Born hundreds of years ago, before the world fell into madness, Noir and Alighieri were hated and feared for their power. Yet even in the midst of an apocalypse, there are always those who covet power, and are insane enough to sacrifice what little life remains to get it.
A trap was set, and the brothers agreed to shepherd someone across the nightmarish wilds. They were burned alive.
Alighieri they plundered and butchered for his power, carving talismans of his blood and bone before incinerating the rest into true death.
However, death's grasp on the world is tenuous and Noir endured, leaving him alone and going mad in a world where the night turns humans into monsters, and the dregs of civilization live in the thrall of deific Tyrants. But he knows who killed his brother, and they will realize he is every bit as cruel as they are.
Noir 's hunt brings him to the steam-choked edifices of the prison-city Umbras, domain of the Tyrant Lock-And-Key. Only, the Tyrant has disappeared, leaving the city teetering on the edge of anarchy and a power vacuum that will destroy it.