Hemlock, my dear. Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith. That's all Oren's asking of you.

That bunny in the background, flattening his ears. That troubles me a bit.

I think he's just disappointed in Hemlock.

I don't see disappointment in Oren's eyes. He sees a path forward, and he's trying to get through to her, so she can walk that path together with the rest of the hollow.

However, this is another one of those "... but" endings, so I am kind of bracing for some unpleasantness on the next page.

I was talking about the guy you were talking about. The bunny in the background flattening his ears.

He only flattened his ears after Hemlock refused Oren's idea.

Hemlock is too deeply scarred to be rational. She tried to kill Rask two pages ago, and he easily dodged the spear. Yet she still doesn't realise that Rask could have killed her any time he wanted to - but didn't want to kill anyone.

I have seen zootopia, we'll all become racist again!

After whut Hemlock went through, I don't really blame her for not wanting to embrace change. Even though Rask is proof that predators can be kind, I can see why she would never want to risk a repeat of her past. Living through that twice would be beyond devastating. Better not to risk it.

I love Oren's big heart though.

Unless, of course, this is the third time. That is, she did trust another hunter after what happened and it ended badly.

That would be interesting!

your comic and your characters are fantastically crafted. keep up the great work!

First, how can you not just love Oren’s face: I wanna hug da bunny!

And the sadness of Rask, I think he knows what might happen to Hemlock if she leaves the hollow.

Now, I am hoping I read this correctly, Teagan. ^^

197 pages marks the end of Volume One? Does this mean in the future we can expect a Volume Two?
This has been such an incredible journey so far and I honestly cannot thank you enough for bringing me and so many others along on this epic journey. I do hope it doesn't officially end in a few more pages.

Correct! The story will continue where the first volume leaves off. :]
The plan (barring anything crazy) is the main storyline will pick up on Patreon late this year. In the meanwhile, starting late July/early Aug, I've got a short comic I plan on posting about Oren and the one-eyed wolf that he alludes to on page 119.

I know you're trying to pay the bills, but are you still going to release here after a delay?

Yes, I will keep posting pages here (and DA, Tapas, etc.) I want the main story to be accessible.

That's awesome. In a way, by doing that you're contributing to the collective commons, enriching our culture in a way sorely lacking by most mainstream media. If I were more financially able, I'd reward that sentiment, but unfortunately, I have only my solemn and vociferous gratitude to offer. Thank you.

😥

Sadly her arc is going to have to end with her eventual death: either embittered by her trauma or because of eventual change.

I hope not.

Gotta admit, was not expecting her to let go of the spear.

She's still an asshole, but I do pity her. She's witnessed such horror she can't see another option.

Just imagine if there were a cannibal, and a tribe destroyed and ate your family. Now there's one in front of you, saying he's changed, but how can you be sure? Can you take faith in someone who knows how to hunt you? That's tough for anyone, let alone someone who lost their family at the hands of that very tribe.

Hemlock can't see past Rask's being a carnivore. She is convinced that is the only important part about him, and, to her, that basically just means that the Hollow has invited danger in to dine with (and eventually on) them. It's understandable to an extent knowing just what she went through, but the thing she's missing, or refuses to acknowledge, is that Rask is unique compared to most other predators she's encountered. He's living proof that her assumptions don't work under all circumstances, and she's struggling so hard to reconcile that, she's outright refused to even try.

It's a bit of a warning, and should be taken as a cautionary tale to everyone reading. All people have a tendency to want to keep their walls in place rather than risk the chance at the house collapsing. When you encounter ignorance, and refusal to see the other side, it's VERY MUCH a natural human response, and it's actually REALLY hard to get over. Being attacked over it just makes someone want to retreat into those walls more, which discourages growth. Something to keep in mind for one's self as well.

Most seem to not understand that Hemlock is nearly not able to even try for redemption. Shee has seen too much and is much more fearful that she shows. Who can blame her after all. I just do not get why people think this will suddenly turn. I do not believe in a redemption arc for her. Not without an event that forces her to change.

And change can be an incredibly painful process. To change from something this deep ingrained to something that is for the better is like scraping away many, many things that are a part of you. Things that either got grafted to you by your experiences and upbringing, or you yourself grafted onto your own being. To change in that way is like taking it upon yourself to kill majority of what you are, but the amazing thing is that people have actually done it, and, while many people are NOT willing to do it, it's a beautiful thing to see someone genuinely make the effort to change themselves for the better, and even more-so to succeed.

been trying to tell that several people under the comic pages. been called a bad mindead person for that XD

Hemlock is a racist. She is a deeply entrenched, card carrying prey supremacist. She cannot see Rask or any other Hunter as a person, and she is unwilling to consider the notion. Her world view does not permit that kind of growth. The very idea conflicts with the internal narrative of her life. Were anyone ever to breach the thickness of bone that is her cranium with facts, with truth, with reality, you would audibly hear the record skip in her blank expression. And then it would reset and she would be back to her racism without missing another beat.

She makes a believable villain, but I don't see a redemption arc for her. She's not Vader; she's Tarkin. She is absolutely secure in her opinion regarding Hunters being non-entities. I have villains like her in my stories, too. They make excellent act one foils, and they can make interesting recurring opponents, but they end up being too one-note. Hate is destructive. It destroys the hater more than it ever hurts the hated.

I tend to have more faith in people than that. Change may be difficult. It may not even be what everyone wants to do, but it does happen, and everyone is capable of it. To change from something THIS deeply embedded usually wouldn't take only a few days, but perhaps, more realistically, a few years. Change on that scale would be, as I've said in comments on prior pages, an INCREDIBLY painful process. I don't know if redemption IS in the cards for Hemlock, as in I'm not sure that's the route BlackTeagan wants to take her in, but I do believe the possibility is open, and I hold no illusions that such a transformation is going to happen quickly.

As for her being secure about her opinions on hunters, I think her initial actions after killing Yarrow run contrary to that idea, because, if that were the case, she wouldn't have tried to scare Rask away at first. She simply would have gone for the kill. Watching Rask's actions have cracked her armor, if only VERY slightly, and, once things have calmed down, and she's separated herself from the Hollow to whatever degree she feels she needs to, memories of Rask may very well nag at her. If they do she'll try to push them away most likely, but the mind tends to know what it has to confront, and understanding what she really saw when Rask fought Yarrow is definitely something her mind is already trying to parse out and analyze, simply because it runs so contrary to her beliefs.

I don't know.. being kept in a hole while your family gets devoured.... what on earth would you expect here? Anyone not irrevocably traumatized by that is a special level psychopath. She rightfully has great disdain, and seeing Rask's father slaughter one of her new family before her eyes. She can't bear to see everyone she cares for slaughtered again.

She's the villain the group needs to keep their eyes open. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.

That's very true. Lets not forget that part of her trauma included snapping her last child's neck to save them from torture at the whims of the big cats that kept her and her kin in a hole, a torture she had to listen on in horror as he daughter before went through it, and only EVENTUALLY died from it.

It's not like her behaviors are completely unfounded (I think Yarrow slid another straw onto that camel's back). Her behaviors are just not sustainable in every situation, which is terrifying to her almost as much as the idea of predators existing, considering she wouldn't be able to box all of them up into the same category like she wanted to before. If she were to accept that predators could be allies, and wouldn't eat them, then the problem becomes one of "a snake in the garden" or, perhaps more recognizably, "a wolf in sheep's clothing".

By conceptually allowing predators to be a part of her "family" she's putting herself and her family in a situation where nobody can be fully aware which predators are truly allies and which ones are there to take advantage of their false sense of security. Morally, they couldn't treat ALL OF THEM like they were bloodthirsty maniacs, but, then, you could see why a prey animal might find such a situation unbearable. The complications that brings into the fold is anxiety-inducing, especially for someone who is living with HER kind of trauma. You can imagine situations where predators who are genuinely good get framed, and perhaps even executed, for something another predator does in a society like the Hollow. If the Hollow succeeds, such a situation is VERY likely to happen, especially in it's growing period.

Eternal vigilance, eternal maintenance. The hallmarks of a good society. You'll never reach a static perfection, but you can always improve, and you can always be more aware.

Perfection is a road, not a destination. Utopia is a concept, not a reality. They are things to strive for, but you must grasp that they can't be achieved. Hemlock does not have this understanding, and neither does Oren. It's beginning to dawn on Rask.

I never said it wasn't realistic. If anything, at least she has legitimate grounds for her racism. But it's still racism. It's still self-destructive. Hemlock is one hundred miles of bad road. She's a train wreck that I won't stop watching any time soon.

I'm not saying anything positive and or negative here.

All I'm gonna say is this ~ I'd say this is a pivotal moment for Hemlock.

i was expecting her to stab Oren.!

I hope Hemlock can find peace, even if it's not at the Hollow

The peace of the grave.

Once again. The artist is buidling up a real good story here and keeping it realistic. As much as I do not like Hemlock, I do not hate her. It is easy to understand why she cannot change. So give up on the redemption arc. She is not even interested in one.

Give it time.

I don't see any way she could change, she witnessed how a pred tried to shiled her and yet she tried to kill him. What else could Rask do. Guess she is to much full of distrust. I would not waste time in trying to change her. It must come from within herself.


Tbh. I could right now even picture her trying to throw over Oren or even try to injury or kill him to get what she wants.

Hemlock lives up to her name sake. She seems poisoned by hate and hurt feelings.

If Hemlock was a human she would probibly be on the level of Karren that would ask, "Hello, I have a problem and would like to kill your manager."

"...you mean talk to my manager, right?"

"You heard me..."

Then again, she seems like the only resident up to the task of defending the place too :)

It ends in blood.
- Avitus

POR QUE NO CONFIAS EN LA MARTTA, NO TE A HECHO NADA...

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