____Fontaine Futuristics____
As I slowly walked down the halls, my nerves began to numb to the electric shocks. My boots thudded against the floor, and as I continued on through the halls, I realized splicers were hiding in the shadows. They stared at me in fear, looking as if they were staring at death itself.
The security doors to one of the high security test chambers opened, and I could see a large tank inside.
That was when I saw the fate of Gilbert Alexander.
He was floating in the tank, looking like a giant, mutated fetus. He was the most digusting display of splicing that I had ever seen. And I knew that only Lamb could have driven him to splice himself so much as do devolve himself into such a monster.
"Now! For your punishment-" Gilbert began as a large piece of metal fell from the ceiling.
Suddenly, a young girl landed next to me. As did an arab boy. Then another Alpha series Big Daddy. Last, was Sinclair.
"Were we interrupting?" Sinclair asked casually, pumping his shotgun once.
"Doctor Alexander, you have to stop this!" the young girl yelled, and as her hair drew back, I recognized her.
"El-El-Eleanor Lamb?! What?! Who?! When?!? I WANT AN EXPLANATION!"
"Doctor Gilbert Alexander. That's your name," the girl said, staring up at the giant gilatimous form floating in the tank.
She looked no more than seventeen, maybe sixteen. It was her voice that I recognized. Older... but it was not so much as to not distinguish Lamb's daughter.
"I AM ALEX THE GREAT! AND WHERE THE HELL ARE THOSE IDIOTS! I'LL TURN THEIR HEADS TO STEW--" Gilbert began to yell over the sentry bot.
"Doctor! Look at me! I am giving you a choice!" Eleanor yelled, grabbing everyone's attention with the force of her voice, "Mother is the devil that put you in here. All I need to do is overload this terminal, and you'll fry. But I'm not going to do that. You have a choice. Help me. I can unlock this prison, you can go free. We can end this nightmare and survive, or you can try and stop us, and burn with everyone else in this damn city. Your life as a man has been stolen, but don't throw your last chance of humanity away over whatever arsenic tipped words my mother told you! You can save yourself, or damn yourself. The choice is yours."
Gilbert fell silent, and Eleanor turned to me.
"Doctor Tenenbaum. I understand you are here to kill this city. Whatever our past relations were, I disregard them for the common goal that we have. Sinclair has already prepared a bathysphere preconfigured to head to the lighthouse for the Sisters. There was barely enough space for them. However, Sinclair has a solution for us. My mother sits on the last functioning submarine vessel that isn't locked to self-destruct if it attempts to flee the city. We don't have any other choice besides blasting every splicer between here and there, and stealing the sub. Do we have an accord?" young Lamb asked me, so fast I barely was able to make sense of it at first.
"Yes. Yes, I will help you. This damn suit will slow me down though," I said, smacking at a knee brace with my hand as I said so.
"Sigma's moves faster than me, it just takes getting used to. I suggest you get used to it damn frickin' fast," Sinclair said.
Sinclair took out a map, and looked at it.
"Down that corridor on the right. You'll head through a tunnel, then reach a pressure station. You and Sigma head on ahead while we get some wetsuits on. Just keep pressing through Persephone, and you should make a hole to get to the Rubicon. Just try to not blow up the damn sub while you're at it!" Sinclair ordered, handing me the map.
Sigma turned to me, and I began moving. As we both pounded on the floor, I looked at the map.
I had known Persephone was some kind of prison that Sinclair had built for Ryan, but I had never expected it to be in Rapture, or connected to Fontaine Futuristics. Truth be told, I never had really tried to put much thought into where our test subjects had come from. It had made it easier to forgive myself, back then, for what I put them through. It didn't help me feel any better now, knowing.
As we reached the pressure room, Sigma handed me a shotgun. I took it and found there was a holster for it on the suit. I slid it in, and he took out a gatling gun. He also had his drill close at hand.
While I pulled the lever to flood the room, I noted Sigma's personality. He put a great deal of forethought into his fighting... much like someone else I knew. Perhaps he had, somehow by chance, retained some of his humanity. I had known a few others had exemplified a few random traits from their days before becoming Daddies, but Sigma pushed the normal limits. Perhaps that was why Sinclair had chosen him.
The door opened, and we exited out into the ocean.
We moved as quickly as we could along the seabed, but that would not have been fast even if we were not in metal suits.
As we crossed the sand, I noticed a refueling pipe, meant for Big Daddies walking by on the sea floor.
I tried to stuff Sinclair's map away, but then I realized there was something hard amongst the folds.
I pulled out a keycard, and looked at it. It had the same ensignia as the refueler.
On spur of the moment thinking, I hopped over to the fueler, and stuck the card in a small slot. Then the ground opened beneath us.
Sigma first was alarmed, taking out his gun, but then lowered it as he floated down into a circular, metal room. I could see another chamber just down a hall connected to the room.
I gestured for Sigma to follow me.
Sinclair sealed the helmet over his head, and turned to the both of us.
"Alright, you both ready?" Sinclair asked, his hand on the lever.
We nodded, and then the water came as Sinclair turned the lever.
Sinclair was first out, and jumped several steps ahead. He gave a wide gesture for us to follow, and we moved to follow.
As we reached where he had been standing, I saw the large hole in the ground. Persephone's emergency entrance, apparently.
I dove in, and Amir jumped down inside.
Once the water level finally dropped and air returned, we all hastily took off our wetsuits.
I quickly looked down the hall, as I could hear yelling.
"Seems like they're already busy clearing the way. Good to know," Sinclair said, taking out a key from his pocket and gesturing again for us to follow.
He led us past several dead splicers to a door. He unlocked it, and it opened to a narrow maintenance path.
"We'd be in the way if we jumped in now. We can stop Lamb while they've got the splicers dancing," Sinclair said, sliding inside.
"You're letting them play decoy?" I asked.
"They're several tons of steel and ammunition, blasting every idiot and yahoo within earshot. They aren't decoys. Hell, we're doing them a favor by -not- trying to help. Now come on! We gotta get to the Rubicon before Sofia does!" Sinclair said, holding out a hand for me to climb in.
I took his hand and he slid further down.
As I helped Amir in, I realized just simply how tight a quarters we were in. I could feel the heat of steam rushing up me as it hissed, and the metal walls practically gave me no elbow room. Sinclair turned on a flashlight, holding it high up, and we followed after him.
The minutes we walked were silent, and nerve racking.
We were so close to freedom, so close to victory, I could taste it. I could almost feel the radiance of the sun on me now, but it was almost drowned out by the feeling of fear that we'd fail.
Amir kept close to me, while Sinclair generally tried to speed ahead as much as he could without abandoning us. I once almost could have sworn his breath was right in my ear, and his hand was on my shoulder.
I knew we were far along when we couldn't hear any more echoes of fighting. We were only yards from the Rubicon now. We just had to push a little more.
Sinclair held up a hand for us to stop, and turned. He slowly opened a door on the wall, and looked outside.
"We're here," he whispered, slowly stepping out.
As Amir and I tip-toed out of the maintenance path, we could see several splicers standing up above on a balconey. They were completely unaware of us, and we kept it that way.
Sinclair led us up a stairway, and down a hall lined with glass windows.
I could see the Rubicon. It sat at its docking port, waiting for us.
"Be sure to check for any splicers onboard. We don't need any-" Sinclair began.
Then the bullet punctured his shoulder.
Amir turned hurriedly, his eyes widdening as he realized Sofia was behind us.
I saw the bullet go through his chest, as she pulled the trigger again on the lugermorph. I could feel his breastplate break, and almost taste the blood coming out of him, even though he was feet away from me. I wanted to melt Sofia's face.
"Hello, my dear. You've let this city get to you, I see. I understand everyone is left with the damnation of choice, and I failed to free you of it. Instead, I have created a monster worse than that of Andrew Ryan. I would regret this, but love is merely a chemical," Sofia said, cocking the gun again.
I quickly ripped the gun from her hand, pulling it to float in front of my hand. I then sent it slamming into her face, sending her toppingly to the iron-clad floor.
"It may be a mere chemical," I growled, "But we choose to give it meaning. I choose to give it meaning. You are the monster, and I will leave you to your pets! May the Rapture family eternally burn in hell!"
Sinclair groaned and rose, trying to use his shotgun as a stilt.
Sofia stared at me, and for just a moment, I could almost see saddenness in her eyes. Then it vanished, with the last shred of any sort of humanity in her.
She ran off, likely to warn the splicers. She'd be too late though. I could hear Tenenbaum and Sigma coming, now. They were less than a mile away, and plowing through the defenses.
I knelt down next to Amir, and closed his eyes. I felt Sinclair's hand touch my shoulder.
"Come on. We gotta move. This city is gonna be fireworks in minutes," Sinclair said.
"He comes with us. I'm not leaving him here," I said, picking him up with my mind.
Sinclair stared in astonishment, then nodded. He hobbled his way through the access port, and entered the sub.
I came in after him, and stared up at the large dome of steal and small windows of glass that hung above us. I sat Amir down in a chair.
Sinclair took out his short-wave radio, and pressed the button on the top of it.
As I shot a splicer away with the shotgun, my radio activated.
"Brigid! You need to get up here now! Damn Lamb... she killed Amir. Got me in the shoulder too. Eleanor nearly killed her... We've got the sub – just make a run for it!"
"Come on!" I yelled to Sigma.
Sigma nodded and slammed away another splicer.
I began running as fast as I could, ignoring shots bounce off of the suit or make emergency lights turn on. The EVE container exploded, and the suit began to fill with it.
As I saw the submarine, I could easily see the docking platform hall. As I did, I heard... Sigma cry out.
"I AM CHARLES PORTER!" Sigma's raspy, contorted voice yelled, "AND I REFUSE TO DIE BY THE HAND OF YOU MONSTERS! THINKER! ACTIVATE COMMANDLINE OH-FOUR-FIVE-ONE!"
As I tried to run and help, he simply turned and yelled, as the splicers grabbed at him, "GO!"
He threw a bag at me, and I caught it.
I ran down the docking bay hall, and I could already hear explosions happening. Sigma – Charles had just activated the self-destruct code. I had seconds left before every major necessity in Rapture came to a halt, and the city fell apart. The pressurizers would be the first to go. As would the docking bay locks...
I reached the door as the sub door sealed and detached.
Not even thinking, I jumped out and landed on the top of the submarine as it lowered, preparing to activate its engines.
I landed hard on the surface, and I could hear the metal scraping. I could see a viewport, and Sinclair and Eleanor inside. I grasped ahold of a handhold, and held on with all my might.
As the sub rapidly activated its engines, it began to rise up. The pressure of the water crushed me down upon the metal surface, and I fought to keep myself conscious.
I refused to let myself die now. I couldn't die now. I had come too far to just die now.
"Mommy's coming home, Peter. I promise..." I thought to myself.
As the sunlight finally began to shine through the dark, I could feel myself beginning to black out.
My body refused to go further, as the submarine splashed out of the sea. My eyes closed as I looked up at the sun, almost obscured by the visage of the lifehouse.
Epilogue
Peter had grown since I had last saw him. It didn't surprise me, though. He was just like his father... that way. Eleanor requested to stay with me for a time, and wished for me to introduce her my fellow past escapee of Rapture... but I let her know that he had vanished faster than if he had the houdini plasmid.
Sinclair did make some money off of the inventions of Rapture... but he was rather displeased to discover that many tricks of Rapture had been discovered topside as well...
Eleanor had looked inside the bag Porter had thrown me, in his final moments. It had the codes to the Thinker. She explained what it could mean if I made such a device. That I could finally cure the splicing illness.. and make it so I would still be alive to see my grandson.
I had warned Eleanor though, of what greedy, ignorant men like Herr Fontaine might do with such knowledge. I would rather live a shorter life, then see the Rapture dream reborn on the surface...
And yet, world is changing still... and there is no name for what is to come. So many died... so that only a few could live. And now, there were talks of new troubles to come. Pinkerton man has become the talk of the world. Shouts of mystery at something older than even myself.
I wonder what world Eleanor will know. Will the surface ever be what she dreamed of? I hope so.
-- Brigid T. Tenenbaum
Author's Note:
There we have it. The cycle's complete. Hope it was what you expected. I'm in the process of working on a few different new things, and trying to get their priorities worked out. I will be announcing what ones will be moving forward when they are worked out, and I will be getting back to working on Abstract (and to who it concerns, if you are reading this, I did get your PM, and will respond ASAP).
I would say now I wouldn't mind if there's anything you (the readers) found in particular good about the story, and what didn't work. I don't ask for praising or for raging, just any comments you feel should be made.
Also, on that thought, I am considering working on another fanfic, although I imagine it shall be in smaller scale. Instead of a rewrite, it'll tie-in to another story. If you have any suggestions yourselves, feel free to speak them (and don't worry about someone shooting down your idea. If someone tries to grief I will delete their comments the instant they appear).
So see you next time, and hopefully on my wordpress blog Downloadable comment: Downloadablecomment.wordpress.com
