Epilogue
***
Eventually the people of Earth rebuilt their ravaged cities, homes, and lives, but nothing would ever be the same. Not a soul on Earth had escaped unscathed - the memories of those that survived the slave camps and those that squatted outside of them would forever burn with images of their dying loved ones and their own torture. Those that were possessed by the Reavers would forever live with guilt - the feeling that they had betrayed their people. They were innocent, of course, but the feeling would never lessen.
Goku, Chichi, Piccolo, Vegeta, Goten, Videl, and Gohan were among the thousands struggling with this guilt. They rememebered every person their hands helped to kill, and it would be many years before any of them would be able to forgive themselves. Bulma, though possesed by the Reavers, was never forced to kill anyone, so her recovery was swift. She became a pillar the first few months for everyone else to lean upon. Pan, of course, recovered quickly, but she was brutally aware of the changes that had developed in her because of everything. Her childhood had been obliterated, leaving behind nothing but the charred ashes of a forgotten innocence. Never would Pan look at the world or its people the same way again.
Trunks' recovery was tragically slow. His body had been completely ravaged by starvation and the energy blast that had saved the planet. He had to learn to walk all over again, and it took him six months of intensive therapy to accomplish the feat. By then he and his parents had moved into a rebuilt Capsule Corps, and much of the world was starting to get back to some semblance of normalcy. Until that first step, he had spent his days confined to a wheelchair - it had been unbearable. Trunks was persistent, however - through sheer will and determination, as well as the support of his friends and family, Trunks managed to regain his lost stregnth and vitality. And Pan was right there with him the whole time, just as she had been before.
***
Eventually the people of Earth rebuilt their ravaged cities, homes, and lives, but nothing would ever be the same. Not a soul on Earth had escaped unscathed - the memories of those that survived the slave camps and those that squatted outside of them would forever burn with images of their dying loved ones and their own torture. Those that were possessed by the Reavers would forever live with guilt - the feeling that they had betrayed their people. They were innocent, of course, but the feeling would never lessen.
Goku, Chichi, Piccolo, Vegeta, Goten, Videl, and Gohan were among the thousands struggling with this guilt. They rememebered every person their hands helped to kill, and it would be many years before any of them would be able to forgive themselves. Bulma, though possesed by the Reavers, was never forced to kill anyone, so her recovery was swift. She became a pillar the first few months for everyone else to lean upon. Pan, of course, recovered quickly, but she was brutally aware of the changes that had developed in her because of everything. Her childhood had been obliterated, leaving behind nothing but the charred ashes of a forgotten innocence. Never would Pan look at the world or its people the same way again.
Trunks' recovery was tragically slow. His body had been completely ravaged by starvation and the energy blast that had saved the planet. He had to learn to walk all over again, and it took him six months of intensive therapy to accomplish the feat. By then he and his parents had moved into a rebuilt Capsule Corps, and much of the world was starting to get back to some semblance of normalcy. Until that first step, he had spent his days confined to a wheelchair - it had been unbearable. Trunks was persistent, however - through sheer will and determination, as well as the support of his friends and family, Trunks managed to regain his lost stregnth and vitality. And Pan was right there with him the whole time, just as she had been before.
