Getting to work on making some references of my guys in the Amaranthine setting, starting with a bit of fashion exploration for good ol’ Theo.

In spite of - or perhaps because of - his less than winsome looks, Theo has always been very particular about his clothing. His sense of fashion is equal parts stodgy, elderly banker and vampire. His attraction to the dramatic and indulgent conflicts with his old-fashioned, staid values in his outfits as well as his actions. 

He had a penchant for wearing black even before his mother’s death, but the years-long period of mourning that Theo collapsed into following her passing did not help with diversifying the colors in his wardrobe.

As for that last outfit… a man must have his academic pursuits, after all. Researching anatomy from books is all well and good, but true mastery comes from hands-on experience.

chocodile:

Taking a little break from making talking heads on white backgrounds to do a set of speedpaints (~2.5 hrs for the second one, ~2 hrs for the third, ~1.5 hours for the first and last) showing some locations in the “past” setting of Amaranthine. Y'know, just to give the waist-up furries with giant dialog boxes some context. :) Descriptions for each locale under the cut! I plan to do a second series focusing on the “present” setting later, time allowing.

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Did the Enememewith@chocodile of our fantasy boys’ (rather one-sided) enemy-ship.

Though Hyden found Ambroys irritating at first, now he’s having a great time squeezing this idiot in his wizard Juicero for all he’s worth (with his worth coming mostly from his delicious unicorn blood) and also enjoys their sparkling conversations. 

Ambroys, for his part, is finding out that playing politics by striking up alliances with sociopathic sorcerers who have bodycounts in the hundreds is maybe not as good of an idea as he first thought.

chocodile:

“You didn’t do too badly at all, you know.”

Theo shivered, his nose wrinkling in disgust. He had to be lying.

“You’re just saying that to make me feel better.” He replied, his tone defensive and terse.

Hyden paused what he was doing and turned his pale gaze upwards toward Theo, his eyebrows raised. “No, I meant it. The positioning is correct. The implant healed well. The veins are active and flush with blood… and you can channel spells through it, yes? That would not be possible if the procedure had not been broadly successful.”

Theo couldn’t argue with that.

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A wee drawing for someone who had a very sweet request to see an anon-character getting a comforting hug from a certain foppish unicorn.

Thank you so much anon. I just have these weird jerks in my head and I need to make them other people’s problem somehow, but they’re dear to me and it always makes me really happy to hear other people are enjoying them too.

I drew this silly horsey for you. He likes you too.

Catalyst stones are still used by witches and wizards in the modern era, though they are vanishingly rare. The few that remain are closely guarded, often in the hands of ancient, powerful magical families that can trace their lineages back to before the fall of the Old Kingdom.

These valuable artifacts are passed down through bloodlines, like the gift of magic itself. Every magic-user that wields one is certain to have received it from their parent, who received it from their parent before them, and so on.

While embedding a catalyst stone in one’s body can increase its potency, much of the knowledge of how to do so was lost with the Old Kingdom. Mingling such powerful, raw magic with one’s own flesh has dire risks. No modern wizard in his right mind would dare attempt it.

Of course, not all wizards are in their right minds.

Being a half-celestial has its perks, and an unnaturally long life is one of them.

Ambroys is indeed still kicking, centuries after the fall of his homeland… and still holding grudges against men long dead (or so he thinks).

They say that living well is the best revenge, but if Ambroys ever found out Hyden had survived to the modern day as well, I doubt he’d be content with leaving it there.

chocodile:

Having finished their bloodletting session for the night, Duke Hyden brings Lord Ambroys back upstairs from his dark wizard torture dungeon magic laboratory, where he promptly collapses on the floor from massive blood loss.

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By Theo’s time, it’s not so much what Hyden is “doing” to Ambroys as much as what Hyden “did” - 300 years ago, in fact! That said, Theo has nothing better to do than obsessively read about the exploits of rich cads from centuries ago. So yes, he knows about it.

However, this situation pits the word of a historical figure he dislikes against one he stans admires. It’s obvious which he sides with.

I should note that while Theo derides historical writers for their “bias”, he has many biases of his own. Take his perspective with a grain of salt.

There are rumors that some malady has stricken the Comte de Luxe. His luster has faded, his halo dimmed, and behind each movement there is a twinge of pain… or fear.

Of course, he denies it all. He is fine, more than fine, perfect as always - simply feeling “a little drained.”

Theo was tremblingly eager to help Hyden update his wardrobe for the current era. Clothes make the darkly brooding nobleman, after all!

…Hyden was slightly less enthusiastic.

A dragony Hyden enjoying his hoard for @chocodile :)

*tiny whinnying*

A debt to the devil is paid in blood.

(A continuation of this earlier scene. More exposition below the cut.)

The alliance between Lord Ambroys and Duke Hyden appeared quite one-sided in its benefits. While Ambroys was drawn to Hyden’s power, much about Ambroys repulsed Hyden. The young lord was a ridiculous, preening peacock and about as witless. It didn’t help that he had a high-pitched, ringing laugh that made Hyden’s head ache. 

What could Ambroys even give Hyden in return for his aid? Everything of value Ambroys had; his summer estates, his luxe outfits, the excesses of bijouterie sparkling on his ears and fingers, were all truly owned by his father, the very man he was conspiring against.

There was one thing Hyden wanted from Ambroys, though, something inherited from his celestial mother: the liquid gold inside his veins.

Unicorn blood was a potent substance. It had the ability to heal grievous wounds, cure any poison and perhaps even reverse the ravages of age itself. Hyden had desired it for years. Now here his opportunity was, presenting itself with a ribbon tied around it like a gift.

Hyden asked for little, at first. One small vial, only a couple thimble’s worth of ichor. It was barely all Ambroys could bear to part with in the first place. The mere whisper of a knife against his skin reduced him to sniveling tears.

He’d get used to it in time, Hyden assured him.

A few drops could never satisfy Hyden’s appetites, however. Each little favor he performed, each enemy silenced and each secret kept had a price. A vial become a bottle, a bottle became several. Ambroys became accustomed to the feeling of a blade plunging into his flesh, and tried to ignore the bit of drool dribbling from Hyden’s lips as the gold began to run from the wound.

But it would all be worth it in the end… wouldn’t it?