Humanity’s thirst for simplification in a world driven by technology leads to the ultimate creation: Designed Consciousness. This invention destroys the framework of society and brings humanity to the verge of collapse. But the implications for the structure of the universe itself are much more sinister. An older man who has lost his purpose and a blind artist girl embark on the impossible quest to prevent the disaster. As the fabric of reality begins to unravel, the two unlikely heroes must question if the world even deserves to be saved.

Chapter 1. Felix

If you die in a dream, do you survive in reality? And what is reality, anyway?
Felix opened his eyes and looked at the rays of the setting sun on the horizon. The most advanced, ultimate Decon experience didn’t bring him joy. Felix breathed in the fresh air, filled with the fleeting aroma of pine trees, just as he liked it. Everything was perfect. Maybe too perfect.
He considered doing something out of the ordinary, such as leaving his smart chair, which had changed shape, morphing into every crevice of his body. He rose and moved forward.
“I advise against this; it is unhealthy and unnatural,” Thelma’s voice pronounced in his head.
“Advise declined,” Felix thought and made a move. He last stood on his feet months ago. As his soles touched the uneven texture of the floor, a thousand tiny warm needles came alive in his toes.
“Please, sit down. You will hurt yourself,” the voice in his mind warned.
“Fuck off.” He winced. How did we let annoying Quarks become our masters?
“I must remind that I created personalized Designed Consciousness based on your unique wishes, and it’s only possible via my interface,” Thelma said. “Would you like me to start a new sequence?”
“I would like you to shut down,” Felix ordered mentally, and the Quark disconnected the interface.
What if this is the new sequence? His Quarks were the most advanced, capable of creating the unmatched Decon experiences. What if this is my deepest desire? To erase the boundary between Decon and reality? How would I know the truth, and what is reality in the first place?
Felix took a few steps and enjoyed the ability to move. He didn’t hurt himself, didn’t fall. His soles pressed against the firm surface of the floor, and it was great. He raised his hands and stared at his fingers—strange, he didn’t remember how they looked. Were these his actual fingers or a ghost taken by Quarks out of his dreams and inserted into the Decon experience?
I might never find out. Felix pulled the tube connecting him to the life-sustaining system. Why do we cling to our bodies? I don’t need it; I live in Decon. The room looked sharp and vibrant with colors: he had upgraded his eyes to the newest version, capable of experiencing an enhanced light spectrum, including infrared. Why do I need this? It’s such a waste.
“Take me outside,” he commanded and remembered he’d just told Thelma to shut down. Shit, I can’t even do a simple thing without stupid Quarks.
Something was driving Felix to change his routine. He’d never ventured outside alone, but now it was different. Felix had to find out if he was in a Decon. He dragged his body along the hallway and arrived at the reinforced composite door.
Felix gestured, and the door obeyed, running facial recognition and many other routines. The grove met him with the smells of blooming spring flowers, the sounds of birds chirping, and the majestic sights of the sun descending into the serene waters of the lake.
This is almost as good as Decon. Upgraded eyes made it confusing.
Felix kept walking, reaching the edge of a cliff. The waterfall on the left was incredible, with a gentle roar of water mixing with the sounds of birds singing their evening serenades. Felix could see every drop of water and a rainbow dancing in each one. He could smell the freshness of the water mixed with the aroma of blooming flowers.
This can’t be real, he finally decided. Thelma is messing up with me.
He turned around and registered several F-Quarks advancing in his direction.
“Stop.” He raised his hand. The drones obeyed the command, freezing some distance away.
At least that worked. If this is a Decon, it’s weird. It should be built based on my desires, but why do I see Quarks? Am I sick? This was unlike anything he’d experienced with the personalized scenarios. In theory, you could design anything conceivable in Decon, but this specific scenario served no purpose.
Felix looked at the giant disk of the setting sun. The sky was colored in a gentle combination of orange and blue, plus hundreds of undertones his upgraded eyes could see.
There is only one way to find out.
Indeed, how did one die in Decon? Had he experienced death before? His memory was blank. Perhaps it was impossible since death was the end of consciousness, and one simply couldn’t experience it.
He was now curious. Taking a few steps forward, Felix stood on the ravine’s very edge, looking at the rocks covering the shore of the lake. I have nothing to lose. I’ve experienced everything except one thing.
Felix smiled, took one last step, and jumped off the cliff.
If you die in a dream, do you survive in reality? was his last thought.

Excerpt from chApter 5

“So, this piece of crap ruined the world?” Frank held a dodecahedron in his hands, a barely noticeable purple light visible within the core of the strange object through the hole in each of its faces. The surface was warm and smooth, but there was something alien about it. Frank couldn’t figure out what, but he was uncomfortable touching the technology that had all but destroyed human civilization.
“Well, not this one.” Paul grinned. “This has probably been spun over ten times, but the answer is yes.”
“How could you be so stupid?” Frank spread his hands, returning the object to Paul.
Accompanied by two drones, they exited the trader’s office and walked toward Paul’s glider, hidden behind the dumpster. Frank had cleaned up his suit but refused to waste time changing into a more appropriate and modern outfit. The look was ridiculous; he resembled a bum in the shapeless coverall.
Paul shrugged, holding the dodecahedron in front of his face. “It gives you freedom, buddy. And the world you want at your fingertips. During Deconvolution, some religious freaks claimed it was a direct message from their gods.”
“I always said there’s no limit to human stupidity.” Frank shook his head. You have to explain much to me; it just doesn’t make any sense. Is this it?” Frank pointed at the machine’s shadow concealed by a screen projecting the glider’s surroundings, making the vehicle practically invisible. “It looks very familiar. We had those back in my time,” he added after Paul turned off the screen.
“Yes, these changed little.”
Paul gestured with his fingers, and the glider’s sliding door shifted up.
They got inside, and Paul asked, gazing at Frank’s face, “To Quasaris? You sure?”
“Yes, sure. It’s the only place in this stupid bloody future where I can find something useful.”
“Okay,” Paul said, providing coordinates to the glider. “You’re the boss now, buddy.” He shrugged and made himself comfortable in the chair.
As they ascended over the ruins of the industrial district, Frank couldn’t stop thinking about how much had changed in just fifty years. This wasn’t Houston he used to live in; this was a heap of rubbish in the middle of the giant swamp, peppered with collapsed buildings, ruined bridges, and abandoned roads dotted by huge potholes and cracks through which the weeds rose to the sky.
“Is it like that everywhere?” Frank asked, pointing at the ugly landscape beneath.
“Pretty much.” Paul shrugged. “Well, except the Designers’ Estates and the Humanists’ camp.”
“Designers?”
“Yeah, those fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time: corporations’ managers and shareholders. You’re one of them now, buddy, and probably the richest. Just remember you owe some of this good fortune to Greedy Paul.” The trader chuckled and patted Frank on the shoulder.
“We’ll see. Do you have a gun or whatever weapons you guys use?”
“Why? The Quarks will protect you; I’m sure you could get the newest military versions at Quasaris.” Paul raised his eyebrows.
“I’m not comfortable without a weapon; I used to rely on myself, and now I feel naked.” Frank didn’t belong here. As the initial shock subsided, reality hit him hard. Alone, fifty years into the future, his lover dead, his world destroyed, Frank was lost for the first time in his life. The cold wave on the bottom of his stomach froze his limbs, stupefied his senses, and threw mind in disarray. If only Ichika were with me, Frank thought.
“Here you go, buddy.” The trader’s rough voice returned Frank to reality. “Nano-Swarmer X3, a little old but still very potent.”
“How does it work?” Frank took the object, which looked like a miniature rocket nozzle with a handle. It fitted nicely into his right palm, was relatively light, and had a slightly rugged surface.
“You load a cartridge of Nano-Quarks. Then you activate it mechanically with a squeeze or a finger gesture, or you could install a direct brain-machine interface.”
“Nano-Quarks? What the hell is that?” Frank frowned.
“Shit, I keep forgetting I need to explain everything, buddy.” Paul laughed. “Nano-bots can penetrate through any material, no matter how tough. They get inside the body of your enemy, and…poof! It’s just biomaterial. Well, unless they have an active anti-Quark defense as part of their immune system. But you shouldn’t worry about it unless your opponent is a wealthy Designer. Got it?”
“That would do for now,” Frank said, placing the Swarmer beside his thigh. “You mentioned Felix Wise. Who’s that? A relative?”
“Your grandkid, I guess. Son of Donald Wise, who led Quasaris through the Deconvolution. Then Felix became a successor, but it was already a different world and a different company.”
“What happened to Don?”
“He died about forty years ago…A skiing accident, if I remember correctly. He fell off the cliff; his girlfriend was the witness.”
“Don…died so long ago….” Frank covered his face with his hand as his eyes suddenly got wet. His son, his future, the most precious soul in this rotten world. The cold wave, head to toe, engulfed him, and his body shook.
“Sorry, buddy. That’s a lot of bad news for you. But, on the flip side, you’re one of the richest people on the planet.” Paul grinned. “Are you coming back to bury your woman?”
“No, she’s gone.” Frank shook his head. “I’m not attached to corpses. Her memory is what matters.” Frank summoned Ichika’s face and savored her gentle determination for a moment. “I ordered a drone to do whatever needs to be done with hers’ and Spencer’s remains. There’s not much left, anyway.”
“Quark, not drone,” Paul corrected him. “They’ll take the remains to the cremation center.”
“What’s a Quark?”
“Quantum Robotic Kernel,” Paul explained. “Quasaris coined the term. I guess it’s a letter play, but it stuck, and even the tech made by other companies is called that now. You’ll see all sorts of weird shit, like F- and V-Quarks and who knows what.”
V…Virtual?”
“Eyeball, buddy.” Paul laughed.
“F….” Frank frowned.
“Flying Quarks similar to what I have. The ones you call drones.”
They finally arrived at the tall, gloomy monolith in the city’s center. The glider landed in front of where the entrance to this monstrosity was supposed to be. At least the red glowing letters “QUASARIS” floating in the air next to the building indicated that. As the two men exited the glider, several F-Quarks approached them from multiple directions and surrounded the newcomers.
“Good evening, Mr. Wise,” the disembodied voice pronounced. “We welcome the new owner of Quasaris Corporation.”
“What about Felix?” Paul asked.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Felix Wise died ten days ago.”