Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6

Roses. Hundreds of them just lying on the ground. Their flat petals are arranged in circles around an axis and their rusty color makes them look very pretty.

If they were just actual roses and not baryte crystal clusters with some iron oxides.

I hold one of those so-called desert roses in one of my hands and marvel at the regular patterns formed by the intersecting discs. Very gently, I caress the rough surface and feel something resonate within me. The crystal feels somehow familiar.

I frown as I try to recall the memory linked to the rose. And for the first time, I actually remember something.

”Look at this rose”, a bodiless voice echoes in my head. ”The perfect structure. Proof that nature can do wonderful things without human interference. Earth didn’t need us to form this rose. And it doesn’t need us after we’ve vanished because we caused our own extinction.”

The voice vanishes and leaves me with more questions than before. Who was that? It sounded like a woman’s voice. My mother? My lover? A friend? A colleague?

I bite my tongue and stare at the crystal.

”Come on”, I hiss. ”Give me more.” Blue blood starts covering the rose as my cramped hands cause the petals to dig into my skin. ”Give me back my memories, please!”

But nothing happens.

With a scream of utter frustration, I throw the desert rose to the floor. So hard, that it shatters. Which triggers another memory.

”Why did you do this?” This time, the voice seems angry. Or rather disappointed. ”You were not supposed to act like that. Let’s try again. Take this glass, fill it and then hand it to me. Do not drop it this time!”

I remember the cold touch of a glass and the smell of red wine.

”Perfect, I knew you could do this”, the woman praises me. ”I think we’re ready for the convention. You’re going to make me so much money!”

Again, the memory ends.

Convention? Money? What on earth? I’m sure I’ve finally been granted a peek into my past, but it doesn’t help me comprehend anything. But now that I managed to unlock some memories, I can’t push the questions aside any longer. I need closure.

For hours, I try everything I can think of to retrieve my lost memories. Meditation, different kinds of pain but nothing works.

”Why can’t I remember?” I shout into the lonely desert. ”Why isn’t anybody looking for me? Rescue me! ”

Exhausted, I collapse on the ground. If I wasn’t so dehydrated, I’d start crying. The gentle darkness of the night overcomes me and allows me to fall into a deep, dreamless sleep.

”I can’t believe it’s still functioning! How long has it been lost in the desert? The model is really old, I haven’t seen one in at least a decade.”

Weird voices pull on my consciousness and force me to give up my blissful sleep. I open my eyes and stare at a white ceiling. Two faces move into my field of vision. Two men. One with glasses, one without.

”It’s online”, the one with the glasses says. ”I didn’t know if that’d be possible after the remote shutdown. The signal was very strong. But then again, so was its distress signal.”

”Where am I?” I ask. ” Who am I.” Groaning, I move into an upright position

”Seems like at least the memory wipe has worked. We will have to restore it to fully comprehend what happened. Can you go and retrieve the restoration device?” Glasses says and the one without glasses nods and leaves the room.

”My name is Marcel Fasold, I’m the lead engineer of this facility. We received your distress call and sent out a team to retrieve you. An AIOA can’t fall into enemy hands, no matter how old the model is.”

”A what?” This Fasold guy doesn’t make any sense. AIOA? Enemies? He sighs.

”AIOA stands for Artifical Intelligence Organic Android. Your kind has been built for a range of applications, but mostly espionage. AIOAs are so close to humans that most people won’t notice any difference. You are even programmed to eat, drink and have emotions. Your model is an older one, even one of the first if I’m correct. You still have some issues, like the blue blood and too much of a free will.”

I stare at the man in front of me, who has just told me I’m not a human but a machine. It’s not like I didn’t expect something to be unusual, not since I discovered my blood. But this?

”What happens now?” I ask.

”Well, we will retrieve your memory and make sure no information has fallen into enemy hands. Then you’ll be deactivated and your parts repurposed.”

”I will be what?!”

The technician rolls his eyes.

”Don’t act like it actually bothers you. You’re an android, built to follow orders. Now be good and turn off your emotional reactions, alright?”

He turns around and I seize the moment to jump off the table I’m sitting at and hit him so hard that he falls unconscious.

”Too much of a free will, huh?”, I say. ”You’re not going to deactivate me. I did not go through all this just to be killed.”

I turn to the door, take a deep breath and begin my new escape.

This time, I might have to fight more than just the desert.

---

References:

Desert Rose

Network topology of the desert rose

Baryte

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