I'm not deaaaaad YAAAAAY!
If I could frown, I would have. I shifted my arm a little, only to have one of the numerous girls latch on to the appendage. I wanted to move. To feel my joints rejoice in the fresh taste of exercise, but no, I just have to give off a stench (That I can't even SMELL, might I add) that attracts little girls. Wonderful! I wanted to speak up, to ask Jack, (who had fallen asleep, somehow) but to no avail. I don't have working lips, so that's probably gonna be really hard.
"Aha!" I heard a distinct German voice exclaim. Tenenbaum ran out of the house carrying what looked like a white handkerchief. She got close and waved it around a couple times. Nothing happened at first, but, the weight started to shift in the direction of the handkerchief.
Tenenbaum suddenly took off like a bullet. She looked like she was running for her life. The weight all but disappeared in a matter of seconds. The swarm of little girls were running after Tenenbaum, But something seemed off. Were they? They couldn't. They're sleepwalking!? How is that even possible?
You know what? I'm not even gonna be surprised anymore.
I made a move to stand up, but my arm was still heavy. I swiveled my head to see Eleanor, latched on to my arm as if for dear life. She, though, was clearly awake.
"Can you stay here for a while? I, um, I just want to stay here." She asked in a small voice. So there we sat. My daughter and I. I remembered how I longed to be with her. To just be near. I knew that the chemical bond had something to do with it, but I didn't care. If anybody, ANYBODY, takes her away from me again, I swear, their slow painful demise will be only a fraction of the pain and suffering I will cause.
"Hilfe! Hilfe! jemand helfen!" Panicked German suddenly pierced the air. I gently nudged Eleanor. She stood first and helped me up by tugging on my arm. At last! MOVEMENT!
German-sounding screams erupted from across the yard. I turned to run be a small hand on my chest plate stopped me.
"You're too slow, Father, let me." She said. And with an explosion of dark smoke and what looked like ashes, she was gone. I saw the warps in the air as she appeared a couple meters ahead of Tenenbaum. As she ran past, Eleanor grabbed the handkerchief from her hand and set off. Now Eleanor, much more agile and fast, left the girls in the dust. They still followed though, just at a distance. Jack (who had gone inside to eat something) just now emerged from the house with a blue rag. To which he joined Eleanor in the chase. He stayed in sync for awhile then took off in a totally different direction. To my surprise all of the girls who I didn't recognize followed him. When he disappeared beyond the hill, Eleanor threw the Handkerchief in the air. She then teleported to the roof of jack house in a plume of black smoke; using telekinesis she kept the handkerchief in the air and let the hoard of ex-little sisters clamber to get the floating white sheet.
Tenenbaum, who was still gasping for air, regained her composure.
"Let it fall!" she yelled with a cracking voice. Eleanor released the hankie from her invisible hold. The handkerchief fell like a butterfly with clipped wings. In a matter of seconds, the tiny square of white fabric was ripped to shreds. The girls suddenly snapped out of whatever trance they were in. They looked around wildly. Porter, who had at one point stepped out and joined in watching the whole fiasco, started clapping. I snickered a bit (which sounded similar to a choking whale) and joined in. Tenenbaum let out a small laugh.
"Come little ones! Are you not hungry?" She called out to the girls. The girls, still bewildered and sleepy, simply nodded their heads. Tenenbaum slowly walked inside, but before she did, she sniffed the air around me.
"Good, it's worn off." She all but mumbled. Everyone shuffled inside except me and Eleanor. She was still on the roof. She was about to come down when her head suddenly snapped to the left (the opposite way Jack had gone)
The look of utter terror suddenly took hold of her facial features. She ran to the edge of the roof.
"Father!" she exclaimed, "Hide, Father! Bad people are coming!"*
I gave her what I hope was a questioning look.
"They're not splicers father! But they're coming! Quickly!" She yelled with urgency.
I spun around and ran for the sea of trees. I heard the noise of teleporting. No doubt she went to warn the others. I ran through the trees. Paranoia was laced through my veins. The familiar weight of my drill was gone, so my feeling of control was almost zero. I kept on feeling that beyond every turn, every corner, under every rock, was an enemy. Was a splicer. I heard someone's deranged laughter behind me. I spun and smacked the thing with a plated fist, only to demolish a tree. It broke and snapped around my fist. I pulled it out and resumed running. The trees no longer looked like brown columns of wood, but blood stained walls chipped and peeling.
I heard broken breathing. I smelt the rotting food and corpses. I felt their bones break beneath my feet.
I heard the splicers rant, "Come back! Come back! Come back to us!" they seemed to whisper in my ear. Suddenly one of them swung at me with a blunt object. I swatted it away. I heard them laugh. I heard them mutter inaudible things.
"hello?"
"It was MY part!"
"Nurse!"
"It's just a little pinch sleeping angel!" I heard a little sister say lovingly to a corpse. I remember seeing it through their eyes. Ivy replacing rubble, rose petals replacing blood, everything so sickly sweet, I can't imagine being trapped in that fever dream! I heard the Rapture anthem buzz through mutilated speakers. I saw the mass murder; I saw the beautiful city plunge into darkness. I saw my beloved daughter being strangled by her own mother in front of me. I remember the feel of the bullet as it ripped apart my brain. I remember Eleanor's face fearful as she watched me commit forced suicide. I remember the nights when I would sit by her vent until time to harvest. I remember playing with her in the streets of Rapture; shocking wealthy citizens, drawing on the walls, collecting forgotten treasures and piling them by her favorite vent. And when it came time for harvesting, I would protect her no matter the costs.
One of the splicers swung at me again. I yanked it out of his iron grip and snapped it in two. I heard the sound of teleporting and turned to see a female splicer, staring at me with beady eyes. Its filthy face gave the appearance of melting skin and a crooked smile; its torn, dirty clothes looked like rags.
"Father?" it said.
Suddenly it didn't look so much like a splicer. Suddenly it looked like my daughter. Suddenly I wasn't in Rapture anymore. The wallpaper turned into bark ant the corpses turned into logs. The whispers was no more that the rustling of leaves.
I saw the path of destruction I had left. The trees arms were ripped off, the ground left the indentations of my boots. I was breathing normally. There was an uneasy silence between us. A single tear rolled down her cheek.
"I know father." She said in a crying voice. " It happened to me too. I was restless after you put me to bed. I was so tired, but I couldn't sleep. Something was gnawing at me from the inside. So to relive this feeling, I took a walk out in these woods. The feeling only got worse. It was like I was walking through Rapture again. The trees turned into the endless corridors we used to traverse, except, I didn't see it through the thick film of little sisterhood. I saw it as it really was. It was like my brain was recalling the memories unaltered. I remember how sweet the angel's blood used to taste. It scares me to the point of insanity. Paranoia is something that everybody, who has ever even visited Rapture, suffers. My mother said so herself."
I walked over to Eleanor, who was now full out sobbing, and wrapped my arms around her. She wept into my chest. I wish I had a voice. I wish I could tell her, 'I'm here for you'
O)O(O
Jack POV
O)O(O
I bolted down the asphalt with the neighbors kids at my heels. Their house was coming up in the horizon. Once there I ran around back, thanking God that the kids had left the window open. I tossed the rag through the window and dove in a bush. The kids all scrambled inside to get a taste (or whiff I'm not even sure what's on that rag). Once they were safely inside a sprinted down the street again. Our property is about a mile long, so we have our privacy. It takes a few minutes to get to the neighbors house on foot. Thankfully, some of the tonics and plasmids that I put in my system still work, but that is a blessing and a curse. So papers get singed , unplugged electronics turn on mysteriously when I'm handling them, bees will occasionally appear at random, my image seems to shimmer if I stand still for too long, you know, the whole nine yards. When I see my house comes up in view, I see two cars parked out in front that aren't mine. Instantly, I think of the worst. Someone found out about the forged birth certificates! Or Someone found us!
We've moved 11 times since we came here. When I got to the house I nearly ripped open the screen door trying to get inside. Waiting there was a man in a suit, sitting on our couch enjoying a cup of tea. Tenenbaum looked at me in a certain way. I knew that look. It was the play along or this person will shoot us look. I quickly regained a calm composure. The man sat down his tea and stood up. He was a young guy, no more than twenty-two. His suit was clean and wrinkle-free. He had a moderate build. If I had to I could beat him in a fight. Scratch that, I could definitely beat him in a fight. He was a pretty-boy. He was like the high-school equivalent of the popular kid; with that dirty blond hair and those mischievous blue eyes. I wouldn't trust this guy with a speck of dirt.
"Oh, Hello Mr. Ryan! I was just waiting here for you. Your maid said you were on a walk." He said in a voice that suited his character. I stole a glance at Tenenbaum. I talk about this later with her.
"Oh yes, I'm sorry I wasn't expecting company." I answered. "If you're selling something, though, I would advise you to leave."
He chuckled a bit and out stretched his hand.
"No, no! Nothing of the sort. My name is Alexander Rector, but you could call me Alex if you want."
I took his hand and shook it firmly. His though squirmed under the sudden pressure. He acted like he didn't notice, but I'm sure I got my message across. I'm one tough son-of-a-bitch don't mess with me.
"Ah yes, on with the reason why I'm here." He quickly added. "I'm here on official government business. Not with you, though, but with what might be stowing away with you."
"Go on." I commanded.
"Well, do you know what the Frozen Triangle is?" he asked.
"Not a clue." I replied.
"It's sort of like the Bermuda Triangle, but up north near Greenland." He explained. I already knew full well what it is. But I'm not gonna let him know that. I simply nodded and waited for him to continue.
"Yesterday, a small vessel came from that triangle. Nothing like that has ever happened since 1919. We tracked the vessel all the way to a port that is about a couple miles away from here, near the heart of New York City. When we went to the port, which was abandoned, it exploded and killed three government officials. After the fire went out we scoured the area for evidence. We found nothing except the remains of a strange submersible and half a map of this area. We are going around asking if anyone had seen anything strange or have strange things happen to them." He finished off.
"Sorry, but nothing strange has happened. Sorry to disappoint." I answered.
He gave a frown and handed me a card.
"Well, if you do see or hear anything strange give me a call." He stepped out the screen door. "Oh, yes. Whatever happened to your door?" He asked from behind the screen.
"A couple kids in the neighborhood thought I'd be funny if the scratched peace signs into the wood. I took it off and dropped it off at the dump. Goodbye, Alex. Hope you find what you're looking for." With that I turned back and had a conversation about strangers with my 'maid'. He simply left in the smaller car with the black van trailing behind him.
Merry whatever doesn't offend you!
This is a present for the Holidays!
Eleanor has the ability to sense if people have bad intent towards her or Delta due to all the Adam pumping through her veins. She has other powers too. Maybe I'll incorporate them…
ALRIGHT!