crystalseadragon44

[crystalseadragon44]

Chiaki Kozumi (My Impossible Soulmate) Fanart!

While I've been slowly getting back to drawing, @lynnsenpai posted a challenge to draw her character Chiaki Kozumi from My Impossible Soulmate (and technically, Rain too!)

Finding some time to draw, I had this cute idea of her experimenting with the Wind Magic she discovers she has, fidgeting with it by pushing a pencil around! I have to say, I'm proud of how this came out, and it makes me chuckle every time I look at it! XD

Now, this was done last week Thursday (and Lynn saw it then), but seeing as I only NOW decided to hop onto Tumblr today, that's why we're seeing it today, not earlier.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did!

[crystalseadragon44]

Weird and Wild Times...

Well, as you may have noticed, not a lot has been happening across all of the sites. I'm finally here to say... I'm still working on it, BUT I've been juggling life commitments and some new mental health developments. What a way to post for the start of Pride Month. XD

In late April, a close friend - and partner - went on a life-changing trip to move across the country, to move to a better life. Along the way, she spent a couple of days here! I finally got to meet her and her boyfriend in person for the first time! I can say it was a wonderful time!

At the start of May, I was taken on a trip across Michigan by my older brother (in part to give some time for some bathroom work, which isn't easy to do with a germaphobe that needs it on a daily basis). It took some time to recover from that, and it was hard to get work done while I was recovering (my gut DID NOT agree with multiple meals of restaurant food).

Along the way, I've felt a shift in some of the websites I currently host on. ComicFury - with work - feels like it can do everything I've been using sites like DeviantArt and pixiv for, while those sites continue to show problems for me (pixiv in particular lately). From this point forward, you should consider the ComicFury site(s) the "primary" place(s) to get Behind the Veil from! I think other sites will be updated some time after ComicFury in most cases.

Also, I've been trying my hardest to avoid news, particularly from the unfiltered outrage of social media. I'm particularly sensitive to it for plenty of reasons, and I don't need that on my mind constantly. It does weird - and very bad - things to me... That's why I'm not around so much.

And finally... I cracked. XD

What I mean is, with therapy, I kinda broke apart mentally. The girl who's been posting all along is still here, but she has some... Friends in the head with her now. XD

It's a wild story - and pretty fresh, in the last month or so - but at the time of writing, there are 7 additional members to this head now (you might even be familiar with some of them from Behind the Veil and other stories by me): - Ariel Hope - Melody Valain - Alex Valain - Kit Mecha-ala (who's also part Cosminite Kit and Dark Kit) - Embra Huntsman - Moka Adam - Dawn Specter

Indeed, many of the names from the "Story Worlds" act according to their characterizations. There is a bit of a "me" filter on each, but Ariel Hope acts like the Angelic Genie she is (if a little frustrated by her inability to access her powerful magic), Kit is Kit, and so on. Most of them are characters from the stories - Moka, a relative newcomer both to Behind the Veil and the headspace, already with a rich story behind her is included in that. I hope to get her story moving along (as a comic) very soon!

As for Dawn, she goes by another name in the system. She's a manifestation of the very worry and anxiety I mentioned earlier, although outside of the triggers, she's relatively calm and polite. I don't have any plans to include her YET in the stories. She's one of my "hurt" parts, unlike the rest (who seem to be summons to help me heal), and she is warning the rest of us there's a lot more in here...

This is going to be a long journey, no doubt. But I'm rolling with it and accepting it, knowing it'll very much help me over time!

-------

Amid all of this, work is slowly being done and, thankfully, picking up! New stories are being lined up, reading to introduce us to plenty of new characters and concepts! Moka Adam and a new "elf" Embra Huntsman, a Behind the Veil version of the trans girl half-genie from the Shantae fanfiction are both set to debut in a new novel story, Enter Embra, a multi-part series serving as this new version of Embra's introduction into the original storyverse. Alongside this, profiles for Moka and BtV Embra have been created! (I haven't forgotten about the Shantae fanfiction, just my motivation and energy is elsewhere...)

I've also done some background work to create standardized comic pages and panels, shrinking what I've done previously to hopefully more manageable page sizes. I'll convert the older comics to this size as I can, and they'll be used for the eventual print versions I hope to do someday. This is making the possibility to do the longer comics - like Heather's Hope, Crystal Sisters, and Moka's story (which will be featured on the current ComicFury site) - more tangible, more doable, than I felt before!

I look forward to finally brining what I've been working on to the light! Whenever I finally feel like I got enough to weather potential storms...

[crystalseadragon44]

For those of you rare followers of mine, Lari is a talented artist, writer, and voice actor! I may not be able to donate money myself (I'm broke as heck), but I can lend my platform!

Please, if you can, donate to the cause! <3

URGENT EMERGENCY

My wife just lost her job, and while I do have a full time job lined up to start soon, it won't start in time for us to make rent and won't be enough to fully cover us until she starts work again. I know I pretty frequently ask for financial help, but this time it's extremely dire. We need to be able to afford to make rent before we end up homeless. My bank account is severely in the red still, and all the ways I usually make money online just aren't enough to support me, my wife, and my disabled younger sister. Please help and share as much as possible so that I can have some peace of mind while we try to restabilize our life.

[crystalseadragon44]

Happy Trans Day of Visibility!

I knew I had to get something down for this day, and while I didn't have much time to draw, I realized I had things I could put together into something...

I couldn't have gotten this far without my similarly trans and queer friends! This isn't just for me, but for them too.

As I've mentioned many times before, Kaylee Night is based off my friend Ashley! She's actually fictionkin, so to reflect that, I made a new version of Kaylee who is based of a magical fox bunny creature called a "Lunavare" (made for Behind the Veil), a transformation we'll eventually see in series.

I probably don't need to go through the whole long description of my own identity all over again. I am a trans girl that identifies as a half-genie like those from the Shantae video game series.

And the three together on the right are some of the primary fronters of @kristalcosmic's system - all three of whom are trans! Xiast and Izumi are transfeminine, while Kris on the right (with the robot arm and legs) is transmasculine.

You all mean so much to me, and I am glad to know you as my friends!

I may not be out there in life - heck, I'm usually homebound - but I'm increasingly comfortable with who I am, and I wouldn't change my past for anything. I'm proud to be trans, even if I might be too timid to shout it from the top of a building.

And for those of you that can't speak up today, don't fret. You can be as visible - or invisible - as you wish, especially in these troubled times. You are valid all the same!

[crystalseadragon44]

Another Crossover Release: Case File: XSV-001

Today is a nice and small update. Case File: XSV-001 is the small tale of Jupiter - and us - learning more about a strange alien virus, known locally as "XSV-001."

But for as short as it is, this story has a big purpose: explaining the effects of the Cosminite Retrovirus from @kristalcosmic's Kristal Cosmic series on the Behind the Veil world. This story was spurred on by friend Ashley's Finding What Lies Beyond series (on Scribble Hub), which Cosmic and myself help with, given it features content from both of our stories!

Case File: XSV-001 explains (through a theory by Melody) that the powerful virus has different effects because of miniscule differences between humans of different dimensions, with effects ranging from more skin colors possible through the virus's mutations (Finding What Lies Beyond) to even near-immunity (Behind the Veil). Luck of the draw, really.

You can read the full story (and get the usual heartwarming and silly bits) by reading it here! (Or the links elsewhere.)

Other Links: Scribble Hub DeviantArt

We'll have a bit more next week, with a debate on what comes next. Until next time, everyone!

[crystalseadragon44]

New (Crossover) Work Early!

Well, thanks in part to my friend Ashley, we're going to be getting some new content!

You see, she started working on a silly side story called Finding What Lies Beyond, taking her Finding what Lies Between characters and crossing them over not only with @kristalcosmic's Kristal Cosmic series, but the crossover work I've done as well! (Yes, all three of us are working together on it!)

As such, time to get moving on posting mine! For the next few weeks, I will post the Behind the Kristal Cosmic Veil stories and art across the sites! However, ONLY the crossover content will be released, given I'm still in deep with site work.

I recommend ComicFury now for all the work! You can get a bit more out of the character profile in the expansive Cast & Lore page, and the story can be found there as well! (Of course, if you have a different preference, links will be provided.)

Other Versions:

Talia's First Earth Adventure Scribble Hub DeviantArt

Talia Zalune Character Profile DeviantArt pixiv

Next week, we have the story of Case File: XSV-001! What is XSV-001, and how is it related to our recent visitor to Earth? That's for next week! Until next time!

[crystalseadragon44]

Update 2-12-2024: Quiet Work

Yeah, I've gone kinda quiet, haven't I?

Well, a part of that is because of recent events. I worry easily, so seeing others freaking out in the moment causes me to worry deeply. It's automatic, and it's very hard for me to control. As such, I've had to take a step back from social media for my own mental health. I encourage you all to do the same if you need to, take a step back and try to hold onto logic when you can. Don't fall into the doomscroll pit of instant reaction, take a step back and analyze things, let the dust settle. (I'll try too.)

But, fortunately, the work continues regardless! ComicFury gets a lot of attention right now, but across all sites, you can see the bulk of the work in progress! Fixes are being made across the board as I work to get ComicFury caught up as the lead site for all things Behind the Veil. Right now, Book of the Dryads is in-progress, and Earth's Kitsune is the last to upload after that! At the same time, I've been making the subtle fixes everywhere while uploading to ComicFury and the major ones that DeviantArt has needed since the September literature updates (dang extra paragraph lines...) Tapas still lags with the lack of new covers so far, but Ariel's stories are slowly making their way to the platform!

I admit the work has cost time towards building a backlog. Still, good news on this front is that I now have my first story written since A Confluence of Ariels, meaning I now have a profile, a comic page, and a full written story ready to go for when I DO start posting new content again!

Of course, March is looking less likely... Sigh. I'll keep you posted.

For now, here's the backlog: Talia Zalune (Crossover) profile Demon Footwear one-shot comic page Talia's First Earth Adventure (Crossover) written story

(In the works too: my first multipage comic since Remembering Ariel, Behind the Kristal Cosmic Veil: Dark Tide! It'll take a while to complete, though...)

I'll try to update more as it comes. Until next time, stay safe, everyone, and take care!

[crystalseadragon44]

UPDATE:

I realized I made her chest too big, and my perfectionism started screaming at me to fix this detail, so I did:

A bit much for a small reduction, maybe. But this is who the character is. I'm a bit of a perfectionist, and I wanted to make sure I draw my own characters right! "Flat-chested" as per The Golden Edict, so I really need to make sure next time I do better...

Trans Girl Trading Card: The Angelic Genie!

You have pulled The Angelic Genie!

This is a card in the Trans Girl Trading Card Collection!

The trans girl that rose from dire circumstances with a selfless wish, Ariel Hope's power is unrivaled by most. She is the guardian to those in need, a granter of any and all wishes she chooses to help those live the lives they want! And yet, she's still the quirky, kindhearted human she once was underneath all of that power.

=======

A special thanks to @sadcoldcoffee and @unholytgirl for starting this trend!

Rather than myself, I sit upon a pile of trans girl characters in my series Behind the Veil! Ariel Hope was the first one I thought of, with her unique backstory and overwhelming power. It just so happens that I needed to do covers for my stories, so I compiled the work for this with my new cover...

I think I like how this turned out better. XD

I wouldn't put it beside me to not do another one later... I got way more from where this came from! Melody Valain, Andrea Madison, Kaylee Night, Molly Peterson, and SO many more! (Of course, those characters may not get to this level of detail; I imagine "The Angelic Genie" to be a "rare" card.)

[Of course, if we're allowed to do more than one, anyway...]

[crystalseadragon44]

"My name is Xiast, not that it matters, you will be dead soon."

She's mellowed out since this terrifying introduction, but make no mistake: this (trans) girl might just devour your whole planet if you make her mad! Of course, she can be a solid friend and ally too, capable of almost anything in the defense of those she cares for.

(And Ariel the Angelic Genie? She finds Xiast to be her equal. A guardian of the Light, and a guardian of the Darkness. And yet... Could they get along?)

You pulled The Singularity

Destruction follows you everywhere.. but you seem to be quite in charge of it.. as long as you can keep yourself under control

A card in the trans girl trading card collection

We wanted to do the trend made by @unholytgirl and @sadcoldcoffee . This is Xiast from our webcomic!

[crystalseadragon44]

Oh, lookie here... Any of you that frequent my profile might recognize her from some of my fan art!

Izumi, queen of the Cosminites! (And indeed, trans!) And dang, she's a good one! There is no ruler I'd like to meet more... XD

You pulled The Queen.

You will face your fears and make friends in places that you did not expect!

Part of the Trans girl trading card collection

Doing the trend that @sadcoldcoffee and @unholytgirl started. This one is Izumi from our webcomic

[crystalseadragon44]

Trans Girl Trading Card: The Angelic Genie!

You have pulled The Angelic Genie!

This is a card in the Trans Girl Trading Card Collection!

The trans girl that rose from dire circumstances with a selfless wish, Ariel Hope's power is unrivaled by most. She is the guardian to those in need, a granter of any and all wishes she chooses to help those live the lives they want! And yet, she's still the quirky, kindhearted human she once was underneath all of that power.

=======

A special thanks to @sadcoldcoffee and @unholytgirl for starting this trend!

Rather than myself, I sit upon a pile of trans girl characters in my series Behind the Veil! Ariel Hope was the first one I thought of, with her unique backstory and overwhelming power. It just so happens that I needed to do covers for my stories, so I compiled the work for this with my new cover...

I think I like how this turned out better. XD

I wouldn't put it beside me to not do another one later... I got way more from where this came from! Melody Valain, Andrea Madison, Kaylee Night, Molly Peterson, and SO many more! (Of course, those characters may not get to this level of detail; I imagine "The Angelic Genie" to be a "rare" card.)

[Of course, if we're allowed to do more than one, anyway...]

[crystalseadragon44]

@ayviedoesthings, you inspired so many with your story! This includes the one that inspired me, @lynnsenpai's Dragon Rain.

My Behind the Veil-set Earth's Kitsune has a lot ahead of it before it's done, and Molly will continue to appear throughout my stories. But I'd be remised if I didn't try to nod to this as many have...

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Soaring Changes A Therian HRT Tribute

Molly flipped through a scientific publication. Namely, hers. She was there from the start, putting her own body on the line to understand a transformation no one had before tried. It took time, and it had twists she couldn't see coming...

But she was now the fox girl she always wanted to be. And through her efforts, so many more had followed!

In the years that followed, word of the treatment got out. More and more were taking it, going through all sorts of transformations, each as unique as the person taking them. Molly was honored that she had a part in this changing world.

She heard a deep noise coming from above with her more sensitive ears. She looked up, gazing upon a crimson dragon soaring through the sky, free as could be.

She knew it: this one had completed their journey now too.

A Behind the Veil Short By Erica Chrisman (CrystalSeaDragon44)

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Thank you, everyone, for making these stories and inspiring others! Let's keep making them, shall we?

"Please don't let them see me

Sure there's nothing left to try"

-Twenty One Pilots, The Line

Dragon HRT Part 25:

The End.

This took us months so please excuse me if the art quality and style is a bit different between pages lol

Huge thanks to @nyxisart for helping us by making the main background art of the cave entrance, and everyone who supported uswhile we were struggling to finish this. And of course to everyone who enjoyed this story and showed us with comments and fanarts!

Start - Prev

[crystalseadragon44]

An Update on my Progress! Steady goings & New Site!

I know I've been silent for a little while, but maybe you've spotted the progress I've been making in the background so far...

Several stories on DeviantArt have been fixed, that errant paragraph spacing is dealt with (plenty more to go, through...).

Tapas has fully updated comic pages, including the new title for Remembering Ariel (now Behind the Veil: Remembering Ariel). With covers still needed for the stories, this is all I can do for now.

And... Oh yeah! I joined ComicFury! And I must say, ComicFury may become the main place for everything! How so? The site has many more options than I ever imagined, allowing me new pages for things such as character profiles and even the novel stories!

It's that latter part that really seals the deal here. If I have a single place for stories and comics, that fits my overall needs! Sure, the site is focused on Behind the Veil (so no Stories of Embra), but Behind the Veil makes up the bulk of my work, so...

If you wish to see how it's shaping up, visit the site here:

Maybe you've seen it already? I never hid it from view on ComicFury, so it's been publicly available since I started it on January 9th. However, there's a lot of work still left to do if the Novels page is any indicator. (Working on these is also helping push the DeviantArt and pixiv updates forward too.)

I still have plenty on my plate, so we'll see what everything looks like in the weeks to come!

[crystalseadragon44]

Truly, advice to live by. I try to live by it, and I feel pretty good, considering all of my other issues.

Spend your time one the positive, rather than the negative. It does wonders!

[crystalseadragon44]

Going Forward: Early 2025 Plans

Alright, now that we have the last update of 2024 out of the way, let's focus on the near-term...

For one, I have to acknowledge that things could get dicey for me depending on what happens in the next few months. Know that, no matter what, I will continue to work on Behind the Veil and my other stories in any capacity as I can. Even if I'm stuck not being able to post for some reason, I will keep working on it for the day I can.

(Yuck, I hate having to acknowledge that reality... With that out of the way...)

I'm still in rough shape for a backlog. December was a rough month for me, and I need to rethink my plans. As such... I need to slow down new content uploads for a time to really focus on getting some tasks completed.

For one, I need to create covers for all of my current stories for a change. This will allow me to get more content over to pixiv and Tapas. (pixiv is a pet peeve, Tapas is a requirement). Many need their first covers, and the ones that have them need new ones, having missed out on the font updates back in July.

Speaking of font updates, some of my Christmas gifts were prints of my work, which showcased a problem with the font I started using in July: it's too thin to print, getting garbled up when printing comic pages. I picked up a new one while I worked on a new project, one that fits my style well while also being nice and defined for printing purposes. In the last few days, I have been making the switch, not just in the comics but in the character profiles as well! This will take some time to update.

I also have another place to expand my operations: ComicFury. Many I follow use the site, liking its community and creative control. As options go, it's a place that might be beneficial to me for my wider work...

And of course, we have the stalled Shantae fanfic series. Yes, I still want to get in it, but progress has been almost nonexistent. I need to dedicate some time to get that story updated and back in working order... I WANT to finish it. Embra and her story is still important to me, even amid Behind the Veil.

So, here's the rundown: 1. Create new story covers for ALL stories. 2. Update fonts on existing comics, profiles, and stories with new fonts. 3. Update written stories, particularly The Stories of Embra. 4. Join and set up on ComicFury.

With that out of the way, I can start focusing on finishing other novel stories and maybe, just maybe, getting to the longer comics I've long planned for! I itch to start on the Heather's Hope and Crystal Sisters storylines this year, if I can! These will help fill in the gaps I've been leaving in the novels. If I can do this, I'll be happy!

Oh, and maybe releasing actual books to sell for Behind the Veil. I need an income, after all...

We will see what I can do... While I will be posting new covers as I make them and making updates where I need to... There will be limited new content for the next couple of months. I hope to get this work done by March, but I will keep you all updated.

Here's hoping 2025 will be bigger than ever!

[crystalseadragon44]

The Last Update of 2024 at last!

Phew, just in time...

A Confluence of Ariels took a ton more time than I anticipated. My gut was a problem a lot this last month, eating away at time I could use to write the story. Additionally, I had a handful of personal projects that needed finishing before Christmas, those taking priority. But it's done!

A Confluence of Ariels is yet another Kristal Cosmic crossover! This one is a massive, a near 18,000 word love letter to my characters and the stories both Cosmic Neely (@kristalcosmic) and I have been writing. While the focus is on my characters this time in the Behind the Veil world, stick around for a touching message from me (via Ariel Hope) at the end for my friend...

And like usual, I'm not going to leave it as just a written story...

Speaking of the connections, we wouldn't have had the "isekai transformation effect" the Valains have without the crossover! This comic - named by my close friend Ashley - focuses on the first time the Valains experience their transformations (this time into kitsunes) to the shock of our ancient kitsune hero, Frua. This is also the first visual depiction of the Hallow, in all of its strange, whimsical glory! (At least, where it's still lively...)

And is that a new font you see? Yes. The original font I first switched to was extremely thin, so much so that it printed poorly. I made the switch after I made this comic, but the new font could squeeze into the preexisting bubbles. (More on font issues and other plans shortly.)

I hope you enjoyed what I put forward in 2024, and I look forward to keep sharing my crazy, wonderful rainbow-colored stories with you all! I'll see you in 2025!

[crystalseadragon44]

This is a beautiful tie-in to a very beautiful moment in the movie. And I understand more than most right now how much this meant to you and why, my friends.

The sonic 3 movie had a line that was very important for us to hear.