#spiralshift

Frustration bubbles within her as one more human meets his demise. She's already revived this one three times; he isn't grasping the concept of lasers being lethal. She could revive him once more, accelerate his healing before he can fully bleed out from his injury, but she decides this one is a lost cause. They all seem to be, at least from this particular wing.

Prisoners, handed off to Aperture as part of their agreement with the local courts. A rehabilitation program, allegedly. An alternative to a death sentence. She's been picking from this wing exclusively lately, working off a hypothesis that their circumstances would make them more determined to survive. Mostly, she's found the opposite.

But… she's been pulling test subjects chronologically; Those who have been in cryosleep the longest first. The cryosleep hangover doesn't seem to be doing them any favors. She switches instead to a fresher batch.

She skims the most recent dozen or so for anything that stands out from the rest. Robbery, assault, murder, drug charges- Oh. Test Subject 7216. If she was looking for something that stands out, she's found it.

She'd intended to skip over murderers; too unpredictable, too much of a temper. But… Test Subject 7216, William Schenk, is more than a murderer. His file is longer than the others. His crimes aren't just simple stabbings; each one is more elaborate than the next, though clearly put together on a budget. Death traps. He isn't just a murderer. He's an engineer.

He'd be wasted as a test subject; and so, as she turns off the gas keeping the man asleep, she has a different strategy in mind. When he awakens, in what appears to be a small motel room, she watches carefully via overhead cameras. The door is locked. He's not going anywhere if he refuses to first listen to her proposition.

Red eyes watched him, seemingly disinterested. 

    "Just breaking bones, Detective?" Schenk did more than just reset a man's shoulder; he tore off its socket. 

  It was brutal, but it did not pale to the atrocities Shadow committed himself. He did not veil himself in a fantasy where he believed he was a patron saint. 

How different were they? Schenk's methods were erratic and grotesque, while he was a swift bullet to the skull until they infringed on the wrong soul. He became twisted with rage, strangling his prey with electric cables.  

They weren't different, not really, and both catered to the philosophy of doing what you need to do to get shit done. It was a distinct world, and the rules were different here. There were no colonies of colorful creatures nor emeralds to secure.  

Just men in aprons caked in human fluids reasoning with artificial life.

will vc: apprentice? how about partner?

-- HELLO, DETECTIVE FITCH. i want to play a game. the tide of justice is rising around you.  ... you murdered a man because he insulted you. your finger pulled the trigger, and that cannot happen again. survival is simple, but it comes with a sacrifice. bite down on the device in your mouth, which will start the motor that will rip away your fingers, leaving you to escape with your life. but if you don't act quickly, all that awaits you is this watery tomb. live or die; make your choice.