Gooday everyone,
Welcome to the Deacon Corner. If you’re new here, these galleries dive into the inspirations behind the images you’ll find throughout the books posted on these pages. In these issues, I also like to share the commission details for each project, so readers can follow along with how these images came to life.
If there’s a particular piece you’re curious about, you can find all previous issues under my journal entries or linked directly beneath the images within each chapter.
Now before we begin, none of these beautiful art pieces would exist without the incredible talent of Sickjoe who is the creative force behind all the artwork in these books. Quite literally the heart and soul of this visual world. If you appreciate his work as much as I do, I encourage you to visit his gallery and explore more of his stunning creations.
Now, without further ado, let's take a look at the featured image and the commission details below.
Forged from the hardened deposits of an engineer’s soul, the blades of Kath’le Kal are born within the vibriatus, sharpened by suffering and sacrifice. Each is unique, an extension of the engineer’s psyche, a weapon beyond compare.
Following the fall of the dragons, Icarus and Persephone face one another with these terrible relics.
Icarus draws his blade from his own chest, the hilt biting into his wrist as if feeding on his resolve. Persephone’s weapon emerges more violently—her final Id, Rage, bursts forth from the base of her spine like a scorpion’s tail, curling forward with a shriek. The blade juts from Rage’s throat, a serrated shard of fury erupting from her maw.
Though often described as singing steel, these weapons are more akin to the mandibles of a foreign insect, forged not just to cut, but to puncture, tear, and disembowel. Each blade reflects the engineer who commands it:
- Velbrava’s is a dagger, small but merciless.
- Persephone’s is a monstrous greatblade embedded in the throat of her skull-headed Id.
- And Icarus’s is a long, rusted sword whose hilt bears teeth, clenching his wrist in a steely grip.
To wield these blades is to bare their very souls, their most lethal weapons of all.