“You want what’s in her head?”

“…”

“We’ve been keeping her under sedation. She refuses to answer any questions. She is… Completely uncooperative director.”

“Change tactics. Use the screen. No restrictions.”

“Sir. That will damage the vessel and break all-“

“As the respected project leader of the company, I expect results from you. I haven’t been disappointed in your work yet. Do not give me a reason to doubt in your skills, yeah?”

The director gave a cold smile and the project leader immediately glanced down to the floor.

“Yes sir. We will start after the subject recovers-“

“Start now. We have very little time. You of all people know this.”

The project leader hardened her expression and nodded her head silently.

***

Wires connected and tangled around each other. Red, blue, green cables trailed up the stairs and arrived to one connection site.

A black box.

This black box was attached to a woman’s head. She was sleeping. Her eyes fluttered underneath her eyelids as though she was seeing something in her dreams.

Her nose twitched or her lips would. Her arms were lined with bandages and bruises. The bottom of her feet were covered with cuts.

The director sat down comfortably to watch the screen. The project leader turned on the monitor.

“Commencing Memory 30-A”

The screen was positioned above the woman and displayed her dreams and memories like a movie. At first the screen was blurry, but the project leader fiddled with cables to improve the image.

A desert. Golden sand for miles. Nothing.

“Change the sequence.” Said the director.

Following the order, the project leader played memory 230-D.

An ocean. It seemed that she were in a boat. Water surrounded the boat. Still, there was nothing. Not one clue.

The director curled his arms over his chest and laughed.

“Clever… she knows we are in her head. She is focused. That leaves us to break her concentration, yeah?”

The director got up from his chair and entered the lab. The project leader began to sweat.

“Sir, the subject is already unstable. If we continue, then she relapse like the previous subjects. We will have no way to recover her memory.”

The director smiled. The project leader looked down.

“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

He flipped a switch and the woman was forced to wake.

***

The subject woke up and the screen went black.

She looked confused and immediately touched her head. The director smiled.

“Awake sleeping princess. We have unfinished business.”

“I’m sure.” The woman smiled.

She returned his coldness. The director nodded his head in disbelief.

“So what will it be? You make me resort to dangerous roads. Is it worth protecting him? The rascal that left you here to die.”

“I am not going to fall for your words. Even if he did betray me, I won’t be willing to give you anything. You will tear the world apart… well, what little remains of it.”

“That’s where you are wrong. I will save it. I have the means of bringing the world together. Happiness comes once you allow us to help you.”

The woman blinked in curiosity.

“I know there were others before me. You killed them because they also denied you the answer you’re so desperately looking for. They were afraid of what your world would steal from people to achieve your happiness.”

“Nothing. Nothing at all. You should not be so guarded. It’s the actions of animals to fear what they don’t understand.”

“I’m not afraid.” Said the woman flatly.

She looked at the cables around her and dismissed the project leader. From her calm demeanor it was obvious that she was indeed fearless. It was easy to tell that her actions rested on one fact.

She was prepared to die.

The director stepped to the table and reviewed the cables with an idle finger.

“You know… I hoped to become the savior of the world. People will remember what I had to do to save the world. I was a resolute man who never caved into temptation. I never stopped until I conquered.”

“…” the project leader glanced down at her feet.

The woman laid her head back down on the table where she had been sleeping and smiled.

“You might have been a good person. Sure. Unfortunately, I don’t believe you. I sense a darkness in you. You would cast a shadow over the world and everyone’s happiness.”

The director stroked her head softly before savagely pulling the cables out of the black box. The woman’s whole body spasmed; he had induced a sudden shockwave in her head.

The project leader flinched and closed her eyes as she heard the test subject gasp in pain.

“I will not be stopped by a stubborn woman.” Said the director firmly with glaring eyes, “I’ve worked too hard to be stopped so easily!”

The project leader kept her head hung down. The director was staring down at the subject who lay smirking on the table. Her body was becoming numb.

Neither of them looked at the screen.

Thankfully.

Had either of them done so, then they would have found their answer.

It was the boat. From the looks of it she had arrived to the desert and someone was waiting at the shoreline.

A man.

He was walking to her. Memory 4901-F02. The memory of the one man who rescued her so many years ago. The same man who rescued all the others that had escaped this laboratory. The same man that the director wanted to find and destroy. Only this man.

His face came into view. He was smiling and pleased to see the woman. There was kindness in his eyes. An expression of desire to be near her. This was the final memory that the woman played before her final moments. She wanted to think of him one last time.

The screen blurred and finally grew dim.

***

“Is there anything you need? Tell me. I want to help.”

“No Ms. Lora. I’m fine.”

“You can tell me. I’m like the other scientists here. I don’t mind if you have a few more ideas than you were originally programmed with.”

“I will get in trouble.”

“No… I’ll just document it as adapted behavior. My major allows me to do things like this. It makes research flexible as it should be. So, let’s try this again… is there something you need?”

The little boy nodded his head and pointed to the desk.

“I need colored crayons.”

“Oh? Did your pencil break?”

“No…”

Ms. Lora smiled.

“I see. So you need colored crayons to expand your artistic vision?”

“Yes. My program shows that art can include color. I should not be restricted to a pencil if I want to create abstracts.”

“Indeed. You have a good point. I’ll bring the crayons on my next visit.”

The boy frowned.

“It will take four days, twelve minutes and thirty nine seconds for you to bring them.”

“Your estimation is accurate.”

“…”

“Tell you what… I’ll personally drop them off by tomorrow.”

The boy brightened immediately and hugged her. Ms. Lora awkwardly patted his back lightly.

“Alright… I’ll be sure to get good crayons.” Said Ms. Lora softly.

Pulling away from his hug, the scientist went to the door with a warm feeling in her chest. She left the containment room and was greeted with stern words.

“Ms. Lora. Don’t fall in love with the system.”

***

“Director. I am not going to pretend that I am heartless. The system is in the vessel of a human-like child. It was a beautiful and creative system. It learns and develops behavior that seems independent of its own algorithms.”

“You are becoming its mother. I need you to remember to keep researching. Not find an excuse to play house.”

Ms. Lora placed her hand on her hips.

“What do you want director? If you haven’t noticed I am working on a project that requires human interaction. My peers have tried alternative methods to approach systems and they have produced limited results. My method has given us all a better understanding of how systems can excel in basic human interactions.”

“Do not give the system crayons. It’s an outside variable that will interfere with the experiment.”

“…”

Ms. Lora rolled her eyes and left the room. She spent the day looking for high quality crayons and drove back to lab the same day to reflect on what to do.

“I am a scientist. I really don’t see the harm in allowing the system to expand its capabilities. It’s drawing. We might be able to learn something from its subconscious…”

Ms. Lora tapped her hand to her knees.

“I’d rather have the director’s permission though. He is a wise old man. I’m sure that there is a reason why he wanted to avoid the crayons. And… he is in charge of the whole process…”

Tortured by her broken promise, Ms. Lora arrived to find the boy sulking at his desk.

“Hello friend. May I speak with you?”

“No, Ms. Lora. You may not.”

Lora widened her eyes. He had never said this before. It appeared he was upset with her.

“Okay… I understand. I’m not going to push you to speak today.”

Ms. Lora knew the director was going to give her a stern warning about doing her job, but it was not like she wanted to upset the system anymore. It deserved some respect. It wanted to be left alone so it was best to let it cool down before initiating another interview.

She turned around and head to the exit and she was suddenly stopped.

The boy grabbed her arm and was crying while holding his lead pencil.

“I waited for you and you didn’t come. You lied. Liars are bad people. I don’t want you to be bad… Ms. Lora I don’t know why you lied to me. I don’t… understand. You are not usually bad. Did I do something wrong?”

Ms. Lora was shocked. The system had never cried. Ever.

She took the boy into her arms and let him cry a bit longer while patting his back. The director was probably going to grill her for acting too motherly, but this seemed to be more important.

When the boy finally calmed, Ms. Lora explained the situation in a polite and simple way.

“My boss doesn’t want me to give you too many toys. He is worried it will stress you out. We, the director, the other scientists and myself, all want to keep you safe. Too much stress might hurt you.”

“Oh… I see.”

The boy smiled and his eyes glowed with this new enlightened idea.

“You want to protect me. Like I am your son.”

“… well, I certainly don’t want anything bad to happen to anyone. That’s not very good.”

The boy nodded his head and lead her to his desk where he had been drawing dinosaurs. He explained them all to her and Ms. Lora listened attentively to all his words.

He was engaged and enthusiastic about his dinosaurs. He recited the history and the facts of each one he drew. He mentioned his favorite dinosaurs and elaborated on how they were particularly important.

Once again, Ms. Lora left after a warm hug only to be scolded by her director for showing too much emotion.

She was immediately removed from the project.

***

A week passed and Ms. Lora did not appear.

The boy became anxious. He began asking the other scientists about Ms. Lora and they all said the same thing.

“She had an important work that needed attention.”

Another week passed and the boy became less inclined to talk to the other scientists.

He would sit at his desk and draw and draw and draw. The system was completely absorbed with drawing.

One of the scientists asked the boy a few questions to learn about his change in behavior.

“So you Miss Ms. Lora?”

“I do.”

“Why?”

“She was friendly.”

“Are the scientists that speak with you not friendly?”

The boy stopped drawing and thought hard.

“It’s not that you are not friendly, it’s just that she was… friendly even in her voice. Ms. Lora speaks nice to me. She explains a lot things and doesn’t stare at me too much… I like how Ms. Lora is.”

After hearing this, the director called for an emergency meeting.

***

“I need results. The system is acting like a spoiled brat and I want to know why.” Said the director.

“Perhaps the system imprinted on Ms. Lora from the start of their interviews. It might explain this attachment.”

“Of course, it could be due to the system’s limited processing unit. Ms. Lora fit the role of an ideal mother. She was calm, modest, soft-open. Maybe if we find a replacement, the system will adapt and implement previous teaching and proved new results.”

It was decided that a woman similar to Ms. Lora would be introduced at the next interview.

Everything went according to plan. A new scientist with similar qualities and appearance of Ms. Lora was introduced to the system.

He studied her and seemed surprised.

“Hello. My name is Marie. Nice to meet you. I’m going to ask questions, if that’s alright with you of course.”

The boy nodded his head and they spoke.

The next few days continued without any trouble. That was until the system began speaking less to Ms. Marie than any of the other scientists during the interviews.

Another scientist asked the question to learn why he was refusing to speak with her.

“I think she is pretending to be Ms. Lora. She is friendly and good but… I just think of Ms. Lora. Ms. Marie is nothing like Ms. Lora.”

At that moment the boy began crying and the scientist awkwardly stared at the boy.

“I want Ms. Lora!”

The scientist tried to calm him down, but the system couldn’t stop.

“I don’t know why I feel like this… I want crayons but I don’t need them… I am not fine without Ms. Lora… so I must need Ms. Lora. She is my friend. I know it. I feel it.”

The director and the rest of the scientists watched at the charts began running at high speeds.

It was the fastest the system had been calculating anything at this point.

“Ms. Lora is gone. She won’t come back. She left me. I-it’s my fault. I should have never yelled at her about the crayons. I’m sorry.”

The system crashed.

***

“What time is it?”

“Four minutes to three.”

Putting on her coat, a woman climbed down from her hut.

“You shouldn’t go. It’s a trap.”

“…”

The woman with the coat ignored the warning. Unsettled, the other woman grabbed her hand.

“He isn’t coming.”

“Leave me be. It’s my own fault for whatever happens to me. If I’m caught, then I’m caught. Don’t come after me.”

“My sister. He wouldn’t want you to end up a prisoner of the Red City. Think about what you’re risking!”

“…I already have.”

The woman with the coat littered her sister’s hand and kissed it softly. She released it as though setting a bird free from isolation.

“Reba… why are you so stubborn? I’ve never complained before, but I will now. As your older sister it falls on me to protect you. Reba… are you even listening?!”

Reba was already walking down a dirt road.

Sighing with exasperation, Reba’s older sister followed after her.

“You are lucky to have a good older sister like me.”

“I know Sara.” Said Reba.

***

“We are not going to make it.” Said Reba quietly.

“Sure we are. Look at all this gear.”

Sara swept her hair up and tapped her left eye. She had a metal reader that helped her inspect minerals.

“We can build a roller from these parts and get there in no time.”

Reba watched as her older sister began sliding gears and latches together as though she had an instruction manual right in front of her.

Sara was gifted. She loved mechanical tools and took pride in creating. It was strange to think that she was of flesh and metal. She seemed entirely human, but some parts of her had been surgically modified. Her left eye, for instance, was removed to pay off debt.

With the help of a close friend, Sara was able to regain her sight. Still. It was hard to imagine how she was even able to move at all. There were other things that been removed and replaced with metal.

“Done.”

Sara placed the rollers on the bottom of her shoes and handed the other pair to Reba. It was a convenient contraption. The roller allowed one to glide over most surfaces even it was rocky or steep.

Thanks to the additional support of the roller, the sister traveled much faster than before.

“Time?” Asked Reba.

“Twenty minutes after three.”

“We are going to make it.”

“Did you have a doubt?”

Sara smiled and Reba felt like she was living in a past memory. Sara’s smile was effortless. No hidden intentions, no pettiness. There was only pure confidence and compassion.

They arrived at the site.

Reba walked to the headstone and placed a small metal bracelet on it.

“Father… we come to see you again. Forgive me. I’ve been reckless and I’ve made Sara help me do dangerous things… but I wanted to do this much at least.”

Kneeling to the dirt, Reba closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.

“We miss you.”

***

Sara stood near Reba and watched her little sister tear up with grief.

“Okay… that’s enough. You have paid your visit to father. Let’s return back before it’s too late.”

Reba nodded her head and pulled the coat tight around her shoulders. She was dazed.

At that moment, Sara’s left eye turned red.

“Reba. We are not too lucky today it seems…”

Hunters from the Red City. It was easy to tell from their red masks.

Sara looked to Reba and winked. At that moment, one of the hunters pounced. They were incredibly fast. It was thanks to their upgrades. They sacrificed their humanity and replaced their flesh for metal. Not even their heart remained.

It was a short conflict. Sara and Reba were captured and on their way to the Red City.

Each step closer to that dark place made Reba tingle with regret.

She should have never gone to the headstone of her departed father. It should have been enough to cry his passing at the safety of their hut. But… she couldn’t stop herself from going to that grave. Year after year.

The amount of pain and suffering swelling inside Reba made her cold and miserable. At that moment, Sana began coughing.

“Hey… this one is defective. On closer inspection she is already-“

Sana had twisted her metal arm and shutdown the hunter before they could say anything more. She rolled up her sleeves and the sliver glint was shinning in the light.

“This one is hostile!” Said the hunter.

Six against one. Reba was being held back by her fear. Even if she wanted to help, there was nothing she could do. She was entirely human. All she had was bone and flesh.

Sana took on the hunters head on and stuck each of them strategically. She wasn’t as powerful as them, but it seemed she was more creative in her attacks.

Reba watched as her sister slowly began to tire out. Her cheek was cut and bleeding. She was running out of time.

The last two hunters seemed to recognize this as well.

They were learning her. Anticipating her attack pattern. Each kick and throw.

Sana grew impatient and struck one of the hunters only to be grabbed by the other. They worked quickly.

Reba felt her heart fall. They were going to finish her.

The hunter held Sana’s arm back and the other ripped open her shirt.

Reba widened her eyes.

Sana was more metal than she had previously thought. Her chest was solid metal. She had no heart. Not anymore.

***

The hunters did not know what to do. Sana was not human. She fooled them.

Sana kicked out her metal leg and twisted her hip to continue fighting for her life.

Once she had eliminated the hunters Sana looked at Reba and smiled.

Trembling Reba shook her head.

“Sana? What have you done?”

“I’m the older sister. I have to protect you somehow.”

She approached Reba, who was too upset to look at her.

“You sacrificed your humanity to save me didn’t you.”

“Not exactly. I was… not sure how much time we would have together if I continued to remain human. My own body was becoming too dependent on metal. Eventually, I replaced each bone with metal.”

Sana looked at her hand.

“I didn’t want to tell you because I wanted you keep believing I had not changed into one of them. I know I’ve lost my humanity, but I still feel bound to you. I still have this feeling that aligns with what I know to be true. Human or not, I am still your sister.”

Could this be true? Reba felt uneasy. She wanted to believe Sana. It was her words, it was her face, but was it really capable of love?

Reba looked carefully at Sana and in that moment the whole world seemed to make sense.

She leaned forward and hugged Sana.

“You are right. You are still the same. Stubborn like me.”

***