Simple psiman

In a future where mental powers are a rare curiosity in the West but a bustling profession in India, Egan Rains moves quietly through bustling hotel corridors, clutching a tiny insignia that marks him as a psiman. The unassuming pin—a moon‑shaped disc with hidden speech crystals—serves as a secret handshake for those with telepathic talent. As he tries to shed the symbol, the device’s faint whisper hints at a deeper, fragile technology.

When Rains tosses the emblem into the hotel’s disposer, the mechanism does the unexpected: it hurls the pin back, intact but bent, and a glowing eye on the wall awakens to comment on the mishap. This sentient screen, part of the hotel’s service network, watches his every move, offering dry advice about pawnshops and the scarcity of exotic materials. The pin, now damaged, repeats “I spy” in a jarring tone, forcing Rains to balance his curiosity with the need for discretion.

Caught between an alien surveillance system and a malfunctioning identification device, Rains must decide whether to embrace his hidden abilities or conceal them forever, all while navigating a world where even a simple piece of jewelry can betray a secret mind.