All Ashes and Illusions

All Ashes and Illusions is a kinetic story of about 90,000 words, with no choices or branches. It follows Yuel, who witnesses his mother’s execution at six years old. She is the wife and queen of Indra’s tyrannical king, Khalil, and is put to death for having an affair.

Yuel and Safiya

As Yuel watches his mother’s body decompose beneath the sun, Khalil tells him not to trust women, whom he calls wicked and deceitful. Yuel hides his grief from his father, fearing his anger, and finds comfort in his nursemaid, Safiya. She is his only ally in a palace where his father is cold and distant and the fearful servants keep silent. When Yuel grows old enough to no longer need a nursemaid, Safiya leaves him too.

After a prolonged illness, Khalil dies and Yuel inherits the throne. Now a grown man, Yuel remains unable to forget Safiya or trust another woman. Determined to win her back and make her fulfill her promise to stay with him, he pursues her at any cost. Their relationship is highly dysfunctional.

Story and artwork

The story takes about 4–6 hours to read and includes detailed background and character art, along with a custom soundtrack.