Note: Chapter 3! Quicker than the last chapter, although to be fair, this chapter was originally supposed to be in Chapter 2. I broke it down just so I wouldn't plaster a wall of text in the last chapter :P

And as usual, hope you enjoy reading!

******

Man, monster

:: click! Whirrrrrrrr.... ::

(Male voice; the same voice in the previous diary)

Choice. Choice is what the Protectors lack; they only do what they are programmed to do. But does it make them much different from us? What if their compulsion is no different from our own need to feed and sleep; their basic needs simply... refocused? If not for Suchong and Gil Alexander's work on their suits, the Protectors would simply fall over and die from lack of nutrients and fatigue.

We can choose in what we do – the Protectors cannot, and thus they are inhuman. But what if one chooses to be a Protector? What does that make them?

:: click ::

Another tingling sensation at the back of his head.

"Real nutjob, tha' one," Wallace had been accompanying Green since the Big Sister incident, picking up the scraps and scavenging Rapture's fall. "Why would anyone wanna be a Big Daddy, eh eh? Ya gotta be nuts if ya willingly loose yer mind, body and soul. Looks painful to be in too. Err, no offence..."

"..." :: thump... thump... thump... :: Green's footsteps sent minor tremours throughout the hull of Rapture. He understood everything Wallace had said, but had no reason, no need, to react to him. Wallace was safe, and that is enough.

Although, he was indeed getting on Green's nerves.

He was getting more accustomed to his body; where once only numbness greeted his limbs, he could feel through his suit – like faint prickly needles. It was also getting easier to think – not that he needed it. There was... something he needed, an... objective? He simply knew that he had to keep moving.

"Hey," announced Wallace, scurrying over with to Green, cradling various bottles and tins. "Don't mean ta burst yer bubble, but the 'lil Sis ya lookin' for? They ain't 'round no more."

What was Wallace trying to do? Green felt that he should be angered at that statement, but he wasn't. Lil Sis... it felt... familiar, somehow. Maybe it was important? Nevermind, he just needed to move on.

They made their way into a room; another shattered suite of Rapture. Green saw a few EVE hypos lying around, which disappeared under Wallace a split second later. Groaning irritably, the Bouncer lazily lumbered to another corner of the room; the world was safe for the moment, and his joints refused to move any faster.

He proceeded to turn a few things (and tables) over. No, not here. Wallace did his own scavenging in another corner, muttering to himself, cheering as he found more hypos. No, nothing else was here, the Big Daddy concluded, and headed to the entrance; his footsteps announcing of his departure.

Wallace scrambled to catch up, cheerily tucking away two more hypos he had found somewhere. His cheer immediately turned into fright, as the sound of a shotgun cocking rang from the entrance.

Three splicers stood by the doorway; a Thuggish, a Leadhead and a Spider variety. The Leadhead held his shotgun in one hand at Green briefly, before turning it to Wallace.

"Well well well, if it ain't Wallace," the Spider cackled. "I see yer still bein' a lowdown thief. It ain't enough ya stole EVE from us, but now ya came ta rob lil ol' us blind!" The Spider's tone fluctuated, ending in hostility.

"In our turf, boyo, thieves get it proper," the Leadhead chimed in, "Ya know what that means?" Something in the gun clicked.

Wallace was shaking. "C'mon now, fellas! What's a lil bit of EVE now and then, ey? Plenty ta go arou--"

"There ain't shit no more!!" The Thuggish blurted, "It's all going to shit, and ya jus' gonna leave us ta rot!!"

"Oh hey, c'mon guys, can't we all be re-reasonable?" stuttered Wallace. "Look fellas, I got two more.." his voice drifted, as he realised there'd be four of them in total, "Aw hell, GET 'EM BIG FELLA!!"

"..." Something had been unsettling Green ever since these three splicers showed up. The view of the shotgun, the hostile exchange between Wallace and the splicers... it unnerved him. Something whispers in his mind, something bad was about to happen.

And yet, he couldn't summon the will to do anything. The world was still fine, still safe; there was no need to act, no need to do anything. He glanced out of his side portholes, and he saw that Wallace was trembling terribly. It felt... wrong. Move in between them, said his instincts. Letting out a long, passive moan, the Bouncer lazily lumbered his way towards the entrance, hoping to stand between the splicers and Wallace. There was something he needed to... stop?

The three splicers did not read his intentions, " Tha's real funny Wallace? Ya think we stupid? Ya ain't got no Hypno. Tin man's just gonna walk out on ya!"

"You're meat now!" The Spider cackled, as the Leadhead took aim and fired.

******

Time slowed down as the Leadhead pulled the trigger; as if he could sense the splicer's hostile intent. All at once, he felt his mind and vision focusing into crisp acuity; his limbs, once felt cumbersome and bulky now weighed like air. His mind instantly calculated and considered the strengths, weaknesses, and attack routes of the splicers. Just as the splicer pulled the trigger, his drill arm shot out, blocking most of the palletes of the shotgun. He vaguely heard a groan behind him; he knew Wallace had been hit, and his lights began to glow a dangerous red.

The Leadhead wasn't even aware of what had happened, even as his body rocked to the motion of the drill, piercing his abdomen. The Thuggish was stunned, mouth gaped open. Maybe his fight or flight kicked in the wrong direction. Or maybe he knew it was his end, no matter what he did. Regardless, he swung his futile wrench at the Big Daddy's helmet; as it as clanged annoyingly in Green's head, he growled dangerously and planted his fist into the splicer's face in a blur of motion. The Thuggish's body was sent flying, and then tumbling into the distance – the law of inertia finally taking hold as it lay in a crumpled heap against the wall.

The Spider sprang into action; leaping up and clinging for dear life on the ceiling, managing to fling a couple of hooks at Green as he leapt. One of them pinged off his helmet, sending another wave of vibrations (much to Green's dismay) – the other sank into a non-metallic part of his left arm. Green grunted, not feeling the pain, but realising that he had been damaged.

The Spider crept along the ceiling, bending impossibly as he disappeared into a vent. As a last ditch effort of revenge, the Spider flung a hook at Wallace, who had managed to roll away in time. "This AIN'T the last ya seen o' me, WALLACE!!" he cried from the vent, and his scampering became softer and softer.

******

Wallace panted as he struggled to his feet. Limping, his white suit and trousers was soaked in fresh red blood; his abdomen and left leg had been hit. He reached down somewhere, picked up his white fedora hat and straightened it on his head, as casual as he can be. Green hadn't realised before, but Wallace's face wasn't as disfigured as the other splicers he had seen. Sure, there was a few lumps here and there, but he still maintained a rather human look comparitively.

Flicking his lights to back to a neutral yellow, he lumbered towards Wallace; instinct once again taking over the Big Daddy, as he knew the splicer had been injured. Wallace did not complain, as the Bouncer gestured softly at his abdomen and leg, changing his lights to green. The splicer nodded.

Green opened a nearby first aid kit, and pulled out a QuikAid spray-can; applying its ADAM-infused contents over Wallace's wounds. The splicer squirmed a little and gritted his teeth, but maintained silence. With difficulty, Green unrolled the bandaged supplied by the kit, and began to wrap the splicer's abdomen and leg.

"S'fine, Green. I can do it." A curt grunt was his only response, as a means to silence the splicer. There was... compulsion on Green's part, that he must finish this. Wallace looked on puzzled, but didn't resist. "Tch, fine. Ya wanna do the work, go ahead then!"

It felt like ages, as Green had to learn to overcome the short comings of his hands; an oversized hand and a drill for an arm, was not the best equipment when it came to bandages. Perhaps it had been an hour, or more, but the bandaging was finished at least. Somewhat.

"Ya tryin' ta turn me into a mummy?! Gah!" grumbled the splicer, "Ya shoulda let me do it; I can do twice the job, in half the time! Stupid tin man! S'least ya know how to use QuikAid; couple o' hours and I'll be right as rain."

Gradually turning his lights back to yellow, Wallace's complains seem to have gone over the Bouncer's head; he was unconcerned about his whinging. He was safe... now.

The splicer struggled to walk, before Green's left arm caught his eye, "Hey, wha's this?" he quipped, pointing to the Spider hook still stuck in the Big Daddy's arm.

"... Lemme get that for ya," Wallace continued calmly, as if regretting his earlier complains. He yanked the hook with one hand, in vain. "Hang on," as the splicer spat into both of his hands, and pulled at the hook with all his might. He literally had to plant both of his legs on the Big Daddy's body to get enough leverage. So it wasn't surprising that when the hook finally came off, the splicer sent himself tumbling backwards into some rubble.

"Gah, shit! Scrawny bastard's got a good throwin' arm. Fuckin' Joe."

Green eyed the hook that now lay on the floor, deep red blood mixed with black goo now seeped out of his arm. He knew exactly what he needed to do – going back to the QuickAid spray-can again, he obliterated it with his drill-arm, and let the contents leak into the tear of his suit, and his wound. Very slowly, he thought he saw his suit seal itself in response to the QuickAid. Nevermind, that will be fine now, he knew.

He turned to Wallace, and flicked his green lights for a second, then back to yellow. The business in this suite is now done, and he had to move elsewhere. Wallace lagged behind, as he made sure to carry as much as he could, despite his injuries.

******

And there's Chapter 3! I thought it'd be cool to rationalise the awesome power of first aid kits from the game, so I thought of the idea of these little magical sprays, that closes wounds slowly once applied. It's playing on the idea of how Little Sisters are invulnerable; so I splashed a bit of ADAM into those sprays.

Also, do review!