Sea Shudders, Skies Crack

The novel opens with a mariner's perspective as the sea itself trembles and the sky darkens, heralding the arrival of something otherworldly. A monstrous, storm-wreathed mass appears, destroying the ship and foreshadowing the incursion of a floating city—Umbriel—into the world of Tamriel. This event signals the return of threats thought banished after the Oblivion Crisis, setting the stage for the chaos to come.

Visions and Warnings

Sul, a Dunmer haunted by his past, wakes from a vision sent by the Daedric Prince Azura. He senses Oblivion's taint and suspects his old nemesis, Vuhon, is behind the new threat. Sul's dreams connect him to the disaster at sea and to a young man, Attrebus, hinting at intertwined destinies. Driven by guilt and a need for retribution, Sul sets out to find the source of the disturbance.

Lilmoth's Restless Shadows

In the decaying city of Lilmoth, Annaïg, a restless and brilliant young woman, and her Argonian friend, Mere-Glim, yearn for excitement. Their investigation into local disappearances leads them into the city's underbelly, where they stumble upon a skooma smuggling ring rather than the supernatural threat Annaïg hoped for. Their friendship and curiosity, however, draw them into far greater dangers.

Annaïg and Glim's Curiosity

Annaïg's disappointment at not finding a were-crocodile is short-lived as rumors of a floating city—Umbriel—reach Lilmoth. The city's Hist tree, usually a source of guidance for Argonians, begins acting strangely, and Annaïg's father, fearing for her safety, arranges her forced departure. Glim, loyal to Annaïg, attempts a rescue, but both are swept up in events beyond their control.

Skooma, Smugglers, and Escape

Annaïg is kidnapped and put on a ship bound for safety, but Glim rescues her in a harrowing underwater escape. Their flight through the dangerous marshes and mangroves of Black Marsh brings them face-to-face with the approaching Umbriel, a city that floats above the land, leaving death and undeath in its wake.

The Floating City Approaches

From a high vantage, Annaïg and Glim witness Umbriel's descent. The city's tendrils harvest souls, and the dead rise as part of an unstoppable army. The Hist tree's betrayal becomes clear: it has allied with Umbriel, sacrificing the "tainted" Argonians and Imperials. Annaïg and Glim, desperate to help, are swept up into the city itself by Annaïg's experimental flying potion.

The Tree's Betrayal

Glim, cut off from the Hist's guidance, realizes the city tree has turned against its own people, seeking to purge all Imperial influence. The city's invasion is not just physical but spiritual, as the roots of Black Marsh's identity are twisted to serve Umbriel's hunger.

Flight, Capture, and Rescue

Inside Umbriel, Annaïg and Glim are quickly captured and forced into the city's bizarre hierarchy. Annaïg is pressed into service in the kitchens, where souls are distilled into food and power. Glim, valued for his aquatic abilities, is sent to the sump, the city's underworld, where the cycle of death and rebirth is mechanized.

The Island of Death

Annaïg learns that Umbriel is a self-contained ecosystem, feeding on souls to sustain itself. The city is ruled by powerful, inhuman chefs and lords, and its denizens are born from the sump, not from parents. Annaïg's alchemical skills make her valuable, but also a target for intrigue and betrayal.

Umbriel's Horrors Revealed

Annaïg is forced to innovate in the kitchens, creating new dishes from the essence of souls. She witnesses the city's brutal politics, where failure means death. Glim discovers the ingenium, the engine that powers Umbriel, and the horrifying truth that souls are its fuel. Both plot escape, hoping to warn the outside world.

Kitchens of Souls

Annaïg's talents bring her to the attention of Toel, a master chef. She is forced to choose between ambition and loyalty, as her assistant Slyr's envy turns deadly. Annaïg's refusal to betray her friend marks her as different from the city's ruthless denizens, but also isolates her.

Attrebus: Hero or Pawn?

Attrebus Mede, the crown prince, is drawn into the crisis by Annaïg's magical message. He sets out with his elite guard, only to be betrayed and ambushed. His illusions of heroism are shattered as he learns his reputation is a carefully constructed lie, and his companions are slaughtered.

Sul's Haunted Past

Sul, driven by loss and guilt, joins Attrebus. He reveals his history: once a servant of Azura, he was cast into Oblivion during the disaster that destroyed Morrowind. His nemesis, Vuhon, is now the master of Umbriel. Sul's knowledge of Oblivion and the ingenium is crucial, but his motives are deeply personal.

Betrayal and Ambush

Attrebus is betrayed by his own guard, sold into captivity, and only escapes through Sul's intervention. Their journey takes them through hostile lands, where they are aided by Khajiit clans and forced to confront the realities of war, politics, and their own limitations.

The Sump and the Ingenium

In the sump, Glim learns the mechanics of Umbriel's cycle of death and rebirth. He becomes a reluctant leader among the oppressed skraws, who begin to dream of resistance. The ingenium's vulnerability is revealed: if the flow of souls is stopped, Umbriel will fall.

Resistance and Survival

Annaïg, reunited with her locket, contacts Attrebus and learns he is coming. She and Glim coordinate their escape, using her flying potion. Their attempt to leave Umbriel fails as they begin to dissolve, realizing they are now part of the city and cannot return to the world they left behind.

Confronting Vuhon

Reaching the ruins of Vivec, Attrebus and Sul confront Vuhon, who reveals his motives and the true nature of Umbriel. The city is a bubble of Oblivion, seeking to anchor itself in Tamriel by seizing the White-Gold Tower. Vuhon offers Attrebus a devil's bargain: help him and save lives, or resist and die.

No Way Home

Unable to escape, Annaïg and Glim return to Umbriel, determined to find a way to fight from within. Attrebus and Sul, cast out of Umbriel, are left to pursue the sword Umbra, the only weapon that might stop Vuhon. The story ends with all parties trapped by their choices, the fate of Tamriel hanging in the balance.

Characters

Annaïg Hoïnart

Annaïg is a young Breton woman whose intelligence, curiosity, and longing for adventure propel her into the heart of Umbriel's horrors. Her relationship with Glim is one of deep friendship and loyalty, and her refusal to betray her friends or lose her compassion sets her apart from the city's ruthless denizens. Annaïg's arc is one of forced maturity: she is repeatedly tested by betrayal, loss, and the seductive power of ambition, but ultimately chooses empathy over self-advancement. Her alchemical skills make her both a target and a hope for resistance.

Mere-Glim

Glim is an Argonian whose connection to the Hist is severed by Umbriel's influence. He is practical, cautious, and deeply loyal to Annaïg, often serving as her anchor. In the sump, Glim becomes a symbol of hope for the oppressed, inspiring thoughts of resistance. His journey is one of self-discovery, as he is forced to act beyond his comfort zone and confront the loss of his cultural identity.

Attrebus Mede

Attrebus is the crown prince of the Empire, raised on tales of heroism and insulated from reality. His journey strips away his illusions, exposing the manipulation behind his reputation and the fragility of his authority. Attrebus's arc is a painful coming-of-age, as he is forced to confront betrayal, failure, and the true cost of leadership. His relationship with Sul is fraught, but ultimately transformative.

Sul (Ezhmaar)

Sul is a Dunmer mage and former servant of Azura, scarred by the destruction of Morrowind and the loss of his lover, Ilzheven. His knowledge of Oblivion and the ingenium is vital, but his motives are deeply personal—he seeks vengeance against Vuhon, whom he blames for all he has lost. Sul is both mentor and cautionary figure for Attrebus, embodying the dangers of obsession and the cost of survival.

Vuhon

Once a respected mage, Vuhon is now the master of Umbriel, driven by a vision of perfection and a need to escape the Daedric Prince Clavicus Vile. His actions are monstrous—he sacrifices countless souls to sustain his city—but he is not a simple villain. Vuhon's motivations are rooted in loss, ambition, and a twisted sense of responsibility. His relationship with Sul is one of former friendship turned bitter enmity.

Slyr

Slyr is Annaïg's assistant in the kitchens, driven by envy and fear. Her willingness to betray and even attempt to murder Annaïg highlights the corrosive effects of Umbriel's culture. Slyr's arc is a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked ambition and the loss of self in the pursuit of power.

Toel

Toel is the head of one of Umbriel's great kitchens, a figure of both inspiration and terror. He recognizes Annaïg's talent and seeks to mold her in his image, offering her power at the cost of her compassion. Toel embodies the seductive nature of Umbriel's hierarchy and the moral compromises it demands.

Colin

Colin is a young inspector in the Penitus Oculatus, the Empire's secret police. His investigation into Attrebus's disappearance uncovers corruption at the heart of the Empire. Colin's arc is one of growing disillusionment and determination, as he risks everything to expose the truth.

Letine Arese

Letine is a palace official complicit in the plot against Attrebus. Her actions are motivated by self-preservation and ambition, and she serves as a reminder that the Empire's greatest threats may come from within.

The Hist Tree

The city tree of Lilmoth, once a source of wisdom and unity for the Argonians, becomes an agent of Umbriel, sacrificing its own people in a bid for purity. The Hist's betrayal is both a literal and symbolic rupture, representing the dangers of fanaticism and the loss of communal identity.

Plot Devices

The Floating City (Umbriel)

Umbriel is both setting and antagonist, a city from Oblivion that floats above Tamriel, harvesting souls and raising the dead as an unstoppable army. Its self-contained ecosystem, powered by the ingenium, is a metaphor for unchecked consumption and the dangers of isolation. Umbriel's movement across the land is inexorable, and its presence warps the very fabric of reality.

The Ingenium

The ingenium is the device that keeps Umbriel aloft and moving, fueled by the souls of the living. It is both a literal engine and a symbol of the costs of progress and ambition. The ingenium's vulnerability—its dependence on a constant supply of souls—offers the only hope for stopping Umbriel.

Dual Protagonists and Parallel Narratives

The novel employs parallel storylines, following Annaïg and Glim's struggle for survival and resistance within Umbriel, and Attrebus and Sul's quest to reach and stop the city from without. Their stories intersect through magical communication and shared purpose, highlighting themes of agency, sacrifice, and the limits of heroism.

Betrayal and Disillusionment

The narrative repeatedly employs betrayal—by friends, family, and institutions—to strip characters of their illusions. Attrebus's realization that his heroism is a lie, the Hist's betrayal of its people, and Slyr's treachery all serve to force characters into painful growth.

Magical Communication (Coo the Bird)

Annaïg's enchanted locket and mechanical bird, Coo, allow her to communicate with Attrebus, bridging the gap between the city and the outside world. This device enables coordination, hope, and the sharing of crucial information, but also underscores the isolation and danger each character faces.

The Sump and Rebirth

The sump, where Umbriel's denizens are born and reborn, is a grotesque parody of natural life cycles. It serves as a metaphor for the loss of individuality and the mechanization of existence under tyranny.

Analysis

The Infernal City is a dark, ambitious fantasy that explores the costs of survival, the dangers of unchecked ambition, and the fragility of identity in the face of overwhelming change. Through its dual narratives, the novel interrogates the nature of heroism, exposing the lies that sustain power and the painful process of self-discovery. The floating city of Umbriel is both a literal and symbolic threat: a self-sustaining system that consumes everything in its path, indifferent to the suffering it causes. The betrayal of the Hist and the corruption within the Empire mirror each other, suggesting that the greatest dangers often come from within. Annaïg and Glim's refusal to abandon compassion, even when it seems futile, stands in stark contrast to the ruthless logic of Umbriel and its masters. The novel ultimately offers no easy answers—its heroes are left trapped, changed, and uncertain—but it insists on the importance of resistance, empathy, and the search for meaning in a world that seems determined to erase both.

Last updated: May 5, 2025