Bioshock: Rifts

Woman: Tell me 'Stephine'... are you afraid of god?

Twilight: I have no god from where I come from... but if I did... yes, I am very afraid...

Rain.

Hard rain hitting her face and her body. She opened her eyes and struggled to lean forward into the sitting position.

"Oh, she's awake... earlier than the others..."

"Hmm, that it seems... should we knock her out again?"

Twilight's heart lurched in her chest.

"No. She's awake and it doesn't matter if we knock her out or not. Besides, we've arrived already..."

The two voices talking were male and female. Both with a Trottingham accent. Like Pipsqueak... She finally sat up and looked around to find herself in a small row boat what seemed to be in the middle of the ocean. She looked up to see a lighthouse that looked like it didn't work for years. The light flickered once or twice, then shut off completely.

"She doesn't seem to be moving..."

"Poke her with a stick, see if she gets moving..."

She failed to notice that the little boat had stopped on the shore of the lighthouse, and she climbed onto the deck on the side. "Where am I supposed to..." she said looking up at the light house and when she looked back, the boat and its occupants were gone. "...go."

"Well... you could go up-"

"-Or you could go down."

She jumped back as the two voices that had been the male and female came from behind her, the yellow rain jackets they wore when they were in the boat were now gone. Instead they wore formal attire, similar to that of the upstate ponies in Canterlot.

Speaking of Canterlot...

"Where am I?" She said genuinely confused. The man and woman looked at her with a bored expression.

"Well, you're here."

"Or you could be there." The woman said pointing down towards the ocean.

"Or there." The man said pointing up towards the raincloud shrouded sky.

"The choice is yours of course, we were wondering where you might be heading?" The woman asked.

"Oh dear, I don't think she knows why she's here at all..." The man said with faux surprise. "You did give her the box right?" He asked her.

"Well, yes, but not here..." She said he walked towards Twilight with a small box she had pulled from behind her back. It had Twilight's name engraved on the lid of the box and as she opened it showed a picture of her friends and a small card with a key, a scroll, and a sword.

"What's this for..." She asked them.

"For if you want to go up..." The man said gesturing towards the lighthouse.

The woman from behind her back, pulled out a rusted wrench and a bottle of red liquid. "For if you want to go down." She said pointing at the sea again. "Once again, the choice is yours, but I would hurry. We're expecting a hurricane soon and we mustn't be late." The woman stated, looking out towards the ocean.

Twilight was... hesitant. She looked at the card and then looked at the wrench and vile. She took the vile and looked it over, shaking it, and watched its reaction. She put the card in her pocket and handed the vile towards the woman. The woman looked surprised at first, then simply shook her head.

"Odd, the other one went down."

"Yes, but this time it's different. She has made a wonderful choice in my opinion."

"You love hearing yourself talk don't you?"

"Only when you're disappointed..." The man finished and in a flash of lightning, they were gone.

Twilight sighed. "Some help you guys are." She said she walked up to the lighthouse, wondering where "Up" meant. She walked on towards the door on the other side of the dock, and noticed the note on the door.

DeWitt-
Bring us the girl, and wipe away the debt
THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE!

The note was also covered in a red liquid and when she looked closer at, it became more clear as to what it was.

Blood.

Staring wide eyed at the note, she slowly opened the door. Inside the room were many things, but one thing she noticed was the poster in front of her.

Of thy sins
I wash from thee

Underneath the poster was, what she assumed, used to be a bowl. The metal bowl, that once held water, was now battered and dented and inside laid a strange device that looked as though it was meant to be put on. She took the hook-like device and slide her arm inside slowly, expecting it to clamp onto her. Twilight let out a breath of relief as the device sat on her arm and did nothing more. She looked at the small trigger where her index finger was and pulled it.

The hook whirred to life and it spun, causing Twilight to rip it from her arm. When it stopped spinning it simply fell silent aside from the few clicks it made. She saw that it had a small sling loop, and took a small piece of rope from the floor and strapped it to herself.

"Okay... strange device that spins... looks as if it was made to be part of something bigger..." She noted as the hooks spun again, but with more control. They looked as if they were supposed to attach to something and judging by the way it looked it was a... transport device. Short distance of course, but still... Continuing up in the lighthouse, she came across a small radio next to a large map of an unknown country (to her) and noticed the red yarn going back and forth. Coordinates? No... They were something... but what?

Shaking her head, she walked up the next flight of stairs and found a horrible sight. A man had been shot dead, a cloth bag covering his head and a bullet hole in his forehead. On his neck was a bloody reminder:

DON'T DISAPPOINT US

Twilight felt her legs turn to jelly as she ran up the last few steps. She found herself on top of the world. Looking at the city in the distance, she walked along side the rail and just stared...

It was beautiful.

She turned and looked at the burned out light and, for the first time, realized that their were bells. One with a scroll, one with a key, and one with a sword. Looking at the card she had, she copied what it said.

Scroll ring once.

*ding*

Key, twice.

*ding, ding*

Sword, twice.

*ding... ding*

She waited and at first nothing happened... until...

BRRRRR

"Holy! What in the world was that!"

BRRRRRR, BRRRRRR

BRRRRR... BRRRRRR

A fog horn? Understandable at a lighthouse... but it sound it like it was everywhere. The light flickered and repeated the sound of the bells and fog horn. The fog horn sounded again, but at a faster tempo. Several clicks and whirrs were heard behind her as turned around in time to see the light go up, like a corkscrew, the bells shifted down and the wall they were on opened, like a door. Out in the middle of the 'room', unfolded a red velvet chair.

She chuckled a little. "Nothing says 'Suspicious' like a fancy chair..." She walked up to it and, regrettably, sat down.

The metal shackles on the chair sprung up restraining her arms to the chair.

"Brace yourself now, pilgrim. The bindings are their as a safe guard." The automated voice said as pieces of... something started to cacoon her.

"Yep, I knew it!" She screamed as the walls closed in on her. The chair went down, and made her drop anything that wasn't attached to her person,. Luckily, the device she found at the bottom of the lighthouse didn't fall, for it was strapped onto her with the small piece of rope.

"Ascension. Ascension in the count of five... count of four... three... two... one... Ascension, ascension." The voice said as Twilight and the pod she was in soared to the clouds.

"Okay Twi, don't think about it... just don't think about how high you really are..."

"Five-thousand feet..."

"You suck..."

"Ten-thousand feet... Fifteen-thousand feet..."

At this point, Twilight was sure she was never going back down. Land. She wanted-- no-- she needed land under her feet. She saw a flash of lightning on her way up and just as soon as she thought she would be struck...

"Hallelujah."

She stared... it's the only she could do... A city...

A city in the sky...