Aphni's Quartet: Nightbloom's Veil
Betrayed by your mothers and sent away to become a prophet, loneliness became an old friend, and an intense longing for connection stirs deep within you.
Hoping to escape the monotony of your life—training to become a Living Prophet and delivering parcels all over the Southern Territories isn’t as fun as it sounds—you seek solace in the nightflowers that bloom in Caligo.
It’s not like you have a choice, anyway, considering your dwindling medication and the irritating withdrawal symptoms (you've blown up one too many dormitories). Maybe you shouldn’t have put this off for so long, but the thought of being in your parents’ old home … well, let’s just say you aren’t ready to revisit their memory.
Embarking on a journey to experience something new, and maybe make some friends along the way, you stand at a crossroads:
will you embrace your destiny or choose to avert your gaze?
Caligo is the home to the Sovereign and her Crimson Court. Famous for its nightflowers, Caligo is the place to go if you want medicine, poisons, glamours, or even cures.
Twin moons cast an ethereal glow upon you, illuminating the blue haze that swirls through the land.
Unclimbable mountains overlook lush, fertile land that covers Insomnium, Umbra, Tenebrae, and the Crimson Court in nightflowers.
Though wet, chilly, and sunless, the beauty of this ancient place still prevails.
❀ your name ❀ select gender and pronouns ❀ romance or friendship ❀ human? ❀
customize your appearance
Prophet-in-Training & Courier, The Elysian Prophet Institute
❀ twyl ❀ he/him ❀ pansexual ❀ woodelf/solarelf ❀
drowning blue eyes; tawny skin; buzzed black hair; a towering presence
Shopkeep, Arcane Apothecary
❀ xander ❀ he/him ❀ pansexual ❀ demon/vampire ❀
detached amber eyes; bronze skin; curly brunet hair; a constant scowl
Dean of Herbalism, Caligan School for Magic & Botany
❀ pantella ❀ she/they ❀ aro-ace ❀ fairy ❀
pitch black eyes; porcelain skin; long white hair; a chime-like giggle
Herbalist’s Apprentice, Caligan School for Magic & Botany
This project is intended for individuals aged 16 and above.
There will be allusions/depictions of:
imperialism
death & loss of family
drug use & alcoholism
indentured servitude
parental abuse, neglect
side & withdrawal effects of drugs
PTSD
swearing, foul language
violence
xenophobia
Various macros by Chapel
morgan’s Twine/Sugarcube 2 Template
Manonamora’s 100% Good Twine Sugarcube Guide
Idrelle Games IF Design, Coding in Twine
Star West’s Itch Game Page Guide
Audio by:
Nightbloom’s Veil is the first part of a four-part fantasy story called Aphni’s Quartet.
All four books will have an interactive element to it where you play a predetermined character and decide their choices.
AQ1:NBV is a work in progress. It is meant to be played in dark mode. This game will only be listed here on Itch, and it will be completely free to play from start to finish.
There are expected to be 14 chapters, with each chapter containing ~10k words. Chapters 0-3 are released, and the full game will be released sometime in Q4 of 2025.
This project was created without the use of AI. You are strictly prohibited from using this project to train any AI systems or create AI companions.
Follow me on Itch for quarterly updates and release announcements. Submit bugs or typos here.
Development log
- Revamp + Chapter Three is Released!16 days ago
- November DevlogDec 05, 2024
- Chapter Two Release + DevlogOct 31, 2024
- October Devlog + Chapter Two DelayOct 11, 2024
- 8/26/2024 Monthly DevlogAug 26, 2024
- 8/10/2024 Update DevlogAug 10, 2024
- Demo Out Now!Aug 03, 2024
Comments
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Where even is the start button
all images are clickable babe <3
Sorry it was all weird on my tablet
that’s entirely my fault! This game was built on my PC and I didn’t get a chance to update it for tablet or mobile. I’ll make that a priority for next update! Try landscape mode, that helped another player.
Oh no no, it's ok! I figured it out
I love the writing and word play, as well as the characters and pov shifts! The worldbuilding and lore are also so interesting! Tldr: I'm obsessed.
Possible edits:
I was having issues accessing the two options to submit bug reports, so I hope this works!
When selecting the first dialogue option here, several errors pop up on the following page:
Also! I noticed that the intro of the game is filled with lore that is organically dispersed throughout the text. As a reader, I was overwhelmed with the new lore before I got my footing as my character. I wonder if it would be possible to put that lore somewhere as reference material in the menu/stats page vs as a prologue to the prologue.
omg thank you so much <3 I really appreciate that you’re enjoying it. I’ll go fix the bug. I was messing with that way too much last night and should have left it alone.
Funny enough, the feedback I got before was not enough lore and now it’s too much. Striking that balance for folks has been hard for me. I’ll keep that in mind as I continue writing, but in full transparency I likely will not change the way it’s set up now, mostly because the new version serves as an opening for the entire series.
thank you again <3
edit: bug has been fixed!
yes!! That's totally your right as the creator of the world, and I'm excited to see what you craft next!
Lil question, is pantella a love interest ?
Hello!!
You can become best friends with Pantella, but they are not romanceable as they are not interested in romantic or sexual relationships.
Hi! I enjoyed this, it’s a great start! I love the little hints that people and places are familiar to you, yet you don’t know why. I’m so intrigued to know more!
I do wish you would expand on some of the world building/lore a bit. I know it’s just starting and I can tell you have an air of mystery to it, but it’s almost a little too vague. For example, I have no idea what a Prophet actually is or does, nor your Core for that matter. Having some context to what the MC is trying to be and accomplish would help us relate to the character better.
Again, it’s a great start and I look forward to seeing where you go with this!
this feedback was incorporated in the most recent release <3
Oh, excellent! Welcome back! I’m excited to see you’re continuing this and I can’t wait to revisit this story!