7.
The next morning, Gordon awoke with a start. Something was wrong; he could just feel it. Alyx was still asleep beside him. "Alyx. Wake up. Something is wrong, Alyx. Come with me. Grab your gun."
Alyx rolled over and woke up to see him. "Gordon? What... what is it?"
They picked up their guns and Gordon stood up while Alyx stretched a little. Gordon put his ear to the door... From inside, he could hear an awful noise. It was deafening in volume, and it seemed close by. Gordon wondered if Barney was awake or not. He peered across the hall into the window on Barney's door. He was up already, but Gordon could tell that Barney, too, had suspicions. Griffith was standing beside Barney and he motioned Gordon and Alyx across the hall. The duo cautiously crossed the hall to meet Barney and Griffith on the other side.
They decided to awaken everyone they could to come with them. Gordon led the quartet around the corner to the other slumber rooms. Each split up and woke everyone up in all of the rooms. With their following behind them, Gordon, Alyx, Barney, and Griffith turned around and went back into the main room. The sealed and locked double metal doors leading out of the lab were still sealed, and the quartet led everyone outside.
".....Dear God, Gordon."
What Barney and everyone else saw happened to be the largest portal Dr. Breen and his army ever made. It was twice the size of the Citadel and appeared to be about 10 miles away. It shone bright through the break of dawn light; there was no mistaking what it was.
"Gordon, let me show Dr. Kleiner," Alex said. She pulled out a small screen and attached it to her hacking tool. She clicked some buttons and a drowsy Dr. Kleiner appeared on the screen.
"Goodness, Alyx. This had better be good. Why did you-- oh.. oh goodness," Dr. Kleiner said as the image hit him head on. "This is the biggest portal I have ever seen. It looks stable, though. Are you guys going inside? Alyx, this is absurd... there's no way you guys could go inside that thing and do something!"
"But Dr. Kleiner, what do you think this was for?" Alyx asked.
"Alyx, the Borealis. Dr. Breen was searching for it. That's why that portal is here. Good gracious, you guys, there could be anything there. There's no telling what you will run into if you try to get inside. Their defenses will be so strong... I highly advise staying out of there... but if you must... send me a map and I will chart it for you. Be careful, everyone. We don't need any casualties."
Everyone knew what they were going to do. Gordon turned around to face all of the people standing behind him. "What we have to do is split up. I know this sounds ridiculous, but if we split into four groups, we can explore the tower much faster than if we did it as one group."
"But Gordon...!"
Alyx didn't want to split up. Alyx wanted to stay with Gordon, right by his side. She had gone into the Citadel so many times, but every time, Gordon was right there with her.
"Alyx, this is the only way. We have to stop this. We have to stop it NOW!"
Gordon turned again to the group behind him. "Okay, split into four groups of near equal number. There should be about thirty in each group. Barney, Griffith, Alyx and I will each take one. We need to move into the tower and shut it down. Alyx, can you get us a map and a hacker tool?"
Without saying a word, Alyx grabbed three more tools and handed them to each group leader. When the groups had split, the four moved forward into the snow and ice ahead.
Alyx was devastated. She couldn't let anything happen to Gordon... not now, not ever. Without him beside of her, she would be lost... without any guidance. How could she go on through the tower when she was constantly worried about him?
She and the other leaders trudged through the cold. It was bitter and rough, but they all knew what they had to do. They had to get inside.
After quite a walk, the troops and leaders finally arrived at the base of the tower. They remained some distance away to avoid detection, all the while trying to decide how to get in the place. Griffith observed the doors and noticed a quaint quirk about the building. "Look at the loading ship port up there! It opens every now and then... could we get inside?"
"Great idea, Griffith. The only requirement is a Combine retinal scan... Where's a bad guy when we need one?" Gordon replied.
Soon, they saw their answer. One Combine had come outside for observation duty. They couldn't have asked for it to be any better. Barney swore he'd be able to handle it. "Lemme do it, G. I can get that scan in no time."
Barney took off after the soldier. While he was turned around, Barney snuck behind him and held him alive just long enough to drag him over to the scanner. With the scan complete and easy, the bay door opened and stayed open. They had little time before the opening alerted more combine. All of the troops got up and ran quickly to the entrance. When inside, they quickly realized how big the place was. There was a clear ceiling above them and even from the bottom floor, they could see the portal itself shining brightly above them.
A computer interface was also close by. This was Alyx's chance inside the system. "Hold on, guys, I'm getting us all a map." In seconds, Alyx had hacked the system, opened the door in front of them, and downloaded a map into the other three hacker tools.
Gordon faced the troops and gave his directions. "Okay everyone. It shows four doors a floor above us, and three access points to the portal, but only two access points to the core. We need to worry about the portal first. Barney, you and Griffith take the two doors to the right, and Alyx and I will take the two to the left. Report ANY casualties after every struggle, keep track of ALL of your troops and keep in touch. Also report any findings to all of us, and watch your map for direction. If help or teamwork is needed, radio any of us and we will take care of you. We have to take care of our teammates, but remember that your first priority is yourself and your group. Understand? Try to work your way to the portal. We'll meet up there."
"Take care of yourself, Gordon. I want to give you that drink I owe you," Barney told Gordon as he turned to leave. Griffith walked off to the right following Barney, and Gordon and Alyx continued to the left.
Soon, they came to the second floor and the two left doors that were waiting to be opened. "Alyx... be careful. I can't let anything happen to you. Stay safe, and make wise decisions."
Gordon looked down at her. She came closer to him and warmed him in a close embrace for a short while. Alyx looked at Gordon and made him swear he would be okay; he then leaned down to kiss her.
That moment filled them both with more feelings than they had ever felt before. They both knew what they were up against, and they both knew what they had to do... but at that moment, neither of them cared. It didn't matter that their lives were at stake... all that mattered was that after all these years of captivity, of hope, of losses and of successes, they were happy, if only for a second. They could finally say that something good had come of the entire situation; of all the labs, the jobs, the killings, the crimes, the enemies... Nothing could stop them now.
