Webcomic / Suihira

Suihira is a fantasy adventure webcomic by Riana Dorsey.

Ages ago, the water goddess Akia fought the fire god Ignis - and lost. The oceans dried out. The world turned into desert.

Legend has it, that somewhere among the sands there is a lake, the only lake there is, and on its shores lies Suihira, a city where nobody lacks water. If you prove yourself devoted to Akia, she will lead you there, where you can have all the water you can drink... or so the myth goes. The truth is, the people of the desert know better. They know Akia abandoned humanity centuries ago.

But Wahida, princess of Iona, isn't convinced. Leaving behind her life, her family, and even her identity, she sets off across the desert, searching for the legendary City of Water... and little does she know about the discoveries she'll make.

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This webcomic contains examples of

• After the End: 500 years before the setting of the comic, the oceans disappeared from the Earth. It seems to have set back society into the Middle Ages.
• Altar Diplomacy: Wahida is expected to marry Nicolai and eventually become queen of his country, Limae. This may be the motive behind Eutimio’s marriage to Hadima as well.
• Arranged Marriage: Works out well for Hadima, but not so much for our protagonist. Her betrothed finds her devotion to the water goddess a bit too zealous.
• Belief Makes You Stupid: How her family sees Wahida. They treat her belief in Suihira and Akia as we would treat a seventeen-year-old still believing in Santa Claus.
• Belligerent Sexual Tension: Wahida and Serin's relationship begins like this. It's like Serin wants to be friendly to her, while she does not want company, and Serin's friend, Leo, being continually suspicious.
• Catapult Nightmare: Happens to Wahida here.
• The Chains of Commanding: Besides Nicolai, Zahi VII, the protagonist's father. He may seem choleric and harsh, but he's had to take over ruling the city pretty early in his life.
• Corner of Woe: Wahida after she learns that her sister does not believe that Suihira actually exists.
• Crossing the Desert: The entire world is a desert, so any journey counts.
• Divine Intervention: After years of ardent worship, Akia finally seems to notice Wahida and tells her she earned the key to Suihira, and that she must go there.
• Desert Punk: Leaning more towards fantasy than sci-fi.
• Desert Skull: A whole desert skeleton, actually. It's a cama!
• Didn't Think This Through: Despite bringing a bag of supplies for her journey to Suihira, Wahida was ill-equipped for trekking the desert. She even lost her stuff to some alert guards.
• Everyone Is Armed: In the desert, all travelers carry guns. Wahida is chewed out by Serin for not thinking to take one with her.
• Fantasy Pantheon: Akia, goddess of water and balance. Ignis, god of fire and strength. Aerun, god of air and wisdom; and Terra, goddess of earth and virtue.
• Fictional Holiday: When Nicolai meets Wahida to potentially discuss a marriage between the two, he arrives in time for a festival celebrating the history of the Kingdom of Iona. Using a parade filled with large puppets representing the gods, water dancers and actors, they tell the story of how Zahi the First used the power of Ignis to convince Akia to bring Iona the plentiful water they've enjoyed for generations. As much as Nicolai is amazed by the showing, Wahida is far less than impressed.
• Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: Hadima is the dutiful daughter, the responsible, obedient, and generally grown-up one. Wahida is a Royal Brat. Sure, her goddess is real, but Wahida's ways of spreading the good word are not exactly well-thought-out.
• The Fundamentalist: Wahida, who even goes as far as to suggest forcing people to pray to Akia, her goddess of choice.
• Give Me a Sign: Not in so many words, but Wahida begs Akia to answer right before she finally does.
• Had to Be Sharp: Serin and Leo, as well as anyone travelling through the desert.
• Have You Seen My God?: The people of the desert believe that the goddess of water, Akia, has abandoned humanity. Wahida thinks this to be a case of Gods Need Prayer Badly.
• Holy City: The legendary Suihira, where Akia's most devoted followers are said to reside.
• Horse of a Different Color: The camel-like creatures are camel/llama hybrids called "camas".
• Important Haircut: Wahida cuts her bangs in order to have a similar haircut to Akia, and to also make herself less recognizable. Doesn't work.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Serin and Leo try to act all tough, but they're really decent blokes.
• Making a Splash: Wahida seems to have gained some variety of hydrokinesis after her talk with Akia.
• Meaningful Rename: Wahida introduces herself to Serin and Leo as Dija - the name of an ancient author who wrote the book of legends she learned about Akia from.
• A Minor Kidroduction: We first meet Wahida as an adorable four-year-old.
• Mission from God: Akia tells Wahida to 'go forth' to Suihira.
• Modest Royalty: Wahida would rather be comfortable than extravagant.
• Mystical White Hair: Wahida's vision of Akia reveals that the goddess has white hair; and after she passes some of her powers over water to Wahida, Wahida's hair turns white when wet.
• The Needless: Downplayed. Akia's blessing takes care of Wahida's need for water.
• Never Bring a Knife to a Gun Fight
  Serin: And you thought it was a good idea to go unarmed?
  Wahida: I-I had a dagger...
  Serin: A dagger.
  Wahida: ...B-but I... left it behind.
• Nice Guy: Nicolai. He doesn't want to marry Wahida, since she's been nothing but sulky and fanatical, and therefore, he doesn't think she'd make a good queen. Regardless, he still frets about her safety and cries when she goes missing.
• Parents as People: The princesses' parents are strict and rather cold, but they do have their daughters' best interests foremost on their minds.
• Perfectly Arranged Marriage: Between Hadima and Eutimio.
• Pet the Dog: Serin’s treatment of his cama, Suzi, shortly after we meet them.
• Power Incontinence: Wahida's emotions seem to control her hydrokinesis, making them hard for the brash girl to control.
• Princess Protagonist: Rebellious Princess Wahida is the protagonist.
• Rebellious Princess: Wahida. Rather than preparing to be a ruler, she spends her time praying to Akia — a religious choice her royal family doesn't approve of (let alone their people). She also argues very loudly for her beliefs.
• The Runaway: Wahida runs away after having a mystical experience.
• Royal Blood: Wahida and her family are descended from Zahi the First, notable for somehow finagling Akia’s last blessing — free-flowing water — to his city of Iona.
• Saharan Shipwreck: Where Wahida meets Serin and Leo.
• Sheltered Aristocrat: Wahida doesn't think ahead. Notably, when she sells her old shoes for an outrageous sum of money (only because she met the most honest shoemaker in the entire universe) she's ready to give Serin all that's left after she's bought the necessary supplies. He politely declines.
• Stern Teacher: Queen Alda, for her daughters.
• Straight Gay: Nicolai is, according to the cast page, in a romantic relationship with the head of his Praetorian Guard. He would also like to be an actor, if it wasn't for his princely duties.
• Water Is Womanly: Akia is the goddess of water and balance, and Princess Wahida herself develops water multiplying powers after speaking with Akia.
• Well, Excuse Me, Princess!: Have we mentioned that our protagonist is a bit of a Royal Brat?