A comic about family, redemption, and finding a cat
About the comic
Fen, formerly known as Fenoril, Elven First Blade of the Black Guard, is now living a life of retirement in Nowhere, a not-quite-realm between all realms. His quiet existence revolves around his neighborhood, an intersection with a slum on Earth, and his kitten, a stray named Lucifer that he adopted one day.But one day Lucifer leaves Fen’s home which should be impossible. Fen has taken every precaution—both physical and magical—to render his home unassailable., Aa kitten, however cute, should not be able to circumvent the defenses of a paranoid master assassin, retired or otherwise.Fen sets out on a journey to reclaim his simple life and get his cat back. He calls on family he hasn’t seen in decades, like young Judas, an elven mage with a demon grafted to his soul. He also calls on old comrades in arms, like Cheryl the amazon. Both were critical in events of the past that led to his quiet life today.Now his quest to find his kitten, Lucifer, takes him to different worlds, different planes, and forces him to confront some the remnants of his past that he’s been hiding from. The simple life of his retirement is forcefully pushed to the side and he’s reminded there was a time when things were very complicated, and the actions he once took to save the realms will be called on again as the truth behind his kitten and his past is laid bare.
Creators
SygninSygnin (she/they) is the pseudonym of illustrator Charlene Chua. Sygnin represents their interests in fantasy and comic art. Sygnin's illustration style features representations of fantasy and mythology done in a stylized digital ink and color finish.Sygnin is also the illustrator of Nowhere. You can see her work at www.sygnin.comWayne SantosWayne Santos (he/him) has been an ad copywriter, a TV scriptwriter, a magazine contributor, an editor, and a freelance writer for too many things on the Internet to count. He grew up in Alberta, lived in Singapore, and settled down in Ontario with his wife and an ongoing rotation of two household cats. He is a multi-disciplinary geek with a double major in science-fiction and fantasy, specializations in novels, comics, anime, TV and film, and a minor in video games. Under no circumstances should he be approached to discuss 80s pop culture unless you are fully aware of the toll this will expend on your remaining lifespan.His debut science fiction/fantasy novel, The Chimera Code was published by Solaris Books in July 2020. His website is www.waynesantos.com
Fen/ Fenoril
More formerly known as Fenoril, Fen is the former First Blade of the Black Guard, a covert assassin unit for one of the more radical Elven kingdoms that broke away from the main governing body of the Elven ruling class, the Synod, and became a pariah kingdom.Fen lives in quiet retirement after assassinating his own Queen and bringing about the end of his kingdom. After losing the love of his life, and goading his own family, Judas, into grafting a demon onto his soul to achieve his goal of vengeance, Fen just wants to live a simple, uncomplicated life, quietly ignored by the rest of the Synod, who would normally execute a Queen-Killer for treason, but, because of their growing concern over Fen’s Queen, allowed him to live in exchange for anonymity.Fen’s simple life is augmented by the adoption of his kitten, Lucifer. The simple, uncomplicated bond of a kitten to its owner has given Fen some of the empathy and affection he’s been needing. Now with the exit of the kitten from his life, he can’t ignore this mishap.
Jude/ Judas
Judas is one of the rare elves exceedingly gifted with magic. Though he is family to Fen, he didn’t grow up in the same kingdom, and was instead raised primarily on Earth by his mother. As a result, Judas is a “diaspora elf” with more roots in western Earth culture than the kingdom Fen lived in.He did eventually relocate to that kingdom and worked in secret with Fen to eventually end the rule of the Queen there. To deal with such exceptional might, Judas willingly took on a demon and now struggles to retain control of that demon, rather than be consumed by it.He has lived in isolation for decades since the destruction of the kingdom, adjusting to the new normal of having a demon in his soul manifesting visibly as a demon eye. He still harbors major resentment against Fen for things done during the destruction of the kingdom, the cost to family, and the things unsaid. However, when Fen finally appears on his doorstep, he is willing to see whether this means things can move forward, or whether they are trapped in a difficult, irreconcilable relationship.
Cheryl
Cheryl is an Amazon and a friend of the family. She was a powerful, cheerful warrior, capable of immense amounts of destruction, and was a critical ally in Fen’s quest to end the reign of his Queen. Originally pitted against each other on opposing sides of a political dispute, Fen and Cheryl gained a grudging respect for each other in skill, even if not in attitude.Cheryl’s cheerful demeanor is in stark contrast to the fact that she is one of the most feared of all the Amazons. While she may not be at her best in the missions of subterfuge and assassination that Fen excels in, she can take a hit like no one’s business and hit back even harder, usually with no hard feelings. After Fen’s revenge quest that fundamentally altered the dynamics between various Elven kingdoms, as well as the rivalry with the Amazons, Cheryl withdrew from her post as Sfyri, and roamed the planes, eventually settling on a job as a courier, since it combined her three favorite pastimes of animals, exploration and ferocious combat.
Lucifer
On first glance, Lucifer appears to be a cute, intelligent kitten that is a “teenager” in appearance, since he physically looks like he’s nearing adulthood. In reality, there is far more to this kitten than initially appears.For example, his kittenhood has lasted several years already, a fact that has been completely lost to Fen, due to his ignorance about cat lifespans.Lucifer, unbeknownst to Fen, has the innate ability to create portals and rapidly traverse linear distances, and even other realms. While this was initially an instinct only triggered by survival situations, as Lucifer has matured, the ability has awoken to conscious access, though exact control is something that will come with further maturation.All of this is the result of his extraordinary lineage, another aspect of life that Fen and company will have to reckon with.
Cat / Catarax
Catarax (Cat) is a former knight champion. He and Fen used to serve the same elf queen before that was all destroyed. Cat is seen as heroic, but he is also proud and vain, and has a temper when things don't go his way.
