Chapter 63

It has been about one week since everything fell out of place. GMN-4 was having more unpredictable outbursts. Sometimes he was very strong, fast, and aggressive and at other times he was weak, having migraines and nosebleeds. At this point, he was able to feel pain from even the slightest pinch. His emotions were all over the place as he kept having flashbacks of his past. He was aggressive, moody, depressed, defensive, reflective, and sometimes sober. It would have been fun to watch him go through mood swings like a teenage girl but they had other issues. 2,6, and 7 were also having flashbacks. Although 2's wasn't serious or he didn't talk about it, 6 was practically confined to her bed with the dog.

3 was not having an easy time. He was trying so hard to decode 1's research. The girl was as cryptic as no one he could think of. He still had to monitor his fellow GMNs. He knew things had taken a worse turn when there was a piercing pain in his head and he was transported back in time.

There was an emergency meeting. They had to figure out what to do. Every GMN looked exhausted. The ones that didn't have flashes had to work twice as hard to make up for the ones that weren't up and running. This was a total disaster and they felt the loss of GMN-1 more because she always had a solution for everything even before it occurs.

3 and Doctor Stone had finished decoding 1's research. Doctor Stone had to admit she was a genius even more than her mom. She effectively combined the extension of the body's limit with the memory recovery process. Technical, efficient, and safer but the problem was, the research wasn't complete. 3 knew that 1 would never start something without finishing it and there were two scenarios: one, she couldn't complete it because something more urgent came up which is likely given the facility and their situation. Two, they only had part of the research meaning that she separated them just in case they fell into the wrong hands and that was a classic GMN-1 move. They could continue from where she stopped which seemed the only option right now but they were pressed for time.

GMN-3 looked around at his fellow GMNs. The stress was evident. 5 looked like she had been dragged through hell and the girl focused so much on her appearance. 9 looked like the undead with his hollow eyes and pale complexion. He was in front of the screens he set up in the room they had converted to the common room. For some reason, they had been facing cyber threats every other day. They knew that sooner or later the banks behind the GMN program would perceive them as threats that needed to be found and exterminated.

He couldn't say 4 looked worse or better. In the past week, the guy had gone through hell. It was like 1 wasn't the only one with a traumatic past. He had so much energy, aggression, and pent-up rage that he needed physical exertion or he would have gone crazy. He turned to workouts and training and as a result bulked up. 3 had to say the various hormones in his body contributed more than the workout because two bulked up too without any exertion and 6 was looking more… Dr. Stone said the reconfiguration had an aging suppressant which was why they still looked like teenagers rather than young adults.

3 had noticed a lot of similarities between father and daughter. They were both reserved, not speaking unless necessary, and had no patience with people or things they deemed insignificant or not worth their time which to Stone was the rest of the GMN who were not biologically inclined except 2. He couldn't tell what the man was feeling or thinking and had that gleam in his eyes when things made more sense than he should. Unlike his daughter, he opened up once in a while especially to 2 for some reason and one could catch a glimpse of the life he led before all this but to 3 and the other GMNs nothing on earth could excuse him from what he did. Not his traumas and certainly not the help he was rendering.

"Are we waiting for someone else!?" 5 asked. The stress had made her grumpier

They would have been waiting for 1. She would have been there or stylishly late. 3 sighed again. 1 just made everything easier.

"We've decided 1's research…

"Rosetta," 2 said

"Doesn't matter"4 countered

"It's not complete!" 3 went straight to the point. It surprised and confused them. Not only did 3 not elongate what is a simple brief by giving an unnecessary backstory, but he was also telling them that 1's research was incomplete. This was 1 he was talking about.

"What do you mean by that?" 6 asked

"The research, though vital, wasn't conclusive. She might have done that in case it fell into the wrong hands. If I had one, someone else likely has the completion." 3 said looking around the room.

7 had a blueprint of the location of all the safes in the facility with their codes and didn't know, she might have given her research to some others who didn't know what it was.

"I would ask everyone to share the projects she had with you because it might be helpful. The other option is to continue from where she stopped and that could take a lot of time we currently don't have " 3 said

The room was quiet.

"Start talking!" 4 said aggressively as his eyes rested on 2 and then 7.

7 looked at 4. He could feel the aggression coming off him in waves. He had given all he could whatever was left was considered personal. Was he going to tell them that she helped improve his skills and memory? Wait! There was something else. She made a list, a list of places. He looked up. He saw the expression on the rest.

"She made a list," 7 said as he looked at the rest

"Why are we hearing of this now!?" 6 asked

"I forgot about it." 7 explained. He didn't know why he forgot about it, maybe from the way she spoke about it. "I'll get the list"

"Later" 4 turned to 2.

"She was investigating every adult in the facility based on the connections 5 had made and didn't have the time so she recruited my help"

"What!?" 5 asked

"You didn't think you were the only one who knew things. She knew what you knew and then more. She made most of the connections you failed to realize."

"Then why did she need your help?"

"She was busy and there were still lots of blanks to fill" 2 replied

"Anything else you conveniently left out?" 6 asked

"I should be asking you."

"The only thing she did was train the dog, use me, and borrow animal DNA" 6 replied

"Animal DNA for?"

"How would I know?"

"What kind of animals?"

"Lots of kinds. The only thing I know is whenever she brought the vials back they contained something different, similar but different."

"How different?"3 asked

"Like they were mixed with something else, different"

"She didn't give you anything to hold or keep for her or something…?"

"Nada"

"Did you ever try to figure out what was in the vials"

"Where are they?"

"I didn't ask and I just stashed them away. After a while, she started returning pristine tubes"

"She must have figured out you're the stupid one," 5 said. The punch that followed was unexpected and was to the face.

"What the…" 3 was quick to pull 6 bodily off 5 before she did any more damage. Who was the stupid one here? Provoking someone who is currently unstable.

"She spent more time in your lab than she did hers. You must have seen what she mixed with those DNAs" 2 said

"I didn't know she collected those DNAs" 3 replied. Absurd. The girl practically lived in his lab but he had no idea what she was up to. He gave her the space and hopefully the right environment to focus on her research.

"We'll need those vials, the list, and whatever information she gave you to investigate," 4 said

"How come you aren't spilling anything?" 5 asked 4. It looked like she wanted a burial to go with that split lip and a broken nose.

"There is nothing to spill," 2 said. He had read and understood 4's anger that 1 had a project with almost everyone but him. Although he hated to admit it, 4 was the only one that could keep her in check just like she was the only one who could challenge him in actions. They had a mutual respect hinged on the fact that they could do whatever it was they needed to do as long as none crossed the line. 1 was playing a dangerous game even though she was smart. She would have been long gone if the higher-ups had an inkling of what she discovered or what she was up to. Everyone knew they watched her like hawks and now they knew why; they had contributed to her camouflage in more than one way. However if 4 knew the kind of risk she was putting herself through, he wouldn't let her. 1 was aware of that fact but was clueless about the 'why?' so she kept him in the dark. He knew she was always up to something and in a way it amused him but if he had known what, they wouldn't be here today. Like always, he kept that part to himself.

"I find that hard to believe," 5 said and 3 facepalmed. Luckily the outburst he expected never came.

"You still haven't given us any meaningful information after all your years as Doc's lackey," 6 said

"I have a copy of every transaction Doc ever made," 5 said proudly

"I have copies of every transaction Doc and Deccan ever made, I have recorded phone conversations, emails, inventories, text messages; every form of interaction and communication tracked both internal and external," 9 said. He knew at this point he was taking full credit for what wasn't his effort.

"I have a list of Doc's contacts"

"I have a comprehensive list including details of her contacts and contacts of those contacts down to DNA analysis and medical records of their second generations. Their favorite foods, routines, dirty secrets, and an open surveillance channel" he said the last part looking at 9, and 9 nodded.

4 could feel the urge to do murder. He didn't know which annoyed him the most: the fact that she was a low-key busybody or she trusted others with such sensitive information but not him. He was going to chain her to a place and put a singing bird in her mouth.

"Give us something we don't know"

"Emily Desdemona Georges"

"Doc's sister?" 2 asked

"Her daughter"

"I can't believe she was right," 9 said

"Doc has a daughter?" 6 asked

"We have everything on her except the fact she is Doc's daughter."

"What is her connection to Rosetta?"

"Rivalry. Doc is to Anabella Stone as Emily is to Rosetta. Both are just cheap phonies"

"We'll need details and Doc's journals," 2 said and turned to 9.

At this point 4 was numb. 6 was confused. Sister, daughter, journal. She doesn't even want to start with contacts' DNA.

"I was just the errand guy. She tells me what to do and I do"

"Like she told you not to tell me". 4 said and 9 looked down. When it came to choosing between offending 4 or 1 the decision was clear. He could not afford to offend 1 and the reasoning was simple. If he offended someone else, he would be safe because 1 could pacify anyone but who would attempt to pacify 1? 4 would just let her do whatever she wants as long as she is not risking herself, and 2 and 3 can't do much. he chose wisely then, now…

"Have you checked your storage for any file you didn't create?" 4 Asked

"I'm on it!" 9 said. He had not thought of that. He was trying to do just that when he got an anonymous email.

"Guys!? I just got an email with attachments "

"From who?"

"Doesn't say, can't trace it"

"Open it," 4 said and they looked at him. Seeing the seriousness in his expression, 9 nodded and opened it. There were just two pdf attachments. He scanned them again before he opened them. He tilted his head to the left and then to the right with a complex expression.

"What is it?"

"That's what I'm trying to figure out" he felt maybe if he viewed it from a different angle it would make sense.

"Let me see," 4 said and 9 unplugged the device and passed it to him. He took one look at it and passed it to 3.

"Is this what you were looking for?" He asked. 3's eyes widen at the mere sight of it. Forget the one they had, this was more…

The rest crowded him but moved away when they realized they couldn't make out anything except for 2. His eyes scanned the document and stopped on page 3 enlarged. He looked at 3 and saw him looking right back at him.

"What is it?"

"Please don't tell me it's another half"

"It's complete, too complete"

"Is it feasible?"

"Yes, with minimal risk"

"So why do you look so pale!?"

"At the end of the procedure, we'll recover our memories"