Raven's World: New Rapture
Prologue
"Wake up, would you kindly…?"
That was the first thing he'd heard. That annoying phrase that he'd come to know and hate. However, he found himself complying to the request subconsciously. Raven opens his eyes for the first time in several hours (he has no memory of what he was doing before he passed out), and takes in his new surroundings. From the wild rushing sounds coming from outside, he surmises that wherever this place was, there was a body of water nearby, and a storm was no doubt coming in… Once he had established these facts, he continued to survey the area.
Still sitting on the floor, Raven takes notice of the room's condition. The walls, though composite of little more than chalky green brick and putrescent mortar, seem stable enough. Directing his attention away from the nearest wall, he is suddenly caught off guard by a menacing golden face staring right back at him. From the center of the front wall, protrudes a massive golden bust of a man who looks to be in his fifties or so. The statue seemed exergonic, in its own disturbing little way, and its gaze haunted Raven to his core. Strung up crudely above the statue, suspended by thin and frail rope, was a red velvet banner with a questionable slogan emblazoned onto it. "NO GOD, NO KINGS, ONLY MAN". The banner ripples lazily in the breeze coming through the cracks in the mortar behind it. Underneath the statue's mounted plinth, is a doorway, opening to either side of the room. Raven, deciding he's seen enough, stands and walks cautiously across the room through the doorway.
The minute Raven passes the doorway, he feels a sick knot of surprise as his foot hits nothing but air, and he falls headlong down a staircase he hadn't noticed while examining the room. He comes to a stop in a circular room and sits there for a while. As soon as the pain in his back subsides, he gets to his feet again and feels around the dark room for a light switch. The room itself, as if sensing his intentions, turns on its own lights suddenly. The light flashes at a staggering wattage before turning dim. This flash causes Raven to shield his eyes and stumble into something in the center of the room. When the light above dims sufficiently, he removes his hands from his eyes and gazes upon a metal sphere, suspended above a hole that leads into the water. He places a hand on the cold surface of the odd mechanism and walks around it. Upon a more thorough inspection, Raven discovers the thing to be a bathysphere…
Raven sighs shakily to himself and touches the grime-covered window at the front of the bathysphere. "Nowhere else to go but down…", he mutters to himself. With the turn of a latch, the front of the bathysphere opens. He steps inside and is greeted by a haunting instrumental rendition of "Beyond the Sea". Instantly realizing the source of the eerie music, he turns to a shortwave service radio in the corner, just as the bathysphere closes. He reaches hesitantly for the radio and switches it off, but the music only seems to play louder as he does so. He gives up on the radio and turns again, this time noticing an ornate control lever. It's a curious thing, the simple machine. The instant Raven lays eyes on this lever, he is suddenly overcome with the urge to pull it. It wasn't curiosity, and it wasn't fear. There was a voice…. A voice he couldn't ignore for much longer--
"Would you kindly get this thing moving…?"
Yes. He'd kindly get this thing moving. Almost completely oblivious to his own movements, Raven reaches a shaky hand out fort the lever and pulls with purpose. Immediately afterward, he is thrown to the ground by the sudden movement of the bathysphere as it submerges. The new pain in his head reawakens the pain in his back and he lies there for a while. The inside of the bathysphere is bathed in a blue glow as it delves deeper into the ocean. When Raven lifts his head to the front window, he notices a neon sign ascending before the bathysphere's front. "18 Fathoms". How curious. Firstly, the glass of a neon light would never last under the pressure of 18 fathoms, unless it was made for these conditions. Secondly, if this were the case, what would anyone need with an underwater neon light…?
The bathysphere crashes to a halt in a dark cylindrical chamber. The aquatic sounds of the ocean outside become inaudible, signifying that the bathysphere has reached its final stop. Lights flicker on as the bathysphere opens up. Raven steps out and looks up. The ceiling, made of some transparent material, provides a full view of the ocean above. He continues into the room, fixated on the tranquil sights of the deep waters. Suddenly, his foot slides forward as it makes contact with something other than the floor. He looks down quickly, still disoriented by the trip. He moves his foot back a step and sees another banner like the one hanging above the statue, this one smeared with what looks like blood and a child's handprints… "WELCOME TO RAPTURE! OPPORTUNITY AWAITS…."
--To Be Continued