What do you get when you combine an undying obsession with Saitou x Sano, a terrible desire to create a fantasy comic, and a near-lethal level of laziness? A badly-drawn Rurouni Kenshin fantasy AU comic wis an obvious pairing, of course. Since this is an AU set in a fantasy world of my own creation, however, no knowledge of Rurouni Kenshin is necessary to read. If you're just looking for a badly-drawn gay fantasy comic, here is one.
Why is the art so ugly, you may ask, when I am technically capable of drawing better than that? Because decent stuff takes me a bazillion years, so each page would take 3-7 bazillion years to complete (depending on the number of panels and the level of detail), and the project would die after maybe three pages. Why, then, you may ask next, not just make this a fic instead of a comic? Because I wanted to draw a comic. Your excuses are flimsy, you might say next. And I would answer, yes. Yes, they are.
Heretic's Reward is updated Mondays; I try to do at least two pages a week, but sometimes there's only one because I'm lazy as hell and also occasionally forget to start the new pages until, like, Wednesday or something.
While my tablet was dead and before I got a new one, all the art for the comic was ugly flat-color, even worse stuff than the usual. Pages 2-9 - 4-2 are currently still in this style as I slowly work on re-coloring everything from those sad, sad days... it's taking a while.
Random comments -- raillery against the art, shameless self-glorification, and just normalish faerytalk on the story -- will appear beneath pages where I feel like putting it. These do not contain any spoilers, but I do recommend that you read through all existing pages before stopping to read the commentary, as it does rather break the flow. Incidentally (for anyone that doesn't happen to know), when I mention "GEF," that's my previous Rurouni Kenshin comic (also Saitou x Sano), Gold Eyes False, the first comic I ever finished, and, indeed, the first comic I ever got more than about four pages into wisout abandoning.
Beneath certain pages you will find short-story-type items. These are scenes that won't appear in the comic but that I felt like writing... how certain characters first met, introspection from characters other than Sano, random shit like that: background information on a variety of aspects of Heretic's Reward, but not direly important. Read these or not as you choose.
Additionally, I'm writing other stories set in the same kingdom as (but otherwise unrelated to) Heretic's Reward. They will probably get a separate page eventually when there are more than... yeah, OK, there's only one at the moment: Façade of Perfection, which is set 261 years before HR. Again, read if you feel like it!
Of course I have a gallery of extraneous art, which is mostly a lot better than the comic's art. Currently non-spoilerish, though there are several pictures of characters we haven't met yet.
For anyone that wants to start reading, or wants their memory refreshed, without actually having to (re)read all existing chapters, here are summaries:
Chapter 1 - Heretics
Sanosuke, an orchard-hand that wears a heretical symbol openly on his chest, is walking home through the forest from the house of his sword master. At a crossroad, he runs into Yahiko, a young homeless boy, who is being chased by a pair of red devoted (low-level religious officials) for stealing food from their shrine. Sano sends the devoted off in the wrong direction and offers Yahiko, who identifies himself as also a heretic, a place to stay at his house in Eloma. Yahiko accepts, but spends only one night there; when Sano returns home from work the next day, Yahiko is gone.
Chapter 2 - Purpose and Awareness
Sano is unsuccessfully practicing meditation with his keonblade at his master's house early in the morning a week later. His master, a hermit, keonmaster, and potter named Seijuurou, lectures him about keonmastery techniques using a metaphor that draws on aspects of their sexual relationship and means very little to Sano. They go outside to spar, during which Seijuurou is deliberately provoking in order for Sano to be able to create and maintain the energy blade of his keon sword -- something he's usually unable to do unless he's angry.
Chapter 3 - Another Homeward Encounter
Again on his way home from Seijuurou's house, Sano encounters Hajime, a royal knight, who is injured and collapses at the crossroad. Fearing that Hajime may be running from someone, Sano carries him off the road into the forest and bandages his wounds. In order to wait out any pursuers, Sano takes a nap, but has an odd, unsettling dream in which Hajime appears and startles him awake. This happens a second time when Sano tries to sleep again, and by then night has fallen and it's started to rain, so he judges it's safe to take Hajime to Eloma. There, he puts the still-unconscious knight on his bed and goes to sleep on a stool in the corner.
Chapter 4 - Not Stable
Sano continues to have strange dreams featuring Hajime, who he begins to suspect is actually communicating with him and not merely his sleeping imagination. Hajime requests that Sano meditate so they can talk clearly; Sano, who isn't capable of maintaining a meditative state, carries Hajime to Seijuurou's home. Seijuurou determines that Hajime is in a warrior's coma, a lethal result of the overuse of spiritual energy, and at first seems unwilling to help; when Sano mentions that Hajime is a royal knight, however, Seijuurou agrees to meditate in order to talk to him. He knocks Sano out in the hopes that unconsciousness will once again allow Hajime and Sano to communicate.
Chapter 5 - Warrior's Coma
The unconscious Sano is able to connect with both Hajime and Seijuurou, with unusual clarity, so the three converse. Hajime explains that the king, Kenshin from the royal house of Barenor'mei, has been usurped by Soujirou, a prince of the other royal family Gontamei. Kenshin sent Hajime to find Seijuurou, who was previously Kenshin's sword master. On hearing that Soujirou sent warriors after Hajime, Sano fears they may come to Eloma looking for the knight and make trouble when they don't find him. He has Seijuurou wake him up so he can return to Eloma.
Chapter 6 - The Defense of Eloma
On reaching his home, Sano finds his fears justified: a group of men dressed as royal knights -- bearing the Gontamei family crest -- are harrassing people and damaging property in their search for Hajime. Sano attacks them, with the help of two of his friends from town, but it's three against ten and the fight goes badly. Suddenly Yahiko appears, picks up the sword of one of the defeated knights, and, in a matter of seconds, wounds and/or disarms every knight still standing. The townspeople are not entirely pleased with this, fearing that Sano has bought them the enmity of a group of dangerous men. When Yahiko suggests that he and Sano go, hoping the knights will leave the town alone when they learn Hajime isn't there, an elder villager informs Sano that he isn't welcome back.
Chapter 7 - Alleged Miracles
Sano and Yahiko go to Seijuurou's house, Sano continually demanding to know how Yahiko is able to fight so well and Yahiko continually putting him off. When Seijuurou questions him, however, Yahiko admits that he lied about being a heretic and claims that all five of the divine ladies talk to him and grant him whatever blessings he needs when he asks. Sano, upset by this, turns the conversation to the subject of Hajime and what to do with him. Seijuurou declares there is nothing to be done, that Hajime is doomed to die. Sano protests, but Seijuurou insists there is no way to bring Hajime out of the coma. At this point Yahiko steps forward, praying to the divine lady Megumi that Hajime be healed. Hajime opens his eyes.
Chapter 8 - Think Quickly
Hajime explains what he knows about Soujirou, saying that some other force is probably driving the usurpation. To find out who is part of the conspiracy, Hajime must go back to the capital in secret, since he is well known there. Sano volunteers to go with him, whereas Seijuurou states he will not (since Kenshin's predicament is not Seijuurou's problem). On hearing about the things Yahiko has done, Hajime determines to take Yahiko with him; he states that some religious group in Elotica is probably involved, and whatever power Yahiko has will be useful. Yahiko declares he will think about it. Sano insists on coming, and Hajime agrees.
Chapter 9 - Departure
Waking up the next morning from another dream about himself and Hajime, Sano finds Seijuurou gathering supplies for their trip and wonders why Seijuurou is being so helpful. Yahiko decides to accompany Hajime and Sano to Elotica, and the three of them set out. During their walking conversation, Sano admits that he's been sleeping with Seijuurou in exchange for training; and Hajime admits he isn't sure whether a political power or a religious power is behind Soujirou's usurpation. When they stop to make camp for the night, Sano notices that one of the supplies Seijuurou provided them is angiruou, an alcoholic drink. He explains Seijuurou's love of alcohol to Hajime, and that he takes this as a sign of Seijuurou's strong, understated interest in the situation.
All right, enough information. Get back to the title page.