Beyond the Western Deep

Oh those Felis locks! Sounds like Asha’s had some trouble with them in the past. The history of locks and lock complexity was a fun little side-step in writing this bit — while it doesn’t necessarily have a direct impact on the storyline, it was interesting to see just how creative older locking systems could be. Older locks (and by old I mean Egypt circa 4,000 years ago!) were made entirely of wood with a series of thin pins acting as tumblers and a large toothbrush-looking key.

It wasn’t really until the late 18th century that the modern lock came into being, courtesy of inventor Robert Barron (who invented the double-acting lever tumbler lock) and Abraham Stansbury in the early 19th century (who invented the double-acting pin tumbler lock).

In the Four Kingdoms, the Felis and Vulpin have a kind of arms race on lock technology — as they do in many different areas of technological advancement. In a world where surveillance and asset protection is limited to how many guards you can post to watch your stuff, a good lock can be the difference between success and poverty. The Felis, of course, seem to be winning the arms race when it comes to complex lock technology. To keep up with their brilliance, an up-and-coming thief would need the latest set of lockpicks (probably designed by the Felis locksmiths who designed the locks in the first place, in case anyone lost their keys). Sometimes it takes more than skill — you need the right tools for the job!

This week, I wanted to share a very fun piece of art from regular guest art contributor Jerijune featuring our main Lutren cast members (Dakkan, Kenosh, and Beck) engaged in an act of pure tomfoolery.

You see, you might remember that quite some time ago, when Sherlock started to gain popularity, a number of internet users realized that juxtaposing Benedict Cumberbatch’s face alongside various otters reveals startlingly similar expressions! Some of them were nigh-indistinguishable from each other. It ultimately turned into a skit on the Graham Norton Show that wound up with Cumberbatch getting a kiss from Johnny Depp. It was… well… it happened, is what I’m saying. This is a real thing that happened. And now Jerijune has taken this meme one delightfully silly step further: Our Lutren cast members imitating Benedict Cumberbatch imitating otters.

It’s like an M.C. Escher painting of sorts: The Perfect Eternal Lutren. I love it, Jerijune! Don’t let my snark fool you — I was laughing out loud at most of these :) Thank you so much for posting this up, and for giving us all a good laugh!