With a thud, the shuttle Henry was on, docked in the open hangar bay of the New Dawn. "Henry, go to the chow hall. Captain Youri and the others are waiting for you there. I am truly sorry," Albert told his long-term student and friend.
"I understand, but what are you sorry for?" Henry asked, puzzled by Albert's tone change.
"You'll see," Albert said, with no other answers. Henry huffed, knowing that if Albert didn't want to talk, he wouldn't. The only way that he would get any answers is by going to Youri and the others. Henry navigated through the narrow grey hallways until he reached the chow hall. The sight that greeted him confused him immensely.
"Captain, I'm confused. Why are everyone's eyes red, and perspiration only on the cheeks, and around the eyes?" Henry asked, baffled by an emotion that he had long since forgotten.
"Read files on the tablet and tell me if they are accurate," Youri said as she slid the small halo tablet towards him. Henry was about to start reading when Youri told him to remove his helmet. To which the Vanguard obliged. The crew was surprised by what they saw. Till now, he had always had his armor on. They saw a teenager's face, ghostly white with freckles, and a bald head. He had a scar on the back, a reminder of the augmentations. His eyes are what shocked everyone the most. They were a striking emerald green, but hollow. A sign of the torture and psychological trauma he endured. The crew watched as Henry read everything, never once showing even a hint of anger or sadness.
"No, Captain, this is slightly off. Mostly right, but Lin left details out. To start off with, it took 26 hours of watching my father die, my mother and classmates being murdered, before it broke me down emotionally. Since that day, I don't remember what it's like to feel most emotions besides anger. I don't know why he left out the method of killing my parents, but he made me stab or strangle them. He said shooting them wouldn't accomplish what he wanted, and that I needed to see the light leaving their eyes. I think that when I realized that if I just killed who they told me to, it was when I wanted to save Martha, a girl from my class, I let go someone who killed everyone else that I loved. From that day on, I knew that if I killed who they told me to, everything would be okay." Henry said, his face still stone cold.
"Is there anything else?" Youri asked. Tears flowing down her face like a steady mountain stream.
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"No, shortly after I got there, I wanted to see my mom again, and they told me she was dead and that I would never see her again. Also, he left out the stuff one of the DIs tried to do to me. Valasquez fought him and broke the other DI's jaw. Later, he tried to do the same thing to one of the other Vanguards after we got augmented. She caved his chest in, killing him instantly," Henry said, staring directly at Youri.
The others looked around at each other, unsure of what to say. Finally, Youri asked the question on everybody's mind. "What did that drill instructor try to do to you?"
"Rape, He tried to rape me, and Valasquez caught him. That day, I learned that if I wanted justice for something done to me, I needed to take it by force. The system failed, and he got to go back to work with the other Vanguard group. I think they were Team Yellow. After she killed the DI in her struggle, they executed her for attacking a superior officer," Henry explained as he finally showed an emotion, anger, pure, unbridled anger.
"They said she was untamed and untrainable after that day," Albert chimed in.
"Of course they did. What more could I expect of the MJS," Henry said as he shook his head.
"Is there anything else that we should know?" Youri asked as she rocked back and forth, feeling lightheaded from the continuous blows of truth.
"Yes. I don't hold any grudge against anyone. I am glad that it happened to me. Now I am strong. A weapon to be used by the UHC to protect others. Valasquez once told me that he was going to mold me into more than just a weapon. I would be the reaper, sweeping through the battlefield harvesting souls," Henry said back to his emotionless self.
"Does all the death that you just dealt not affect you at all?" Ningamu asked, hoping beyond hope that some of Henry's humanity might have been left.
"No, it doesn't. It's either kill or be killed. I took their lives before they could take mine, or anybody else's," Henry said, baffled that anyone would be concerned about something so mundane as taking a life.
"Do their faces not haunt you?" Ningamu pressed.
"Let me make this clear for you, petty officer, I am not and never will be haunted by anyone I kill. If I killed them, it was for a reason. I've stopped seeing the faces of those I killed the week of August 15, 2352," Henry said, leaning forward towards the black petty officer.
"Damn this just got intense," Nani whispered to Vallery.
"Okay, let's calm down now," Youri said, trying to defuse the situation with the walking, talking, death machine in a compact space in the void of space.
"I am calm, just thought that he could use some clarification," Henry said as he stepped back and stood up straight.
"Good," Youri said, relieved that Ningamu didn't set him off. Suddenly, a voice came through the intercom.
"Henry, your mother and classmates are still alive. I am sorry, all the times that I told you that was just a dream, I lied. I lied to protect you from the harsh truth. Even I didn't know the full extent of what was done during our time before integration. I hope that you can forgive me for the transgressions," Albert said, pleading for his friend's forgiveness.
The others looked over towards Henry, shocked about the revelation that the boy's mother was still alive. "I already knew. Albert, you are terrible at lying to me. I knew it almost a full year know. No need to ask for forgiveness." Henry said as he turned his head towards the intercom.
"Great, now that all this is done, we need to return to base," Youri told the others. Everyone disbanded, Henry back to his bunk, and the others to the bridge.
