Desmond shakes his head. "No, I mean they literally messed up my head. They put me in the machine that got me to live through the other lives, but it gives you brain damage. I got the bleeding effect, it's what they call it when you stop being able to figure out who you are, what life you're in. All the test subjects before me died or killed themselves." It was very brutal. It also wasn't even that long ago, and he can still feel it at times, like he's not always sure exactly who he is.

He pauses before crossing his arms against his chest. "Lucy created the machine, the Animus. She's the one who put me through it." It's not so simple, but in some ways it is. What happened to his mind was her doing, but he knows how badly she feels for him, for Clay, for the others. "She was doing it to save the world though. What's a few lives in exchange for millions?" But it gives a little glimpse into why the two of them have complicated layers.