I chose... Rapture. [Faith/ Dream]

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Welcome to Rapture. A city where the artist can roam freely, the scientist can create with the sky as the limit, and the power is with the people. Such a place could never exist on land therefore it was literally built on the bottom of the ocean, as far away from the governing powers as possible. Out of every jurisdiction. The extreme of extremes. It is a massive place with buildings that tower over head and long walkways that link different areas of the city together.
Everything you could ever want you can find in Rapture. There are stores, restaurants, hotels, spas, housing units, art galleries, markets, sports centers and for those who enjoy a little bit of nighttime excitement there are bars and love-houses. Everyone is welcome in Rapture! There are no minorities. Everyone is equal. Everyone gets a fair share.
All of this is thanks to to the hard work and dedication of our founder Andrew Ryan!

At least..that's how things used to be. Before the revolution. On New Year's Eve, at 12:00 on the dot, just as the clocks were ticking down and the champagne bottles were about to be popped, explosions rang through the entire city. The whole foundation of Rapture was shaken to its very core. Those explosions marked the beginning of what would be a long battle throughout the streets between those who supported Andrew Ryan and those who supported a man named Frank Fontaine. Soon blood coated every wall on every corner of the city. The year 1959 was off to a great start.

Hundreds died and those that didn't die..were left to slowly go insane. Driven only further to insanity by their addiction to Adam; the genetical stimulant that once kept the wheels of Rapture turning.
The side-effect of this drug was both an overwhelming addiction to it and a range of horrible disfigurations due to the way the drug affected the human body. Those addicted where named Splicers and those Splicers are all that are left in this city. They do whatever they can to get their hands on Adam..even if it means killing each other. Many have banded together in order to overpower those who are weak, making them even more dangerous.

The revolution was two years ago. There are now those who are merely trying to get by and those who are trying to escape. But to escape means going through hell and back again...straight through the center of the city. Can you make it out?
Let's see, shall we?

Without my armor on I felt like I was far too vulnerable to be fighting one of my own. Perhaps if I had been fully armored I would have stood more of a chance against it but every time I tried to fight back with a punch or a kick I was left with only a throbbing hand or leg from the blow bouncing against metal plating. This Sister was a later 'model' per say from me. Instead of the heavy leather plating I wore she wore metal plating that clearly protected her much more efficiently.
By the time Mira had gotten herself up off the ground the protector had gotten the upper hand and was doing everything it could to put me out of commission.

When she came from the side and froze the Sister as I had told her to, immediately I fell back panting deeply, and with Mira's help I pulled myself out from beneath our attacker. The struggle had taken much more out of me than I expected and I could feel the places where bruises were going to form later on.
But I was alive, Mira was alive, and the creature was encased in a block of ice. Still alive just trapped in the position she had been in on top of me, an arm raised above in preparation to strike. A blow that could have been the very last one.

I heard Mira's voice behind me and I turned to look at her as she cut herself off from finishing her sentence. I knew exactly what she had wanted to say though and the damage was done. I was not particularly offended by the thought of killing the creature in front of us and taking the Adam we would definitely find within her but..something told me that I needed to look more closely at it.
I got a feeling deep inside my gut that told me that this creature was not our enemy.
Perhaps it was just my conditioning that was speaking but I could not deny my own urge.
"Wait a second.." I whispered as I caught my breath and pulled myself into a crouched position on the ground.

Once again small flames began to flicker from my fingertips illuminating the whole room around us. The struggle had left the place in a mess but that was not the focus of my gaze at this point. I leaned in to closer examine the Sister that was frozen in place. With my hand that was not working as a torch I reached out to trace out something on the protectors shoulder plate. A design carved into the metal that looked like a simply drawn fish.
My eyes widened.
"I know her.." I murmured quietly before turning my head to look at my companion.
"I know this Big Sister." I repeated myself a little louder just in case she had not hurt my muttering.
I quickly turned my gaze back towards the figure.

"She was one of the girls I lived here with.. Well, most of the Big Sisters in Rapture lived with me at some point. But this one I know better than any of the others. She was one of my only friends here.." I explained while slowly pulling myself to my feet.
My mind was flying at a thousand thoughts a second as I tried to figure out what to do next. Did we pack our things up and leave her here to thaw out? Or..did we take the chance of her recognizing an old friend? The darkness had kept her from doing so.
I bit my lip and then let out a sigh.
"I want to see if she'll recognize me..but what do you suggest? I'll go with what you think is best, Mira." I turned my head towards her as I said this, looking at her with trusting eyes. I trusted her to make the right decision.

With the sister now frozen, we were free to move around and decide her fate really. She wouldn’t stay frozen forever and when she thawed we either needed to be out of this place or she needed to be docile. I look over to Echo, and I’m surprised to see that she didn’t think I any lower of me from what I said. I didn’t like knowing that the first thing I thought of this creature was its Adam, but this thing was like Echo. She probably felt more like family with that thing then she did a normal person. For that, it would be over stepping the boundaries to say we should take the Adam.

She seems to push away my idea as she looks to the Sister. By the way she examined it, it was as if she wanted to recognize the sister. She wanted to be able to save it by saying that she knew it. After a few moments of examination, she seems to recognize the girl now covered in ice. I look to her, uncertainty in my eyes. Just because she had known this girl at one point didn’t mean that she couldn’t have turned into a monster since then. She could have gone crazy, you never knew.

“Just because you knew her…doesn’t mean…Echo, Rapture changes people” I speak quietly, looking over the still-frozen Sister. I didn’t want to just end it like that though. Really, the chance of her being a not crazed lunatic wasn’t much, but if there was a chance that I could have two Sisters fighting for a chance to make it to the surface…Well, I was willing to risk that. I was willing to risk my life for a chance of almost securing place topside. I think it over for a moment before turning and looking towards Echo a moment.

“I suggest that you get your armor on Dollface” I give her a slight wink as I pull the bag off my back. I pull the bag open, pulling a bottle of aspirin out of the pocket. I pull four out, two for me and two for her. I knew she had to be aching after the beating she had just received. “We’ll wait and see if this girl is still got something left in her head. If she doesn’t and she attacks us, I will kill her.” My words are simple as I walk around the girl. I begin charging the plasmid. It takes me a moment but I release the cold on her legs that were pressed to the floor and the one hand that wasn’t lifted above her head to attack.

“You could help thaw her out when you’re done, but watch her legs. I want her stuck were she is okay?” We needed to be extra careful with this girl. Every second that she was able to move was a second that she could use her plasmids and kill me in an instant. Like Echo, she had plasmids much stronger than the ones on the market. She would be able to take the stronger pulse of whatever the girl through at her, but I knew that there wasn’t a chance in hell for me.

“Do you know what kind of plasmids she has?” It was a question that I was leaping for. I doubted that she could remember something like that from her past. It would be good to know everything I could about this girl before there was a chance of us going against her.

Perhaps my mind was playing tricks on itself because this was the first Big Sister I had seen since my escape from this place all those years ago. My mind saw the familiar symbol because it wanted to see it, not because it was actually there. Mira saw this side of things and she spoke to me softly, telling me that the creature frozen in front of me was probably not the same person I remembered from my time as a subject here.
Another sigh passed my lips as I nodded my head in understanding of her words. She was probably right too but I was not willing to give up so quickly.
"I know..but.."

I trailed off knowing that I had turned the decision to Mira and no matter what she decided, I was going to follow her lead. She was much more knowing when it came to these kinds of things. The only protector I had ever met was myself and I knew for a fact that many of the others were not as docile as I was. They truly were machines. What if this Sister, one that I had known personally, was no different from the rest?
I was just about to give up hope when she told me that she thought it would be best if I put my armor on. At first I frowned but then I realized what she meant.
An excited smile came to my lips and I nodded my head quickly, moving to do just that.

I made for the pile of armor in the corner, beginning with the leg section of the armor and working my way up as quickly as possible. I knew the Sister was not going to stay frozen forever and even with the extra freezing Mira applied to her legs, there was no guarantee that it was going to keep her down.
"I understand." I replied to her words about killing the protector if she made herself out to be aggressive yet again. I agreed with her. There was no point in keeping her alive if she could no longer tell friend from foe.

I had been putting on the last of my armor when I heard Mira's question. I turned my gaze towards the figure before I could give her the best guess I had.
"She was suited later than I was..so her plasmids will be just like mine only she's probably got a few more in reserve. She'd have the standard ones for us; telekinesis, incinerate, electro bolt, and teleportation but she probably also has swarm and maybe even winter blast like you. There's no knowing for sure though." I answered her question as I tightened the last strap on the side of my breast-plate.
Once I was ready I moved and crouched down in front of the frozen figure, glancing up towards my companion.

"I'm going to try something...be ready for anything." I warned her before I raised the flickering flames of my fingers to the front of the Sister's armor, where her helmet met the neck of her breast-plate. I began to thaw out the clasps and nothing but the clasps, moving around the circle.
With my fingertips I worked the clasps free until none held the helmet down over the protectors head.
I drew back for a moment.
What was I going to find beneath the helmet? Would I regret finding out? I hoped not.
After a second of considering all possibilities I shook my head and simply reached out with my hands, grasping the sphere with my fingers. Here goes..

A frown falls on her lips as I tell her to put her armor on. What she didn’t understand yet was the fact that I was trying to give her what she wanted. It seemed like I was doing that more and more. If Echo wanted it then I was right there giving it to her or at least trying to help her get it. If Echo thought of a plan we did it; if Echo wanted me in bed I would be there; if Echo wanted to save her friend I would let her try. I felt like I was starting to spoil the girl... The more and more that I was with her the more power she had over me. For a while I thought that she might have some kind of spell over me or something. Maybe I was growing far too attracted to this girl who didn’t seem to show the same kind of feelings toward me. She wanted to protect me like she would one of those little girls. I was like a little sister to her, something that she could protect. She didn’t see me like I saw her.

Once she realizes what I mean by my words, she is all the giddier. With a quiet smile and a nod she pulled herself across the room and started throwing her armor on as quickly as possible. Even though the armor wouldn’t protect her as well as the thick metal armor the other girl had on, but it was more than a few thin bits of cloth.

I continue with my work. I can feel the ice beginning to slowly but surely melt. Every now and again I’ll run my hand across the melting ice, refreezing it across her body. The more resistance she had when she tried to move the better. Hopefully it would keep her pinned long enough to figure out whether or not the person behind the helmet was a friend or foe.

I had gotten a very thick layer of ice on her legs by the time I had ran out of Eve, not there wasn’t much more I could do unless I wasted what Hypos I had left. I didn’t feel like this was the best Idea so for now I just opted to refill so if I needed it again it would be there. If I needed to fight with his girl then I would have the plasmids I needed to protect myself.

It wasn’t very settling when I am informed of all the plasmids this Sister could have. Really, I was mostly worried about the swarm plasmid simply because that was the one that you couldn’t very well run from. Unless you had incinerate then you had to hope that you could outrun a swarm of pissed off bees. I currently did not have incinerate and I never planned on getting another plasmid again. Two had been enough for me to finally say, ‘no more’. They were dangerous enough and I had only gotten the two to protect myself better when I had ended up on the streets.

I haven’t been paying attention to what Echo has been doing until now. She was very quick to put on her armor to get ready for what we were doing. When she makes it back over to us, it seems that she has begun melting the ice around the helmet of the Sister. It was good thinking, very good thinking in fact. It seemed to have taken her a little bit to get the ice off the clasps that kept the helmet on. The mechanisms seemed to be almost identical to the ones that were on her helmet. She waits a moment and I look up to her, still kneeling by the sister. I pull myself up, stumbling toward her. I plant my sights on the helmet just as she starts to pull it off.

(I’m going to let you have the sister.)

There were a million possibilities as to what might happen the moment the helmet came off. The Sister beneath could suddenly break free from the ice it was trapped in and attack us both yet again, much angrier and powerful than before. I could lift the helmet and find that the creature beneath was not in fact the person I thought it was and then we would be forced to kill it before it could break free of the ice. Or beneath the helmet I really could find the person I had thought I was going to find and everything was going to work out! Either that or she was not going to remember me and we would yet again resort to ending her life before she could have another go at taking ours.
Whatever was going to happen I prepared myself for anything.

Mira had done everything she could to keep the Sister from immediately breaking out of the ice to attack us in case that the Sister was hostile. I noticed she had run out of Eve and was using one of her Hypos to charge up again.
I told myself I was going to give her one of mine when all of this was over dependant on how the next few minutes passed. There was no doubt in my mind that we were both going to survive this encounter no matter what happened when I took the helmet off. I just hoped that I wasn't going to need to use my powers to end her life.

With a last glance at Mira I nodded my head before turning back to look at the helmet in my hands, slowly pulling it up and off the head of the creature beneath it. As soon as there was a gap between the helmet and the neck piece it connected to long locks of almost white hair fell onto the frozen armor.
The higher I drew the helmet up the more features I could see.
Finally I pulled the helmet off completely and I set it down next to me, looking back up at the face that was now in the open. My eyes traveled over every inch of the girl's face taking in every detail there was to take in.

She looked about my age if not a little bit older. Her long hair came down to about her mid-back and it stood out against the dark grey color of her armor. Her lips were frozen in a neutral cold frown and her eyes were closed. From just a glance she looked no different from me.
A soft sigh of disbelief passed my lips as I brought my hand up to her face, the flames slowly warming her to consciousness.
After a second or two the eyes that were closed flew open and I found myself staring into the bluest pair of eyes I had ever seen. The very same eyes I recognized from all those years ago when I was still just a test subject.

At first the girl just looked at me but then her eyes narrowed and she tried to make a move towards me, as if she was trying to attack me again. I kept my eyes locked on hers though and I placed my hand unused hand against her cheek lightly.
"Focus.. don't you recognize me?" I murmured softly as she still struggled.
"It's me, Echo. Don't you remember me?" I asked quietly as I leaned forward and pressed my forehead lightly against hers.
Suddenly the fighting came to a stop and the girl's eyes closed. It was like something was being passed between us from one mind to the other.
When I drew back a second or two later the girl was looking up at me with amazed eyes.

"Echo? Echo is that really you?" Her voice was slightly deeper than mine but gentle none the less, the kind of voice that could lull a person to sleep if they were tired enough. The girl, who went by the name of Focus, turned her head slowly to look around the room at the mess that surrounded her.
"I'm so sorry.. I didn't know who was in here. We don't ever find anyone in here so automatically assumed you were just Splicers coming to loot the place." She explained in a voice that was genuinely apologetic.
I slowly shook my head before turning it towards my companion.
"Mira, this is Focus. Focus, this is Mira. I met her a few days ago and she's been keeping me safe ever since." I introduced the two parties with a smile before I caught myself frowning.

"Wait.. did you say 'we'?" I turned my head back toward Focus as I asked her this and she nodded her head quickly. Immediately I found myself filled with a kind of excitement I had never felt before. There were more of us?
If Focus had been able to keep her sanity through everything that had happened. Wasn't it possible that the others had done the same? Suddenly a hundred possibilities opened themselves before us.
I turned my head to look up at Mira, to see what her reaction was to all of this.


(We're going out for dinner again tonight and I expect we'll be back more or less the same time as last night. I'll post when I get back!)

My weapon is trained on the still frozen girl underneath the helmet. It was good that we could see what she looked like before she spoke. If Echo didn’t recognize the girl she could tell me right then. Of course, that didn’t happen. Instead, she moves to warming the face back up to that it can speak and maybe attack us. It takes her a moment before she starts moving again, and soon her eyes open. They are wide and the most magnificent color of blue I had ever seen. They were much bluer than mine. Maybe it was the fact that her eyes were far larger than mine that made hers stand out so great.

I take in a slow breath, watching as she lunges at Echo. It’s apparent that she doesn’t see me or if she does then she doesn’t think that I’m anything to worry about even though I was the one that put her in that block of ice and I was now pointing a gun in her face. Instead, she centers all her aggression towards Echo as she begins to speak. I watch her silently as they touch foreheads. I watch them a moment before shaking my head. The words that pass the girls lips are enough to tell me that Echo just saved this girl’s life. I watch her a moment before turning slightly to look around the mess of the room. The way that Echo touched her is unsettling enough. She graces her cheek as if they were something different. I watch the pair a moment before having to look away again. The way they speak to each other…It’s very obvious that they had many more ties. They were friends from a past life.

I refuse to speak as the girl is introduced to me. I’m still trying to make out how I feel about this girl. Yes she was a friend of Echo’s… a long time ago. That did not mean this wasn’t some trick she was trying to pull to get her to let us out. Echo had given her enough information that a lie was just as easily made as the truth could be spoken. I don’t say anything for the longest time. It seems that Echo has had enough to talk about and soon their conversation morphs to something greater.

As they start talking about more of them I turn and start walking back towards the bed. My shoes sat on the floor and my bag was right next to it. I make it to the bed, turning around and sitting quietly. I bend at the waist, pulling the shoes on the fastening them tightly. The two girls were too busy with their chatter for my liking. Even as the girl was frozen in ice something about her just didn’t seem right. It was almost like she was going to cause a change that I didn’t want to happen. It was like she was going to change everything.

(Okay I’ll be here)

Mira's silence behind me was something I had not expected. Mainly because I expected some kind of reaction out of her but she said nothing at all. She merely watched over our reunion in a silence that showed her to be deep in thought. When she even said nothing after I introduced her to Focus, I began to worry. What was she thinking about so deeply that was causing her to become distant the way she had been when we first met?
Perhaps it was the fact that this had all happened so suddenly. That would have made sense but there was something else to it as well. Something that was beyond my comprehension without being in her head.

Focus regarded Mira with a bit of apprehension but she quickly turned her attention back to me as I started to thaw the rest of her body out. She expressed her gratefulness with a smile and once she had regained the movement of her arms she started to help me by using her own incinerate plasmid to melt the opposite leg of the one I had started to work on.
Within a few minutes she was fully free and I helped her up from the ground, finding that she was not as tall as I remembered. An inch or two shorter than me but her body was much more feminine and shapely beneath her armor. There was still lankiness to her but there was much more to her than me.
"Where are the others? How many are you?" I asked her curiously.

She looked up at me and paused to think, as if counting in her head, and then gave me her answer with a kind smile.
"We're a total of three but with you we've become four. We've made the common rooms our home. I'll go tell the others you're here!" She said excitedly and after hesitating as if to make sure that it was alright that she left, she quickly took her leave through the broken door. Stopping to shake her head apologetically before she disappeared into the darkness, her helmet clasped in her hand.

Now that the two of us were alone again I turned towards my companion and I looked at her with an expression of uncertainty. I wasn't sure what kind of thoughts were going through her head but I knew that they probably weren't good. I doubted that she trusted my old friend the way that I did but for that I could not blame her.
I approached her and reached out to place my hand on her arm, gripping at her sleeve.
"Look.. I know what you're thinking. If there's any chance of these being my friends though I'd give anything to see them again. One last time. And then we'll move on okay? I promise you, I'm not going to abandon our journey to the surface. " There was nothing but sincerity in my voice as I moved my hand from her sleeve to the back of her head where she had hit it against the ground.
My fingers ran through her hair as lightly as the touch of a butterfly's wings and I smiled.
"I doubt I'd be able to live without you at this point anyway.."
With that I grabbed my bag and started towards the door, stopping to look back at my companion. I was willing to listen to whatever she had to say. If she said we weren't going to follow Focus, then we weren't going to follow her.

Anyone that wasn’t Echo I needed to regard as something I might have to kill in the future. This girl was much different and the fact that I had stayed long enough to hear their conversation was quite the surprise. I was really growing to be attached to Echo more and more. The two talk quietly amongst themselves as I finish putting my shoes on and putting my backpack on my back. I didn’t like the idea of there being three other Big Sisters around here. I was starting to get a little aggravated at the fact that I had such little power. All these sisters could take shots and one another and take hits, but I was just one somewhat normal person. If this turned out to all go wrong then I was the one who was going to get killed, not those two.

I was thinking about this from a different perspective than she was. She could be so naïve at times. I saw all the bad in people all the time. Echo seemed to trust this girl far more than I did. I didn’t want to trust any of them. I just wanted to keep on my way and not bother with them. It would have been wrong of me to tell her that I going moving on. It wouldn’t be right just to tell her that she could either go see them or come with me. I knew it wouldn’t be right just to tell her what she was doing. My father did that enough with my mother and I hated it. I wasn’t that kind of person.

It takes them a few minutes to stop talking and for the girl to head out. I’ve been in silence as I lean against the bed, waiting quietly for them to finish. Echo doesn’t seem very happy with me as she walks over, grabbing me by the arm. I take in a deep breath, sighing quietly.

“You don’t understand that if that girl is lying then I’m the one that has a hundred percent chance of being dead.” I grip my teeth, pulling myself up off the bed. “You don’t understand that I’m not going to trust a damn one of them..” I trail off quietly, shaking my head. I wasn’t going to deny her the pleasure of seeing her friends. I wasn’t going to be the one getting killed because of this. I pull on the straps to tighten the pack that’s on my back. I look over to the door a moment before sighing.

“I will go with you to see these people, but I won’t trust them.” I sigh quietly, starting towards the door. I make it to the broken door, stepping on the pieces of wood that now lay on the ground. “Which way is this place?”

I was being too hard on her, I knew that. I wasn’t as aggravated as I let on. I just wanted her to see the danger she could possibly be getting me in. Not only that, but I had a headache and I was irritable when I had headaches.

The level of mistrust that Mira felt for Focus and the other three Big Sister's she claimed shared this area with her was all but understandable. She had lived a very solitary life since the beginning of the revolution until she met me. The fact that she had grown to trust me at all was a complete miracle. How could I expect her to trust someone that she had only just met?
She had not lived with them the way I had though she was very right when she raised the point of this being some kind of trap. It was entirely possible that she was just trying to lure us into the open before ambushing us so that she could finish off the job she had started in the darkness of the room.
As much as I wanted to say that such a thing was impossible, there was no way of knowing that for sure. For all I knew Mira was right and I was leading us to our deaths.

Instead of trying to counter her words with any kind of argument I simply nodded my head in understanding and I gave her a thankful smile.
"Thank you. I'll try to make it short." I said as she joined me in the hallway once she had given me her opinion on the matter. I understood and accepted her opinion. Not only that but I acknowledged the fact that she could have been right about the whole thing. Mira was the more experienced one and if she was going to be ready for an ambush then I was going to be ready for one as well, just in case.
I did not want my stupidity to be the reason behind our deaths. Not after the mistake I had made the day before.

"It's this way." I said over my shoulder as I began to walk down the hallway in the direction we had both gone the night before when..whatever had happened then happened. Except we walked past the bathroom and continued down the hallway for at least a couple minutes before we came to a large common room where the space for rooms was replaced with a large room where those who lived along the hallways could come together when they were allowed to.
Many a time I had spent sitting in the middle of the common rooms enjoying the free time we were given.
The moment we walked into the room three sets of heads turned our direction. Focus still had her helmet off but as she had promised there were two more Sisters sitting together off to the side with a crate sitting between them.

A smile came back to Focus's lips when she saw us come in and she moved to greet us, motioning towards the two who were sat down. I turned my gaze towards the two and immediately recognized the carvings in their shoulder plates.
"Mel.. Sam.. It's so good to see you again." I greeted them both and they quickly stood from where they had been sat, moving to join the three of us that were already stood up. I moved to meet them and gave each of them a hug before I stepped back and took my place next to Mira.
Focus turned her head back towards us and stepped closer, the smile fading slowly from her lips.
"I hate to break up this reunion but there's something I need to show you both.. Here, follow me to the security room. We caught something on our exterior cameras that we don't quite understand."

She glanced between us before she headed towards the hallway on the other side of the room from the one we had used to enter. I let my gaze follow after her before I turned it towards my companion, wondering whether she was okay with following behind Focus.
Whatever it was she wanted to show us, I doubted that it was going to be good news.
I let out a quiet sigh and started to follow after my old friend, knowing that I was going to need to keep whatever the news was short. I had promised her we would leave as soon as I had met with my old friends after all.

Once we got into the hallway I heard Focus's voice flow back to meet us as she led the way.
"Usually we don't see many Splicers in this area. They don't often come here. But since yesterday we've been seeing dozens come through like they're searching for something." She explained as she reached the door to the security office and headed into it.
I slowed to almost a stop and turned my head towards Mira.
"It's Finn.." I murmured to her even though I doubted she needed me to.

She thanks me for going with her, but I don’t do anything but grumble in return. I trusted her with my neck far too much lately. Yes, she had been taking very good care of my neck, but I didn’t like it. I liked being able to protect myself. I liked being able to say that I could take care of myself. I didn’t like being in a situation that I couldn’t take care of myself. She was putting me in that situation. I wasn’t mad at her per say, but I was a little put down by the idea.

I take in a deep breath, pulling a hand through my hair. Once again she took point again and I knew that it would be for the best. She knew where she was going and I didn’t. I would never know where I was going in this place. We walk for a while without saying anything. We walked down the hallway that I had ran off into the night before. I take in a slow breath as we pass the place, the door still open and the trash still on the floor. We kept going for a few minutes before making it into a large expansion of room. I look around quietly, knowing that this had at one time occupied many small children.

The girl, this Focus, was a little ways away, talking to the other Sisters. I feel my grip tighten on my weapon as I follow along quietly. We come to a stop as Echo speaks. I simply watch silently from behind her. The girls get up to come and greet her. It seemed that I had been a little too high strung about this whole thing. Up until now I hadn’t been shot at or hit with anything. They greeted the girl happily with a hug. Soon, Echo steps back to stand beside me. The girls eye me with a strange curiosity, but soon it burns out.

Focus draws our attention away from the little group. It seems that there’s something that we need to see. I watch them a moment and Echo hurriedly follows the girl. I stand there a moment before reluctantly following like a lost pet that didn’t want to be left alone. As long as I didn’t get shot at, I would be completely happy with following along after her. I am a few steps behind her as we make it into the hallway, going towards what I am assuming is the security room. She begins to explain the problem and as she finishes, I feel a chill run down my spine. Echo turns to me, explaining what I already knew. I grit my teeth, shaking my head.

“I should have killed that freak when I had the chance..” I mutter the words as I pick up my pace. I knew that making him look like a fool was a mistake. We both knew that he would come looking for us, if not to simply capture us and kill us in front of his men. He wanted to have the pleasure of killing us, showing that he was still the strongest man in Rapture.

When Mira spoke I nodded my head in agreement with her. We should have killed him when we had the chance, when he cornered us for the second time. But we had missed our chance and now he had come after us with a force much larger than we ever could have predicted. We had underestimated his thirst for revenge on us.
I shook my head slowly before stepping into the security office with Focus. It was a relatively small room with little more than a wall covered in monitors and a control panel used to control all of the different cameras that were hooked up to the screens. The other protector was stood in front of them watching and motioned for us to join her.
I knew what we were going to see on the screens but I looked all the same.

Several of the small monitors showed movement in the darkness of the shadows on the opposite side of the road from the entrance to the building. It seemed like they had not thought to properly examine the entrance due to the fact that the collapsed walls around it made it seem like the place had collapsed completely. Perhaps that was the only thing that had kept it from actually being a Splicer that burst through the door earlier.
The cameras did not lie though. Finn had sent out men to find the two who had slipped out of his grasp and made a fool of him in front of all of his followers. Unfortunately for us we had released the beast upon the surrounding area. No doubt he was not going to stop looking for us until he had our heads sitting on a pedestal in front of his throne. We had become the sole focus of a man who had nothing else to do with his power and those who served under him.

I let out a quiet sigh and turned my head towards Mira. I looked her over for a few seconds before I shook my head, turning my gaze back towards the screens. I had seen more than enough to know that we were in deeper trouble than we could fight our way out of.
"The front door is the only way in and out of this place.. There's no way for us to leave without finding ourselves up against his men. Once they spot us, we'll have an entire army to deal with." I said quietly while bringing my hand up to run through my hair.
The facility had been built with one way in and out so that there were no way for the subjects to escape without being seen. Right now that feature trapped us within these walls lest we dared begin an all out war against Finn's men.

Focus turned her head to look at the both of us with an expression of curiosity on her face. At first she didn't seem to know what we were talking about but then it clicked in her mind and she turned her head back towards the screen, watching as the Splicers moved through the rubble of a building on the opposite side of the street.
"Finn Wood.. That bastard." She growled with a sudden bout of hostility that threw me completely off guard. My eyes came to rest on Focus's figure as she grit her teeth and clenched her fists tightly.
"There used to be five of us that lived here together. But we lost two of our friends to that man.. he's a power hungry monster. He prides himself in his ability to kill anything that stands in his way. Aeris and Nova, Echo.. he killed them both." She said in a voice that was filled with pain and anger.

At the mention of the two names my head slowly fell and I joined my hands together in front of me. I squeezed my hands together as tightly as I could until my knuckles went white in an attempt not to cry. I had known the two names she gave very well.
Like Focus they had been friends of mine when we were all trapped together in this place. We watched over each other like siblings and the bond between us was just as strong. But to know that they were both gone.. that hurt more than anything I had felt recently ever since I met Mira, the woman who had changed my life for the better.

Echo nods quietly to me as we continue walking. We had him in our grasp, but the fear of getting caught kept us from doing the job. Hell, we had barely made it out with our lives. Our revenge, it seemed, had been very short lived. He would come for us and wouldn’t stop searching for us until we were dead. This man was more fixated on revenge than I had ever seen anyone else in my life. It was sickening how deep we were in this mess.

We make it into the small room, filled with security televisions. Focus stands over the control panel, watching the large groups of splicers as they walked by the building that I assumed we had occupied. I had never seen the outside of the building since we had teleported in. I shake my head, not wanting to remember that horrible movement.

The words that pass Echo’s lips just cause me to sour even more. Apparently there was no other way out of this place, which meant we were stuck in this building for a possibly long time. I take in a short breath, my hand going to my temple I rub it quietly, watching the two that were ahead of me.

“I just wanted to get topside” The words quietly escape my lips. I was talking to myself as I stood there, looking blankly at the wall. I didn’t want to be trapped in this building. I wanted to be out of here and into the next area we still had to travel through the get to the Bathysphere that we only hoped was still there. I hadn’t gone this far to sit in a stupid lab for a week.

I had been lost in my own thoughts for a moment. I am only drawn away from what I’m thinking by the sound of a growl from Focus, making my grip tighten on my weapon for a moment. I let my grip loosen once I realize that it’s simply because we apparently have the same enemies. The word of her friends’ death hit Echo hard. I watch as her head falls in an attempt to hide what she feels. I can’t stop myself from making the few feet between us no more. I pull a hand around her shoulder, giving her a half hug. I don’t say anything. Really, I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know the people and I didn’t know how to tell her that it was going to be okay when really, it wasn’t. Two of her friends were dead and we were stuck in the one building that housed so many of her memories. I sigh quietly, I wouldn’t tell her that it would be okay—I wouldn’t potentially lie to her like that.

Death was something very common on the streets of Rapture. People died every day and nobody thought anything of it. Just another casualty to the death toll of the revolution. Hell, I had caused a handful of those deaths myself without feeling much guilt at their loss.
However this was something else entirely. These deaths were the deaths of two people I had known from a very early age. People I had laughed with, cried with, and spent many hours talking to. We matured together and were turned into Big Sisters together.
When I felt Mira's arm around me I could not help but lean into her and let a few of my tears fall. The loss was too much for me. The crying was silent but the tears fell onto my breastplate with quiet little taps.

Mira seemed to take notice when Focus let out an aggressive growl but relaxed when she came to realize that everyone in this building had the same enemy. The very man that was hunting for us. Doing everything that he possibly could to exact his revenge on us.
Mira and I were not the only ones who had a bone to pick with the man behind the golden mask. If anything this drew all of us together but that opened a whole new option that had never come to me until now.
Knowing that the other Sister's hated this man as much as we both did meant that maybe..just maybe.. We'd be able convince them to help us fight our way out of the facility. It was much to ask of them but I was willing to give it a shot.

Focus's pain and anger was very quick to pass as her thoughts were drawn towards the words she had heard from Mira. The Sister frowned a little bit before she turned her head towards the two of us, looking at us curiously.
"Topside? You two are trying to make a break for the surface?" She asked us while straightening up and taking a moment to think something over. There was a moment of silence before she walked over to us.
"You go even though you know it's a suicide mission.. That's just like you, Echo." She spoke with a certain degree of fondness in her voice and a smile on her lips.

I nodded my head slowly, bringing one of my arms up to wipe away my tears, as a smile came to my lips. She was right in saying that I would do something as rash as trying to get to the surface. I had always been the most reckless of the five of us.
Focus regarded us for a few seconds before she blinked, a calm smile coming to her lips. It was as if she had settled her mind on something and now she was just about to do whatever it was she had decided on.
"Let me go speak to the others.. I've got an idea." She gave us a quick nod before heading out the door of the office heading back towards the common room where Mel and Sam were.

Once we were alone again I turned towards Mira and I looked into her eyes through the semi-darkness of the room. There was a moment of silence before I reached out to place my hands on her waist, hesitating for a moment.
"The last time I tried to hug you, you froze up.. would you now?" I asked her quietly while tilting my head a little bit.

I will an arm around her. Her head stays down but I can tell that she’s leaned into me further. I hear the quiet pit pats of tears as they fall onto the leather plate that covers her torso. I grit my teeth quietly. I hadn’t been able to wipe the tears away before, in the hallway, and now, I had the chance. I had the chance, and yet I didn’t move in to wipe them away. What was wrong with me? I take in a deep breath before I tighten the grip around her shoulder, trying to show her that she had people here for her. It was hard to watch her cry like she was, but it wasn’t my place to stop her. She needed this and I wasn’t the person to tell her that all of these things would get better when we got topside. Hell, I didn’t know if they would. Topside was just as harsh a place as down here. There just wasn’t any mindless killing or plasmids to make everything horrible.

I look up as the girl speaks. It seems that she had caught the words that fell quietly from my lips. I watch her quietly a moment as she regards Echo with a sort of loving admiration. For some reason, it doesn’t surprise her. She has to think over the idea a moment before stepping closer to our little grouping. Only then does Echo pull her head up to look at her. A smile comes to her lips and she pulls her own hand up to wipe a tear away. It was good that she had sort of stopped crying. I didn’t like her when she cried.

We are watched quietly by this girl a few more moments before something changes in her eyes. There’s a bout of determination that seems to flood through her and she straightens up a moment. I watch her with curiosity. I didn’t want to put my guard down, but the more Echo spoke to this girl, the more I found it in me to try to trust her. I still had many doubts and they would have to show that they were fighting the same fight as us. I wasn’t sure why, but the tick that went of in the back of my head would not stop. Maybe it wasn’t for the Sisters though, maybe it was my mind telling me that we had been out of the fight for too long and something had to end up going wrong soon.

The girl leaves us with only knowing that she needed to speak with the others about an idea. That’s fine with me. It would give me a chance to talk to Echo without ears being within distance. The moment we are along the girl turns so she’s in front of me. I drop my arms to feet who hands placed lightly on my waist. I watch her a moment, unable to say anything. She wanted…a hug? A twinge of something in my stomach gets me nervous. I watch her a moment and she watches me, waiting for an answer. I sigh quietly, shaking my head at her. I pull myself closer to her, pulling myself up on my toes to I can reach to give her a light kiss on her forehead.

“You know… you probably don’t have to ask anymore” I mutter the words quietly and I press myself into her breastplate. I pull my arms around her body, a small smile pulling across my lips. At the same time that I was pretty sure she only wanted comfort for her friends, I wanted to say that it was something else. I wanted to say that it was something more that called for her to want to hug me. No matter what it was, I was happy to oblige without tensing up or jerking away. She was probably the only person in Rapture I was comfortable with hugging.

(Sorry about last night. I passed out at my computer again T_T )

Whatever Focus had in mind, it was probably not going to be the best of ideas but I had faith in her that she was going to get things worked out. Of the five of us she had always been the one who came up with the crazy ideas but at the same time she was also the one who knew how to solve problems by thinking outside of the box. A very clever girl.
As she walked out of the room I couldn't help but smile after her. Although it had been years since the last time I saw her, she had not changed in the slightest. At least not as far as I had been able to tell from the short time we had spent together. I doubted time could change a personality as powerful as hers.

When I turned to face Mira, once we were left alone in the security room, I found myself looking into her eyes. My mind was racing with thoughts but also emotions. Up until now my emotions had been nothing but an unintelligible mess to me but I was beginning to notice a trend within them. Things that reminded me of the descriptions within the romance novels I had once read during my spare time. Like the image of butterflies being in a person's stomach and the thought of time slowing down whenever the person you loved smiled at you.
All these things corresponded with the sensations I got when I was alone with Mira and she regarded me with a warm expression of friendship. Very different from the cold, harsh expression I had seen the very first day we met.

My question seemed to throw her off guard. She regarded me in silence for a few seconds before she shook her head slowly. I felt a slight frown of confusion come to my face before I was surprised by the sudden movement of her going up onto her tip toes so she could press a light kiss to my forehead. My eyes widened as the kiss left what could best be described as a tingling sensation against my skin. It was a warm feeling that made a smile come to my lips.
She then wrapped her arms around me, drawing me into an embrace. Immediately my arms came to wrap around her body and I held her close to me, drawing comfort from her touch in a way that I knew only she could make me feel.

Though she had come into my life only a few days ago she had managed to turn it around and upside down without really trying. She had brought both happiness and hope into my life and for that I was never going to be able to repay her. Though the thought of reaching the surface had always been on my mind the reason I had never thought to go through with the idea was because I had never felt like I had a reason to.
Mira had become that reason. I had met someone who deserved a new life. She deserved to be happy. She deserved anything but being trapped down here in the hell that was Rapture.
Slowly I turned my head and though she may not have felt it through her hair, I returned the kiss she had given me on my forehead to the side of her head.

"I wish we could have met somewhere else..perhaps in a different lifetime. One were we could be happy together without having to fight for it." I murmured quietly though I had not properly thought through the words that passed my lips. I was not sure how she was going to take them. But I hoped she knew that I meant them.
Slowly and reluctantly I pulled away from the embrace with a glance towards the door.
A part of me wanted to remain in the embrace forever but the other part of me was curious to find out what Focus had in mind.
"Shall we?" I turned my head back with a warm smile.


(Oh no, please, no need to apologize!)

I had a feeling that the sudden show of affection startled her a little bit. No matter how much time we spent together, we were both so used to showing care for someone that was a surprise anytime either one of us did just that. I take in a slow breath as I feel the bits of tear press into my cheek. They were now cold on her breastplate, but I didn’t mind. The warmth of her as she pulls her arms around me is enough to keep the cold out forever. I can feel that small twitch in my stomach turn into something more. It was a greater feeling than I had probably ever felt.

It was the feeling that had made me nauseous when I saw two people walking down the street, holding hands and smiling as if there was nothing better in the world. It was that feeling that I had never felt for anyone in the entire world. It was the feeling that, when Rapture fell, I assumed I would never get to feel. Now, though, I was feeling it. I was able to hold someone in my arms and feel the twitch in my stomach.

I can feel the pressure of something on my head. Maybe it was her lips? I don’t know, but even the prospect of it makes me close my eyes. I wanted to enjoy this forever. She starts talking and I can’t help but giggle quietly. I hum quietly into her, giving a small nod to the idea. I didn't say anything. I was afraid that if I said something, I would wake up dreaming.

Still, the idea hung heavily in my mind. What would it have been like had we not met in Rapture? If we had met topside, would we still have felt the same way as we did right now, or was it just the heat of the moments, the excitement, and the adrenaline that caused us to be so attracted to each other…Well, that caused me to be so attracted to her. I still hadn’t exactly figured out whether or not she meant all this in a friendly way. Maybe I was too blind by something to see that she didn’t mean it the way I did. Right now though, it didn’t matter to me. All that mattered was the warmth of her body pressing against mine.

Soon, like all good things, it came to an end. She pulled away from me and we locked eyes for a few seconds before she spoke. I sigh quietly, feeling the warmth that had surrounded me to be completely gone. She was ready to see what this Focus girl had come up with. I couldn’t deny it, I was quite curious myself. I pull away from her fully for a moment, nodding slowly.

“I guess we shall” I mutter quietly, straightening up the backpack on my back. I look to her for a moment before starting towards the door. All feeling from a few moments ago were now gone. Her warmth was what I missed most. In a world like this, you had to have something to hand onto and it seemed that that was my hook. That was the one thing that I could always turn to to make me feel better, but now it was gone.

The very last thing I wanted to do was to let her go from my embrace. There had been so many emotions involved in just that moment of hugging that I wasn't sure I wanted to lose those emotions. I mean, I doubted I was ever going to lose the feelings I had for Mira. Whatever those feelings were. I could not understand them. But I knew that I wanted to be with her as more than just companions and friends in this journey. I was not sure what the next step above that was but that's what I wanted. I hoped, wished, that one day I'd be able to tell her the way I felt but with words that sounded better than 'I think I have feelings for you' because that was not exactly the way it was worded in those romance novels. Perhaps if I were to take the words from those books? Perhaps.. but I did not let my mind think of such things right now. My thoughts were now split between missing her touch and wondering what Focus was up to.

As we both moved to leave the security room I paused at the door, glancing back towards the monitors for a few seconds. The movements were still visible on the screens but they were getting closer to the entrance of the facility. A few of the Splicers had even begun to examine the outside walls as if examining the possibility that we had taken refuge inside.
It would not have surprised me if we were discovered. Not after the knowledge that Finn Wood had displayed about me. If he knew that much about my creation then he was bound to know where I had been created and it was only logical for him to think of this place as a possible hiding spot.

I shook my head slightly before heading out into the hallway to quickly catch up with Mira who had begun without me. I was at her side a second or two later and I walked with her until we reached the common room where the three Sister's were all stood together speaking amongst themselves.
The two Sisters who had stood silent earlier now stood with their helmets in their hands and turned to face us as we came in.
The girl named Sam had long black hair that she kept tied back with a strand of ribbon, brown eyes, and an older appearance than all of the rest though that was only a year or two at the most.
The other Sister named Mel was quite the opposite with short hazel brown hair, green eyes much like my own, and she seemed to be the youngest of us all.
Focus turned as well and immediately greeted us with a nod.
"With Finn's men outside you're going to come up against some fierce fighting if you want to get out of here. Just the two of you can't take him on..but the five of us might stand a chance." She said as we approached the small group, the two behind her nodding their heads in agreement with her words.

I slowed to a stop a few feet away from then and frowned, shaking my head slowly. As much as I appreciated them offering us help, I also felt as though this was not their fight. I did not want to bring them into a mess that I had started. Hell, I didn't want to bring Mira into this mess either.
"Guys.. You don't have to do that.." I began with a tone of worry but I was cut off by the sound of a loud metallic thump echoing through the hallways.
The three Sisters turned their heads in the direction of the hallway we had first entered through. A few seconds passed before the sound was heard again only this time it was louder.
"They're trying to get in.." Focus murmured, speaking the thought that all minds in the room were thinking,
"Now we don't have a choice, Echo."

(I just want to let you know that we're driving to visit some relatives that live out of town. So I'll be back later in the evening, hopefully before 7. I'll post then!)

I make it into the hallway before Echo does. I stop when I don’t hear her behind me to see that she’s paused, looking at the screens on last time. She was very concerned about the movement in the shadows outside the building. I could see the concern in her eyes as she turned, walking out of the room and making her place beside me. We walked silently beside each other as if nothing had happened in that small little room. At this point, that’s how it should have been. With the fight that I was sure we were going to have on our hands soon, it would have been harder had we got our emotions in the way. We needed to keep our heads on what we needed to do. We needed to be ready for anything.

We slowly come to a stop when we make it into the large common room. The group of girls had been talking quietly as we walked in, but they turned to face us as we made our presence known. The other two sisters that had their helmets on earlier now had them off, looking to the two of us with another soft smile. They were both young, like the rest of us. None of them were older than me. One of them, the dark haired one, looked to be the closest to me in age, but I couldn’t necessarily be positive with my assumptions.

Focus is the only one that speaks. She offers us help fighting the group of Splicers that had begun gathering around the surrounding areas. Echo is very quick to show her opposition to the idea. She didn’t think that it was their fight. Maybe it was their fight just as much as ours. The girls had lost two friends to this man and they saw their chance to end the pain that he was causing to Rapture. They all seemed very determined to help us out of the building, no matter what opposition Echo had. They all seemed to have good intentions, but there was a great risk in accepting their help.

Echo starts to object, which I should have expected from her. She was very protective of her friends. She doesn’t get too far in her objections before a loud sound echoes through the hallways, cutting her off. I jump at the sound, turning towards the hallway that we had come through the first time we made our way towards the common room. A few seconds pass before the sound erupts from down the hallway. I look back to the group a moment before taking a few steps towards the hallway. Focus begins to talk and I sigh quietly.

“She’s right. Attacking them head on though won’t work. There’s too many of them. We need some sort of plan… or we'll end up getting shot.” I speak loud enough that the girls can hear me from where I stand. It’s the first time I’ve spoken to the group as a whole. It’s the first few words that are directed towards them all. I knew how this battle would end up. If we survived it, we wouldn’t have any supplies left. All of the Eve and first aid would be used up during battle and I would have no ammunition left after such a fight. This little battle would make it hard to get through the rest of Rapture, but we didn’t very well have a choice.

(It's cool! I'll see you then!)

I hated the idea of the three of my fellow Sisters joining our fight. Not so much because I didn't want their help, no, their help was probably the only thing that could save us at this point. But I did not want them to risk their lives so soon after having been reunited with them.
We were charging into a fight where the odds were so stacked against us it was almost tragically funny. Easily 20 to one odds with Finn's thugs having the upper hand in number.
Big Sisters were formidable fighters, as it came second nature to them, but there were only so many enemies one could take on without being overwhelmed from all sides.

The moment the sound of Finn's men trying to break through the door reached my ears I knew that there was no going back. Focus was right. They now had no choice other than to take up arms and fight alongside us. I clenched my fists and took a few deep breaths before I slowly nodded my head.
"Alright.. we're going to need a plan though." I said just before Mira began to address the group as a whole, which drew all of the attention towards her.
Mel and Sam both nodded their heads in agreement with her words and I knew she was right. If we weren't careful none of us were going to walk away from this battle.

"They don't know that we're here. We can use that to our advantage! Our main problem is that if we allow too many of them to get inside, we might not be able to fight our way out. There's nowhere to run if they overwhelm us with pure number.. I think we should meet them at the front door. Let some of them in before we attack and create a bottle-neck at the door. Only a few can come in at a time, so long as we can keep that up they won't be able to do anything." Focus spoke with a serious tone and glanced towards Mira to get her opinion on the matter.
The Sister knew that Mira was the oldest and thereby the most experienced of the entire group. If she thought it would work, then that's the plan they were going to go along with.

During this silence the other two Sisters began to outfit themselves with their array of weapons. Having been outfitted later than I was, they both carried more advanced weapons than me. Mel carried an intricately designed harpoon launcher while Sam wore a very heavy caliber hand cannon that was probably a mixture between a machine gun and a shotgun.
For a moment I looked down at my own weapon and I wondered whether it was going to be enough to protect those around me. Of course we were all going to be fighting but if anyone were to get hurt, I'd blame myself.
The appearance of someone in front of me drew my attention up and I found myself looking into the eyes of Mel.
She held out a new helmet for me to take and I reached out to accept the helmet, a smile coming to my lips. We really were going to fight together even if it was for the last time.


(Sorry for the wait, we had to be social for longer than I thought. xD)

The chance of us getting out of this fight was very slim. If we hit at them head on them we had no chance. We needed to be very savvy about how we took these splicers on or we would all end up getting captured by Finn. That wasn’t even an option this time around. I would fight until one of them killed me, but I would not be handed over to that man again. I would not watch my Echo get hurt like she was before. I would give myself up for her if the chance ever came.

Focus has a plan and I’m glad, because I was coming up with blanks. I turn around slightly to look at the group. There wasn’t much time to think. We had to get at the front door now or we weren’t going to be able to get the upper hand in this fight.

“You’re a very smart girl.” I give my nod of approval. “If I can get my plasmids down on the ground at the door, I can kill the first ones easy. They’re all pretty spliced up…Once I’m occupied fighting I won’t have time to put traps down though.” I shake my head a moment. Her plan would work; I wasn’t going to worry about their numbers or their plasmids. If I thought about that then I would only become wary of the fight. “If we plan on beating them to the front then we’ll need to hurry. I don’t think that door has very much longer” The girls have begun to outfit themselves with equipment. I one of the girls offers Echo a new helmet and I smile. She would be safer with that on. They all had armor except for me. I couldn’t deny that I was the weakest out of the group. I wouldn’t let that stop me from being right in the action. I wasn’t going to be someone they would have to worry about. I would fight just as fiercely as they would.

They were still finishing off the last bit of their armor and weaponry as I started down the hallway. I wasn’t running down the hallway. I walk at a normal pace, knowing that the girls could all catch up. They all had long legs and I didn’t doubt that they could follow behind once they were done and catch me before they turned the corner. I wanted to get traps set down before they got inside. If I was able to at least do that, then the ones that came in first would be nothing but bits of ice by their first two steps. That would strike fear into the others, well, at least I hoped it would.

(Don’t worry about it. I won’t be here tomorrow from like 11-7. I might be a little later since I have to drive an hour and a half to go to a friend’s birthday party)

Mira expressed her agreement with the plan that Focus suggested and explained the role she would play with the very beginning of the battle. All of the Sisters knew that she was the most vulnerable out of the bunch but at the same time they respected her for wanting to take part in a battle that looked to be as suicidal as a journey towards the surface. She easily could have said that she wanted to hang back and none of them would have thought any less of her for saying so, but her help was more than welcome. If anything she was going to help tip the scale of battle more than anyone.
Big Sisters were more efficient at hand to hand combat than long range combat and although they had powerful plasmids, they could only use these plasmids when they had a moment to spare.
If Mira could keep showering the enemy with plasmids then there was a good chance they would survive the battle.

The moment she mentioned that they all needed to move, they all started to move gathering together the very last of the equipment they were going to need. Focus, Mel, and Sam all pulled their helmets over their heads before they headed towards the hallway after Mira.
I kept my helmet in my hand at my side as I moved to catch up with her, glancing over my shoulder at the others who were following behind us.
A slight smile came to my lips as I imagined the faces we were going to see the moment the Splicers realized they were coming up against a total of four Big Sisters as opposed to just one.
Finn was about to get a very unpleasant surprise.

Walking alongside Mira I glanced over at her, looking her over for a moment. I was not sure how to feel. What if this was the last time I got to see her? What if one of us was killed during the fighting? What would happen then?
I shook the thought out of my head quickly though and I gripped my helmet tightly, mustering up all of the courage I had inside me. The battle was not what scared me. What scared me was the thought of what I was just about to do.
I was either going to make a huge mistake or I was going to ensure both our survival.

When we reached an intersection of two hallways, near the door that led into the main lobby where most of the fighting was going to take place, I stepped around the corner and quickly grabbed Mira's hand drawing her along with me. I knew she was going to be confused but that was exactly what I wanted. I stood in front of her and looked into her eyes through the near darkness of the hall.
The three other Sister's walked passed us but they said nothing, knowing that it was not their place to get between us.
"I'm not going to try and convince you to sit this one out. I know there's no way I could. I just want you to be careful okay? Be safe. Survive.." I trailed off and before I could stop myself with a second thought, I leaned down and let my lips brush against hers.

It was a gesture of affection the likes of which I had only ever read about in books. In fact I hardly knew what I was doing. I merely pressed my lips to hers softly and hoped that she wouldn't make fun of me for my inexperience in the realm of kissing.
For that split moment in time though I found myself lost in a sensation of absolute bliss. Like all of my dreams had come true. But I knew that we did not have the time to enjoy the sensation..or rather I didn't have the time to enjoy the sensation. So I slowly drew back and opened my eyes, letting out a breath I had not known I had been holding in.
"Please." I whispered before I stepped away and gave her a smile.
Knowing that I had either ruined our relationship or changed it forever, I turned to continue on my way towards the lobby while pulling my new helmet over my head.
If this was the last time I was going to speak to Mira, I wanted her to know what I felt about her. The truth about how I felt. I wanted there to be no obscurities.
If I was about to die I wanted to go knowing that she knew the truth.

(Ah that's a shame but that should be fun! )

I take in slow breaths as I walk. The girls were quick at finishing up what they were doing and followed behind me quickly. I wasn’t afraid of going to the battle and dying at least. I was afraid to go in to have Echo get hurt. I couldn’t imagine her getting killed in such a battle. I was almost positive that I would come out of this fight hurt if not dead. I didn’t want to doubt my abilities, but I wasn’t going to doubt the Splicer’s either.

I continue walking as I see Echo catch up to me. I can see her out of the corner of my eye watching me. She watches me until we make it to the turn in the hallway. In a split second I see her shoot off in front of me. I watch her with slight curiosity as she grabs my hand, pulling me alongside her. I stop quietly, watching her for a moment. What was she doing? Did she not realize that we were about to go into a battle. I look at her a moment, watching silently as she moves around me. She waits for the Sisters to pass us before looking to me and speaking.

I can’t help a small smile fall on my lips as I realize what this little confrontation is all about. She was afraid for me. She was worried that I would get hurt. I watch her, about to start telling her that I couldn’t promise her anything when she leans in and presses her lips to mine. I feel a shock with the movement. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do. This was the sign I had been looking for from her, but it would have been too much if I had pulled her close to me like I wanted. My eyes fell closed and I felt myself lean into her. For a moment, I thought that I wanted to just stand here forever, kissing her, but before I know it, she’s pulled away.

I could tell by the way she looked at me when she opened her eyes that she was afraid that I would make fun of her for her kissing. It wasn’t the technique or really the way she kissed me, but how she kissed me that told me she had never done such a thing. She was more afraid of what I would think and how I would feel to just enjoy the moment to the fullest extent. She was afraid I would make fun of her instead of concentrating on the moment we had just shared.

I watch her for a moment, in the silence of the hallway. The only thing that can be heard is the loud sound of the splicers trying to beat the door down. With one last word to me she steps away and starts toward the door. I can’t help but stand there a moment just watching her as she headed towards the door.

“I won’t promise you anything” I speak quietly, more to myself than to her. There were other things that needed tending to. I start after her at a fast jog. She had already pulled her helmet on when I caught up with her. I slow to a stop for only a moment. I hold up my hand, the small vortex spinning quickly in my hand. I point to it for a moment before turning and jogging down the hallway in front of her. I hoped that she would get what I was trying to get through to her. I needed to put the traps down before I lost my chance.

I wasn't quite sure what to think about the moment we shared. I wasn't sure what Mira thought about the action I had so rashly carried out without thinking about the repercussions it might have on our relationship. For all I knew was watching me with an expression of disgust but something told me that she was watching me with quite the opposite kind of expression.
I could have sworn that I had felt her lean into me when our lips touched and she recovered from the suddenness of the action. Even as I walked on without her I could still feel the tingling against my lips where hers had been only moments before.
All of the sudden I understood exactly what the books meant when they described the first kiss between two people. How it was like an explosion of emotions, sensations, and the most wonderful of tingling sensations.

I knew that I did not have the time to revel in the feelings I had just experienced. We were all minutes away from a battle that was either going to kill all of us or was going to leave Finn Wood defeated, ridding the entire area of a dictator.
With the number of Splicers I had seen on the screen the last time I looked it was most likely to be the first option but I was not going to allow myself to think so negatively.
I did not doubt the fighting abilities of my fellow Sister's and I certainly did not doubt the fighting abilities of my companion. She had proven herself a thousand times over to be even more skilled than I was.
As this thought crossed my mind she appeared at my side with a whirling vortex in her palm. I regarded it and nodded when she looked up at me just before she hurried on into the lobby.
I knew where she was going with that plasmid.
She was going to use the same strategy she had used the very first time we fought together.

I followed her into the lobby a second or two later and I found Focus, Mel, and Sam all standing ready facing the door. The Splicers were doing everything they possibly could to get through the heavily bolted metal doors but they had not yet gotten through. By the sound of things they were getting close though. We only had a few minutes at the very most before they would be swarming through those doors.
When I entered the Sister's all turned to me as if they were waiting for my guidance on where to be when the door finally did give way.
I motioned towards each individually and gave them each places where they could remain hidden until the right moment when the Splicers least expected them.
We were going to start the battle with them believing they were still against just Mira and I. The metal protectors all disappeared from view and I was left with my companion to face the door.

Once all of her traps were laid out I took a moment to shake out all of my limbs and double check that my weapon was ready for use. I tightened the blade on the end and trained the barrel on the door that was beginning to show signs of being broken through.
The hinges were struggling with the constant battering they were taking. By the creaking sound they would only hold together for a few seconds.
I turned my head to look at Mira for a few seconds, looking her over quickly, before I settled my gaze upon the door.
So this was it.
My heart began to race in my chest as I waited for the battle to begin. Seconds seemed like minutes to me now.

I had to admit, the kiss had left my mind a little fuzzy. It was swimming in thoughts of Echo. It was strange to think that way, since I had tried to keep my mind off her. For all this time I kept myself back; I didn’t want to get attached to someone who didn’t have feelings for me. Now, I knew that she show at least a little more feeling for me than friendship, and I allowed myself to think of us on the way.

Of course, the way to the lobby wasn’t as far as I had hoped, and soon I drew my attention away from the thoughts that filled my head. I had to or I would end up getting killed. I make my way towards the door. The other Sisters watch me as I walk toward the door. I could tell by the creaking of the hinges that the door would give away any moment. For now though, I just worked on my traps.

I placed two vortexes in front of the doors, spreading them backwards until I had about vice vortex spinning threateningly in front of the door. Then I changed plasmids. I let each one charge before I discharged it on the vortex. One at a time I worked diligently. They were all in place after about a minute. They would easily take care of the first few Splicers that ran through the door.

I take a few steps back, standing next to Echo who was already in a battle stance. She had already directed each of the other Sisters into different places to hide. The splicers would come at us with everything, but they wouldn’t know that this time we had help.

I look to Echo a moment as I watch her head turn towards me.
“Keep safe.” I mouth the words to her silently. In a second, her mask is back facing the door. I wasn’t sure if she had seen the words I mouthed, but I didn’t let it bother me any. I knew that she would try her best to keep herself safe. It was in our nature to do so. I couldn’t keep my mind from wandering as we wait for the doors to burst open and the fighting to begin. What if this was the last peaceful moment in our lives? What if this was the last time I got to see her not fighting. I shake my head; I had to get my head out of the clouds. If I wasn’t careful, then I would end up dead on the tile floor beneath our feet.

The doors can’t hold any longer. With two more hard thrusts at the door, the hinges give away. They had been using telekinesis plasmids because the door went flying back behind us, hitting a wall with a dull metal noise. The men are all but quiet. They yell in victory as if the door was just another enemy that they killed. The first man runs through the door, weapon at the ready. He doesn’t expect there to be something on the floor. He is only able to point his weapon at us before he steps on a trap. He is frozen, being raised into the air by the vortex. The force applied by the plasmid causes him to hit the ceiling, breaking into a hundred little piece. I can’t help but chuckle quietly as they start to rush in.

I take steps to the side, watching as two more men run in. Not many can come in at one time since most of them are so wide they themselves barely make it through without opposition. As the men fall victim to the traps, I throw more out. These aren’t as strong as the first, and soon I’ve already gone through my Eve. I kneel so it’s harder to hit me if anyone was able to get past what was still left on the floor. I pull another Eve Hypo from my pack, quickly jabbing it into my arm and pushing the pump down. I can feel the power pulsing through me. My veins glow blue for a few moments before I throw the empty hypo to the ground. I hear the sound of glass breaking as I pull myself back to my feet. The men had stepped on all of the traps and no more remained. Now the war had started.