Make Light, Children, for the Dark is nearing.
Trial of the Sun
is a webcomic by Jeinu. It updates on Mondays and Fridays.
Long ago, when the world was divided, a war was waged in the names of gods. From that conflict, several nations of man were united by the Goddess Amari. From the blood of Enorans, one of the human races, the Goddess created the Elves, the Kipira, and the Lamiak, and through their covenant with the Goddess, the Saltblood Barrier was erected. It was an unsurpassable defense—no enemy could cross the threshold of Saltblood and live—and so the newly founded Anocura knew a peace that would last for generations.
Just so long as the Elves continue to hold vigil over the Ark, of course.
It’s now the early 600’s. Racial tensions formed in the early days of cultural assimilation have not abated. Eliano Davrey, a fourteen year old Sworn Maiden from a respectable family, is considering joining a training phalanx. Unexpectedly, the Goddess Amari, who normally hibernates for years at a time, arrives in Saltrust. That night a close friend of Eli brings him news that there’s been a riot in the smith’s quarter, and that his father and uncle have been gravely injured…
This webcomic provides examples of:
- Abnormal Limb Rotation Range: The Kipiru (tree people) look like humans with their heads and arms on backwards
- Afraid of Blood: Almost no one, considering blood and its magical properties are a cornerstone of their religion and society.
- An Arm and a Leg:
- Anocuran people swear oaths on specific fingers. The punishment for breaking that oath is the loss of that finger. And that's just a start as they don't seem to believe in jails and most of their other punishments also involve drastic mutilation of one sort or another.
- One Elven sect leader implies they actually cut off Srana's "appendages" after they discovered her fingers wouldn't stay broken, only to have them grow back immediately.
- Break the Cutie: Oh, poor Eli. Poor Khesar. Poor Srana…
- Break the Haughty: Look’s like Eli’s headed this way. He's had several near-breaking moments already.
- Broken Bird: Relmin. She forged the papers that got her little brother into the trial, revealing the truth would render her untouchable and destroy her entire family, and she's so convinced he's going to die she can't even put on a brave face for him before he leaves.
- Buy Them Off: Only citizens can purchase certain potions, such as Madsight (a berserker draught). If a Deotian wants to buy some, they’re gonna have to do a little bribing.
- Clear Their Name: On the surface, the Trial of the Sun is supposed to retroactively “prove” that the winner (or the person they represent) is innocent. In reality it was never more than capital punishment in all but name, and the Goddess put a stop to it until she felt it necessary to make a spectacular example of some troublemakers who dared to disturb her peace when she was in town.
- Comically Inept Healing: Srana. she gets the job done—without pain suppression—but there's a serious risk of future infection.
- Coming of Age Story: All three of our protagonists are in their teens.
- *Cough* Snark *Cough*: Eliano
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass/Ping Pong Naïveté: Srana reveals disturbing flashes of cunning and competence to Khesar while acting as The Load in front of Eliano.
- Cultural Rebel: Deotians, by and large, still don’t quite jell with the rest of the Amari-worshipping populace, even if they were officially converted a very long time ago, in part because they insist on maintaining their own cultural identity and distinctive mode of dress. We later discover that the Deotians are the original inhabitants of Anocura, the Enorans and others were originally invaders. Parallels to the Palestinians and Israelis are probably intentional
- Dad the Veteran: Eli’s father Caliosis and uncle Rennin both served in the military.
- Dark Is Not Evil: The Elves regularly heal patients with blood sacrifices. Since that’s just what doctoring IS in this world, nobody bats an eye.
- Deadly Road Trip: The Trial is a journey through the Wastes, nearly 800 leagues long, through land where the abominations of twisted gods dwell.
- The Ditz: Srana combines this with The Ingenue and is a borderline Shrinking Violet to boot.
- Dude Looks Like a Lady: Other characters are constantly addressing Eliano as "girl" despite his male clothing. Even his uncle and father forget a time or two. His father even greets him with his former female name "Eleta" at one point. Justified as Eli's legally male status does not actually change his appearance.
- Duel to the Death: Eli would’ve preferred this to the Trial.
- Enemy Mine: Eli starts out viewing the trial as a straightforward trial by combat, but Srana sort-of convinces him the goddess' real purpose is them working together for mutual survival. The likely truth is much uglier and a lot more cynical: Amari just wanted to make a spectacular example out of them and Srana just wants to survive, whatever it takes.
- Everyone Has Standards: the sect leaders are horrified to discover the trial substitutes are both children and by what they must do to poor Srana.
- Exact Words: an unintentional version. Amari and the feral god both address Srana implying some transgression on her part. when they're actually speaking to her possessor, and the transgression is the possession of Srana herself.
- Fantastic Racism: Against the Lamiak and Deotians most prominently, but all over.
- A Fate Worse Than Death: Relmin completely loses it when the judges announce the nature of the trial, because she's studied the history and believes death would be kinder. there's only ever been one survivor and it took him 14 years to complete the journey disfigured and insane.
- Fingore:
- Forbidden Zone: The Wastes.
- From Nobody to Nightmare: Srana may not have become a nightmare, but she unleashed one. Later comics imply it's possessing her.
- The Fundamentalist: Eliano is extremely devout, for all the good it does him. It often appears that his faith is misplaced. It certainly makes it easier for Srana to manipulate him.
- Happily Married: Most established couples. Eli’s parents, Japer and Bright-Song, Minano and Diolo, Baatar and Erdenetei… Khesar is implied to come from a broken home.
- Harmful Healing: Elves usually suppress pain during healing, but there's always the risk that could lead to a permanent loss of sensation.
- Healing Factor: Srana, post-possession. Healing without sacrifice is how the elves realize that something's wrong. the implication is no one else's healing powers are working because they were powered by the captive feral god now possessing Srana.
- Healing Potion: The Kipira are masters of potion making. The binding ingredient for many potions is their own blood, which is voluntarily donated and separated from the plasma during a religious ceremony. Any amount of salt, however, can ruin a potion.
- Hidden Elf Village: Subverted. Because humans are the older species and the Elves were created from human blood, the Elves largely assimilated into Enoran culture, and there’s little animosity (but some jealousy) between them.
- Hidden Depths:
- Sure, Eli thinks he’s hot stuff, but underneath the tough exterior he’s a lot more insecure than he’d have you believe.
- Srana reveals flashes of something cunning and ugly lurking under her ditzy exterior.
- Hoist by Their Own Petard:
- Eliano, Relmin and Orsino commit perjury so Eliano can represent his father in court, and then can't back down because admitting what they've done will ruin the whole family.
- The last time the Trial of the Sun was used was back in year 260 when the goddess Amari found out the sects were using the trial as a form of backdoor capital punishment during her hibernation and ordered all eight sect leaders to undergo the trial themselves — a event that went down in history as the "Abundant Feast" as they were all eaten as soon as they crossed the barrier.
- I Don't Like the Sound of That Place: Again, the Wastes.
- I Know You Know I Know:
- The first Feral God they meet speaks to Srana in a way that implies she's clearly more than she appears, perhaps possessed, but as they keep the conversation to generalities the two boys are still clueless.
- When Shrana learns Khesar is on to her she reminds him that Eliano is just looking for an excuse to kill him and he better play along if he wants to stay alive.
- Intergenerational Friendship: An interesting example. At 14 years, Eli may be older than the Lamiak Japer, but Japer’s well into adulthood by his own species’ standards and already has children.
- Ironic Echo: Eli replies "Is that a trick question?" to Srana's clueless question about his training only to have Srana turn it right back at him in response to Eli's clueless question about her mother.
- "It" Is Dehumanizing: Deliberately employed by the leaders of the Sect of Light to distance themselves from what they feel they must do to poor Srana.
- Kids Are Cruel: A pair of Enoran children sling rocks at a mid-flight Japer. Even a little bruising can kill a bird if you aren’t careful.
- Large Ham: Amari. And how.
- "L" Is for "Dyslexia": Eli has some form of Dyslexia. It probably influenced his choice to take maiden's vows since arts and letters appear to be primarily if not exclusively female roles in Enoran society.
- Meaningful Appearance: Eli, Summas, and their eldest sister Minano have cat-like eyes, just like their father. They take after him in personality as well.
- Misery Builds Character: The philosophy appears baked into Enoran culture. Khesar is a subversion as a life of constant misery has just made him miserable.
- Mission from God: A literal mission ordered by an actual goddess. subverted as the Goddess' words and actions imply she's actually just sending them out to die in a very spectacular fashion to serve as a warning to others. That doesn't stop Srana from playing on Eliano's belief in validity of the trial to manipulate him.
- Nervous Wreck: Khesar isn’t holding up too well, but who can blame him?
- Not Helping Your Case:
- Khesar’s brother Gantxu at the hearing.
- Khesar speaking Deotian with the feral god. As if the others didn't completely distrust him already.
- No-One Could Have Survived That: Srana's ejection over the Saltblood barrier should have been fatal. Eli didn't notice but Khezar certainly did, setting up their I Know You Know I Know moment.
- Not So Stoic: Eli’s uncle shouts at him for jokingly suggesting they let Eli’s little sister walk home alone.
- Phlebotinum Breakdown: The Elves lose their ability to heal at a very inconvenient moment.
- Place Worse Than Death: If Relmin’s reaction is anything to go by.
- Politically Incorrect Villain: Gantxu purposefully misgenders Eli.
- Prodigal Hero: Eliano. He's underage and perjured himself to participate in his badly wounded father's place.
- Pronoun Trouble:
- Lots of people use the wrong pronouns for Eli. Even his own uncle once.
- The Elves cannot settle on singular, plural, male or female pronouns for Srana post-possesion and finally just go with "it".
- The Quest: The trial takes this form, though the object is simply to survive the journey
- Race-Name Basis: Eliano constantly refers to Khesar as "Deotian". Enoran culture seems to be on a race name basis in general.
- Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil: The source of the Feud between Eli and Khesar's families, though it wasn't just rape, it was murder. Though give the honor-bound nature of Enoran society her actual death may have been suicide or an honor killing by her own family.
- Really 17 Years Old: Eli never would’ve been able to represent his father in the Trial if Relmin hadn’t helped him fake his age documentation. Though in this case it's really fourteen pretending to be be seventeen (the age of majority in Anocura.)
- Red Headed Step Child:
- Khesar accuses his brothers of trying to discard him and appears used to a certain level of abuse.
- Srana implies that her mother ditched her at the Temple at a very young age to embark on her own military career.
- Ridiculously Difficult Route: It's a trial. It's not supposed to be a walk in the park.
- Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Rennin openly attacks a man he’s certain raped and killed his wife, and both families jump into the fray.
- Rousing Speech: Eli gives a few in regards to trusting in their Goddess, but it’s himself he’s trying to convince.
- Set Right What Once Went Wrong: The trial is ostensibly to break the bloody cycle of vengeance that's developing between Eli's and Khesar's families. getting rid of Srana and whatever appears to be possessing her appears to be a coincidence, as does fixing whatever Srana did to make the healing magic stop working.
- Shaming the Mob: Eli, after getting on a pair of kid’s cases for nearly injuring Japer: “Look at that! It’s unbecoming of an Enoran.”
- The Stoic: Khesar is able to bear the breaking of all of the fingers on his left hand without changing expression. Turns out there's a reason for this.
- Sure, Let's Go with That: Srana doesn't actually lie to Eli so much as play to his preconceived notions while allowing him to jump to convenient conclusions.
- The Theocracy: A very strict theocracy with a fully revealed religion and an in-your-face goddess who makes damn sure you know she's in charge.
- Tell Me About My Father: Concerning Filumena’s death. Turns out Eli already knows and Summas is too young to understand.
- To Hell and Back: the object of the trial is to survive a journey through the Goddess-less wastes.
- Tragic Bigot: Eliano has been raised to hate Deotians due to a tragedy in his family background. On another level this prejudice prevents him from realizing his real enemy in the trial is Srana, not Khesar.
- What Measure Is a Non-Human?: Some humans are shown to harbor this attitude towards Lamiak
- What Might Have Been: A request to adopt Srana came in too late to save her.
- Why Couldn't You Be Different?: Khesar’s comment, “Well, Brothers, you are finally rid of me,” suggests this may be how some of his family feels about him.
- Wrong Genre Savvy: Eli has some shades of this. As Relmin put it, “real life is never like poetry.” and once the trial begins his blind faith in the Goddess blinds him to some obvious inconsistencies and allows Srana to lead him around by the nose.
- Unsportsmanlike Gloating: Subverted. Eli may beat you at sword fighting, but the worst he’ll do is give you some tips afterwards.
- Utopia Justifies the Means: The Goddess Amari has some shades of this.
- You Are What You Hate: Eliano Davrey champions the rights of the Lamiak, but has some choice feelings about those dirty Deotians…
- You Know What They Say About X...: Deotians get this a lot.
"You don't think it's too soon?"
