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day seven - liz
[ Jack is working away diligently in the tech lab on day seven, since it's more or less where he's taken up residence. He's busily working during the non-trial days, and at this point, he's got something almost finished. When Elizabeth stops by, she'll see a mostly completed and surprisingly sophisticated pipe pistol, because of course that's what Jack's been working on. Whether she's just stopping by or actually looking for Jack, he'll look up from his work and give her a friendly wave. ]
Oh, hey, Liz. What up.
[ He twirls the pistol in his hand idly, since he's rather pleased with himself, but then sets it down as he stands. ]
Hope you don't mind but this became my, uh, priority a little bit over what I promised you. But! Today? Totally getting started. You got any requests I should start on first?
Oh, hey, Liz. What up.
[ He twirls the pistol in his hand idly, since he's rather pleased with himself, but then sets it down as he stands. ]
Hope you don't mind but this became my, uh, priority a little bit over what I promised you. But! Today? Totally getting started. You got any requests I should start on first?
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What? No, not literally. ...Okay, maybe a little, but I'm not some kinda scientist or staff or whatever. I've got no idea what they're even doing. Didn't ask, don't have plans to.
[ He's curious, but not curious enough to learn. It's easier for him to swallow when he doesn't know, because it was difficult for him to essentially pick the path where he's knowingly condemning thirty innocent people to die. When he looks back at her, he's reminded of that. He frowns more, and his brow knits together, because guilt twists in his stomach quickly when he knows that statistically speaking, she'll probably be one of them. Hell, she's likely to be if she keeps being so aggressive, he thinks.
When she walks closer, Jack doesn't stop her, but the hip that his gun is resting on automatically shifts to be angled away from her. He's given her bad news in general, but she might be thinking he's a traitor on top of that. Truth be told, he wouldn't exactly blame her for lashing out, but self-preservation is still his goal here. His expression is still twisted up and difficult when he meets her eyes, but slowly, his hand shifts down to clasp her hand in his. ]
I'm not with the staff, scientists-- whatever, Liz. Just- Just know that. I've got an alliance, and I'm feelin' you already know exactly who it is.
[ He gives her hand a squeeze that's tight, but not threateningly so. It's tight in a way like he's trying to express his own frustration and the difficulty of this choice. ]
There's a moon full of people that are gonna die if I don't stop Zarpedon from blowing it to bits. So- Look. If there's another way outta here? I'm all for it. But for now, I have to think of those people, and this? This is the concrete chance I'm seeing. [ He gives her hand another squeeze, then lets go ] If only we had more time-- Maybe this would be different. But with how things are going now? It's gonna be a bloodbath sooner rather than later. So you were talking numbers? You're right, Liz. Problem is, the number's five.
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[ Elizabeth isn't expecting him to get her and honestly, she wishes she could see the doors now. See if she walks out of here alive. See if she made the right choice approaching him. As he holds onto her hands, she remembers only holding one other hand her entire life. Booker's. It's a short life, she thinks, one that she can't remember the resolution too and now that she realizes she has no powers, no doors - she has to work with what she has. ]
You're going to lose your alliance, Jack... [ She has to warn him, right? Tell him that. ] The more staff members we can find and vote, we can - there's a way to leave.
[ She listens to him. Talking about his people and she doesn't blame him. He lets go of her hand and she sighs, reminding that... she doesn't have anyone, does she? There's no goal for her. She can't even remember why she came back - why she gave everything up to return to Rapture. ]
If five is the magic number, remove three of the staff members. You snuggly fit into those slots instead of getting by the skin of your teeth.
[ Elizabeth lifts her palm up to wipe away the tears that come from the corners - frustration, just the same that he was feeling. ]
I don't care what happens to me but I can't - ... I can't die for nothing again. [ ? ] These people have kept us caged and depraved us of our freedom and I'll be fucking damned if I'm going to die caged without some kind of collateral damage.
You can have your slot, but the road to hell is paved with good intention. I don't care if I'm one of the five leaving here - there's much more at stake now.
[ Elizabeth sighs heavily, breathing deeply to regain her composure before looking away. Almost as if she's ashamed. ]
I just wanted to see the sun once more, but... if that's not in cards, so be it. I'd rather they know every ounce of what I've felt being locked away, mister. Having every ounce of hope rot away.
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I know. [ The first part is soft, but his words are firmer as he continues: ] The guy's an idiot, since how do you think I figured it out? But- Look, I take my alliances seriously. I trusted him, and he trusted me. So I'm trusting you now too. He gets caught because he keeps being suspicious? Whatever. That's his own damn fault. But I'm asking you. Don't go after Rhys.
[ So much for dancing around that. He doesn't even know if she has a role, and he doesn't care, but there's something about the finality of how she talks about him losing his alliance that makes him feel he needs to say it. ]
I don't care about the rest of 'em, and, uh, honestly, don't even know who they are. I'm not going to shed any tears if they get caught, and it's the same for that moron. But he- He's useful. You've gotta see that, right? The guy- The guy friggin' told me when I asked if he was staff. The rest of them, we might not be so lucky that they feel inclined to be that chatty. Down the line, if we need to— [ Jack pauses and looks down to the floor, then sighs ] Well, that'll be that. But that alliance is the most honest source of information we've got.
[ Jack sighs too, then runs a hand through his hair quickly and briefly. He takes a half step closer to her so that he can put his hands on her shoulders. It's careful and light, so she can pull away easily, but he's just a physical person, and gestures like this are how it's easiest for him to express sincerity. ]
You can see the sun again, Liz. Yeah, these odds are shit, but they're not zero. Hell, it's- It's not even set in stone that we might not be able to find some way to flip Judy the bird and all walk out of here. Maybe, well, I might've given up on that possibility too quick because I found one way that I felt was certain.
[ He steps back, considering something, then reaches to his hip. He grabs the pistol, which might alarm Elizabeth, but he hands it to her with the barrel pointing his way. ]
You wanted a gun? It's yours. So if that idiot or any of the others comes after you, shoot 'em in the gut. Consider it a token to the fact that I don't have any love for any of them.
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She wonders why she chose Rapture - why she didn't choose some other place where the sun beamed so hotly onto her flesh it warmed her core. Maybe she was never meant for it. Maybe it was all out of her hands in ever universe, but she has to try.
Jack goes on and she can't feel any pity for Rhys and any of the ones who were keen on keeping them here. They should have chosen another girl. They should have chosen another person other than her. That would be their undoing. ]
I can't make that vow.
[ The wheels were already turning and she looks away. ]
You can - I don't know... That's a lot of you to ask of me but, I get it. It's business. Preserving your Plan A and Plan B. If it goes that way during trial, I won't contribute. [ She looks down. ] I think people... listen to me. People are looking to me for answers that I don't have.
[ Is it enough? She's not sure. But, she needs to make something explicitly clear: ]
Did you see when I disrobed at the trial, Jack? [ Oh... ] The wound on my back, it's not healed but - someone like Rhys focused on business over humanity. Saw a guinea pig instead of a girl. This isn't business to me, but personal.
[ She insists with a chilling hiss of her voice. ]
I know precious little of what will happen next, but I'll accept that fate.
[ Whether or not he still offers the gun to her, Elizabeth does show a bit of hesitance. She doesn't yet accept it, instead, hovering her hand over it. ]
You can't - what if... I have a crossbow and ... and - you believe in my cause?
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[ She hesitates in taking the gun, so he pushes it into her hand and clasps her hand with both of his to fold her fingers around it. ]
Because, yeah, people listen to you. You may not have the answers, but you've got confidence, and speaking from experience here, that's 90% of getting people to listen to you and take you seriously. So, yeah, I can, and I am. You take this, because you're the one putting the target on your back, not me. For better or worse, I'm, uh, pretty sure I'm safe because Rhys wouldn't let any of his guys kill me.
[ He draws his hands away, since that's more factual and as he'd listened to her, he felt more certain that giving the pistol away was the right thing to do here. He can address most of what she's said with confidence, but that one part... It's more unfamiliar. There's an irony in that Jack doesn't yet know, but he places his hands on his hips as he looks down and to the side. ]
I didn't. Look, I like to chase skirts, but I'm not gonna oggle when there's a room full of people to kick my ass for it. [ maybe privately though ssh
Jack exhales a sigh, then looks back to her. His expression is difficult, like he's unsure of what he should say here, so again, he tries to express what he wants to say as a more physical gesture. He reaches out to her face, just cupping her cheek carefully in his hand. It's a gesture of concern rather than anything inappropriate, and his expression carries the same feeling. ]
Can't say I know anything about whoever saw you as a guinea pig, but- Look, just be careful, kiddo. Problem about acting like you've got all the confidence in the world is just how big it makes that target on your back. [ He cracks a small smile ] It's not exactly your boss trying to assassinate you, but you don't have a body double to fall back on here. If that Fran chick is any indication, our staff is a bunch of grudge-y assholes, so anyone that takes one of 'em down is in trouble. At least, that's how I see it.
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...I would if I had someone else. It was happenstance, believe me. [ She still doesn't confirm where she got the knowledge from, but it's good intel. That's all she wants to focus on. ] I didn't want this - you know. This type of obligation or responsibility.
[ She forces herself to look to him, and the way he phrases it - how he's helping her... she feels like there's even more pressure. ]
Then, don't worry. I won't compromise you. If I need to make a move, the crosshairs will be on me. Don't want them to be... but, doesn't feel right pinning it on someone else.
[ He sees her look over the pistol, noting the craftsmanship where it was evident. Elizabeth listens, smiling just a tiny bit at his mention of getting beat for looking at her. It's not until his hand scoops against her face that she looks back up to him.
Eyes trembling, lips parting into a soft agape state, she's sure he can feel the red flush onto her face. How it could sting him if he wasn't careful. It wasn't inappropriate but it was far more intimate than she was use to. ]
Jack...
[ His name falls past her lips in a dull hush, unable to express how she feels about it. The fear, the worry - there's a lot at risk. Not only herself but for the others. Jack wasn't understanding the weight of her responsibility - she had no one except for Booker back home. She feels... she feels like this was a chance for her to do good past her own selfish want. Her own selfish need to see the sun again. ]
I don't plan on leaving a sexy corpse, you know. But, whatever happens, I've always depended on the kindness of strangers. Thank you, ...stranger.
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His thumb strokes her cheek lightly when she looks at him, because he worries briefly that he's upset her with how she looks at him, but-- He feels the warmth of her cheek in his hand, and that concern instead turns to a more confident smile. He breathes out a laugh at her wry comment, and he ducks his head lightly. ]
Well, good. Don't leave one at all.
[ He draws his hand away slowly, like he's hesitating to break that contact. Jack is a physical person, so in truth, it just feels nice to touch her. But he doesn't want to make it weird, especially when she's been coming onto him so strongly, so pulling away it is. ]
Hey, but, are we really strangers? I mean— [ He motions towards his face with a more wry grin ] You patched me up. That's gotta make us friends, c'mon. Or at least acquaintances? Give me some credit here.