Chapter 4:

Theories about locked Memories

Giftear


'Elysium' and ‘Tartarus’.
Perhaps these names mean something to you. In your time, they should have a mythological meaning - in my time, they are simply the names of the two space stations that encircle the planet in a ring. For me, Elysium was my destination for today: I had my interview with Kingston there, accepted what may be my last case and was introduced to the mysterious woman Silvia Antigone.

The latter is now sitting opposite me as we descend towards the surface in the space elevator. These giant constructs are the only way to travel safely between the space stations and the planet's surface. The demand for elevator rides is correspondingly high and the prices are expensive. And to make matters worse, a journey takes almost two hours...

I use the time to immerse myself in my notes. I try to draw up as detailed a plan as possible to find out clues about Silvia's past in the quickest and most effective way. After all, I want to shine in this case in order to gain Giftear's favor. I keep glancing up from my notepad and briefly observe the woman with silver hair.

We are the only passengers in our windowless cabin and the only visual stimulation is a small screen above the cabin door.
Silvia stares mesmerized at the screen in question: Apart from the current weather report, nothing else is displayed there. The simple animated rain clouds seem to fascinate her - at least that's what I assume. I would go mad without something decent to do, so I can't resist asking her a question:

“Isn't that boring? You could instead just browse a bit, right?”

“Huh?”
Silvia returns to reality and turns to me.
“Browsing? What's that?”

I should have guessed.
Of course she's forgotten how to access entertainment quickly.
“That's right. Sorry, I mean this:”

With a few movements of my index finger, I open the holographic screen in front of me. Silvia's eyes widen in awe. She seems to be experiencing everything for the first time again, like a toddler in the guise of an adult.

“Woah, cool! Can I do that too?”

“Sure, you can watch videos, read texts and so on from there. That should be more interesting than watching the weather report.”

I stop my speech. Silvia frantically whirls both hands around as if she's playing the drums.

“Somehow this thing doesn't want to appear...”
She states - her eyes narrow with strain.

“You just need a bit of practice. It's easy.” I try to cheer her up.
“Sometimes the motion detection can be a bit weird.”

Silvia lets out a deep sigh.
I can imagine that it must be incredibly frustrating to have to relearn everyday things; that's another reason why we need to restore her memories as quickly as possible.

With nothing meaningful to do, Silvia crosses her long legs and looks at me.

“What are you doing there?” she asks, resting her head on her hands.

“Well...” I start, while my eyes remain fixed on the thick, written-on paper.
“I'm trying to come up with a plan to help you.”

I'm trying? That sounded very unprofessional again... By now, Silvia must have lost all her trust in my skills - it's not as if I'm actually competent...

“Oooh! What's the plan then, officer?”
Her downcast mood seems to have vanished again.
The positive aura of this woman impresses me once again. I wonder if she really hasn't given up hope in me yet.

I scroll to the top of my notes:
“Well, first we're going to take you to a hotel where you can stay for now. A psychotherapist will then contact us tomorrow. He-”

“Or she”

“...or she will be able to give us possible starting points. Then we can really get started with the investigation.”

“Hm...”
Silvia bobs her head back and forth thoughtfully.
Her silky hair swirls through the air and slowly begins to stand on end. I can occasionally see her eye, which is usually covered by long bangs. I have no idea what I was expecting, but Silvia's right eye looks completely normal, except that it stays closed the whole time.

Suddenly Silvia stops swiveling her head and looks at me with her head bowed:

“So does that mean we can't do anything interesting today?”

“I'm sorry, but I wouldn't want to do anything without an expert. Let's take it easy today.”

After all, I'm not responsible for her entertainment, right?
Admittedly, I'm a boring person. Maybe a non-boring investigator would do something different? 

No, with her amnesia, Silvia could have a panic attack or something similar at any time. That would be too dangerous without psychological support. I should take her to the hotel as quickly as possible and shield her from outside influences until the expert arrives tomorrow.

I look over at Silvia again. She's staring at the weather forecast again.

Steward McOy
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Mario Nakano 64
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Sikyll
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