And so it begins! What’s next for Kilani as she walks into her meeting with Her Majesty Queen Oscura? Share your predictions down below!
Howdy, fellow Draconiacs! RazorFox here.
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24 Comments
Given the dragons completely lack a nudity taboo, and aren’t know for respecting tiger traditions … How did they have those clothes, or know the tiger would want them, or think to even give them to her, or WANT to give them to her?
You’re about to meet the queen of all Dragonkind. Gotta go in your Sunday best!
It’s for valentine’s day.
Half the fun of a present is tearing off the pretty wrappings
Man, the suspense is killing me!
But is it about to kill Kilani? Hmmm…
Wow this is going to to be scary poor kilani
She seems to be holding her head high!
gonna be the sacrificial lamb ToT
Been a wild ride to get here, lets which group of tigers f*cks this up first.
Kess, Shie, and Riah are theoretically still within the palace, unless Shaleigh decides to move in a different direction.
Finally at that point. The Fate of Kilani.
Time to see if Oscura really is the queen she’s shown to be throughout the story and execute Kilani outright, though Schaddig seems to have that on the mind more than her.
Or, she could be completely different than the past has shown her and be merciful. Give Kilani a chance to plead her case.
Maybe there’s a physical mannerism or body language in the tiger speech system that shows if someone’s lying that Oscura learned from Kiriad before. If Kilani doesn’t show it, Oscura may listen to the truth.
Nice callback to the physical tells, like when Kess twitched to reveal Kilani’s suspected whereabouts earlier. We’ll see how the forthcoming conversation goes!
I don’t think its hyperbole to say that we may be reaching a penultimate point within this narrative, Kilani’s arc has always been the most interesting story ark in this comic to me mainly due to how its conclusion could affect the entire story. Whatever fate Kilani receives in the coming pages could be very indicative of the narrative direction and tone that Draconia Chronicles will take going forward. After all the underlying question of her character has always been “can tigers and dragons achieve peace” a question that could really push the story forward if it becomes the focus, a question I think Oscura may be giving us an answer to.
Concerning the page it self, Oscura’s comment on death being “still on the table” seem really interesting to me considering that much of her court, the tigers and even us readers have been under the assumption that death was the ONLY option on the table. If Oscura isn’t bluffing for appearances and is truly looking for peaceful solutions to the Kilani situation then I’m really unsure what the out come of this little chat might be.
Personally I’m rooting for Kilani to get some major Ws going forward, its been L after L for one of the only peaceful characters in this story for quite some time now.
We’ll see if Kilani’s ready to swing at whatever Her Majesty’s pitching!
You bring up a good point about this being a crucial moment in the story, and when I decided it was time to make this happen, it also dawned on me how this could probably tie up the series’ longest-running storyline and it actually made me a little nervous. I won’t spoil anything, but I’ve already got the next few pages written and it’s put my fears aside as to whether this was the right move to make at this time. I’m really excited to show everyone what’s coming up! Thanks for being along for the ride, too. I always look forward to your comments!
This should be nice. A private chat with the Queen herself without any bias gumming things up. Hopefully. Anyways you can see the looks of concern on Lady Red, Blue and Pyra’s faces. Given how they (Blue especially) have been able to associate with her for I would say the longest out of any other dragons, save for Cinder, then their image of the “savage, bloodthirsty, instinctual tiger” is in serious doubt and the three are hoping for the best.
As for Oscura, she was last seen speaking to an image of Azure wishing to put the whole matter of Lumina’s ‘abduction’ to bed while seeking justice for Azure’s death. There must be a lot on Oscura’s mind right now. And I’m also glad to see that Oscura has death “on the table” for Kilani means that it isn’t an immediate option and Oscura is willing to set things straight between them before giving a verdict.
Oh, and I must admit, I was expecting the Oscura and others would be present for Kilani’s trial. I guess I was wrong, eh?
Regardless, I wonder what Oscura wants to say to Kilani and most of all what she is searching for from the tiger.
Well, Her Majesty did say she was seeking closure. Will it come in the form she wanted? Stay tuned…
Razorfox I have been following this comic from the start and I will say this the story has been such an interesting one both sides have their own cultures but the underlying factor is can they coexist considering the giant explosion earlier in the comic and those magic foxes there is definatly something else going on that could be larger than both races. I think its great the queen wants to have a chat considering whilst yes she lost a number of years with Chaki whats worse her being alive or her never being born to begin with. The fact they also have people fluent in the language also could indicate they tried in the past for peace. I do hope they do achieve piece but the fact you have all the other groups converging on the dragons home I can’t see it being without bloodshed. The suspense is killing me.
Thanks so much for joining the adventure! A lot of this is going to come down to what happens between Kilani and Her Majesty Queen Oscura. Stay tuned!
While a story about the futility of war, the hideousness of ‘dehumanization’ that is required for war, (both for those who are killed, and those doing the killing), and yet how peace isn’t something that you can magically snap your fingers to have is a story worth telling… Remember that your audience wants pay-off. If every build-up ends in just more misery, people lose interest in what happens next. If the only thing that changes between the start and end of the story is “these people died for nothing” then why should the audience care?
This isn’t meant as a personal attack on you, nor your work, this is just advice as a story telling perspective. And while a story’s message shouldn’t be undermined, unless the audience has a reason to stick around, they won’t. Again, this is meant as ADVICE from someone whose been reading this for years. I hope it proves useful to you.
There are precious few rays of hope here that the heirs of these tigers and dragons aren’t doomed to the same cycle of murder and revenge, and if they’re all snuffed out…
P.S.
You’ve created a work of art here, you want you to know that too. Better than anything I could have done. You’ve made a story that is truly A PLACE. That is something to be proud of.
Thanks so much for the kind words, and for the critique, even if it’s not specifically for “The Draconia Chronicles.” I actually really appreciate it, and I know I’m by no means a perfect writer. Obviously I won’t spoil the outcome, but if you’re looking for a payoff, you might just find one. I’m really happy that you think so highly of what I’ve created and accomplished here! The characters are like dear friends to me, so I want to try to give each one their moment to shine. Right now, Kilani and Her Majesty Queen Oscura have the spotlight! ^__^
This conversation has been a long time coming, and I’m going to guess, there might be a plot twist. Everyone’s expecting an execution, they speak of it like it’s fact, but the Queen is treating this as anything but. If you really believe in the Tigers as lowly savages, you don’t set your prisoner up in the Royal Guest Suite, provide a meal suitable to their diet, and even clothe them all to put them at ease. Unless you truly are pure Evil and are doing this out of some sick game. There’s much more to this than being let on. The Queen may be keeping up appearances with her Court and Guard while harboring ulterior motives that wouldn’t go very well publicly, yet. Here’s where my wishful optimism peeks. Perhaps the Queen wants to strike a deal with Kilani?
The Queen has an interpreter present, ordered to translate everything as it’s said. Hopefully the Queen allows Kilani to speak her side and she actually explains her motives and reasoning behind the “abduction”.
Interesting analysis of Her Majesty’s actions thus far. Some had suspected that this might be Shaleigh mucking with things, but we now know that it was the Queen all along. Has her benevolence reached its limit? Stay tuned!
A part of me is wondering if Queen Oscura is playing a more elaborate game here. Her internal monologue suggests she believes going in that Kilani – labeled everywhere as The Monster – killed Azure and kept/stole the egg. And yet even in her thoughts she remembers that Lady Red’s version of events is what she has been told – and we have seen the degree to which Red is willing to twist events in the name of appearance. The fact that even now Red is looking to spin Cinder’s “Stripes” as a malicious attack by Kilani – that may come into play, and if exposed it may make Queen Oscura question Red’s stories both then and now.
The fact that Oscura is hedging her bets by putting KIlani at ease, telling Lady Shaddig that Kilani’s death is not a foregone conclusion, and deliberately non-specific musing on the prior page that they have “the one who struck the final blow” – all of it points to the potential that Oscura suspects someone else, and that KIlani could be here as a vital witness and not a sacrifice.
My main concern is that Queen Oscura appears to be reliant on Lady Shaddig for interpretation. If the fire dragons stick together in spinning events, Oscura may never know – unless it turns out she has enough language awareness herself to catch when she is being fed altered facts.
We sympathize with Kilani as readers, but we need to be ready for events to really be just as brutal as reported: no hidden plots, lies, subterfuge, it was just bloody war in the end. But that little itch behind my ear keeps me thinking there’s more at work, and that we’re about to see a LOT of truths laid bare that we were not initially expecting.
Hang in there and you might just get that itch scratched! ~__^