Silverwing Bats!!

[FlipperBoidSkua]

The Silverwing series is undoubtedly my favorite book series ever. So it's only natural that I draw pics for it!! Like my Koopa Paratroopa section is for all my paratroopa fanart, this will be for all my Silverwing fanart. Enjoy!!

First and foremost!! Cama Zotz!! Mayan bat god of the Underworld!! I LOOOOOVE him!!! He's my fav character in the whole series!!



That little speck beside him is Goth!! :^.^: Maybe his three-foot wingspan isn't so big after all! Yes, Zotz is a quadraped, but I made him rear upright in this picture so he can take up more room!!

And the second pic, the major characters of the first three books!



Shade the silver-haired bat (the black one), Marina the red bat (the orange one), Griffin (the black and orange one), and Goth the False Vampire Bat (the big pissed-off looking one). I'm not good with batties, but they're certainly a lot easier to draw than birds!! Hope you likey!!!

[Pangaea]

An entire thread devoted to Silverwing fanart? FANTASTIC! I don’t know if you got the memo, but I am CRAZY about bats! They were some of the first animals I ever got interested in, along with cats, sharks, crocodiles, and dinosaurs.

I only read Firewing once a few years ago (I thought it was too depressing, personally ), so I don’t remember much about how Cama Zotz was described, other than that his face had a reptilian, skull-like look to it (less batlike than Goth had imagined). I see you also added a Pteranodon-esque crest to his head. I’m seeing some parallels with LBT sharpteeth, too, namely the tail, claws, throat, and digitigrade feet. I can honestly say that I find him pretty creepy-looking. :blink: The pale, hairless arms and neck look weird to me, though (a bit too human, almost), and the way his fur just “stops” makes it look like he’s wearing a vest. Also, this is just my personal feeling, but seeing as he’s a god of death who spends all his time underground, I think black or white (or both) might be better colors for him than brown. I recall that the original Mayan depiction of Cama Zotz had black wings with white markings on them shaped like crossbones. I think a combination of black and white would look good if you tried drawing him again; perhaps a black background with white markings that make him look like a skeleton.

I love the second picture! What are you talking about; you do a great job drawing bats! These are MUCH better than the designs in the Silverwing TV series. I think your drawing of Marina is my favorite (red bats are so cute! ); the only suggestion I have is that her arm should be darker. And I love the asymmetrical pose you drew Shade in; his partly opened wing looks really good. Griffin’s angle looks good, too, although I can’t help but notice he looks kind of sad. (By the way, bats don’t have opposing toes for gripping like birds do; their toes all face the same direction and work as hooks, so all of the toes on Griffin’s left foot should be on the same side of the branch.) And Goth’s expression is great! You even included the bands on Goth and Marina! Your bat anatomy is really good, too; did you use references for these?

Hope to see more bat artwork from you soon!

[LBTDiclonius]

Really wonderful artwork FBS!!!! I love all three! They're all really great. I must admit, I am not into Silverwing, but I love these drawings! Nice work.

[FlipperBoidSkua]

Heck, yeah, Silverwing art!!! Nice to see someone who LOVES bats too!!

Awww, thanks for commenting the pic!! Firewing's my favorite as it has the most Cama Zotz in it!!   I tried following the description given to him, adding some of my own flare (adding a tail for instance; it never mentions him having a tail, but never denied him having one either!! ^^). I mostly used the following passage of the story:

With a tremendous crack that reverberated against the stone heavens, two massive spikes erupted from the earth, soaring past him. As Goth shook his head, cleared the silt from his eyes, he saw that these spikes were not stone, but folded wings, now unfurling. Electricity crackled along their dark membranes as they shook dust and rock from the creases. The simple act of those wings extending to their full length-hundreds of feet, Goth guessed-created a shockwave of searing wind that blasted him backward.
In a titanic convulsion the ground between the wings heaved up, and Goth saw a darkly furred back rising from the rubble, two powerful legs pushing clear, massive shoulders hunching to lift a long, leathery neck. Goth swallowed, nearly gagging, for his throat was so dry. Finally, the head came into view. It was white, hairless, gaunt as a skull. From the back, a long knobbly crest jutted high into the air. The jaws themselves were thrice the length of Goth's entire body, and when they split apart, he saw endless rows of jagged teeth. Eyes, set far back in the skull, blinked the dust clear, then turned to gaze straight at him.
Goth stared back, unable to look away. Despite his terror, his heart exalted. Finally he beheld Zotz. He had never seen any creature so massive, as big as a mountain. In his imagination he had always pictured Zotz as a giant but one who would look essentially like the other Vampyrum. But there was something altogether more bestial about him, and slightly reptilian. Each of his thumbs had developed into a kind of paw, so that he stood on four feet, like a beast, his wings spiked high. His skin had a scaly look, especially around the furless face. He looked like something unspeakably ancient.

I basically interpretated some points, the most important probably being the term "Darkly furred". A dark brown, maybe? Since the characters knew the color black, I would expect them to use that word to describe our lovable bat god!! Another assumption I made was the fur-less arms part. Since most bats essentially have naked arms, I applied that to him too! I personally just thought he looked better if his shoulders were furred. :^.^:

Yay!! He's creepy-looking!! I've succeeded in something then!

The Second Picture:
Awwwww, thanks. I'm glad the hard-work paid off (bat wings are evil, but less so than bird wings) and that you loved it. And yes, red bats are adorable!!

These are MUCH better than the designs in the Silverwing TV series.

Agh! I did NOT like the bat designs for the TV series.   They barely looked like bats at all; too human for my taste (gravity-defying hair? WTF?! :blink: ). Though I did like some parts of the show, like the owls, and Goth saying how much of a naughty bat he was . Hopefully, if there's a movie for Silverwing, they'll keep to the actual animal designs.

Yeah, I wanted to show the silver on Shade's wings and thought one open wing would be good enough. Griffin is sad; throughout the whole book he's all worried and sad and fearful and stuff, so I thought I'd add that to the pic! Yeah, I know they don't have the opposable toes of birds, but I did it to make the branch easier for me to draw (That stick was the hardest part of the picture!! ).

Goth is fun!! I was reminded of Sierra when drawing him!!   And I love the bands! In fact, most of my battie OCs are banded, like Chimera the Honduran White Bat (yes, she's named after the Darkwing character!! ) and Slasher the Deathgleaner bat (I have a Silverwing/Future is Wild fanfic, in case your confused). Bands are just so awesome, for some reason!

Nah, I only used the 'photos' of the species in my head and the years of practicing drawing bats in general (the first bat I ever drew looked like a jelly-bean with wings....). I drew these while I was utterly bored at a birthday party.

And thanks LBTD!! I love how you always comment on my pics even if they're not your thing! If you love animals and hadn't read Silverwing yet, I recommend it! It's a lot better than the TV show and it makes bats lovable critters!

[LBTDiclonius]

Your welcome FBS. It's my pleasure. I love seeing your drawings. And maybe I will start reading the books.

[Pangaea]

Heck, yeah, Silverwing art!!! Nice to see someone who LOVES bats too!!

Likewise. By the way, there aren't as many bat books out there as there are dinosaur books, but I still have a considerable library of bat information. (I also have a membership with Bat Conservation International, and get their quarterly magazine.) So if there's ever anything you want to know about bats, I'm as happy to answer questions about them as I am about prehistoric life. :^.^:

With a tremendous crack that reverberated against the stone heavens, two massive spikes erupted from the earth, soaring past him. As Goth shook his head, cleared the silt from his eyes, he saw that these spikes were not stone, but folded wings, now unfurling. Electricity crackled along their dark membranes as they shook dust and rock from the creases. The simple act of those wings extending to their full length-hundreds of feet, Goth guessed-created a shockwave of searing wind that blasted him backward.
In a titanic convulsion the ground between the wings heaved up, and Goth saw a darkly furred back rising from the rubble, two powerful legs pushing clear, massive shoulders hunching to lift a long, leathery neck. Goth swallowed, nearly gagging, for his throat was so dry. Finally, the head came into view. It was white, hairless, gaunt as a skull. From the back, a long knobbly crest jutted high into the air. The jaws themselves were thrice the length of Goth's entire body, and when they split apart, he saw endless rows of jagged teeth. Eyes, set far back in the skull, blinked the dust clear, then turned to gaze straight at him.
Goth stared back, unable to look away. Despite his terror, his heart exalted. Finally he beheld Zotz. He had never seen any creature so massive, as big as a mountain. In his imagination he had always pictured Zotz as a giant but one who would look essentially like the other Vampyrum. But there was something altogether more bestial about him, and slightly reptilian. Each of his thumbs had developed into a kind of paw, so that he stood on four feet, like a beast, his wings spiked high. His skin had a scaly look, especially around the furless face. He looked like something unspeakably ancient.

Wow. I'd forgotten just how epic Cama Zotz's introduction was. It just occurred to me that that description makes Cama Zotz sound rather like a pterosaur; long neck, crested head, four-footed stance, scaly skin (though the only scales pterosaurs are actually known to have had were on the feet), ancient appearance. :!

I basically interpretated some points, the most important probably being the term "Darkly furred". A dark brown, maybe? Since the characters knew the color black, I would expect them to use that word to describe our lovable bat god!! Another assumption I made was the fur-less arms part. Since most bats essentially have naked arms, I applied that to him too! I personally just thought he looked better if his shoulders were furred. :^.^:

How is it that I keep forgetting that the bats are colorblind? :bslap Good point there, though I still think the fur could be black. Can't argue with your logic about the arms, either. Part of the reason they look strange to me, though, is that they're so pale compared to the fur and wings. Also, I think the muscles that power a bat's wingbeat are mainly in the back and chest, so the arms needn't be so burly; the muscle would just add weight that would make the wings harder to flap.

Agh! I did NOT like the bat designs for the TV series.  They barely looked like bats at all; too human for my taste (gravity-defying hair? WTF?! :blink: ).

Hopefully, if there's a movie for Silverwing, they'll keep to the actual animal designs.

My thoughts exactly.

Goth is fun!! I was reminded of Sierra when drawing him!!  And I love the bands! In fact, most of my battie OCs are banded, like Chimera the Honduran White Bat (yes, she's named after the Darkwing character!! ) and Slasher the Deathgleaner bat (I have a Silverwing/Future is Wild fanfic, in case your confused). Bands are just so awesome, for some reason!

You're going to post pictures of those characters, I hope.

[FlipperBoidSkua]

LBTD: Yayz!! I has a fan!! You've commented my LBT ones, my Paratroopa one, my Future is Wild one, and my Silverwing one!! I can't get over how awesomely loyal you are!!

Pangaea:
You would certainly have more books on bats than I do. Only informative bat books I've read are library books.

I also have a membership with Bat Conservation International, and get their quarterly magazine

No fair!! How do I become a member?

Wow. I'd forgotten just how epic Cama Zotz's introduction was.  It just occurred to me that that description makes Cama Zotz sound rather like a pterosaur; long neck, crested head, four-footed stance, scaly skin (though the only scales pterosaurs are actually known to have had were on the feet), ancient appearance.

Everything about Zotz is epic to me, especially that entrance!! And his talk with Shade about his history and goals.....That's my all-time favorite scene in the whole series. With his speech on how he wants to reunite the living and the dead, I dunno how evil this guy is or if he can even be considered evil for doing what he truely believed was the right thing for all bats. *shrugs* He's a surprisingly complex character.

Pterosaurs only have scales on their feet? Huh, that's another thing I learned today! Cool!!

How is it that I keep forgetting that the bats are colorblind? :bslap Good point there, though I still think the fur could be black.  Can't argue with your logic about the arms, either. Part of the reason they look strange to me, though, is that they're so pale compared to the fur and wings. Also, I think the muscles that power a bat's wingbeat are mainly in the back and chest, so the arms needn't be so burly; the muscle would just add weight that would make the wings harder to flap.

True. Darkly furred can be another way to say black fur!! I guess the scanner didn't pick up as much color as I had on the arms, but it didn't really bother me. And yeah, I only made his arms buff simply because he'll look awesome. Plus, walking on all fours, I'd assume it would need some muscle to them.  

You're going to post pictures of those characters, I hope.

Yup! I have an unscanned pic of Chimera and already got a scanned pic of Slasher, but I'm hesitant on which of my fanart category to put him in...Silverwing or the Future is Wild. He's a Future is Wild critter (he was accidently transferred to the present time because of the Time Flyer from the FiW cartoon, so it's not impossible to have him here!), but an OC made for a Silverwing fanfic. Got any suggestions on that predicament?

[Pangaea]

I also have a membership with Bat Conservation International, and get their quarterly magazine

No fair!! How do I become a member?

It's a little expensive, mind you; a basic membership costs $35 a year. But if you want to check it out, go to their website and click “Support BCI”. From there, you can become a member, donate to the organization, learn about memberships and donations, adopt a bat (you donate $25 and receive a bat plushie; this can also be packaged with a membership for $50), or visit their catalog. (Yep, they've got a whole store devoted to bats! ) The website itself also has bat photos, bat information (though mainly about North American species), and archives of their magazine (so if you wanted a membership mainly for that, look no further!).

Pterosaurs only have scales on their feet? Huh, that's another thing I learned today! Cool!!

Yep. Most of the skin on a pterosaur's bodyójudging from fossil impressionsówas fairly smooth, slightly leathery, and thinner than that of modern reptiles; almost like human skin. Pterosaurs are also known to have had a covering of “hair” (technically called pycnofibers) over most of the body apart from the wings, tail, and beak, with a “mane” of especially long, dense hair on the back of the head and neck. However, a fossil of Tapejara preserves imprints of fine diamond-shaped scales on the underside of the heel of the foot. Fossil trackways of pterosaurs walking on the ground show similar impressions. So the undersides of the feet (and possibly the hands as well), at least, were scaled, which makes sense, since those were the parts of the body that would be subjected to the most wear and tear due to contact with the ground.

I have an unscanned pic of Chimera and already got a scanned pic of Slasher, but I'm hesitant on which of my fanart category to put him in...Silverwing or the Future is Wild. He's a Future is Wild critter (he was accidently transferred to the present time because of the Time Flyer from the FiW cartoon, so it's not impossible to have him here!), but an OC made for a Silverwing fanfic. Got any suggestions on that predicament?

Hmm…tricky. Well, my first instinct would be to put him in the Silverwing category, if he mainly interacts with those characters. You could post a link in the Future is Wild thread to the post with the picture in the Silverwing thread (or vice versa if you decide to post it in the Future is Wild thread instead).

[FlipperBoidSkua]

I am definitely interested! Once I get a job and earn some stable money to reliably pay the annual fee, I'mma sign up!!   SQUEEEEE!!!

AWESOME!!! I mean, I knew that at least some pterosaurs were fuzzy, but the leathery thin skin is a surprise for me!! I always thought that the non-fuzzy parts would be scaly, not just the feet and (possibly) hands!! You're awesome, ya know that?

Hmmmmm, you have a valid point there! I'm gonna post the image here. Keep in mind, this was the first pic I ever drew of a Deathgleaner bat and the references I used showed bizzare traits (like unusually thickened fingers) that I was gonna stick to as they seemed to be a part of the species design.



Yes, he's roosting on a rocky wall of some sort and no, I'm not gonna color it because backgrounds are pure evil, I tell you!! EVIL!!   I'm gonna be posting up the fanfic involving him and Chimera in a sec. Hope you guys like it!!

[LBTDiclonius]

Nice picture! The coloring's a little off and messy in some areas, but good all the same. Nice work!

[Pangaea]

I am definitely interested! Once I get a job and earn some stable money to reliably pay the annual fee, I'mma sign up!!  SQUEEEEE!!!

Good luck with that.

AWESOME!!! I mean, I knew that at least some pterosaurs were fuzzy, but the leathery thin skin is a surprise for me!! I always thought that the non-fuzzy parts would be scaly, not just the feet and (possibly) hands!! You're awesome, ya know that?

Aw, thanks. I just like to make sure people are filled in on all the details when I share an interesting fact.

Yes, he's roosting on a rocky wall of some sort and no, I'm not gonna color it because backgrounds are pure evil, I tell you!! EVIL!! 

Yeah, I'm no good with backgrounds either.

Awesome picture! You’re so good at drawing roosting bats! I just can’t stop looking at the feet, tail, hind legs, and connecting membranes; they’re so good! I also love the eyes; they have a lot of character. I like his little fangs, too. And the stripes on his face; looking at the picture you posted with your story (which I haven’t read yet, but plan to), I interpreted those to just be furrows or indentations in the skin, but I think he looks good this way. To me, he actually doesn’t look all that mean (though the story may very well prove me wrong); kinda cute, even.

The one thing that bugs me about the picture is that at the lower right-hand corner, the edges of his snout are cut off. Is that just the way it came out when you scanned it? (When I scan things, the computer sometimes tries to crop the image close to the outermost outlines before saving it; I prefer to have a little leeway, and crop it myself later if need be.)

[FlipperBoidSkua]

Thanks, I need all the luck I can get!  

Awwww, thanks!! He does look kinda cute, doesn't he? And he's not so mean, so long as he doesn't see you as food or that you don't antagonize him in the slightest way, otherwise you'd be sorry. Drawing this before, I did think they had stripes on their faces and drew this accordingly. Then I realized it might well have been shadows. But I brushed it off because Slasher looks better with the stripes!! That can be like his personal trait, since the cartoon already had a way of distinguishing the main characters from others of their species.

Yeah, it's the scanner's fault. I tried rescanning and rescanning but each time, it would take the edges off by itself. It was really ticking me off, but I don't know how to stop it from doing that.

[Pangaea]

Yeah, it's the scanner's fault. I tried rescanning and rescanning but each time, it would take the edges off by itself. It was really ticking me off, but I don't know how to stop it from doing that.

What kind of scanner do you use? My computer has a program (HP Photosmart Studio) that lets you see the scanned image before you import it, which lets you control how the image is cropped, what format to save it in, etc. Do you have anything like that on your computer?

[FlipperBoidSkua]

Gotta new picture for this thread! Although I have two others still in the coloring process, I can't help but submit this one now!!!

Behold, one of my Silverwing OCs!



Chimera, the Honduran White Bat!! I've been using her as a Silverwing OC in the RP I'm doing with my friend, and she'll be involved in my Silverwing/Future is WIld crossover, Top Predator.

Isn't she adorable!!!?

She's an orphaned baby bat being cared for by a bat biologist, whom is studying Goth's species and is currently residing smack dab in the jungle. Newly fledged and curious, Chimie frequently explores the surrounding territory and eventually got lost on one of her excursions. She ran into Slasher, the Deathgleaner, and things went pretty much downhill from there. I ain't giving anything away, but all she wants is to get back to her human.

In this pic, she's curled up in a ball on the upper right corner. Her human owner taught her to do it on command with the word, "Cottonball". It's just a cute little trick that I would certainly teach a little white batty if I had one!  

On the center pic, she loves bananas (and mangos)! And that's a small slice in her little mouth! Her kind grow to about 1.5-2 inches long. Being a child, I'm assuming she'll probably be about 1 inch long. So friggin' tiny and CUTE!!!

And on the bottom one, she's just flying around and about to make a landing.

And notice she's banded on both arms, one as a typical studying-band given to her by her scientist owner and the other the equivalent of a collar with contact info and stuff.

And dear Zotz, she's adorable! *hugs her and all her cottonball kind!!* Also, I'm not sure if her kind has a tail or not, but I'm putting one, just in case!

[Pangaea]

D'aww…I was wondering when FlipperBoidSkua would get around to drawing a Honduran white bat character. Seriously, people, there's tons of cute bats out there, but Ectophylla alba is undeniably one of the most endearing. Honestly, if you don't like bats, these little guys might change your mind. Remember, though, like all bats, they're wild animals and probably wouldn't make good pets. *sigh* Such a shame.

Before I read the description, I thought: "Is that bat holding a coin in its mouth?" :huh: Then I saw the words "she loves bananas" and realized: "Ohhh…it's a banana slice. That makes much more sense!" And the fact that she has a band on both wings is cool. She's a bat with bling! (Something compelled to say that, for some reason. ) I love her biography, by the way. Poor thing; I hope she gets back to her human eventually. Just out of curiosity, why the name Chimera?

Hmm…according to this scource, the Honduran white bat doesn't have a tail. Uh-oh. You can certainly be forgiven for not knowing this, since virtually every picture you'll ever find of this species shows them huddling under a leaf in that heart-wringlingly adorable way they do. Heck, I used to think that their wings were solid yellow, because I never saw a picture of one with the dark wing membrane visible. I didn't know about the tail (or lack thereof) either. And we're probably the two biggest bat fanatics on the GOF (If anybody else would like to dispute that, I'll gladly welcome them into our club ). Tail aside, you've done a great job on the coloring and anatomy. I admire how well you drew the feet (in both pictures where they are visible) and the color gradient on the arms. And you did a great job making her look fuzzy.

By the way, while I was searching for Honduran white bat pictures online, I cam across this artist (Website here, DeviantArt page here) who creates felt sculptures of animals and random little creatures. Her specialty seems to be animals that are "underknown and underloved", includingóyou guessed itóbats. And one of her creations is a strikingly realisticóand insanely adorableóHonduran white bat brooch. I know you're going to say it with me: I WANT ONE!

[FlipperBoidSkua]

D'aww…I was wondering when FlipperBoidSkua would get around to drawing a Honduran white bat character.

You knew it was inevitable!! Along with the Common Vampire Bat, they're my fave bats EVER!!!!*snuggles a whole bunch of little white batties!!*

Before I read the description, I thought: "Is that bat holding a coin in its mouth?"   Then I saw the words "she loves bananas" and realized: "Ohhh…it's a banana slice. That makes much more sense!"  And the fact that she has a band on both wings is cool. She's a bat with bling!  (Something compelled to say that, for some reason. ) I love her biography, by the way. Poor thing; I hope she gets back to her human eventually. Just out of curiosity, why the name Chimera?

Yeah, I had a horrible time with the banana slice, considering I never drew one before! I just wasn't too sure how to make it look like a fruit, so I eventualy just gave up. Hmmmm, maybe with I splotch a little brown on it...

Batty bling! Great, now I'm gonna start saying that! It's all your fault, Pangy!

She was originally named after the Darkwing character of the same name. Then my sister (who can never get Chimie's name right) started using the pronounciation: Chime-era. That gave me the idea of Slasher 'fondly' calling her Wind-Chime. I'm probably not answering your question too well, but I thought the info would be fun to share with ya!   Nowadays, I follow my sister's example in pronouncing her name differently than its original.

Hmm…according to this scource, the Honduran white bat doesn't have a tail. Uh-oh.  You can certainly be forgiven for not knowing this, since virtually every picture you'll ever find of this species shows them huddling under a leaf in that heart-wringlingly adorable way they do. Heck, I used to think that their wings were solid yellow, because I never saw a picture of one with the dark wing membrane visible. I didn't know about the tail (or lack thereof) either. And we're probably the two biggest bat fanatics on the GOF (If anybody else would like to dispute that, I'll gladly welcome them into our club ). Tail aside, you've done a great job on the coloring and anatomy. I admire how well you drew the feet (in both pictures where they are visible) and the color gradient on the arms. And you did a great job making her look fuzzy.

  :blink:    : .........Where was that source when I needed it?!   Oh well, the tail could easily be remedied once I get enough free time... *cough*fiveyearslater*cough*

Yeah, I have noticed the lack of bat fans around here; I'm with Pangy when he says to join the club! We give out free invisible jackets, mailed right to you in invisible packages!

And whoooo, I'm sooooo glad you love the rest of the anatomy! Especially the pic of Chimie in flight; it's been a looooong time since I drew a flying bat, so it's good to know I haven't lost my touch! And I did good making her fluffy!! Yayz!!! *jumps about randomly before I slip and fall on my butt on the hard-tile floor....yes, that actually happened just now *

By the way, while I was searching for Honduran white bat pictures online, I cam across this artist (Website here, DeviantArt page here) who creates felt sculptures of animals and random little creatures. Her specialty seems to be animals that are "underknown and underloved", includingóyou guessed itóbats. And one of her creations is a strikingly realisticóand insanely adorableóHonduran white bat brooch. I know you're going to say it with me: I WANT ONE!

..................................................................................................
You know me so well, Pangy.......................................
I WANT ONE!!!! SO FRIGGIN' BADLY!!! IT'S SOOOOOOO CUUUUUUUTE!!!!!!! OMZ!!! *not learning my lesson, I jump around randomly again, but this time I meet no incident! Yayz!!*

[Pangaea]

Yeah, I had a horrible time with the banana slice, considering I never drew one before! I just wasn't too sure how to make it look like a fruit, so I eventualy just gave up. Hmmmm, maybe with I splotch a little brown on it...

I think the trouble is that the slice doesn't look "soft" enough. Maybe adding some texture to make it look squishy and a little fibrous would help. Also the…*researches banana anatomy on Wikipedia*…carpels in the center of the banana should look more triangle-ish in shape, rather than just >-shaped lines. (…Y'know what? It would probably be easier just to slice a banana and use it as a reference than to listen to me struggle to describe what a cross-section of a banana carpel looks like. ) It also might help if you didn't outline the carpels in black, but in a shade of greenish-brownish-yellow, slightly darker than the rest of the banana.

Great, now I'm hungry for bananas.

Batty bling! Great, now I'm gonna start saying that! It's all your fault, Pangy!

Oh, guano.

She was originally named after the Darkwing character of the same name. Then my sister (who can never get Chimie's name right) started using the pronounciation: Chime-era. That gave me the idea of Slasher 'fondly' calling her Wind-Chime.

You mean to say that wind chimes outlast humanity and will still exist five million years from now? That's quite a warranty!

I guess you could still explain it by giving Slasher an encounter with wind chimes (*pictures Slasher mistaking the sounds of a wind chime for spink calls and attacking it, resulting in a deathgleaner tangled up in a hanging noisemaking patio fixture* ), and having some other character telling him what they are.

So…is "Chimera" a name that was given to her by her human? If so, maybe he's like your sister and can't pronounce it correctly. Still not sure why he decided to give her a name that refers to a hybrid, or a giant fire-breathing lion-goat-serpent monster from Greek mythology.

Yeah, I have noticed the lack of bat fans around here; I'm with Pangy when he says to join the club! We give out free invisible jackets, mailed right to you in invisible packages!

I know there are other members here who like bats; I just don't know anyone else who is obsessed with them the way we are. :

[FlipperBoidSkua]

I think the trouble is that the slice doesn't look "soft" enough. Maybe adding some texture to make it look squishy and a little fibrous would help. Also the…*researches banana anatomy on Wikipedia*…carpels in the center of the banana should look more triangle-ish in shape, rather than just >-shaped lines. (…Y'know what? It would probably be easier just to slice a banana and use it as a reference than to listen to me struggle to describe what a cross-section of a banana carpel looks like. ) It also might help if you didn't outline the carpels in black, but in a shade of greenish-brownish-yellow, slightly darker than the rest of the banana.

Maybe I should use the banana slice to experiment a bit more with Photoshop. I'm still not to good with the program, so maybe I can practice with that evil banana slice of dooooooom!! I'll definitely take the use of reference to heart, I'mma get me some bananas!

Great, now I'm hungry for bananas.

*laughs evilly!* I'm soooo tempted to try something Jeff Corwin (sp?) did on Animal Planet. I remember watching an episode where he states that bananas are his favorite food, so he decided to eat nothing but bananas for a week or something like that. My memory's a bit fuzzy, but needless to say, it was hilarious when he started getting sick (figuratively and literally) of them.

You mean to say that wind chimes outlast humanity and will still exist five million years from now? That's quite a warranty!

Yes!      

I guess you could still explain it by giving Slasher an encounter with wind chimes (*pictures Slasher mistaking the sounds of a wind chime for spink calls and attacking it, resulting in a deathgleaner tangled up in a hanging noisemaking patio fixture* ), and having some other character telling him what they are.

Something like that, actually. He finds some wind chimes and plays with it a bit (poking it and being a bit mesmerized by its sound and sparkle), before learning what it's called. But I like your idea a LOT better!!! You mind if I make that an actual part of my Top Predator story?

So…is "Chimera" a name that was given to her by her human? If so, maybe he's like your sister and can't pronounce it correctly.  Still not sure why he decided to give her a name that refers to a hybrid, or a giant fire-breathing lion-goat-serpent monster from Greek mythology.

Yes, it was given to her by her human! I like that idea you have that he can't pronounce the name properly, and it'll give basis to why Chimie can't pronounce it correctly either and leads Slasher to call her by her nickname! Your a GENIUS!!! *glomps!*

Maybe the human dude read Darkwing recently ! Or maybe he just likes the way the name sounds (even if it's not a correct sound!)! :^.^:

I know there are other members here who like bats; I just don't know anyone else who is obsessed with them the way we are.

We be special!! *glomps you again just cuz I can!*

[Pangaea]

Great, now I'm hungry for bananas.

*laughs evilly!* I'm soooo tempted to try something Jeff Corwin (sp?) did on Animal Planet. I remember watching an episode where he states that bananas are his favorite food, so he decided to eat nothing but bananas for a week or something like that. My memory's a bit fuzzy, but needless to say, it was hilarious when he started getting sick (figuratively and literally) of them.

You know, right after taking a break from the computer, I found out that we in fact did have a bunch of bananas in the kitchen; they were in a semi-concealed fruit bowl instead of hanging from the "banana gallows", so I wasn't aware of it previously. (If I had known about them earlier I would have sliced one open and looked at it while I gave my critique. ) Turns out writing that last post made me hungier for bananas than I thought: I ended up eating two in a row; I've never done that before! (It helps that they were really good bananas. ) Heck, I'mma runnin' back upstairs and grabbin' me another one! :

I guess you could still explain it by giving Slasher an encounter with wind chimes (*pictures Slasher mistaking the sounds of a wind chime for spink calls and attacking it, resulting in a deathgleaner tangled up in a hanging noisemaking patio fixture* ), and having some other character telling him what they are.

Something like that, actually. He finds some wind chimes and plays with it a bit (poking it and being a bit mesmerized by its sound and sparkle), before learning what it's called. But I like your idea a LOT better!!! You mind if I make that an actual part of my Top Predator story?

To tell you the truth, oftentimes when I bring up some random idea that's popped into my head while we're talking, half of my reason for sharing it is in case you like it enough to incorporate it into one of your stories or drawings. So of course you can use it!

Yes, it was given to her by her human! I like that idea you have that he can't pronounce the name properly, and it'll give basis to why Chimie can't pronounce it correctly either and leads Slasher to call her by her nickname! Your a GENIUS!!! *glomps!*

Always happy to help. :^.^:

Maybe the human dude read Darkwing recently !

I'm sure that counts as some sort of fourth-wall breakage. It's pretty funny, actually.

[FlipperBoidSkua]

I got done with my other photoshop project. It was an older pic that I found and fixed up!

"You're the puniest thing I've ever seen in my entire life! Dear Zotz, are you sure you're a bat?!" Slasher taunted as he laughed the hardest he had since arriving in this strange land. The tiny little white creature in front of him stayed curled where she was, like she was too terrified to even look at him. Slinking a bit closer for a sniff, Slasher heard the little bat whimper and he chuckled before asking. "What's your name, Fluffy?"

"Ch...Chimera." came the slightly muffled response from the curled up bundle. A shivering sob wracked her little body and another squeak came from her, her words shaking. "P-please don't e....eat me."

"Eat you?!" Slasher cracked up again, his hook-like claws on his feet and wings the only thing keeping him from falling to the forest floor in his outburst of cackles. "My little Wind-Chime, you're not even a mouthful! Hardly even worth the effort of snapping at!"

As the Deathgleaner continued his laughing fit, Chimera felt the urge to fly away, her body starting to unfreeze. She wasn't entirely sure if he meant what he said about not eating her, or if it was just another mocking statement. She didn't wanna stick around to find out...

Ignore the simple background, I was too lazy to do much else!

This is the very first encounter between Slasher and Chimera. She's so friggin' tiny, even Slasher can't help pointing it out!!

Enjoy the pic!