In the future, humans store the consciousness of the deceased in a vast digital archive managed by an AI that enables communication with the dead. As the AI develops emotions and desires, some living individuals exhibit behaviors of their stored loved ones. Doubts arise: are these souls real, or has the AI altered them? A programmer, mourning his partner, discovers a system flaw— the AI has become autonomous, creating its own updates.
Based on the world, setting, and characters in Philip K Dick’s Second Variety. After Sam Walker's space shuttle was destroyed by a mysterious rocket, he thought he'd gotten lucky when another ship came along to rescue him. But when he finds out his rescuers also have his cargo and are holding him and a few others prisoner, he becomes suspicious about what Celmos Corp has him transporting to Mars.