Pathetic Third-Rate Wabano WIP

PLEASE comment if you fave! I worked hard on this.

All right, I'm going to try to take part in the 100 Picture Challenge, or whatever it's called here. Basically, you draw one picture each for one of 100 themes. I just started learning how to draw human faces about two months ago. I was going to hold off on entering the challenge until I'd gotten bodily postures down better, but figured that if I waited that long I'd never get anywhere. So I know I still need a lot of work. Maybe doing this challenge will help me improve, maybe not. I like to hope that maybe someday I'll be able to redo this picture and it'll look a whole lot better. For now though, it's much better than what I could have done a couple of months ago.

This illustrates a scene from Part 118 of Escape From Manitou Island [link] and pictures the theme of "Rated." Okay, I had a really hard time coming up with a picture for that theme as there isn't really anything in the entire series so far that has to do with "rated." So I just used a phrase that's tossed about as an insult in EFMI, when the powerful wabano (fire-juggling medicine man who can change into a bear or a fireball), Mishosha, and his wife Makwaquae, refer to the good wabano Moon Wolf as a "third-rate wabano."

Mishosha and Makwaquae, you see, have aspirations of becoming manitous, or powerful spirits. In this scene they've just had a run-in with Charmian and company and Mishosha has ended up with this little lock of hair. Why is this important? You'd have to read the story to find out.

This is just the inked sketch. I cropped off a bit of the background for now. I'm planning on filling it all in with colored pencil, as that's the only medium I have, that and a photo program which mangles my pictures when I resize and try to up the saturation a bit. Really need a better photo program...

Anyway...the next theme I believe is "Teamwork" and I already have it inked in.

This will be scrapped later on when I upload the finished version. Just wanted to put this in my gallery to brag a bit. You can see more characters from this story in my scraps, BTW.

Criticism not desired as I already know all the flaws this has, thank you very much.

*****

The mitchi manitou stumbled over the swells of the glacier until it began to right itself, its roiling slowing down to nothing until it was still once again. He staggered toward the two bears, though there were no longer any bears there...instead there was a man and a woman, and they were both staring in the direction that the little group had vanished in. By the time he reached them they both looked moderately composed, Mishosha's hands tucked into his sleeves, but he could tell they were beyond angry, as soon as they both turned their heads and their eyes glittered almost as blue as his own. He halted, head lowering almost to the ground.

"Not only did you let that little winter girl use her power, and let them get away with Little Wind," the wabano said in an oddly neutral voice, "but you attempted to kill the flame-haired girl, as well, just as I told you not to."

The manitou whistled pathetically. Is a nuisance! Thought it would be better withou--

His whistle cut off in a blaat of pain when the medicine man's hand met his face, his head swinging to the side as if a bear's paw had slammed into it. Mishosha's fingers curled into a fist and flames shot up around it. "NEVER disobey me!" he snarled, teeth bared. "Ineptitude I can tolerate--even blind stupidity! But the moment you disobey me again--you will be lucky if I don't tear your antlers off myself and GUT you with them!"

The manitou lowered his head, cowering. Won't--won't do it again! Promise! he cried.

Mishosha stood with his hand held up and an ugly look on his face for another moment, then slowly lowered it. Makwaquae snorted and tucked her own hands into her sleeves.

"You're far too easy on him," she stated. "I think he would make an excellent dinner."

The manitou's eyes widened and he paled. "Perhaps after the next time," Mishosha mused. "Seeing as Little Wind is now gone, we still need an extra pair of hands...so to speak." He gave the manitou a critical look, then jerked his hand at him; the manitou flinched and hurriedly backed away. "So Kabebonikka helped them again," Mishosha continued, eyes narrowing as he and his wife looked back toward where the others had vanished. "I find it strange, that the North Wind would suddenly be so accommodating toward humans. It must be that winter girl with them."

"Did you see that medicine she used?" Makwaquae asked, frowning. "He's one of your more powerful manitous, and he's familiar with the medicine the demons use. How could a little girl do something like that? Is this something we should be worried about?"

Mishosha shook his head. "Hardly. Have you noticed? She seems to only display it when she's out of her head, and afterward she can't even remember it. How do you harness such power when you don't even recall what you did in the first place? And right now that flame-haired girl is rather helping us by refusing to teach her much. This is working in our favor as it is. Besides..." He started walking, gesturing briefly for Makwaquae to follow; the manitou kept his distance, head hanging. "I've sensed some strange things from that Swan. Her medicine is acting oddly, too. I know she's somehow in touch with that girl--perhaps even both of them." His mouth twisted in a smirk. "Won't it be a sight when they find out exactly who she is? I rather wonder if they'll regret ever setting eyes on her in the first place."

"I think it may be foolish to grant them such easy access to her," Makwaquae warned.

The wabano let out a light snort. "Even she doesn't know who she is yet. You wanted some fun out of this, didn't you--?" He looked back at her, raising an eyebrow. "Didn't I promise you this would be entertaining? And once it's all over, we will be free of that obnoxious Pearl Feather, and free to do our own things." He dug in his pouch and pulled out a little lock of hair, his smirk turning into a grin. "And then the real fun will begin."

Makwaquae caught up with him, smirking herself. "Why haven't you made use of that yet?" she asked with a mock pout. "I'm itching to see just what he tries doing when he finds himself under your thumb! What a pathetic third-rate wabano."

"Our little trick with the camp didn't keep them busy for long," Mishosha said. "I say we follow them back, and see it play out for ourselves. Even if he allowed them to escape, and delayed us, I still know Kabebonikka better than they do. There's no way he will give up his game, not for anyone but Gitchi Manitou himself. We may hardly need to do a thing, as it turns out."

Makwaquae got a sour look. "That hardly sounds amusing! I assumed we would play some part in this!"

"Of course we will," Mishosha assured her. "Remember! We have everything we need on our side. All we have to do is let the pieces fall into place."

Mitchi manitous, Mishosha, Kabebonikka, the Red Swan, Megissogwun (the Pearl Feather), and Gitchi Manitou are from Ojibwa mythology. Makwaquae, Little Wind, Winter Born (the little winter girl), Charmian (the flame-haired girl), and Moon Wolf (the pathetic third-rate wabano) are © Tehuti.