Reality Check

Orion's Search

Shadows (by The Afters)

"Wake up the statues, breathe out the dust. Shock of a heartbeat, rush of the blood. Breaking in to my skin, feel the burning again . . ."

___

Like most things, it had happened unexpectedly.

Orion had been searching for four days. Four for Bethany, who had unexpectedly gone missing. Four for Doc Twilight, who had inconveniently gone missing as well. His father figure had disappeared shortly after the two had started their search for Bethany on the night she'd gone missing.

After investigating the area where they'd last seen Bethany and ultimately realizing that she must be in danger, Orion and Doc Twilight had decided to split up so they'd cover more ground. That had been a mistake, because when Orion searched for him later, Doc Twilight was nowhere to be seen. It felt eerily similar to when Doc had gone missing for several months — back when he'd turned into the Dark — leaving Orion on his own to take care of things.

The thing was, Orion had become used to training and living with Doc Twilight, who had practically raised him ever since his parents died in an alien invasion. The man had become like a father to him, and although Orion was not one to openly express his emotions, he was worried about him. He couldn't help but be worried about Bethany, too, who had grown like a sister to him ever since she'd started living with them for three years. They were his family, and their disappearance made Orion feel as dark as one of the shadows that used to take over the city.

At first, Orion had searched for what felt like hours, growing more frustrated when he could not find his father figure. He had tried everything to contact him, and when Doc failed to pick up his radio, he began his search, which had expanded into four days. First his adopted sister went missing, and now his father figure? Orion didn't believe in coincidences, and this hardly felt like one. The two disappearances had to be related, somehow.

It was an absolute mystery to him where Doc Twilight and Bethany were, given the fact that they'd disappeared out of nowhere, not leaving a single clue that showed where they were. He would not rest for a second until he found them. The only explanation that he could come up with was that they'd been kidnapped. By who, Orion didn't know, but he assumed that the supervillains had something to do with this.

There wasn't another explanation besides that, so Orion set off with a plan to interrogate every single supervillain in Jupiter City, fighting anyone that dared to cross his path. Whoever was holding his family captive would pay, and Orion would make sure that the supervillain involved in this would suffer greatly, right before he put them into jail. It made him even more furious to think that anyone in their right mind would mess with his family.

So far, Orion had traveled a good distance across Jupiter City, sleeping in public buildings or in cars when he wasn't fighting supervillians. He didn't bother heading back to the Twilight Cave, where his hideout was. What was the point in that? It would be idiotic, and Orion was the least idiotic person he knew. That would be a waste of time, especially because there were so many supervillians left to interrogate.

Finding Doc and Bethany was his greatest priority right now. He knew they could handle themselves, but he was worried about them. He had no idea where they were or how to contact them. Who knew what could be happening to them, all while Orion was still out here, taking four days and maybe even more to find them?

At the start of day four, Orion slowly opened his eyes after a restless sleep and squinted against the harsh, unforgiving sunlight that shone down on him. Since the best time to find supervillians was at night, he'd been roaming the streets all night until he eventually gave into his exhaustion. He was never the type to enjoy sunshine or the morning, so both things made him feel even more unpleasant than he already was.