Hope falls silently in the dark ... - Part 1

Caitlyn didn't care if she looked like a peeping Tom as she peered into Alaina's room and, to her relief, found that everything looked normal. Normal for Alaina, that is. Anyone else would think the room had been upended, but Caitlyn knew what Alaina was like. The mess was all of her friend's making. Alaina, at least, had avoided Fiend's attention, but that still left Aunt Mary missing.

Just to check, Caitlyn called Alaina again and, once again, her cell went straight to her voicemail. It felt good to hear Alaina's voice, but it still worried Caitlyn. Just because Fiend hadn't attacked Alaina at home, didn't mean he hadn't taken her elsewhere. As for Chief Watson. As much as she liked him, he was a police officer. He could take care of himself.

"Kyle! Ping Alaina's cell. Wherever she is, I need to make sure she's alright." Floating down to the alley, she sent the suit back into hiding. She wanted to check one more thing. "Have the drones found anything?"

Almost as soon as the explosion had occurred in Aunt Mary's apartment, Kyle had transported down, with several of Drone's drones in tow, proving that the transporter was accurate, after all. The explosion hadn't caused much damage, but Kyle thought the debris could hold clues to the events leading up to Aunt Mary's abduction.

"Components from Ald-Tech, but, apart from that, nothing. No fingerprints. The blood is definitely from your aunt, but it's not enough to be life-threatening. Keep your focus, Caitlyn!" He sounded busy. In the background, Caitlyn heard the sound of furious keyboard tapping. "Alaina's cell is ... in her apartment. Switched off. It could mean anything."

It could. While talking to Kyle, she made her way into the apartment building, racing up the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator and, after several thunderous knocks, Alaina's mother came to the door. Eyes drooping from smoking too much pot, the mom tried to focus on Caitlyn, as though she had trouble remembering the girl that had only been her daughter's best friend for, like, ever.

"Mrs Allen? I'm looking for Alaina. I'm supposed to copy her notes for Math class." Caitlyn talked slowly, noting the confused look on Mrs Allen's face. "Do you know where she is?"

"She ain't here? Mikey? Mikey! Is Aly not here?" She shouted over her shoulder and Caitlyn heard a muddled mumbling from within the apartment. "She's out. Oh, yeah! She's with that girl. You know, that girl? Snooty kid. Thinks she's better than everybody."

Caitlyn didn't even wait to thank Alaina's mom. Alaina was with Rayna and Caitlyn didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Fiend, Raymond Alden, Rayna's father, had had AlleyGator attack his own daughter to test Caitlyn, Blood Obsidian. Yet, he had also ordered AlleyGator not to hurt Rayna. That was not the way a father should treat a daughter and Caitlyn doubted he would avoid capturing Alaina just because Rayna was with her.

As soon as she reached the street, she didn't care who saw her. The suit enveloped her and she launched herself to the rooftops. Only one person would know where to find Aunt Mary and, maybe, Alaina. Raymond Alden. The man must have gone mad, using the synthesised Black Element, believing Caitlyn had tried to kill his daughter. Whatever the reason for this madness, he had all the answers and she intended finding him.

-+-

Meanwhile, at Machina's brownstone ...

Chief Watson had trouble changing the fuses in a house. Couldn't fix anything even remotely technical, but he knew how to break things. That tiny drone had flitted about, trying to escape the Faraday cage below Joe Morrison's brownstone, but there was no way out. Watson had squashed the damned thing like a bug.

Now, however, he didn't know what to do with it. Using the switchblade, he dug into the casing, tearing at any wires he could see, cursing his ageing eyesight, but he hoped he had done enough to take the thing offline completely. The proof would be when he left the safety of the Faraday cage. Opening the door, he peeked outside, fearing that he would see more of the drones, or of the villain that had sent this drone to watch him.

Seeing nothing, Watson left the room, taking out his cell phone, and laid the drone down on one of Joe's old workbenches. If he couldn't see well enough without glasses, the phone had a zoom feature as good as anything he had seen. He pinched his thumb and forefinger out on the screen and saw writing. Writing that told him exactly where the drone had come from.

Checking the signal strength on the phone, he placed a call. If he had a drone tailing him, others might too and he knew someone well used, by now, to dealing with super-villains.

-+-

On the Bastion satellite, high above the Earth ...

Kyle watched a dozen monitors at once and knew that, when Bastion returned from their cosmic adventure, Drone was going to have words. Many words and most of those words would be angry. The satellite looked as though a tech company had dumped their entire stock into the meeting room. On one of the monitors, he saw someone trying to contact Caitlyn, but she was too busy to take this call.

"Officer Watson, long time no see! Oh, this is Pho-Boy, by the way. Blood Obsidian is busy right now." Kyle pinged the position of the Chief and scowled. What was he doing at Machina's brownstone. "I'm here to help. Tell me what you need."

"I just found out that I've been tailed by little flying spies. I just want to make sure the kid is okay. I doubt I'm the only one getting the stalking treatment." The old man had given Kyle a pass for not calling him 'Chief'. He must be worried. "Funny thing is, this drone thing? Made by Ald-Tech. I didn't know they made surveillance drones. Do you have the technology to trace where it got its orders from?"

"I know exactly where it got its orders from. Raymond Alden, himself. We think he's Fiend and he ..." While talking, Kyle had remotely broken into the Chief's phone, looking at the photo's Watson had taken of the drone. "Even for someone as egotistical as Alden, that's taking brand recognition too far. He's not even trying to hide that he's Fiend."

"Yeah? Let the kid know, will you?" By the sound of it, Watson had reached the street. "I need to see if this thing is enough evidence for a search warrant for Ald-Tech."

"Sure." Kyle knew it wouldn't be. Up to now, there was no way to prove Alden had committed a crime. Something bothered him, though. "Say, why, exactly, were you at Machina's place?"

-+-

At that moment, back on Earth, New Hastings city ...

She had never swung so high, though she had floated higher, with Principle. This time, it felt different. The height and the dark of the night enhanced her fears. Fears that she couldn't find Aunt Mary in time. Fears that, if she lost her aunt, how she could possibly cope. After losing her parents, Aunt Mary and Uncle Richard were there for her. When the accident took Uncle Richard from them, Aunt Mary had stood like a rock against a raging gale. She was Caitlyn's only constant. As much of a mother to Caitlyn as her birth mother.

If Alden had hurt her, he would pay dearly. All thoughts of guilt about allowing AlleyGator to die became tossed aside. Should Alden harm Aunt Mary, not even kill her, but if he harmed her in any way, he would find out just how strong this suit was, and he would realise why he should never have pissed off the teenager wearing it.

The length of material, fired from the suit, latched on to the building below and Caitlyn tugged, sending her swinging faster and faster. She had come here, earlier in the night, under stealthy circumstances, seeking answers. This time, she was coming to Ald-Tech with fury in her mind and in her heart, and woe-betide any who got in her way.

Curling her body, crossing her arms before her face, she shattered glass designed to stop high-powered bullets, sending the little shards cascading across the office she had only visited hours ago. A quick look around and she saw that Alden wasn't here, but someone would be. The door to the office flew across the reception area as she kicked it, only to find no-one there, either. Of course, it was very late, but Caitlyn had no other avenues to search.

Something struck her shoulder, then another hit her back. She turned to see a bunch of security goons, firing everything they had at her. At least now she knew the suit was bulletproof. The flattened bullets fell to the floor at her feet, pushed out of the material of the suit, and Caitlyn turned her attention to those goons. She only needed one conscious.

-+-

Elsewhere ...

Mary woke to find herself locked in a cold room, with only a dim light from a single wall lamp for her eyes to see by. The place looked clean enough, but sparse. A sharp pain brought both her hands to her forehead and she realised that they were tied together. The pain in her head came from a gash, but she couldn't remember how she had come by it. Dried blood flaked away as she gingerly touched the wound.

On the floor, by the heavy, reinforced door, she saw a tray with food and a bottle of water and she dove for that water. It felt as though she hadn't had a drink in days and she gulped the water down even while she looked around the cell she found herself in. And it was a cell. Someone had imprisoned her, but she had no idea why.

Everything had happened so fast. The casserole was cooking nicely. Caitlyn was on her way home. They were going to have a quiet, family meal and Mary had expected to listen to Caitlyn's woes about the girl she liked, or about Alaina. Then, something had crashed through the window. At first, Mary had thought it a bird, but it was far, far too big for a bird. Then all she could remember were big, bulging yellow eyes and a laugh so evil, it chilled her bones even now.

"Mary! Mary, Mary quite contrary." That voice, playful, yet nasty, came from outside the cell. "How does your garden grow? Seriously, how does it grow? A window box? An allotment? What? Here? In New Hastings? Do you even have a garden, Mary, Mary?"

Despite her better judgement, Mary moved toward the door. A rectangular hole sat open. An observation hatch. Shaking, hesitant, she looked out, eyes widening as she saw something that looked like a laboratory outside, but, also, other cell doors.

"Who are you? Where am I?" She moved her head, trying to see where the owner of that evil voice was. "What are you going to do to me?"

"To you? Dear, sweet, oh so kind, Aunt Mary, Mary? Nothing. Yet. See, I'm a gardener, too. Kind of. I've planted seeds and I'm just waiting for them to sprout. Your Caitlyn has been a baaaadd girl and she needs a good spanking. But not in an eew creepy way, though. Disciplinary. As for who I am ..." A pair of eyes appeared at the hatch, sending Mary tumbling back in fright. She remembered those yellow eyes. "I'm the good guy. Boo!"

The laughter filled the cell, echoing from unforgiving walls, penetrating into Mary's pained skull. Whatever this monster wanted, it had something to do with Caitlyn, but, whatever this creature intended to do to Caitlyn, Mary wouldn't allow it. No-one messes with her niece!