Zachary Ezra Rawlings

Zachary is an Emerging Media graduate student at a university in Vermont and the son of a fortune-teller, Madame Love Rawlins. He finds Sweet Sorrows in the university library and is shocked to find that a story within the book is from his childhood. When he was little, he saw a painted door in an alleyway and did not enter. According to the story, if he had entered, he would have gone to the Starless Sea, an underground library and fantasy world. He feels regret for not entering this door and having missed his chance. After this realization, Zachary’s curiosity drives him toward seeking adventure. He begins to research the Starless Sea and finds an image online of an annual masquerade party at the Algonquin Hotel in New York City.

On a whim, Zachary buys a train ticket and decides to go to the party...