Colors yield power.

The blizzard rises day after day in the Frostbanks, forcing numbing snow and deadly winds onto the land and its people. In defiance to nature itself, the city of Oglios stands amidst the storm and even thrives thanks to the Suntower's protection, an artifact of old now relegated to simple fixture, its secrets fiercely guarded by the Scorched Circle, whose members regulate the flow of Returned, husks of the departed, in and out of the city.

Part of the larger nation of Gonphar, Oglios has obligations to respect if it wants to keep its relative independence, and the city's elite busies itself to fulfill their orders, supplying Gonphar as a whole with cheap labor in the ways of countless Returned. Meanwhile, the specter of war rears its dreadful head from across the mountains as border tensions with the Ehodan Kingdoms increase. Yet most ignore the threat, having more pressing concerns right within Oglios where warmth is limited, and free space is at a premium.

Three individuals converge during these trying times, lost in their personal struggles.

The Echo, an outsider in several degrees, returns to a family still mourning their mother's passing to uncover her wrongdoings. He would fulfill a promise, and perhaps find himself in the process, all the while having to conceal who and what he is.
The Dutiful reaches into criminal matters by authority of the Office of Inquiries. Held by guilt over her choices, she struggles to make it day-by-day, turning to Nostalgia for release. A thirst for vengeance fuels her will and keeps her going towards the ultimate goal.
The Collector, a mortician by trade, dwells in opposite circles. Pulled by decades old ties to the Circle, he stays loyal to the city in his own way by moving through the underworld in order to uproot corruption.

───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

This is a work in progress, obviously. I want this to be a fully fleshed out novel eventually. It has a lot of moving pieces and things I'm still figuring out which is mostly still in my mind but I still wanted to put it out there, and hopefully get some feedback! Some chapters will very likely end up getting scrapped from the final product as I dig further into the story, and I will also go back and revisit older chapters to fix grammar, continuity errors, etc.

Story on hold as of now (January 2022)