Bioshock: The Bond Between Sisters

Chapter 6

The Voice

“How long is it gonna take for her to wake up?” asked Applejack as she bit at the ends of her hooves.

“I have no idea,” admitted Silver River.

“And you're sure she'll be okay?”

There was a deafening pause.

“She’ll be alive.”

The orange mare pushed what was left of her hat back into place. “What exactly is that supposed to mean now?”

“It means I don't know.”

“How do you not know!?”

The two continued to babble, but for Rainbow Dash it all blurred together. In one upside-down day she had to deal with her whole world being rewritten. She watched a stallion die in front of her. She had to feel her own flesh being torn from her bones, just to come back from the dead. Then she sat back and did nothing as one of her best friends shot herself up with magical drugs. She needed a break. She needed to be alone.

Rainbow splattered a ball of spit onto the ground. “Hey, guys, I think I'm going look around a bit, okay?”

“Well alright,” Applejack scrunched her forehead together. “Don't wander too far off ya hear? We don't want you to get scooped up by one of those things now do we?”

“I'll be fine.” Rainbow kicked a pebble then trotted away.

When they were fighting the splicer, Dash noticed something. Before the flying contraption filled the monster full of lead, it must have come from somewhere. She peered upwards. There wasn't much on the ceiling, just a bit of moss and a few thin gray lines. One of the said lines went down the hallway and through the still rubble-covered door to the next room. The other however, made a sharp turn toward the left and dove behind a conchrite pillar about halfway through the room.

Rainbow crept along the path of the arrow. Soon she found herself on the other side of the support structure staring down the opening to a ventilation shaft.

“Dangit!” she mumbled to herself. No reason to squeeze myself through there. I guess I'll go back and talk to— Rainbow’s brain locked up. In her ears were the near-silent sounds of childhood laughter. It had to be in her head, didn't it?

She turned away. Fear can twist the mind, and juice vivid darkness from the depths of one’s memories.

There is no way it was real.

With every step Dash took, she felt herself being dragged back to the opening with an otherworldly magnetism. She peered over her shoulder. Her mouth went dry. She had to.

It was a tight fit. And Rainbow Dash had to wriggle to pull herself through, but claustrophobic is one adjective that has never described the blue pegasus, even if she was crammed into the tube like a winged sardine.

The farther she pulled herself in, the louder the childish voice became. Before long her mind began to jump to a hopeful conclusion.

It sounds familiar, but that would be a real coincidence wouldn't it?

She tried to shove the thought from her mind, but the idea kept nattering in her skull. What if it was her?

As she neared the light at the end of the damp tunnel, making out the individual words that She was hearing became easier.

“What's this?” came the young voice. For some reason, it sounded as if the filly’s speech was distorted like a dirty vinyl record scratching against the needle. “It looks like a new toy! Can I play with him Mr. Bubbles?”

Mr. Bubbles? Rainbow wrinkled her muzzle. What kind of name is that?

Suddenly, a new voice ripped through the silence. “New toy? You'll see about that little filly! I'll tear you to shreds, and then I'll suck you dry!”

WHAT!? The packaged pegasus pulled herself forward at the speed of an inchworm pumped full of plasmids. I don't know what context this is, but I don't think I want anypony getting sucked dry.

Rainbow Dash’s eyes ached as she pulled her head out of the other side of the rusty vent. She tried to look at what was going on in front of her, but the light was too strong. She heard a loud yell and saw a blurry shape rush forward. Her ears shot onto the back of her head as the cacophonous whirring sound of spinning metal filled her encasement and rippled through the tunnel.

“W— Wait I'm sorry! I didn't know you're Daddy was around! Please I—”

The whirring sped faster and faster until it became one continuous hum. Soon there was a blood curdling scream and the hum slowed to a sporadic ballet of stop-and-go squelching. Through her still squinting eyes Rainbow could see a blob of red spray across her field of vision like one of Rarity’s modern art paintings. Suddenly Dash could feel a new wetness soaking into her face fur.

“That wasn't nearly as fun as I thought it would be.” rang the syrupy voice of the young pony. “Why did you have to drill him so quickly Mr. B?”

There was a low heart-stopping rumble. It was the sound of a massive beast. Its low echo was similar to a whale, but deeper and somehow more sinister. Before that moment Rainbow Dash didn't think a sound could be evil, but never has she felt a monsoon of dark emotions so massive and mind-numbing.

Her eyes finally became accustomed to the light, and what she saw made her seal her vision shut before the image could be burned into her brain. She slunk back a few feet and thought about everything that had just happened.

Somepony got wacked. That's what the red was, but who was that voice? It was young; she knew that. There was some sort of distortion that caused her to sound like she was speaking through a mask or something. What was it that was under that over-resonant echo? It sounded gravelly and gruff, a bit like Rainbow’s own voice.

In the moment that her eyes were open what was it that she saw, besides the glowing steel behemoth looming over a mess of pony entrails. It looked like a blur of orange, orange fur maybe?

After a few minutes, the sound of heavy hoofsteps creaked into silence.

“Okay, Rainbow,” the pegasus whispered to herself. “Let’s do this.”

***

Ants crawled beneath Rarity’s fur. The muscles in her body twitched like a nest of angry bees, and her mouth was bone-dry. Surprisingly however, she didn't feel bad. As she lifted her head up and looked at her orange friend, her whole body surged with a warm wash of power. She felt strong, stronger than she had ever felt before.

“Oh good!” Applejack chimed. “You're finally awake!”

Rarity pulled herself to her hooves and dusted her body off.

“Y’all we're startin’ to worry us for a second there.”

“How does it feel to have power?” came the crackling voice of Silver River.

Rarity did not answer. She took a deep breath and looked down at her hooves. A alien blue glow radiated from her white appendages, and a solar warmth permeated through her flesh and into her bone.

Rarity wracked her brain, focusing all of her energy to one spot. The blue that surrounded her hooves started to sizzle and pop. Before long, the pops turned into snaps and the snaps turned to stovetop cracks. The blue force field fluctuated and morphed into a great azure sparkeler of electrical arcs fanning out around her leg. Her body was made of thunder, or at least that's how it felt to Rarity.

“The process may be painful,” Silver admitted. “but there’s nuthin like a fist fulla lighting now is there?”

Applejack coughed. “Aren't ya goin’ to talk to us?”

Rarity turned away from her friend and set her sights on the security helicopter sitting in the rubble.

“Is somethin’ wrong? Why don't ya want to ta—”

CRACK

A rope of electricity jet from Rarity’s hoof and surged into the derelict robot causing its propeller to spin faster than a weather vane in a hurricane. Bright diodes of light shone all over the machine and the stone around it rattled. Before long the bot had flung itself into the wild spiral of a weather pony who was drinking on the job. Rarity grinned a smug smile as the helicopter exploded on the ground in a mini sun fireball.

“What the bloody fuck is going on down there?” Silver shouted. “My security bot just went totally haywire!”

“Oh, sorry darling,” Rarity answered in a butter-smooth voice. “I was just trying out my new power.”

“That certainly is one humdinger of a zap!” Applejack said as she scraped her shocked body from The floor.

Rarity cocked her head. “Oh dear. What happened to Rainbow Dash?”

“Well,” The farm pony rubbed her chin. “I don't really know where she ran of to.” She trotted in the direction of the buried door. “She said she was goin’ to go pokin’ round back here.” Applejack looked through some of the large cracks in the rubble. “Maybe she squeezed her way through one a these.”

“Is there anywhere else she could have gone?” Rarity asked.

“Well, there is one other way,” Silver mumbled.

“Spit it out; we ain't gonna bite.”

“There’s an air vent down the left.”

Rarity turned and peered at the small opening down the hall. “I doubt she would crawl through that. Did she not say she wanted to just look around? Seems strange to me.”

“I don't know, Rarity,” Applejack shrugged. “we can't rule anything out.”

“Do what you must, but I am not shoving myself through a dirty shaft.”

“Well, I think we need to assess all of our options first.” AJ insisted, stepping between the door and her friend.

“There are two of you aren't there?” Silver’s voice froze the room. “One pony per direction.”

“What a wonderful suggestion, Mr. River!” Rarity said, grinning.

“Have you been sniffing bad perfume?” cried Applejack. “That’s a plain rotten idea!”

“You’d cover more ground,” pointed out Silver River.

“Yeah, and it’d get us both killed!”

“It’s the best way to save your three sisters.”

Applejack snorted and flicked her tail. “Alright, but I don't know what's gotten into you Rarity!”

She didn't answer. She turned away and poked her head through the large gaps in the wall of conchrite boulders.

***

Rainbow Dash slunk through the room in which she heard the voice. It was a large tiled clearing with fishbowl glass windows leading to the murky sea outside. Above her were stairs leading to an upper level with bright flashing lights. Near a door under the balcony was the body of the unfortunate splicer who crossed whatever it was that passed through. Rainbow crept over to the dismembered mess. Maybe it had something useful? In its soaked coat were a few wrinkled bills she assumed was money. Crud, now I really wish I brought my saddle bags.

Dash looked down at a metal box that was hanging from the side of the splicer’s mangled body. It was moldy-olive green and had been stenciled with bright yellow symbols. Well, it looks like a saddle bag… She reached out and grabbed the box with both hooves, but when she tried to unglue it from the corpse it refused to budge. She turned the sticky body to see if she could find what was keeping the box magnetized so tightly. What the heck? On the creature’s chest was an X shaped harness held together by a clip at the center. Rainbow cocked her head; she had seen this before. Why is he wearing a baby harness? Upon further inspection, it was attached not only to the box but also something long and metal on the splicer’s other side. A mile-long shiver went up Rainbow’s spine. Alright. Let's do this.

She unclicked the buckle with her teeth then scurried her way around to the strap that was draped over the splicer's back. She took a deep breath of the musky air then closed her eyes. It's no big deal Rainbow. You've done worse...right?

Dash pulled, but nothing happened. She pulled harder and her hooves skid around the slippery floor like skates on fresh ice. She snorted and clenched her teeth until her gums went numb then she tried again. What's in this box, lead? She arched her back and planted her hooves firmly onto the ground. With one last pull, she was able to dislodge the harness. Rainbow’s mind cheered in satisfaction at completing the task. Her legs, however, didn't get the memo. She tumbled backwards and crumpled on the ground like sheet of parchment.

Ow.

Even with Rainbow Dash’s strength, the blue pegasus strained to put the monstrous device on her own back. Once the straps were over her shoulders, she reached down and snapped the buckle closed with a satisfying click. Suddenly Rainbow remembered the reason she had taken the box off the splicer in the first place. She grabbed the crinkled wad of bills from the floor and pulled open the top of the rusty box. However she dropped them again when she saw the container’s contents, an enormous pile of shiny pointed cylinders. They were capsules of death, little tiny murderers all lined up in neat rows; Dash just didn't know it yet.

Now more curious than ever, she decided to make a closer inspection of the heavy device hanging on the other side of her body. It had a long tube with a hole in it coming out of the front and a bulky body with a knobs sticking out of it. Many of the parts seemed designed for movement, but Dash couldn't seem to find a way to make them work. She tried to blow into the tube. She tried sliding the knobs. She even tried pulling on the confusing banana-shaped appendage hanging from the lower side of the device. Right as she was about to give up and trash the thing, the colorful mare noticed a small swingarm that was attached to its main body. She grabbed it between her teeth and pulled it out so it was in front of her face. On the end of the metal extremity was a round red button.

I wonder.

She swallowed her spit, opened her mouth then bit down on the button.

BANG!

***

Applejack sighed and scratched her head. “So, what now?

“Well,” Silver River began. “We can't just sit on our arses, now can we? Rarity is gone, but both directions are gunna lead up to the city center eventually.”

“Alrighty. If you think that's best.” Applejack stood up, placed the radio under her hat, and picked up her monkey wrench. “Say, when you said you've gotten reports of where Apple Bloom is, what do you mean?”

“Well, To be honest Applejack, I don't think you're gunna like the answer to that question.”

AJ pursed her lips. “Why not?”

“Well…” whispered Silver River. “Ah fuck… I didn't get any bloody reports. I've been fibbin’ to ya about that.”

“Then where the hay are we goin’?” Applejack cried, stamping her hooves on the ground.

“Where all the little fillies and colts go in Rapture.” River paused and released a great sigh. “To Mother Goose’s Nursery.”

The farm pony staggered and fell back onto a pile of rocks. Her heart felt like it was about to collapse in on itself. “Wait… yer not sayin’ they…”

“I am so sorry.”

“But they can't do that to little Applebloom. Not her and not Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo neither.” Applejack's voice cracked and warm tears began to slip from the corners of her eyes.

“At this point your beloved has probably already been turned into a Little Sister The reason that I want us to go track Mother Goose down, is that I have reason to believe she might be carryin’ a cure. If we managed to get our hands on that, then we can administer it to the poor darlings and get our arses out of this city.”

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “And how am I supposed to trust you now that I know you've been lyin’? What's in this little journey for you?”

There was nothing but static over the radio for what felt like years. Finally Silver River begin to speak in a choked tone. “ I need that cure myself. Ya see, I have a daughter. A tiny little thing, cute as can be…” there were drawn out sniffles from over the line. “We were playin’ in the park one day, just like we did every day. Lilly was singin’ her favorite tune, that’s her name, Lilly, it was her mother’s name…” Silver chuckled for a moment. “Anyway, as I was sittin’ on the bench and Lilly was singin’, two stallions in lab coats waltzed up to be me and started a conversation. They greeted me and told me they were from Gatherer’s Garden, the ponies who develop most of our plasmids, and then they started talkin’ to me about Lilly. Now just like any other father, I was proud to talk about my little sprout, but soon things took a turn. They pulled out a file with some paperwork in it, and then with a stone cold face told me they would be taking my daughter. Said she was perfect Little Sister material...”

Applejack’s face dropped. “But ya fought back right? Ya didn't just let ‘em take her away?”

“I wanted to. I wanted to kick their fuckin’ teeth out. But when you're dealin’ with evil ponies you gotta be wide. They might have something stuffed up their sleeves.”

“Did they?” asked Applejack, swallowing her spit.

“They had my wife. They had her captured, and they Said they'd kill her if I so much as moved a fuckin’ inch. So I didn’t.”

“Well,” Applejack puffed up her chest and tried to collect a confident tone. “Every ounce of my condolences goes out to you and the rest of your family.”

“We all have our own hurts.” Silver coughed and filled his lungs with air. “The best way to right the wrongs that have been done to us is to go out there and grab this city by the balls. We’re gunna make it to the nursery, and we're gunna take that cure out from under Mother Goose's fat nose.”

Applejack grinned. “I'm with ya pardner! Let's get the rodeo movin’!”