Path to Becoming the Greatest Space Mercenary
Author: MegaC
Chapter 402 402 A Motherâs Choice and Determination
Though Serena brushed past the time that she and the others like her had swept through the people involved in the experiment, it was no doubt a brutal and gory time for her. Far more than even what very had experienced since becoming a mercenary.
Obviously, she did not want to burden Avery with the details, and perhaps she was afraid that his opinion of her would lessen if he found out exactly what horrible things she and her companions did to earn their freedom.
'But I'd never think any less of you mom. You've been carrying such an enormous burden with you the entire time even if you'd forgotten it until recently.'
Avery did not voice his thoughts because he felt that there was no need to.
Instead, he leaned in and gave his mother another hug. After recounting her time breaking free from the clutches that kept ahold of her through her entire life, it was easy to see how shaken up she was. No matter how hard she tried to hide it.
Feeling the warmth and love of her son, the building negative emotions that had been steady rising within Serena settled back down.
They had not vanished, but they were overshadowed by something stronger.
"Thank you, Avery, but I'm not quite finished yet. I'm sure that you want to know what happened after we finished and we're ready to get on with our lives." Serena said, pulling away from her son and smiling.
Avery waited and listened intently.
His mother had intentionally glossed over the other children that had awakened special abilities. Perhaps she was worried that Avery might try to track them down if he had more information about them.
"Truthfully, I hope that they're all living the normal lives that we strived for. It pains me to say, but out of the fourteen of us, only eleven of us survived until the end. Only losing three may not seem like a lot, but we had basically become the only family any of us had ever known. Every death of one of us hurt unbearably." Serena said, sucking in a deep breath to prevent herself from crying again.
Once everything was over, out of the eleven survivors, nine of them decided to erase their memories and seal away their powers.
This was accomplished thanks to Serena's and another member's abilities.
While Avery's mother was able to use her energy to interact with the brain, it was the other companion that did most of the work.
"He was the second toughest among us. His power gave him some truly impressive psychic abilities that allowed him to communicate telepathically, read other people's thoughts, and even change memories and implant new ones. It was thanks largely to him that we had any shot of forgetting out pasts and moving on with our lives."
Serena did not sound particularly proud when she told the next part, but it was thanks to this companion that they were all able to get new identities made for all of them.
They ended up essentially brainwashing the leader of a branch office within the Dramid Alliance's Ministry of Vital Statics which kept track of birth records.
"Of course, we didn't harm the man, we just, gave him some new memories." Serena said, looking ashamed of what her team had done many years ago.
Still, it had been a necessary step for their freedom. In the current age, it was basically impossible to do anything without the proper identification.
After her powers and memories were sealed, Serena would not have been able to even get on the ship that brought her to Yuson II if she did not exist within the systems of the Dramid Alliance.
"Okay, so I pretty much know the rest already since you've told me about your coming here and meeting dad. But what about the others, including the two that kept their memories and powers?"
"Well, for the nine of us that wanted to forget, we each went to the far sides of the Dramid Alliance in separate directions. I don't know exactly where they ended up since that information was kept hidden from all of us. We felt that we would all be safer that way."
"As for Vic- the two that kept their memories, they both did so to protect the rest of us. While I was number three, they were our top two. Even at the end, both of them decided to keep on protecting the rest of us instead of aiming for the normal lives we all desired. I wouldn't be surprised if they're still keeping tabs on all of us to make sure we remain hidden from anyone out there that might be looking for us."
With that, Serena had finished telling Avery the abridged story of until recently, forgotten life.
Still, there was one big issue that was still looming.
"Do you want to forget again, mom? If you do, I can probably help you somehow. I may not be adept at activating or using it, but my ability lets me see the flow of energy. I might be able to help direct you in using your power to surpass your memories and ability again." Avery said, clearly having struggled to come to this decision by his demeanor.
"I-I won't seal my memories again. They're painful, and its hard on me to live with what I went through and did, but I don't feel like running away anymore. I've lived another twenty-eight years after escaping. That's a lot more than the seventeen year I'd forgotten. During that time, I met the love of my life and had a wonderful son who's become a young man that I'm proud of. If ever I'm feeling down, I'll just remember moments like this one. Part of the normal life I used to yearn for and have managed to achieve."
Avery could hear the hesitancy and fear in his mother's voice, but her eyes remained resolute. To protect her family, she was willing to continue remembering her painful past.
Obviously, she did not want to burden Avery with the details, and perhaps she was afraid that his opinion of her would lessen if he found out exactly what horrible things she and her companions did to earn their freedom.
'But I'd never think any less of you mom. You've been carrying such an enormous burden with you the entire time even if you'd forgotten it until recently.'
Avery did not voice his thoughts because he felt that there was no need to.
Instead, he leaned in and gave his mother another hug. After recounting her time breaking free from the clutches that kept ahold of her through her entire life, it was easy to see how shaken up she was. No matter how hard she tried to hide it.
Feeling the warmth and love of her son, the building negative emotions that had been steady rising within Serena settled back down.
They had not vanished, but they were overshadowed by something stronger.
"Thank you, Avery, but I'm not quite finished yet. I'm sure that you want to know what happened after we finished and we're ready to get on with our lives." Serena said, pulling away from her son and smiling.
Avery waited and listened intently.
His mother had intentionally glossed over the other children that had awakened special abilities. Perhaps she was worried that Avery might try to track them down if he had more information about them.
"Truthfully, I hope that they're all living the normal lives that we strived for. It pains me to say, but out of the fourteen of us, only eleven of us survived until the end. Only losing three may not seem like a lot, but we had basically become the only family any of us had ever known. Every death of one of us hurt unbearably." Serena said, sucking in a deep breath to prevent herself from crying again.
Once everything was over, out of the eleven survivors, nine of them decided to erase their memories and seal away their powers.
This was accomplished thanks to Serena's and another member's abilities.
While Avery's mother was able to use her energy to interact with the brain, it was the other companion that did most of the work.
"He was the second toughest among us. His power gave him some truly impressive psychic abilities that allowed him to communicate telepathically, read other people's thoughts, and even change memories and implant new ones. It was thanks largely to him that we had any shot of forgetting out pasts and moving on with our lives."
Serena did not sound particularly proud when she told the next part, but it was thanks to this companion that they were all able to get new identities made for all of them.
They ended up essentially brainwashing the leader of a branch office within the Dramid Alliance's Ministry of Vital Statics which kept track of birth records.
"Of course, we didn't harm the man, we just, gave him some new memories." Serena said, looking ashamed of what her team had done many years ago.
Still, it had been a necessary step for their freedom. In the current age, it was basically impossible to do anything without the proper identification.
After her powers and memories were sealed, Serena would not have been able to even get on the ship that brought her to Yuson II if she did not exist within the systems of the Dramid Alliance.
"Okay, so I pretty much know the rest already since you've told me about your coming here and meeting dad. But what about the others, including the two that kept their memories and powers?"
"Well, for the nine of us that wanted to forget, we each went to the far sides of the Dramid Alliance in separate directions. I don't know exactly where they ended up since that information was kept hidden from all of us. We felt that we would all be safer that way."
"As for Vic- the two that kept their memories, they both did so to protect the rest of us. While I was number three, they were our top two. Even at the end, both of them decided to keep on protecting the rest of us instead of aiming for the normal lives we all desired. I wouldn't be surprised if they're still keeping tabs on all of us to make sure we remain hidden from anyone out there that might be looking for us."
With that, Serena had finished telling Avery the abridged story of until recently, forgotten life.
Still, there was one big issue that was still looming.
"Do you want to forget again, mom? If you do, I can probably help you somehow. I may not be adept at activating or using it, but my ability lets me see the flow of energy. I might be able to help direct you in using your power to surpass your memories and ability again." Avery said, clearly having struggled to come to this decision by his demeanor.
"I-I won't seal my memories again. They're painful, and its hard on me to live with what I went through and did, but I don't feel like running away anymore. I've lived another twenty-eight years after escaping. That's a lot more than the seventeen year I'd forgotten. During that time, I met the love of my life and had a wonderful son who's become a young man that I'm proud of. If ever I'm feeling down, I'll just remember moments like this one. Part of the normal life I used to yearn for and have managed to achieve."
Avery could hear the hesitancy and fear in his mother's voice, but her eyes remained resolute. To protect her family, she was willing to continue remembering her painful past.