Society was on the brink of collapse, and not for the typical reasons. No, life as we knew it threatened to implode because no one cared whether or not it actually did. Yet, indifference turned to terror when the cosmos unleashed its apocalyptic wrath during The Solemn Veil. The world, mysteriously stripped of its protective cloak-the magnetosphere-was scorched into chaos.

The outdoors turned lethal as the sun hurled relentless flares and coronal mass ejections toward Earth. People cowered inside their homes, which tragically morphed into tombs of desperation. Billions died from radiation and famine. Those who managed to live through the initial onslaught spent each waking second in fear of murderers, bandits, and cannibals. It was Hell on Earth.

Were it not for the Benefactor's emergence, life might have altogether perished. His legions of Humanara-machines in man's image-worked tirelessly to create a new infrastructure shielded from the sun's effects. Because of them, life above the surface became possible again.

Two generations later, The Solemn Veil's grip still tightened its gnarled fingers around the survivors' necks. However, after an emotional upheaval with society's elites, Slevin wondered if the truth could peel away those deadly fingers.