--
Grabbing a portable radio and handgun from a nearby dead security guard, Sam ran past rubble filled hallways. Keeping the radio close to her ear, she tried to pinpoint the exact location of her father. Now, all that could be heard were screams.
"Please," she cried to no one. "Please talk to me."
The COM unit replied with more static.
". . . Gord . . . level."
Sam stopped in her tracks, pressing the speaker against her ear.
"Gordon Freeman is in the . . . L4 main crossroad."
The L4 crossroad! Sam knew that this was just around the corner. Her legs pushed the last few feet. She spun around the corner, keeping her pace quick. Farther down, she could see flames.
God, no!
Warm tears streamed across her cheek as the distance was crossed. The place grew hot from the fire. Rebel bodies and spent weapons lined the floor. She payed no attention to these. Entering the point where four halls met, Sam spun her head around, trying to find the one she cared about.
"Dad?!"
No reply. The floor was covered in chunks of rock. Only small piles of fire illuminated the area, keeping the corners filled with shadow.
A deep groan echoed through the thick air.
Sam spun around, finding a bearded man nesled in the rubble.
"Dad!"
Sam jumped to his side, immediately cupping his face in her hands and producing even more liquid in her eyes.
"Honey," He whispered, finding tears in his own eyes.
She looked down at his condition. His black coat was torn, and the white T-shirt underneath was covered with fresh blood. A massive hole the size of her fist was in his chest. She felt horrified.
"Oh, Dad."
He smiled weakly, raising his hand to touch her cheek.
"It's alright. It's going to be okay."
"But, your hurt. I'm going to get some help!"
She was just about to bolt to her feet when Gordon's hand grabbed her arm.
"No," he whispered, still smiling. "It's time for me to go."
Sam couldn't hold it in anymore. Sobs choked out her throat. "Dad, I don't want you to go!"
"I know, baby. But I have avoided death so many times. It's finally caught up."
"No! Please, no."
Blood seemed to pour profusely now from his wound. He winced before looking deep into his daughter's eyes. "I love you. Now, go find your mother and tell her that I love her, too."
Sam couldn't speak past her emotions. She simply nodded.
Gordon Freeman smiled for the last time. "I know you won't … listen, but I have to… ask you one thing."
"Yes?"
"You have my lucky side, but . . . don't do anything crazy."
Sam didn't really understand, but gave a small chuckle past her sorrow. She nodded.
"That's my girl."
His smile disappeared. Eyes still connected, Gordon's hand slowly slipped from her cheek. She grabbed it, and held it in place.
"I love you, Daddy."
" . . I love . . .you . ."
His eyes slowly slipped closed. His body relaxed. His chest no longer moved with breath. Sam shook with sadness. She cried until she was gasping for breath, not noticing the person approaching behind her.
She peered over her shoulder to find Nate sitting against the wall, staring out into space. His face was red and wet.
"I'm sorry, Sam." He whispered, not even looking at her face. "I'm so sorry."
The woman in his midst looked at the ground. They sat there in silence for what seemed hours.
"Who did this?"
The sudden growl from Sam caught Nathan's attention.
"I have no idea."
He pointed towards a corpse lying on the ground. "But they look like this."
Sam followed his eyes, now looking at a strange body on the ground. It looked like a man, only skinnier. It's head was a strange shape and had three glowing blue eyes. It wore armor that was a mix of black, grey and blue. She didn't even seem surprised by this though.
She seemed in a daze, no comprehending anything. A few muffled thumps reverberated through the walls, obviously distant explosions. As if on que, Nathan rose to his feet and stood next to Sam's side.
"We need to get out of here." He stated plainly, emotions still in his voice.
There was no reply. The young Freeman simply stared at her dad.
Nathan could hear the fighting getting close. He knelt down to her level.
"I'm going to carry you. Is that okay?"
Again, silence. He nodded knowingly. Slipping his arms under her legs and behind her back, Nate effortlessly lifted Sam. She didn't object. Instead, Sam simply looked out into nothingness.
Nathan began moving down the hallway they had just come from, careful not to trip over any of the bodies. He turned right at the next crossway. Behind him, Nate could hear a high pitched squeal. He sprinted faster. Blue fletches whizzed over his head, nearly impacting against the back of his skull. Using what adrenalin he had, Nathan lost his pursuer in the maze of corridors.
He was about to cross another intersection when a battle ensued. On one side, the rebels were spraying bullets at the pressing invaders. The strange army on the opposite side filled the hall with blue darts, each one exploding on impact. Nathan had to cross between the two.
He chewed his lip, trying to figure out how to get past. Looking down at Sam, he could tell she was in another world, completely oblivious. A rebel frag grenade sent a wave of pressure and debris through the halls. Nate quickly turned his back to the blast, hoping to protect his bundle.
The firing stopped.
Nathan took this opportunity and jumped past the preoccupied warriors. Mere seconds later, the fighting started again. Nate picked himself off of the ground and resumed his escape of Green Base. He knew the main gate was close.
Covering the distance within a few minutes, the pair made it to the gate unharmed. The massive bulkhead had a big hole in it with the sharp sides caving in. Nathan took no time in marveling at the gaping blast point, but was focused on what was going on outside.
It was night out and the darkness filled the ring of woods beyond the base. But, the base was lit up like a candle.
Hundreds of rebels were running around, shooting at the air, shooting at the trees. Dozens of explosions from grenades and rockets impacted the ground every second. Bullets by the thousands filled the air including plasma and fletches.
Nathan began to think that inside the base was safer.
But, nevertheless, they had to get out of there.
Nathan pulled Sam close. He counted. "1 . . . 2 . . . 3!"
Sprinting with all his might, Nate found himself out in the open. He weaved past rebels and enemies alike. Above, several familiar gunships floated above the mayhem, raining down fire upon the helpless humans. To Nathan's left, a huge fire ball stretched towards the clouds, lighting up the entire base. Enemy dropships like he had never seen before landed on the cement, dropping more soldiers before taking off into the darkness.
Nathan tried to dodge every bullet, but failed. One skimmed his upper left thigh, while the other passed strait through his right shoulder. He screamed out in pain, but kept his pace. Not caring whether he was wounded, all he wanted to do is get this girl to safety.
Nathan remembered the entire area lighting up again and heat pouring over his body, but didn't turn around to look. He ran into the forest. Branches and twigs grabbed at his coat and scratched his face. He paid no attention.
Nathan ran until his legs fell out from underneath him, sending the two careening to the ground. He didn't let this stop him.
Crawling over to Sam's unmoving figure, Nate dragged the young woman into the bushes, hoping that this would be a good hiding place. Somewhere in his mind, he knew they were a good five miles away from the destruction, but still wanted to keep cautious. He moved into the brush as well, finding Sam already sleeping on the leaves.
Nate allowed his breathing to slow down and rested his head on his knees. A few thoughts passed through his head. He wondered what had attacked them. He thought about what the next step was. He pictured his mother lying on the floor of their apartment dead.
Fresh tears fell. These lasted until sleep overcame.
--
Alright. I hope you guys haven't thrown their mouse at the computer because I killed off Gordon. :O If you did, I'm soooo sorry. But, that was for plot purposes. I'm startin' fresh. Otherwise, I hope you guys liked this chapter.
For this chapter and the next ones, I'm gonna just give you guys kinda a 'behind the scenes' thing. Well, the reason why I started the action so soon was because in every Half Life game, you start out dazed, confused and in the action without a weapon. So, I wanted to hold true to that. It was hard designing a new enemy. I came up with a few ideas, but all just stupid. So, these guys that I described are perfect for what I want.
The character of Nathan Forest was going to be a replacement of Gordon. Of course, I then thought that was a bad idea. Nathan has qualities of Gordon, but they are not twins. What is interesting for me is that I actually have a main male character in my stories that can talk now. :)
Your probably wondering why this chapter came out one day after the last. Well, I am bored. Plus, this is going to be a long story, spanning two Episodes after this one.
MORE ON THE WAY!
