Chapter 14: The Airship

Elizabeth's Perspective.

Down on the boardwalk of Soldier's Field once more, we were, after having fought through the army of Founders that were amassed outside the Hall of Heroes. They weren't very keen on giving up, either; it was the hardest fight we'd had yet. They had an entirely perimeter established outside on the scaffolding and were fully prepared to handle us. Fortunately, none of the defenses were too much for Will and Booker to handle, with a little bit of help from us. I honestly didn't know if they'd still be alive if I didn't keep them stocked with supplies and Lucy didn't pass any of the technological obstacles in our way.

But either way, we broke through their defenses and left Slate and them to their own devices. I wasn't sure if he was going to be okay, but I hoped he was going to be. If anything, just a few years of imprisonment. . . Booker spared him for no reason, if that wasn't the case.

"Let's get the Shock Jockey conduit all charged up, Booker," said Lucy. She led us through the deserted boardwalk and towards the gondola station. It looked just as it had before; the lever, hooked up to the spherical conduit, which was meant to hold the Shock Jockey, which powered the gondola lines. Booker charged up his hand, and sent a bolt of electricity at it. It collected into a mass of the blue mixture we'd seen so much of on our trip, and we heard the Shock Jockey jingle as the gondola started drifting towards us.

I twirled around with delight, clasping my hands in front of my chest. "Oh, this is wonderful! I can't believe we're about to see Paris! It will be wonderful! I just can't wait until we get to see the Eiffel Tower, won't it be amazing, Lucy?"

She smiled radiantly at me. "I bet it will! I just can't wait until we see my mother and father again. . . What are you going to do, Booker?"

He remained silent, for the most part, muttering slightly. ". . . Booker?" I asked.

"Huh? Oh, uh, nothin'. I'm just gonna' wait and see how things play out." He shrugged, and stared upwards at the slowly approaching gondola. "Dammit. . . Get here faster!"

"How 'bout you, Will?" asked Lucy. "What do you plan to do once we get down under?"

Will and I looked at each other briefly, exchanging a look of distress. "I dunno'. Probably going to head outta' town, maybe. Get back home."

She frowned slightly. "You got a family or something? Siblings, wife?"

I can't believe I never remembered to ask him if he had a family, let alone a wife. "Yeah, I'd like to know as well."

He sighed. "No, 'fraid not. Still got business, though."

"Couldn't you stay for a little while?" I asked, pleading with my eyes.

I was met with another sigh. "I could do a couple more photographs of the Eiffel Tower while we're there, if that'd make you feel better."

We all grinned simultaneously. Booker brought us back to business, "The gondola's here now."

A voice crackled over the area, though. "He will abandon you, my sweet Elizabeth!" Comstock shouted over the gunship announcement systems.

"The Prophet himself, gracing us with his presence. We should be honored," muttered Will.

"He will get what he wants, and then he will leave you all alone, abandon you!" he shouted ferociously. "What do you expect from a liar and killer of women?"

"Father, Prophet, whoever you are, I'm leaving, and there's naught you can do to stop me!" I shouted, hoping he could hear me.

Evidently, he could. "Oh, but that's where you're wrong."

And with that, the gunships lifted from their spot below the city. On the deck, there were two heavily armored soldiers with rockets, and a groups of regular infantry poured out over the side.

The heavily armored men fired their rockets, sending them spiraling towards us. Of course, none of them were directed at me; Comstock obviously wanted me alive, but sparing Will, Booker and Lucy wasn't on their to do list. Will jumped onto one of the skylines and disappeared from view, while Lucy and Booker ducked behind a bench. I started to run away, begging to be anywhere but here, but I knew I couldn't leave. I'd gotten this far. We just needed to handle this situation, and we'd be done. I'd be off to Paris and everything would be perfect.

"Elizabeth!" shouted Booker. "I could use a restock!" He ripped me back into reality with a shout. Booker was running out of shotgun ammunition. "I need some, right now!"

"U-Uh, I'm looking!" I scanned the area, looking for anything he could use as a weapon. There was nothing around, though; absolutely nothing. Who the hell thought that we could find a shotgun in an amusement park?

"Elizabeth, I'm all out! I really need a restock!" He tossed his shotgun to the side and started to beat on people with the sky-hook. That wouldn't work on the armored people, though.

"I can't find anything, I'll let you know if there's anything else you can use, but the shotgun's out for now!"

He cursed under his breath and tackled a soldier to the ground, wrestling the hook to his neck before activating the trigger and ripping his head off. The scene was gruesome, but there wasn't much I could do about it; the sky-hook was all he had. As for the men with the rockets, Will was making quick work of them. His rooftop perch allowed him to blast their helmets off, before removing their head as well. With a half a minute, two of the men with the rockets were dead.

Gunships were still arriving, though, and our gondola wasn't here yet. It was getting there, but it still wasn't here, and that was our only salvation unless we wanted to fight the entire army of Founders. But we couldn't handle that right now. Booker was all out of ammunition, Will was still injured, and there was nothing Lucy could take care of. We were at a dead end, and I was having difficulty finding us a way out of it.

"Booker!" shouted Lucy, "I found something!" She tossed him a rifle, which he turned and loaded into a soldier's head. It had been sitting right underneath a bench, right in the corner of my eye. How did I miss that?

Flaming ravens circled around, looking for targets, and finding none. It was utterly chaotic. I couldn't even find Will, but I knew he was shooting accurately. He was blasting heads off left and right, leaving people with holes everywhere. But even with the stream of blood we left behind us, we couldn't thin their ranks. Everyone was everywhere.

"You see, my lamb!" Comstock shouted. "There's nothing I wouldn't do for you! What has your False Shepard done for you so far, other than make things harder for you? You have a destiny, Elizabeth, and he is leading you astray! Just as the prophecy said!"

"She doesn't give a damn about your prophecy," shouted Will, before loading another bullet into another head. "And neither do I!"

Comstock seemed taken aback for a moment. "Who. . . is that?" He spoke softly, as if forgetting his voice was projected through the area. Who? How does a Prophet not know something?. . . "Regardless, it is true! Why can't you simply come back home with me, my dear Elizabeth?"

"Just shut up, Comstock, and tell your soldiers to give it up before they all meet their deaths!" Lucy had her turn to speak now.

Comstock had another moment of confusion. "What. . . Grr! Soldiers, do not fret! Your glory will be found, in victory or death! Do not hesitate!"

And they certainly didn't. Our gondola arrived at the station, only to reveal a fireman and a motorized patriot. Lucy clenched her fist and raised her pipe, "Jackpot. Booker, hit that thing with a shock!" He did as she asked. The fireman dove off the ship and onto the boardwalk, but the motorized patriot was left paralyzed and sizzling. I get it. . . She's going to make that ours, isn't she? "I need five minutes, hold them off!"

"Got it!" Booker stood in front of her and raised his rifle, preparing to shoot anyone who was foolish enough to attack him, leaving me completely . . . exposed.

Soldiers took notice of this faster than I would've liked them to. "The lamb's over there! Ignore the Shepard and his friends, take her!" They all started rushing towards me, bludgeons raised and guns lowered. They clearly wanted me alive, but my perfect well being wasn't necessary. I raised my hands in fear, stepping back until I ran into a wall. Th-They're going to take me back now. . . I-I can't go back! "I can't go back!"

A black cloud of crows engulfed the group before they could arrive, though, and Will dropped off the skyline next to me with "Sally" raised. He was firing into the cloud, grimacing visibly with each shot. "Not today, bastards! Step back! You aren't getting her today!" He continued firing until Sally needed to be reloaded, and by that time, most everyone was already taken care of. I couldn't stop staring at Will, though.

"W-Will. . ." I rushed forwards and wrapped my arms around him, afraid that if I let go they'd take me back again. I won't let them have me.

"Hey, I hate to break up this tender moment," he said, "but don't we still have a situation to handle?"

"No, as a matter of fact, we don't." Lucy spoke with her arm rested upon the mechanical George Washington, which was now our best friend. "He took care of the rest."

Booker sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "Now that that's handled, could we get to the airship already?"

I blinked several times before I realized I was desperately clinging to Will. I pulled off of him, blushing slightly, with a light nod. "Yeah, we should get a move on."

Lucy smiled. "Alright, George, it's okay now. You can rest." She smacked something on its back and it shut down, lowering its head as the mechanical whirring sound from inside of it stopped.

We hopped on the gondola and Booker pulled the lever from inside. The rest of us sat outside, staring towards the First Lady. "I can't believe it," I said. "I'm almost out. I get to go to Paris now. Everything will be perfect!" The gondola slowly slid forwards, not nearly fast enough for me. I'm going to be in Paris soon. . . It'll be perfect. No more silly stories about my father and this prophecy. I get to be normal. I couldn't wait.

Lucy smiled. "I get to see my mom and dad again. I can't wait either."

Will and Booker were eerily silent, though. They hadn't said anything conversational for a while now. Are they hiding something?

Will spoke for the first time in a while now. "Well, Booker, what are you going to do in Paris?" The emphasis on the question filled me with a dark premonition, but I couldn't quite tell what from.

"Uh. . . I-I'm not sure. Maybe do some sightseeing and finish my business," he said, as nonchalantly as possible. What's up with them?

The gondola stopped at its station, right outside the dock into the First Lady. The silence frightened me. It was almost as if the night sky was reflecting an ominous aura down upon us, with the sole purpose of unnerving me. I have to remain positive.

The First Lady was certainly well adorned; all the framework was golden, the balloon itself appeared to be made out of the closest material they could find to red velvet that would still allow it to float, and everything around it was decorated beautifully. And, the centerpiece; a giant portrait of Lady Comstock, adorned with golden lining, on either side of the balloon. With that much metal on it, I was surprised that it could float.

Booker pushed open the door to allow us inside. He held the foot-thick door open for the three of us, before sliding inside and closing it himself. "Wow. . ." I said, glancing around the cockpit. It was more ornate than a palace I'd read about in one of my books. All the furniture was velvet, there was an entire backroom set to accommodate for the First Lady; clothes her size, what looked like a bed for her, portraits all across the wall. Everything was amazing.

"Alright, Booker, punch in some coordinates," said Will. "I'm gonna' get some rest." He jumped onto the couch and kicked his feet up, transferring blood and mud from his jacket onto the furniture. "I deserve it."

"You sure do, our suited wonder," said Lucy. "I'll help Booker out with the airship. I have experience," she said.

I smiled and ran forwards into the cockpit, staring out at it. Booker slid a wrench over and leaned forwards, grabbing the levers that adjusted the coordinates. "I can't wait to see everything the world has to offer. . . It's going to be amazing!"

"Hey, keep it down up there! I'm trying to sleep!" Will tussled over and over, his eyelids shut tight. I giggled lightly. He really is tired, isn't he?

I watched Booker change the coordinates on the levers. . . 40 North, by 74 West? Those aren't the coordinates for New York, those are for. . .

"Wait, that isn't Paris. That's New York." I crossed my arms and shot an evil glare towards Booker. This doesn't add up.

"How did you know that?" He opened his eyes widely and stared at me, completely shocked. All I could see on his face was evil; absolute evil. Comstock was right. . . He's a cruel and horrible father, but he was right. . . Booker lied to me. The realization was almost immediate: This really was a False Shepard, filling us with his lies, wasn't he?

"One thing I had in that tower was time, Mr. DeWitt."

I couldn't pay attention to anything else in the room. Lucy said something along the lines of "What are you doing, Booker? Did you lie to us the entire time?" but I couldn't pay attention to that right now.

"I owed money. And I knew a guy, who offered to pay off my debt in exchange for. . . you."

I started to cry. I couldn't believe it. I was just a bargaining chip, not important. I was purely something Booker was using. He saved me for his own good. . . He never planned on taking any of us to Paris.

I felt a hand on my back and turned to see Booker, trying to comfort me. "Hey," he said, trying to calm me down, as if anything he could say would manage to make me feel better about being kidnapped by him. I reached for something, anything I could use behind me, and that's when I felt it; the wrench he had slid across the counter. I grabbed it and clenched it in my hand, thoroughly contemplating what I was going to do. But I knew before I even started to do it.

With all the force I could muster, I slammed the wrench into his temple. He fell to the ground with a bloodied forehead, and a resounding 'thud' echoed through the room.

Will sat up suddenly, jumping to his feet with his hand on his gun. "What just happened?"

I leaned forward and began to alter the coordinates, setting them to take us to Paris. North: 2, East: 49. I'm still going to Paris. . .

"Lucy, what just happened?"

"Booker lied to all of us. He wasn't helping us get to Paris, he was kidnapping Elizabeth. . . He lied. . ." She bit her lip, rubbing her elbow vigorously. "I can't believe he did that. . ."

I vigorously adjusted controls, begging it to go faster. "Come on, why won't this thing move!"

Will put a hand on my shoulder. "Elizabeth, you need to calm down! You're going to break it!"

I turned towards him and stared into his eyes with fury. "You knew too, didn't you? I knew it was too convenient for you two to just be here at the same time, helping us through all of this! You were both too nice!" I slapped him, the sound echoing through the room for a moment. "Just get away from me!"

He rubbed his cheek and shook his jaw for a moment. "That . . . was not fun." He didn't waver, though. "Elizabeth, do you really think that? Really?"

I collapsed, metaphorically speaking. It was too much. "I-I don't know! I just don't know anymore!" I started to cry again, unsure of what to believe. I thought these people cared about me. Did they really?

Something more alarming came up, though. Will pointed out the glass viewing chamber, at a giant, red zeppelin floating around. "That's . . . That's not good." He grabbed my arm, and started to pull me off the ship. "That's the Vox." He looked more closely. "Lucy, change the coordinates to the nearest thing in the city!"

"That'd be. . ." she stared at the manual, looking for the coordinates. "Finkton, why?"

"We need to get off this thing, right now, or we're in trouble." He looked into my eyes with the hard grey irides I'd gotten so used to. "You're going to have to trust me for just a little while longer."

I stared at him and put on the hardest expression I could muster. "Fine, but after that, I'm going to get off this city by myself."

Lucy stared down at Booker. "I'm going to stay here with him and make sure he doesn't get into any trouble. I'll catch up with you later, Will. You've still got to take me to Paris."

He nodded. "Noted. So if you can't catch up with me, make sure you meet me . . ." He stared at a map of Columbia for a moment, before deciding on a location. "Lutece Laboratories, in two or three days."

We all nodded unanimously and the boat docked. Will and I got off, waving Lucy goodbye, before re-entering the streets of the city. But this time, I won't be so foolish. . .