About Castoff

After getting kidnapped and dragged halfway across the world, scaredy-cat Vector finds himself a long, long way from home. Now, with the help of a short-tempered bounty hunter, a happy-go-lucky cartographer, and many more unlikely friends, he has to try to make it home in one piece.

Castoff began in April 2015 and updates every Monday and Friday. The comic is rated PG-13 for language, violence, and blood.

The following story synopsis contains SPOILERS for the comic's story! Read on with care...

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Chapter 1 - The Mage

Vector Jacobs has spent his life living in fear of the outside world. That is, until the bounty hunter Arianna walks into the bookshop he calls home. Shocked that she isn’t afraid of him, Vector thinks he might be making a friend- until she accuses him of being a wanted criminal and kidnaps him.

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Chapter 2 - The Spark

After arriving at the capitol, Arianna gives Vector to the guard, but starts to regret her actions when she finds out that he’ll be put to death. Vector, being dragged away and beaten by guards, suddenly begins glowing with a powerful, magical light. Arianna tries to calm Vector down, only to get caught in the blast when his powers reach their peak. In a flash of light, the two are whisked away from the castle, and wake up in an unfamiliar forest. Vector tries to run away, but quickly realizes how dangerous the woods can be. Seeing no other options, he decides to stick with Arianna for the time being.

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Chapter 3 - The Woods

As night falls, the duo makes their way through the forest. Arianna, feeling guilty for her actions toward Vector, helps patch up his wounds, gives him her cloak, and carries him on her back as they walk. They discover an inn and take shelter for the night. After Arianna asks for directions, the innkeeper suggests the duo speak to one of their regulars the next day to help them figure out how to get home.

Back in the capital, Zera, the captain of the royal guard, has returned from a diplomacy trip. His assistant, Liam, fills him in on the day's occurrences- and finds out that Zera not only knew Arianna, but that the person called Arianna Marcel actually died 15 years ago.

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Chapter 4 - The Inn

The next morning, Vector and Arianna sit down for breakfast and talk things through. Arianna reveals that she used Vector as a distraction so she could enter the capitol and find something that was stolen. She intends to go back to the capital and finish the job, but offers to pay for a bodyguard to take Vector home. However, Vector asks Arianna to do the job instead, noting that anyone she hired would likely be afraid of him. After some convincing, Arianna agrees. Shortly after, a young man called Frankie arrives. He introduces himself as a cartographer, and offers to help lead Vector and Arianna back to the capitol. The trio sets off for Alverane.

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Chapter 5 - The Mapmaker

At the capital, Zera oversees the production of Vector and Arianna’s wanted posters. His subordinates Sonja and Terran question him, asking why he’s so upset by Arianna’s sudden appearance. Zera believes that Arianna is an imposter, and wants to find and question her. General Brisse, leader of the guard and the queen’s right hand, questions Zera about the posters he’s circulating. He is skeptical at first, but allows Zera to continue his search- and reveals that Zera and Arianna share the same last name.

Meanwhile, Vector, Arianna, and Frankie have begun their journey proper. However, it quickly becomes clear that Frankie isn’t quite what he seems. When the trio finds a small creek, Frankie refuses to cross, and Arianna's annoyed attempt to force him across lead to both of them falling in. Frankie, now drenched, urges the duo to run before suddenly becoming violent and attacking them. Arianna fights back, and when the fight is finished, Frankie re-awakens, back to his normal self. He reveals that he’s actually a machine with a rogue self-defense mechanism that activates if he touches water. Arianna, angry at his deception, tells him to leave. But Vector pleads Frankie’s case, saying that Frankie should be allowed to stay. After some convincing, Arianna grudgingly agrees, and the trio stays together, for now.

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Chapter 6 - The Mountain Pass

Back in the capital, Sonja, Terran, and Liam are frustrated by Zera's secrecy, and decide to try and gather more information.

Vector, Arianna, and Frankie begin their trip through the mountain pass, but travel begins to take a toll on Vector. While deciding their next move, a man with a cart offers to help the trio through the pass. Shortly after, the cart is attacked by a trio of elves who have a grudge against the driver. The party tries to fight the elves off, but the cart is destroyed, and Arianna and Frankie are both knocked into the canyon. Terrified and alone, Vector begins to hear a strange voice in his head, urging him to run. Before he can escape, the elves corner him, but they fall victim to his fear aura and flee. The trio regroups, and finds a place to rest.

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Chapter 7 - The Wave

After a few more days of traveling, the trio arrives at Whitecliff, a large port city with a ferry that will take them across the Alverian channel. However, they quickly find that the Alverian royal guard is patrolling the city, searching for Vector and Arianna. Frankie learns that the duo is wanted, but chooses to trust them, believing that they aren’t criminals like their wanted posters make them out to be. Deciding that taking the ferry is too big of a risk, the trio instead steal a small sailboat, and begin to make their way across the channel, the guard in hot pursuit. Arianna is able to use magic to outspeed the guard’s ship, but they hit a large wave and Vector is knocked overboard. While Arianna attempts to rescue him, the guard catches up and destroys their boat. Unable to swim and sinking quickly, Vector struggles to stay awake, but just before he falls unconscious, his magic activates once again, and the trio disappears.

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Chapter 8 - The Island

Vector wakes up alone on the beach, with Arianna and Frankie nowhere to be seen. A woman named Marina finds him and offers him aid. Just as Marina offers to help search for his friends, the two of them find Arianna and Frankie caught in a trap set by Marina’s friend and roommate, Rori. Vector helps his friends out of the trap, and Marina invites them to dinner to apologize for Rori’s behavior. As a heavy storm rolls in, Marina offers to let the trio stay overnight, promising to take them to their next destination by boat in the morning. Although Arianna is hesitant at first, the trio takes her up on her offer.

Meanwhile, word reaches Zera that Vector and Arianna have been sighted in Whitecliff, and he readies himself to make his next move.

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Chapter 9 - The Traitor

Back in the capital, Terran, Sonja, and Liam continue their search for information on Arianna, and Zera’s connection to her. While rummaging through his personal file, they discover part of an old document claiming that someone with Zera’s last name was executed for high treason 15 years prior.

Back on the island, Arianna questions Vector about his teleporting, but Vector insists he still doesn’t understand how or why it happens. Vector is curious about Arianna’s motivations for returning to the capital, and Arianna reveals that her brother, a former royal guard member, was wrongly executed several years ago after being accused of treason.

Marina unexpectedly runs into a group of Alverian soldiers. They ask if she has seen anyone suspicious on the island, and eventually pressure Vector and Arianna’s location out of her. The soldiers are then able to sneak up on and capture Vector, Arianna, and Frankie. Rori attacks the lead guard when they mention taking Marina into custody for sheltering fugitives. While the guards are distracted, Vector, Arianna, and Frankie are able to escape and make a run for it. But in the scuffle that follows, Vector teleports again, taking Frankie, Rori, and one of the guards with him, leaving Arianna and Marina behind.

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Chapter 10 - The Signal

After Vector, Frankie, and Rori vanish, Arianna attempts to track them down- however, her tracking spell repeatedly malfunctions. When she is finally able to trace them, she discovers that the group has been teleported to Goldview. After some arguing, she and Marina form an unsteady alliance, and make their way to the city together.

Meanwhile, Vector and company awaken and find themselves in the center of the bustling metropolis of Goldview. In their attempts to reach the docks and make their way back to Marina’s island, the trio is constantly hounded by the guards swarming the city. Desperate, the trio concocts a plan, and uses fireworks to trick the guards into thinking they’ve teleported out of the city. While the trio catches their breath, Arianna and Marina finally catch up to them, and the group is reunited at last.

After leaving the city, the group decides what to do next. Rori and Marina decide to make their way east, and ask to accompany the trio, citing that they’ll be able to help in exchange for an escort to the capital. Arianna initially refuses, but is swayed by the others convincing her that they would be useful to have around. And so, the trio becomes a quintet.

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To be continued...