(a/n: Please enjoy and review!)

Ch. 6: Big Trouble in Siren Alley

The Atlantic train raced down the track, carrying Jack, Delta, Sinclair, Artemis and Wally along to their next destination.

The train passed by towering plants that grew from the ocean floor. Illuminating the darkness ahead was a single spotlight on the train. As the train raced down the track, Sinclair was talking with Jack in the rear half of the train.

Artemis and Wally sat across from Sinclair and Jack. They were cleaning their weapons while listening to Sinclair's stories about Rapture.

Delta was in the front, keeping an eye on the controls. For the most part, it was smooth sailing. But suddenly a voice came on the radio.

The voice was male and sounded old. The man growled "O ye who would murder the lamb of God, ye shall not reach her garden!" .

Sinclair's eyes widened in shock "I know that voice".

The group heard a deep buzzing sound and a large shape came hurtling towards them. Sinclair shouted "Get down!"

Artemis, Wally and Jack hit the floor but Delta turned towards the sound, only to see it explode in a bright flash of light. The entire train rocked and there was a loud hissing sound. Sinclair hit a switch and a metal wall slid in between the two halves of the train. The front half of the train quickly became flooded with seawater and then broke off, dragging Delta down to the seafloor.

Water dripped down the metal wall but they were safe for the moment. Sinclair sighed in relief "That was close"

"What was that?" said Artemis looking a little shook up.

The businessman's expression turned grim "From the sound of that voice and that warm greeting, I'm going to say that was Father Wales"

"Who's he?" asked Wally.

Sinclair explained "He was one of the men who designed this city. When Rapture hit hard times, his business went under. He was one of Lambs patients and one of her most devoted followers".

Jack looked out the window and searched the dark ocean floor for the front half of the train "Where's Delta?"

"Down there, somewhere" said Sinclair "It'll take more than that to finish a Big Daddy"

"What do we do now?" asked Wally "The front half is gone along with the controls"

"Not exactly" said Sinclair. He pointed to a small box on the wall. Sinclair opened the box revealing a secondary set of control switches and buttons. The businessman grinned, "Luckily Ryan thought of these sort of situations and installed these". Sinclair hit a switch.

The train shuddered and resumed its journey down the track.

Sinclair said to the others, "We won't make our destination with this limited air supply. Unfortunately we're going to have to make a pit stop in Siren Alley and hope to find a way forward".

Jack frowned "Unfortunately?"

"Father Wales rules Siren Alley" said Sinclair grimly.

Delta awoke and he pushed through the wreckage of the train. He looked up and saw the train car was still going.

The Big Daddy saw movement and lights coming from the window of the train. He felt relieved to know that his friends were alive.

Delta watched as the train moved down the track and followed a turn into a nearby station that was in Siren Alley.

Delta decided to meet them there. The Big Daddy turned and he lumbered towards a nearby airlock.

As he approached the airlock for Siren Alley, he heard Sofia speaking to him on his radio "I see that Father Wales has separated you from your craft and accomplices. And you still cling to life" she chuckled a little "Congratulations, Delta. Today you meet a man who has no fear of death. And for Eleanor…he would burn with a smile".

Delta entered the airlock and the water drained away.

Once the water was all gone, Delta entered Siren Alley.

Sinclair, Jack, Wally and Artemis found Delta.

After the train came to a halt at the station, they vacated the ruined train. Sinclair told them that their next destination, Dionysus Park, was currently flooded.

He explained that there was a pumping station in Siren Alley and to get to Dionysus Park, they would need to get to the pumping station to drain the park. The four left the station and made their way into Siren Alley where they met Delta.

Once they were reunited, the group went in search of the pumping station but they ducked for cover when a rocket went sailing over head and exploding on impact with a low hanging sign.

Jack peeked out from behind cover and saw a trio of Splicers attacking a Big Daddy. The little sister was hiding behind a trashcan, watching the battle and cheering on her protector.

Delta stepped into the battle and slain two of the Splicers while the other Big Daddy blasted the last one with his rocket launcher.

Delta killed the Big Daddy and cured the Little Sister. Once they were dealt with, Sinclair led them through Siren Alley.

Siren Alley was ritzy compared to most of Rapture. Even though most of the city had sea life growing, Siren Alley was almost devoid of any sea life.

They walked down an avenue that ran between two, towering buildings that had multiple levels where shops, hotels and apartments were. There were several other avenues leading to other buildings in Siren Alley. Artemis saw catwalks connecting both buildings together.

Sinclair said aloud "This place used to be quite a hotspot. Then Rapture hit hard times. After that, this place became a red light district. After that it went to the dogs". He shook his head slowly "Such a shame".

Sinclair led the group through a door, which led to a maintenance area. On the other side of the door, there was a small red wagon with a red plasmid bottle. Delta picked it up and he went ridged.

Sinclair frowned "What's going on?"

"I think Eleanor's talking with him" said Jack.

Sinclair glanced to Jack "Pardon?" Jack explained the girl he saw and what she told him and Delta.

Sinclair nodded a little "That does sound like Eleanor" he glanced at Delta "And it does make sense, considering that Eleanor was once a little sister"

"What do you mean?" asked Artemis.

Sinclair explained, "Little Sisters and Big Daddies share a bond of sorts that make them inseparable. Delta and Eleanor have a special bond. Now I don't know much about it, but I know that Delta was able to sense Eleanor's thoughts. She could be communicating to her old friend now"

"But how can Jack hear what she's saying?" asked Artemis.

Sinclair shrugged "Your guess is as good as mine".

Delta injected himself with the plasmid and the group continued on into the maintenance area. The maintenance area was spacious. The floor was flooded with seawater and there was a set of stair's that led up to an upper floor. Jack and Delta climbed the stairs and found a locked gate and a door with a number lock.

Artemis scowled at the door "How do we get in?"

"We find the code I'm afraid," said Sinclair. Wally noticed a tape recorder on the floor by a small collection of candles.

The speedster picked it up and pressed play. The voice of Father Wales spoke, sounding rather melancholy "Daniel... you and I drafted Rapture's blueprint together... 'Wales and Wales, Architects.' Do you remember? But Andrew Ryan led us astray, my brother... turned us from the Almighty. Doctor Lamb offers you salvation, Daniel. I ask only for proof that the barest flicker of faith remains in you. I left a gift for you at the Pink Pearl, in your... offices. Find the code on it, brother, and we shall pray together for your sorry soul."

Jack nodded slowly "The Pink Pearl, that's a start"

"Go find that code" said Sinclair "But be careful, there are whispers that Daniel is still lurking about the Pink Pearl. They also say that he's as twisted as his brother."

"Got it" said Jack, nodding.

Jack descended the stairs with Delta following closely behind.

Artemis and Wally looked to Sinclair "What do we do?"

"Lets take a look around" said Sinclair "And see what kind of toys are lying around". The archer and the speedster nodded.

The trio left and went to search through Siren Alley.

Jack and Delta found the Pink Pearl at the far end of Siren Alley.

As they approached the boarded up entrance, they heard Grace speak on the radio "I've got this maddening notion that I owe you my life stranger…such as it is. I'm sending you something in the Pneumo. I appreciate that you don't tell Doctor Lamb"

"Our lips are sealed" said Jack.

Delta searched through the tube that sat outside the Pink Pearl and found some ammunition, a first aid kit and some Eve Hypo.

The two pocketed the items Grace sent them and they entered the Pink Pearl.

Sinclair, Artemis and Wally were strolling down a narrow lane carefully searching through some over turned trashcans and wounding Splicers who attacked.

Artemis's radio came on and she heard Jack speak "Ok, we're here"

the archer handed the radio to Sinclair and the businessman said, "Good, now Daniel's office was on the top floor. Head up there now"

"On it" said Jack. For a few moments there was silence then they heard Jack mutter, "This place is fancy"

"It was" said Sinclair "The Pearl was one of the ritziest lodgings in Rapture. But during the war between Atlas and Ryan, the residents put themselves up for sale."

Artemis grimaced. They heard some clattering and Jack muttering, "Man, this place smells like a dump".

Suddenly there was a gunshot on the radio followed by shouting. Jack grunted "Call you later" there were more shots then radio silence.

Sinclair handed Artemis the radio. The trio continued down the lane.

After several minutes, Wally stumbled upon something that made his eyes almost pop out of his skull. He ran back down the lane to the small convenience store where Artemis and Sinclair were scavenging for food.

The speedster stammered, "Y-You guys gotta see this". Artemis and Sinclair shared a confused look and they followed after the speedster.

Wally led them down to the end of the lane and around a corner, into an alley.

At the end of the alley was a shrine. There were hundreds of candles illuminating the alley. Hanging on the walls were several paintings. Artemis approached the paintings to get a better look. Her eyes widened in shock.

The painting she was inspecting was of the plane crash that brought her, Wally and Jack to Rapture in the first place.

Artemis moved on to another painting. The second painting was of Jack, standing over a bloody and beaten Andrew Ryan. Andrew Ryan looked like a twisted demonic version of himself while Jack looked angelic.

Artemis looked at the third painting. It showed Jack, Wally and she battling Fontaine. Fontaine was bronze and muscular, Jack still looked angelic but Wally and Artemis looked rather plain and uninteresting.

The fourth painting showed Dr. Steinman standing at an altar of sorts with a mangled body laying on it. The mad doctor's hands were raised to the sky where three horribly mutilated bodies hung by chains.

Finally, Artemis came to the final portrait. It showed Jack and a dark haired girl, standing together on a peaceful beach. They were both dressed in white. Jack held a white, porcelain bird mask in one hand, and the girl held a blue butterfly mask in hers.

The two held hands with their free hands. A golden sun shone down on them both. They had serene expressions on their faces. A small inscription was made beneath the painting. The inscription read, "They are our salvation".

Artemis glanced at Sinclair and asked, "What is this?"

"A shrine I suppose" said Sinclair, sounding unsure "I heard Father Wales had a few shrines down here for Eleanor but I never figured that he added Jack to this madness"

"What are these shrines for?" asked Wally as he inspected the painting of Andrew Ryan's death.

Sinclair shook his head "I'm not sure. I heard that Father Wales turned Lamb's ideals into a extreme cult to bring in more followers for her but I never figured that it would be this extreme"

"So they believe Jack and this girl Eleanor to be gods?" asked Wally.

Sinclair nodded "Maybe". He saw a tape recorder on the ground by one of the paintings. The businessman picked it up and pressed play.

Father Wales voice spoke "Lord... what more do ye wish of me? Your wretch of a servant waits for word... I have followed the letter of the Holy Mother Lamb, though she will not tell me of the day of your return. I watched as ye smote down the false Father, Andrew Ryan - who tempted us away from your radiant graze. But ye would not speak to me, Lord! I have built for ye this great temple and gathered your flock, yet still you are silent. Will ye not strike me poor brother blind so he may at last behold your glory, as was done to Paul on the road to Damascus? I am alone, Lord. Alone... and waiting for a sign."

Sinclair paused the tape and looked up at the two heroes. Artemis and Wally both looked rather shocked. Wally was the first to speak "This guy is nuts"

"He is" admitted Sinclair "But, Lamb was the one who turned him onto this whole 'Father' thing. He was a brilliant architect when I knew him but after his visit to Lamb, he was a changed man".

Artemis shivered "This Lamb lady is starting to creep me out".

Sinclair glanced down at the tape recorder and muttered, "There's more". He pressed play and Father Wales spoke, sounding more upbeat "Mother Lamb has told me that you have returned to us Lord. My prayers have finally been answered! With thy guiding light Mother Lamb shall raise the people of Rapture from the depths of darkness and we shall be have Paradise as she promised!" the tape ended.

Artemis frowned and muttered "Guiding light"

"What're you thinking about?" asked Sinclair.

The archer explained, "Ever since we got here, Lamb has been gunning for Jack. I think that whatever she has planning, it won't work without Jack"

"We should keep a closer eye on him then" said Sinclair.

Artemis nodded "Right". They turned to leave but Wally told them "Wait, you got to see this"

The two turned and they saw Wally pointing to the corner of the painting of Jack and Eleanor. Artemis went over to the painting and squinted.

In the corner of the painting, the artist signed his name in small letters. The name made Artemis's heart skip a beat.

The name of the artist was Sander Cohen.

Artemis, Wally and Sinclair returned to the maintenance area where they found Jack and Delta. Jack was covered in blood splatters and cuts.

Jack explained that they had a run in with Daniel Wales. Daniel was elusive and hard to catch but eventually Delta killed Daniel and Jack found the code on the desk in Daniel's office. They went to the door and Jack began entering the code.

Once the code was in, the door began to slide open just a little then froze abruptly. Suddenly sparks began to shower from nearby consoles and the lights flickered then died.

Red emergency lights blinked on and bathed the room in a faint red glow.

Sinclair cursed and said "They cut the power, we're stuck until the back ups kick in".

Father Wales voice came on the radio, he growled, "Know this beast, Daniel's body may go cold but his soul rests with the child of the Lamb. You shall roast and blacken in the pit and it'll be a grieving brother who sent you!" the radio went silent.

The group heard Splicers shouting and clamoring their way. Jack muttered, "That's not good"

"We got to get that door open" said Artemis

Sinclair shrugged "We're going to have to wait for the backups".

Artemis, Jack, Wally and Delta readied their weapons and when the Splicers spilled into the maintenance room's entrance, they fired upon them.

For several minutes the four held off the Splicers and Sinclair kept an eye on the door. Once the auxiliary power came on, the door slid open enough for them to enter.

Sinclair waved them over and they all rushed through. On the other side, Jack slammed the door shut so the Splicers couldn't follow.

Sinclair wiped away some sweat saying "Nice shootin' now lets get over to Pumping Station five and get this over with".

The group made their way through an enormous plaza similar to the one they were in before. Delta, Jack, Artemis and Wally cleared a path towards the pumping station by wounding or driving away any Splicer that got in their way.

Sinclair directed them toward a few rooms filled with heavy machinery and through doors that led to the pumping stations.

Jack told them to go on without him and he explained that he saw a Little Sister skipping around at Joe's Green Groceries alone and he wanted to cure her before the Splicers get to her.

Artemis and Wally nodded and told him to be careful.

Jack doubled back to the Plaza Hedone where they came from. Unbeknownst to Jack, a Big Sister was hiding on one of the catwalks above, watching him go out on his own. The Big Sister cocked her head and stalked after Jack.

As Artemis, Sinclair, Wally and Delta got closer to Pumping Station five, they heard Father Wales speak loudly.

Father Wales boomed "Each of you know the child of the Lamb, with ADAM our souls will pass into her very blood and we shall be reborn in a single body"

Artemis winced "That's gross" "Tell me about it" muttered Wally.

The four descended down some stairs and marched on toward the pumping station as Father Wales' voice echoed around the hall.

Father Wales continued, "But the Beast is upon us children. It has a hide of iron, its hands are Death and Change. It walks with a silver tongued thief and two vicious demons from the surface. The beast has hidden our guiding light from us. He who struck down the False Father, they took him and hid him away from us so that we may forever be lost to darkness. Now they have come to seize the child from us and with her, Paradise itself!"

The group reached a door and they opened it. On the other side was the pumping station. The pumping station was huge and it was converted to by Wales to be a chapel of sorts, one floor below them where rows of benches for his congregation and the entire station was illuminated by thousands of candles.

On the far end of the station, there was a painting of Eleanor. Standing in front of it was Father Wales himself.

He was dressed in black, like a priest and a wide brimmed hat. With him were at least a dozen Splicers. Father Wale's eyes locked on Delta and he bellowed, "Be ye soldier of the ground or angel of the sky, ye must hold fast and send these beasts howling back to Hell!"

The Splicers hissed at Delta and the others. Father Wales jabbed a crooked finger at them and screamed, "Attack!"

At Joe's Green Groceries, Jack cured the Little Sister he found and he helped her into the vent.

Once he was sure that the little girl was safe, Jack turned to leave but he found himself knocked off his feet.

He crashed against a shelf of old canned food. Jack winced in pain and he looked up. Standing in the doorway was a Big Sister.

The Big Sister hissed. Jack saw his gun lying on the floor only a foot away.

He scrambled to get his gun but the Big Sister pinned Jack's arm to the floor with her foot.

Jack looked up and saw the Big Sister reaching down at him. Her hand clamped over his face and a sweet scent invaded his nostrils. Everything went black.

Once Jack's body went limp, the Big Sister heard Sofia whisper "Good. Now bring him to me, my child."

The Big Sister nodded. She scooped up the unconscious Jack and quickly departed the grocery store.

At the pumping station, Delta and the others were busy fighting Father Wales. After battling his followers, all that remained was Wales. He fought fiercely and screamed threats at them.

Artemis managed to hit him in the leg with her gun but the Father kept fighting.

As they fought, they heard Sofia Lamb's voice speak on the loudspeaker "Father Wales, this is Sofia Lamb. We have him, as I have promised. He is now being cared for now."

Father Wales let out a triumphant cry and crowed "Ha! Paradise is neigh!" he attacked Wally with a pair of daggers.

The speedster dodged with super speed and he knocked the Splicer off balance. Delta grabbed Father Wales and hurled him across the room. Wales crashed into some benches but he jumped back to his feet. He attacked Artemis who was busy helping Sinclair destroy an enemy security bot.

Delta intervened and he impaled Father Wales with his drill. Father Wales screamed in pain. The Splicer priest looked up at Delta and sneered "P…Paradise is...ours" then his body went limp.

Delta placed the Splicer on a nearby bench and turned to Sinclair and Artemis. The archer thanked Delta and she asked Sinclair "What was Sofia talking about?"

"I don't know" said Sinclair "But it didn't sound good" he turned and he rushed up a nearby set of stairs that led to a small room with a consol.

Artemis followed. She saw Sinclair work on the controls and he finally flipped the main switch. A there were some beeping sounds and Sinclair smiled "There, now lets get to Dionysus Park."

As they left the control room, they heard Sofia speak on the radio "Do you think me a tyrant? Vying for control of a dead man's dream"

"It seems that way" muttered Artemis.

Sofia chuckled and said, "Rapture is nothing. Rapture must die, so that Eleanor and Jack may rise from its body."

Artemis frowned and glanced at the radio in her hand "What do you mean?" "Allow me to demonstrate" said Sofia.

There was a loud rumbling and groaning. The pipes in the pump station began creak loudly then burst, spraying seawater everywhere.

Sinclair's eyes widened "She's overloading the pumps, she's gonna drown us!" he turned to Delta and the others "We gotta go, now!" the four raced out of the pumping station.

As they raced through Siren Alley, they saw the water level slowly rising.

Wally looked around and shouted over the roar of the rushing water "Where's Jack?"

Artemis shrugged. Wally took off at super speed and searched at the grocery store where he said he was investigating. The speedster saw that it was empty.

As he turned to leave, he spotted something running at top speed towards an exit. Wally raced after it and as he got close, he saw that it was a Big Sister, carrying Jack on her shoulder.

He tried to catch up but the Big Sister heard Wally coming.

She flicked her wrist and suddenly Wally was flung back several feet and landed in cold water. He got up and saw the Big Sister race through a doorway.

Wally tried to follow but the door was sealed shut. The speedster tried to find another way in but the water level began to grow dangerously high, so he turned and ran back to the others.

Wally found Artemis, Sinclair and Delta at the train station.

Sinclair had found an undamaged train and he was trying to get it to work. Artemis asked about Jack and Wally told her what happened.

The archer's eyes widened and she said "We got to go back"

"It's too late" said Sinclair "We'll drown before we could even get close to finding a way through. The only thing we can do now is to get to Dionysus Park. From there it's a straight shot to Lamb, that's where he'll be".

Artemis and Wally wanted to argue but there was a loud rumble and they saw water flooding into the station.

They boarded the train and Sinclair hit the switch. The train moved and carried them out of Siren Alley.

The Big Sister walked into Sofia Lamb's office with the unconscious Jack in her arms.

Sofia smiled and told the Big Sister "Put him with Eleanor"

The Big Sister nodded and she carried Jack to a small, isolated chamber where Eleanor laid. She placed Jack down beside Eleanor and Sofia told the Big Sister to leave.

Sofia inserted a tube into Jack's arm. A red liquid oozed through the tube and into Jack's veins.

The doctor patted Jack gently on the cheek muttering "Sweet dreams child".

She turned and left. Sofia had unfinished business to attend to with Delta and Sinclair.

End of chapter.

(a/n: what do you think? Since Sander Cohen survived in my last story, i thought he should make an appearance soon. Please review!)