In the Watchful City

Cut off from the rest of the world by choice, the city of Ora relies on heavy surveillance of its people and surroundings to maintain order. Anima is one of the extrasensory humans tasked with running the city. Even if it means never leaving the Hub, Anima is content with her job, as it offers ær a direct connection to the Gleaming, a powerful network that spans the globe and connects all things. Then, a mysterious figure named Vessel enters Ora without going through one of the border gates. She offers Anima the chance to look at her cabinet of curiosities from around the world in exchange for a memento of her own. Instead of turning her in to the authorities, Anima, who has never seen the world outside Ora, accepts Vessel's offer. But as she learns the story behind each item, Anima realizes that the rest of the world isn't like Ora and begins to doubt her role in enforcing the city's rules. As events collide, Anima is left with one question that destabilizes everything she knows: What good is a city if it can't protect its people?