Sofia Lamb,

Protective instinct:

In my time as a psychiatrist I have come across all manner of people. But the founders and top players of Rapture are by far some of the most selfish… and yet one of the very worst of them shares a moment of kindness towards a boy.

Mister Fontaine would be what I would call a classic sociopath, with no regard as to what his actions may do to his fellow man and yet, even he is privy to what he would perceive as a weakness. I don't know how the relationship between him and the boy formed, but it's clear, no matter how he tries to hide it, that the child means something to him. There is a protective instinct towards the child and the child only.

One wonders… what similarities must he share with the boy to pull such a reaction from a cold and calculated manipulator.

Clayton grinned up at Mister Fontaine as he happily ate his ice cream. The ice cream salesman looked shocked to even have Fontaine there, but Clayton had been good. He'd put another bully in his place, in front of Mister Fontaine no less and the man decided to reward his victory.

They ended up sitting on one of the many benches of Rapture, overlooking Market Street from their vantage point of Hight Street. In the Corner sat Cohen's new club, the other side held rich stores, most of them had something to do with art of some kind. It was probably why the batty artist picked this area in the first place.

Clayton sat on the bench but not next to him. There was a gap between the two of them so you were almost unsure if they were together or not. Clayton was swinging his legs and licking his ice cream. Frank was smoking a cigarette and it had been by pure coincidence that he and the kid met. Apparently Clayton had learnt his mother's time table so knew when he could sneak out of the house and he was getting far more adventurous. He'd sneaked out to as far as Fort Frolic which was were Fontaine had found him. At first he was going to ignore the kid, but when he caught one mug eyeing Clayton in less than friendly ways, Frank instantly pulled the kid to his side. It had almost been second nature. That was worrying.

They'd argued a little. Frank had threatened to tell his Ma that Clayton was sneaking out, the boy then threatened to tell his Ma about the lessons Frank was secretly teaching him. Apparently he was teaching him too well because that was a move he'd do.

Now they sat together on High Street, getting a few odd looks, but a glare from Frank sent people packing. Still, Fontaine couldn't quite shake the feeling of being watched. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck prickle, but whenever he glanced around he failed to see anybody there. It was getting on his nerves.

"I got him good, didn't I, Mister Fontaine?"

Frank looked back at Clayton's beaming smile. He was missing a few teeth, not from the fight, just he was getting older and loosing his baby teeth. Apparently he had a new wobbly one, which he did not hesitate to proudly show Frank. He'd congratulated him because in all honesty what was he meant to say to that?

Now though, the boy was clearly talking about the fight he'd broken out into with another kid. Apparently this boy had been picking on Clayton for a while as well as a few of his new friends he was making. Even making friends with, god help him, Sofia Lamb's kid, Eleanor. If Fontaine was being honest, the way Clayton spoke about her, it was clearly a school boy crush.

"Sure did," Frank drawled looking around at the scenery. He'd admit that Rapture was impressive. "Don't think he'll be bothering you any longer."

"It's the monsters that scare me."

"Monsters?"

"The bad people who use the super powers."

"Oh."

Yeah, kid had a point with that one. One of the side effects that Tenenbaum and Suchong had only just bothered to become aware of, was the mental deterioration. Sure, they'd told him it was addictive and Frank had been so pleased at the idea of selling something that people would constantly want. The problem was if they didn't get their fix gradually they'd become less and less… cognitive. You needed more and more ADAM just to hold it back. It certainly had increased sales and initially Frank had been pleased. He became less pleased when these loopy plasmid heads starting taking pot shots at just about anyone.

Shooting fire out of their finger tips wasn't enough, oh no, these loonies wanted to carry guns around with them too. Insanity, Frank had found in the past, was dangerous, but insanity with a gun was worse. These idiots couldn't tell the difference between friend and foe, a joke or a threat and would react violently.

It wasn't so bad in the richer parts of Rapture but in Pauper's Drop, Artimise Suites… it was worse. A lot worse. There'd been several casualties over the past few weeks. Sinclair's Persephone was filling up more and more by the day with plasmid using loony toons who thought they were gods.

"Best stay away from them, kid," Frank muttered. "They ain't right in the head."

Clayton looked thoughtful for a moment, before he looked up at Fontaine. "Is it the super powers?"

Kid's too damn smart for his own good, Frank thought, almost fondly.

Instead he shook his head. "Nah. They're just crazy," he took a drag of his cigarette and blew the smoke to the ceiling. "Maybe the power got to 'em and they feel invincible or somethin', I don't know. You see any one of those crazies, Clay'," he fixed the boy with a stern look. "You the run the other direction or ya' hide. Got it?"

Clayton was smiling brightly despite the conversation. Probably because Fontaine had called him 'Clay', his nickname for the kid and Clayton loved it. He'd proudly told his mother about it in front of Fontaine and Em had glared at him. She was protective of her son and Frank couldn't blame her. If he had a kid, he wouldn't want him spending time with a guy like himself either.

Clayton, however, was a shadow he couldn't seem to shake. The kid would either be at Ms Em's side like a good little boy and if she wasn't there, he'd now taken up exploring or tracking Fontaine down. Frank was half tempted to suggest putting a bell on the kid, Clayton often snuck up on him. One moment he wouldn't be there, he'd turn around and suddenly be greeted by a mega watt grin.

He'd tried everything. Snapping at the kid, telling him he was busy, locking his door. Kid still appeared. Frank still didn't know how Clayton got past the locked door. He made a passing comment to Em about at it and she'd just looked at him funny.

"He's five, almost six," she'd said. "How could he possibly know how to pick locks?"

Frank didn't know but the little bastard seemed capable of it. The freakiest moment had been when Clayton had been knocking on his front door.

The elevator up to his pent house had a key code…

It was around that time Frank gave up trying to work out how the kid did half the things he did and just accepted them. It was easier that way and he had more important things to think about than a kid sneaking around.

"I'll run away, Mister Fontaine, promise!" He beamed at him, kicking his legs again, going back to licking his ice cream.

"Good," Frank put his cigarette out on one of the near by ashtrays. "C'mon then kid. You need to go home now."

"Aww…"

"Don't you 'aww' me," he snapped. "That shit don't work on me and you know it. Get going, finish ya' ice cream."

Let it be said that was a sentence he never thought would leave his mouth. Jesus Christ he sounded like a parent. He needed this kid to leave him alone, he wasn't good for him. He was an issue. There was a simple solution, Frank had considered it at first, just… kill the kid off. Kid's weren't tough. They'd be easy, he'd imagined, to bump off, but Clayton had just looked up at him with these big brown eyes and… He couldn't kill the kid. He just couldn't.

So here he was, playing parent for a tyke that had nothing to do with him.

Once they were safely in the bathysphere, only when Clayton had finished his ice cream, Fontaine turned to him. He held a stern look on his face, which shocked Clayton. It wasn't the usual stern almost friendly look Fontaine would show him, it was harsh. Whatever he was going to say next he clearly meant it.

"Okay kid, don't let me catch you anywhere near Fort Frolic again."

"Bu-."

"Ah! No buts, no ifs, no nothing!" Frank snapped, pointing at him. "You stay the hell away from that place and if I catch you there again, I will be telling Em about yous sneaking out."

Clayton gaped at him. "You can't do that! She won't let me go anywhere alone. I have to stay in the house, but I get bored!"

"Of course she won't let you go anywhere alone, ya five!"

"I'm five and three quarters!"

"Clayton!"

"Sorry…"

"It's dangerous," Frank stressed. "Listen, there are some messed up folks in this town and they will not hesitate to hurt you. Especially now some are splicing up like they are. You stay away from Fort Frolic and you stay away from Cohen."

Clayton looked down at his feet miserably, but nodded his head. It seemed like he'd had this conversation before. His mother had probably delivered it to him, no surprise there, Em didn't trust anyone. Clayton didn't trust many people either, but it wasn't about that. You didn't have to trust someone for them to pick you up and take you away and Clayton was a small kid. Just like Frank had been.

He knew the dangers better than anyone, he'd lived that life. He'd been Clayton. Maybe that was why he was so damn protective of the kid. He understood.

"Now," Frank straightened out his suit, glancing down at him and offering his signature smirk. "Empty ya' pockets kid, I wanna see what ya stole."

Clayton grinned and pulled out several watches and a bracelet.

Frank had bestowed onto the kid the greatest gift he could give him or at least that was what Frank thought. He taught Clayton how to pick pocket. It had taken a few tries and a lot of practice, but hey the kid was a natural. He blended in with the crowd and if he was caught, he'd get all teary eyed and go on about loosing his Ma before darting off into the crowd saying he'd spotted her. It was one of the many lessons Frank had taught the kid, he'd taught him how to lie too. How to adapt when a situation didn't go his way and most importantly, he taught the kid how to manipulate people.

All important life lessons in Frank's opinion.

"Not bad kid. Ya' pawn those off it'll give you some change in ya' pocket."

"Then I can buy Mama a birthday present!"

"I… suppose or you could get ya self somethin'."

Clayton shook his head, stuffing the watches and bracelet back in his pockets. "No, I have everything I want. I got my Mama, my house and my toys.. oh and my books! Mama wants some pearls but she's saving for a new house for us… she won't spend it on herself," he pouted, but grinned at Fontaine again. "So I'm gonna get her them!"

"Couldn't you just draw her a picture?"

"That's what I'm doing with the card," he frowned at him. "I wanna buy my Mama some pearls, Mister Fontaine. She likes black ones."

Frank didn't get it. He frowned at the kid. "Don't you wanna buy yourself more stuff though?"

"No," Clayton shook his head. "I started off with nothing… I didn't have a Mama or a home…" he frowned at the floor, but soon a smile was back again. "But now I have everything. I don't need anything else."

Okay so maybe Clayton wasn't completely like him. Frank didn't think that was necessarily a bad thing.

Work was a little different today, since everyone was congratulating Daniel on getting married. He had a big beaming smile on his face the entire time and wore his ring with pride. He didn't ever take it off, just worse gloves more often than before.

Kyburz and Em had smiles on their faces when they saw him. It had been only two weeks since Daniel had gotten married, he'd been on his honeymoon with Opal to the Adonis Luxury resort. Today was his first day back since then and Daniel had the biggest smile on his face.

Kyburz and Em had calmed down since that evening. The plasmid attack had scared them both, but gradually they moved past it. Kyburz would now walk her to work however, Em still had to leave Clayton at home, but she made sure the door was locked and even bought an extra bolt lock for the door. She couldn't bring him to work, now he had to stay at home on his own. She didn't like leaving him like that, but she didn't have a choice. She couldn't afford a babysitter and taking him to work at Hephestus was out of the question. The buildings Fontaine owned were a little different, because there were places she could have Clayton with her and he helped her with some parts. Hephestus though, was not like that.

Plasmid attacks seemed to be on the rise recently. It didn't seem like the people who used it were quite all there. Almost like they were very quickly loosing touch with reality. She'd seen a few more attacks down at the Drop, so she was going to buy another lock for the door later on today, before picking up Clayton. They'd go off to work at Futuristics building, Clayton would do his reading and studies, she was home schooling him now.

Em had looked at the different schools and academies but quite frankly she didn't know why any mother in their right mind would send their children there. In one school they were teaching the children how to use crossbows to shoot 'parasites' as the named 'Ryan the Lion' told them. It was sick. After seeing that and a lost worse, she decided to keep Clayton home and she'd homeschool him. She knew enough and if she taught him her business he might even be able to get a job once he was old enough. Of course, she wanted him to have a better job than hers, but you had to work with what you had.

Recently though, it seemed Clayton was a smart kid. A lot smarter than she'd first anticipated. She'd had to move him along quickly with some of the lessons, he was almost as skilled as she was. It had been startling at first, she'd never seen anything like it, but gradually she got used to it. She taught him at the level he needed and Clayton was thriving. He'd even started to build and make things with pieces of scraps. Everyday after work she would take little pieces home with her for him to play with. No one would notice some scrap pieces, a few bolts and screws missing.

One of Clayton's favourite things to mess with were watches. He liked all the cogs and mechanisms. A lot of the time he'd take the watch apart just to put it back together again, but if there was one he couldn't fix he'd keep the parts and make something else out of them. It would be Christmas soon, she wanted to give him his own tool kit, but she was also tempted to take him to the new ice rink in Fontaine's department store. Emilie had spent many fond memories on the ice back in Norway. Sometimes she'd go skiing too, that was fun, but you couldn't do that here. Those were things she missed about topside, but at least she could take him ice skating. She was certain Clayton would love it, he'd probably be a bit confused at first, he'd never seen ice before.

"Are you okay?"

"Hm?" Em blinked and looked over at Kyburz.

"You zoned out," he explained, looking a little concerned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yes," she nodded. "Just thinking about what I'm going to get Clayton for Christmas, I'm thinking about taking him ice skating."

He smiled at her. "Sounds like a great idea. I've never been ice skating myself, so I don't know what to expect, but I imagine Clayton would like it."

"Oh, ice skating is fantastic," Emilie beamed at him. "So is skiing, but you can't do that here… I miss that," she sighed, but shook her head. "You never know, maybe someone will open up a ski resort."

Daniel came over to them, the smile on his face was so big Em thought it would split his face in half. It was good to see him better than he'd ever been. She'd always worried about Daniel a little. He was self destructive like her. It seemed though, now both of them had someone else to think about other than themselves, they'd both gotten better. Em no longer drank, neither did Daniel. She might smoke a little more than she used to, but anything was better than being drunk.

"It's weird being back here," Daniel laughed.

"It's weird you being here at all, Daniel," Kyburz smirked. "On time too."

Daniel rolled his eyes. "That was the old Daniel Warren. This is the new one. I'm a married man now," his smile seemed to get bigger. "Can you believe it?"

"No," Pablo spoke, walking to them. "No one can," he placed a hand on his shoulder and gestured around the room. "You've put the rest of these sorry bastards to shame. Who wouldda' thought that you," he poked Daniel in the chest. "Would be the guy to get the girl in the end."

"Be nice, Pablo," Em warned, turning to walk towards their job, Kyburz, Daniel and Pablo right behind her.

"Me be nice?" Pablo laughed. "When have you ever known me to be that?"

This was how these mornings usually went. They were an odd group. What consisted of an Aussie, a Norwegian, an American and an Italian American. When Bill was with them they even had a Brit. You wouldn't usually pair such an odd group of people together. They were all so different.

Probably why we get on, Em mused to herself. We're all so different and yet so similar. We gravitate to each other.

It was true. When she first started working here, Kyburz had quickly gravitated to her side. Daniel followed a bit after because she and Kyburz were some of the few who were nice to him. Finally Pablo came along after Bill introduced them to him. They'd worked together topside at one point, but those two didn't really get along. Em figured there was some rivalry between the two or there was on Pablo's side.

They split off, but Kyburz followed Em to her work station. It was a smallish office, just round the corner from his own. Out of the way and more open, she had a view of the volcanic fields that surrounded Hephestus. He'd sometimes catch her staring out at the 'Hades fields' as they were called amongst the workers. It was a stunning sight, watching the red magma run through the rock in a sea of blue. The orange light casted a hazy glow across her work space, but she seemed to like it.

He wanted to talk to her about moving in with him again. As friends of course, he knew Em wasn't interested in him in that way… yet. He had hope. She might not be ready now, but she would be later. She'd see him eventually and realise how much he cared about her. More than anything he was concerned about her and Clayton's safety in the drop. The plasmid attacks were only getting worse and half the time they seemed random.

"Kyburz! Em!"

They turned to see Bill jogging over to them. He had a stunned look on his face, but he seemed excited too. Pleased even?

"Bill?"

"Heads up, Ryan's coming," Bill explained. "He wants to talk to you."

"Me?" Em pointed at herself, raising an eyebrow, Kyburz looked equally confused. "Why does he want to talk to me?"

She heard footsteps and looked behind Bill to see that yes Andrew Ryan was walking over to them, with Sullivan just behind him and Karlosky at his side. Ryan's security.

It wasn't uncommon to see Ryan walking around Hephestus, he did monthly checks of the entire city to make sure it was running smoothly. Em didn't know how he found the time.

"Here she is, Mister Ryan," Bill spoke, gesturing to her. "The best mechanic and electrical engineer Rapture has to offer."

By the look of Em's face, she wanted to protest, but that was probably a bad idea, Ryan didn't look to be in that much of a good mood.

Does he ever? Em wondered idly.

"Ms Lokken," Ryan nodded to her, before glancing to the rest of them. "Kyburz, I'd like to talk to Ms Lokken in private."

Kyburz blinked, looking at Em, worrying no doubt like usual. She offered him a soft smile and he returned it with one of his own. Leaving the office and going to his own. Em had a feeling he'd be watching though, keeping an eye out for when they left to check on her.

"You as well, Bill." Ryan glanced at the Brit, who nodded and left. He didn't seem half as nervous as Kyburz had been, but Bill was close with Ryan. Friends even. If Andrew Ryan had any friends.

Karlosky was standing outside her workshop, holding his gun loosely in his hand clearly standing on guard. Sullivan was standing next to Ryan now and maybe she should feel intimidated, but she oddly didn't. They weren't half as scary as Fontaine.

"What can I do for you, Mister Ryan?"

Ryan seemed to consider her a moment. He was studying her or that's what it felt like. Almost akin to the times Fontaine had studied her. There was a coldness in his eyes, like he didn't see a person but an object. A tool he could use however he wanted and throw away once he was done with her. That part was a little nerve racking.

"Bill tells me you're the best electrical engineer we have," he said to start. "I'm also aware that you have done jobs for Fontaine and Sinclair, and that now you're working for Fontaine part time."

"All within contract, Mister Ryan," she replied politely. "I've not overstepped any boundaries and I don't trade secrets."

He seemed pleased to hear that. "Good. I wish to talk to you about security," Ryan explained. "I'm sure you're aware of the recent attacks with plasmids, as well as Lamb's ilk."

"I live in Pauper's Drop, Mister Ryan," she replied carefully. "That's all you hear about down there, now days. I'd rather stay out of it."

"Quite. You see though, there is an issue with security here," he explained. "If Lamb is able to work her way into the workers of Hephestus, any one of them can enter my office," he narrowed his eyes. "That is a great risk to security. The central control and genetic key are all located in my office. Whoever gets their hands on that… they might use it for unsavoury purposes. I wouldn't put it past Lamb to move to more drastic measures. I would like to commission you to make me a lock system that can't be hacked or picked."

Emilie blinked. Was he serious? He looked pretty serious and Andrew Ryan wasn't known for telling jokes. He really was getting paranoid. She doubted it was just about Lamb either, he was probably worrying about Fontaine too.

"I see…" she was silent for a moment thinking it over. "I'm sure I can draft some ideas up, Mister Ryan… present them to you when their ready…"

"Be sure to be quick about it, Ms Lokken," he fixed her with a cold look. "Let Sullivan go over them and you are to work on nothing else until these plans are finished," his eyes seemed to get even colder if that was at all possible. "I expect results."

"Yes Mister Ryan," she nodded her head. "I'll work on it straight away, sir."

Ryan seemed pleased by this. He nodded to her and turned leaving the room, Sullivan behind him and Karlosky tailing them. The Russian glanced back at her and gave her a thumbs up. Em nodded and he nodded back before following after Ryan and Sullivan.

Emilie slumped in her chair, letting a sigh leave her lips. She rubbed at her eyes tiredly, thinking about what exactly she was meant to do now. Sure, he wanted a locking system, but what? Something that couldn't be hacked, that couldn't be picked? So no forms of traditional locking. Air locks? Could she do that? Maybe, but there were risks with air locks and too many variables. She might need to pay a visit to Minerva's Den. They had the latest technology there or claimed to at least, she was on good terms with Porter he'd probably show her around. Whal was a different matter entirely, he was a more stand offish sort. Always seemed to be constantly judging everyone.

A knock sounded at her door, she looked up to see Kyburz leaning against the frame. He looked worried about her, probably running over a million and two reasons as to why Ryan was there.

"You okay?"

"Yeah…" she nodded her head. "Ryan's commissioned me to make him a security system."

"A security system?"

"Well, a locking system.. for his office," she sighed and pulled out her note book and a pen. "Apparently he thinks Lamb is going to make a move against him. He doesn't want her getting into Hephestus or more importantly his office. He thinks she'll… I don't know take control or something," she waved around idly, scribbling some notes down. "I have to come up with a system that's un hackable and can't be picked."

"You won't be able to do that on your own," Kyburz frowned at her and she shrugged.

It looked like she might have to. She wasn't even sure she was meant to be telling Kyburz this stuff. Well, Ryan wasn't here right now so he couldn't tell her what she could and couldn't do.

"I have an idea…" she mumbled. "I'll need to head down to Minerva's Den tomorrow. Go over some things with Porter to be sure.."

"He deals with computer science," Kyburz frowned. "What would he know about locks."

"Maybe nothing, but he might no some guys that have the right stuff," she scribbled a few notes. "There's the robotics engineers and the like in that place. They might have some of the technology I need."

"Just… be careful, okay?" He glanced back at the steps, taking a few cautious steps inside to talk to her. "Between you and me… Ryan's been a bit…" he waved his hand around. "Ya know? Not all there."

"Then I better do a good job then, hadn't I?"

Kyburz sighed, nodding his head. "Just… please be careful."

"Always am, Kyburz."

Arcadia was probably what would be considered the most beautiful part of Rapture.

It was the one place where everyone, rich or poor could take a break and have a nice wander through the woods. Enjoy a little bit of outdoor life even in a place under the sea. Some parts were simply gardens, other parts were more rural, with caves to explore if citizens of Rapture felt adventurous. Shallow rivers ran through the forest, filled with freshwater. Open pastures were used to grow vegetables and there was a small orchard filled with apples, oranges, pears, a few lemon trees here and there.

Flowers lined many of the walkways, bees hovered and buzzed around them, the artificial sound of birds filled the air. The scent of the roses near the mill wheel filtered through the haze. Chinese lanterns in various colours lined the walls or stretched across small open spaces.

Arcadia was kept warm, occasionally it would be made colder to give the trees and people a more natural environment. As the months drew closer to winter, the temperature dropped in Arcadia to match. Leaves would fall and line the pathways, it would be the duty of those who worked in Arcadia to sweep them up. They would then be thrown onto a pile and used as compost later.

Some parts of Arcadia which was cut off from the main section held cabins, for the lucky few who could afford it to take a vacation. Some of the cabins had even been bought and converted into actual living arrangements for members of the Arcadia staff. They'd use all their wages to buy the cabin and alter it, then they didn't need to pay for anything else like travel.

Connected to Arcadia was the Farmer's Market. A place where fresh food from Arcadia could be sold by the very planters themselves. Fresh vegetables, fruits, cheese and even meats were sold at the stores. Mostly the meat consisted of chicken, turkey and other smaller mammals. One farmer even held a small flock of sheep. He'd able to convince Ryan to let him have the small flock, stating that people would get bored of just eating fish. Most of the other pieces of meat, however, were sold secretly. Supplied by Fontaine by smuggling them down. Most of those dealings were done behind the counter and sneaked in peoples packages. They were simply called 'today's specials' and whatever had been brought down, was what you got.

Farmer's Market was a picturesque place. It looked like a traditional market you'd get topside, paved walkways and more colourful Chinese lanterns hung across the walkways. The market was bright and colourful, always filled with life and the busy rush of shoppers. It was open quite late too and then the lights would dim and it would become a night market, with the beautiful light from the lanterns warmly glowing overhead.

A few other places were attached to Farmer's Market, like the 'The Silverwing Apiary' and 'Worley Winery' that were own by separate businesses.

The Silverwing, owned by Tasha Denu, was a very well established and popular shop. It sold Rapture's finest honey, but not only that the bees themselves were vital to sustaining Arcadia. The Silverwing had become so popular, that even the rising American Football team in Rapture had named themselves 'The Rapture Stingers' in honour of it.

Worley Winery produced some of the finest wines and alcoholic beverages in Arcadia. What many didn't know, however, was that most of the wine and alcohol was watered down. The owner only ever used distilled water, he argued with a few customers who accused him of doing so. Suggesting that maybe he should just take the water straight from the ocean.

All in all, Arcadia and the Farmer's Market were beautiful picturesque places that enticed many of Rapture's citizens. The best part of the whole place, was all of it was completely free or at least it had been. Now, however, you had to pay to enter Arcadia. You didn't have to pay for the Farmer's Market, thankfully, but to see the most beautiful place in Rapture? That you had to pay for.

Julie Langford hated the very idea of having to pay to walk through the woods. She may be a crazy or batty plant lady, but she'd spent the time to build Arcadia, it was her life's work. She was proud to show it off. Not many botanists could say they'd planted a forest at the bottom of the ocean, now could they?

Then Ryan came along, always Andrew bloody Ryan getting in the way of things. He'd wanted to boost profits in Arcadia, so naturally Julie suggested the oxygen supply. So now, she was selling oxygen. The most vital thing in this glass tomb and she was selling it. You could think it was a given, to have oxygen, what was Ryan going to do if you couldn't afford it? Cut the oxygen supply from that one area? Seemed absurd.

Still, Ryan had liked the idea and it appealed to him since it seemed Fontaine was already in the business of selling oxygen. Tooth and claw. That little futuristics building of his was proving to be a great success. So naturally selling oxygen in a place that created it freely, seemed the right thing to do and part of the boosted profits Arcadia was now producing rode on Julie's hip.

Paying to walk in the woods, however? Well that was simply ridiculous and she had argued with him… but Ryan paid her, he was the one who wrote her cheques, so she'd given in. She'd let him construct those god awful tollbooths and any and all free accesses to Arcadia was cut off.

Some people had been buried in Arcadia, towards the back, opposite the tea gardens. What where the mourners going to do the next time someone died? Where they expected to pay before or after they'd finished burying their dead.

"I simply don't understand that man, sometimes," Julie mumbled as she looked over one of her recent test results. She'd started playing around with ADAM and plant genetics, wondering what it could do to the plants here. Lifting her head up, pushing the glasses back up her nose she glared a little out of the window. "I spent years working out how to kill trees to scare the Japs, then he asks me to come here and do the same thing in reverse. I do that, as per Mister Ryan's requests and now… now people have to pay. Pay! It's absurd, don't you think Edna?"

Edna glanced up, she packing away from pots and flowers into a crate.

Edna Clarice was a small woman, who believed quite strongly in herbal remedies. She'd loved Arcadia the moment she saw it and now worked full time, even lived in one of the cabins. She was an Australian woman, her accent wasn't quite as strong as others, it was softer almost musical. Whenever Edna spoke, however, there always seemed to be this far away quality to her voice.

Her complexion was startling, she was pale, everything about her was pale. Pale blonde hair, pale green eyes, she looked washed out nearly all the time. You'd think she was sick, if you didn't see the slight hint of pink to her cheeks and lips.

Edna worked as one of the gardeners in Arcadia, but she also made and sold herbal remedies out of her cabin. She had her own little herbal garden right outside her cabin, where she'd go and pick things. Recently she'd been ordering sea water, mixing it with strange concoctions or pouring them into little bottles. She'd wrap a cord around these bottles, seal them with wax and sold them as tokens of protection. To keep you safe from the raging sea above. Edna herself wore one and she did sell a few of these little sealed bottles. Mostly they were brought by mothers who'd give them to children.

Julie, being a woman of science, thought it was utter nonsense, but Edna was nice to talk to and seemed to agree with her when it comes to plants. That being, plants were sometimes better than people.

"I think Mister Ryan cares too much about money and not enough about people," Edna spoke softly, she packed the rest of the pots away. "He cares little for their well being. Being in the woods… it helps you. Heals you…"

Julie blinked back at her in surprise. "I suppose I do feel better afterwards," she agreed, nodding tightly. "But paying to walk in the woods?"

"Nothing's sacred anymore," Edna said. "In Greece, Arcadia was considered to be the birth place of both Hermes and Pan. It was sacred, it was held in high regard. It wasn't brought to being so cheap as simply buying it. You couldn't afford it. Mister Ryan has taken away it's glory by making it something you can buy. Beauty like this is not something that can simply be bought and paid for."

"I'd have to argue with you on that," Julie replied, not quite sure where all the talk about Ancient Greece had come from, but this was what she meant. Edna could become a little dreamy and… odd, at times.

There was a reason Edna was named 'The Witch of Arcadia' by the children of Rapture. Hell, she was called that by some of the adults too. Edna had a very spiritual belief about her. Julie was surprised she'd even come down to Rapture in the first place, that Ryan had even invited her down here. Though it seemed that Edna did believe in science, she held in high regard, it was how she made her herbal remedies after all. She was a scientist, a chemist and botanist, she just took her beliefs a little far at times.

Julie was surprised that she hadn't gone off to join Lamb's little cult yet, but she supposed the woman loved Arcadia too much.

"How so?" Edna asked softly, picking up the crate filled with pots and a few potted plants. "Because you were paid to build it? The plant life and nature already existed, you simply happened to place it in a different place."

"That's… fair, I suppose," Julie frowned slightly. "But I now might be able to change such things."

"Just because you can, doesn't mean you should," Edna advised.

Julie rolled her eyes, glancing at her in annoyance. "Rapture is a place where we can push the scientific boundaries," she held up the bottle of ADAM she'd purchased from Fontaine. "And this stuff allows us to alter things even further. To really push our genetics and plant life's genetics even further."

"If you say so," Edna shrugged, walking towards the exit.

"And what do you mean by that?" Julie frowned at the back of the woman's head.

Edna turned to her and offered when of her little peculiar smiles. "There's a natural order to things, Julie. An order man was not meant to mess with," she added ominously. "And here you all are, playing god. There are some things we were not meant to know or should know, I believe that it should stay that way."

Edna Clarice,

New job:

Well here we are… I'm a gardener for Arcadia, don't have to pay to get in because I never leave, I don't need to. I've got everything I need right here.

The grass, the water, food and the small slivers of sunlight… ah yes… truly the gods have blessed me with such a place.