Bioshocked

[mitochondriaaya]

Who: Aya and the boys?
When: Once the boys are old enough to remember Rapture? 1960 or so.
What: So they probably shouldn't leave that down there huh?

Breakfast tables were...probably dangerous. Given how often things discussed there determined the fate of the world and all. Or at least that's how it felt some days. They lived on base given Elcy and Yinsi were high assets and Braig and Dilan were likely to be even higher assets. Some days she felt kind of like she'd just managed to stumble accidentally into something that made her so happy. Growing up as a base brat had bled into college that led to liaison to their scientists had led to something of a whirlwind romance had led to special dispensation that ad her waking up every morning with two wonderful men in her life.

Not bad as far as she was concerned, even if it took a particular frame of mind to accept their marriage. They were headed into a era of more openness and allowance, hopefully, she'd like that after growing up in the fifties and it's insistence on perfect modular housing and nuclear families.

And kitchen devices. What the hell was that even about? Granted, she wasn't a modern housewife that spent hours in the kitchen, she had a range of talents that did not...comply with the standard and Dilan was a better cook than she'd ever be. A fact that kind of made her outcast at the base housewife socials but hey, she was usually busy anyway.

Still, some days she almost wished for the standard experience. Days like today when she looked up from her eggs at the breakfast table to blink at her husbands, bemused, as they did the secret language based on prior experience thing. She loved them, yes, but sometimes her brilliant men lost her...

...and then wrote out a list.

Hell.

"So we're going to the middle of the ocean..." she drawled, later, in front of her CO. "For world peace." At least that was how her men had phrased it? Half remembered horrors from a city under the sea. She hadn't had a chance to stop by her inlaws before pinning the commander, but...the boys outranked anyone on base normally. That was what happened when you wrapped intelligent people in a military bodyguard set. You protected your intelligent assets after all...

"A boat and...?"

"I've a requisitions list for the armory."

"...of course you do. You're sure this isn't just some night terror, Brea?"

"Operation Paperclip. All of the files on it are redacted," she noted softly. She'd...checked? Subset of scientists NOT brought to the US had been listed with Rapture destination though. It was...legit? As far as records went. And there had been adverts about an open city, Rapture...

...she wasn't feeling nearly as stable by the time their boat bumped against the small, rocky outcropping and they were threading their way into the dark lighthouse to...go down. Down. Oh hell. The video clip kicked on at eighteen fathoms.

Where the artist need not fear censure...

...where the scientist need not be bound by petty morality.

That was a bad sign wasn't it? "I see why your parents left," she admitted quietly as she leaned back against the boys, shadows playing across the packs at their feet. The neon splashes that shifted through the window as they came in on the approach to Rapture was...almost normal. Neon was the advertisement hook of choice these days but the whale drfting past painted in those reflected colors was certainly...striking.

Okay, admittedly, she was impressed. A city under the sea? All shadowy depths and polished windows and chrome? It was...attractive.

But they had a lot of ammo for a reason yes. Staying grounded was important, this wasn't a vacation. Not...really. "Not seeing much movement in the connecting tunnels," she noted softly as the bathysphere leveled out. "Population is likely low..." Given it SHOULD be a time of day when people were out of work and at their leisure?

Should.

"I demand a proper honeymoon after this," she noted softly. JUST IN CASE.

Comments

[sliceitwithwind]

"This is going to make you sad," Dilan said quietly, putting his hand on hers in a silent agreement about the honeymoon, "and angry, and pretty much all other negative emotions except for jealous. You're going to see...literally the worst of humanity and Olia."

Ryan had never managed to convince any of the cat-descended people that they wanted to live under water. Not enough room to roam.

"The only ones we might, emphasis on might, be able to save are the Little Sisters. If we can get them drained of Adam. They're stunted, Aya. All those little girls are about the same age as Braig and me."

[mitochondriaaya]

"Goodie goodie," she sighed. She was glad she'd opted for pants, yes. With a lead up like that..."That's the project that made your parents walk, right?" They'd been...handed a file. With helpful profanity translation sheets from Elcy. The Little Sisters had been an orphanage turned to a purpose...

...which did also explain why they'd taken an immediate interst in the blonde bases brat running around with the boys yes. The protective urges were at least explained now?

Yeah, even her brain rambled sometimes when it was trying not to be afraid. This was certainly...frightening. "How much do you two remember?"

[sliceitwithwind]

They spoke with one voice, although what they said differed.
"Too much." was Dilan's opinion.
"Not enough." was Braig's.

Dilan gave Braig a side-eyed glance and the shorter man shrugged, "We're going into hell, dude." he pointed out, "It'd be nice to remember the roads and buildings and where shit was. There are things that I'm going to spend the rest of my life trying to forget, but right now? I want to remember all of it so that we can keep ourselves safe, save the Little Sisters, and maybe blow the place to hell."

[mitochondriaaya]

Well THAT was reassuring.

Really.

"Why haven't the little sisters been evacuated prior?" she asked softly, taking any hand sketched maps out of the file Yinsi had given them and tucking them in a pocket.

[sliceitwithwind]

"Because of the Big Daddies." Braig leaned against the side of the bathysphere, "They attack anything they perceive as a threat to the Little Sisters and that includes people draining them of Adam."

"It's been tried." Dilan murmured.

"But not by us." Braig's eyes were sharp, hard, like they usually were when he dealt with someone he would love to kill. Not that he ever had killed a person, but he knew he could if he needed to.

[mitochondriaaya]

"So we want to get kids out, if possible, and we want to ensure no one raids the city for tech?" she mused. "Or to make sure the creator of said city is actually dead?" Some clear goals were nice? It was a little odd to her that they hadn't just dropped depth charges prior honestly if it was that awful...

...but perhaps most agencies weren't aware of the degree of bad down here?

[sliceitwithwind]

"Tech and any bio crap they may have developed in since we left." Braig agreed.

Dilan put a hand over his eyes, "All of the above, monkey. Number one priority, though, is getting us out alive. If we have to leave the Little Sisters...we will." the Katzu love for children meant his words leaked agony.

[mitochondriaaya]

She nodded, letting that settle in her brain for a long moment, "alright. This bathysphere, is it on auto recall? There weren't any others at the lighthouse, so will it be going back up?" Her boys were more than skilled enough to tell what it was set to do! "And given we haven't been flooded with wave tech so far...I'm betting options back to the surface are limited."

[sliceitwithwind]

"Not auto recall, exactly. It'll go back up automatically, but it will come down when we call it. The last thing we need is some Adam-crazed person to get to the surface." Dilan said reaching over to pull Aya into a hug as he watched Rapture grow closer.

"You ready?"

[mitochondriaaya]

"Can you lock it so it will ONLY come down if we call?" she asked softly, considering. "If so it might be a good idea to leave some of the gear here to call in as necessary..." she mused.

Yeah.

"Not in the least but we're here anyway?" she admitted, leaning into him a moment.

[sliceitwithwind]

"Good idea." Dilan said, fiddling with the mechanism that called their transport.

"No," Braig said to the equipment thing, "Dilan's strong enough to carry it all easily and if we brought it I want quick access to it. Very quick."

[mitochondriaaya]

"Fair," she admitted to Braig. "But at least a small pack for everyone, radios." In case of collapse, kidnapping, and general separations!"

[sliceitwithwind]

"Well, yeah." he agreed, suiting action to words and beginning to divide up the essentials into three packs. The nice-to-haves were all added to Dilan's.

"Can I just say now, once, that it creeps me out to be this deep under water?" the heavy, heavy Katzu said.

[mitochondriaaya]

"Creeps me too, I can't help thinking there's leaks." They'd run on a rescue run to help a downed sub. NOT a good memory no. Still.

She made herself useful slotting Barig's ammo clips into his preferred access pockets and strips before lacing and strapping her boots higher. Over blades in case, laced to knee as extra armor and a touch of water proofing...yeah. "Anyone comes at us with that damn Adam stuff and we can't dodge, it's me, clear?" Human had a better track record?

[sliceitwithwind]

"Yup." Dilan agreed, giving himself a once-over as well. Braig nodded a thanks as Aya armed him, then checked it all again while Dilan and Aya checked each other. Redundancy was their friend right now.

"...Hate to say it, but you're right." Braig agreed, "Olia go up and down too fast, and elements only know what would happen to Dilan. Nobody ever tested it on Katzu."

"My luck it'd shoot me up high because of mom's blood and then get me stuck there because of the Clan's." Dilan mused.

[mitochondriaaya]

"And I'm used to you siting on me at need so even if it screws me up in the head for a bit subconscious will be on your side," she agreed wryly. That said, well, they had...very little exposed skin left by the time the sphere bumped home in it's docking cradle.

That wasn't exactly an inspiring scene, a dimly lit hallways they could barely see with a knocked over vending machine dominating the area ahead of them. The door opened to salty tang and the taste of burnt wiring on the tongue, at least for Aya. Had to play merry hell with Dilan. "Face mask?" she asked softly.

Whatever he might say was interrupted by a verdigrised radio on the wall screeching to life "Holy, an arrival? Hell people? Please tell me you're real people?"

[sliceitwithwind]

"Not yet." Dilan murmured, eyeing the radio. Braig frowned and moved over to it, speaking slowly and clearly,

"Identify yourself."

[mitochondriaaya]

"Ah mate, I'm Atlas, you're...hell I hope you're not one of the steel tweakers playing soldier? Real soldier then God bless you but answer me this: What's twelve times nineteen just to be sure?"

[sliceitwithwind]

"Atlas. Uh huh." It was said in chorus, by the two men.

"Better idea you tell us," Dilan said, "what's an Ayn Rand fan doing in Rapture?"

[mitochondriaaya]

"Ayn Rand? There's a bit of her in the library and the bloody docs used to do her musical when drunk back in the day? But me and my sibs were all named after bloody statues my dad wished he coulda stole!" he laughed. "Granted he always said 'seen' when we were tots but there's me, Attalus but Atlas is easier yeah? Victorious went by Victor at school, and little Chlamys changed his name to Chris and never talked to us again after eighteen! Still want the damn math answer though for my peace of mind. Wouldn't believe the shit answers I've been given over the last few years..."

[sliceitwithwind]

The boys looked at each other, then Dilan pointed at Aya and pressed a finger to his lips. Sure, "Atlas" may have heard her...but no use in making sure of it.

"228." Dilan said after they'd had their silent conversation.

[mitochondriaaya]

Aya saluted and nodded, she'd be silent as much as possible now yes.

"Not going to lie to you, that's such a better answer than teddy bear four," he sighed. "So some bad news I guess and you've every right to hate me for it? Arrival building is...messed up. Smugglers ran into Ryan's enforcer crew years ago and it got kind of shot to shit. You're gonna run into leaks and tweakers, and since my maintenance team never got back in there I'm better it's cold and dark to boot sometimes," he huffed.

[sliceitwithwind]

"No shit." Braig said, rolling his eyes, "Things decay. In this hellhole they decay fast."

[mitochondriaaya]

"Oh good it pisses you off too," he snorted. "When things went to hell couple of the maintenance mates and our families sealed ourselves up in the far apartments, but some days we get worked up thinking about everything falling apart out there. Rigged up one or two radios in each building as we retreated though..."

[sliceitwithwind]

Dilan's eyebrows raised and fell. Something about this guy didn't...seem right. He glanced at Aya to see what she was thinking.

Braig was still glaring at the radio.