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You smiled at the memory, despite yourself. It was clear to you now that none of that had ever happened. Did the girl implant this memory in an attempt to endear you to her.
More memories played out before you. There was that time you helped Rich find a date for the big dance in middle school. In the altered version, Vic was there to psych him up when it came time to pop the question. Her presence seemed minor here.
Then there was that time you all went camping together, only for the campsite to flood due to a sudden and severe thunderstorm. That had been a rather miserable, cold and soggy experience for all of you. But Vic didn’t change much about it. It wasn’t a happier memory by any definition of the word…but you couldn’t help but think back on it fondly.
It was slightly nostalgic, even for a fake memory. The rest went on like that for a while. Your high school graduation, old birthday parties, grabbing a slice at Mr. Aziz's pizza parlor after school. Vic was there for it all. And somehow, she made things seem slightly better in hindsight.
But she was also there for the bad times. There were even some in there where the two of you got into some pretty heated arguments. Family has to argue, after all. If they didn’t then they’d always encounter the same problems, and would come to resent one another.
You wondered if that had been intentional. Was everything about this “Vic” person fake? It was an unnerving thought.
<span class="mu-r">“Can you show me my last unaltered memory?”</span> you asked.
Once again, the whole world shifted, and you found yourself squatting in a home that didn’t belong to you, drinking the day away. This must have been when you were still going around breaking into people’s homes for kicks. There had been a few close calls, but you were never caught.
At the time, you were lamenting the rancid taste of the cheap booze that this guy had stocked his fridge with, when you noticed a bright, purple ray of light shining in from the outside. Frowning, you pulled yourself to your feet, pushed aside the blinds and glanced out the window.
Your eyes went wide when you saw what was coming your way, but there was no avoiding it. A wave of purple energy enveloped you, the entire house, and everything else within your line of sight.
The memory faded, and you nearly stumbled. Your vision was swimming, and your mind felt hazy. I t was as if you'd felt the backlash from the energy wave in real-time.
<span class="mu-r">“What the hell was that!?”</span> you snarled.
<span class="mu-r">“This is just my guess,”</span> said Madame Webb’s disembodied voice. <span class="mu-r">“But it was most likely a large-scale psionic event. And from the looks of it, the Parkers weren’t the only ones caught up in it.”</span>
<span class="mu-r">“Do you know anyone powerful enough to do something like that?”</span> you asked.
<span class="mu-r">“No. It shouldn’t be possible at all.”</span> she replied, and you got the impression that she was scowling.
(Cont.)
