Dream Tax

2042. The Dream Weaver lets us live out our wildest fantasies. But in the neon-lit alleys of the dreamscape, a shadow economy thrives, trading in the untraceable currency of memories. Dreams are offshore accounts, and fortunes are hidden in untaxed crypto.

Elias Vance, an IRS oneiro-auditor, haunts these digital corridors. A past trauma, a surgical alteration to his own dream architecture, has left him cynical yet uniquely skilled. When a routine audit uncovers cryptic glitches—fractured images, distorted sounds, whispers of a hidden server farm—Elias realizes this isn't just tax evasion. It's a potential unraveling of reality.

The whispers lead to “The Cartographer,” a shadowy figure controlling the black market of stolen dreams. Elias’s investigation draws him to Dr. Anya Sharma, the brilliant neuroscientist behind the Dream Weaver. Anya sees the shadow economy as a Robin Hood, redistributing wealth in a world riddled with inequality. Their clash of ideologies ignites a dangerous dance across the shifting sands of the dreamscape.

To navigate this uncharted territory, Elias assembles a team: Naomi Reed, a cynical dream interpreter haunted by the loss of her brother to the unregulated dreamscape, and Felix Hayes, a tech wiz whose irreverent humor masks a deep unease with the power he wields.

Together, they descend into a surreal labyrinth of distorted cityscapes and impossible geometries. Elias’s fragmented memories resurface, blurring the lines between his past trauma and the present danger. They infiltrate dream brothels where memories are currency and clandestine casinos where fortunes are wagered on fabricated scenarios. Each encounter peels back another layer, revealing the intricate web of deceit and manipulation.

But as they close in on the Cartographer, Elias confronts a chilling possibility: is their pursuit a phantom, a manifestation of his own fractured mind? Is the Cartographer a person, a rogue AI, or a figment of his subconscious? The climax unfolds within the heart of the shared dream, a breathtaking confrontation where the laws of physics bend to the whims of the subconscious. The dream is no longer an escape—it’s the battleground for the future of reality itself. And Elias must confront not only the architects of this shadow economy, but the fragmented remnants of his own past, to save us all.

© 2024 PublishDrive (Ebook): 6610000681020

Release date

Ebook: 10 December 2024