08-03-2015, 11:34 AM
It took slightly longer than Nealaphh had expected for a Big Daddy, Little Sister pair to show up, but the god-mind was nothing if not patient. Due to the out-of-the-way nature of Nealaphh's selected ambush location, there were no ocean windows to gaze out of, so the shadow contented itself with running simulations of the impending skirmish in its head. All scenarios allowed Nealaphh to escape alive, and over sixty percent of them resulted in a successful capture of a Little Sister. The winning scenarios all shared an element of confusing the Big Daddy protector via distortions in the regional quantum flux. From what Nealaphh had observed in the past, all Big Daddies shared a singular, straight-forward method of thinking, only ever reacting to stimuli, and never improvising or taking initiative for specific things themselves. This was the exact type of opponent that Nealaphh excelled in dispatching.
After some time more, the god-mind registered the sound of distant stomping, and a low, doleful moan that signaled the approach of a harvesting pair. They were coming from only one of two directions Nealaphh had made available, and in this case they were approaching from behind the god-mind. As such, Nealaphh ducked into a nearby corroded doorway at the top of the steps and slunk into the shadows. The room that it found itself in was some sort of steam manifold access point, used for routing hydraulic pressure throughout the undersea skyscraper the shadow found itself in. The entire area, in fact, was quite dark, with only the wan light of orange-yellow emergency bulbs casting the surrounding metal walls into a sinister, umber glow.
"I heard the angel singing over here, Mr. B!" said the Little Sister, her voice echoing from down the hallway. Nealaphh was hoping to be able to capture the Little Sister for mental examination, as the god-mind was quite intrigued with the conditioning that had been ingrained in them. The god-mind remained absolutely still as the pair wandered past, not even bothering to look into the shadows of the rooms they passed by. Such complacency would serve to act as their downfall. The shadow was, however, quite wary of the Big Daddy's drill weapon. Nealaphh's outer carapace was as hard as stone, but fracturing forces like those applied by drilling apparatus were precisely the kind of thing that could gravely injure the god-mind. Nealaphh waited until they had descended all the way down the creaking metal staircase before emerging from the steam manifold access closet.
They took no notice of Nealaphh, standing ominously at the top of the long staircase, staring down at them intently. The Little Sister set about her grisly work with enthusiasm, driving her ADAM extraction device into the frigid corpse into precise locations which had been ingrained into her muscle memory. The Big Daddy stood nearby, seemingly to stare off into space, it's yellow helmet lights reflecting off of the steam-slicked walls.
"Angel, angel here you are, me and Bubbles walked so far. Down alone inside a cave, look at us we're very brave! Angel, angel here you are, how we-" the next moment, the Little Sister screamed loudly, as there was suddenly a very scary looking demon in front of her! From her perspective, Nealaphh appeared as he did outside of her fantasy realm, his own psychic eminence piercing the gilded veil which clouded her perception. The Big Daddy's eyes immediately flashed red and his drill roared to life. Nealaphh reached into the local time stream and slowed down the events happening just enough that it was able to narrowly dodge the devastating blow. Instead of shattering the god-mind into countless pieces, the Big Daddy instead drove an immense hole through the metal wall, allowing stunningly frigid sea-water to come flooding into the passage.
The three of them were immediately thrown against the opposite wall, and though the immense cold momentarily stunned Nealaphh, the god-mind was able to confirm that neither of the harvesters were looking at it. As such, it took advantage of their perceptive quantum uncertainty and reappeared at the top of the metal stairs, where they weren't looking. Due to the breach in the hull of the building, the bulkhead doors that separated this particular passage began to slide shut, orange klaxons flashing brightly. In and effort to save his charge, the Big Daddy plugged the hole with his drill again, stemming the flood of water just long enough that the Little Sister had a chance to run for her escape passage. Nealaphh, however, was prepared for this, and immediately snatched the Little Sister away with a telekinetic hold.
"Mr. Bbeeeeeeeee!" she shrieked as she flew through the air, up the flight of stairs towards the god-mind. Nealaphh deposited her a few feet behind itself. The Big Daddy immediately wrenched his drill arm out of the breach and began to surge up the stairway, roaring in such a profound rage as Nealaphh had rarely witnessed. The god-mind took a moment to focus its mind and accelerated the flow of time around the bulkhead door, accelerating its operation to the point where it slammed shut with a resounding bang. The roars of the Big Daddy could still be heard, muted through the thick steel barrier, and dents appeared in the bulkhead as he tried to smash the obstacle away. The Little Sister scampered to her feet and tried to rush up to the bulkhead door to reunite with her protector, but Nealaphh stopped her in her tracks with a mental wall of force. She slowly turned around and regarded the god-mind with wide, glowing, yellow eyes, saying nothing. In her world, she could never remember seeing anything nearly as terrifying as Nealaphh, and could not even find the words to tell it what an abomination it was.
Nealaphh knew this; the girl's conditioned mind was easy to infiltrate and observe using its telepathic abilities. As such, it was equally as simple rearrange a few critical components of her mental conditioning so that she came to regard the shadow as her protector instead of the ponderous, idiotic behemoth she had previously been bonded to. Once Nealaphh had completed this rearrangement, the Little Sister, whose name it had found to be Rebecca, blinked a few times before smiling widely at Nealaphh.
"Hey daddy! I though you were on the other side of the door!" she said, rushing forward and clasping Nealaphh's leg. Her ADAM extraction device had been lost in the initial flood of water, but that didn't matter to the god-mind. The Little Sisters themselves were natural producers of ADAM, at least in conjunction with the sea slug that was bonded to their internal organs. Nealaphh did notice, however, that the incessant banging on the bulkhead door had stopped. Was the protector dead? No...Nealaphh knew for a fact that they were equipped to survive underwater. Had it given up? Unlikely. This troubled the god-mind. Better to move on with its plan of action than linger and be taken off guard.
"Where are we going, daddy?" Rebeccas asked, skipping along Nealaphh's side as the shadow briskly walked away from the dented metal door.
We are going to see a friend.
"Oh...I don't always like meeting new people..." Rebecca said, looking down at the ground, a shy expression on her face.
It's okay. I'll keep you safe. Nealaphh said softly. The two walked on, making their way back to Dr. Steinman's clinic in the medical pavilion. Along the way, multitudes of people murmured and whispered as the pair walked past. Nealaphh could feel the suspicion and...jealousy? That was odd. What was it about these Little Sisters that made them such huge prizes? Nealaphh knew that they had something to do with ADAM production, but was it really that much of a precious commodity? It was curious to the shadow. On the one hand, it could understand the desire to enhance one's genetic makeup to be able to perform any of the wondrous feats that ADAM could provide; it was an easy way to accelerate the process of personal realization. On the other hand, such crazed dependence on a substance was inherently limiting. The god-mind considered reevaluating its opinion of the people of Rapture.
As Rebecca and Nealaphh entered Dr. Steinman's office, the cosmetic surgeon looked up with wide eyes at who the shadow had in tow.
"Nealaphh, you..." he paused and approached the god-mind, his voice following to a mere whisper. "You brought her here?"
The god-mind blinked slowly.
Yes. You said that Little Sisters could produce ADAM for us. I retrieved one. What is the issue? Nealaphh asked, its eyes squinting just a little bit. Steinman ran a hand down his perfectly sculpted features and let out a melodramatic sigh.
"You can extract ADAM from them, yes. That's what we're after." Steinman said with an exasperated flourish of the arms. Nealaphh looked down at Rebecca, who was clinging to Nealaphh's robe and holding it in front of her face. He slowly looked back to Steinman, his telepathic voice taking on a frigid edge.
...And how is this accomplished?
"We need to extract the sea slug from her body. It serves as the central conduit and storage place of the ADAM inside of her." Steinman said, moving to walk into his laboratory. Nealaphh could hear the doctor's frantic thoughts. He planned to kill this Little Sister. Rebecca. Granted, his surgical procedures were humane enough, but ultimately, removing the sea slug from her body would kill her. This did not please the god-mind.
I will not let you kill this girl. Nealaphh said simply, watching as Steinman rummaged around in his desk drawers. He was looking for a weapon. An automatic rifle. Nealaphh could hear this. The shadow told Rebecca to stay behind it, and the Little Sister obliged quickly, finding a place out of sight. Unfortunately, there were no escape chutes for her to utilize, but Nealaphh was sure it could handle Steinman, if it came to that.
"That doesn't seem like you!" Steinman called from inside his office, his voice echoing out from the doorway. He emerged, carrying a heavy looking gun which had a round magazine to provide a high rate of fire. For the moment, he held the weapon upwards in one hand, his tone of voice and posture adopting a casual nature. Nealaphh gathered its mental faculties in preparation for any sudden movements. "I thought it was your mission to help everyone reach their full potential? Now you're going to hinder that?" he asked, raising a challenging eyebrow.
This girl has more net potential alive than she would serve the greater whole with her death. An immortal human, immune to all forms of damage. Think of it! All we need to do is remove her mental conditioning and she could be beyond powerful. Nealaphh said, trying to pique the doctor's sense of scientific enterprise. Steinman only scoffed.
"No, god-mind. That is not the way things work in Rapture. The ADAM must flow. We...I must...I must have it!" Steinman said, his voice now taking on a slightly deranged edge. Nealaphh squinted at the man. So, he too was a slave to addiction. Pathetic. Steinman's endeavors no longer intrigued the shadow, for they were fueled only by dependence and self-enslavement.
Put the weapon down, Steinman. Nealaphh said, its voice remaining steady.
"Hah! No, my dear Nealaphh I'm afraid-" Steinman started to say. He was abruptly cut off with the sound of a large crack and shattering glass from inside his laboratory, followed by a monstrous rush of water. Both of them whipped around to see the source of the commotion.
There, in the laboratory that was rapidly filling with ocean water, was Rebecca's original protector. He had apparently climbed up the side of the medical building and smashed in the window in Steinman's lab.
Its eyes flicked red.
After some time more, the god-mind registered the sound of distant stomping, and a low, doleful moan that signaled the approach of a harvesting pair. They were coming from only one of two directions Nealaphh had made available, and in this case they were approaching from behind the god-mind. As such, Nealaphh ducked into a nearby corroded doorway at the top of the steps and slunk into the shadows. The room that it found itself in was some sort of steam manifold access point, used for routing hydraulic pressure throughout the undersea skyscraper the shadow found itself in. The entire area, in fact, was quite dark, with only the wan light of orange-yellow emergency bulbs casting the surrounding metal walls into a sinister, umber glow.
"I heard the angel singing over here, Mr. B!" said the Little Sister, her voice echoing from down the hallway. Nealaphh was hoping to be able to capture the Little Sister for mental examination, as the god-mind was quite intrigued with the conditioning that had been ingrained in them. The god-mind remained absolutely still as the pair wandered past, not even bothering to look into the shadows of the rooms they passed by. Such complacency would serve to act as their downfall. The shadow was, however, quite wary of the Big Daddy's drill weapon. Nealaphh's outer carapace was as hard as stone, but fracturing forces like those applied by drilling apparatus were precisely the kind of thing that could gravely injure the god-mind. Nealaphh waited until they had descended all the way down the creaking metal staircase before emerging from the steam manifold access closet.
They took no notice of Nealaphh, standing ominously at the top of the long staircase, staring down at them intently. The Little Sister set about her grisly work with enthusiasm, driving her ADAM extraction device into the frigid corpse into precise locations which had been ingrained into her muscle memory. The Big Daddy stood nearby, seemingly to stare off into space, it's yellow helmet lights reflecting off of the steam-slicked walls.
"Angel, angel here you are, me and Bubbles walked so far. Down alone inside a cave, look at us we're very brave! Angel, angel here you are, how we-" the next moment, the Little Sister screamed loudly, as there was suddenly a very scary looking demon in front of her! From her perspective, Nealaphh appeared as he did outside of her fantasy realm, his own psychic eminence piercing the gilded veil which clouded her perception. The Big Daddy's eyes immediately flashed red and his drill roared to life. Nealaphh reached into the local time stream and slowed down the events happening just enough that it was able to narrowly dodge the devastating blow. Instead of shattering the god-mind into countless pieces, the Big Daddy instead drove an immense hole through the metal wall, allowing stunningly frigid sea-water to come flooding into the passage.
The three of them were immediately thrown against the opposite wall, and though the immense cold momentarily stunned Nealaphh, the god-mind was able to confirm that neither of the harvesters were looking at it. As such, it took advantage of their perceptive quantum uncertainty and reappeared at the top of the metal stairs, where they weren't looking. Due to the breach in the hull of the building, the bulkhead doors that separated this particular passage began to slide shut, orange klaxons flashing brightly. In and effort to save his charge, the Big Daddy plugged the hole with his drill again, stemming the flood of water just long enough that the Little Sister had a chance to run for her escape passage. Nealaphh, however, was prepared for this, and immediately snatched the Little Sister away with a telekinetic hold.
"Mr. Bbeeeeeeeee!" she shrieked as she flew through the air, up the flight of stairs towards the god-mind. Nealaphh deposited her a few feet behind itself. The Big Daddy immediately wrenched his drill arm out of the breach and began to surge up the stairway, roaring in such a profound rage as Nealaphh had rarely witnessed. The god-mind took a moment to focus its mind and accelerated the flow of time around the bulkhead door, accelerating its operation to the point where it slammed shut with a resounding bang. The roars of the Big Daddy could still be heard, muted through the thick steel barrier, and dents appeared in the bulkhead as he tried to smash the obstacle away. The Little Sister scampered to her feet and tried to rush up to the bulkhead door to reunite with her protector, but Nealaphh stopped her in her tracks with a mental wall of force. She slowly turned around and regarded the god-mind with wide, glowing, yellow eyes, saying nothing. In her world, she could never remember seeing anything nearly as terrifying as Nealaphh, and could not even find the words to tell it what an abomination it was.
Nealaphh knew this; the girl's conditioned mind was easy to infiltrate and observe using its telepathic abilities. As such, it was equally as simple rearrange a few critical components of her mental conditioning so that she came to regard the shadow as her protector instead of the ponderous, idiotic behemoth she had previously been bonded to. Once Nealaphh had completed this rearrangement, the Little Sister, whose name it had found to be Rebecca, blinked a few times before smiling widely at Nealaphh.
"Hey daddy! I though you were on the other side of the door!" she said, rushing forward and clasping Nealaphh's leg. Her ADAM extraction device had been lost in the initial flood of water, but that didn't matter to the god-mind. The Little Sisters themselves were natural producers of ADAM, at least in conjunction with the sea slug that was bonded to their internal organs. Nealaphh did notice, however, that the incessant banging on the bulkhead door had stopped. Was the protector dead? No...Nealaphh knew for a fact that they were equipped to survive underwater. Had it given up? Unlikely. This troubled the god-mind. Better to move on with its plan of action than linger and be taken off guard.
"Where are we going, daddy?" Rebeccas asked, skipping along Nealaphh's side as the shadow briskly walked away from the dented metal door.
We are going to see a friend.
"Oh...I don't always like meeting new people..." Rebecca said, looking down at the ground, a shy expression on her face.
It's okay. I'll keep you safe. Nealaphh said softly. The two walked on, making their way back to Dr. Steinman's clinic in the medical pavilion. Along the way, multitudes of people murmured and whispered as the pair walked past. Nealaphh could feel the suspicion and...jealousy? That was odd. What was it about these Little Sisters that made them such huge prizes? Nealaphh knew that they had something to do with ADAM production, but was it really that much of a precious commodity? It was curious to the shadow. On the one hand, it could understand the desire to enhance one's genetic makeup to be able to perform any of the wondrous feats that ADAM could provide; it was an easy way to accelerate the process of personal realization. On the other hand, such crazed dependence on a substance was inherently limiting. The god-mind considered reevaluating its opinion of the people of Rapture.
As Rebecca and Nealaphh entered Dr. Steinman's office, the cosmetic surgeon looked up with wide eyes at who the shadow had in tow.
"Nealaphh, you..." he paused and approached the god-mind, his voice following to a mere whisper. "You brought her here?"
The god-mind blinked slowly.
Yes. You said that Little Sisters could produce ADAM for us. I retrieved one. What is the issue? Nealaphh asked, its eyes squinting just a little bit. Steinman ran a hand down his perfectly sculpted features and let out a melodramatic sigh.
"You can extract ADAM from them, yes. That's what we're after." Steinman said with an exasperated flourish of the arms. Nealaphh looked down at Rebecca, who was clinging to Nealaphh's robe and holding it in front of her face. He slowly looked back to Steinman, his telepathic voice taking on a frigid edge.
...And how is this accomplished?
"We need to extract the sea slug from her body. It serves as the central conduit and storage place of the ADAM inside of her." Steinman said, moving to walk into his laboratory. Nealaphh could hear the doctor's frantic thoughts. He planned to kill this Little Sister. Rebecca. Granted, his surgical procedures were humane enough, but ultimately, removing the sea slug from her body would kill her. This did not please the god-mind.
I will not let you kill this girl. Nealaphh said simply, watching as Steinman rummaged around in his desk drawers. He was looking for a weapon. An automatic rifle. Nealaphh could hear this. The shadow told Rebecca to stay behind it, and the Little Sister obliged quickly, finding a place out of sight. Unfortunately, there were no escape chutes for her to utilize, but Nealaphh was sure it could handle Steinman, if it came to that.
"That doesn't seem like you!" Steinman called from inside his office, his voice echoing out from the doorway. He emerged, carrying a heavy looking gun which had a round magazine to provide a high rate of fire. For the moment, he held the weapon upwards in one hand, his tone of voice and posture adopting a casual nature. Nealaphh gathered its mental faculties in preparation for any sudden movements. "I thought it was your mission to help everyone reach their full potential? Now you're going to hinder that?" he asked, raising a challenging eyebrow.
This girl has more net potential alive than she would serve the greater whole with her death. An immortal human, immune to all forms of damage. Think of it! All we need to do is remove her mental conditioning and she could be beyond powerful. Nealaphh said, trying to pique the doctor's sense of scientific enterprise. Steinman only scoffed.
"No, god-mind. That is not the way things work in Rapture. The ADAM must flow. We...I must...I must have it!" Steinman said, his voice now taking on a slightly deranged edge. Nealaphh squinted at the man. So, he too was a slave to addiction. Pathetic. Steinman's endeavors no longer intrigued the shadow, for they were fueled only by dependence and self-enslavement.
Put the weapon down, Steinman. Nealaphh said, its voice remaining steady.
"Hah! No, my dear Nealaphh I'm afraid-" Steinman started to say. He was abruptly cut off with the sound of a large crack and shattering glass from inside his laboratory, followed by a monstrous rush of water. Both of them whipped around to see the source of the commotion.
There, in the laboratory that was rapidly filling with ocean water, was Rebecca's original protector. He had apparently climbed up the side of the medical building and smashed in the window in Steinman's lab.
Its eyes flicked red.
And, we dream of home I dream of life out of here Their dreams are small My dreams don't know fear I got my heart full of hope I will change everything No matter what I'm told How impossible it seems We did it before And we'll do it again We're indestructible Even when we're tired And we've been here before Just you and I
Don't try to rescue me I don't need to be rescued
Don't try to rescue me I don't need to be rescued