Gilded Shadows

Gilded Shadows is Steamberry Studio's second project. It has officially released as of May 13, 2022, with the beginning six love interests. Three additional love interests backed via the Kickstarter campaign will be written and released as individual updates as they are completed.

## The Premise

Arcalis is a planet with a complex history.

Centuries ago, when humans arrived, they found it abandoned. The only remnants of its previous society were massive bio-domes dotted on the surface and designed as protection from the hostile climate.

With one side of the world bathed in eternal day and the other cloaked in frigid night, the bio-domes are oases where people live sheltered from the scorching winds and storms. But whether in the bright, clean cities of the day side of the planet, or the poor and crime-ridden cities of the night side, life is never simple nor peace easy to come by.

When a fateful encounter exposes Morgan Leone, a young woman who has long hid her ESP, as a queen ranked Esper, she finds herself on the run from multiple factions eager to attain her abilities. Endgame, the planetary defense organization; Crimson, a notorious crime syndicate from Delphine; and even the shadowy group only known as "the Host" - each group sends operatives to retrieve her.

Now, with several paths open to her, she must choose her allies carefully. Between light and shadow lies grey twilight where the lines between good and evil are blurred. And in a world where the only constants are the endless day and night that divide the planet, Morgan learns those who can't adapt...also can't survive.

## The Main Character

### Morgan Leone

Age: 34.5 (23 Earth years)

Rank: Unknown

Faction: None

###### Overview:

Optimistic and energetic most of the time, she is an inquisitive young woman who is genuinely curious about the world around her.

Morgan does not initially cope well with things not going as planned, and can either stubbornly insist on doing things her way, or else adapt to the situation and try to go with the flow.

She has lived for most of her life in one of the wealthiest cities on the planet, but has long focused her dreams on leaving Arcalis to explore other parts of the solar system.

## The Love Interests

### Ari Vaughn

Age: 36 (24 Earth years)

Rank: Knight

Faction: Endgame

###### Overview:

Stoic, calm, and chivalrous, Ari is known for being impassive and difficult to read. He keeps his feelings to himself and rarely expresses strong emotions.

More of a listener than a talker, it is sometimes difficult to know what is going on behind his usually serious expression.

He has been a part of endgame since his very early childhood, having been taken in by them at a far earlier age than most of the organization's other members.

### Caissa Fianchetto

Age: 34.5 (23 Earth years)

Rank: King

Faction: Crimson

###### Overview:

As the son of Crimson's leader, Caissa is unable to show any signs of weakness whether in the form of soft emotion or lack of conviction.

Some believe him to be as brutally ruthless as his father, Keres, while other allies of the cutthroat group see him as a weaker and more inferior heir to the family than his brother Deimos would have been.

He keeps his opinions and plans close, and not many people know what he's thinking or how he feels about various goings on within the organization.

### Caleb Zheng

Age: 37.5 (25 Earth years)

Rank: Rook

Faction: Endgame

###### Overview:

Caleb is an intense individual that often comes across as brusque or even outright rude. Even so, he is serious about his work and will willingly throw himself into harm's way to protect others.

Having been at the organization a long time, Caleb has seen some of the worst Arcalis has to offer. He's lost many friends along the way - and it's possible his thorny demeanor is just a way to keep others distant so he doesn't have to care about more people he may one day lose.

### Jack Viscer

Age: 37.5 (25 Earth years)

Rank: Rook

Faction: Crimson

###### Overview:

Jack is a smooth-talking and outgoing flirt who is not afraid to be upfront about what (and who) he wants. He has a tendency to be reckless, a trait that has got him into trouble on more than one occasion.

Jack was raised by his sister on the streets of Delphine's worst slums. The two were taken into Endgame when he was a child, but he left when he was a young adult.

He currently works as a part of Crimson and is one of Caissa Fianchetto's closest allies and friends.

### Magnus Ulrich

Age: 42 (28 Earth years)

Rank: King

Faction: Endgame

###### Overview:

Forgetful and teasing, Magnus is the public face of Endgame and the de facto commander of its Esper force. Endgame's council - the true leaders of the group - view him as little more than a figurehead.

Born into Endgame, he was groomed for a leadership position from a young age.

As Endgame's head, he's seen and lost many important things. He seems to cope with it, but sometimes reveals a darker, more ruthless side to his personality that causes those close to him to worry for his future.

### Lance Basileus

Age: 40-42 (27-28 Earth years)

Rank: Unknown

Faction: Unknown

###### Overview:

A gentle man who occasionally struggles to remember what it is to be human. He has an odd sort of wisdom and insight that, at times, makes him seem far older than he appears.

He lives alone in the Wastes, tending the plants in his greenhouse. His only other human contact is with the Nomos, who occasionally stop by his small settlement to trade and share news with him.

Even so, he seems to be aware of much of what's happening on the rest of the planet, despite his otherwise solitary existence.

### Reuben Kelner

Age: 43.5 (29 Earth years)

Rank: Pseudo-Esper

Faction: UTPOL

###### Overview:

Friendly and earnest, Reuben is a dutiful member of UTPOL, an international police organization.

Though unlikely to develop psi-abilities, being a Pseudo-Esper gave Reuben an early interest in Espers. He believes they need some regulation, but has never agreed with the way Endgame handles them.

Not particularly fond of Endgame, Reuben has had run-ins with its agents during the course of his work - which often involves investigating Esper related crimes.

### Yuu Sasaki

Age: 43.5 (29 Earth years)

Rank: Rook

Faction: Endgame

###### Overview:

Though well known for his eccentric behavior as the head of Endgame's medical division, Yuu remains popular and well-liked among his peers.

Yuu was "born" on New Terra, but was relocated to the surface and inducted into Endgame as a young teen where he settled in quickly.

Raised in the organization, he eventually became a bright, friendly child with insatiable curiosity. He went into medicine and, despite his young age, rose to the top position in the medical division.

### Quill

Age: 46.5 (31 Earth years)

Rank: None

Faction: Neo Humans

###### Overview:

Quill is a quiet man who is one of the central committee members of Nysa. He first moved into the Day Territories some fifteen years prior, after traversing the Trinity Desert.

His view on humans ranges from frustration to exasperation to quiet indifference much of the time. He finds some of their behaviors equal parts baffling and entertaining.

Though he sits on the central committee, he spends much of each day working as a production editor for Brittia Publishing. He also writes android centric romance novels on the side.

## Where to Try and Buy

### Itch.io

$29.99

Windows and Mac versions available.

### Steam

$29.99

Steam achievements are enabled.