(No FB text today.)

I like the varying states of battle-readiness here, and how they’re not necessarily what you’d expect. Penk and Magda are the most peace-minded of the group, and yet they’re alert and primed to respond if their enemies answer this appeal with violence. Rana’s the most trigger-happy of the bunch, unwilling and perhaps unable to see any path to dealing with our heroes that doesn’t end in blood. But Auraugu’s just happy to not be pedaling any more, and Goblaurence, while he doesn’t like it, can see the immediate future of this “parley” as clearly as a winter elf could.

If there WERE a fight, our heroes would be unlikely to win it. Syr’Nj is fresh and ready, but Gravedust is nearly finished, Byron’s recovering, and Frigg and Best are nowhere near their peak effectiveness in this cold. Not to mention that the Champions are much better adapted to this terrain, on average, thanks to their fur, feathers, and Tectonican warmth.

I vetoed the shedding of tears in the last panel here. They seemed a little over the top and also incompatible with the well-below-freezing environs.