Euryclade - Intentions

WIP - All (important) characters of Euryclade

“Euryclade” is a story I have been working on since the summer of 7th grade. As an artist, I usually figure out what I want to express through a story by first establishing a connection with the characters themselves, leading me to often repeatedly draw my characters’ interactions with each other without actually writing down the larger plot. Since I’ve familiarized myself with my characters now, I want to be able to organize their story into a tangible product, whether that be a comic, large artwork, or written story.

The main theme of Euryclade is the development of healthy relationships: with a significant other, with family, with society, and with oneself. 

The story is set in a world called Cynthrite, which is a planet extremely similar to Earth. All the lands are joint together within the Cynthrite United Empire (CUE), except for a hostile island that has barricaded itself from the others, Euryclade. Cynthrite is divided into many states, ruled by individuals of the nobility class “Duke”. The major states within the story include: the Capitol, ruled by the Emperor who rules over the entirety of Cynthite, and Desiderium, Aechelon, and Ewout, which are all governed by their namesake Duke families. 

Dukes receive a new name from Unsee-ers once they inherit the last name. Usually dukes use their old name as a middle name. Nobility in Cynthrite is not necessarily followed by blood, and the importance of being linked by blood is less valued than being linked by ability or quirk. It is surprisingly common for nobles to adopt children with strong abilities/similar abilities to them and make them their heir if they aren’t planning to have children. 

There had been numerous attempts to imperialize Euryclade, but all had failed due to the harsh environment and extremely hostile ‘monsters’ there. Thus, Euryclade had become somewhat of an unspeakable subject among those within Cynthrite. Some states started using Euryclade as an execution method of some sorts, reserved for those who had committed heinous crimes or who had expressed defiance against the CUE. Exile to Euryclade meant certain death to the eyes of many.

In Cynthrite, intellectual beings are either ‘people’ or ‘monsters’ - this is purely based on how much a species resembles humans. Humans are the species that inhabited Cynthrite along with some of the other ‘low intelligence species’, and both evolved to be able to communicate with each other. Humans have extremely high intelligence, but to adapt to the harsh fantastical climate of Cynthrite, they started to develop abilities/powers. These were passed through blood, and soon humans became interspersed into different species, that became less and less resemblant of the traits humans had. Pure blood humans became extinct. Low intelligence species also began to breed with these species evolved from humans, resulting in certain low intelligence species also developing powers. 

Higher intelligence beings believe that the human form is the most perfect form to be, because they were the most intelligent. They also received the most powers/abilities, which made them have an advantage over low intelligence species intellectually and ability-wise, but low intelligence species still harbored great physical strength, making them feared. Both species feared each other, and were disgusted by each other. As the more intelligent group, humanoids created the derogatory terminology of “monster” to denote those that physically resembled low intelligence species. So became the ‘divide of species’ a system created by people to differentiate themselves from those they believed were less than them.

The discrimination between people and monsters is comparable to the societal hierarchies within our real human society. The blatant discrimination between people and monsters is comparable to racism within human societies. Regarding homophobia - the planet Cynthrite is not a theocracy, and Christianity does not exist as a whole. However, homophobia is present within Cynthrian society as it is interconnected with racism. Homosexuality is oftentimes associated with the low intelligence species, because some of their species reproduce in ways that are considered ‘abnormal’ for the humanoids (not male-female sexual reproduction). Therefore homosexuality is looked down upon, since to people that have established racism towards monsters, it seems like an act of lowering the status of the proud humanoids. 

The central plot follow four characters, Amelaide (Amel) Desiderium, the younger sister of the Duke Zrayuu Arwen Desiderium; Xemu, an underground agent working for the Duke Xersian Yun Aechelon; Eclis Schneier, the knight and fiancé of the currently comatose Duke Cecillia Cecil Ewout;  and Nua, a robot at the verge of being discarded by a branch of the larger power controlling the Empire. These four characters have all bought the resentment of the Council, consisting of all the Dukes, an organization of prophet-like beings, and the Emperor, in some way, which have left them completely at the mercy of these higher officials. They are given a mission to explore Euryclade, investigating the recent emergence of a terroristic organization that had started to rule over that supposedly ‘inhabitable’ island. 

I’ve been wanting to write this story because of two major reasons. Firstly, it reflects the social issues I want to address using fantastical elements, and secondly, it explores the intricacies of love and relationships, a subject I’ve always been intrigued about. Euryclade is my way of expressing my own frustration regarding the experiences I’ve had with these two factors.

Social issues that are present in our real world are implied, sometimes directly and sometimes indirectly, within my story, through fantastical elements. This gives me the opportunity to touch upon sensitive subjects in our society while still maintaining the whimsical nature of my story. 

As aforementioned, looking back to when I started making Euryclade, frustration was the main reason why I began this story. At that point, I was struggling with my interpersonal relationships, because I subconsciously realized that I was letting my friends harm me, but I wasn’t letting go of those toxic friendships because I still craved the connection we shared. Because of this inability to move on, I was stuck in a cycle of people pleasing, self deprecation and anxiety. Euryclade became a site for me to introduce characters that were grappling with similar issues as me, but who were able to make decisions for themselves, and were able to grow as a result of their struggles. 

Once I started setting healthy boundaries between myself and my peers, I started being introduced to the many social issues in our world. When before, I was projecting my desire for a perfect world onto my own worldview, now I was hit with the awareness that the world was, in fact, imperfect. That there were people that were shunned by society by aspects of their identity that were uncontrollable, that this systemic discrimination just hadn’t reached me yet because I was living a sheltered, privileged life. 

When I finally acknowledged the existence of such inequalities within our world, I was subsequently hit with frustration at myself for not acting upon it. I am not courageous enough to put my academics and current comfort on the line to make myself vulnerable in the eyes of the world. I understand there may be people better suited to speak upon these issues; those who have experienced discrimination first hand, or those whose conviction is much stronger than mine. But the privilege that has allowed me to feel so safe with all the traits that could make me a social minority also provides me with some protection against harm for speaking up. Through Euryclade, I wanted to vocalize my concern for the world, and for the existence of the societal discrimination that divides us as a human race.

A lot of my characters have their moment of growth when they realize the unhealthy nature of a relationship they have with another character, a thought or a societal norm. This “point of growth” allows them to take a step towards healthier forms of love, either by attempting to communicate with the other party, removing themselves from a toxic situation, or accepting the imperfections of their love. For example, Amel and Zrayuu’s strained sister relationship was based on my past struggles with friendships, while Xemu and Xersian/Yun’s complex romantic relationship was based on connections I had made between love, societal pressures and self acceptance.

At the start of the story, Amel has been incarcerated, charged with arson against the protected grounds of the Unsee-ers. This incident was an accident that resulted in her detainment – many years ago, in a bout of chaos as Amel tried to defend the Duke when a few ‘prophets’ had started blatantly insulting her, she dropped a gas canister that lit on fire, injuring a few individuals. As a final attempt to validate herself in the eyes of her sister and potentially salvage their strained relationship, Amel agrees to venture to Euryclade.

Amel is obsessed over being accepted and loved by her (adoptive) sister Zrayuu, reminiscing the happy and healthy relationship they used to have before Zrayuu suddenly became distant. Zrayuu clearly draws a line, pushing their relationship to become more of a corporate one than a familial one; though she still loves Amel, there is an external force (antagonist) that prevents her from maintaining her connection with her sister. 

Amel goes to unhealthy bounds just to get her sister’s attention, developing severe people pleasing tendencies in the process. Throughout the plot, Amel meets other people, such as the other protagonists Xemu, Eclis and Nua. While they get closer to each other through their shared journey, all four individuals grow in their own way, the character development in Amel being that she is finally able to see her relationship with Zrayuu for what it is; a ghost of something that used to be. It’s at the near-climax of the story that Amel realizes this and acts upon it – when she is forced to choose between remaining next to her sister (almost as a prisoner) or continuing a grueling journey with her friends to find out the truth behind a larger power within the world, she chooses to finally let her crumbling relationship go. This is where Amel allows herself to want something other than what she thinks her sister might want, signaling the point where Amel learns to love and respect herself. 

Even while she allows herself to drop her longing for her sister’s approval, accepting that her relationship with her sister is no longer healthy for her, Amel is still able to accept that she had loved her sister through those times, and will continue to love her sister, just not in a destructive way. She creates a healthy boundary between herself and her sister, which allows her to grow as her own individual, not someone that is purely dependent on her sister.

In the case of Xemu and Xersian/Yun: Xemu is an individual that faces severe discrimination due to his economic status and his broken horn. Xemu and Yun are both from a species with horns, which is a symbol for that specific species. These horns, somewhat like a unicorn’s horn, heal any consumer (act of pseudo-cannibalism) of any injury or medical condition, which makes ‘higher quality’ horns sought out by those in the black market. Any cracks or malformations of the horns are considered an indication of lowliness. Xemu’s left horn was broken once when he was a child, as he tried to protect Yun (a younger child completely unrelated to him by blood, but whom he regards as his “little brother”) from an organization that had been kidnapping children to sell their horns.

This ‘imperfection’ becomes Xemu’s greatest obstacle in life, as it drops his socioeconomic status even lower than before. Xemu and Yun maintain a friendly relationship throughout their academic career; all the while, Yun develops romantic feelings for Xemu, but Xemu is oblivious to this. At the end of Xemu’s senior year, the day before his graduation, his guardian/parental figure/found family older brother is severely injured as repercussion for trying to find out who was behind the organization that had committed the kidnappings many years ago. Xemu abandons his aspiration of higher education (though he had more than enough potential and a great intellectual curiosity) in order to start working, earning money to pay his “family member”’s hospital bills. He is forced to cut off contact with his peers in school in the process.

Due to his broken horn, Xemu is abused within his workplace(s), usually being comparatively underpaid because “his horns affect [his] performance”. His ‘disability’ becomes an excuse for him to be exploited by his employers. When his family member passes away because Xemu and the other family members were unable to pay the bills for an important operation due to being fired without payment, Xemu is devastated. Over the years of discrimination he faces, he becomes more cynical and pessimistic, shutting people off except for his close family in fear of being mistreated again.

Years later, Xemu is able to (somewhat) climb up the socioeconomic ladder, being employed  by a higher status individual as their bodyguard and then being offered a chance to apply to become part of an underground agent organization controlled by another noble figure. This figure happens to be Yun, who is still deeply hurt by Xemu due to miscommunication regarding Xemu’s unforeseen departure. Though Yun tries not to do so, he falls for Xemu again, and although Xemu is still extremely defensive (unable to trust others), he learns to open up to those who care about him. 

The recurring conflict within Xemu and Yun’s relationship is 1) Xemu’s insecurity due to the huge social status gap, rooted in his self hate because of his broken horn and 2) Xemu’s fixation with the importance of ‘family’ which makes him scared to accept that he now views Yun as a romantic prospect rather than an immature “little brother”. Before joining Yun’s workforce, Xemu is gifted a prosthetic horn by his previous employer. This gift was given with pure intentions, but in turn amplified the idea that a broken horn is something to hide from societal gaze. Later, it is revealed that the prosthetic was made with a new material that is the key to resolving the larger conflict of the story. To continue the research on this material, Xemu would have to give up this prosthetic, thus rendering him vulnerable to blatant discrimination once again. 

Xemu’s point of character growth comes when Yun is gravely injured while trying to protect him, near the end of the dilemma. While Yun bleeds out in Xemu’s arms, Xemu realizes his love for Yun is stronger than his hesitation towards deepening their relationship (hence making him emotionally vulnerable), and that his desire to save Yun is greater than his fear of societal oppression. Through this revelation, Xemu breaks off his other horn, feeding it to Yun to heal him. In this manner, Xemu partially overcomes the two obstacles that had been blocking his development as an individual with healthy relationships with both his body and the people around him.

Even though both stories seem to have a perfect happy ending, I want to make clear that the process of them finding themselves in the story does not make them perfectly healed individuals, nor does it cure them of all their flaws. Healing doesn’t happen at any specific point of the story. My characters may relapse into harmful thoughts once again, they may go back to their obsessive habits, and time and time again, it will be visible that they are still continuing to struggle to become better people.

This is ultimately what I want to convey through my story – the experiences that proves to me that I’m imperfect, and that the world I live in, reflected through the world I’ve built, is imperfect, but I will strive to better myself, and hopefully, the world will try to better itself to.