"Colour" - Extended Synopsis

Part 1 - The Transporter in Wetledale

The Transporter stops at the edge of Wetledale, the northernmost of the Seven Valleys. He notes the valley's colourless appearance — mostly grey, white, and brown — a result of its shift to a lucrative cabinet making industry. This industry, enabled by the Wetledale Conformance Council and sea transport, has reduced the need for transporters crossing the Last Mountains in winter. The Transporter's aim is to find valuable cargo to justify his winter crossing.

He has returned north because the Warehouse Manager assured him of new value in the North and desperately needed a Transporter who could cross the mountains in winter.

He observes a figure, a Fishwick (a member of a group skilled in foraging for colour) disappearing into the mist and later visits the cottage of Michael and Michele Fishwick. They are gathering intense autumn colour, supported by the Warehouse Manager, who provides them with provisions. The Transporter informs them that the Warehouse Manager wants their help gathering intelligence on the trading fraternities to dismantle the Conformance Council's rules that restrict colour and trade.

The Transporter descends towards Wetledale Town to the Decorators' Hall to make a delivery of approved pigments. The Chair of the Decorators grants him a contract to secretly transport a Ruling Council Examiner over the Last Mountains before winter ends. The Chair hopes the Examiner will witness the inconsistencies of Wetledale's rules before the Cabinet Makers can control his view.

The Transporter, believing the contract isn't enough to force change, seeks leverage. At the Red Dragon Inn, he overhears two young decorators, Helen and Angela, who have won the prestigious Conformance Hall redecoration contract. They bemoan the colour restrictions and discuss the existence of hidden Fishwick colour. The Transporter subtly approaches them, sowing the first seeds of his plan.

Part 2 - Appointing an Examiner

The Ruling Council of the Seven Valleys meets in the Southern City. The Mayor of the Southern City privately warns the Wetledale Representative that the valley's increasing value makes it vulnerable to an Examination.

The Chair of the Ruling Council, the Peacekeeper, and the Head of All Science discuss the rise of the Sky Lord in the Flatlands, whose power is bolstered by rich colours believed to be sourced from the North. Fearing political instability and a potential Flatlander incursion, the Head of All Science proposes a covert investigation by an Examiner to uncover new value, specifically targeting Wetledale.

The Master of Examiners later meets with the Head of All Science and advises sending Jim Kirwin, a previously discredited but desperate Examiner whose pragmatic approach is suited to the high-risk, unrewarded nature of the assignment.

Kirwin, now the Examiner of the Seventh Valley, prepares for the journey. The Transporter (acting on behalf of the Warehouse Manager) arrives and offers to transport Kirwin undercover, over the Last Mountains before winter, ensuring his arrival is unnoticed by the fraternities. Kirwin agrees to travel disguised as a transporter.

Part 3 - The Fraternity of Decorators

Three weeks before the Examiner's arrival, the Decorators' Chair discusses the Transporter's contract with her Responsible Brother. She refuses to give the Transporter access to the Fourth Element of the Record (which documents illicit colour use) for fear of compromising the Fraternity.

At the weekly meeting, the Decorators record their work. Senior Brother Stewart, aligned with the Cabinet Makers, demands the destruction of the Fourth Element of the Record, claiming it compromises them ahead of the expected Examination. The Chair rejects this, defending the Records as vital for the Fraternity's defence. She announces that young decorators Helen and Angela have won the Conformance Hall redecoration contract, praising their use of texture to comply with existing rules.

At the Red Dragon Inn, Helen expresses her passionate desire for colour to return to Wetledale, whilst Angela remains pragmatic, focusing on working within the rules. The Transporter, listening, engages them, encouraging Helen's rebellious inclinations and subtly pushing her toward action.

The Chair of Decorators later withdraws her request to introduce the colour yellow to the Conformance Council, sacrificing profit for apparent harmony. She later instructs Helen and Angela to monitor for any interference with the Examination process at Conformance Hall, unwittingly giving them an intelligence role.

The Transporter meets the Decorators' Chair again to add a clause to his contract: that the decorators must assist the Examiner. She refuses to officially assist but shows him the Fourth Element of the Record. The Transporter concludes that the evidence must reach the Examiner through the young decorators.

Part 4 - Colour

Michael Fishwick, tasked with listening to the Cabinet Makers, overhears the Senior Responsible Brother assure his colleagues that the rules are "flawless" and condemn the Decorators' desire for colour. Michael is enraged that the Cabinet Makers are systematically destroying all illicit colour. Michael and Michele acknowledge that the intense Fishwick colour they are providing to the South is fuelling the political instability of the Flatlands, but Michael is determined to keep foraging. Michele resolves that they must offer the Transporter more support.

Helen, working on the remote meeting rooms of Conformance Hall, discovers a loose panel behind which is a vivid, breathtaking mural of Wetledale painted with translucent layers of colour from a time before the restrictive rules. She shows it to Angela, who insists they report the loose panel to their Chair, as its repair falls under the Cabinet Makers' remit.

At the Ship Inn, Helen passionately argues that the mural is the "truth" of Wetledale's history and must be shown to the Examiner. Angela rejects this dangerous idea, stating her plan to report the loose panel and quickly finish their contract. A desperate Helen, leaving the inn, is met again by the Transporter. He informs her that the Examiner will cross the mountains the next morning and suggests she meet him on the high road.

Helen meets the Examiner, Kirwin, who has crossed the Last Mountains, on the high road. She tells him about the hidden mural. Kirwin states the old mural is irrelevant, but evidence of Cabinet Makers covering up rule violations, combined with the Decorators' Records, could provide a "different mechanism" to force rule changes concerning colour.

Angela, after reporting the panel, is told by the Chair of Decorators to finish and leave immediately, leading her to realise the Chair knew the Examiner was coming. She shares this with Helen, who then reveals she met with the Examiner. Angela, now deeply concerned, agrees they must finish the work on Conformance Hall and leave that day.

Michael Fishwick, still in Wetledale, has overheard the meeting of Helen with the Examiner. Realising that Helen is a fellow "Colourer” who must be protected, he resolves to help her.

Part 5 - The Fourth Element

Helen and Angela meet at an abandoned cottage. Angela reveals that the Fourth Element of the Record book is physically unsecured and suggests they copy the pages detailing illicit colour work to present to the Examiner. Helen agrees to the plan.

Angela also shares the Decorators' Chair's belief that Red - the colour of Helen's nature - is a powerful, subversive colour needed to "reconfigure the whole picture".

Helen breaks into the Decorators' Hall and begins copying the records, focusing on the homes of Cabinet Makers. She is interrupted by the sound of an approaching Enforcer and flees through the window. She is intercepted by Michael Fishwick, who leads her to his quarry cottage refuge.

Michael reveals that it was he who stole the entire Fourth Element of the Record and believes only the original Record, not a copy, will convince the Examiner. Helen, now determined, agrees they must get the actual Record to the Examiner.

Helen meets with Angela and later they both meet with the Responsible Brother of the Decorators. The Brother tacitly agrees to use his influence to assist them in extracting the Examiner from Conformance Hall. The Decorators' Chair, recognising the immediate danger posed by the Cabinet Makers, later grants permission for the Responsible Brother to support Helen's actions, but insists the Fraternity can completely deny any involvement.

That evening, during a severe storm, Fishwick and Helen enter Conformance Hall through the concealed service entrance. They find the Examiner being pressured by the Chair of Conformance to negotiate a minor rule change and a token payment to end the Examination. Helen presents the Fourth Element of the Record to the Examiner.

The Chair of Conformance, seeing his plan implode, immediately pivots, accepting the evidence and proposing a document of revised rules on colour with "generous provisions" for value for the Ruling Council. The Chair then formally requests Fishwick and Helen to escort the Examiner to a "place of safety", and explicitly instructs them to show the Examiner examples of rule-breaking colour that he claims have been "accidentally covered up".

The Examiner, Helen, and Fishwick leave in Angela's light cart. Following the Chair of Conformance's explicit instructions, they are intercepted by two Enforcers. Fishwick throws a handful of powdered colour mushroom spores into the Enforcers' faces, overwhelming them with intense, hallucinatory colour and allowing their escape to Fishwick's cottage.

Part 6 - Flatlanders

The Warehouse Manager is informed that the Earth Lord of the Flatlands has crossed the Southern River and is demanding action to stop the Fishwick colour that is reaching the Sky Lord. The Peacekeeper orders the Transporter to Armdale to stop the flow of colour and ensure the Examiner's report and unassigned value from Wetledale are secured to bolster southern defences.

The Transporter, contracted by the Warehouse Manager, arrives atHigh Farm to collect the Examiner and Helen. He presents the Examiner with a new, urgent contract from the Peacekeeper to transport him to the Armdale Warehouse immediately. The Transporter refuses to take the Examiner back to Conformance Hall, stating he must descend to the Hall alone to secure the necessary loan of value for the Peacekeeper.

At Conformance Hall, the Transporter is confronted by the Chair of Decorators, who furiously chastises him for deliberately encouraging Helen to disclose the Records. The Transporter defends his actions as necessary for the future of colour. He offers the Chair leverage by revealing that the Senior Responsible Brother of the Cabinet Makers is missing after chasing Fishwick into the Black Marsh. The Chair recognises the diplomatic value of offering to lead the rescue. The Transporter agrees to go in search of the missing Cabinet Maker and, if at all possible, to return him alive and well, to the Decorators' Hall.

Part 7 - Wetledale

Fishwick reveals that he had led the Cabinet Maker's Senior Responsible Brother to a treacherous island in the Black Marsh and left him there to await rescue. The Transporter is guided by Fishwick back to the Marsh, where he finds and rescues the lost Brother. The Transporter ensures the rescued Brother understands that his rescue was orchestrated by the Chair of the Decorators. The Chair of Decorators then uses the successful rescue to secure the immediate loan of value required by the Peacekeeper.

The Examiner, safe at High Farm, expresses his frustration to Helen that the evidence he collected is insufficient to convince the Ruling Council to change the system. He also advises Helen to temporarily leave the valley.

Michael Fishwick comes in search of Helen, and informs her of his intention to leave Wetledale for the North. He gives Helen a roll of black cloth interwoven with the purest colours, asking her to carry it South to the Flatlands.

Part 8 - The Last Mountains

The Transporter, Helen, and the Examiner begin the dangerous return over the mountains, carrying the secured value and the Examiner's findings. Helen overhears the Examiner tell the Transporter that the Head of All Science admitted the political flaw in the system: power fraternities manipulate the rules for self-interest, confirming the underlying truth of the Examination process.

At the Armdale Warehouse, the Examiner presents his report to the Peacekeeper. She is furious that his report suggests the entire system of Attitudinal Science is flawed. She demands he re-write his report to state that the problems are minor and temporary, offering him a generous retirement package as an incentive. The Examiner appears to accept the offer.

Helen, having learned of the Peacekeeper's ultimatum, tells the Transporter she is determined to travel South. The Transporter agrees, recognising that Helen carries the "true colour" that frames the future.

The Transporter and Helen leave Armdale secretly in a light cart. They are pursued by Enforcers. Helen throws the colour mushroom spores, causing a distraction, but later their cart crashes. They retrieve the Fishwick coloured cloth and, managing to right the cart, continue on their journey.

They meet the Servant (the Examiner's former assistant, now working with the Sky Lord) at a transport store near the Southern River. Helen gives the Servant the Fishwick cloth. The Servant confirms that the cloth will provide the legitimacy the Sky Lord needs to consolidate power.

Six weeks later, Helen and the Transporter are heading back North to Wetledale. Helen is now confident she can persuade the Cabinet Makers to allow the return of colour. She has come to understand that Angela's patient and thorough approach is the only way to achieve this aim.

The novel concludes with the Peacekeeper resolving to teach the "slippery" Servant a lesson, while in the Flatlands, the Sky Lord, summoning the Servant to his Offices of State, observes that spring will soon melt the "ice in the high mountains" (the power of the North) and hinting at the future return of conflict.