Chapter Text
Straying from the road yet keeping it in sight, moving between the pines, Ebony ducked and weaved as she made her way towards the mining facility. She pulled the microcassette recorder and tape from her coat pocket, only to be wacked by a tree branch, causing her to tumble into a bush.
'Ow,' she groaned before sighing and chuckling to herself. 'Ow. Ow. Ow.' Those were genuine. Back on her feet, Ebony continued forward, pulling some leafs from her afro and patting down her jumper. The roof of the accommodation came into view over the hill, followed by all the infrastructure that Ebony didn't know the name of, but it dwarfed her. All she knew was that it had the elevator shaft into the mines beneath her feet.
Lifting the recorder to her face, Ebony clicked the button.
'So, it's 16th September 1985. Time is-' Ebony shuffled, trying to roll her sleeve up to see her watch. '-shit-' She caught a quick glance. '11:22 am, and I'm at the mining facility where, fifteen days ago, twenty-five miners vanished. No footprints. No signs of a struggle.' At least from what she could see. 'True, some rain might have washed some evidence away, but something is not adding up. It's like a UFO just swooped down and flew off with them.' But, Ebony knew that was bullshit. Aliens weren't real.
The fourteen year old made her way for the accommodation. The metal door swung lightly in the breeze. Dried leafs had found their way inside. Ebony walked up the two steps and pushed the door open with her shoulder. A small canteen area greeted her. The smell of cigarettes still lingered in the air, their butts piling on the floor and holders on the wooden table. Several cups had half drunk coffee, which now had mould growing over the skin. Flies made their home on the leftover food. It made Ebony shudder and gag. She clicked the recorder back to life. 'I'm in accommodation. It's really filthy in here.'
She closed the door, revealing coats and several rucksacks. 'Seems a few men didn't have time to unpack.' She looked at the label and saw the name Glover. Of course, she knew the name. A good man whose wife worked for the post office. Their twin boys were only six years old. Ebony held her breath for a moment and counted her lucky stars her dad wasn't one of the twenty-five. At least she knew he was back in Los Angeles, and she got to see him at Christmas and talk to him every night over the phone.
A rattling pulled Ebony from her thoughts. She turned and jumped at a fox racing past her, unable to find any food to scavenge, and vanish into the undergrowth. 'That was a fox,' she spoke into the microphone after realising she was still recording. The kitchen area looked relatively normal. Apart from the dust collecting on the surfaces, there didn't seem to be any signs of a struggle. The facility didn't have a full-time chef, but whoever wanted to cook would. 'In the kitchen. Nothing out of the ordinary, so gonna head up to the cabins and see-' Something caught Ebony from the corner of her eye. She turned and was greeted by Todd's face at the window. 'Holy shit-' She jerked and juggled her microcassette in her hands before groaning like she had the right to be annoyed. 'Mom!'
Todd didn't say anything. She, with a look that said, 'Are you serious?' And. 'You'll be the twenty-sixth person who will go missing,' just pointed at her daughter, then to the ground. With a small sigh of defeat, Ebony left.
'You know,' Todd said with her hand on her hips, posture strong. 'Last time I checked, math class does not include going into the mountains. Alone.' She really emphasised the alone. 'What are you doing here?'
'Just trying to help.'
'And making your grades drop?'
'They're not dropping.'
And Ebony was right. True, she had been skipping school for her nature walks, but she always did her homework and never got anything below a B. Her exam results reflected that, too. Checkmate. Todd paused, clicked her tongue before sighing.
'Grab you stuff. I'm taking you to school.'
'But I have biology today.'
'So?'
'I hate biology.'
'And I hated French, but I still had to do it.'
'Yeah, but Miss. Bailey has me sit in the back of the class because my hair blocks the view.'
'Oh, does she now?'
'Yeah...'
Sadly. This was nothing new for the family. It wasn't as bad as LA, but the shadow was always there. The locals were more ignorant with their words, especially the older generation who didn't like change. The Todds, to them, were different. Outsiders who have only been in Ashington Creek for three years.
'Yeah, well,' Todd nudged Ebony with a small smile. 'Her head looks like a boiled egg.' That got Ebony to laugh. Together, they made their way for the cruiser. 'Don't worry. I'll talk to her. Enjoying the cassette?' A good way to change the subject.
'Yeah. Got several minutes' worth of tape left.'
'Remind me, are you trying to be a police officer or a journalist?'
'Police has better pay. Journalism is more freedom.'
'Neither are a nine to five.'
'Wow, what gave that away?'
Back in the car, Todd drove down the mountain and back for town. Ebony rolled down the window and rested her elbow on the frame.
'Oh, but the skating rink is off.'
'Yeah, that's fair.'
'Pizzas still on, though.'
'Because you'll never pass up time with Ray.'
'Oh, don't start.'
'Just tell him already!'
'Tell him what?'
'I dunno just-' Ebony stuttered as she juggled her thoughts. 'What do a pair of divorced adults do on dates?'
Todd kept her eyes on the road, fully knowing Ebony was correct in her assumption, and she'd start to blush. 'Just think about what you're gonna say to Mr. Roberts.' The headmaster. 'Like I am.'
The peaceful silence that followed for several minutes was cut with the roaring of enginees above. 'You hear that?' Ebony muttered. She didn't like her mum time to answer, as she leaned her upper body out of the window and looked above the trees, where an F-15 flew. 'Did you see that?'
'That I did.' Ebony climbed back in.
'Is that normal?'
'It's a military craft. They can do what they want.'
'Could they be here to help us?'
Todd scoffed. 'No. No, they'll be training up there somewhere. Don't think too much about it.'
Starscream landed on the rocky walls that protected the grasslands and alpine beauty below. The animals around him vanished, seeing the bigger threat stomping through their territory. Even the birds fell silent. The seven meter Decepticon followed the signal. It wasn't coming from behind a wall, but below. A cave. With a smirk and taking several steps back, Starscream aimed a missile and fired at the ground, opening an undiscovered entrance. Much to his disappointment, however, the signal was deep within the earth. Of course, he had to go deeper.
He shuddered, shaking his servos to mentally prepare himself, and jumped in.