"Would you kindly?"
The words are still ringing in her ears, echoing in her skull, taunting her with their meaning.
No. No, no no. It...couldn't be…
Jack is the Ace in the Hole.
She had been right. Jack is nothing more than a pawn on Fontaine's chess board. But to have it so bluntly presented to her, on a silver platter...God, it hurt to think. To think that the man she had been about to radio was activated by the very phrase she had gotten for Fontaine so long ago.
But it wasn't his fault, she supposes. From what she'd found out from Audio Diaries and such, he'd been the unfortunate victim of scientific experimentation. She'd known he was a person, of course, and she'd known that Atlas intended to use him to bring down Andrew Ryan-but she'd never imagined (quite naively, she now realized) that Jack could be the Ace.
And...it was her fault.
Shaking herself out of her thoughts, she bends down to pick up the radio that had fallen from her hands. She inspects it for damage, and, seeing almost none, presses the button.
"Jack?"
She steels herself for his response, even though she knows it will probably be a normal one. Just because she knows about him now doesn't mean he does.
"Hey. Did you get it?"
She still flinches when she hears his voice. She tries to sound normal (and not guilty). "Yeah. So, how do I apply this stuff?"
She listens as Jack talks her through it, and when she's done, she tries the lever again.
It moves.
"Did it work?"
"Yeah. It worked. I can hear the bathysphere coming as we speak."
"Great."
Another one of those awkward silences that only seem to happen between them. She clears her throat in an attempt to disperse it.
"So, where should I meet you?"
"Whoa, whoa. Who said anything about meeting up?"
"Well, I assumed you would want to-"
"I just met you. Remember when I said I didn't trust people I've just met?"
"Actually, you never said that. I do remember you saying that you 'weren't too inclined to believe anyone' though."
"Well, I don't trust people I've just met."
"Something tells me you don't trust anyone."
"Well, you'd be right."
She pauses, wondering if she's being too harsh with him. She doesn't think so-just because she's just found out he's a genetic experiment doesn't make him a different person. He's still the same as before-but maybe, if she's with him, she can keep an eye on him. Maybe make him less susceptible to Fontaine's lies. Of course, she can't tell him that his buddy "Atlas" is a phony-that would screw with the future. No, she knows what needs to happen-but that doesn't mean she can't be around him to make sure he doesn't expire as soon as Fontaine is done with him. Because, believe it or not-she actually likes him a little bit.
"Where are you right now?"
"Uh-what?"
"Let me rephrase that. Where should I meet you?"
"I thought you didn't trust people you just met."
She scoffs. "Changed my mind, I guess."
"Huh. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say you don't do that often."
"Just tell me where we're meeting," she snaps.
"Arcadia. I'm heading there now."
"Arcadia? Where the hell is that?"
"I don't know. I just got in the bathysphere and pressed the damn button."
"Okay...guess I'll be seeing you soon, then."
"I guess you will. Looking forward to it."
"I could say the same."
"But?"
"I won't."
He laughs, which makes Elizabeth feel...weird. It's not an entirely unpleasant feeling, though. "You're a strange one, aren't you?"
"You have no idea."
Ten minutes later, and Elizabeth is standing in Arcadia. The first thing she notices is that it's easier to breathe here; probably because it's a part of the rest of Rapture, she thinks. Not that Fontaine's Department store wasn't-it's just that Arcadia wasn't at the very bottom of the ocean, like the department store was.
After a few minutes of fumbling, she manages to get the bathysphere door open just wide enough for her to slip through. She lets it fall closed behind her, wincing when she hears the loud BANG! as it echoes through the space.
Pulling herself together, she begins her long journey through Arcadia.
Arcadia, it turns out, is a lot more plentiful in supplies than the department store was. In the first twenty minutes, Elizabeth finds more ammunition for her weapons, a first aid kit, and a couple of EVE hypos, which she stores in a satchel she found not too long ago. She also finds a half-loaded pistol, which she promptly has to use to fend off a couple of Splicers looking for some ADAM, which she doesn't have, obviously.
She's just finished looting their corpses for valuables when she hears footsteps around the corner. She quickly abandons the corpses and positions herself against the wall, lead pipe in hand, waiting for the Splicer to turn the corner.
It seems like an eternity before he comes-but when he does, Elizabeth is ready for him. Before he can even turn the corner, she swings her weapon, smashing it into the Splicer's face with a thwack!
"Son-of-a-"
Elizabeth wastes no time in rounding the corner, lead pipe held high above her, ready to bring it down on the enemy's head. Before she can, however, the Splicer winds his arms around her legs and pulls, sending her toppling backwards. She falls to the ground with a thud. She struggles to get up, but she can't see anything-the world is blurry.
The Splicer gets up, pointing his gun at her face, ready to shoot. A few seconds later, he speaks.
"You're not a Splicer," he says curiously. He lowers his weapon.
Elizabeth groans, shaking her head. She immediately regrets the action; moving makes it so much worse. She clutches her head, willing the pain away.
When she opens her eyes again, she finds she can see. She looks up at the Splicer, who she now realizes isn't a Splicer at all-rather, it's a young man.
It takes her a few seconds to realize he's offering her his hand; but when she does, she takes with caution, allowing her to help him up.
She gives him a once-over once she's on her feet again.
He certainly doesn't look like a Splicer; he's wearing a simple yellow cable-knit sweater and slacks, and his shoes, although covered in blood and grime, were once (as far as Elizabeth can tell) fancy and new. He's tall, but he's not lanky-or muscled. He looks like your typical "man in his young twenties."
Elizabeth regards him with suspicion.
"Who are you?" she asks accusingly.
"Uh, well. My name's Jack. Listen, I have to be going, I'm supposed to be meeting someone-"
"Wait. Jack?"
"Uh-wait. Liz?"
She frowns. "It's Elizabeth."
"Hm. I like Liz better. Anyways, nice to finally meet you face-to-face." He offers her his hand again.
She hesitates before gingerly placing her hand in his. They shake hands for a brief moment before Elizabeth feels a jolt of electricity zap her hand, and she pulls it back in surprise.
"Ow!"
"Oh, damn. Sorry, I have a Gene Tonic that-nevermind. Sorry." He smiles nervously, brushing his brown hair out of his eyes.
That weird feeling is back, settling in the pit of Elizabeth's stomach and gnawing at her insides like a bunch of angry caterpillars. She tries her best to ignore it, instead electing to pay attention to the numbing pain in her left hand that even now is beginning to fade.
She clears her throat nervously. "It's-it's alright. Er-what Gene Tonic-"
"Static Discharge. I think." He looks sheepish now. "Really, I'm sorry. It's supposed to shock enemies, I-I didn't think-"
"Seriously, it's fine. See?" She wiggles the fingers on her left hand to show that the effect has worn off. "All better."
"Right, right. It's just-geez. Anyways, uh, now that we've 'officially' met, I don't suppose you'd like to accompany me to the Tea Garden?"
"The-what?"
"It's an area in Arcadia. I'm supposed to be heading there now, but-you know."
Elizabeth nods. "Right. Uh, yeah, sure. I suppose I could tag along."
Jack grins. "Fantastic. Let's go."
And just like that, he walks past her and heads to the Tea Garden, leaving Elizabeth no choice but to follow.
"Oh."
Elizabeth is stunned at what she sees. Instead of a pigsty, like she was expecting, she sees near everything where it's supposed to be. Trees-at least, what she assumes are trees (they look a lot like the ones in her books) are on either side of the small bridge giving passage across the river. Several more can be seen in the small space, dotting the scenery. Numerous bushes are scattered around the area; some with flowers, some not. Rocks are also present; there is even a waterfall near the bridge.
It's eerily beautiful, Elizabeth thinks, and she's awestruck for a moment.
"Wow."
She starts when she hears another voice, but quickly realizes it's just Jack. She shakes herself out of her thoughts and turns to him.
"So. Here we are."
"Uh. Yeah."
She walks over to one of the trees and places her hand on the massive trunk, gently running her hand over the rough bark. "It's...it's insane. Who knew that this kind of stuff could-could grow down here?"
Jack regards her curiously. "You really are strange," he comments, before walking over to the corner of the garden to inspect something.
Elizabeth walks over to where Jack is, looking down at the Audio Diary.
"Property of Bill McDonagh," she reads, taking the recording out of his hands. She presses play.
A second later, she hears a gruff voice echo through the room
"Seems like some poor blighters have started seeing ghosts. Ghosts! Ryan tells me it's a side effect of this Plasmid business. One poor sod's memories getting passed on to another through genetic sampling. Leaks. Lunatics. Rebellion. And now bleeding ghosts. Ain't life in Rapture grand?"
The recording ends, leaving silence in its wake. Elizabeth looks at Jack.
"Huh. Well, that explains it."
She frowns. "Explains what? Are you seeing these 'ghosts?'" she asks, raising an eyebrow in disbelief.
Jack doesn't answer. His attention is fixed on something behind her, but when she turns to looks, she sees nothing.
"Uh, Jack?"
Again, no response.
She's starting to get irritated now. "Jack!"
He puts up a hand to silence her.
Elizabeth has just enough time to bristle at his audacity before he straightens and finally looks at her.
"What?" He sounds annoyed, which makes Elizabeth even more irritated with him than she already is.
"What the hell was that?"
"It's nothing. Let's just keep going."
"No, what was that? Was it the 'ghosts?' Are you seeing them?"
"Yes, okay? I'm seeing ghosts. Everyone is. Aren't you?"
"No!"
"You-what do you mean, 'no?' You've spliced by now, haven't you?"
Elizabeth feels her cheeks heat up in indignation. "No, I haven't. I suppose you have? God knows you'd be stupid enough," she snaps.
"Hey, screw you. It's not my fault I want to get out of this godforsaken place. Besides, it's not like I'm going crazy with the stuff. I'm taking just enough to survive out here. You might wanna start doing the same, unless you want to die down here."
Her whole face is heated and her fists are clenched so tightly that she's almost positive they're drawing blood. She wants to yell at him-God, she wants to yell at him-but she doesn't. She has more self-control than that. Instead, she takes a deep breath and says as calmly as she can, "You know what? It doesn't matter. As long as you don't become one of them, then we're fine. Let's just...keep going. Okay?"
Jack, apparently, is not as naive as Elizabeth had thought. He seems to realize that he's tested her patience to the breaking point, and he immediately backs down. He sighs. "Alright. Fine. Let's...go to...I dunno. What's the next room?"
"I, ah…" She looks around for some sort of sign telling them where to go next. She sees a sign for the storage room on the far side of the room, and, seeing that all other entrances are blocked, decides that their best bet would be to head in there.
"There," she says. "It's a storage room. Could be some supplies in there."
Jack seems to consider it for a while. Finally, he says, "Sure."
"It's settled, then. We're heading to the storage room."