In a future where science has unlocked secrets once thought impossible, Earth's most ambitious project is an experiment shrouded in mystery-and ethical gray areas. Dr. Aria Voss, a brilliant geneticist with a mind like no other, is brought in to study an extraordinary alien specimen. She's a woman of science, grounded in logic and precision, yet challenged by the world's view of her autism, which has isolated her from colleagues and any real connections. But her work offers her purpose and control in a life that often feels anything but.
Her newest subject, known only as "Specimen X," is like nothing Aria has ever encountered. With a striking humanoid form marked by bioluminescent skin, intricate markings, and eyes that seem to hold a universe of secrets, he is a being from a world humanity can barely imagine. But as she delves deeper into her study, Aria begins to suspect that he is far more than just a research subject. Underneath the cold detachment of the laboratory, there's a fierce intelligence-and a sorrow that resonates with her own.
As Aria uncovers the dark truths hidden within her organization, she finds herself torn between her loyalty to science and her growing empathy for the alien who has become her closest ally. When she learns of a sinister agenda threatening not only his survival but also her own, Aria must choose: stay silent and remain complicit, or risk everything to set them both free.
Experiment X is a tale of love, sacrifice, and the courage to break free of society's bounds, even if it means defying the very foundations of science and humanity.
Aria is on top of her game. Putting away criminals, closing cases, she is smart, tenacious, and ambitious. As a detective with the NYPD, she is putting in the hours and working diligently towards a promotion. Only instead of a new title, she finds herself transported into the future where death is not the end, but merely a transition into virtual reality. Now in the year 3000, Aria is immersed in a new type of case where the victim of a grisly murder can still provide some clues to help catch the perpetrator through his consciousness. Worse yet, as Aria delves deeper into the investigation, she finds herself falling in love with a mysterious man named Ayden.
Nothing is as it seems in this new world where reality can be augmented and the truth may be hiding in plain sight. As Aria and Ayden grow closer, the looming shadow of the murderer threatens everything they have come to care for. Aria must use her skills of deduction to unravel the truth and bring justice to the victim while saving the man she loves.
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ONC2023
Prompt 82. In a future where humans have the ability to upload their consciousness into virtual reality at the time of their death, a detective must solve a murder case in both the virtual and physical world as the victim's consciousness may still exist in the virtual world and hold the key to solving the crime.