#thatawesomeguy

[awaytoshutup]

Hey You!

Hey You!

I really like you!

I admire your sensitivity towards me--

how of a gentleman you are to me,

How you look so cute when you smile,

How ragged you look but gentle deep inside,

How studious and responsible you are with your studies,

How concern you are of me when I go home late in the evening,

And how you stand up to your values.

But right now, I just want to know you more.

Let's be super friends, shall we? 

[subject-orchid]

Prologue: The Diary

When she isn’t relaxing in Arcadia, finding ADAM, or escorting Little Sisters, Subject Orchid also likes to find audio diaries. The tapes have been scattered all over Rapture, containing so many different voices, so many stories. None of the ones that she’s found so far have been really happy--no one gets a happy ending while living in Rapture--but she likes to listen to them regardless. They are a reminder, a reminder that Rapture once had normal people, was probably even a decent place to live.  They are a past that she will never know or remember, a life she can never live again (if she ever had). She feels that if she tries hard enough, she can construct a memory of this place, before things basically went to shit.

Today, while wandering around in Hephaestus, Subject Orchid comes across a particular audio diary, a particular voice. The voice of a man of vision, as well as delusion; a man that she and anyone affiliated with the Family has been taught to hate, though Lamb wouldn't dare use that word; a man who has been dead for nearly a decade. His name was Andrew Ryan.

Subject Orchid isn't sure what to make of Andrew Ryan whenever she hears any of his audio diaries. On the one hand, Ryan seemed to have had some good ideas when it came to business, politics, and running a society, and he was rather eloquent when talking about them. On the other hand, when his ideas were put in practice, the only one who ended up really benefiting it was him, or anyone affiliated with him. He still ended up dead.

Still, the diary (as well as the speaker) is still a piece of Rapture's history. So, of course, after finding a safe spot away from the Splicers and some of the still active security cameras, she gives the diary a listen.

 “Atlas's rabble is still on the move as I speak," Ryan's voice says. "At first, this 'revolution' was nothing. A few sabotages to the machinery here or there, some cryptic notes hidden in the ducts, talking about how my time was ending--heh, they will have to kill me first--perhaps even one or two Little Sisters disappearing, but not really causing an alarm. They weren't harmless, but snuffing them, as well as their leader, out would have been little to no issue. But then, New Years happened."

Ryan's voice gives pause, though it is not silent. Orchid leans in and listens to those little sounds, the sighs and soft murmurs that Ryan said in passing thought. As he speaks, it's almost too easy to picture him sitting at his desk, rubbing his forehead to stave off a brutal headache. It's almost too easy to picture a man as him looking as if he's officially feeling the weight of the world he willingly put on his shoulders. She wonders if she should pity him.

When he seems more composed, Ryan's voice continues, "I thought this chaos would end with the death of Fontaine, but it seems that another chapter has opened in order to bring down the Great Chain. Plasmids are no longer being used as tools to help strengthen the Chain...no, now they are being used to fight. To kill. Rapture, my beloved city, is slowly becoming a battleground. And with the ADAM dwindling so fast, and with more Little Sisters perishing...it will only get worse."

Another pause. Orchid almost expects the tape to stop, but it keeps on rolling as Ryan speaks once more, his voice now hard and calculating:

"I won't let Rapture fall. I won't fail the Great Chain. I've been thinking of an alternative to the Little Sisters, a Gatherer that will be stronger and more durable. A Gatherer that can fight back without the need of a Protector, one that will kill if he needs to. I will go speak to Suchong and Alexander tomorrow, perhaps even Tenenbaum, if she ever decides to come out of her hiding place. As for Atlas, I will go talk to Sullivan. We will prevail."

The tape ends there. Orchid stares at the Accu-Vox in her hand, feeling at first numb, then a chill roll down her back.

What...? What could Ryan have meant? An alternative Gatherer? "He"? It just  doesn't make any sense to Orchid. There were never any male Gatherers. So, how...?

When the tape officially runs out, the Accu-Vox automatically opens. Though her throat is dry, her hands are not shaky as she removes the tape. There is nothing to be shaky or nervous about. This is just another tape displaying how far gone Andrew Ryan was. That is all. She should put it back where she found it and forget she ever heard it.

However, when she has the tape in her hand again, she finally takes notice of the title that this audio diary had been given. That's when her heart starts to pound, when her arms start to shake. She's not sure if it's fear or intense confusion.

After all, what is a Big Sister supposed to do, let alone think when she sees something like “Brother" on a tape like this?