Before you read, there may or may not be spoilers for those of you who haven't played the game. And please don't be turned off by the name changes! THEY ARE NOT OCS! They are the same characters with different names for the purpose of this first chapter only.
Thank you!
1912: Columbia
He sat against the bench, paper bag in one hand a burning cigarette in the other. He had to pick up some groceries on the way home.
Their maid was supposed to do it but she hadn't been feeling too well today and who was he to make a sick woman go out. But now he was stuck in the same predicament he was always stuck in.
How was he going to get home without his family seeing him and saying something!
Samuel would just have to wing it somehow. He wasn't ashamed of himself or anything but throughout the years he had just grown so tired of the jibes directed at his hobby. So, it wasn't exactly normal to like to cook, especially for a wealthy, white, Columbian man. But he couldn't help it. Ever since he was younger, he had always had such a great appreciation for food. He was never, picky, wasteful, or overly snobby about his food.
Still he didn't feel like going home this very instant, but he couldn't exactly sit out here forever.
On the way home, others were making their way down to the Columbia Fair. There was supposed to be a raffle today but he's heard enough of the horrors to steer clear. Yes it was horribe, but he didn't want to meet the same fate by getting himself involved. He still had too much to live for.
He had been on his way home, that the idiot hadn't taken into account that his own family may be attending the fair and the raffle. Why was it important now? Because his family was heading right towards him.
"Samuel, what are you doing with that bag? Wasn't the maid supposed to be out doing this?" His fathers's deep voice resonated within him. He was an intimidating man.
"She was feeling ill, father. So I took it upon myself to buy a few groceries." The glare he got for that response was expected, but nonetheless, still very unwelcome. His father was a very proud man and much of what Sanji did was insulting to him and to his status. He just felt so hopeless in trying to please his father.
"Father, you were correct though. The servant is doing his job." Isaac sneered.
God he hated him. Sure they were brothers but he just couldn't stand them. Isaac was the first born and of course the biggest suck up. Then there was his underlings, Nathaniel and York. Even if York was the youngest, they would all gang up against him and his father didn't even seem to care. Of course he wouldn't.
"How immature Isaac. Such comments are frivolous and beneath you." Now his sister, Regina, was a different story altogether. She was beautiful, carried herself with grace, and yet she was the only woman he couldn't stand. Just like everyone else, she tried so hard to convince him to marry some girl he hasn't even met. He hated everything about the marriage!
It was only so that his father could gain more power and wealth, at the cost of his least favorable son.
"We will be attending the raffle this afternoon." His father spoke with finality, breaking him out of his thoughts. "You will return to the estate and you will get dressed in your finest attire. We will have a meeting afterwards with Miss Prudence and your in-laws. I expect for it to go well. Now come along." he gestured with a nod for the other four to follow.
The others trailed behind him to the fairgrounds, his brothers bumping into his shoulders as they passed him. Samuel had nothing to say. As much as he didn't want to disappoint a woman innocent in all of this, there was nothing wanted more than for it to be called off.
.
Their estate was huge, it had a great view of the rest of the city, wonderful servants and everything. But it was just so lonely. The other maids were currently getting him dressed for his meeting with Prudence and her family. He could have changed himself but they insisted and he allowed it, only because he knew they feared punishment from his father.
His black tailored suit was slim but it emphasized his broad shoulders and strong torso, not to mention his long legs. The golden buttons proudly sported the family crest and really tied the outfit together with such a regal look.
He was sure, that if given the chance, his father would dethrone the prophet and take over Columbia all for himself. But Samuel honestly couldn't see the appeal to such a place. Maybe to a stranger, this would seem like heaven, but to someone born and raised here, the city had lost its glamour year after boring year. He wanted to know so much more about the world below them. All that he was taught was that Father Comstock, with the help of the angel Columbia, helped their beloved city ascend into its own kind of heaven.
He wanted to learn more about the Sodom below, if he could even call it that. After all the messed up things he's seen here, he just couldn't seem to believe that the world below them was much worse than this place.
He insisted that they leave his hair as he normally had it, but to make him look more properly they gelled it back. After the final touch of cologne, they left him sulking in his room until it was time to meet his fiancé's family.
And so Samuel waited and waited.. and waited. But no one showed up. Not even his family. Where were they? The servants were getting anxious, not wanting to get into trouble for being ill prepared. But their meal was already prepared, lousily if he had any say in it, and still no one has arrived.
Almost two hours have gone by until they finally heard what sounded like sirens. A maid came rushing into his room, beginning to pack his clothing and other essentials.
"Gertrude, what is going on? Have you heard from my father?"
She frantically rushed around the room, haphazardly folding clothes and stuffing them into his suitcase. "Master Samuel.. there was an incident at the fair today. He was there!" Information came spewing out of her mouth breathlessly.
"Who was there?"
"The False Shepard! He was there! We must escort you to the next airship out of Columbia." She stuffed the suitcase and latched it up, grabbing Samuel by the arm and leading him out of the room.
"An airship? But aren't those all the way across Columbia?" As excited as he was to hear that he was leaving Columbia, he didn't know what to think about this whole situation.
The False Shepard was here, and that only proved Father Comstock's gift once again. And if it was truth, then he had to go save their precious Lamb! No way in hell was he going to let some creep lay a hand on such a beautiful lady! Well, he was sure she was beautiful. Even if no one has ever seen her, he didn't need to know what she looked like to know that she was beautiful!
"That is why we must make haste master. Your family is probably already waiting for you!"
As if, they would have gladly left him behind. "Well can't we just take a gondola there?" It was much faster than having to run through the city. Others were undoubtedly making their way to the airships too. It would be utter chaos.
Her frowned deepened, "I don't believe they will be operational. If the authorities are searching for this horrible man, then they won't want to give him an easy way of escape."
That was a pretty reasonable argument, but it would only make it harder for them to get to an airship.
"Then the police is our answer. If they're all around here, then it's best we find someone and we can all get transported to an airship."
They gathered down in the foyer, the other servants packed and ready to leave. Gertrude had pulled him aside. "Master, we will take you as far as we can, but you are our priority. We will not be leaving with you, but with the general public.."
"What?!" He inwardly kicked himself for snapping at a lady, but it was ridiculous! If things were really as crazy as they were saying, then no one should give a damn about social status!
"I really do appreciate your concern master, but it is just how things must be done. Will you please allow us to fulfill our job?" She softly smiled, taking his hand and giving a light squeeze.
His heart turned to mush and the blood went rushing to his face. "Of course my lovely lady! Anything for you!"
Her smile curled into a determined grin. "Then let's get a move on." The men carried the heavier luggage while the maids had extra provisions for Samuel. They made their way out of the estate and loaded the family carriage.
This wasn't the first time Samuel has left the estate, but it certainly felt like it. To think that he was actually going to leave Columbia on an airship.. He didn't exactly like this whole False Shepard business, but a part of him hoped this guy made hell for their city. Because maybe, just maybe they would be forced to land down below.
The automated stallions were revved up and they headed out into the city. He assumed they would be taking the First Lady Airship as it was well known and advertised. They most likely had people of higher status taking that one.
"STOP, WE ARE DETAINING ALL MOTORIZED VEHICLES. RESIST US AND WE WILL USE FORCE."
They froze, but Sanji nodded for them to stop the carriage. Since he was the owner, he stepped out, his hands up in surrender. A gunship was descending as a few officers jumped out, pointing their guns at Sanji.
"Everyone step away from the carriage with your hands where we can see them." They all complied and it didn't take them long to figure out that none of these people were anyone they were looking for.
"We apologize for the inconvenience Mr. Vinsmoke, but we need be extra cautious. We can personally escort you with the others nobles." Captain Smith pulled the cigar from his lips. He was instructed to get as many nobles to safety. He wanted to hunt down the False Shepard himself but he had his orders.
He glanced back at Gertrude and the others, and that look from her was all he needed to know that from here on out, he had to go out on his own. "Very well. But my servants are to be led to a safe area."
"That can be arranged. Now if you would like to bring your belongings, we can board."
Gertrude brought his suitcase over and she sent him off with a hopeful smile to see each other again. He really hated leaving them behind but he knew they would at least be safe.
And as he waved from the ascending gunship, his servants disappeared. Captain Smith commanded his men to keep their guard up and be on the lookout for anymore stragglers.
They soared above the roofs of homes, restaurants, and other buildings. They had passed by one restaurant he was familiar with. The Blue Ribbon. It was decent but he had much better taste and presentation. The only appeal he could think of was that they had enough booze to last them a lifetime.
He could see Battleship Bay. He remembered always wanting to go there as a child but his father never allowed it, saying that it was too public of a place to muddle their family's cleanliness. Even so, he always dreamed of running through the sandy beach or playing at the arcade. And despite probably having too refined of a taste, he'd want to try the food too. The sound of the chimey music made it all the more enticing. He just wanted to be normal. These weren't exactly the circumstances in which he wanted to finally visit Battleship Bay... It hadn't taken them much time to get to Soldier's Field afterwards, but it was no problem. He had hoped they would get to the Aerodrome as soon as possible. There was no rush to meet up with his family again, but he was excited to finally leave this place.
"INCOMING!"
Samuel looked over the side of the gunship just as the projectile was coming, but he recognized it right away. He pivoted on his heal and kicked out into the air, a burst of fire shooting out and clashing midair with the fiery grenade.
"It's him! The False Shepard Booker DeWitt!"
Captain Smith shouted out orders to attack but not let any harm come to Samuel, before jumping down into the action. The sound of crank guns alerted the presence of motorized Patriots, but there was all kinds of fire from all sides. The False Shepard better be careful, even those Patriots were hard to destroy.
"I can help!" Samuel was ready to jump over and help too, but the soldiers stopped him, speeding past all the action. They had to get him to safety and fast.
Samuel didn't have much of a choice in the matter as they were already soaring past Battleship Bay. They were heading up the usual route that the gondola took and from here he could already see multiple airships taking off. He was almost there.
Other gunships behind them were being shot down. Who was this False Shepard that could take down all these guys? Samuel himself admitted that he could easily overpower these guys but even he would be overwhelmed by the sheer numbers. There were too many soldier to fight off, so how did this guy do it?
He was obviously on a whole other level. And despite his chivalrous thoughts about wanting to protect their sacred lamb, he was more desperate to finally leave Columbia.
"Sorry my precious lamb." He muttered.
"What was that si-"
The gunship rocked as from a distance, a possessed Patriot was shooting at them. And beneath them, the gondola was heading in their same direction. That bastard! He had the same plan. Booker DeWitt was trying to escape Columbia with the Lamb.
He was torn between going down there and beating the bastard within an inch of his life, or trying to escape for himself. He wanted to reassure himself that the soldiers could handle him but look at how far he's gotten already!
"I'm going down there!" He was ready to leap over the edge but in that instant, the thrusters on the left side of the gunship were completely blown out. They were falling and fast. He felt someone grab his arm and the next thing he knew he was hanging onto one of the soldiers as they traveled via skyline.
It was definitely hard to miss the curves, even underneath the clunky uniform. Her arm was strapped into the skyhook that was rolling along the magnetized line.
"Mr. Vinsmoke! Are you alright?" Officer Trisha held onto him, following the gondola up to where they needed to go. Captain Smith had been in the fight and she could only hope that he made it out alive. It looked to be a massacre down there. They had underestimated the False Shepard and now they were paying for it.
"Oh! I'm feeling much better with you here my lovely lady!" He felt a warm trickly sensation in his nose but sniffed to keep it from showing. He's had plenty of those incidents to know what would happen and now wasn't exactly the time to be worrying the officer he was clinging to.
She hadn't seemed to noticed, looking fully determined to catch up to the gondola up ahead. "I know this is reckless and I don't want to put your life at risk sir, but we need to stop that man at all costs. He cannot escape our great city!"
He nodded, understanding that although it might be against her orders to put him in harm's way, she needed help if she wanted to take this son of a bitch down. So he readily complied. "No need to worry my dear! I am a skilled fighter and I have the power of my vigor."
It just happened one day when he was curious. Usually vigors this dangerous were reserved for the authorities but as a man of higher standing, he could afford it and be trusted with it. Thought he wouldn't say the same for his siblings.
Samuel only had the power of Devil's Kiss. After experiencing the feeling of drinking his first vigor, he didn't want to have to go through it again. It was such a powerful burst of energy, and as he drank it, he could have sworn that his flesh melted off his very bones. But the power was exhilarating and over a couple of years he learned to develop his fiery power along with his combat skills.
"I will take full responsibility for anything that should happen to you sir!" They watched as the gondola arrived at the top of the Lady's Aerodrome. They arrived shortly after, nodding to each other before jumping down onto the platform.
Trisha immediately had her sword unsheathed and in hand. It was the first time he noticed that she had a sheath on her hip in the first place. It was strange but fascinating. Most of the soldiers carried around issued guns, not something as rare and beautiful as her sword.
"You needn't worry yourself, lovely. I will take care of this bastard and return the Lamb to her rightful home." Samuel stepped in front of her and proceeded to check the gondola but it was empty.
They heard the shooting up ahead and they both had the same idea, running towards the action. And there he was, shotgun in hand, firing at the other soldiers and taking them down one by one. Trisha dashed past Samuel, pulling her sword back , ready to slice through the False Shepard.
Samuel was right behind her until he spotted a young girl, crouched down beneath the counter. Her wild eyes darted between Trisha and Booker, before they landed on him.
He felt his heart melt at the fear in her beautiful blue eyes. So open and filled with innocence. Samuel quickly approached her, hand reaching out. "My lady! Come with me!"
"Mr. DeWitt!" She cried out for help.
The poor thing didn't know that Booker DeWitt was the enemy! He was right about to grab her hand when she seemingly grabbed out into empty air and pulled it apart. In a flash of light and confusion, the last thing that Samuel saw of Columbia was Trisha being shot down.
.
The momentum he had gained from running towards the girl had sent him hurdling straight through a door and tumbling onto the checkered tile floor. Mops, brooms and other miscellaneous equipment fell out of the storage closet.
He was a bit disoriented from landing head first and somehow traveling to a new place. Where was he? He slowly looked up, holding his head. Surrounding him were what appeared to be a group of grizzly looking chefs.
Thud – clank!
Thud – clank!
Thud – clank!
The strange noise he realized was a foot and a wooden leg. The owner of both, glared down at him. He was an aged man, but underneath those chef's whites, he could sense there was great strength and pride. This old man was stronger than he appeared.
The most striking features about him was his long braided mustached and his incredibly tall hat. It looked as though it just barely reached the ceiling.
"What are you doing here brat? How the hell did you even get in?"
"Where..where am I?" He felt a bit lightheaded all of a sudden. He felt as though his body was being crushed, and the air was being taken right from his lungs. Why did he feel so different here? So heavy..
Their faces morphed into startled expressions and then panic when Samuel finally collapsed.
So I know I should really be working on updating my other story and I swear I have but work and school have finally caught up and I'm struggling to get the chapter done! I am so sorry! I will get to that as soon as I possibly can! Thank you for being patient with a lazy sack of shit like me!
Anyway, I'm a big fan of One Piece and Bioshock and I had this idea one day when I thought about the characters having the powers of vigors/plasmids. If you have any questions about the Bioshock Universe, or feel like I should be a bit more clear for those not familiar with it, then let me know!
Hope you like this and hope you'll want to read more in the future!