Fear response - Part 2
He descended like a god from on high, gratefully accepting the adulation of his worshippers, in a suit that probably cost more than the gross domestic product of several small nations. Standing in an easy, frivolous manner, hands in pockets, jacket tucked back over his wrists, Raymond Alden gazed down through the thick glass of the elevator as it headed toward the enormous reception area of the Ald-Tech building.
Caitlyn had expected more ostentatious decorations within the open plan area. Standards fluttering from the surroundings with Alden's face peering down like some megalomaniacal tyrant. A corporate Nuremberg, filled with prone minions, not daring to catch his eye. Instead, there seemed to be a great deal more hanging plants. Though there was one, huge, tv screen that had Ald-Tech's accomplishments and brief snippets of future products, playing on a loop. And families. Lots of smiling families, staring out into a bright future. The tv had a lot of that.
Surrounded by a small group of other students, college students, Caitlyn felt more than a little out of place. Too young. Not dressed right. Short. The call had come before Caitlyn had even had chance to wake up. A summons to a pre-internship tour that the caller made clear, she absolutely had to attend. In clothing appropriate for a working environment. That proved a problem, but Aunt Mary had loaned her a bland blouse and black pants that were a little too baggy for her.
"Welcome! It's great to see you all so bright and early!" With arms spread, Raymond Alden exited the elevator and gave them all a smile. A bright, white smile that fell upon everyone, letting them know just how much he appreciated every single one of them. "I'm sure I don't have to tell you what a great opportunity this is. Not only for you, but for Ald-Tech. You are the future and we would be privileged to have your intelligence and skills adding to our team."
He waved to the side and a number of white-coated minions appeared, each carrying lanyards with security passes dangling from them. Every future intern received one, hanging them around their necks without question. Caitlyn turned hers over in her hands. It felt heavier than she expected, but she hooked it over her head anyway.
"Please wear these at all times. They give you access to the designated areas of the tour." One minion, a tall, willowy blonde woman who looked like she had stepped off a catwalk, clipboard in hand, walked along the line of interns. "Please remain with the group and do not touch anything unless told you can do so."
She stepped back and moved to Alden's side, a face so stern that she could replace any one of the Presidents' faces on Mount Rushmore. Alden didn't look at her. He saved all his attention for the wide-eyed interns that appeared dizzy with anticipation of what the great industrialist had to say. Caitlyn, however, felt hungry. She had left without breakfast and now she could feel her stomach readying itself to growl and embarrass her.
"Now, I can't come on the tour with you today, but know that I am excited for what you may bring to our family. I'm sure all of you are eager to see the facilities and Miranda, here, will keep me informed about everything." He clapped his hands together, rubbing them as though he couldn't wait to get started. "Any questions before I head out to perform the oh-so boring everyday business dealings that are keeping me away from such wonderful young minds?"
"Um ... I have ... uh ... something." Before she knew it, Caitlyn's hand had fluttered upward, her stammering voice sounding like an out of tune piano played by a half-asleep mouse. She cleared her throat. "I mean, I was wondering ... what progress Ald-Tech is making in the field of liquid metal nano-robotics and the efficacy of affecting biological reactions in a live subject?"
Alden didn't even blink. Caitlyn did. Where that question had come from, she couldn't imagine. Sure, she had spent a restless night wondering what, exactly, Black Staff's suit was made from and, yes, she had made a couple of leaps as to what it could be, considering the way the suit acted and how it had, seemingly, managed to heal her. Several times. She hadn't come up with anything that didn't sound like science fiction, but she lived in a world where aliens flew across the skies.
"That ... is an excellent question and it's that kind of thinking that we at Ald-Tech are looking for in our future rising stars. We are, of course, investigating many different areas of similar technologies, for medical research and such, but not anything quite so specific." His head dipped and he looked at Caitlyn as though studying her over a pair of spectacles. "I could talk about that sort of thing forever, Ms Carter, but I'm afraid we don't have the time. Enjoy the tour. Everybody."
That look disappeared in an instant and Alden grinned that smile that could woo a million investors out of their fortunes. The other interns lapped it up as Alden moved along the line, shaking hands, talking to each of them, using their names to let them know how important they were.
Upon reaching Caitlyn, he shook her hand, patting it with the other, but spared her the platitudes he had poured over the others. In fact, he said nothing to her, only nodding, and Caitlyn knew, right there and then, that her big mouth had blown it. Alden walked away, waving as he left, grinning. The assistant, Miranda, fell in at his side for a few steps, whispers passing between them, before returning to the interns. She didn't look at Caitlyn, but she couldn't miss the bright red of Caitlyn's embarrassment.
The other interns scowled at Caitlyn as Miranda led them away across the reception area floor, toward a set of glass doors. She couldn't blame them. Her one question had annoyed Alden so much that he hadn't fielded any of their questions. Not half an hour into the tour and she had already alienated herself from everyone else. Which was pretty much the story of her entire school life.
-+-
In the darkened information centre in the bowels of the Ald-Tech building, a dozen white-coated technicians pored over the streams of data that flowed across the screens before them. Graphical representations of several people, standing like da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, were central to many of the screens, though faceless and less detailed. Numbers flickered by each figure, changing by the second.
"Status." Raymond Alden breezed into the room, removing his expensive, tailored jacket and dropping it over a console. He began to roll up his sleeves. "I want constant monitoring. We're looking for any fluctuations. Any irregularities."
"Yes, sir." All the technicians responded, without looking at their employer. "All subjects are reading age, sex, bodyweight appropriate nominal. Nothing out of the ordinary."
Alden leaned over one console, in particular, staring at the readings for the most important of all those interns. The technology in their security passes would monitor almost every biological function for the entire time they were here, in Ald-Tech headquarters, and he needed answers. Not only about Caitlyn Carter, herself, but answers about what she now carried within her. From somewhere, a cell phone rang and Alden took it from an anonymous hand without looking.
"And? That's all you have? Millions of dollars spent in only the last few days and you give me that?" Even though he talked on the phone, he continued to watch the monitors. "This young woman worked that out in her bedroom while she listened to her favourite K-Pop bands, Peterson! Of course it affects biological responses! But I'm looking at her stats right now and she's registering normal across the board. Billings, are there any discrepancies at all?"
"No, sir. In fact, her readings are so normal, so average, if I didn't know any better, I'd say she was in a hospital bed receiving round-the-clock care." Billings leaned out of the way as Alden took a much closer look, chewing his lip. "I'll continue monitoring the subject."
"No, Peterson, there is no mistake. The Element created a monster in Professor Halstrom, but, in this young woman, it created a hero. Or a would-be hero. What is the factor that decides that? If we can't figure that out, this project will be nothing but a waste." He sighed, rubbing his forehead, before turning away from the screens for a brief second. "We stand at the cusp of a new age for humanity, Peterson. If we can crack this Element, synthesise it, the healing properties alone will change everything. Ald-Tech will herald in a world where no injury, no disease, is incurable. Perhaps even death will be held back. Imagine that, Peterson. Imagine the entire world, healthy, forever."
He didn't need to make the speech to Peterson, or any of them. He was Raymond Alden and if there was one thing he wanted to do before he died, it was ensure no-one had to suffer what he had to suffer. He doubted they would make a breakthrough in time to save him, but he could leave a legacy that no-one could deny. Raymond Alden, the man that cured the world.
-+-
Even the air filled with toxic fumes from the millions of cars creeping through the city streets felt fresher and less cloying than inside the Ald-Tech building and Caitlyn gasped great lungfuls into her as she rushed away from the glass façade and away to the nearest subway station. After making her excruciating initial question, she had followed Miranda around the building, walking several steps behind everyone else. If Raymond Alden still wanted her after that, he must be a masochist.
Her feet clicked and clacked in shoes with heels that she never wore and, as she leaned against a trash can to take them off, preferring to walk barefoot than cripple herself, she looked up to the towering buildings all around her. Something caught her eye, far above, and she squinted to get a better look. Probably only a super, but she only saw a flash. A super wearing black, which was a little odd.
The only super in New Hastings city that wore black was Black Staff. Most supers, even villains, preferred more colourful outfits, for whatever reason. As she hooked the uncomfortable shoes over her fingers, she tried to make a list of all the supers that wore black as a way to take her mind off the disaster she had experienced in Ald-Tech headquarters. A growl from her stomach had her change direction, heading for the nearest fast food restaurant, trying not to grimace at having to walk barefoot all the way there and all the way back to the subway station, then all the way home. Her life sucked.
It also took her mind from Alaina's insistence that she practice every day using Black Staff's suit. She had a point, Caitlyn supposed, but not having the suit at all was what she would rather work towards. It had been days since Black Staff's death and only a few super-villains had come crawling out of the woodwork. Other supers had dealt with them and it looked like the city didn't need 'Blood Obsidian' after all. Caitlyn, for certain, didn't need the suit. She had no intention of becoming a superhero. None at all.