Nou is a world parallel to our own, a place hidden beyond dreams where children can escape their earthly troubles.  Especially a Wiradjuri boy named Elan, stolen from his home and family under Australian government mandate.

Fleeing his abusive circumstances and into Nou, he encounters the Noumina, creatures of cloth, fluff, and stitch. He and the other children — known in Nou as Pilgrims — are invited to create, explore, and play to their hearts’ content.

But everything changes when a material darkness known as the Gloom starts creeping across the land, transforming the natural landscapes of Nou into grotesque mechanical ruins. Out of the Gloom come the tick-tocks, monsters of spring, bolt, and gear, bent on terror and destruction.

Enter Poguri, a Noumin shrouded in his own darkness. An unlikely hero, he embarks on a quest to discover the truth behind the Gloom before it swallows the entire world.