Chapter 64

The room was deathly quiet. The words recover memories was still ringing in their head. They knew what it meant. They would regain memories that were forcefully robbed from them. Their past and identities would be restored howbeit mentally.

It sounded like a cause for celebration. They finally get to know who they were before all this. They could finally feel the gaps and stop the painful flashes. Have accessible information about the lives they led.

Their reservations? A lot. They have only one reference of someone who recovered her memory and she was MIA. She was perfect and nonchalant before and suicidal after. What if she was right? Their past might be better not remembered.

"Can the memory recovery procedure be optional?"

"From a glance, I will say no but if I study it a bit more, I will check if there is a way around it"

"Whoever sent it wanted us to recover our memories, why?"

"What is in the second attachment?"

"I really don't understand it," 9 said, staring at a bunch of words. He turned the screen to face the rest.

They looked at it with furrowed brows.

"Looks like some sort of riddle." 6 was the first to speak

The venom clamours of a jealous woman,

Poisons more deadly than a mad dog's tooth.

It seems his sleeps were hinder'd by thy railing:

And thereof comes it that his head is light.

Thou say'st his meat was sauced with thy upbraidings:

Unquiet meals make ill digestions;

Thereof the raging fire of fever bred;

And what's a fever but a fit of madness?

Thou say'st his sports were hinder'd by thy brawls:

Sweet recreation barr'd, what doth ensue

But moody and dull melancholy,

Kinsman to grim and comfortless despair;

And at her heels a huge infectious troop

Of pale distemperatures and foes to life?

In food, in sport, and life-preserving rest

To be disturb'd, would mad or man or beast:

The consequence is, then, thy jealous fits

Have scared thy husband from the use of wits.

Up, sword; and know thou a more horrid hent:

When he is drunk asleep, or in his rage,

Or in the incestuous pleasure of his bed;

At game, a-swearing, or about some act

That has no relish of salvation in't;

Then trip him, that his heels may kick at heaven,

And that his soul may be as damn'd and black

As hell, whereto it goes. My mother stays:

This physic but prolongs thy sickly days.

"Shakespeare" 5 and 2 said at the same time

Shakespeare?

"Which one?" 4 and 3 said together

9, 6, and 7 just stared at them.

"Comedy of errors," 5 said

"Hamlet," 2 said

"None of them is the answer" 9 replied and they turned to look at him.

"Looks like 6 was right. It may be some kind of riddle. The answer links you to the cloud document"

"What kind of psycho would use Shakespeare to encrypt a probable very important document?" 6 asked

"1" 4 said and they froze. Thinking about it, who else will send the completion of her research except her? The timing was just so perfect but a lot of things still didn't make sense.

"Can you trace the location from where the email was sent?" 2 asked

" I couldn't identify her as the sender, I doubt I would be able to find a location but I'll try" 9 grumbled. It was not fair the girl gets all the talent in the world

"How fast can you prep for the first procedure?"4 asked and all eyes whipped to him.

"You can't be serious!" 5 said and 4 inclined his head towards her, his expression reading 'don't look like I am joking?'

"Just because you assume that the person that sent the research is 1 you want to what? Volunteer as a lab rat?" 6 asked

"I didn't assume. I know" he replied

"Someone please check this guy into a mental facility. There is more than one thing wrong with his brain!" 6 exclaimed exasperatedly

" is it feasible?" 4 asked again

"it looks like" 3 replied

"That's all I need to know," 4 said

"Give 3 time. He might be able to figure out how to separate the two procedures" 7 finally spoke up

In his opinion, whichever they were dealing with didn't matter. There must be a reason she made the memory recovery process a core part of the procedure. The only thing he was afraid of if ever was not remembering her after the procedure but that seemed unlikely.

"You don't know what would happen if you recover your memories. It could tear you apart! Drive you insane! It made her suicidal" GMN-7 said. He didn't want to lose another teammate.

"At least I know not to expect happy memories," 4 said drily. His mind was made up. They turned to 3 for help. The one person that could change his mind was not here. 3 was a last resort.

"Are you sure?" 3 asked and the others were speechless. Why wasn't he dissuading him?

4 nodded and 3 gave an understanding nod. "I'll get on it then"

"Have you both lost it!?" 6 asked like she couldn't believe what was going on.

"This is our best option. No one could crack these genetic codes like she does" 3 reasoned

"And she'll just hand it over without a catch?" 5 asked

"The catch is not in the procedure" 4 replied

There was a catch. Did they not care about the risk?

"We are racing against time. She knows that." 3 said

"Whatever she wants, the chances of her getting it by tampering with the procedure is low," 4 said

"What if tampering with the procedures was what she hoped to gain?" 5 asked

"Fine by me"

Of all the idiotic males!

3 had an understanding of 4. He trusted that 1 wouldn't hurt them with something like this. Was it a misplaced trust? He didn't know and would bet 4 didn't care. That was why he was willing to volunteer himself. If it turned out there was foul play…

6 didn't bloody care about his faith in 1. Deep down she knew 1 wouldn't hurt them but she wasn't so sure of Rosetta. She seemed suicidal at first and then she woke up, there was this coldness. A coldness she had never seen in anyone, not even in GMN-1. She wouldn't poke anything given by her with a ten-foot pole.

5 just stared. She was too mentally exhausted for all this. Throughout history, dead people don't come back to life and remain the same. They don't usually have good intentions.

Coincidence is not a word he would use with 1. The timing was just too perfect. One could say she anticipated it seeing that she already started working on it but with 1 nothing is as it appears.

9 was still busy trying to crack the password of the riddle. He had run it through most of his software. Darn that girl! He looked up at 6 and changed his mind. Darn that Lady! The growth sprout had him for loops. Suddenly he was looking at different people. Aging whatever 3 has been talking about left him confused. Rosetta and GMN-1 gave him more headaches.

7 had nothing against 1. However, hearing that she may not be the same person made him skeptical. They were running out of time, he knew but options needed to be considered carefully. The girl…He looked at 6. GMN-1 was scary now they had to deal with two who might be quite distinct.

"I have to run this by Dr. Stone,"3 said

"Let's focus on getting better" 4 said and cringed and they knew why. They watched the video of her procedure. Annabelle Stone had claimed that she would make 1 better. However, they needed to get better because they had a lot of unresolved issues. 4 scoffed inwardly. That list was bound to grow.

"2, I might need you to confirm something," 3 said and 2 nodded

There was a small whimper and they all turned. 6 had her hand over her ears. 3 was beside her in a second. The rest gathered but gave them some space.

"Tell me again why you hate animals"

"Because they are the same as kids."

"But you are a kid"

"Who wishes she wasn't."

"Your ears are bleeding!" 3 noticed

"I knew her" that was all she said before she fainted.

"Call Dr. Stone," 3 said to no one in particular before zooming off with 6 in his arms.

2 was the first to react and went to find Dr. Stone. He had a sinking suspicion. What if they weren't just random smart kids….