Out of Time
“Out of Time” is a dystopian, sci-fi thriller laced with metaphysical insights, fortified with conspiracy and suspense. It is a tale about what it means to be fully human.
In the year 2194, a pandemic appears out of nowhere and begins deleting embedded artificial intelligence before destroying the human host. The world is in a race to find a solution before it’s too late but can only comprehend via data programmed in their cerebral implants, controlled by a centralized government.
Ollie Quinn, a bios specialist, is one of six high-ranking scientists commissioned to act as timekeepers– determining the precise point when it will be too late to turn the ‘Dysfunction’ around. To protect their pod from public scrutiny, they are sequestered on Mount Athos, a shielded island off the coast of Greece that incarcerates Defectors who have refused to give up certain illegal practices. Their unusual beliefs are diametrically opposed to everything contained within the sanctioned bio-chips.
The primitive monastic location is a marked departure from Ollie’s bio-technical society. His outdated programs can barely contain his panic condition in the claustrophobic setting. Further complicating his problems, Ollie grows enamored with Luce Perrara, the renowned mathematician and pod leader. But her beauty is marred by the cold, impersonal logic of an advanced neural.
Jacques Forteau, the intimidating physicist on the team, disdains Luce Perrara with the same passion that Ollie obsesses over her, ever since she replaced him on a consulting arrangement he once enjoyed with Consolidated Bios Industries, the sole manufacturer of PrimaChips. Seeking revenge, Jacques dismantles their only external link and initiates his first lethal test. Ollie must collect his courage to stop these covert activities.
Meanwhile, the rate of worldwide Dysfunction amnesia steadily rises. The pod members begin exhibiting varying degrees of affliction. Ollie is eventually forced to turn to the Defectors for assistance. He realizes that their anticipated ‘Return of the Light’ has elements disturbingly similar to what scientists are discovering about the Dysfunction. And on Mount Athos, the two worlds collide.
Deadly Passage
Rookie social worker, Liz Faucette, is eager to excel in her new job at Lone Mesa Care Facility, located in rural northern New Mexico. Empathetic by nature, she reaches out to an unusual resident, 18-year old Sonya Burns, the sole survivor of a brutal attack that has left her paralyzed and mute, and her grandparents dead. Although police had leads on a lone male perpetrator, the crime remains unsolved. Liz becomes horrified when Sonya implies through an electronic talking board that a strange man sometimes enters her room at night. She worries that this stalker could be linked to the untimely deaths unfolding among the facility’s frail and helpless residents. Liz relays these concerns to her superiors but receives no support, which convinces her to investigate on her own. Unfortunately, learning the truth is a daunting task when there’s an array of possible suspects, with her best witnesses plagued by dementia or mental illness. She soon finds an ally– Jake Carlson, a handsome, rugged Montana transplant, and investigator with Adult Protective Services; except there is her job security to consider, and an ex-boyfriend who decides he wants her back. Ultimately, Liz perseveres and uncovers an intricate web of criminal activities that nearly ends her life.
