Origin 4

Tora paused, letting the information sink in. The room remained silent as she continued her story.

"My father came to Terra 30 years ago. His mother was a Terra who was subject to Gahari experiments. She was forced to bear children, one of which was my father.

"My father met my mother soon after arriving here. I don't know if they loved each other, but my mother became pregnant with twins.

"He was absent when my mother gave birth. When he found out that my mother left us at the hospital, he took me and my brother, Rize, back to Gorian with him.

"On Gorian, my brother and I could create small orbs of lights, and we were stronger and smarter than the average children. However, I had asthma, which made it difficult to breathe in the thin atmosphere. My father sent me on a ship back to Terra. I was 8 years old."

She raised her head, nodding to Darren as she said, "Darren was the first person I met when I arrived here. A year later, when we were crossing the street, we were hit by a car. I tried to shield Darren, but I lost control of my powers. I never formally learned how to use them."

After all those years, Tora never forgot that day. The car came hurtling down the street as they crossed. As fast as her feet could carry her, she grabbed Darren and tried to pull him out of harm's way. Just as they got out of the path of the car, the car swerved. Her body reacted on its own as she wrapped her arms around Darren to hold him.

She was more durable than him, so she could take the majority of the force of the impact. She forced energy into her legs, arms, and back muscles as she crouched down. She gritted her teeth when the car struck her, sending her and Darren rolling on the asphalt. The asphalt scrapped the skin of her knees and arms. As she tried to get up, her back protested as a sharp pain ran through her. She fell back on the ground before everything turned black as she fainted.

Tora returned to the present, turning her eyes to Nathan. She wanted to return to the topic of Darren's new abilities.

"I think what happened is that when the car hit us, the radiation also affected Darren in some way. I think Darren, somehow, absorbed my powers. When I woke up at a hospital, my hair was brown instead of its natural silver color."

Miriam touched the ends of Tora's curly dark hair. "This isn't your natural hair color?" she asked.

Tora removed the contacts from her eyes, exhibiting the silver eyes. "My race has natural silver hair and eyes. Just as I kept some strength and abilities, my eye color remained the same while my hair became darker." She looked at Darren. "That's why I think Darren can absorb any other abilities and powers he comes into contact with."

Nathan nodded as he was deep in thought. "If that's true, then his Veteri ability should be an adaptation type. He seemed to have absorbed your powers to the point that it has become like his own," Nathan said.

"Then, why didn't he also absorb Electro's power when the lightning struck him?" Matt asked. "We also shook hands, and he didn't absorb my power."

"Either, one: he needs to be touching the subject to absorb their powers, or two: he has no need to absorb any other powers he comes into contact with," Nathan explained. "He not only copied Tora's powers, but he almost stripped her of them completely. I think it has to be option two."

"That means Darren should also have super-strength, super-speed, and EM radiation manipulation powers." Matt laughed as he looked at Tora. He whispered under his breath, "Oh, man, things just got more interesting around here."

"Darren, if it's okay with you, I'd like to run some tests on you. It won't be anything intrusive," said Nathan. "If you do have these powers, you must learn to control them. I want to see the extent of your powers."

Darren stared at Tora, his eyes drooping as he nodded. He was still trying to grasp Tora's revelation. He more shocked by the origins of his powers than by Tora's alien heritage.

He copied her powers when they were in the accident. Darren had never thought of that.

When he woke up in the hospital after the accident, he barely had any injuries, while Tora was attached to a ventilator in the ICU. Her shiny silver hair had turned a darker color; she became almost unrecognizable.

When Tora woke up, she was hysterical when she found she could no longer access her powers. She cut her hair and tried to dye it, stating it was not hers and that she did not want dark hair. "I want Daddy's hair," she yelled at the social worker. Tora had no choice but to accept the changes to her body. She went through a long bout of depression that year.

Darren never considered it was his fault. He stole her heritage.

A twinge of guilt pricked his chest as he looked at Tora. Darren quickly looked away as he did not dare to look at her.

What pained expression would he see on her face?

Darren shook his head before he looked at Nathan. "Huh? Oh, okay." He stood off the hair. "I think we should leave Tora and Miriam alone to talk." Darren hastily walked out of the room, unable to look at Tora. Matt and Nathan followed, leaving the mother-daughter pair alone.

Miriam and Tora were left in the silent room. Tora turned slightly on the couch to face Miriam. "Um, I wanted to tell you and dad, but no matter how many chances I had, I just couldn't bring myself to say it. I was, just-"

"Afraid," Miriam finished. "Ever since you first came into my house, I could tell you were a child who was afraid. You were reluctant to talk about your personal life and your feelings."

Tora's eyes shifted to look at the other side of the room. "I never knew my mother," she explained. "My brother and I were raised by our father on Gorian. They were my family and my home. Even if it was to save my life, I never wanted to come to Terra. To me, Terra was a foreign land. I didn't care if my mother was here; she was a stranger to me. When my asthma got better, I was waiting for my father to come to get me. I would always look up at the night sky, hoping that the next streak of light would be him.

"After I lost my powers, I began to resent my father because I felt like he had abandoned me. So, I took it upon myself to find my way home. I didn't have my original ship. I joined the Air Force to try to find my ship, and, if needed, I would build a new ship that would allow me to reach home. I needed NASA's resources to do that."

"Then why did you stop?" Miriam asked. "After Jordan died, you left the Air Force and NASA. You were also offered an opportunity to work at Starset, a company that primarily engineers spacecrafts. Working for them would've allowed you to continue your research, but you refused. Why?"

Tora gulped as she raised her eyes to look at Miriam. "After dad died, I realized Gorian had become an obsession. I was so focused on what I'd lost that I couldn't appreciate what I'd gained." The tears she held back until now rose to the surface, and she could no longer hold them in. "You and Darren are my family, my home. There's no way I could leave everything I have here for a place I barely remember."

She broke down completely, sobbing her heart out as she grasped Miriam's hand. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I didn't tell you. I wanted to, but I, I didn't want you to leave me too." She started rambling as she sniffled the snot that came out of her nose. She hiccupped uncontrollably. She held Miriam tightly, grasping at her hands with desperation as she pleaded. "I don't want you to go. Please don't leave me. Mommy, don't abandon me."