Memory of Others

Chapter 3: The Project is Deleted

She stared at the words, her heartbeat pounding in her ears. Someone knew she was searching. Someone wanted her to stop.

But that only made her more certain. If someone was afraid of the truth being exposed, then that truth was worth digging into.

She opened the interface to call Haru – a specialist in deep data access, an anonymous hacker in the virtual world.

The screen displayed a light gray space. Haru appeared as a virtual model, his voice distorted by a sound filter:

— "I found a leaked backup of the NOEMA system. But I warn you, this is not in the public domain. It was once a top-secret neural project, and..."

— "I know." Anna interrupted. "I want to see it."

The encrypted file was heavy. Each layer that opened revealed a new layer of truth – deleted texts, redacted notes. Anna used her special ability, connecting her mind to the data, decoding each part.

The title gradually became clear:

NOEMA Project – Celestis Applied Neuroscience Institute – Omega-level security

Objective: to create a new personality entity from a collection of artificial memories, connecting the human brain to a customizable memory library.

Application: for patients with amnesia, personality disorders, or to recreate individuals from the memories of others.

Phase 4: Identity "ANNA"

Anna froze.

The note below hit her mind like a punch:

"Background subject: Sofia – brain dead after an accident.

Proceeding to create a new identity by synthesizing 13 memories from various sources, including the memory of an unidentified criminal.

Resulting identity: ANNA – stable memory, enhanced intelligence, above-standard retention ability. Subject placed in social testing to evaluate personality maintenance."

Anna's throat tightened. The lives she had once received – were they truly someone else's, or were they pieces to create her own self?

The final part of the document revealed something even more horrifying: a copy of Sofia's original memory had been deeply embedded in ANNA's brain as a method to test responses.

A memory fragment could awaken. A murder case. A face resembling hers. An unidentified killer.

She had not "received that memory" like other clients. It had always been within her.

The name Elric Duong appeared in the list of high-level project directors.

A genius neuroscientist, but he had vanished without a trace after the data leak in 3492 – the incident that led to the cancellation of the NOEMA project.

The last note he left in the system:

"Personality can be created, but true memories always find their way back."

No one knew where Elric had gone. But data fragments suggested that he had hidden a part of the original memory in Anna's brain – like a "seed" to see if the true self could surpass the artificial personality.

From the coordinates attached in the document, Anna discovered a coded location: CODE 9-RED – an underground testing center, closed and no longer operational.

Haru explained:

— "That station used to store brain copies. Data shows there is still an active consciousness model there. It could be... Sofia."

— "Or the rest of me?" Anna thought to herself.

That night, in the dark room, Anna stood in front of the mirror.

She looked at herself – or at least what she still thought was "herself."

But the eyes in the mirror were no longer hers. It was the woman in the memory – Sofia – looking back at her. Calm. Empty.

Anna stepped back. The image vanished.

She knew what was happening. The original personality was beginning to awaken.

The next morning, Anna prepared her belongings. A white storage drive – to back herself up. A set of neural impulses. And a map to CODE 9-RED.

She stood atop the residential area, looking down at the shimmering virtual city of 3500. The world beneath her feet was like a programmed dream. She whispered:

— "If I was created from someone else's memories, then perhaps... I must return to the beginning to know if I am real."

And then, she left.

A journey into the heart of memory. Into the heart of herself.