oh dark, the darkness that dozes in the dusk

couch-house

Seven pages of a digital comic. The Master Emerald sits in its outdoor shrine next to a large egg in a basket with a bow. "Years ago, on Angel Island..." The egg rustles and cracks. A hand smashes through the shell. The pieces fall away to reveal Knuckles, with very short spines and eyes still closed. "This little echidna doesn't know it yet, but he's the last of his kind... And the guardian of the Master Emerald!" Knuckles blindly reaches out to touch the Emerald, which reflects a vision of his older self.ALT
Knuckles is distracted and turns to see a group of chao watching him. Stylized text over green says "Little Knuckles, Angel Island will guard and protect you as you grow until one day you will guard and protect us." He thinks to himself for a moment. "Knuckles... Is that me?" He thinks again, then squeaks.ALT
"And so..." Seasons change and time passes as reflected in the Master Emerald. Knuckles takes over the narration. He is older now but still a young child. He stands at the crest of a hill overlooking the jungle, a chao next to him. "Angel Island is my home, a floating paradise that has taken care of me my whole life. And it is my responsibility to guard and protect it." Knuckles notices an entrance to ruins in a cliffside while gliding, then finds and illuminates and echidna mural with a torch. "The island is huge and full of mysteries. Every day I find something new! Like the ruins of ancient cities built by echidnas like me! Their writings were impossible to read at first. But after a few days of trying really hard..." He paces around the Master Emerald, puzzled. "I was able to figure it out!" He reads a carved tablet with confidence.ALT
Knuckles discovers another ruined building in the jungle and explores, finding decaying tapestries, broken pottery, and intact jewelry inside. "I've tried to learn everything I can about my people. Where they lived, what they wore..." He holds a large silver necklace, uncertain. "How they looked." He puts it on and inspects his reflection in calm water. The necklace remains on for the rest of the comic. Later that night, he sits regarding the ruins below and the stars above. "But there's so many things I can't tell from ruins. Like why they left or where they went. I'll just have to wait and ask them when they get back."ALT
Some time later, Knuckles sleeps curled up on top of the master emerald. He dreams of finding a leafy plant, digging under it, and discovering delicious tubers. He blinks awake and yawns. "A dream...?"ALT
Later that day... Knuckles walks down a hill and notices a plant out of the corner of his eye. "Oh! Just like in my dream!" He crouches down beneath it. "I wonder if I dig..." He uproots the tubers from his dream and says aloud "Oh wow!" He turns to the side and sees a large plot of the plants. "And there's so many more! This must have been a farm!" He munches on a raw tuber, which is juicy. "As guardian of the island, it is my job to take care of it while everyone's away!"ALT
"It's a lot of work, but..." Time passes and he tiredly looks over the plot at sunset. weeds have been dug out from the neat rows of plants. "There's no one else to do it. I wonder what the other echidnas did after a long day of work like this." He catches himself and looks down despondently. He slouches back up the steps to the M.E., where he lays down on top of it and thinks. "I sure was lucky to find that farm. What a strange coincidence that dream was. If I'd never had it..." He's uncertain. "There's still so much I don't know. The only thing I know for sure is it's my job to protect the island. And I don't even know why..." He becomes determined. "Well I know all I need! I'm Knuckles, the guardian of Angel Island, and I'll make my ancestors proud!"ALT

yippee knuckles comic done! wanted to try several things: tell a story in 4-7 pages, attempt to style layouts and writing a bit more like stc comics, and lump my "knuckles raised unknowingly by the m.e." headcanons together. mixed results I think but I still think it turned out nice :)

Jul 1 2023 • 7,368 notes

against my better judgement i clicked on a sus link so if i start posting weird in the next 24 hours it was the hackers lol

Jul 1 2023 • 22 notes