Beyond the Sea

Rapture - 1960

Brigid Tenenbaum smiled tightly and took off her glasses, rubbing the bridge of her nose. She’d done it. The Little Sister Antidote plasmid was finally ready. She calmed her nerves by methodically preparing the plasmid for injection, readying a few small dosages of EVE to ensure herself enough to heal all the girls, and then making a clean sweep of the entirety of her secret little lab to make sure she hadn't left anything important behind. She felt better once all the equipment was neatly lined up and all the glass beakers were scrubbed clean and shining.

She looked around the room one last time and smiled. Like the place had never been used at all. If it was ever found (which she doubted), they would never be able to discover what had been made here. Not that it would matter for very much longer - the time had come to leave Rapture. If the Duncans and the rest of the DYAD were reckless enough to stay, they would eventually go down with the ship, as it were.

She stood against the far wall, her ear pressed up against it, for a moment, then pressed a section of the wall that looked exactly the same as the wall around it. A door slid open and she stepped through into a storage room, and then through another door into her normal lab. No one was about. Brigid frowned. It seemed unusually quiet for this time of the day. She decided to check on the girls now, and let the twins know that they would be on the move very soon. She trusted them to be sensible and help her with the other girls.

As long as everything went according to the plan. She could stay calm as long as everything went according to plan. For a moment she stood still, fingers of her left hand being worried at by her right. Then she took a couple of deep breaths, squared her shoulders and headed to her office to give her friend on the black market a call. She stopped by the twins bedroom on the way.

Sarah looked miserable, and Helena even more so.

“What is wrong, my little sestras?” asked Brigid. She automatically checked the girls foreheads for their temperature but they seemed fine.

Sarah answered, “‘lena is scared.” She looked at Helena as if to get confirmation, and then corrected herself. “Not scared - she just knows that something is going to happen. Something bad.”

 Brigid's stomach sank. She knelt down on one leg in front of Helena and took the girls hands in her own.

 “My little angel, what do you feel? Can you tell me what it is you feel?”

 Helena gazed at her with her golden eyes, then shut them, and spoke hesitantly.

 “The bad man…” She shook her head. “And...lonely. I feel...lonely.” Her lips trembled as she opened her eyes. “Can you stop him, maty? Please?”

The bad man...that could only mean Suchong. Brigid felt cold. Was he finally making his move on the twins? Why hadn’t she been keeping closer tabs on him? Млинець , she cursed to herself. She had been so focused on formulating the cure that she had hadn’t picked up on any rumblings around the labs. She needed to start moving the girls now .

She placed a hand on a shoulder of each of the twins.

“Listen to me, my дочки, we will need to start our plan, yes? You understand?”

They both nodded, faces solemn.

“Good. Good girls. I need you to let the other girls know that it’s time to start moving to the safe room. Best to go through the tunnels, less eyes that way.” Brigid curled her fingers around one eye, like a telescope, and smiled. Sarah and Helena smiled back at her, with worried eyes.

“Don’t worry, Maty,” Sarah said in a serious voice. “We’ll make sure all the sestras get there.”

Helena nodded furiously in agreement, holding tight to Sarah’s hand.

Brigid drew both of them for a brief, fierce hug, whispering я тебе люблю in both their ears.

After she left, Sarah and Helena looked at each other, the golden glow intensifying as they spoke silently.

It’ll be okay, ‘lena, Maty will make sure we’re okay.

Helena shrugged.

Maybe. Maybe...we should go get Daddy.

Holding hands tightly, the girls headed to the common rooms to spread the word.

                                                  ⇌   ⇌   ⇌

Brigid Tenenbaum held the phone in her hand for a moment, collecting her thoughts, then pushed a series of numbers. When a woman’s voice with an Irish accent answered, she relaxed slightly.

“Кохана, are you busy?”

Down in Fontaine’s Fisheries, Siobhan smiled.

“Always time for you, love,” she answered with flirtatious cheer. “What do you need?”

Tenenbaum chose her words carefully.

“That order I put in - is it possible that I pick it up today? Say...in an hour?”

S raised her eyebrows. She hadn’t expected the plan to come to fruition so soon, but she was nothing if not resourceful.

“That shouldn’t be a problem. Possibly a slight delay but no more than an extra...half hour. Would that be acceptable?”

“Yes, that will be fine.” Tenenbaum sighed in relief, slightly less worried now that S was sharing the burden. She lowered her voice.

“I have missed you, Siobhan. I...look forward to all this being over, and we can spend some time together.”

S chuckled warmly.

“Me too, love, me too.” There was a series of clatters from behind her somewhere and men shouting. She rolled her eyes.

“I better shoot off, darlin’, there’s a lot going on and I need to get your order ready. Meet you at the spot in an hour or so, righto?”

“Meet you at the spot.” Tenenbaum echoed, smiling at the phone, even though S couldn’t see her. She hung up, and put her fingers to her mouth, almost chewing the skin around the nails, then caught herself and entwined her hands. They were on the clock now. Time to move. She took the bag that contained the antidote plasmid and EVE doses down to the twins room and stashed it in the vent, then headed off to fetch them.

S hung up on her end, a smile tugging at her mouth.. The smuggling game had been a good lark, but she was looking forward to getting back topside and feeling the sun on her face again. The sky truly was falling in Rapture - and when that sky was the only thing holding up an entire ocean, you best get out while you could. As for Brigid - well, she was an odd duck, to be sure, with a brilliant mind, an attractive face and guts of steel.  Although some of the things she had told S late at night hadn’t been pleasant, she had a good heart, ready to do right by those poor little girls. S had a house in England, ready and waiting. A fresh start for all of them.

She thought about Brigid’s eyes, and how they skittered around, avoiding direct eye contact most of the time. But when she looked at you, with a gaze as green and soft as grass, your heart couldn’t help but open up. S shook her head, smiling ruefully at herself. She had it bad, alright. And now, it was time to do some good.

                                                        ⇌   ⇌   ⇌

The twins had found several of the other Sisters in the common rooms and split up to whisper in everyone’s ears. They all knew to make it look like they were just heading out into the city to gather ADAM, like any other day. They all knew to meet up in the safe room. Those Sisters who were already out would soon know what was happening, thanks to the connection they all shared. Once the girls started heading out, Sarah and Helena climbed into the nearest vent and made their way to the area where their Big Daddy was stored. The other Daddies were free to roam Rapture, still performing routine maintenance and keeping the city from collapsing completely, when they weren't needed by their Little Sisters. The twins liked having their Daddy close, just in case, so Tenenbaum had arranged a room for him...almost like his own bedroom.

Not that he slept, of course. He just...existed, until the twins needed him again.

They swung down into the room, and pattered across the floor. It was chilly and quiet, and they could just see the huge shadow against the wall, the lights in the helmet barely glowing a soft amber.

“Daddy! Wake up!” called Sarah, while Helena held one of his great hands and patted it until he stirred.

The lights grew brighter and switched to green. The Daddy gave a low rumble, and Helena answered.

“Hello Mr Bubbles. Time to go now!”

Another rumble, then he stood up, towering over the two girls, who looked up at him adoringly. A terrible thought struck Helena, and a moment later, Sarah.

He won’t be able to come with us…

They looked at each other,  golden eyes brimming with tears.

Rachel moved through the hallways, looking for Sarah. She went to the twins bedroom and before she had time to even knock, the door opened.

“Rachel. I suppose you’re looking for the...for Sarah.”

“Dr Tenenbaum.” Rachel nodded politely. She rather liked the doctor, who treated Rachel with respect and a touch of affection. “Yes. Do you know where she is?”

“They’ll both be somewhere close.” Tenenbaum put a gentle hand on Rachel’s shoulder. “You should go and find them. I believe Sarah has something to tell you, сюрприз*.”

Rachel’s brow furrowed, then cleared as she mentally translated the word. She smiled and thanked Dr Tenenbaum before hurriedly heading off to the common room. Tenenbaum watched her go. She had thought it best to keep Rachel in the dark about the escape plan as long as possible, just in case. She was still a child, and even the most responsible of children make mistakes and say the wrong thing at the wrong time. At DYAD, the walls had ears, and eyes, and sometimes teeth.

                                       ⇌   ⇌   ⇌

Dr Suchong gave orders in a quiet, clipped voice. Susan Duncan stood at the back of the room, observing. Ethan had refused to have anything to do with the matter - in fact, he had washed his hands of both the Little Sister and Leda projects altogether and moved into another wing of the building a few days before, effectively leaving his job and his family. Nobody had bothered to inform Rachel of this, of course. All attention had been turned to obtaining Helena, and the possibilities contained within her.

The other men in the room were doctors. At least, they wore white coats and were trained in basic aid. Also in weapons handling, unarmed combat...Suchong had prepared.

“Remember,” he stated authoritatively, “The girls can be - hurt -  but the ADAM will not - allow - them to be killed. Be - careful - but do not be afraid to use - force. If anyone else gets in the way -however…” He shrugged. The men nodded, eyes emotionless and hands steady.

                                                                  ⇌   ⇌   ⇌

The twins had never taken their Big Daddy into Little Wonders before and they were excitedly showing him their favourite toys in the common room when Rachel found them. She was startled to see the great mechanical man looming there but she pushed down the usual resentment about anyone in Sarah’s life that wasn’t Rachel, and plastered a grin on her face, waving at him to make Sarah smile. She did.

“Rachel!” Sarah grabbed her hands and pulled her close, much to her delight. Putting her mouth close to Rachel’s ear, Sarah whispered, “We have something to tell you. We’re leaving Rapture!”

Rachel felt her face go white, and the tips of her fingers crystallise with ice.

“What do you mean, leaving?” she hissed back, her breath hanging in the air between them. “You can’t!” She jerked her hands away. “You can’t leave.” She stared down at her fingers, already turning blue.

Helena rolled her eyes and turned to show Daddy the doll she’d made of him with an old baseball and other bits and pieces. Insofar as the metal man showed any emotion, he seemed pleased.

Sarah’s mouth opened in horror. “Oh,” she said, “No, Rachel, I mean...you’re coming too. We’re all leaving. Maty is going to take us topside, to the surface. We’re going to see the sun!” she clapped her hands excitedly at the thought. “Unless…” her face dropped. “You don’t...want to? Do you want to stay here?”

Rachel felt a surge of relief, and her hands began to warm up again. Then she frowned for a moment. Leave DYAD? Leave her parents? Leave Rapture ? She considered this for a moment.

“No.” she said firmly. “I don’t want to stay here. I want to go with you. Is...will there be room for me?”

Sarah hugged her and said “Of course! We’ve been planning this for a long time and I told Maty that you had to come!”

Helena blew a raspberry at the ceiling. She wasn’t thrilled about Rachel coming with them, but she felt compelled to remove Rachel from the vicinity of her awful mother and the bad man. Besides, it would make Sarah happy and that was the most important thing.

The three of them began to head out of the common room. Helena and the Big Daddy walked in front, Sarah and Rachel just behind, Sarah talking animatedly about how they were all going to live in a house in a place called England, all of them together like sisters! There would be sunshine and a real sky and cake every day!

“Sarah.” Rachel stopped and grabbed her arm. “I ...need to tell you something. Um. It’s something I...overheard. In the labs.”

Sarah paused and studied Rachel.

“What is it?” she asked. “ You feel - nervous.”

Rachel inwardly cursed the other girl's intuition. She’d managed to push her conversation with Dr Suchong almost completely out of her mind. If she thought about it too much, she started to feel guilty, and that was unpleasant. So, she didn’t think about it at all. Safer that way.

But everything had changed now, in an instant. They could all just...leave. Together. It was ridiculous to stay, anyway. The city was never going to return to it’s former glory and while Rachel had enjoyed her taste of power, it would be pointless trying to lord it over a bunch of fish, which would be all that was left of Rapture in another few years…but topside? She would be unique, a miracle of science, one of a kind.

She took a deep breath and -

A crash from the hallway startled both of them, Sarah pulling her hands away from Rachel's as she turned. They heard the Big Daddy roar, and Helena scream, and Sarah was already running towards the sounds.

“Oh no.” whispered Rachel. Her fists clenched at her sides, already sparking and zapping.

In the hallway, a group of men in white coats were surrounding the Big Daddy and Helena, who had climbed up onto his shoulders and was kicking anyone who got close enough.

“No, no, no, no!” she yelled. “Bad man! Get ‘im Mr B, unzip him, unzip him!” She swung the Big Daddy doll she was still holding around her head, then brought it down and smacked one of the men on the temple. He crumpled onto the floor, and Sarah paused to kick him in the stomach as she ran past, then clambered up to join her sister. Two of the men were already dead, ripped apart by the Big Daddy’s drill. They hadn’t counted on one of the metal protectors being involved - the things had never been allowed inside DYAD.

Walking back to her office, Brigid Tenenbaum heard the commotion and felt a wave of panic. She started to run.

Suchong stood back, well out of reach of the Big Daddy, a small frown on his face. Unpredictability. If only there was a way to wipe it out of existence. He heard Tenenbaum snap at him from behind.

“Just what are you doing, Suchong, you схиблений*?” She grabbed his arm roughly and turned him to face her. “Explain yourself!”

He laughed in her face. “What needs to be - done. You got soft, Doctor. Playing mother to -these-  girls, when they are nothing -more- than property and data. Walking laboratories. “

Brigid narrowed her eyes.

“I used to think like you, Suchong. Now I feel dirty even being in the same room. What we have done - what I have done - to these girls is wrong. Stolen their humanity, their childhoods...it is ганебний.*”

Suchong smirked...and then his face froze as he felt the barrel of a gun dig into the underside of his chin.

“I don’t really want to add murder to my list of sins,” said Brigid quietly. “But if it saves my little sestras…” She shrugged with one shoulder. “нехай буде так.*”

Behind them, a man swung from the Big Daddy’s giant metal hand, gurgling, while another body had joined the ones already on the floor. Rachel watched from behind the doorframe. She had been ready to zap Dr Suchong, just enough to knock him out, but then Dr Tenenbaum had arrived. Now she was taking quick shots at the other men, enough to keep them from grabbing Sarah and Helena, but she felt like she was going to run dry. She’d never used so much plasmid power in one session before, and it had been awhile since her EVE levels were at their peak. She gave her hands a brisk shake, then yelped as she was grabbed from behind.

Reinforcements had arrived.

They were prepared now. Men armed with electrified batons circled the Big Daddy. He turned one way, then the other, then went rigid as three of the men touched their batons to his torso. The deep whale-like bellow made Brigid’s head turn, and Suchong slapped the gun away from his face, shoved her into the wall, and made a run for it, leaving his operatives to finish the job without him. Brigid steadied herself and took a shot at his fleeing back, but missed as he rounded a corner.

“Put the gun away, Ma’am.” said a voice in her ear. Glancing sideways, she saw the Big Daddy drop down to one knee as he weakened under the continued electrical current. She couldn’t even see the twins in the mass of white coats. She heard the whine of the baton charging up just behind her.

She slowly put the gun away, and her arms were grasped and held behind her back. Through her tears, she saw the white coats form into two groups, and there were her little sestras, holding onto each other for dear life. Helena was still kicking and biting anything close enough, while Sarah screamed for their Daddy.

But he lay on the floor, a pile of metal and dimming lights, an occasional moan drifting out as the electricity sparked on his metal carcass. The big hand reached towards the girls still. The drill was motionless.

Sarah and Helena’s hands were white with the effort of holding on. Slowly, slowly, they were being torn apart. Both them were just screaming now, no words.

Finally, the men got Helena's arms free, and immediately yanked them behind her back and cuffed her. Before they managed to gag her, she had bitten one man's finger to the bone.

Brigid pulled ineffectively against the men that held her.

“немає” she cried, “немає! No!”

Sarah’s screams were completely hysterical now as she struggled in the grasp of the white coats, barely able to see her sister being dragged away through the tears.

All the two of them could hear was

‘lena‘lena’lena’lena’lena

sarahsarahsarahsarahsarah

echoing through their minds

Then it was over.