The Death Hypothesis

How would it feel to die, and then wake up because someone brought you back? Would you feel like you cheated death, or would you shrug it off and continue about your day as if nothing happened? What if, just hear me out, you tested this theory, but instead, allowed adrenaline to drive your thoughts as you went through the phases.

This theory explains that when the human body is pushed to the brink of death, the extreme surge of adrenaline and other stress hormones (including pain) trigger a hidden potential within the human physiology and brain, resulting in extraordinary abilities. This phenomenon, called "Adrenaline-Induced Potentiality (AIP)", suggests that under extreme stress conditions, the body can unlock superhuman or "extraordinary" capabilities that lie dormant in all individuals.

Your character is a Medical Student at Peaks Medical Institute. Peaks is an elite medical school is located in the heart of the colorful city of Arcadia in New York. It's known for its cutting-edge research facilities and rigorous academic programs. In order to graduate, your character needs to submit a 'Thesis', a comprehensive research project. Your character and their friends team up to study the Adrenaline Induced Potentiality (AIP) Hypothesis. In order to get more accurate information, they decide to try it out for themselves. One by one, each and every one of them will die-- and it's up to the others to bring them back with their medical knowledge and skills.

They gather every night in the Eclipse Lab, an abandoned Laboratory with high-end medical equipment, stimulation rooms, and technology on the construction side of campus. Here, they will bring each other back from the dead and study their hypothesis.

Little do they know, this comes with a catch. When they get revived, and they're stuck in-between the afterlife and death, they develop extraordinary abilities that prove their hypothesis true. The problem is, will they now be considered a threat to society? When a professor starts asking questions, weirder and weirder things keep happening.



How long is it until our characters figure out that there's always a price when you cheat death?

Spoiler

*Age:They're in medical school in their final year, so they'll be 26-30 years old.

*Gift: When it comes to gifts, One gift per person, and try to stray away from elemental powers (fire, water, ice, etc) or any that would be unfair to the others. We want everyone to be as equal as possible. For example, gifts like these are what I'm looking for:

Telepathy
Healing
Time Manipulation (only for a few seconds)
Enhanced strength
Invisibility
Enhanced agility

You're more than welcome to pick others on the same level, but please run it by me first! <3

*Focus in Study: Where does your character want to be in a year? General Practice? Orthopedic Practice? Cardiothoracic Practice?

*Crime/wrongdoing: Remember, your character's mistake must be intense enough to where the universe wants to punish your character for it. So things like petty crimes are not what we're looking for, think bigger! :D If it's a wrongdoing, it has to be something that stays on your character's conscious constantly, something they know they did wrong-- but didn't fix.

This is a non-romantic SB, mostly because I'd like to stay on plot and try not to stray away. Of course, there will still lots some drama along the way ;)

Spoiler

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Cast

*Warning: Mention of sui*ide*

The sun was setting behind Peaks, casting a golden hue over the sprawling campus. The air was filled with a sense of urgency and anticipation as the semester drew to a close. For most students, it meant endless hours in the library, preparing for final exams and wrapping up their research projects. But for a select group of ambitious and daring medical students, it meant something far more extraordinary.

Natayla sat in a secluded corner of the Library, waiting for her friends to arrive. She'd done so much research already, she was sure that this plan would work. The Induced Potentiality Hypothesis was a rigid subject, something that nobody in the name of science has ever tried, but she wanted to make history. That's why they were in medical school to begin with... right? To go against all odds and prove that medicine is capable of saving lives.

At this point, Nat was covered in scientific journals, research papers, and notebooks. She had jotted all her ideas down, but not one even came close to the breakthroughs they could make with AIP. She was nervous to bring it up, but if nobody had any better ideas, she'd throw that idea out there. It's better to say something than to stay silent, especially when the outcomes could change their lives, hopefully for the better.

She glanced up just as someone walked through the large, bulky doors.

Nuala was adjusting her ponytail of wavy, dark auburn hair as she stepped inside. As soon as she noticed the mess of journals and papers in the corner, she took that as her cue to approach.

"Hello?" She spoke, her Irish accent barely traceable. "Anyone here?"

"Here!" Natayla smiled at her, pointing towards her journal, "I have an idea. But I want to wait for a few others to get here first. You know how we've been trying to figure out what thesis to research? Well, I got it! Atleast... atleast I think I do. We'll see."

Nuala crashed onto one of the available chairs. "Awesome. Thanks for taking over thesis-searching. I'd have helped out but, you know, Six Feet Under came to town and how can I pass up a concert like that?"

"You went to a Six Feet Under concert and didn't invite me?" Nat frowned playfully. "I mean, I wouldn't have been able to go anyways, I'm still backed up on Professor Harvey's lecture. But still. Did you at least take videos?"

Nuala snickered, "Miz bookworm is into death metal, huh? And yeah, I have videos."

Nat thought about her hypothesis and shifted in her seat, "Yeah... surprisingly, I've been researching death a lot lately. Did you know, that when we die, we don't really die? Like... our bodies are dead, but our souls... they live on for days, even weeks."

Nuala blinked hard. "Shit, that sounds like it's dipping into paranormal stuff. Only, more sciencey and not filled with the hours of fifteen-year-olds playing too many horror games."

Nat blushed and stretched, "Yeah. Wasn't fun to read about, but you'll understand why. I think we could become rich off this idea. We wouldn't even really need our degrees-- that's how groundbreaking this will be."

"I like the sound of that!" Nuala remarked.

Lyle walked in, carrying his tote bag. He saw Nat and Nuala and waved. "So what are we talking about?"

"I have a theory," Nat smiled, hiding her paper, "But I shall wait. I think Sa'Ida and Aiden will be joining us, too. The others are stuck in class. But I couldn't wait for the others-- this theory is too good to pass up. As I was just telling Nuala, this could change our lives," she whispered.

"And it has ghostie vibes," Nuala remarked. "Fun."

"Scientifically speaking, Ghosts don't even exist," Nat shrugged, "Energy cannot be created nor destroyed. Common law of physics. Maybe energy, but not ghosts. Like... our spirits, if that makes sense. And even then, I doubt we'll encounter any."

"Well, one could argue our spirits could manifest as ghosts." Lyle quipped, grabbing a tupperware out of his tote. "Chocolate chip cookies, anyone?"

Nuala gladly accepted a cookie while making a playfully snide expression toward Nat. "Yeah, see? Thank you, Lyle."

"Maybe," Natayla took a cookie as well, and placed it on her notebook, "But... this is what I need to ask you. Would you die for science? Like, not actually die. But die... technically."

Nuala paused for a long moment, pondering that question. Her laid-back, playful attitude slowly turned into one of deep contemplation. For whatever odd reason, she reached for her eyes, tapping under them as if to check if they were still there.

"Um...that was unexpectedly deep," she mumbled. "But, in some ways, I think I would."

"Lyle?" Nat glanced at Lyle, who was stuffing his face with the largest cookie in the bag.

Lyle finished chewing and paused. "Um... Like, die die?"

"Nooo, not die die," Nat opened her notebook and slid it over to them, "Have you ever heard of the Adrenaline Potentiality Hypothesis?"

Lyle skimmed the notebook. "I have. It's a stretch though. I'm assuming you want to test it?"

"I thought that was just an episode of X-Files," Nuala murmured. "But it's real?"

"Precisely! But we'll take precautions, obviously. I just feel like... if we can successfully pull this off, we'd be making history. And not only that, but... what if it actually works? What if, by dying and coming back, we gain these supernatural gifts that all these scientists talk about? We'd be famous. And then, Nuala, you could probably see Six Feet Under backstage if you want. And Lyle, you could even be a renowned chef. We wouldn't even need to stay in this damn school," Natalya studied them, "I really do think it's worth it. And we're Med Students after all. We know what to do."

Nuala chuckled, "Oh, the possibilities..."

"Yeah... but still. Messing with the cycle of life and death?" Lyle shut the notebook and handed it back to Nat.

"Ghosts aren't real. And we do it everyday when we bring back patients. It's not like this isn't a regular thing for us," Nat shrugged.

"Fair point," Nuala murmured. "I mean, we wouldn't have invented the defribulator if someone hadn't stuck an electric prod in a corpse, and that turned out well. Sometimes, you need to take risk."

"Yeah, but we're effectively going to live forever." Lyle shook his head.

"You don't know that," Nat urged, "There's no where in any reports about people coming back from death with the gift of immortality. I did some research..." she pulled out a few case studies from her bag, and slid them over to Nuala and Lyle, "Look. Mid aged woman. Thirty five years old. Car crash. Came back with the ability to speak telepathically to others. She could hear literal thoughts."

She slid over another, "Male. Twenty-two. Died of suicide. Was resucitated, but came back with the ability to heal. Quickly, too." she slid over the last one, "A child. Five years old. Died of drowning. Came back with the ability to cause pain, with only a touch. Got put in a mental institution by the time he was eight. You're telling me that all of these are coincidental?"

"It is suspicious," Nuala murmured. "I think there are people that have made hoaxes out of this though, so with the already-wild theory, we'd have to be thorough. Which, in this context..." She cringed. "Sounds gnarly."

"Still, there has to be some sort of reprocussion for this. I'm not sure I'm on board with this. Yet, I do admit that the evidence is compelling." Lyle took another cookie.

"We will be thorough," Nat looked at Nuala, and then to Lyle, "Come on, Lyle. It will work, we just have to do it right. We won't wait too long to bring anyone back. We just have to leave them... asleep for a few minutes, enough for the heart to stop beating. Then, we bring them back."

"Which means there's room for error. If we wait too long, I presume that they'll end up dead?"

"We practice medicine. There's room for error every time we save someone. Every single time. We'd do this in a controlled environment, in the Eclipse lab at sundown, when nobody is around. And there will be so many of us working at the same time, that it'll be almost impossible for us to lose someone," Nat took her case studies back.

"I mean, with today's technology, people come back later and later," Nuala murmured. "One of my favorite singers OD'd and was dead for about sixteen minutes, and was still recussitated with no side-effects. Who knows, maybe the demon shriek he manages to do is his own 'gift' from this thesis."

Lyle sighed. "Who else are you roping into this?"

"Exactly!" Nat nodded at Nuala, "And Lyle, everyone. Everyone in our group. We need more people. The more, the better. You don't just complete an experiment once, and call it quits. We have to do it over and over and over again to analyze true results."

"I really don't feel like dying," Nuala murmured. "But you know what? If there's any student I'm going to trust to recussitate me, it's going to be Nat. And if I can use the information for what I have in mind, stick a needle in me and call me Miz Rigor Mortis."

"I'm only doing this if there's more people. And I'm not going first. I can't risk putting my achievements at risk."

"Your achievements will look like itty bitty accomplishments if we can actually pull this off," Nat smiled, just as another person walked through the door.

It was Aiden, in his usual school hoodie and jeans. "'Sup," he said, popping the p sound as he smiled. "Not too late, am I?"

"Nope, I just finished telling them about our little plan," Nat tapped the seat next to her.

"Great," Aiden said, sliding his backpack next to the chair before sitting down. "So you're in, right?"

Lyle groaned. "Why him?" He frowned.

"What's wrong with Aiden joining us? You said more people, right?" Natalya questioned.

"Yeah, hey," Aiden said, placing a hand over his heart. "I'm so hurt," he pouted.

"He keeps stealing the things I bake, while they're cooling! They aren't even warm then, they're practically scalding!"

Nuala averted her eyes, pretending to ignore them.

Aiden's mouth dropped open. "I would never!"

Lyle sneered. "You would too. I saw you do it."

"Okay, okay," Nat shushed them, "Baked goods stealer or not, Aiden will be helpful. We all need to work together on this, or one of us will stay dead. Do we want that? No. We don't."

"Come on, Gordon Ramsey," Aiden grinned, "you're gonna need me. Otherwise, who's gonna go first?"

Lyle groaned again. "He's not even a baker!"

Aiden shrugged. "Eh, close enough."

A quiet set of footsteps tiptoed into the library, cautious and trying to avoid drawing any attention. Natalya followed the sounds and her eyes landed on Sa'Ida, who was weighed down by what looked like at least five textbooks.

"The other nerd has arrived!" Nuala exclaimed -using the term playfully of course. "Hey, Ida."

"Sa'Ida!" Nat smiled, "Sit, sit! We have an idea for our thesis."

She looked up, looking quiet startled at being noticed. "H..hello."

Nat went on to explain her theory, how it'd work, and shared the case studies, "So, what do you think? You in?"

Her eyes were glimmering ever slo slightly with excitement even as the rest of her expression hardly changed. "Ground breaking!" She nodded slowly. "If you'll have me of course!"

"RIght? That's what I said! And of course we'll have you. The more, the merrier!" Nat placed her hands together excitedly, "Okay. So. Tonight. Eclipse Lab. 8pm, when nobodys there. We'll start. How does that sound, everyone?"

"Can't wait to die," Aiden drawls with a lazy smile.

Nuala nodded. "I like the energy. I'm in."

Lyle sighed. "I guess I'm in. Still not 100% onboard."

Sa'Ida nodded, still looking a little shocked to be included.

"It'll be fine," Natayla stood and gathered her things, "I'll tell the others. See you tonight!"

She exited the library with a goofy smile plastered on her face. She couldn't stop thinking about it: the revelations they'd make if it actually worked, the amount of fame and praise they'd get from all the scientists that were too scared to try it themselves. She texted the others in the group: Darien, Enzo, Zimzam, and Tempest. She gave them the location, time, and the rundown. There was only one thing left to do:

Die.

Darien Garcia left the study hall with his hands full of his stuff. Every single time they had this class, it went over. He could not wait to get this class over with, and he felt like his friends, who took that class with him, felt the same.

Evening classes sucked to begin with, but wasting people's time and then some in the evening was especially brutal. It got to the point where Darien scooped up his stuff immediately after being let out and stuff it in his backpack as he scurried out.

As Darien and his friends left the second floor and made their way out to the lobby, Darien broke the ice. "So... did anyone take notes this time around?"

Enzo raised his hand. "Given my handwriting, I can't say whether they're legible... but they exist. Probably. I was dozing off near the end so the last few pages might be dream mumblings." He walked with his usual bouncy stride.

Darien chuckled. "You and the professor both. I stopped trying after hour two? Like, really, who needs to lecture on and on and on about the history of antibiotics with excruciating detail on the life stories of their discoverers?"

Zimzam yawned, dragging his feet as always. "What notes?"

Enzo laughed. "We're all doomed." He had a grin on his face still, though. "I call hosting our cram session before finals."

"Don't worry, buddy. Enzo here will decipher his notes for ya. Right?" Darien elbowed Enzo as they exited the building.

"You all need notes?" Tempest walked up to them, looking much too awake after such grueling torture. "I took extensive ones! Color coordinated and everything. Do you need a particular part or everything?"

"I'm not going through the grueling work of translating my notes unless I'm paid." Enzo pointed at Tempest. "Ask her for help. Tempest, you're the best, and I will bake you brownies if you share your notes."

"Tempest, what will we do without you?" Darien smiled. "This class will be the death of me, I swear."

"Fail, probably. But I'll take those brownies, Enzo. I'll upload them to Google Drive and share the document with you." Tempest pulled out her phone, turning it on.

"You, are an absolute savior." Zimzam nodded.

Enzo cheered in agreement as they crossed a lawn. The sun had set, but there was still some light illuminating the clouds in the sky with dramatic orange and purple hues.

Tempest stopped in her tracks. "Oh dear. Guys, we're needed. Urgently apparently. Under threat of a 'gruesome demise' if we're late. And we're... fifteen minutes late."

"What?" Enzo rummaged in his backpack for his phone, spending probably a good thirty seconds searching for it. Finally, he pulled it out. "Oh. I should really start telling people to give me a heads-up of 2-3 business days when planning things, considering how I'm more likely to use my phone as a paperweight than a communications device... In any case, whoops. To the Eclipse Lab?"

"An advance plan would've been nice. Not everyone can drop everything on short notice. But we should go." Tempest looked around. "That way, right?" She pointed towards the science part of campus.

"Well they can wait for another 15 minutes." Zimzam grumbled. "I need a nap."

"Nap while running," Enzo suggested. "Or fast-walking, if that's easier."

"Didn't work, already tried that. Face-planted onto the concrete floor." He yawned.

"Maybe you can sleep during the meeting. Just pretend it's English class." Tempest started towards the lab buildings.

"Ooooh great idea! I can fall asleep with my eyes open." He replied cheerfully, following Tempest.

"Zimzam, we really need to get you to do a sleep study." Darien grinned and patted the man on his shoulder. "Last one to the Eclipse Lab gets to take a nap!" And he sprinted off.

"Wait, shouldn't it be the first one...?" Enzo called. He grumbled, but when Darien glanced back, he was following, albeit at a slower pace. Zimzam definitely was lagging behind just to be last. Darien shrugged to himself. He wouldn't question his own logic... until he tripped over something --maybe even his own feet-- and fell right into the grass, tasting a lot of damp grass and a little bit of blood.

"Ouch," he muttered, spitting out a mouthful of vegetation.

Enzo immediately bent down and offered a band-aid. Tempest kneeled beside them. "You good?"

"I think he's just wanting a nap." Zimzam stopped behind them.

"Yeah, a dirt nap." Darien struggled to his knees.

"At least you aren't taking it six feet underground. Although that would be cozy, I think."

"Thanks for repeating my joke, Zimzam... urgh." He shrugged the backpack back onto his arm. "I am going to need a shower after this meeting."

Tempest took a step back. "You and me both."

"..Gonna take that as a no for the band-aid, then." Enzo shrugged and slipped the banana and orange-patterned band-aid back into his pocket.

"Thanks for the offer, Enzo. I think I've earned the last place nap, haha."

"Congratulations." He laughed.

"Or both of you take a nap and I take notes for everyone again." Tempest smirked as she opened the door to the science building. "Now come on, sleepyheads."

Darien took his time to the Eclipse Lab, at first hobbling because his right knee felt a little off, and then finally to a walk fast enough to keep up with Zimzam, who was still taking his merry time. It didn't help that the lab was up hill, which seemed to be a classic "feature" of many campuses. Walking uphill absolutely everywhere. Downhill didn't exist if you were at a university.

As Darien climbed the needless amount of stairs and reached the door, he was met with Zimzam holding it open for him, with a grin on his face. "After you my injured friend."

"Oh, how generous of you!" Darien said. "I can open my own door, though."

"Yes, well, I insist."

Darien chuckled. He unfortunately knew they would be there all night if he didn't walk through that door. And so he stepped through the open door, and Zimzam followed. They made their way to the Lab room that was mentioned in the text.

As they walked through the door, Darien announced their timely arrival with, "Hey, what'd we miss?"