As a heads up to those reading, a couple weeks from now will by getting very busy for me. Studying for finals, putting together end of semester projects, and working extra hours means that I might have to delay a chapter or two. I'll do my best to keep that from happening, but I may end up missing a week.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bioshock or any of the characters

Over the years, Tomas had forced himself to do many difficult things. None of them had been as hard as keeping still in this moment. He stood with his back to the wall, the object of his hatred sitting only a couple feet away. Outside the bulkhead door to Tenenbaum's office, a group of colonists had gathered with Archer at their head. They all wanted to get at the man he was supposed to be keeping under lockdown.

Stanley Poole had seen better days. He suffered from a black eye, a torn lip, and enough bruising to make him look like his face had been used as a trampoline by a hoard of brute splicers. He was tied to a chair in the middle of the office. Tomas, being head of the security force in Pauper's Drop, was here to ensure both that he didn't try to break free as well as to keep the angry mob from tearing him apart.

It didn't help that Tomas wanted to gut the man with his bare hands.

Eleven people had been killed in the attack. An attack that wouldn't have happened without Stanley. He wasn't too clear on the details, but anybody could see that the bastard had sold them out to the splicers.

Every life lost was a tragedy, each individual irreplaceable, but one stuck out from the rest.

Joseph.

Just thinking about it made Tomas's ears ring and his vision go hazy as anger built up in his system. It wasn't just that Joey had been their brightest technician. It wasn't just that he had family still alive in this place. It was his age. Almost all of those in the colony were people who had originated from the surface. They'd come to Rapture seeking their fortunes and glory and had managed to cling to life when everything had gone to hell.

Joseph was one of those poor fools who'd been unlucky enough to be born here. He hadn't chosen to come here. He'd never seen the sun, or sky, or felt what it was to breathe in air that didn't reek of death.

And now he never would.

"Open the fucking door Tomas! I know you can hear me!" Archer's voice roared over the intercom. He wanted to. So badly. He wanted to open the doors and throw the filthy man into the raging masses outside. But he couldn't. Tenenbaum had given him an order. He knew better than to disobey.

Stanley barely reacted to the calls for his death. He'd hardly moved since regaining consciousness, which was probably for the best. Tomas might have been willing to swallow his pride on the doctor's orders, but he wasn't above using any errant twitch as an excuse to start venting some of his frustration on the helpless man.

Very suddenly, the noise outside started to quiet down. That could mean only one thing.

"Doctor's back." He stated, speaking more to himself than his charge. Picking his shotgun up from its resting place against the wall next to him, he stood at the ready as the doors opened. The twinge of pain that came from wrapping his injured hand around the weapon was ignored.

As expected, Tenenbaum's image was the first thing that greeted him. She looked remarkably calm given the fact that there was a mob of people standing behind her and sending dark glares into the room. As she stepped inside, Archer darted forwards only to be stopped as Tomas raised his weapon. The two of them stood in a silent battle of wills until he spoke.

"Get. Out. Of. The. Way." Archer said softly, putting emphasis on each word. His voice was ragged, and the look in his eyes left no doubt as to the amount of pain he was holding inside.

"Back up." Tomas ordered, his aim never wavering. His warning caused the boy's face to twist into a snarl.

"Or what!?" He shouted, taking an aggressive step forward despite the shotgun being pointed at him. "Or you'll shoot me!? Don't tell me you honestly think that bastard deserves to live after leading them here!"

"The doctor wants him alive." Tomas answered, carefully keeping his tone devoid of any emotions. Now wasn't the time for that.

They returned to their silent staring match. Tomas's finger wasn't on the trigger, but it could be brought there in an instant. He prayed that Archer wouldn't do anything too stupid. He didn't want to have to hurt him.

Eventually, the boy's shoulders sagged. Without a word, he turned and made his way back through the crowd. Several people who weren't fast enough to get out of the way were elbowed aside as he passed.

Tomas watched him go, his face unreadable. When nobody else tried stepping forward to test his resolve, he stood back and allowed the doors to close.

"Thank you for that." Tenenbaum said behind him. "I know it isn't easy, but we can't afford to be sowing more violence at the moment." He just grunted in response.

With a soft sigh, the doctor took a seat at her desk directly across from Stanley's bound form. She observed him for a time. The only sound was the ticking of an old clock that had been left in the corner. He didn't meet her gaze, instead choosing to stare blankly at a crack in the floorboards.

"Mister Poole." She said at last. "Look at me."

Stanley was slow to respond, but the sound of Tomas approaching from behind prompted him to obey. His battered face rose to face her with the kind of hopeless apathy that came from knowing you had very little hope for survival.

"What do you want?" He asked, a dribble of blood spilling as the words opened up the cut on his mouth. "Just tell him to shoot me already. I know you're going to, so for Christ sake stop dragging it out will ya?"

Tenenbaum responded by folding her arms on the desk in front of her. Leaning forwards, she fixed him with a serious stare.

"There are many people here who want you dead, but I am not one of them." She didn't react to the growl of disapproval coming from Tomas, instead keeping her full attention on the bound man. "If you wish to survive here, you will need to tell me how you came to be fighting for those men. How did you slip away? Why turn against us? Revenge? How much have you told them?"

A bitter chuckle rose from his chest at her questions. It was clear that he didn't believe her when she said that he had a chance at living through this.

"Well doc." He began. "To answer you in order, I snuck out a couple days ago when things were hectic around here. I 'turned against you' because some freak hit me with a plasmid that turned my brain to mush. Couldn't even speak without them telling me I was allowed to. And for how much I told 'em, everything. Every-fucking-thing. The layout of this place, the guard patrol schedules that I learned, the path I used to sneak out, the color shoes you guys wear. Everything. Not just because I wanted to get back at you either. I didn't have a choice. If I got my way, I'd be back in my little holdout right now trying to forget this whole damn mess."

Tenenbaum took in the information with an attentive silence. She didn't interrupt, and when he made it clear that he was finished talking she looked down, placing her thumbs up to her forehead.

"That is what I was afraid of."

Taking a breath to regain her composure, she turned her head towards the other man in the room.

"Tomas, it would seem that Pauper's Drop is no longer secure." She said, taking on a businesslike tone that meant there was a job she needed done. "If you are sufficiently recovered from your other mission, I would like you to take on a special assignment for me. I fear that it can't be delayed for another moment. Now that they know how to strike at us, we must make haste to escape before another attack may be thrown our way."

The man cracked his neck, bringing the shotgun up to his chest in a ready position. He'd spent too long sitting here doing nothing.

"Just say the word doctor." He replied. "Whatever it is, you can consider it done."

Epsilon stared intently at the piece of paper in front of her. The cracked pencil in her hands hovered above it with the single-minded concentration, focusing every ounce of her strategic training into one singular moment. She should pick the bottom left. Yes, definitely. Though that would let her opponent take the top right unopposed. Did that matter? She needed three areas under control that all lined up to win, so maybe conceding half the territory wasn't the smartest idea. But where would be better? Maybe… ha! That's it!

A triumphant smile forming on her face, Epsilon penciled in a small x directly in the center of the grid. It gave her access to all manner of possible attack avenues and ensured that she would be the one dictating how the next few turns would go.

Grinning softly at her cleverness, she sat back and let Gwen take her turn. Not that she could possibly win at this point as far as Epsilon could see. The big sister had taken any possible moves into consideration, and this should give her the guaranteed advantage.

Nearby, Davian looked on in a chair while resting his head on one hand. He'd been very quiet ever since hearing about Joseph's death, but pretended that nothing was wrong whenever Gwen started to worry. Epsilon supposed that it was his way of grieving. She didn't know if the two of them had actually been friends or if he was just like this out of sympathy, but looking at him whenever he thought nobody was paying attention made her start grow concerned.

After the attack, almost all activity in the colony had ground to a halt and didn't seem to be getting back on track any time soon. To pass the time, they'd retired back to their room where Davian had come up with this game. Tic-something-or-other. It had some ridiculous name that he'd probably made up on the spot. It was a strategy game that involved filling up a grid with circles and x's to get three in a row while blocking the opponent from doing the same. Epsilon had lost her first few bouts to him, but she was improving quickly.

Gwen on the other hand, was having a bit of trouble. She pouted, unsure of how best to counter the big sister's flawless and brilliant strategy. She directed a couple questioning glances at Davian, looking to him for guidance. Fine. She was all right with that. Not even he could possibly figure a way out of this.

After several more moments of hesitant decision-making, the girl finally put a circle in the bottom left corner. Two avenues for her to maneuver in. Smart. But not smart enough. Epsilon followed up by blocking of the top left corner, ensuring she only had one other direction to go. Seeing only one possible move, Gwen chose the bottom right corner to block off her victory. This continued for several more moves before Epsilon realized that her perfect strategy hadn't been so perfect after all. The grids had been filled and neither of them had a row of three.

Gwen frowned at the filled boxes as though someone had just kicked her favorite kitten.

"Mister M?" She asked, turning to Davian. "Can I play against you some more now?"

Epsilon just shook her head with a huff. She knew that he'd been letting Gwen win whenever the two of them played. It was painfully obvious, meaning the girl was entirely oblivious or just chose not to notice his ploy. Either way, she preferred playing against him for obvious reasons.

With a forced smile, he left his position on the chair to kneel down on the ground where they had been playing. Epsilon sat back to let the two of them go at it.

She couldn't help but notice the way that Gwen instantly brightened up when he got near. Even though she'd been trying her best to connect to the girl, there was still a barrier in the way. Epsilon suddenly felt empty as the thrill of competition was replaced by the knowledge that she couldn't reclaim what the two of them had once had. Her smile fell into a frown which she quickly hid by pulling her knees up to her face.

It wasn't Gwen's fault. She was almost certain that the girl would open up to her given enough time and motivation. No, this blockade was one she'd set up on herself. It was because of those two. Davian, and… Delta… She didn't want to compare the two of them. It was wrong. Sick.

Davian was a good person who'd become her first friend outside of her sisters. Just being around him made her feel like things were worth all the fighting. That they actually had a chance of righting all the wrong that existed around them.

Delta on the other hand, was a monster. A murderer. He'd destroyed her home, murdered her sisters, and stolen away Eleanor, the dearest member of her family next to mother herself.

And yet, they'd both done the same thing. They'd taken the little sisters and turned them human once more. The more of Gwen she saw, the more she started to wonder if this truly was the hellish fate that she'd been told.

It made her doubt whether or not Delta was truly as terrible as she'd believed.

Epsilon simply couldn't deal with that, and so she continued to distance herself from the girl. It was survival. She couldn't allow herself to get too close, or she might start to doubt the very driving force that had kept her alive this long. She couldn't possibly handle the concept that her sisters had died for nothing.

She was brought out of her thoughts as a childish squeal of joy sounded throughout the room. A quick look told her that Davian had once again lost to Gwen, though he now had a much more genuine smile on it.

"One more time mister M, please?" She asked, gesturing for him to draw a new grid for them to play on. His response was interrupted as a knock sounded on the door. Epsilon gave an involuntary jolt, her nerves still geared towards the earlier fight. After a moment, Davian got up to answer it.

He made his way across the room, opening the door a crack. Judging by the look of surprise he wore, it wasn't someone he was expecting.

"Davian? May I come in?" Came a female voice on the outside. It was familiar, though Epsilon couldn't place it at the moment. The big sister got to her feet just in case there was the possibility of a confrontation.

"Oh, yeah, sure." He answered, getting over his initial unexpectedness of the visit. He opened the door the rest of the way, revealing Doctor Tenenbaum's figure on the other side. Stepping back to let her inside, he took a seat on the bed nearest to the door.

The woman took several steps inside, choosing to stand rather than take a seat. She bid Epsilon a quick nod as a form of greeting. When her eyes found Gwen, the serious expression she'd been wearing softened into a sad smile.

"I see you took my advice to heart." She commented, directing the remark towards Davian. He offered a small shrug. Gwen, in response to the unexpected attention, took the opportunity to crawl up on the bed and half-hide behind his back.

"I take it this isn't a personal visit?" He asked, getting straight to the point. "Do you need us to help with fixing something?"

"I do need your help yes, though not with fixing anything." Tenenbaum replied, her face taking on the serious expression once more. "As you may be aware, Stanley Poole has given quite a bit of our security information to those who would do us harm. Since the safety of the colony has been jeopardized, it has become vital for us to hasten our departure from Rapture as much as possible."

"Wait, hold on a second." Davian interrupted, holding up a hand. "Did you say Stanley Poole? The same guy that came with us when we arrived?"

She nodded. "The very same. From what I've gathered, he slipped away during the aftermath of your last mission before being captured and subjected to a hypnotize plasmid. Is something wrong?" His face had gone somewhat pale and it looked like he was trying to focus on something. After several moments he regained his composure enough to answer.

"No, nothing's wrong. I was just… I was remembering a warning someone gave me a while ago."

Epsilon gave him a questioning look. Was he talking about the other colonists? She knew they didn't like the guy, but she couldn't remember any of them saying that he'd turn on them like this. Either knowing what he was referring to or deciding it wasn't important enough to worry about, Tenenbaum continued.

"A short while before the attack, a group of people I'd sent out on a special job returned. Or rather, one of them did." Judging from the grim expression she had, the job had gone badly. "They were sent to locate the final piece we need in order to escape from this city. The codes that can be used to control the automated torpedo system."

Both Davian and Epsilon could see where this was going.

"Let me guess." He said. "Someone else beat you to it? Hawthorn has them now, doesn't he?"

"No. Not Hawthorn." She assured, though it didn't look like the alternative would be any better. "The team I sent was ambushed by a group of spider splicers. Only one managed to escape. The survivor was a woman by the name of Emma. She brought a mask back with her that has left only one suspect for who was behind this."

Epsilon felt a frown growing on her face. Spiders weren't the most common splicers out there, and they had a tendency of being highly unstable. Few groups were bold or stupid enough to try and gain their loyalty. Seeing the unspoken questions, Tenenbaum went on.

"The mask was the same kind that many wore after the events of the civil war. Since then, only one group still dons those in any kind of serious numbers. It is my belief that a man by the name of Sander Cohen has taken the codes."

The big sister let out a hiss at the name. She'd heard of Cohen before. He was one of the biggest problems that mother had to deal with before Delta had arrived. Many members of the family had perished trying to fight him before his home, Fort Frolic, was eventually declared too dangerous to enter. It was put under lockdown after that. Now that mother wasn't keeping him in check anymore, there was no telling how far his influence would have spread.

"And you want us to go get it." Davian finished for her. If he recognized the name Sander Cohen, he gave no indication of it.

"Believe me, I would not be sending you out so soon after the last fight if it were not vital to the survival of everyone here." Tenenbaum said. "We have few people capable of taking on this task other than most of those you've already worked with."

He wasn't happy to hear that. His gaze drifted back and forth between Epsilon and Gwen, his mouth forming a thin line.

"What about her?" He said at last, gesturing to the child beside him. "Amelia's suit is too damaged to carry a passenger, and even if it wasn't we wouldn't be able to bring her with us. She's not a little sister anymore, so one stray shot…"

One of the best defenses little sisters had other than their protectors was their incredibly rapid healing abilities. He was right when he said they couldn't take her with them now that she didn't have that. No matter how careful they were, keeping a child alive in a combat zone would be nearly impossible.

Tenenbaum chuckled lightly at his question.

"I understand your concern for her safety. During the mission, I would look after her personally. I have much experience keeping the little ones safe, so it would be no trouble to do so."

He looked down at Gwen. It was clear that she didn't want to be separated from them for even a brief period of time. She still saw him as her personal guardian.

Then he turned to Epsilon. She wasn't keen on going after a man like Cohen, but she had come too far to back out now. She'd go with whatever decision he felt was correct.

"These codes? You said that these are the last things standing between us and the surface?" He asked at last.

"That is correct." Tenenbaum said. "The two of you would be joined by Tomas, Archer, and Emma for the mission. I know that the group is small, but it is everyone we can spare. Time is of the essence. The longer we wait, the more likely it is for the splicers to attack us here."

Silence held for the span of a few minutes as he thought. When his decision was finally made, he looked up with determination burning in his features.

"Let's get to it then. I've always wanted to see what the outside world looks like."

Pause. Rewind. Play.

Those three buttons had encompassed Archer's entire world for the past couple of hours. He knew that Tomas was looking for him, but that could wait.

Pause. Rewind. Play.

The security cameras outside the Drop had been disabled before the attack, but those on the inside had still been functioning. He stared intently at the screen, his crossbow resting in his lap.

Pause. Rewind. Play.

Archer's face was stone as he watched his brother's final moment. He took in every detail of the splicer. His features, scars, weaponry, posture, even the delay between his disappearance and reappearance.

Pause. Rewind. Play.

Everything was committed to memory. He made sure to examine the underhanded swing as the man struck Joseph's midsection with his hatchet. He kept the image of it sinking into flesh vivid in his mind.

Pause.

"I hope you're ready you son of a bitch." Despite the raw hatred that encompassed his face, his voice was eerily calm. "Because I'm going to find you. And when I do…"

The crossbow swung upwards, barking sharply as the bolt was fired. The screen exploded in a shower of sparks and shards of glass as the shot struck directly where the splicer's head had been.

"I will fucking destroy you."