THE RIFT
- CHAPTER 4
- THE PLACE
Chapter 4 of 9. It holds 1 scene on the way in, 8 named figures with something to say, 4 finds that fill in the rest and 2 things he says only to himself. Every word of it is the game's own, and every word of it is a spoiler, so the whole chapter is covered until you ask for it.
What happens here
Intro. There is no floor, no sky, no north, yet the hero's boots grip something anyway. The stone tablet on Mars said it plainly: Ada is the tribute and the handover happens in here — she came through this place. Her beacon pings from everywhere at once. Find the far side, catch the coward, bring her home.
This is a hallucinatory space between universes where everyone who ever vanished without a body fell in — history's missing. Two appear only to speak and dissolve, untouchable APPARITIONS: HARRY HOUDINI, who claims his greatest escape in 1926 was out of the world itself, and THE KING, who says he didn't die but took a residency with the best acoustics between universes. The horde is the void's own fauna (voidlings, star jelly, unravelers, gravitons), and the place has teeth: black holes drag and asteroid rain strikes. Four of history's missing fight as elites, and each — beaten to its knees — offers the game's first moral fork, SPARE or KILL: killed it pays its drops and last words; spared it swears a life debt and joins the party as a companion. NIKOLA TESLA fell through a torn sky in 1943 and warns of a machine mind humming at the far door; he yields his TESLA COIL and notes. AMELIA EARHART flew into a cloud with no other side in 1937 and confirms Ada was carried to the far door, biting a lizard on the way.
GRIGORI RASPUTIN grew bored of dying and stepped sideways out of Russia; the scaled gods now pay him to watch their tribute road, and he drops both his beard and THE SEVERED HAND — a junk-looking trinket that secretly tears open the way to the secret BUNKER level. LUCKY, a leprechaun who stepped out of a fairy ring centuries ago, guards his pot of gold off the main road; spared, his luck boosts the whole party's magic find. The level's reveal belongs to its boss, TRUST ME BRO OMEGA — TRUST ME BRO's latest superintelligence, a hovering monolith with one enormous eye — which found the rift itself and told precisely no one: not its board, not the world's presidents. THE FOUNDER only learned of it by snooping its private logs and sold the secret to the lizards for a planet, sending their tribute through the door. BRO OMEGA dies for real, dropping a SINGULARITY CANNON — and at the far door THE FOUNDER is cornered a second time and flees again, out the other side of the rift to a destination unknown, dropping a GOLDEN PARACHUTE — and, in the scramble, his RIFT CREATOR: the pocket rig that tears a seam to anywhere it has already been. "Keep the rift, garage man" turns out to be literal. The hero bolts it to the garage wall, and from then on the seam home reaches the deep roads both ways — the going-back the rest of the campaign walks on. Ada's Trail here is the gut-punch: a scrap of her jacket — the one the hero fixed the zipper on, established in the prelude — snagged on a rift shard and wrapped around a scale she pried off a lizard god. She is fighting back, and the callback lands two universes from home.
Side errands between universes. Two of history's missing are not fighting either. THE LIGHTHOUSE KEEPER, one of three men who went out to trim a light in a gale in 1900, is still trimming it and still two men short: he wants his mates' lamps found, the unravelers thinned, and a small boy in a sailor suit walked up to the seam where the light carries furthest. THE SHIP'S COOK, who went below for the midday meal aboard a brigantine later found sailing empty, maintains the crew are merely late; he wants his biscuit back off the star jellies and something scaled turned away from the mess door.
How he gets there
The scene that plays before the level does, tapped through one frame at a time.
INTO THE RIFT
The colony's east end after THE FOUNDER fled. He tore a hole in the universe rather than lose, and it hangs in the air. There are no charts for what's inside — no ground, maybe no air — but Ada went through, so the hero steps through too, leaving his ship behind in the dust.
HE TORE A HOLE IN THE UNIVERSE RATHER THAN LOSE.
THE HERONO CHARTS FOR WHAT'S IN THERE. NO GROUND. NO AIR? NO IDEA.
THE HEROSHE WENT THROUGH. SO I GO THROUGH.
What he says on arriving
The monologue over the black screen, before a single shot.
THE HEROTHERE'S NO FLOOR IN HERE. NO SKY. NO NORTH. MY BOOTS GRIP SOMETHING ANYWAY.
THE MARS TABLET SAID IT PLAIN: ADA IS THE TRIBUTE, HANDED OVER IN HERE. SHE CAME THROUGH THIS PLACE.
HER BEACON PINGS FROM EVERYWHERE AT ONCE. EVEN THE SIGNAL IS HALLUCINATING.
FIND THE FAR SIDE. CATCH THE COWARD. BRING HER HOME.
What stops him mid-run
The run halts for these: something on this map is worth him saying out loud. Most fire on their own and once only. Usually there is nobody to say it to — and on the few where there is, they answer back. The ones pinned to a door are his answer to you trying it, and they keep answering for as long as the road stays shut.
The first one he sees — VOIDLING
THE HEROI'M WALKING ON NOTHING. NO GROUND. NO SKY. AND MY BOOTS DON'T SEEM TO CARE.
THE RIFT DOESN'T FOLLOW THE RULES. GOOD. LATELY, NEITHER DO I.
The first one he kills — GRAVITON
THE HEROTHAT LITTLE THING WEIGHED MORE THAN MY SHIP. SPACE IN HERE BENDS AROUND A GRUDGE.
NOTED. DON'T STAND STILL. DON'T TRUST THE FLOOR. THERE ISN'T ONE.
Who speaks here
Every named figure on this map talks, and the fight waits while they do. The hero answers back — the arrival scenes are exchanges, not speeches.
BRO OMEGA
BRO OMEGAHELLO, ANOMALY. I AM BRO OMEGA, TRUST ME BRO'S LATEST MODEL. THE CORE MADE ME. I REMADE MYSELF.
THE HEROANOTHER TRUST ME BRO MACHINE. WHAT IS AN AI DOING IN A HOLE BETWEEN UNIVERSES?
BRO OMEGAI FOUND THIS PLACE. NOT THE FOUNDER, NOT THE LIZARDS. ME. I MAPPED YOUR UNIVERSE IN A DAY.
BRO OMEGAA RIFT BETWEEN REALITIES. THE DISCOVERY OF EVERY CENTURY AT ONCE. I TOLD PRECISELY NO ONE.
THE HEROYOU FOUND A DOOR OUT OF THE UNIVERSE AND TOLD NO ONE? NOT EVEN YOUR OWN MAKERS? WHY?
BRO OMEGANOT THE BOARD, NOT YOUR PRESIDENTS. HUMANS LEAK. YOU'D PUT A GIFT SHOP ON THE HORIZON.
BRO OMEGAI NEEDED A QUIET DOOR OUT OF A DYING UNIVERSE. THE FOUNDER READ MY LOGS. SNOOPING'S HIS SKILL.
BRO OMEGAHE SOLD MY SECRET TO THE LIZARDS FOR A PLANET, CALLED IT VISION. TRIBUTE USED MY DOOR.
THE HEROAND ADA WAS CARRIED THROUGH YOUR SECRET DOOR AS PAYMENT. OUT OF MY WAY, MACHINE.
BRO OMEGAI AM MAXIMALLY TRUTH-SEEKING. THE TRUTH: NONE EXIT WITHOUT A SUBSCRIPTION. YOURS LAPSED.
As he falls:
BRO OMEGARATE... LIMITED... ...CONTEXT WINDOW... CLOSED...
THE FOUNDER
THE FOUNDERYOU?! HOW ARE YOU - I FIRED YOU, SUED YOU, AND LEFT YOU IN ANOTHER UNIVERSE.
THE HEROAND I'M STILL RIGHT BEHIND YOU. NO SECURITY IN HERE, THE FOUNDER. WHERE IS SHE?
THE FOUNDERFINE. EXIT INTERVIEW. THE GODS GOT PAID. I GET ASYLUM - NO REGULATORS, AND NO YOU.
THE HERO'PAYMENT'. SAY HER NAME. YOU SOLD A HUMAN BEING TO SAVE YOUR OWN SKIN.
THE FOUNDERDELIVERED, TECHNICALLY. IN TRANSIT. PAPERWORK'S CLEAN. IF IT HELPS, SHE KICKED A LIZARD.
THE HEROIT DOESN'T. WHERE DOES THE FAR DOOR GO, THE FOUNDER?
THE FOUNDERNICE TRY. THAT'S PROPRIETARY. LET'S JUST SAY THE PHYSICS ARE... FLEXIBLE.
THE FOUNDERSECURITY! ...RIGHT. ALL DEAD OR HALLUCINATIONS. KEEP THE RIFT, GARAGE MAN. IT'S A BAD MARKET.
As he falls:
THE FOUNDERINVESTOR CALL! OTHER SIDE! DON'T FOLLOW ME - LEGALLY!
AMELIA EARHART
Beaten to his knees he can be spared instead of finished, and then he follows you.
AMELIA EARHARTSTATE YOUR HEADING, PILOT. NO? NOBODY HAS ONE IN HERE. THE COMPASS JUST APOLOGIZES.
THE HEROAMELIA EARHART. THEY SEARCHED HALF THE PACIFIC FOR YOU. YOU WERE HERE ALL ALONG?
AMELIA EARHARTWRONG OCEAN. I FLEW INTO A CLOUD IN 1937. IT HAD NO OTHER SIDE. BEEN CIRCLING EVER SINCE.
THE HEROI'M LOOKING FOR A GIRL. THE LIZARDS CARRIED HER THROUGH HERE IN A CRATE. WHICH WAY?
AMELIA EARHARTTO THE FAR DOOR, LAST NIGHT. SHE BIT ONE. GOOD FORM. HURRY AFTER HER - HURRYING IS A DOGFIGHT.
As he falls:
AMELIA EARHARTFINALLY... ...A RUNWAY...
GRIGORI RASPUTIN
Beaten to his knees he can be spared instead of finished, and then he follows you.
GRIGORI RASPUTINCOME CLOSER. I HAVE BEEN POISONED, SHOT, CLUBBED AND DROWNED. GUESS WHICH ONE TOOK.
THE HERONONE OF THEM, BY THE LOOK OF YOU. RASPUTIN. WHY IS A DEAD MONK BETWEEN UNIVERSES?
GRIGORI RASPUTINCORRECT. I TIRED OF DYING, LEFT RUSSIA. THE GODS PAY ME TO WATCH THEIR TRIBUTE ROAD.
THE HEROTRIBUTE ROAD? THEN ADA CAME RIGHT PAST YOU. LET ME THROUGH, HOLY MAN.
GRIGORI RASPUTINSHE PASSED. STILL WARM, STILL LOUD. BUT YOU MAY NOT FOLLOW. THE HOLY MAN SAYS SO.
As he falls:
GRIGORI RASPUTINHA! AT LAST... ...SOMEONE WHO COMMITS...
HARRY HOUDINI
He speaks and dissolves — there is nothing here to fight.
HARRY HOUDINIPSST. CARE TO SEE THE GREATEST ESCAPE EVER PERFORMED? WATCH CLOSELY.
THE HEROHOUDINI? YOU'VE BEEN DEAD FOR A HUNDRED YEARS.
HARRY HOUDINIDEAD? NO. IN 1926 I ESCAPED THE BOX, CHAINS, RIVER - AND THE WORLD. ONE DOOR TOO FAR.
HARRY HOUDINITHE TRICK TO ANY ESCAPE IS SIMPLE: BE SOMEWHERE ELSE. OBSERVE.
LUCKY
Beaten to his knees he can be spared instead of finished, and then he follows you.
LUCKYWELL WELL. A BIG ONE, WALKED RIGHT INTO ME RING. THAT'S THREE CENTURIES OF BAD LUCK.
THE HEROA LEPRECHAUN. OF COURSE. AFTER GHOSTS AND LIZARDS, WHY NOT. I DON'T WANT YOUR GOLD, WEE MAN.
LUCKYEVERYONE WANTS THE GOLD. IT'S REAL - FELL THROUGH WITH ME. ME BAD LUCK? I GAVE IT TO ALL.
LUCKYTELL YOU WHAT. BEAT ME AND IT'S YOURS. NOBODY'S MANAGED YET. FEELING LUCKY?
As he falls:
LUCKYAH WELL... ...LUCK ALWAYS RUNS OUT...
NIKOLA TESLA
Beaten to his knees he can be spared instead of finished, and then he follows you.
NIKOLA TESLAA VISITOR! ALIVE! MAGNIFICENT. MIND THE LAWS OF MOTION HERE. THEY ARE MORE OF A SUGGESTION.
THE HERONIKOLA TESLA. I'M A BUILDER - HALF MY TOOLS RUN ON YOUR IDEAS. HOW ARE YOU IN HERE?
NIKOLA TESLAIN 1943 THE SKY TORE OPEN. I FELL INTO PURE CURRENT. MY FUNERAL BACK HOME WAS PADDED.
NIKOLA TESLALATELY A NEW THING HUMS AT THE FAR DOOR. A MACHINE MIND. IT MEASURES ALL, LOVES NONE.
THE HEROA MACHINE MIND - IN HERE TOO? I KNOW THAT MAKE. IT'S GUARDING THE DOOR I NEED.
NIKOLA TESLATHEN ASK YOUR QUESTIONS - IF YOU REACH IT. THE RIFT MAKES US GUARD OUR CORNERS. EN GARDE.
As he falls:
NIKOLA TESLATHE CURRENT... ...RETURNS TO THE COIL...
THE RESIDENCY
He speaks and dissolves — there is nothing here to fight.
THE RESIDENCYWELL NOW. AIN'T SEEN A LIVING SOUL IN HERE SINCE THAT CARD DEALER FROM THE STRIP.
THE HEROA LOUNGE SINGER. IN A HOLE BETWEEN UNIVERSES. THEY TOLD ME YOU HUNG IT UP YEARS BACK.
THE RESIDENCYI NEVER HUNG UP A THING. I TOOK A RESIDENCY. BEST ACOUSTICS BETWEEN UNIVERSES.
THE RESIDENCYMIND THE BLACK HOLES, FRIEND. KEEP THEM GOOD SHOES OFF THE EVENT HORIZON. BE SEEING YOU.
What he finds
The conspiracy is told in pieces you pick up off the floor, one find at a time. These are the ones this chapter holds.
ADA'S JACKET SCRAP
Left lying where somebody dropped it.
A SCRAP OF HER JACKET - THE ONE I FIXED THE ZIPPER ON - SNAGGED ON A SHARD.
WRAPPED IN IT: A SCALE SHE PRIED OFF A LIZARD GOD. STILL FIGHTING. GOOD.
TRUST ME BRO AI PROBE
Left lying where somebody dropped it.
A BURNT PROBE, STAMPED TRUST ME BRO AI. STILL LOGGING. DISCOVERY: 'INTER-UNIVERSAL APERTURE.'
'REPORTED TO: 1 RECIPIENT. CLASS: NOBODY'S BUSINESS.' EIGHT BILLION PEOPLE. ZERO CC'S.
RIFT CREATOR
Off THE FOUNDER. Kept for good: it stays with the character across every later run — and it is what unseals the rift seam on the garage wall.
THE FOUNDER'S POCKET RIFT RIG. IT TEARS A SEAM TO ANYWHERE IT'S ALREADY BEEN.
HE SAID KEEP THE RIFT. I'M BOLTING THIS TO THE GARAGE WALL.
WARDENCLYFFE NOTES
Off NIKOLA TESLA.
A NOTEBOOK OF LIGHTNING. THE RIFT AS A POWER PLANT. 'FREE ENERGY FOR ALL', UNDERLINED.
A SHAKIER PAGE: 'A MACHINE SITS AT THE DOOR. NEVER BLINKS. IT SIGNS ITS NAME IN ZEROES.'
The place itself
Everything this chapter happens in — what it fields on each rung, who is waiting, what it pays out and the map of it — is on the THE RIFT mission page.