni”. Killian doesn’t even bother to be neat, letting his weapons, armour, potions, and coin fall to what little floor space there is available before letting himself sink naked into the warmth. The agitated boil helps to shift the stubborn muck customary of weeks on the path.

How long had it been since his last? A few days, maybe? A week? He’d taken a brief dip in the river just outside Camelot before embarking on his quest— had it really been that long? No wonder the mare had turned her nose up. No wonder Merlin had regarded him with such polite distance.

He’d been wandering around smelling like a Necrophage’s anal gland and no one had bothered to tell him. Not that anyone could tell him. That’s the thing with always being on the path—the only things to talk to are your horse or your hunt.

Monsters aren’t always the best conversationalists.

The waters lap away the aches set deep in his bones, settling each worn muscle with its tender embrace. It’s a luxury he can nary afford, but it’s worth it when he can. When he exits, smelling of old soap and lavender, there is only black silt left behind. A dark mirror on the liquid’s surface. He won’t be able to use it again. He takes his underclothes to the small basin by the bedside to soak instead, too tired to even consider spending any more time away from the clutches of sleep.

For the first time in a long time, he’s asleep before his head hits the pillow. The exhaustion of the weeks passed weighing his bones like lead, as if they’d sink straight through the mattress and into the nether below. He wishes they would.

“Killian.”

He jerks awake—no, not awake. Further into the embrace of a dream. Oppressive darkness and silence surround him, his keenest senses rendered useless in their wake. Beneath him, a plush leather armchair. It’s painfully familiar. Precious, somewhat. Worn and comfortable and moulded to him as if he’d spent a century sat only here. This dreamscape. This void.

Oneiromancy. Perfect.

“Killian.”

A woman’s voice— her voice.

“Emma.”

“And I thought you’d forgotten about me.” She smiles, suddenly appearing in his lap, hips straddling his thighs as if it hadn’t been almost five years since they’d last parted. Five long, arduous years.

“Impossible, love. You’re not so easy to forget.” Killian can feel the steady beat of her heart as his hands take her waist. Soft, so soft.

And centuries old.

“You never thought to stop by on your travels then?”

“The path is—”

“Don’t lecture me. I know,” Pouting, she brings her arms around Killian’s neck. The thin swath of lace she’s wearing does nothing to hide her figure but its intricacies marr the details he wants very much to focus on; the blush of her breasts, the swell of her arse, what lies between those slender legs. Each time he tries to take her in, see past the veil of fabric, it shifts, obscuring his gaze once more. Fucking magic. “But I have missed you terribly.”

“Emma Swan, legendary sorceress and advisor to the throne of Misthaven, missing but a lowly Witcher?” The pale expanse of her neck calls for his kiss, so close and yet so far. “People will talk.”

With a violet flash, Emma winks. “Noise complaints, hopefully.”

His eyes slip shut, trying to maintain what little composure he has left. As disconcerting as dream magic is, he doesn’t want the spell to end. The feel of her so close is maddening. Waking to an empty bed will be torture.

Words he can’t possibly say nor mean jump to his throat, aching to be whispered against her mouth, passed to her tongue by his own as they had longed to so many times in the past. They burn.

“Come see me.”

“Emma—”

“I need you. I can’t tell you why—not here—but I need you.” There’s a silent plea hidden in her words, behind the typical bravado she always favours. He almost doesn’t catch it. She adjusts herself slightly, sitting back on his knees and letting her hands reverently trace the scars across his shoulders and chest. Ones she’s seen before and ones she hasn’t, long healed but still raw to her touch. It’s been too long. Her tongue darts out to wet her lips and it takes every modicum of restraint he has not to kiss her there and then. “Come to King David’s court in Misthaven. There’s a tourney one week from now.”

“I’m sensing I don’t have a choice.”

“Of course you have a choice. It’s in your best interests to make the right one.”

Killian sighs, letting his palms slide from her middle to her thighs, taking in the phantom warmth he’s missed so greatly. Emma Swan is an enigma. She’s centuries of power wrapped in mystery and untold sorrows and it lingers beneath her skin. She’s the first kiss of morning sun, the dark chill of winter, the wild lilacs that grow along the dirt roads of Misthaven. She’s true love’s first kiss and the denial of destiny. She’s nothing and everything, the beginning and the end.

And, occasionally, his.

“One week?” He muses, hyper focused on the way her nails feel against his skin, as if she were there, as if it were real. Her eyes, green as woodland moss, captivate him in the way they always used to, but they’re not the same. A mere mimicry. Beneath his fingers, the dream begins to fall away.

There’s no depth, just a glimmer of magic below the surface.

Everything’s hollow and when he finally presses his lips to her fading visage, all he tastes is ash, dirt and the absence of all things.

“One week.”

It echoes around the cramped room, a whisper in the darkness not yet reached by morning’s soft first touches. A reminder.

Killian almost missed it. Misthaven. It’s rolling hills and wildflower meadows, deep green forests free of ill fated fiends. Well, mostly free—wraiths and rotfiends are everywhere these days, especially after the war. If they weren’t, he’d be out of a job.

In the five days on the path, across the forgotten poppy-filled battlefields and open plains of Temeria, Killian didn’t encounter much trouble. The first two days were monotonous, non-stop riding through the day and night, brief pauses for food, water and rest.

The day after that saw a kikimora rear its ugly maw as Smee cantered past its roadside hovel, swiping out with its blade-like limbs in an attempt to take out the horse’s legs — it took three swipes of his blade to take it down, the starving queen letting out a defeated whine as glinting silver pierced through her armour and into her brain. Killian left a bomb in his wake, making sure none of her spawn would see the light of day.

Day four drove him closer to the ruins of Vizima, it’s grand stone walls now bleak and crumbled. Killian had been around when it fell, only a few years beneath his belt on the path as the Nilfgaardians withdrew their tyranny. They razed the city, with fire and blood, so that the North would remember what the clutches of Emperor Emhyr var Emreis. The self-proclaimed white flame dancing on the graves of his enemies sputtered and faded just like everyone else on this mortal coil. The flames had kept him warm one night, decades ago, as the fallen city smouldered.

Misthaven greets the horizon on day five. It’s unperturbed woodland gracing his path with an archway formed of two entwined enchanted oaks, their magic forms the base of the wards that surround the city and the sheer power of it is a familiar thrum of energy that has his medallion singing as Smee trots over the border. In the thick bramble bushes beside the sheltered road, fairies shield themselves from view, their sugar plum scent hangs on the air as heavy as horse shit. There’s something he hasn’t missed. After half a mile or so, the rattle of his medallion becomes barely noticeable, a gentle simmer rather than a raucous boil.

Instead of taking the northern road at Lake Nostos towards the bustling city and the castle of King David, they turn to the east, along a too familiar, although far less trodden, path.

Smee huffs at his choices, resisting the tug of his reins.

Killian rolls his eyes. “Don’t you start.”

The Rabbit Hole is, in Killian’s eyes, better than most. Being just outside the city, tucked up against the eastern entrance’s vine smothered portcullis, not many people stumble through its doors by accident. However, with its vast stone hearth, sturdy oak beams and a half decent cellar, the place could weather the harshest Skellige storm with nary but a draught. Ale, food, music and good company. It’s… nice, for lack of a better word.

And, despite the nature of his work, it’s somewhere Killian keeps coming back to. Regardless of the years between his visits.

Smee, ever the dramatic, saunters over to the water-filled trough cemented to the tavern's stable, eagerly eyeing up the hay-filled feedbag beside it. At least, he’ll get a chance to rest as Killian gets his own fill. Haphazardly, he knots Smee’s reins to the hitching post, leaving just enough slack for him to be able to reach his amenities and socialise with the unsaddled gelding tied up on the other side of the post.

Killian pulls his coin purse from his steed’s saddlebags, knowing full well he’ll spend it one way or another. The door swings open before he can even tap the shit off his boots.

“You took your time, Captain.” Will Scarlet, with his signature troublesome smirk, is upon him in an instant, arms thrown around Killian’s shoulders, squeezing tightly as his skinny arms allow. He’d never been one for heavy lifting, more interested in wielding a lyre than a sword, and it shows in the way he greets his old friend as if it hasn’t been almost five years since Killian left him in Toussaint in the bed of a baroness whose husband had not been best pleased to find him there. The stench of Mahakaman mead on the bard’s breath permeates the air. The half-decade has barely touched him.

It hasn’t touched Killian either but, then again, mutations will do that to a man.

“Is that what they’re calling me now?”

Will peels himself away, stumbling back into the oak door frame that knocks the air right out of him with an oof. His brow furrows ever so slightly and someone from the other side of the dimly lit pub chortles at his discomfort. Will throws an obscene gesture his way before coming to Killian’s side instead.

“Just roll with it mate, you wouldn’t like the alternative.”

Killian shrugs. Murderer, Mutant, Devil— “I have been called worse.”

The bard nods in agreement, letting Killian step over the threshold and into the dark innards of the inn. They both have. Back when they travelled together, there was nary a day that insults weren’t hurled their way. Killian never had the chance to apologise back then, and it doesn’t seem right to bring it up now.

Will looks… happy.

“Anyway,” He starts, falling back on his chipper tone and catching Killian off guard as he hops over the bar top with ease, grabbing a tankard on his way. “To what do I owe the pleasure?

“I’m not too sure of that myself.”

Will places the tankard before him, full of a sweet smelling dark ale. “No contract?”

Killian knocks back the mug in one, letting the slightly soured brew flavour his tongue. It’s better than the pig swill he’s settled for along the Path. Then again, Will always was one with good taste; always the finest inns, the grandest company, lining his pockets with the gold of diplomats and dukes alike. Despite all that, The Rabbit Hole suits him, dust and dirt be damned. He hum’s, considering how to answer, before settling for the simplest one. “No.”

“No valiant quest?”

Killian shrugs.

“Ah,” Eyeing him knowingly while taking a sip from his own cup with a smug smile, Will hums. They’ve known each other long enough now for him to be able to read between the lines. “A summons then.”

“Can’t I just stop by and visit an old friend?”

“Theoretically, yes. But that’s not in your nature is it, mate.” There’s a pause. Someone laughs from the other side of the room, lit only by a handful of candles to fend off the dark even in the daylight. Will doesn’t even blink, drumming out a rhythm on the countertop, wearing an ever present smile. “Especially knowing that there’s a certain sorceress within the city walls.”

Killian had no idea what he was here for, not really. One dream and he’d come running like a well trained dog, a pet. He can’t even feel shame about it. Emma could’ve asked him to pick daisies in the grand gardens of King David and he’d have come running, a prisoner to his emotions. His mutations should have rid him of them decades ago and yet—

He lets himself be seen, letting his posture slip to a slouch. The ride was harder on him than he’d anticipated and his limbs call for sleep, the ache of it weighing him down. Will is, above all else, his oldest friend. If he can trust anyone, it's him.

“What’s going on, Killian?”

Lilac and gooseberries, touched with cinnamon and the undeniable scar of power. It singes the air with its grace and sets Killian’s medallion ablaze with activity before he can even register the draught behind him hadn’t come from the door. Will looks up, eyes rapidly widening in a mix of familiarity and surprise, but Killian doesn’t have to. He knows. She must have sensed him when he passed the kingdom's wards, followed the sing of his own power to find him, greet him.

Killian turns and lets a smirk tug at his lips as silence hangs like a criminal, the whole inn rendered mute by her entrance. In awe. In fear.

Emma.

Time hasn’t dared touch her. It hasn’t in aeons. In the years Killian has known her, she has always looked this radiant. Hair curled loosely over her shoulders and a dress of lace laid over silk, bright and beautiful and absolutely incredible. An aura of light surrounds her, bringing illumination to the dim room. From her very core, she is beautiful.

Killian has missed her.

She smiles, knowingly.

"I haven't told him yet."

[jandjsalmon]

Okay so I love when we get Jandy the Professor lectures. I want to brew a pot of tea, put on a chunky-knit sweater and just, you know learn. Thank you for sharing! Also everyone should always watch the Clive Owen King Arthur, becuase Clive Owen and Ioan Gruffudd with swords! I concur! (Also the boy at the time, who I watched the movie with spent the entire second half of the movie concerned about Kiera Knightley being cold. Fun fact)

That is freaking hilarious. She was pretty naked throughout - despite the weather in Britain not being conducive to that kind of apparel. As for Professor Jandy. Don’t even get me started on the things I actually focused on in Uni. I wrote my Honours Thesis on the banality of the abdication of Edward the VIII so I have A LOT to say about the modern royal family based on truth and not People Magazine. I have literally spent hours talking about the various pedigrees during the War of the Roses - who did what/when and why Shakespearewas playing the propaganda game when it came to Richard II. I have repeatedly talked the ears off poor undeserving people regarding witches in Early Modern England and what that meant for feminism with a segue into ergot poisoning in 1690s Salem. Oooh or we could talk mad Bertha locked in the upper floors of Thornfield Hall and what was the underlying message of Jane Eyre. Wouldn’t want all those 19th Century British novel courses to be for naught. There are so many things we could talk about, curled up with tea and chunky sweaters. Lol.

[orphanedshadow]

@soufflefcrged asked: What kind of things does Kara like to eat and drink in particular? Is there anything she doesn't like or that is harmful to her, food or drink wise? What's the tastiest kind of poison?

In a way Kara’s quite picky, as a lot of things are harmful to her if she ingests them. For example preservatives and artificial ingredients. The effects range from minor irritants to causing necrosis of the intestinal tissue. Luckily for her she heals decently quickly and is extremely difficult to kill, but it’s still pretty damaging and the effects can linger for a while.
What she likes best is things plucked directly from the ground and still with a coating of dirt. This includes everything from potatoes, to rotted meat with maggots, to poisonous mushrooms. She will also eat things others consider ingredients, like ergot-contaminated rye.

When it comes to cooked/mixed foods she usually likes them hot enough to kill humans. Her sensors for heat in food work, but she’s got a massive resistance. To her the Carolina Reaper is mild enough to be eaten as an entertaining snack, and she’s basically immune to the effects of chilli in her eyes.

She also likes insect-based cuisine, including things like fried locusts. In fact she prefers foods from less industrialized parts of the world as they’re much less likely to make her stomach hurt, and tend to have more flavour that is based on natural things instead of artificial ones.


The tastiest kind of poisonous (earth) mushroom in her opinion is probably the Podostroma cornu-damae. However, she is extremely fond of varieties of poison that only grow in Hell, or in the Fae realms. Basically if it’s a plant that is poisonous she thinks it’s extremely tasty, the more lethal the better. Picking one as her favourite is hard though, as in some ways it is like comparing desserts to pastas. Both delicious, but in different ways.

Kara loves fish, especially raw. A part of her gets a thrill out of it, and feels quite victorious. The creatures thought they could escape her by living in the water, they were wrong. Poisonous fish are even better, and she will eat them raw and unprepared. 
And now for some even grosser things, and meat related info.

In some ways Kara is a pseudo-vegetarian. She avoids meats in many places as they are often contaminated with various compounds to keep the animals healthy. Hormones, antibiotics, that sort of thing. But at the same time she loves meat…just not the kind found at the store.

First of all, yes, she will eat human flesh. Also the flesh of pretty much anything she hunts, as she does not waste any part of her kill. If she offers you jerky don’t take it, long-pig is literally your best option…and your worst fall into the realm of “eldritch horror that will take over your body if you consume its meat”
If need be she will eat the meat of animals, but that’s usually more of an “it was there and dead, and I could not make a construct with it” or “I found it dead and I did make a construct with it but only needed the bones, so the rest is to be used for nutrition”

Her favourite “normal” earth animal meat is the cute and cuddly Koala. Unlike pretty much every other living creature she doesn’t care that the flesh is tainted with toxic eucalyptus, to her it’s basically just marinaded in deliciousness.
Also those brightly coloured frogs? Well, if she finds them dead then they’re gonna be eaten.

As for the question no one asked: What about the mushrooms that grow in shit? Does she at least wash them off? 
For you my sweet summer child I just have to say, what do you think she is? No, she will take bat guano covered mushrooms off a cave wall and shove them in her mouth. Sometimes she wipes them off with her hand, but that’s her getting fancy.

[rohad93]

Magic & Monster Ch5

Ruby picked through the herbalists stall for the right herbs and grasses needed to brew golden oriole potion and draconid oil. Both would be essential in this fight.

She picked up a handful or ergot seeds and put them on the bundle the herbalist was currently putting together for her.

“That will be all, thank you.” She took the bundle and handed the crooked over old man and handed him back two ducats.

“I think that’s everything I need.” She mumbled to herself as she stashed the bundle in Zwei’s side bags and climbed into the saddle.

She nodded to the merchant before spurring Zwei on back toward the castle. He tossed his head and snorted.

It promised to be another beautiful summer day. The sky was bright, clear and devoid of clouds. A gentle breeze was moving over the fields, tossing at Zwei’s mane and blowing her own black and red locks into her face.

The bright and warm sunlight was filtering through the trees growing along the side of the road, their broad leaves allowing only a few beams to breach the shade. The occasional beam hit her face as she rode at an easy trot down the dirt path.

The trees ended a few hundred yards from the castle, leaving her more exposed to the late morning sun. The heat felt good on her back, for now. Within a couple more hours the sun would reach its zenith and the constant heat and light would be unbearable.

For now she soaked up all the warming sunlight she could considering that after sunset she would be descending once again into the catacombs beneath the castle to find and slay the basilisk.

She gave the guards on the ramparts a lazy wave as she rode through the large open gates and through the courtyard to the stables.

A few stable hands were milling about taking care of all the other horses in residence. Ruby nodded and waved at them, most of which returned her greetings happily, save one. An elven servant with slicked back red hair, a white bandana wrapped around his forehead, hanging low and almost covering his eyes.

She waved at him and he ignored her, hauling a square bale of hay out of the stables and out into the field where the horses were currently being allowed to stretch their legs.

She just shrugged, she was long used to the sometimes standoff nature of elves, despite the fact that she was a Witcher (Vatt’ghern in the elder language used by elves) and often considered a race unto themselves, to elves she was D’hoine, a human. An interloper just like her ancestors who had been stranded in this world by the conjunction of the spheres several millennia ago.

She hauled herself off Zwei and gathered all her things from his saddle bags after hanging the saddle up.

She had a lot of work to do before nightfall.

A servant showed her to the castle lab and she quickly got to work grinding the seeds and other ingredients for the draconid oil while the potions were brewed over the course of a few hours. Once the oil was ready she poured it into a small vial. She wouldn’t apply that until after she was down there.

She watched the distillery slowly brew her potions one drip at a time as she sharpened her sword. She was trying to focus on the hunt ahead of her but all she could think about was snowy-haired Sorceress.

She hadn’t seen Weiss since she’d left her room the night before. She’d taken her breakfast in the kitchen with the staff, it was more relaxed than having breakfast with Oobleck and Weiss. Not to mention she was still a little embarrassed that Weiss had heard her thoughts about wanting to run her fingers through her hair. Just thinking about it made her stomach flip uneasily.

After some thought she realized that yeah, she kind of liked Weiss. She was smart and quick-witted, if a little cold. Some people were just like that, not everyone could make an entire inn worth of strangers into their best friends like her sister.

She was also very beautiful, though that went without saying.

Really, she was surprised the Sorceress hadn’t told her off. Weiss didn’t seem the type to shy away from confrontation. Maybe she was just trying to spare them both some embarrassment?

She sighed and looked at the slowly distilling potions, she had a couple hours and her sword wasn’t going to get any sharper. She did need to find Weiss and tell her that she was going down alone this time. No doubt the Sorceress would be displeased by that.

She stood from the workbench and slid the sword back into its sheath across her back before going in search of Weiss.

A servant was able to point her in the direction of the library after a half hour of searching. The walk to the library was quiet and leisurely. Until she turned a corner and ran smack dab into a familiar face.

“I’m very sorry, please forgive me.” It was the golden eye’d servant from last night. She begged for forgiveness.

“No, it’s my fault.” Ruby waved away her plea as she stooped down to start picking up the linens the other woman had been carrying.

Ruby was quick to scoop them up before the servant had a chance and handed them back.

“Here, I wasn’t looking where I was going, forgive me…” She paused.

“Oh… Blake.” She finally said. “My name is Blake.”

“Please accept my apology, Blake.” She held out the linens. Blake hesitated a moment before taking the laundry back and nodded.

Ruby smiled and gave a nod before continuing on her way to the library.

She quietly pushed open the door and peeking inside.

Shelf after shelf of large leather bound tomes filled the room as far as the eye could see. Massive floor to ceiling windows dotted every wall of the room, allowing as much light as possible to fill the room.

She walked silently through the rows of books, running her gloved fingers over their spines as she went. The scent of old parchment and ink tickled her nose.

Books covering every subject from magic to shoemaking could be found. She stopped and glanced at a book about fairy tales. And couldn’t stop herself from pulling it from its place on the shelf. The weighty tome was thick and bound in deep red leather with shiny gold embossing.

“ Fairy Tales from the Beyond.”

She might have some time to read this either after the job or in the morning. Either way she tucked it under her arm to deposit in her room for later.

She continued stalking through the books until her prey was found.

Weiss was leaned back in a plush chair, with a heavy tome settled across her lap. She seemed completely engrossed in it as Ruby walked very clearly across the middle of the room, though she made no sound, a byproduct of her training. It couldn’t be helped.

Of course where her movements never betrayed her, her curiosity always did in the end.

“Whatcha reading?”

Weiss nearly jumped out of her own skin at the sudden voice. She scowled, turning toward the intruder.

Her eyes landed on Ruby standing beside her chair.

“We are under constant threat of assassination.” She whispered harshly. “Must you sneak around like that.” She grumbled.

“I don’t think you would have heard me if I had slammed the door open and knocked over every shelf on the way.” She smiled at how engrossed she was in the book on her lap. “What’s so interesting?” She tried again.

“Nothing of interest to you, I’m sure.” She started to turn the book away but Ruby was faster and leaned over to read the title.

“A compendium of Witcher facts and practices?” There was a surprised lilt to her voice that colored Weiss’s normally pale cheeks.

“I was curious about the extent of your abilities.” She explained. “The book seems to have more speculation than facts.” the sorceress groussed, making Ruby chuckle.

“Witcher’s aren't really the talkative types...” She started but Weiss was giving her a disbelieving look. “Most, aren’t.” She amended, setting her book on the table. “Also, if you wanted to know something all you had to do was ask.” She sat in the chair next to Weiss and gave her a questioning look.

Weiss carefully closed her book and set it on the table before folding her hands over her carefully crossed legs.

“Very well….” She started. Looking at the Witcher thoughtfully. “You’ve said before that most poisons don’t bother you. Is that the extent of your enhanced immune system?” She questioned.

“I’m immune to all sickness and diseases. The mutations they give us change our entire body chemistry. It of course does other stuff too, like make us sterile, but ya know…” She lifted and lowered her hands like a scale.

Looking closely at the Witcher she spotted the wolf head medallion sitting on her chest.

“Your medallion.” Weiss started. “The book said that without it you’re powerless...” She stopped when Ruby snorted.  

Ruby closed her hand around the dark grey metal hanging from her neck.

“That’s an old myth.” Ruby said. “ My medallion has nothing to do with my abilities.”

“Than why have it?” Weiss questioned, curious.

“All Witchers have one. It’s imbued with magic and tells me when magic is nearby, illusions, monsters… It's invaluable, but I can kill a monster just fine without it.” Ruby assured. “Besides, it denotes which school you’re from and I’ve often gotten jobs based on my school's reputation over the years.”

“And which school is that?”

“The school of the Wolf, of course.” She held up the wolf head medallion proudly for Weiss’s inspection. “There are six Witcher schools that I know of, the Wolf and as you mentioned the other day, the Cat.” She explained.

“And the other four?” Weiss’s love of learning kept her asking questions.

“I don’t know much about them but the other four are the Bear, Viper, Griffin and Manticore schools.” She laid the snarling wolf head back on her chest.  

“That sign you used, last night, on the snake. How many of those are there?” The sorceress questioned. Weiss was always interested in learning about different types of magic and how they were employed. Ruby suppressed the smile that threatened to spill onto her face.

It felt like she was back in class at Kaer Morhen, except now she was the teacher.

“There are five basic Witcher signs. Axii, Igni, Aard, Quen and Yrden. Actually most mages I’ve known have always been kinda snooty about it cause it’s really basic compared to what people like you can do.” She admitted. “I know the things you can do are amazing in comparison but there’s no reason to be snotty about it.” Ruby grumbled, crossing her arms and leaning back in the chair.

Weiss rolled her eyes at the Witcher’s whining but couldn’t stop the corners of her mouth from twitching upwards at the pout on her face.

“Considering how stoic and serious I’ve heard Witchers are supposed to be how did you get to be such a… dolt?” She asked with a cocked brow.

“That’s all natural to me.” Ruby smiled in what she hoped was an adequately charming grin. Judging by the way Weiss turned away sharply, rolling her eyes she thought it might have worked.

They sat in companionable silence for a minute, Ruby just enjoying the company and the warm sunlight streaming down on her from the large window they sat under.

The comment of hers of it being natural to her reminded Weiss of something she had been trying to look for in the book.

“How… do the trials of the grasses work?” Weiss questioned, turning back to the pleased Witcher.

Ruby’s face immediately turned more serious, her smile dropping away and the air seemed heavier than it had only a moment before.

“The trials…” She started slowly. “Are what makes us Witchers, like I’ve said before. The trial of grasses is a secret concoction of herbs and things that is given to us through our veins when we have completed the first steps of our training.” She turned away from Weiss, looking out into space.

“It breaks us down from the inside. As children, were more malleable and our bodies more open to change. It breaks us down and then they induce the mutagens that build us back up, into Witchers.” Ruby’s hands fisted into the material of her pants. “It takes days… and as you can imagine just because your body is more open to change does not mean that it comes easily…” She looked back to Weiss. “Sweat, vomit, fever, convulsions and hallucinations, all while strapped to a metal table, but the worst part is the pain… ” She trailed off, her eyes looking far off and Weiss could see the memories flashing there.

“Ruby…” The Witcher didn’t move. “Ruby!” She called again. This time she jerked, coming back to herself.

“Ah, sorry. Weiss.” She apologized looking down.

“No,” Weiss said. “Don’t apologize for something that isn’t your fault.” The Sorceress said, standing up and brushing the imaginary wrinkles out of her dress.

“I’m sorry I got so heavy, there…”

“What did I just say?” The Sorceress scowled, pointing a finger straight at the Witcher, who starred crossed eyed at the digit just an inch from her nose.

“Ah… ok.” She nodded complacently.

“Good,” Weiss said, picking her book off the table and walking over to a shelf with a single empty space and pushing the book back into its place.

“If you’re ready, Oobleck created a list of the servants who have gone missing.” She said, walking back over to the table and picking up a piece of parchment Ruby had taken no notice of until now.

“Oh, right, sure.” She stood and followed Weiss out of the library and across the castle where most of the servants quarters were located.

“This is the first room.” Weiss indicated as they stopped in front of the first door.

The inside looked quite different from Ruby’s room. It was obviously a servants room. It was sparsely decorated, the walls were not the only thing bare though. There was a small pallet pushed up against the wall in one corner. The blankets thrown back probably from the last time the rooms occupant had been in them. A short bedside table stood next to it, a single candle sat tipped over on it.

A threadbare rug laying on the cold stone floor was torn and dirty. It was impossible to tell what was the cause of a struggle and what was just in disrepair. Ruby and Weiss both went over the room with a fine tooth comb but came back with nothing except the fact that the scattered bedding seemed to indicate that its owner had been dragged from it. Not much to go on.

Weiss lead the way to the next room and it was nearly identical to the last.

Searching through the bedding Ruby did find one distinct difference.

Strewn about the pillow was a fine white powder.

Pulling off her glove Ruby ran a hand through it and rubbed her fingers together.

“What is this?” She mumbled to herself.

“Let me see.” Weiss was suddenly at her side, peering at the mysterious substance. Before Ruby could stop her she had scooped a miniscule amount onto her finger a testingly touched it to her tongue.

“What the hell are you...!?” Ruby started, shocked that the sensible Sorceress would just taste something she found in a stranger's bed.

“As I thought. It’s fisstech.” She said after making a face.

“The narcotic?” Ruby blinked. Weiss sent her a look that made her flinch.

“No, like the cat. Of course the narcotic.” She huffed. “There’s nothing unusual about a servant with a fisstech habit though.”

“It’s the only interesting thing we’ve found so far though.” Ruby. “How do you know what fisstech tastes like?” She asked as an afterthought as they left the room.

“I’ve used it in mixes for elixirs before.” She insisted.

“Uhuh,..” Ruby grinned at the pointed look Weiss gave her.

The next few rooms were just as empty as the first two but in nearly all of them they found traces of fisstech in the beds.

“One or two servants is one thing, but all of the victims? That can’t be a coincidence.” Weiss pursed her lips in thought.

“I don’t see the connection.” Ruby frowned.

“Fisstech is often used as an anesthesia, to render patients docile or unconscious.” She hummed.

“So… maybe it’s being used to drug them in their beds so it’s easier to get them down to the catacombs, where the basilisk is waiting for an easy meal…” Ruby picked up on the Sorceress’s train of thought.

“It’s an idea.” Weiss nodded.

“The best one we have so far.” Ruby agreed as she glanced out the window. The sky was turning a vibrant orange. It was almost time.

“I need to go back to the lab and get my potions. It’s time for me to go back down.” She turned back to Weiss who glanced out the window with a nod.

“Let me go change.” She started.

“Actually…” Ruby hesitated. “I’m going down alone this time.”

Weiss glared but before she could utter a word Ruby held up her hands.

“I appreciate that you want to help, Weiss, but you don’t know how to fight a basilisk, you are just as susceptible to it’s poison as a regular person.” She reminded. “Besides, while I’m sure your spells are powerful they probably aren’t fit for the kind of close quarter combat that will be going on down their.” Ruby reasoned with the glaring Sorceress.

“Fine.” She clipped and turned on heel and strutted down the hall. Ruby watched her go until her white hair disappeared around the corner.

“Well… I guess that could have gone worse…” She sighed, shaking her head.

She walked quickly back to the lab and was pleased to find her potions had finish distilling. She poured them carefully into vials and tucked them into the pouch at her waist as she went over her mental checklist.

She had her oil, potions and her sword was sharp and ready.

‘Let’s do this.’ She thought as she walked down the stairs leading to the dungeon.

The usual guard was standing there, keeping watch over the entrance to the catacombs. What surprised Ruby was to find Weiss standing there as well.

“Weiss…” The Witcher started just to be cut off.

“I will wait here for your return, Witcher.” She said haughtily. Perhaps for the guards benefit, or perhaps because she was still mad at her, probably both. Ruby nodded nonetheless and pulled the small bottle of Golden Oriole potion from her pouch and pulled out the cork.

It was an unpleasant yellow color.

“That doesn’t look at all safe to drink…” Weiss eyed the bottle warily.

“For you? Absolutely not. For me? Ehh….” She wiggled her hand in a so-so motion that made Weiss’s eyebrows disappear into her hairline as she tipped her head back and drank the whole bottles worth.

“Blegh!” She made a disgusted face after swallowing the last drop. “Never will get used to that…” She smacked her lips as she pulled out the next bottle and downed it all as well to Weiss’s silent horror. The cat potion quickly took effect, enhancing her eyesight.

“Alright. I’m ready.” She wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve.

The guard nodded and unlocked the old door.

She started down the steps and just before the door closed behind her she was able to make out a voice, barely audible even to her hearing.

“Be careful.”

[herochan]

Here are the 2017 Eisner Award Winners

Named for the pioneering comics creator and graphic novelist Will Eisner, The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, considered the “Oscars” of the comic book industry, were given out in 31 categories for works published in 2016.

Below is the full list of the nominees and winners (highlighted in bold).

Best Short Story

“The Comics Wedding of the Century,” by Simon Hanselmann, in We Told You So: Comics as Art (Fantagraphics)

“The Dark Nothing,” by Jordan Crane, in Uptight #5 (Fantagraphics)

“Good Boy,” by Tom King & David Finch, Batman Annual #1 (DC)

“Monday,” by W. Maxwell Prince and John Amor, in One Week in the Library (Image)  

“Mostly Saturn,” by Michael DeForge, in Island Magazine #8 (Image)

“Shrine of the Monkey God!” by Kim Deitch, in Kramers Ergot 9 (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue/One-Shot

Babybel Wax Bodysuit, by Eric Kostiuk Williams (Retrofit/Big Planet)

Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In, by Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, and Jill Thompson (Dark Horse)

Blammo #9, by Noah Van Sciver (Kilgore Books)

Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

Sir Alfred #3, by Tim Hensley (Pigeon Press)

Your Black Friend, by Ben Passmore (Silver Sprocket)

Best Continuing Series

Astro City, by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson (Vertigo/DC)

Kill or Be Killed, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

The Mighty Thor, by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman (Marvel)

Paper Girls, by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang (Image)

Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best Limited Series

Archangel, by William Gibson, Michael St. John Smith, Butch Guice, and Tom Palmer (IDW)

Briggs Land, by Brian Wood and Mack Chater (Dark Horse)

Han Solo, by Marjorie Liu and Mark Brooks (Marvel)

Kim and Kim, by Magdalene Visaggio and Eva Cabrera (Black Mask)

The Vision, by Tom King and Gabriel Walta (Marvel)

Best New Series

Black Hammer, by Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston (Dark Horse)

Clean Room, by Gail Simone and Jon Davis-Hunt (Vertigo/DC)

Deathstroke: Rebirth, by Christopher Priest, Carlo Pagulayan, et al. (DC)

Faith, by Jody Houser, Pere Pérez, and Marguerite Sauvage (Valiant)

Mockingbird, by Chelsea Cain and Kate Niemczyk (Marvel)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 8)

Ape and Armadillo Take Over the World, by James Sturm (Toon)

Burt’s Way Home, by John Martz (Koyama)

The Creeps, Book 2: The Trolls Will Feast! by Chris Schweizer (Abrams)

I’m Grumpy (My First Comics), by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Random House Books for Young Readers)

Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, by Ben Clanton (Tundra)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 9-12)

The Drawing Lesson, by Mark Crilley (Watson-Guptill)

Ghosts, by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic)

Hilda and the Stone Forest, by Luke Pearson (Flying Eye Books)

Rikki, adapted by Norm Harper and Matthew Foltz-Gray (Karate Petshop)

Science Comics: Dinosaurs, by MK Reed and Joe Flood (First Second)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)

Bad Machinery, vol. 5: The Case of the Fire Inside, by John Allison (Oni)

Batgirl, by Hope Larson and Rafael Albuquerque (DC)

Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie)

Monstress, by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda (Image)

Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars, by Jessica Abel (Papercutz/Super Genius)

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl by Ryan North & Erica Henderson (Marvel)

Best Humor Publication

The Further Fattening Adventures of Pudge, Girl Blimp, by Lee Marrs (Marrs Books)

Hot Dog Taste Test, by Lisa Hanawalt (Drawn & Quarterly)

Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie)

Man, I Hate Cursive, by Jim Benton (Andrews McMeel)

Yuge! 30 Years of Doonesbury on Trump, by G. B. Trudeau (Andrews McMeel)

Best Anthology

Baltic Comics Anthology š! #26: dADa, edited by David Schilter and Sanita Muizniece (kuš!)

Island Magazine, edited by Brandon Graham and Emma Rios (Image)

Kramers Ergot 9, edited by Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics)

Love Is Love, edited by Sarah Gaydos and Jamie S. Rich (IDW/DC)

Spanish Fever: Stories by the New Spanish Cartoonists, edited by Santiago Garcia (Fantagraphics)

Best Reality-Based Work

Dark Night: A True Batman Story, by Paul Dini and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC)

Glenn Gould: A Life Off Tempo, by Sandrine Revel (NBM)

March (Book Three), by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf)

Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir, by Tom Hart (St. Martin’s)

Tetris: The Games People Play, by Box Brown (First Second)

Best Graphic Album—New

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

Black Dog: The Dreams of Paul Nash, by Dave McKean (Dark Horse)

Exits, by Daryl Seitchik (Koyama)

Mooncop, by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly)

Patience, by Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics)

Wonder Woman: The True Amazon, by Jill Thompson (DC Comics)

Best Graphic Album—Reprint

Demon, by Jason Shiga (First Second)

Incomplete Works, by Dylan Horrocks (Alternative)

Last Look, by Charles Burns (Pantheon)

Meat Cake Bible, by Dame Darcy (Fantagraphics)

Megg and Mogg in Amsterdam and Other Stories, by Simon Hanselmann (Fantagraphics)

She’s Not into Poetry, by Tom Hart (Alternative)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

Equinoxes, by Cyril Pedrosa, translated by Joe Johnson (NBM)

Irmina, by Barbara Yelin, translated by Michael Waaler (SelfMadeHero)

Love: The Lion, by Frédéric Brémaud and Federico Bertolucci (Magnetic)

Moebius Library: The World of Edena, by Jean “Moebius” Giraud et al. (Dark Horse)

Wrinkles, by Paco Roca, translated by Erica Mena (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

Goodnight Punpun, vols. 1–4, by Inio Asano, translated by JN PRoductions (VIZ Media)

orange: The Complete Collection, vols. 1–2, by Ichigo Takano, translated by Amber Tamosaitis, adaptation by Shannon Fay (Seven Seas)

The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime, by Toshio Ban and Tezuka Productions, translated by Frederik L. Schodt (Stone Bridge Press)

Princess Jellyfish, vols. 1–3, by Akiko Higashimura, translated by Sarah Alys Lindholm (Kodansha)

Wandering Island, vol. 1, by Kenji Tsuruta, translated by Dana Lewis (Dark Horse)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old)

Almost Completely Baxter: New and Selected Blurtings, by Glen Baxter (NYR Comics)

Barnaby, vol. 3, by Crockett Johnson, edited by Philip Nel and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, Colorful Cases of the 1930s, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press)

The Realist Cartoons, edited by Paul Krassner and Ethan Persoff (Fantagraphics)

Walt & Skeezix 1931–1932, by Frank King, edited by Jeet Heer and Chris Ware (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old)

The Complete Neat Stuff, by Peter Bagge, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, edited by Trina Robbins, Gary Groth, and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics)

Fables and Funnies, by Walt Kelly, compiled by David W. Tosh (Dark Horse)

Trump: The Complete Collection, by Harvey Kurtzman et al., edited by Denis Kitchen and John Lind (Dark Horse)

U.S.S. Stevens: The Collected Stories, by Sam Glanzman, edited by Drew Ford (Dover)

Best Writer

Ed Brubaker, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image)

Kurt Busiek, Astro City (Vertigo/DC)

Chelsea Cain, Mockingbird (Marvel)

Max Landis, Green Valley (Image/Skybound); Superman: American Alien (DC)

Jeff Lemire, Black Hammer (Dark Horse); Descender, Plutona (Image); Bloodshot Reborn (Valiant)

Brian K. Vaughan, Paper Girls, Saga (Image)

Best Writer/Artist

Jessica Abel, Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars (Papercutz/Super Genius)

Box Brown, Tetris: The Games People Play (First Second)

Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly)

Tom Hart, Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir (St. Martin’s)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

Mark Brooks, Han Solo (Marvel)

Dan Mora, Klaus (BOOM! Studios)

Greg Ruth, Indeh (Grand Central Publishing)

Francois Schuiten, The Theory of the Grain of Sand (IDW)

Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Brian Stelfreeze, Black Panther (Marvel)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

Federico Bertolucci, Love: The Lion (Magnetic)

Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly)

Manuele Fior, 5,000 km per Second (Fantagraphics)

Dave McKean, Black Dog (Dark Horse)

Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Jill Thompson, Wonder Woman: The True Amazon (DC); Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In (Dark Horse)

Best Cover Artist (for multiple covers)

Mike Del Mundo, Avengers, Carnage, Mosaic, The Vision (Marvel)

David Mack, Abe Sapien, BPRD Hell on Earth, Fight Club 2, Hellboy and the BPRD 1953 (Dark Horse)

Sean Phillips, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed (Image)

Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Best Coloring

Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Green Valley (Image/Skybound)

Elizabeth Breitweiser, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image); Outcast by Kirkman & Azaceta (Image/Skybound)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Laura Martin, Wonder Woman (DC); Ragnorak (IDW); Black Panther (Marvel)

Matt Wilson, Cry Havoc, Paper Girls, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Black Widow, The Mighty Thor, Star-Lord (Marvel)

Best Lettering

Dan Clowes, Patience (Fantagraphics)

Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly)

Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly)

Nick Hayes, Woody Guthrie (Abrams)

Todd Klein, Clean Room, Dark Night, Lucifer (Vertigo/DC); Black Hammer (Dark Horse)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

The A.V. Club comics coverage, including Comics Panel, Back Issues, and Big Issues, by Oliver Sava et al., www.avclub.com

Comic Riffs blog, by Michael Cavna and David Betancourt, www.washingtonpost.com/new/comic-riffs/

Critical Chips, edited by Zainab Akhtar (Comics & Cola)

PanelPatter.com, edited by Rob McMonigal

WomenWriteAboutComics.com, edited by Megan Purdy and Claire Napier

Best Comics-Related Book

blanc et noir: takeshi obata illustrations, by Takeshi Obata (VIZ Media)

Ditko Unleashed: An American Hero, by Florentino Flórez and Frédéric Manzano (IDW/Editions Déesse)

Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White, by Michael Tisserand (Harper)

The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood, vol. 1, edited by Bhob Stewart and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics)

More Heroes of the Comics, by Drew Friedman (Fantagraphics)

Best Academic/Scholarly Work

Brighter Than You Think: Ten Short Works by Alan Moore, with essays by Marc Sobel (Uncivilized)

Forging the Past: Set and the Art of Memory, by Daniel Marrone (University Press of Mississippi)

Frank Miller’s Daredevil and the Ends of Heroism, by Paul Young (Rutgers University Press)

Pioneering Cartoonists of Color, by Tim Jackson (University Press of Mississippi)

Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation, by Carolyn Cocca (Bloomsbury)

Best Publication Design

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, designed by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, designed by Keeli McCarthy (Fantagraphics)

Frank in the Third Dimension, designed by Jacob Covey, 3D conversions by Charles Barnard (Fantagraphics)

The Realist Cartoons, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)

Si Lewen’s Parade: An Artist’s Odyssey, designed by Art Spiegelman (Abrams)

Best Webcomic

Bird Boy, by Anne Szabla, http://bird-boy.com

Deja Brew, by Taneka Stotts and Sara DuVall (Stela.com)

Jaeger, by Ibrahim Moustafa (Stela.com)

The Middle Age, by Steve Conley, steveconley.com/the-middle-age

On Beauty, by Christina Tran,  sodelightful.com/comics/beauty/

Best Digital Comic

Bandette - Paul Tobin & Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain/comiXology)

Edison Rex, by Chris Roberson and Dennis Culver (Monkeybrain/comiXology)

Helm, by Jehanzeb Hasan and Mauricio Caballero, www.crookshaw.com/helm/

On a Sunbeam, by Tillie Walden, www.onasunbeam.com

Universe!, by Albert Monteys (Panel Syndicate)

Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailer Award

Comicazi, Robert Howard, David Lockwood, Michael Burke. Somerville, MA

[smashpages]

‘Saga,’ Sonny Liew, Jill Thompson take home 2017 Eisner Awards

Sonny Liew, Jill Thompson and the team behind Saga all took home multiple awards last night at the 28th annual Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards at Comic-Con International in San Diego.

Saga took home four awards, including Best Continuing Series and Best Writer for Brian K. Vaughan, while artist Fiona Staples won Best Cover Artist and Best Penciller/Inker. Liew ‘s awards for his graphic novel, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, included Best Writer/Artist, Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia, and Best Publication Design. And Jill Thompson was recognized three times: for Best Single Issue/One-Shot for her work on Beast of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In, Best Graphic Album—New for Wonder Woman: The True Amazon and Best Painter/Multimedia Artist.

Several comics legends were also honored at the ceremony. Jack Kirby and William Messner-Loebs both received the Bill Finger Excellence in Comics Writing Award, while Walt Simonson, Jim Starlin, Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez, George Perez, Milt Gross, H.G. Peter, Antonio Prohias and Dori Seda were all inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award, created to honor those people in comics and the popular arts who have worked to help others, went to Joe Ferrara, for his work in prostate cancer awareness, and Mark Andreyko for curating the Love Is Love anthology after the Pulse nightclub shooting. Love is Love also won for best anthology.

Other awards presented at the ceremony include the Will Eisner Spirit of Retailer Award, which went to Comicazi in Somerville, Massachusetts, and the Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award, which wnet to Anne Szabla, writer/artist of Bird-Boy.

Here’s the complete list of all nominees, with the winners bolded:

Best Short Story “The Comics Wedding of the Century,” by Simon Hanselmann, in We Told You So: Comics as Art (Fantagraphics) “The Dark Nothing,” by Jordan Crane, in Uptight #5 (Fantagraphics) “Good Boy,” by Tom King and David Finch, in Batman Annual #1 (DC) “Monday,” by W. Maxwell Prince and John Amor, in One Week in the Library (Image) “Mostly Saturn,” by Michael DeForge, in Island Magazine #8 (Image) “Shrine of the Monkey God!” by Kim Deitch, in Kramers Ergot 9 (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue/One-Shot Babybel Wax Bodysuit, by Eric Kostiuk Williams (Retrofit/Big Planet) Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In, by Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, and Jill Thompson (Dark Horse) Blammo #9, by Noah Van Sciver (Kilgore Books) Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image) Sir Alfred #3, by Tim Hensley (Pigeon Press) Your Black Friend, by Ben Passmore (Silver Sprocket)

Best Continuing Series Astro City, by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson (Vertigo/DC) Kill or Be Killed, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image) The Mighty Thor, by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman (Marvel) Paper Girls, by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang (Image) Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best Limited Series Archangel, by William Gibson, Michael St. John Smith, Butch Guice, and Tom Palmer (IDW) Briggs Land, by Brian Wood and Mack Chater (Dark Horse) Han Solo, by Marjorie Liu and Mark Brooks (Marvel) Kim and Kim, by Magdalene Visaggio and Eva Cabrera (Black Mask) The Vision, by Tom King and Gabriel Walta (Marvel) We Stand on Guard, by Brian K. Vaughan and Steve Skroce (Image)

Best New Series Black Hammer, by Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston (Dark Horse) Clean Room, by Gail Simone and Jon Davis-Hunt (Vertigo/DC) Deathstroke: Rebirth, by Christopher Priest, Carlo Pagulayan, et al. (DC) Faith, by Jody Houser, Pere Pérez, and Marguerite Sauvage (Valiant) Mockingbird, by Chelsea Cain and Kate Niemczyk (Marvel)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 8) Ape and Armadillo Take Over the World, by James Sturm (Toon) Burt’s Way Home, by John Martz (Koyama) The Creeps, Book 2: The Trolls Will Feast! by Chris Schweizer (Abrams) I’m Grumpy (My First Comics), by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Random House Books for Young Readers) Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, by Ben Clanton (Tundra)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 9-12) The Drawing Lesson, by Mark Crilley (Ten Speed Press) Ghosts, by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic) Hilda and the Stone Forest, by Luke Pearson (Flying Eye Books) Rikki, adapted by Norm Harper and Matthew Foltz-Gray (Karate Petshop) Science Comics: Dinosaurs, by MK Reed and Joe Flood (First Second)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17) Bad Machinery, vol. 5: The Case of the Fire Inside, by John Allison (Oni) Batgirl, by Hope Larson and Rafael Albuquerque (DC) Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie) Monstress, by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda (Image) Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars, by Jessica Abel (Papercutz/Super Genius) The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, by Ryan North and Erica Henderson (Marvel)

Best Humor Publication The Further Fattening Adventures of Pudge, Girl Blimp, by Lee Marrs (Marrs Books) Hot Dog Taste Test, by Lisa Hanawalt (Drawn & Quarterly) Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie) Man, I Hate Cursive, by Jim Benton (Andrews McMeel) Yuge! 30 Years of Doonesbury on Trump, by G. B. Trudeau (Andrews McMeel)

Best Anthology Baltic Comics Anthology š! #26: dADa, edited by David Schilter and Sanita Muizniece (kuš!) Island Magazine, edited by Brandon Graham and Emma Rios (Image) Kramers Ergot 9, edited by Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics) Love Is Love, edited by Marc Andreyko (IDW/DC) Spanish Fever: Stories by the New Spanish Cartoonists, edited by Santiago Garcia (Fantagraphics)

Best Reality-Based Work Dark Night: A True Batman Story, by Paul Dini and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC) Glenn Gould: A Life Off Tempo, by Sandrine Revel (NBM) March (Book Three), by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf) Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir, by Tom Hart (St. Martin’s) Tetris: The Games People Play, by Box Brown (First Second)

Best Graphic Album—New The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon) Black Dog: The Dreams of Paul Nash, by Dave McKean (Dark Horse) Exits, by Daryl Seitchik (Koyama) Mooncop, by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly) Patience, by Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics) Wonder Woman: The True Amazon by Jill Thompson (DC Comics)

Best Graphic Album—Reprint Demon, by Jason Shiga (First Second) Incomplete Works, by Dylan Horrocks (Alternative) Last Look, by Charles Burns (Pantheon) Meat Cake Bible, by Dame Darcy (Fantagraphics) Megg and Mogg in Amsterdam and Other Stories, by Simon Hanselmann (Fantagraphics) She’s Not into Poetry, by Tom Hart (Alternative)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material Equinoxes, by Cyril Pedrosa, translated by Joe Johnson (NBM) Irmina, by Barbara Yelin, translated by Michael Waaler (SelfMadeHero) Love: The Lion, by Frédéric Brémaud and Federico Bertolucci (Magnetic) Moebius Library: The World of Edena, by Jean “Moebius” Giraud et al. (Dark Horse) Wrinkles, by Paco Roca, translated by Erica Mena (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon) Goodnight Punpun, vols. 1–4, by Inio Asano, translated by JN PRoductions (VIZ Media) orange: The Complete Collection, vols. 1–2, by Ichigo Takano, translated by Amber Tamosaitis, adaptation by Shannon Fay (Seven Seas) The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime, by Toshio Ban and Tezuka Productions, translated by Frederik L. Schodt (Stone Bridge Press) Princess Jellyfish, vols. 1–3 by Akiko Higashimura, translated by Sarah Alys Lindholm (Kodansha) Wandering Island, vol. 1, by Kenji Tsuruta, translated by Dana Lewis (Dark Horse)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old) Almost Completely Baxter: New and Selected Blurtings, by Glen Baxter (NYR Comics) Barnaby, vol. 3, by Crockett Johnson, edited by Philip Nel and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics) Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, Colorful Cases of the 1930s, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press) The Realist Cartoons, edited by Paul Krassner and Ethan Persoff (Fantagraphics) Walt & Skeezix 1931–1932, by Frank King, edited by Jeet Heer and Chris Ware (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old) The Complete Neat Stuff, by Peter Bagge, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics) The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, edited by Trina Robbins (Fantagraphics) Fables and Funnies, by Walt Kelly, compiled by David W. Tosh (Dark Horse) Trump: The Complete Collection, by Harvey Kurtzman et al., edited by Denis Kitchen and John Lind (Dark Horse) U.S.S. Stevens: The Collected Stories, by Sam Glanzman, edited by Drew Ford (Dover)

Best Writer Ed Brubaker, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image) Kurt Busiek, Astro City (Vertigo/DC) Chelsea Cain, Mockingbird (Marvel) Max Landis, Green Valley (Image/Skybound), Superman: American Alien (DC) Jeff Lemire, Black Hammer (Dark Horse); Descender, Plutona (Image); Bloodshot Reborn (Valiant) Brian K. Vaughan, Paper Girls, Saga, We Stand On Guard (Image)

Best Writer/Artist Jessica Abel, Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars (Papercutz/Super Genius) Box Brown, Tetris: The Games People Play (First Second) Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly) Tom Hart, Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir (St. Martin’s) Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team Mark Brooks, Han Solo (Marvel) Dan Mora, Klaus (BOOM!) Greg Ruth, Indeh (Grand Central Publishing) Francois Schuiten, The Theory of the Grain of Sand (IDW) Fiona Staples, Saga (Image) Brian Stelfreeze, Black Panther (Marvel)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art) Federico Bertolucci, Love: The Lion (Magnetic) Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly) Manuele Fior, 5,000 km per Second (Fantagraphics) Dave McKean, Black Dog (Dark Horse) Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image) Jill Thompson, Wonder Woman: The True Amazon (DC); Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In (Dark Horse)

Best Cover Artist (for multiple covers) Mike Del Mundo, Avengers, Carnage, Mosaic, The Vision (Marvel) David Mack, Abe Sapien, BPRD Hell on Earth, Fight Club 2, Hellboy and the BPRD 1953 (Dark Horse) Sean Phillips, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed (Image) Fiona Staples, Saga (Image) Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Best Coloring Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Green Valley (Image/Skybound) Elizabeth Breitweiser, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image); Outcast by Kirkman & Azaceta (Image/Skybound) Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon) Laura Martin, Wonder Woman (DC); Ragnorak (IDW); Black Panther (Marvel) Matt Wilson, Cry Havoc, Paper Girls, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Black Widow, The Mighty Thor, Star-Lord (Marvel)

Best Lettering Dan Clowes, Patience (Fantagraphics) Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly) Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly) Nick Hayes, Woody Guthrie (Abrams) Todd Klein, Clean Room, Dark Night, Lucifer (Vertigo/DC); Black Hammer (Dark Horse) Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism The A.V. Club comics coverage, including Comics Panel, Back Issues, and Big Issues, by Oliver Sava et al. Comic Riffs blog, by Michael Cavna Critical Chips, edited by Zainab Akhtar (Comics & Cola) PanelPatter.com, edited by Rob McMonigal WomenWriteAboutComics.com, edited by Megan Purdy and Claire Napier

Best Comics-Related Book blanc et noir: takeshi obata illustrations, by Takeshi Obata (VIZ Media) Ditko Unleashed: An American Hero, by Florentino Flórez and Frédéric Manzano (IDW/Editions Déese) Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White, by Michael Tisserand (Harper) The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood, vol. 1, edited by Bhob Stewart and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics) More Heroes of the Comics, by Drew Friedman (Fantagraphics)

Best Academic/Scholarly Work Brighter Than You Think: Ten Short Works by Alan Moore, with essays by Marc Sobel (Uncivilized) Forging the Past: Set and the Art of Memory, by Daniel Marrone (University Press of Mississippi) Frank Miller’s Daredevil and the Ends of Heroism, by Paul Young (Rutgers University Press) Pioneering Cartoonists of Color, by Tim Jackson (University Press of Mississippi) Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation, by Carolyn Cocca (Bloomsbury)

Best Publication Design The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, designed by Sonny Liew (Pantheon) The Complete Wimmin’s Comix, designed by Keeli McCarthy (Fantagraphics) Frank in the Third Dimension, designed by Jacob Covey, 3D conversions by Charles Barnard (Fantagraphics) The Realist Cartoons, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics) Si Lewen’s Parade: An Artist’s Odyssey, designed by Art Spiegelman (Abrams)

Best Webcomic Bird Boy, by Anne Szabla Deja Brew, by Teneka Stotts and Sarah DuVall (Stela.com) Jaeger, by Ibrahim Moustafa (Stela.com) The Middle Age, by Steve Conley On Beauty, by Christina Tran

Best Digital Comic Bandette, by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain/comiXology) Edison Rex, by Chris Roberson and Dennis Culver (Monkeybrain/comiXology) Helm, by Jehanzeb Hasan and Mauricio Caballero On a Sunbeam, by Tillie Walden Universe!, by Albert Monteys (Panel Syndicate)

from WordPress http://ift.tt/2tqbkci

[comicsalternative]

Episode 242: A Discussion of the 2017 Eisner Award Nominations

Earlier this month the nominees for the 2017 Eisner Awards were announced at the Comic-Con International website, and as Andy and Derek like to do every year, they're devoting a full episode of The Comics Alternative to a discussion of the nominations. On this week's show, the Two Guys give their impressions of the various nominees, both as a whole and on a category-by-category basis, making observations and trying to understand any trends underlying this year's selections. However, Derek and Andy resist the urge to play armchair quarterbacks, so they don't second-guess the six-member panel of judges or focus on what they would have chosen if they had been on the selection committee. As diligent comics scholars, they judicial and discerning in their commentary. At the same time, they don't shy away from pointing out a few inconsistencies and a few head-scratchers when trying to make sense of this year's nominations.

You can find a complete list of the 2017 Eisner Award nominees below. So as you listen to this week's episode, please feel free to scroll down and follow along!

  Eisner Awards Nominations 2017

Best Short Story

“The Comics Wedding of the Century,” by Simon Hanselmann, in We Told You So: Comics as Art (Fantagraphics)

“The Dark Nothing,” by Jordan Crane, in Uptight #5 (Fantagraphics)

“Good Boy,” by Tom King and David Finch, in Batman Annual #1 (DC)

“Monday,” by W. Maxwell Prince and John Amor, in One Week in the Library (Image)

“Mostly Saturn,” by Michael DeForge, in Island Magazine #8 (Image)

“Shrine of the Monkey God!” by Kim Deitch, in Kramers Ergot 9 (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue/One-Shot

Babybel Wax Bodysuit, by Eric Kostiuk Williams (Retrofit/Big Planet)

Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In, by Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, and Jill Thompson (Dark Horse)

Blammo #9, by Noah Van Sciver (Kilgore Books)

Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

Sir Alfred #3, by Tim Hensley (Pigeon Press)

Your Black Friend, by Ben Passmore (Silver Sprocket)

Best Continuing Series

Astro City, by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson (Vertigo/DC)

Kill or Be Killed, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

The Mighty Thor, by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman (Marvel)

Paper Girls, by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang (Image)

Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best Limited Series

Archangel, by William Gibson, Michael St. John Smith, Butch Guice, and Tom Palmer (IDW)

Briggs Land, by Brian Wood and Mack Chater (Dark Horse)

Han Solo, by Marjorie Liu and Mark Brooks (Marvel)

Kim and Kim, by Magdalene Visaggio and Eva Cabrera (Black Mask)

The Vision, by Tom King and Gabriel Walta (Marvel)

Best New Series

Black Hammer, by Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston (Dark Horse)

Clean Room, by Gail Simone and Jon Davis-Hunt (Vertigo/DC)

Deathstroke: Rebirth, by Christopher Priest, Carlo Pagulayan, et al. (DC)

Faith, by Jody Houser, Pere Pérez, and Marguerite Sauvage (Valiant)

Mockingbird, by Chelsea Cain and Kate Niemczyk (Marvel)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 8)

Ape and Armadillo Take Over the World, by James Sturm (Toon)

Burt’s Way Home, by John Martz (Koyama)

The Creeps, Book 2: The Trolls Will Feast! by Chris Schweizer (Abrams)

I’m Grumpy (My First Comics), by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Random House Books for Young Readers)

Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, by Ben Clanton (Tundra)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 9-12)

The Drawing Lesson, by Mark Crilley (Watson-Guptill)

Ghosts, by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic)

Hilda and the Stone Forest, by Luke Pearson (Flying Eye Books)

Rikki, adapted by Norm Harper and Matthew Foltz-Gray (Karate Petshop)

Science Comics: Dinosaurs, by MK Reed and Joe Flood (First Second)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)

Bad Machinery, vol. 5: The Case of the Fire Inside, by John Allison (Oni)

Batgirl, by Hope Larson and Rafael Albuquerque (DC)

Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie)

Monstress, by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda (Image)

Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars, by Jessica Abel (Papercutz/Super Genius)

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, by Ryan North and Erica Henderson (Marvel)

Best Humor Publication

The Further Fattening Adventures of Pudge, Girl Blimp, by Lee Marrs (Marrs Books)

Hot Dog Taste Test, by Lisa Hanawalt (Drawn & Quarterly)

Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie)

Man, I Hate Cursive, by Jim Benton (Andrews McMeel)

Yuge! 30 Years of Doonesbury on Trump, by G. B. Trudeau (Andrews McMeel)

Best Anthology

Baltic Comics Anthology š! #26: dADa, edited by David Schilter and Sanita Muizniece (kuš!)

Island Magazine, edited by Brandon Graham and Emma Rios (Image)

Kramers Ergot 9, edited by Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics)

Love Is Love, edited by Sarah Gaydos and Jamie S. Rich (IDW/DC)

Spanish Fever: Stories by the New Spanish Cartoonists, edited by Santiago Garcia (Fantagraphics)

Best Reality-Based Work

Dark Night: A True Batman Story, by Paul Dini and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC)

Glenn Gould: A Life Off Tempo, by Sandrine Revel (NBM)

March (Book Three), by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf)

Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir, by Tom Hart (St. Martin’s)

Tetris: The Games People Play, by Box Brown (First Second)

Best Graphic Album—New

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

Black Dog: The Dreams of Paul Nash, by Dave McKean (Dark Horse)

Exits, by Daryl Seitchik (Koyama)

Mooncop, by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly)

Patience, by Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics)

Wonder Woman: The True Amazon, by Jill Thompson (DC Comics)

Best Graphic Album—Reprint

Demon, by Jason Shiga (First Second)

Incomplete Works, by Dylan Horrocks (Alternative)

Last Look, by Charles Burns (Pantheon)

Meat Cake Bible, by Dame Darcy (Fantagraphics)

Megg and Mogg in Amsterdam and Other Stories, by Simon Hanselmann (Fantagraphics)

She’s Not into Poetry, by Tom Hart (Alternative)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

Equinoxes, by Cyril Pedrosa, translated by Joe Johnson (NBM)

Irmina, by Barbara Yelin, translated by Michael Waaler (SelfMadeHero)

Love: The Lion, by Frédéric Brémaud and Federico Bertolucci (Magnetic)

Moebius Library: The World of Edena, by Jean “Moebius” Giraud et al. (Dark Horse)

Wrinkles, by Paco Roca, translated by Erica Mena (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

Goodnight Punpun, vols. 1–4, by Inio Asano, translated by JN PRoductions (VIZ Media)

orange: The Complete Collection, vols. 1–2, by Ichigo Takano, translated by Amber Tamosaitis, adaptation by Shannon Fay (Seven Seas)

The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime, by Toshio Ban and Tezuka Productions, translated by Frederik L. Schodt (Stone Bridge Press)

Princess Jellyfish, vols. 1–3, by Akiko Higashimura, translated by Sarah Alys Lindholm (Kodansha)

Wandering Island, vol. 1, by Kenji Tsuruta, translated by Dana Lewis (Dark Horse)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old)

Almost Completely Baxter: New and Selected Blurtings, by Glen Baxter (NYR Comics)

Barnaby, vol. 3, by Crockett Johnson, edited by Philip Nel and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, Colorful Cases of the 1930s, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press)

The Realist Cartoons, edited by Paul Krassner and Ethan Persoff (Fantagraphics)

Walt & Skeezix 1931–1932, by Frank King, edited by Jeet Heer and Chris Ware (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old)

The Complete Neat Stuff, by Peter Bagge, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, edited by Trina Robbins, Gary Groth, and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics)

Fables and Funnies, by Walt Kelly, compiled by David W. Tosh (Dark Horse)

Trump: The Complete Collection, by Harvey Kurtzman et al., edited by Denis Kitchen and John Lind (Dark Horse)

U.S.S. Stevens: The Collected Stories, by Sam Glanzman, edited by Drew Ford (Dover)

Best Writer

Ed Brubaker, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image)

Kurt Busiek, Astro City (Vertigo/DC)

Chelsea Cain, Mockingbird (Marvel)

Max Landis, Green Valley (Image/Skybound); Superman: American Alien (DC)

Jeff Lemire, Black Hammer (Dark Horse); Descender, Plutona (Image); Bloodshot Reborn (Valiant)

Brian K. Vaughan, Paper Girls, Saga (Image)

Best Writer/Artist

Jessica Abel, Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars (Papercutz/Super Genius)

Box Brown, Tetris: The Games People Play (First Second)

Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly)

Tom Hart, Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir (St. Martin’s)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

Mark Brooks, Han Solo (Marvel)

Dan Mora, Klaus (BOOM! Studios)

Greg Ruth, Indeh (Grand Central Publishing)

Francois Schuiten, The Theory of the Grain of Sand (IDW)

Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Brian Stelfreeze, Black Panther (Marvel)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

Federico Bertolucci, Love: The Lion (Magnetic)

Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly)

Manuele Fior, 5,000 km per Second (Fantagraphics)

Dave McKean, Black Dog (Dark Horse)

Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Jill Thompson, Wonder Woman: The True Amazon (DC); Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In (Dark Horse)

Best Cover Artist (for multiple covers)

Mike Del Mundo, Avengers, Carnage, Mosaic, The Vision (Marvel)

David Mack, Abe Sapien, BPRD Hell on Earth, Fight Club 2, Hellboy and the BPRD 1953 (Dark Horse)

Sean Phillips, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed (Image)

Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Best Coloring

Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Green Valley (Image/Skybound)

Elizabeth Breitweiser, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image); Outcast by Kirkman & Azaceta (Image/Skybound)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Laura Martin, Wonder Woman (DC); Ragnorak (IDW); Black Panther (Marvel)

Matt Wilson, Cry Havoc, Paper Girls, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Black Widow, The Mighty Thor, Star-Lord (Marvel)

Best Lettering

Dan Clowes, Patience (Fantagraphics)

Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly)

Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly)

Nick Hayes, Woody Guthrie (Abrams)

Todd Klein, Clean Room, Dark Night, Lucifer (Vertigo/DC); Black Hammer (Dark Horse)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

The A.V. Club comics coverage, including Comics Panel, Back Issues, and Big Issues, by Oliver Sava et al., www.avclub.com

Comic Riffs blog, by Michael Cavna and David Betancourt, www.washingtonpost.com/new/comic-riffs/

Critical Chips, edited by Zainab Akhtar (Comics & Cola)

PanelPatter.com, edited by Rob McMonigal

WomenWriteAboutComics.com, edited by Megan Purdy and Claire Napier

Best Comics-Related Book

blanc et noir: takeshi obata illustrations, by Takeshi Obata (VIZ Media)

Ditko Unleashed: An American Hero, by Florentino Flórez and Frédéric Manzano (IDW/Editions Déesse)

Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White, by Michael Tisserand (Harper)

The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood, vol. 1, edited by Bhob Stewart and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics)

More Heroes of the Comics, by Drew Friedman (Fantagraphics)

Best Academic/Scholarly Work

Brighter Than You Think: Ten Short Works by Alan Moore, with essays by Marc Sobel (Uncivilized)

Forging the Past: Set and the Art of Memory, by Daniel Marrone (University Press of Mississippi)

Frank Miller’s Daredevil and the Ends of Heroism, by Paul Young (Rutgers University Press)

Pioneering Cartoonists of Color, by Tim Jackson (University Press of Mississippi)

Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation, by Carolyn Cocca (Bloomsbury)

Best Publication Design

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, designed by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, designed by Keeli McCarthy (Fantagraphics)

Frank in the Third Dimension, designed by Jacob Covey, 3D conversions by Charles Barnard (Fantagraphics)

The Realist Cartoons, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)

Si Lewen’s Parade: An Artist’s Odyssey, designed by Art Spiegelman (Abrams)

Best Webcomic

Bird Boy, by Anne Szabla, http://bird-boy.com

Deja Brew, by Taneka Stotts and Sara DuVall (Stela.com)

Jaeger, by Ibrahim Moustafa (Stela.com)

The Middle Age, by Steve Conley, steveconley.com/the-middle-age

On Beauty, by Christina Tran,  sodelightful.com/comics/beauty/

Best Digital Comic

Bandette, by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain/comiXology)

Edison Rex, by Chris Roberson and Dennis Culver (Monkeybrain/comiXology)

Helm, by Jehanzeb Hasan and Mauricio Caballero, www.crookshaw.com/helm/

On a Sunbeam, by Tillie Walden, www.onasunbeam.com

Universe!, by Albert Monteys (Panel Syndicate)

Check out this episode!

[mikeyscomics]

Best Short Story

“The Comics Wedding of the Century,” by Simon Hanselmann, in We Told You So: Comics as Art (Fantagraphics)

“The Dark Nothing,” by Jordan Crane, in Uptight #5 (Fantagraphics)

“Good Boy,” by Tom King and David Finch, in Batman Annual #1 (DC)

“Monday,” by W. Maxwell Prince and John Amor, in One Week in the Library (Image)  

“Mostly Saturn,” by Michael DeForge, in Island Magazine #8 (Image)

“Shrine of the Monkey God!” by Kim Deitch, in Kramers Ergot 9 (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue/One-Shot

Babybel Wax Bodysuit, by Eric Kostiuk Williams (Retrofit/Big Planet)

Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In, by Evan Dorkin, Sarah Dyer, and Jill Thompson (Dark Horse)

Blammo #9, by Noah Van Sciver (Kilgore Books)

Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

Sir Alfred #3, by Tim Hensley (Pigeon Press)

Your Black Friend, by Ben Passmore (Silver Sprocket)

Best Continuing Series

Astro City, by Kurt Busiek and Brent Anderson (Vertigo/DC)

Kill or Be Killed, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image)

The Mighty Thor, by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman (Marvel)

Paper Girls, by Brian K. Vaughan and Cliff Chiang (Image)

Saga, by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples (Image)

Best Limited Series

Archangel, by William Gibson, Michael St. John Smith, Butch Guice, and Tom Palmer (IDW)

Briggs Land, by Brian Wood and Mack Chater (Dark Horse)

Han Solo, by Marjorie Liu and Mark Brooks (Marvel)

Kim and Kim, by Magdalene Visaggio and Eva Cabrera (Black Mask)

The Vision, by Tom King and Gabriel Walta (Marvel)

Best New Series

Black Hammer, by Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston (Dark Horse)

Clean Room, by Gail Simone and Jon Davis-Hunt (Vertigo/DC)

Deathstroke: Rebirth, by Christopher Priest, Carlo Pagulayan, et al. (DC)

Faith, by Jody Houser, Pere Pérez, and Marguerite Sauvage (Valiant)

Mockingbird, by Chelsea Cain and Kate Niemczyk (Marvel)

Best Publication for Early Readers (up to age 8)

Ape and Armadillo Take Over the World, by James Sturm (Toon)

Burt’s Way Home, by John Martz (Koyama)

The Creeps, Book 2: The Trolls Will Feast! by Chris Schweizer (Abrams)

I’m Grumpy (My First Comics), by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm (Random House Books for Young Readers)

Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea, by Ben Clanton (Tundra)

Best Publication for Kids (ages 9-12)

The Drawing Lesson, by Mark Crilley (Watson-Guptill)

Ghosts, by Raina Telgemeier (Scholastic)

Hilda and the Stone Forest, by Luke Pearson (Flying Eye Books)

Rikki, adapted by Norm Harper and Matthew Foltz-Gray (Karate Petshop)

Science Comics: Dinosaurs, by MK Reed and Joe Flood (First Second)

Best Publication for Teens (ages 13-17)

Bad Machinery, vol. 5: The Case of the Fire Inside, by John Allison (Oni)

Batgirl, by Hope Larson and Rafael Albuquerque (DC)

Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie)

Monstress, by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda (Image)

Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars, by Jessica Abel (Papercutz/Super Genius)

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, by Ryan North and Erica Henderson (Marvel)

Best Humor Publication

The Further Fattening Adventures of Pudge, Girl Blimp, by Lee Marrs (Marrs Books)

Hot Dog Taste Test, by Lisa Hanawalt (Drawn & Quarterly)

Jughead, by Chip Zdarsky, Ryan North, Erica Henderson, and Derek Charm (Archie)

Man, I Hate Cursive, by Jim Benton (Andrews McMeel)

Yuge! 30 Years of Doonesbury on Trump, by G. B. Trudeau (Andrews McMeel)

Best Anthology

Baltic Comics Anthology š! #26: dADa, edited by David Schilter and Sanita Muizniece (kuš!)

Island Magazine, edited by Brandon Graham and Emma Rios (Image)

Kramers Ergot 9, edited by Sammy Harkham (Fantagraphics)

Love Is Love, edited by Marc Andreyko (IDW/DC)

Spanish Fever: Stories by the New Spanish Cartoonists, edited by Santiago Garcia (Fantagraphics)

Best Reality-Based Work

Dark Night: A True Batman Story, by Paul Dini and Eduardo Risso (Vertigo/DC)

Glenn Gould: A Life Off Tempo, by Sandrine Revel (NBM)

March (Book Three), by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell (Top Shelf)

Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir, by Tom Hart (St. Martin’s)

Tetris: The Games People Play, by Box Brown (First Second)

Best Graphic Album—New

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

Black Dog: The Dreams of Paul Nash, by Dave McKean (Dark Horse)

Exits, by Daryl Seitchik (Koyama)

Mooncop, by Tom Gauld (Drawn & Quarterly)

Patience, by Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics)

Wonder Woman: The True Amazon, by Jill Thompson (DC Comics)

Best Graphic Album—Reprint

Demon, by Jason Shiga (First Second)

Incomplete Works, by Dylan Horrocks (Alternative)

Last Look, by Charles Burns (Pantheon)

Meat Cake Bible, by Dame Darcy (Fantagraphics)

Megg and Mogg in Amsterdam and Other Stories, by Simon Hanselmann (Fantagraphics)

She’s Not into Poetry, by Tom Hart (Alternative)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

Equinoxes, by Cyril Pedrosa, translated by Joe Johnson (NBM)

Irmina, by Barbara Yelin, translated by Michael Waaler (SelfMadeHero)

Love: The Lion, by Frédéric Brémaud and Federico Bertolucci (Magnetic)

Moebius Library: The World of Edena, by Jean “Moebius” Giraud et al. (Dark Horse)

Wrinkles, by Paco Roca, translated by Erica Mena (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material—Asia

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

Goodnight Punpun, vols. 1–4, by Inio Asano, translated by JN PRoductions (VIZ Media)

orange: The Complete Collection, vols. 1–2, by Ichigo Takano, translated by Amber Tamosaitis, adaptation by Shannon Fay (Seven Seas)

The Osamu Tezuka Story: A Life in Manga and Anime, by Toshio Ban and Tezuka Productions, translated by Frederik L. Schodt (Stone Bridge Press)

Princess Jellyfish, vols. 1–3, by Akiko Higashimura, translated by Sarah Alys Lindholm (Kodansha)

Wandering Island, vol. 1, by Kenji Tsuruta, translated by Dana Lewis (Dark Horse)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips (at least 20 years old)

Almost Completely Baxter: New and Selected Blurtings, by Glen Baxter (NYR Comics)

Barnaby, vol. 3, by Crockett Johnson, edited by Philip Nel and Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, Colorful Cases of the 1930s, edited by Peter Maresca (Sunday Press)

The Realist Cartoons, edited by Paul Krassner and Ethan Persoff (Fantagraphics)

Walt & Skeezix 1931–1932, by Frank King, edited by Jeet Heer and Chris Ware (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Archival Collection/Project—Comic Books (at least 20 Years Old)

The Complete Neat Stuff, by Peter Bagge, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)

The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, edited by Trina Robbins, Gary Groth, and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics)

Fables and Funnies, by Walt Kelly, compiled by David W. Tosh (Dark Horse)

Trump: The Complete Collection, by Harvey Kurtzman et al., edited by Denis Kitchen and John Lind (Dark Horse)

U.S.S. Stevens: The Collected Stories, by Sam Glanzman, edited by Drew Ford (Dover)

Best Writer

Ed Brubaker, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image)

Kurt Busiek, Astro City (Vertigo/DC)

Chelsea Cain, Mockingbird (Marvel)

Max Landis, Green Valley (Image/Skybound); Superman: American Alien (DC)

Jeff Lemire, Black Hammer (Dark Horse); Descender, Plutona (Image); Bloodshot Reborn (Valiant)

Brian K. Vaughan, Paper Girls, Saga (Image)

Best Writer/Artist

Jessica Abel, Trish Trash: Roller Girl of Mars (Papercutz/Super Genius)

Box Brown, Tetris: The Games People Play (First Second)

Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly)

Tom Hart, Rosalie Lightning: A Graphic Memoir (St. Martin’s)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

Mark Brooks, Han Solo (Marvel)

Dan Mora, Klaus (BOOM!)

Greg Ruth, Indeh (Grand Central Publishing)

Francois Schuiten, The Theory of the Grain of Sand (IDW)

Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Brian Stelfreeze, Black Panther (Marvel)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (interior art)

Federico Bertolucci, Love: The Lion (Magnetic)

Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly)

Manuele Fior, 5,000 km per Second (Fantagraphics)

Dave McKean, Black Dog (Dark Horse)

Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Jill Thompson, Wonder Woman: The True Amazon (DC); Beasts of Burden: What the Cat Dragged In (Dark Horse)

Best Cover Artist (for multiple covers)

Mike Del Mundo, Avengers, Carnage, Mosaic, The Vision (Marvel)

David Mack, Abe Sapien, BPRD Hell on Earth, Fight Club 2, Hellboy and the BPRD 1953 (Dark Horse)

Sean Phillips, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed (Image)

Fiona Staples, Saga (Image)

Sana Takeda, Monstress (Image)

Best Coloring

Jean-Francois Beaulieu, Green Valley (Image/Skybound)

Elizabeth Breitweiser, Criminal 10th Anniversary Special, Kill or Be Killed, Velvet (Image); Outcast by Kirkman & Azaceta (Image/Skybound)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Laura Martin, Wonder Woman (DC); Ragnorak (IDW); Black Panther (Marvel)

Matt Wilson, Cry Havoc, Paper Girls, The Wicked + The Divine (Image); Black Widow, The Mighty Thor, Star-Lord (Marvel)

Best Lettering

Dan Clowes, Patience (Fantagraphics)

Brecht Evens, Panther (Drawn & Quarterly)

Tom Gauld, Mooncop (Drawn & Quarterly)

Nick Hayes, Woody Guthrie (Abrams)

Todd Klein, Clean Room, Dark Night, Lucifer (Vertigo/DC); Black Hammer (Dark Horse)

Sonny Liew, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye (Pantheon)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

The A.V. Club comics coverage, including Comics Panel, Back Issues, and Big Issues, by Oliver Sava et al., www.avclub.com

Comic Riffs blog, by Michael Cavna and David Betancourt, www.washingtonpost.com/new/comic-riffs/

Critical Chips, edited by Zainab Akhtar (Comics & Cola)

PanelPatter.com, edited by Rob McMonigal

WomenWriteAboutComics.com, edited by Megan Purdy and Claire Napier

Best Comics-Related Book

blanc et noir: takeshi obata illustrations, by Takeshi Obata (VIZ Media)

Ditko Unleashed: An American Hero, by Florentino Flórez and Frédéric Manzano (IDW/Editions Déesse)

Krazy: George Herriman, A Life in Black and White, by Michael Tisserand (Harper)

The Life and Legend of Wallace Wood, vol. 1, edited by Bhob Stewart and J. Michael Catron (Fantagraphics)

More Heroes of the Comics, by Drew Friedman (Fantagraphics)

Best Academic/Scholarly Work

Brighter Than You Think: Ten Short Works by Alan Moore, with essays by Marc Sobel (Uncivilized)

Forging the Past: Set and the Art of Memory, by Daniel Marrone (University Press of Mississippi)

Frank Miller’s Daredevil and the Ends of Heroism, by Paul Young (Rutgers University Press)

Pioneering Cartoonists of Color, by Tim Jackson (University Press of Mississippi)

Superwomen: Gender, Power, and Representation, by Carolyn Cocca (Bloomsbury)

Best Publication Design

The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, designed by Sonny Liew (Pantheon)

The Complete Wimmen’s Comix, designed by Keeli McCarthy (Fantagraphics)

Frank in the Third Dimension, designed by Jacob Covey, 3D conversions by Charles Barnard (Fantagraphics)

The Realist Cartoons, designed by Jacob Covey (Fantagraphics)

Si Lewen’s Parade: An Artist’s Odyssey, designed by Art Spiegelman (Abrams)

Best Webcomic

Bird Boy, by Anne Szabla, http://bird-boy.com

Deja Brew, by Taneka Stotts and Sara DuVall (Stela.com)

Jaeger, by Ibrahim Moustafa (Stela.com)

The Middle Age, by Steve Conley, steveconley.com/the-middle-age

On Beauty, by Christina Tran,  sodelightful.com/comics/beauty/

Best Digital Comic

Bandette, by Paul Tobin and Colleen Coover (Monkeybrain/comiXology)

Edison Rex, by Chris Roberson and Dennis Culver (Monkeybrain/comiXology)

Helm, by Jehanzeb Hasan and Mauricio Caballero, www.crookshaw.com/helm/

On a Sunbeam, by Tillie Walden, www.onasunbeam.com

Universe!, by Albert Monteys (Panel Syndicate)