Ash has blotted the sun for months.Despair and violence have taken root across the continent of Linnea. People are searching for answers- some have turned to ancient superstitions, others to the seductive teachings of strange new cults. However, 20-year-old Arithel isn't too concerned - she carves out a comfortable but lonely existence as a tax collector's scribe, trying to forget the reckless decisions that led to a self-imposed exile from her village...