The story follows a tiny American platoon stationed in an even smaller Italian town after complaints circulate of civilians “turning into something inhuman”.
November 1943; Parolin is a small town in Southern Italy. The town is close minded and isolated. The citizens hate the soldiers, even though they need their help. They still align with the Axis powers. Ben, Leon, and Chiara move into Giuseppe’s church to keep themselves safe from Aamon’s manipulation. They try to trick as many people as possible into moving into the church, but peopler refuse. They lock themselves into the church to ensure their safety, only leaving when absolutely necessary.
Leon Steele is an extremely talented soldier, hoping to earn people’s respect through military success. However, Leon quickly realizes that even in the military, racism refuses to allow him to succeed.
Ben Walters is Leon’s close friend and bunk mate. Ben was a successful Hollywood actor before he was outed as gay. His managers forced him to join the army, hoping that through his service, audiences would forget about his scandal. However, Ben’s face was mutilated in battle. Ben knows that his acting career is over and must find a new purpose.
Chiara Marino is a law student from Parolin. Chiara dreams of being a detective, but is not taken seriously due to her gender. Chiara and Leon work very closely on finding out how to take down Aamon, and eventually fall in love. However, they have to keep their romance a secret because interracial marriage was illegal.
Giuseppe Marchioni is a progressive and kind priest. Even when Italy was a part of the Axis powers, Giuseppe welcomed all into his church. Giuseppe wants to help the people of Parolin, providing research and sanctuary. Giuseppe’s religious knowledge is essential to discovering Aamon’s motives.
Aamon is a lonely demon. Aamon sees the human souls he obtains as his friends. He is a grand marquis of hell and was gifted a large section of land by Satan. Aamon decided to use this land to create a sanctuary for his “friends”. Aamon believes that by controlling people and allowing them to live forever, he is saving them. However, these people’s souls are trapped deep inside of their bodies as Aamon controls them. He wants to “save” as many people as possible. Aamon can influence human decisions from hell. Aamon has started the war in hopes of using the chaos to eventually escape Hell and take over Earth.
“The infected’s” features become gradually more obscure as Aamon gains more control over them. Eventually, his victims travel through his portal to live in his section of hell. Aamon resides in the first layer of hell, purgatory. The infected’s souls will be trapped inside of their stolen bodies forever. Aamon uses these bodies as props to fill up his land, growing stronger until he can come up to Earth and take as many souls as he pleases.
Eventually, our characters sacrifice themselves and the people of Parolin to end the war and close the portal. They are trapped, living as Aamon’s puppets forever.
