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Perception Must Preserve

Fiction Spencer Nitkey
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In a near-future city where augmented reality overlays allow people to customize their visual perception, a protagonist discovers that the artificial perfection of their curated reality—engineered by the Zoothesia Protocols—has left them emotionally numb and disconnected from authentic experience. The story explores the psychological cost of perfect perception, suggesting that beauty and meaning require the friction of unfiltered reality, including danger and discomfort.

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