*unedited

Michael slides his arms inside another fur coat. I did the same and smile a bit at the sight of my breath turns into cold vapor.

The room is spacious. The large LCDs on the walls and there is a hidden space that are covered with a mirror.

Everything is all white except the metallic tables and the floor we're stepping on. When did modernity gets so cold?

Michael calls for me to keep trailing him. We goes into the hidden space. I set my eyes on a trunk made of solid thick and blue ice in the middle of the room.

"Understand why it is so cold now?"

"Yeah, what's inside it?"

"Your subject~~" he says, chirping.

"I'm positive that you knew all of the other subjects aren't placed in separated and hidden place like this."

I nod. 'Obviously'

He adds. "This is also why I didn't answered Prof. Rook honestly. He'll be outraged if he knows you've got subject 1315."

"Uh hum? And why would he?"

"Subject 1315 came from 10 decades ago. The only one does." He inhales to continue.

"For years since we found her, he'd be in charge of retrieving the memories. The first apprentice didn't really managed to record nor report anything. As soon as he's out of her mind, he lost his memories. The scientists decided that she shall be disposed since she hasn't got any use. But their decision changed as soon as they see the reports that had her last thought. I said reports because they all got on hold the same thought. They were all aware that to be an excellent and qualified history scientist, the apprentices need to have great empathy skills. So subject 1315 is a perfect platform for that because you'll have to "mix" with its feelings to recover the memories and gave full report."

"Prof.Rook was banned from being in charge of subject 1315 because he wouldn't stop from sending researchers inside subject 1315's mind. The director of the history department sensed his early obsession and banned him."

Michael shakes his head. "Obsession that brought bad outcomes weren't welcomed."

I knew the rest.

Memory History Department is still a new foundation. The scientists aren't able to pick alive subject to experiments with because of the fatal risks of losing memories. We cannot afford worst cases: losing minds.

Subject 1315 hadn't let anyone read her memories. And somehow, they are still fresh enough to be able to be reported although it has been dead for a hundred years.

A perfect platform it is.

Michael must has realizes my acknowledgement since he stop explaining.

I choose to ask. "Why me?" I tilt an eyebrow up. "What if I got amnesia like others?"

His eyes on me but his finger didn't stop from busily tapping on some tangible keypads. Preparing the process.

Smirking teasingly, he says. "Not me. But the director of the department himself. Doc.Prof.Hawk."

I mumble "oh dad."under my breath, knowing I can't just shrug this damn subject off.

My feet shuffle closer towards the opening trunk, there is still another thinner cover on top of it.

"As Prof.Rook have mentioned before, you're our platinum apprentice. So, the theory is, the more intelligent the one who goes into her scary mind, the less it's likely to lost your memories."

Huh. Wow. I'm so impressed that the hypothesis is so simple that I can just say.

"I actually doubt I'm that smart. During the intelligence test, I just gave some lucky guesses."

He grins." As if I'm going to fall for that. Playing humble?"

No one believes me when I said that. I wonder why? Whatever.

"Why don't ask Georgia Grandele instead?" That girl is also a platinum apprentice out of two.

Lol. Me and her.

"The decision wasn't mine to decide. Besides, you're the one who lacks of empathy."His answer sounds a bit amused.

Ouch -_-'"

The cover slides open and I crane my neck over to see the subject.

Its body curled. The ice had stuck on the bare grey skin that touched it. The long black hair covered half of its face with few strands of it fallen on its nose and lips. Frosted long and thick eyelashes.

I assume my subject must have been on school trip or something like that. It was still in black, wool sleeveless vest with white long sleeves shirt underneath tucked in the skirt that reached its upper thigh. The skirt was slanted, luckily subject 1315 wore black leggings before it. I can see the school brooch.

How on earth a school student died in a chiller? I started to figure the hows.

"Was it killed? Or it killed itself?"

"That is.."Michael speaks over his shoulder, I can hear him cracking his knuckles. "for you to find out."

"Its death was a bit mysterious. We found subject 1315 in a frozen food factory, there wasn't anything else that escaped from being rumbles, of course. It somehow got into the freezer, probably the newest model at that time, trapped and died. We cut the ice around it and brought it here."

"Living thing traces?"

"None. It has been a century. Subject 1315 was the one that somehow survived. "

One of the LCDs beeps. "It's all ready."

Upon his words, I back off a few steps to let another truck rises besides the subject's.

"You wouldn't mind sleeping with a corpse?"

That makes me roll me eyes.

He laughs. I climb on, inside the capsule like trunk. I lay my back on the gladly warm enough for me surface of the metal trunk.

The side that separates my subject and me is gone. I blink at the subject. It's as if we're on the same trunk.

My Prof hands me a pair of wireless earphones-like objects.

"You won't feel hungry, you won't feel thirsty, you also won't hear the nature's call. Everything you need will appear when you wished for them in subject 1315's mind. I'll be checking on you always."

I nod.

Transparent hemisphere glass cover the trunks. I see Michael mouthing-good luck.

My eyes closed unwillingly as my mind jerks into unconsciousness.