Should be easy enough, as long as we don't meet ourselves here.
[ He's not sure quite what the outcome of that would be, but it's all too easy to imagine how he'd have reacted if he'd met another version of himself and Elizabeth here the first time he'd boarded the airship. Not well.
He looks around, until he spots a small, crank-operated elevator and points. ]
There.
[ They board and Booker pulls the crank to send the elevator up, frowning as a thought occurs to him. ]
Isn't the particle the only thing holding this airship in the sky?
[ To her, it's as simple as that. Constants and variables. That would be an enormous variable, one that could derail their entire journey together and destroy the end result. ... Unless, of course, there was a universe in which that did happen, where the collision was enough to ruin the minds of one or both of them before Comstock ever could. It's hard to remember, now, without her old powers.
Drip. Almost mechanically, she raises two fingers to her nose; they come away with a streak of red. ]
What? [ Hurriedly, she wipes it away, hoping to do so before he notices. The fact that her mind isn't enjoying the trip isn't exactly a surprise, but it's never happened before, and she, somehow, hadn't prepared for it. ] It - Yes, but there should be a spare. Taking the active particle would drop the First Lady out of the sky.
[ The logic's a bit past him, but Booker just grunts and shakes his head skeptically. There's nothing either of them can do to stop it, anyway, except trust that she's right and get in and out of here as quickly as possible.
Elizabeth seems flustered beside him as she explains about the particle, and he turns to look in time to see her hurriedly tucking her hand away at her side. He frowns, but there's no time to pursue it as the elevator grinds to a halt. ]
All right, let's get this over with.
[ He steps forward, approaching the machinery before him warily. It looks...complicated, and the mental image of the airship suddenly dropping like a stone is still fresh in his mind. ]
[ Though she points to the pulsing, bright containment in the center of the room, plugged in to the ship, the core of the vessel, she doesn't remove it. Instead, Elizabeth turns to look off to its side, humming thoughtfully when she spies an extra and slips that into her pocket, instead. ]
Lucky they keep a spare. [ Or they really would fall out of the sky. ] With this, we can-
[ But she gasps sharply, pained, shutting her eyes tight. A sudden headache jolts through her brain and it's bad enough that she lowers to a crouch, pressing hard to her temples. When it begins to dull, she raises a shaky hand to the wall for support. When she opens her eyes, her vision is hazy, seeing double, for a moment. ]
I - I don't know what happened. [ Evenly, regaining composure and all-too aware of how he'll react, she gets to her feet. A distant drop of red falls, a perfect circle on the ground between them. ]
[ He reaches for her, feeling like he's moving in slow motion as she doubles over and then shakily pulls herself back up. The blood splashes to the ground, and he looks down at it, then back up to what he knows he'll see - the telltale trickle of blood just under her nose. ]
I thought that kind of thing didn't happen to you.
[ He's shaken, worried, and it translates into sounding harsher than he'd meant, almost accusatory. He frowns, reaching out to grasp her upper arms and hold her steady, just in case. ]
[ Of course he's seen, he was going to eventually. That doesn't make it easier or simpler and she knows there's not much chance of him not worrying about her now. ]
Yes. [ It's mostly true. ] ... We don't need to worry about it. Without my powers, it's difficult to be in the same universe as myself, especially when we're bound to be close to the First Lady. But, we only need to go back to Rapture, where I belong.
[ Not "where we belong," because he doesn't belong there. At all. For her, it's the last stop on a very long ride, though, and she's made her peace with that.
Mostly. ]
It never did you any permanent damage. [ Elizabeth points out, which is true (though, he'd also been dead in a lot of those parallel worlds. ] I'll be fine for now.
He goes quiet at that, unable to offer any response. Things are different now. Elizabeth - she's not who she was.
It doesn't mean he won't worry, and it sure as hell doesn't make him any happier about going back to Rapture. But it does mean there's nothing he can do about it right now, and he lets the hand on her arm go slack, dropping it back to his side.
Where I belong. She doesn't - she doesn't belong there, but she doesn't belong here either, and he knows she's right. Staying in Columbia won't do either of them any favors. For a fleeting moment he considers persuading her to open a tear somewhere else, getting them clear off all of this for good, before he remembers - she can't. And there's Sally to think of. ]
Let's get this over with.
[ But he keeps his eye on her even as he turns back to the elevator, watching her with a critical eye. As if he's just waiting for her to collapse, or for something else to go terribly wrong. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
[ He's not sure quite what the outcome of that would be, but it's all too easy to imagine how he'd have reacted if he'd met another version of himself and Elizabeth here the first time he'd boarded the airship. Not well.
He looks around, until he spots a small, crank-operated elevator and points. ]
There.
[ They board and Booker pulls the crank to send the elevator up, frowning as a thought occurs to him. ]
Isn't the particle the only thing holding this airship in the sky?
no subject
[ To her, it's as simple as that. Constants and variables. That would be an enormous variable, one that could derail their entire journey together and destroy the end result. ... Unless, of course, there was a universe in which that did happen, where the collision was enough to ruin the minds of one or both of them before Comstock ever could. It's hard to remember, now, without her old powers.
Drip. Almost mechanically, she raises two fingers to her nose; they come away with a streak of red. ]
What? [ Hurriedly, she wipes it away, hoping to do so before he notices. The fact that her mind isn't enjoying the trip isn't exactly a surprise, but it's never happened before, and she, somehow, hadn't prepared for it. ] It - Yes, but there should be a spare. Taking the active particle would drop the First Lady out of the sky.
no subject
Elizabeth seems flustered beside him as she explains about the particle, and he turns to look in time to see her hurriedly tucking her hand away at her side. He frowns, but there's no time to pursue it as the elevator grinds to a halt. ]
All right, let's get this over with.
[ He steps forward, approaching the machinery before him warily. It looks...complicated, and the mental image of the airship suddenly dropping like a stone is still fresh in his mind. ]
Any idea what we're looking for?
no subject
[ Though she points to the pulsing, bright containment in the center of the room, plugged in to the ship, the core of the vessel, she doesn't remove it. Instead, Elizabeth turns to look off to its side, humming thoughtfully when she spies an extra and slips that into her pocket, instead. ]
Lucky they keep a spare. [ Or they really would fall out of the sky. ] With this, we can-
[ But she gasps sharply, pained, shutting her eyes tight. A sudden headache jolts through her brain and it's bad enough that she lowers to a crouch, pressing hard to her temples. When it begins to dull, she raises a shaky hand to the wall for support. When she opens her eyes, her vision is hazy, seeing double, for a moment. ]
I - I don't know what happened. [ Evenly, regaining composure and all-too aware of how he'll react, she gets to her feet. A distant drop of red falls, a perfect circle on the ground between them. ]
no subject
[ He reaches for her, feeling like he's moving in slow motion as she doubles over and then shakily pulls herself back up. The blood splashes to the ground, and he looks down at it, then back up to what he knows he'll see - the telltale trickle of blood just under her nose. ]
I thought that kind of thing didn't happen to you.
[ He's shaken, worried, and it translates into sounding harsher than he'd meant, almost accusatory. He frowns, reaching out to grasp her upper arms and hold her steady, just in case. ]
Is this the first time?
no subject
[ Of course he's seen, he was going to eventually. That doesn't make it easier or simpler and she knows there's not much chance of him not worrying about her now. ]
Yes. [ It's mostly true. ] ... We don't need to worry about it. Without my powers, it's difficult to be in the same universe as myself, especially when we're bound to be close to the First Lady. But, we only need to go back to Rapture, where I belong.
[ Not "where we belong," because he doesn't belong there. At all. For her, it's the last stop on a very long ride, though, and she's made her peace with that.
Mostly. ]
It never did you any permanent damage. [ Elizabeth points out, which is true (though, he'd also been dead in a lot of those parallel worlds. ] I'll be fine for now.
no subject
He goes quiet at that, unable to offer any response. Things are different now. Elizabeth - she's not who she was.
It doesn't mean he won't worry, and it sure as hell doesn't make him any happier about going back to Rapture. But it does mean there's nothing he can do about it right now, and he lets the hand on her arm go slack, dropping it back to his side.
Where I belong. She doesn't - she doesn't belong there, but she doesn't belong here either, and he knows she's right. Staying in Columbia won't do either of them any favors. For a fleeting moment he considers persuading her to open a tear somewhere else, getting them clear off all of this for good, before he remembers - she can't. And there's Sally to think of. ]
Let's get this over with.
[ But he keeps his eye on her even as he turns back to the elevator, watching her with a critical eye. As if he's just waiting for her to collapse, or for something else to go terribly wrong. ]