HIVE: Otto's Past 2: A Very Confused Otto

Laura, Wing and Shelby sprinted through HIVE, trying to catch up with Raven and Otto. Their feet were silent on the hard floor – well, Wing and Shelby's were, Laura knew she was probably louder than an elephant.

Stealth was not her thing.

As they ran in silence, turning corners and following the sound of the stretcher's wheels, Laura couldn't help noticing how Shelby kept on casting furtive glances at Wing and attempting to flatten her hair. Well, well – it looked like she wasn't the only one with boy problems after all.

"Laura!" Shelby hissed suddenly.

It took Laura a few seconds to realise that Wing and Shelby weren't in front of her any more. They were behind her, flattened against the wall. Wing grabbed her arm and pulled her back to them.

"Camera!" he whispered, jerking his head upwards.

Laura looked up and saw the camera on the ceiling, its lens sweeping the corridor, back and forth. She felt the others tense, getting ready to run.

"Now!" Wing said and they darted forwards, the camera pointed away from them.

A few minutes later and Laura could feel her lungs burning, her breathing becoming ragged and her legs starting to ache. She was well behind Wing and Shelby, who were still running flat out.

How do they do it? a small part of her wondered.

Exercise, another part said sagely.

Up ahead, Shelby – who was at the front – was about to turn a corner when she abruptly back-pedalled and crashed into Wing, who let out an "Oof!" Shelby glared at him and put a finger to her lips. Wing frowned, giving her a that-was-your-fault look. At that point Laura reached them, clutching her side. Curious, she edged past her friends and peered round the corner.

Raven was walking down it, pushing Otto.

xxXXOtto+MaximumXXxx

The corridors were deserted as Raven hurried down them, wheeling Otto in front of her. Every now and then she cast glances over her shoulder, checking that there were no pursuers. Everything was going well – so far. At one point she thought she heard footsteps (Laura) and someone gasping (Wing) but dismissed it instantly: no guards patrolled this section and no one had seen her taking Otto away.

Raven reached the hangar doors. She keyed in the top-secret code and the industrial doors shuddered and opened. Grabbing the stretcher, she pushed Otto into the wide, brightly lit cavern which was empty except for the helicopter in the centre. She sighed when she saw it. All the Shrouds – basically helicopters which could turn invisible – had either been damaged or dispatched to other villains who needed them. There were none left. If Nero had known about the whole School scenario sooner then he would have been able to reserve one, but lamentably, they were stuck with an ordinary helicopter.

Well, not totally ordinary, Raven smiled as she approached it. It's loaded with guns, missiles, the latest radar system and all kinds of other hi-tech gadgets.

There was a loud thud as the hangar doors closed behind her. Raven slid open the helicopter's door and hitched the front wheels of Otto's stretcher into the helicopter. With an almighty push, she managed to get the rest in.

This time she remembered to lock the wheels.

Raven checked that Otto was still out and turned round to close the door. Three colourful shapes flashed in her peripheral vision. She whirled to the left, staring at the crates at the back of the helicopter. She couldn't see anything, but that didn't mean nothing was there. She crept forwards, narrowing her eyes and slowing her breathing. She put a hand on the crates and looked over them-

Beep!

Cursing, Raven drew back and retrieved a mobile from her belt. Nero's face was on the screen.

"Has everything gone as planned?" he asked grimly. "Is Otto secure?"

"Yes," Raven replied, glancing at the sleeping boy.

A sad look passed over Nero's face. "I didn't want to do this, but it's for the boy's own good. Who knows what the School would've done to him if they'd found him at HIVE."

Raven pursed her lips. "They could still find him – especially in this helicopter."

He sighed, weariness in his eyes. "Sorry about that, but it couldn't be helped-"

"I understand, Max," she said before he could go on.

"Be careful, Natalya," the headmaster said.

She nodded. "I always am."

Nero hung up.

Raven went into the cockpit, flicking switches and checking the helicopter's status. Everything was fine. She started the propellers and, slowly, the helicopter rose into the air. The doors in the hangar's rocky ceiling opened automatically, revealing bright stars in the jet-black sky.

It was 12:30am.

xxXXOtto+MaximumXXxx

Otto woke up – and was very confused.

For one thing he was no longer in his bedroom; he was looking up at the interior of a helicopter, the helicopter was moving, he was strapped to a stretcher and he had no idea what he was doing there.

Or maybe he did. The more Otto thought about it, the more likely it became. It was dreadful and the thought filled him with pure terror, but it was probably true. Who else had drugged him before? Who else had successfully smuggled him out of HIVE? Who else had strapped him to a stretcher before and refused to let him go?

The School.

The scientists had got him after all.

"Let me go!" he screamed, frantically trying to wriggle out of the straps. They weren't tight, but still kept him in place. "Help!" he cried. "Help, help, help!"

"Otto!" a familiar voice said. "Calm down."

Otto stopped screaming and struggling long enough to look up. Raven was standing over him, face filled with anguish. He sighed in relief.

"Oh, thank god it's you," he said, relaxing instantly. "I thought it was the School."

After a few seconds his relief disappeared, to be replaced by confusion, then anger, as he realised what had happened.

"What are you doing!" Otto shouted at Raven. "Y-you can't just take me away and leave everyone else at HIVE, the scientists will get them!"

"Sorry," she said, and she truly looked sorry. "But I had to do as Nero ordered."

But Otto's temper had risen and he wouldn't stop now. "Undo these straps!" he bellowed, struggling again. When Raven didn't move, he shouted, "I hate you! I hate you! I hate-"

BANG!

He cut off abruptly, chest heaving and his eyes staring daggers at Raven. She was looking at the helicopter door, frowning.

BANG!

This time Otto's temper was replaced by curiosity tinged with fear and he managed to drag his eyes away from Raven to stare at the door behind him. It was quite hard, twisting his head round, being strapped down and all, but he managed it. The helicopter door was made out of hard, unyielding metal, and yet it had buckled inwards. In the corner of his eye he saw Raven's hand move to her belt, where her weapons were.

BANG!

Otto gasped in fright and even Raven backed away as the door imploded, flying across the helicopter's interior and smashing against the opposite wall. Otto slowly drew his eyes back to the door, expecting to see someone wearing a white lab coat.

Instead Maximum Ride was standing in the doorway, the stars shining at her back.