---

Joe entered into the dock and walked towards the nearest office. His curiosity was soon peaked after spotting numerous workers surrounding the ship christened the Borealis. Mechanics and technicians, dangling from both sides by harnesses, now obscured the massive, red ship. Their job was to repair any minor and major cracks, scratches or rust. Sparks from hundreds of handheld sanding and welding devises cascaded from the ship's hull, illuminating both the boat and the worker's bodies in a soft glow. However, one detail worried Joe. He had never seen so many people in the dock before.

The "White coats" or scientists were busy moving to and from the Borealis, walking down planks connected to the ship's deck and the dock below. Although Joe had never scene the interior of the Borealis, he had heard stories and rumors. Supposedly, the outside was just a shell or illusion. The inside was a mass of pure white corridors and clean labs filled with amazing technologies.

Joe really didn't care. His job was to help the Borealis keep functioning and that's all he was going to think about.

---

As Joe approached the small office near the boat, he spotted a small table surrounded by some of his buddies. Joe walked closer, spotting cards strewn across the top of the table. Harold Whitt spotted the approaching mechanic.

"Joey!" Harold shouted, drawing the attention of the remaining guys towards Joe. "How goes it?"

Joe smiled. "It's going good. How are you guys?"

A series of soft grunts and mumbles rose from the group. The newcomer gestured at the cards.

"Shouldn't you guys be workin'?"

Roaring laughter rang out, dismissing the somewhat foolish comment. Joe shook his head out of pity for the lazy bums. He waved his goodbyes before walking away towards the office.

"Oh, Joe!" Harold called out, stopping him in his tracks. "You don't want to go in there. The boss it pretty pissed right now. He did give you a job though. You're going to be working on the port side today."

Joe frowned. "Doing what?"

"There's a crack to be filled." Harold sent a devious grin at Joe, who gave out a small groan. Filling cracks in the Borealis' hull was not a fun nor short task. But he dismissed his grumblings and moved towards the equipment shack, ready to get his day started.

---

Inside the Borealis

Dr. Edward Westman tried to keep his emotions at bay. Earlier this morning, he had receive dire news. An urgent meeting was called, summoned near the center of the Borealis, in one of the many beautiful conference rooms.

Around a oval shaped, mahogany conference table, each seat was occupied. Four of the head scientists in charge of the Borealis' main labs were present, along with the captain of the ship: Benjamin Stevens. Dr. Westman stood at the end of the table, his arms crossed in frustration. After making sure everyone was present and accounted for, Westman started the meeting.

"I have some upsetting news," He called out, silencing any loose conversations. "It seems that our competitors at Black Mesa have tested their teleport devise earlier this morning."

Subtle gasps could be heard from all listening. Dr. Westman continued, ignoring the soft surprise.

"Although they have initiated their test early, our informer was unable to contact us until ten minutes before it began."

Westman quickly checked his wristwatch.

"Right now, that test began an hour ago." The doctor shifted his gaze to the table. "We . . . have lost contact with our informer at Black Mesa. We've tried to reconnect with him, but have achieved nothing. The strangest part is . . . we are not receiving any radio chatter from their facility. Not even a whisper."

Dr. Westman spotted confusion between his comrades.

"This is not a good sign, gentlemen. If Black Mesa has found out that we have a man inside of their lab, we must be prepared to move the Borealis out of here at once. We cannot risk any prying eyes on this boat. Our friends will certainly try to find us, so we must act fast."

Dr. Thrash brought his eyes upon Westman.

"What of Item #3325?"

The elderly scientist's cold stare silenced Thrash.

"We have loaded that piece of equipment this morning, Dr. Thrash." Westman's voice called out, his voice thick with malice. "I'd care that you would never talk of it again, understood?"

Thrash nodded, feeling embarrassment welling up inside.

"Captain." Westman directed his gaze to Stevens. "When can we have the Borealis ready to leave the dock?"

Captain Stevens thought for a moment.

"An hour . . . maybe less."

Westman simply nodded. "Good. Get it done. That is all, gentlemen."

Along with the captain, all scientists present exited the small room, towards their new duties, leaving Westman alone. The good doctor, now in solitude, lumbered into one of the leather chairs, letting out a small grumble. Black Mesa had always been pain in his side, but this was absurd. "What," he wondered. "has happened there?"

Westman rested his hand on a COM channel atop the table, pressing the call button.

"GLaDOS?"

"Yes, Dr. Westman?" GLaDOS replied. "She" was the ships A.I., also being the personal undertaker of Aperture Science's many Enrichment Centers and Docks. The Borealis' version of the advanced super computer was small compared to the main "mind" located deep within Aperture's first enrichment center, but, in theory, was connected in every way.

Still, she was an amazing achievement in the eyes of Aperture.

She was a growing Artificial Intelligence, obtaining knowledge each day, mostly in the sense of personality. GLaDOS was curious. New information was her hobby, along creating fresh ideas. But for now, she was in charge of the Borealis' many "functions", her command over the station almost total. The only man who was above authority was Weston.

"GLaDOS," Westman continued. "Is Item #3325 ready and holding?"

"Yes, Dr. Westman!" The system called out in a chipper voice. "Item #3325 has been successfully integrated into the Borealis."

"Good." The doctor breathed a sigh of relief. "It looks like we are leaving the dock soon."

A small pause caused GLaDOS to think for a second. "Why are we leaving, Dr. Westman?"

A small chuckle emitted from the man. She was becoming curious, asking all the obvious questions. It was starting to get, somewhat, taxing on his nerves.

"Let's just say we might be in danger."

GLaDOS could feel a small pang of fear, if what she felt could be called just that. In her "mind", survival was always a factor. If she was in danger, then panic would ensue shortly after, causing her to lose some memory or focus. Her creators had never even dreamed of GLaDOS being protective of her own personal safety. But, complications happen.

"Are we in danger, Dr. Westman?"

Westman sat in silence for a moment before waving at the air. "Eh, don't worry about it. It's not that serious."

GLaDOS didn't believe him, but let the subject slide, figuring that she would find out soon enough.

---

Westman exited the conference room, walking out into the brightly lit hallway, deep within the Borealis. Before he could walk further, a single scientist turned the corner with a crazed look on his face.

"Dr. Westman!" The younger scientist stopped, his chest heaving from the exertion of running. Through gasps, the scientist handed Westman a piece of paper. After a few seconds of reading, the paper seemed to slip from his fingers. Shock, along with horror, was painted across his face.

"My God. Is this all across the world?"

The scientist shrugged. "So far, it's spreading over America."

"Americ . . ." Westman's eyes widened. His mind raced, trying to connect the dots. "What time did this start?"

"Um, around nine o'clock."

"And where is the center of this entire phenomenon?"

"I think the center was around New Mexico."

Westman's hands ran over his face. He softly explained his deep fear.

"Black Mesa began their teleport test this morning around nine. If what you say is true, and the center of the storm is around New Mexico . . ." His voice dropped. "I believe our friends at Black Mesa have created a Resonance Cascade."

Westman watched as the young scientist's mouth opened in surprise.

"Is that even possible?"

The elder scientist didn't even answer. In a blind fury, Westman's mind raced, trying to find more evidence to this claim. He turned to the nearest COM unit lining the hallway and activated it.

"GLaDOS?"

No answer. Weston was becoming impatient with her strange behavior, which consisted sometimes of ignoring fellow scientists altogether.

"GLaDOS!"

"Yes?"

"Can you hack into the resource mainframe and find out if any military, both private or hired, was sent to Black Mesa, New Mexico?"

"Please wait."

---

GLaDOS obeyed the command. Rushing through miles of hardware at speeds unknown to man, she found her way to the American Government's mainframe archives. From one glance, security was tight. A Yolt'z Firewall guarded the information in a wall of sealed code, impenetrable by any human force. To make things more challenging, "Guard Dog" programs slowly patrolled the firewall, causing GLaDOS to record the guards every move, just in case there was a weakness in their pattern.

After waiting two milliseconds, GLaDOS acted, quickly sending a "Ice-Wire" into the Firewall, instantly opening a small "hole" in the barrier. In a blink of an eye, the intruding A.I. grabbed the desired information and slipped back out the way she came, sealing the wall behind her. Just for precaution, she took the time to erase any small memory cores in the "Guard Dogs", allowing some peace of mind.

GLaDOS found her way back to the Borealis' system, her time away from home a mere four seconds.

---

"Done. It seems that the American Government sent a small team of Marine Corp Special Forces to Black Mesa, New Mexico under order's from various departments in Washington D.C. Unfortunately, there is, so far, no contact from the squads. I can give you the Marine roster if you would like?"

"No." Westman closed his eyes, knowing that this clue, along with the information provided by the spy Aperture had inside of Black Mesa, alone confirmed his suspicions. Black Mesa had caused a catastrophic Resonance Cascade, allowing hostile creatures to teleport onto earth.

Outside of Dry Dock 7, all out war between humans and extra-terrestrials was engulfing the world.

---

GLaDOS resumed her duty in keeping the boat under comfortable standards. However, her thoughts were dwelling on Dr. Westman's strange comments and behavior. Out of curiosity, GLaDOS decided to disobey her restrictions. She quickly hacked into one of Aperture's personal satellites, quickly finding the video feed. Tapping into the main screen, GLaDOS was able to witness the travesty that was taking place on earth.

According to her calculations, almost�forty-three percent of the world was engulfed in swirling black clouds, which�were slowly spreading across all the continents. Green lightning randomly emitted from the clouds, along with large portal waves, rushing over the dark mist. She tried to enhance the images, but soon lost the feed and the satellite.

GLaDOS then connected with the nearest television station, turning the channel to the news station. What surprised her was the fact that all stations were out of commission and not broadcasting. Only static remained.

For the first time, she felt completely afraid. Panic slowly followed suit, along with a decision that had to be made in order to insure her own survival.

---

Alright, one more chapter after this one. I had no idea I would be writing so much. This chapter just explains a bit about what was going on inside of the Borealis before it disappeared. Hope your liking it so far.