Frauleinstein

Chapter XI: Frauleinstein, Part I

Chapter XI

Frauleinstein

"Should we wake her?" asked Dieter.

The woman rolled over and sat bolt upright at the unfamiliar voice. She stared at each of the men in turn, as she attempted to figure out what was happening to her. She then widened her gaze to take in the devastation around her. The laboratory looked like a bomb had gone off, which, technically, it had. Smoke still hung in the air, and the occasional popping and frying sound came from the machinery that surrounded her.

"Wie geht es?" asked Dr. Pretorius.

The girl's extremely wide eyes returned to the doctor. "Huh?" she managed to say.

"Verstehen Sie?" asked the doctor.

The girl's mouth hung open, then she simply looked confused. "Sorry, I don't speak French," she finally said.

"Incredible!" exclaimed the doctor. "You are unable to understand German? This is your natural language, the language you use to converse every day! Tell me, what do you remember?"

The girl still looked confused. She looked up and pursed her lips as she considered the doctor's question. "English?" she suggested.

"Yes, yes, of course," said the doctor dismissively. "But what else? You must tell me, I have waited for so long! What is the secret of life?"

The girl shrugged her shoulders. "Get plenty of rest? Think positive thoughts?"

"Let's start with something simpler," suggested the doctor. "Just, tell me anything you can remember prior to awakening here."

The girl thought. "Anything?"

"Yes, anything!" said the doctor. "Can you remember anything at all about your previous life?"

The girl thought again. She rolled her eyes skyward, and wrinkled her face in concentration. After thoroughly considering the question she answered, "No, not really."

Everyone was silent for a while, as this answer seemed to preclude any other line of questioning.

"Oh wait!" she finally said, breaking the long silence. "I remember a name!"

"Yes? Yes?" said the doctor encouragingly. "You remember your name?"

"Giselle," said the girl with a sense of satisfaction. "It seems to me, my name may be Giselle. Or not." The girl frowned.

Dr. Pretorius appeared to be upset by this. He spoke aside to Dieter and Friedrich saying, "The material used to patch her brain came from the girl's brain! The memories contained in these patches may be causing interference and confusion. The body's name, as I recall, was Giselle Gottlieb!"

"Yes, that's right!" cried out the girl. "Giselle Gottlieb! I remember now. My name is, definitely, not Giselle Gottlieb. Why is that not my name? Give me another hint!"

"Do not worry about that now," Dr. Pretorius said. "Perhaps, since your memory fails you, we should introduce ourselves. I am Dr. Septimus Pretorius, your Chief Physician. And these are your assistants, Dieter and Friedrich."

"Hey," said the girl with a nod. "Nice to meet you. I'm... oh yeah, I forgot that I can't remember."

"Oh, I know!" said Friedrich. "Your name is..."

"Nein!" called out Pretorius. "She must discover her own memories, in her own time. For now we must not speak of her past."

"Well she's gotta have a name," said Dieter. "We can't go on just calling her 'the girl' forever!"