Chapter I: The Calm Before The Storm
Eleanor gave her mother a hard stare.
"You know…I really should kill you for everything that you have done here. If it were not for my father's influence, I probably would have let you drown."
Sofia Lamb just continued to look out into the vast ocean, ignoring her daughter completely. Eleanor was a little annoyed at this but what real difference would it make? Her mother no longer had any power over her, if she tried anything she would just be forced to kill her. Her father had taught her to believe in second chances, but that was it. If her mother tried anything else she would have to end her life. She was not going to let her endanger the lives of her eight sisters, who were currently asleep in the bathysphere, any longer. Eleanor turned away from her mother and gazed up into the gloomy sky. The raven haired teen smelt the air and grimaced, there was a storm coming. She hoped that it would change it's course and miss them but she knew that, that was just wishful thinking.
"Eleanor…can you answer me this one question?" Sofia asked, so softly that even Eleanor's advanced hearing nearly didn't catch it. The sapphire eyed girl turned to face her mother, a delicate eyebrow raised.
"And what information I pray tell are you asking of me?" Eleanor asked, in a rather disrespecting tone. The blond haired woman sitting at the other end of the bathysphere was already standing on thin ice with her. Her father had taught her to show mercy to others, even if they were guilty, and to protect the innocent at all cost. Spilling the blood of the innocent was a sin that Eleanor could never, would never, allow herself to commit. This is the reason why her mother was still breathing, like she said before if it were not for her father she probably would have let her drown. Sofia sighed lightly but went on with voicing her question.
"Why…do you love him so much? Was the bond that you and Delta shared really that powerful?" Sofia asked.
For awhile Eleanor just stared into her mother's eyes, she seemed to be in no rush to answer her question. Assuming that she wasn't going to get an answer, Sofia averted gaze back to the dark waters of the sea.
"Why…do I love him so much?" Eleanor repeated her mother's question, as if testing the words on her own tongue. She then started to chuckle lightly, she then erupted into a giggling fit, then finally full out hysterical laughter. Sofia stared at her daughter with a bit of fear in her eyes, she was beginning to wonder if she was actually all there. Eleanor calmed down a moment later.
"Why do I love him so much? Well, mother, lets see. He was everything I ever wanted in a parent and more! He actually loved me, hugged me and showed me affection, unlike you. Even though I was draped with an artificial sense of peace in my Little Sister days, I know that most of it was real. Whenever I was with him, I was at peace, I was happy…because I knew that I finally had a parental figure that loved me. Mother you said it yourself, you never loved me, I was only your little lab experiment. To you I was only 'The Daughter Of The People.'" Eleanor said the last line with a large amount of sarcasm. Sofia glared at her daughter.
"You talk as if that were a bad thing. Eleanor you were suppose to transcend into Godhood, you were special, you were made to do great things!"
Eleanor noticed how her mother had said 'made' and not 'born.' The raven haired teen just smiled at her mother.
"Well…I'm glad that I disappointed you." She said, turning her head up towards the sky. Eleanor sighed and got to her feet.
"A storm with hurricane force winds is almost upon us. If you don't want to get flung off this vessel and into the sea never to be seen again, I suggest you get into the bathysphere mother dearest." Eleanor said. Sofia was angered to no end by her daughter's crude remarks but what could she do? Eleanor was stronger than her and if she unleashed her wrath she would show her no mercy. Just like Delta, Eleanor was a force of nature when angered. Sofia sighed heavily and made her way into the bathysphere.
OOO OOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOO
Eleanor clutched the arms of the chair she was sitting in for dear life, her mother and her sisters doing the same as well. Eleanor had learned long ago that the sea was a cruel mistress that enjoyed making the lives of fisherman and the like utterly miserable.
That also went for people down in Rapture as well.
If maintenance wasn't performed on the water pipes of the city every week, they would start to burst then freeze over. Not only that but if there was even a single leak in the under water city, it could end up being a flash flood really soon. Eleanor growled as she bumped her head against one of the bathysphere's windows.
Oh the sea was a cruel mistress indeed.
A particularly viscous wave smashed against the hull of the bathysphere, throwing Sofia out of her chair and sending her crashing onto the cold, hard floor. Eleanor had grabbed onto one of the pipes in the bathysphere's ceiling for support, keeping herself from being thrown around like a rag doll. Her smaller sisters were all grabbing onto various objects to keep themselves from being thrown around as well. The raven haired teen had to suppress herself from laughing at her mother's misfortune.
Now really wasn't the time.
The bathysphere was pounded by yet another huge wave, this time Eleanor was flung from her seat. The black haired teen flinched as her buttocks hit the floor.
'Can't say that I didn't have that coming. Bloody hell, sometimes I hate karma.'
Eleanor thought to herself. The raven haired teen lifted her right hand and her eyes widened when she realized that she had ripped the pipe she was holding from the submersible's ceiling. Eleanor looked to the ceiling to find water pouring from the wrecked pipe line. The sapphire eyed young woman swore under her breath, now not only did they have to worry about being pummeled into oblivion by insanely powerful waves but drowning as well. Eleanor cursed her insane strength as she got to her feet, she detached her bulbous Big Sister helmet from the back of her suit and quickly adorned her head with it.
"Mother, I'm going to go check the back for a diving suit you can wear!" Eleanor yelled out, trying to raise her voice over the roaring fury of the storm. "Stay put and watch the children!"
As Eleanor made her way to the back of the vessel, she couldn't help but notice the fear in her mother's eyes when she had looked into them. Seeing the fear in her eyes would have had Eleanor laughing any other day, but right now she had to try her best to get her mother to safety. Eleanor knew that if she didn't try her best to truly save her mother, it would be pretty much the same as killing her. This would be seen as her purposely ignoring her father's teachings, something that she would not allow herself to ever do.
Eleanor trudged through the claustrophobic hallways of the bathysphere, her ADAM Syringe clanking against the metallic walls of the vessel's hull. Eleanor mentally gave herself a pat on the back when she finally found the supply closet. Just as she was about to open it, the bathysphere was hit by something with incredible force, most likely a monster wave. Eleanor was thrown off balance and her head crashed against the wall of the bathysphere with enough force to leave a dent in her helmet. Eleanor fell to the ground, the emerald green glow of her helmet's porthole quickly fading to black.