An ASSFACEs holiday greetings are never early. Nor are they late. They arrive precisely when he means.
Merry Christmas from Charles Joustkonsudt esq. and Justicecat.Monday, December 31, 2007
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Old Art 3
This Connor is *really* old. But I've still never drawn him better. My bad. I'll try again.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Friday, December 28, 2007
Old Art 1
(You all get old art for a while. My scanner is not where I am, and I am too lazy to go there every day.)
At least Lex is having a good time?
Doctor and Engineer
(Picture to come when I have a scanner again!)
Sircuit sat at the meeting table with the blueprints and the new Pectoral Guns in sealed sterile bags. No sense in getting bacteria and dust all over them. Also helped keep fingerprints off the black patina on the barrel covers. He had been working on these for the past few weeks. Normally a project like this would take him a few days at the most. But these were for NoFace. She was his friend which made him a little more cautious. She would also kick his ass if they malfunctioned and hurt her. That had made him downright paranoid.
Today they were going to be inspected by the pre-eminent cyborg expert in the world: Pierre Cartes. He had read about Dr. Cartes' achievements when he heard the man had been hired by The Lawyers. He had been responsible for Big Dolly, The Columbine, and Turbine Sally -three of the most famous Cyborgs of this era. Dr. Cartes' had come up with several designs for NoFace and all the designs had been presented to her at the same time minus the signatures on at the bottom to denote the designer. Given all the options (some of them granting flight and sonar disturbance) she had picked his. It had been immensely gratifying. "There's a sense of humor to this set," she had said as she handed his work over to The Lawyers. She had also picked out a set of gills by Cartes that would grant her the ability to breathe underwater as well as move her breathing organs from her lower torso (where Murphy had put them) to her neck. Her torso cage would be expanded to her neck for extra protection. But the guns were Sircuit's design and he couldn't think of anything he would like to build more at that point than her primary weapons.
Sircuit unrolled the schematics again and checked one last time for any small mistake. Cartes was the expert and he didn't want to present the man with mistakes. After a very careful re-evaluation he found none and was rolling up the drawings when the meeting room doors opened. Cartes was here.
The man looked surprisingly normal. Tall and thin with short brown hair, glasses and a no-nonsense look on his face that Sircuit knew NoFace would appreciate. Sircuit stood and the two men silently inspected one another for a moment. Then, faster than most would think him capable, Cartes whipped the sunglasses off Sircuit's face, leaned in close and studied his eyes. "Impressive," Cartes said in a very flat tone. "They look familiar."
Sircuit grabbed his glasses and put them back on. "My own design."
"They resemble Zuhan's work. You should be very proud of those." Again, his voice lacked inflection and the words were spoken carefully. "If your gun design is as good, this should be a treat for me."
Upon further inspection, Sircuit noticed the peculiarities in the man's movements. Synapse enhancers, probably the nano-attachment variety as opposed to chemical. Almost imperceptible except to someone with Sircuit's eyes. It was a good sign. Extra manual dexterity was a plus in a cyborg surgeon.
Cartes unbuttoned his dark blue pinstriped suitcoat and sat, picking up the schematics. He leafed through them casually while Sircuit watched nervously. Then Cartes stopped and went back a few pages. His brow furrowed and Sircuit almost swallowed his own tongue. There was a mistake. How embarrassing!
"These are beautiful," Cartes said. "I was wondering if you could clarify something for me."
"Sure," Sircuit said, trying his best not to look upset.
"To re-load, will she have to carry so many ammo tubes with her? I would think that would be a bit cumbersome." He pointed to the interchangeable ammo tubes in the barrel.
"Gloves," Sircuit said. Both donned sterile silicone gloves and Sircuit unzipped the bag around the left gun, removed the larger center tube and handed it to Cartes.
Cartes turned it over in his hands a few times. "The Infinity Mark," he said. "Who did you get to do that? I hear it's terribly expensive. If NoFace didn't already have magical components I would be hesitant to install these."
"It's a little trick I picked up." Sircuit shrugged. "She's my teammate, Dr. Cartes. I wouldn't put something in her if I thought it might hurt her."
"You realize what kind of destructive capabilities this gives her?" Cartes put the tube back. "Her old models were enough to permit her to do what she did to Sweden."
Sircuit grinned. "I know full well. Like I said. She's my teammate. I want the best for her because it means the best for me. She was so efficient in Sweden because she was smart, not because she had a lot of firepower -though that didn't hurt. She systematically shot out gas lines and electrical stations. And before you even ask; No. We still don't know why."
Cartes began to flip through the anatomical photographs, which Sircuit hadn't seen and didn't want to. The old schematics had been all he needed. Judging by the way Cartes shook his head with disgust (the first notable emotion the man had shown), Sircuit knew he was better off not knowing. Aside from being his teammate, NoFace was also his friend. All he had to do was watch her to see how much the old guns hurt her. He was not the kind of man who enjoyed the suffering of his friends. The scars the past procedures had left on her and the way the old guns clanked together when she bent over or turned at certain angles had been enough to convince him that her past work hadn't been kind to her. It would have taken a cruel person to not want to fix her. "What was Murphy thinking? Even with the cage, guns and ammo that weigh so much and make a relocation of her respiratory organs necessary are an act of cruelty. I wish she had come to my attention sooner."
"What has it done to her?" Sircuit asked, curiosity getting the better of him. "I know about the artificial parts, but have no idea about the organic bits."
"Her spine, as advanced as it may be, is only calibrated to handle the upper body weight of a normal person. Each of those guns she has now weighs in excess of 40 pounds. Yours weigh in at half of that at the most. The places where metal meets flesh around the barrels lacks padding or vibration control. In fact, her current guns have no insulation or extra bracing of any kind. They are floating freely in her chest cavity," Cartes began. Sircuit gritted his teeth. It was just plain sloppy work. An engineer of any kind should know better! "If it weren't for the torso cage, she wouldn't be able to stand upright anymore. Her actual ribcage has atrophied, broken, and been ground down to a few splintered pieces that probably move and poke at her constantly. I'll be removing them. The scans show that the guns are now resting on her lungs, which have been squashed into her lower torso. This means she can only take in about 1/3 the amount of air than would otherwise be normal. You know her fairly well so you know how many headaches she has and that she can get extra irritable very quickly. You can blame her guns for that. I have never seen such poor planning and haphazard engineering in my life."
Sircuit ran a hand over the new guns with their reinforcing braces and shock absorbing pads, both surface and sub-cutaneous. They were lighter and had new covers that minimized movement. The little kick (and it was next to none) that would be created when she fired had been compensated for in the design. "So ... these will help?"
Cartes raised his eyebrows. "Because of her current condition, the procedure will not be without the risk of infection and outright rejection of the new pieces. But compared to what she has now? These will not alleviate the damage already done, but will still feel like mercy made real to her." Cartes eyes were drawn back to the schematics again. He looked up at Sircuit and managed a smile. "Reversing the polarity of the firing charge?"
"She naturally produces negative energy. That's her Given Ability. I thought it would be obvious."
"It wasn't obvious to Murphy." Cartes stood and re-buttoned his jacket. "Congratulations, Sircuit, I am very impressed. In two weeks time, your guns will officially make Lunette Bruce the most destructively efficient Cyborg I have had the pleasure of seeing."
"Are you saying ..." Sircuit stood and pointed at the doctor as he left.
"More terrifying than my own Turbine Sally. My advice? Next time you all get in a battle? Stand behind NoFace and enjoy the carnage. It promises to be spectacular and all the more rewarding because you made it possible."
Sircuit sat at the meeting table with the blueprints and the new Pectoral Guns in sealed sterile bags. No sense in getting bacteria and dust all over them. Also helped keep fingerprints off the black patina on the barrel covers. He had been working on these for the past few weeks. Normally a project like this would take him a few days at the most. But these were for NoFace. She was his friend which made him a little more cautious. She would also kick his ass if they malfunctioned and hurt her. That had made him downright paranoid.
Today they were going to be inspected by the pre-eminent cyborg expert in the world: Pierre Cartes. He had read about Dr. Cartes' achievements when he heard the man had been hired by The Lawyers. He had been responsible for Big Dolly, The Columbine, and Turbine Sally -three of the most famous Cyborgs of this era. Dr. Cartes' had come up with several designs for NoFace and all the designs had been presented to her at the same time minus the signatures on at the bottom to denote the designer. Given all the options (some of them granting flight and sonar disturbance) she had picked his. It had been immensely gratifying. "There's a sense of humor to this set," she had said as she handed his work over to The Lawyers. She had also picked out a set of gills by Cartes that would grant her the ability to breathe underwater as well as move her breathing organs from her lower torso (where Murphy had put them) to her neck. Her torso cage would be expanded to her neck for extra protection. But the guns were Sircuit's design and he couldn't think of anything he would like to build more at that point than her primary weapons.
Sircuit unrolled the schematics again and checked one last time for any small mistake. Cartes was the expert and he didn't want to present the man with mistakes. After a very careful re-evaluation he found none and was rolling up the drawings when the meeting room doors opened. Cartes was here.
The man looked surprisingly normal. Tall and thin with short brown hair, glasses and a no-nonsense look on his face that Sircuit knew NoFace would appreciate. Sircuit stood and the two men silently inspected one another for a moment. Then, faster than most would think him capable, Cartes whipped the sunglasses off Sircuit's face, leaned in close and studied his eyes. "Impressive," Cartes said in a very flat tone. "They look familiar."
Sircuit grabbed his glasses and put them back on. "My own design."
"They resemble Zuhan's work. You should be very proud of those." Again, his voice lacked inflection and the words were spoken carefully. "If your gun design is as good, this should be a treat for me."
Upon further inspection, Sircuit noticed the peculiarities in the man's movements. Synapse enhancers, probably the nano-attachment variety as opposed to chemical. Almost imperceptible except to someone with Sircuit's eyes. It was a good sign. Extra manual dexterity was a plus in a cyborg surgeon.
Cartes unbuttoned his dark blue pinstriped suitcoat and sat, picking up the schematics. He leafed through them casually while Sircuit watched nervously. Then Cartes stopped and went back a few pages. His brow furrowed and Sircuit almost swallowed his own tongue. There was a mistake. How embarrassing!
"These are beautiful," Cartes said. "I was wondering if you could clarify something for me."
"Sure," Sircuit said, trying his best not to look upset.
"To re-load, will she have to carry so many ammo tubes with her? I would think that would be a bit cumbersome." He pointed to the interchangeable ammo tubes in the barrel.
"Gloves," Sircuit said. Both donned sterile silicone gloves and Sircuit unzipped the bag around the left gun, removed the larger center tube and handed it to Cartes.
Cartes turned it over in his hands a few times. "The Infinity Mark," he said. "Who did you get to do that? I hear it's terribly expensive. If NoFace didn't already have magical components I would be hesitant to install these."
"It's a little trick I picked up." Sircuit shrugged. "She's my teammate, Dr. Cartes. I wouldn't put something in her if I thought it might hurt her."
"You realize what kind of destructive capabilities this gives her?" Cartes put the tube back. "Her old models were enough to permit her to do what she did to Sweden."
Sircuit grinned. "I know full well. Like I said. She's my teammate. I want the best for her because it means the best for me. She was so efficient in Sweden because she was smart, not because she had a lot of firepower -though that didn't hurt. She systematically shot out gas lines and electrical stations. And before you even ask; No. We still don't know why."
Cartes began to flip through the anatomical photographs, which Sircuit hadn't seen and didn't want to. The old schematics had been all he needed. Judging by the way Cartes shook his head with disgust (the first notable emotion the man had shown), Sircuit knew he was better off not knowing. Aside from being his teammate, NoFace was also his friend. All he had to do was watch her to see how much the old guns hurt her. He was not the kind of man who enjoyed the suffering of his friends. The scars the past procedures had left on her and the way the old guns clanked together when she bent over or turned at certain angles had been enough to convince him that her past work hadn't been kind to her. It would have taken a cruel person to not want to fix her. "What was Murphy thinking? Even with the cage, guns and ammo that weigh so much and make a relocation of her respiratory organs necessary are an act of cruelty. I wish she had come to my attention sooner."
"What has it done to her?" Sircuit asked, curiosity getting the better of him. "I know about the artificial parts, but have no idea about the organic bits."
"Her spine, as advanced as it may be, is only calibrated to handle the upper body weight of a normal person. Each of those guns she has now weighs in excess of 40 pounds. Yours weigh in at half of that at the most. The places where metal meets flesh around the barrels lacks padding or vibration control. In fact, her current guns have no insulation or extra bracing of any kind. They are floating freely in her chest cavity," Cartes began. Sircuit gritted his teeth. It was just plain sloppy work. An engineer of any kind should know better! "If it weren't for the torso cage, she wouldn't be able to stand upright anymore. Her actual ribcage has atrophied, broken, and been ground down to a few splintered pieces that probably move and poke at her constantly. I'll be removing them. The scans show that the guns are now resting on her lungs, which have been squashed into her lower torso. This means she can only take in about 1/3 the amount of air than would otherwise be normal. You know her fairly well so you know how many headaches she has and that she can get extra irritable very quickly. You can blame her guns for that. I have never seen such poor planning and haphazard engineering in my life."
Sircuit ran a hand over the new guns with their reinforcing braces and shock absorbing pads, both surface and sub-cutaneous. They were lighter and had new covers that minimized movement. The little kick (and it was next to none) that would be created when she fired had been compensated for in the design. "So ... these will help?"
Cartes raised his eyebrows. "Because of her current condition, the procedure will not be without the risk of infection and outright rejection of the new pieces. But compared to what she has now? These will not alleviate the damage already done, but will still feel like mercy made real to her." Cartes eyes were drawn back to the schematics again. He looked up at Sircuit and managed a smile. "Reversing the polarity of the firing charge?"
"She naturally produces negative energy. That's her Given Ability. I thought it would be obvious."
"It wasn't obvious to Murphy." Cartes stood and re-buttoned his jacket. "Congratulations, Sircuit, I am very impressed. In two weeks time, your guns will officially make Lunette Bruce the most destructively efficient Cyborg I have had the pleasure of seeing."
"Are you saying ..." Sircuit stood and pointed at the doctor as he left.
"More terrifying than my own Turbine Sally. My advice? Next time you all get in a battle? Stand behind NoFace and enjoy the carnage. It promises to be spectacular and all the more rewarding because you made it possible."
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Horny
And by that I mean antlers.
Sicko.
That's okay. This is Gwion. He's a sicko too. You all can be friends.
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Justicecat
Charles' familiar: Justicecat. Justicecat will be refered to by Justicecat's full and proper name at all times. Justicecat will have his belly rubbed at Justicecat's whim.
Monday, December 24, 2007
Faces
Some faces you know. Some you don't. Clockwise from upper left: Ken Zuhan, Sean Bruce, Gorawen, Falcon and Lexa Veargas. Something is screwy about Gorawen's eyes. She looks much meaner than she is. Can you believe it? I drew a short-haired guy! I'm growing as an artist! Let's all hug now.
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Bits
Since I've given so many people hard times about character anatomy, I thought I'd tackle the toughest anatomical character I have. See NoFace's bits and the explanation for where her lungs are ... I had always wondered myself. Still haven't decided how the guns will open and close this time. It could still use a little work. Perhaps caging the neck now that there are vital organs in it.
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
View the Mistakes and DESPAIR!!!
I am a nerd. No really. And like any nerd prone to fan fiction moments who is also a Hellboy junkie ... I got to wondering. What would a female Abe Sapien look like? Groan if you wish! I am not the only one to think it. However, I am the only one I know of who has posted the progression of this character's development.
I'll have to do a better one later. And I just realized she's dressed like Lara Croft! Dammit!
Picture One: This is the first one I did. I wasn't paying too much attention to anatomy. Just messing around. There is more influence from the movie than I can ever really be proud of.
Picture Two: A bit better. Less movie more comic based. Why the dress? Couldn't say. I decided at this point to use the fins on her head as emotional indicators. Maybe the dress is to compensate for the manly face?
Picture Three: And then I saw the animated movies. It shows, for good or for ill. This is my favorite version. I can't decide whether to call her Juliette or Charlotte. Coloring ruined whatever subtlety this picture may have had. Sorry.
I'll have to do a better one later. And I just realized she's dressed like Lara Croft! Dammit!
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Monster Within
So, I watched "The Golden Compass" last night. Now I am sure I will never read the book. What the hell was all that? Anyway...
Those jerks had things like ferrets, monkeys and cats. I have a dinosaur. Good to know a part of my soul has the capacity to hunt and swallow whole all those other guys.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Early sketches
PAGE ONEPanel 1
View through space shuttle window of Europe. A country appears to be glowing extra bright. Joe Astronaut is looking out the window
JA: Hey Frank! Come look at this!
Panel 2
Frank Astronaut joins Joe at the window. One man on either side.
FA: Looks like the country is on fire. Which one is that, anyway?
Panel 3
Same as panel 2
JA: I think it's Sweden
Panel 4
NoFace standing amidst carnage and ruin. Things are on fire, people are running. Total disaster.
Narr: Pitea, Sweden
NF: I should have known! You people are cowards! Hard to believe you assholes are descended from Vikings! Your ancestors weep! Holy Roller! Victim A! Come out and fight!
Narr: Worst vacation ever.
PAGE 2Panel 1
Very posh office. Man in white suit with white hair has head down on desk (note left arm). Tall slender man in black with black hair is leaning against the wall reading the paper (note right arm). Man in black is Mark Chernyshev. Man in white is Matt Vitae.
MC: It says here she's chosen to represent herself in a case of this magnitude. Is the woman insane?
MV: So? Do you want to go or should I?
Panel 2
Close up of Matt with head down. Mark is patting him.
MC: Oh, lets send you!
MV: Yay.
Panel 3
Matt on a plane
Panel 4
Matt in a car
Panel 5
Matt sitting at a table in a jail
Panel 6
Matt at table. NoFace at far end of room (short hair).
NF: I appreciate you coming here, I really do. But I've got this taken care of.
PAGE 3Panel 1
Matt giving NF a look of disbelief. NF grinning.
MV: Come again?
NF: I have it covered. You can go home. Or did you come all this way to sit by me? Aren't you sweet!
Panel 2
NF looking down. Matt at table standing now.
MV: I don't think you've quite grasped what's going on here. You blew up Sweden! I don't know how you pulled it off ... but you did. They're seeking execution!
NF: Oh, I've firmly grasped that. More than once.
Panel 3
Matt next to NF at window. Show window grate pattern. NF glaring.
MV: Everyone knows you did it. You were on live news broadcasts. The president is presiding over this himself. He's calling it terrorism.
NF: Do I look like an idiot to you?
Panel 4
MV: No.
NF: Then sit there at that table and look pretty or whatever you do, and let me handle it.
Panel 5
Long panel. NF walking away.
NF: If you say anything, you'll get me killed. I mean it! Come tomorrow only if you plan on being completely silent. And bring that folder with you.
PAGE 4Panel 1
Looking up at old, stupid-looking man. American flag behind his head
Narr: President Igor Amos Bush
PB: Lunette "NoFace" Bruce. You stand accused of terrorism against the country of Sweden. How do you plead?
Panel 2
NF standing with hand on Matt's shoulder to keep him sitting.
NF: Mr. President, everything you saw on television was true, and so was what the Swedes reported ... except for that thing about me turning into a giant monster and eating babies. I don't eat babies. Ever. I did what I did to protect Sweden's enemies.
PB: You best explain yourself, Ms. Bruce.
Panel 3
Close up of NF smile. Matt making shocked face behind. (He realizes what she's doing.)
NF: It's simple Mr. President. They had ...
Panel 4
Full body NF in "HUUUNT" pose. Big waving flag in background.
NF: WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION!!
Panel 5
Inset of president with little mouth, big eyes and a look of complete shock. Little text.
PB: WMDs!
Monday, December 3, 2007
Pre-Hysterical
A human body is such a terrible clumsy thing. Yes ... It's good to be a Saurus ... even if everyone adds interesting pre-fixes to the name of your species.
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