Throw Everything At Them

I barely had time to react, but instinct took over as I ordered every bug in my range to swarm the woman. Spiders, ants, flies—anything nearby rushed toward her. It wasn’t fast enough. Not enough of them managed to get to her in time to do any real damage. The few that did bite didn’t seem to faze her.

I could only watch as the splicer—if that’s what she was—sliced Johnny’s stomach open. Her speed caught me off guard. She moved faster than I expected, driving her hook into his neck before he even had a chance to scream. Blood sprayed from the wound, his body collapsing in a lifeless heap on the floor.

Too late did enough bugs arrive.

The splicer panicked, fast the swarm engulfed her, her arms flailing in a **** attempt to get them off. She let out a bloodcurdling scream, turning her attention to me. She slammed against the bathysphere, trying to break in with crazed, animalistic fury. The metal groaned, sparks flying from the impact, but thankfully, it held. She wasn’t strong enough to break through.

That gave me time. Time to do what, though? Drive her off? Kill her?

This was a person. I mean, I didn't know her. Maybe she just looked like a psychotic monster, and actually had a perfectly valid reason for killing Johnny and trying to break into the bathysphere. She could be completely innocent.

Yeah, and maybe the Nazis were just misunderstood.

A voice crackled over the old radio, "Would you kindly pick up that shortwave radio?"

"Hello?" I **** the word out.

"...You're not fucking Jack." The voice on the other end turned hostile instantly. "How the fuck did you get the bathysphere working? They're on lockdown! Only Jack should have-fuck! This ruins everything!"

Great. Another person pissed off at me. Welcome to my life.

"... Whatever, not gonna waste my time arguing. If you're not Jack, then just go fucking die here, got it?!"

The line went dead.

Meanwhile, my bugs were still tearing at the splicer. She was slowing down, though, her movements growing sluggish as the various bug venoms took effect. Jumping around with parahuman speed had its limits, it seemed. Finally, she turned and bolted, leaving me in the temporary safety of the bathysphere.

Which was good, because the bathysphere opened up then without any say from me.

Baton in hand, I stepped out, the dark halls of Rapture stretching ahead of me. Screens sparked with electricity, the air heavy with the scent of sea salt and metal. My bugs gave me a clear picture of the layout, and I could track the splicer, still struggling to escape.

She came at me faster than I expected.

I tried not to panic and pretend I didn't notice her until... I spun around and smashed my baton into her face. The crack of her nose breaking echoed in the hall, and she flew back, landing hard against the wall. I didn’t give her a chance to recover. I charged forward, bugs swarming her in a vicious frenzy. I didn’t let up. Hit after hit, I kept swinging with the stun off to not kill my own bugs. I didn’t stop until she was still.

I stood there, panting, staring down at her body, my chest heaving, hands trembling. I’d... I’d killed her. I didn’t have a choice, right? She was dangerous. She would’ve killed me.

But that didn’t stop the weight in my gut from settling in.

I took a breath, trying to steady myself. No time to think about it. I couldn’t afford to break down now. There was only one path forward, blocked by debris. The gap was large enough though that I could squeeze through since I was fairly skinny.

Before stepping into the stair way, my bugs were already attacking another splicer. My bugs found him spraying fire from his hands onto a wooden bench, preparing to kick it down. I didn’t wait. I wasn't going to hold back against a _parahuman _splicer. With my swarm in his eyes and mouth, I dashed in, landing a quick strike with my baton. He stumbled but didn’t fall. I kept my distance, dodging his wild, clumsy swings while my bugs distracted him. Another hit. Then another. Finally, he collapsed.

I collapsed against the wall, exhausted. Was this what the whole mission was going to be like? Just one fight after another? I didn’t know if I could keep it up.

Lying there, I mapped out the area with my swarm. The coast seemed clear—for now. There was a staircase nearby, and at the top was something strange—a vending machine with a creepy, childlike voice playing on repeat: “My daddy's SMARTER than Einstein, STRONGER than Hercules and lights a fire with a SNAP of his fingers. Are you as good as my daddy, Mister? Not if you don't visit the Gatherer's Garden, you aren't! Smart daddies get spliced, at the Gardens!”

Curious, I got up and climbed the stairs. The vending machine held large vials of a red liquid. One had already been dispensed, alongside a giant needle labeled "Electro Bolt."

It didn't take a detective to connect the dots. The advertisement, people called splicers, a splicer that shoots fire? These were powers in a bottle.