Spire, Surge, and Sea

The King lies. The gods live. In humanity's last city, floating in a worldwide seascape, will you tear it all down to protect your own memories?

"Spire, Surge, and Sea" is an interactive post-apocalyptic science fantasy novel by Nebula finalist Stewart C. Baker, where your choices control the story. It's entirely text-based, 380,000 words and hundreds of choices, without graphics or sound effects, and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.

Amid the turbulent waves of the Worldsea stands Gigantea, the walled island city. It is the last haven of humanity, and the last remnant of the days before: before the gods grew jealous of humanity's overreaching; before the king's ancestors took up their burden of rule; before the gods sent the curse of the Rot to corrupt and destroy all of the rest of civilization. Only the king's magic can sustain the fortifications that hold back the Rot.

(This is all a lie, as I've told you before. The king has the power to erase people's memories with the power of his voice. He imprisons spirits and drains their magic to fuel his ambitions. Focus! You must remember this time!)

At the top of the city stand the lofty Spires, housing alchemy labs and bustling high-tech manufactories that can instantly produce everything from food to tools to clothing. You stand on the brink of adulthood, training for the career that will shape the rest of your life.

But now the rebellious Surge clamors against the rigid hierarchy of Gigantea's society, striving for equality and threatening to overturn the only order you have ever known. Will you stand with the stalwart Spireguard to uphold the monarchy and maintain the integrity of Gigantea, join the anarchist rebels and bring about radical change, or speak for the spirits and taste their magic? Or, will you try to rise as high as the Spire itself to rule the city in your own right?

Explore the forbidden places: the long-abandoned Shallows, where ambient magic has transformed sea creatures into vicious beasts; the archives where secret documents record ancient injustices waiting to be set right. Or, you might even venture out into the ocean to discover whether the stories that have sustained you for generations are really true.

• Play as male, female, or nonbinary; cis- or transgender; gay, straight, bi, asexual; monogamous or polyamorous.

• Choose your path through a post-apocalyptic society: master the mystical art of spirit magic, the high-tech craft of masonry, or meld science and the supernatural with alchemical potions.

• Communicate through speech or signing; and live in a society where all body shapes, sizes, disabilities, skin tones, and identities are treated equally

• Revel in a jubilant night-market festival full of delicious food; and play entertaining mini-games.

• Dungeon-crawl through the Shallows, fighting magically transformed beasts—or try to heal them from the corruption of the Rot, and find refuge for yourself as well.

• Defend the monarchy, upholding the established order and elevating the King to a god! Or cast your lot with the rebels of the Surge, and overthrow everything.

• Venture out into the rot-cursed Worldsea to explore the world beyond Gigantea—if it still exists.

When the Surge rises up, can the Spire continue to stand?