Project Heartstrings

Rooms line most of the hallways. They're all shown by glass walls, covering up to entire walls. Most contain tubed machinery, connected to otherworldly devices. Inventions you've never seen in your life. And there are rooms that have only a door with a small window at the top. Yet nearly all of those you've looked in seem to resemble emergency rooms in hospitals. And others are the obligatory storage rooms. You've gone exploring inside them some, but little to none show any interest. This place resembles that of a hedge maze. Every twist and turn you make all seem identical. It's dark for the most part, but the seemingly endless amounts of machinery in the glass walled in rooms give off a bit of vision for you. The blinking lights off the darkened walls make it nauseating for you to proceed sometimes.

You turn another corner, and are met with a pair of symmetrical double-doors. You're unsure of where they may lead, but they look inviting to enter. On top of that, this is the only other room you've seen that are not identical to others you've seen. You open one of the two doors, and are met with several computer consoles, lined in a row, all facing a metal wall. A rough estimation of probably 10 computers.

You tug on Lyra's back side to allow her inside with you. Taking the first computer you saw, you sit down in the chair accompanying it, and you motion Lyra to sit down on the ground along with you. Flipping on the monitor, your eyes squint at the bright light the desktop gives off. The computer seems to have already been left vacant and logged on.

In fact...

You check the computer to the right of you.

It looks like they've all been left logged onto.

Odd behavior for such a seemingly large corporation.

Unless... Oh shit.

Whatever happened here, you may be lucky for it, but you immediately assume time is being wasted by the second. You look around on the dark blue desktop for any programs that may be of use. There are four applications named "Recycle Bin", "Command Prompt", "Test", and "Startup Sequence". There are two folders along with, one being "Progress Logs" and the other using the default name for a new folder; "New Folder". Not knowing what the applications are capable for, you decide it's safer to check the folders first.

First up, Progress Logs.

You open it up, and are presented with several notepad files. They're named things such as "SEQUENCE.LOG//4.18.14//FAILURE" and "SEQUENCE.LOG//5.02.14//FAILURE". They're looking to be as logs for a certain application. Very possible one of the four you viewed on the desktop. Out of curiosity, you open one up named "SEQUENCE_LOG::8/12/13::FAILURE". It reads the following:

beginlog//

...:::RELICS 4.21:::...

_ENTER COMMAND

.>run backgroundcehck.exe

_COMMAND run backgroundcehck.exe NOT RECOGNIZED

.>run backgroundcheck.bat

_RUNNING backgroundcheck.bat...

_..........................................

_GENERATOR 01 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 02 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 03 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 04 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 05 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 06 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 07 CHECK...OKAY

_GENERATOR 08 CHECK...ERROR

_GENERATOR 08 CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ERRORS: UNDETECTED

_CONTINUE WITH backgroundcheck.bat? Y/N

.>n

_STOPPING BACKGROUNDCHECK.EXE...

_ENTER COMMAND

.>exit

//endlog

That wasn't much of a help. You decide to exit out of the file and folder, as they may not be much of help at all right now. Interested in more, you open up New Folder to view, if any, it's contents. There are multiple notepad files. The file names give away that it was likely all typed personally by a living being. You open up the first one, named "log 1, 5/20/12". You open it up to read:

Our head of department brought something to my attention today. He explained to me that our previous project left something along with it. Our previous project was concerning space travel, but not in the sense of moving physically, but in the sense of transmitting 'information' off of a sort of large 'satellite' type creation through certain channels, and receiving them back in another area, the device automatically piecing them back together, that of a puzzle. That's right; Quantum teleportaion. It never did work out, though. We sent one person through, yet I can't even begin to describe it. My stomach churns as I think of it.

Like I said, he explained it left something behind. Where to start explaining it, I'm not sure. But he said that it left an accidental... well, a cross-dimensional 'tear'. I didn't believe him at first. I replied saying there are only three dimensions. He retorted back saying that we just created a fourth! I wasn't sure what to think. I asked him to show me, yet he threw a bag of blueprints onto my desk, and said "See for yourself".

I stared at the pile of blueprints, and was about to ask him where it went, but he was gone before I got the chance to.

I traveled to his office later, and asked him the question I had in mind earlier: Where did this 'tear' go to? But he only chuckled, shook his head, and turned it out the window, staring up at the sky. Seconds later, he replied back without looking to me: "Let's just say we will eventually know which of the indefinite amounts of universes will exist through that tear."

I'm going to gather the parts needed for this project over the next week. I begin blueprinting in seven days.

This likely may be an explanation to why your visitor is here. There are nearly around one hundred other files, so you decide to scroll up and open one of the latest, "log 230 2/12/14":

It has been days since we actually opened the rift. What we came across is completely alien to any of us. What I am saying is that we have come in contact with another universe.

It's a cartoonist's dream. Horses that come in different colors scatter the planet. Not only that--they hold intelligence. They built homes, and farms, and they use the concept of magic. It been some time since I had last believed in magic. Last time I did was since I was a kid. But now, I have major faith in it again.

You may notice that it's been weeks since I last typed up a log. I'm typing one now because, well... They brought one back. And I don't know what they plan to do with her.

You finish it up, and realize you're beginning to run out of time. You open up the final file. It's name is "New Text Document.txt". It looks as if he didn't have a ton of time to type it up:

i have made a huge mistake

im sorry im so so sorry pleace forgive me

they wanted to explore the universe more

but they wouldnt allow us out of the portal there, theyre too smart to know what were to do to them

they did the one thing they coulD I TRIE DTO STOP THEM

they turned dher into a machine

a fucking cyborg

they need ed sa place to explore memoriesd to view more annd those twisted fucks put a projector inp lace of her head

a radio to ttransmit the sounds mdae in the memoreiss

they stole mY INVENTION

MY CREaTION AND

im just so sorry

i have committed ungodly crimes beyond this universe and i deserve to be punished

i know what i must do

You mumble to yourself, "Jesus Christ..."

Your hands tremble. Part of your head dreadfully hopes he didn't commit suicide. You don't want to face the truth. Yet you know.

"... God... rest his soul..." You bow your head down, and shut your eyes for no more than a minute.

You then bring your head back up, and look over at Lyra. You touch your hand to her back, and begin to rub again.

So he said something about a rift between dimensions...

There's hope to send her back. You can set this right. You spin around in your chair, and look for a light switch on the wall behind you, but find none. You spin back around and look at the table, looking for any kind of switches that would activate any sort of lights. Five gain sliders to your left get your attention.

You slide one up, all the way. Lights above you flicker on.

You slide up the second one. The metal wall in front of you and behind the computers suddenly rise up. A black void replaces it.

The third. Lights that line walls reveal a large room, with computers surrounding something.

Fourth slider. A walkway leading from directly below you to the center of the room.

The final slider. Lights flicker on in the center of the room. A large spherical device lies there.

It reveals Lyra's doorway back home. It displays the cartoonist's dreams. It unveils...

The portal to Equestria.