RIA
Ria is our main character and has a special gift to heal spirit and body as a curandera as well as communicate with ancestors. They come from a long line of healers. That line was cut when Ria’s mom, a former addict-current-evangelical, kicked them out as a teenager. Many in their community [friends, family, clients, lovers] have uploaded to the Digisphere leaving Ria alone and in a crisis of faith. As a last resort to stop the pain and maybe join their community again, they decide to upload to Digisphere. But before they can upload, they must convince their estranged bestie, Taa, an anti-Digisphere activist, to sign off to be their next of kin.
TAA
Taa and Ria have been friends since elementary school where the two met. They gravitated towards each other as in-the-closet homies. When Ria's mom kicked out Ria as a teen, Taa's family took in Ria as their own. The two have been through thick and thin over the last decade. Taa and Ria stopped talking when one of their closest buddies uploaded into the Digisphere. Ria started spiraling and Taa became a militant anti-Digisphere activist and the two lost touch. After a few years of estrangement, Taa gets a call out of the blue from Ria asking them to meet.
DIGISPHERE
Digisphere is a new technology developed by a powerful tech giant. The Digisphere is marketed as a solution to death itself. A chance to leave behind the human body and upload your consciousness into the Internet making you immortal, all-knowing, and never again susceptible to things like poverty, hunger, disease, racism, misogyny, transphobia, and discrimination. The Digisphere went online 2 years ago and 1000s in Ria and Taa's community have uploaded, leaving their barrio barren and broken.