Sorry for the lack of updates – a few hiccups in the process (Alli being ill and her hand suffering from some pretty severe cramping) has caused us to not be able to produce a page this week. So, instead, enjoy these fantastic drawings from Jenn Lee of Rising Sand.

Speaking of Rising Sand. It’s time for another…

Hasera and Lark Review:

Rising Sand


Lark:
So, the plane this whole story takes place on looks like it’s about to meet the same fate as Quel’lan’s, or at least, that’s how it reads. It doesn’t seem to take place in that ‘future’ plane some of the other stories I’ve been reading lately does, but it sure isn’t something like the Neutral plane.

The story follows a little ‘sylph’ named Dal. Sylphs around here don’t look much like her. They’ve got sharp teeth, a real bad attitude and a penchant for using essence to turn folk into plants. Dal is a little thief who seems to have had a decent rearing until something happened – which I can guess at, but hasn’t really been brought up, yet.

Throw in the end of the world, some family troubles and a really, really bad life decision on the part of Dal’s sister and you’ve got yourself a recipe for disaster (and a really good story).

The art in this one is by far the best I’ve seen throughout the other stories, so far. It’s got a grade that I couldn’t be able to justify in words. It hasn’t been going long, but the story is pretty damned interesting and I would say that it’s worth a look. Especially if you like violent elf-like chicks with what I can only assume is some kind of essence-powered armor.

I’d recommend this story to everyone. If not for the actual world that’s being built, then for the craftsmanship of the art. Go look at it.

Hasera:
My eyes. I must never wash them, or blink… Gah… It’s so hard to not blink! Vethu’s spine! Now I need to look at all of that again! … Oh… Dershan only knows why I turn this thing on before I’m ready…

Rising Sand is a story about a young thief-girl named Dal who is just trying to make her way in a plane that looks like its God is on their last leg. They even have an Occulus in the sky, though it doesn’t have the second ring – maybe it’s a minor Occulus? Who knows. Dal is a sweety who is also a trouble maker. She seems like a good kid, but her meddlesome habit of taking things that don’t belong to her start the story off with a bang. Add Qeb, the blue Netural so tall that even a Growtusk would shrink away from him, and you have an unstoppable team of straight man and troublemaker.

The story is interesting as it seems to be starting at the the beginning of the end of the plane. How I wonder how the last few days on the Nine would have looked or if anyone even knew that Quel’Lan was going to be killed? I guess only the Gods would know. The Rounds from the world of Rising Sand is called glass and apparently some of the inhabitants use it not only as a bartering device, but also as some kind of religious currency.

The art is beyond me. It’s so beautiful and well crafted. I feel like even trying to describe it would be doing an injustice. The artist team behind this piece of work should be incredibly proud of what they have accomplished.

I would recommend this story to anyone who wants to get in at the ground level of a story, nay, world, that is so easy to lose yourself to. This one is going to go far and I would highly recommend everyone go and have a look-see – even if it’s just to see Dal’s antics.