OCs: The Wardens

Everyone knows about The Wardens now. The final enforcers of The Main Hall's discipline. But how much do you really know about them?

Allow me to enlighten you...

Also known by the Subs and Slaves as "The Gray Robes" they hold in line the whole of The Mews with their very different approaches. It has been recorded how once, when asked about it, Lord Black said about their grey robes "Grey makes them inconspicuous. They can see without being seen." But then again, when asked some other time he said "Grey makes them stand out among the black. Everyone must know when they're around." So good luck trying to figure that one out.

They have jurisdiction over The Main Hall as one, and yet it's easier to see Warden Aidan around the west hall, were male Subs and Slaves are hosted more exclusively as you move towards the end of the hall. Pretty much the same goes for Warden Morrigan with the east hall around the girls. And Warden Gallen usually can be seen watching the north and south halls, where the male/female/everything-else ratio is pretty close to "anything goes". More than one sub has learned the hard way those frontiers aren't set in stone and they're more of a difuse guideline than anything else. The word of any of the three Wardens holds the same power anywhere in The Mews. And that power is absolute and could only be overridden by Lord Black's word. Which, by the way, has never happened.

So let's take a closer look at them. Don't stare tho... You don't wanna stir their anger. ^^

Warden Aidan (He/Them)

The cold and distant small ember runs The West Hall.

"Warden Aidan.

Good things, small packages.

The ice-cold warden would usually keep his indifference as he chastises the unruly subs with his heavy custom paddle.

(Don't mention about his height when in earshot tho...)"

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It takes a while to understand the way Warden Aidan works. His usual policy is to watch and not intervene unless necessary. He might look apathetic but the truth lies far from it. If one were to watch him carefully they would understand his demeanour is always precise, efficient. Always watchful, always alert.

And yet he usually stands in the background. Letting things unravel as they should. Minor offences would be let for The Crows to deal with. Small missdemeanours will be overlooked. Boys will be boys and a tad of rough housing is to be expected after all...

Now, come the time he has to intervene, somehow it only takes him a couple strides to be in the precise place to get hold of the offender. He won't scold them, he won't shout or give lectures. Before they had time to register what's happening the Sub/Slave will be pinned down and feeling the heavy blows of his paddle. And heavy is the right word, for anyone who has felt the kiss of his paddle would confirm it must be heavier than it looks, having to be weighted somehow. If further punishment is required the sentence will be called swiftly and efficiently to be carried by The Crows. Subs have a game in which they compete to see if anyone is able to convey the same Warden Aidan did using less words... And all of it would happen and you would have to be extremely attentive to notice the slightest shift in his frown.

When the paddling has been done and yet further action is required, he rarely favours heavily sexual punishments, leaning for more humiliating and embarrassing predicaments. For the more athletic Subs and Slaves the punishment might lean towards tests of stamina or physical prowess.

If he ever gets Subs or Slaves to service him no one seems to know. Actually more than one sub (specially those with a fancy for a bit of pain) looks the Warden with sweet eyes, and yet none had got their interests reciprocated. To the point that some Subs actually try to get heavier punishments in order to see if they get the Warden to lose the robe for a while...

At any rate, those who actually know the ex-gladiator are aware that he acts the way he does because he isn't moved by a sense of self gratification. He's actually motivated by an intense sense of duty, as if he was resolved to hand back something that was given to him.

- Artist's Notes:

When working on Aidan I had in mind I wanted a stern looking yet somehow small character. I like the idea of that contrast and it's a common ocurrence in my works (those who follow me from a long time will know). I also wanted his physical prowess as an ex-gladiator to show, so he had to be tight-packed.

Here, have some early concepts for him:

About the hair, I went for this kind of style at first, I still think it would suit him, but I knew what Gallen's general hairstyles would usually be quite similar so I ended up discarding the idea. But the change in style is what led to me thinking about him having fire red hair. Which I ended up liking even more than the original idea. ^^

About the robe. I wanted it to show his physique while still being long enough for it to somehow convey his importance in The Mirror. So I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted for it since the begining. Executing it into a proper pic was harder than I anticipated tho. But overall I'm glad with the final result.

Warden Morrigan (She/Her)

The stern keeper of the rules is in charge of The East Hall.

"Warden Morrigan. She's the stern unrelenting enforcer of the laws at The Mews. No deviation of the rules will remain unpunished, no misdemeanour shall go free. And I mean free as in she will literally get any transgressor into the strictest bondage you can imagine."

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Warden Morrigan has been described as "the storm after the calm" for her particular way of running things. She's usually stern, snappy and harsh in her regular interactions. Whatever you're selling, she's having none of it.

Now come the time she finds an offence going on (and it's hard to find anyone more vigilant than she is) that's were the actual huntress surfaces. Her commanding voice cracking like a thunder above The Mews' usual bustle (word says she once silenced the whole east hall with a single shout), her towering figure looming your way one impossibly long stride at a time, the tap of her heels like the sound of a clock counting down... And her eyes fixated on her prey making you feel there's no wall thick enough you could hide behind. For those who aren't on her way is quite amusing to see how Subs and Slaves regress to some kind of primal state as they get paralysed with fear or, worse... Their flee instinct kicks in.

Many would assume fleeing from a Warden would make them raging mad, but if you were to look closely at Morrigan when a Sub's instincts get the best of them and run, you would notice how she takes a couple seconds to react. Just slightly but definitely too long. You would also notice how, in that brief moment, she would close her eyes, take a breath, her lips would show the faintest hint of a grin... And when she opens here eyes back there's something dangerous in them, something wild. She's fixated like a bird of prey. She's gleaming in anticipation...She's hunting. And she's loving it.

But if you think that giving her that moment of sheer joy would grant the offender any leniency you would be wrong. Dangerously wrong. For there's just one mood you would like less to see her in than mad, and that's riled up.

At any rate, whenever an infractor is caught in any way or capacity, the first step the Warden would take will always be to immobilize the subject. Thoroughly.

A few swats of her sword like paddle will serve to check the subject has been reduced to a drooling mess who can only wiggle their toes as they moan in protest through their gag.

For The Huntress there's no offence too small, no fault to be overlooked. If she spots you committing any misdeed you're in for it. And she won't hesitate on turning the culprits into a living (yet not very mobile) example for everyone to see, and it's not unusual to step into her office to realize all the furniture: coffee table, coat hanger... even her chair and footrest, are offenders serving their time. If the faintest hint of moaning coming from behind what must be some seriously effective gags come from overstimulation or absolute lack of it you will have to wait to ask the prisoner once they served their time.

Be as it may, Warden Morrigan is the one making sure the rules are enforced in The Main Hall. Keeper of The Mirror's order. She might be easy to irate and harsh on her punishments, but she's also one of the pillars in which The Mews rest.

- Artist's Notes:

I had a very specific idea of how I wanted Morrigan to look from the very beginning. Actually her looks is based in an ancient pic I did for LordDragonMaster in like 3000 bc which pretty much laid the ide idea for what would become The Black Mirror general aesthetics.

(You can tell this is were the design for Circ's robe came from BTW... XD)

Warden Gallen (They/Them)

The gentle and smooth caretaker keeps tabs of everything that goes on at The North and The South Halls.

"And thus comes the velvet glove of The Wardens: Warden Gallen. Subs line up to try and get a word of praise by them, and many would take the sting of Aidan's paddle before that of failing the gentle Warden. Some make the mistake of taking their gentleness for softness... Once."

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Everyone loves Warden Gallen. It may be cause they're always composed in their speech. It may be cause they're always gentle and kind with everyone. It may be for the way they have to see the best in every person and, most of all, to show that back at them. It's a dangerous thing to see your best self.

To get a better look at the gentle Warden ways it's better if we follow them as they solve an incident:

*--Let's say Warden Gallen has found The Crows had caught a Sub in the midst of tampering with the chastity cage of a slave, who was locked in The Stocks, in order to tease him, when said Slave's regime forces him to be permanently in chastity unless his Master says otherwise.

That's a naughty naughty sub. The Warden's disappointment is so intense the Sub can't look them in the eye. He starts muttering how sorry he is about the whole thing while Gallen starts wandering with him through the halls. They have an amicable chat in which The Warden explains how such misdeeds from an usually nice Sub hurt them deeply, for they trusted in the Sub's judgement not to commit such an awful offence. Specially with someone else's Slave. He would have to think hard on his behaviour and the consequences of his acts.

It's a soothing walk in which the words of The Warden sink in the culprit.

They go inside one of the blocks as the contrite Sub deeply apologizes. "I will never do it again. I swear!"

The Warden leans in to kiss him in the forehead and holding his face in their hand with the friendliest smile they say: "Oh. I know you won't." The silky voice soothes the Sub's conscience but something else catches his attention as he gets hold of his surroundings. They're in a locker room with as much as 20 of Lady Fenris' stallions that were doing a show run at the track. Huge muscular men in different states of nakedness all looking down at the two smaller figures. The Sub turns in panic to the gentle Warden who's looking at him with a gleaming smile and says: "I'm pretty confident you'll never ever do anything like this again."

As the grey robe is leaving the room the Sub is petrified while the shadows of the hulklings start surrounding him.

Another lesson well learned. ^^--*

Many a new guest asks why is it that Warden Gallen doesn't have a paddle as their counterparts. The answer is always the same: "Cause they don't need it."

The silk glove for the iron fist that are The Wardens, Gallen's discipline relies on the moral authority of someone who has shown a genuine interest in those they have to check on. They know the names of every single guest at The Main Hall and would follow their training with endearing enthusiasm, never losing their composure no matter how bad a Sub or a Slave had messed up.

It's well known the case of a group of Subs who bet on who would make The Warden lose their cool. They ended up confessing and turning themselves for punishing. Which they completed gladly as Gallen told them how proud they were for their honesty.

The Gentle Warden has a way of getting under one's skin with their kind and affective ways that some have compared to hypnotism or even possession. And they also have the capability to do so while looking freaking fabulous!

Gallen's composure sometimes contrast with the flashiness of their many different styles and makeups. But that speaks of their confidence in their talent to solve any conflict without resorting to physical means. You can't pull certain looks while having to run after some pesky Sub after all. Things will be Ok and the Warden knows it. And they let it show through their stunning looks.

It’s to them the Subs go to when they have an issue or a conflict that doesn't require the... straight forward approach of the other Wardens.

It's actually a common saying among Subs and Slaves at The Mews: "When in doubt, ask Warden Gallen."

- Artist's notes:

I was certain of how I wanted The Gentle Warden to look like from the very begining. I was aiming for that certain tight stringy look, inspired by the figure of Nina Simone. The tricky part was always to take away any hints of sexual traits. I didn't want to go the easy way with a feminine figure just with a bulge or with small boobs. I wanted to stay away from the idea that NB equals Futa when it comes to looks. I knew from the get go that would be hard to pull and I'm not sure I succeeded at that, but I did my best with it. I also tried to convey the idea of their robe being tight and latexy on the neck and shoulders and getting loose and more cloth like at chest level and bellow. Still not sure I nailed that. But overall I'm kindda glad how they turned out and I love this character to bits. ^^

The pose was chosen to convey confidence in an open and welcoming way. Hardly any original but I wanted it to push the character's personality as best as possible.

About the Sigils:

The sigils for the Wardens are hardly any subtle recall to their genders identity.

When I have to think of a sigil for any character my priority is always to make it the most iconic yet keeping it as simple as possible. Seeing as The Wardens are the only instance of The Black Mirror where gender plays a role (What with the halls arranged so any sexuality might have a spot inside The Mews for people to be able to imagine their own antics there.) I decided to use that as a motive for the icons.

Took me a while and more than a couple iterations to avoid the most obvious parallelisms with the usual gender symbols.

A final word:

The Wardens are the final enforcers of the rules at The Main Hall. But their actual role involves a lot more. They must ensure eveyrthing is running smoothly to secure the guests are getting the most intense experience from their stay at The Mirror.

Despite what it might look like, everything that happens inside The Main Hall is perfectly consensual. Before going in everyone has consented to this things to happen and to this things to be done to them. Even if they protest at the at a particular instance, they actually want things to be like that. It's what they yearn for. Subs and Slaves want to be dominated and abused. So the main responsibility of The Wardens is that The Mews provide the experience those inside of it are looking for, enforcing the regimes of every single Sub and Slaves, and that includes their limits, but also includes being used and punished, for that's what they are in The Black Mirror for.

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I'm sorry this update took so long to be up. It took a lot of work to put it all together and I'm not in the best working conditions ATM. I really hope you enjoy this at least half as much as I enjoyed creating it for you.

So, as always, thank you all for your patience and for your support!