I'm honestly not sure. I mean, it could be manufactured mass hysteria, fostered by the Bureau for some unknown purpose by means of something as simple as suggestion. It's not unheard of. We could be the ones they're experimenting on - and that's probably not a wise thing to say on the Network they fund, is it?

[John taps his lips lightly in thought, considering.]

It felt real. The rush of the vacuum, the screaming, the...well. [The ache of horror and loss. Best to leave that out.] Could be staged, you're not wrong. I suppose we'll only find out if we keep on the path.

[However, his heart both leaped and ached at the idea of family out there - hope, but also the awareness that he had been utterly unwanted. He frowns a bit.]

Don't know my mum either. I can't really say. I suppose a DNA test could exclude it, but I sort of...gave up on looking a while ago. But if what you're saying is true, if it runs in families, then you might just be on to something there.